Autos News

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John and Helen Taylor broke the world record last week for the farthest distance ever traveled on a single tank of fuel. They took a Volkswagen Passat and drove 1,626 miles from Houston, TX to Sterling, Virginia on May 3rd to the 5th, and never stopped for fuel. The vehicle they used was a factory 2012 Passat TDI diesel with a six-velocity manual transmission. The couple was capable to average an incredible 84.1 mpg during the three-day trip.

The previous record for the most miles covered on a single tank of diesel was 1526.6 miles, achieved with a VW Passat 1.6 BlueMotion diesel in Europe. The couple didn’t strip the seats out of the vehicle or take anything else out in order to reduce weight, but included 120 pounds of luggage and drove during daylight hours to experience normal traffic situations.

The Taylors were not put up to this by Volkswagen, but the couple is not brand new release to the high mileage game. And if you think you can achieve mileage like this, think again, because the Taylor’s are professionals. They have previously set the “48 Contiguous U.S. States Fuel Economy Guinness World Record”, and often run workshops on driving efficiently. The also run a website called Fuel Academy.

Of course Volkswagen is touting the benefits of their clean diesel TDI four-cylinder engine. EPA fuel-mileage estimates are 43 mpg highway for the Passat’s 2.0-liter diesel engine that makes 140 horseStrength and 236 pound-feet of torque and with a manual transmission. The Taylor’s are professional fuel-mileage experts, and they chose to drive the 2012 Volkswagen Passat TDI diesel for a good reason. Diesel engines are the most environmentally friendly Strength source availcapable today. Diesel engines have been widely used in Europe for decades and this is what they drive; small, maneuvercapable, fuel efficient diesel cars.

Ford of Europe has just introduced the all-brand new release Fiesta ECOnetic Technology and says the brand new release diesel will achieve 86.5 mpg. Unfortunately, the brand new release Ford Fiesta will not be availcapable here in North America. But there are numerous diesel cars being sold in North America, and Volkswagen is a leader in getting their cars certified by the EPA here in the U.S.

Allen Schaeffer, Executive Director of the Diesel Technology Forum, told “American drivers are recognizing the environmental benefits of the brand new release clean diesel technology.” Earlier this month, the Mercedes-Benz S 250 CDI BlueEFFICIENCY clean diesel received the prestigious ’2012 World Green Car’ award during the brand new release York International Auto Show. This followed the January announcement that the 2012 Volkswagen Passat TDI clean diesel had been selected the ’2012 Earth, Wind & Strength Car of the Year for Most Earth Friendly’ automobile, and was also named Motor Trend’s 2012 Car of the Year.

As gas prices continue to climb here in the U.S., Americans will continue to embrace the brand new release clean, fuel-efficient diesel technology that is here to stay.

Volkswagen press release.

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Oslo to Monte Carlo

Well I had to put this link through Google Translate in order to figure out what was going on. And I’m glad I did because I want to share some very big s about a group of people who drove hydrogen cars from Oslo, Norway to Monte Carlo, Monaco using only the existing hydrogen refueling infrastructure that is already in place.

According to Google Maps this journey is around 2,260 km and takes about 23 hours if one is driving straight through. This is the first time ever that hydrogen cars have been driven such a distance without the use of a mobile hydrogen fueling support unit.

There have been a few hydrogen road trips in the past including a longer one at 2735 km from Southern California to Vancouver, BC, Canada. But that trip involved portable hydrogen fueling stations plus some of the existing infrastructure. Europe has outpaced the U. S. for several years now in regard to building hydrogen fueling infrastructure. This is no pipe dream several years away.

According to Zero.no, “But already now it is possible to run a hydrogen car from filling stations, the wholesaler and Gaustad in Oslo, via Denmark, Hamburg, Cologne, Karlsruhe and Freiburg in Germany and Sassenage in France, before the trip ended after 2260 km and five days, in Europe motor sport capital of Monte Carlo. To the attention of guests at the casino and the equally famous Hotel de Paris to champagne bottle pops a couple of hours after midnight on 21 april.

