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2015 will be the biggest year ever for cars at CES

Like the SEMA Show, major automakers are paying increasing attention to the CES, with 2015 expected to be one of the most auto focused yet. Ford, Volkswagen, Toyota, General Motors, Hyundai, Mazda, Audi, BMW and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles will all be in attendance when CES 2015 kicks off next week, taking up a record-breaking 165,000 square feet of space at the Las Vegas Convention Center. "We've come a long way from a single car on a carpet," Ford's Alan Hall told Bloomberg. Unlike SEMA, or a more traditional auto show, like the upcoming festivities in Detroit, CES doesn't necessarily focus on entire cars or the way they perform, but on the way our technology will interact with vehicles, and in how those vehicles will deliver information to drivers. "CES has become a major launch point for a lot of the big automakers," IHS tech analyst Mark Boyadjis told Bloomberg. "CES is a way for them to get on a global stage for technology." As for what kind of wares automakers will trot out in Las Vegas, we already know that BMW will show off an autonomous i3 electric car that can navigate its way through a multistory car park and can be hailed via a smartwatch app. According to Bloomberg, Hyundai will show off its own smartwatch app for the Genesis sedan, while Audi and Mercedes-Benz will show off autonomous vehicles next week. Automakers won't be the only companies looking to capitalize on CES. Tech firms, like chipmaker Nvidia, are becoming increasingly involved in the automotive game and will be in town showing their wares off to OEMs. "Two years ago, our booth would have been filled with PCs and people playing video games," Danny Shapiro, Nvidia's senior director for automotive business, told Bloomberg. "This year we made a strategic decision to shift the focus of the booth on automotive and de-prioritize some of the other things." Needless to say, you can expect to see a lot of news out of Las Vegas come next week. Stay tuned. News Source: BloombergImage Credit: Julie Jacobson / AP CES Audi BMW Chrysler Fiat Ford GM Hyundai Mazda Toyota Volkswagen Technology CES 2015

In Jamaica, it's not easy to sell or buy hybrid cars

Jamaica's mellow reputation and Rasta vibe contributes to an international reputation of an island nation that moves at a leisurely pace. And the term "leisurely" certainly applies to the rate of sales of hybrids there. And we thought Mitsubishi i sales in the US have been slow. The country's Toyota dealership is still in the process of explaining hybrid technology to many of its prospective customers, with the widespread perception remains that a standard Toyota Prius needs to be plugged in for electrical charging, the Jamaica Gleaner reports. Because of such slow exposure, Toyota has only sold about 10 hybrids in Jamaica since the Japanese automaker started selling them there in 2010. And we thought Mitsubishi i sales in the US have been slow. Toyota dealers in Jamaica continue to tout hybrid technology that can boost fuel economy by about 30 percent but are going up against the fact that Toyota's hybrids now need to be pre-ordered and aren't kept in stock because of sluggish demand. There's also the fact that Toyota's Japanese operations insist on an approval process that ensures the hybrids sent there can handle Jamaica's road conditions, and it typically takes three to four months for a Prius to get to Jamaica once ordered. Island locales provide a curious dichotomy for advanced-powertrain vehicles. On one hand, the driving distances tend to be relatively small, lengthening the amount of time it takes to pay back the original cost premium. On the flip side, importing fuel to islands makes gas prices skyrocket and can prove costly for the economy in island nations. Late last year, for instance, the government of another Caribbean nation, Barbados, estimated it spends about $250 million a year on gas used for personal vehicles. That's why the government there is pushing for more electric-vehicle adoption, though the number of EVs on the island was in the low double-digits as of mid-2013.

Italian coachbuilder wraps a modern-day Citroen van in a retro skin

Italian coachbuilder Caselani resurrected an obscure, often-forgotten model from Citroen's past to offer van buyers an additional retro-styled option. Called Type HG, it's based on the current-generation Citroen Jumpy. One of the French carmaker's best-known vintage vans is the Type H, which was built with only minor changes from 1947 to 1981. It's aged into a sought-after classic that's popular as a food truck and as a camper from Paris to Sydney. Few realize Citroen planned to release a smaller model named Type G which looked almost exactly like the H but used an air-cooled flat-twin engine shared with the 2CV. Several prototypes were made, but the project was canned in favor of the 2CV-based, nine-horsepower AU van released in 1951. It's this little-known prototype that only exists in Citroen's official heritage collection and in the minds of the most indoctrinated French car enthusiasts that Caselani chose to bring into the 21st century. And, because the Type G (shown below) was a shrunken copy of the Type H from a design standpoint, making a body kit that fits the Citroen Jumpy was relatively simple. Caselani liberally borrowed styling cues from its modern version of the Type H, which is based on the larger Citroen Jumper sold as the Ram ProMaster in the United States. It adds a new-look front end with a vertical grille, chromed chevrons, and round headlights positioned as far out of the body as regulations permit, corrugated body panels, and a redesigned rear end. Whitewall tires are optionally available. Caselani offers the Type HG as a passenger van, a crew-cab van, and a panel van. Pricing starts at 29,400 euros before taxes are factored in, a sum that represents about $35,000 and that corresponds to a short-wheelbase panel model powered by a 100-horsepower, four-cylinder turbodiesel engine. Alternatively, motorists who already own a Jumpy can purchase the transformation kit on its own for 14,800 euros (about $17,500). For added peace of mind, Caselani pointed out the conversion was created with Citroen's input, and the brand authorized the kit. We know what you're thinking: what on earth is a Jumpy? Glad you asked! It's a van positioned in the middle of Citroen's commercial range. It slots between the Berlingo, which competes in the same segment as the Ford Transit Connect, and the Jumper, which is marketed as an alternative to the Ford Transit.