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Nissan to Showcase X-TRAIL Diesel Prototype

Wed, 11 Jun 2008 01:34:22 GMT

At the G8 Summit meetings, Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. will showcase a showcase a diesel prototype of its X-TRAIL SUV in an effort to show its support on environmental issues. Nissan announced that it will showcase the X-TRAIL diesel prototype on June 19-21 at the 2008 Integrated Exhibition of the Environment in Hokkaido and also on July 7-9 at the G8 Hokkaido Toyako Summit’s International Media Center.

Referred to as "Post New Long-term Regulations", by October 2, 2009, Japan is slated to introduce its new emission regulatory standards. In September this year, Nissan plans to introduce the X-TRAIL diesel which will meet with the more strigent standards.

As delegates and members of the media the G8 Summit will offers an ideal platform for Nissan to showcase its latest clean diesel technology that will have the opportunity to test drive the product and see related technology exhibits. The Nissan version on the X-TRAIL employs advanced technologies to deliver high torque and powerful acceleration, based on the M9R diesel engine co-developed with Alliance-partner Renault, as well to improved fuel-economy while meeting the demands for cleaner emission standards globally. Including to the diesel technology incorporated are the Piezo-electric-controlled injectors, Common rail system (1600 bar), Variable nozzle turbos, Diesel particulate filters (DPF), Lean NOx-trap catalysts, and the sophisticated control system for precise modulation of the DPF and catalysts in tandem with the driving conditions. The company aims to introduce new technologies, products and services that can lead to real-world reductions in vehicle CO2 emissions, under the Nissan Green Program 2010 mid-term environmental plan.

Knight Rider LED Light Scanner

Fri, 23 May 2008 02:49:19 GMT

Muscle Car Blog are already well educated about the new Knight Rider original NBC 2-hour movie. They have posted a ton of news about the show as huge fans of the original 80's show starring The Hoff. They are excited about the upcoming movie and hope NBC turns it into a new series.

With all of the the entertainment news shows and websites focusing on the actors, MCB are all about the cars. They know that the new KITT car is a Shelby Mustang GT500 KR that throws down 550HP off the showroom floor. But what makes the new KITT so special? What made the original KITT so special? It's that buzzing red light in the front, just under the hood. It's as iconic as David Hasselhoff when it comes to Knight Rider history. MCB Webmaster Chris Duke recently had the opportunity to sit down with the inventor of the new KITT LED red light scanner for an exclusive interview.

Here is the interview with Pierre Hoffmann, President of Auto Indulgence, Inc. based out of Lomita, California. Pierre's company is well known for its work on designing and installing lighting in the movie "2 Fast 2 Furious" and several episodes of "Monster Garage".

MCB: Pierre, did you watch the original Knight Rider TV series in the early 80's starring The Hoff?
PH: Yes!

MCB: Are you somehow related to "The Hoff" since your last name is Hoffmann?
PH: Um, no.

MCB: What do you remember from those days when the original Knight Rider series aired?
PH: The red scanner in the front of the car and the action of the stunts in the show.

MCB: How old were you back then?
PH: I was 17 when I started watching and it was one of my favorite shows, because of all the action. I don't think I missed a show. I think it kind of helped me to get in to business for myself, as I was always into making things and making money. I would make custom parts for cars or electric components, then sell and install them.

MCB: How did you originally get involved with the new Knight Rider movie?
PH: I worked with Ted Moser from Picture Car Warehouse in the movie "2 Fast 2 Furious". My Auto Indulgence crew and I did all of the StreetGlow lighting products in the movie and his company built the cars for that movie. When the producers from Knight Rider were looking for someone to make the scanner for them, Ted called us to take care of it.

MCB: Tell us about the iconic KITT light scanner! How many LEDs are in that bad boy?
PH: There are 480 total, 240 per side.

MCB: What kind of LEDs are they?
PH: They are super bright red LEDs, however I cannot disclose the exact ones we used.

