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Posts Tagged ‘Frankfurt’

Jan. 28, 1938: The Passing of the Silver Comet

1938: German race car driver Bernd Rosemeyer drives his Auto Union streamliner to the unheard-of speed of 268.432 mph on a stretch of autobahn between Frankfurt and Darmstadt. Never before has anyone driven so fast, and never again has someone gone so fast on a public road.
Rosemeyer was behind the wheel of an Auto Union, [...]

Grateful Dead: Europe Â’72 Tour Box Set

INDIVIDUALLY NUMBERED, LIMITED EDITION COLLECTION

AVAILABLE EXCLUSIVELY AT DEAD.NET AND SHIPS IN SEPTEMBER


sketch of new box set

Grateful Dead slipped the
shores of America and crossed the pond for its first-ever major European tour in April 1972. The legendary 22-
show run spawned Europe ’72, a live triple album that remains one of the band’s best-selling and most
beloved releases. A tour this momentous deserves a boxed set of historic proportions and Dead.net has stamped your passport to relive every note from the European tour
with Europe ’72: The Complete Recordings, an individually numbered, limited edition collection
that includes more than 60 discs with over 70 hours of music featuring every show from what is arguably the
Grateful Dead’s greatest tour. The box set ships in September.

Europe ’72: The Complete Recordings is housed in a replica steamer trunk reminiscent of the ones
prevalently used at the time. The travel
chest contains tour memorabilia, a coffee-table book with never-before-seen photos, and a comprehensive essay
by noted Dead author Blair Jackson. Each performance will also be accompanied by an essay specific to
the show written by top Dead scholars including David Gans, Gary Lambert, Nicholas Meriwether, and
Steve Silberman.

Jeffrey Norman, the primary mixer of the Dead’s archival multi-track material for the past 15 years, is
mixing each
show from the original 16-track recordings.

Due to ship in September, the boxed set is available exclusively from Dead.net, which is taking orders now. The
price of the collection is $450, which works out to the remarkably low price of about $20 for each show, or roughly
the cost of a transatlantic flight from New York City to London in 1972 (price of time machine not included).

The first 3,000 fans to order will have
their copy personalized with a name requested by the purchaser. Once the 3,000 order goal is reached by April 1,
Dead.net will continue to take orders through the summer but will limit production of the collection to a maximum
of 7,200 pieces, all of which will be individually numbered. Orders will no longer be taken at some date (to be
determined) later in the summer.

The tour offers a snapshot of a band at the top of its game, still ascending in the wake of three straight hit albums—
Workingman’s Dead, American Beauty, and the live Grateful Dead (“Skull & Roses”). It had been a
year since
the lineup had gone to its single-drummer configuration, six months since Keith Godchaux had been
broken in as the group’s exceptional pianist, and this marked the first tour to feature Donna Godchaux as
a member of the touring band.

There was a ton of new, unreleased material that came into the repertoire in the fall of ’71 and during the spring of
’72, including “Tennessee Jed,” “Jack Straw,” “Mexicali Blues,” “Comes A Time,” “Ramble On Rose,” “One More
Saturday Night,” “Black-Throated Wind,” “Looks Like Rain” and Pigpen‘s “Chinatown Shuffle,” “The Stranger
(Two
Souls In Communion)” and “Mr. Charlie.” (Sadly, this was Pigpen’s final tour.) All those future classics were
interspersed with songs from the aforementioned “hit” albums—such as “Uncle John’s Band,” “Casey Jones,” “Sugar
Magnolia,” “Bertha,” and “Not Fade Away”—and then were topped off by loads of big jamming numbers—the Europe
’72 tour produced spectacular versions of “Dark Star,” “The Other One,” “Playing in the Band,” “Truckin’,” “China Cat
Sunflower” > “I Know You Rider,” “Good Lovin’,” “Lovelight,” and even the early Pig chestnut “Caution.”

