NYT/Reuters: Japan Makes Plans for Greener Cars, Batteries

[DeepModem Mom]

Japan Makes Plans for Greener Cars, Batteries
By REUTERS
Published: August 28, 2006

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan has drawn up an action plan to spearhead efforts to develop the next generation of more environmentally friendly vehicles and batteries to help reduce its reliance on oil.

Under the plan, Japan aims to foster the introduction of state-of-the-art environmentally friendly vehicles in stages, a panel set up by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said in a report on Monday.

The government should also set up a project to develop next-generation batteries to power such automobiles, through cooperation with local battery makers and research institutes, it said. It also plans to offer incentives to make such vehicles widespread in Japan, in addition to developing infrastructure, it added.vehicles capable of running about 80 kilometers (50 miles) per charge, as well as 30 percent more fuel-efficient hybrid vehicles, the panel said.

The panel also hoped that after 2030 local car makers would start full-scale mass production of electric vehicles, powered by batteries manufactured at a 40th of the cost of current versions.

Japan, which has a target of 50,000 fuel-cell vehicles on Japanese roads in 2010, aims to raise the number of such vehicles in use to 5 million by 2020....

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/technology/tech-energy-japan-cars.html?_r=1&oref=login

[soothsayer]

1. Thank god someone is kicking this off! Hanging onto fossil

fuels and poor mileage performace will finally be the death of the lazy american automagnates---unless they get with it.

[w4rma]

2. More innovations that could have been done in America. Oh well. (nt)

[Julius Civitatus]

3. Meanwhile, Detroit releases a new batch of gass-guzzling SUVs

Nice going, American auto industry!

http://suvworld.tenmagazines.com/tenarticle.asp?aid=2829&sid=9

http://suvworld.tenmagazines.com/tenarticle.asp?aid=2694&sid=9

[MrPrax]

4. They will bury us...

Both Japan and China have seen the light -- this is the way of the future and they are getting in on the ground floor. We wil still be working on proof of concepts that meet the approval of stock brokers, while they are in their third generation dominating the future.

Imagine if our governments got tough and mandated these changes -- companies like Ford might be in a better position today if they were FORCED to make this inevitable transtition.

But we insist that our oligarchies are visionary and embody 'human nature' so we'll never move beyond 19th century mercantile principles.

[Bonobo]

5. Japan takes a long time to change directions but when it does so...kaboom!

Generally, the above is true. But when Japanese society really decides to make a change, it is on a large, widespread scale (think 95% and up).

So this could be very exciting and groundbreaking.

[truthisfreedom]

8. erm... hopefully that "kaboom" isn't the sound of their batteries 'splodin

with the rash of laptops having problems, i'm getting a little more nervous about battery technology in general. storing so much energy in a small space has its risks!

[Lydia Leftcoast]

6. And with their terrific intercity rail and transit systems, they could

get along without cars far better than we could.

Most DUers probably don't know that Tokyo is STILL building new routes on its subway system.

[donkeyotay]

7. Go see "Who Killed the Electric Car"

A documentary on why our government is as broken as our so-called free market. We could be commuting to work in EV1's now ... but oh, no. That would have been bad for bidness - you know, the same schmucks occupying the WH.

Really, if you are not sufficiently pissed off, see the movie.

[ConcernedCanuk]

9. "bad for bidness - you know, the same schmucks occupying the WH."

.
.
.

"In an effort to unravel this murder mystery, the film takes us back in time to 1990 when California was faced with so much pollution that school days were periodically cancelled due to smog.

That's when California's Zero Emissions Mandate was born - a mandate forcing 2 per cent of California's vehicles to be emission free by 1998, and 10 per cent by 2003. Inspired by California's mandate, GM launched the EV-1: a sleek looking, Jag-like electric car that had no problems accelerating, and had a battery that could not only be recharged at home but had enough juice to satisfy most commuters.

But it wasn't meant to be. Someone somewhere realized that these life-saving machines were going to be too popular. In a bizarre form of corporate cannibalism, GM ate its own young. It sabotaged its advertising, took back all the cars (every last one of them), and destroyed its assembly plants - during this period it also bought the rights to mass-produce the gas-guzzling Hummer

/snip/

"Plainly put, no one really wanted the electric car to succeed. How's that for a sad commentary on humankind?"

MORE


Sad indeed - Korprate GREED is what it is -

plain and simple IMO

(sigh)

[hermetic]

10. I've been buying japanese cars

for the past 20 years, and I used to get a lot of shit for it. "Buy American, not rice burners" They always got better mileage though and were easier to work on. And I sure am loving my Toyota these days. Heh!