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.

It Might Cost Too Much to Insure This Flying Podcast

Old is new and new is new with March auto sales. Chrysler continued to storm back with a sales rebound, while sales climbers Hyundai and Kia continued to roll.

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Ford sales remain strong, and that might mean Alan Mulally's huge paycheck was worth it. But the auto maker is facing scrutiny for its rising fleet sales. One vehicle likely to be popular with fleets is the coming Ford Fusion which will have a stop-start option to save fuel.

In Japan, where car sales are surging, Honda is lagging rivals, which is also true in the U.S. market.

The DoubleBack would be popular in Seattle

While GM sales are not going gangbusters, the company is hiring workers, along with Ford and Chrysler, helping to push United Auto Workers membership up for the first time in a long time.

The New York auto show is breaking cover this week and one of the most interesting premiers is the Fisker Atlantic, a less expensive model to go with the Karma and featuring a similar extended-range electric power train.

The flying car will make its official debut in New York, but might not catch on, especially because insurance might be $60,000 a year.

Finally, the VW camper van/bus is extremely popular in the Pacific NorthWest and an U.K. company has figured out how to make it more spacious -- but only when it needs to be.