AutoblogGreen

Many people in the States still make their living using good 'ole fashioned pickup trucks as their main method of transportation. For those people, the sky-high price of fuel is putting a serious dent in their profit margins, especially when that truck is used day-in and day-out to move heavy objects from one place to another. It's dirty work, but somebody's got to do it, as they say. For these gasoline-weary individuals, Ford, makers of the best-selling pickup truck in the world, is diligently working on its upcoming 4.4L diesel V8 powerplant, which should improve on the bread-and-butter 5.4L Triton gasoline engine's mpg figure by 20-percent while delivering an extra shot of torque.

While we've seen the engine sitting by itself earlier this year at Ford's national dealer conference in Vegas, PickupTrucks.com has managed to get its hands on a few shots of the engine under hood of a new F-150 mule. We can clearly see that it's a tight fit in there with all the associated emissions plumbing, turbocharger and intercooler. Take note too that the engine wears the Power Stroke moniker, though the mill is not made by Ford's traditional diesel supplier, Navistar. Instead, this engine is derived from a diesel engine used by Land Rover in Europe and will be manufactured in Mexico. Those looking to save a few bucks on a fill-up can look forward to a hopeful debut at the '09 Chicago Auto Show with a production release sometime later that year.
[Source: PickupTrucks.com]

The freshly unveiled all-electric Lightning GT we showed you yesterday is certainly garnering a lot of attention and video tape at this years British International Motor Show. We received a message from British electric-car vlogger, Danny, telling us he had footage of the hi-tech silver beauty having its shroud publicly removed. We rushed to watch it and happily discovered he also had his own mini Q & A session with Lightning Car Company representative, Chris Dell. We got to hear some very interesting tidbits that answer some of the questions we've been getting. For instance, the range is less than we hoped for at about 150 to 180 miles (this should come as no surprise since the Altairnano batteries only have half the energy density of the cells used by Tesla). However, the size of the 36 Kwh battery pack can be increased. Mr Dell informs us the "nought to sixty" time should be under 4 seconds with its top speed limited to 130 mph. Just as impressive as its Tesla-challenging numbers was the way it looked with its linen removed, spinning on the turntable.

Another comment we heard a lot yesterday was that it's still vapor because it's not driveable. Our second video, though brief, dumps a lake full of cold water on this assumption. From RockaboxMedia comes teaser footage of the Lightning GT looking quite at home on a length of track. In true teaser fashion, most of the clip is soundless and in slow-motion but they promise they will bring us a full documentary on the creation and launch of the car. Unfortunately, they aren't sharing the embed code so you must go to YouTube to see it.

The last video we want to bring to your attention today is an Al Jazeera news piece that seems to hold the spotlight on the Lightning GT. We are briefly shown the NICE Mega City but most of the report seems to be spent contrasting the Tesla Roadster with the new UK contender. Find out which vehicle the British-accented presenter prefers as well as Danny's video after the jump.


[Source: Danny's Contentment / YouTube]

Most people are under the impression that trains are a reasonably green sort of transportation. When used in a city to move people about, the environmental benefits seem pretty obvious. Fewer cars are needed on the roads, decreasing congestion and electric trains are more efficient and create less air pollution than their automotive brethren. But apparently that's not good enough for some folks in Kagoshima, Japan. They realized if they placed some midori (green) around and under the train tracks, not only could they improve the appearance of their town but also reduce the heat island effect caused by acres of concrete and pavement. In the newscast discussing this development a reporter takes a temperature reading while standing on the asphalt street of 62.6 degrees Celsius (143.96 Fahrenheit). Moving over to the grass, the temperature drops to a much more reasonable 35 degrees C (95 F). So far they've done just under 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) but hope to green about 9 Km (5.5 miles) by 2012. The effect on the people of the city seemed positive. The one comment the reporter received from a woman about the improvement that we could understand without an interpreter said it looked beautiful. We agree. Thanks to B.T. for the tip!

[Source: Japan Probe]

Pick up trucks seem to be vehicles that are ripe for fuel economy improvements. GM didn't do so bad with 40 percent city-driving gains made with their Silverado dual-mode hybrid but it's a far cry from what Hybrid Electric Vehicle Technologies (HEVT) has achieved with an ordinary Ford F-150. The Progressive X-Prize entrant has taken the plug-in path and produced a prototype that can go 15 miles on only electricity, get 41 mpg over a 30 mile distance and 21 mpg after that. Considering the vehicle they started with only got 16 mpg, we're impressed. Their alterations also give the truck more low-speed torque, V2G capability and 120V power availability. Pretty sweet!

They say the system can also be scaled for F-250s and F-350s. Heck, they're even working on slapping it into a school bus! This isn't just some shade-tree contraption either but rather the product of an early-stage technology venture developed under the watchful eye of Professor Ali Emadi at the Illinois Institute of Technology. HEVT has just unveiled their creation at the Plug-In 2008 Conference and Exposition in San Jose but if you couldn't make it to that event, we have not only a super video, but also a detailed press release after the jump.

[Source: Youtube / HEVT]

The Wall Street Journal has published a very interesting article that states that GM is teaming with a dozen electric utilities operating in 40 states to prepare the arrival of its plug-in model (the Volt, if you didn't remember the name). From the business point of view, the article states that both the utilities and the auto industry have a lot to win. The plug-in hybrid car is seen as a "hot product" that can revive car sales, as well as reduce our dependence on oil. GM needs utilities which can keep the grid reliable for recharges, the same way it needed a reliable battery manufacturer for the cars to work correctly.

