At the recent Convergence Conference held at the Cobo Center in Detroit, General Motors Corp., through luxury brand Cadillac, demonstrated a technology that can revolutionize vehicle safety in the future – vehicle to vehicle communication technology or V2V. This V2V system will enable a vehicle to detect the position and movement of other vehicles on the road, even up to a quarter of a mile away. In effect, V2V equipped cars communicate their relative positions to each other.

A V2V-equipped vehicle can anticipate and react to whatever driving situations there are on the road. It will warn the driver through chimes, visual icons and seat vibrations once it detects any potential collision. If the driver fails to respond to these signals, the vehicle can bring itself to a safe stop, thus avoiding a collision. “V2V technology gives drivers a sixth sense to know what’s going on around them to help avoid accidents and improve traffic flow,” says Larry Burns, GM vice president of research & development and planning.

Cadillac’s all new 2008 CTS has fed the automotive rumor mill ever since it was announced. In fact, the 2008 CTS is one of the most photographed prototypes of the year. The hype surrounding this new vehicle is not surprising, since the new CTS is the heir of a legendary and award-winning luxury car. Now it is confirmed that the new CTS will have its world premiere at the 2007 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. The new CTS will then be available to American buyers by late summer of 2007.

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Do you know what your favorite Hollywood Stars have been seen driving? Forbes.com recently featured a list of luxury cars that America’s celebrities own. With tons of money to burn, it’s not a surprise that the list is a veritable showcase of some of the most expensive cars today: with hybrid and horsepower as the main trends. The almost half a million price tag of the Mercedes Benz SLR Mclaren is no big deal for Britney Spears. Paris Hilton drives a Bentley Continental GT priced at $170,000. Meanwhile, superstars Julia Roberts and Leonardo DiCaprio have opted for gas/electric hybrids such as the Toyota Prius, even though they can afford much more expensive cars. Here’s a list of some of the cars of the stars.

Adaptive Cruise Control is one of the most advanced innovations in automotive technology today, probably a precursor to fully automated travel. A number of luxury vehicles offer ACC. Mercedes Benz was the first to offer ACC, called the Distronic system. Other automakers followed suit, such as Lexus’ with its Dynamic Laser Cruise Control, Acura, Audi, Nissan, Volkswagen, BMW, Infiniti, Cadillac, Toyota and Jaguar.

Adaptive cruise control uses either radar or lasers that signal the car to slow down if it gets too close to another car on the road and accelerate again if the traffic allows it. AAC promises to reduce rear-end collisions in heavy traffic as well as reduce fuel consumption. ACC can also handle twice or thrice today’s traffic.

Among the models with Adaptive Cruise Control, the Acura RL’s has a collision mitigating braking system. Some Infiniti models are equipped with sensors and cameras that read the lane markers and alert the drivers when crossing into another lane. Meanwhile, sensors in the Audi Q7 monitor blind spots.

Luxury automaker Lexus took home AutoPacific’s 2006 Vehicle Satisfaction Rating for Top Brand on account of the solid performance of its LS 430 premium luxury car and excellent ratings of other models in its lineup. Meanwhile, Lincoln Navigator Luxury SUV owners were the most satisfied with their vehicle, while the Hyundai Azera was the highest rated car. The auto consulting firm’s Vehicle Satisfaction Awards aims to objectively gauge owner satisfaction with their new car or light truck. Six automakers were honored in eighteen Vehicle Satisfaction categories. The results were calculated according to owner satisfaction in different areas including vehicle operation, comfort, and safety. This year’s top performers are the following:

Top Brand: Lexus

Top Passenger Cars:

Premium Luxury Ca: Lexus LS
Entry Luxury Car: Cadillac CTS
Luxury/Large Car: Hyundai Azera
Premium Mid-Size Car: Volkswagen Passat
Mid-Size Car: Mercury Milan
Image Compact Car: MINI Cooper
Compact Car: Honda Civic
Sports Car: Chevrolet Corvette
Sporty Car: Acura RSX

Top Light Trucks:

Large Light-Duty Pickup: Nissan Titan
Large Heavy-Duty Pickup: Chevrolet Silverado HD
Sport Utility Truck: Honda Ridgeline
Compact Pickup: Mitsubishi Raider
Luxury Sport Utility: Lincoln Navigator
Large Sport Utility: Nissan Armada
Premium Mid-Size Sport Utility: Mitsubishi Endeavor
Mid-Size Sport Utility: Hyundai Santa Fe
Compact Sport Utility: Suzuki Grand Vitara
Minivan: Honda Odyssey

Will cooled seats lead to less fuel consumption? The U.S. Department of Energy thinks so, says a news report from Wards Auto. The DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory reveals that by using these ventilated seats (like those found on the Cadillac STS), vehicle occupants can keep cool, thus reducing the need for air conditioning. Researchers estimate that if all vehicles had ventilated seats, there could be a 7.5% decrease in national air-conditioning use. They claim that this could save up to 522 million gallons of fuel in a year. In its study, the NREL used thermal comfort measuring tools and subjective tests to measure the thermal sensation with ventilated seats. The researches used ComfortCool seats from W.E.T Automotive Systems, the ones featured in the Cadillac STS.

For many years, automakers have created the identity of their vehicles through comprehensible, even prestigious, names. Most of these names have become legendary such as Mustang, Corvette, Explorer, Civic, DeVille, Camry and many more. Now, the trend of giving cars real names is starting to fade and automakers now favor letter combinations. However, the letters of the alphabet it seems is a precious resource that is increasingly becoming inadequate to satisfy the needs of the auto world.

