TechnologySmartphones, devices influence expectations for connected cars, study says 12:00 pm U.S. ET | June 5, 2013  Consumer expectations for connected-vehicle technology are being shaped by nonautomotive devices such as smartphones and tablets, according to a new study.... Read More »
LEARNING LAB Stanford innovation center studies the auto's past, plans for its future 12:01 am U.S. ET | June 3, 2013  Drawing on Stanford's resources, the Automotive Innovation Facility in Palo Alto, Calif., has become an academic hothouse for all things automotive. It's a think-big tank that looks at everything from how body panels corrode to the history of iconic cars -- not just to solve today's problems but to understand the future of personal transportation and to plan for it.... Read More »
Japan's nonstop search for best stop-start system 12:01 am U.S. ET | June 3, 2013  Suppliers and carmakers are trying out competing energy-storage systems to power the fuel-saving engine stop-start systems that are increasingly common on vehicles.... Read More »
Cruze woos VW fans with 46-mpg diesel 12:01 am U.S. ET | June 3, 2013  The gaudy 46 mpg highway rating on the 2014 Chevrolet Cruze diesel, combined with its smooth powertrain and relatively quiet cabin, might be enough to ease Americans' leeriness of diesel cars.... Read More »
REALITY CHECK Infiniti boss puts EV on hold, reduces sales expectations 12:01 am U.S. ET | June 3, 2013  Infiniti's new boss is calling for new priorities. Less than a year into his job as president of Nissan Motor Co.'s premium marque, Johan de Nysschen is tempering expectations that Infiniti will nearly triple sales in four years.... Read More »
Self-driving car safety worries feds 12:01 am U.S. ET | June 3, 2013 Self-driving cars are not ready for prime time, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said last week as it urged states to require motorists to have special licenses and be in the driver's seat at all times to operate the vehicles.... Read More »
Better Place bites the dust after 5-year run 12:01 am U.S. ET | June 3, 2013  Better Place, the Palo Alto, Calif., company that aimed to change the world with a global system of cars powered by switchable batteries, is going to -- well, a better place.... Read More »
THE DEALER SPEAKS: O.C. WELCH, O.C. WELSH FORD-LINCOLN 'All this Bluetooth stuff' is a time-suck for dealerships 12:01 am U.S. ET | June 3, 2013  From the time he started his own car-cleaning and -detailing operation in Savannah, Ga., at age 20, O.C. Welch knew he was going to be a lifer in the car business.... Read More »
Bosch sees opportunity in automated driving 12:01 am U.S. ET | June 3, 2013  Many of the pieces to achieve automated driving are in place, such as sensors that can control braking, steering, speed and the distance between vehicles.... Read More »
Automated cars show promise, but not ready for wider use, regulators sayMay 30, 2013 17:34 CET  Self-driving cars could have huge benefits for drivers in the long run, but they should remain in the experimental phase for now, U.S. federal auto safety regulators say.... Read More »
Automated cars show promise, but not ready for wider use, regulators say 11:34 am U.S. ET | May 30, 2013  Self-driving cars could have huge benefits for drivers in the long run, but they should remain in the experimental phase for now, federal auto safety regulators say.... Read More »
Indy engines shrink, just like those in showrooms 12:01 am U.S. ET | May 27, 2013  The technological trends that are shrinking engines in the showroom are also downsizing cutting-edge powerplants at the Indianapolis 500 and the IndyCar racing circuit.... Read More »
STAR POWER Not satisfied with OnStar's steady profits, GM wants to create a global 4G powerhouse 12:01 am U.S. ET | May 27, 2013  General Motors' OnStar telematics unit has quietly become a profit margin superstar. Analysts peg OnStar's revenues at about $1.5 billion annually, with a margin of 30 to 35 percent. That's about five times the 6.2 percent margin from GM's first-quarter adjusted earnings before interest and taxes in North America. The question for GM now is: Can OnStar be more?... Read More »
