Its funny that detroit won't use this product. The developer says the big auto companies are like a ship. It takes time to turn one around. Doesn't take long to lay workers off when you have been building the wrong type of autos.

Bellevue company builds 150 MPG hybrid car - Seattle - MSNBC.com

Why don't they just build it and sell it?


Aritcle doesn't give much info on the car itself.

What is the electrical cost to go along with a tank of gas?

What is the range with 2 adults and about 100 lb's or luggage and stuff?

Go to the Yahoo home page they have video. These guys are a group of engineers from some of our top companies. Lockheed, NASA, MD and so on. They don't build cars.

I doubt it is as fast. lol but MIT has this working. And has if one reads the rest of the report a cycle ready to be release in the Italian Motor ralley next week.

MIT offers City Car for the masses: MIT offers City Car for the masses - CNET News.com

Is the City Car the solution to "the last mile" problem?

The City Car, a design project under way at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is envisioned as a two-seater electric vehicle powered by lithium-ion batteries. It would weigh between 1,000 and 1,200 pounds and could collapse, then stack like a shopping cart with six to eight fitting into a typical parking space. It isn't just a car, but is designed as a system of shared cars with kiosks at locations around a city or small community.


"The problem with mass transit is it kind of takes you to where you want to go and at the approximate time you want to get there, but not exactly. Sometimes you have to walk up to a mile from the last train or subway stop," said Franco Vairani, a Ph.D. candidate at MIT's school of architecture. The City Car is his thesis, though it's now a group effort involving many others at the school.

While the City Car is still under development--a prototype is expected next year

Detroit is already working on a hybrid



The Chevy Volt

The engine is a turbocharged, 1.0L three cylinder engine with 71 hp that has no mechanical connection to the wheels. The ICE runs at about 1800 rpm and drives a 53 kW generator that charges the lithium ion battery pack. The engine starts and stops automatically as needed to charge the battery.

Detroit Auto Show: It's here. GM's plug-in hybrid is the Chevy Volt Concept - AutoblogGreen

Short term,great idea but one has to wonder what will happen to our electric rates once millions of cars are connected to the grid.

I will bet you a thousand dollars that they don't produce a car that looks like that. I remember many years ago Larry King was at the car show. He was interviewing all the heads of the auto companies. I called and ask them why they never build the cars they use as concept cars? They had some BS answer. And I have to hand it to Larry. He followed up on the question.

But year in and out its the same story. Cool concept cars then somehow they screw them up.

Sure many are working on the concept. But how many can allow us to rip up parking lots as these fold up...lol

Now that is a true concept. And very GREEN...

Engineers build things including cars, but from what your saying about them maybe GM knows better whether it is a viable sellable care then.

The main attraction would be any patents they get from it and whether that is sellable techinology.

Don't fall for the myths that GM and other auto manufacturers for some nefarious reason won't build a car that would get 150mpg IF the public would buy it.

GM Closes Four Plants, Approves Chevy Volt Electric Car At Annual Meeting

Update



General Motors (NYSE: GM) announced Tuesday that it is closing four truck and SUV plants in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

The move will affect 10,000 workers as the automotive conglomerate makes changes during the current gas crisis and the consumer shift to smaller vehicles.

General Motors Chairman and CEO Rick Wagoner said Tuesday before the GM annual meeting in Delaware the plants to be closed are in Oshawa, Ontario; Moraine, Ohio; Janesville, Wis.; and Toluca, Mexico.

Wagoner said the GM board has approved production of a new small Chevrolet car at a plant in Lordstown, Ohio, in mid-2010 and production of the Chevrolet Volt electric vehicle in Detroit.

The closings will save the company $1 billion per year starting in 2010 and by 2011, GM will have cut costs by $15 billion a year over in 2005.

The GM board also approved the production schedule of the Chevrolet Volt and the company plans to unveil the Chevy electric car in showrooms by 2012

When fully charged, the Volt could drive about 40 miles without using any gasoline, and a small conventional engine would recharge the vehicle, allowing it to get the equivalent of 150 miles per gallon. GM plans to sell about 100,000 Volts a year by 2012.

I dunno Mikeyy, GM closed 4 truck plants and it looks like they will actulay start building the Volt..

. First of all I don't know why we want to make hybrids look like crap. Ford has been building V10's They get something like 6 MPG. Now I am not the head of a car company. But if I were I would have put a stop to that a while back in exchange for a two seat sports car hybrid. If I had a choice between a car that looks like a Previa. Or the car Spencer just posted my choice would be easy. Previa looks like it was designed by........what am I thinking. It has no design. Now the Pontiac Solstice is sweet.