HYBRID CARS
Ford Motor Co. announced today that it is offering a new round of incentives to prospective buyers that consists of cash rebates and pricing usually reserved for Ford, Lincoln and Mercury employees, as well as zero-interest financing on the brands' most fuel-efficient models.
Employee Pricing Plus, as the incentive program is called, will be in effect tomorrow through January 5. The employee pricing is offered to buyers of most 2008 and 2009 Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles, plus a per-purchase cash rebate of up to $6,000.
Customers who select one of the eight most fuel-efficient models made by the three brands–the Ford Focus, Fusion, Escape and Flex (pictured); the Mercury Milan and Mariner; and the Lincoln MKZ and MKS–can opt for zero-percent financing for 36 months on top of employee pricing.
Furthermore, Ford Credit will provide a $500 bonus on the purchase of most Ford, Lincoln and Mercury models.
The all-new 2009 Ford F-150 is not offered with employee pricing, but it is available with zero-percent financing. Also excluded from the employee pricing are 2008 and 2009 Ford Escape Hybrids and Mercury Mariner Hybrids, 2008 and 2009 Ford Shelby GT500, Ford F-Series chassis cabs models, and Ford E-Series cutaways models.
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Find the Volt. GM parked the Chevy "extended-range EV" show car in front of the Edmunds building and it was immediately engulfed by curious staff members.
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A picture, the old saw goes, is worth a thousand words.
In the case of the Chevrolet Volt, the pictures that we've seen previously are worth a thousand words of apology.
GM dropped by Edmunds.com headquarters Monday to show the staff the Volt show car that will be on the stand at the Los Angeles Auto Show starting with a media preview Wednesday and we were both impressed and abashed.
Impressed by how good looking the car (left) is in person, abashed at how we joined lots of others in bad-mouthing it when all we had to look at were pictures (below, bottom) that just didn't do it justice.
The production-version Volt still isn't the low-slung, knife-edged, machine the original concept car made it out to be. But that car, according to GM Vice Chairman and produce guru Bob Lutz, turned out to have the aerodynamics of a brick.
After massive surgery to make air flow over and around the car smoothly instead of slamming into it like a block wall and then setting up enough turbulence to rival a Mix-Master dialed up to "blend" (sorry, I was helping the wife bake last night), the result is one nice-looking, sporty compact.
Especially striking in the flesh and hard to show properly in a photo (click on photos for larger sizes) is the rear-end styling. It isn't as soft and squooshy as it appeared in those initial photos from GM, boasting instead a lot of the original concept's sharp creases and blunt musculature.
The roofline, which appeared a bit hump-backed over the rear of the cabin in the original GM photos, is smoother and lower on the show car we saw -a car that, Volt vehicle line director Tony Posawatz insists, looks just like the 2011 model year production car slated to hit Chevy dealers' showrooms near the end of 2010.
John O'Dell, Senior Editor
Studies in contrast: Volt line manager Tony Posawatz poses with production model mock-up in first official GM photo (left) and GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz poses with orignal Volt concept (right).———-
Visit Edmunds Inside Line for more photos, details of Volt production model.
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Photos 1 and 3 by John O'DellPhoto 2 by Jon Barrett, Edmunds.comPhotos 4 and 5 courtesy General Motors Corp.
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Road Rage Against Cyclist
Last summer, the Oregonian reported an incident between a cyclist and a deranged driver in Portland: Jason Scott Rehnberg, 37, yelled at the car to slow down, and apparently angered by the remark, the driver chased the cyclist. He rode his bike into the neighborhood to escape and after a while, probably thinking he was safe, he went …
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According to a study released by researchers at the Columbia Center for Children’s Environmental Health there’s reason to believe that the development of antibodies to cockroach and mouse proteins is associated with a greater risk for wheeze, hay fever, and eczema in preschool urban children as young as three years of age.
The study is the first to focus on the links between antibody responses to cockroach and mouse proteins and respiratory and allergic symptoms in such a young age group, and the implications for children who live in our inner cities where indoor air quality is often poor are truly significant.
…
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Photo by Mable2006
They’re big, they’re burly, and they may have deep pockets, but the popular singer Björk plans to limit their destruction to her home country, Iceland, by supporting a current project in the works called, Náttúra….