GRATEFUL DEAD EUROPE 1972 TOUR DATES

All shows included in their entirety

April 7 Wembley Empire Pool, Wembley

April 8 Wembley Empire Pool, Wembley

April 11 Newcastle City Hall, Newcastle

April 14 Tivolis Koncertsal, Copenhagen

April 16 Aarhus University, Aarhus

April 17 Tivolis Koncertsal, Copenhagen

April 21 Beat Club, Bremen

April 24 Rheinhalle, Dusseldorf

April 26 Jahrhundert Halle, Frankfurt

April 29 Musikhalle, Hamburg

May 3 Olympia Theatre, Paris

May 4 Olympia Theatre, Paris

May 7 Bickershaw Festival, Wigan

May 10 Concertgebouw, Amsterdam

May 11 Rotterdam Civic Hall, Rotterdam

May 13 Lille Fairgrounds, Lille

May 16 Theatre Hall, Luxembourg

May 18 Kongressaal – Deutsches Museum, Munich

May 23 Strand Lyceum, London

May 24 Strand Lyceum, London

May 25 Strand Lyceum, London

May 26 Strand Lyceum, London


Rush Add Summer Dates

FINAL ROUND OF DATES BEGINNING JUNE 8 IN GREENVILLE, SC


Rush

Rush have added the final
dates to their “Time Machine Tour.” After the previously announced US and European dates in the Spring, the band
will hit the road for their final round of dates in the summer, starting June 8 in Greenville, SC. The tour features a
performance of the classic album Moving Pictures in its entirety. Click here for information on pre-sales and fan club packages.

TIME MACHINE TOUR DATES

03/30/11 Wed BankAtlantic Center Sunrise, FL

04/01/11 Fri Greensboro Coliseum Greensboro, NC

04/03/11 Sun Bridgestone Arena Nashville, TN
04/05/11 Tue KFC Yum! Center Louisville, KY
04/06/11 Wed Huntington Center Toledo, OH
04/08/11 Fri Giant Center Hershey, PA

04/10/11 Sun Madison Square Garden New York, NY

04/12/11 Tue United Center Chicago, IL
04/15/11 Fri Quicken Loans Arena Cleveland, OH

04/17/11 Sun The Palace of Auburn Hills Auburn Hills, MI

04/19/11 Tue Copps Coliseum Hamilton, ON

04/20/11 Wed Bell Centre Montreal, QC

04/22/11 Fri 1st Mariner Arena Baltimore, MD

05/04/11 Wed Hartwall Arena Helsinki, FI
05/06/11 Fri Stockholm Globe Arena Stockholm, SE

05/08/11 Sun Malmo Arena Malmo, SE
05/12/11 Thu The O2 Dublin, IR

05/14/11 Sat SECC Glasgow, GB

05/16/11 Mon Motorpoint Arena (formerly Sheffield Arena) Sheffield, GB

05/19/11 Thu Manchester Evening News Arena (MEN) Manchester, GB
05/21/11 Sat Metro Radio Arena Newcastle, GB

05/22/11 Sun LG Arena (NEC Arena) Birmingham, GB
05/25/11 Wed O2 Arena London, GB
05/27/11 Fri Ahoy Hall Rotterdam, NL
05/29/11 Sun Festhalle Frankfurt, GER

06/08/11 Wed Bi-Lo Center Greenville, SC
06/10/11 Fri New Orleans Arena New Orleans, LA

06/12/11 Sun Frank Erwin Center Austin, TX
06/14/11 Tue Don Haskins Center El Paso, TX
06/16/11 Thu US Airways Center Phoenix, AZ
06/18/11 Sat Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre Chula Vista, CA

06/20/11 Mon Gibson Amphitheatre Universal City, CA

06/22/11 Wed Gibson Amphitheatre Universal City, CA
06/24/11 Fri MGM Grand Garden Arena Las Vegas, NV
06/26/11 Sun Sleep Train Pavilion At Concord Concord, CA
06/28/11 Tue Sleep Country Amphitheater Ridgefield, WA

07/02/11 Sat The Gorge George, WA

Rush
Tour Dates

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Rush News
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Rush
Concert
Reviews


Rush Announces 2011 North American Dates

TOUR STARTS MARCH 30 IN FT. LAUDERDALE


Rush

Rush have confirmed The
Time Machine Tour will visit new cities throughout North America and play a few
return engagements beginning March 30 in Ft. Lauderdale and running through April 22 in 2011 with dates in
Greensboro, Nashville, Louisville, Toledo, Hershey, New York’s esteemed Madison Square Garden, Chicago,
Cleveland, Detroit, Hamilton, Montreal and Baltimore. The tour also returns to North America in June with
performances in select markets that will include cities such as New Orleans, Austin, Vancouver and a very special
return play in Los Angeles – more information on these dates and more soon.

