You’ve probably been noticing that fuel prices have been creeping up lately, as usually jittery investors see signs that the economic outlook is improving.

In the automotive sector there’s also some positive news; JD Power and Associates, along with the LMC Authority, are predicting that new vehicle sales in the US will reach 13.4 million this month, up from 12.7 million in December last year, this despite a reduction in sales incentives to move metal during 2011. Current estimates from both groups predict even stronger demand in 2012, with current projections set at some 13.8 million units.

“For the third straight time, light-vehicle sales are posting strong selling rates at the close of the year,” remarked Jeff Schuster, LMC’s senior vice president.  ”Next year, the automotive industry will look to build upon the strong finish to 2011, but the real test in 2012 will be weathering a summer selling slowdown and posting a full year of a progressive recovery,” he said.

[Source: Automotive News]

Hyundai is slightly increasing the price for their 2012 Sonata Hybrid, bumping the MSRP by $55 to $26,610 compared to the 2011 model. Also new for the 2012 model will be a Leather Package, priced at $1,500, offering leather seats, steering wheel and shift knob.

The Leather Package will also come with front and rear heated seats, an auto-dimming rearview mirror with HomeLink and a compass. The Leather Package was previously only offered on the top-of-the-line Sonata model.

Hyundai’s Blue Link telematics system will also come standard on the hybrid model and drivers will be able to download the phone app in order to lock and unlock their car and to control other functions remotely.

Those looking to splurge on their Sonata Hybrid can also opt for the Ultimate Package, priced at $5,500. That package includes everything in the previously mentioned Leather Package but also adds 17-inch wheels, a sunroof, navigation, backup camera, premium sound and a few other luxurious trim options.

The Sonata Hybrid will remain with a 2.4L Atksinson-cycle engine under the hood with 166-hp while the electric motor will add 40-hp for a total output of 206-hp. Fuel economy is still rated at 40-mpg on the highway and 35-mpg in the city.

With the current trend towards lowering emissions from our transportation devices, it seems even dear old Santa is jumping on the bandwagon, albeit with assistance from Ford Motor Company.

According to Ford designer Paul Wraith, Santa’s team of nine reindeer produce the equivalent of a whopping 214,670 tons of CO2 emissions and, considering that the sleigh travels huge distances (some 200,237, 360 km/125,148,350 miles) Santa also has to deal with a hefty fuel bill of some £122 million ($195 million) for carrots.

As a result, in order to deal with both issues, Ford has developed a new sleigh with cutting edge technology , including a 1.0-liter EcoBoost engine which will help Santa save some 191,843 tonnes of CO₂ and £110 million/$176 million on fuel costs, plus such features as Active Park Assist (useful for tight rooftop landings), SYNC (enabling Santa to remain in contact with the elves back at the North Pole, while staying en route, as well as listening to his favorite Christmas tunes); Active Blind Spot Monitoring (allowing Santa to keep an eye out for potential hazards such as aircraft when navigating the skies) and even a MyKey feature (meaning that during the off season,  some of Santa’s cheekier elves aren’t tempted to take the sleigh out for joy rides).

“Our tongue may be firmly in cheek as we launch this sleigh design,” declared Wraith “but our heart is in the right place”. ” At Ford, we’re dreaming of a Green Christmas. We’re already thinking of the concept sleigh mark II. With electric vehicle battery technology developing all the time, we are keen to get to work on a zero-carbon version of our sleigh.”

Although Santa wasn’t available for comment due to his currently very busy schedule, Mrs Claus added that while “I am not looking forward to telling Donner and Blitzen the news [about the new sleigh], the polar bears in the North Pole will certainly welcome it.”

Considering that many rumors have been circulating about the future of the Chevrolet Camaro, ranging from the fact that it might be axed, to it being based on a version of the same platform that will underpin the Cadillac ATS (which would essentially mean no V8 option, due to lack of space under the hood),  it now appears that through the end of the decade at least, the Camaro won’t likely change too much.

Yet, aside from information apparently gleaned from inside sources at the General that the next iteration of the Camaro will debut as a 2016 model and it will retain the 6.2-liter V8, not much else is currently being revealed.

However, given that tough Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards are looming and the fact that the current Camaro is rather heavy (more than 300 lbs heavier than the Mustang, which itself is  no bantam), don’t be surprised if the 2016 model goes on a diet; GM has stated previously that the next Camaro will be dimensionally smaller, which likely also means it will be significantly lighter too. Stay tuned for further developments.

[Source: GM Inside News]

The old “gas and dash” may be a thing of the past, thanks to Post-Pay, a new gas pump technology that requires customers to swipe their driver’s licence before they fill up.

The first stations to take the Post-Pay pumps for a test drive are in Saginaw, Michigan and owned by Paxson Oil. Cash-paying customers must swipe their driver’s licences in order to unlock the pumps. When they are finished filling up, they settle their bill with the cashier. If a customer is a little low on cash and makes a run for it, they will be tracked down by the police using the driver’s licence information swiped at the pump.

This kind of technology eliminates the need to pre-pay with a set amount, return to the pump to fill their tanks, then head back to the cashier again to settle the rest of the bill.

According to Bob Hohn, president for Paxson Oil Company and Post-Pay inventor, the driver’s license information can’t be viewed by the cashier and it’s not recorded for any other purpose other than tracking down pump and run culprits.

Would you swipe your licence before being allowed to pump fuel? Let us know what you think of Post-Pay system in the comments section below. As well, you can watch news footage of the system in action after the jump.

