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Recharge Wrap-up: Volt makes up third of Quebec Chevy dealerships sales, Tesla seeks Aussie talent

A Chevrolet dealership in Quebec has had the Volt make up 35 percent of its sales so far this year. Bourgeois Chevrolet in Rawdon, Quebec received recognition for the feat at the 2014 Electric Vehicle Conference, where it won the award for Leading Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle Dealership. To sell that many, Bourgeois Chevrolet had to import used Volts from the US, and keeps about 50 units on the lot in various configurations. The conference also saw Park Avenue Nissan of Brossard, Quebec win the Leading Battery Electric Vehicle Dealership Award, and Loch Lomond Mitsubishi of Saint John, New Brunswick receive the award for Electric Vehicle Dealership Inspiration. Read more at Green Car Reports. Tesla Motors has begun scouting Australian engineers as other automakers shutter operations there. Ford, General Motors and Toyota have announced that they will shut down their Australian factories, leaving behind a lot of unused talent. Tesla recently held a "Recruiting Open House" in Melbourne for engineers to fill positions at its plant in Fremont, CA, where they will be paired with other Aussie engineers already on staff. Read more at Green Car Reports, or at Motoring. Electric turbochargers may come to play a key role in making internal combustion engines more efficient. Valeo recently showed an electric turbo it plans to supply to an unnamed automaker at a fuel economy showcase event at the EPA's National Vehicle Emissions and Fuel Lab. Electric turbochargers have the advantage of greatly reduced lag when compared to exhaust-driven turbos. They also work well when paired with cylinder deactivation, providing a much-needed boost when driving on a grade, which can help reduce the need for cylinders to reactivate. Independence from the exhaust system also makes it easier to package the turbocharger wherever there is room. Read more from Navigant Research. US crude oil futures have dropped to their lowest in more than two years. Saudi Arabia cut oil costs for the US and raised them for Europe and Asia as the US has increased output. On November 3, US crude futures fell as much as 2.2 percent in New York. West Texas Intermediate closed at $78.78, the lowest since June 2012. Brent crude slipped $1.08 to $84.78 a barrel. Read more at Bloomberg.

GM to make most cars LTE hotspots for 2015

General Motors isn't the first automaker to deliver in-car Internet access, but a proposed plan announced today could make the technology more widespread than any of its competitors have offered. By the 2015 model year, most Chevrolet, Buick, Cadillac and GMC products in the US and Canada will offer 4G LTE mobile broadband access. Initially, GM will just be pairing with AT&T to deliver this service, but additional carriers will be revealed in the future.
Current in-car Wi-Fi hot spots are limited to 3G, but GM says that 4G LTE is 10 times faster than 3G service and will allow for full Internet access, including streaming video for entertainment as well as services like real-time traffic updates and navigation driving directions. There is also no need for a paired smartphone with this new system, which should make it easier to use, and GM and AT&T will also be working together to develop new apps for customers.
Buyers can expect to start seeing 4G LTE in their cars starting next year, and GM is already planning to expand the service to other global markets as well. All of the information from GM's announcement is posted in a press release below.

These cars are headed to the Great Crusher In The Sky

It happens every year. We bid adieu to some cars and trucks that will be missed, and say good riddance to others wondering how they stayed around so long. Whether they're being killed off for slow sales or due to a new product coming along to replace them, the list of vehicles being discontinued after 2012 is surprisingly long and diverse.
CNN Money has compiled a list of departing vehicles, to which we've added a few more of our own. In the slow sales column, cars like the Lexus HS 250h, Mercedes-Benz R-Class and the full Maybach lineup appear, while the Ford Escape Hybrid, Mazda CX-7 and Hyundai Veracruz are all having their gaps filled with more modern and more fuel-efficient alternatives. Obvious exceptions to the rule include models that still sell in decent numbers like the Jeep Liberty and the Chrysler Town & Country (which will eventually be replaced by a crossover-like vehicle).
Check out our gallery of discontinued cars above, then scroll down for more information.