Detnews.com -- By Brian J. O'Connor

A clean diesel car can be good for the environment -- but will it end up cleaning out your wallet? With mileage that can be as much as one-third better than comparable gasoline engines -- hitting more than 40 mpg on the highway -- clean diesel engines can take a big bite out of your car's carbon footprint.

The new diesels are much improved over the models that appeared in the late 1980s, with lowered tailpipe emissions and quieter performance that refutes diesels' reputation as noisy stinkpots. But the premium cost of diesel models and diesel fuel mean they also can take a bite out of your wallet.

In many cases, it can take years for drivers to see real savings from the improved mileage of a diesel, notes John O'Dell, senior editor of the Green Car Advisor at Edmund  (read more)

wired.com/autopia -- There are some 1 billion cars on the planet, and when you get right down to it, they’re all essentially the same — a box on wheels propelled, more often than not, by an internal combustion engine. Get past the marketing and one’s as good as another.

There are a couple of sound designs that would last for ages. No car is perfect, but here are 10 that are damn close. They are designs that have stood the test of time, and if these 10 cars were the only 10 cars ever built, there would still be something for just about everyone.

We know you’re eager to get to the list and start flaming us. Before you do, bear this in mind: We aren’t saying these are the 10 damn-near perfect cars. You almost certainly have your suggestions that didn’t make the list.  (read more)

The Telegraph -- The Carbon Trust has announced it is working with the University of York to research how using microwave technology could turn garden and wood waste into biofuel.

Using microwaves, the waste is heated in the absence of oxygen through a process called pyrolysis.

The research will look at how this process could be used to produce a biofuel to blend with fossil fuel or use as a pure fuel.

According to the Carbon Trust, the carbon footprint of this new pyrolysis biofuel could potentially save 95 per cent of carbon compared to fossil fuels.  (read more)

Technology Review -- Natural gas may be the cleanest fossil fuel, but it can be an unnecessary pest when it's produced as waste from remote offshore oil wells. Brazilian state oil company Petrobras is fueling a race between two developers of modular chemical reactors that could turn this "associated gas" into synthetic crude.

U.K.-based Compact GTL will unveil a commercial partnership today with Sumitomo Precision Products, a Japanese industrial company with which Compact GTL is building a gas-to-liquid (GTL) pilot plant to be delivered to Petrobras by this summer. Nipping at Compact GTL's heels, meanwhile, is Columbus-based microreactor developer Velocys, which announced plans last month to build a pilot plant for Petrobras using its potentially more compact design.  (read more)

The Phoenix Business Journal -- The folks at Ford Motor Co. are singing a cheery tune as the blue oval company trumped rivals in sales in the U.S. and Canada last month.

So I checked in with a couple execs to see exactly what they are singing on their daily commute. More specifically, I asked for their favorite car songs, putting the kibosh on “Mustang Sally,” since that’s my favorite (ode to a 1966 GT fastback I wish I still had) and really just not a fair answer for Ford guys.

Mark Fields, executive vice president and president, Americas, for Ford is thinking Cadillac with “Back in Black” by AC/DC.  (read more)

Associated Press -- SAN DIEGO – A memo drafted for a congressional panel says that investigators with Toyota Motor Corp. and the federal government were unable to make a Prius speed out of control as its owner said it did on a California freeway, casting doubt on the driver's story.

The draft memo, obtained Saturday by The Associated Press, said the experts who examined and test drove the car could not replicate the problems James Sikes said he encountered.

Sikes, 61, called 911 on Monday to report losing control of his Prius as the hybrid reached speeds of 94 mph. A California Highway Patrol officer helped Sikes bring the vehicle to a safe stop on Interstate 8 near San Diego.  (read more)

Detnews.com -- Bryce G. Hoffman / The Detroit News

Ford Motor Co.'s latest internal employee survey shows morale is up sharply and employees' confidence in the company's future has reached an all-time high.

That is according to Ford's latest quarterly report card, a copy of which was obtained by The Detroit News.

It shows that 89 percent of employees have a positive outlook, compared to less than 55 percent in the middle of 2008. The survey was conducted in December.

"It's a very positive reflection of employee confidence in Ford," said spokeswoman Marcey Evans, who confirmed the authenticity of the report. "It reflects their confidence in our company and their confidence in our products."

The December results were 2 percentage points higher than the previous survey, conducted last June.

 (read more)

Businessweek.com -- By Leigh Phillips

The European Union is to surpass its target of 20 percent consumption of energy from renewable sources by 2020, according to national forecasts submitted to the European Commission.

The EU executive found that overall, the bloc will achieve a 20.3 percent share of renewables in its energy mix.

According to a summary published on Thursday, 10 out of the EU's 27 member states are on track to exceed their national targets for renewable energy, with a further 12 set to meet their goals using domestic sources of renewable energy.

