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March 2011

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Monday, March 28, 2011

2011 Kia Sportage Review, Specs and Comparisons

2011 Kia Sportage Review, Specs and Comparisons

2011 KIA SPORTAGE EX FWD Review By Steve Purdy TheAutoChannel.com Detroit Bureau This third-generation Sportage compact, front-wheel drive crossover has come a long way since the first generation’s introduction as a cheap and tawdry little conveyance. Though undistinguished in style or design the second generation ... Continue reading

NextGen Motor Oil Gives Drivers The Opportunity Go Green(er)

NextGen Motor Oil Gives Drivers The Opportunity Go Green(er)

Lexington KY March 27, 2011; Kentucky -based Valvoline, a division of Ashland Oil, unveiled NextGen a new type of motor oil made with 50 percent recycled oil. Valvoline says that NextGen is more environmentally friendly because the reuse of used oil eliminates the need to dispose of it in a way that contaminates the so ... Continue reading

Cooper Standard Acquires USi, Expands Technology Capabilities

Cooper Standard Acquires USi, Expands Technology Capabilities

PR Newswire NOVI, Mich., March 28, 2011 NOVI, Mich., March 28, 2011 -- Cooper Standard Automotive Inc. today announced its acquisition of USi, Inc. from Ikuyo Co. Ltd. of Japan, effective immediately. USi, based in Rockford, Tenn., provides an exclusive hard coating process for use in automotive and industrial applicat ... Continue reading

VINtek Marks 2010 with Significant Growth and Expansion

VINtek Marks 2010 with Significant Growth and Expansion

PHILADELPHIA--VINtek, a provider of automotive collateral management, electronic lien and title (ELT) services and direct finance processing for automotive lenders, reported 30 percent annual revenue growth in 2010, doubling its revenues since 2008. VINtek also signed nearly 700 new clients, a 435 percent increase in n ... Continue reading

General Tire Announces the Winner of the 2011 Miss Mint 400 Competition - Keli Snyder

General Tire Announces the Winner of the 2011 Miss Mint 400 Competition - Keli Snyder

PR Newswire FORT MILL, S.C., March 28, 2011 FORT MILL, S.C., March 28, 2011 -- The 2011 General Tire Miss Mint 400 competition comes to an exciting finish. After a fierce online voting competition and rounds of interviews, General Tire crowned Keli Snyder, a University of Southern California journalism student and a te ... Continue reading

Chevrolet Hits Home Run with 'Dream' Baseball Diamond at Pflugerville Little League Complex

Chevrolet Hits Home Run with 'Dream' Baseball Diamond at Pflugerville Little League Complex

PR Newswire PFLUGERVILLE, Texas, March 28, 2011 PFLUGERVILLE, Texas, March 28, 2011 -- YouTube video What started as a simple online ZIP code nomination by area-resident Patrick Hennigan, became a boon for local baseball teams when a Pflugerville Little League field was chosen as one of five winners of Chevrolet's 'Bui ... Continue reading

Intelligent Energy: Road Legal Fuel Cell Black Cabs Make First Appearance on London's Roads

Intelligent Energy: Road Legal Fuel Cell Black Cabs Make First Appearance on London's Roads

LOUGHBOROUGH, England--Intelligent Energy, the global clean power systems company, has announced that the Fuel Cell Black Cabs have taken to the roads of London for the first time since being awarded Road Legal status by the UK Vehicle Certification Authority (VCA). At an event on 22nd March 2011, one of the Intelligen ... Continue reading

Helmet Law Repeal Will Result in More Traffic Fatalities and Costs, AAA Reports

Helmet Law Repeal Will Result in More Traffic Fatalities and Costs, AAA Reports

PR Newswire DEARBORN, Mich., March 28, 2011 DEARBORN, Mich., March 28, 2011 -- AAA Michigan strongly opposes legislation recently introduced in both the Michigan Senate and the House which -- if approved -- would repeal Michigan's nearly four-decade old mandatory motorcycle helmet law. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.c ... Continue reading

Consumer Demand for the Lincoln MKZ Hybrid Continues to Outstrip Expectations; MKZ Range Excels for Choice and Dependability

Consumer Demand for the Lincoln MKZ Hybrid Continues to Outstrip Expectations; MKZ Range Excels for Choice and Dependability

PR Newswire DEARBORN, Mich., March 28, 2011 DEARBORN, Mich., March 28, 2011 -- Percentage of hybrid models sold within the MKZ range is higher than expected Lincoln MKZ Hybrid is the most fuel-efficient luxury sedan in America and is the first model to offer a no-charge hybrid powertrain option Lincoln received highest ... Continue reading

Duke's Garage Introduces Collection of Electric and Gasoline Powered Vintage Porsche Replica Convertibles

