Car batteries are something that no one wants to let run down. Whether we might use it up fiddling with the GPS system too much or just generally mucking around the car, the towing bill that we will inevitably have to pay just takes all the fun out of it.

ICP Solar has come to the rescue and produced a solar panel that will help to charge your car battery. The new “Sunsei SolarCharger” will keep your car battery charged using energy from the Sun. Naturally the panel must be placed on the dashboard or attached to the windshield. With its ‘Trickle-Down’ feature, the solar panel will never overcharge the 12-volt battery in your car.

This neat little gadget may end up saving you quite a few bucks. We all know that there is nothing more frustrating than coming …

Sony is reporting that its second audio-streaming AM/FM CD receiver equipped with Bluetooth technology will go on sale later this month. The MEX-BT2500 allows up to five different mobile phones to be linked to the unit, meaning that the whole family can talk hands-free when it’s their turn to drive (filling up the gas tank is not included.)

Additionally, if you own a phone equipped with A2DP you can stream direct from the handset to the receiver. The MEX also supports both wired and wireless playback for Bluetooth-enabled digital music players, and for non-Bluetooth devices you can connect direct into the unit via an audio cable jack that’s available separately. New noise cancellation and echo reduction technology makes your hands-free calls clearer on both ends. The faceplate portion is also detachable.

Stylistically, the unit has a sexy blue illumination …

We don’t cover a lot of auto news here at the Brick, but I have always liked Saabs and this seemed like a significant automotive innovation. I still miss my beloved Saab 900 which I traded for a VW many years ago.

Saab has developed an E100 fuel concept car that it is premiering at the Geneva Motor Show in March. The Saab BioPower 100 Concept demonstrates the first production-based engine optimized for pure bioethanol (E100) fuel.

Based on the Saab 9-5 SportCombi, the BioPower concept demonstrates the performance possibilities of bioethanol. The 2.0-liter turbocharged engine develops 300 hp made possible through modifications to the engine management system and internal components. This allows the BioPower 100 to achieve zero to 100 kph acceleration in 6.6 seconds and 80 - 120 kph (fifth gear) in 8.2 seconds.

Saab has already …

Harmon Kardon, the company known for audio excellence, has released its updated version of its popular Drive+Play device. Drive+Play 2 provides a nice interface for devices like an iPod or satellite radio. The Drive+Play mimics an iPod down to the interface and button. The remote is a 2.4GHz wireless knob that resembles an iPods scroll wheel.

The 3.5 inch display, which mounts on your dash with either glue or screws (yikes), is meant to resemble an iPod screen. The screen supports regular and large font (for those older drivers). The screen is colored unlike the original which had a gray scale screen.

The “brain” of the system can be wired directly to a car stereo system for a permanent installation. If the user isn’t so sure about permanently grafting the device to their car, they …

US Auto manufacturers like Ford and GM are hoping hi-tech innovations will put sales into high gear. Ford recently announced a partnership with Microsoft to create Sync, a technology built into Ford vehicles that will allow the interface of devices like mobile phones and iPods to the automobiles sound system.

GM unveiled an all electric car that draws power from an onboard lithium-ion battery (just like an iPod!). GM calls this concept car “Volt.” GM tried and failed once before with its EV1 hybrid car. GM has improved on the features of the EV1 by increasing the passenger area, increasing the maximum spend and decreasing the charging time for the batteries. The car is unique in that the combustion engine is only used to charge the battery, not for actually propelling the vehicle. The Volt can either …

Today Ford announced that they have teamed up with Microsoft to offer some in-car software to enhance the use of digital audio players, mobile phones and multimedia in their vehicles. Ford Sync will be powered by Microsoft Auto Software and provide voice activated communications and entertainment in select Ford vehicles.

Sync is planned to be available in 12 different Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles yet this year and will allow users to access their mobile phone, mobile music and will host almost any digital media player including the iPod and Zune, all from voice commands or from controls on the steering wheel. Integration will happen via either Bluetooth connectivity for mobile phones or a USB 2.0 port inside the vehicle to connect digital audio players and most media storage devices. The Microsoft Auto software will support …

Autonet Mobile has announced that it is going to launch a product to provide broadband internet connections through a WiFi hotspot in vehicles. Autonet is planning on unveiling the mobile WiFi product at the CES International in Las Vegas on January 8th. They are also expected to make an agreement this week with Avis Car rental to provide the WiFi system in their rental cars by March of this year for an additional $10.95 a day.

The rolling WiFi hotspot is expected to cost around $399 initially along with a $49/month service fee. Since Autonet takes the service fee, they are also acting as the internet service provider with the 3G back-end connection. This is slightly different from most hardware sales for WiFi where consumers would have to purchase the hardware and internet service plan separately. “Our goal was to deliver …

The PCS-8220 from Portwell is a proof-of-concept in-vehicle embedded PC infotainment system. The PCS-8220 supports your in-car entertainment needs with an integrated DVB-T/FM tuner, Bluetooth, WiFi, and GPS capabilities.

