At the Chicago Auto Show ABG had the chance to sit down with Toyota's Bob Carter and Jaycie Chitwood. Bob is currently the Group VP for the Toyota Division and Jaycie is the Senior Strategic Planner. We talked about a range of issues including hybrid marketing, diesel, ethanol, hydrogen and weight reduction.

ABG: In production applications Toyota were obviously the pioneers in bringing hybrid vehicles to the mainstream and everybody is scrambling to catch up and get their own hybrids and other alternative drivetrains to market. Moving forward, obviously, you have applied your hybrid synergy drive to a wide a variety of Toyota and Lexus vehicles. Let's start by talking a little bit about where you are today and where Toyota is going in the next five to ten years?

BC: Okay, where we are today. Six hybrids, three Toyotas, three Lexus. We are really pleased with the progress. Total we did 278,000 units last year. Prius had a tremendous increase, up 67 percent. We had a 44 percent increase overall in hybrids. We first brought Prius to the U.S. in 2000. As you are aware Prius was actually introduced in Japan in 1997.

There were a lot of people who were just scratching their heads. They did not really understand it. A lot of criticism on hybrid, why they are doing that. Back in 2000, fuel prices were under $1.50 a gallon and there was not nearly the concern on supply and concern on the environment was there but was not really, in my view, embedded in the society the way it is today.

We introduced the first generation. It did well. It attracted the early adoptors that we were primarily interested in environmental impact. We also had people that were attracted by the technology. What is so encouraging to walk around this show is when we look at 2007, the 278,000 hybrids, it has gone beyond the initial adoptors. It's starting to embed itself within the general market and 11 percent, I am talking in terms of Toyota division which I represent, of our total sales last year were hybrid. Yet less than 2 percent of the industry was hybrid.

The conversation continues below the fold.

There is nothing remotely green about the F-650-based Alton XUV in the picture above. The Alton beast, on display at the Chicago Auto Show, seems to be designed to provoke, with its insane GVWR of 25,999 lbs and $200,000 price tag. Still, there is at least one area where the aftermarket gearheads at Alton decided to take the weight of the vehicle into account: the thing's carbon fiber hood. I doubt the environment was on their minds as they were installing that part; they were probably laughing about how the expensive material would allow them to charge an even prettier penny from people with more money than brains. Alternately, they might have wanted to balance out one of the three TVs in the cabin (two drop-down 16 inchers and a 42-inch plasma screen) or one of the four computers.

Anyway, if we can move on from the lightweight hood (and crooked bumper), let's check out Ford's Work Solutions, also introduced in Chicago. We talked about this in our podcast, but I wanted to highlight the concept again here. The idea is to use computers and RFID chips to make organizing work fleets easier and more efficient. With all the tools tagged and the computer able to determine what's in the bed, you'll never forget a piece of equipment after you tell the truck what kind of job you're about to drive to. As Mike from Pickuptruck.com mentioned to us at the show, this feature will save a lot of wasted trips, and I'm pretty sure that there's more than one contractor reading this who's driven 50 miles only to find that his ladder is back home safely in the garage. The subsequent 100-mile trip and wasted fuel - not to mention unbilled time - would be saved with a package like Work Solutions. To me, this is the most stealthy way to conserve fuel we saw at the who. You can read more details over at Autoblog and read one more unconventional way we can save fuel after the jump.

I came across the Bridgestone booth at the Chicago Auto Show while they were rehearsing for an upcoming press conference. Ex-NFL player Eddie George was running through the script and Bridgestone was showing off its Super Bowl commercials, but I was more interested in the booth's "One Team, One Planet" display. I got a chance to speak about the environmental efforts that Bridgestone and Firestone have done and are doing with Dan MacDonald, Bridgestone's director of media relations, and Michael Martini, president of North American Consumer O.E. for both Firestone and Bridgestone.

The short version of the tale is that the tire manufacturer is working on the reduce, reuse, recycle method. Whether it's retreading a tire (a process that uses 68 percent less oil compared to making a new tire - 7 gallons vs. 22 gallons) or giving the State of Tennessee ten thousand acres to be set aside as a nature reserve, there's a lot more going green here than low-rolling resistance tires. Don't worry, we talk about that, too. Listen in here (8 MB, 17 min).

