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Filed under: Wagon, Paris Motor Show, Saab, Electric, Luxury

Saab 9-3 ePower

Saab 9-3 ePower – Click above for high-res image gallery

Unlike so many other electric vehicles introduced at the Paris Motor Show and throughout the year, the Saab 9-3 ePower doesn’t look like its vanity plate should read “Buck Rogers,” and it isn’t powered by dark matter or black holes or Neptunian vapor. It’s a 9-3 SportCombi with a plug in the back. That’s all.

But that means a lot for Saab. The ePower is a testbed for a 70-car fleet that will be evaluated next year in Sweden in preparation for a production electric vehicle. The aim is a 120-mile range in a car that provides real-world wagon convenience. Up front is a 184-horsepower electric motor, 26 hp less than the ICE in the production 2.0T, powered by a 35 kW lithium-ion battery pack. That gets the estate from zero to 62 miles per hour in 8.5 seconds and on to a 90-mph top speed.

Trials in Sweden will put the air-cooled batteries’ 30-degree Celsius operating temperature to the test, which Saab claims is ten degrees colder than other battery packs can manage. The 70 families invited to drive the car over the next two years will put its other attributes to the test. If all goes well, Saab wants to turn the knowledge it gains into a high-performance electric vehicle. There’s more to know in the press release after the jump, and plenty of high-res images in the gallery below.

Gallery: Paris 2010: Saab e-Power

Continue reading Paris 2010: Saab 9-3 ePower signals one way for ward for the Swedes

Paris 2010: Saab 9-3 ePower signals one way for ward for the Swedes originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 01 Oct 2010 20:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: SUV, Government/Legal, Recalls, Safety, Mercedes-Benz

Mercedes-Benz G-Class – Click above for high-res image gallery

The 2002 through 2010 Mercedes-Benz G-Class is equipped with covers for the front turn signals – added for style as much as protection. Undoubtedly, many owners of the blocky SUV have never given the covers a thought, but the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has and it’s been deemed unworthy of Federal Standard 108.

If you’re wondering, that’s the standard that covers “lamps, reflective devices and associated equipment.” In this case, NHTSA claims that the cover could “impact over time the signal’s ability to meet the minimum requirements of FMVSS 108.” In other words, the cover could inhibit the visibility of the signal.

If you’re one of the 3,522 G-Class owners affected by this recall, you’ll be notified to bring your $100,000 off-roader to a Mercedes dealer, where they’ll install a new turn light unit that works better with the grill cover. Hit the jump to read over the NHTSA press release.

Gallery: Review: 2009 Mercedes-Benz G550

[Source: NHTSA]

Continue reading Mercedes-Benz recalls 3,500 G-Class SUVs over turn signals

Mercedes-Benz recalls 3,500 G-Class SUVs over turn signals originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 10 Aug 2010 18:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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