F1: Turbo tutorial for Honda? 12:01 am U.S. ET | May 27, 2013 For average car buyers, the most important aspect of Honda Motor Co.'s return to Formula One racing, as an engine supplier to McLaren Automotive, could be its plans for downsized turbocharging. Honda is expected to roll out downsized turbocharging as its next step toward more fuel-efficient cars. Developing them for racing could boost its mass-market plans.... Read More »
Small BMW team rethought electric cars for huge citiesMay 23, 2013 06:01 CET  Nearly six years ago, BMW's Project i began to position the automaker for the future. Project i chief Ulrich Kranz explained how the idea of a carbon-body car for megacities emerged from his team.... Read More »
PSA will close r&d site to reduce spendingMay 22, 2013 09:49 CET  PSA will shut a French r&d facility as part of a program to reduce spending.... Read More »
CARS & CONCEPTS NSX's electric motors will help handling 12:01 am U.S. ET | May 20, 2013  Technical details on the Acura NSX coming in 2015 are scarce, but large-project leader Ted Klaus offered a few nuggets last week as Honda officials announced that the sports car will be built in Ohio.... Read More »
Cost is key to fate of talking cars 12:01 am U.S. ET | May 20, 2013  Cars that communicate with each other to avoid crashes or traffic jams will save lives, but the cost of the systems will determine consumers' acceptance, the U.S. transportation secretary said last week.... Read More »
Survey: Consumers are ready for new tech ideas in cars 10:29 am U.S. ET | May 15, 2013 A new survey about what vehicle consumers want and don't want suggests that the auto industry is lagging consumers when it comes to technology ideas.... Read More »
Cost to be big factor in 'talking' cars acceptance, LaHood says 3:51 pm U.S. ET | May 14, 2013  Cars that "talk" to each other to avoid crashes or traffic jams, like those being tested here, will save lives but the cost of the systems will determine consumers' acceptance of such technology, the transportation secretary said today.... Read More »
BEST PRACTICES Dealer pairs test driver's phone to car 12:01 am U.S. ET | May 13, 2013  A Chrysler Group dealer in Michigan has turned a 30-second routine into a better way to demonstrate his technology-laden vehicles.Before the start of each test drive at Extreme Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram, the salesperson showing the vehicle asks the customer in the driver's seat for his or her smartphone and -- with permission -- connects the phone to the vehicle's infotainment system.... Read More »
Michigan couple appeal sentence in GM trade-secret case 6:07 pm U.S. ET | May 13, 2013 A Michigan couple sentenced to prison for stealing General Motors hybrid-car technology trade secrets filed appeals Friday with the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati.... Read More »
GABE NELSON Why Wednesday hearing could be connected cars' moment of truth 4:12 pm U.S. ET | May 13, 2013  In the software industry, people talk about vaporware -- products that are heavily promoted but never seem to go on sale. Automakers are at the point that they must prove that connected cars, which talk to each other over Wi-Fi to stay out of fender-benders, are more than just vaporware.... Read More »
Toyota puts high beams on headlight regulation 12:01 am U.S. ET | May 13, 2013  With a recent petition, Toyota has intensified the pressure on safety regulators to approve new headlights currently forbidden on U.S. roads. The headlights use cameras to detect other cars and automatically dim the portions of the high beam that would shine in other drivers' eyes.... Read More »
GM says new data centers will improve vehicles, margins 1:35 pm U.S. ET | May 13, 2013  General Motors said it is investing $546 million in two new Michigan data centers in hopes it will free up millions of dollars to boost vehicle quality more quickly.... Read More »
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Special Report
 Dealer O.C. Welch's big-truck turnaroundAfter Mercury's demise, South Carolina Ford-Lincoln dealer O.C. Welch had to find a way to replace lost revenue. He decided to load up on Super Duty pickups – and sell them online. Mon., June 17» Watch the Video |
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Don Davis Dealerships, Inc. -- Lake Jackson, Texas, United States - Service Manager
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