This has caused a number of legal spats between some automakers. For instance, Acura and Lincoln almost went to court due to possible name infringement – Acura’s MDX (see above photo) and Lincoln’s MKX (see below photo) was apparently too similar for comfort. Fortunately, the two automakers settled before any lawsuit was filed. BMW and Infiniti also had a tiff over the letter ‘M’ which figures prominently in both BMW’s M-Series and Infiniti’s M35 and M45.

Meanwhile, this problem is not only between automakers. Cadillac had to change the XLR’s original name CLR because it was already used as a name for a bathroom cleaner. Also, Toyota’s MR2 had to be renamed to Coupe MR in France since MR2 when pronounced, sounds like a common vulgar expression there. Amongst the letters, X is quite popular among automakers while Y, P, U, and O are not. The letters S and Z are also in great demand.

The use of alphanumeric names is not exactly an innovation, Ford called his first car the Model A. Mercedes-Benz and BMW are also well-known for giving alphanumeric names to its vehicles such as S-Class, M-Class and the like. In the ‘90s, many automakers began to follow suit. All Lexus vehicles also have alphanumeric names. The reason why automakers are picking vague letters and numbers as vehicle names is to build up the image of the whole brand, not just that particular model. For example, Lincoln has been changing their vehicle names as part of its turnaround plan last year. “We were in a situation where people were saying, ‘We drive a Town Car,’ and we want people to say, ‘We drive a Lincoln,’ ” explains Sara Tatchio, a Lincoln spokeswoman.

What is Electronic Stability Control? Among the numerous technological innovations introduced in the automotive industry for the last few years, ESC is probably one of the most important as a lifesaver. Picture this: you’re cruising along in your SUV at normal speed then you suddenly enter a curve that is too extreme for the speed you are traveling, the rear of your vehicle begins to slide and spin out, you panic and try to grapple with the steering wheel to avert a potentially serious accident.

Without ESC, you would probably end up off the road, rolling over or even worse. But with ESC, the system automatically detects that your direction is changing more quickly than appropriate for your intended direction. It then briefly applies the right front brakes to alter the direction of the vehicle back to the right path.

How does ESC work? Electronic Stability Control is an evolution from antilock braking technology which uses speed sensors and independent braking for each wheel. An ESC system uses automatic braking of each wheel to prevent the heading from either changing to quickly (spinning out) or not quickly enough (plowing out). ESC helps keep the driver in control of the vehicle while under extreme maneuvers although it does not increase traction. It also uses the driver’s natural reaction of steering into the right direction.

A study conducted by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) revealed that having ESC significantly reduced single-vehicle crash risk in cars by 35% and 67% for SUVs. Results corroborated with another study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and indicated that widespread application of ESC can save more than 7,000 lives per year. Furthermore, the study says that if all US vehicles have ESC, this can prevent as many as 800,000 of the 2 million+ single vehicle crashes that happen every year.

Electronic Stability Control is currently being offered as either standard or optional in pricey cars and SUVs from the likes of Acura, Audi, BMW, Cadillac, Infiniti, Jaguar, Lexus, Mercedes and Saab. It is offered in different names such as Stabilitrak in GM cars and Vehicle Dynamics Integrated Management (VDIM) in Toyota and Lexus. (For a list of 2006 ESC equipped vehicles, visit this site.)

However, it is quite ironic that only 6 percent of car buyers opt for ESC. It is partly because ESC as an option is still quite expensive. It may also be the lack of knowledge or plain indifference why most car buyers usually ignore this potentially lifesaving technology. This is why most automakers still don’t offer ESC as standard equipment especially in mid to low priced vehicles.

In any case, if people can afford less-important luxuries such as a high tech audio system, they should have the foresight to spend more on a proven, life-saving technology such as ESC.

No less than His Airness, Michael Jordan is the newest proud owner of a supercharged Cadillac XLR-V. That’s not really anything extraordinary, considering that #23 has a lot of big bucks to spare and has a stable of forty vehicles. What’s surprising is that the Cadillac XLR-V is actually Jordan’s first American Car (as what he confided). Reports said that Cadillac general manager Jim Taylor himself had his team personally deliver the new roadster over to Jordan’s house.

Taylor sent over an entire semi-truck loaded with three XLR-Vs in different colors – Infra Red, Black Raven and Light Platinum so that the basketball legend can choose his favorite. Jordan chose the red one and plunked down a cool US$100,000 for the car. Cadillac also added a set of custom side sills in aluminum etched with Jordan’s signature.

The Cadillac XLR-V is an ultra-luxury, high performance roadster offering a bold and distinctive styling, superb and luxurious performance and personal amenities, top of the line technology and rear wheel drive performance. The roadster is powered by an all-new 4.4 liter version of the Northstar engine producing 443 HP at 6,400 rpm and 414 lb-ft. of torque at 3.900 rpm. The XLR-V comes with the new Hydra-Matic 6L80 six-speed automatic transmission, one of the most technologically advanced in the industry delivering smooth and precise performance.

The Cadillac XLR-V boasts of other luxurious features such as Zingana wood and ebony leather trims, soft leather seats with French stitching and suede fabric inserts, interior aluminum accents and others. Exterior-wise, the XLR-V features an attractive V-series mesh grill and additional badging, eighteen-inch wheels, four polished stainless steel exhaust tips and an aggressively sculpted hood. The XLR-V is Cadillac’s most expensive model to date.