LG Wants to Ban BMW and Audi Sales in South Korea

Electronics companies are amongst the fiercest rivals when it comes to protecting their patents – even a lioness with her cubs seems like a purring cat in comparison. That’s why in the world of high technology, lawsuits fly left and right, one of the most recent examples being the Apple - Samsung dispute over the their smartphones.
Nevertheless, we were surprised to learn today that LG Electronics and its subsidiary, the component-making LG Innotek Co., filled a lawsuit with a South Korean court seeking to block BMW and Audi from selling their cars in the country.
What is happening is that the two German luxury carmakers have been caught in the middle of a patent war between LG and Osram over LED technologies. LG seeks to stop their the German automakers' vehicles from being sold because they are equipped with Osram lighting systems.
“LG sued Osram at the Seoul Central District Court for purportedly infringing on LG-owned patents such as LED chips and packaging technologies that are widely used in LED light bulbs and cars”, LG spokesman Lim Young-min told the Korean Times daily.
“Because local branches of BMW and Audi are using Osram’s LED applications that infringe on LG patterns, we are seeking a complete ban on BMW and Audi car sales in South Korea”, the LG spokesperson added.
The situation gets even more complicated because Osram was the one to draw first blood by demanding that LG continued to pay loyalties for patents it used for several years.
LG refused to do so, having developed its own LED technologies, and counter-sued, dragging Audi and BMW into the middle of this, presumably as another form of pressure.

PHOTO GALLERY

Read more In Cars

Ford will Build Electric Cars and Selling Lincolns in China

Ford Motor Company’s CEO, Allan Mulally, recently told Bloomberg Television that his company might build electric cars with its partner in China while the automaker is also looking to introduce the Lincoln brand into the market.

“As we move towards electrification, you’re going to see more hybrids, plug-in hybrids and all-electric cars”, said Mulally while on a trip to Chongqing, China, for the founding of a new transmission plant in partnership with Changan Automobile Group.

The CEO did not specify when or which EVs Ford is considering to make in China in cooperation with its local partner, only that it depends on infrastructure and progress in battery pack technology. The Chinese government’s intention is to have at least one million electric cars on the streets by 2015 in order to reduce emissions.

Mulally added that Ford, which aims to double its presence in all segments in the local market, is considering bringing the Lincoln brand to China: “We have a great luxury brand in Lincoln. There’s going to be tremendous pull from China to have access to these great vehicles.”

Introducing Lincoln to the Chinese market might prove a profitable movement, since JD Power estimates that luxury car sales will increase by 15% in 2011 alone.

Ford came a little late to the China booming car market party, but intends to make up for it by investing $1.6 billion USD in the construction of four new plants in order to achieve its goals. Currently its share in China is just 2.7%, while GM’s is more than triple, at 10%.

Read more In Cars

New Disney Toy Cars Interact with Apple's iPad

Some of you probably grew up playing only with actual toys, while others (like yours truly) had the opportunity to play with both electronic games and real life toys in their childhood before technology cast its shade over the physical world introducing the next generations of kids to the sofa couch virtual wonders of gaming.
Now, Disney is trying to bridge the physical and virtual gaming worlds with a new range of toys called Appmates, which can interact directly with apps on Apple's iPad tablet. The new toy line allows kids to use the tablet's screen as a virtual play mat.
The boys are the first to get the new toys as AppMATes is launching with Pixar's Cars. The lineup includes the vehicle-characters from the Cars 2 movie.
"We have cracked the technology code in changing the way kids play with their toys," said Sunny Lauridsen, director of digital toys for DCP. "Kids will always use toys to play out their favorite Disney stories, but Disney Appmates now allows them to include technology which has become a way of life for them through a beautifully rich app."
The Disney Appmates toys will go on sale on October 1, with pricing set at $19,99 for a package with two vehicles, while the app will be offered as a free download through Apple's iTunes.
Photo Credits: Disney

VIDEO

PHOTO GALLERY

Read more In Cars

BMW Testing Ceramic Brakes for M5 V8

Dr. Herbert Diess, Member of the Board of BMW and Head of Purchasing and Supplier Network, recently revealed to BimmerFile that the firm's M Division is exploring various options on carbon ceramic brakes for the new M5 sports saloon.

However, the M Division is not working alone but together with Brembo, which is also the break supplier of the new M5, in developing the new carbon ceramic discs.

The two companies are also connected through SGL Carbon. SGL has formed a joint venture with BMW for creating carbon fiber parts to be used in future BMW cars, and another one with Brembo for the development and manufacture of ceramic discs.

According to the report, the brake package will retain the steel-disc equipped M5’s calipers but will feature larger diameter ceramic discs, which will require the fitment of 20-inch wheels. The package will be available in about a year's time from now.

