The next-generation Hyundai Equus and Genesis Sedan and Coupe will all receive all-wheel drive variants, the company has confirmed. An exact launch date is currently unknown, but not expected for several years.

At a launch event for the new Equus luxury sedan near San Francisco, California, Hyundai Motor America President and CEO John Krafcik confirmed to reporters during a question-and-answer session that all three models will offer all-wheel drive in the future. All three vehicles share a similar platform and when it is updated sometime in the next few years, it will be designed to accommodate a new all-wheel drive system. The exact launch date of those vehicles isn’t known, but will likely be several years out as the oldest of the group, the Genesis Sedan, has only been on sale for two years.

We hope to find out more later this week when we drive the 2011 Hyundai Equus for the first time in the U.S. Stay tuned.

Source: Hyundai

Toyota announced it is expanding its Product Quality Field Office program by adding four new locations in the U.S. and Canada. The new locations are in addition to the San Francisco, California, office set to open in July, as well as the upcoming Toronto, Ontario, and Calgary, Alberta, offices, for a total of seven locations.

Each office will employ three to five staffers in charge of data gathering and reporting, with technical expertise to detect, analyze, and respond to customer and quality issues.

The New York region office specializes in Toyota, Lexus and Scion models in cold weather regions, with emphasis on corrosion issues. As if taken from the script of the “South Park” Toyhonda Pious episode, the San Francisco office will handle hybrid vehicle systems and durability.

As for the four newly added offices, Toyota is evaluating Jacksonville, Florida, for heating, ventilation and air conditioning, and drivability; Houston for trucks and chassis components; and Denver to study high altitude performance and SUV models. Both Toronto and Calgary will specialize in extreme seasonal temperature changes, high road salt issues, and unique vehicle operating conditions. Product Quality Field Offices will also provide technical support to dealership service personnel and regional field staff, and “specialized response” for Toyota’s Swift Market Analysis Response Teams (SMART).

– Source: Toyota Motor Sales USA, Inc.

Fleet customers may be intrigued by the low operating costs and green credentials offered by the new Ford Transit Connect Electric, but they may be concerned by the lack of charging infrastructure in the U.S. To help rectify this problem, Ford and Coulomb Technologies are pairing up to install nearly 4600 charging stations across the U.S.

“Infrastructure is a key for the growing electric vehicle market,” Mike Tinskey, manager of Ford’s sustainability group, told Automotive News.”We have a bit of an infrastructure challenge in front of us, and we think this project will help enable the early adopters.”

Ford’s Blue Oval ChargePoint Program is incorporated into Coulomb’s ChargePoint America project. In the first phase of the program, the two companies will install 4600 charging stations in nine regions: Austin, Texas, Detroit, Michigan, Los Angeles, Sacramento, and San Francisco, California, New York City, Orlando, Florida, Redmond, Washington, and Washington D.C.

The program will allocate and install chargers for both private use and public access. Roughly 2000 home chargers will be given to Ford customers — notably those who purchase the Transit Connect EV — while the remaining 2600 chargers will be installed across the aforementioned cities. Residents can log onto Coulomb’s website to request/plead for a specific installation site. Ford is also moving to install EV charging stations across its dealer network — important, especially when the Focus BEV reaches the market in 2012.

The ChargePoint program is funded largely by a $15 million-grant from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Transportation Electrification Initiative. Because of the DOE’s involvement, Coulomb is required to have its early-adopter stations installed and operational in most regions by 2011 — just in time for the market launches of both the Chevrolet Volt and Nissan Leaf.

Source: Ford, Automotive News (Subscription required)