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| The Great Houston Flood of 2015: I-45 North at North Main (Photo Credit: AP) |
In the Genesis account of the Great Flood, Noah
opens the window of the ark after 40-days and nights, and dispatches a dove to
look for land. The dove returns with an olive leaf, indicating something is
above water.
Drivers in Austin, Dallas, Houston and San
Antonio (and many places in between) may have been wishing for similar
salvation over the past two weeks of heavy rains in Texas. The Texas Water Development Board says state
reservoirs went from being 73% full to 85% full, thanks to the Memorial Day
Weekend deluge of about 8-million cubic feet of water flowing into state reservoirs.
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| "Scubaru" WRX |
Some might have hoped for an amphibious vehicle
to navigate flooded streets and highways. Enterprising Aussies sold
a “Scubaru” WRX earlier this month in an online auction on TradeMe.co.nz. The car sold for $620.
A more conventional—and attractive—amphibious
car is being produced by the Gibbs company. The British-built Aquada can
achieve up to 30-mph on water, and has a top speed of 100mph on land. It’s
powered by a 175hp V-6 engine.
Many automakers answered the call for help in
Texas last week. Nissan made a $50,000 cash donation to the American Red Cross
for relief efforts here, and RAM Truck and the FCA Foundation contributed $100,000
to the First Response Team of America for recovery and relief support in
Central Texas. The FRTA uses a fleet of RAM Trucks to provide its services.
Chevrolet is spending $175-million to retool its
Lansing Grand River Assembly Plant, and hiring 500-workers for a second shift
to build the Gen-6 Camaro.
Lansing, MI Mayor Virg Bernero quipped, “I may be
the luckiest mayor in America today,” as GM announced full-scale production of
the car.
The City of Lansing, the UAW, and Chevrolet have enjoyed an extraordinary
relationship for more than two decades. “We build the best car in the world,
right here in Lansing,” he said.
Some of the facility improvements will include
three new paint systems for Camaro’s unique colors, Summit White, Bright
Yellow, and Red Hot. GM is also installing two robotic framers, which will
allow better dimensional control, resulting in a more precise driving
experience.
So many cliché’s, so little time. Apple and Volvo are two companies appealing to a similar audience. Nothing says
“whitebread” like tooling around in your Volvo with anything-i: iPhone, iPod,
iPad…and now the Apple Watch.
In fact, the companies are collaborating on a
remote control system whereby you can control your Volvo with your Apple Watch.
IkidYouNot. Would that make this an iVolvo, or is that just too weird?
Volvo On Call will release a smart phone app for
both Apple and Android users to lock or unlock their car, start it up and cool
it down, and even check your fuel level. Volvo boasts the app will even help
you locate your misplaced car in a crowded parking garage near the Apple Store.
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| 2015 Ford C-Max Hybrid |
What would happen if competing car makers had
access to one anothers patents? Ford Motor Company is betting that sharing its
electrified vehicle technology patents with other manufacturers could result
in the accelerated development of those cars (no pun intended).
Kevin Layden,
Director of Ford’s Electrification Programs, says “Innovation is our goal.” Last year Ford filed more than 400-patents for
electrified vehicle technologies—representing more than 20% of the total
patents the company filed. The company is making available some of these technologies
through AutoHarvest, which is a collaborative innovation and licensing
marketplace. Ford is a founding member of the group.
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Francis Jehl, Herbert Hoover,
Henry Ford and Thomas Edison
inside reconstructed Menlo Park laboratory, Dearborn, Michigan |
FoMoCo plans to hire 200 electrified
vehicle engineers as the Ford Engineering Laboratory team moves into its new
facilities this year, located on the site of Henry Ford’s first laboratories.
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