Tickets go on sale in select markets beginning December 6 at LiveNation.com. Tickets for the Rush performances
will go on sale in Hershey, Detroit and Baltimore beginning Monday, Dec. 6, with additional on-sales to follow. To
benefit the relief efforts in Haiti, one dollar of each ticket sold will be donated through several charities including
“Doctors Without Borders”. Rush will also contribute a portion of their proceeds at the culmination of the tour.

For Rush Fan Club tickets, as well as fan club exclusive merchandise offers, click here.

For Rush Time Machine packages, click here.

2011 TOUR DATES

Mar 30/11 Ft. Lauderdale, FL Bank Atlantic Center 
April 1/11 Greensboro, NC Coliseum  
April 3/11 Nashville, TN Bridgestone Arena  
April 5/11 Louisville, KY KFC Yum! Center    
April 6/11 Toledo, OH Huntington Center

April 8/11 Hershey, PA Giant Center   
April 10/11 New York, NY Madison Square Garden
  
April 12/11 Chicago, IL United Center  
April 15/11 Cleveland, OH Quickens Loans Arena
  
April 17/11 Detroit, MI Palace of Auburn Hills   

April 19/11 Hamilton, ON Copps Coliseum  
April 20/11 Montreal, PQ Bell Centre  
April 22/11 Baltimore, MD 1st Mariner Arena
 
May 4 Helsinki, Finland Hartwall Arena
May 6 Stockholm, Sweden Globe
May 8 Malmo, Sweden Malmo Arena
May 12 Dublin, Ireland O2
May 14 Glasgow, Scotland SECC
May 16 Sheffield, UK Motorpoint Arena
May 19 Manchester, UK MEN Arena
May 21 Newcastle, UK Metro Radio Arena

May 22 Birmingham, UK LG Arena
May 25 London, UK O2
May 27 Rotterdam, Holland Ahoy Arena
May 29 Frankfurt, Germany Festhalle

Rush
Tour Dates

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Rush News
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Rush
Concert
Reviews


Kyuss Reunites Without Josh Homme

THREE QUARTERS OF KYUSS REUNITE


Kyuss

Legendary stoner rock band Kyuss is reuniting without original guitarist and Queens of the Stone Age
main man Josh Homme. The lineup includes vocalist John Garcia, bassist Nick Oliveri,
and drummer Brant Bjork. Guitarist Bruno Fevery will be stepping in to replace Homme, and the
band is calling
themselves Kyuss
Lives
.

In an interview with Blabbermouth, Homme discussed the
possibility of a Kyuss reunion, saying “The offers come in all the
time. They’re getting more and more expensive, and more and more elaborate. The money is crazy, but I’ve never
been tempted – I don’t really care about the money, I never have. That’s not what Kyuss was about, so to punctuate
the end of our sentence with that would be blasphemy…Kyuss has such a great history that it would be a total error.
I like that nobody saw
Kyuss, and that it was largely misunderstood. That sounds like a legend forming to me. I’m too proud of it to rub
my dick on it.”

All announced tour dates are below.

TOUR DATES

03/12/11 Rockefeller Oslo, NO

03/13/11 Debaser Stockholm, SE

03/15/11 Docks Hamburg, GER

03/16/11 Colombia Fritz Berlin, GER

03/17/11 Garage Saar brucken, GER

03/18/11 Z7 Basel, SWI

03/19/11 Backstage Club Munich, GER

03/20/11 Godor Club Budapest, HU

03/22/11 Arena Vienna, AUS

03/23/11 Live Club Milan, IT

03/24/11 Hugenotten halle Frankfurt, GER

03/25/11 Fuzz Club Athens, GR

03/27/11 Ancienne Belgique Brussels, BEL

03/28/11 Live Music Hall Cologne, GER

03/29/11 The Paradiso Amsterdam, NL

03/31/11 Nottingham Rock City Nottingham, GB

04/01/11 Wulfrun Hall Wolverhampton, GB

04/02/11 HMV Forum London, GB

04/03/11 HMV Forum London, GB

04/05/11 Manchester Academy Manchester, GB

04/06/11 Bristol Academy Bristol, GB

Kyuss Lives
Tour Dates

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Kyuss Lives News
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Kyuss Lives
Concert
Reviews


