Electric DeLorean Races Toward 2013 Release [PICS]

Electric DeLorean Races Toward 2013 Release [PICS]
by Samantha Murphy on Mashable

The Electric DeLorean

The electric version of the DeLorean sports car featured in the Back to the Future films has arrived at the 2012 New York International Auto Show, touting an iPhone dock, Bluetooth capabilities and a battery-powered engine.

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Rear View

The electric DeLorean will hit the U.S. market in 2013. The latest DeLorean still comes with recognizable gull-wing doors, a stainless steel body and a rear-mounted engine

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Side View

Although DeLoreans typically run for $65,000, the electric model will cost $95,000.

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Steering Wheel

The electric DeLorean is expected to get about the same mileage as a Nissan Leaf, running about 100 miles on a full charge.

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iPhone Dock

In addition to an iPhone dock, the company plans to add iOS controls to the vehicle with the inclusion of apps.

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Rear Engine

The vehicle features a 32-kWh lithium iron phosphate battery system.

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"Where we're going we don't need gas!"

The DeLorean may be best known for its role as the unlikely time machine in the Back to the Future films, but it has attracted the attention of car collectors and fans years following the movie’s 1985 debut.

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Engine Close-Up

An up-close look at the electric DeLorean's battery system.

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Wheel Close-Up

The car can go from 0 to 60 mph in less than six seconds.

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Attention Getter

Electric DeLoreans will be made starting in January 2013.

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Gull-Wing Doors

The first deliveries of the car itself will take place in February or early March of next year.

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Original DeLorean

An original version of the gas-powered DeLorean was also on display at the 2012 New York International Auto Show. Both of the winged doors were open for all to see.

The not-yet-released electric version of the iconic DeLorean sports car featured in the Back to the Future films has arrived at the 2012 New York International Auto Show, touting an iPhone dock, Bluetooth capabilities and a battery-powered engine.

The electric DeLorean, which will hit the U.S. market in 2013, was originally announced in October 2011 but it’s making a surprise appearance at the auto show this week.

The latest DeLorean still comes with recognizable gull-wing doors, a stainless steel body and a rear-mounted engine. However this sucker is electrical: It features a 32-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion phosphate battery system. It’s still sporty, too: The car can go from 0 mph to 60 mph in less than six seconds.

Although DeLoreans typically run for $65,000, the electric model will cost $95,000.

“The electric DeLorean is a natural progression for the vehicle — it has everything that people expect in cars today that you couldn’t get back in 1981 with the original model,” James Espey, vice president of DeLorean, told Mashable.

The DeLorean may be best known for its role as the unlikely time machine in the Back to the Future movies, but it has attracted the attention of car collectors and fans years following the movie’s 1985 debut.

“People still love that movie and as younger people see it for the first time, they go online and learn more about the DeLorean,” Espey said, noting that orders for the DeLorean are mostly placed by people in their 30s and 40s. “We are never going to be a mass production type of company, but for low-volume, niche-market cars, there is a demand.”

Espey said that the electric DeLorean will get about the same mileage as a Nissan Leaf, running about 100 miles on one electric charge.

“Anyone can buy a Prius or a Tesla, but if you want something collectible and different than what anyone else has, this is it. It certainly attracts attention.”

Moving forward, the company plans to add iOS controls to the vehicle with the inclusion of apps. The first deliveries of the car itself will take place in February or early March of next year.

“Starting in January, we will be making three DeLoreans a week,” Espey said. “Depending on order volume, it will be a mixture of gas and electric — one week we may do two electric and one gas or vice versa.”

Are you excited about the electric DeLorean? Tell us why or why not in the comments.






Source: http://mashable.com/2012/04/09/electric-delorean/#view_as_one_page-gallery_box5059

Intel and Nissan Bring Multitasking to Infiniti Vehicles

Intel and Nissan Bring Multitasking to Infiniti Vehicles
by Stan Schroeder on Mashable

Intel and Nissan have revealed an in-car infotainment system that will bring an interesting array of features to some Infiniti vehicles.

The system was revealed at the New York Auto Show and showcased within Nissan’s concept car, the Infiniti LE.

It will sport an Intel ATOM CPU and bring multitasking to the car: for example, the driver could receive traffic or navigation information, while feeding a movie to the passengers at the same time.

Other interesting features include the ability to control some aspects of the vehicle with a smartphone; for example, an NFC-enabled phone could let you into the car without a key.

