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Detroit 3 to implement delayed unified towing standards for 2015

Car buyers have a responsibility to be well-informed consumers. That's not always a very simple task, but some guidelines are self-evident. If you live in a very snowy climate, you generally know a Ford Mustang or Chevrolet Camaro might not be as viable a vehicle choice as an all-wheel drive Explorer or Traverse, for example. If you want a fuel-efficient car, it's generally a good idea to know the difference between a diesel and a hybrid. But what if it's kind of tough to be an informed consumer? What if the information you need is more difficult to come by, or worse, based on different standards for each vehicle? Well, in that case, you might be a truck shopper. For years, customers of light-duty pickups have had to suffer through different ratings of towing capacities for each brand. For 2015 model year trucks, though, that will no longer be a problem. According to Automotive News, General Motors, Ford and Chrysler Group have announced that starting with next year's models, a common standard will be used to measure towing capacity. The Detroit Three will join Toyota, which adopted the Society of Automotive Engineers' so-called SAE J2807 standards way back in 2011. The standard was originally supposed to be in place for MY2013, but concerns that it would lower the overall stated capacity for trucks led Detroit automakers to pass. Ford originally passed, claiming it'd wait until its new F-150 was launched to adopt the new standards, leading GM and Ram to follow suit. Nissan, meanwhile, has said it will adopt the new standards as its vehicles are updated, meaning the company's next-generation Titan should adhere to the same tow ratings as its competitors. While the adoption of SAE J2807 will be helpful for light-duty customers, those interested in bigger trucks will still be left with differing standards. There is no sign of the new tow standards being adopted for the heavy-duty market.

Nissan Leaf sales double Chevy Volt to close out winning 2014

To close out the year, sales of the two most-popular plug-in vehicles in the US kept going in the direction that they had been all year. The Chevy Volt dropped and the Nissan Leaf had another record month. Sound familiar? The Volt sold 1,490 units in December, a year-to-year drop of 37.7 percent. For all of 2014, Volt sales were down 18.6 percent to just 18,805 (from 23,094 in 2013). On the Nissan side of the ledger, the Leaf sold 3,102 units, up 22.7 percent from the 2,529 sold in December 2013. For the year, Nissan sold 30,200 Leafs, up 33.6 percent from the 22,610 sold in 2013. A few other things to note: For every month in 2014, the Leaf sold more than it did for the same month in 2013. For the Volt, this was only true for three months (April, May and July). Funnily enough, the Volt sold exactly 1,478 units in both March 2013 and 2014. The Volt's 2014 total was lower than both 2013 and 2012, while the Leaf had its best year ever. There were three months in 2014 when people bought at least twice as many Leafs than bought a Volt (September, November, December). The Leaf outsold the Volt every month in 2014. The closest gap was 215 units, in February. The biggest was 1,612, in December. As you've most likely seen, GM is still busy teasing the new Volt, which will make its official debut at the Detroit Auto Show next week. We'll have a more in-depth green car sales post up soon. <iframe embedded="true" "="" scrolling="no" src="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1oIuH75vaSHaaplD4x6gLsYjSsiN4oGmez1T63eaYdhY/pubhtml?widget=true&headers=false" height="430"> Nissan celebrates 30,000 leaf sales in 2014, best year ever for sales of any plug-in vehicle NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Jan. 5, 2015) – Nissan, the world leader in electric vehicle sales, shattered yet another sales record with 30,200 LEAF vehicles sold in 2014, which is the first time any plug-in has sold more than 30,000 units in a single year. "Now in its fifth model year, Nissan LEAF is more popular than ever and continues to bring new buyers to Nissan," said Brendan Jones, director, Nissan Electric Vehicle Sales and Infrastructure. "From the beginning our vision was to bring electric vehicles to the mass market in a practical and fun-to-drive package, which is what makes Nissan LEAF the best-selling electric car in the world." Last month, Nissan sold 3,102 all-electric LEAFs, up 22.7 percent from the prior year and a December record.

Chevy preparing new Camaro ZL1 Convertible?

It's a given that when an automaker introduces a new performance model, it's only a matter of time before an even hotter variant arrives. The Ford Mustang begets the Shelby GT350 and the Dodge Challenger R/T spawns the SRT 392 and Hellcat. And for Chevrolet, that progression sees the Camaro SS evolve into the ZL1. That's probably what our spies have captured here. The convertible variant of GM's most powerful Camaro is betrayed not by its big, black wheels or quad exhaust tips – both of those items have been fitted to the far tamer 1LE in the past – but by its brakes. To put it simply, they're enormous. The old ZL1 had 14.6-inch rotors in front and 14.4-inchers in the back, with Brembo-branded six-piston calipers up front and four-piston binders at the rear. While the overall size of the calipers doesn't appear to have changed much, it looks like the rotors – especially in front – seem to take up a larger space inside the front wheels than in last year's model. Perhaps Chevy moved to a straight 15-inch rotor? It's difficult to discern any more from these images, though. Chevy did a fine job with the camouflage, making it difficult to pick out ZL1-specific body parts. From the rear spoiler to the front fascia to the side sills, each body piece looks like it's the same as the standard Camaro or is just completely obscured. If this is a Camaro ZL1, it seems like Chevy may have just stuffed the vital organs inside the body of more pedestrian droptop. According to our spies, it's unlikely that Chevy will mix things up under the hood. Expect the 6.2-liter, supercharged V8 from the Corvette Z06 and Cadillac CTS-V to move the ZL1 from 550 horsepower to around 640 ponies when it debuts for model year 2017. A six-speed manual transmission will be standard, while the Camaro's big brother will probably donate its eight-speed automatic. Related Video: Image Credit: Brian Williams / SpiedBilde Spy Photos Chevrolet Convertible Performance chevy camaro zl1