Excerpts

Europe's renewable energy directive sets an overall EU target of 20 percent and individual binding national targets. The bloc defines biofuels, biomass, wind, solar energy as well as hydro power as being renewable.

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Consumer Affairs -- Variety of factors credited for continued decline in highway deaths....  (read more)

The Wall Street Journal -- NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Crude oil and gold futures turned lower in morning trade Friday after a survey showed U.S. consumers were less optimistic in March. Crude oil for April delivery was down 2 cents at $82.09 a barrel in electronic trade. It earlier rose to a high of $83.20 a barrel, lifted by the International Energy Agency's forecast for higher global oil demand. Gold for April was down 1.10, or 0.1%, at $1,107.10 an ounce, off a morning high of $1,119.50 an ounce.  (read more)

Wall Street Journal -- Caterpillar Inc. is considering relocating some heavy-equipment overseas production to a new U.S. plant, part of a growing movement among manufacturers to bring more operations back home—a shift that will likely spark fierce competition among states for new manufacturing jobs.
The trend, known as onshoring or reshoring, is gaining momentum as a weak U.S. dollar makes it costlier to import products from overseas. Manufacturers are also counting on White House jobs incentives, as well as their ability to negotiate lower prices from U.S. suppliers who were hurt by the downturn and willing to bargain.
After a decade of rapid globalization, economists say companies are seeing disadvantages of offshore production, including shipping costs, complicated logistics, and quality issues.  (read more)

Detroit News -- General Motors Co. will keep making big trucks and SUVs because U.S. buyers demand them, but a major portion of them will be gas-electric hybrids in the near future, retiring Vice Chairman Bob Lutz said.

Lutz didn't give details, but said GM must apply hybrid technology to more vehicles in order to meet fuel-economy standards that will rise 40 percent to an average of 35 miles per gallon by 2020. The cost will likely be spread across GM's lineup, since charging individual buyers for a hybrid system would make vehicles too expensive. GM has seven hybrids in its lineup now.

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BBC News -- Prosecutors in California are suing Toyota, claiming the Japanese carmaker sold hundreds of thousands of vehicles that it knew had defects.
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The world's largest carmaker has recalled millions of vehicles because of problems accelerating and braking.
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Regulators have linked five deaths to crashes allegedly caused by accelerator problems and are investigating dozens of others.

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FORBES.COM -- By Christopher Helman

Occidental Petroleum is the untrendiest of the big oil companies. Unlike its bigger rivals, Oxy has no refineries and no interest in Canadian oil sands, liquefied natural gas or deepwater prospects. The Los Angeles company is unabashedly partial to oil, with 73% of its reserves in crude; most operators are more than half natural gas.

Now Occidental ( OXY - news - people ) is breaking ranks in another way, by upsetting the commonplace view that the days of "easy oil" in the U.S. are over. Last year Oxy announced a new find outside Bakersfield, in Kern County, Calif., which is shaping up to be the biggest onshore oil discovery the U.S. has seen in three decades. It likely holds more than 1 billion barrels of oil (and natural gas equivalents) that will be easy and  (read more)

SeekingAlpha.com -- By Wayne A. Corbitt

There is an intense debate raging surrounding the future direction of crude oil prices. The bulls say the upcoming driving season will spur demand once again to give crude a push higher. They also argue that demand from China and other countries with healthier economies than our own will continue to soak up supply.

The bears argue that China is in the process of draining excess liquidity to dampen speculation and apply the brakes on an overheating economy. The bears also contend that with our "mirage" economy is so weak (just watch the employment numbers) that demand in this country will tail off.

In cases such as these, the proper thing to do is to not get caught up in these fundamental debates but to look at what the market tells us.  (read more)

GasBuddy Blog -- As much as it stinks to hear, sometimes rising gasoline prices are partially our own fault. The fact that Americans are beginning to spend more shows that the economy is on the mend, and while Americans may be buying more food or clothes, they're also making more trips to the store, the mall, etc. The one product letting them get there is gasoline. We can directly tie increased shopping purchases and retail sales increases to gasoline demand. The more people are purchasing, the more gasoline they're undoubtedly using to get to stores or to the mall.

February's retail sales report showed definite signs of people beginning to open their wallets more for items they want, but that also means they should prepare to pay more at the pump...  (read more)

Domestic Fuel -- When discussing indirect land use it brings a popular saying to mind: If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it, does it still make a sound? Only in this situation the saying should be modified as follows: If a tree is cut down in a rainforest in Brazil to sell wood, should corn ethanol’s carbon footprint go up? Anyone with an ounce of commonsense would say no.  (read more)

Central Valley Business Times -- Gasoline prices have increased for the third week in a row in California, according to two price surveys Friday.

