During a press conference in Lansing, Michigan on Wednesday, Governor Jennifer Granholm suggested that the state should consider lowering speed limit from the current 70mph. Granholm was speaking during the launch of a new state web site designed to help Michigan residents save money. The site includes a calculator that lets users determine how much money they could save by car pooling as well as a service to help match up commuters to share rides. Granholm didn't give any indication of what she thought the speed limit ought to be. It seems increasingly likely that states will start lowering speed limits in the coming months if fuel prices don't subside. On the personal side, Granholm indicated that she and her husband are both driving hybrids and she is riding a bike to the office two days a week.

[Source: Detroit News]

There hasn't been a whole lot of positive news for Michigan's economy in the last few years and the auto industry has been among the low-lights. Since the 1980s, the city of Flint, in particular, has been the icon for everything that has gone wrong in the U.S. auto industry. However, in the midst all the bad news from GM about truck plant closings on Tuesday, there were a few positive nuggets especially for Michigan. We've known since last fall that GM was planning to build the Chevy Volt in Detroit come 2010, but getting official production approval from the Board of Directors was definitely a sign that the program is on track. Also buried among the negative stuff yesterday was the plan to add a third production shift at the Lake Orion assembly plant near Pontiac. Lake Orion builds the Pontiac G6 and recently added production of the Chevy Malibu. Malibu sales are so strong right now that more capacity is needed. In Flint, where many of the production facilities that once dotted the city have now been shuttered or demolished, 1,000 jobs are being preserved by the assignment of a new engine family to the engine plant there. A family of small engines ranging from 1.0-1.4L will be produced in Flint. The 1.4L is the new turbocharged engine that will go into the new compact coming from Lordstown, Ohio next year as well as the Saturn Astra and other models. The 1.0L may well be the three cylinder that is used to drive the range extending generator for the Volt. Hopefully for Michigan this is just the start of a resurgence for more efficient and more reasonably sized vehicles to replace all those over-sized SUVs of the past decade.

[Source: Detroit Free Press]

Plug-in electric vehicles obviously aren't very common right now but if they do become widespread the stability of the electrical grid could become a major issue. Although analysts expect most EVs to be plugged in at night when electrical demand is typically lower, it's inevitable that we will see daytime plug-ins as well, particularly for drivers who have longer commutes and access to a socket at work. The Michigan Public Service Commission that oversees and regulates utilities in the state is kicking off a pilot program to study the integration of plug-in vehicles with the grid.

The investigations will look at what is necessary to implement intelligent grid technology so that deployment of plug-ins will actually help stabilize rather the stress the grid. Working with electricity suppliers, the commission will study the environmental impact of electric vehicles and vehicle-to-grid (VTG) technology and how it will affect power generators and the grid. Commission staff will produce annual reports beginning in June 2009.

[Source: Michigan Public Service Commission]

Over the past year and a half that I've been sharing my thoughts here on this site it's become clear that many of the readers are convinced that there is some grand conspiracy between U.S. automakers and oil companies. This massive collusion is put forth as the reason that domestic automakers have put so much effort into building and selling so many big trucks and SUVs.

I hate to disappoint all of you but the reality is far more mundane. The vehicles produced by domestic automakers are developed by people who predominantly live in the Detroit Area. Those of you live in other parts of the country and have never visited the Great Lakes state might be shocked by what passes for a road around these parts. Generally the only thing worse than the way our thoroughfares are constructed is the way that they are maintained. Particularly at this time of the year when temperatures cycle rapidly between frigid and spring-like, what passes for pavement tends to disintegrate at a frightening rate. Potholes that tear up wheels and suspension components are a regular feature. These SUVs are created by people who regularly commute on these roads and they are designed to survive this environment.

[Source: Autoblog]

Lithium Technology Corporation (LTC) has announced that is going to supply about $4.7 million worth of batteries for hybrid bus application in a joint program with Kettering University and Transportation Techniques LLC (TransTeq).

These batteries will be used to develop a hybrid bus program in Flint, Michigan. While a hybrid bus already saves 15 to 20 percent fuel compared to regular buses, TransTeq's hybrid technology with LTC's batteries provide an additional improvement of 15 to 20 percent, adding up to a potential 40 percent savings. The model will also be able to run in an EV-mode only in of cities where combustion engines are not allowed (or will not be allowed in the future).

The whole project is aimed not only to provide cleaner mass transit systems but to revitalize a segment of Michigan's economy. The hybrid bus program is headed by Professor Mohamed El Sayed of Kettering University (formerly General Motors Institute). The MTA (Mass Transport Authority in Flint) will provide the vehicles and facilities for carrying out the technology demonstration. The integration and the production of vehicles will be done by TransTeq and will be based on progress milestones. At a later stage, discussions will be held between Kettering University, Michigan-based GR Investment Group (TransTeq's parent company), and LTC for the production of the batteries in the State of Michigan.

