680 articles on Cars

  • The Buttons Are Back on Ford's Most Popular Model
    Ford has taken the wraps off the 2013 F-Series pickup and there's something familiar inside: buttons and knobs. Rather than outfit the new (and optional) MyFord Touch-equipped center stack with the same capacitive controls fitted to the Edge and Explorer, Ford opted for standard switchgear. But why?
    06.04.12
  • A Start Up Trek - Creative Commons
    So in summary creative time is good. Here I was able to work out the interactions of the different aspects of MindGear, and develop my drawing skills a little. I have to put off doing a better sketch because financial and budgeting and marketing tasks are still sitting on my desk. And finally I realize I'm about to embark on an experiment. I'm creating conflict by disagreeing with my girlfriend in public in a blog article. Next week will show how well that goes.
    06.04.12
  • The World's Largest Boeing Takes Flight
    Boeing's largest airplane began passenger service today as Lufthansa enlisted the service of the new 747-8 Intercontinental on a flight from Frankfurt, Germany, to Washington, D.C. The newest 747 is a bigger, quieter and more efficient version of the iconic jumbo jet that first flew passengers under the Pan Am banner back in 1970. The 747-8I uses much of the same technology found on the 787 Dreamliner, along with an all-new wing and engines.
    06.01.12
  • BMW Developing Handwriting Recognition, Gesture Controls
    Audi may have been the first automaker to integrate a touch pad into its infotainment systems, allowing users to simply draw letters rather than tediously scroll through an alphanumeric list to input an address or point-of-interest search. But BMW refuses to be left behind, and in addition to a new iDrive controller with integrated touch pad, the automaker is working on new gesture-based controls that are unlike anything we've seen in a production vehicle.
    06.01.12
  • Ford's 'Sync' Driving Data to Provide Insurance Discounts
    State Farm is expanding its Drive Safe and Save usage-based insurance program to include cars equipped with Ford¿s Sync telematics system. Also known as ¿pay as you go,¿ usage-based insurance programs look at how many miles drivers put on their cars and calculate premiums accordingly.
    05.31.12
  • Rigid Roads Can Reduce Fuel Consumption
    A new study predicts that repaving US roadways with firmer surfaces could save up to 273 million barrels of crude oil each year. Researchers at MIT used mathematical models to examine the forces at work when a rubber tire travels over a road surface and found that cars and trucks must use slightly more energy on ...
    05.31.12
  • Ash Falls on Manizales as Colombia's Ruiz Ramps Up Explosions [UPDATED]
    I might have guessed that just after reading an article about how USGS geologist left Colombia this week after helping set up monitoring for Nevado del Ruiz that the volcano do something. Sure enough, today the volcano experienced a series of explosions that produced ash that fell on the city of Manizales, ~30 km from ...
    05.30.12
  • Exclusive: Hands-On With BMW's Most Advanced Infotainment System
                         runMobileCompatibilityScript('myExperience1656904524001', 'anId'); brightcove.createExperiences(); BMW has released details on its refreshed 2013 7 Series flagship before it goes on sale late this summer. But while the new drivetrains, mildly updated exterior and reworked interior are nice, what's more impressive is the latest iteration of BMW iDrive. And we've ...
    05.25.12
  • Senate Panel Cuts Off Navy's Biofuel Buys
    The Navy's ambitious renewable energy plans aren't sunk quite yet. But they took a major hit Thursday, when the Senate Armed Services Committee voted to all-but-ban the military from buying alternative fuels.
    05.24.12
  • Automakers Struggle to Create an iPhone-Simple User Interface
    As automakers continue to load vehicles with the features and functionality people expect from their portable devices, the in-dash user interface has become a branding battleground ¿ and the Achilles¿ heel of the increasingly connected car.
    05.24.12
  • Garmin's Multi-Controller Concept Talks to the Hand
    With more technology being shoved into the dashboard of cars, drivers are being bombarded with information. So automakers and suppliers are trying to figure out the best way to manage this growing sensory overload so drivers don't become distracted, say, by their Facebook feeds on an in-dash display.
    05.23.12
  • New Alfa Romeo Roadster Will Be Mazda MX-5 Based, Built In Japan
    Earlier this morning, Mazda and Fiat announced that they are partnering to build a new Alfa Romeo roadster off of the forthcoming Mazda MX-5 platform. This could be very, very good news for fans of both brands. According to Mazda, the two companies signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding (MoU) to further the development and production ...
