For the next generation of Ford’s in-dash displays, the company is actually putting some thought into them—and focus groups are using a high-tech virtual simulator to determine what works in relaying information to drivers and passengers alike.

The driving simulator is carefully designed to match the interior of a Ford Focus Electric, with two 4.2-inch color LCD screens on both sides of the speedometer. Once the occupant gets in (and 30 drivers have already), the simulator takes him on a diverse 11-mile drive—across winding hills, city streets, country roads, stretches of flat nothingness, and Grandma’s house.

“These screens are an integral part of Focus Electric and we thought the best way to make sure they would do their job is to have people come in and try them out for themselves,” said Paul Aldighieri, an engineer with Ford. “The only true way to get a feel for what the screens are telling the driver is by actually getting behind the wheel.”

The simulator gauges how drivers react to all of the information that pertains to the Focus Electric: battery charge, remaining range, and whether you could be driving even more efficiently. It’s a lot of information to display, especially while someone’s driving and doing the 100 other things one normally does while driving (applying makeup, eating cheeseburgers, flipping off tailgaters, sexting) so engineers have to determine what’s effective and what’s not. Butterflies to display eco-friendliness, for example, are more welcoming than circuitboard graphics.

The system is integrated into MyFord Touch, which offers information about range, destinations and charge points. It’s all controlled through five buttons on the steering wheel, which will also bring up the ability to customize information to individual drivers (which Ford calls “MyView”). When the Ford Focus Electric finally comes out, it’ll be key for consumers to know that, well, circuits are too nerdy for environmentalists!

Infiniti has been teasing us with the JX for some time now, but today the pieces finally fit: the luxury crossover was unveiled in its entirety at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.

The JX is Infiniti’s second vehicle that seats 7 people across three rows of leather-clad seats. The first was the QX56, the Nissan Patrol-based behemoth that is more comfortable crossing the Serengeti (or in the back of rap videos) than the JX would ever be. But that’s ok. Seeing as off-roading isn’t the JX’s forte, it makes up with more curvaceous styling—a front end cribbed from the M and the Essence concept, and some deep sculpting along its flanks.

The result is akin to a two-box station wagon, with Infiniti’s bulging carp-like face. Packagewise, the JX hides its size well: the strangely-sculpted rear D-pillar makes this apparent. Infiniti says that the JX “shines as a fresh, bold alternative to the many flavors of vanilla” that make up its 3-row rivals. It’s certainly an unmistakable presence—take that how you will.

And inside is where it counts: the 2nd row can tilt and slide forward to allow access to the third row, even with a child seat in place—though Infiniti advises you to take the child out first. All three rows should be able to fit full-size adults, though past 3-row seaters have always called this claim into skepticism. The passengers that do fit, however, will be treated to a 14-speaker Bose surround-sound system with Waveguide bass, Infiniti Connection Telematics to schedule appointments and calendars, and Infiniti Personal Assistant, a 24-hour concierge system that’s free on all 2012 Infiniti cars.

The JX uses one of Infiniti’s V6 engines, which will most likely be the 3.7-liter V6 shared in the G37. It can be had in front- or all-wheel drives, attached to a continuously-variable transmission—Infiniti’s first, designed to balance fuel efficiency and freeway-worthy acceleration. (Infiniti also claims “driving exhilaration,” but c’mon—let’s not kid ourselves here.)

Further details regarding the powertrain will be announced when Infiniti debuts the production version, in a few months at the Los Angeles Auto Show. By then, we’ll see if Infiniti’s claim of sportiness and 3rd-row roominess are accurate or not.

GALLERY: Infiniti JX Concept Reveal

GALLERY: Infiniti JX Concept

Watch video from the reveal in Pebble Beach after the jump:

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And now, drumroll, please…at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, Lexus has unveiled the all-new GS350,with sharper styling and sportier handling.

The new GS is wider than the outgoing four-eyed model, as befitting an entirely new platform that is even more rigid but stays within the same size. Lexus engineers focused on making the car more aerodynamic, with carefully-designed trunklids and bumpers to make sure air gets tamed as it passes above and below. Lexus says the Gs features a class-leading coefficient of drag, but declined giving any numbers.

From the outside, it certainly looks new: gone are the wide-eyed, mismatched headlights and baleen grille, exorcised for more aggressive knife edges and angles. It’s an evolution of Lexus’s L-Finesse styling that blatantly takes its cues from the supercar LF-A. Lexus now calls the new chrome-speared grille a “spindle grille,” whatever that means. But from the side, the GS sharply mimics its LS older brother, and manages to look more purposeful at the same time: 17-inch wheels are standard as well, with the option of going up to 19 inches.

