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Volvo to develop self-driving cars for Uber

Volvo has signed a framework agreement with Uber, which will see the ride-sharing company purchase several thousand vehicles between 2019 and 2021. This non-exclusive agreement will enhance the strategic partnership that was announced between the two parties back in August 2016.

These vehicles will be based on Volvo’s fully modular platform that it calls Scalable Product Architecture (SPA). It serves as a base for current and future vehicles from the Swedish automaker. Currently, it underpins cars the like the S90 series and the new XC60 SUV.

Since its scalable, SPA can be used to develop a variety of different Volvos from a compact hatchback to a full-blown SUV. Volvo claims that it is one of the most advanced car architectures in the world, but Volkswagen employ a similar strategy with its own modular platform.

Volvo’s engineers are working closely with those from Uber to jointly develop the XC90 to serve in the ride-sharing service’s car fleet. These base vehicles will be fitted with the necessary safety, redundancy and autonomous-driving technologies that will enable Uber to offer its customers a fully autonomous ride sharing service.

“The automotive industry is being disrupted by technology, and Volvo Cars chooses to be an active part of that disruption,” said Håkan Samuelsson, President and Chief Executive of Volvo Cars. “Our aim is to be the supplier of choice for AD ride-sharing service providers globally. Today’s agreement with Uber is a primary example of that strategic direction.”

https://youtu.be/vu-WRUvUWog

Despite this, Volvo isn’t handing over the ‘keys to the kingdom’ to Uber, instead it will be developing its own independent autonomous-car strategy. This will be parallel and unrelated to that of Uber’s, with solid plans of introducing Volvo’s first fully autonomous car in 2021.

Toyota’s touching mobility inspired video

Toyota will air a touching yet inspiring short promotional film in the US on NBCSN during the Winter Olympic Trials with an Olympic and Paralympic message that delivers hope and breaks new ground for Toyota. It aims to encapsulate the Japanese automaker’s evolution from being an automotive company to a mobility one.

The 1 minute long clip depicts the resilience of the human spirit and its ability to overcome almost insurmountable problems with the help of cutting edge tech. Throughout the video, several of Toyota’s machines that include electric wheel chairs, automated robots, assisted prosthetics and micro cars, can be seen improving the daily lives of those with mobility issues.

This film has been created as part of the company’s eight-year global sponsorship of The Olympic and Paralympic Games. The theme of this particular video is ‘Mobility For All’, and highlights the mobility stories of Olympic and Paralympic athletes and other individuals.

A total of 15 athletes are part of ‘Mobility For All’, including Tatyana McFadden, the world’s leading wheelchair racer, Brad Snyder, American Paralympic swimmer and former captain of the U.S. Naval Academy swim and Rami Anis, a swimmer from Syria, part of the Refugee Olympic Team.

According to the automaker, the latest video will be part of an entire series of short films that will be aired globally throughout The Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in 2018. Each of them will based on inspirational stories and feature Toyota’s range of mobility products that include concepts and actual production vehicles.

Through them, Toyota wants people to know of its commitment to making the world a better place with the development of better mobility solutions. Like its rival Honda, the company is heavily invested in changing how we perceive personal transportation and revolutionize the concept to allow for a more sustainable future.

Honda wins big at KBB

Honda has bagged a number of new awards in North America, with the most notable of the lot being awarded to the 2018 Accord. It has been named Overall Best Buy of 2018 by Kelley Blue Book (KBB). It is one of 7 accolades that the Japanese automaker won from a total of 12 ‘Best Buy’ award categories.

According to the judges, the Accord bested the competition because it managed to outclass its rivals in all categories despite being considerably cheaper. Besides this, it also offers decent fuel consumption and features that offer the best bang for your buck.

The following is the full list of Honda vehicles that were recognized during the awards ceremony:

Overall Best Buy: 2018 Honda Accord
Mid-Size Car: 2018 Honda Accord
Small Car: 2018 Honda Civic
Electric/Hybrid Car: 2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid
Small SUV/Crossover: 2018 Honda CR-V
Midsize SUV/Crossover: 2018 Honda Pilot
Minivan: 2018 Honda Odyssey

Speaking of Honda’s latest achievements, Jeff Conrad, senior vice president of the Automobile Division of American Honda, said, “We’re exceptionally proud to have dominated this year’s Kelly Blue Book awards, which really reinforces our unique focus on individual car buyers and on delivering the best overall value.”

Honda’s reputation for building vehicles of decent quality with impressive reliability standards have won over many North American car buyers. Despite stiff competition from local and Japanese rivals, it still continues to win award after award.

Polestar to begin work on state-of-the-art factory

Polestar has started construction work on its new state-of-the-art production centre in Chengdu, China. The facility, once completed, will be the most environmentally-responsible car factory in China. It will also be one of the most efficient in the world, with a target to attain the Gold status in the LEED ratings (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design).