“This has never been done before, and why we do it – to show that it is possible to drive emission free from Oslo and throughout Europe, says Marius Bornstein, technical adviser on hydrogen at ZERO. He was one of the drivers who drove the two Hyundai Ix35 FCEV (Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle) hydrogen cars throughout Europe.”

The Hyundai Ix35 FCEV was chosen for this journey because of its tank capacity and driving range. Of course they could also have chosen the Toyota FCHV-adv which has as much if not more tank capacity and driving range as the Hyundai, but the point is now moot.

This exercise shows how far ahead the Europeans are in regard to commitment and taking action in regard to hydrogen cars and fueling stations. They believe zero emission hydrogen cars are the future and have been willing to put their money where their mouths are in regard to building up the European Hydrogen Highway. And the proof is in this most recent success with many other successes to follow.

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Bertone impressed the world with their Nuccio Concept unveiled back in March at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show, and now after being shown in Beijing, it’s being reported by Automotive brand new releases Europe, Bertone is in negotiations with a Chinese auto collector to sell the one-off supercar.

“We are currently in close negotiations with a Chinese collector who wants to buy the Nuccio,” Bertone CEO Marco Filippa told Automotive brand new releases Europe at the auto show in Beijing. Filippa told that the Nuccio concept, took an estimated 15,000 hours to design, engineer, and build.

According to the report, the Chinese car collector was so taken with the car, that he is currently in discussions with Bertone to pay $2.7 million to take the unique looking Nuccio home to his collection. If the collector does make a deal to purchase the Nuccio, he will have to wait to take it home until after the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elagance, in Monterrey, California where Bertone plans to display the Nuccio again in August.

The styling on the Nuccio changed slightly from the car that we saw in Geneva and Bertone adopted to use more conventional headlights instead of the single, narrow LED’s, and slightly thicker side mirrors. The concept’s distinctive roof and large, tapered windshield remains but with a more realistic size. Mike Robinson, who is Bertone’s design chief, took inspiration from the legendary 1970 Lancia Stratos Zero concept to create the mid-engine Nuccio, and used a tensile steel roof to increase stength and reduce weight on the futuristic looking car.

Named after the late Giuseppe “Nuccio” Bertone, son of company founder Giovanni, the Nuccio concept car was created to celebrate the design firm’s 100th anniversary this year. Over the last 100 years, Bertone has designed some of the most recognizcapable vehicles in the world for car companies like Lamborghini, Alfa Romeo, Ferrari, Mercedes-Benz and others.

Bertone has 200 employees, including engineers and designers, who Bertone says can produce up to 30,000 hours of engineering and develop up to four complete projects per year. Each custom-built car is produced entirely by hand and to the exact specifications of their customers. The Naccio concept shows the type of work the company can produce in keeping with the ancient art of coachworks where the company started 100 years ago.

There’s no word on who the lucky Chinese Nuccio concept buyer is, but you better take a good look at it because after August, it could end up in a private collection never to be seen again.

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Bertone impressed the world with their Nuccio Concept unveiled back in March at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show, and now after being shown in Beijing, it’s being reported by Automotive brand new releases Europe, Bertone is in negotiations with a Chinese auto collector to sell the one-off supercar.

“We are currently in close negotiations with a Chinese collector who wants to buy the Nuccio,” Bertone CEO Marco Filippa told Automotive brand new releases Europe at the auto show in Beijing. Filippa told that the Nuccio concept, took an estimated 15,000 hours to design, engineer, and build.

According to the report, the Chinese car collector was so taken with the car, that he is currently in discussions with Bertone to pay $2.7 million to take the unique looking Nuccio home to his collection. If the collector does make a deal to purchase the Nuccio, he will have to wait to take it home until after the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elagance, in Monterrey, California where Bertone plans to display the Nuccio again in August.