Related:

• Mercedes diesel-electric hybrid Citaro bus wins Dekra award
• Azure Dynamics series hybrid bus completes US government tests
• DC Auto Show: 1,732 more orders for GM Hybrid buses

[Source: Lithium Technologies]

Click on the Saab 9-4x BioPower concept for a high-res gallery

When it comes to seriously promoting ethanol as a motor fuel, two countries jump to the forefront and neither of the them is the United States. While the U.S. government provides a lot subsidies to corn growers and ethanol producers as well as fuel efficiency credits to vehicles capable of running on E85, the market here is still tiny. Brazil, of course, got into the ethanol game a long time ago thanks to their cultivation of sugar cane. Sweden, however, is the one racing ahead with plans to completely supplant fossil fuels with renewable replacements within the next two decades. While the U.S. has barely topped 1,200 E85 pumps nationwide, the Scandinavian nation of 5 million drivers has over 1,000 already.

The Swedish government gives drivers a break with no pump taxes on ethanol. Hometown brand Saab, with its predominantly turbocharged engine lineup, has been promoting E85 through its BioPower branding. The forestry industry in northern Sweden is also investing heavily in cellulosic ethanol research as a way of making use of their waste products. Now the Michigan government is looking to Sweden for guidance in developing a renewable fuels industry here. With any luck Michigan will be able to create at least a fraction of the 400,000 jobs that are claimed for the renewable fuels industry in Sweden.


[Source: Detroit News]

In the past New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman has made his disdain for the US Domestic auto industry clearly known and the other day the pro-globalization writer fired off a salvo at Toyota for their current stance on new fuel economy regulations. Toyota's Irv Miller was quick to return fire last night and now General Motors has joined the fire fight as well. Tom Wilkinson has "penned" a response on the company's FYI blog reiterating many of the same points as Miller and rebutting Friedman's simplistic notions. The consistent problem with much of Friedman's writing is that he tends to spout easy-to-digest but nutrition-free ideas.

The continuing ignorance of the fact that high fuel taxes and the resulting end-user cost are a major part of the reason for greater efficiency overseas is pointed out again by Wilkinson. As a columnist, Friedman has every right to his own opinion and has the right to express it. However if a writer can't recognize that just because the world may be flat it doesn't mean it's level then his credibility is severely damaged.

Related:

• NRDC slams Toyota for Greenwashing and supporting Hill-Terry
• Toyota fires back at Thomas "Flat World" Friedman!

[Source: GM FYI Blog]

It's pretty rare that John Dingell and John Conyers agree with Joe Knollenberg on much of anything. But the two Democrats, the Republican and all twelve other members of the Michigan delegation in the US House of Representatives got together to pen a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt about the recent departmental newsletter that urged employees to purchase more fuel efficient cars.

While a letter like that in and of itself seems reasonable, the House members got up in arms because the list of twelve recommended cars did not include a single one from any of the US-based carmakers. No matter which side of the aisle politicians are on you can usually count on them to try and save jobs in their own district, not least their own.

[Source: Detroit Free Press]

Michigan is looking to get into the biofuels game as much as they can. Considering that Detroit is the birthplace and home of the motor industry in America, it seems proper that they should ride the biofuel wave as more and more cars come out of the Big Three that can use either E85 or biodiesel in their tanks. We previously told you about an ethanol plant that was to be one of the largest in the country, and now Detroit News let's us in on the announcement of a new biodiesel plant in Adrian Michigan, close to Detroit. NextDiesel is opening the plant, which will use animal fats and soybean oil to make the biofuel. The diversity of the source product is designed to make it easier for the plant to weather price fluctuations in the marketplace. Employing about 25 workers, the plant will double the current amount of biodiesel made in Michigan. The same article mentions that Xenerga Inc. is set to open a plant in Michigan as well, using recycled oils like restaurant grease, which seems to make sense. Using a waste product as a source sounds like an ideal way to recycle an unwanted by-product of our unhealthy diets.

Related:

• Mascoma Corp to build cellulosic ethanol plant in Michigan
• Woodland Biofuels gets $9.8 million for celllulosic ethanol plant in Canada

[Source: Detroit News]

Michigan's economy has been hurt badly in the past decade by the troubles of the domestic car industry and attempts to attract new business have not created nearly as many jobs as those that have evaporated. The latest venture that's attracting attention is biofuels. Michigan may be known for industry but there is still a lot of farming here and those farmers want to cash in.

There are currently six operating biodiesel and ethanol facilities in the state with sixteen more in the works including a cellulosic ethanol plant scheduled to open in 2009. Biofuel producers have an advantage in Michigan because the car makers are willing to work with them on testing and development. Unlike some other farm states, Michigan is not focusing just on corn ethanol but is working on many different technologies. Hopefully some of these developments will pan out and benefit both the state and the whole country.

[Source: Detroit News]

Carl Levin is a liberal Democrat, for whatever that's worth to you. More important for our site is what he is struggling to do every day. At the ripe age of 73, he has to be one of the busiest lead men in politics.