Why a safe grid? Think of what happens in a hot summer afternoon with all A/C working and energy at its peak tier prices and plants at maximum production. Intelligent chips and software tuning would identify the car as plugged to the electric grid and then use spare electricity to recharge. According to some studies, spare power plant capacity at night could feed millions of cars.


[Source: WSJ]

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Spanish company IFR Automotive has unveiled the Aspid at the British Motor Show. The Aspid is a new ultra-lightweight sports car. The Aspid (Spanish for viper, ahem) features a 2-liter I4 engine in two versions able to produce 270 and 400hp, the latter thanks to supercharging. This powerful engine, mated to a 700 kg (1,543 pounds) weight provides spectacular performance. The 270hp version runs from 0 to 100 km/h (62mph) in 3.7 seconds, and 2.8 for the most powerful version. IFR also announced the estimated consumption figures, that would be vaild only if owners keep the Aspid at speeds roughly around the EU mixed cycle. In that case drivers might manage 4.8 and 5.5 l/100 km, which translates into 49 and 43mpg (US) respectively.

According to the manufacturer, the Aspid is not a simple toy to take for a drive out for track days, but it's a capable road vehicle, something hard to tell from its design. It's almost completely made from aluminum and carbon fiber. It also sports plenty of gadgetry: GPS, GPRS, a complete HiFi system, USB, Bluetooth, Wi-fi, and Ethernet connection, because the Aspid gathers data you can download regarding the car's performance. And all this gadgetry, as well as most of the electric systems have been simplified to a maximum level to reduce weight. Impressed? They're taking orders already.


[Source: IFR via Autoblog en Español]

If you love the Fiat 500 as much as we do, live in the UK and wished you could buy an electric version of this nuovo-retro then you are in luck! The NICE Car Company have announced they will launch the Micro Vette Fiat e500 at the British International Motor Show (BIMS). Micro Vette has a close relationship with Fiat and because their work leaves the vehicle structurally undisturbed, not only is the e500 covered by the full Fiat warranty, but you can also order from the full range of Fiat options.

Powered by lithium-ion polymer batteries, the e500 has a range of 70 miles and will do 60 mph. While maybe not ideal for those with a super long commute, it seems to possess just enough performance to fill its role as an electric city car. It's definitely preferable to driving a G-Wiz (sorry Wizzers). If you're interested in it, let them know at BIMS since they are saying this produced-to-order sweetie is available for a limited time.


[Source: NICE Car Company]

Photo: splorp - Licensed under CC 2.0

Higher gas prices equal fewer miles driven. Fewer miles driven equals fewer traffic fatalities. At least, that's the assumption, 'cause it's really impossible to know for sure what is driving the current death rate decline on American roadways. Still, that above equation sure makes sense, so we're gonna go ahead and conclude for ourselves that it's true. Add that to the fact that many drivers who can't get off the roads have slowed down to counter the high fuel surcharges which accompany a lead foot, and total motor vehicle fatalities are down 9-percent this year.

There have only been two other times in American history where traffic death statistics dropped so drastically in such short order, one of which was when the country endured its last gas price spike during 1973 and 1974. Coincidence? Hardly. One more good effect from higher gas prices is that fewer drunk drivers are on the roads, as more drinkers choose to consume their alcohol at home instead of driving to the bar. See? High gas prices do have their advantages. Thanks for the tip, Alex!

[Source: AP via AT&T]

We've been following the on-again, off-again news of the upcoming hybrid and diesel powertrain options on Porsche's Panamera, which is scheduled to go on sale starting next year. It seems that the hybrid is a lock and will be equipped with a 3.6-liter V6 engine offering 300 horsepower along with an extra hundred horsies from the electric motor. While that engine and motor combo will likely make the Porsche an extremely fast hybrid, rumor has it that the driver will be able to selectively choose how much power to extract from either power source. If this holds true, the Panamera hybrid sounds a heck of a lot more interesting today that it did just yesterday.

The other possible alternative powertrain for the Panamera is a diesel engine. While the Cayenne will get the 3.0L diesel engine from Audi, the Panamera could double that cylinder count by being bestowed with Audi's mammoth 6.0L V12 TDI, which punches out 500 horsepower along with an incredible 758 lb-ft of torque. In Audi's large Q7 SUV, that powerplant manages nearly 20 miles per gallon, and it should do considerably better in the low-slung Panamera if it indeed finds its way underhood. Expect all of these options to come at a high cost, as the normal six-cylinder Panamera is expected to fetch $127,000 and the higher spec. turbo V8 model will go for nearly $200 grand. Sounds like the upcoming four door Porsche hybrid will require very deep pockets.

[Source: Inside Line]

Cleangreencars.co.uk has awarded BMW as the "cleanest premium manufacturer" in Great Britain. Their report found that total model range CO₂ emissions from January 2008 to June 2008 at BMW averaged 161.64g/km. BMW's competitors all achieved worse figures. For instance Audi and Mercedes were 177.36g/km and 192.85g/km respectively. Lexus, with its hybrid-based model line-up, managed an average of 194.85g/km, while Jaguar topped 200g/km and Porsche recorded 275.64g/km. BMW's MINI brand had an average of 139.64g/km.

According to BMW's press release (which you can find after the jump), both the EfficientDynamics and the MINImalism program have reduced emissions while keeping up driving dynamics. BMW also said that it's preparing NOx storage capability within a catalytic converter on certain models in the near future and that it was finalizing drivetrain configurations to meet the likely EU6 legislation due to come into effect in 2014.

[Source: BMW]