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Great news for NW Ohio.
Marathon Oil splitting in two
The Board of Directors of Marathon Oil Corporation has approved moving forward with plans to spin off Marathon’s downstream business, creating two independent energy companies. Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC), to be headquartered in Findlay, Ohio, is expected to be the fifth largest US refi...
Not that this is a forum for a debate on fair taxation... but..
Harvey- Do you realize that Farmers and blue collar workers make up a large percent of truck/suv owners? I don't know a single farmer that doesn't own at least 1 pickup. I also know very few construction workers/plumbers/electricians that also don't own a pickup. If you tax those... you're taxing the middle class workers. If you want to tax rich people.. a more appropriate tax would be on cars like the prius (which would not be a good idea, and i'm not advocating).
GM Posts Second Consecutive Quarter of Profitability
General Motors Company announced its second quarter 2010 results, marked by revenue of $33.2 billion and net income attributable to common stockholders of $1.3 billion, resulting in earnings per share on a diluted basis of $2.55. GM’s second quarter earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) was $2...
Bob -
200k is middle class in NY. I don't think many people making 200k in New York, DC, or Boston are buying Yachts. The reality is... these new taxes aren't indexed to inflation. Couple that with the fact that the bureau of printing and engraving has been working so much OT, and it's going to impact the middle class in ~10 years. People will just adapt to a higher tax burden, which is sort of a sad reality.
As a side note with taxes... If we raise them to 1960s levels (as some liberal talking heads suggest), what is my incentive to take out 150k in loans to go to B-school or law school?
But i digress... Good luck GM.
GM Posts Second Consecutive Quarter of Profitability
General Motors Company announced its second quarter 2010 results, marked by revenue of $33.2 billion and net income attributable to common stockholders of $1.3 billion, resulting in earnings per share on a diluted basis of $2.55. GM’s second quarter earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) was $2...
a123systems is backed by some companies with a lot of experience in manufacturing (GE, Qualcomm, Motorola) not to mention MIT.
A123 Systems Withdraws from Fiat 500 EV Project
The Detroit Free Press reports that Chrysler is looking for a new battery supplier after A123 Systems withdrew from the Fiat 500 electric vehicle project after the battery maker reported a second-quarter loss of $34.2 million, compared with a loss of $21.9 million a year earlier. “A123 will not...
cujet-
Ford has to adhere to the same EPA driving cycle as every other auto manufacturer in order to receive their EPA fuel economy ratings. They can't 'skew' numbers. Maybe your normal driving is more aggressive than the EPA driving cycle (which has been updated in recent years to reflect more aggressive driving).
vrd863- The F150 only uses a gas engine. I would imagine the reasoning has something to do with the need for an expensive heavy duty frame (found in the F-250 and F-350).
Ford Revamps 2011 F-150 Powertrain Lineup; New EcoBoost 3.5L V6 20% More Fuel Efficient Than 2010 Model Year 5.4L V8
2011 Ford F-150 3.5-liter EcoBoost Engine. Click to enlarge. The 2011 Ford F-150 is receiving an extensive powertrain overhaul, featuring four new truck engines, all coupled to a revised six-speed automatic transmission. Each engine delivers improved fuel economy. When the direct-injection t...
SJC- agreed.
I've wondered why hybrids haven't been incorporated into larger vehicles (outside of the escape and silverado). They're already more expensive, so the cost of the battery would equal a smaller % of the total cost. Additionally, the savings in fuel costs would be much greater in vehicles where the base model gets less than 20 mpg.
Chrysler Group LLC Posts 2Q Operating Profit
Chrysler Group LLC posted a second quarter operating profit of $183 million, and a first half 2010 operating profit of $326 million. In Q2 2010, Net Revenues increased to $10,478 million representing an 8.2% improvement over the prior quarter. First half 2010 Net Revenues totaled $20,165 millio...
