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Fiat Turns to Natural Gas as Toyota, GM Go ElectricBy Tommaso Ebhardt and Tim Higgins
Dec. 2 (Bloomberg) -- As Sergio Marchionne brings back Fiat SpA to the U.S. after nearly three decades, he may add another Italian speciality: the natural gas engine.
Marchionne, who is chief executive officer of Fiat and Chrysler Group LLC, says natural gas engines offer a better way to cut emissions because they’re cheaper than competing technologies. He also argues electric cars, which General Motors Co. and Toyota Motor Corp. are betting on, present “too many obstacles” such as the recharge time for batteries.
“Natural gas is very suitable for the U.S.,” Constantinos Vafidis, who oversees transmission and hybrid development at Fiat’s research center in Turin, Italy, said in an interview. “Especially for public services and goods transportation, where vehicles are refueled from a central base.”
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