2014 Hyundai Genesis Coupe 2.0t R-spec on 2040-cars

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Hyundai patenting speed bump detection

Often patents are more about solving a small, annoying problem than really taking on the big issues. Take Hyundai's recent filing for a system to detect speed bumps, for example. Other than teens with a fresh license and ground-scraping supercar drivers, no one really sees spotting these traffic-slowing devices as the bane of their existence. However, the Korean automaker is out to make driving just a little more convenient for everyone with this tech. The Hyundai patent combines several pieces of currently available technology in a new way. GPS, a camera, and multiple sensors identify an oncoming speed bump, and they then measure its height, width, and curvature. With that info, the software calculates the appropriate speed to drive over the hump. If drivers are going too fast, then a warning message tells them to slow down. The patent is a straightforward solution to a problem that doesn't seem to really exist for many drivers. However, while Hyundai makes no mention of this in the documents, this tech could be extremely useful for applications in autonomous vehicles. All the system would need is the additional ability to slow itself automatically, and the driverless car could potentially handle a speed bump just as well as a human.

2013 Hyundai Veloster Turbo: June 2013

There are an awful lot of good reasons to get into the Hyundai Veloster family and formula. This car looks good, is loaded out with tech and offers a great deal of practicality in a small form factor. One good reason not to consider a Veloster, at least if you're a city dweller or have primarily urban daily driving path, is the turbocharged 1.6-liter engine in the eponymous Veloster Turbo.
Two major factors kill the Veloster Turbo in terms of said city driving: turbo lag and fuel economy.
Two major factors kill the Veloster Turbo in terms of city driving: turbo lag and fuel economy.

Recharge Wrap-up: Tesla battery degradation graphed, Hyundai plans fuel cell hub in Korea

A man has created a graph of Tesla Model S battery degradation over time. Merijn Coumans of Holland is tracking the owner data gathered on from Model S owners in a single file and graphing it visually. Coumans continually updates the graph of drivers' maximum ranges to give a look at battery degradation over the life of the car. Coumans tracks mileage and even number of visits to Superchargers in his data. Tesla provides an eight-year battery guarantee regardless of mileage. Read more at the Steinbuch blog. US plug-in vehicle sales are expected to surpass 300,000 when the data is tallied at the end of this month. That is 30 percent of President Obama's goal of 1 million battery electric cars and plug-in hybrids by the end of 2015. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz admitted the US won't reach the goal, saying, "We're going to be a few years after the president's aspirational goal of the end of 2015, but I think that we are within a few years of reaching that goal." Green car analyst Alan Baum projects the 1 million EV milestone will be met in 2018. Read more at Hybrid Cars. Hyundai and the South Korean government plan to create a hub for fuel cell technologies. Hyundai and Kia will give up unused patents to automotive startups focused on fuel cells at a recently launched innovation center in Gwangju. "Hyundai Motor will offer substantial assistance in the whole process of corporate growth ranging from the development of ideas to industrialization to making inroads into global markets," says South Korea's President Park Geun-hye. Hyundai hopes this will make the city a center for hydrogen technology. Read more at Just Auto. Mayor Boris Johnson has approved a cycling superhighway for the city of London. Set to be built along the Thames embankment, the system of cycling lanes could help encourage more people to ride their bikes, reducing automotive traffic congestion and relieving pressure on other transit networks. Opponents are upset that the cycling highway will increase driving time across the city, and call cyclists a "loud minority," whose numbers doesn't justify the new lanes. Read more at Treehugger. Kansas and Nebraska are joining the challenge against the EPA's new ethanol emissions rules. The EPA's Moves2014 regulations seek to reduce automotive sulfur emissions by 60 percent, but, says Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt, the ethanol emissions measurement model is faulty and was adopted without public comment or review.