Archive for November, 2010

Sunny reports from LA

The Washington Auto Show delegation has returned from the L.A. Auto Show press preview day, which spelled considerable optimism for the industry.

As reported from the NYTimes Wheels blog;

“Such a strong presence for Nissan, Infiniti, Chrysler, Dodge and Fiat — returning here for the first time in 27 years — at the Los Angeles show is seen as especially significant. A year ago, those automakers essentially shunned this stop on the worldwide circuit of auto shows. Over all, it is seen as a hopeful sign of a recovery in the industry. These new introductions, plus dozens of others, will help breathe life into a show that was in danger the last two years, during the depths of the industry’s depression, of becoming moribund.” 

Here are Barbara’s pics on location.

Debut of the 2012 Ford Focus

Here is one of Stefan Jacoby, president and CEO of Volvo, who projected the company will have sold 380,000 vehicles by 2010. Jacoby also said Volvo will make a PHEV SUV next year.

Stefan Jacoby, president and CEO of Volvo

And, what would a blog post be without a little self-indulgence.

Here’s one of our team: Washington Auto Show Chairman Charles Stringfellow, who  is apparently cutting up with Ron Cogan, editor and publisher of the Green Car Journal.

L to R: Ron Cogan, editor and publisher of Green Car Journal and editor of www.greencar.com, with Charles Stringfellow, Washington Auto Show chairman and CEO of Brown Automotive Group.

We work closely with Ron to produce our Green Car Summit on Capitol Hill.

Cogan’s Green Car Journal proclaimed the Chevy Volt its “Green Car of the Year” on Thursday. That prestigious award comes after MOtor Trend gave the Volt its coveted car of the year award as well.

Cogan will announce the Green Car Journal’s “Green Car Vision” award at The Washington Auto Show, keynoted by GM CEO Dan Akerson.

GE announces winners of ecomagination Challenge

Among the nearly 4,000 submissions to advance the smart grid through a collaborative framework, five winners were announced Tuesday.

Each of the following five companies will receive $100,000 from GE to pursue their plan.  (For more details, check out the press release from GE: http://tinyurl.com/33b94r4 or visit www.ecomagination.com for a fuller picture of GE’s work to jumpstart the smart grid.)

And the winners are….

Capstone Metering: Intelligent Water Meters, Carrollton, Texas

ElectricRoute: Secure Communications Network for the Electric Grid, Salem and Hollis, New Hampshire

GridON: Controlling Power Quality in Electric Grids, Givatayim, Israel

IceCode: Wind Turbine Blade Anti-Icing and De-Icing, West Lebanon, NH

WinFlex: Inflatable Wind Turbines, Kiryat Yam, Israel

GM riding high on IPO, Motor Trend pick

The hubbub surrounding GM’s impending IPO has reached a fairly feverish pitch now that the pricing is reported to be significantly higher than previously indicated. Add to the mix today’s blockbuster news from Motor Trend announcing the Chevy Volt the 2011 Car of the Year and you have one very confident General Motors.

We’ll look forward to hearing all about it firsthand when GM CEO Dan Akerson keynotes Public Policy Day at The Washington Auto Show ®.

Here are the latest details from USA Today’s “On Deadline” — http://tinyurl.com/36vkezy

And the full feature from Motor Trend on the Volt:

http://tinyurl.com/34oj7hj

Mulally: The People’s Business Person of the Year

The fresh-faced CEO of Ford, who keynoted The Washington Auto Show last year, is the people’s pick for business person of the year, says Fortune. http://tinyurl.com/2frowd4

At a time when America is hankering for a rock star to put our economy back on track, this designation is a considerable one.

Interestingly, Ratan Tata of the Tata Group was one of the top contendors. Tata Motors, produces the world’s cheapest car and one that runs on air with technology by the French company, Motor Development International.

DOE and EPA release 2011 guide to fuel-efficient vehicles

The 2011 Fuel Economy Guide, an analysis of fuel efficiency among 2011 model vehicles, is availalbe on the EPA web site: www.fueleconomy.gov. The site provides soup-to-nuts tips on energy-efficient driving.

Here is the DOE’s release on the 2011 Fuel Economy Guide.

http://www.energy.gov/news/9760.htm