Duke's Garage Introduces Collection of Electric and Gasoline Powered Vintage Porsche Replica Convertibles

WESTMINSTER, Colo.--Duke’s Garage, a company specializing in restoring classic cars, and converting cars and trucks from gasoline engines to 100% electric vehicles, today announces the introduction of its eSpeedster and 550 Spyder Porsche replica vehicles. Duke’s Garage will be showcasing ... Continue reading

Ford Motor Co. is Awarded Ex-Im Bank Deal-of-the-Year Award

Ford Motor Co. is Awarded Ex-Im Bank Deal-of-the-Year Award

PR Newswire WASHINGTON, March 28, 2011 Unique $250 Million Facility Backs $3 Billion in Ford Car Sales, Thousands of American Jobs WASHINGTON, March 28, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Ford Motor Company, Dearborn, Mich., will receive the Deal of the Year award from the Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Ba ... Continue reading

Research and Markets: Connected Car Research Package with the European & North American Editions of Connected Car plus the CES 2011 Briefing

Research and Markets: Connected Car Research Package with the European & North American Editions of Connected Car plus the CES 2011 Briefing

DUBLIN--Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/362675/connected_car_rese) has announced the addition of the "Connected Car Research Package" report to their offering. This package contains the Connected Car Report - Europe & North American Editions plus the CES 2011 Briefing Connected Car Repo ... Continue reading

Lack of Highway Code knowledge is putting lives at risk in the UK

Lack of Highway Code knowledge is putting lives at risk in the UK

Our knowledge of The Highway Code is compromising road safety. That's the message from Goodyear as its poll of 5,000 people reveals that motorists have a poor understanding of the most basic road signs and rules. A copy of the press release is below summarising the most alarming results from the survey, but if you woul ... Continue reading

Cruze's Innovative Electrical Technology Saves Fuel

Cruze's Innovative Electrical Technology Saves Fuel

PR Newswire WARREN, Mich., March 28, 2011 WARREN, Mich., March 28, 2011 -- Improving fuel economy in the Chevrolet Cruze consists of many small steps, including reducing the energy consumed by the alternator to help make the engine run more efficiently. Officially, it is a patented General Motors technology called Regu ... Continue reading

China's Vice Premier Dejiang Zhang Confident in China Automotive Systems' Future

China's Vice Premier Dejiang Zhang Confident in China Automotive Systems' Future

PR Newswire HUBEI, China,, March 28, 2011 HUBEI, China, March 28, 2011 /PRNewswire-Asia-FirstCall/ -- China Automotive Systems, Inc. ("CAAS" or the "Company"), the largest power steering components and systems supplier in China, today announced that on March 24th, Vice Premier of the People's Republic of China, Mr. Dej ... Continue reading

Tesla Roadster Drives 10 Million Miles and Counting

Tesla Roadster Drives 10 Million Miles and Counting

PALO ALTO, Calif.--Tesla Motors announced today that electric Roadsters in more than 30 countries have now covered over 10 million real-world miles, the greatest collective distance covered by any electric vehicle maker to date. “We owe this achievement to Roadster drivers around the world and their pioneering ado ... Continue reading

Volkswagen Announces Voluntary Safety Recall of 71,000 2011 Model Year Jetta Vehicles

Volkswagen Announces Voluntary Safety Recall of 71,000 2011 Model Year Jetta Vehicles

PR Newswire HERNDON, Va., March 28, 2011 HERNDON, Va., March 28, 2011 -- Volkswagen of America, Inc. today announced a voluntary safety recall of 71,043 2011 model year Jettas in order to reconfigure a wiring layout associated with the anti-theft alarm system and horn. No injuries or accidents have been reported as a r ... Continue reading

Research and Markets: The Hybrids and Plug-In Vehicles Report - 2011 Edition

Research and Markets: The Hybrids and Plug-In Vehicles Report - 2011 Edition

DUBLIN--Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/102695/the_hybrids_and_pl) has announced the addition of the "The Hybrids and Plug-In Vehicles Report 2011 Edition" report to their offering. “The Hybrids and Plug-In Vehicles Report 2011 Edition” This 273 page report provides coverage o ... Continue reading

Coulomb Technologies ChargePoint Network Releases New Mobile App for Locating Available Charging Stations

Coulomb Technologies ChargePoint Network Releases New Mobile App for Locating Available Charging Stations

CAMPBELL, Calif.--Coulomb Technologies today announced new features for its ChargePoint smart phone apps for the Blackberry and iPhone. Now available for free in the iPhone and Blackberry app stores, the ChargePoint® App is the only app available that gives electric vehicle (EV) drivers real-time charging statio ... Continue reading

Impact of Electric Vehicle Roll-out to Shift Market Focus from Charging Infrastructure to Advanced Distribution Grid Technologies through 2015