Under the hood, the Ss350 gets for a base engine a 3.5-liter V6, good for 306 horsepower and 277 lb-ft of torque. In order to stay competitive with the Infiniti M, however, expect larger V8 engines to make it into the fold. A six-speed sequential automatic puts this power to the ground, through the rear wheels as well as an available all-wheel drive system. All of this is good for a 0-60 sprint of 5.7 seconds on its way to an electronically-limited top speed of 142 mph.

Inside, one can expect all of the leather and wood accoutrements as expected of Lexus, with some trick energy-saving technologies: an automatic climate control system Lexus calls S-Flow, which detects the number and position of its occupants, and directs airflow only to them. Despite keeping the same dimensions, cabin space has increased with more head- and legroom both in front and back. And good news for those home-improvement types: trunk space has increased by 25%, and doors now open even wider than before.

Technology? The Gs gets a central touchscreen that controls DVD audio and video capability, MP3, Bluetooth, Gracenote, HD and satellite radio, 5.1 Surround Sound, a text-to-speech feature for those distracted types, and Lexus Enform, which hooks owners up with Facebook, Pandora, Yelp, stock quotes, movie tickets and dinner reservations, and Bing Internet search. An optional 10-channel, 835-watt Mark Levinson system with 7.1 Surround Sound and 17 speakers is available.

The new Gs should keep Lexus competitive with its main target, the Infiniti M. And Lexus is banking on the likes of enthusiast drivers to take a look at the Gs: whether this is a successful move on their part, we’ll only know from a first drive. Stay tuned to Autoguide for that soon.

GALLERY: 2013 Lexus GS350

Watch video from the Pebble Beach unveiling after the jump:

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For parents, babysitter nightmares don’t come any worse than this: a 23-year old woman was arrested after leaving an 8-month old baby in the back of a Dodge Ram and driving around in the back.

Keyona Davis, from—where else?—Florida, was stopped by police after witnesses spotted her sitting in the back of the truck, with the stroller and the baby inside. The driver, a Mr. White, was cited for reckless driving, but Davis got off a bit harsher—felony child neglect, to add to a rap sheet of previous charges. She is being held in jail on a $5,000 bond, and will not be getting a recommendation from the baby’s family.

Click the jump to see the police dashboard camera, which caught the vehicle in the act. To be fair, she also sat in the back of the truck with the baby and the stroller, which makes it safe! And a note to aspiring babysitters: the Subaru Brat was taken out of production for a reason.

[Source: The Smoking Gun]

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Spurred by the recent riots in London, the Germans have taken to the streets—and their target are the Mercedes, BMW, and Audi cars owned by “fat cats” that are ruining their country.

About 138 cars have been torched across Berlin, with 26 just in the past two days. 130 of those have been Benzes; 91 Volkswagens, 60 BMWs, and 43 Audis and Opels comprise the rest. Berlin police are setting up special investigative units to process the cases as political crimes, which carry steeper penalties than mere vandalism. Arsonists usually light up the cars through the tires, placing barbeque charcoals around them. So far, no arrests have been made.

Germany is facing a terrible economic downturn: despite lofty sales figures from its car makers, Germany’s growth has almost completely stopped. This is coming from a country that only last year supported Western Europe’s economy. Many people believe that the protests and arsons aren’t about the financial crisis—they’re aimed against capitalism in general, globalization and gentrification in East Berlin’s former Soviet areas.

It’s common belief that any social injustice eventually devolves into an “us vs. them” mentality—the rich make convenient targets in this economic downturn, and certainly those who are wealthy enough to afford luxury cars are more of a target than London’s humble shopkeepers. And even as the Vancouver protests over the Stanley Cup have shown, cars are the number one target: especially expensive ones. As long as there’s inequality, even a perceived one, anywhere in volatile Europe, cars are going to go up in flames.

[Source: Zero Hedge]

Michael Accavitti once worked for Chrysler as its chief marketing officer, even becoming president of the Dodge brand. But now he’s taken his talents to Honda, where he will be doing much the same thing.

Accavitti worked at Cisco Systems shortly after his stint in Auburn Heights, spending the past two years there. It will be a change of pace back into automotive marketing, as he takes over Honda and Acura’s marketing and public relations. Honda’s sales have declined 2% this year, and Acura down 6%, so he’ll have some work to do.

His outgoing replacement Steve Center has been at the position since 2008, but will leave to head up a new department within Honda called the Environmental Business Development Office. It will oversee Honda’s various environmentally-friendly initiatives such as solar arrays for its facilities and electric vehicle production.

[Source: Automotive News]

Kia, spurred by the success of sibling Hyundai’s Genesis (and possibly Equus), wants a piece of the rear-drive pie. The company is planning a flagship luxury sedan and possibly a coupe, both in the vein of the Genesis duo.