You can see high-resolution images of all the panels in the "One Team, One Planet" in the gallery below.

We showed you the pictures yesterday, and now we've got some video to go along with the Denali XT unveiling. While GMC started the unveiling with the introduction of the 2009 Silverado hybrid, you can tell that GMC is more interested in the Denali XT than that standard truck. The XT is a more exciting vehicle - even if it's just a concept - and you can see GMC North America design head Bryan Nesbitt's excitement in the Denali XT's look as he introduces it. Sure, every time a vehicle is unveiled at an auto show, enthusiasm is the rule; I'm just sayin'. Why listen to me, though, when you can watch the event itself in the video above?

Related:

• Chicago 2008: GMC unwraps the Denali XT concept
• Chicago Auto Show 2008 videos: GMC Denali XT concept
• Chicago 2008: GMC Denali XT concept gets flex-fuel and two-mode hybrid

I've already heard a lot of wonderful oneliners about the just-unveiled International LoneStar. Over at Autoblog, someone writes that those Escalades are getting bigger every year and here at the Chicago Auto Show, we're pretty sure this name is a misprint. LoanStar is a more accurate name for this sleek new monster.

The reason we're covering such a huge semi on AutoblogGreen is that Navistar/International is making a big deal about the fuel efficiency gains to be had when using the LoneStar vs. other trucks with that traditional flat grille. There were even electricity-generating windmills in the promotional video for the LoneStar that was screened before the big reveal. Dee Kapur, the president of Navistar Truck Group, introduce the LoneStar and said that what his company was trying to do with this machine was to marry efficiency with the pride in their trucks that longhaul drivers demand. Officially, International estimates the LoneStar will use around 15 percent less fuel than "classic trucks," which should result in fuel savings of between $3,000 to $8,000. Guess buyers can use the savings to pay down the Loan. Actually, we don't know yet how much this truck will cost but deliveries will start this fall.

The long wait for the new fifty-state legal VW Jetta CleanTDI is almost over. After a delay from the original March launch date to finish certification, the first batch of 1,000 diesel Jettas will arrive at dealers in the US and Canada in June. You won't be able to actually buy one at that point because each dealer will only get one car. The cars will be used as demonstrators for test drives through the summer to re-introduce potential buyers to the new powertrain. In late August, VW will start shipping cars to dealers in earnest for sale to any and all. No pricing yet but VW has previously indicated that the diesel would run about $2,000 extra just like the previous-generation model.

[Source: Diesel Forecast]

The Electric Runabout, made by Columbia, was the first electric car ridden in by a U.S. President. That historical event happened over 105 years ago, in case you were wondering. The 1903 Columbia Electric Runabout had a 40-mile range and, like most electric cars of the era, was very popular with female drivers. While that 40-mile range sound wicked good compared to today's electric cars (and concept cars), the Runabout was really more like a Walkabout since its top speed was a solid 14 miles per hour - downhill.

The car was powered by a 40-volt, 30 amp motor from General Electric and cost $850 back at the beginning of the last century. While Columbia went out of business in 1911, you can see the Runabout this coming week as part of the historical display corner of the Chicago Auto Show (this is the 100th show, after all) hidden way in the back of the show floor.

Click the Denali XT for a high res gallery

GMC doesn't do concepts very often but their latest example was unveiled here at the Chicago Auto Show. The new Denali XT concept is primarily a styling exercise but it also highlights a lot of ideas for the future of the truck market. As new fuel economy regulations kick in the coming years, trucks will have to get smaller and lighter and a car based truck like this will likely become a viable option for drivers who chose pickups for personal use rather than as a work truck. Regardless of whether this particular vehicle turns up, the powertrain almost certainly will. Future GM trucks will very likely use a smaller displacement V-8 like this 4.9L (or even smaller) with direct fuel injection. It many applications it will also be combined with the two-mode hybrid system as volumes increase and cost is reduced.

[Source: General Motors]

When people like GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz talk about how new fuel economy regulations are going to add $5-6,000 to the price of new cars and trucks, it's worth examining how they come to those numbers. Obviously there are some cars today that can achieve the 35mpg level without being insanely expensive. Unfortunately those tend to be smaller cars that the vast majority of American new car buyers seem to be unwilling to buy at current fuel prices. For any number of reasons, Americans still prefer vehicles that are larger, heavier and thirstier, in some cases for perfectly legitimate reasons.