Air freight and counter-terrorism: Turbulence

Bureaucracy not technology

BOSSES in the aviation industry and their government counterparts have had a tricky relationship since September 11th 2001. Knee-jerk reactions from politicians have caused headaches aplenty. By chance, both groups met in Frankfurt at this year’s AVSEC, a conference on aviation security, just after news of the Yemeni-launched parcel bombs broke.

Rather than rushing through ill-considered and potentially disruptive measures, both sides were keen to keep calm and carry on. Although the latest attack was aimed at cargo rather than passengers, neither the technology nor the thinking behind it was a step change. John Pistole, head of America’s Transportation Security Administration, highlighted “a delicate balance” between responding to the latest threat and safeguarding an industry that carried 26m tonnes of freight last year—just over a third of the total value of internationally traded goods. …

Iron & Wine: Tour Dates & New Album

TOUR STARTS NOVEMBER 13; NEW ALBUM OUT IN JANUARY


Iron & Wine

Iron & Wine
will release
their first album since 2007, Kiss Each Other Clean, in January 2011. To
support the record, a
string of dates have been announced beginning November 13 at The Pageant in St. Louis, MO.
After that, they will
hit the road in February 2011 for an extensive European tour. Check out all the dates
below.

Iron & Wine 2010 Tour Dates:

11/13 – St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant
11/14 – Memphis, TN @ Minglewood Hall
11/15 – Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel
11/16 – Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse

11/17 – Jacksonville, FL @ Florida Theatre

11/18 – Miami Beach, FL @ Fillmore Miami Beach
11/19 – Tallahassee, FL @ The Moon

11/20 – New Orleans, LA @ House Of Blues

11/21 – Houston, TX @ Fitzgeralds

Iron & Wine 2011 Tour Dates:

02/02/11 Debase rStockholm, SE

02/03/11 Rockefeller Oslo, NO

02/04/11 Tradgardsforeningen Gothenburg, SE

02/05/11 Vox Hall Arhus, DK

02/06/11 Vega Copenhagen, DK

02/07/11 Fabrik Hamburg, GER

02/08/11 Berghain Berlin, GER

02/09/11 Gloria Theater Cologne, GER

02/10/11 Wuk Vienna, AUS

02/11/11 Freiheiz Munich, GER

02/12/11 Locomotiv Bologna, IT

02/13/11 El Lokal Zurich, SWI

02/14/11 Mousonturm Frankfurt, GER

02/15/11 The Paradiso Amsterdam, NL

02/16/11 Ancienne Belgique Brussels, BEL

02/17/11 Alhambra Paris, FRA

03/08/11 Roundhouse London, GB

03/09/11 Corn Exchange Brighton, GB

03/10/11 Birmingham Town Hall Birmingham, GB

03/11/11 HMV Picture House Edinburgh, GB

03/12/11 Royal Liverpool Philharmonic hall Liverpool, GB

03/14/11 Olympia Theatre Dublin, IR

03/15/11 Academy 2 Manchester, GB

03/16/11 The Sage Gateshead, GB

03/17/11 Metropolitan University Leeds, GB

Iron & Wine
Tour Dates

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Iron & Wine News
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Iron & Wine
Concert
Reviews


Pad tie

The price of Apple’s tablet computer, before sales tax, varies significantly between countries

IF YOU fly from Hong Kong to Frankfurt or Paris and look suspiciously like a gadget lover, chances are that you will be searched by customs officers: an iPad with Wi-Fi and 16 gigabytes of memory costs $200 less in the former British colony than in Germany and France. Given the risk of having to pay extra duty (and the price of the flight), potential iPad buyers in both countries ought to consider a trip to nearby Luxembourg, where Apple’s popular device is $35 cheaper. The sales tax is only one reason for such differences in price. Consumers in Hong Kong also get a better deal because iPads are assembled in mainland China. Buyers in Switzerland have to pay more because there is less competition between retailers. In China and Mexico, the device may be cheaper because people are poorer. Incidentally, if income is taken into account, consumers in Luxembourg get the best deal: they only have to spend about 0.8% of the city-state’s GDP per person on an iPad.

