Auto Guide 2007

AUTOGUIDE07 Wind in your hair, road under your wheelPAGE 12s

Not-so heavy Chevys are ready for the NY runways pg.4 Lexus uncovers valuable valet parking secrets, tips

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Nissan Rogue, Ford Flex display crossover appeal

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Adventurers have some new options Check out the latest SUVs, Crossovers from Jeep, Lexus, Toyota and Volvo

By MARIA FOTOPOULOS l

Special to the Daily Press

LEXUS

LEXUS LX 570

The LX 570 is the new luxury utility vehicle from Lexus that replaces the LX470. It will go on sale at the beginning of next year. Bob Carter, Lexus group vice president and general manager, said the LX model traditionally has been for the most affluent with families who value its luxury, versatility and capability.

The engine in the LX 570 delivers 381 horsepower — an increase of 110 horsepower over the previous model — and it produces 90 percent of its torque at the low end. The new model also has greater towing capacity — to 8,500 pounds.

A new cross-linked suspension system controls the ride height, lowering the chassis as needed for highway speeds and varying conditions, and Crawl Control modulates for rough roads.

LX also features a North American first — the blind corner monitor. By simply pressing a button, the driver can check blind spots on the navigation screen coming from cameras within the grille and the passenger sideview mirror. When would a driver need this information? A good example would be when coming out of a parking structure when just cresting an underground exit onto a sidewalk. The front camera will reveal what might previously have been hidden from driver view.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF LEXUS

TOYOTA Launched in 2003 to attract a younger, hipper market, Toyota’s Scion division has a second-generation of the boxy Scion xB that should be arriving at dealerships soon. The Scion xD will follow it later this summer.

The new xB is larger than its predecessor, or as Scion’s vice president, Mark Templin, said, “We’ve stated in the past that we’ll probably always have a box in the Scion lineup, but our owners told us they wanted a bigger box.

They talk, we listen, and

we responded with a bigger box.”

It’s also more powerful with a 2.4 L dual overheadcam 4-cylinder engine with Variable Valve Timing producing 158 horsepower.

The Scion xD is a 5-door urban subcompact powered by a 1.8-liter 4-cylinder engine that delivers 128 horsepower.

Both the xB and xD are “mono-spec,” so the only choices customers have to make are exterior color and transmission type (5speed manual or 4-speed automatic).

OUR OWNERS TOLD US THEY WANTED A BIGGER BOX.

THEY TALK, WE LISTEN, AND WE RESPONDED WITH A BIGGER BOX.” Scion’s vice president

JEEP

Among the XC70’s many other safety advances are a stronger and lighter side structure designed to minimize penetration into the passenger compartment in the event of a crash, compact transverse engines that contribute to collision safety and second-generation WHIPS (Whiplash Protection System) that dampens incoming force in a rearend collision.

The XC70 should arrive in dealerships in August and is expected to start at just over $30,000.

VOLVO XC70

JEEP LIBERTY 4X4 PHOTO COURTESY OF VOLVO

PHOTO COURTESY OF TOYOTA

Mark Templin,

VOLVO The third generation all-wheel drive Volvo XC70 is “equally at home outside that favorite downtown bistro or the opera house as it is on rough forest tracks, out in the wilderness or halfway up a mountain,” according to its makers.

Volvo has come to be synonymous with safety, and the XC70 crossover claims a world’s first in child safety with its heightadjustable integrated booster cushion with an extended inflatable curtain in the rear seat.

SCION xD

PHOTO COURTESY OF JEEP

The 2008 Jeep Liberty 4x4 offers improved ride and handling with new independent front and new five-link rear suspension systems. It has all-new exterior styling and an industry-exclusive Sky Slider™ full-open canvas roof that can be moved to several positions. It’s a big sunroof, in other words.

Available in two models — the Jeep Liberty Sport and Jeep Liberty Limited — the mid-size SUV has increased cargo capacity and additional second-row legroom.

New to the vehicle is a liftgate with a flipper glass window that permits interior access without having to open the rear liftgate and can be opened by a release button on the light bar or key fob.

Among 35 safety and security features in the all-new Jeep are the Electronic Stability Program, which enhances driver control and helps maintain directional stability under all conditions; Hill Descent Control for smooth and controlled descent on rough or slippery terrain; and Hill Start Assist for starting a vehicle from a stop on a hill.

The Jeep Liberty will be built in Toledo, Ohio, and should be available for sale in the third quarter of 2007.

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CHEVROLET GLOBAL CONCEPTS: GROOVE, BEAT, TRAX PHOTOS COURTESY OF CHEVROLET

Kite surfing, military helmets inspire concept car designers Minicars built for Urban Jungle; Hakaze thinks outside box

By MARIA FOTOPOULOS Special to the Daily Press

THE BEAT

THE IDEA OF A CONCEPT CAR ISN’T ALWAYS readily grasped by the uninitiated. Concept cars are sort of like the clothing worn by fashion runway models. You think, would someone really wear that? With a concept car, you think, would someone really drive that? Is that a real car?

And those actually are the types of questions automakers do want answers to when they put out a concept vehicle, or “show car.” Usually introduced at auto shows, concept vehicles may be created to showcase a new technology or design direction, test consumer reaction to a possible product or to serve as an exercise that explores the limits of radical design — and consumers’ tastes.

With varying degrees of modification, some concepts do actually become production models. For example, the 2009 Ford Flex evolved from the Fairlane concept and retained much of the concept’s character.

Following are new Mazda and Chevrolet concepts which recently had public showings:

MAZDA’S HAKAZE The Mazda Hakaze (pronounced: “hah-kahzay”) was inspired by the sport of kite surfing.

It’s Mazda’s third concept in a series created around the idea of Nagare, or “flow.”

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DESIGNED AT MAZDA’S EUROPEAN DESIGN CENTER NEAR FRANKFURT, GERMANY, THE MAZDA HAKAZE FEATURES TWO LARGE POP-UP DOORS THAT HAVE KEYLESS, ONE-TOUCH ENTRY TO ONE OF FOUR BUCKET SEATS.

THE REAR TWO-THIRDS OF THE GLASS ROOF OF THE MAZDA HAKAZE COMPACT CROSSOVER IS REMOVABLE, GIVING THE HAKAZE THE FEEL OF A ROADSTER.

Bike Ski Surf is the Car-Rack Specialty Store

off

Entire Inventory

We are the Nation’s leader with the largest selection of recreational automobile and truck racks from Thule, Yakima, Saris, INNO, RockyMounts, Dakine, and Hitch Safe PHOTOS COURTESY OF MAZDA The name, Hakaze, comes from a combination of Japanese words — ha for leaf and kaze for wind. “Even while standing still,” Mazda says Hakaze “looks as if it is effortlessly cutting through the air.”

Hakaze’s textured side body panels give the impression of wind-ripped sand dunes. The fourseater coupe has athletic prowess, funky doors and an interesting removable rear roof, but its smile unfortunately calls to mind Jack Nicholson as The Joker.

I WANTED TO GET OUT OF THE

CHEVROLET’S MINICARS

STEREOTYPE

Chevrolet’s three minicar concepts — Groove, Beat and Trax — all look like sisters from a young, hip family. And in Chevrolet’s imaginings, they live in an urban market, like to have fun, understand value and want fuel economy.

The thinking behind these concepts, Chevrolet says, is, “Art needn’t take a backseat just because the canvas is small.”

The green, orange and eggplant concepts were created at GM’s Design Studio in South Korea. The Chevrolet Beat concept was then built in India, while Trax and Groove were built in Michigan.

Each concept has a different fuel-efficient engine, including a diesel.

GROOVE Inspired by a “half-soldier, half-modern” military helmet, the Chevy Groove is a contemporary and funky concept that evokes classic Chevrolet heritage through design cues — an upright windshield and prominent fender flares for a strong, sturdy stance reminiscent of a retro hot rod.

BEAT The Chevy Beat is a front-wheel-drive, three-door hatchback that gives off the attitude of a high-performance, high-tech micro tuner car, with fascias, rocker panels, lamps and wheels enhanced for personalization. With 17-inch wheels pushed to the corner and brake calipers matching the body color, there’s drama about the wheels.

