In Gear offers a fresh look at the world of cars – its technology, economics, and future – through the eyes of Monitor staffers and other automobile writers from around the world.
The 2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid is pictured. The 2014 Ford Fusion, which underwent a dramatic redesign, is 'nothing short of breathtaking and transformative,' Halvorson says. (Ford/AP/File)
2014 Ford Fusion: Sleeker, more efficient than ever
Last year the Ford Fusion received a redesign that was nothing short of breathtaking and transformative; with a handsome and dramatic yet family-friendly design, the Taurus made a leap from staid to dynamic in appearance, inside and out, and all the more surprising was that it maintains some of the most engaging driving dynamics. The good looks are now gorgeous; the road manners, if anything, have grown even more athletic; and it's now one of the most tech-forward, fuel-efficient mid-size models As an overall package, it's everything almost any mid-size sedan buyer needs--and that's part of the reason why we named it out 2013 Best Car to Buy.
The design's a standout whether you judge it by its impressive collection of details or how it wraps all these elements together, in context. A hexagon grille bends and bevels between headlamps and foglamps in a way that's half-Aston, half-Hyundai. We see the roofline of the Audi A7 from the rear quarters, with the LED taillamps punctuating that point. But take a look at the sideview and it's all Ford, with the details somehow making a greater sense in composite. Inside, it's functional and sleep, especially taking focus front and center at the touchscreen-driven MyFord Touch system and the tablet-like finish of the center-stack controls.
The base-level engine, a 178-horsepower, 2.5-liter four-cylinder, doesn't come close to performing as well as the rakish design suggests, but it's adequate with the six-speed automatic. If we wanted the performance of a V-6, essentially, we'd head straight for the 2.0-liter EcoBoost turbo four, with its 240 hp and 270 lb-ft of torque. It's quick to rev, and the automatic's shifts click quickly via paddle controls. For 2014, last year's 1.6-liter EcoBoost turbo is gone, replaced by a 1.5-liter turbo four. At the time of posting, we don't yet have power or fuel economy numbers for this new fuel-efficient pick of the lineup, but Ford will include engine start/stop in 1.5-liter automatic version, but we'd be more tempted by the great six-speed manual gearbox--a no-cost option on much of the lineup.
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Even in its heaviest form, at about 3,700 pounds with the available all-wheel drive, the Fusion is quite light for this class, and with well-tuned steering and a taut yet absorbent feel, it has firm, flat, reassuring cornering that's not to the detriment of ride quality, combined with a nimble, eager feeling that's missing from most mid-size sedans--except for the latest Mazda 6. Of note for 2014 is a new performance tire option with summer-only rubber.
The Fusion's cabin isn't camped by the sexy silhouette, either. It's a little longer overall than before, with a much longer wheelbase, which adds up to better legroom all around. Thinner and firmer front seats also help bring a lot more back-seat space; and even the base manual front seats are quite comfortable and supportive. Headroom's great, provided you avoid the optional sunroof. And overall this is an interior that lends a feeling of quality, with good materials everywhere you look (and feel), great noise damping and vibration quelling, and satisfying sounds as you open and close doors. The trunk is 16 cubic feet, big for the class, and the Fusion has ample storage all around the cabin, with a stow space under the center stack, bottle holders in the doors, and a decently sized glovebox. ( Continue… )
General Motors chairman and CEO Daniel Akerson speaks at an energy conference in Houston, Texas earlier this year. General Motors CEO Dan Akerson says the company has to keep investing in new vehicles and equipment to ensure its survival. (Pat Sullivan/AP/File)
General Motors is taking a leaf out of Tesla's book
"History is littered with big companies that ignored innovation that was coming their way because you didn’t know where you could be disrupted."
General Motors will be hoping those words, from vice chairman Steve Girksy as the automaker begins to study electric upstart Tesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA], don't become too prophetic.
They're a clear indication that major automakers are starting to worry about the startup electric automaker, as GM CEO Dan Akerson looks into how Tesla may affect the 104-year old GM's business.
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According to Bloomberg, studying Tesla is just one way that Akerson is hoping to change GM's culture after its financial difficulties in 2009.
The world economic crisis and the big bailouts required as a result of it shook the major U.S. automakers out of a complacency that had let them fall behind rivals from overseas--and improvements from the Big Three are already apparent as quality, performance and efficiency climb inexorably upward. ( Continue… )
The 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray is revealed at media previews for the North American International Auto Show in Detroit in January. The new Corvette Stingray is more fuel efficient than its main rivals, getting a combined 21 mpg. (Paul Sancya/AP/File)
New Corvette Stingray: good gas mileage, for a sports car
The new horsepower war is fully upon us. It's no longer just about how much fuel and oxygen you can flow through an engine in a quest for a bigger bottom line, it's about getting the most horsepower from the least amount of fuel possible.