He serves as the chairman of the Senate Armed Service Committee, is part of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee. His biggest current project is pushing an alternative bill in Congress for regulation of fuel economy. This week, instead of setting the bar ridiculously out of reach (as they saw it), he and his staff worked to make the goal 36 mpg for cars by 2022, and 30 mpg for trucks by 2025. This was certainly in favor of the automakers, as it is a reachable goal, allowing lots of time for them to get their acts together. Instead of it being a completely biased bill and cutting its own legs out from under itself, it had no escape clauses in case the automakers run into "unforeseen technical or economic obstacles." Therefore, the automakers are pretty sure they can make the pole-vault jump without worrying about hitting the bar, and Congress is happy that there will be a significant improvement.

With yesterday's compromise agreeing to 35 mpg by 2020 (but not the 4 percent annual increase beyond that), Levin didn't get everything he wanted. Still, while Levin's personality is often direct and feather-ruffling, he is in fact trying to be everyone's friend by saving them from each other. Carl Levin is "just who [the Detroit 3] want on their side."

[Source: Automotive News (subs req'd)]

The Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG) announced that they are going to be setting up drive by emissions test monitors over the next month. The monitors will be situated on highway ramps to measure the emissions of passing vehicles. Like red-light monitors, they will be equipped with cameras to photograph your car if you get a poor rating. If your car is spewing too much bad stuff, they'll send you a letter suggesting that you get your car checked out.

The machines will be out in the open and there will be a sign that tells you right away if you got a good, fair or poor rating. They estimate that only about one percent of cars will get a poor rating, but there will be no mandatory testing or repairs. This is strictly for information purposes and it would be interesting to see how accurate the results are.

[Source: SEMCOG]

Tesla Motors has already made clear their intentions to expand their product line beyond the Lotus Elise based roadster that's due this summer. They've previously announced plans for at least the sedans, one in the $50,000-70,000 range and another down at the $30,000 range. Now comes word via TheCarConnection that Tesla has opened up a tech center in Auburn Hills, MI, north of Detroit and has hired a dozen engineers there. The Michigan tech center will initially be working on the $50,000 vehicle which is code-named "White Star" and may turn out to be a sedan/crossover. A crossover would make more sense at this point than a sedan, because the higher floor would allow space for a larger battery pack to maintain the range achieved by the lighter roadster in the larger form factor vehicle.

The product timing for this second vehicle is pretty aggressive since it will be a new-from-the-ground-up vehicle, meant to have substantially higher production volumes than the Roadster, which is derived from an existing vehicle structure. Designing, certifying and tooling up such a product in only a couple of years is hard for an established manufacturer that has facilities in place. It seems likely that Tesla will probably team up with a company like Magna or ASC, that have built full concept vehicles and have been itching to get a niche production program like this for years. The fact that they have set up shop in Michigan definitely points in this direction.

[Source: TheCarConnection]

Automotive News (subscription req'd) today has a report on the share of registrations for hybrid vehicles in various states and California is definitely the dominant market. Through the first seven months of 2006, 26.4 percent of the more than 144,000 hybrids registered in the United States were in California. This is more than double the 12.8 percent of total market that California represents overall. In fact, the Los Angeles area alone represents 12.4 percent of all the hybrids in the country, followed by the San Francisco Bay area, with 7.9 percent.

Hybrids are generally not as popular in Michigan which 4.2 percent of total vehicle registrations but only 1.7 percent of the hybrid registrations. There are of course exceptions, with hybrids and even some plug-in electrics being popular the Ann Arbor area. I personally know three people who own hybrids (an Escape, a Prius and a Civic) and see lots of Civics and Priuses as well as several Insights around town. The Detroit area has a disproportionate penetration of domestic brand cars because many people in the area work for Big 2.5 and buy what they build. Going forward in the next couple of years the penetration of hybrids in Michigan will probably increase significantly with the introduction of more hybrids from GM, Chrysler and Ford.

[Source: Automotive News]

It's no secret that the Big 3 are collectively suffering due short-sightedness in fuel-efficiency. However, a new study by the University of Michigan's Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI) attempts to quantify near-future gains and losses if the domestic auto makers were to make proactive efforts to maximize fuel-efficiency fleet-wide.

The study focuses on the 2010 model year using 3 fuel price scenarios, $3.10, $2.30 and $2 per gallon. At $3.10, Ford could increase its profits by $1.4 billion, $500 million at GM and $100 million at DaimlerChrysler. While the Japanese manufacturers stand to lose up to $600 million. The gains for the Big 3 remain true even at $2 per gallon with a total of $1.3 billion in increased profits with Japanese loses at $300 million.

The study also took a look at the impact on auto industry employment in the U.S. At $3.10 per gallon, progressive fuel-efficiency efforts by the domestics could save 35,000 jobs at their own plants while costing 19,000 jobs at plants of foreign manufacturers in North America.

The fact that it can take 3 to 4 years to develop a new vehicle highlights the immediate significance of the 2010 model year. Walter McManus, head of UMTRI's auto analysis division sums up the study's implications by saying, "Deploying new technologies takes time and money to accomplish, and time and money are in short supply in Detroit. While management is currently focused on cutting capacity through massive layoffs, they need to undertake a deep transformation to much more fuel-efficient fleets to avoid going under. The dilemma the Detroit automakers face is that while they may believe that they cannot afford to make fuel economy a high priority, in actuality, it turns out that they cannot afford not to."

[Source: Auto Industry]