The unit also supports dual independent displays for CRT, LVDS or TV-out so that passengers in both the front and rear seats can view the different video. The PCS-8220 has six USB ports for versatile expansion into areas such as GPS navigation and other peripheral integration.

The system is based on the Intel ECX (Embedded Compact Extended) form factor and is designed to dissipate heat by using the air in the passenger compartment to reduce the internal temperature. The case also has shock absorbing pads and spring loaded fasteners to minimize shock on rough terrain. The unique power supply works with the ignition control to utilize DC power from the car battery.

The PCS-8220 debuted at the Fall …

JVC has a pretty cool DVD/CD receiver called the KD-AVX2 in the EXAD line up that provides a 3.5″ wide screen right in the DIN sized component in your dash. With this design, no longer do you need to have those screens retract and end up blocking other controls, getting over-exposed to heat or cold from your vents and get bumped when they are sticking out.

This monitor is built right into the face of the receiver and allows you to set up your own wallpaper to display when its not being used. The KD-AVX2 from JVC is also ready to control your iPod with an additional adapter, and is SAT radio ready.

It also has output jacks so that you can setup surround sound quality in your card, and hook up external monitors for those in the back seat. The player allows …

More vehicles are being produced with Bluetooth integration built into the car, so you can speak and listen through your vehicle audio system when you have your Bluetooth enabled mobile phone with you. For the many other cars that currently do not have this integration built in, Motorola has a pretty nice solution.

The Motorola IHF1000 Bluetooth Car Kit is a package of components, most of which are hidden away, that allow you to have wireless and hands-free mobile phone use and conversations in your car. There is a small device pictured here that you mount within reach of the driver which allows you to do basic functions on your Bluetooth enabled phone with voice commands or simple touches to the buttons. In fact, the device will allow you to integrate with up to four different phones that have Bluetooth capabilities.

The Motorola …

GM has released plans to introduce a upgrade to the common key fob for their higher end SUV style vehicles such as the Cadillac Escalade. The new key fob will be the first to offer two way communication between the device and the vehicle, as well as offering a liquid crystal display.

The remote gadget will be able to lock and unlock the doors and set of a panic alarm as most key fobs would, but the difference lies in what it gets back from the vehicle. The key fob will be able to display that status of the vehicles door locks, tire pressure, odometer reading, fuel level, radio settings and more, according to an article in USA Today.

Vehicle makers have been adding more features to the remote access of vehicles, such as unlocking doors when you get close, associating seat and mirror settings, …

This is an awesome safety gadget created by HitchCam to prevent accidents, especially with small children, when backing up with your SUV, pickup or really any vehicle.

HitchCam provides a number of solutions, but the pictured LCD monitor here is one of the coolest. When you put your big rig into reverse, the small LCD monitor slides out from the side of your rear view mirror and displays what is on the camera, allowing you to view what is behind you. When you shift back into park or drive, the camera automatically slides back into the rear view mirror and out of site.

HitchCam has a number of video viewing devices available aside from the rear view mirror mount, including a 2.5″ custom color monitor and seamless integration into a video system already installed into …

iLane is a hands-free and eyes-free solution for managing email messages and attachments, phone calls, SMS messages and calendar appointments while in transit using voice commands. The iLane device interacts directly with existing Bluetooth enabled handheld devices and vehicle audio systems or headsets.

iLane integrates with the audio system in your car to notify you as new messages arrive on your handheld device or smart-phone. Using voice commands you can then listen to a summary or the entire message, compose a reply, or forward an attachment. The iLane system can manage email messages and attachments, calendar requests and appointments, SMS messages and phone calls, all without taking your hands off the wheel or your eyes off the road.

Upon entering your car, iLane will recognize your handheld device and control how incoming information is managed - based on your settings. This information is communicated to …

You are looking at a moving vehicle that has the PimpStar rims from Dub. These rims have built-in full color LED lights with a microprocessor and wireless modem on each wheel. This allows you to sit in your vehicle with the included software on your notebook PC and place virtually an image, text or a combination of both to display on your rims while driving. You can display the same thing on all rims or have something different on each one. All this can be done and changed as often as you want while you drive.

The included software for the Pimpstar rims allows you to pre-load a set of images to each wheel and allows them to change at different time intervals.

The rims can come in many, many different styles, are completely waterproof and run off of the vehicles electrical system, so there …

Pictured here is the Sony Xplode CDX-GT510 CD/MP3 Car Stereo Receiver. If you are one of those who want to take their digital music collections on the road in their car, Sony released some new car receivers that will make this a lot easier. Sony announced the release of 4 versions of the Xplod in-dash CD car stereos. These car stereos give you more options for playing burned CDs, MP3 and WMA files in your car. How it works is that the stereo has an auxiliary input port on the faceplate so you can plug in your portable music player into the stereo with a standard 1/8-inch mini jack. When I first saw this announcement I was hoping I would be able to upload my music into the car stereo itself, but this is not the case. It simply allows you to …