This Automotive Podcast Is Sucking Up the Great Cars at The New York Auto Show

The automotive world has converged on New York this week for the auto show and we go through some of the interesting and surprising new models and refreshes. David's pick is for a vehicle that totally sucks, far more than this minivan.

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Some of those new models will engender loyalty, but right now Ford is garnering the greatest loyalty from existing owners. That kind of loyalty may be pushing people to finance their new-car purchases for as long as 72-months, a once unheard of loan length.

Cadillac's striking CTS from the
 NY Auto Show via Autoblog 

More than 85% of Americans rely on their cars to commute to work and the AAA offers their picks for the best commuter cars.

Honda has a brilliant app idea to get drivers to pay attention to their style of driving so that they don't cause congestion. The NHTSA has a far less inspired app.

Speaking of inspiration, a British inventor has created an air car, that is one that runs on air. But not very far.

Finally, moving to air travel, soon you may be allowed to use electronic devices to distract yourself from those stressful moments during takeoff and landing.

This Automotive Podcast Lost Its SmartKey at the In-Home Car Wash

The economy is coming back and car sales continue to hum along, with predictions for March sales looking good. One group of buyers, those between 24-34, are changing their preference from mostly Japanese brands to more Korean and American brands.

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Those young people are usually the most expensive to insure, and we look at the most and least expensive states for car insurance. One factor affecting insurance costs: lawyers. Insurance costs might be going up in Nevada, where some questionable folks are staging scam car crashes.

The government hoped to make electric cars safer for pedestrians, but car makers are saying the volume they want on the safety sound is too loud. In other electric and hybrid car news, the Mayo Clinic found they won't affect pacemakers.

Don't leave the car without it. via MSN

Someone on the Secret Service is probably having a heart attack after the wrong type of fuel led to a breakdown of President Obama's limousine.

Fuel savings is a big deal for big trucks and fleets, and now some are considering natural gas as a potential fuel, while others are working to make big rigs lighter and more efficient.

While this home car wash won't save much money, it is pretty cool. Audi's new super LED headlights are hot, so hot they are illegal in the U.S. Finally, keyless entry for cars is convenient, but also has the potential for other follies.

This Automotive Podcast Is Not Just a Cute Concept

It's time for the Detroit auto show where car makers unveil their next new models, inspiring designs and  radical concepts. We run through some of the most significant and sexy vehicles in the show, including the Chevrolet C7 Corvette, VW CrossBlue, Hyundai HCD-14, among many others.

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While Autoblog does a great job of obsessively covering the show, our old friend Joe White does a great job of asking Build It or Bag It?

Ford, which didn't have a bunch of big reveals at the show, is doing a great job of keeping its customers loyal to the brand.

There has been an increase in the debate about moving from a gas tax to a mileage tax and David makes an impassioned argument that it's too soon and there are too many infrastructure improvements and repairs needed to make that change.

Some day in the future there will be enough electric and alternative vehicles, especially if the prices drop like they did for the Nissan Leaf this year. But that day is probably still many years away.

Finally, a judge ruled that corporations aren't people enough to qualify for the HOV lane.

With Two Billion Vehicles We Need More Automotive Podcasts Like This

The age of the U.S. auto fleet is at its highest level ever, and that makes Ford's marketing chief think that sales will continue to be strong, especially as shoppers see how much better and fuel-efficient new vehicles have become.

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If those sales do keep increasing, the world will end up with more than 2 billion vehicles in 2035, twice as many as today.

Los Angeles is perhaps the center of car culture in the U.S., so the L.A. Auto Show has become a place where car makers show off some very cool designs and significant new models. This year the Koreans and the Japanese dominated, with Mazda, Hyundai, Kia, Subaru and Toyota all revealing new models or cool concepts. We review the action, and recap my trip to the Seattle auto show.

A car full of the future.

One of the most significant vehicles in L.A. was the all-electric Chevrolet Spark, which also features integration with Apple's Siri. That makes Mathew wonder why Apple isn't making car infotainment systems yet.

Beyond entertainment, the next thing that auto electronics will do is tell you when you are tense and ask you to chill out. Toyota hopes some of its new technologies will prevent drivers from doing unintended things.

Finally, would you like a gas station at your house? If you have a natural-gas vehicle that may be possible and affordable.

Rest Assured, This Podcast Won't Save Your Life, But It Will Be Entertaining

Obama has called for the government to start buying only alternative-fuel vehicles starting in 2015 as part of an effort to reduct overseas oil imports by a third by 2025. We agree that this is a good idea. What do you think?

Speed cameras stink, even in Australia.

Hyundai make a big splash two years ago by offering to take back cars from buyers who lose their jobs. That was at the beginning of the Korean car company's recent surge. With the economy rebounding, Hyundai has decided to end the offer, and only 350 people took advantage of the offer.

Telsa wants its day in court with Top Gear. The electric-car maker is suing the U.K. car show for showing the company's Roadster car running out of electricity and slowing to a halt in a race.

Another legal snarl is happening in South Carolina where a greedy town has set up speed cameras on I-95 and is mailing drivers tickets.

GM's OnStar and Chevrolet made a splash by touting Facebook integration in the new Cruze, but a NYTimes reviewer said the system isn't ready to be liked because of text-to-speech limitations.

Men may like GPS systems, but they don't trust them according to a U.K. study.

You may not want to trust rental-car companies. NHTSA is investigating whether they are keeping up with vehicle recalls.

Finally, a truck driver ruined his safe-driving record but saved his own life in a crash recently.

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