Unless the cost of operating those vehicles rises dramatically, it seems Americans won't want to make the switch. Of course the cost may jump anyway, although the timing of such a rise is uncertain. As is all too often the case, trying legislate a simplistic solution to a complex problem is likely to lead to unintended consequences. If customers want their bigger vehicles but carmakers are forced either produce unaffordable versions of big rides or smaller vehicles people don't want, something has to give.

In Cuba, where nearly half a century of U.S. trade embargoes have eliminated access to new American cars, people have just learned to keep the cars that existed there in the fifties on the road seemingly indefinitely. During a discussion at the Chicago Auto Show, GM NA President Troy Clarke indicated something similar could also happen here in the coming years. If car-makers are unable to provide the vehicles customers want at a price they can pay, businesses that specialize in reconditioning used vehicles could step in to fill the gap. While this would benefit consumers by providing affordable transportation, it would negate the benefits of higher fuel economy standards by keeping those more efficient vehicles from supplanting older ones in the fleet. Unless car buyers have a real financial incentive to move to smaller vehicles, they will likely just move to the used car market.

The American version of the smallish Ford Transit Connect was unveiled at the Chicago Auto Show yesterday and Ford did the honorable thing (at least, that's how it felt as a hungry blogger on the expo floor) when it displayed just how versatile the delivery van can be by having the vans sort of deliver food to everyone in attendance. The four versions of the Transit Connect were each personalized by one of four Chicago-area personalities, from a blues musician to caterers. These people, who've all thought about how the Transit Connect could help them in their line of work, were all on hand, but it was the caterers who I appreciated the most. The music - by Eddie Shaw and the Wolf Gang - was good, too. You can't eat along in the video above, but you can at least see the vans.

Related:

• Chicago 2008: Ford Transit Connect live reveal photo gallery
• Chicago 2008: Ford brings the Transit Connect to America

Just how many hybrids has General Motors sold? Apparently not very many. We all know the Prius is the 800lb gorilla of the hybrid segment with sales of between 800,000 and 900,000 so far. A reader left a link to an IRS website in a comment the other day. The site lists which vehicles are still eligible for federal tax credits which get phased out as sales for each manufacturer increase. According to the last update in October 2007, General Motors had only sold a total of 9,577 hybrid vehicles by the end of September 2007.

At a lunch discussion with GM North America President Troy Clarke today at the Chicago Auto Show, I posed the question of how many hybrids the company had sold. According to Clarke until now GM had not been very aggressive in marketing their hybrid models. He explained that they were still feeling their way in the market and the time period covered by those numbers was prior to the launch of the 2008 Saturn Vue and Chevy Malibu mild hybrids along with the two-mode hybrid SUVs. GM actually started shipping the hybrid Tahoes and Yukons during the first week of January and ran an ad for the Yukon during the Super Bowl. Clarke says that now that five of these hybrids are shipping and five more are coming later this year, they will be pushing them a lot more. Hopefully by the end of this year that number will grow by an order of magnitude.

[Source: General Motors]

After announcing a few feature updates in the Ford F150 at the Chicago Auto Show today, Ford unveiled the U.S. version of the Ford Transit Connect. This Euro-style van fits into a greener delivery niche, and Ford certainly made these vans look appealing, with four vans dancing around the stage, each decked out for a different use: musicians, caterers and the like. The Transit Connect gets good mileage for a delivery van (19 mpg city and 24 mpg highway). The designers found a way to pack 143 cubic feet of cargo space into a van that can fit into garages with 6 ft. 8 in. clearance. It won't be available on these shores until the middle of next year, but I imagine these will be pretty solid sellers when they get here.

We've have a video of the reveal soon.

To get a little more information out of Coskata about this morning's announcement of a partnership with ICM to build the first commercial cellulosic ethanol plant using Coskata's proprietary process (past details on Coskata are here), we tracked down Wes Bolsen, chief marketing officer, business development at the company. Bolsen was an executive at ICM in his previous life, so he is very familiar with what ICM is all about (for now, this is building a lot of corn ethanol plants in the U.S.) and why the company is a good fit for Coskata.