Impact of Electric Vehicle Roll-out to Shift Market Focus from Charging Infrastructure to Advanced Distribution Grid Technologies through 2015

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--Due to their significant load requirements on existing power grids, the electric vehicles (EV) market will present a large market opportunity for smart grid hardware, software and communications vendors. As rising oil prices and auto-industry advances engender this EV market, a variety of smart grid t ... Continue reading

F1 - FIA Post-race Press Conference - Australian GP

F1 - FIA Post-race Press Conference - Australian GP

Drivers: 1 - Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull), 2 - Lewis Hamilton (McLaren), 3 - Vitaly Petrov (Renault). Q: Sebastian, pole position and victory. It looked under control, was it? Sebastian Vettel: Yeah, obviously, it was a good race. In the end, things calmed down a bit. Lewis didn’t push as hard anymore, so we tried ... Continue reading

Auto Club FAMOSO Bakersfield - March Meet Finals

Auto Club FAMOSO Bakersfield - March Meet Finals

BAKERSFIELD, Mar. 27, 2011: It took an extra six days, but it was well worth the wait for nostalgia drag racing fans as the March Meet completed its 53rd-year run Saturday at legendary Auto Club Famoso. Kris Krabill won the March Meet Nostalgia Funny Car championship for the first time as did Rick White, who captured t ... Continue reading

Long, von Kluge and Aschenbach Take Pirelli World Challenge Season Opening Wins

Long, von Kluge and Aschenbach Take Pirelli World Challenge Season Opening Wins

ST. PETERSBURG, March 27, 2011: “Exciting.â€� That was the word that overall and GT class winner Patrick Long, from Belleair, Fla., GTS class winner Jason von Kluge, from Ann Arbor, Mich., and Touring Car winner Lawson Aschenbach, from Darnestown, Md., each used to describe Saturday’s Acura Sports Ca ... Continue reading

Sam Schmidt Motorsports: St. Petersburg Indy Lights Race Report

Sam Schmidt Motorsports: St. Petersburg Indy Lights Race Report

St. Pete. March, 27, 2011: It can be said that Sam Schmidt Motorsports (SSM) was flexing its muscles Sunday in the Firestone Indy Lights Series race that was part of the IZOD IndyCar Series season-opening Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. After capturing the first three positions in Saturday qualifying, the four-car ... Continue reading

Simona de Silvestro Stuns Crowd With Fourth Place Finish

Simona de Silvestro Stuns Crowd With Fourth Place Finish

St. Pete., March 27, 2011: Simona de Silvestro started her sophomore season with an exciting run and an amazing fourth place finish in the #78 Nuclear Clean Air Energy car at the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. De Silvestro - the 2010 Indy 500 Rookie of the Year - set out to prove that she's got the talent to run a ... Continue reading

Track Chic's Woman Behind The Wheels: Simona De Silvestro Nuclear Clean Air Energy/HVM Racing

Track Chic's Woman Behind The Wheels: Simona De Silvestro Nuclear Clean Air Energy/HVM Racing

St. Pete. March 27, 2011: Simona De Silvestro hails from a country where auto racing has been banned since the 1955 24 Hours of Le Mans Disaster where a horrific crash caused large parts of racing car debris to fly into the crowd, killing many spectators. Nonetheless, this Swiss native knew at a very early age that rac ... Continue reading

Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: Toyota Motor, Honda Motor, Nissan Motor, General Motors and Ford Motor

Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: Toyota Motor, Honda Motor, Nissan Motor, General Motors and Ford Motor

PR Newswire CHICAGO, March 28, 2011 CHICAGO, March 28, 2011 -- Zacks.com Analyst Blog features: Toyota Motor Corp. , Honda Motor Co. , Nissan Motor Co. (OTC: NSANY), General Motors Co. and Ford Motor Co. . (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20101027/ZIRLOGO) Get the most recent insight from Zacks Equity Research ... Continue reading

Walter P. Chrysler Museum Announces 2011 Lecture/Workshop Series

Walter P. Chrysler Museum Announces 2011 Lecture/Workshop Series

PR Newswire AUBURN HILLS, Mich., March 28, 2011 AUBURN HILLS, Mich., March 28, 2011 -- The Walter P. Chrysler Museum in Auburn Hills, Mich., announces its complete 2011 Lecture/Workshop Series comprised of six sessions highlighting a wide range of topics for die-hard auto enthusiasts as well as novice car owners. The s ... Continue reading

Mercedes-Benz and The PGA of America Kick Off Golf Performance Center Tour at the Masters

Mercedes-Benz and The PGA of America Kick Off Golf Performance Center Tour at the Masters

