UAW Convention Opens in Vegas

With the  U.S. auto industry in the midst of sweeping restructuring, the United Auto Workers has to prepare for change, UAW president Ron Gettelfinger said as the union opened its quadrennial convention in Last Vegas. Gettelfinger said in a report distributed to the delegates that the union was facing challenges unlike any it has faced during its 70-year history, including the near-bankruptcy of the Chrysler Corp. and the deep recession of the early 1980s. "We can be proud that our union doesn't shy away from making tough calls, and even prouder our members' willingness to make sacrifices for those who preceded them and for those that will follow them," Gettelfinger said in keynote speech, which also called for a national healthcare system

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Bernhard Sees DSG As the Future

Volkswagen product chief Wolfgang Bernhard is placing a lot of faith in the VW Group's DSG gearboxes. DSG (Direct Shift Gearbox), described as two gearboxes in one (one clutch operates odd-numbered gears and reverse; the other, even gears) has been in place on VW models since 2003, and Bernhard sees it as the future transmission for the company's transverse-engined vehicles. Within five years, Bernhard says, the DSG will replace automatics in vehicles from Audi, Skoda, Seat, and Volkswagen, so long as their engines line up east-west in the engine bay. The company is studying ways to also use the gearboxes in longitudinal applications, where wear and tear are a bigger issue. The performance benefit granted by the DSG, Bernhard says, is worth the additional complexity of building the transmissions versus a traditional automatic-and especially CVTs. As to whether the company is interested in licensing the technology to the competition, Bernhard says "we're not selling to anyone." He sees the DSG as a USP - a "unique selling proposition" that will help define future Volkswagen and VW Group products from other car makes. -Marty Padgett

2006 Volkswagen Golf GTI by Conor Twomey (2/27/2006)
Recapturing enough essence.

New Diesel Regs: A Grand to Comply?

Volkswagen, more than any other automaker selling cars in the U.S., will take a sales hit as diesel regulations and fuel formulations change at the end of the 2006 model year. The company will be forced to drop all its passenger-car diesel models for one model year as it comes up with ways to meet more stringent emissions requirements, which VW car chief Wolfgang Bernhard says will add about $1000 to the cost of diesel models his company will bring to the U.S. in the 2008 calendar year.

The additional complexity and cost of the new regulations is forcing VW to look at other technologies that maintain performance and boost fuel efficiency, such as the "Twincharger" or "TSI" four-cylinder engine it now offers in the European Golf and is studying for a future U.S. Rabbit model. The Twincharger uses both a supercharger and a turbocharger to boost the output of a 1.4-liter four-cylinder to 170 hp and 177 lb-ft of torque - nearly the equal of the company's 2.0-liter turbo four.

The Twincharger system could be a feasible alternative to hybrids, Bernhard agrees: the technology is "much more efficient than hybrids," since all the necessary components exist in the VW parts bin. Still, the company is working on a true gas-electric hybrid, a version of the Touareg SUV, due out in the next couple of years.

Above all of these, Bernhard insists that the new generation of clean turbodiesels still holds a five-percent fuel economy advantage over hybrids or TSI models. -Marty Padgett

VW Eos, "Twincharger" Coming to Frankfurt

New Jetta Wagon Coming to Paris?

Volkswagen is adding to its Jetta lineup with a new five-door wagon model likely to be introduced at the Paris auto show in the fall. The new model shown to the press in VW's Wolfsburg styling studio has a sweeping roofline much like the new C-Class Mercedes wagon or Saab 9-3 SportCombi, with sleek additions like a roof spoiler. With more cargo room than the last Jetta Wagon, the new Mexico-built model arrives in 2007 with the same engine lineup as the current Jetta: a 2.5-liter in-line five and a 2.0-liter turbocharged four are to be offered, as will a GLI sport model. A diesel variant returns to the lineup in 2008, VW promises. -Marty Padgett

