Cars and Motors

The future of Hydrogen Fuel Cell vehicles is beginning to brighten thanks to the unveiling of Honda's at home refueling station. However, this won't solve the problem of taking a road trip with a hydrogen powered vehicle. To pick up where the at home solution leaves off, a company called SunHydro has drafted a plan to build stations along major highways in the US.

While many automakers are still looking into gasoline electric vehicles or diesel electric vehicles for the future of our vehicles, Honda has remained faithful to the Hydrogen Fuel Cell. This decision was made while being well aware of the problems they will face when trying to develop a useable fueling infrastructure. Now, they have developed a new fueling station that may make this transition even easier.

With so much attention being put on the upcoming Toyota FT-86, it should come as no surprise that the parent automaker is also working on an aftermarket performance division to boost sales even more. What makes this news even more exciting is that the automaker may also be using the new department to build full models.

Early in the 2nd quarter of 2009, Jaguar/Land Rover received a massive chunk of funding from the European Investment Bank to help offset the costs of developing more fuel efficient vehicles. Since then the Engineers have been working tirelessly to get the new concepts from paper to production, a goal that will be realized with the introduction of the hybrid electric XJ Sedan.

It should come as no surprise that the upcoming Chicago Auto Show will once again be dominated by the hybrid variety. While many will be updated versions of previously introduced models, Kia is planning on using Chicago to introduce their recently teased Ray Concept.

Rumors of a hybrid driven Lancer Evolution have been flying around since October of last year. This is mostly thanks to the MX-MiEV concept that was built on the same platform as the all wheel drive legend. Now, a few more details have been released that could mean production for the hybrid variant.

Infotainment systems are slowly but surely becoming just as common as air conditioning in today's vehicles, and for a good reason. As we become more dependent on new technologies, it only makes sense that we want to use them all the time. Advancements like these are likely why Kia has introduced their UVO system.

It seems like all of the world's automakers these days are beginning to realize the potential of smaller turbocharged engines. Thankfully, this rarely comes at the expense of performance, making them extremely versatile when it comes to sportier models. Volvo has given us yet another example of this with their latest GTDi Engine.

Having your driver's license suspended or revoked is a serious matter. Even more serious is the number of people who have had this happen and then successfully applied for another in a different state or even county in some instances. The Australian Police have developed a new computer system to help cut down on these occurrences which could eventually make its way into the US.

As expected, Audi has given us another upgrade to their constantly improving Multi Media Interface for the New Year. This iteration features not only a more impressive visual experience, but will also include a 3 Dimensional representation of buildings and landmarks.

One of the most often posed complaints surrounding electric vehicles is the look. While they may be much friendlier to the environment, some people just can't get over the styling. The new Trexa modular vehicle platform solves this problem by letting a buyer custom design their own all electric vehicle.

BMW's ActiveHybrid lineup has been slowly but surely expanding to encompass nearly every size of vehicle offered by the Bavarian Auto Maker. While the 3-Series ActiveHybrid will likely be enough for much of the market, BMW has also decided to redesign a 5-Series to offer a slightly more upscale variant.

Audi is no stranger to the premium segment of cars. Much of their line-up has redefined the benchmark for other automakers to meet at one time or another, and their recently redesigned S4 is no different. However, they have also been working to develop the first compact vehicle to be slated in the premium segment, which they now plan on unveiling at the Geneva Motor Show.

We all know that the key to selling a high value product is to be able to predict what the masses will want next. A few years back, Ford did just that by introducing the SYNC Infotainment System. Since then, they have been steadily improving it both by upgrading the system itself and adding new things to it. The latest of these additions, the MyFord Touch Driver Connect System, promises to offer even more personalization and information to the driver than ever before.

The Internet as the ecosystem of our lives is expanding beyond the confines of desktops and mobile devices to connect with actual things that take up space in our world. Back in February, 2009, I predicted that by 2020 appliances, vehicles, buildings and smart homes will be able to start talking with one another. Well that Internet of Things' timetable might have just been moved up a decade as a result of what  one company is doing with this new technology.

After failing in their first attempt to introduce a model smaller than the 3-Series, BMW successfully introduced the both the 128i and 135i to American soil in 2008. Since then, the 1-Series has been able to collect a substantial fan-base, thanks in large part to the sporty 135i. Now, BMW is planning on expanding even more on the 1-Series lineup, both by improving performance and fuel economy.

Yes. You read right.  You've heard that cell phones distract drivers.  Now, for the first time, a study has proven that driving distracts a driver from those cell phone conversations!

At last year’s Frankfurt Auto Show, Audi introduced the high performance all electric E-Tron Concept to the world.  Since then, they have been working on a similar vehicle that could serve as a starting point for Audi’s upcoming Plug-In Hybrid Lineup.

After the obligatory waiting period since first being mentioned, Toyota has finally taken the cover off of their upcoming MR2 based Hybrid Sports Car. While the design seems to make perfect sense with what consumers are asking for, the name currently being used leave something to be desired.