PR Newswire AUGUSTA, Ga., March 28, 2011 AUGUSTA, Ga., March 28, 2011 -- A host of innovative golf teaching technologies hits the road this year giving golfers a chance to sharpen their skills as The Mercedes-Benz Performance Center, a mobile golf tour powered by The PGA of America, launches in Augusta with the help of ... Continue reading

Tesla Roadster Building Road Credibility as They Pass 10 Million Driving Miles

Tesla Roadster Building Road Credibility as They Pass 10 Million Driving Miles

PALO ALTO, Calif.--Tesla Motors announced today that electric Roadsters in more than 30 countries have now covered over 10 million real-world miles, the greatest collective distance covered by any electric vehicle maker to date. "The Roadster has proven to the world that electric cars can be incredibly fun and practica ... Continue reading

Website Revamp Reflects Changing Priorities In The Automotive Aftermarket Sector

Website Revamp Reflects Changing Priorities In The Automotive Aftermarket Sector

Diversified technology company 3M has revamped its dedicated website for the automotive aftermarket at www.3Mbodyshop.co.uk to reflect changing market dynamics and priorities. ... Continue reading

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Takes Spirit Of Ecstasy Centenary Celebrations To Salon Privé 2011

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Takes Spirit Of Ecstasy Centenary Celebrations To Salon Privé 2011

Spirit of Ecstasy centenary celebrations will take place at Salon Privé this year, as Rolls-Royce Motor Cars toasts 100 years of the famous flying lady hood figurine. ... Continue reading

Tata Motors To Boost UK Engineering Base With The University Of Warwick

Tata Motors To Boost UK Engineering Base With The University Of Warwick

The UK's technology base was given a major boost today when Tata Motors' European Technical Centre (TMETC), a wholly-owned UK-based subsidiary of Tata Motors, announced that it will be expanding its partnership with WMG at the University of Warwick. ... Continue reading

Land Rover Celebrates Production Of The 250,000th Freelander 2

Land Rover Celebrates Production Of The 250,000th Freelander 2

Land Rover employees at the Company's Halewood manufacturing plant in Merseyside are today celebrating an important milestone achievement - the production of the 250,000th Freelander 2. ... Continue reading

The Volvo C30 Electric Tested In Rough Winter Conditions

The Volvo C30 Electric Tested In Rough Winter Conditions

The Volvo C30 Electric has been exposed to rough winter conditions in order to ensure that the battery-powered car runs smoothly in temperatures as low as -20° Celsius. ... Continue reading

Renault Launches New Bose Pack For Scenic And Grand Scenic

Renault Launches New Bose Pack For Scenic And Grand Scenic

Building on the success of its partnership with audio specialists, Bose, which began in 2008 with several of its larger models, Renault is now extending the premium sound system offering across its Scénic range for the first time. ... Continue reading

Skoda UK Named ';Importer Of The Year 2010'

Skoda UK Named ';Importer Of The Year 2010'

Skoda UK consolidated a record breaking 2010 this week (w/c 21.03.11) by sweeping the board at Skoda Auto's global awards ceremony. ... Continue reading

Citroen C-Zero Meets The Mayor Of London

Citroen C-Zero Meets The Mayor Of London

The acclaimed Citroen C-Zero, the brand's new 100% electric city car, met London's Mayor, Boris Johnson, earlier this week. The city is gearing up to become the "electric car capital of the world" under the auspices of the first ever city-wide electric vehicle charging network - Source London - to launch this spring. ... Continue reading

Subaru Impreza Shines In MSN Cars Hatchback Handling Challenge

Subaru Impreza Shines In MSN Cars Hatchback Handling Challenge

Subaru's All-Wheel Drive Impreza is the hatchback to be in when bad weather strikes, according to handling tests carried out recently by MSN Cars. ... Continue reading

Environment Agency Goes Pure Electric With The Delivery Of Its First Mitsubishi I-Miev

Environment Agency Goes Pure Electric With The Delivery Of Its First Mitsubishi I-Miev

After decades of experimentation, innovation and trials, the future of motoring is here and today sees the Environment Agency take delivery of its first pure-electric vehicle (EV) in a bid to reduce the organisation's carbon footprint ... Continue reading

Budget Puts Seat Ibiza At The Top Of Company Car Lists

Budget Puts Seat Ibiza At The Top Of Company Car Lists

Chancellor George Osborne's Budget this week has put SEAT's super-frugal line-up of Ibiza E Ecomotive models in pole position for fleet and business drivers looking to keep a lid on their company car tax and running costs. ... Continue reading

The 2011 Nissan GT-R: A Promise Honoured

The 2011 Nissan GT-R: A Promise Honoured

The introduction of the 2011 Nissan GT-R R35 honours a promise made three years ago by Chief Vehicle Engineer and the car's 'Godfather', Kazutoshi Mizuno. ... Continue reading

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