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Archive for the ‘Automotive News’ Category

the transmission company, showed its 8-speed automatic gearbox in the expo hall next door to where the expo’s seminars were taking place. While we’ve become used to transmissions with more gears, this unit held a surprise that points to another intermediate technology toward going fully electric.

Beyond functioning as an automatic transmission, the conventional torque converter in this unit can be swapped out for an electric motor, making it a hybrid transmission. This technology greatly simplifies the integration of hybrid technologies into existing vehicle lines. For example, if a manufacturer wanted to add a hybrid edition to an existing vehicle line (say a BMW X5), the builder could select one of their current engines then add the ZF hybrid transmission, a starter/generator unit (that enables an engine to immediately restart after a fuel-saving Auto Stop), and a battery module. Voila … a new X5 Hybrid is born. Fuel savings would be in the double digits.

The Michelin and ZF technologies demonstrate the type of innovation coming from the supplier-side of the business. Expect to see more ideas in the coming months.

Another major theme: the rollout of new small cars, electric vehicles and hybrids that major automakers have readied at a time when oil prices — and gasoline prices at the pump — are heading higher.

Those include a larger version of Toyota’s market-leading Prius hybrid, the first-ever compact sedan for General Motors’ Buick and a boxy concept known as the Curb from Hyundai.

The Korean automaker grew at more than twice the rate of the overall market in 2010 at 24 percent, seizing market share from rivals with competitive pricing and a reputation for sharply better quality.

The Detroit auto show also represents a major milestone for Volkswagen. The German automaker plans to show off a new version of its Passat that will be built at its first U.S. plant since the 1980s. The $1 billion plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, is near completion and will begin operations later this year.
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The Detroit show is also significant for the U.S. automakers, which are in varying stages of a comeback in sales and in profitability.

GM completed its public share offering in November, the largest ever, and its shares are up 18 percent from the IPO price. Chrysler is expected to launch its own IPO in the second half of 2011.

Ford passed Toyota as the No. 2 U.S. automaker in sales behind GM in 2010 and its stock has risen more than 80 percent since the start of last year.

Ford posted a 19 percent U.S. sales gain in 2010, its largest percentage increase since 1984.

A KPMG survey found a much higher percentage of senior automotive industry executives expects global market share growth from Ford than Toyota in 2011.

“Ford in one year essentially eclipsed Toyota, which is a big change in one year,” said Gary Silberg, who leads

Deciding which kind of car is best for you can be a very difficult process. If you start the car-buying process without figuring out which kind of car is right for you, you might end up buying the wrong kind. And this is something that you want to avoid at all costs – because it will end up costing you a lot of money, time, and effort.

Your car-buying budget and figuring out what your car will have to do will help you better determine which type of car you are looking for, and which kind will fit your way of life the best. Questions you should consider answering include:

• What is your family unit like? Are you married or single? Do you have young children or no children? Do you have teenagers ready to start driving, college students who want their own car, or elderly drivers in your immediate family unit?
• How far will your car need to take you every day? Every month? Do you plan on traveling long distances often? Will the car get a lot of rough use or is it only going to be used occasionally?
• Who will be driving this car? Take different drivers into account, because this will greatly affect the type of car and driver insurance you need. This will also greatly determine the price of said insurance.

These questions and more will help you figure out what kind of car is best for you. Without these questions, finding the perfect car would be much more difficult. Dealerships like Northern Auto Traders and K G Suzuki, car dealerships that you can trust to give their customers the best service, are the best dealerships to buy a car from. They can even help you figure out the best car to fit your lifestyle.

Written by: Philip Thow