Sherman 580-99-3 Grille Ford F-250 Super Duty on 2040-parts.com

Toyota FT-EV II – it’s the Jetsons!

The Toyota FT-EV II Electric city car concept As we reported earlier, Toyota believe electric cars have no future, apart from as short-range, low power city runarounds or as commercial vehicles. So the Toyota FT-EV II is exactly what Toyota believes the EV future is – a small, slow city car. Toyota say of the FT-EV – “… (its) design and technology look to a future society where EVs will be in common use, among a range of different means of transport that will reflect user requirements, the type of energy used and the local energy supply infrastructure”.

Is BMW’s Project-i (i3 & i8) in trouble?

Reports suggest that BMW are getting cold feet over their electric Project i and are considering delaying the i3 and i8. We’re not the biggest fans of the electric car, although we certainly see it has a place in our new world. But as a replacement for the ICE car it’s a non-starter.

Volkswagen launches Car-Net in-car assistance system

Volkswagen has launched an in-car assistance system which will offer a number of convenience and diagnostic features. Not too dissimilar from some other systems already on the market -- such as BMW Assist, Mercedes-Benz'sMbrace, and GM's On-Star -- VW's system will offer roadside assistance, service appointment scheduling, and automatic crash notification. The latter triggers a call from the vehicle to a Car-Net customer specialist when the airbags in the car are deployed, which will then connect the occupants with a local public safety answering point, which can send emergency vehicles to the scene if needed.