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General Motors and MapQuest have teamed up on a new service enabling drivers of GM's OnStar-enabled cars to use the Web to select and store destinations for their turn-by-turn guidance when out on the road. The new service, called OnStar Web Destination Entry, will allow drivers to find up to five destinations on MapQuest's Web site, then send them to the OnStar system directly from their computers.

The theory goes that these destinations can then be accessed while out on the road by connecting to the OnStar service center and selecting a stored destination via OnStar's automated … Read more

GM's booth at the 2007 Geneva auto show features a particularly featureless slot car setup. The orange and white cars racing around the track show no marque or model distinction, instead designed to represent an "everycar," just as the featureless buildings around the track represent an "everycity." This display is not intended to demonstrate GM's lack of style, but rather its vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication technology. As the cars race around the track, another car pulls out of a parking garage, causing an obstruction. Both approaching cars receive a warning through their V2V hardware, and … Read more

While much of the county is suffering blizzards and ice storms, we counted our sunny stars today and hit the dry, open road for a first look at the 2007 Saturn Sky Red Line. Like the Pontiac Solstice, with which it shares its platform, the Sky soft-top roadster exudes bold body styling. Sleek lines, a bulging hood, and aggressively arched front fenders all give the Sky a mini-Batmobile character, an impression underlined by the fact that our tester came in onyx black (that's black to you and me).

As its name suggests, the Sky Red Line is a performance-tuned … Read more

Following the introduction of its 2007 Altima Hybrid, which we saw at this month's LA Auto Show (and which makes use of Toyota's hybrid drivetrain technology), Nissan has outlined plans to introduce a car using its own hybrid technology in 2010.

The announcement is part of the Nissan Green Program 2010, which also includes plans to introduce an original hydrogen fuel-cell car incorporating an in-house-developed stack, and a "three-liter car"--a car that gets gas mileage of 100km per three liters of gasoline (around 79mpg)--both by 2010.

Nissan's news is the latest in a … Read more

Arnold Schwarzenegger kicked off the second day of the LA Auto Show here today by telling carmakers that clean energy is the future of the auto industry. Surrounded by a collection of alternative-fuel vehicles, including BMW's Hydrogen7, Tesla's electric-powered roadster, and Honda's hydrogen fuel cell-powered FCX Concept, the California governor said that it was time for automakers to "get on the train" to alternative energy.

He also thanked car manufacturers for what they have done to date in their efforts to produce vehicles that run on alternatives to gasoline. A troupe of automotive executives joined … Read more

Following the announcement this morning from GM chief Rick Wagoner that Saturn plans to bring to market a plug-in hybrid vehicle, the company continued its hybrid kick with the unveiling of the 2008 Saturn Aura Green Line Hybrid here at the 2007 Los Angeles Auto Show. The Aura Green Line Hybrid makes use of the same belt alternator system (BAS) technology that we recently saw in the Saturn Vue Green Line Hybrid, and will deliver a 25 percent increase in fuel economy over the gasoline-only Aura, according to Saturn representatives.

Production of the Aura Green Line Hybrid is scheduled to … Read more

General Motors has begun development of the world's first plug-in hybrid production vehicle, which will be offered as a version of the 2008 Saturn Vue hybrid. The announcement was made at the kickoff of the 2007 Los Angeles Show this morning at the Los Angeles Convention Center by GM's CEO Rick Wagoner. The front-wheel-drive 2008 Saturn Vue hybrid will incorporate GM's two-mode hybrid system, which will make its first appearance in the Chevrolet Tahoe hybrid, due to come to market next year. Wagoner said that no definite timeline had been decided for the Vue hybrid plug-in, but … Read more

Cadillac Escalade owners will soon have an extra piece of tech bling with which to wow their homies. According to USA Today, GM is planning to introduce a new remote-control key fob next April that will allow Escalade drivers to change their cars' radio-station settings, check the fuel-tank level and tire pressure, and remind themselves whether they locked the doors or not. The device will feature a built-in LCD display and is designed to operate at four-to-six times the distance of other remote access systems, according to GM. The technofob will be offered on the Escalade and a range of … Read more

Following yesterday's Los Angeles Times article on GM's development of a new kind of gasoline-electric hybrid, Reuters is reporting this morning that the plug-in hybrid electric (PHEV) car is likely to make its first appearance at the 2007 North American International Auto Show in Detroit next January. The unveiling will come exactly 10 years after the launch of the ill-fated EV1 electric car (pictured), which GM discontinued in 2002 citing lack of public interest. Since then, GM has taken a hammering at the hands of overseas automakers who have been early adopters of hybrid technology.

Recent initiatives such … Read more