Obama to hold credit card town hall meeting this week

President Barack Obama will hold a town hall meeting to discuss the credit card crisis and push for Congressional passage of credit card reform measures during a May 14 stop in New Mexico, the White House said Friday.

The town hall is the latest example of the White House using its influence on a hot-button issue that affects millions of American families.

There's a "strong desire to get something done on an issue of tremendous importance to middle class families and that is to rein in some of the excesses and some of the abuses that we've seen from credit cards over the past many years," White House press secretary Robert Gibbs told reporters during the daily press briefing Friday.

He added: "For many people, credit cards provide an opportunity to finance purchases, but we think there' s a more equitable way to do that. Those reforms are on their way through Congress."

The U.S. Senate is expected to begin debate Monday afternoon on a compromise credit card amendment cosponsored by Democratic Sen. Christopher Dodd and his GOP counterpart Sen. Richard Shelby.

Dodd sponsored The Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure (or Credit CARD) Act (S. 414) -- a tougher Senate version of the Credit Cardholders' Bill of Rights, which passed by an overwhelming 357-70 vote in the U.S. House of Representatives on April 30. Senate passage was less certain, however, until Dodd and Shelby worked out a bipartisan compromise. Senate Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid praised the Dodd-Shelby legislation.

"It's a very important piece of legislation. It's bipartisan in nature," Reid said.

The legislation in both the House and Senate largely mirror sweeping new federal rules scheduled to take effect July 1, 2010. The bills also include additional consumer protections endorsed by the White House that call for transparency, fairness in billing and marketing, disclosure and oversight of credit cards. Lawmakers said they wanted to codify the federal rules into law so they would be more difficult to revise.

The Obama town hall is planned for Thursday morning in Albuquerque as part of a trip that includes a stop in Tempe, Ariz., for a college commencement speech.

Chevrolet Volt On Track For 2010 Production

The hard times at GM may appear to have no end in sight, but recent comments from GM’s global product chief, Tom Stephens, indicate that the storm clouds overhead haven’t changed the company’s plans for the Volt.

Talking to journalists at a University of Michigan event, Stephens was quoted as saying that ‘at this point in time’, there’s no reason the Chevrolet Volt can’t be in production by November 2010.

Stephens was promoted to Vice Chairman of Global Product Development in April, replacing outgoing chief Bob Lutz.

While speaking at the event, Stephens said that although one other GM brand would feature Volt technology, the company has not yet made a decision on which it will be.

“It’s best utilized in urban vehicles,” Stephens said.

“We have to consider what is the usage of the person buying the vehicle. For a commuter who drives 40 miles a day and takes it shopping on weekend, it’s the perfect application.”

With the retirement of Pontiac and the sale of Saturn and Saab, the options are down to Cadillac, Buick and GMC.

With the Cadillac brand holding the more prestigious image of the group, it would seem that either a CTS Volt version or an all-new model under the Cadillac badge will be the likely choice.

For Australian buyers, Stephens’ comments could also mean that the Holden Volt – identical to the Chevy version in all ways but the badge – could be on Aussie roads around 2010 or 2011.

F1: Button On Pole For Spanish Grand Prix

Brawn team mates Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello at Spain this weekend.

Brawn GP’s Jenson Button will start from pole position for tonight’s Spanish Grand Prix after a stunning last gasp effort denied Sebastian Vettel top spot on the grid.

Button crossed the finish line with two seconds to spare to begin his final flying lap after a mix-up left him languishing behind BMW’s Robert Kubica on his out lap.

Despite having a limited window to complete his lap, the Brit was able to establish a gap between himself and Kubica before embarking on his quest for pole, beating Vettel by a tenth.

Fellow Brawn driver Rubens Barrichello could only manage third despite setting the fastest time of the weekend in Q2, while Ferrari’s Felipe Massa and Aussie Mark Webber rounded out the top five.

The championship leader, Button was surprised to snatch his third pole of the 2009 campaign after struggling to find a suitable set-up on Friday.

“An unexpected but very pleasing pole position today and it is probably my most satisfying pole of the season,” he said.

“My final lap in Q3 was by far the best lap that I’ve had this weekend but it was a bit close crossing the line with just two seconds to spare.”

After outpacing team mate Vettel in Q1 and Q2, Webber looked to be in a position to challenge for pole, but he was unable to sustain his form in the important final session, compromising his chances of finishing on the podium.

“That was a bit disappointing. I would like to have done a slightly better job in Q3 and I could have done it. Q2 was good, but that’s not the most important session. We’re fifth, so let’s see what we can do from there tomorrow,” he said.

But while Button and Vettel appear to be favourites for victory, Massa looms as the dark horse, and is well placed to secure Ferrari’s first win of the season.

The Brazilian is carrying the heaviest fuel load in the top six and is armed with the KERS system, which provides a 10 metre boost at the start and will make him a difficult opponent to pass on track.

2010 BMW S 1000 RR, Global Launch At Monza

BMW Motorrad has used Monza’s famed racing circuit to unveil the new 2010 BMW S 1000 RR supersports bike to the world, its new weapon for BMW showrooms and the World Superbike Championship.