2006 Volkswagen Jetta TDI by TCC Team (1/16/2006)
Tight handling, 40 mpg, and the world's best economy cabin.

Touareg Updates Include Nose Job, New Navi

Volkswagen's Touareg SUV will be updated for the 2007 model year, with a Paris auto show introduction likely later this fall. The revised SUV gets a slimmed-down nose more closely resembling that of its VW cousins, the Jetta and Passat. The headlamps are reshaped with subtle "eye" curves, while the taillamps receive more pronounced twin lamps. A new navigation system and more deeply sculpted seats, with horizontal, Porsche-like stitching, are included in the revamped interior. The Touareg adds a new direct-injection, 3.6-liter V-6 for the 2007 model year as well; a V-10 diesel version will be available in all 50 states for the 2006 model year in limited numbers, while the 2007 model will only be offered in 45 states due to tougher emissions rules in California and several northeastern states. -Marty Padgett

Can Diesel Make A U.S. Comeback? by Paul A. Eisenstein (5/1/2006)
Hybrids have the momentum, but diesel makers are pushing for their own reignition.

Michelin Wants to Reinvent Wheel

It isn't easy reinventing the wheel - or the tire, for that matter - but the French manufacturer, Michelin, is hoping to come up with a breakthrough that would revolutionize its business as radically as the radial tire did many decades ago. "We would like to see a breakthrough like radials every five years," but it's a little difficult," conceded Thieery Courdurier, President of Worldwide Strategy for passenger car and light vehicle tires. But there are still some significant developments in the works, he asserted.

One of the most pressing issues for the tire industry involves fuel economy. On the typical automobiles, tires account for about 20 percent of the total fuel consumed, most of that through rolling resistance - essentially the flexing of the tires as it rotates. "We're working on tires which would reduce (that) to as little as ten percent," Courdurier explained, during this year's Challenge Bibendum, "though that isn't easy to do." Part of the process of reducing fuel consumption is the adoption of new materials, high-strength composites, rather than steel, for example, and silica instead of carbon black. There's another issue driving the search for alternative materials, Michelin executives noted. Natural rubber currently accounts for a quarter of a tire's total cost, but that raw ingredient has risen sharply in recent years - up 54 percent - with no immediate leveling off in sight. Trimming back the amount of rubber used could be a profitable strategy.

Another challenge for Michelin, and its competition is to develop a truly competitive extended mobility tire. Consumers would certainly like to avoid having to change tires, and manufacturers like the idea of eliminating the spare - which would save money, space, and weight. Run-flats, such as the Michelin Pax system, are becoming more commonplace. Honda, for example, is using Pax on its Odyssey minivan, but there are some downsides to current technology. The systems are more costly than conventional tires, and can negatively impact comfort. Michelin has developed an airless prototype, dubbed the Twheel, which is, effectively "unpuncturable," said Courdurier, but he quickly added that, "We're not in a position today to introduce the Twheel" to the commercial market. -Paul A. Eisenstein

PSA Planning Diesel Hybrid by 2010

French automaker PSA Peugeot Citroen plans to put the world's first diesel-hybrid into production, confirmed CEO Jean Martin Folz. "We will start selling diesel-hybrids by 2010," Folz declared Monday, during the final session of Michelin's Challenge Bibendum. Exactly what the production version will look like is unclear, though the automaker displayed two relatively identical prototypes during the eighth annual Challenge, a global environmental and safety conference.

The hybrid package starts with a 1.6-liter direct-injection diesel engine generating 90 horsepower, then adds a 17-kilowatt electric motor system. "It is the equivalent of a car with a diesel engine of 110-hp, explained PSA spokesman Jean Francois Heure. Power is passed through a new, electronically-shifted six-speed manual transmission. The system is what is commonly referred to as a mybrid, or mild hybrid, meaning it does not feature the ability to run in electric-only mode, though PSA's design does have the ability to automatically stop when idling, then automatically restart. That, industry experts say, was one of the biggest challenges in working with a diesel-hybrid combination. Cost is the other challenge, and something the French maker has not fully resolved. Heure acknowledged that the hybrid portion of the sysem is still "three times too expensive," and in current form would add another 6000 euros to the cost of a car otherwise costing less than 20,000 euros, "too expensive for the customer."