Actually... Crysler's biggest area of growth is Europe. Apparently Jeeps are popular over there. I still think people should be able to buy what they want to buy (higher gas prices would lead to a faster switch to alternatives globally), so I have no problem with it.
Chrysler Group LLC Posts 2Q Operating Profit
Chrysler Group LLC posted a second quarter operating profit of $183 million, and a first half 2010 operating profit of $326 million. In Q2 2010, Net Revenues increased to $10,478 million representing an 8.2% improvement over the prior quarter. First half 2010 Net Revenues totaled $20,165 millio...
The government is beholden to the people. Their fair share? That's not easily defined. Some might argue that a head tax would be the 'fairest' way to distribute the costs of the government's services.
I'm not suggesting that corporations should be allowed to conduct themselves unethically, but that isn't anywhere close to where our government operates. Too many markets are socialism-capitalism hybrids. Nobel Laureate Fredrich Hayek argues in 'The Road to Serfdom' that those markets are in-fact the most prone to become monopoly and oligoloply markets. I would argue the reason we're seeing so many large banks influencing markets are government policies that promote consolidation, although that's a separate issue.
The point of my previous statement is that the government is woefully inadequate when it comes to innovation and pareto efficiency.
DuPont Introduces New Separators for Li-ion Batteries
DuPont has introduced a nanofiber-based polymeric battery separator that boosts the performance and safety of lithium-ion batteries. DuPont Energain battery separators can increase power 15 to 30%, increase battery life by up to 20% and improve battery safety by providing stability at high tempe...
SJC-
I think you misspoke. I think you meant to say "The government has it's place, but don't wait for it to do what the coutnry needs, it is what their special interests need." Take a look at who makes up our government.. wings of the same bird.
To take a step back and look at what our goals are for batteries we need to understand that the biggest hurdle to commercialization is R&D. Some firm (existing or future) will commercialize viable technology. Unethical firms do exist, but that's really the individual not the system. The best thing the government can do, which it has done since 2005 across two presidents, is to provide resources to universities and private labs in order to make these sorts of advances that we've been seeing.
DuPont Introduces New Separators for Li-ion Batteries
DuPont has introduced a nanofiber-based polymeric battery separator that boosts the performance and safety of lithium-ion batteries. DuPont Energain battery separators can increase power 15 to 30%, increase battery life by up to 20% and improve battery safety by providing stability at high tempe...
Engineer-Poet,
I don't think many people are against using wind energy in our nation's energy mix. We should most definitely continue our trend of wind development, but we also need to include base load plants (nuclear, solar thermal, and hydro) as well as peaking power plants (natural gas and hydro) to have an effective electrical grid.
I don't think that this whole 'peak coal' theory is probably incredibly worrisome or even true. If the US used nuclear reprocessing like France, nuclear could be cheaper than coal. We wouldn't even be discussing fine particle pollution, sulfur dioxide emissions, or black lung if this were the case..
Study Concludes “Peak Coal” Will Occur Close to 2011
A multi-Hubbert analysis of coal production by Tadeusz Patzek at The University of Texas at Austin and Gregory Croft at the University of California, Berkeley concludes that the global peak of coal production from existing coalfields will occur close to the year 2011. The HHV of global productio...
ejj- How does Obama get credit for the volt? Bush gets credi/blame (depending on who you are) for TARP (which bailed out GM)... The volt is a reaction to Bush's energy policy of 2005.
I don't like Bush,but come on... Obama was a state senator when GM started developing this thing!
GM to Boost Volt US Production Capacity by 50% to 45,000 Units in 2012
Due to what it termed “strong public interest” in the Chevrolet Volt, General Motors will increase US production capacity of the Volt by 50%, from 30,000 units to 45,000 units, in 2012. The announcement came as US President Barack Obama toured the Detroit-Hamtramck facility, where the Volt is b...
Thank Jimmy Carter for putting us in this situation. If he hadn't killed the nuclear industry, we wouldn't be so reliant on coal for electricity still.
