Archive for the ‘congress’ Category

Since June of this year, the Department of Energy's Advanced Technology Vehicle program has awarded low-interest loans to encourage the development of next-gen cars. Ford, Nissan, Tesla, and Fisker got in on the action, but one outside-the-box company has been left on the sidelines: Aptera. The company's 2e model has been legally classified as a motorcycle, so Aptera hasn't been eligible for the program, but that'll change with Congress' redefining of the term "automobile". (Hint: if it's enclosed, seats two, and gets 75 mpg, it's in the ballpark.) John Voelcker has the full story at GreenCarReports.com.

With the recent restructuring of Chrysler and General Motors, there's been a lot of focus on auto dealers -- particularly those who were axed from the two companies' networks. Considerable time and energy on Capitol Hill has been dedicated to protecting dealers during the bankruptcy process, but now, new legislation is being developed to scrutinize them. And it has nothing to do with the auto industry bailout.

Indeed, this new legislation is related to a different bailout altogether: that of the financial industry. Pushed by an array of consumer groups, including the Consumer Federation of America, Consumers Union, and the National Council...

To say that the federal government's bailout of Chrysler and General Motors has been contentious is a little like saying that the Bugatti Veyron is kinda fast -- an understatement at best, cause for a righteous uproar at worst. But roughly a year since the Big Three began wooing Washington, the dust has begun to settle: Ford seems to be doing fine on its own, Chrysler and GM have emerged from bankruptcy, Chrysler and Fiat finally hooked up, and surprisingly, the world hasn't ended. (Yet.) However, there is one very long, very loose string that still needs to be tied up: the not-so-small issue of dealers summarily terminated from GM and ...