The 2014 Chevy Corvette Stingray does a remarkably good job of it, scoring 29 mpg highway and 17 mpg city for a combined rating of 21 mpg.
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That's pretty much on top of the new Corvette Stingray's sporting rival, the Porsche 911, which scores 19 mpg city and 27 mpg highway for 22 mpg combined in 2013 911 Carrera S form. Eking out 2 mpg combined beyond the 911's highway rating is likely a factor of tall gearing and the low-rpm torque of the new LT1 V-8 engine under the Stingray's hood. It's worth noting that the 29 mpg highway figure is above even Chevy's own expectations; the brand had previously estimated 26 mpg highway. ( Continue… )
A 2013 all-electric Nissan Leaf is displayed at the Washington Auto Show earlier this year. The 2014 Nissan Leaf has slightly better mileage, an updated EV-IT system, and a backup camera system for every grade. (Gary Cameron/Reuters/File)
Few tweaks for 2014 Nissan Leaf
Nissan has announced its full list of changes for the 2014 Nissan Leaf--and as you'd expect, less than a year after the revised 2013 model debuted, it's fairly small.
The updates are largely detail changes to equipment levels, everything else continuing pretty much as the 2013 model left it.
RearView Monitor, Nissan's backup camera system, is now standard on all grades, S, SV and SL.
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Also standard on relevant models is an updated EV-IT system, Nissan's dedicated information technology system for electric vehicles. The system now includes voice destination entry and SMS readout.
The minor changes join the larger roster of technical upgrades the Leaf received earlier this year, to coincide with production at Nissan's Smyrna, Tennessee plant. ( Continue… )
A Mitsubishi Motors vehicle is marked with a carshare logo. Change is fast approaching the taxi industry through smartphone apps that allow users to find rides with nearby drivers, Read says. (Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc./PRNewsFoto/File)
Will smartphone apps cut down on cars on the road?
Sometimes, change is painful, devastating -- just ask the folks at Blockbuster Video or the residents of any neighborhood that's been split by new freeways.
Sometimes, change is wonderful, life-giving -- just ask the folks at Netflix or ambulance drivers who now have faster ways to get from the sites of emergencies to nearby hospitals.
Change is finally coming to the taxi industry, and no one is entirely sure whether the shift will mean the death of cabs as we know them or their radical transformation.
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But given what we've seen of people and businesses that have dug in their heels and tried to stem the tide of progress (e.g. George Wallace, Yellow Pages, the recording industry), it doesn't look good for today's taxi drivers.
And if they do meet their end, they'll probably have the smartphone to blame. ( Continue… )
U.S. President Barack Obama gets into an electric Ford Focus in Holland, Mich. in 2010. The 2014 Ford Focus is now $35,995 — 10 percent cheaper than its 2013 counterpart. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters/File)
The price war: Will cheaper Ford Focus beat out C-Max Energi?
If you've been considering an electric car but have been deterred by pricing, it might be worth another try—or at least another look at the numbers.
This past week, Ford dropped the price of the 2014 Focus Electric to $35,995; that's about a 10-percent cut from the 2013 sticker price of $39,995.
This past week, we caught up with Ford's Focus Electric Marketing Manager Chad D'Arcy, on the matter. While D'Arcy wouldn't speculate on what is or isn't happening in the electric-car market, he did say that keeping pace with the market is a chief concern.
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“The biggest thing is that we wanted to remain competitive ... and we're going to continue to monitor the competitive environment,” said D'Arcy.
Downward pricing pressure
It's rare to see a price adjustment of this magnitude in the auto industry (although Nissan did effectively cut the price of the Leaf by about this much going into 2013 after it shifted production from Japan to the U.S.). ( Continue… )
Gasoline drips from a nozzle at gas station in Lake Oswego, Ore. last year. Some analysts are predicting a spike in gas prices for August. (Rick Bowmer/AP/File)
Gas prices could soar in August. Here's why.
Typically, fuel prices spike in the spring and the fall, as refineries stop making one seasonal blend of gasoline and start making another. The changeover produces an artificial gas shortage that drives prices up until the floodgates open and a new fuel blend arrives.
But according to CNN, motorists could see pump prices rise by 25 or 30 cents per gallon next month -- well before the uptick we expect in September and October. That prediction comes largely from oil trader Dan Dicker and industry analyst Tom Kloza (the latter of whom works for one of our favorite gas pricing sites and apps, GasBuddy).
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Here's the problem as they see it. Gas futures and oil prices have been on a tear in recent weeks, climbing more than 10% over the past month alone. But at the pump, prices haven't moved in a steady line. Four weeks ago, the average price for a gallon of unleaded was $3.63. Last week, it was $3.48. Yesterday, it was $3.52, and today, it's $3.55.
That rise we've witnessed over the past week could be the start of something major, with gas prices beginning to reflect gas futures and oil prices. And we may not have seen the worst of it.
