1966 Ford Bronco on 2040-cars

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Ford Mustang GT Bi-Fuel CNG

Highly intrigued, we recently visited a Southern California Gas Company office to check out several hybrid vehicles promising something new. Unlike more commonplace gasoline-electric hybrids, we were there to evaluate innovative gasoline-compressed natural gas (CNG) hybrids - yes, they run on unleaded gasoline and compressed natural gas. According to the experts on hand, this arrangement delivers extended range and reduced emissions while chipping in with lower operating costs than pure-gasoline vehicles. There are advantages over its gasoline-electric counterparts, as well.
The program is part of a three-way collaboration between The Carlab, a Southern California-based automotive consulting firm, Landi Renzo USA, a company specializing in alternative fuel solutions, and America's Natural Gas Alliance, a group that promotes CNG. Long story short, the team has engineered a way to allow a modified internal combustion vehicle to seamlessly switch between two fuels (gasoline and CNG) with no driver intervention. In theory, and if it works as well as promised, it's a win-win for the vehicle owner and the environment.
Parked at the Gas Company office were six different gasoline-CNG hybrid vehicles. To demonstrate the technology's versatility (just about any gasoline vehicle may be modified) Carlab brought a varied assortment of bodystyles, each from a different automaker. After taking a quick glance at the half-dozen in the parking lot, we made a beeline for the performance-oriented Ford Mustang GT - a 2012 model - with the six-speed manual gearbox.

Weekly Recap: Ferrari, Ford and Porsche power up for Geneva

Monday was Groundhog Day. Tuesday, apparently, was Sports Car Day. The Ferrari 488 GTB, the Ford Focus RS and the Porsche Cayman GT4 all debuted within hours of each other ahead of their rollouts at the Geneva Motor Show. Three sporty machines, three vastly different approaches – and a lot of implications for enthusiasts. That's a day worth repeating. It also illustrates the opportunities automakers see in the performance market, which is expected to grow in the coming years. Ford estimates the segment has expanded 14 percent in Europe and surged 70 percent in North America since 2009. The Detroit Auto Show was evidence of this, and performance cars of every stripe debuted, including the Acura NSX, Ford GT, Alfa Romeo 4C Spider and several others. This isn't a fad. Performance cars aren't going away. The question is why? Stricter CAFE standards are looming in the United States, as are tighter emissions regulations in Europe. And no one expects gas prices to remain low in America. None of this matters for sports cars, and automakers are increasingly using them to elevate their images. That's why Dodge rolled out two 707-horsepower Hellcats last year. It's why Ford has decided to resurrect the GT for road and track. It's why in the depths of bankruptcy, General Motors continued work on the Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, not to mention the Z06. "Great brands are made one car at a time," Ford of Europe president Jim Farley said at the reveal of the Focus RS. Still, companies make those cars for different reasons. View 5 Photos Mainstream brands like Ford and Dodge want to build cars that get people talking, excite their bases and drive more potential customers into the showroom. They probably don't buy a Focus RS or a Hellcat, but suddenly the regular Focus hatch looks a bit hotter, and that V6 Charger seems to be just a touch more muscular. The halo of performance is alive and well in the eyes of automakers and their customers. "It's one of the most effective catalysts for ingenuity and innovation," said Joe Bakaj, vice president of product development for Ford of Europe. That also leads to a trickle-down effect. Some of the technologies inevitably make their way to other products. It's hard to think the new all-wheel-drive system in the Focus RS that distributes torque front to rear and side to side won't be used in other vehicles. It's different for Ferrari and Porsche.

Recharge Wrap-up: Ford's "snowtonomous" Fusion Hybrid, Porsche eyes battery makers

Bosch and Panasonic are vying to be the battery supplier for Porsche's electric sports car based on the Mission E concept. While Bosch's costs may be higher, its solution would offer simpler logistics. Panasonic is already well established as a battery maker, providing the packs for the Porsche car's rival, Tesla. "We're in the final stage of making a decision," says Porsche CEO Oliver Blume, declining to comment on specific manufacturers. Neither Bosch nor Panasonic provided comment. Read more from Automotive News. Renault will supply a fleet of 150 Renault Zoe EVs for a smart solar charging project in Utrecht, Netherlands. The project involves the installation of 1,000 EV chargers powered by 10,000 photovoltaic panels. The Renault Zoes would be used as part of a carsharing program powered by the solar chargers. Renault and its partners will also implement a vehicle-to-grid system to provide energy during peak demand from the solar chargers and connected EVs. Read more in the press release from Renault. Ford has been testing an autonomous Fusion Hybrid prototype that is capable of driving itself in snowy conditions. Ford uses 3D mapping to scan the drive route. Its LiDAR laser mapping can even detect single falling snowflakes. It collects and processes up to 600 gigabytes of data per hour, comparing its environment to saved maps, a process that helps establish location more precisely than GPS. In addition to the LiDAR systems, the car is also equipped with cameras and radar to help it navigate. Eventually, the car could even be able to clean off its sensors when it detects loss of performance from ice and dirt. Read more in the press release below. FROM AUTONOMY TO SNOWTONOMY: HOW FORD FUSION HYBRID AUTONOMOUS RESEARCH VEHICLE CAN NAVIGATE IN WINTER DEARBORN, Mich., March 10, 2016 – Driving in snow can be a slippery challenge, with the potential for one blizzardy gust to white-out your field of view – a situation faced by the majority of people in the United States. So if self-driving cars are to become a reality – and they almost certainly will – they must be able to navigate snow-covered roads. In its quest to bring self-driving vehicles to millions of people around the world, Ford reveals six facts about its technology that allows for a car to drive itself in snow. 1. Mapping the way: Ford first creates high-resolution 3D maps using LiDAR technology to scan the area its autonomous vehicle will later drive in the snow.