As most people involved in creating an EV charging stations infrastructure are still figuring stuff out, Coulomb Technologies announced today it will start using the Flex Billing system. This will allow ChargePoint Network station owners worldwide to set pricing as a function of time of day, calendar date, and driver.
This shift is a direct result of the feedback from our customer base which dates back to 2008, said Richard Lowenthal, CEO of Coulomb Technologies. Flexibility is extremely impo… (read more)
After yesterday Japanese carmaker Toyota announced it will recall 133,000 2010 model year Prius and 14,500 Lexus 2010 HS 250h in the US, the carmaker announced earlier today the recall, as expected, to a global level and added a few more models to the recall. 
Opel/Vauxhall CEO has just unveiled the so-called "Plan for the Future" that is expected to help the two automakers survive the crisis and even return to profit.
With their 2010 single-seater now out in the open, Force India can clearly state their objectives for the upcoming season of Formula One. Since up is the only way to go in the series, improving on their magnificent season last year is regarded as a must by all members of the Force India organization, including the 2009-appointed CEO Otmar Szafnauer.
Since the start of 2010, vehicle sales have seriously gone up. BMW Group saw a strong increase in sales of 16.6%, as it managed to deliver 82,120 BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce worldwide during the month of January. By comparison, BMW Group only delivered 70,419 last year.
A change in the marketing department of Ask.com has put an end to a year-long contract between NASCAR and search engine provider, with immediate effect. After spending $15 million on its NASCAR sponsorships and activation, Ask.com found its contract with the sanctioning body was in the low seven figures, while the team sponsorship amounted to about $4 million. 
Prior to the public unveiling that will take place at the Geneva Motor Show in March, Nissan will present the Juke crossover tomorrow. The car, which is going to be produced in the United Kingdom and will arrive in dealerships in October, will be smaller than the Qashqai but bigger than a Nissan Note.
Fiat UK announced it has signed a three-year agreement with British Cycling, including the Great Britain Cycling and Para-Cycling Teams, becoming their official car supplier. Members of the British Cycling will therefore make use of the Fiat Bravo, Punto Evo and the 500 city car for transporting the staff of the Road, Track, Mountain Biking, BMX, Cycle Speedway and Cycle Cross disciplines.
Force India have finally unveiled their 2010 Formula One challenger, one day before the second test of the season, at Jerez. The online launch of the VJM03 took place in the early hours of this morning, with the car clearly an evolution of last year’s podium clincher VJM02.
The German Ministry of Economics and Technology awarded BMW Group in the 2009 Best Innovator competition, with the special award for Sustainable Innovation Management. This was the sixth edition of the competition.
The recent reports that US Grand Prix Engineering and Campos Grand Prix might miss out on the first 3 events of the 2010 Formula One championship due to lack of finance has now been confirmed by the very president of the International Automobile Federation, Jean Todt. 
Since General Motors has already confirmed its decision to close the Antwerp plant and rumors are claiming that other facilities might have the same fate, countries hosting Opel plants are willing to do anything possible to save local jobs. And one way to do that seems to be providing financial help to General Motors.
Things have been really going well for Hyundai in America. The Korean car manufacturer managed to finish 2009 with bigger sales than in 2008, it launched a lot of new models and will continue to do so according to their 24/7 Version 2.0, campaign which announces 7 new models in the next 24 months.
Japanese carmaker Nissan released today information regarding its financial performance in the third quarter of the 2009 fiscal year (ending March 31, 2010), with number showing a 45 billion yen ($480 million) net income. A better than expected result, says Nissan, mostly driven by scrapping incentives in major markets, the ever growing Chinese market and the measures set in place by the carmaker to cut cost. 
The North American division of Yamaha announced it has GRANTed (Guaranteeing Responsible Access to our Nation’s Trails) more than $80,000 in the fourth quarter of 2009 through its OHV (off-highway vehicle) arm. Also, it has released the 2010 Access Initiative GRANT schedule, which is available at the following link along with the application form and guidelines.
Although he was backed by Max Mosley for the presidential seat of the International Automobile Federation (FIA), Jean Todt doesn’t seem to have the same visions about the future of the sport as his predecessor. And one of the things the two don’t agree on is the budget cap rule.
The European Commission finally approved the Swedish state loan guarantees for Saab, which basically means that Spyker, the new owner of the Swedish brand, can now continue work on the restructuring plan. According to just-auto.com, "the EC has ruled 82.8% of the Swedish guarantee to be in line with its state aid rules concerning access to finance in the current global economic uncertainty," while the remaining 17.2 percent will be offered depending on the economic environment.
With the 2010 Geneva Auto Show less than a month away, Swedish carmaker Volvo pulled the wraps off the long awaited Volvo S60, marking the carmaker’s entry in the CD Premium car segment. The car will be presented, for the first time, at the aforementioned show, bringing with it an entire array of new safety, infotainment and performance elements. 
It’s no longer a secret that electric cars are here to stay. This green technology might save us the trouble of going to the gas station, but it has a range problem at the moment. But as long as long as you have well-defined routs, the EV is ideal. Ford understood that and applied the technology to one of its small vans, creating the Transit Connect Electric.
While Flavio Briatore insisted that he holds nothing against the FIA or its new president Jean Todt for the penalty he received after the crash-gate, the former Ferrari boss that now runs business within the ruling body did not return the favor. Talking to the Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport, Todt insisted that Briatore is as guilty of the crash-gate as ever.