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detroit

What Detroit could learn from Silicon Valley

Ever wonder what the American automobile industry would be like if it actually made good cars? ZDNet takes it a step further to speculate as to what GM would look like under Steve Jobs' guidance, speculation that is worth further discussion.

No one is suggesting that Steve Jobs has any interest in reforming GM and the U.S. automobile industry, but don't you wish he would? Or for the Microsofties among you, how about Steve Ballmer? Or Marc Benioff? Or anyone from the technology industry?

In technology, we don't have the benefit (and problem) of years of government … Read more

OK, I'm glad we got hosed at the pump

Long before I ever heard about personal computers, I was a huge fan of automobile design. When I was a kid, my room was jammed with miniature model cars I spent hours assembling, painting, and proudly putting on display.

So it was that my first real car was a second-hand Pontiac that could roar from 0 to 60 in no time flat. It got a whopping 7 miles to the gallon, but since gasoline cost around 75 cents a gallon (as my addled memory recalls), I hit the road as much as possible.

But as they say, that was then … Read more

New Prius to be bigger, better

The Truth About Cars blog posted commentary on the next generation Toyota Prius today. The car is supposed to debut at the 2009 Detroit auto show, but a few details have come out in Edmund's Auto Observer. The new Prius will be 3 inches to 4 inches longer than the current model and it will get a 50 horsepower boost. Along with all that, it will get better fuel economy than the current model. The last update was in 2004, so this new version is definitely due. There's also talk of another model in the Prius line, and … Read more

100-year-old model for electric car coming back

It was good enough for John D. Rockefeller Jr.

To promote itself, Detroit Electric--a new joint venture between Zap and China's Youngman Automotive Group--plan to release a limited number of cars based around the Detroit Electric, an electric car produced by the Anderson Electric Car Co. in the early part of the 20th century.

Anderson produced various models of the Detroit Electric from 1907 to 1939. Customers included Henry Ford and Rockefeller. It was also featured on a stamp. TV host Jay Leno has some of the cars in his collection.

When the opportunity came up to buy … Read more