MCB: In what sort of pattern are they mounted? Simple rows or something tricky?
PH: We used three rows, with 80 in each row.

MCB: How many prototypes did you build before you found that one that worked best?
PH: We did many different prototypes to get what the producers were looking for. The first unit made was made with 24 red Luxor1 universal LED units, the units we used had 12 surface mount LEDs for a total of 288, or 144 on each side. The idea was to make the lights beat like a heart beat. We provided them with a sample that had a MP3 player to simulate with sounds of different heartbeats that were connected to a music interface to flash the Luxor1 lights to the look like a heart was beating.

Big Rig Jig

Sat, 10 May 2008 01:56:23 GMT

Mike Ross, leader of the Big Rig Jig project, wants the sculpture to represent the oil economy even earlier than he heard about the green theme of this year’s festival. Dub the Big Rig Jig, this bizarre sculpture made its debut at the annual Burning Man festivities in Black Rock City, Nevada.

Ross wants people to feel vulnerable and in danger while they gaze up at the towering structure. The inside is full of silk plants to remind visitors that oil ultimately comes from nature.It achievable to crawl up through the entire structure and feel the constraint of the oil industry as you squeeze among structural braces and various pipes inside the tankers.

The most appealing interpretation of the piece is the Las Vegas Sun’s panorama image, which allows viewers to navigate around the scene. Furthermore there are 1500 photos, including the one troysandal shot that appears atop this post, returned in a Flickr search for Big Rig Jig. It’s certainly worth the time to examine the first few pages of photos, several are quite eye-catching.

Source: Weird.com

Too Many Cars, Too Heavy Traffic

Wed, 05 Mar 2008 08:05:38 GMT

A Japanese team has found the underlying cause of traffic jams when there is no obvious reason for the delay.

Many traffic jams leave drivers baffled as they finally reach the end of a tail-back to find no visible cause. An accident? Construction work? A bottleneck? No, just too much traffic, says a team led by Prof Yuki Sugiyama of Nagoya University, who has spent more than a decade puzzling over the problem.

In the New Journal of Physics a study by his group explains why we're occasionally caught in jams for no obvious reason.

The real origin of the snarl up often has nothing to do with obvious obstructions such as accidents or construction work but is simply the result of there being too many cars.

The team discovered the importance of traffic density by applying techniques to model the movements of lots of particles to real-life moving traffic. The research shows that even tiny fluctuations in car-road density cause a chain reaction which can lead to a jam.

The team also studied cars driving around a circular track with a circumference of 230m. They put 22 cars on the road and asked the drivers to go steadily at 30km/h (19mph) around the track. While the flow was initially free, the effect of a driver altering his speed reverberated around the track and led to brief standstills.

Prof Sugiyama says, "Although the emerging jam in our experiment is small, its behaviour is not different from large ones on highways. When a large number of vehicles, beyond the road capacity, are successively injected into the road, the density exceeds the critical value and the free flow state becomes unstable."
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The research suggests that it might be possible to estimate the critical density of roads, making it possible to build a road fit for the number of drivers that need to use it.

Mathematicians led by Dr Gábor Orosz of the University of Exeter have done similar work and he comments: "Many researchers believe that the effect of spontaneous jam formation (caused by tiny fluctuations above a critical traffic density) is the main reason for traffic jams and this view is supported by Prof Sugiyama."

The Exeter work is different because the reaction time delay of drivers is included, revealing that the late reaction of drivers even one second can have big knock on effects when driving at much higher speeds than in the Japanese study.

"In a typical situation a vehicle dropping its speed from 80 mph to 65 mph may cause a ripple that later vanishes while dropping its speed from 80 mph to 62 mph may cause a ripple that is amplified and leads to traffic jams."

Heavy traffic on highways does not automatically lead to congestion but can be smooth-flowing, he says. "We are currently developing algorithms for radar-guided computer-controlled cruise-control devices that could cut down over-braking and keep traffic smooth."

