Get your mind out of the gutter– this is an automotive blog. And anyway, despite rumors of a plastic car (heard today on the Paul Harvey newscast no less) The Hindu Business Line reports that the new Tata will have a traditional steel body and the usual bits and pieces. The Rabbit-sized ride will sport a rear-mounted 600cc engine. While it doesn't have an official name yet, the "One Lakh Car" (100,000 rupees, or around $2,400) will be priced within reach of India's growing middle class. Considering the tiny profit margin involved (about three percent), they'll need to sticker that low to generate enough volume to turn a profit. (Ain't capitalism grand?) Currently, Indian autos are priced well out of the economic mainstream; about eight in 1000 Indians owns a car. What's that you say? Safety? Well, it can hardly be less safe than the mopeds favored by most of India's population. Perhaps it'll give us something other than China's dismal safety ratings to talk about.

I sat anxiously in a showroom Mercedes CLS while the salesman processed my paperwork for a test drive. Even in repose, the CLS is a magnificent machine. Soaking in that heady blend of luxury and gravitas, I wondered if my spin in the B200 (available in Canada and Europe) would capture any of that Mercedes quintessence. Sometimes, brand extension works (Bentley Continental GT) and sometimes, it doesn't (VW Phaeton). So does the B 200 fit in Herr Doktor Daimler’s pantheon of pomp and circumstance?

Would someone at Chryslerberus please tell their new jeffe that the ungainly four-door Jeep Commander is almost as much of a goner as his precious Prowler? Boot'em Bob Nardelli doesn't seem to realize it was a dud right out of the chute, and sales are even worse this year– down 15.5 percent. Oblivious to the facts, Nardelli said "the Jeep Commander is doing a great job" while talking to reporters at the Prowler 10th anniversary PR-orgy celebration last week. Detroit News Autos Insider suggests maybe he read the monthly sales chart upside down. It's more likely an indicator of just how little he really knows about the auto industry. Don't say we didn't tell you.

In The Washington Post, the dean of DC car hacks reports of his meeting with GM engineers to discuss gas – electric hybrids. The boffins convinced Warren Brown they're a duff deal. "In terms of what engineers call 'well-to-wheel energy costs,' gas-electrics actually are more energy consumptive and environmentally stressful than the traditional gasoline-powered cars and trucks they are supposed to replace. It takes lots of energy to design, develop, manufacture, transport and install nickel-metal hydride and lithium ion batteries. And, again, once their energy is used, once those batteries have become entropic, something has to be done with them." Full marks for recycling an old argument. But it's more than that; it's Warren's Road to Damascus. "It was in that context, over a luncheon of killed and cooked fish [dig the symbolism] we were eating to fuel our bodies, that we ventured into a conversation about Christian religious beliefs… Energy conservation is nothing more than an attempt to delay and manage the inevitable. It requires intelligence. It demands compromise. You can even argue that… it requires a certain amount of love. Essentially, it is an act of faith in something better." Amen.

As Robbie Burns might have put it, "The best-laid plans o' mice an' politicians gang aft a-gley." A study conducted by DesRosiers Automotive Consultants and reported in Financial Post reveals that Canada's eco-Auto program has backfired. The legislation was designed to lure Canadians out of their SUVs into hybrids and other more fuel efficient vehicles. Instead of increasing sales of the fuel sippers, buyers are turning to large pickups. The program places an excise tax of up to $4k on SUVs and other gas guzzlers like sports cars. However, because a pickup is a "need" for work rather than a "transportation choice," they're exempt. Sales of small pickups are up 18 percent so far this year, while large truck sales have increased 14 percent. It's only a matter of time– and not much of it– before the loophole cinches shut.

Under the Energy Conservation Reauthorization Act of 1998, federal, state, and public utility fleets can meet their alternative fuel requirements by tanking-up with biodiesel. As a direct result, The National Biodiesel Board reports sales of the vegetable oil and and diesel brew have risen to 225m gallons per year, heading for an estimated 2b gallons by 2015. Carpe-ing the diem, Green Earth Fuels has started production of biofuels in Houston. Using a proprietary system, Green Earth's aiming to cook-up some 45 million gallons of biodiesel per year. "The time has come for a national biodiesel infrastructure that is safe, sustainable, progressive and commercially viable," says Greg Bafalis, Green Earth’s president and CEO. Wall Street tycoons (The Carlyle Group, Riverstone Holdings and Goldman Sacks) are bankrolling Bafalis' faith in alt. fuel serendipity. But the rising price of vegetable oils and the possibility that Uncle Sam may remove its biofuel "incentives" have some investors spooked– while Washington lobbyists continue to cash large checks.  

The trend toward class-action law suits against auto companies isn't just an American phenomenon. The Straits Times reports that major Japanese automakers and the Tokyo city government have settled a lawsuit filed by asthma patients 11 years ago over the city's air pollution. More than 520 Tokyo residents claimed that diesel fumes caused their asthma (before authorities imposed strict standards in 2003). The settlement specifies $29m to set up a five-year health plan and a one-time $10.9m payment to the plaintiffs (and their lawyers). Plaintiff Hiroko Ozawa was not satisfied with the pay-out. "The benefits will only be given to asthma patients, not to those suffering chronic bronchitis and other lung problems."