[Source: Consumer Reports] Continue Reading…

Flash drives have never looked flashier. Case in point: Flash Rods new Mercedes SLS Hard Drive.

The newest in Flash Rod’s automotive flash drives series, this detailed scale replica of a 2011 Mercedes SLS has got some serious junk in the trunk – a 2.5″ hard disk drive and a USB 2.0 port in the rear.

In terms of looks, this hard drive gets it right, inside and out. Take a peek inside at the upholstered interior – you’ll be impressed with the attention to detail. Outside, its gull wing doors, trunk and hood open and close, and if you look close enough, you can see the disc brakes behind its mag wheels. To let you know that data is being transfered, its tail lights flash.

The Mercedes SLS Hard Drive comes in black, red and silver and sells for $250 each. You can order them online at the Flash Rods online store.

[Source: Everything USB]

Over the last two-decades, BMW has given us quite a few “Z” cars. There was the chic Z3 that James Bond helped unveil in the movie “Golden Eye,” followed by the sinfully pretty Z8 (also used in a Bond flick; The World Is Not Enough), which was penned by Henrik Fisker (yes, the same guy who went on to design some Aston Martin‘s and then started his own car company).

More recently, we have seen two-generations of the Z4 model, and while there was a Z9 concept car, when it eventually went into production, it became the 6-series.

In North America, very few know about the car that started the whole “Z”-line of cars at BMW. The very first model to wear this alphabet was appropriately called the Z1.

Like all the “Z” cars that went into production, the Z1 is a front-engined, rear-wheel drive, two-seater sports car. Unlike all other “Z” cars (or any other production car for that matter), the Z1 had doors that would drop down into the sills. Yes, getting in and out is a bit more challenging than usual due to the high sills, but it is worth it for the reaction it causes in public. Plus you can park in a tight spot and not worry about being able to swing open the door. The doors would move up and down via an electric motor, so no muscle power is needed.

Speaking of muscle, the Z1 was powered by the familiar 2.5-liter, straight-six cylinder engine, that can be found in other BMW models. This engine produces just 168-hp and 161 lb/ft of torque, which is not a lot for a car that weighs 3200-lbs. Power was fed to the rear wheels via a 5-speed manual gearbox. According to BMW, this sleek roadster took 9.0-seconds to accelerate from 0-62 mph, and would top out at 137 mph. Not slow, but not nearly as fast as it looks.

During its two-year production run from March 1989 to June 1991, BMW made just 8000 examples of the Z1, well short of their target of producing 35,000 copies initially.

Nowadays, the Z1 is considered to be a rare, modern classic, and finding one for sale in North America (a market where it was never officially sold) is extremely difficult.

But we have found a clean example sitting in Calgary, AB., Canada. This black on grey and charcoal example has covered about 20,600-miles. The seller has not provided much else information, and has mentioned a wrong engine size in the ad. The asking price is CAN$29,999, which equals to $29,400 in our currency at today’s exchange rate.

So if you’ve always wanted a Z1, or just want a car with disappearing doors, you can check out the ad yourself in the source link below.

[Source: AutoTrader.ca]

In Maybach‘s last full year of sales before the hyper-luxury brand will be shuttered for 2013, Daimler has increased the MSRP of Maybach’s 2012 line-up.

According to the latest pricing updates released by Mercedes-Benz USA, the 2012 Maybach 57 will begin at $379,050, an extra $3,080 over the 2011 model year. The 2012 Maybach 57 S and Maybach 62 will be offered at $418,950 and $430,450 respectively, each a $4,200 premium over last year’s model. Next, a 2012 Maybach 62 S will be starting at $470,350, $4,600 more than the 2011 MSRP. Finally, the top-of-the-line Maybach Landaulet pricing will remain the same as last year at $1,382,750.

A strange move for the German automaker as common practice and conventional economics traditionally dictate lower prices amid waning demand. While Maybach is a made-to-order boutique marque, we suggest prospective customers to keep an eye on Maybach’s slightly more affordable 2011 inventory.

GALLERY: Maybach Line-up

An investigation is currently underway regarding a cross-continent auto-parts price fixing operation involving the authorities of Australia, United States, Europe and Japan.

These companies have supplied parts to both automakers and aftermarket companies in immense volumes that caused a certain government official to even declare that this investigation is the largest probe in U.S. history. A total of 20 automotive suppliers are under scrutiny although it is believed that the scope of the investigation is much greater. Selective companies that have been identified are publicly traded and, by law, must disclose involvement in the investigation to shareholders. However, private companies are not obligated to do the same.

Furukawa Electric Company of Japan is currently the first and only company to be convicted of price fixing in the investigation. Given a $200 million USD fine, three of Furukawa’s U.S. based execs face criminal charges and incarceration. Subpoenas have been handed down for raids against 19 suppliers over six supply sectors.

[Source: Autoblog]

OnStar has joined forces with NORAD to bring you updates as to where Santa is delivering presents – that means if you’re on the road, you can find out where St. Nick is and get home in time to leave out milk and cookies.

Available to OnStar subscribers for free 7 a.m. Christmas Eve through 5 a.m. Christmas Day, all you have to do to find out where Santa is making his rounds is just press the OnStar blue button. Operators will give you a “Santa Update” using NORAD’s military radar stations and satellites.

“We see this holiday tradition as staying true to keeping subscribers connected in ways they never thought possible,” said OnStar marketing vice president Terry Inch. “We know many of our customers will be glad to know Santa’s location information.”

To see how the OnStar Santa Update works, watch the video after the jump.

Continue Reading…