2015 Passenger Car and 2014 Concept Car Yearbook

Book excerpt: Every year global automakers introduce new or significantly re-engineered passenger vehicles with increasingly advanced technology intended to exceed consumer expectations and satisfy increasingly stringent government regulations. Some of these technologies are firsts-of-their-kind and start trends that other automakers soon follow—with the innovations becoming adopted across the board. The supply community is also increasingly playing a more significant role in helping the original equipment manufacturers research, develop, and introduce the latest engineering innovations that help bring competitive advantage for their automaker partners. Each year, the editors of SAE’s Automotive Engineering magazine publish many articles focused on the technology and engineering innovations of new passenger and concept vehicles, and these articles have been collected into this volume. This 2015 Passenger Car and 2014 Concept Car Yearbook is the fourth in an ongoing series of books that provide yearly snapshots of the latest and greatest technologies introduced by the automotive industry. In this book, we explore from an OEM and supplier perspective the newest and most technically interesting production vehicles released for the 2015 model year. In addition, we also have included a technology-focused recap of the concept cars revealed during 2014. Readers will have, in one publication, a complete overview of the key advances that took place over the course of the year from around the world. Each new model is profiled in its own chapter with one or more articles by the award-winning editors and contributors of Automotive Engineering in this exclusive compilation of print and online content. The novel engineering aspects of each new vehicle are explored, with exclusive interviews of key engineers and product developers providing insights you can only get from you can only get from Automotive Engineering. This book is published for the most technically-minded enthusiasts who are interested in new car technologies, as well as practicing automotive engineers who are interested in new engineering trends. Engineering trends explored focus on what engineers are doing to meet the sometimes conflicting consumer and governmental demands for improved vehicle fuel efficiency, performance, safety and comfort. In short, this book: • Provides a single source for information on the key engineering trends of the year from both automaker and supplier perspectives. • Allows the reader to skip to chapters that cover specific car models that interest them, or read about all models from beginning to end. • Makes for dynamic book reading, with its large number of big, full-color images and easy-reading magazine format.