With a lightweight water-cooled four-cylinder inline power unit producing 142 kW (193 hp) at 13,000 rpm (and revving up to a maximum speed of 14,200 rpm), and maximum torque of 112 Nm (82.5 lb-ft) at 9,750 rpm, the new S 1000 RR tips the scales at just 204 kg (450 lb) including fuel.

That’s a respectable power-to-weight ratio in any language – best in class, according to BMW, with 1.05kg per horsepower without Race ABS, and 1.06 kg per horsepower with Race ABS.

An aluminium bridge frame integrates the engine as a loadbearing element, tilted to the front at an angle of 32 degrees. This provides optimum torsional stiffness and minimum weight.

The front wheel runs on an upside-down fork with a fixed tube (46mm or 1.81-inch diameter), while keeping things together at the rear is an aluminium swing arm with spring and damping action provided by a central spring strut.

The rear frame section of the S 1000 RR is a welded light-alloy structure belted to the mainframe.

Also equipped with Race ABS and DTC Dynamic Traction Control, the S 1000 RR sets “a new benchmark in terms of riding dynamics, safety and innovation” according to BMW Motorrad.

Featuring an aluminium bridge frame, and compact overall layout, BMW also claims its new S 1000 RR supersports offers sure-footed handling and straightforward rideability.

It also features premium safety technologies with Race ABS and DTC Dynamic Traction Control developed especially for the S 1000 RR and available as an option straight from the factory.

Riders have the choice of altering the engine characteristics and set-ups at the touch of a button, enabling them to select between various riding conditions such as wet roads (‘Rain’), regular road conditions (‘Sport’), a race track with supersport tyres (‘Race’), or a race track with slicks (‘Slick’).

The selected riding modes work in concert with the Race ABS and Dynamic Traction Control settings to optimise performance and safety.

Having joined the World Superbike circus at the beginning of this year, the new S 1000 RR will be the foundation for the 2010 production-based racing machines ridden by BMW Motorrad’s two works riders – former double world champion Troy Corser and Spaniard Ruben Xaus. (Aussie Troy Corser signed on for two seasons with BMW Motorrad in September 2008.)

With a whole lot of BMW F1 technologies deployed in the engine, the S 1000 RR promises a whole new ball-game from BMW Motorrad in the 2010 season.

No word on pricing yet – it’s all a bit too fresh – but we’ll keep you posted when it comes to hand. (With world currencies fluctuating all over the place, BMW Motorrad won’t be sticking its neck out by making a pricing call for the Oz market too early.)

Digital Car Radio: Will It Take Off In Australia?

The launch of digital radio is happening this month across Australia, and pundits are pondering what its future holds. Will it flourish, or will it be assigned to the digital reject bin, like Mini Discs and HD-DVD?

Digital radio is an impressive enough format - possessing cleaner and improved sound, extra channels, track title and artist info, pause and rewind, downloadable music and images, just to name a few features.

Commercial Radio Australia’s CEO Joan Warner said that talks with the auto industry are underway, working towards a solution for the DAB+ (Digital Audio Broadcasting) system.

Warner said, “Car manufacturers in Australia and overseas are aware that Australia’s digital radio standard is DAB+ and we are switching on in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth this month.”

“Mercedes, BMW, Jaguar and Audi have DAB receivers and Commercial Radio Australia (CRA) has contacted these manufactures to encourage them to add a DAB+ chip into those receivers for the Australian market.”

In addition to this, Commercial Radio Australia is also looking at providing the car after-market with a number of options to enjoy DAB+.

Some of the ideas include in-car adaptors that could link a portable DAB+ receiver via Bluetooth in your car or portable navigation systems that may include a DAB+ solution.

“Other receiver manufacturers CRA has spoken with are working on DAB+ after car market options.

“CRA is also a member of the World DMB Car Manufacturers Task Force meeting in Stockholm shortly to further encourage DAB+ options in cars throughout the world,” Ms Warner said.

Australia is following the European lead; with DAB+ being the preferred digital radio broadcast system, as opposed to HD radio in the US.

UK digital radio sales are going great guns, with sixty per cent of all radio listening coming via a digital signal.

The top-selling Ford Focus, Ford C-MAX and Ford Kuga are the first models to receive DAB+, with other models in the European Ford range to receive the option later this year.

On the Australian broadcasting front, Austereo (2DayFM and Triple M) are already trialling their new digital-only station, Radar, and now DMG (Nova and Vega) have announced their new digital stations: Novanation (dance) and Koffee (chill), but their management reasons that it will be four years before we know if their stations have truly been accepted.

Organisations like Commercial Radio Australia (and their lobbying) will help the acceptance of the new broadcast medium, and, of course, the carmakers who will decide whether to include or option it.

Carmakers will no doubt closely evaluate home digital radio sales figures before deciding whether to opt for it in their vehicles.

Ultimately, it’s in the hands of the fickle public, their acceptance of the marketing, the relative cost and the benefits of improved radio sound and helpful features.