MINI VEHICLES

Outstanding prices and superior customer service backed by over thirty years of experience.

Give Rack Solid a try and we’ll guarantee total customer satisfaction.

THAT IS CHARACTERIZED BY A WEAK, INSECURE AND ‘CUTE’ APPEARANCE

SO THAT CONSUMERS

CAN FEEL SAFE JUST BY LOOKING AT THE VEHICLE. “

Jawook Koo, Groove Exterior Designer TRAX An urban crossover, Chevrolet called Trax, “The adventurous spirit of modern grunge.”

Powered by a one-liter gas engine, Trax is front-wheel drive with an electric limited-slip differential that features an independent battery pack and an electric motor to drive the rear wheels, providing a low-cost all-wheeldrive system.

Consumers can vote at www.vote4chevrolet.com for their favorite minicar, which Chevrolet says will help them determine which design resonates with potential buyers and U.S. market interest in the minicar segment.

3127 Lincoln Blvd., Santa Monica

866.450.7225

www.racksolid.com

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MERCEDES C350 SPORT

PHOTOS COURTESY OF MERCEDES

Mercedes fans get ready for C-Class There’s no need for fancy names this autumn

By MARIA FOTOPOULOS l

Special to the Daily Press

MERCEDES IS A BRAND THAT CONSISTENTLY MANAGES TO overwhelm. It has more than 40 models, made all the more complex by the company’s naming scheme. There are no colts, cougars, mustangs or other animal names; no place names of Dakota, Santa Fe, Tahoe or Tucson — just a dedication to the alphabet – C, E, G, M, R and S, with many letters still available as needed.

Last year the company introduced six new models, saw sales growth with their diesel vehicles and overall sold more cars in the U.S. market — nearly 250,000 — than in any prior year, making for 13 years of increasing sales for the brand.

The luxury brand has not been without criticism, zinged last year by Consumer Reports for quality and reliability issues. The idea of being spread too thin does come to mind with so much model variation. Dilution of focus also comes to mind with the less than perfect nearly 10-year marriage to Chrysler.

A divorce does look imminent at DaimlerChrysler, but isn’t slowing the delivery of new Mercedes products to the market place. Launching this fall in the U.S. market is the new C-Class, what’s considered entry level for a Mercedes and is expected to be priced in the low $30,000s.

The next-generation 2008 C-Class sedan is larger in nearly every aspect versus prior models — outdoing Mercedes as “only Mercedes can,” according to Ernst Lieb, president and CEO of Mercedes-Benz USA. The company says they placed more emphasis on agility, comfort and safety in this sedan over its predecessor.

The new sedan will be offered in sport models with racetracktuned suspensions (C300 Sport and C350 Sport) and a luxury model (C300 Luxury).

Visually the main difference is with the front end’s more aggressive stance in the Sport model, and the Luxury model has the Mercedes hood ornament, while Sport has the Mercedes emblem on the grille.

The C300 Sport and C300 Luxury models will be available with an all-new 4MATIC all-wheel drive system paired with a seven-speed transmission. The full-time, four-wheel drive system provides year-round traction and stability benefits on wet and dry roads.

The luxury model has a standard power sunroof or optional panorama roof, along with optional Bi-Xenon headlamps with corner illuminating foglamps and heated headlamp washers.

Two-zone automatic climate control, eight-way power front seats with lumbar support and Bluetooth connectivity that allows a phone that’s still in a pocket or purse to be operated through the audio system are new standard equipment for the C-Class.

When equipped with the optional COMAND navigation system, a power-operated seven inch screen slides out and up on the C-Class and can display map data for North America.

The C-Class was tested as a digital prototype and crashed 5,500 times, using 1.9 million data points. Among the 2008 C-Class safety features are six air bags, ABS anti-lock, traction control and ESP stability control, as well as active front head restraints that move forward nearly two inches and upward approximately one inch to support the head and reduce the likelihood of whiplash injuries in the event of a severe rear collision.

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GIVEN THAT AUTO SALES WERE DOWN IN APRIL, LOTS MAY BE BACKED UP.

Analysts foresee sagging U.S. sales Big Three’s plans to alter course hit a sales snafu

By TOM KRISHER l

AP Business Writer

SOFT AUTO SALES IN APRIL COULD SPELL trouble down the road for Detroit’s three automakers as they restructure and try to entice buyers away from strong foreign brands, according to several industry analysts.

Five industry analysts predicted that U.S. sales will be down in April compared with the same month in 2006, and in a down market that continues to shift from trucks to cars, that means trouble for Detroit.

The analysts said there doesn’t seem to be any pent-up demand for vehicles. Consumers either have too much debt, are facing increased payments due to rising adjustable rate mortgages or are waiting to see what happens to gasoline prices.

Under those circumstances, it will be difficult for the Detroit Three to execute their turnaround plans because they’re competing for a shrinking market mainly against Honda Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp., which both have strong car brands.

“It’s a very tough environment out there right now,” said Joe Barker, senior manager of global sales analysis for CSM Worldwide, an automotive forecasting firm in Northville. “If you’re undergoing a restructuring at the same time that you’re trying to go after a smaller pool of consumers, it just adds to the complexity of a turnaround plan.”

Ford Motor Co., General Motors Corp. and DaimlerChrysler AG’s Chrysler Group are all at varying stages of turnarounds. All have lost billions in recent years as Toyota and Honda have increased their market share. GM actually made money in the fourth quarter of 2006 and by most accounts is ahead of its U.S.-based counterparts in restructuring.

Barker predicted April sales at an annualized rate of about 16 million vehicles. For the full year last year, U.S. sales were about 16.5 million.

Mark McCready, vice president of market planning and pricing for the Carsdirect.com automotive Web site, said buyers were distracted first by taxes and then by bad weather in the Northeast and even the mass shootings at Virginia Tech.

If gasoline supplies continue to be stressed as the country enters the peak summer driving season, he sees prices going up. Many car buyers, he predicted, will be on the sidelines in April.

“I think people are waiting a little bit to see what happens,” McCready said.

The Detroit Three are still heavily reliant on pickup trucks for sales and profit, and that market likely will continue to decline, said Erich Merkle, an industry analyst with auto consulting company IRN Inc. in Grand Rapids.

As the market shifts, Merkle predicted more buyers would go to Toyota and Honda.

“Unfortunately it’s going to come from the Big Three,” he said.

Barker said his company’s research shows that Toyota and Honda have such strong car brands that it will be difficult for Ford, GM and Chrysler to persuade buyers to switch when economic times are harder.

“In times of softening demand, consumers typically will look to brands that they trust and rely on. Consumers trust and rely on Japanese brands,” he said.

Ford is seeing softening sales industrywide, at least during the first two weeks of the month, said George Pipas, the company’s top sales analyst.

“We’re seeing this throughout the industry.

It’s not a Ford thing,” he said, cautioning that the month could turn around in its final week.

The slowdown extends to Ford’s mid-sized cars, the Mercury Milan and Ford Fusion, which had done well in previous months, he said.

“That’s what makes the weakness a little more troublesome,” he said.

IN TIMES OF SOFTENING DEMAND,

CONSUMERS TYPICALLY WILL LOOK TO

BRANDS THAT THEY TRUST AND RELY ON.” Joe Barker, Senior manager of global sales analysis for CSM Worldwide Better news may be in the offing, at least according to traffic at the Kelley Blue Book Web site for car shoppers, said Jack Nerad, Kelley Blue Book executive market analyst.

Traffic on the site is a mixed bag for April compared with the same month in 2006, he said.

“I would say probably more positives than negatives there,” he said.

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X Prize banks on clean finish SM foundation to award first team to hit 100

BY IRENE MANAHAN Special to the Daily Press

THE FOUNDATION THAT CHAMPIONED THE development of the first private spacecraft is taking to the land by creating a new competition to find a “super-efficient” road vehicle.

The X Prize Foundation, based in Santa Monica, introduced the multi-million dollar Automotive X Prize early this month at the New York Auto Show. In response to unsustainable oil consumption, global warming and soaring gas prices, the AXP hopes to create a clean, viable vehicle that can exceed 100 miles per gallon or its equivalent.

