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At the 2008 Detroit Auto Show, diesel cars grabbed their share of the limelight, as manufacturers such as Audi, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW prepare to import new diesel vehicles to the U.S. New diesel engines promise performance equivalent to gasoline cars but much better mileage, and new technology means cleaner emissions.

Click here for photos of new diesel cars shown in Detroit.

Click here for more 2008 Detroit auto show coverage.

The recently concluded K 2007 conference in Düsseldorf, Germany, featured a variety of recent advances in materials science that will change your life. No hyperbole there--just a safe prediction.

I didn't make it to the show, but I've been following the announcements on the Web site of Design News, a trade publication for mechanical engineers. The K Fair is all about plastics...but in truth, the line between plastic and metal is getting pretty blurry these days.

Indeed, companies such as DuPont are now talking about plastics climbing "the metals replacement curve." MetaFuse technology, co-developed by DuPont, Morph Technologies, Integran, and PowerMetal Technologies, combines "nanocrystalline" metals with engineering polymers to create objects with exceptionally high stiffness-to-weight ratios.

Carbon nanotubes promise to replace metal entirely in future automobiles, mobile electronics, and other products. At K 2007, companies such as Bayer and RTP showed carbon nanotube-based composite plastics. Earlier in October, Bayer announced it's building a second production facility for carbon nanotubes. The new facility's capacity is only 30 metric tons per year; Bayer and all of today's suppliers together can barely handle the demand for experimentation and prototyping, but Bayer says its "medium term" plan is to build another facility with the capacity to produce 3,000 tons per year. That's starting to become significant, I think.

Carbon-fiber composites are already strong enough to replace aluminum and steel in certain circumstances, chiefly where cost is secondary to weight or style, as in Toyota's 1/X concept, a carbon-fiber car weighing just 926 pounds, or the 2008 BMW M3--I'm planning to buy one of these next year myself.

But carbon nanotubes are so much stronger than carbon (graphite) fibers that they will likely enable entirely new design philosophies, in the same way that steel revolutionized shipbuilding, and aluminum made commercial aviation practical. We define prehistoric times in terms of materials science--the Stone Age, Bronze Age, and Iron Age--and we're on the cusp of a new age based on practical nanotechnology.

Fisker Automotive. Think of it as a marriage between the Chevy Volt and the Tesla Roadster.

The company is planning to come to market in about 18 months with a high-performance, high-end, plug-in hybrid sedan. The car will cost $80,000. It will go about 50 miles on a battery charge, which isn't far, but the car will also come with a built-in gas engine that exists primarily to charge the battery. With the charging capability, the car can go hundreds of miles, according to Henrik Fisker, the company's CEO.

With a range of hundreds of miles, the car will go farther than other electric cars coming to market. The new electric cars go only about 225 miles on a single charge at best. Granted, Fisker's car uses a little gas--something electric cars don't--but it won't burn much. This is how the Volt functions. General Motors, however, doesn't plan on coming out with the Volt until 2010. If Fisker hits its goals, it will have cars on the market in 2009. Fisker, though, is also aiming at the luxury end of the market with its alternative car, which makes it like Tesla. Its tag line is "Eco-chic."

Fisker also hopes to come out with SUVs and other types of cars. The drive train comes from Quantum Technologies, by the way. Quantum works with a number of companies and government agencies on alternative fuel vehicles. Initial production will be about 15,000 vehicles a year.

The company will show off a prototype at the Detroit Auto Show, according to the company's somewhat cryptic Web site.

In this day and age, it seems everybody has started an alternative car company. There is Tesla, Miles Automotive, Zap and Venture Vehicles. Everyone but my grandmother, and that's because we took her license away.

But Fisker does have something a lot of these other companies don't. Namely, experience in the auto industry. Henrik worked for years at Ford and BMW. He came up with the BMW Z8 and the Aston Martin DB9.

Thanks to Greg King of Wostec for pointing out the Fisker presentation at the Dow Jones Alternative Energy Innovations Conference taking place in Redwood City, Calif., this week.