[via: Telegraph.com.uk]

There Is Freedom In Sunroof

Wed, 27 Feb 2008 04:31:31 GMT

It’s like pumping your heart out while driving -- the freedom affixed with riding a car while star-gazing or cloud-watching without necessarily compromising your hairstyle. That is the main reason why vehicles that offer sun roofs are hip these times.

Almost all of the world’s largest automakers have discovered that secret. Now, Ford Motors offer the same feature in its mid-size crossover sport-utility vehicle (SUV) Ford Edge as well as in its latest Lincoln MKX crossover that boasts of its Vista Roof, which allows a wide view for rear and front passengers. Other upcoming models such as the Ford Flex crossover, along with the Lincoln MKS sedan, will also have this unique feature.

One of the best things about competition, particularly in the auto market, is that it promotes product excellence among car manufacturers.

Catching up with Ford is General Motors (GM), the world’s largest automaker, which also has its own version of vehicles with sunroof. It is installed in its new Cadillac SRX, a five-door, mid-size crossover that is considered as one of GM’s luxury brands. GM’s Acadia, a crossover equipped with touchscreen control that allows easy mapping, as well as Saturn Outlook and Buick Enclave buyers can also enjoy the sunroof feature.

Japanese automaker and the world’s second largest car manufacturer Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) took the challenge with its upcoming 2009 Venza crossover sedan that will offer a glass roof.

As a sentimental maxim goes, “It’s not about arriving at the destination but the journey that counts.” I think that’s primarily the reason why it is forecasted that vehicles with sunroof will reach up to 700,000 in just a span of four years.

Sun roof is that feature in a vehicle in which conventional roofs are replaced by shatter-resistant roof or glass roofs to give passengers what Consumer Reports Senior Director David Champion tags as “air of space.” This feature amounts to more or less than $1,200 to $2,000.

Online Trip Planning Site Launched

Fri, 22 Feb 2008 13:44:19 GMT

Road tripping or traveling for a week-long vacation is absolutely a great experience. But before anything else, aside from checking the vehicle’s tires, engine, fan shroud, and all else in between, travelers must consider planning the trip just before the expected schedule to have a smooth-sailing journey to their desired destination. However, if things go complicated and you lose track, Hertz will be there to help you out!

The Auto Channel happily accounted that travelers and tourists can now avail the Online Trip Planning(TM) from Hertz. The NeverLost in-car navigation system is the first ever and newest feature in the rental car industry’s pioneering system. Hertz allows customers to arrange their trips online from the comfort of their home or workplace. All they need to do is visit NeverLost.com, enter their trip information, save it in a personal USB storage gadget and put it into the Hertz NeverLost system - simple as ABC!

"Online Trip Planning once again demonstrates to our loyal client base that we are dedicated to making their travel experience the best it can be. Already, we have hundreds of thousands of Hertz gold customers who insist upon Hertz NeverLost with every rental," says Roger A. Stevens, President and CEO of Navigation Solutions.

Online customers came into details for every destination into the Hertz NeverLost system before with only just one destination download at a time. Today, whole trips can be organized ahead of schedule fast and convenient with Online Trip Planning.

Here are a few of Hertz NeverLost system unique features:

Yellow Pages - Searches businesses close to destinations. For example, travelers can locate restaurants near their next stop.
Corridor Search - Locates establishments amid destinations, such as finding a gas station on the way back to the airport.
Trip Optimization - Alters the order of stops for a well-organized route planning.
Address/Intersection - Permits effortless access of addresses or joint information
Favorites - Can save the most state-of-the-art information on favorite points of interest, such as museums, sporting events, shopping malls, meetings and conventions.
City Guides - Offers city guides for top markets that highlight the most remarkable tourist attractions

Autos To Look Forward To…

Fri, 25 Jan 2008 09:05:51 GMT

You find it hard to figure out what cars will make it big in the market in the coming months? Hot, stunning, and remarkable cars are usually spotted at auto shows. And at the North American International Auto Show, Cobo Center is inundated with breathtaking cars.