Another example is the car sending a notification to the owner’s smartphone after another car bumps into it in a parking lot.

We can expect to see these features in high-end Infiniti vehicles, beginning in 2013.

Porsche Unveils High-Tech SUV, Sleek Sports Car to U.S. Market

Porsche Unveils High-Tech SUV, Sleek Sports Car to U.S. Market

By Samantha Murphy on Mashable

Porsche Boxster 2013

Porsche has revealed its third-generation 2013 Boxster, receiving its first all-new design since its debut in 1996.

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Porsche Boxster 2013

The 2013 Boxster features a 260-horsepower flat-six engine, while the Boxster S -- priced at $10,000 more -- comes with 315-horsepower engine.

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Porsche Boxster 2013

The vehicles also tout a longer, lower and wider chassis, which is the internal frame, which helps the car weigh about 77 lbs. less than its former model.

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Porsche Boxster 2013

Boasting a fully-electric convertible top, the Boxster will be introduced to Porsche dealer showrooms later this summer.

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Porsche Boxster 2013

The Boxster will be priced at $49,500, while the Boxster S will cost about $60,900.

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Porsche Cayenne Diesel

Porsche also introduced its first diesel-powered vehicle to the U.S. market called The Cayenne Diesel.

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Porsche Cayenne Diesel

The Cayenne Diesel -- which will debut in the U.S. in September -- is extremely energy efficient. In fact, it can travel from New York to Indianapolis on a single tank of gas.

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Porsche Cayenne Diesel

It was designed to meet strict emission standards and includes selective catalytic reduction (SCR) technology to help reduce NOx (oxides of nitrogen) emissions.

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Porsche Cayenne Diesel

The vehicle is powered by a 3.0-liter V6 turbo diesel engine with 240 horsepower and can go from 0 mph to 60 mph in 7.2 seconds. The Cayenne Diesel can reach a speed of 135 mph.

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Porsche 917 Race Car

Porsche had on display at its 2012 New York Auto Show kickoff event its historic race car called the 917, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. It is often considered the greatest racing car of all time.

Ahead of the 2012 New York International Auto Show, Porsche introduced on Tuesday its first diesel-powered vehicle to the U.S. market, as well as the latest model in its ultra-sleek Boxster sports car line.

The Cayenne Diesel SUV — which will debut in the U.S. in September — is extremely energy efficient. In fact, it’s said to be 30% more fuel efficient than an equivalent gasoline engine and travel 28 miles per gallon of fuel.

“You can take the Cayenne Diesel from New York to Indianapolis about 740 miles away on a single tank of fuel,” Porsche president and CEO Detlev von Platen told Mashable during the company’s New York International Auto Show kickoff event.

Powered by a 3.0-liter V6 turbo diesel engine and delivering 240 horsepower, the Cayenne Diesel can go from 0 mph to 60 mph in 7.2 seconds and reach a speed of 135 mph.

It was designed to meet strict emission standards and includes selective catalytic reduction (SCR) technology to help reduce NOx (oxides of nitrogen) emissions.

“The technology of diesel has become much cleaner over the years and the perception of it in the U.S. has also changed in time,” von Platen said. “The Cayenne Diesel is actually a very quiet and light car — much lighter than its competition.”

The Cayenne Diesel was introduced in Europe in 2009 and will join its existing sister line of vehicles in the U.S., including the Cayenne, Cayenne S, Cayenne S Hybrid and Cayenne Turbo models. The base price for the Cayenne Diesel is $55,750.

Porsche also revealed its third-generation 2013 Boxster, which received its first all-new design since its debut in 1996.

The 2013 Boxster features a 260-horsepower flat-six engine, while the Boxster S — priced at $10,000 more — comes with a 315-horsepower engine. The vehicles also tout a longer, lower and wider chassis, which is the internal frame, to help the car weigh about 77 lbs. less than its former model.

Boasting a fully-electric convertible top, the Boxster will be introduced to Porsche dealer showrooms later this summer. The Boxster will be priced at $49,500, while the Boxster S will cost about $60,900.

Like many car manufacturers today, Porsche is also adding new features to its internal entertainment and navigation systems.

It will introduce HD Radio to its new cars in 2013 and is working on introducing a feature that allows vehicle owners to take photos from their phone and display them on the navigation screen.

