VEHICLE repair information aggregator Autodata has changed hands for £340 million ($A550.5m), sold to Texas-based conglomerate Solera Holdings that also owns smash repair software specialist Audatex plus a number of global automotive, home ownership and digital identity businesses. Solera chairman and CEO Tony Aquila recognised the fact vehicles are being driven longer than ever before … Continue reading AUTODATA ACQUIRED BY SOLERA HOLDINGS
The Expo is a great opportunity for VASA to raise its profile and strengthen ties among the automotive industry, engage with existing members and recruit new ones. SightGlass News readers are encouraged to attend the Expo and visit VASA representatives on stand T36. A number of VASA member companies and affiliated organisations will also be … Continue reading AFTERMARKET EXPO PREVIEW
SUMMER 2014-2015: PART 6 THE survey of air conditioning faults in 667 motor vehicles, including cars, trucks, tractors and heavy equipment done from 1 December 2014 to 31 March 2015 includes repairs and evaluations by CoolCar Air-Conditioning Centre, Hamilton (more background can be found in September 2015, November 2015, May 2016, August 2016 and December … Continue reading NZ AUTO-AC FIELD SURVEY
CHEMOURS has broken ground on its new R1234yf production plantwithin its Corpus Christi facility at Ingleside, Texas. The new factory will triple the company’s global production capacity for the low global warming potential automotive refrigerant and products on which it is based. Announcing the start of construction, Chemours president and CEO Mark Vergnano estimated that … Continue reading US YF PLANT
AUTOMOTIVE repairers in New Zealand will soon be able to purchase cylinders of R1234yf refrigerant, which has just received importation approval from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This is good news as the situation was beginning to become desperate, with reports of R1234yf-equipped cars starting to enter the country as early as 2014 and the … Continue reading NZ FINALLY GETS R1234YF
SHIPPING giant Maersk has ordered the first half of a planned 200 new refrigerated containers that are chilled with CO2 refrigerant using technology by Carrier Transicold. The announcement comes shortly after Danfoss published survey results revealing the vast majority of manufacturers and consultants in the United States commercial and industrial refrigeration sector now regard R744 … Continue reading CO2 REFRIGERATED CONTAINERS
THE European Commission (EC) has busted four car parts cartels, fining air conditioning and engine cooling component suppliers Behr, Calsonic, Denso, Panasonic, Sanden and Valeo a combined €155 million ($A218.5m). All accused suppliers agreed to settle the case, in which they were found to have “coordinated prices or markets, and exchanged sensitive information, for the … Continue reading CAR PARTS CARTEL
IN HYBRID and electric vehicles, there are high-voltage components required beyond the battery pack. In this article, we will explore the inverter. The inverter acts as a motor controller, in this case it supplies the alternating current (AC) power to the high-voltage air conditioning compressor (Fig.1). A computerised device, the inverter can switch direct current … Continue reading HYBRID POWER ELECTRONICS: WHAT ARE THEY?
CHINESE-OWNED British car brand MG has developed a new demister test to simulate the window fog caused by a wet dog. The company brought prototypes of its new GS SUV to Australia as part of a rigorous 1.2 million kilometre shakedown regime that exposed the car to 46-degree heat in Alice Springs and a deep … Continue reading NEW WET DOG TEST
NOT a motor show goes by without several electric or hybrid concept cars being revealed, many of which are designed to eliminate stereotypes that electrified cars are boring and promote the advantages high technology can bring to the everyday lives of motorists. While many of these show-ponies have forward-looking, futuristic designs and features, as many … Continue reading WATTS GOING ON AT OHM AND ABROAD