The automaker hopes to complete the work by mid-2018 to begin tooling installation and pre-production testing. Its a pretty tall order considering the amount of effort that is required to complete such a facility within the next 9 months.

Thomas Ingenlath, Chief Executive Officer of Polestar, said, “Following the successful launch of the new Polestar brand in October, construction of the new Polestar Production Centre is the next step in turning our plans into reality.”

“We are building a Production Centre that is a reflection of our brand. A facility that is modern, progressive, technically advanced and environmentally responsible. T he Polestar Production Centre will be an embodiment of the Polestar brand, ” he later added.

Once complete, the centre, which has been designed by Norwegian international award-winning architects, will be the birth place of the automaker’s first non-volvo production car, called the Polestar 1. Unveiled last month, the car is essentially a Grand Touring Coupe with a 600-bhp hybrid powertrain.

Polestar says that this car will be capable of covering 150km on pure electric power, which is impressive for a typical hybrid. This would effectively, allow the Polestar 1 to be driven on pure electric power for prolonged periods of time, and negating the need for petrol power.

But it won’t be the only car that will be made at the new facility, because Polestar has plans of producing several others that include a pure EV. Besides building cars, the facility will also house a customer experience centre and a test track that will enable potential customers to experience all that Polestar has to offer.

McLaren create thunder down under

McLaren hosted a special track day event for 21 of its luckiest customers in Australia. The event was held at the iconic Philip Island Circuit where participants got to experience the thrill of driving their cars flat-out in a controlled environment.

It also shines a spotlight on the automaker’s commitment to ensuring that customers are given opportunities to enjoy the ownership experience. Unlike others, McLaren doesn’t believe that their relationship with customers end as soon as the money exchanges hands. instead, they believe that it is forged by continued engagement between both parties.

The event mirrored other track day programmes held by the Woking based manufacturer in other areas of the world. participants were offered the chance to get behind the wheel of 29 other McLaren models to truly experience the entire range of its supercars.

George Biggs, Managing Director of Asia Pacific at McLaren Automotive, said, “This event marks the first ever McLaren owner’s day to take place in Australia. Every McLaren is built to be driven and enjoyed, hosting it here on the Philip Island Circuit provides the best opportunity for our owners to do so.”

“It is great to see a growing community of McLaren owners in Australia that enjoy sharing their passion for driving. Besides the Owner’s Day event, McLaren owners in Australia may look forward to more driving programmes in the near future as we definitely have an exciting line up of activities in 2018,” he later added.

McLaren enlisted the expertise of Kenny Brack, Indy Racing League Drivers Championship winner and Indy 500 champion, to train and offer tips to owners that might help boost their performance on track. Even owners who are adept at handling a Mclaren at its limits can learn a thing or two from an instructor and professional racer like Brack.

Brack was appointed as Test and Development Driver for McLaren Automotive in 2015. His insight and experience has played a part in strengthening McLaren’s three tier product range – Sports Series, Super Series, and Ultimate Series. He will also be responsible for ensuring that every new car that is produced, is worthy of being called a McLaren

SEAT deliver the Guardian Angel of cars

SEAT has produced one of the safest cars in the world with technology that rival that of certain volvos. Called the Leon Cristobal, the car is fitted with 19 innovative technologies that help keep drivers safe while on the road.

This particular Leon was named after St Christopher (San Cristobal in Spanish), the patron saint of travelers. It’s a fitting name considering that most of its features are designed to keep commutes as safe as possible.

The first feature of the lot is Drive-lock. This system works with a built-in breathalyzer that prevents drivers from driving off if a positive reading is given. A must for party animals, this piece of tech could reduce the number accidents caused by drink driving.

Then there’s the Eye Tracker, a system that monitors a driver’s eye lids to detect signs of drowsiness. It can work in tandem with Drive-coach, a personalized voice assistant that provides several different warnings that include the excessive speed warning.

A nice addition that we wished were made available across other hatchbacks, is the Display-mirror. Essentially, its a display system that receives input from a rear mounted camera for better all-round visibility. Even if the boot is stacked with items, rear visibility will not be impaired.

Inspired by aircraft safety, the Leon Cristobal is fitted with a Black box image and date recorder. It sends footage to a selected smartphone in the event of an accident. There’s even a parent mode here too. the Mentor app enables them to limited vehicle functionality when their overenthusiastic teen with limited driving experience gets behind the wheel.

The app allows parents to limit vehicle speed and monitor its location location at any given time. But the Pièce De Résistance, has to be the ‘Guardian Angel’ driving mode. Once activated, it allow for all 19 safety systems to work concurrently, ensuring that the car is driven safely and is under the control of a fully alert driver.

Introducing such systems may seem like a Godsend for many, but there will definitely be a select few, who will ignore them and instead prefer that natural selection take its course. If more vehicle manufacturers introduce such safety nets, they could contribute to the reduction in vehicle related accidents and fatalities.