Car Chute

Americans are driving less than they used to because of higher gasoline prices, a weak economy and changing generational preferences, according to a report released Tuesday that found a sixty-year ”driving boom” had hit the brakes.

The report, by advocacy organizations the US Public Interest Research Group and Frontier Group, said transportation policymakers and existing plans to expand the nation’s roads and highways have not taken the decline into account.

The researchers said car use is likely to decline further as members of the Millennial generation, now in their teens to early 30s, move into cities and rely more on public transportation, while car-loving baby boomers age out of their ”peak driving” years.
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DETROIT (Reuters) – Kevin Baillie, co-founder of a visual effects company that works on major motion pictures, had never been in a car like his new Tesla Model S electric sedan, but somehow it looked familiar.

”When I got into my car, I thought, ‘Wait a minute, this looks like something from the movie I just worked on,”’ said Baillie. ”It’s like Star Trek.”
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DETROIT (AP) – Honda is recalling nearly 205,000 minivans and SUVs in the U.S. to fix a problem with the automatic shifters.

The recall includes the Honda CR-V small SUV and Odyssey minivan from the 2012 and 2013 model years. Also covered is the 2013 Acura RDX SUV.

Honda says the device that stops drivers from shifting out of park without a foot on the brake may not work properly. The problem occurs in below-freezing temperatures.
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DETROIT (Reuters) – General Motors Co and Ford Motor Co, the two largest US automakers, have agreed to jointly develop a new line of nine- and ten-speed automatic transmissions to boost the fuel economy and performance of their lineup, the companies said on Monday.

The pact marks the third time in the last decade that the two automakers have collaborated on transmissions. The joint effort allows GM and Ford to bring the transmissions to market more quickly and at a lower cost than if they worked alone.

GM and Ford will build both front- and rear-wheel drive transmissions as part of this effort. Engineering teams for both companies have already started initial design work.
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DETROIT (Reuters) – Ford Motor Co announced on Thursday that it will introduce this month a 1.5-liter version of its turbo-charged ”EcoBoost” engine.

The new four-cylinder version will first be included in a the Mondeo sedan to be sold in China.

The smaller EcoBoost engine in the Mondeo will allow Chinese consumers to be eligible for a tax break when purchasing the car, said Raj Nair, head of product development for Ford.
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MUMBAI/MILAN (Reuters) – Go specialist and go alone. That’s Fiat SpA’s new mantra for India as the Italian carmaker tries, once again, to crack the world’s seventh-largest car market.

Fiat, one of the first Western carmakers to enter India but now the worst performing, opens a new, fully-owned 57-dealer network on April 1, hoping to attract more of the 1.2 billion people in the world’s second most populous country.
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Japan (Reuters) – Toyota Motor Corp will start selling in 2015 the first vehicles built under its parts-sharing and platform framework, the company said on Wednesday, as rivals led by Volkswagen pursue similar strategies to cut costs.

The framework, called the Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA), shares parts among vehicles using the same platform in order to save costs and manpower.
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DETROIT (AP) – Honda Motor Co. showed off its updated Odyssey minivan Tuesday evening ahead of the New York International Auto Show. The 2014 Odyssey – last redesigned in 2011 – has a richer, more chiseled look, chrome-trimmed fog lights and other premium features.

But HondaVAC, the hand-held vacuum cleaner integrated into the cargo area, will likely be its most talked-about feature. Honda says it’s the first to offer this family-friendly tool, which it developed with heavy-duty vacuum maker Shop-Vac. Honda’s system includes nozzle accessories and a hose that can reach every corner of the vehicle. It doesn’t need an outlet for recharging, and can work continuously when the motor is running _ or for up to eight minutes when the van is turned off.
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Berlin (dpa) – Creeping along in traffic is hard on a car’s clutch and modulating the pedal between the fully depressed and fully released positions can take years off this vital component’s lifetime.

Extending the life of the clutch is possible, say experts from Germany’s TUEV vehicle assessment organisation, provided motorists observe a few simple rules.
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Goodwood, England (dpa) – The Rolls Royce Silver Cloud III Drophead coupe was once the most noble two-door convertible on the market and an expensive status symbol that only a few could afford.

The ticking clock embedded in the wooden dashboard can be clearly heard and almost seems to be exhorting the driver to proceed with more haste and less speed.

The Silver Cloud III rolled off the productions line 50 years ago in the summer of 1963 and at a cost so prohibitive that it was really only within the reach of film stars, heads of industry and nobility.
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