“Our goal is to inspire a new generation of vehicles that can help break our addiction to oil and climate change,” said Neal Anderson, senior director for AXP. “The auto industry is a tremendous contributor. They are responsible for 40 percent of the world’s annual oil output.”

Unlike the 1994 Ansari X Prize that offered $10 million to spur a private space flight, the AXP “will affect a lot more people,” according to Anderson.

“High oil prices and new technology affect all of us. Everybody drives a car and everybody can relate to that. X prize has broadened its sights to try to spur radical breakthroughs for humanity with a major focus on energy,” Anderson added.

The city of Santa Monica knows a thing or two about fuel efficient vehicles as most of its fleet run on alternative fuels. Anderson expects a positive response from the city’s “very progressive and environmentally conscious” residents.

“Santa Monica citizens have really proven to be environmental leaders,” said Anderson.

“They have a great interest in alternative fuels and other methods of transportation.”

The AXP challenges the automotive industry by “jump starting” people to bring these vehicles to the market, according to Washington D.C. consultant for AXP, Carrie Fox. She hopes that this innovative automotive revolution will continue after the competition is decided.

“The intent of the competition is designed to stimulate affordable, desirable vehicles that are on the cusp of being produced,” said Anderson.

The AXP is just a step toward getting manufacturers, companies, scientists, engineers and

individuals worldwide to start thinking about the future. “[People are] interested and excited about creating a vehicle that can reach 100 miles per gallon,” said Fox. “Your typical vehicle today averages around 20 MPG. For every Santa Monica resident that buys a 100 MPG vehicle inspired by the Automotive X PRIZE will be like taking four vehicles off of the road in terms of oil consumption and emissions.”

“Auto manufacturers are simply making products that people want to buy. Fuel economy was not on the top of their minds, but I think it’s really changing now. We want to show consumers what else is possible,” said Anderson. “In the past 20 years or so a lot of innovation has really gone toward increased size and performance.”

OUR GOAL IS

TO INSPIRE A NEW

GENERATION OF VEHICLES THAT CAN HELP BREAK OUR ADDICTION TO OIL AND CLIMATE CHANGE.” Neal Anderson, Senior Director for the Automotive X Prize Anderson thinks people will support a change in that mentality.

“Prizes are really fantastic in spurring breakthroughs, and this prize is a great catalyst for some rapid and significant changes in the industry,” said Anderson.

The competition has not been officially launched, however, according to Anderson. Thus far, more than 100 letters of intent have been submitted since the announcement just weeks ago.

“We’re really excited to be at a point where we believe we can make a huge difference,” said Anderson. “We hope to see fuel efficient vehicles available to all people in the future.”

ON THE NET

■ Guidelines and further information: auto.xprize.org

Farmers dig biodiesel as fuel demand grows

BY JACOB ADELMAN Associated Press Writer

California farmers are hoping to strike oil — vegetable oil, that is — with a series of experimental trials involving crops that can be processed into biodiesel, an increasingly sought-after fuel squeezed from oilseed plants.

Some of the efforts call for growing hearty crops such as canola on unproductive land that can’t support higher-value produce.

Other farmers are eyeing oilseed plants as a cover crop that might improve soil quality between more profitable plantings of berries or leafy greens.

Researchers have even started experimenting with varieties of algae that can be farmed in ponds and converted into biodiesel.

“We have one of the world’s most fertile and productive growing regions,” said Salinas Mayor Dennis Donohue, a radicchio farmer. “It doesn’t make any sense that we shouldn’t be involved in the future that’s shaping up.”

The trials are being conducted as high gas prices and stringent environmental regulations

drive the market for alternative energy sources such as biodiesel. Derived from vegetable oils and other sources, the fuel is used to run diesel engines that have undergone slight modifications.

Transit agencies in several cities — including Houston and Columbus, Ohio — run biodiesel bus fleets. The University of California system is converting its campus fleets to run on 100-percent biodiesel.

And Disneyland uses biodiesel to fuel the trains that circle the popular theme park.

Nationwide, biodiesel production has tripled in each of the past two years to reach nearly 250 million gallons in 2006, National Biodiesel Board spokeswoman Amber Pearson said.

It’s not yet clear, though, that growing canola or other oilseed crops would make economic sense for California, which produces some of the nation’s most valuable vegetables.

Many farmers are awaiting the results of a state study of the economic and environmental costs and benefits of bioenergy crops.

Some observers point out that land and labor are much cheaper in midwestern states, where such commodity crops are generally produced.

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The valet’s ballet: How to tip Reporter goes undercover as a Westside valet

By MARIA FOTOPOULOS l

Special to the Daily Press

Once it was the exclusive domain of Hollywood red carpets, luxury hotels and exclusive country clubs. But now valet parking is so much a part of the culture here in Santa Monica and in Los Angeles, as well as most major U.S. cities, that it’s seen at doctors’ offices, grocery stores, hair salons, health clubs, sporting events and yoga studios.

Luxury automaker Lexus thought this phenomenon merited exploration and hired L.A.-based journalist David Hochman to investigate what happens once a vehicle disappears into “Valet Land” with one of the more than 200,000 men and women working as parking attendants in America.

In the course of his research, Hochman, who spends a lot of time interviewing celebrities, found himself working “undercover” as a parking attendant at an upscale shopping area on the Westside.

“One of the things I learned working undercover as a valet is that there’s a whole secret language,” Hochman said. “For instance, a Benji — it’s the ultimate tip [$100], named after Benjamin Franklin.

“Then there’s Holy Roller, which is a car that smells so bad that all four windows have to be rolled down,” Hochman added.

There’s also the Jewel Case, the premier parking spot, and the Pull, the act of retrieving a claim ticket.

Hochman said spending the day working as a valet “was one of the most terrifying things I ever had to do.

“When somebody turns over the keys to their automobile to you, they’re putting their ultimate trust in you … and it’s scary.

You’re driving away with a very expensive piece of property, and then you have to take care of it and get it back to them safely, and do it very quickly — at lunch time with 50 other cars waiting for you,” Hochman said. “The life of a valet is very, very intense.”

Lexus also engaged Kelton Research to conduct a national

survey on parking habits, which found that more than 60 percent of Americans use valet parking. The research turned up something called “car shame,” defined as a nagging feeling — experienced more by women — that the valet was judging one’s car.

Among drivers’ greatest concerns found in the study are that their cars will be taken for a joy ride, with one in two surveyed worrying that the car will be returned damaged.

Fortunately, these concerns are unfounded. “Most valets are exceptional drivers, because all they do is drive cars all day,” according to John Van Horn of the parking industry trade magazine, Parking Today.

Or as Herb Citrin says, “You give us your car; we send it back to you the same way it came in — unharmed.” Citrin, aka Mr. Valet, is known as the Father of Valet Parking. The 83-yearold legend among parking attendants introduced the idea of uniforms, white gloves and the name “valet parking” to Los Angeles in the 1940s.

The survey also found that manners, which may seem a long-lost memory in Southern California, do still count with most Americans.

For 87 percent surveyed, valets’ friendliness and politeness impacted the size of their tips. And on average, American drivers tip their valets $3, with 73 percent feeling confident that when they tip, they are tipping the right person the right amount.

There are the big tippers who put the average tipper to shame though. According to Citrin, “Frank Sinatra was a great tipper.”

Citrin said one night in the 1960s when Sinatra was leaving a Hollywood restaurant, “He said to the valet parking attendant, ‘How many attendants are working here tonight?’ The parking attendant said, ‘Four, Mr. Sinatra.’”

As Citrin recalled the moment, Sinatra then pealed off four $100 bills and said, “Take care of the boys.”

More insight into the world of valet parking is at www.lexusvaletguide.com.

VALET AT THE PENINSULA HOTEL, BEVERLY HILLS.

Greasing some palms in Chinatown

By The Associated Press

WOULD YOU TRUST A ROBOT TO PARK YOUR car? The question will confront New Yorkers as the city’s first robotic parking opens in Chinatown. The technology has had a good track record overseas, but the only other public robotic garage in the United States has been troublesome, dropping vehicles and trapping cars because of technical glitches.

