california
GReddy Scion FR-S Makes Appearance At Irvine Cars And Coffee
When Scion‘s FR-S debuted out in Los Angeles, a modified black variant by GReddy was also present but wasn’t exactly center stage. This isn’t a huge surprise as GReddy has been a long time partner with Scion, but this might also be revealing a few more projects that are underway through the collaboration. Scion decided…
Chrysler Fined $955,000 By California DMV
The California Department of Motor Vehicles slapped Chrysler this month to the tune of $955,000 in fines. “We hope other manufacturers will see what happened in this case and think twice about doing something similar,” said Brian Moss, director of government affairs for the California New Car Dealers Association, in an interview with Automotive News. The…
Ruf CTR3 For Sale In California For $540,000
There are tuner shops, and then there are tuner manufacturers. What’s the difference? While a Tuner shop will bolt on spoilers and body kits, and some good tuner shops can even enhance your engines performance; a tuner manufacturer takes a bare shell and makes the entire car themselves to meet their customer’s requirements. That is…
2012 Chevrolet Volt To Qualify For California HOV Lanes
The Chevrolet Volt will be able to qualify for California’s High Occupancy Vehicle lanes in 2012, after General Motors announced the availability of a Low Emissions Package for their hybird-electric car. With traffic congestion in California a major annoyance for motorists, the ability to use the HOV lane – via one of the state’s 40,000…
BYD Grand Opening Launches U.S. Operations
There’s a new kid in Los Angeles, BYD. The Chinese battery and electric car manufacturer opened its California office today. BYD says it will bring 150 green-collar engineering and management jobs to the city. The event highlight, however, is a deal between BYD and Hertz to provide airport shuttles to the rental agency. This could prove…
California Highway Congestion Worsened By Hybrids?
California told 85,000 hybrid drivers to move over, literally. Now everyone is feeling the sting. Starting last July the yellow stickers allowing hybrid owners to drive alone in the high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lane expired. The move came in preparation for an anticipated increase in electric vehicles on the road that will be allowed…
CODA Automotive Opens First Dealership in LA Shopping Mall
CODA Automotive has opened its first consumer store in the Westfield Century City Shopping Center in Los Angeles, California, hoping to bring an innovative sales experience to their consumers. CODA Automotive is part of CODA Holdings, a California-based developer of advanced Lithium-ion power battery systems that are used to power their CODA sedan. The four-door,…
Fisker Announces Partnership With BMW To Supply Engines
Fisker Automotive has announced a new partnership with BMW that will supply engines and other automotive components for next-gen Fisker vehicles. Fisker is interested in BMW’s new turbocharged four-cylinder engine for the “Project Nina’ mid-size premium sedan. The “Project Nina” sedan will be built at a former GM plant in Wilmington, Delaware by the end of 2012….
Mini Prices New Goodwood Model At $52,000
MINI’s new Goodwood model was unveiled at the world-famous Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in California this week. The MINI Goodwood is an exclusive special edition which has been produced in close collaboration with the Rolls-Royce Motor Cars design team. This is a car that drips of automotive luxury and exclusivity in its highest form. The…
Ford Focus Electric Full Launch Delayed
Ford is delaying the full launch of the 2012 electric Focus. Initially, the Focus EV was to be launched in 19 markets, including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Detroit and Seattle. However, plans have changed and the primary launch will be concentrated in California and New York. Ford’s electrified-vehicles marketing manager David Finnegan said, “For the…
Nissan And City Ventures Prewire 190 New Homes For Electric Vehicle Chargers
Nissan and City Ventures announced today that they plan to proceed with their cooperative project to prewire 190 Southern California townhomes with electric vehicle chargers. This will be the largest residential, electric vehicle pre-wiring project in the United States. The installation will include a Level II (240v- 40 amp) electric vehicle dock which is recommended for charging…
Mitsubishi, Jim Russell Racing School Launch New High Performance Driving Program
Mitsubishi North America and the Jim Russell Racing Drivers School have launched a new high performance driving program that allows drivers to participate in the advanced Lancer Evolution Experience II at the Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California. This new program builds on the curriculum and driving instruction offered in the Lancer Evolution Experience I. In LEE II,…
Mitsubishi Slashes EV Price To Increase Sales
Mitsubishi is becoming much more aggressive regarding future EV sales in its home market of Japan. Currently Mitsubishi’s i-MiEV sells for 3.98 million yen which equals $49,200. Government subsidies bring the price down a million yen equalling $36,900. The i-MiEV’s chief rival, the Nissan Leaf costs 3.76 million yen which equals $46,500 before subsidies and is…
HOV Access For Hybrid Vehicles in California Expires Today
Get back into traffic with the rest of us, electric vehicles… your time is up. If you’re in California and drive a hybrid, today is the day your six-year privilege to the HOV lane expires. About 85,000 hybrid vehicle owners have to share the regular highway lanes, as the yellow sticker that gave them access…
Idling In California Requires A Special Exemption Sticker
However, an engine tends to be at it’s least efficient when idling, as well as producing the greatest amount of oxides of nitrogen (smog). The CARB ruling required that in order to certify diesel trucks for California, automakers had to meet an idle emissions standard of 30 grams of NOx per hour.