Read more In Cars

Caterham Launches New Company, With Brand-New Models

Back in April, when the owners of Formula 1’sTeam Lotus acquired British sports car maker Caterham, they promised to “have all the ingredients and the launch pad to take Caterham to new exciting horizons with innovative products and greater brand exposure.”True to their word, Caterham's new owners announced on Monday that they are creating a new, standalone engineering business named CTI (Caterham Technology and Innovation).
The newly formed division will undertake the development of a new range of affordable sports cars that promise to remain true to the Seven’s character.
This amounts to an evolution for Caterham, which up until now, was renowned only for the Seven, the building rights of which it acquired from Lotus owner Colin Chapman in 1973. According to the company, CTI will also benefit from technology used in the Team Lotus F1 and Caterham Team AirAsia GP2 motorsport activities.
“The new shareholders are committed to investing in an exciting range of global products over the next 10 years”, said CTI’s CEO Mark Edwards.
The firm has already begun recruiting new staff, with one of the first being Tony Shute who has in his CV the Lotus Elise and will be CTI’s Head of Road Cars.
Caterham Cars’ CEO, Ansar Ali, commented: “Creating a new product range that has the same reputation and appeal as the Seven is the Holy Grail of the business. To meet the challenge, we knew we needed to invest in a new operation that would have the scope, experience and vision to deliver.”
CTI will be based in Norfolk, near Team Lotus’ motorsport operations.

PHOTO GALLERY

Read more In Cars

Alfa Romeo Won't Come to the States Until 2013, Cancels SUV Plans

In what has become something of a joke for those closely following the Fiat Group's plans to re-introduce Alfa Romeo to the States, the Milanese firm's CEO Harald Wester told journalists in Frankfurt that the company has once again pushed back the U.S. presentation of several key models.

Wester also said that Alfa Romeo has canceled plans to build a mid-sized SUV at Chrysler Group's factory in Ohio.

In July, and following a string of delays that began in 2000, Fiat and Chrysler Group head honcho Sergio Marchionne said that Alfa Romeo would enter the U.S. market with the 4C sports car before the end of 2012, and launch a compact crossover model in 2013.

Now, Marchionne is claiming that the current debt crisis in Europe is forcing the company to reevaluate the timing of its new vehicle introductions.

"We are reviewing volumes and the timing of new products to see when it is really necessary to launch them," Marchionne said.

Under the new plan –which could very well be reassessed in a couple of months […]- Alfa will bring the 4C to the States in the first half of 2013, and the Ford Fiesta-sized MiTo hatchback in the second part of the same year.

In addition, the latest plan ditches the Jeep Liberty-based Alfa Romeo crossover and instead calls for a large rear-wheel drive sports sedan, loosely based on the next generation Maserati Quattroporte which will appear sometime after 2014.

Read more In Cars

Toyota Prius Hybrid Family

The March 11 earthquake that shook Japan to its core had many collateral damages, one of which was vehicle manufacturing. For example, more than 650 of Toyota’s suppliers suffered great damages and halted production, forcing the Japanese automaker to reconsider its strategy.

Two weeks later, its management had reached the conclusion that it should focus its worldwide resources mainly on one model line. “We were rapidly burning through cash, so in order to survive this we prioritized the cars our customers wanted most” explained head of production Atsushi Niimi.

So which vehicles were the chosen ones? Could it be the cars that helped it the most to become the world’s number one car manufacturer since 2008? Nope: Corolla and Camry would have to take a back seat to hybrids, and especially the Prius. Therefore, Toyota started off by ensuring that it could find parts for the Prius and the Lexus hybrids.

“The last several years have been a triple shock for Toyota” said Masatoshi Nishimoto of Tokyo-based consulting company HIS Inc. “It’s now at a major turning point.”

The first came in 1990. Up until that point, six of the world’s 10 biggest companies were Japanese, with Toyota in ninth place. When the real estate bubble burst, things changed dramatically: Toyota is the sole Japanese company in BusinessWeek’s top 50 ranking, down to 35th place.

Then there was the 2009-2010 floor-mat and sticky pedal recall saga. The way it was handled resulted in a $16.4 million dollar fine by the NHTSA and millions of recalls – which meant more millions lost, and perhaps more importantly, the loss of Toyota’s reputation as the manufacturer of the world’s most reliable cars.

This year’s earthquake, along with the strengthening of the yen against the US dollar, made things even more difficult as of all Japanese car manufacturers, Toyota is the one that builds the most cars domestically.