Nonetheless, the developers of the Chinatown garage are confident with the technology and are counting on it to squeeze 67 cars in an apartment-building basement that would otherwise fit only 24, accomplished by removing a ramp and maneuver space normally required.

A humanoid robot valet won’t be stepping into your car to drive it.

Rather, the garage itself does the parking.

The driver stops the car on a pallet and gets out.

The pallet is then lowered into the innards of the garage, and transported to a vacant parking space by a computer-controlled contraption similar to an elevator that also runs sideways.

There is no human supervision, but an attendant will be on hand to accept cash and explain the system to baffled humans.

Parking rates are competitive – about $400 monthly or $25 per day, according to Ari Milstein, the director of planning for Automotion Parking Systems, the U.S. subsidiary of Germany’s Stolzer Parkhaus, which has built automated garages in several countries overseas and in the United States for residents of a

Washington, D.C., apartment building.

Another company had built the only other public robotic garage in the United States, the one with a checkered past.

Built in 2002 across the river in Hoboken, N.J., with 314 spaces for monthly rentals only, the garage dropped an unoccupied Cadillac Deville six floors in 2004 and a Jeep four stories the following year. Early last year, a malfunction that went unrepaired for 26 hours trapped cars inside.

Last summer, the city of Hoboken tried

at Robotic Parking, acknowledged the operational problems, but said the garage has operated with ”99.99 percent efficiency.” He called the 26-hour outage a freak incident, where two redundant sensors failed at the same time and a maintenance crew failed to follow company policy in not repairing them right away.

The company’s current generation of garages is much improved, Clarke added.

“Software-wise, machinery-wise, everything that has ever given us a problem has been

IT IS A COMPLETE VIRTUAL

IMPOSSIBILITY

THAT DAMAGE CAN OCCUR.” Ari Milstein, director of planning for Automotion Parking Systems to wrest control of the garage from its builder, Robotic Parking Systems Inc. of Clearwater, Fla., and an ensuing court battle shut it down for two weeks, trapping some cars inside. The garage was closed while the city replaced the controlling software, city spokesman Bill Campbell said.

Dennis Clarke, the chief operating officer

designed out of the system,” Clarke said.

Automotion’s Milstein said that in the 11 years Stolzer Parkhaus has built robotic garages, only one car has been damaged, in an incident involving a half-set parking brake. Even that loophole has now been eliminated with the addition of an additional sensor, he said.

“It is a complete virtual impossibility that

damage can occur,” he said.

If the garage lives up to that claim, it would certainly be a safety record unheard of for traditional garages, where not only cars but people get hurt and even killed. Even the Hoboken garage may not look like a disaster by comparison, though it’s rare for a conventional garage not to give your car back.

The two loading bays in the Chinatown garage are outfitted with enough laser and radar sensors to make Fort Knox jealous. They sense if the car fits on the pallet (it’s large enough for medium-sized SUVs) and look for movement to determine whether the driver and passenger have left the car. When the car is properly parked on the pallet, the driver is told to exit the car and leave the bay, and a door closes behind him or her before the pallet descends into the garage.

When the driver comes back for the car, the underground system goes into motion to retrieve it. Because it parks cars two deep in some slots, it sometimes needs to shuffle cars around to retrieve others. The software figures all that out.

In a touch worthy of Inspector Gadget, an underground turntable turns the car around before it’s lifted to the surface, ensuring that it’s returned facing out into the driveway, eliminating any need to back out of the garage.

Clarke at Robotic Parking Systems said demand for robotic parking is booming in the country after long lagging behind other developed countries.

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Leave gridlock behind as you clear your mind

By KRISTEN MAYER Special to the Daily Press

The roads less travelled T

HE SUNDAY SUN BECKONS WHILE YOU DOWN A GLASS of orange juice and munch on a piece of morning toast.

Staying inside on such a day would be obscene. Grabbing the keys and hitting the road is only right, exploring the twists, turns and straight-aways that make Southern California a car owner’s dream.

While the city itself boasts too much traffic to cater to the free-spirited roadster, an afternoon on the open road provides much-needed therapy as a means to brush off the cobwebs of another hard-fought week.

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EVEN AT NIGHT THERE ARE TIMES WHEN THE MOON IS THE ONLY LIGHT YOU NEED. IF YOU HAVE A FULL MOON, IT WILL HANG OVER THE WATER, LIGHTING UP THE WHOLE SCENE.” Larry Schnolick,

Treasurer of the Santa Monica Sports Car Club

PHOTOS COURTESY JOE AKERMAN/INTO THE NIGHT

WHILE MOST SANTA MONICANS FINISH THE WEEK FED UP WITH TRAFFIC, A WEEKEND CRUISE ON AN OPEN ROAD STILL CLEARS THE COBWEBS. “It’s like why you clear your throat,” said Larry Scholnick, treasurer of the Santa Monica Sports Car Club. “You feel so much better when you get the crud out of your lungs ... in this case, your car’s lungs.”

If you’re ready to put the pedal to the metal, cruise on up the 405 and 5 north to Highway 126. Turn off in Piru to embark on a little jaunt.

Here you’ll find a peaceful road sandwiched between orange groves on one side and mountains on the other. The drive features a mixture of straight-aways and some scattered curves.

“Guiberson Road and South Mountain Road are both nestled in the foothills of the mountains,” Scholnick said. “They follow the river and skirt the edges of the orange groves.”

The drive winds along the south side of the Santa Clara River from Piru to Santa Paula.

Scholnick said his sports car club hosts rallies — competitive time trials that award accuracy, rather than sheer speed — along the country road from time to time.

“You’re really trying to see how both you and your car perform on the road while being mindful of the legal speed limit at 65,” Scholnick said. “A fearful driver who slows down every time they see a curve will have comparatively little fun.”

Because of the geography, only one road crosses the river in the middle of the half-hour ride, so there’s no cross traffic to worry about.

“Yes, a farmer can always pull out of his place and get in your way. Other than that these roads are wonderfully empty,” Scholnick said.

The only time to avoid this stretch is after heavy rains because the access road to the starting point at Guiberson Road is at grade level, rather than over-passing bridge level.

WORD ON THE STREET Mike Ditz, a car photographer from Woodland Hills, mapped out a few of his favorite day trips.

He takes motorcycle trips to scout out locations for the frequently requested scenery of “curvy road” or “mountain-y background.”

Take Interstate 5 up to Frazier Park. Hop on Frazier Mountain Road going west and head toward Lockwood Valley Road. Take that and keep going until you end up on Highway 33.

Follow the fun, curvy roads back south and end up in Ojai. Continue back to Ventura and take Highway 101 south.

The loop — which Ditz estimates to be about 200 miles — takes you along two-lane roads through Los Padres National Forest, including Wheeler Gorge.

For a shorter excursion, about 60 miles round trip, consider a triangular route that will lead you past Lake Casitas and back through Santa Monica.

Take Highway 101 out past Ventura and Highway 33 north to Ojai. Follow Highway 150 west past the lake to Carpentaria then come back along the coast on Highway One.

Take PCH through Oxnard to the 101 North.

State Street in Santa Barbara leads to the 154, which takes you through the mountains and valley and kicks you back on 101 just north of Solvang.

The drive along PCH works day or night, rain or shine, but be sure to avoid beachgoer traffic.

“Even at night there are times when the moon is the only light you need. If you have a full moon, it will hang over the water, lighting up the whole scene,” Scholnick said. “Or if it’s a time when the moon’s not showing — a new moon — you actually see stars.”

“ P E O P L E C O M E F R O M A L L OV E R

TT O HD R IEV E O NWT HOE S ERR OLA DDS , SO I MIGHT AS WELL DRIVE ON THEM WHILE I’M HERE.” Mike Ditz, a car photographer from Woodland Hills “You get to drive along the coast, go into the mountains and go through some hilly, curvy stuff,” Ditz said.

Bill Hayward, a Long Beach resident who works on Montana Avenue, recommends heading up toward Santa Barbara for a taste of wine country.

The Pacific Coast Highway offers spectacular views of wildflowers along the ocean while hugging the coastline at the base of the mountains.

