If you live in the San Francisco Bay area, I'm sure you're probably familiar with the little golf-cart looking car called the Smart ForTwo. These trendy little things are gas efficient, eco-friendly, and easy to drive, but are they safe? Today's video demonstrates just how potentially dangerous these things are in an accident, so pay attention.
It's been noted that this video has an affiliation with the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, although this claim has been disputed by some Web viewers. Regardless, this video is neat as it shows the testers setting up the crash test dummies for placement inside the vehicles. Then shortly after the 3-minute mark, the Smart ForTwo is pitted in a frontal collision test versus a Mercedes E-Class sedan. And even if you know which car is the safer of the two, you should still pay attention to the outcome as the amount of potential damage to a would-be rider in a so-called "Smart" car is hard to realistically comprehend without seeing it for yourselves.
The Viper Smart Start app can control your car from wherever you are, as long as you have a data connection on your iPhone or iPod Touch.
(Credit: Directed Electronics)Car security company Directed Electronics is unveiling a new iPhone application Tuesday that lets customers control parts of their Viper SmartStart-enabled vehicle from their iPhone or iPod Touch.
The app, called Viper SmartStart, is quite similar toZipcar's recently released iPhone app, except it can work with your car, and not one you're renting for the weekend. It, too, creates a virtual keychain control module that can do things like lock and unlock your vehicle, open the trunk, and activate the alarm, getting rid of the need to carry around one of those keychain clickers as long as you've got your phone handy.
Coolest of all, though, there's a "Smart Start" button in the center of the screen that can turn on your vehicle. The company is promoting this as a simple way to defrost or cool off a car before you get in--that is, assuming you correctly set the climate controls the last time you were inside.
Since the app uses the iPhone's data connection to send the commands, you can control your car (or cars) from anywhere you have an EDGE or 3G signal. It also means you can use it on a non-cellular data device like the iPod Touch, as long as it's near Wi-Fi.
The app is completely free, but it requires you have Viper's SmartStart system installed in each car you want to take control of. This costs $499 for a new installation, or $299 for cars that already have a Viper alarm system, as well as an active subscription to Viper's Smart Start service. Buyers of the system get a year of the $29.99 service included when they get the service installed; then they have to pay after that.
I'm still waiting for a version that can give you live video and steering controls, like the ridiculous, yet awesome remote-controlled BMW in "Tomorrow Never Dies" Though something tells me that's not happening anytime soon.
You can watch the company's promo video after the break.
Correction 9:07 a.m. on October 13: This story initially misidentified the remote-controlled car and James Bond film it was featured in. It is a BMW, and it appeared in "Tomorrow Never Dies."
... Read more
For years, style was absent without an excuse from American subcompacts. But the days of slab-sided, no-frills hatchbacks may soon be history.
For decades, something was missing in the small cars designed, built and sold in the United States. It was gone for so long that most American consumers probably didn't know what it was.
But to Ralph Gilles, Chrysler Group's chief designer, the missing ingredient was obvious. U.S. subcompacts lacked emotional appeal.
"Small cars of the past were not necessarily done with passion," he said.
Generations of Detroit designers seemed to say: No one buys a small car for its styling, so why bother? Uninspired, appliancelike econoboxes? What else did you expect?
American subcompacts had none of the attributes found in the cool, quirky and even elegant small cars created elsewhere in the world, from the original BMC Mini to the first Peugeot 205 to the modern Citroen C3.
U.S. automakers were forced to churn out small cars to raise corporate average fuel economy averages, so they could keep selling big trucks. Small-car design? An oxymoron.
But consumer preference has shifted -- the result of higher gasoline prices, new fuel-efficiency standards and concern about climate change.
"Small cars and vehicles powered by four-cylinder engines have been on a steady increase since 2004," said Ford Motor Co. sales analyst George Pipas.
U.S. fleets must average 35.5 mpg by 2016, compared with 25.3 mpg this year. Combined with stricter emissions standards, it means the number of small-car nameplates for sale in the United States will increase.