USA Today automotive columnist Jame Healey sees dead people. "If the switch to smaller, lighter vehicles continues to grow, the result could be anywhere from dozens to thousands of traffic deaths that would have been avoided in bigger vehicles, according to fatality records and safety forecasters." It's an old argument (which doesn't necessarily make it a bad one), for which Healey trots out some old stats: a 2002 National Academy of Sciences' report that concludes "Small vehicles have higher fatality rates than larger ones." It's just the first salvo in a sustained stat campaign that, strangely, fights both sides of the argument at once. Or, if you prefer, takes a fair and balanced view. In the middle of the piece, a University of Michigan physics professor nails it. There are "lots of answers" to the question of small-car safety, Marc Ross opines. “There just aren't any simple ones." Perhaps that explains the discrepancy between Healey's sensationalistic opening and yet another wishy-washy USA Today headline: "People buy small cars even though they can be deadly."

When Frank Williams and I launched TTAC’s news blog, we envisioned an editorial gestalt somewhere between Autoblog (dull but worthy) and Jalopnik (wild but wacky). I reckon we nailed it. We’re cranking-out far more (and timelier) hard news than Neff’s product-crazed army, and creating more pithy posts than Spinelli’s electric cool aid acid test troops. In another sense, thanks to our excellent commentators and snarky bloggers, we’ve established our own unique mindspace. Unfortunately, the feature's done sweet FA for our site stats.

The Auto Channel reports that Unitrin Direct Auto Insurance is offering a six percent discount to Georgia residents who pledge “not to do things that will take their attention off the road.” Georgia product manager Andy Mason hopes its “focused driver pledge” will increase awareness of the "great importance of staying focused while behind the wheel of a car." Customers solemnly swear (online or via hard copy) “not [to] read text messages, e-mails, GPS devices or load or watch DVDs while driving.” To check the legal niceties, we phoned Unitrim Prez Scott Carter. He told us the company doesn't spy on pledge-takers. Any driver who got caught breaking the pledge would lose their discount, not the entire policy. Oh, and he spoke to us from his cell phone– in the car.

PRNewsWire wants us to know that the U.S. Army has unveiled a hybrid-electric propulsion system for their latest Manned Ground Vehicles (MGV). The hybrid design is a bit like a Chevy Volt on steroids: a traditional engine (de-coupled from the drivetrain) powers a generator that drives the motors, juices the vehicular sub-systems and recharges the batteries. Before you start thinking that our military forces are becoming tree-huggers, the hybrid MGV nothing to do with increased efficiency. "The Army is using hybrid-electric power because the more modern [combat vehicles] have much greater electrical power requirements than [the ones currently in use]. Hybrid-electric vehicles provide the requisite electrical power because they employ a rechargeable energy storage system."

Chrysler has just unleashed its new minivan, hoping to jump-start sales in a sector that's been shrinking for a decade. During this slide, the Honda Odyssey and Toyota Sienna have moved their people movers upmarket, banking healthy margins on the back of tremendous customer loyalty. Meanwhile, Kia entered the fray with a more budget-minded alternative, the Sedona. Although Kia missed the obvious marketing opportunity (My my my, Sedona), the not-so-fancy shmancy minivan has proven itself a sales winner. Why?

To show The New York Times (and others) that he really is a "car guy," freshly-minted Chrysler CEO Bob Nardelli brought his silver and black '01 Chrysler (nee Plymouth) Prowler to his very first post-ascension public appearance. At shareholder's expense, Chrysler trucked Boot'em Bob's faux rat rod from his home in Atlanta so BEB could hang with fellow Prowler owners at the company's museum parking lot. Unfortunately, BEB was plagued with feelings of inadequacy. Nardelli told the Detroit Free Press "I am a little embarrassed with my stock Prowler here compared to all of the work these folks have done." If driving a cramped, underpowered, poor-handling, overwrought automotive codpiece isn't enough to convince us that Nardelli's a "car guy," last week he asked Chrysler VP of product development Frank Kelgon when Chrysler would be ready to sell an 800hp vehicle. Oh dear.

The Detroit News carries news of a "made-for-TV" rally of Ford and Chrysler autoworkers in Chicago yesterday. The event, "put together by a public relations firm," protested proposed Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) legislation. The rent-a-mob consisted primarily of 200 workers bussed in from nearby assembly plants. They put on a good show, too. At one point, a Ford Expedition rolled up and disgorged a scoutmaster. three Boy Scouts and a Girl Scout "to demonstrate ways Americans need larger vehicles" (The mind boggles).  One Chrysler worker described her [ostensible] reason for attending the rally: "People should be able to drive what they want." A lot of Americans agree with her, which is why the Camry outsells the Sebring by a very wide margin. 

Today's the day. From Friday until Tuesday, the Chinese government has implemented a license plate-based ban on a third of Beijing's 3m drivers. Officials hope to remove over a million vehicles from the city as part of an "experiment" to see if they can clear Beijing's fetid air ahead of the '08 Olympics (without causing public unrest). As you might imagine, carbon negative governments around the world are monitoring the situation carefully, looking for justification for similar restrictions in their own backyards. Without casting aspersions of Iran's press freedoms, it's interesting that Press TV is so keen on the China's anti-car syndrome that they're not waiting to see if reality matches their expectations. "Beijing is noticeably less congested following the four-day scheme that yanked 1.3 million private cars off the streets on Friday." If you thought that was a particularly non-scientific (if perhaps prescient) summation, how about this? "City residents, who are being forced to take public transport during the test period, generally appeared to support the project." Support for government policy is generally good within dictatorships, but then Press TV probably already knows that.