Start in Santa Monica and take PCH all the way up to Ventura County where if becomes a freeway, the speed limit progressively increasing from 45 to 55.

If you’re in the mood for pine forests, mountains and breathtaking drop-offs rather than a sea of city pavement, check out these drives through the Angeles National Forest.

“Angeles Crest Highway is another place to drive and drive fast,” said David Dewhurst, a car photographer who lives near Pomona. “You can drive for a long time there without having to stop and turn around. It’s a very high-speed road. It’s the kind of place where you could do 100 miles an hour quite easily.

“It’s also a nice place to get a speed ticket.”

Angeles Crest starts from La Cañada and heads out to the San Bernardino town of Wrightwood. From there you can branch off to

the Angeles Forest highway, which goes out to Palmdale.

Many drivers who live in Palmdale or Lancaster avoid the miles of congestion on Highway 14 or 5, cutting down on distance and boosting beauty.

“These people all seem to know their cars and how to drive and are pushing the 55 speed limit most of the way,” Scholnick said.

CLOSER TO HOME If you don’t have a full day to dedicate to a drive, check out the local hot spots.

Mulholland Drive loosely follows the ridgeline of the Santa Monica Mountains and Hollywood Hills, offering popular views of the Los Angeles area.

The drive comes alive on the weekends when motorists congregate at the Rock Store, a favorite place to check out each others’ wheels before hitting the pavement.

The Rock Store is one of the most popular motorcycle pit stops in Southern California.

Motorcyclists and car people congregate to gaze longingly at each others’ vehicles before setting off on Mulholland.

“It’s reasonably quiet,” Dewhurst said.

“There are some nice, sweeping, high-speed corners.”

The canyons to the north of Santa Monica offer a glimpse of nature’s beauty without much of a trek.

“That’s the most picturesque — going through the canyon, winding your way around and looking at the beautiful homes,” said Fran Lyness, a Santa Monica resident for 25 years.

Favorites include Topanga Canyon, Dume Canyon and the less-frequented Kanan Canyon, complete with nearby winery.

“I love driving up on Malibu and Laurel Canyon,” said David Pepe, a North Hollywood resident who works in Santa Monica. “There’s a whole bunch of trails off the road where you can go down and walk on the hill. I like nature, and it’s out in the open. Industrial stuff is not exactly appealing to the eyes.”

No matter what trek you choose for your next Sunday drive, take Ditz’s advice and soak up the experience while it lasts.

“Sometimes I need to get out and remind myself why I came to California,” Ditz said.

“People come from all over the world to drive on these roads, so I might as well drive on them while I’m here.”

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Biotechs seek a crude reply Scientists look to ease fuel’s reliance on oil by tapping into a slew of unlikely sources

BY PAUL ELIAS l

AP Biotechnology Writer

THE ETHANOL CRAZE IS PUTTING THE SQUEEZE ON corn supplies and causing food prices to rise.

Mexicans took to the streets last year to protest increased tortilla prices. The cost of chicken and beef in the United States ticked up because feed is more expensive.

That’s where biotechnology comes in.

Scientists are engineering microscopic bugs to extract fuel from a variety of non-corn sources, including the human urinary tract, a Russian fungus and the plant responsible for tequila.

The quest for alternative energy is more complicated than just finding a replacement for petroleum. Scientists and a growing number of biotechnology companies are attempting to remove corn from the ethanol equation because it has created huge demand for the global food staple.

“There is enormous growth potential” for alternative fuels, said McKinsey & Co analyst Jens Riese. “But we need to be smarter than just building the next corn ethanol plant.”

Researchers are racing against time. Already, 114 U.S. ethanol biorefineries are in operation and 80 more are under construction. Producers made nearly 5 billion gallons of ethanol last year, a 25 percent increase from the previous year.

And nearly all of it was made from edible corn kernels.

That’s good news for U.S. farmers, but consumers are suffering at the checkout stand because corn prices have nearly doubled over the last two years and will continue to climb.

And with farmers planting corn at unprecedented rates, often instead of other crops, prices for other products may soon rise as well.

Corn is a fundamental U.S. food ingredient, found in everything from soft drinks to cough syrup. It’s also a staple throughout Latin America, where residents may feel the sting of rising corn prices the most.

Backers of alternative production methods argue that a technological change is needed soon, before corn-based ethanol grows so large that other manufacturing methods will be squeezed out of the market.

That’s why genetic engineers from Berkeley to Florida are racing to produce ethanol without corn.

They’re looking into termite guts, the human urinary tract and sap from palm trees for exotic microbes that can produce alternative fuel sources.

Scientists at DuPont Co., for instance, have been tinkering with the DNA of an agave-loving bug in a bid to make ethanol from corn waste rather than the kernel itself. Working with $19 million of its own money and the same amount from a Department of Energy grant, the chemical company hopes to have a pilot plant in operation by 2010.

The idea is to genetically engineer microscopic bugs such as bacteria and fungus to spit out enzymes that will break down just about every imaginable crop into ethanol. This would theoretically fulfill President Bush’s initiative to support flexible-fuel vehicles, which are capable of using gasoline and ethanol blends, and to cut gas consumption by 20 percent in 10 years.

A growing number of biotechnology companies, backed financially and politically by an odd coalition of national security hawks, venture capitalists and environmentalists, are remaking themselves as ethanol producers to cash in on the alternative fuel craze.

In February, the U.S. Energy Department awarded $385 million in grant money over four years to six projects dedicated to producing so-called cellulosic ethanol, which avoids the corn problem by making fuel from straw and other inedible agricultural leftovers. Cellulose is the woody material in branches and stems that makes plants hard.

Breaking cellulose into sugar to spin straw into ethanol has been studied for at least 50 years. But the technological hurdles and costs — specifically the expense genetically engineering exotic microbes to produce enzymes — have been so daunting that most ethanol producers instead relied on heavy government subsidies to squeeze fuel from corn.

WE NEED TO BE

SMARTER

THAN JUST BUILDING THE NEXT CORN ETHANOL PLANT.” Jens Riese, McKinsey & Co analyst That’s now changing. Enzyme costs have fallen from about $5 a gallon to less than 20 cents a gallon. Analysts said once enzyme prices gets below a dime, cellulosic ethanol will become affordable.

“There really has to be an incredible improvement in the enzyme cost,” said Kevin Baum, an executive vice president at Diversa Corp.

“This can’t be underestimated.”

The growing number of biotechnology companies redirecting resources to capitalize on ethanol’s popularity said they are getting close to making cellulosic ethanol profitable.

“It will be a very large chunk of what we do,” said Per Falholt, an executive vice president with Novozymes Inc., an enzyme maker and the largest industrial biotechnology company. “It has the potential to transform the company.”

Earlier this year, San Diego-based Diversa, which made enzymes for animal feed and other industrial uses, merged with the Cambridge, Mass.-based Celunol Inc. and is attempting to remake itself as an ethanol producer.

Silicon Valley billionaire Vinod Khosla, the Sun Microsystems Inc. co-founder, is among the venture capitalists gambling on cellulosic ethanol. His venture capital firm has invested millions in biotech companies pursuing alternative fuel strategies.

“In a short period of time we can replace 100 percent of our gasoline use,” Khosla told executives and scientists gathered last month at an industrial biotechnology conference in Orlando, Fla. Still, there are critics. Oil and automotive industry executives are skeptical that the country will make the investment in basic equipment.

“It does require the pumps to appear when the ethanol appears,” said Coleman Jones, who heads General Motors Corp.’s biofuels projects.

ON THE NET

■ Dyadic: www.dyadic-group.com ■ Novozymes: www.novozymes.com/en ■ DOE: www.doe.gov

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NISSAN ROGUE

THE ROGUE’S INTERIOR, LIKE ITS EXTERIOR, IS DESIGNED TO STAND OUT IN ITS CLASS WITH A SOPHISTICATED COCKPITLIKE DRIVER’S SPACE AND EXCEPTIONAL UTILITY. THE NISSAN MODEL OFFERS A NUMBER OF AVAILABLE UTILITY FEATURES, INCLUDING A FOLDFLAT FRONT PASSENGER SEAT, A REAR 60/40 SPLIT-FOLD BENCH SEAT, AN OVERSIZE GLOVE BOX WITH PARTITION AND A VERSATILE, DUAL-LEVEL CENTER CONSOLE STORAGE. PHOTOS COURTESY OF NISSAN

Crossovers woo customers with best of both worlds Nissan Rogue, Ford Flex are the latest entries

By MARIA FOTOPOULOS l

2009 FORD FLEX

For the Daily Press

After a few years in the wilderness during the late 1990s, Nissan has been relentless in bringing new products to market since 2000. The company kicked off this year by introducing its first entry into the small crossover SUV market, the Rogue.