And when a market segment gets crowded, automakers must rely on styling to set their vehicles apart from the crowd.
"It's not business as usual for small cars here anymore," said Moray Callum, Ford Motor's design director for cars.
The expanding lineup of new small cars means styling will get a lot more creative and appealing, just as it did with mid-sized cars recently. (Think of the modern Chevrolet Malibu, the new Ford Taurus and the current Toyota Camry and Honda Accord.)
... Read more
(Credit:
CellControl)
If you can't keep your hands off your cell phone while driving, a new blocking device can help you keep them on the wheel.
CellControl plugs into the computer terminals of cars made in 1996 and later (terminals are located under the steering column). It then links to your cell via Bluetooth and a downloadable application. When the vehicle is in motion, the device blocks all incoming and outgoing calls, plus texts and e-mails. But it always allows you to call emergency numbers.
CellControl does not depend on cell phone tower triangulation or GPS; as long as a car is moving at more than 1 mph, it will sense the motion and block calling. Incoming calls and messages are stored.
The device can be programmed, though, to allow only calls or text messages. Once the car is stopped, calls automatically come through. Passenger cell phones are not affected.
Driving while distracted (DWD) is becoming an increasingly important public safety issue.
Louisiana-based developer Obdedge says texting was related to about 500,000 road accidents in 2008. Meanwhile, the United Services Automobile Association recently noted that studies conducted in summer 2009 show texting while driving makes a driver 23 times more likely to be involved in an accident, while talking on a cell phone while driving, even hands-free, makes drivers as likely to cause a crash as someone considered legally drunk.
Obdedge is offering free beta testing before it launches CellControl for BlackBerry devices on September 15. Launches for Windows Mobile and Android will come later.
And you thought the Fortwo's cabin was cramped...
(Credit: Mercedes-Benz)Recent patent filings by Mercedes-Benz indicate that a three-seater Smart may be in the works.
According to Autocar:
"Nothing's official at this stage, but Mercedes-Benz insiders contacted by Autocar suggest the new car could take the name 'Forthree' into showrooms by 2014 as part of plans to extend the Smart lineup into a complete range of models by the middle of the next decade."
Smart Forthree? How about something more exciting like McSmart F1?
Obviously drawing inspiration from the McLaren F1 supercar, the rumored Smart will feature a 1+2 layout with a centrally positioned driver's seat flanked by two passenger seats mounted slightly behind. To facilitate easy entrance and egress, the driver's seat looks like it should be able to rotate slightly and slide on rails toward the door. Also, depicted in the patent drawings is a trick fold-flat pedal, which should clear the footwell when seats start sliding.
The patent drawings also outline airbag and seatbelt placement, as well as alternate configurations.
(Credit: Mercedes-Benz)The patent makes no mention of the three-seater's drivetrain, but speculation seems to point to one of Mercedes' upcoming three-cylinder gasoline and diesel engines for small vehicle applications and a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox, which is still under development.
(Via Autocar.co.uk)
Some sight-impaired people believe hybrid and electric cars pose a safety risk. They reckon that because these things make virtually no noise, it's only a matter of time before they're involved in some sort of collision with an errant G-Wiz or Citroen C1 EV'IE.
Smart doesn't particularly believe this to be true, but its latest vehicle, the Smart Brabus Electric Drive, incorporates a gadget that may save the lives of the visually challenged. Or not. It has a sound generator that mimics the noise made by a traditional internal combustion engine. More to the point, it also makes a noise that mimics a bloomin' spaceship!
Watch the video below to see and hear it in action, and when you're done, check out our photos of the Smart Brabus Electric Drive to get a closer look.
(Source: Crave UK)
Meet the Smart Brabus Electric Drive--a modified version of the Smart ED prototype. The most significant addition, as far as we're concerned, is the noise generator. Click on the image above for more pictures.
(Credit: Crave UK)Are you tired of being run over by near-silent electric cars? No, us neither, but we've got good news for anyone who often finds themselves wandering into the path of freakishly quiet oncoming eco-cars.