Study Concludes “Peak Coal” Will Occur Close to 2011
A multi-Hubbert analysis of coal production by Tadeusz Patzek at The University of Texas at Austin and Gregory Croft at the University of California, Berkeley concludes that the global peak of coal production from existing coalfields will occur close to the year 2011. The HHV of global productio...
I'll agree that high speed rail serves a strategic alternative to highways and airplanes and certainly could dominate the market in trips between 100-500 miles.
I wonder what the associated cost would be in terms of infrastructure development of HSR vs. the cost of offering some crazy incentives to 'voltify' cars on the road.
FRA to Award Up To $25M to R&D Projects Supporting the Development of High Speed and Intercity Passenger Rail Service
The US Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has issued a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA-2010-1) soliciting a variety of basic and applied technology research proposals to advance the state of the art in the high-speed rail and intercity passenger service area. Estimated total program funding is...
Will S-
Not sure where you live, but here in DC we're still occasionally allowed our freedom of speech and debate. I like green cars; that's why I frequent this site. I understand a need for new technologies that will revolutionize the auto industry. This advancement is an incremental improvement in Ford's ever improving car portfolio. You clearly haven't followed the updates in EPA estimates or even the time lag for commercializing new technolgies. Ford is now beating foreign and domestic automakers in fuel economy and initial quality in most car segments. Don't ever speak down to someone with such a sophomoric argument, it just makes you look like a fool.
Ford Introduces 2011 Explorer SUV
The 2011 Ford Explorer SUV. Click to enlarge. Ford has introduced the new 2011 Explorer. Offering two new engines—a new 3.5L V6 and the new 2.0L I4 EcoBoost (earlier post)—the new Explorer offers up to a 30% improvement in fuel economy over the current Explorer. The 2010 Ford Explorer 2WD wi...
26 mpg is a vast improvement over previous models. Unless you'd like an economically fascist government banning products... this is a great vehicle. you're giving people what they want, while improving a glaring weakness.
There is a need for large vehicles.
Ford Introduces 2011 Explorer SUV
The 2011 Ford Explorer SUV. Click to enlarge. Ford has introduced the new 2011 Explorer. Offering two new engines—a new 3.5L V6 and the new 2.0L I4 EcoBoost (earlier post)—the new Explorer offers up to a 30% improvement in fuel economy over the current Explorer. The 2010 Ford Explorer 2WD wi...
This article fails to mention the fuel economy for the Ecoboost variant.
According to the Detroit Free Press, it will get 19 city and 26 highway... that is pretty darn good for a full sized SUV
http://www.freep.com/article/20100726/BUSINESS01/100725035/1318/Ford-unveils-its-all-new-Explorer
Ford Introduces 2011 Explorer SUV
The 2011 Ford Explorer SUV. Click to enlarge. Ford has introduced the new 2011 Explorer. Offering two new engines—a new 3.5L V6 and the new 2.0L I4 EcoBoost (earlier post)—the new Explorer offers up to a 30% improvement in fuel economy over the current Explorer. The 2010 Ford Explorer 2WD wi...
~50 gallons of ethanol per ton of switgrass? At 12.5 tons per acre, that would produce 625 gallons per acre with lower stress on soil and fewer inputs into planting and cultivating. Not bad...
Yield Projections for Switchgrass as a Biofuel Crop Across the US
A team of researchers from Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Dartmouth College have compiled national data on switchgrass yield as it relates to site location, plot size, stand age, harvest frequency, fertilizer application, climate, and land quality. Their paper appears in the July-August 2010 ...
As a libertarian-republican I can even argue for a strategic need for high speed rail as an alternate option to driving or flying. We could have a nuclear/wind powered train system that produces no emissions while providing easy tranportation....
But, 2.3billion dollars will not do it the right way unless you focus the entirety on one project. Nickel and diming projects for these 79mph or even 110mph trains will do nothing to improve the image of train travel. If they started by improving the Acela to a 200mph train... that would be a good way to demonstrate the technology as well as the comfort/convenience over driving or flying.