Crossover is the new vehicle category for automakers to play in to entice new customers. The concept is to take the best attributes of cars and SUVs to create a new vehicle that is “the crossover.”

Crossover vehicles are the fastest-growing segment in today’s competitive automotive marketplace. Last year was the first year that crossovers surpassed SUV sales. By the end of the decade, crossovers are expected to reach sales of 3 million units.

The 2008 Nissan Rogue “is a crossover SUV in the truest sense of the word,” according to Brad Bradshaw, Nissan’s senior vice president for sales and marketing. “Not merely a cross between a car and an SUV, the Rogue is aimed dead center at young people who are ‘crossing over’ into lives of additional responsibilities.”

Designed for “enthused drivers,” said Bradshaw, the Rogue is sleek yet functional, with aggressive styling and sporty performance. Rogue’s masculine styling is defined by powerful rear shoulder lines and strong arcs.

The company says that Rogue “fulfills the functional needs of young, active drivers, while still indulging in the emotional aspects of style and performance that allow these drivers to fully enjoy the driving experience.”

Nissan’s name for its new product sounds daring and dashing.

And of all the negative dictionary definitions for the word, “rogue,” Nissan likely gravitated towards the more fun one, “nontypical.” Rogue stands out in a crowd. And maybe there’s a role for it in Marvel Comics’ X-Men, or at least a celebrity endorsement by Anna Paquin.

With features such as a high-function roof rack, a front passenger seat that folds flat, a pop-up cargo organizer, available Intelligent Key, Bluetooth Hands-Free Phone System, satellite radio and premium audio, an oversized glove box, a dual-level center console storage and rear tonneau cover, Nissan touts Rogue’s “ultra-functionality.”

Other features include a rear 60/40 split-fold bench seat, a removable tray that fits below the cargo area floor and available Xenon headlights.

A 2.5-liter 4-cylinder engine, rated at 170 horsepower and 175 lb.ft. of torque, mated to the Xtronic CVT™ (Continuously Variable Transmission), powers Rogue. There are available paddle shifters for sporty, efficient performance, and an all-new, allwheel drive system with yaw rate control also is available.

Every Rogue comes standard with the Vehicle Dynamic Control (VDC) and Traction Control System (TCS), an Electric Power-Assisted Steering (EPS) system and 4-wheel disc brakes with an Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS) with Electronic Brake Force Distribution (EBD) and Brake Assist (BA).

THE SANTA MONICA DA I LY P R E S S

Rogue’s standard safety features include Zone Body Construction, Advanced Air Bag System (AABS) with dual stage front air bags and occupant classification system for the front passenger seat, and front seat Active Head Restraints.

Front seat-mounted side-impact supplemental air bags and roof-mounted curtain supplemental air bags (for front and rear outboard occupant head protection) with rollover detection are standard as well.

Pricing on Rogue, which should begin arriving in dealerships this fall, is expected to start at $20,000. And in line with its continuing push to bring new products to market, company spokespeople say expect three more new products in coming months.

2009 FORD FLEX Into the larger sized crossover segment comes the new 2009 Ford Flex that can accommodate seven passengers. For size perspective versus Rogue, Flex has a wheelbase that’s 12 inches longer, an overall length that’s nearly 20 inches greater, and it’s nine inches wider. According to J Mays, the group vice president of design for Ford, one “could probably pack an entire IKEA living room in it.”

The name gives a good indication of what the product can do, according to Mark Fields, Ford’s president of the Americas, who believes the new Ford “is a game changer.” Flex is the production vehicle coming out of the much-ballyhooed Fairlane concept shown in a prior year.

I’d not seen the Fairlane concept, but my first thought viewing Flex at the recent New York Auto Show was, it’s a bigger Honda Element. Others in the automotive press saw Scion and Mini Cooper in it. You get the idea; it’s another one of the squared off, boxy vehicles we’re seeing more of from the manufacturers.

“It’s a purpose-built crossover,” said Mays, who added that the company intends to define crossover vehicles for this decade, as well as small cars, the two segments where customers are headed.

The full-size crossover Flex is striking with side body strakes, black side and rear windows and windshield that help create the effect of a solid sheet of glass along the side body. Contrasting roof color in white suede or silver is cool and different, a nice signature for the vehicle — like Rod Stewart and his spats. One can choose to be less distinctive and pick a body-color roof from one of 10 available exterior colors. Other distinctive design cues are tail lamps outlined in chrome and a brushed satin finish metal appliqué that accents the lift gate.

Originally conceptualized with sliding doors that kept it in the minivan frame of mind, the production Flex has regular rear doors. Mays said this made the vehicle more appealing, moved it further away from the minivan stigma and also freed up budget to use elsewhere in Flex. This includes an eight-inch DVD dropdown screen in the back seat area, an optional refrigerator mounted between the second-row captain’s chairs and a glass roof (the Multi-Panel Vista Roof™) that gives occupants in each row their own skylight.

Flex’s safety and security features include an available rear back-up camera, standard front-and-side-seat mounted air bags, three-row Safety Canopy® side curtain air bags designed to deploy when an occupant’s head is resting against the side glass and AdvanceTrac® with RSC® (Roll Stability Control).

Other cool features of Flex are second-row footrests, FordSync™ in-car communications and entertainment system, a 2,300 song personal jukebox, capless fueling and programmable ambient interior “mood lighting” in seven colors.

The same engine used in several other Ford products, a 260horsepower 3.5-liter V-6 engine with a six-speed automatic transmission, will power Flex.

Flex is expected to come to market in summer 2008. Pricing is not available but is expected to come in at more than $27,000.

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Ford paints the town green INITIATIVES ARE PART OF MOTOR COMPANY’S GLOBAL SUSTAINABILTY STRATEGY IN RECOGNITION OF EARTH DAY, THIS TOP-10 list focuses on some of Ford’s latest ‘green’ initiatives. Ford’s comprehensive global sustainability strategy includes a focus on the development of environmentally friendly vehicle technologies, including hybrids, diesels, bio-diesels, advanced engines and transmissions, E85 ethanol, plug-in hybrids, hydrogen internal combustion engines and fuel cells. In addition, Ford is introducing sustainable efforts throughout the company in manufacturing, materials and facilities management.

Ford’s commitment to “green” vehicle technologies will result in improved fuel economy for our customers and reduced CO 2 emissions.

Other green efforts will help minimize the company environmental impact through the conservation of energy and a reduction in pollution, while saving the company and customers money.

1. USE OF SUSTAINABLE FABRIC The 2008 Ford Escape is believed to be the first U.S. automotive application of 100 percent recycled fabric seating surfaces. The new fabric, supplied by Interface Fabrics, Inc., is produced from 100 percent post-industrial waste. Post-industrial waste is something originally intended for retail use that never makes it to the consumer. It can include anything from plastic intended for pop bottles to undyed polyester fibers that don’t make the cut for consumer use.

This plastic and polyester is processed, spun into yarn, dyed and woven into seat fabric.

Recycling waste otherwise destined for landfills has obvious environmental benefits. Interface Fabrics estimates that Ford’s use of post-industrial recycled materials, rather than virgin fibers, will conserve up to: ■ 600,000 gallons of water ■ 1.8 million pounds of carbon dioxide (CO 2) equivalents ■ The equivalent of more than 7 million kilowatt hours of electricity.

