1997 Volvo 850 Very Nice Clean Car, Low Miles on 2040-cars

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Here's today's round of auto plant closures in response to coronavirus

More automakers have shuttered factories, as businesses everywhere work to slow the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus — and as the pandemic slows sales and disrupts parts supply chains. On Friday, the following closures were announced: • Volvo will close its factories in Sweden and the United States from March 26 to April 14. Volvo's U.S. facility, in Charleston, South Carolina, makes the S60 sedan. Its assembly plant in Torslanda, Sweden, turns out the XC90, SC60, and V90. Other Swedish facilities make engines and component parts. A Volvo factory in Ghent, Belgium, that builds the XC40 and V60 closed earlier this week and is expected to remain offline until April 6. Volvo's four factories in China have been reopened after a shutdown earlier this year. • Jaguar Land Rover announced that it will suspend production at its assembly plants in the UK over the coming week. The shutdown is expected to last until April 20. Elsewhere, production continues at the company's factories in India and Brazil, and JLR's joint-venture plant in China reopened at the end of February. • Bentley is closing its factory in Crewe, England, for four weeks, effective today. • Bugatti has put its atelier in Molsheim, France, on hiatus. No date was given for when assembly of its supercars might resume. • Mercedes-Benz on Monday will shut down its SUV factory in Alabama and its van assembly plant in South Carolina. Both will remain closed for a minimum of two weeks. Tesla yesterday revealed that it will suspend operations at its Fremont, California, vehicle assembly plant next week, on order from local officials there. Yesterday's factory closure announcements also included the U.S. assembly plants for Toyota (until April 6), Volkswagen (through March 29), Subaru (through March 29), and Hyundai (no time period specified). They join GM, Ford, Chrysler, Honda, Nissan, and Harley-Davidson, which earlier this week announced the suspension of production at their facilities. Plants/Manufacturing Bentley Bugatti Jaguar Land Rover Mercedes-Benz Volvo coronavirus

Volvo Concept Estate hauls in great expectations [w/videos]

You're looking at the third leg of Volvo's award-winning concept trilogy, the Concept Estate. Despite its banal name, this sweeping longroof showcar has our attention like few other cars at the Geneva Motor Show.
It's not just that we have a weakness for shooting brakes or Volvo's take on the genre in particular (we can see some P1800ES in this design). We just think this car is exceptionally well surfaced, with a fantastic stance and the sort of clean lines that are singularly appropriate of a Scandinavian design. We also appreciate the details that are expected to inform future production models, including the T-shaped headlamps, strong rear shoulders and floating grille mount. In fact, the vast majority of the Concept Estate's design idiom is expected to make it to showrooms in future models, starting with the long-overdue, second-generation XC90 crossover.
We hope - but don't expect - that attitude carries over to the interior, which has stunning, white leather, floating clamshell seats backed in plaid. If there's one cabin feature that's expected to make it to production, it's a derivative of the car's new infotainment system, which features a massive touchscreen with tablet-like gesture controls.

Recharge Wrap-up: Formula E car swap video, Lyft adds carpooling, new Tesla book

Curious to see how the Formula E car swap goes down? During each hour-long race (or ePrix, as the series calls them), drivers have to make a pit stop to switch cars as the battery runs down. Of course, they want to do it as quickly as possible. It's kind of a tricky dance extricating oneself from the cockpit of one car and slipping into the seat of another facing the opposite direction. See the maneuver in the video below and read more at Jalopnik. A new report forecasts that the CNG and LPG vehicle market will be worth nearly $5.2 billion by 2019. The report cites fluctuating gasoline and diesel prices, and the relatively low prices of these alternative fuels, for their growing popularity. The report also breaks down the popularity of natural gas and propane vehicles in different parts up the world. In the Asia-Pacific region, China is the largest consumer. In Europe, CNG thrives in Italy, while LPG is most popular in Turkey and Poland. Meanwhile, CNG remains a tough sell in America, while South America has a healthy market. Learn more in the press release below or at Markets and Markets. The Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are testing trucks connected to overhead electric wires to reduce emissions and improve air quality. The eHighway, as the project is called, will cost $13.5 million and will use battery electric and hybrid trucks to move cargo around the ports along a one-mile stretch of wires. The trucks, made by Siemens and Volvo, also have the ability to disconnect from the wires and drive under their own power. See more in the video below or read more at ABC7. Lyft is introducing its own carpooling feature to its car-hailing app. Yesterday, we reported that its competitor Uber is testing UberPool, and Lyft is now doing something similar to encourage people to share rides. Lyft Line offers discounted rides, and matches passengers who are going to nearby destinations around the same time. Lyft Line offers passengers a guaranteed price before they accept the ride. Lyft is launching the carpooling service in San Francisco, and hopes to expand it from there. Read the in-depth article at The New York Times. A new book is available called Tesla Motors: How Elon Musk and Company Made Electric Cars Cool, and Sparked the Next Tech Revolution. Written by Charles Morris, senior editor of Charged, it chronicles the history of the famed electric automaker, its achievements in business and technology and the people responsible for Tesla's success.