Fred Weisberger, president of the Aloha Region, Antique Automobile Club of America, will discuss the club and its events and activities at the monthly Auto Lunch Bunch at noon Monday at the Waikiki Yacht Club, 1599 Ala Moana Blvd.
On display will be Roy King’s 1929 Ford Model A Phaeton, Weisberger’s 1930 Cadillac Town Sedan and Gary Wild’s 1956 Ford Thunderbird.
To RSVP, contact Ed Kemper at 225-2965 or email him at edracers@aol.com. The cost is $18 for lunch, and the club accepts only credit cards.
Michigan senators ease rules for self-driving cars
LANSING, Mich. >> Michigan would no longer require that someone be inside a self-driving car while testing it on public roads under legislation passed unanimously Wednesday by the state Senate, where backers touted the measures as necessary to keep the U.S. auto industry’s home state ahead of the curve on rapidly advancing technology.
The expansive bills, which are on track for final legislative approval by year’s end and are supported by Republican Gov. Rick Snyder, would make Michigan a rare state to explicitly end a requirement that a researcher be present inside an autonomous test vehicle. The researcher would have to “promptly” take control of its movements remotely if necessary, or the vehicle would have to be able to stop or slow on its own.
Supporters said the human operator requirement is seen as an impediment that could put Michigan at risk of losing research and development to other states.
Other provisions would allow for public operation of driverless vehicles when they are sold, ease the “platooning” of autonomous commercial trucks traveling closely together at electronically coordinated speeds, and help create a facility to test autonomous and wirelessly connected cars at highway speeds.
VW seeks alliance with Chinese company
FRANKFURT, Germany >> Volkswagen said Wednesday it is in talks about forming a joint venture to develop electric vehicles with China’s Anhui Jianghuai Automobile, or JAC.
Volkswagen said it had signed a memorandum of understanding Tuesday with Jianghuai to evaluate the possibility of joining forces. No financial details were disclosed.
Jianghuai is little-known abroad but ranks No. 9 among auto brands in China in total number of cars and SUVs sold. The company already sells an all-electric sedan, the iEV.
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Star-Advertiser staff and news services
