Nissan Car Charger Nissan Zero Emission Wall Plug Evse Nissan Brand New With Bag on 2040-parts.com

For new CAFE rules, automakers place high-stakes tech bets

Game-changing 2015 fuel economy rules are forcing vehicle development teams to make high-stakes bets on expensive technologies--bets that will separate the winners from the also-rans. Not only do federal rules target a 2015 fleet average of 35.5 mpg, up from the current 27.5 mpg for cars and 23.1 mpg for light trucks; they force automakers to bet on different technology packages for each vehicle segment. Companies that do best at mixing technologies while keeping down costs will have an advantage when buyers wince at higher stickers.

Lutz deflates talk of new Chevy Caprice

Well, that was fast. Just four days after Bob Lutz, General Motors' new marketing honcho, raised the possibility of the Pontiac G8 living on as a new Chevrolet Caprice, he shot it down. "The G8 will not be a Caprice after all," Lutz wrote on GM's Fastlane blog on July 16.

Wild thing: Audi A1 clubsport quattro unveiled

Audi has created a 496-hp version of the A1 small car to celebrate the 30th anniversary of an Austrian festival for Audi, Seat, Skoda and Volkswagen fans. Called the A1 clubsport quattro, the one-off show car gains a heavy dose of rally-inspired styling that is said to preview the appearance of a hot new all-wheel-drive S1 quattro model being developed by Audi as a rival to the likes of the Renault Clio Sport. At the heart of the hatchback is a heavily modified version of Audi's turbocharged 2.5-liter, five-cylinder powerplant shoehorned transversely into the A1's compact engine bay.