First long distance journey by an automobile

The first long distance journey was completed in a Benz Patent-Motorwagen Nr.3 of 1888 and was driven by a woman Bertha Benz who was the wife of Karl Benz. She supposedly took the Motorwagen without her husband’s knowledge and drove more than sixty miles. She did it to demonstrate that the Motorwagen could be used as a means of transportation over long distances. Accompanied her on her travel were her two sons Eugen age 15 and Richard age 14. She traveled from Mannheim through Heidelberg and Wiesloch where she stopped and purchased ligroin for fuel at the city’s pharmacy, making the pharmacy the first fueling station in history. In addition to being the driver, Bertha acted as mechanic, cleaning the carburetor out with her hat pin and using a garter to insulate a wire. Bertha asked a local shoemaker to nail leather on the brake blocks when the brakes wore out. Bertha Benz traveled a total of 121 miles on her journey making it the first long distance journey traveled by an automobile.

Every two years there is a private parade in Germany to celebrate the historic trip of Bertha Benz.  The Bertha Benz Memorial Route was officially approved as rout of industrial heritage to mankind in 2008. The Route follows Bertha Benz’s 1888 long distance journey by automobile.

NHTSA Opens Preliminary investigation on 200,000 Nissan Sentras and Versas

After receiving complaints from eight consumers alleging that their cars continued to travel after the drivers had pressed the brake pedal. U.S. safety regulators opened a preliminary investigation on 200,000 Nissan’s Sentra and Versa vehicles in the U.S. for potential braking issues. The first step in a process that could lead to a recall is the preliminary investigation. If it is determine during the preliminary investigation that a safety issue needs to be addressed by the manufacturer it will issue a recall.

There were no reports of accidents or injuries. According to documents file with the NHTSA in May of 2013 an owner of a 2013 Nissan Sentra with only 142 miles pressed down on the brake pedal to stop at a red light, the car continued to travel forcing the driver to use the parking brake to get the car to come to a complete stop.

 Nissan is working with the NHSTA to answer questions regarding this issue. Nissan said that it is reviewing the issue.  

Stop Start Technology Standard on the 2015 Impala

To boost the 2015 Impala’s fuel economy Chevrolet is implementing stop-start technology. Chevrolet says this technology will increase the car’s fuel economy by 5%. The stop-start technology will only be offered standard in the 2.5 liter 2015 Impala. Chevrolet has already used the stop-start in the four cylinder 2014 Malibu. This technology only works in certain situations, for instance in stop and go traffic the stop-start technology turns off the engine which reduces the amount of fuel the engine consumes.

GM Announces Another Recall

5 more recalls for GM covering 2.7 million vehicles, this brings the total number of vehicles recalled this year to about 10 million. This latest recall includes light trucks and passenger cars.

Included in this latest recall are 140,000 Chevrolet Malibu's, also included in the recall  are recent and older models, starting with the 2005 Pontiac G6 all the way forward to the 2015 Chevrolet Tahoe SUV. The problems range from defective taillights to flaws in tie-rods that could cause loss of control of the vehicle which could lead to a crash.

Automobile Accessories

We take for granted many of the options available in today’s cars however it wasn’t always the case; the lifesaving safety seatbelt was not even a standard in cars until 1963. How about something as common place a fuel gauge?  It wasn’t a feature until 1922 and the car radio didn’t make an appearance until 1929. The convenience of power windows became available in 1946 and the first cars used levers not steering wheels to control the direction of the vehicles?

Did you know that the first Porsche Sedan was not the Panamera, or even their 1990's four door prototype? In 1952 Porsche built a prototype sedan for Studebaker, it was called the Type 542. It was deemed too weird for production

California's  New Bill Taxing Motorist for Miles Driven

Due to the more fuel efficient vehicles of today there has been a decline in the amount of gas tax revenue that the state of California receives to offset the decline in revenue California State Senator Mark DeSaulnier (D-Concord) has introduced a bill that will tax California motorist for their miles driven. It is modeled after similar programs in Washington and Oregon.

This bill will give officials in agencies such as the Department of Motor Vehicles and the California Transportation Agency the authority to track by GPS the miles traveled by a motorist. Slated to begin in January 2016, however the exact date has not been released. The program in California will be voluntary and will require a GPS tracking device installed the vehicles.  California’s program is similar to Oregon's test pilot which is scheduled to begin in 2015.

For more information on this bill go to: http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201320140SB1077

Ram Pickup

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is pushing back the date of the next major update for one its most profitable vehicles the Ram pickup, the next major update will happen in 2017.

The reason for moving the update back a year Reid Bigland the Ram brand chief stated that the current version of the Ram pickup which debuted in 2003 has been on a upward path outpacing General Motors, Ford and import brands.

According to Bigland since 2009 the Ram pickup has gained a North America market share of 10% and the 2013 sales were up from 257,000 to 463,000.

The Ram’s success is credited to the truck’s fuel efficient diesel and gasoline engines and the many features the truck offers such as improving the rough ride common with trucks, Ram’s leaf spring suspension was replaced by coil spring rear suspension which makes for a smoother ride, a cargo box storage system located in the rear fenders and is unique to the Ram pickup. Let’s not overlook the fuel economy of the optional EcoDiesel 3.0 liter engine that’s almost compact car-like, along with the ability to tow 9,200 pounds.

Last year Ram entered the North American commercial van segment with the ProMaster, which is based on one of Europe’s best selling cargo vans the Fiat Ducato. After capturing 18% of the North American market the ProMaster is set for further growth. 

 This year a 3.0 liter diesel engine will be added to the ProMaster and in the fall a smaller cargo van called the ProMaster City will be released in the North America. The ProMaster City was based on the Fiat Doblo and it will compete with the Nissan NV200, the Chevrolet City Express and the Ford Transit Connection.