General Motors Corp. is releasing new, more fuel-efficient versions of its full-size pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles later this fall.

The XFE — or extra fuel economy — versions of the 2009 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra trucks and Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon SUVs will get one mile per gallon more in both city and highway fuel economy than non-XFE versions. The boost will give them a total of 15 miles per gallon in the city and 21 on the highway.

On XFE models, GM improved the aerodynamics by extending the front lower air dam, lowering the suspension and revising the chassis tuning. The automaker also reduced the mass with aluminum parts, including an aluminum spare wheel and 17-inch aluminum wheels, gave the vehicles low rolling resistance tires and powered them with a 5.3-liter, ethanol-capable V-8 engine that has an aluminum cylinder block and heads.

Continue reading →

Share This

NISSAN won’t be coming out with a model available only as a hybrid, opting instead to focus on electric vehicles for its green strategy, according to a senior executive.

Mitsuhiko Yamashita, Nissan Motor Company executive vice- president overseeing research and development, said Nissan will likely pack its hybrid system in a model already available as a conventional petrol-powered car.

Hybrids, he said, will soon be so commonplace they will no longer be the conspicuous status symbols they now seem to be for owners.

His comments last week offer a rare look into product development strategy at a major automaker. They also counter the common wisdom about the reason for the success of Toyota Motor Corp.’s petrol-electric hybrid Prius, believed to have drawn buyers because it is a hybrid-only model.

Tokyo-based Nissan is a latecomer to hybrids, compared to Japanese rival Toyota. It currently buys hybrid systems from Toyota for the Nissan Altima hybrid, but is promising a vehicle packed with Nissan’s own hybrid system by 2010.

Continue reading →

Share This

Drivers from Moncton, Saint John and the Acadian Peninsula in northeastern New Brunswick can expect their insurance rates to go up.

The new fees will be up to 10 per cent more than what drivers are currently paying, New Brunswick consumer advocate Ronald Godin said.

Continue reading →

Share This