“We are focusing on new technologies and entertainment within the car, but first and foremost, we focus on the car itself,” von Platen said. “It’s important to introduce technologies like the automatic start and stop function, which saves a good amount of fuel economy, before we narrow in on the screen size we want to introduce for internal entertainment.”

However, he noted that adding new technologies within the car for entertainment purposes is still top of mind.

“It doesn’t mean we’re not interested in it though — we’re very interested in it,” von Platen said. “We are always looking toward innovation and we will continue to do so in the future.”

CES 2013 will be Google's show

by Rafe Needleman  January 15, 2012 10:03 AM PST

Not that many years ago, nearly every computing product on the CES exhibit floor ran Windows. This year, that was not the case. Sure, the new "ultrabooks" are Windows-powered, but Android is everywhere else: in tablets, in phones, and in TVs.

Even though Microsoft Windows still dominates the PC and laptop markets, Microsoft itself is no longer the leader in consumer tech innovation. It's sad but appropriate that the company will no longer be kicking off the leading consumer electronics trade show.

After Apple, Google is leading the charge in consumer electronics. Apple doesn't officially participate in CES, leaving Google as the most influential platform company there. The most interesting tablet products at CES ran Android (examples: Asus 370T; Asus Transformer Prime; Samsung Galaxy Note, while the the Windows-powered ultrabooks appeared pedestrian in comparison (except perhaps for Lenovo's Yoga). And it's a safe bet that most of the smartphone manufacturers see Google Android as their only feasible defense against the iPhone juggernaut. Windows Phone 7, good as it is, is too late.

It would make sense for Google to get the 2013 CES keynote spot. It was the most important vendor at this year's show and it's likely to be even more critical to the CE industry next year.

Google rose to this position in CE by using the same playbook as the company it's displacing. As Microsoft did with Windows, Google now makes the operating system that every manufacturer knows how to bake into its hot products and that developers like to build for due to its expanding market footprint and technical flexibility. In consumer computing, Microsoft perfected this virtual cycle, but in the new era of mobile devices, it's Google that's doing the best job implementing the model.

Will it be Google?
Jason Oxman, senior vice president of Industry Affairs at the Consumer Electronics Association, wouldn't tell me who has been invited to give the keynote at CES 2013. But he did discuss with me the process. CEA execs will decide on the "thematic direction" for the 2013 show shortly after the 2012 show closes. Then they'll extend invitations to speakers.

Another safe bet: the CEA isn't going to determine that the thematic direction for CES 2013 will in any way relate to portable PCs running Windows 8. Nor for any sensible 2013 theme (mobile computing, search, social computing, the cloud, or media), does Microsoft sit at the head of the class.

At some point, a major manufacturer like Samsung, Sony, LG, or Toshiba may manage to get real traction with an integrated media-sharing platform that competes with Apple (they are all building them). If it does, it could end up as a good keynote candidate. But as of CES 2012, these initiatives all seem secondary to these manufacturers' hardware lines. They're not as well integrated, or nearly as good, as iTunes is with Apple TV, its iOS devices, and the Macs.

Apple, for its part, does participate in CES. The company sent hundreds of employees to CES this year. Some reports called them "spies" because they were quiet deal-makers and observers, not press-facing flag-wavers. But if Apple sent spies, Google sent generals. Eric Schmidt and Marissa Meyer, for example, both appeared on CNET livestreamed events. Google is already laying the groundwork to dominate CES.

Next year, when Microsoft has neither the keynote slot nor its mega-booth in the Central Hall (which it did not renew), the company will do a similar thing: It will send hundreds of employees and likely "embed" them in the booths where Windows 8-running products are being pushed. But no matter how ever-present Microsoft is in partner booths, it won't be able to control the message to the same extent it would if it had a native exhibit. Microsoft will be Apple-like in 2013.

The 2013 CES will belong to Google even if it doesn't get (or accept) the keynote spot. Google was the most influential company at CES 2012, it's arguably the most important company for other CE vendors to work with, and it deserves the top billing at CES 2013.

(Tidbit: No matter who gets the nod as the kick-off company for CES 2013, it's not clear if they'll get what the CEA calls the "Microsoft keynote," the talk the night before the show officially opens. In fact, no one might. That pre-show kickoff slot was created 14 years ago specifically for Microsoft. Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer have anchored that talk, but no other company has. The CEA is considering eliminating that slot and pushing the media to treat the official opening-day keynote as the show launch instead. This year, Qualcomm CEO Paul Jacobs had that spot.)

Source: news.cnet.com