BMW Participates In Research Project with Hydrogen-powered 7 Series CarsThe U. S. Department of Energy has awarded a grant to a partnership, which includes BMW and is led by Air Products and Chemicals Inc., for a combined research project titled "Controlled Hydrogen Fleet and Infrastructure Demonstration Project." The goal of the project is to study hydrogen as a fuel in real-world driving conditions. The 5-year program will use Federal funds, as well as donations from partnership members, to finance construction and testing of 24 hydrogen filling stations in California. Due to the nature of the project, the stations will vary from using renewable resources such as wind power to using a hydrogen pipeline.
Partnership members Toyota, Honda and Nissan will contribute a total of 65 fuel-cell-powered vehicles to the project. BMW, as the leader in hydrogen internal combustion engines ,will provide up to 15 7 Series cars, the only test vehicles using proven internal-combustion engines.
Volvo Names Bronx Woman America's Greatest Hometown HeroEarnestine Russell-Drumgold, a New Yorker who for 20 years has run a youth center that has improved the lives of more than 3,000 children in a crime-ridden area in the northeast Bronx, was named "America's Greatest Hometown Hero" at the second annual Volvo for Life Awards ceremony. Held in Times Square on April 7, the "Volvo for Life Awards" ceremony capped off the largest-ever national search for and celebration of everyday heroes, providing $1 million in awards and financial contributions.
A panel of eight judges reviewed the finalists' nominations and selected a winner in three categories. Russell-Drumgold, 54, was the winner in the quality of life category, for her work founding and running the Bronx-based Baychester Youth Council. To recognize Russell-Drumgold's efforts, Volvo presented her with a new Volvo car every 3 years for the rest of her life and $50,000 to be donated to the Baychester Youth Council.
The other top hometown heroes, Rosamond Carr, 91, of Gisenyi, Rwanda, and Kristen Stryker, 18, of Canton, Ohio, were category winners, in the safety and environment categories, respectively.
We Hear...from Over ThereCheap and CheerfulIf the Gumball Rally's collection of Lamborghinis, Ferraris and assembled exotica is just that little bit out of your league, then the Staples 2 Naples Banger Rally is for you.
Starting in Calais, France, on October 1, the rally is open only to cars costing less than 100 ($185), so survival is clearly the most important aspect of this gathering and only two out of 20 cars made the distance last year. It's hardly surprising, though, when cars costing 2,000 times more often fall by the wayside on the more glamorous Gumball.
Daily challenges should include a full day of action in the Alps, and there is a 1,000 ($1,850) prize for the winning team that makes it all the way to Napleswith the most points.
The full route has not been decided yet, and is variable to allow competitors who will cover at least 1,500 miles to travel through extra countries and mountain passes; but competitors will cover at least 1,500 miles on this odyssey.
Check www.staples2naples.com for more information and some pictures of clapped-out cars that really don't look up to the job in hand. Favorites include Austin Montegos and Maestros, as very few cars come that cheap-whatever their condition.
Merc is Murder?Pressure group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has launched an international campaign targeting Mercedes. The group wants the marque to offer non-leather upholstery across its range in every country. Mercedes has already bowed to pressure in India, and now the group wants global domination.
Multipla Owners Know the TruthThe Fiat Multipla may have won countless car of the year awards in the U.K., but there's no getting away from the fact that it's less sexy than your grandma's rear. Now the very people that bought the car have confirmed that at least they know by organizing the first annual owner's club meeting-the Ugly Bug Ball.
While the attendance might not have been huge, as those that drive the Italian MPV tend to have large families and spend their weekends at school events or garden centers, but it was still penciled in for May 22 to 23 (at press time) anyway.
Taking its TollBritain's first toll-paying highway has been reduced to a snarled traffic jam and an accident blackspot after opening a few months ago.
The $1.5 billion stretch of road, 27 miles long, was sold as a congestion-free alternative to the nightmarish M6 motorway for those willing to pay almost $4 for smooth and fast passage.
As Britain's first paying road, it needed to be the very best, but drainage problems have left huge puddles of water at two areas, necessitating the closure of two lanes. This has resulted in huge tailbacks and the water on the road was a contributing factor in at least five accidents.
Ironically, the toll road easing the pressure left the M6 running freely, which could scupper the program for economic reasons alone.
Toll stations on France's autoroutes are an everyday and accepted sight. The French do not then charge a separate road tax, though, and there is a growing feeling in Britain that the motorist is funding other shortfalls. London now has a"'Congestion Charge," which means every driver going through the capital's center must pay 5.
With the huge tax levies on fuel and the ongoing row over speed cameras acting merely as revenue collectors rather than targeting dangerous areas, the UK is an expensive place for the motorist right now.
Rolls-Royce Launches in RussiaFollowing hot on the heels of Land Rover, which recently introduced its bulletproof Range Rover, Rolls-Royce has now arrived in Moscow and expects the nouveau riche Russians to flock to buy the British company's armchairs on wheels.
Ostentatious displays of wealth are commonplace among Russia's entrepreneurs. In Eastern Europe the car is even more of a status symbol than here and CEOs with more money than taste are prevalent. The Flying Lady should go down well in a land where chauffeurs and armed guards are all part of the standard equipment.
Rolls-Royce's contemporaries, Bentley and Ferrari, are already safely ensconced and selling cars. Now Rolls-Royce expects the fast-moving luxury Russian economy to provide a welcome addition to the sales figures for the Phantom.
Button's Delicate HandsThe view commonly offered by NASCAR racers about their F1 counterparts' manliness might be right after all, as it has been revealed that Briton Jenson Button insisted on a hand double for a recent commercial shoot because his own weren't "manly enough."
Button, who took his first podium in the Malaysian Grand Prix, had to handle a remote control as part of his commercial for the BBC. He refused to do close-up camera work, though, and the producers had to find a double with butcher hands.
The 24-year-old has described his hands as "quite dainty" in a previous interview, and it's not really the stuff beer-swilling racing legends. are made of.