More Daily charts …

Tina Fey “Bossypants” Book Cover Leaked…Complete With Man Hands

A sneak peek at the front cover of Tina Fey’s new book of comical essays — Bossypants — leaked to the web last week after making its debut at a book fair in Frankfurt, Germany, but there’s more to this cover shot than meets the eye! Can you spot the oddity? Here’s a hint: Get [...]

Oct. 8, 1582: Nothing Happens … in Catholic Lands

1582: Nobody does anything, anything at all. In fact, nobody does anything whatsoever between Oct. 4 and Oct. 15, 1582, because the 10 intervening days have simply been declared out of existence by the pope. (This offer may not apply outside Italy, Spain and Portugal.)
Where did those days go?
By the mid-1570s, the Julian Calendar established [...]

German Pop Star Nadja Benaissa Escapes Jail Time In HIV Case

An HIV-positive German pop star has been sentenced two years of suspended prison term for infecting a former partner with the deadly virus, The BBC said Thursday.Nadja Benaissa, 28, admitted that she had unprotected sexual intercourse with three people between 2000 and 2004 — despite knowing that she was infected with the virus that causes [...]

High-speed rail in Europe: Trouble ahead

The train giants of France and Germany are at war over European high-speed rail

AT THE Gare de l’Est in Paris, Franco-German co-operation seems on track. Deutsche Bahn inter-city express (ICE) trains glide in from Frankfurt and SNCF sends trains deep into Germany, thanks to a joint venture between the two firms. Every train has a French and a German controller on board. Despite wrangling over details—French unions, for instance, refused to let their head conductors serve meals to first-class passengers, so the Germans have to do it all—they get along well. “When we’re on the same train, we’re a team,” says Marine Dubois, the French controlleur on the 13.09 ICE to Frankfurt.

The joint venture between Deutsche Bahn and SNCF, the German and French rail giants, was launched in 2007 amid high hopes. Boosters predicted an open European market where trains and passengers would cross borders without fuss. But old national rivalries are resurfacing. Relations at the top have turned nasty. The joint venture could even be at risk. …

U2 Reschedules North American Dates

RESCHEDULED NORTH AMERICAN RUN BEGINS MAY 21 IN DENVER, COLORADO


U2

U2 have announced the
rescheduled dates for their postponed U2 360º North American Tour. The tour, previously postponed due to Bono’s
emergency back surgery, begins May 21 at Invesco Field in
Denver, Colorado, and continues on through Salt Lake City, Seattle, Oakland, Miami, Chicago, and other cities. All
2010/2011 dates are available below.

All tickets for the postponed 2010 dates will be valid at the rescheduled 2011 dates. On sale information for the
remaining tickets has not yet been released.

U2 2010/2011 Tour Dates:

08/06 – Turin, IT @ Stadio Olimpico %
08/10 – Frankfurt, DE @ Commerzbank Arena %
08/12 – Hannover, DE @ AWD Stadium %

08/15 – Horsens, DK @ Casa Arena $
08/16 – Horsens, DK @ Casa Arena $
08/20 – Helsinki, FI @ Olympic Stadium @
08/21 – Helsinki, FI @ Olympic Stadium @