I wrote recently (here) about the One Laptop Per Child project's plan to begin selling the XO laptop in a special one-for-two deal: buyers pay $400 for two, receive one, and get a tax deduction for the other, which is then delivered to a child in a developing nation.

As I said, I think that's a good deal--the XO is likely to be a pretty interesting machine, even though its price is twice its original $100 target, and battery life isn't likely to live up to OLPC's original projections (I covered that issue here and here).

Another low-cost Linux-based laptop that you'll soon be able to buy is the Eee PC from Asus. Pricing for this machine, originally expected to start at $199, is now rumored to begin at $260 when the machine goes on sale later this month, with high-end models coming in around $400.

These prices are reasonably appropriate, given the Eee PC's better performance vs. the XO--a 900-MHz modern Intel processor vs. the older technology of an AMD Geode at 433 MHz. However, the two machines are generally similar in other ways, and the XO will have the advantage for some users of a sunlight-readable display (although it is monochrome only in this mode).

Anyway, I think there's room for both systems in the market, and it'll be interesting to watch them compete for the hearts and minds of educational and open-source software developers.

I intend to get one of each for myself, and of course, I'll post here when I'm able to do that.

[Update 2007-10-02 1330: Reader "hitman247" points out in the comments that the price hikes in the XO and Eee PC don't solely reflect cost increases by the manufacturers; the drop in the value of the US dollar on international markets must play a significant part. As I alluded to in a reply, I've been wondering if I shouldn't accelerate my plan to buy a new BMW next year to replace my 1999-model year 540i. And then, just today, the Wall Street Journal published an article on this very topic (see Google News for the link). So whatever else happens, it may get temporarily more difficult to hit any price point for a new laptop, car, or whatever.]

Besides Toyota Motor and BMW, automakers haven't done a great job of building fleets that emit less carbon dioxide, according to an Environmental Defense report.

The organization's 80-page report, called "Automakers' Corporate Carbon Burdens" (PDF), evaluated the carbon dioxide emissions of vehicles from major automakers between 1990 and 2005. Companies graded were: Ford Motor, General Motors, DaimlerChrysler, Toyota, Honda Motor, Nissan Motor, Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors, Volkswagen, BMW, Subaru and Mitsubishi Motors.

"The rate of carbon dioxide emissions from new cars and light trucks in the U.S. dipped for the first time in two decades, but their overall contribution to global warming has continued to grow steadily since 1990," Environmental Defense said in a statement.

BMW achieved a 12 percent reduction in carbon dioxide emissions across its entire fleet of cars, more than any of the other car companies included in the study. Environmental Defense attributes the drop to the company's addition of the low carbon dioxide-emitting Mini Cooper to its lineup, as well as efficiency improvements made across its entire line of cars.

Toyota was rated the second best, reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 3 percent overall during that period, due in large part to its introduction of the Prius hybrid to its lineup and efficiency improvements made to the Corolla.

The report also rated the overall "carbon burden" that automakers placed on the environment, based on factors that included the emissions of their cars and the number of cars sold.

In this area, GM ranked No. 1, with a 6.5 percent reduction in overall carbon burden. Environmental Defense, however, attributed this to GM's loss of market share, not to the carbon dioxide emissions of its overall lineup, which actually rose 3 percent. In contrast, Toyota, while low in its 3 percent carbon dioxide emissions reduction rate, grew its carbon burden by 125 percent, due to an increase in overall sales.

Environmental Defense combined the average over an entire lineup of cars and light trucks from 1990 to 2005 to determine an automaker fleet's average carbon dioxide emissions rate:

• BMW, reduced 12.3 percent.

• Toyota, reduced 3 percent .

• Volkswagen, up 1.3 percent.

• Subaru, up 1.6 percent.

• General Motors, up 3 percent.

• Mitsubishi, up 4 percent.

• Honda, up 4.4 percent.

• Ford, up 4.7 percent.

