Vehicle Interiors

June 12, 2008 -- Ward's AutoWorld magazine once again acknowledged Volvo for superior car interior design. The 2008 Volvo C30 earned Ward's Interior Design Award for Best Brand Reflection. Last year, Ward's named the Volvo S80 winner of the Best Interior Design of the Year Award.

2008 Volvo C30 Interior

DEARBORN, Mich., June 2, 2008 – Two redesigned Ford vehicles – the 2008 Ford Focus and the 2008 Ford Escape – have been nominated by the editors of WARD’s AutoWorld magazine for WARD’S Interior of the Year awards for their styling, safety, comfort and refinement.

2008 Ford Escape interior

Highlights::
* The 2008 Ford Focus and Ford Escape are competing for “Interior of the Year” honors at the WARD’S Auto Interior Show in Detroit.
* The Focus is nominated in the “Economy Priced Cars under $16,999” category, and the Escape is doing battle in the “Popular Sized Trucks under $34,999” segment.

"Interior of the Year" Awards & Ford Purchasing Panel Key Highlights

DETROIT, June 3, 2008 /PRNewswire/ -- The 15th annual Auto Interiors Show opens tomorrow (Wednesday, June 4) at Detroit's Cobo Center. It brings together leading manufacturers and automotive design and engineering talent who will share their vision of the road ahead in styling, safety, recycling, smart-car technology for vehicle interiors, OEM-supplier relations and more.

Executives from GM, Ford, Chrysler, Mazda, Toyota's Design Center, and numerous Tier One interior suppliers such as Visteon, Faurecia, DuPont, TRW, Lear, Magna, JCI, Key Safety Systems, and many others will be participating on panels or giving keynotes. (For a complete conference and show schedule, see autointeriors.com)

Toyota Boshoku America Announces Merger of Two Companies in Mexico

RAMOS ARIZPE, COAHUILA, Mexico, Jan. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Toyota Boshoku America (TBA) leaders announced today, the recent merger of two of its sister automotive parts production subsidiaries located in Northeast Mexico.

Toyota Boshoku is aiming to establish efficient business management structures by strengthening collaboration within group companies. This includes establishing strategic regional head offices which serve as leaders in each region of the world. The Toyota Boshoku America region includes North, Central and South America.

The human nose is still out of competition

Dec, 18, 2007 -- As yet, there is no technical device which can replace the human nose or, in particular, determine if something smells good or bad. For this reason, Volvo Car Corporation established some years ago a ‘smell test panel'. Our 'nose team' is consisting of eight specially selected people with ‘standard' noses, who guide the designers in their choice of materials and production methods, especially for the interior of the car. A new Volvo must smell like a Volvo!

What smells good or bad is a subjective judgement.

Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) Central Europe confers second place on new production process

HIROSHIMA, Japan, Sept. 25, 2007 — The world’s first biofabric made with completely plant-derived fibers, suitable for use in vehicle interiors, has been developed by Mazda Motor Corporation in collaboration with Teijin Limited and Teijin Fibers Limited. This newly developed biofabric does not contain any oil-based materials, yet it possesses the quality and durability required for use in vehicle seat covers. Resistant to abrasion and damage from sunlight, in addition to being flame retardant, the new biofabric meets the highest quality standards. Based on this biotechnology, Mazda will strengthen its future research and development on non-food-based materials in consideration of the impact such technologies have on food supplies.