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Recharge Wrap-up: Houston's bus revival, autonomous trucks on the Autobahn

A documentary shows how Houston, Texas significantly improved its outdated bus system. Called High Frequency: Why Houston is Back on the Bus, the short film describes how the city reimagined its bus system to become more efficient, more useful and more popular. Despite some opposition, the change has proven to be effective, with bus ridership up eight percent in three months, and light rail ridership up due to complementary bus routes. See the video above, and read more at CityLab. Automakers sent autonomous semi trucks on the German Autobahn as part of the European Truck Platooning Challenge of 2016. Mercedes-Benz, Volvo and Scania, among other groups, sent platoons of trucks between Stuttgart, Germany, and Rotterdam, Holland. In Mercedes's platoon of three trucks, the lead truck was fitted with lasers and other sensors to guide the convoy down the road. The two following trucks relied on vehicle-to-vehicle communication to trail 50 feet behind the lead, making room for cars to come between them and closing the gaps when able. The close following distance provides fuel economy gains of up to 10 percent in the rearward trucks on account of the reduction in drag. Read more at Hybrid Cars. Renault has reduced NOx emissions in its Euro 6b diesel vehicles in real world driving conditions. By improving its exhaust gas recirculation systems and NOx traps, nitrogen oxide emissions are cut in half on average, under certain driving conditions. The improvements will be included in vehicles leaving the factory beginning in July of 2016. Beginning in October, owners of Renault Euro 6b diesels can have the modifications added to their cars for free. Read more from Renault. Tata Technologies is creating an innovation lab in California to partner with EV technology companies. Having a tech center in California allows Tata to work on technologies that will largely be deployed in the company's main market of Asia. "Today, we are partnering with companies and startups who have aspirations to sell in China, but a lot of what they do is in California," says Samir Yajnik of Tata Technologies. Read more from The Economic Times. BMW's i Ventures is investing in mobility-as-a-service software provider RideCell. RideCell provides technology for services such as carsharing, ridesharing and other transit services. "The convergence of transportation trends in cities is of key importance to BMW," says Ulrich Quay, head of BMW i Ventures.

Mercedes-Benz working on S-Class EV in accelerated green car lineup?

With Mercedes-Benz bringing out coupe and plug-in hybrid versions of its S-Class sedan, the German automaker just may follow through with a battery-electric variant as well. That's what the company's Uwe Ernstberger told the folks at Top Gear during the Geneva Motor Show. And while he noted the company still needs to work in a larger-than-usual battery pack and was less than specific with details, he did envision an all-electric S-Class "in the future." Of course, rumors started bubbling about an EV S-Class as far back as 2011, so we'll see. Christian Bokich, department manager for product and technology communications for Mercedes-Benz USA, would not confirm anything about an electric S-Class, but he did give AutoblogGreen an official rundown of MB's upcoming green cars in the US, starting with the launch of the all-electric B-Class ED in July of this year in the ZEV states (launch details for other states are TBA, he said). An S-Class plug-in hybrid is coming in the first half of 2015, followed by a C-Class PHEV closer towards the end of that year in the USA. There is also a C-Class four-cylinder BlueTEC coming at some point in 2016. Until we get more concrete information about the possible S-Class EV, let's review what we know about the PHEV. Last September, Mercedes-Benz started showing off the plug-in hybrid S-Class, saying that it could go as far as 19 miles on electric power alone and had a preliminary fuel efficiency rating of more than 78 miles per gallon, using the more lenient European driving cycle. Earlier this week, Mercedes showed off its S-Class Coupe. That model's US version will have a twin-turbocharged V8 that kicks in 449 horsepower, a few more than the presumptive S-Class EV will have. Ernstberger also said Mercedes would join the ranks of automakers offering autonomous driving systems and mentioned the S-Class as being at the "top of the movement." He held his tongue when asked about the possibility of an S-Class cabriolet.

Apple lends prestige to a new Mercedes-Benz music system

Not often does Apple offer its name to products or technologies that emerge from beyond the walls of Fortress Cupertino. Could a partnership with Mercedes-Benz signal the start of something new? Mercedes’ new audio system unveiled this past weekend centers on the integration of Apple MusicÂ’s Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos surround — a music enhancement generally heard in headphone-listening environments — in selected (and optional) Burmester audio systems. Plans are to offer the components initially in the Mercedes-Maybach S-Class, the S-Class as well as the EQE, EQE SUV, EQS and EQS SUV. No prices for the options were announced. Also partnering in the project is the Universal Music Group, one of the worldÂ’s leading music publishers. According to Mercedes, the Dolby tech “empowers musicians and audio engineers to place discrete audio elements or objects in a three-dimensional sound field, which goes beyond the capabilities of standard stereo productions. The system adapts to any playback environment, meaning fans can listen to music with unparalleled clarity that matches the artist's original vision in the studio.” We would expect no less from 31 speakers in a Maybach, powered by a pair of amps churning out 1,750 watts. Imagine Keith Richards cranking guitar through 31 speakers in an enclosed car cockpit. Almost three out of four music consumers say that they listen mostly in a car, says Mercedes Chairman Ola Kallenius. ”Through this exceptional partnership, we are giving our customers the extraordinary in-car audio experience they expect from Mercedes-Benz,” he said. “Both Apple and UMG share our vision and values and, together with Dolby, we will create a seamless and unique experience for our customers." Partnerships between automakers and audio companies have become common in recent years, and there have been mixed results from systems attempting to create a "surround sound" experience that goes beyond stereo. Bose put its systems into General Motors cars decades ago, and others followed, including Bowers & Wilkins, JBL and even the legendary McIntosh. Most recently, famed Italian speaker designer Sonon faber found a home in Maserati's new Grecale, and British speaker maker KEF is working with Lotus.