    05.23.12
  • Tesla Model S Coming June 22
    It's official: The first deliveries of the long-awaited Tesla Model S will begin on June 22. Nearly three years after the car was first announced, Tesla's sales VP George Blankenship confirmed on the company's blog that the first customers with reservations will get their cars a month from today.
    05.22.12
  • Rolls-Royce EV Cancelled Due To Lack Of Customer Interest
    The people have spoken, and they're not interested in an electric Rolls-Royce. Since its debut at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show, Rolls-Royce has been traveling the world with its sole Rolls-Royce 102EX Phantom Experimental Electric, gauging how likely current Rolls-Royce owners would be to open their Burberry wallets for an EV adorned with the Spirit of ...
    05.22.12
  • Trucks Use GPS To Anticipate Hills, Save Fuel
    Daimler has debuted a new speed control system on their long-haul trucks that uses GPS data to automatically choose the right gear for going up or down a hill. Available on the Mercedes-Benz Actros, Predictive Power Control takes advantage of topographic data programmed into the truck's GPS in order to properly shift the truck's 12-speed automatic ...
    05.21.12
  • A Start Up Trek - Resource Management
    To recap, I have enough funding to start MindGear, but not quite enough to do the full lab pictured here. I'll look at my financial options and at doing a crowdsourcing campaign soon. My attempt to economize by doing work I could farm out to others (website design, hiring efforts) is taking too much of my time. I'm rapidly coming to the conclusion that I need to farm out whatever I can to people who are passionate about what they do. That way I can concentrate on what I'm competent and excited about doing, making this business a success.
    05.21.12
  • As Congress Mulls Mandate on Car Black Boxes, Data Ownership Remains Unclear
    Congress seems set on passing legislation that would make an Electronic Data Recorder (EDR) ¿ the technical name for an automotive black box ¿ required equipment on all new cars. And lawmakers also want to settle who owns the data on the devices, although that issue won't be nearly as cut-and-dried.
    05.16.12
  • OnStar Files Patents for Minority Report-Style Billboards
    Two weeks ago, a patent filing by General Motors was uncovered that proposed using data collected from its OnStar service to tailor public advertisements to individual drivers. Like the billboards Tom Cruise encountered in Minority Report, the OnStar-linked ads would be tailored to passing motorists based on personal information they'd shared with their telematics service. Perusing ...
    05.15.12
  • Ford + TechShop: Getting Employees to Tinker
    Before he invented the assembly line, Henry Ford built his first prototype on a workbench in a shed. More than a century later, his company has partnered with TechShop the 21st-century equivalent of that shed, with a bold program to ignite innovation in the company.
    05.14.12
  • A Start Up Trek - Young Minds
    That was this week's theme as I rush around trying to start a business from scratch. And the marketers have told me to not forget the kids. Kids may not have most of the money in our economy, but pretty much all of what they have is disposable. And a kid doesn't have to have money to wield considerable influence over how money is spent.
    05.14.12
  • Ford Fusion To Bring Active Safety Technology To The Masses
    Ford has announced that the upcoming 2013 Fusion will offer an available suite of driver assistance technology, like adaptive cruise control, active park assist and collision warning. While active safety features have increasingly been offered on luxury cars over the past five years, the Fusion marks the first time such systems have been available in a ...
    05.10.12
  • Aussie Hypermilers Break Another Record, This Time With Diesel
    When we last heard from Helen and John Taylor, they'd just finished a drive through all 48 contiguous states in a Chevy Cruze Eco, achieving 64.42 mpg in the process. Now, the couple from Melbourne, Australia has set a new record: 1,626 miles on a single tank of fuel. This time that fuel was diesel, and ...
    05.10.12
  • Tesla Model S Range Could Top 300 Miles
    Tesla has announced that their long-awaited and finally forthcoming Model S sedan is expected to have a real-world operating range between 250 and 350 miles. Those numbers come from computer models of Model S battery performance, and appeared in a post on Tesla's blog co-authored by founder and CEO Elon Musk and Chief Technical Officer JB Straubel. They ...
    05.09.12


 

 

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