• DaimlerChrysler, up 4.8 percent.

• Nissan, up 9.2 percent.

• Hyundai, up 17 percent.

• Kia, up 30 percent.

In the midst of all the bleak news for the American car industry, there was a ray of hope of sorts. A recent survey on "retained value" (what percentage of retail price a car maintains on the used market) has the Hummer coming in the top 10. As Autoblog reports:

"[T]he new Power Information Network retained value rankings for the automakers came out, and while the top ten list is pretty much owned by imports, Hummer crashes the party, coming in at the #8 spot. Hummer vehicles retain 63% of their original value, an increase of 3.5% over their last showing. Scion sits in the top spot, retaining 69.8%

Toyota (Scion #1, Toyota #5, Lexus #6), Honda (Honda #2, Acura #4) and BMW (MINI #3, BMW #10) actually account for seven of the top ten, with Subaru (7th) and Nissan (9th) rounding out the list along with Hummer."

So the Hummer (or as the manufacturer would prefer, HUMMER--it's all about the yelling) is the only American nameplate to get into the Top 10. A ray of hope, but also worrying that it was the only brand to do so. And it will be interesting to see if it can sustain that in the face of increasing fuel prices - is this just a residual effect from Hummer's early rep?

Whatever you think about the Hummer, it provides a unique experience, and that is a large part of its appeal. The macho look, the huge size, the gonzo tires, the military image - your basic Chevrolet or Ford or Dodge pales by comparison.

But what was even more interesting was how this played out with the imports. Scion and Mini are both new brands (well, sort of in the case of Mini). Both are distinguished by creating holistic, coherent experiences across multiple touch points. From the cars themselves to their immersive websites, their characterful dealerships, their offbeat advertising, and of course how both allow large degrees of customer involvement in personalizing their rides. In all the ways that they speak with and interact with their customers they have had a clarity of focus to their messages, and executed them spectacularly.

How has this paid off? Scion at #1 outpaced its parent Toyota by 4 places, and Mini at #3 an astonishing 7 places ahead of blue ribbon parent brand BMW. I would argue that the quality and consistency of the user experience created by these brands has had a large role in pushing them so far ahead so quickly. Certainly they are not selling mainstream cars that try to compete on the usual dimensions - bigger, faster, more comfortable, and so on. They have succeed in spite of going against the grain with their product choices. This too has been part of their voice as brands - iconoclasm, appealing to people who consider themselves independent thinkers, yet still style-minded.

Infiniti was the only upscale Japanese brand not to make it onto the list, which in part surely has to do with its confused image for the last 10 years. In the last three years Infiniti has stepped up its game considerably, so expect it to do much better soon. Likewise Acura is on a resurgence after years of producing competent but mostly bland cars, perhaps explaining its sitting behind the lower-end parent Honda.

A big fuel cell from UTC Power was in the news here in Silicon Valley this week when Fujitsu installed it as a backup power source for its local campus. CNET's Michael Kanellos wrote a good story about the event here, and took pictures ("Photos: Fujitsu unveils king-size fuel cell").

Although the fuel cell itself runs on hydrogen, there's no convenient source of pure hydrogen in Silicon Valley, so UTC Power also provided a steam methane reformer that yields hydrogen from natural gas.

One place where pure hydrogen is readily available is NASA's Cape Canaveral facility, and BMW recently completed an eight-week test of its Hydrogen 7 prototype vehicle there. (See the Edmunds review of the car, and a story of the test, with a great photo of the car posed in front of the Endeavour before the recent launch.)

BMW has now handed the keys to one of these cars to actor Will Ferrell (BMW press release), though I suspect BMW will learn less from Ferrell than it did from the NASA testers.

Interestingly, however, the Hydrogen 7 is not a fuel cell car, in spite of stories like this one. BMW just uses its big 6-liter V12 engine with minor modifications allowing it to run on hydrogen as well as gasoline. This is may be the most practical way to run a car on hydrogen, but it's not the wave of the future.