Gull Wing Group Reunites To Recreate Famous Golden Gate Bridge Photo
To celebrate its 50-year milestone, the Gull Wing Group teamed up with Mercedes-Benz to recreate their infamous group photo at Fort Point Park with the Golden Gate Bridge as its backdrop. The Gull Wing Group was originally founded in 1961 by Ernie Spitzer with just eighteen 300 SL Coupe owners. 50 years later, the Gull…
Concorso Italiano At Laguna Seca August 19th
On August 19th at Laguna Seca Golf Ranch, Monterey California, Concorso Italiano will open the traditional Monterey/Pebble Beach Weekend. The event will feature more than 800-1000 beautifully designed Italian cars on display. Enthusiasts can engage in conversations with fellow car lovers and enjoy Italian fashion, food and art. There will no doubt be an astonishing variety of Ferrari’s,…
California Considers Bill To Shorten Yellow Light Times
The state of California is considering lowering speed limits and shortening yellow light times. The Senate Transportation Committee will hold a hearing tomorrow on Assembly Bill 529. This bill proposes to rewrite the state’s speed trap law so that cities would be able to round down all speed limits. The measure passed the full Assembly by a…
Signal Unnecessary When Nobody is Looking, California Court Rules
The California Court of Appeal has ruled that drivers do not need to use their turn signals if no other car is nearby. A three-judge panel found that La Habra Police Officer Nick Wilson was in the wrong when he pulled over Paul David Carmona, Jr. after the accused made a right-hand turn without signaling…
Fisker Karma Plug-In Hybrid Sales To Start In July
With much of the electric car attention being drawn by the first mass-produced Nissan LEAF and Chevy Volt, many have ignored the 2011 Fisker Karma plug-in hybrid luxury sports sedan. Fisker dealers in Los Angeles previously claimed the first deliveries to paying customers would take place in March or April of this year. But the…
Ferrari Leading The Way In Reducing Emissions
Quick, name the European car company that’s made the most progress in reducing their emissions. Peugeot? Smart? Even Dacia? If you had bet on Ferrari, the poster child for irresponsible motoring, you’d have won big. Among luxury and supercar makers, Ferrari has made the most strides in reducing their CO2 emissions, according to recently-released figures….
Toyota Prius In Short Supply In California
The Toyota Prius, beloved of eco-conscious of buyers in California, is in short supply in the Sunshine State, as high gas prices and production disruptions due to Japan’s natural disasters have caused dealers to either run low on supply or be completely out of stock. Dealers, who report as little as a 14-day supply of the…
Chrysler Factory Store In Los Angeles Is Illegal, Says California Dealer Group
The California New Car Dealers Association is accusing Chrysler of operating a factory store illegally in the Los Angeles area. The showroom, dubbed Motor Village L.A., was designed to boost Chrysler’s profile and show off their revised product lineup, as well as the new Fiat brand. The dealer group filed a petition with the California…
ADV.1 Wheels Gives Ferrari California a Manly Touch
Ferrari‘s F430 and now F458 Italia has become synonymous with the Italian manufacturer’s moniker; while models such as the California go on living their lives less popular in the public light. Sporting a front-engine 4.3L V8 with 454-hp, many critiqued the California as a girl’s Ferrari, rather than a man’s Ferrari. But the folks over…
