What's in a car

One of the things missing in the car reviews today is a practical review of how transportation works for families in varying situations. Our society today is focused on the individual. The macho vision of the muscle cars of yesterday and today plays up to this stereo type.

While I bought into the view as a teenager, my view of cars as status symbol has diminished as my quiver has become full. None-the-less, I still enjoy the thrill which comes from reading about or seeing a fast car. I am equally excited by the prospects of electric cars and hybrid cars. I look forward to an opportunity to take a first drive in a hybrid.

I've followed with interest the development of the Tesla electric car company (here), imagine an electric car which can go 0-60 faster than a $250,000 gas powered sports car! Maybe some day there really will be an electric car for the masses? Where's Henry Ford?

I've also been interested in GM's and now Toyota's CEOs comments on how the auto industry is changing. In fact these CEOs say there are fundamental changes which are at work driving these big automakers to change their approaches away from oil powered vehicles (see this blog or this CNN report).

While I think there is plenty of oil available and with the right approach gas powered vehicles could still be around for a while, the challenge most people are pointing to is the growth of China and India. How do these huge economies continue to grow and add cars to their growing economies without impacting oil availability?

Whatever the big oil companies do to meet demand, GM and Toyota are pushing for electric cars, hydrogen powered cars, and other hybrid technologies. Chevy's approach is to build a car they are calling the Volt. Essentially a battery powered car which can go 40 miles on a charge and it has a small gas powered generator on board to charge the batteries. Toyota is set to release a plug-in version of their hybrid the Prius in the next few years and have plans to introduce hybrid or other power plant options for every other vehicle in their showrooms.

The future of the cars will be much different than today. I can't wait to see how the industry evolves. What do you think will be powering your car in 5-10 years?