Google engineers have shed light on some of the unique challenges in refining technology for self-driving cars.
After encountering trouble smoothly operating the cars in certain situations, such as four-way stops, the team has found that the management software must be programmed to behave more like a human driver than a robot.

“We found that we actually need to be — not aggressive — but assertive,” Nathaniel Fairfield, a technical leader involved in software development for the cars, told the San Jose Mercury News. “If you’re always yielding and conservative, basically everybody will just stomp on you all day.”

Engineers are also investigating how the cars can react in other scenarios that commonly involve body language or gestures by human drivers, posing additional challenges for a car that may not be capable of interpreting the waving hand of another motorist.

The report suggests Google is exploring driving strategies that are not quite aligned with California driving guidelines. On the highway, the cars are said to have been reprogrammed to reduce the following distance behind vehicles further ahead — consistent with most other drivers, but not with the state’s “three-second rule” that California recommends.

“If you follow too closely and another driver ‘cuts’ in front of you, just take your foot off the gas,” the California Driver Handbook says.

The company found that other drivers were dangerously cutting into the wide gap left between the self-driving car and the next vehicle ahead. Slowing down every time a car pulls into the 100-yard gap on a busy 70-mph highway can quickly bring the car into conflict with minimum-speed laws, suggesting Google is attempting to find a realistic compromise between two laws that are enforced subjectively by law enforcement.

The self-driving cars have already completed more than 700,000 miles around Google’s home town of Mountain View. The vehicles currently require extremely detailed maps of every road, however the company is working to make the technology ready for wider adoption as early as 2017.

Ford has released its fourth teaser video for an upcoming performance-focused model that will be unveiled ahead of the Los Angeles Auto Show.
The latest segment shows even more closeup shots of the front bumper, grille and other elements. The last few seconds show a complete silhouette of the front end, shrouded in fog.

“When you look at the front end, and the nose, and what we’ve done with the hood and the front-end styling, it just says to you ‘I’m mean, I’m raw and I want to go,’” says Ford executive VP Joe Hinrichs.

Taken together, all four teasers suggest Ford is ready to unveil a new high-performance Mustang. The timing aligns with rumors of a new Shelby GT350 build that is believed to be ready for production, likely with a 5.2-liter naturally-aspirated V8 under the hood.

The fifth video in the series promises to fully reveal the new model on November 17.

British sports car maker Lotus has confirmed plans to unveil a heavily revised version of its Evora at the Geneva Motor Show next March.
Lotus CEO Jean-Marc Gales revealed the news in an interview with Autocar. Specific details weren’t discussed, but the new Evora will boast about 15 percent more power and be stripped of some weight. The car will also feature enhanced styling both inside and out.

The new Evora is expected to be U.S.-legal. The last-generation of the car was sold under a temporary exemption, which expired for the new model year.

In addition to the update, Lotus is also planning a high-performance Cup version of the new Evora. That model will shed even more weight and could arrive with a few more ponies under the hood.

Though farther off, Lotus is still eying a sporty crossover model that could help boost the company’s annual sales from today’s 2,000 units to around 10,000 units.

General Motors has outlined the rigorous safety tests that are designed to verify the safety of compressed natural-gas cylinders used in the bi-fuel Chevrolet Impala.
The company claims to have gone above and beyond industry standards and federally-mandated test requirements, ensuring tank integrity even in extreme situations.

The CNG cylinder has been placed a few inches above an 800-degree fire to test the pressure-release valves. Engineers also added fires in the trunk and back seat for additional verification, with tests completed at two different fuel levels.

The penetration trial requires the tank to be filled to its service pressure of 3,600 PSI and shot with a 7.62mm armor-piercing bullet. The tank is not designed to deflect a bullet from an AK-47, but the projectile must only pass through one side of the tank without exiting the other side or causing the cylinder to completely rupture.

A series of front-, rear- and side-impact crash tests put to test GM’s overall vehicle design and sheet-metal barrier plates located around the tank. The company also fills the tank 15,000 times to ensure long-term structural integrity, while hydrostatic bursting pressure must exceed 8,100 PSI.

“We designed this system for those ‘what if’ situations,” said Impala chief engineer Nichole Kraatz. “The customer shouldn’t even know it’s there. They shouldn’t even think about it. CNG should just be another fuel they use to power their vehicle.”

The CNG tank takes up some trunk space, but it provides an extra 150 miles of driving range before the car automatically switches to gasoline power.

Galpin Auto Sports has released a teaser image for a new car, known as the Rocket, that has been designed by Henrik Fisker.
The rough sketch shows sculpted lines, wide fenders and short windows, resembling several of the design elements Fisker embraced for the Karma. Air inlets in front of the rear fenders hint at brake-cooling ducts, while the overall form takes the shape of a fastback.

Unlike the Karma, the Rocket will be based on a Ford Mustang. The pony car has been reworked with a new carbon-fiber body kit and other modifications, which have not yet been fully detailed.

Galpin is the top Ford dealer in the world, with extensive experience customizing Mustangs and other models. A supercharged Mustang GT sat among the company’s SEMA builds, promising 725 horsepower and outfitted with plenty of carbon fiber. It is unclear if the Rocket will get similar under-the-hood upgrades.

Fisker and Galpin are promoting the Rocket as the “ultimate American muscle car,” to be unveiled next week at the Los Angeles Auto Show.