08/25 – Moscow, RU @ Luzhniki $
08/30 – Vienna, AT @ Ernst Happel Stadium &

09/03 – Athens, GR @ Olypmic Stadium $
09/06 – Istanbul, TR @ Ataturk Olympic Stadium $
09/11 – Zurich, CH @ Letzigrund Stadium @
09/12 – Zurich, CH @ Letzigrund Stadium @
09/15 – Munich, DE @ Olympic Stadium @
09/18 – Paris, FR @ Stade de France ^
09/22 – Brussels, BE @ Stade Roi Boudoin ^
09/23 – Brussels, BE @ Stade Roi Boudoin ^
09/26 – San Sebastian, ES @ Anoeta Stadium ^
09/29 – Seville, ES @ Olympic Stadium ^
10/02 – Colmbra, PT @ Stadium ^
10/03 – Colmbra, PT @ Stadium ^
10/08 – Rome, IT @ Olympic Stadium ^
05/21 – Denver, CO @ Invesco Field
05/24 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Rice Eccles Stadium
06/01 – Edmonton, AB @ Commonwealth Stadium
06/04 – Seattle, WA @ Qwet Field
06/07 – Oakland, CA @ McAfee Coliseum
06/17 – Anaheim, CA @ Angels Stadium
06/18 – Anaheim, CA @ Angels Stadium
06/26 – E. Lansing, MI @ Spartan Stadium
06/29 – Miami, FL @ Sun Life Stadium
07/05 – Chicago, IL @ Soldier Field
07/08 – Montreal, QC @ Hippodrome
07/09 – Montreal, QC @ Hippodrome
07/11 – Toronto, ON @ Rogers Centre
07/14 – Philadelphia, PA @ Lincoln Financial Field
07/20 – E. Rutherford, NJ @ New Meadowlands Stadium
07/23 – Minneapolis, MN @ TCF Bank Stadium

^ = w/ Interpol
% = w/ Kasabian
$ = w/ Snow Patrol
@ = w/ Razorlight
& = w/ OneRepublic

U2
Tour Dates

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U2 News ::
U2
Concert
Reviews


June 3, 1889: Power Flows Long-Distance

1889: The first long-distance transmission of electricity takes place, linking a powerhouse at Willamette Falls to a string of lights in Portland, Oregon, 14 miles to the west.
The power lines stretching from the hydroelectric generator to 55 street lights at 4th and Main heralded the arrival of a major innovation in energy technology. The [...]

May 19: Wilmar, China Fishery, United Envirotech, United Fiber System

Singapore’s benchmark Straits Times Index rose 0.38% to 2,844.35 points on Tuesday.

US stocks sank last night, driven lower as the strengthening of financial regulation from Wall Street to Frankfurt crushed bank stocks, adding to worries about the sustainability of the global economic recovery.

Here are some stocks and factors to watch:

Read more…

SAP attempts a comeback: Short-term memory gain

Will a takeover and new technology revive the German software giant?

WHEN Bill McDermott and Jim Hageman Snabe jointly took the helm at SAP in February they promised to be much “bolder”. The troubled German software giant would move faster to acquire other companies, and new products would be introduced more quickly. “We’re off to a very fast start,” the pair said in unison.

This was not idle chatter. On May 12th SAP announced that it would buy Sybase, a vendor of database software, in a deal worth $5.8 billion—the second-biggest purchase in the company’s history. Next week, at the firm’s annual customer conference, to be held simultaneously in Frankfurt and Orlando, it will introduce new technology, loosely called “in-memory”, that is intended to re-install SAP as an industry leader. …

Google all set to introduce its eBooks service this summer

Google has announced to launch the Google Editions soon this summer. The eBooks service from Google will enable the users to download eBooks on variety of devices like mobile phones, eBook readers or PCs. Google Editions was introduced last year at the Frankfurt Book Fair which is now expected to bring have half a million [...]

Range Extenders – the wilderness years

Lively discussions of late on the relative merits of battery-electric vehicles, plug-in hybrids, range-extenders, and so on. And while there are commendable features of all the systems, I keep on coming down on the side of the range-extender as the right way forward.

In fact, the only surprise is that it’s taken so long for one to be commercialised. The first US-built pre-production Chevrolet Volt rolled off the line this week – yet the Series Hybrid concept – for that’s what it is – has been around for a lot longer. Diesel-electric locomotives, for example, are Series Hybrids – albeit on a much larger scale.