2. LEADER IN FUEL-EFFICIENT 6-SPEED TRANSMISSIONS Ford, Lincoln and Mercury offer 15 models that are available with fuel-saving 6-speed transmissions. Ford plans to produce about 1.3 million 6-speed transmissions annually by 2008. Two out of every three vehicles will be offered with 6-speed transmissions by the end of next year. Fuel efficiency is improved

up to 7 percent in highway driving over typical 4-speed transmissions while offering better performance and smoother, more precise shifts.

3. FORD INTRODUCES FIRST CLEAN DIESEL IN HEAVY-DUTY PICKUP MARKET Ford is leading the diesel revolution with the 2008 Super Duty, offering the segment’s first clean diesel engine. The new 6.4-liter diesel utilizes Ford Clean Diesel Technology™ and meets the most stringent emissions standards in the world while increasing power and torque in an engine that is smooth and quiet.

The 6.4-liter PowerStroke® clean-diesel makes an impressive 350 horsepower at 3,000 rpm and 650 foot-pounds of torque starting at 2,000 rpm while reducing particulate output by up to 97 percent to a level on par with gasoline engines.

4. SUSTAINABLE LANDSCAPING PRESERVES ENVIRONMENT AND LOOKS GOOD In an effort to conserve natural resources, improve habitat and lower costs, Ford has installed nearly 200 acres of sustainable landscaping around its corporate properties in Dearborn and Allen Park, Mich. The comprehensive grounds maintenance plan incorporates fields of wildflowers, natural prairies and fallow fields.

Several prairie fields are designated ‘Grow Zones,’ meaning they contribute to a sustainable environment by preserving natural resources, providing wildlife habitat, absorbing rainwater, reducing erosion and saving maintenance costs.

5. FIRST TWO-TIME WINNER OF EPA’S ENERGY STAR AWARD Ford’s actions to increase energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from its facilities have earned it the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s coveted ENERGY STAR 2007 Partner of the Year Award in Energy Management. Ford is the first automaker to receive the award two years in a row. In 2006, Ford improved energy efficiency in the U.S. by 5 percent, resulting in savings of approximately $25 million.

Since 2000, Ford’s U.S. facilities have improved energy efficiency by 25 percent, equivalent to the amount of energy con-

sumed by 220,000 homes.

6. FORD ESCAPE AND FOCUS ARE OVER 80 PERCENT RECYCLABLE Dismantlers and shredders process more than 94 percent of all salvaged vehicles. They collect parts and materials for reuse, remanufacturing and recycling. Usually, 75 percent of an automobile’s content is recycled – including steel, iron, aluminum, copper and other non-ferrous metals. The Ford Escape and Focus exceed the norm, being over 80 percent recyclable.

7. PAINT FUMES BECOME FUEL AT MICHIGAN TRUCK PLANT Ford’s innovative Fumes-to-Fuel system burns paint fumes in a process that produces electricity at the Michigan Truck Plant in Wayne, Mich., home of the Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator. The patent-pending Ford system uses a Stirling cycle Engine to burn the fumes from solvent-based paint used to paint cars and trucks. Not only does the process virtually destroy the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the fumes, it also produces electricity for the plant. The program burns onethird of the fumes in one paint booth, yet 45-50 kilowatts of electricity are produced – enough to meet the typical demand of an average suburban block of houses. Currently, Ford’s North American assembly plants incinerate the VOCs in solventbased paint fumes, but the process requires a significant amount of energy, substantial floor space and produces some carbon dioxide (CO 2). The only by-products of Ford’s Fumes-to-Fuel system are small amounts of water vapor, CO 2 and nitrogen oxides.

8. KEEPING COOL WITH GEOTHERMAL COOLING SYSTEM The Lima (Ohio) Engine Plant, home of production for Ford’s award-winning Duratec 35 engine, uses cold water from two abandoned limestone quarries on the property to cool a portion of the plant and its equipment. The geothermal system saved Ford $300,000 in installation costs — compared with the cost of installing a traditional cooling tower — and saved more than $300,000 in annual operating costs. Although actual cost savings are difficult to determine at this point, the system is capable of providing chilled water using 0.1 kw/ton of cooling versus traditional chiller systems with cooling towers, which consume around 0.7 kw/ton or more. In addition, several hundred thousand gallons of domestic water have

already been saved due to the elimination of some existing cooling towers.

9. POLICE GO GREEN WITH THE 2008 CROWN VICTORIA INTERCEPTOR The 2008 Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor will be the first and only police fleet vehicle offered with flexible fuel capability, allowing it to operate on E85 ethanol or gasoline. Ford is the largest producer and seller of police vehicles, with more than 80 percent of the market. As police and government agencies move toward becoming more environmentally conscious and seek alternative fuel vehicles for their fleets, Ford is in the position to fill this need for its police customers. Ford’s current lineup of flexible fuel vehicles (FFVs) includes the Ford F-150, Crown Victoria and Mercury Grand Marquis models.

Ford has placed more than two million flexible fuel vehicles on the road and has pledged to make half of its production capable of running on alternative fuels by 2012, provided the necessary fuel and infrastructure are in place. The company recently announced it has achieved 50-state certification for all of the Ford and Mercury 2008 flexible fuel passenger car models. In an effort to differentiate its FFVs from standard gasoline vehicles, Ford will begin equipping the E85-capable vehicles with yellow gas caps by the end of this year.

10. WORLD’S ROOF

LARGEST

GREEN

Ford’s Dearborn Truck Plant has the World’s Largest Living Roof, according to Guinness World Records. The 10.4-acre living roof is part of Ford’s redevelopment of the Ford Rouge Center, which includes a number of progressive environmental initiatives. The roof is composed of a drought-resistant perennial groundcover called sedum which is planted into a specially layered bed. Virtually maintenance-free, it can absorb up to 4 million gallons of rainwater annually and is part of a broader storm-water management system installed at the Rouge. In addition to absorbing rainwater and carbon dioxide, the sedum roof produces oxygen and provides natural overhead insulation for the final assembly building, thereby reducing energy costs. It also is expected to last twice as long as a traditionally constructed roof.

SPANISH REVIVALISTS GUESTS FILE INTO THE REFURBISHED SHOWROOM AT LEXUS SANTA MONICA DURING THEIR RECENT GRAND OPENING CELEBRATION. THE HISTORIC SPANISHSTYLE BUILDING AT 15TH STREET AND SANTA MONICA BOULEVARD ENDURED AN EXTENSIVE TWOYEAR RESTORATION FABIAN LEWKOWICZ FABIANL@SMDP.COM

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Tribeca brings power with style; Impreza resuscitates the compact

BY MARIA FOTOPOULOS

2008 IMPREZA 2.51, IMPREZA WRX

Special to the Daily Press

Subaru’s Impreza 2.5i and its performanceoriented relative, the Impreza WRX, have allnew styling for the 2008 model year.

According to Subaru, Impreza’s more sophisticated styling and new body styles — a fourdoor sedan and five-door model — “breathe new life into the compact performance market.”

The new four-door is four 1/2 inches longer than the previous sedan and four 1/2-inches longer than the new five-door models. The design of the four-door models creates an improved road presence, with a wider and sharper front design giving way to a crisp side body crease. The rear of the four-door Impreza is set apart by red lamp lenses and a chrome strip below the trunk line that visually widens the tail.

The new five-door design is clean and elegant, with a sweeping single curve roofline that flows into an aerodynamic rear spoiler. An allnew frontal design features the new spread wing logo design at the top of the widened grille. The new grille creates a connection to the Subaru aircraft heritage and places a focus on the Subaru star cluster logo.

Further, the five-door features a distinctive character line that sweeps upward at the rear, giving the car an agile look. The short rear overhang, new clear rear tail lamp lenses and a vertical chrome bar combine to integrate the side character line into the tail.

Both exterior designs focus on detail touches such as the new clear rear lenses on the fivedoor, distinctive curved fog lamps and an inward sweeping chrome embellishment that flows the grille design into the bumper. An aggressive lower spoiler adds to the sporting character of the design.

“The new Impreza is a huge leap forward with completely new styling and grown up proportions,” said Tim Colbeck, Subaru of America’s vice president of sales. “It is more of what made Impreza

IT’S AN AREA IN MANHATTAN — THE TRIANGLE Below Canal Street — that’s come to be known as TriBeCa and likely brings to mind Robert DeNiro and the Tribeca Film Festival before any connection to an automobile. But earlier this month, Subaru made a Manhattan mark debuting its version of Tribeca, as well as all-new Imprezas at the New York International Auto Show.