Ford has made a true fuel-cell car, the Fusion 999, and it's considerably faster than the Hydrogen 7. In fact, Ford's unique vehicle, derived from its production Fusion sedan, recently set a speed record for fuel-cell vehicles, reaching 207.297 mph on the Bonneville salt flats. This isn't a car you'll be seeing on the road anytime soon; it has a 770-horsepower electric motor and several huge pressure tanks, it weighs 6,700 pounds, and its range is only just good enough for the high-speed runs on the salt. Richard S. Chang blogged about the event for The New York Times and there's also an interesting video on the Popular Mechanics site.

Ford worked with Ohio State University on the Fusion 999 and on OSU's scratch-built Buckeye Bullet 2, a fuel-cell streamliner that may be able to exceed 350 mph. There's a blog for that project, and it's fascinating reading if you like cars and high technology.

But when can we regular folks have fuel cells of our own? Other than expensive and clumsy solutions like the Trulite and Medis products I blogged about last month (somewhat disparagingly), it won't be soon.

EE Times recently reported that Toshiba, for example, expects it will take several years to bring practical fuel cells to market. "Practical," in this case, means fuel cells based on DMFC (direct methanol fuel cell) technology, which can be powered by inexpensive methanol (also known as wood alcohol).

Samsung has demonstrated a version of its Q35 ultraportable notebook running on a DMFC power supply, achieving 240 hours of operation over the course of a month, but don't get too excited-- the supply is fairly bulky (see some photos and a video on AVING.net) and I'm not entirely convinced that the full month's worth of fuel is stored internally.

It's no coincidence that Samsung chose the Q35 for the demonstration; even the best DMFC fuel cells have much lower power density (watts of output power per cubic inch) than lithium batteries, so they'll have to be very large to support high-performance notebooks.

I'm sure DMFC technology will reach the consumer market soon enough, and then we'll see how it compares with batteries. I suspect lithium batteries will remain the most popular solution for laptops, and I'm sure handheld electronics will stick with batteries unless there's some breakthrough in fuel cells. But it'll be good to have another choice in portable power supplies.

A survey released today says the 2008 model year will yield the highest percentage of gadget-filled cars in history.

The study, conducted by Telematics Research Group (TRG) and based on 100 cars announced for the 2008 model year, says almost 70 percent of cars for sale in North America will offer voice-activated, hands-free Bluetooth phone support. Navigation systems will come standard in 80 percent of announced MY08 models.

Portable music player support will also be at an all-time high. According to TRG's Technology Availability Index, 50 percent of cars will have direct iPod connectivity, and 90 percent will have auxiliary input and/or flash memory interfaces. (Not too long ago, those of us wanting to connect our iPods directly to our cars had to shell out around $300 for a stereo shop to install a third-party solution.) Some automakers are also taking a chance on the growing popularity of USB; 20 percent of upcoming models will offer support.

Other technology becoming more widespread in new cars includes safety systems like parking assistance; 60 percent of cars will have ultrasonic park assist as standard or optional equipment. Camera-assisted parking will be available on 30 percent of MY08 vehicles.

TRG named the 2008 BMW 5 series the most technologically advanced vehicle in world for that model year. According to the survey, it has the highest number of electronic features and gadgets available as standard or optional equipment. The German car beat out the Lexus LS-460, which led the pack in the '07 model year.

I've come to the conclusion that the iPhone is a very picky Bluetooth dater. It doesn't like its own kind. It doesn't like MacBooks. And it gives mixed signals toward my car. Maybe it's just not into it. I'm not sure; time will tell.

I came to these conclusions playing matchmaker while testing out the iPhone's Bluetooth capabilities with various Bluetooth-enabled devices. First my car, then my friend Max's iPhone and my friend Max's new MacBook.