Concept cars, future models, and more – they’re all at NAIAS. New York Times has given a list of future showroom models to look forward to in the near future:

FORD F-150 America’s best-selling vehicle for 26 years, the F-Series pickup is Ford’s biggest remaining franchise, but it’s no longer impregnable. To keep rivals in its mirrors, Ford introduced a 2009 F-150 so macho it could make Stanley Kowalski tremble. The pickup features familiar 4.6-liter and 5.4-liter V-8s, with F-150 diesel and turbo V-6 options arriving in 2010.

CORVETTE ZR1 If a $100,000 Corvette sounds expensive, consider that the ZR1 is designed to meet or beat Ferraris and other supercars at double or triple the price, even with its cheesy see-through hood panel. The 620-horsepower 6.2-liter V-8 revealed beneath the hood can propel the ZR1 to a top speed of more than 200 m.p.h.

DODGE RAM Accompanied by 120 Texas Longhorns outside Cobo Center, the Dodge Ram rolled into public view with familiar cowpoke styling, but more city-slicker features. Dodge’s first-ever pickup with a so-called crew-size cab — it steals inches from the bed to expand the back seat — uses a coil-spring suspension to improve ride and handling. A more muscular Hemi V-8 pumps out 380 horsepower; Hemi Hybrids and higher-mileage diesels are coming in 2010.

HYUNDAI GENESIS Hyundai continues its brave march into unfamiliar sales territory with the full-size Genesis luxury sedan. The Genesis will get 3.5-liter and 3.8-liter V-6 engines as well as a 4.6-liter V-8, Hyundai’s first, that makes 375 horsepower. The starting price is likely to be about $30,000.

CADILLAC CTS-V GM’s bid to overwhelm high-performance models from BMW’s M works and Mercedes’s AMG division, the CTS-V reaches showrooms this fall, powered by a version of the Corvette ZR1’s supercharged 6.2-liter V-8 with an estimated — and class-leading — 550 horsepower. Likely to have a starting price below $60,000, the Caddy will offer a six-speed automatic.

HONDA PILOT Some media grumbling could be heard at the auto show over the redesigned Pilot’s squared-off styling. But Honda said its popular eight-passenger hauler would be more space-efficient inside, with a man-size third row. A V-6 capable of switching to three- or four-cylinder operation to save fuel will be standard when the Pilot goes on sale in the spring.

VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT CC Borrowing its design theme from the Mercedes CLS, the Passat CC is a four-door coupe whose arching roofline is meant to disguise a practical sedan layout. It worked for Mercedes, though the conservative VW doesn’t begin to approach the Benz’s traffic-stopping style. The CC goes on sale later this year.

Nation's Worst Road Goes To Louisiana For Second Straight Year!

Tue, 22 Jan 2008 00:31:30 GMT

Winning this title isn’t something to be proud of. Being recognized to have the worst road in America is such a shame. I think Louisiana motorists are definitely guilty about this. Talk about screeching tires and broken intake manifolds. On the other hand, Arkansas was named the most improved in the said category. Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee publicized his road development project that showed off hard work and catapulted Arkansas from the state with the nastiest roads to "the most improved road system in the country"!

According to the Auto Channel, Texas remained dominant as the first ranked for best roads in any other state for most available overnight truck parking, best truck stops and best four-wheelers. Meanwhile, Tennessee's 450-mile division of the I-40 is ranked number one for the best segment in road lists for two consecutive years. Each category is based on a separate question. For more information, click here. Check the complete results below, courtesy of my source:

WORST ROADS
1. Louisiana
2. Pennsylvania
3. Oklahoma
4. California
5. Arkansas

BEST ROADS
1. Texas
2. Florida
3. Tennessee
4. Virginia
5. Ohio

WORST SEGMENT
1. I-10 Louisiana
2-3. (tie) I-40 Oklahoma and I-80 Pennsylvania
4. I-40 Arkansas
5. I-5 California

