[Quietcars] Volvo with an eye towards safety.

[michael townsend]

In the second part of this article featured on Maryland Public Television's
MotorWeek, we will see that Volvo has an eye on safety as well as keeping
things green.  New details will follow, but I thought that I would share
this piece with readers who might be concerned with safety as it might
pertain to future offerings from this Swedish manufacturer. 

Mike T
Chevrolet Caprice PPV
Jessica Choksey
Keeping American highways safe is a full-time job, and for most law
enforcement officers,
their car is key to assuring that safety.
For decades Chevrolet was synonymous with high-powered, rear-wheel drive
police cruisers.
But the last Chevrolet Caprice fit for such duty retired in 1996, leaving
the job
of manning the roadways mostly to cross town rivals from Ford and Dodge.
But, for 2011, the Caprice Police Patrol Vehicle, or PPV, will be ready to
return
to the beat, albeit with a slightly foreign accent.
This modern full-size sedan will be imported from GM Australia's Holden
Division.
Using the same rear drive chassis design adapted to the Pontiac G8 and
Chevrolet
Camaro, the Caprice PPV will offer both V-8 and V-6 power, an extra large
back seat,
as well as an array of specialized equipment and features.
Not available to civilians, the Chevrolet Caprice PPV was developed
specifically
for police duty, using advice from law enforcement agencies to develop a
superior
vehicle.
And with such a long history of police cruisers, Chevy hopes its newest
patrol car
will prove to be a popular and effective crime fighting tool.
In another area of assurance, car maker Volvo is trying to stay ahead of the
curve
in electric car safety.
The Swedish manufacturer is conducting a wide-ranging investigation of
possible safety
scenarios for cars with hybrid electric and pure electric powertrains.
Through computer modeling, real time crash testing, and using Volvo's
massive safety
data base, Volvo is looking at everything from how large battery packs might
endanger
occupants in a collision, to how the added battery weight might affect the
car's
ability to absorb crash energy.
The results of Volvo's safety research will directly impact future models
such as
an already announced plug-in diesel-electric hybrid due in 2012. And that's
it for
this week's MotorNews.
http://www.mpt.org/motorweek/motornews.shtml

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Mike Townsend and Seeing Eye dog Brent
Dunellen, New Jersey  08812
emails:  mrtownsend at optonline.net; 
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