The last time we checked in on the Renault EV Spy Scandal, the French automaker appeared to be backpedaling the seriousness of the affair, claiming all technical secrets were safe. But be that as it may, the WSJ reports that the firm has still filed a criminal “complaint against persons unknown” in the case

for acts constituting organized industrial espionage, corruption, breach of trust, theft and concealment.

The complaint comes after Renault met with its three suspended managers, who tell the press they are accused of “serious wrongdoing” but insist that they are innocent. A lawyer for at least one of the accused Renault employees says she is not even aware of what exactly Renault is accusing her client of. Reuters adds that “a private company in a foreign country” is named in the complaint, which now goes to the State Prosecutor of Paris, who will determine whether or not to investigate the complaint. In an effort to backpedal Renault’s apparent suspicion of a Chinese-based conspiracy, the Prosecutor’s office demurred

We never within the government mentioned such a possibility… It’s Renault’s position. They don’t cite a foreign power, they only cite private persons.

China has already denied any involvement in the affair, and Renault’s Chief Operating Officer alleges that the case involves

an organized international network and that technology leaked involved the architecture and economic model of electric vehicles.

Automotive News [sub] reports that three Renault executives, including one who works for the automaker’s electric vehicle development program, have been suspended without pay pending an industrial espionage investigation. According to a Renault source

[The investigation] involves people who were caught red-handed for industrial espionage. Renault is a victim in this story. The group is a bit worried about its electric vehicle program — it hopes that its leadership in this technology won’t be threatened.

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Despite the fact that current EPA testing methods fail to demonstrate the advantages of “stop-start” systems, which shut down engines at idle, Ford will begin rolling out the technology on 2012 model-year vehicles. Automotive News [sub] reports that “some” four-cylinder models will go idle-free starting with next year’s rollout of 2012 models, and that

Based on the European rollout, the most likely initial vehicles include the 2012 Ford Fiesta and Focus cars, Escape crossover, C-Max minivan and Transit Connect delivery vehicle.

By 2015, Ford will have joined Mazda as one of the manufacturers offering start-stop across its lineup (on manual and automatic models). There was, however, no cooperation between the two firms on their respective stop-start systems. Ford’s newest system can reportedly improve efficiency by ten percent in the city and five percent overall.

With so much focus being put on electric, full-hybrid, and plug-in cars, it’s easy to forget that these kinds of lower-cost and widely-applicable (but less-sexy) methods of improving fleet-wide efficiency will have a much larger incremental effect on overall fuel consumption. Along with its commitment to technologies like gasoline direct-injection, downsized, turbocharged engines and dual-clutch transmissions, Ford’s introduction of start-stop systems should help America’s healthiest automotive manufacturer maintain a technological and environmental advantage over the competition for the foreseeable future.

When Chrysler re-launched under Fiat, its Five Year Plan called for the Italian automaker’s dual-clutch transmissions (known at Fiat as Twin Clutch Transmission, or TCT) to make their way to the group’s D-segment models by the end of 2010. But here we are, at the end of 2010, and the Chrysler 200 and Dodge Intrepid have not been equipped with the fuel-saving transmissions. So what’s the deal? The only news on the topic comes from InsideLine which reports

By 2013 this TCT gearbox will be offered with all inline-4 and V6 engines from Fiat and Chrysler in North America. The aim is to have C-plus and D-segment cars like the Chrysler 200, V6-equipped Jeep models, and future Alfa Romeo Giulia lead the way with the TCT gearbox here.

But starting when? And with what vehicles? With Ford already offering dual-clutch transmissions in the Fiesta (with more to come), and Hyundai about to bet big on dual-clutch boxes next year, Chrysler is on pace to lag two years behind the market leaders. For a brand in Chrysler’s position, that’s a recipe for perennially playing catch-up on a crucial technology.

When Autoweek asks the R&D boss at an alt-drivetrain leader like Toyota what the future of its powertrain development looks like, one tends to hope for something revelatory in his answer. Instead, we get

With results from Audi’s driverless attempt at Pikes Peak certified, it seems that we have nothing to fear from the GPS-based autonomous drifting machine. Audi’s press release notes:

Overall, the Autonomous Audi TTS Pikes Peak completed the mountain course in 27 minutes, as verified by Pikes Peak International Hill Climb officials. No human rally driver has completed the course in fewer than 10 minutes, despite driving cars that produced more than 900 hp. The Autonomous Audi TTS Pikes Peak generates 265 hp. Race officials told researchers they would expect an expert race driver on the course to finish in around 17 minutes in a car similar to the TTS.

Take that robots! You may build cars better than humans, but you’ve still got a thing or two to learn about driving.

[UPDATE: the Stanford team writes in to remind us that the point of the exercise was to safely develop driver-assistance systems, and that the 27 minute time was ” just a measurement of our safety plan and the speed we set for the lead vehicle.” Call us insecure, but we’re still calling this a victory for H.Sapiens.]

