Grim News for GM, but Hybrids March On
The week got off to a roller coaster start with President Obama politely showing GM’s Rick Wagoner the gate and giving the once great automaker 60 days to get its ducks in a row. Chrysler has just as a month to line up a merger with Fiat or cease to exist. Finding good automotive news is tough these days when the government is throwing the word “bankruptcy” around. The government insists it will not let the American auto industry just disappear, but one is left to wonder, will anyone recognize that industry a year from now?
One bright spot on the alternative fuel front is the fact that Mazda has commenced commercial leasing of its Premacy Hydrogen RE Hybrid. Local governments and energy-related companies will start getting the cars this year. The Premacy has a series-type hybrid drivetrain that works in concert with a hydrogen rotary engine with an electric motor. Total range? 200 kilometers. (Full story on Engadget.)
Also, look for the 2010 Ford Fusion hybrid sedan in showrooms this month at a price of $27,270. It’s expected to be the most fuel-efficient mid-size car in America, knocking off 39 mpg city and 37 on the highway. For a full report, from the Atlanta Journal Constitution (via the San Antonio Express News), click here.