The 2008 Tribeca claims the spot of the lone SUV with a horizontally opposed engine, which keeps the vehicle’s center of gravity low, thus providing better resistance to rollover. The engine is a new 3.6-liter 6-cylinder engine that delivers 256 horsepower and 247 lb.-ft. of torque. And even though the engine is larger, it maintains emissions levels and has better fuel efficiency than the prior iteration, according to Subaru, which hasn’t yet released the fuel efficiency stats.

Tribeca uses Subaru’s Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive system which sends power from the Boxer engine to each wheel at once, providing stability and poise, enhanced traction and fast response to slippage in varying road conditions.

The new Tribeca has gotten some knocks in the automotive press for adopting a pedestrian appearance after losing highly defined front and back ends on the prior model, a look management said cost the product sales. But pedestrian can have advantages over polarizing.

On the inside, no such complaints — the twin cockpit has a flowing dash and center console, which features an information center that groups readouts for the stereo, time, fuel economy and outside temperature. With available third row seating, the cabin has five- and sevenpassenger capability, and the automaker brags up to 64 unique seating configurations.

Tribeca should be shipped this summer, starting just below $30,000.

SUBARU IMPREZA

PHOTOS COURTESY OF SUBARU successful in a stunning new wrapper.”

A 2.5-liter flat-four Boxer engine delivering 224 horsepower and 226 lb.-ft. of torque powers the new WRX. Lighter than its predecessor by 50 lbs., the engine has been modified to produce more torque at lower rpm. With its broader and richer torque curve, the new WRX delivers a smooth stream of power to improve drivability and fuel efficiency.

An instant worldwide success when it

launched in 1992, WRX then came to the U.S. market in 2001 and changed the performance market.

It was a car that could deliver turbocharged, rally-bred performance in any driving condition.

Impreza and WRX will be available in Subaru dealerships late this summer. Look for pricing to start in the mid-$20,000 range.

IMPREZA

T H E

N E W

I M P R E Z A

I S

A HUGE LEAP FORWARD

WITH COMPLETELY NEW STYLING AND GROWN UP PROPORTIONS.

IT IS MORE OF WHAT MADE IMPREZA SUCESSFULL IN A

STUNNING NEW WRAPPER.” Tim Colbeck, Subaru of America’s vice president

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Saab introduces power and green concept

THE SAAB BIOPOWER 100 CONCEPT SOUNDS LIKE A CONTRADICTION. IT HAS 300 HORSEPOWER AND 295 LB.-FT. OF TORQUE AND A GREATLY REDUCED CARBON FOOTPRINT. THE VEHICLE HAS THE FIRST PRODUCTION-BASED TURBO ENGINE OPTIMIZED FOR PURE, ECO-FRIENDLY BIOETHANOL (E100) FUEL. SAAB IS THE EUROPEAN LEADER IN AN EMERGING MARKET FOR WHAT'S BEING TERMED "FLEX-FUEL VEHICLES" THAT RUN ON GASOLINE AND/OR BIOETHANOL.

Claude Short Auto Sales OFFERING QUALITY SERVICE TO THE WESTSIDE SINCE 1927

Four Generations of Devoted Service

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AutoGuide2007

THE SANTA MONICA DA I LY P R E S S

FABIAN LEWKOWICZ FABIANL@SMDP.COM

ALTERNATIVE CARS RALLY TO BARKER HANGAR AT THE SANTA MONICA AIRPORT DURING THE ALTERNATIVE CAR AND TRANSPORTATION EXPO IN DECEMBER.

A touch of avant-garde proves a Shanghai surprise AUTOMAKERS ROLL OUT ‘GREEN’ INITIATIVES NEXT TO GAS-GUZZLERS

By The Associated Press ONE EXPERIMENTAL CLEAN-ENERGY CAR RUNS ON NATURAL gas. Another uses ethanol distilled from corn. A third has a zeroemissions electric motor powered by a hydrogen fuel cell.

These alternative vehicles were created not by a global automaker but by China’s small but ambitious car companies, which displayed them Sunday alongside gasoline-powered sedans and sport utility vehicles at the start of the Shanghai Auto Show.

At a time when they are still trying to establish themselves in international markets, Chinese automakers are already investing in such avant-garde research in a bid to win a foothold in the next generation of technology.

“This is the tide of the industry. If you don’t go with the tide, the industry will pass you by,” said Qin Lihong, a vice president of China’s biggest domestic automaker, Chery Auto Co., in an interview ahead of the show’s opening.

China’s communist leaders are encouraging the development as part of efforts to cut pollution and rising dependence on imported oil and to make this country a creator of profitable technologies.

Chinese manufacturers are getting help from foreign automakers in joint ventures and from research alliances with Chinese universities and government laboratories.

Beijing has made cleaner cars a policy priority, targeting the field as one of 11 priority areas in a 15-year technology development plan issued in February 2006. It promised grants and tax breaks to support industry efforts.

The campaign embodies one of Beijing’s strategies in technology development: Pick new areas with no entrenched competi-

tors so China can make breakthroughs without huge costs.

While foreign automakers have a lead in conventional technology, “In new energy we’re starting from almost the same line,” said Chen Hong, the president of Shanghai Automotive Industries Corp.

“So we believe we can catch up with other auto companies and make great progress in developing new energy vehicles,” Chen said.

China’s leaders are pressing its auto, steel, manufacturing and other industries to improve energy efficiency and cut pollution.

They see China’s rising reliance on imported oil as a strategic weakness, especially since much of it comes from the politically volatile Middle East and crosses seas beyond Beijing’s control.

China already is the world’s No. 2 oil consumer after the United States and saw imports soar by 14.5 percent in 2006, driven by economic growth that has topped 10 percent for the past four years.

A boom in car sales has added to smog shrouding China’s major cities, which are among the world’s dirtiest. Vehicle sales jumped 25.1 percent last year to 7.2 million units, including 3.8 million passenger cars. At the Shanghai show, both SAIC and Chery displayed experimental fuel-cell sedans, while they and a third Chinese automaker, Chang’an Automobile Group Co., also showed gasoline-electric hybrids.

SAIC said it will start selling its hybrid next year, while Qin said Chery’s would go on the market in two to three years.

“The hybrid will be our focus,” SAIC chairman Hu Maoyan said at a news conference. “The fuel cell will be our direction.”

SAIC has spent 100 million yuan ($12 million) on fuel cell research, according to state media.

Chery had the widest array of alternative vehicles on display at the Shanghai show. They included models outfitted to run on bio-diesel made from vegetable oil or a “flexible fuel” choice of compressed natural gas or ethanol.

Foreign automakers also are playing a role in China’s research.

General Motors Corp. has a joint-venture technology center with SAIC in Shanghai and operates three experimental fuel cell buses in the city. DaimlerChrysler AG has three of its own fuel

FABIAN LEWKOWICZ FABIANL@SMDP.COM

‘SMART CARS’ WERE A POPULAR ATTRACTION DURING THE EARTH DAY ON THE PROMENADE FESTIVAL STAGED IN MID-APRIL. cell buses running regular routes in Beijing in a research project with the technology ministry.

Foreign automakers including GM, Ford Motor Co., BMW AG and Honda Motor Co. displayed their own hybrids and experimental fuel cell cars at the Shanghai show.

Company officials said hydrogen fuel cells, which produce power with no exhaust, are the cleanest option. But they say it could be a decade or more before such technology is commercially feasible, due partly to the need to create a network of hydrogen filling stations.

Chinese authorities also are looking at other possible fuels such as natural gas and methane extracted from coal, said MeiWei Cheng, the president of Ford’s China operations.

“This is not an easy decision, because every option has pros and cons,” Cheng said. “The government is trying to find a solution as quickly as possible, but this is a difficult problem.”

AutoGuide2007

THE SANTA MONICA DA I LY P R E S S

Pre-Owned Center 800-547-4569

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AutoGuide2007

THE SANTA MONICA DA I LY P R E S S