Thought PSA believes it can drive down that cost, not everyone is as optimistic. "We are less convinced about the diesel-hybrid," countered Jean Louis Ricard, a senior executive with PSA's Parisian rival, Renault. "We believe it is technically possible, but are less convinced it will satisfy customers," Ricard said while sharing the stage with Folz. But perhaps that skepticism is not surprising. Renault's Japanese partner, Nissan is just getting ready to launch its first gasoline-hybrid, well behind rivals Toyota and Honda, and even now, Carlos Ghosn, CEO of both Renault and Nissan, remains skeptical that any hybrid is economically viable. -Paul A. Eisenstein

Brazil Pushing Biodiesel, Ethanol

No country has made a more complete commitment to alcohol-based fuels than Brazil . The Latin American nation first experimented with ethanol back in 1912, and by the late 1980s, was beginning to use it widely as a substitute for gasoline. There are now 5.7 million flex-fuel vehicles on the road in Brazil, and in contrast to the U.S., where there are also millions in operation, Brazilians actually are making widespread use of ethanol. By using sugar cane, rather than corn, as a feedstock, costs are extremely competitive with gasoline, noted Dr. Silvio Crestana, the president of Embrapa. The country expects to invest another $10 billion to expand production of the alternative, renewable fuel by 2010, Crestana announced during the Challenge Bibendum. Meanwhile, manufacturers are expected to increase to 80 percent the share of alcohol-ready cars sold in Brazil this year.

Brazil is also looking to boost the use of a renewable alternative to petro-based diesel fuel, the executive announced. Within two years, at least two percent of the country's diesel will be bio-based, and by 2013, that will be required to go to 13 percent, according to new regulations. Overall, Crestana said, the goal of the populous nation is to make renewable fuels account for "more than 50 percent" of its energy mix in the near future. -Paul A. Eisenstein

FROM THE SOURCE headlines from the latest press releases

New 2007 Hyundai Accent Pricing Announced

Name	Symbol	Last	Change
Autobytel, Inc.	ABTL	3.01	-0.01 (-0.33%)
Autoliv Inc.	ALV	53.87	-1.01 (-1.84%)
AutoNation Inc.	AN	20.83	-0.17 (-0.81%)
ArvinMeritor Inc.	ARM	15.83	-0.57 (-3.48%)
American Axle & Mfr. Holdings Inc.	AXL	16.62	-0.01 (-0.06%)
Ballard Power Systems Inc.	BLDP	6.06	-0.42 (-6.48%)
BorgWarner Inc.	BWA	62.04	-1.02 (-1.62%)
Cummins Inc.	CMI	101.20	-3.31 (-3.17%)
DaimlerChrysler AG (ADR)	DCX	47.43	-0.71 (-1.47%)
Dura Automotive Systems	DRRA	1.96	-0.16 (-7.55%)
Eaton Corporation	ETN	69.80	-1.00 (-1.41%)
Ford Motor Company	F	6.77	+0.01 (+0.15%)
General Motors Corporation	GM	25.78	+0.43 (+1.70%)
Gentex Corporation	GNTX	14.36	+0.12 (+0.84%)
Goodyear Tire & Rubber	GT	11.63	-0.18 (-1.52%)
Honda Motor Co. Ltd. (ADR)	HMC	30.27	-0.24 (-0.79%)
Johnson Controls Inc.	JCI	81.79	-1.21 (-1.46%)
Lear Corporation	LEA	22.19	-0.43 (-1.90%)
Magna International Inc.	MGA	73.66	+0.33 (+0.45%)
Motorola Inc.	MOT	19.73	-0.86 (-4.18%)
Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. (ADR)	NSANY	22.01	-0.10 (-0.45%)
Sonic Automotive Inc.	SAH	22.86	-0.40 (-1.72%)
Siemens AG	SI	77.64	-2.17 (-2.72%)
Sirius Satellite Radio	SIRI	4.11	-0.15 (-3.52%)
Toyota Motor Corporation (ADR)	TM	99.69	-0.86 (-0.86%)
TRW Automotive Holdings	TRW	25.80	-0.59 (-2.24%)
Tower Automotive Inc.	TWRAQ.PK	0.133	0.00 (0.00%)
United Auto Group Inc.	UAG	20.28	-0.40 (-1.93%)
Visteon Corporation	VC	7.21	+0.10 (+1.41%)
XM Satellite Radio Hold.	XMSR	13.39	-0.21 (-1.54%)