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Happy New Year!
by
Robert Farago
(IC: employee)
Updated: August 20th, 2006
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Thanks in part to Charles Darwin's theory of evolution, mankind believes everything's gradually getting better. It's a pretty strange kind of optimism, what with killer uptopians like Adolph Hitler and Joseph Stalin hanging-out in our collective past. But this faith in the eternal sunshine of the spotless future fits in nicely with the whole New Year's thing. As does The Detroit News (DTN) January 1 feature "The Road Ahead." Given the black cloud of bankruptcy hanging over Detroit, writer Bill Vlassic's desire to spread a little holiday cheer with a bit of automotive boosterism is entirely understandable. But there's a big difference between lightening-up and enlightenment.
Robert Farago
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Published December 31st, 2005 7:00 PM
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- VoGhost Matt, If you could read, you'd know that EV sales are by no means slowing. The rate of increase may be slowing, but more EVs are sold every year, on average by 40%. Please learn something about the industry you try so hard to analyze.
- VoGhost ICE is dead. Even Nissan gets it. When will TTAC?
- VoGhost Do all of you work for the buggy whip lobby, or is the obviousness of the near future not obvious to you?
- Jkross22 Hybrid V8 with a proven ZF 8 speed tuned correctly or with a Getrag 6 speed manual.Sorry, what was the question?
- SCE to AUX Hydrogen will remain a dud with many strikes against it.As for product portfolio, I'd offer:[list][*]Trucks - gas with hybrid option, with legal diesels for a premium.[/*][*]SUVs - gas with hybrid option, using the low-end truck engines.[/*][*]CUVs/Sedans - a) gas with hybrid option, b) BEV on a dedicated platform.[/*][*]No PHEVs - They are low volume, high cost, high complexity, and people rarely use them properly anyway. Because of this, their 'green-ness' will probably be investigated someday.[/*][/list]Few companies can be all things for all people, so the market shouldn't be regulated as such. It should be OK for niche players to avoid electric, and not everyone can offer a large pickup or sedan.The real challenge is that every company has limited resources (even Toyota), so committing to a risky development and sourcing program takes courage they often don't have. Both BEV and ICE are risky if the politics change against you.
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