Time to buy a Hybrid?

[Driven1]

ps - gas will not be $8 within a year.  not in the U.S. at least.

[jaxnative]

I'm so glad that through the hard work, sacrifice, and great risk of two families my kids won't have to join the "share the misery" generation about to unveil.  I'm thinking about setting them up in the scooter, bicycle, and maybe the rickshaw business and having them invest longterm in coal to be ready when the people finally have had enough.  I haven't decided on a Navigator or an Escalade for their college graduation gifts but I'm going to install those train horns on the vehicles so they can make sure not to run over the walkers, multiple scooter and bicycle riders, and people standing in long lines at the mass transit sites because the system has been down from roaming brownouts after the windmills recorded their limit on bird kills, it's been cloudy and rainy for a number of days in a row, and Captain Planet just took down the last, evil, greedy capitalist run fossil fuel power plant.  It's gonna be a hell of a sad era.

[Driven1]

which two families?

[jaxnative]

I can't say!!  Carmine and Gino tell me I've said too much already!!!!!!!!

[gatorback]

Fiat is looking at this car.  The car would be another great car to bring to the US market.



TURIN, Italy (Reuters) - Italy's Fiat (FIA.MI) is thinking about creating a new brand for a low-cost car it is developing, according to its chief executive.
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"The next brand is going to be one that we develop ourselves," Sergio Marchionne told an automotive congress held in Turin, an industrial city in northwestern Italy.

In light of the success enjoyed by France's Renault (RENA.PA) with its Logan and the global media attention won by India's Tata Motors Ltd (TAMO.BO) for its upcoming Nano, Fiat and other manufacturers are working on their own cheap cars.

"The market has the space for what I consider a true value-for-money car," he said.

Marchionne said Tata, Fiat's Indian partner, could have a role in the creation of the new brand.

Fiat would take a decision in the next 12 months, he added.

ALFA IN AMERICA

Marchionne reiterated his intention to make Alfa Romeo cars in North America, though he had yet to decide where and when.

Fiat has sold its limited edition 8C Competizione car to U.S. customers but it has yet to return to the country with a full product range. It also has a presence through luxury sports car brands Ferrari and Maserati.

Marchionne expressed a strong desire to bring the updated version of Fiat's small Cinquecento (500) car to the United States, saying he was convinced it would be as much of a hit as it had been in Europe since its launch last July.

"It could probably carry the market," he said.

Ever since Fiat announced plans to bring Alfa Romeo back to North America, it has been approached by a number of parties offering their manufacturing facilities.

In tandem with the congress, representatives of the U.S. states of Kentucky and Georgia have spoken to Fiat about the possibility, according to sources close to the company.

The premier of Ontario is to pay Marchionne a visit on Wednesday to try to convince him to make Alfa Romeos at the Canadian province's under-utilized plants.

Marchionne said Mexico was a possible candidate because it would be a natural extension of Fiat's presence in Latin America, especially in Brazil where it dominates the market.

He also raised the possibility of working out of two manufacturing sites.

One issue Fiat had to address was the distribution network, he said.

"If we started with 100 dealers, I'd be happy," he said. "I don't think we need more than that.

"If we find an agreement with an auto maker that will allow for manufacturing and distribution wrapped together, we would do it," he added.

Fiat would not use the sales network of CNH (CNH.N) because its U.S. farming equipment subsidiary served a different market. Marchionne said Fiat had neglected Russia and was refocusing its attention on a country whose car market will soon become Europe's biggest.

"We will be active there in the next five years in all activities of the group," he said. Apart from cars and tractors, Fiat makes trucks under the Iveco brand.

(Reporting by Gilles Castonguay; Editing by Braden Reddall)

[gatorback]

I love Alfas.  I love Italian design.  Pininfarina is one sexy design team.  Now here's a car.  Not your father's supercar.





Pininfarina Birdcage 2005





Turin, June 23 2005. The Maserati Birdcage 75th, the prototype which commemorates the 75th anniversary of Pininfarina, is to take part in the Supercar Run to be held during the Goodwood Festival of Speed scheduled for June 24 to 26.

Based on Maserati tradition and cutting edge mechanical technology, and created in collaboration with Motorola, the Maserati Birdcage 75th won the “Best Concept” award in the Editors’ Choice Awards at the 2005 Geneva Motor Show, where it made its debut, and made it onto the list of the 10 “coolest concept cars” of 2005 drawn up by Forbes.

Other cars taking part in the Goodwood Festival include the Alfa Romeo Brera, a 2+2 coupé developed in collaboration with Italdesign-Giugiaro and set to be produced by Pininfarina from the second half of 2005.



Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason, Maserati Birdcage 75th   Goodwood Festival of Speed

[gatorback]

I doubt any Ferrari is green,  but not that many are sold each year.  This puppy is Italy's green car:



If you're a interested in conserving gas (and with today's prices, who isn't), you probably know that the most effective way to do it is reduce the size of your car. Smaller cars mean smaller, more efficient engines, and lighter, less energy-hungry chassis. But as more and more SUV's and other large cars populate the roads, driving in a small car can make you feel like some tiny rodent in a predator-prey relationship: In a side impact verses an H2, the little guy is going to lose. That is, unless a certain Italian car company has its way...

PininFarina, the mastermind behind concept cars for manufacturers from Ferrari to Honda has formulated a bold new concept to bring real-world impact safety to smaller vehicles.

