PARIS MOTOR SHOW: smart's local future unclear

The new ForTwo and Forfour promise to be better cars – but can they be cheaper too?

The third generation smart range made its motor show debut in Paris overnight, but the chances of the new ForTwo and reborn ForFour making it to Australia hang on "robust" negotiations that should be resolved one way or another by the end of 2014.

The Mercedes-Benz-owned city-car brand has been financially problematic globally and a misfire in Australia, where just 67 have been sold to the end of August 2014.

However, the new triple-cylinder, rear-drive, two and four-seat smarts, which were first shown to media in Berlin last July, shape up as a significant improvement compared to their predecessors, which is a key reason Mercedes-Benz Australia/Pacific is still trying to make a difficult business case work.

Read full article here. 

Piaggio in the Piazzas of Italy

Better known in North America for its Vespa (Wasp) scooters, Piaggio has been making Ape (Bee) pickup trucks and panel vans since 1948. In Italy, they are ubiquitous at piazza markets and shops as their size and versatility are ideally suited to the needs of vendors and navigating narrow streets and tight parking spots.

smart Roadster, Padova, Italy

smart produced about 43 000 roadsters between 2003 and 2006. Sales were meeting projections but warranty claims due to leakage problems halted production. This one we spotted in Padova, Italy has a removable Targa roof. An electric powered soft-top was another option available. With a six-speed automatic transmission and rear mid-engine, rear-wheel drive layout the roadster's fuel economy is about 45 miles per Imperial gallon.

Business smarts 54: Sm+ools, Padova, Italy

Sm+ools is a private, gaming club in Padova, Italy.

Business smarts 53: Fondo Casa, Monza, Italy

Fondo Casa is an Italian real estate company with offices in several cities. This smart belongs to their Monza office. 

Car-free Zermatt

We arrived in Zermatt via the Glacier Express train and were greeted at the station by a fleet of electric taxis, the only vehicles allowed in town. Our hotel was in walking distance so we didn't need to catch a lift. Tourists wishing to visit this ski resort town by car will find that they need to part 5 km away at Täsch and continue their journey by train.  These transporters are manufactured in Switzerland by Stimbo,  and Jumbo-Garage and Italy by Simai .

Swiss Post delivers via electric scooter

In a bid to reduce CO2 emissions, Swiss Post aims to replace its 7500 scooters with an electric version, like the one above spotted in St Moritz, by 2016. These funky looking 3-wheelers are safer, have larger carrying capacity and can go 20 km (12.4 miles) on a single charge. Photo by RLT.

Ladies First

Some underground garages in Europe have designated spots for women to park in . These spaces are well lit, near to exits and are covered by security cameras. I found the example above in St Moritz, Switzerland. Occasionally municipalities invite scorn by creating what are viewed as discriminatory parking rules, as did Triberg, Germany when it designated "difficult" spots for men's use. More here.

Kamoo Smile

Kamoo is a Swiss electric car company that offers a variety of models for sale. This funky looking"Smile" is a two seater with a top speed of 110 kph (68 mph). It takes just 90 minutes to charge and comes with either a hard top or targa top, seen above. Read more here.

Swiss Efficiency

In Lucerne, Switzerland I photographed these three fortwos  that belong to Rebasmen Elecktroplan, a company that creates "ecologically sound electrical engineering systems". See their website for more info.

Autolib "Libre Comme L'air" electric car sharing

• cars share program started in 2011 in Paris
• Bluecar is a front wheel drive electric four-seater hatchback with a  basic interior
• 1,800 Bluecars are available at 670 kiosks in Paris
• the 660 pound (300 kg) lithium ion batteries are made in Brittany and Montreal
• vehicle range is 155 mi (250 km) in urban use and 93 mi (150 km) on highway
• more than 40,000 people have joined the car share system

Read about it on Autolib's website

smart parking in Paris

You can see fortwos on lots of street corners of Paris, parked where not many other vehicles can fit. The Renault Twizy and Fiat 500 can do the same. This fourfour I spotted is actually resting on the bumper of the fortwo behind it.

Renault Twizy

Production of this two-seater electric vehicle started in 2012 at the Renault plant in Valladoid, Spain. In Europe it's classified as a heavy quadcycle and it has a 100nkm or 62 mile range. Read more on Wikipedia or the Renault UK website

This Twizy belongs to the Château of Versailles and is ideal for driving its 7 ha or 17 acre grounds.

I photographed this Twizy on the Rue de Lisbonne, Paris.

Car crash economics

An excerpt from Andrew Frankel's Road Cars column,
MotorSport Magazine, December 2013, page 40.

"Fascinating if somewhat gruesome reading this month from Bernstein Research, in the form of the greatest loss-making model lines among European car manufacturers. Way out in front is the original Smart ForTwo which between 1997 and 2006 managed to lose Daimler-Benz a simply extraordinary ₤ 2.8 billion.  More staggering still is that this adds up to ₤ 3782 per vehicle, approximately half the car's retail price at the time.  

Then again, if you care to add up losses on a per-vehicle basis the Bugatti Veyron is in a league all by itself, unapproached I suspect by any other car in history. If you thought ₤ 1 million was a lot to ask for a  mere car, consider that for everyone sold, Volkswagen has shouldering a loss of  ₤3.9 million."

Elio Motors

Elio is not a fling. It is not a novelty.

It is the product of a mobile society naturally evolving to a more efficient and practical form of transportation.