As for cars, ever since GM unveiled the Volt/Ampera, I’ve been having a serious bout of déjà vu. I’ve seen something very similar before – at one of the Tokyo Motor Shows in the 1990s. Google turned up a blank, so only one thing for it. Don the protective clothing and hard hat and venture into the Coolbear garage, where old press kits, magazines and brochures go to die – or at least have a lengthy sleep.

Sure enough, after some concerted rummaging, I found what I was looking for. Details of a long-forgotten concept, the Daihatsu DASH 21. From longer ago than I’d thought too – it was shown at both Frankfurt and Tokyo in 1993. And we wrote about it in issue 1 of Automotive International magazine, the just-auto of its pre-internet day, which I used to edit.

“Daihatsu has developed a hybrid vehicle which can travel long distances without the need of battery charging stations,” said the AI report. “It has its own powerplant, a three-cylinder 660cc petrol engine, which recharges the electric batteries, overcoming the problem of low range.”

Neat, isn’t it. Well packaged, with a lot of cabin and not a lot of engine bay. Technically, it’s pretty much the same as the Volt/Ampera. The generator engine, mounted at the rear, runs at a constant speed, and only starts when the battery charge is running low. This gave it a range of 450km. An electric motor drove the front wheels.

DASH stands for Daihatsu Autocharging Series Hybrid, by the way. The ‘21’ presumably referred to the impending new century, by which time we’d all be driving one. “The DASH 21 features technology which is close to being used on mass-production vehicles,” the report concluded.

Close, but no cigar. Seventeen years later and we’re still two years off being able to buy an Opel/Vauxhall Ampera. So what forced this technology into the car park for more than a decade? A couple of reasons, perhaps. Firstly, a series hybrid would not be classified as a Zero-emissions vehicle – and in the mid-‘90s, the strict dogma of the California Air Resources Board was what drove automakers’ decisions on electric cars.

CARB wanted a percentage of auto sales to be ZEVs – and threatened to ban automakers that didn’t comply from selling cars there at all. So everyone made battery-electric cars – even though the battery technology du jour wasn’t up to the job. Hence farcical cul-de-sac projects such as the GM EV1.

Secondly, of course, Daihatsu is part of Toyota – and Toyota had its own ideas of where to go on hybrids. Perhaps the parent company didn’t want to be upstaged by its subsidiary? A case of ‘not invented here’ syndrome? Around the time the DASH 21 was revealed, Toyota set up its own project called G21, to develop a 21st century hybrid. Two years later, the prototype Prius was shown at Tokyo. DASH 21 was, er, dashed.

It’s interesting to think where Toyota might have gone with the series Hybrid idea if the G21 team had picked it up instead of the far more complex but more conventional is use Parallel Hybrid system of the Prius. Although the Prius captured the imagination and defined “green” motoring over the past decade, it’s not really as radical as it thinks it is. Imagine a third-generation Series Hybrid with a decade and a half of development…

Series Hybrid offers so much more potential, especially when it comes to the technology that can be employed for the range-extender generator. As well as small conventional petrol engines, we’ve seen a small Wankel rotary engine on the Audi A1 E-Tron concept. And Jaguar, which is also working on range-extenders, is considering using a small gas-turbine engine – basically a tiny jet engine – to act as generator.

These engines can run on different fuels – ethanol, or natural gas, for example, making for near-zero emissions. Cleaner even, if you factor in power generation, than battery-electric vehicles (or coal-fired cars, as they’ve recently been called!). Time for automakers to make up for lost time.

Air India, Jet Airways resume flights to Europe

After a gap of six days, national carrier Air India Wednesday resumed its daily flights to Paris and Frankfurt and private airline Jet Airways winged its way to London from Delhi and Mumbai.
“Air India’s stranded flight from Frankfurt has reached Delhi today via Egypt. Air India will operate its Delhi-London and Delhi-Frankfurt flights tomorrow. It [...]

Hundreds stranded as US, Britain flights cancelled

Around 900 passengers were stranded at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport Saturday as flights to several places in Europe were cancelled following volcanic ash clouding the flight path.
All flights from Mumbai to London, cities in the US and Canada have been cancelled and flights to India are also delayed indefinitely, officials said.
“Our flights to London [...]