Bolsen said that ICM, like the rest of the ethanol industry, knows that corn ethanol's days are numbered and that cellulosic biofuel is the way to go. After doing their homework, ICM decided that Coskata had the right process to move to commercialization with. Wes said that the relatively small footprint of a cellulosic ethanol plant - about 20 acres - will mean these plants have the potential to pop up all over the world, wherever there is some feedstock (like the municipal waste) and space. While the Coskata process can handle a lot of different kinds of input material, each plant would likely be built to handle only one type. Therefore, the design that is best suited for paper mill waste could be built next to a paper mill whereas a plant that works well with corn stork or corn fiber could be erected alongside a currently-operating corn ethanol plant.

Now for the unknowns: the location of this first plant has not yet been announced, nor what type of feedstock it will use. Exactly when it will be finished is also uncertain, but late 2010 or early 2011 is the target. The hope is to then have two more plants running by late 2011 or early 2012 and expanding from there to the point where Coskata is responsible for producing billions of gallons of cellulosic ethanol to the market every year. We'll keep watching.

You can listen to my chat with Wes here (5.3 MB, 11 min).

UPDATE: As Wes said in the comments below, he's taking issue with my characterization of what he said about the future of corn ethanol, the struck-out above. I didn't mean to give the wrong impression of what he said, so I'm going to explain why I wrote what I wrote. Wes said that ICM considers itself at the forefront of the ethanol industry, especially corn-based ethanol. But, when I asked about the move to cellulosic ethanol and away from corn, Wes said that, "At some point, everyone knows that that will stop." That's where my characterization came from. You can hear it at minute three of the audio clip. You can read Wes' clarification below.

If a GM representative is speaking to the public these days, you can bet heavily that biofuels (cellulosic ethanol), E-Flex and the phrase "Gas friendly to gas free" will be uttered. When GM North America president Troy Clarke gave the opening keynote presentation at the Chicago Auto Show today, he followed the script to the letter. During a half-hour talk that sets the stage for the show, Clarke rolled through the points we've come to expect over the past year or so.

In one nice touch, Clarke said that, "If you ask the potential customer about the auto industry, they really don't talk about who's the global sales leader." Clarke's point was that automakers need to give customers what the customers want, not dictate to them the vehicle they will buy. The auto industry is at a crossroads, Clarke said, with energy security and climate change and cost of transportation all causing massive changes. Naturally, Clarke believes that GM has the best slate of candidates for the vote/dollar of the customer. Mandating that all automakers produce a particular approach or a particular solution (i.e., incredibly high mpg vehicles) will not result in good sales or happy drivers. "Extremely small vehicles wouldn't satisfy some customers, even if they got 100 miles per gallon," Clarke said, framing the argument so that you can't say he's wrong. In the end, it's customers who need to define what the automakers make. Of course, Clarke then told a story about a focus group he attended in LA where the members of the public basically said yes, they want a green vehicle, but they then also described that car as a 40 mpg Tahoe.

Aside from the voice of the consumer meme, Clarke once again brought up the Coskata-GM partnership and Coskata's announcement today that it has partnered with ITM to build cellulosic ethanol plants and mentioned the Chevy HHR going flex-fuel. Clarke then broke down once again the GM plan for the future, including biofuels and E-Flex and all that, and mentioned that it'd be good if the government funded more advanced battery research.

One question from the audience is worth mentioning. Asked about the Coskata ethanol process, Clarke couldn't promise that it would result in sustainable ethanol, but did say that he and GM hope and believe it will. You can hear Clarke's speech here (19 MB, 28 min).

Also - the introduction to the keynote gave us this fun trivia for the day: when President McKinley was shot in 1901, he was taken to the hospital in a battery-powered ambulance.

Click on the E85 Chevy HHR for a high res gallery

General Motors continues to add flex-fuel capability to their fleet in a bid to reach their publicly-stated goal of selling at least half of their vehicles with biofuel capability by 2012. The latest member of the team to be able to run on any mix of gasoline or E85 is the Chevy HHR. The HHR will have E85 capability on both the 2.2L and 2.4L EcoTec four cylinder engines. This is the first four cylinder flex-fuel engine that GM has offered in the U.S. market. The 2.4L engine was already equipped with variable valve timing and for 2009, the that feature gets added to the smaller engine as well. Like many other smaller vehicles, HHR sales have been on the upswing of late with January sales up 73 percent from 2007.

[Source: Chevrolet]