The Nido concept car isolates it's passenger and driver inside a rigid welded safety cage for roll and crush-resistance. But injuries from the force of impact are still a problem, so the passenger compartment is suspended within the cage by a series of crushable aluminum honeycomb panels. When struck by another car, these panels crumple one after another, bringing the passengers to a smoother stop than a rigid car body would, and avoiding whiplash, organ bruising, and brain injuries like concussions.

While this technology is still in the limited prototype phase, it holds promise for keeping small cars from being completely run off the road by larger competitors. Hopefully we'll see more of this in the future.

[Coolyfett]

Gee, where is that Cookie-Monster now?

Trolleys/transit/rail/skyway anyone?

Ocklawaha

HA ha ha ha!!! Ock your new name is Noah. The creator of the "Ark on Rail"

Stephendare 8 dollars a gallon?? Man that would hurt!! really That would so hurt.

What are your ideas to avoid buying gas to get around??

Sometimes I think of sleeping in my car till the next day/shift lol just to avoid the long drive from home.


Question for Lake....When will the  Mulitiple TODs & Electric Automobiles become the norm instead of just concepts and ideas? Whats your opinion on that?

I try Googling this info but I never find hard answers. Everything just seems to be coming out in the future. Well how long do we have to wait?

Has anyone seen the movie "Who Killed the Electric Car"?

[Coolyfett]

Not time to buy a hybrid; time to ditch the suburbs.

Tell me about it!! If only it was so easy......

[Driven1]

Gee, where is that Cookie-Monster now?

Trolleys/transit/rail/skyway anyone?

Ocklawaha

HA ha ha ha!!! Ock your new name is Noah. The creator of the "Ark on Rail"

Stephendare 8 dollars a gallon?? Man that would hurt!! really That would so hurt.

What are your ideas to avoid buying gas to get around??

Sometimes I think of sleeping in my car till the next day/shift lol just to avoid the long drive from home.


Question for Lake....When will the  Mulitiple TODs & Electric Automobiles become the norm instead of just concepts and ideas? Whats your opinion on that?

I try Googling this info but I never find hard answers. Everything just seems to be coming out in the future. Well how long do we have to wait?

Has anyone seen the movie "Who Killed the Electric Car"?

as of one hour ago...

Honda to sell new gas-electric hybrid next year

http://news.moneycentral.msn.com/provider/providerarticle.aspx?feed=AP&date=20080520&id=8673646

[Ernest Street]

Hahaha..I live in 5 Points and save a lot of gas driving downtown.  Problem is driving to the southside where a lot of my business is.

[gatorback]

This thing looks huge and damn, I can't wait like you said Ocklawaha.

[gatorback]

[gatorback]

Two concept models will make their world premiere at the motor show. The CR-Z is a next-generation lightweight sports car equipped with Honda’s original gas-electric hybrid system which achieves both clean performance and a high level of torque. The PUYO is a fuel cell vehicle which was designed based on out-of-box thinking to provide fun for both the vehicle owner and people around them as well. Also on display will be a model of the i-DTEC next-generation diesel engine, first announced in September at the Frankfurt Motor Show, which delivers both outstanding environmental performance and engine performance characteristics.

Moreover, the all-new Fit, which will go on sale in Japan in late October, will be on display. Since it was first introduced in 2001, the Fit has been widely acclaimed for its style, functionality, and outstanding fuel economy, with worldwide sales topping two million units. The all-new Inspire equipped with a new Variable Cylinder Management system, scheduled to go on sale in Japan later this year, will also be on display. Honda will exhibit a total of 18 vehicles representing 11 different models, including vehicles already on the market, those soon to be introduced, and future concept models.

In addition, a “Next Energy” display will showcase Honda’s latest initiatives in new energy development, including technology for producing bio-ethanol from rice straw and the environmentally responsible next-generation thin-film solar cells, which will go on sale nationwide in Japan. Moreover, Honda’s F1 and other racing machines that symbolize the challenge to realize new dreams and other advanced environmental technologies that enable people to enjoy mobility into the future will also be on display. Through these exhibits, Honda will propose a new direction for the future of mobility PUYO
‘PUYO’ is a Japanese onomatopoeia that expresses the sensation of touching the vehicle’s soft body. It is meant to convey a warm, friendly impression.

The PUYO represents a new idea in mobility that brings together ‘clean’, ’safe’ and ‘fun’ functionality in an environmentally responsible, people-friendly minimalist design featuring an ultra-high efficiency, small frame and fuel cell technology to please both users and onlookers alike.

Exterior design
The development theme for the PUYO exterior was to create a cornerless, ‘Seamless Soft Box’ form that is kind to both people and the environment. The goal was to create a personable design with the feel of an adorable pet, while taking advantage of the maximum spaciousness of the box-shaped design. The PUYO’s ‘gel body’ features soft materials to promote greater real-world safety. Moreover, the body has been made luminescent to guide people into the proper operating position and notify them of the vehicle’s condition, facilitating a more intimate relationship between people and their cars.

[gatorback]

Interior design
Developed to have a ‘Silky Feel’, the PUYO’s interior is designed to provide a refreshing, people-friendly space imbued with a feeling of transparency. Features such as an instrument panel monitor, controls that take advantage of the elastic qualities of cloth to rise up when the vehicle starts up, luminous fluid meter displays, and a joystick for intuitive operation are all designed to gently support occupants’ senses and sensibilities.