Kia’s rear-drive adventures end there, however: there are no plans to introduce a pickup truck. There won’t be a Miata-sized roadster, either. Kia’s engineers aren’t interested in expanding into new markets, but tackling the segments they’re already comfortable in. And for Kia, this includes sedans (increasingly bigger ones, too) and coupes like the Forte.

The K7/Cadenza is currently their largest luxury sedan right now, which may or may not make it to America—but it’s a front-driver. The new RWD sedan will use the Genesis platform and series of V6 and V8 engines, and will slot above the Cadenza. If it’s built, it will enter the Korean market next May, and in about two years after that Stateside.

Lastly, Kia’s RWD sports car will be shown in Frankfurt in concept form. If people like it, Kia will target the BMW 3-Series—a lofty goal if there ever was one. It should be no surprise that the Kia sports car will be based on the Genesis, which will get a whole host of improvements by 2013 that will carry over to Kia, in their ambitious goal of besting the Bavarians.

And just think, only yesterday everybody was making bad jokes about the Rio. How fast they grow up these days!

[Source: Car And Driver]

A few days ago, Cadillac announced that the Volt-based Converj concept would enter production. Well, it’s gotten a name change to suit its newfound status: look for the Cadillac ELR to hit dealers in a few months.

After all, a sensible, less-ambiguous name like “Converj” couldn’t be used: it had too many letters! ELR brings the Volt-based luxury electric car into Cadillac’s naming convention. Naturally, the letters don’t stand for anything, but “Electric Luxury Ride” seems to make the most sense.

We like to think somebody at Cadillac’s naming division is a big fan of Electric Light Orchestra (and fudged the spellcheck), and we’re going to bet that “Mr. Blue Sky” finds its way into an environmentally-themed marketing campaign when the car is released.

GALLERY: Cadillac ELR

In case BMW‘s notoriously fickle enthusiasts can’t find the motivation to summon their pitchforks, here’s some news to light a fire under their posteriors: the legendary M division will put a diesel engine under the hood of their next car, a 5-Series.

Say it ain’t so, again! What’s next, a front-wheel drive M? But the next M-diesel won’t be an all-out M car—instead, it will be a companion to the M5, with the clunky badging of 550dM to indicate a diesel 5-Series that’s been breathed on by the sport division. The diesel powertrain will also make it to BMW’s other models such as the X-series of SUVs, which will also feature all-wheel drive.

As for the engine—going by the “more is better” theme, the diesel powerplant will carry three turbochargers to weed out even the suggestion of turbo lag. It will be a 3.0-liter straight-six as used in BMW’s current diesel cars, but with significant differences to the cylinder head. Direct injection and more efficient valve timing will push final horsepower figures to within the M5′s 560 horsepower: somewhere north of 500 will be expected, but with significantly more torque.

How significant? The M5 has 500 lb-ft of torque right now from its gasoline engine, but the diesel M will have more than 650 lb-ft. All-wheel drive will be standard then, according to a BMW official, “otherwise you’ll be spinning your tires all day.”

Diesel has been catching on slowly in the US, which holds stringent regulations on its sulfur levels. A high-performance diesel could light a fire under current sales figures of oil burners, and if BMW readies an M-diesel, it could even beat Audi at its own game. That, more than sales figures, would be the triumph of the day.

[Source: The Detroit Bureau]

Just like how elementary school kids promised free lollipops and candy in the vending machines, America’s politicians make the same affirmations. Case in point: Michelle Bachmann will, if elected, give all God-fearing Americans the divine right of cheap gas.

Drill baby, drill! Bachmann told supporters at an event in South Carolina: “The day that the president became president gasoline was $1.79 a gallon. Look at what it is today. Under President Bachmann, you will see gasoline come down below $2 a gallon again. That will happen.”

She didn’t mention specifically where this magical oil would come from, other than some vague rumblings about opening up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska. Which, according to an EPA study in 2008 (in the middle of $4/gallon gas), wouldn’t do much to lower gas prices quickly or effectively. But then again, with Bachmann herself salivating at the prospect of shutting down the socialist plot that is the Environmental Protection Agency, it’s doubtful that she heeded this report in the first place.

But hey, cheap gas grabs attention—and promising $2/gallon sure is catchy. With the gauntlet laid down by Bachmann, we wonder what the other candidates will promise to Americans. Maybe Governor Perry will promise a free revolver for every man, woman, and child: Mitt Romney will fly over major metropolitan areas dropping denim jackets from an airplane, and Obama, in a bid to stay relevant and popular, will simply throw change from the rooftops.

[Source: Politico]