“Prices are typically on the upswing at this time of year because demand is usually picking up from the slower winter months, and because refineries are beginning the switchover to producing the more-expensive ‘summer blend’ of gasoline that must be sold by all gas stations beginning April 1 to satisfy state air quality requirements,” Jeffrey Spring, a spokesman for the Automobile Club of Southern California.

Here are Central Valley market averages on March 12, driving from south to north, as reported by the American Automobile Association with last week’s (March 5) averages in parentheses and [Feb. 26] prices in brackets:  (read more)

Reuters -- Coming not so soon and probably not to a house near you is the home solar hydrogen refueling station -- Honda Motor Co's latest idea in its drive to make hydrogen the fuel of choice for zero emission cars.

The Japanese auto giant believes hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles offer the best long-term alternative to fossil fuels and the company showed on Friday a refueling breakthrough that it says points to a home version down the road.

Most major automakers have spent billions of dollars in researching hydrogen-powered fuel cells, tempted by the idea of a car that uses no gasoline and emits only water vapor. But Honda is widely seen as the hydrogen leader, while others like General Motors put more effort into battery-powered electric vehicles like the upcoming Volt.  (read more)

MSNBC -- Predicting the end of oil has proven tricky and often controversial, but Kuwaiti scientists now say that global oil production will peak in 2014.

Their work represents an updated version of the famous Hubbert model, which correctly predicted in 1956 that U.S. oil reserves would peak within 20 years. Many researchers have since tried using the model to predict when worldwide oil production might peak.

Some have said production already peaked. One earlier model by Swedish researchers suggested that oil would peak sometime between 2008 and 2018. And other researchers have argued there are decades to go before oil production goes into irreversible decline. The only thing they all agree on: Oil is a finite and very valuable resource.

 (read more)

Detroit News -- I've gotten tired of writing about the next good Hyundai.

And according to the late night profanity-laced messages left on my voice mail, so have Detroit readers.

So let's just stop acting surprised every time Hyundai rolls out an impressive car or crossover. This is a quality operation and its lineup is going to continue to improve. (For those keeping score, I also say the same thing about Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Co.)

The next piece of evidence: the 2011 Hyundai Sonata.

In the past, Hyundai was seen as the lower-priced alternative. Many consumers never considered it because they would drone methodically, "must buy another Camry" with the same appreciation for their car as their washing machine.
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forbes.com -- RICHMOND, Va. -- Gov. Bob McDonnell signed into law Wednesday offshore drilling legislation intended to realize his goal of making Virginia the East Coast's energy superpower.

The bills supporting offshore oil and gas exploration and directing royalties from drilling back to Virginia each hinge on actions by the federal government and Congress.

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar is expected to announce his decision soon whether the government will move forward with the sale of oil and gas leases in a triangular tract 50 miles off of the Virginia coast. The 2.9 million acres has an estimated 130 million barrels of oil and 1.1 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

McDonnell said the bill backing offshore exploration is intended to signal to Salazar the state's official endorsement of

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New York Times - Green Inc. -- HOUSTON -- Renewable energy is being praised in Washington, but it is generating snickers here in the nation's traditional energy capital, where oil, gas and utility leaders are gathered for a major industry conference.

Leaders of two of the world's largest oil and gas companies used their addresses at CERAWeek, a sprawling conference sponsored by energy analysis firm IHS Cambridge Energy Research Associates, to warn against unbridled optimism about wind and solar energy. Khalid Al-Falih, president and CEO of Saudi Aramco, deemed overreliance on renewable power dangerous, while ConocoPhillips Chairman James Mulva employed sarcasm to compare renewable boosters to those who won't acknowledge climate change.

"We must overcome the opposition of the 'hydrocarbon deniers,'"  (read more)

GasBuddy Blog -- So how much impact did the recession make on oil demand? Looking at the figures, the recession that began in late 2008 easily dwarfed the economic slowdown after September 11, 2001. In fact, I had to go back to 1999 to find the last month that saw lower demand numbers than what we saw at the start of the 2008 recession, and demand still has not recovered.

September 2008 is when banks went into crisis, Wall Street panicked, and the recession really began. Oil demand (and thus supply) plummeted in September 2008, dropping to 535.16 million barrels, a number not seen since February 1999. It's important to note that February is routinely a month of poor demand, so if we exclude that month, one must go back to July 1995 to see a comparable...  (read more)

Associated Press -- NEW YORK – For the want of a better two-second picture of a tachometer, ABC News has called into question its reporting on acceleration problems with Toyota vehicles.

The network's handling of a Feb. 22 "World News" story about potential problems with computer systems in Toyotas has created ethical questions and intensified bitter feelings the besieged automaker already had toward ABC.

ABC has admitted to a misjudgment and swapped out the brief dashboard video in its report, which continues to be available online. Its story illustrated a report by David Gilbert, a Southern Illinois University professor who suggested that a design flaw in Toyotas might leave a short-circuit that could cause sudden acceleration undetected by the car's computer system.  (read more)