The styling on the Nuccio changed slightly from the car that we saw in Geneva and Bertone adopted to use more conventional headlights instead of the single, narrow LED’s, and slightly thicker side mirrors. The concept’s distinctive roof and large, tapered windshield remains but with a more realistic size. Mike Robinson, who is Bertone’s design chief, took inspiration from the legendary 1970 Lancia Stratos Zero concept to create the mid-engine Nuccio, and used a tensile steel roof to increase stength and reduce weight on the futuristic looking car.

Named after the late Giuseppe “Nuccio” Bertone, son of company founder Giovanni, the Nuccio concept car was created to celebrate the design firm’s 100th anniversary this year. Over the last 100 years, Bertone has designed some of the most recognizcapable vehicles in the world for car companies like Lamborghini, Alfa Romeo, Ferrari, Mercedes-Benz and others.

Bertone has 200 employees, including engineers and designers, who Bertone says can produce up to 30,000 hours of engineering and develop up to four complete projects per year. Each custom-built car is produced entirely by hand and to the exact specifications of their customers. The Naccio concept shows the type of work the company can produce in keeping with the ancient art of coachworks where the company started 100 years ago.

There’s no word on who the lucky Chinese Nuccio concept buyer is, but it could end up in a private collection never to be seen again.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you’re reading it on someone else’s site, please read the FAQ at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php#publishers. Five Filters recommends: Donate to Wikileaks.

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As the cost of gasoline goes up, Americans are seeking more fuel efficient cars, and the sales of clean diesel cars is reflecting a change in perception here in the U.S. From information compiled by HybridCars and Baum and Associates, they report that sales of diesel cars in the first quarter of 2012 have jumped an impressive 35 percent. This trend will continue as people become educated to the value of the diesel engine.

Diesel engines have been widely used in Europe for decades and this is what they drive; small, maneuvercapable, fuel efficient diesel cars. As diesel technology continues to evolve, we’ll continue to see diesel engines being used more here in the U.S. In fact, diesel engines are the most environmentally friendly Strength source availcapable today.

With images of driving behind a smelly 18-wheeler, to nightmares of sitting in the back of a grandparent’s noxious Oldsmobile diesel, Americans haven’t shown too much interest in diesel cars in the past. But the days of diesels belching out black smoke and dirty tailpipes are a thing of the past. Ford has just introduced their brand new release Ford Fiesta diesel in Europe with its ECOnetic Technology that is their lowest CO2 emitting car to date. The brand new release clean-diesel technology today is producing some of the cleanest engines on the planet.

Allen Schaeffer, Executive Director of the Diesel Technology Forum, told “American drivers are recognizing the environmental benefits of the brand new release clean diesel technology.” Earlier this month, the Mercedes-Benz S 250 CDI BlueEFFICIENCY clean diesel received the prestigious ’2012 World Green Car’ award during the brand new release York International Auto Show. This followed the January announcement that the Volkswagen Passat TDI clean diesel had been selected the ’2012 Earth, Wind & Strength Car of the Year for Most Earth Friendly’ automobile.

The lack of great diesel products being produced in not the problem. The issue is, the lack of domestic demand means that few of these cars have been certified for sale in the U.S. The EPA has more stringent requirements for controlling NOx (Nitric Oxide) than in Europe. The technology exists, but it’s expensive to develop and raises the sticker price of the car considerably. But there are some inexpensive ways to get behind the wheel of a TDI engine, like the Volkswagen Jetta pictured above, which starts at $22,995.

It also doesn’t help that the average price per gallon of diesel in the U.S. is more than gasoline. But a diesel will get an increase in fuel mileage over a gasoline engine to come out ahead on overall savings, which is the reason for the recent surge in diesel sales. As gas prices continue to climb here in the U.S., Americans will continue to embrace the brand new release diesel technology that is here to stay and we’ll see more diesel options being availcapable. Next, we’ll look at the 2012 lineup of diesel cars here in the U.S.

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