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So I am off to Boston for the Greenbuild show, and as usual I take my Strida folding bike, as I have on many flights before. It is a great way to get around and see the City and I feel a little better about having to fly when I know that at least on the ground I am emitting less carbon dioxide. I go to check in and the attendant asks “what’s that?” I say a folding bike. She says “I have to charge you 50 bucks, we have a charge for bikes.” I say that I understand, bikes are usually big and awkward but this folds up and is in a case and is under weight and maximum bag dimensions. And it is a…
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Filed under: Etc., Legislation and Policy, Green Daily, USA
Photo of West Texas by longhorndave. Licensed under Creative Commons license 2.0.
We can all save fuel and emissions by cutting back how much we drive, but until now not many insurance companies haven’t seen fit to reward us with lower rates if we put fewer miles on our cars. There have been a few percentage discounts if you live close to work, sure, and lots of hybrid discounts, but no plan where your bill and your odometer have a symbiotic relationship. Now, the MileMeter company in Texas has launched a pay-as-you-drive (PAYD) insurance program that offers infrequent drivers the chance to pay a lower premium. Of course, it’s highly amusing to me that Texas - the second largest state in the Union, where very house is at least 100 miles from the neighboring house*, - is where you can get rewarded for driving less, but I’m glad we’re starting somewhere.
* This might not be accurate.
[Source: Sustainable Business]
Don’t mess with driving - Texans can buy by-the-mile insurance rates originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 18 Nov 2008 18:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: Emerging Technologies, Ethanol, GM
Sugar cane photo by 91RS. Licensed under Creative Commons license 2.0.
The two ethanol companies that GM has invested in, Coskata and Mascoma, must be making the automaker proud and frustrated this week, as they have very different news to report. Coskata’s got some potentially good news: U.S. Sugar might be the next to try and commercialize the plasma/gassification ethanol production process with a plant in Florida. The Florida plant makes sense for U.S. Sugar because the company can use leftover sugar cane material to make the biofuel and because Florida has set its own ethanol mandate. Coskata already has a pilot plant agreement with the Westinghouse Plasma Center and another commercial partner in ICM.
Meanwhile, over at Mascoma, the news is a bit less positive: CNET is reporting that the company is “shedding staff,” which in a small company like Mascoma means between 5 and 10 positions are now history.
[Source: Coskata, CNET]
Continue reading A tale of two ethanol companies: Coskata’s up and Mascoma’s down
A tale of two ethanol companies: Coskata’s up and Mascoma’s down originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 18 Nov 2008 17:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, BMW, MINI, LA Auto Show
Click the MINI E for more shots of the car
This afternoon BMW representatives took the wraps off the first “production” MINI E, #1 of a run of 500 that will be leased to customers in the southern California and metro New York areas starting in January. Dr. Friederich Eichiner presented the electric car to the press on the roof top terrace at the Beverly Wilshire hotel explaining the purpose of the program. BMW has built these cars as the first stage of “Project I” where I stands for either ideas or innovation. Eichiner told the media that “individual mobility will still play a key role” going forward and with increased urbanization electrically driven vehicles like this one will be increasingly important. BMW and other manufacturers have to learn how to reconcile that need for mobility with environmental concerns and plug-in vehicles are just one element of that. BMW is using the MINI E as a means to learn how these vehicles are used and how they work in the real world. Learn more about the MINI E program after the jump.
Related:
LA Preview: Officially, official: the MINI E!
Gallery: MINI E live reveal
Gallery: MINI E
Continue reading LA 2008: Live reveal of the MINI E
LA 2008: Live reveal of the MINI E originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 18 Nov 2008 16:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Green Culture, Green Daily
Click to see more shots of the S10 EV
An old Chevy S10 that’s missing it’s engine - but has a bank of batteries and an electric motor in its place - has turned up on eBay. The converted S10 has a 27 HP motor (well, that’s what the seller thinks it is, anyway), 20 6V DC batteries and the original 5 speed transmisson. The seller put the batteries in last year and, with the included 30 amp, 220V charger, will charge the truck in about eight hours. This charge is good for about 40 miles and, understandably, the seller has been using this vehicle as an errand runner.The auction ends tomorrow. Current bid is $2,225 but the reserve hasn’t been met. Buy it now price is $8,000.
This isn’t the only S10 converted to run on electrons. Stanly Community College converted one as part of their EV truck series.
Gallery: Electric Chevy S10
[Source: eBay via EcoModder]
eBay find of the Day: electric Chevrolet S10 originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 18 Nov 2008 16:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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