Studebaker, Breather Cap, Used. Item: 8565 on 2040-parts.com

Fisker, Energy Department face tough Congressional hearing on federal loans

Struggling Fisker Automotive took a bludgeoning Wednesday on Capitol Hill from top congressional Republicans who compared Fisker to failed automotive startups of the past and lambasted the Department of Energy for allowing the electric-car producer to draw down nearly $200 million in taxpayer-funded loans. House Oversight Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif., told Fisker founder Henrik Fisker that he will be remembered fondly for his design work for BMW and Aston Martin. But he compared Fisker to Malcolm Bricklin, John DeLorean and Preston Tucker -- three entrepreneurs known for their failed startup car companies.

Hydrogen powered London Taxis hit the road

Hydrogen powered London Taxi revealed last Summer Over two years ago London Mayor, Boris Johnson, promised we would have a ‘Hydrogen Highway’ in London in time for the 2012 Olympics, with a small fleet of 150 cars, 20 black cabs and 5 buses all running on Hydrogen. He also said that London would have half a dozen hydrogen refuelling stations and, in typically ‘Boris’ style, proclaimed that Britain would become a ‘World Leader in Fuel Cell Technology’ and that one in three cars would be powered by hydrogen by 2020. And although we took Boris’s proclamations with a pinch of salt, we were pleased to see a senior politician seeing the future as something other than plug-in BEVs.

GM's Henderson says no decision yet on bankruptcy

General Motors CEO Fritz Henderson said today the company has not decided whether to file for bankruptcy protection, but that preparations continue in case such an action is necessary. "We have until June 1, and if we can't do it between now and June 1 then we do it in bankruptcy," Henderson said during a morning teleconference with journalists. Still in his first month at the helm after the March 30 departure of CEO Rick Wagoner, Henderson said he wasn't sure who would make the decision.