Author: Tabitha

Volvo Cars has opened its first ‘climate-neutral’ manufacturing plant. The company’s engine factory at Skšvde, Sweden, switched to renewable heating on Jan. 1. Volvo Cars plans for all its manufacturing operations around the globe to be climate-neutral by 2025. In Skšvde, the local energy provider ensures that all heating supplied to the plant is generated from waste incineration, biomass and recycled bio-fuels. “Along with our plan to electrify all new Volvo cars launched from 2019, climate-neutral manufacturing operations will significantly reduce our overall carbon footprint,” said Director of Sustainability Stuart Templar. In 2016, the company’s plant in Ghent, Belgium, introduced…

Nissan luxury/sports division, Infiniti Motor Co., will offer electrified powertrains in all new models from 2021, said CEO Hiroto Saikawa. He said 2021 will also be the year in which the automaker will launch its first fully electric vehicle. Saikawa told the Automotive News World Congress in Detroit, Mich., in January, that by 2025, electrified vehicles will comprise more than half of Infiniti’s global sales. Infiniti will offer a mix of electric vehicles and ‘e-Power’ vehicles, “demonstrating the full range of ultra-low-emission vehicle technology available.” The company’s e-Power-branded technology uses a small gasoline engine that charges a high-output battery, eliminating…

Hobbyists and professionals who need to move their project cars around the shop can get some assistance with the Uni-Dolly from RD Enterprises. This tool is far more useful than individual dollies since the system’s two-inch-by-six-inch casters can be adjusted apart, from 30-60 inches. They’re also height adjustable, 14-21 inches. Uni-Dolly can be used regardless of whether your work-in-progress even has wheels, while supporting up to 9,600 pounds. Prices range from $440 to $990. View the complete product line and order at www.uni-dolly.com.

Terry Ross (based in Warwickshire, United Kingdom) conveys automotive and motorcycle passion through his Speed Freaks sculptures. His pieces pay an exaggerated homage to hot rods, dragsters, sports cars and equally classic North American Chopper-style motorcycles. Some of Ross’s subjects (the ones that are recognizable) include a 1965 E-Type Jaguar (pictured here), Chevrolet Camaro and Corvette, Porsche 911 and Mini Cooper. Prices range from $16 for Ross’s Christmas ornaments, to $65 for the larger tabletop art. Shop at www.citylightscollectibles.com, but www.amazon.com and www.ebay.com also carry some of his pieces.

Mahindra USA Inc. sells light- and medium-duty tractors, primarily for agricultural duty. Recently, the India-based company added a strictly off-road model called the Roxor, a two-seat four-wheel-drive convertible that slots somewhere between a side-by-side ATV and an actual World War II-era Willys Jeep. The 3,000-pound body-on-frame Roxor runs with a 2.5-liter turbo-diesel engine that makes 62 horsepower and 144 pound-feet of torque. Power is sent to the rear or to all four wheels via a five-speed manual transmission. The four-wheel-drive system uses a two-speed transfer case (with a low range). Prices start at $15,000, not including options such as a…

A strong wind can cause your car cover to flap in the breeze (scuffing the paint and trim) or even detach itself from the vehicle. Prevent this from happening with the Gust Guard. Each set comes with four specially designed clamps that securely attach to each corner of your cover. There’s also two bungee cords that attach underneath the body between the front and rear axles. There are 12-, 24- and 36-inch lengths available, designed for automobile, motorcycle and other applications such as bicycles, barbecues and picnic tables. Prices range from $12-$13 per set. Purchase at www.gustguard.com.

Volvo’s first fully electric model will come in the form of the 2019 Volvo XC40 small utility vehicle, expected to go on sale in North America in mid-2019. The plug-in battery-electric will be a model option, as will a plug-in hybrid option, though not in all markets initially. The XC40 rides on new architecture specifically designed to accommodate battery-electric drive, according to alternative-vehicle webmagazine Green Car Reports. It will also be shared with future vehicles to be launched by Volvo owner Geely of China. Lex Kerssemakers, Volvo Cars USA CEO, has said that the electric XC40 would start around $35,000-$40,000…

The company said in mid-December that it will launch 10 new electric vehicles by the ‘early’ 2020s, and will add electrified-model options to its complete lineup by 2025. “We need to expand our offering of electric cars,” said Shigeki Terashi, executive vice president. To reach the company’s earlier stated goal of selling one million battery EVs and hydrogen-fuel-cell vehicles by 2030, he said, will require spending more than US $13 billion on battery technology. According to Charged Electric Vehicles Magazine, the goals mark a reversal of sorts for Toyota, which has championed hydrogen-electric vehicles like its limited-production Mirai midsize sedan.…

Many times before, Suburu has produced excellent design studies/concepts, only for them to be disappointingly watered down when they hit production. The Sleuth thinks that the recently revealed Subaru Viziv Performance STI Concept is an absolutely stunning design, but will Subaru learn the lesson of past follies? The Viziv has an aggressive front end and side cladding, plus a rear wing that appears more integrated with the rest of the body, and not simply bolted on as was the case with previous WRX STI models. There’s no powertrain info, but earlier rumors have raised the possibility of a hybrid system…

As if the automotive landscape isn’t competitive enough these days, it will get even more crowded with the arrival of GAC Motor of China and France-based Peugeot. GAC attended the recent 2018 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit, Mich., its fourth time at the annual event. This time it showed three current models plus a concept. GAC claims it will begin selling its vehicles here by the fourth quarter of 2019, although company reps aren’t saying how they will do this (as in setting up their own dealer network or partnering with an established automaker). Meanwhile, the PSA…