Date No. 1: My Bimmer

I admit I'm a yuppie type who just has to talk on his cell phone as I commute to work or to dinner (or, most cases to call you to let you know that I'm running late). To that end, the iPhone's supposed Bluetooth compatibility with my car was a draw. In theory, you can drive and talk on the phone hands-free without having to have a Borg-like ear implant that either makes you look like Captain Picard Borg (Locutus) or some other general tool.

OK, who am I kidding here? The iPhone was just cool enough on its own for me to get it; the Bluetooth capabilities were just icing on the cake. Regardless, the iPhone's Bluetooth feature was one I was anticipating, especially with my BMW's hands-free cell phone feature. With my Razr , pairing the car and the Bluetooth-enabled cell phone was no problem. The Razr's reception on the AT&T network in San Francisco with all its hills and valleys, however, was spotty. I had become accustomed to several coverage shadows in Cole Valley and on the 17th Street hill. The Razr was an OK match for my car, but it seemed there should be a better match out there somewhere.

So, on June 29, when BMW announced nearly "full compatibility," I was stoked. My car was stoked. This was to be a match made in heaven, right? Sure enough, syncing the iPhone and my 2006 3-series was easy enough. It was love at first sight. Two shiny devices finding and matching up with the touch of a few buttons. Control of the iPhone's Bluetooth feature is located under "settings" and "general" (not too obviously placed). My car's main radio dashboard asked for a PIN. The iPhone asked for a PIN. After entering both, they were synced. They were, quite literally, on the same wavelength. This relationship held great promise: The AT&T coverage bars shot through the roof--I had never seen that much reception with my Razr. The signal was strong, the connection grave. A heralded new golden era of yapping and carrying on was about to begin!

Then, I actually placed a call using the iPhone through the car's controls and microphone systems, and it all fizzled, sort of. When I called my friend Larry in Iowa, there was silence. Suddenly, Larry boomed out, "Hello?" over the car's speakers. I was surprised; where was the actual ringing? Hrmm, perhaps this was a new stealth ring feature I had to get used to. But the call itself sounded something like: "Hey...Larry? (static)...(pause)...hey, what was that? She said what?...Pregnant...dragon...red monkey on a table?"

Larry: "Hillary...Obama was appearing and said that he was...I was floored." I strained to hear every word that was missing. There were lots of them. This happened with each and every call I tried to make: my mom, my friend Max, my ex, the BMW service number. Fragments of conversations, frustration and a general sense of confusion hit me with every call I attempted through the car (the iPhone does allow you to select speaker or handset mode, but that defeats the purpose of "hands-free"). My hopes were being dashed as there was a breakdown in communication.

It was exactly like dating.

So, just like when things go south in a relationship and you call your friends for advice, I needed to find BMW-iPhone help. Luckily for me, I found out that a BMW-iPhone relationship advice line existed. I placed a call to BMW (on my landline) to 1-800-831-1117 for help.

The friendly BMW operator gave me the friendly, yet standard, script: Well, we were premature in announcing full compatibility between the iPhone and BMWs. This is an issue our engineers are examining. We'll make an announcement in a few weeks when the issue is resolved. We won't contact you--you'll have to check back with us.

I was being strung along.

But I maintained my early-adopter-must-be-patient-friendliness and then the operator lowered her voice and let me in on a secret.

"Well, this isn't official, but I've heard other people who have this problem have turned off their Wi-Fi while in their car and have had better results."

So I tried it, and, much to my surprise, it worked.

I guess it shows what a little patience, perspective and perseverance can get you. Now, calls in and through my car are effortless. The reception is still a marked improvement over that of the Razr. There are still patchy reception shadows throughout San Francisco, but on the whole, the quality of the calls are better. I just have to remember to switch on (or off) the Wi-Fi feature). I suspect that an update is forthcoming, I guess I'll have to be patient for that too.

Dates No. 2 and No. 3: Max's iPhone and MacBook.

Attempting to sync my iPhone with my friend Max's iPhone and with his new MacBook was a non-starter. Even after several attempts, our iPhones didn't find each other despite being inches apart. Nor was his new MacBook found. I guess the match just wasn't meant to be between these devices.