Toyota will certainly lose the number one spot on world sales to General Motors this year andLexus, after a decade, falls behind rivals BMW and Mercedes-Benz. Now, Akio Toyoda is betting his company’s future on hybrid technology and especially the Prius. The three new models of the world’s best-selling hybrid take center spot have to succeed if the company is to make a quick recovery.

PHOTO GALLERY

Read more In Cars

Brand New Chrysler Group Cars Driven at Warp Speed

While we are no strangers to offbeat incidents involving new cars and transporters, we'll admit that we've never seen anything like this – that is, if the video you're about to watch is original and has not been altered in any way as understandably, we can't be 100 per cent sure.

The clip appears to have been shot by someone standing on the top level of a double decker transporter train and it shows five allegedly brand new vehicles (all Jeep Grand Cherokee SUVs, if we're not mistaken) shooting out of the deck at warp speed.

The surroundings suggest the train is located at a parking lot terminal. Follow the break to watch the video for yourself and tell us what you think in the comments area below.

VIDEO

Read more In Cars

Mercedes SLS AMG gets optional Electronically Adjustable Suspension and more!

The SLS AMG has only been a few months on the market and yet Mercedes-Benz, after unveiling the roadster version, continues to add new features to its brand-new supercar. The latest add-on is the introduction of the optional AMG Ride Control suspension featuring electronically controlled damping to improve its behavior no matter what the road surface.The adaptive suspension offers three settings: “Comfort”, “Sport” and “Sport Plus” which the driver can control by pushing the AMG Drive Unit with the newly-added shock absorber symbol and view the selected mode in the AMG main menu.
You can guess the suspension settings by each mode’s name: “Comfort”, which is the default setting every time the engine is started, is supple and comfort-oriented, thus suitable for everyday driving and cruising on the motorway. “Sport” is selected by pressing the AMG Drive Unit once and it firms up the dampers’ response, reducing body roll and pitching without fully sacrificing comfort.
When you feel like really going for it, press the Drive Unit a little longer to select the “Sport Plus” mode. Mercedes recommends that this setting is best suited on a race circuit, presumably because it is too harsh for road use.
The driver can store his preferred setup in the Drive Unit. If, on the other hand, you don’t feel like shelling out €2,320.50 ($3,156) for the active dampers, you can still choose the normal or the AMG Performance suspension. As with the “normal” SLS AMG the car also features four transmission modes (Controlled Efficiency, Sport, Sport Plus and Manual).
Also new on the options list of both the coupe and the roadster versions of the SLS AMG is the Blind Spot Assist system (€773.50/$1,052.8) that is operational from 30 km/h (18.6 mph). This system uses the radar sensors of the standard parking assist to monitor the area around 3.5 meters on each side of the car and 3 meters on the rear and recognize vehicles in the driver’s blind spots. In this case, a red triangle lights up in the relevant exterior mirror and if the driver doesn’t react, an acoustic warning is activated.
Mercedes has also added options for the SLS’ exterior appearance. The updated list includes matt black-finish AMG 10-spoke forged alloy wheels with 265/35 R 19 and 295/30 R20 tires at the front and rear respectively (€3,272.50/$4,455) and red-painted calipers (€714.20/$972.8). Other new entries include the new “Sepang” metallic brown paintwork for the body (€2,439.50/$3,321.6) a new single- or two-tone “espresso” brown leather interior, and a high-gloss black trim on the center console (€2,320/$3,158.5). 

PHOTO GALLERY

Read more In Cars

Videos: Batmobile Replica 1989 Powered by a Boeing Jet Turbine!

Perhaps the most celebrated Batmobile after the1966 model from Adam West's Batman TV Show is the Anton Furst designed version from the 1989 and 1991 Tim Burton films.

And while collectors may seek the original Batmobiles featured in the movies, we're pretty sure that fans will take a special liking to this replica, which is up for grabs on eBay.

What separates this replica of the 1989 Batmobile, not only from the other clones on the market but the original as well, is that, according to the seller, it is the only turbine-powered car of its kind in the world.

Built and designed by Casey Putsch of Putsch Racing in 2011, the car was completed in 2011. Under the massive hood you'll find a Boeing turboshaft jet engine borrowed from military drone helicopter.

Putsch Racing says the engine, which can run on Jet A, kerosene, or diesel fuel, pushes out 365-horsepower (the seller doesn't say with which type of fuel), though we'll assume that most people will be more interested in the sound it makes and which you can check out in the videos below.

The replica tips the scales at approximately 2,800 pounds or just 1,270 kilos, and comes equipped with height-adjustable suspension. according to the seller, its street legal in the U.S.

Now for the bad news; even though the seller has dropped the price tag from the last eBay auction ($620,000), the car is still listed at a ridonkulous $520,000.

PHOTO GALLERY

VIDEOS

Read more In Cars