Click image for a high-res gallery of the Transit Connect Taxi

The Ford Crown Victoria makes for a seriously great taxicab. It's durable and comfortable, but that V8 engine no longer meshes with the direction many cities are taking when it comes to their taxi fleets. Greener is better, but the trick is to improve without sacrificing utility. Ford will use New York, the ultimate Big City, as the backdrop for the premiere of the Transit Connect Taxi concept. With a 2.0L four-banger motivating things, the Transit Connect is fuel efficient (19 mpg city) with 90% lower tailpipe emissions than many of the traditional cabs prowling the city streets today.

If you thought the Crown Vic was spacious, this thing must be like riding in a mobile racquetball court. The tall roof is augmented by large glass panels that add a sense of airiness to the passenger cabin. The clear partition between driver and passengers is also home to a 13-inch infotainment/payment system powered by the Ford/Microsoft Work solutions system, and while. Decked out in yellow and charcoal gray, the transit taxi certainly looks the part, and if it can handle the relentless punishment cabs endure daily, it looks like it could be an attractive alternative. A hybrid system would make it even more so. Ford, you listening?


[Source: Ford]

Click image for a high-res gallery of the Nissan Denki Cube concept

Yesterday, the Financial Times reported that Nissan will unveil its electric Denki Cube concept in New York. Based on the standard Cube minicar, the Denki (Japanese for "electric") shows that Nissan is also looking at the market viability of EVs. It's not alone, as Subaru will be showing its R1e and Mitsubishi will display its i MiEV along with the i MiEV Sport concept.

We don't yet have official details on the Denki Cube, but photos tell a lot of the story, and as is the case so often in the runup to auto shows, those photos have hit the web this morning. The Super Nissans forum has accelerated the unveiling schedule for Nissan, breaking the embargo and posting the shots you see here. Visually, the Denki Cube is finished in white with lightning-pattern grillework, dressed-up headlamps, and hole-punch patterns on the front and rear bumper covers (the taillamps show through those rear openings). Solid wheel covers with square centers complete the exterior makeover. Inside, the standard interior gets a swanky new instrument panel, but the layout is essentially unchanged. Yellow seats and trim highlight the otherwise white cabin.

We'll bring you live shots and complete details following the car's official unveiling tomorrow! A series of customized Cubes will also be unveiled for the first time, and we'll be on hand to provide full coverage.


[Source: SuperNissans.net]

Click image for a photo gallery of the '09 JDM Honda Fit

The redesigned Honda Fit is ready to hit the US as an '09 model, and Honda will give it a big Broadway debut at the New York Auto Show next month. Okay, okay -- it's more like a big 11th Avenue debut, but you get the point. The overhauled Fit essentially blends the shape of a Prius with the face of a last-gen Civic Si. The end result is a subcompact with midsize-level interior room. It should do well at the pump, too. Don't look for the 98-horsepower Japan-spec 1.3L base engine to make the trip to the US, however. Instead, we'll probably get the 1.5L i-VTEC that makes 118 horsepower. That's a 9-horse jump over the current car, and it's capable of achieving a maximum fuel economy rating of 46 mpg under the Japanese test cycle. We'll have to wait and see how it rates under the EPA's program. AutoblogGreen will be there when Honda drives the car onstage in the Javits Center, and we'll provide full coverage from New York. In the meantime, if you want more info on the Japanese-market version, check out our October post on the topic.


[Source: Honda]