Let’s look at the facts and realities of the world we live in:

• Gas today is at an all-time high
• Space is becoming a smaller and smaller commodity and we’re being crowded off our roads and bumped and dinged out of our parking lots
• Cars cost more than the average house did only a few decades ago

Traditional personal transportation isn’t working like it used to. We need a new way of getting around.

That’s when a car enthusiast, a visionary, a man with a dream named Paul Elio got an idea. A simple, brilliant idea. To create a vehicle for today’s generation of drivers that addressed their transportation needs and the world’s new realities.

Read more here http://www.eliomotors.com/

Nissan BladeGlider concept set for Tokyo Motor Show debut

It may seem like a car suitable for Rick Deckard as he tracks down aliens masquerading as human beings, but Nissan will be taking to this month’s Tokyo Motor Show to showcase the wild and absolutely crazy BladeGlider concept.

The BladeGlider shares a shape inspired by the DeltaWing racecar and Nissan’s own ZEOD RC concept, which will be competing in next year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans. A peculiar shape it may be, but its lightweight and narrow front track, coupled with the wide rear end, does wonders for reducing drag and considerably improving high-speed and cornering stability.

Of course, it helps to have doors that swing upwards and underbody aerodynamics that help keep the rubber glued to the tarmac. The BladeGlider’s fighter jet-like stance lends to a one-plus-two interior layout with the driver smack-dab in the middle, similar to the McLaren F1. A lithium-ion battery and carbon fibre bodywork help keep the weight down, translating to a 30/70 front/rear weight distribution. Detailed specs haven’t been announced just yet, but Nissan says the BladeGlider shares much of its engineering with the ZEOD RC, packing electric motors at each wheel.

It might be countless years until we see a production version of the BladeGlider, but Nissan wants to make it into a reality. After all, Nissan says it hints at the future of its electric car.

The Tokyo Motor Show opens its doors on Nov. 20.

View Source: driving.ca

Chuggabug Tour Day 10: Auburn, IN to Toronto, ON

Always hard to tackle, a long last day home via Detroit. From Auburn we cut across to the Ohio Turnpike and splurge $4 on the toll which rushes us to Toledo, Ohio. A pitstop for gas then stock up on Goldenberg's peanut chews from Rite Aid.
We have no delay at the border and within 20 minutes are back in Windsor, ON. We stop at the Dutton ONroute for coffee and diesel. We can't help questioning why our provincial government is in the food court business. The amount of travel information provided is minimal and there are no staff to answer questions.

Chuggabug Tour Day 9: Springfield, IL to Auburn, IN

We overnighted at the Drury Inn in Springfield, IL, a chain that provides a hot breakfast and a 17:30 Kick-back, consisting of light supper and drinks (including alcohol). Great view of the adjacent smokestacks.
Next morning we leave Route 66 behind, heading across endless farm country. We pass an Alcoa plant and a Subaru factory before stopping at Barnes & Noble in Fayetteville, IN. This cavernous bookstore has a questionable business model. I purchase "Nothin' but Blue Skies: The Heyday, Hard Times, and Hopes of America's Industrial Heartland" by Edward McClelland. The book discusses the concepts of ruin-porn (photographing derelict buildings) and rust-belt-chic.
First rain of the tour so we stop at J D's Riverside Café, in Whitley, IN, in a downpour. Salsa and tortilla chips.
We press on to Auburn, IN, in time to tour the Auburn, Cord, Duesenberg Automobile Museum at 1800 South Wayne. (The change from Central to Eastern time means we have lost an hour in the day.) This is rust-belt-chic at its finest - an exquisite art deco building, where the cars were once made, celebrating the largely defunct Indiana motor industry, which contains a wonderful collection of the three marques, plus a smattering of other vehicles including an Indiana-made Crosley Hotshot once owned by Frank Lloyd Wright.
To the Quality Inn, walking to Wal-Mart for bagel take-out supper. RLT.

Chuggabug Tour Day 8: Springfield, MO to Springfield, IL

We normally try to avoid chain restaurants but a US road trip just wouldn't be complete without a breakfast at the Waffle House. We stopped at one in St. Robert, Missouri and it didn't disappoint. A friendly Viet Nam vet helped us map a route over the Mississippi while avoiding the bulk of traffic through St. Louis. Route 30 was a great choice and we made good time. We diverged off the Interstate Highways driving along various alignments of Route 66 in both Missouri and Illinois. Nothing matches the bump-thump of Portland Concrete and the brick road near Auburn, Illinois really channels the ghosts of Route 66.

Chuggabug Tour Day 7: Fort Smith, AR to Springfield, MO

We drive north through the Ozarks and are impressed with the trim town square in Bentonville, AR, home of Wal-Mart. A museum housed in the first Walton's 5 & 10 cent store tells the story of Sam Walton's rise from humble beginnings to the owner of 1,960 Wal-Mart, Sam's Club and Supercentres that employed 380,000 people at the time of his death in 1992. Parking and museum: no charge.
Eureka Springs is a resort community strung out on winding roads in the hills. $5 parking and nothing entices us to stop. After lunch at a poorly-operated restaurant in Branson, MO, we agree it's not the place for us.
We check into the Best Western Rail Haven Motel on Route 66 in Springfield, MO, featuring at-the-door parking, where two Ford cars from the mid-fifties and vintage gas pumps greet you as you drive in. After downtown tour to Steak-N-Shake for supper, 1158 E St Louis, for burger, veggie melt, strawberry/banana shake and coffee, $20 incl tip.