Meet the Smart Brabus Electric Drive--a modified version of the Smart ED prototype we tested back in April 2008. This one's been given the once-over by German tuning company Brabus, which has painted it spearmint green and white, fitted a matching interior, and added some interesting new gadgets.
The most significant addition, as far as we're concerned, is the noise generator. Flick a switch under the dashboard, hit the go pedal and the car makes a noise that sounds like the USS Enterprise as it enters warp speed. The sound doesn't come from the internal speakers, either--it's generated by an external loudspeaker positioned toward the front of the car. If you want something slightly less bonkers, flicking the switch in the other direction will make the car sound like a highly beefed-up Smart fortwo. It's ace.
... Read moreThe value-packed, sporty and well-equipped Smart ForTwo Passion coupe includes a panorama roof, alloy wheels, air conditioning with climate control, three-spoke leather sports steering wheel with shift paddles, power windows, electric and heated side mirrors, and AM/FM radio with CD player.
The car debuted last fall at the 2008 LA auto show. Check out this review by Cars.com's Joe Wiesenfelder.
Team members (left to right) Steve Burke, Wayne Gerdes, and Tom Rolewicz breaking the seal on the gas tank after driving an amazing 1,445.7 miles on a single tank of gas in Alexandria, Va., ending at 5:37 a.m. Tuesday, April 28, 2009. The car had been running for 69 hours continuously.
(Credit: Ford)Setting a world record a gasoline fueled midsized sedan, the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid traveled 1,445.7 miles on a single tank of gas on Tuesday, April 28, 2009.
Traveling between 20 and 45 mph depending on traffic to take advantage of the car's capability to operate in electric-only mode up to 47 mph and foregoing cruise control to maximize fuel economy, a team of seven eco-drivers set out from Mount Vernon, Va. on Saturday at 8:15 a.m. ET with a goal of reaching 1,000 miles on their 17-gallon tank.
The team included Nascar driver Carl Edwards, high mileage trailblazer Wayne Gerdes and several Ford Motor Company engineers who took turns at the wheel, twittering their progress along the way.
The 1,000 mile target was easily reached at 9:07 a.m. EDT on April 27. Edwards reportedly took them past this milestone with an average fuel economy of 76.3 mpg, according to a post on Twitter.
With fuel still in the tank, the team continued driving into the night to see just how far the Fusion Hybrid could go.
... Read moreDETROIT--French auto supplier Faurecia SA thinks the next generation of automotive seating could eliminate polyurethane foam.
With its concept Sustainable Comfort Seat, the company replaces foam inside the seat with two sheets of injection-molded thermoplastic polyurethane. The design echoes the visible structure in some athletic shoes and the molded seats of office chairs.
The twin-sheet structure is part of a seat system that is 17 percent lighter than standard seats and 30 millimeters thinner, resulting in more legroom for rear-seat passengers.
The entire seat also uses an injection-molded nylon and long-glass-fiber structural frame that replaces steel and an injection-molded head restraint in place of foam and steel.
"There are multiple innovations in here," said Jay Hutchins, a product planning manager, during an interview last month at Faurecia's North American technical center in suburban Detroit.
Faurecia introduced the seat as part of its Light Attitude concept interior during the Los Angeles Auto Show in November. Since then, the company has been showing it to individual automakers.
No more foam
Lighter and thinner seats have been a target for automakers and suppliers for the past few years. Most research has emphasized reducing the bulk through improved urethane foam that provides the needed support in a smaller package.
Faurecia's new seat design is lighter than foam seats, which would help fuel economy.
(Credit: Faurecia)Faurecia's seat eliminates the foam in favor of the injection-molded core. Two sheets of thermoplastic polyurethane are designed with cavities and raised areas to provide both support and flexibility where needed, said Olivier Boinais, the company's industrial design manager.
The two sheets are vibration-welded and joined with an injection-molded outer shell at the rear of the seat and a textile cover.
... Read more