A GM press release subtitled Engine Control Module Reliably Performs 125 Million Operations a Second reveals that

A 32-bit embedded processor with three megabytes of integrated flash memory gives the 2011 Buick Regal’s Ecotec 2.0L engine microcontroller the quickest throughput, or processing power, in the automotive industry.

For the Regal driver, this means more precise fuel delivery for the best-possible fuel economy, emissions and performance.

Our question: why can’t this processor work in Chevy’s truck marketing?

Science fiction author Charlie Stross recently penned a blog piece on the future impact of autonomously computer-driven cars. Let’s call them “robocars.” I’ve pondered this before and Stross’s post is the perfect jumping-off point for a discussion of the many issues standing between science fiction and the robocar future. Let’s take a look.

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The car business has endured a lot of bad news over the last several years, as finance-fueled sales crashed with the credit market, and automakers around the world scrambled for government aid. The so-called “Carmageddon” has touched everyone even remotely involved with the automotive industry, not to mention everyone who pays taxes, but from a strictly  consumer perspective, it hasn’t been all bad. Certainly the deals have been good, as programs like Cash For Clunkers and the wind-down of several brands have helped savvy shoppers find some of the best deals in a long time. So here’s the reality check: according to Booz & Co.’s Global Innovation 1000 study, spending on research and development by the auto sector was down $12b last year. That’s $12b that should have been spent making your car faster, smarter, safer, cleaner, better that’s no longer being spent. Still feeling untouched?

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This summer I had the pleasure of touring Volkswagen’s advanced research lab at an industrial park near Stanford University. VW is developing a number of advanced technologies at this Silicon Valley facility, including its autonomous driving systems and electric battery packs. But in one corner of the lab, VW techs have a driving simulator set up with cameras aimed at the driver’s face. Using these cameras, VW developers measure driver attention and focus, testing just how much the latest Google Maps-based navigation system distracts drivers, and whether a car could offer features designed to keep the driver’s attention on the road.

These are doubtless worthy goals, but this ad for the Hyundai Sonata Turbo made me wonder whether VW pays much attention to changes in facial features based on changes in performance. Surely the kick of a turbo at full boost focuses the driver away from the gadgets and gizmos that VW (and every other automaker) is trying to integrate into its vehicles, and reconnects them with the original automotive “killer app”: a compelling driving experience. Technology, it seems, is being used simply to integrate more technology while minimizing distraction. When will car companies start using that technology to assist their vehicles in providing a more engaging, emotionally-rewarding driving experience?

Notice a difference between these two pictures? No, not the fact that one is a sexy press shot and the other is a bush-league amateur snap. Both pictures show the 2011 Volkswagen Jetta, but one of them has a torsion beam rear axle, the other has a variation of the Golf’s multilink setup. One has a 2.5 liter blunt instrument of an engine and a slushbox, the other has a high-tech “twincharger” engine that won the International Engine Of The Year award two years running, mated to a dual-clutch ‘box. One has a nasty, plasticky interior, the other offers “higher quality materials and trim.” By now you’ve probably guessed that the less desirable of these two Jettas is the US version, and the fancy-pants version has just been announced for the European market…
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You know that something is a fad when A) it’s bubbling on the stock market or when B) snake-oil salesmen tout the newest revolution, and regular folks actually start believing them.We’re not quite there yet with “A)”, but check out what I call an exhibit for “B)”. (Read More…)

A week and a half ago, when asked about automaker plans to bring in-car access to social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook, Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood told Bloomberg

I’m absolutely opposed to all of that.That would be the biggest distraction of all. All of that is well beyond the idea that you’re really trying to avoid distracted driving.

Regardless of LaHood’s ongoing campaign to curb distracted driving, the government-owned General Motors is pushing ahead with plans to integrate voice-activated Facebook and Twitter updates into its Onstar system. Onstar CEO Chris Preuss takes on LaHood’s perspective on in-car Facebook updates in the Detroit News, arguing

OK, so the basic functionality of the Car & Driver/Chrysler “Txt U L8r” app is fine: receive a text message while you’re driving, and it will read it aloud and automatically reply that you are driving and cannot respond immediately. But the industry’s fundamental ambivalence towards distracted driving quickly rears its head in the form of a “paid upgrade” that allows voice-activated replies by the driver: distracted driving is not a problem to be solved, but a money-making opportunity to be exploited. As a result, the message that C&D and Chrysler send with this new app is “Texting while driving is bad, bad, bad… unless you shell out for our perfectly safe app.” Which, not to put too fine a point on it, is bullshit.
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Given the rush to load up cars with the latest technological gadgets, you’d think that in-car television would have taken off by now. But Chrysler, the pioneer of in-car live TV, has sold only 850 units of its FLO TV system since it began offering the $629 (plus installation) MOPAR accessory last year, according to the Detroit News. And now Qualcomm is winding down its FLO TV business (likely due to low sales, reports the LAT), leaving Chrysler with only the Sirius TV subscription service to offer consumers who want live TV in their Grand Caravan. Chrysler is