Though ongoing fears of turmoil in the Middle East could certainly affect oil prices, an even bigger problem may be the plummeting price of gold. Over the past year, the price of gold has fallen from nearly $1,800 per ounce to around $1,275 per ounce today. According to Dicker, traders and fund managers who prefer commodities have been funneling money that they would've put in gold into oil. That's driving oil prices up, and gas prices should ultimately follow.
Our take? We're not oil analysts, so we're not experts in these matters -- not by a long shot. However, we know that few people can accurately predict the future. Heck, even Nate Silver would have a hard time nailing down gas and oil prices, which seem especially squirrely.
That said, Dicker and Kloza clearly know their stuff, and their arguments do make sense, so we wouldn't be surprised to see gas prices tick up 20 or 30 more cents before summer's end.
That doesn't mean much for most folks, though. Unless you've got a safe, easy means of stocking up on gasoline before your August road trip, you may just have to grin and bear it at the pump.
The folks most affected by news like this are car shoppers. Due to inflation and other factors, fuel prices aren't likely to dip below $3 per gallon in the near future -- if ever. If you're in the market for another set of wheels and fuel economy is important to you, check out the stats onnew and used cars in our handy-dandy shoppers' guides.
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People wait to see Tesla Motors Inc CEO Elon Musk demonstrate Tesla's battery-swapping program in Hawthorne, Calif. in June 2013. Tesla recently announced that it is ahead of its target production goal, setting it on the way to produce 800 Model S vehicles by late 2014. (Lucy Nicholson/Reuters/File)
Tesla zips ahead of Model S production goals
All is still well at Tesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA], it seems, with CEO Elon Musk announcing the company is beating its self-imposed production targets.
As Bloomberg reports, Tesla is ahead of its 400-per-week production goal, by a margin Musk describes as "not trivial."
Meeting such a target is all the more important as Tesla's sole new product, the Model S, is set to go on sale in European markets in the next few months.
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Back in January, the company announced it had reached full production capacity of 400 units per week, after a slow start in 2012 which saw Tesla miss its 5,000-car delivery goal.
Tesla is clearly capable of more, though. Musk says the pace of production will rise to 800 per week by late 2014: "I'm very confident we'll get there," he told Bloomberg. ( Continue… )
BMW's Mini Countryman, a compact crossover, is surprisingly versatile while coming in its characteristically small size. (BMW/AP/File)
BMW Mini Countryman: compact, but surprisingly versatile
The MINI Countryman is an answer to a question you may not know to ask, but it's one worth hearing. Compact, feature-packed, and surprisingly versatile, the Countryman is a modern take on what a utility vehicle should be.
Styling leaves little doubt the Countryman is a MINI, though closer inspection yields little in the way of specific detail borrowed from the Cooper Hardtop hatchback. It's more a matter of capturing the overall MINI effect, which the Countryman does both inside and out, despite its larger size.
With three performance levels from Cooper to Cooper S to John Cooper Works, plus available ALL4 all-wheel drive, there are many ways to outfit a Countryman. Both manual and automatic six-speed transmissions are also available. If you're after maximum bang-for-the-buck, the Cooper ALL4 might hit the spot; the John Cooper Works ALL4 is the hotshoe's seat.
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Cargo space is an inevitable compromise of the Countryman's compact exterior dimensions, but with an typical sedan's trunk behind the rear seats and up to 40 cubic feet with the rear seats folded down, there's still enough space for even a busy daily routine.
On the safety front, the 2014 MINI Countryman hasn't been tested yet, but it does offer a strong set of standard safety equipment. Last year's model earned a Top Safety Pick rating from the IIHS, too--and this year's Countryman is mechanically and structurally identical.
As with any other MINI, the array of equipment and appearance combinations for the Countryman are essentially endless. Well-configured in base form, but upgradeable to a number of high-tech and luxury features, there's a Countryman for almost anyone--but beware the bottom line as you tick all of the boxes.
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An electric charging station stands in Montpelier, Vt. in June 2013. Dutch gas stations are suing the government to prevent third parties from creating charging points for electric cars at freeway service station locations. (Toby Talbot/AP/File)
Dutch gas stations: Stop charging electric cars here.
Remember all that stuff we said recently about The Netherlands being a haven for electric vehicles?
Maybe knock a few degrees of conviction off that statement, as it seems not everyone in the European country is as keen on electric vehicles as some.
Companies operating regular gasoline and diesel filling stations certainly aren't keen. So much so, that NOS reports they're filing a lawsuit against the Dutch state to prevent third parties from operating charging points at freeway service station locations.
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As part of the recent announcement that the country would be home to almost 250 DC quick-charge stations--none located more than 30 miles from every person in the country--provider Fastned would operate charging points at several freeway rest stops and service stations.
Energy or "fuel"?
26 service stations have filed the lawsuit, centering on whether these charging points constitute "fuel", and are therefore governed by the same regulations (and need to incur the same costs, rather than being offered space for free) as the filling stations. ( Continue… )
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