BEST SEGMENT
1. I-40 Tennessee
2. I-75 Florida
3. I-10 Texas
4. I-81 Virginia
5. I-80 Ohio

MOST IMPROVED SEGMENT
1. I-40 Arkansas
2. I-80 Pennsylvania
3-4. (tie) I-30 Arkansas and I-10 Louisiana
5-6. (tie) I-75 Georgia and I-44 Missouri

WORST FOUR-WHEELERS
1. New York
2. California
3. Illinois
4. Florida
5. Texas

BEST FOUR-WHEELERS
1. Texas
2. California
3-4. (tie) Wyoming and Tennessee
5. Minnesota

TOUGHEST TRUCK INSPECTIONS AND LAW ENFORCEMENT
1. California
2. Ohio
3. Pennsylvania
4. Iowa
5. Connecticut

WEAKEST TRUCK INSPECTIONS AND LAW ENFORCEMENT
1. Alabama
2. Texas
3. Oklahoma
4. West Virginia
5. South Carolina

Most Inexpensive Car

Thu, 17 Jan 2008 01:39:32 GMT

It's been a long time that I haven't posted anything here. I think the holidays made me too lazy than I want to be. Anyway, Happy New Year to all even though it's very late already and let's all welcome the world's least expensive car, the Tata Nano.

Last year, Indian automaker Tata Motors announced that they would be manufacturing a vehicle which will cost only about a hundred thousand rupees. That means that it is priced at about $2,500 or so. Wow huh? But of course, many people would ask whether it is safe and whatnot.

Ratan Tata, chairman of the Indian automaker talked about the challenges of building the car. And along his explanation, we can see that he is confident that the Nano can wipe away all those criticism thrown at it.

"There was the usual dilemma of what is basic and what is nice to have. A basic car may not have all the niceties its fancier cousins sport, and when you're looking at saving money on every single bit of the car — even parts that cost as little as Rs20 — you keep facing these dilemmas. Hundreds of such dilemmas have risen," related Tata.

"However, we were always conscious that there should be no quality stigma attached to the buying of this product. One thing we were clear about: this was never going to be a half-car. Nobody wants a car that is less than everybody else's car. Our car may have a small engine and certain limitations in terms of being basic, but that does not make it inferior. Also, we have a higher version of the car — with air conditioning, leather seats, etc — that we will be displaying at the auto show in Delhi. We hope people will look at that, too. Down the line, as we widen our range, we will have dressed-up versions with higher-powered engines, diesel engines, automatics and the like. We have a whole bunch of innovations coming along on this platform."

The Nano will be available in India later this year.

Ford to Launch Focus RS in Europe

Sat, 29 Dec 2007 08:01:18 GMT

Ford Motor Company's European arm has recently confirmed that it will launch a new high performance Ford Focus model some time in 2009. According to Ford of Europe, the new high performance Focus model will be based on the new Focus ST. The Ford Team RS will lead the development and production of the vehicle under Jost Capito.

John Fleming, Ford of Europe's President and CEO said:
"With two consecutive Manufacturers' World Rally Championship titles under our belt, the time is right to create a new Focus RS. With the Fiesta and Focus ST models, Jost and his team have proved already that they can deliver exciting and practical performance road cars. The success of these models, combined with Jost's experience in motorsport and Ford of Europe's positive business results, mean that we now have a credible business case for a no-compromise Focus RS roadcar for more enthusiastic drivers."

Unfortunately, Ford did not release the preliminary details of the new Focus RS. Anyway, just check out what Jost Capito has to say about the vehicle.

"We have reviewed our technical options and worked closely with the Design team on how the car might look, and I'm very excited by the results, Now with the programme going ahead, the hard work really starts as the small team working on the project takes the car from prototype to production."

Capito added: "We will use the redesigned 2008 Focus ST as the base for a no-compromise RS model that will become the ultimate road-going Focus," Capito added. "Just as the Focus RS WRC owns the rally circuit, we want the new Focus RS to own the road, so we have the major competitors in our sights as we develop the car's performance, design, handling and braking."