Carmakers Go Green for L.A. Auto Show
LOS ANGELES, Nov. 30, 2006 — -- The auto companies are trying to put on a "green" face for The Los Angeles Auto Show opening here Friday, hoping to attract the attention of car buyers looking for fuel-efficient and environmentally cleaner vehicles.
Ford, General Motors, Chrysler and BMW are rolling out new gas-electric hybrids and hydrogen-fueled cars, not all of which will be available for the public to buy any time soon.
Much of what is happening here is image-building on the part of car companies that have fallen behind in the race for new technologies, according to Tom Libby of the marketing research firm J.D. Power & Associates.
"Right now, Toyota and Honda enjoy a very strong image in terms of environmentally friendly vehicles and the other manufacturers see that and they want to improve their images so they are considered in the same light as Toyota and Honda," Libby said.
Some analysts say the American car companies have lagged behind because they have been losing money in recent years and have nothing to put into research to develop alternative technologies.
But
"We must as a business necessity develop alternative sources of propulsion based on alternative sources of energy in order to meet the world's growing demand for out products," said General Motors chairman and CEO Rick Wagoner in a morning speech.
Wagoner's remarks reflected what may the industry-wide belief that no one knows for sure what will be the winning technologies of the future: gas, electric, hydrogen, ethanol or combinations of fuel systems.
"We believe the best way to power to automobile in the years to come is to do so with many different sources of energy," Wagoner said.
At this convention GM will be highlighting a hybrid GMC Yukon, the Saturn Vue sport utility and the Chevrolet Equinox fuel-cell driven car. Wagoner even promised the development of a bio-fuel burning Hummer, the gas-guzzling SUV originally developed for the military.
Among other cars featured:
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