The culmination of a carbon emissions reduction effort, a suit designed to simulate drugged driving, compost as power, and a virtual look at the owner's manual were among the items being promoted by automakers recently.

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[naviga:li]Chevrolet says it has met a goal it set for itself in 2010 to launch community-based efforts to prevent 8 million metric tons of carbon dioxide from being released into the atmosphere. The company supported 38 conservation projects in 29 states, including efforts to reduce truckers' idling time and heat a hospital with methane from a landfill. Chevrolet also introduced its electric Volt model in 2010, and owners of this vehicle have covered an estimated 700 million miles in the past five years. The company has chosen to retire the carbon credits it earned through these initiatives rather than apply them to offset emissions from its vehicles or their production.[/naviga:li]

[naviga:li]Toyota is also seeking to reduce its carbon emissions by using methane gas. On Monday, the company began using methane produced by decomposing refuse at the Central Kentucky Landfill to produce electricity for its manufacturing plant in Georgetown, Ky. The system includes a methane collection apparatus at the landfill, a 6.5-mile transmission line, and a generator at the plant. Toyota recently announced a goal to eliminate carbon emissions from its manufacturing plants and vehicles by 2050 through steps such as alternative energy use and making its fuel cell patents available to other automakers.[/naviga:li]

[naviga:li]Ford plans to use a "Drugged Driving Suit" in its young driver program—Driving Skills For Life—to simulate the effect of driving under the influence of substances such as marijuana, cocaine, and heroin. The suit, developed in association with the Meyer-Hentschel Institute in Germany, is designed to inhibit the wearer's vision, mobility, and coordination. Features include weights and bandages to limit arm and neck movement, tremor generators to make the wearer's hands shake, headphones to play disorienting background noises, and goggles to create tunnel vision and blurred vision. The Governors Highway Safety Association reported in September that 40 percent of fatally injured drivers tested positive for drugs in the most recently available national data.[/naviga:li]

[naviga:li]Hyundai has introduced a "Virtual Guide" app later this year to let drivers use their smartphones and tablets to reference an owner's manual. The app includes information on the vehicle's features, recommended maintenance schedules, 82 how-to videos, and more than 50 informational guides. The app currently applies to the 2015 Sonata, and the automaker plans to expand it to additional models in the future.[/naviga:li]

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