Tampa-Orlando was a good start... but they wasted money in Ohio for the '3C' line that won't get used.
Federal Railroad Administration Seeks Applications for $2.3B in High-Speed Rail Grants
The US Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) will begin accepting applications for $2.1 billion in grants to continue the development of high-speed intercity passenger rail corridors. In addition, FRA will make another $245 million available for individual construc...
The telematics systems developed by GM (onstar) and Ford (based on Microsoft Auto) are years ahead of anything from Toyota or Honda.
GM Doubling Size of Its Warren Advanced Automotive Battery Lab
General Motors is doubling the size of the largest and most technologically advanced automotive battery lab in the US to expedite the development of electrically driven vehicles for consumers. The $8-million investment will improve on-site testing of all current and new battery cell, module and ...
True story. Within a reasonably level of predictably almost all new technologies become cheaper to produce over time, though.
Update: Volt Hitting Range Milestones, On Schedule for Start of Regular Production
Recent calibration drives of pre-production Chevrolet Volt electric vehicles have achieved up to 39.9 miles (64.2 km) of emission-free, electric-only driving range, chief engineer Andrew Farah said Monday during a media update on the program. The Volt recently completed a round of cold weather t...
What about those people who live in unincorporated agricultural communities? Similarly, small towns within 20 miles of a factory. I refer to communities similar to that which consitute a significant portion of our country. Additionally, there isn't a need for factories to be located in cities.. they're often located on rail lines and staffed with workers from rural (unincorporated) areas within 30 miles.
SAIC Unveils Its Own “Leaf”
SAIC has unveiled its “Leaf” concept car at the Shanghai Automotive Group - General Motors Pavilion at Expo 2010 Shanghai. The car combines photovoltaic conversion (solar cells), wind energy conversion (spinners on the wheels), and CO2 absorption in a electric-drive vehicle. SAIC reveals its ...
Maybe it's time to adapt you and your wife's perception.
GM Doubling Size of Its Warren Advanced Automotive Battery Lab
General Motors is doubling the size of the largest and most technologically advanced automotive battery lab in the US to expedite the development of electrically driven vehicles for consumers. The $8-million investment will improve on-site testing of all current and new battery cell, module and ...
Henry-
30 mph? You're kidding I hope.
I love the idea of high speed rail... but I don't think you can connect every rural area via rail to eliminate the need for cars.
SAIC Unveils Its Own “Leaf”
SAIC has unveiled its “Leaf” concept car at the Shanghai Automotive Group - General Motors Pavilion at Expo 2010 Shanghai. The car combines photovoltaic conversion (solar cells), wind energy conversion (spinners on the wheels), and CO2 absorption in a electric-drive vehicle. SAIC reveals its ...
Hopefully they can hit their price milestone! It won't really matter in terms of sales as I'm sure there will be a sufficient number of early adopters willing to pay the premium, it's more for the media reaction.
Update: Volt Hitting Range Milestones, On Schedule for Start of Regular Production
Recent calibration drives of pre-production Chevrolet Volt electric vehicles have achieved up to 39.9 miles (64.2 km) of emission-free, electric-only driving range, chief engineer Andrew Farah said Monday during a media update on the program. The Volt recently completed a round of cold weather t...
GM has a great opportunity to use all Volt real-world data in real time to help understand the strengths and weaknesses in their battery design. It will be interesting to see if they take advantage of the capability of OnStar telematics and the additional capability the Volt will provide to test the configuration. I'm not quite sure why HarveyD is always so down on GM and Ford, they seem to be doing some very logical things lately.
GM Doubling Size of Its Warren Advanced Automotive Battery Lab
General Motors is doubling the size of the largest and most technologically advanced automotive battery lab in the US to expedite the development of electrically driven vehicles for consumers. The $8-million investment will improve on-site testing of all current and new battery cell, module and ...
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