Isuzu has officially decided it is abandoning the North American market, and discontinuing sales of its i-Series pickup and Ascender SUV.

Isuzu has an exclusive installation deal with XM Satellite Radio. The status of their partnership is unknown, but it's a pretty good assumption that it's a done deal.

Not that it mattered much anyway.

While Isuzu's sales topped out to 100,000 units in 1999, led largely by the popular Isuzu Trooper, sales have plummeted to dismal levels since. In 2007, the automaker sold a mere 7,906 units, and that's down from 15,751 units in 2006.

And with sales numbers like that, you surely can't blame them for bailing out.

[AutoBlog]

Mercedes-Benz will offer Sirius Canada as standard equipment on many of its vehicles available in Canada.

Sirius Satellite Radio will be offered as standard equipment on all Mercedes-Benz E-Class, S-Class, CL-Class, CLS-Class, SL-Class, ML-Class, R-Class and GL-Class vehicles along with the all new 2008 C350 and C350 4MATIC models. All Mercedes-Benz AMG vehicles will feature Sirius as factory standard equipment as well.

In addition, Sirius will be available as a factory installed option on all Mercedes-Benz B-Class, C-Class, CLK-Class and SLK-Class models.

Sirius-equipped Mercedes-Benz vehicles will include a complimentary 6-month Sirius subscription.

Sirius Canada will also be standard equipment on all Maybach vehicles and will feature a lifetime Sirius subscription.

The all-new 2009 Kia Borrego midsize SUV, unveiled recently at NAIAS in Detroit, will be the first Kia vehicle to have Sirius Satellite Radio as factory standard equipment. Set to go on sale this summer as a 2009 model, the Borrego also houses Kia's first-ever V8 engine, making it the most powerful Kia vehicle to date.

Sirius and Kia announced a partnership 20-months ago that runs through 2014. There's also an optional extension to 2017.

Alongside Sirius, the Borrego also comes standard with USB/iPod capabilities powered by a 600- watt Infinity audio system. Each Borrego will come with three months of free Sirius service.

Sirius is scheduled to become a standard feature in all 2009 model year Kia vehicles.

General Motors yesterday unveiled the CTS-V, the high performance version of the redesigned CTS sedan, at the North American International Auto Show. The CTS-V delivers 550 horsepower and 550 lb-ft of torque from the supercharged 6.2L V8, and will be available in a six-speed manual, or (for the first time) a six-speed automatic transmission. It will have the strongest engine in Cadillac's history.

The 2009 Cadillac CTS-V will also come standard, factory-equipped with XM Satellite Radio and with XM NavTraffic on navigation-equipped vehicles.

The CTS-V will not be a high-volume seller, but it's not supposed to be. It's meant to cement Cadillac's image as a high-performing luxury line.

Pictured above is GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz as he unveils the 2009 Cadillac CTS-V at NAIAS 2008. Check out AutoBlog for more live shots of the CTS-V unveiling.

Ford Motor Company's new 2009 F-150 truck not only has added the updated Ford SYNC (complete with "911 Assist" and Vehicle Health Reports), but also has added on the new Sirius Travel Link system.

Sirius Travel Link was previously only known to be included on the 2009 Lincoln MKS.

The beauty is that by combining Ford SYNC with Sirius Travel Link, now many of Sirius' functions are accessible through Microsoft's voice-recognition software. So real-time traffic, coast-to-coast weather conditions and fuel price information from over 120,000 gas stations - as well as Sirius Satellite Radio itself - are all now voice-activated on the 2009 Ford F-150.

You can see Orbitcast's own hands-on photos with Sirius Travel Link, or check out CNET's photos with the Travel Link system in the F-150 here.

[via Engadget]

Ford SYNC is continuing to expand its feature-list, as well as its penetration rate, adding a new "911 Assist" functionality and regular Vehicle Health Reports later this year.

At CES, Bill Gates announced that Ford will expand SYNC to nearly all Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles by the end of the year. Currently, it's only available on 12 models.

But that's not really the big news. The big news is that Ford SYNC is getting a massive update later this year to include "911 Assist" functionality. All the new models, as well as current SYNC-enabled models on the road, will get this expanded functionality (since the SYNC system can download software updates).

This new "911 Assist" feature makes SYNC compete not only with satellite radio, but also with other telematics systems like GM's OnStar. The big difference being: there's no additional monthly fee.

Instead of setting up a separate cellular connection, Ford SYNC simply pairs itself with your current cellphone (which it's designed to happen every time you enter the vehicle). Upon airbag deployment, the system will wait 10 seconds before it automatically calls the local 911 emergency operator. A pre-recorded message will then play when the call is answered, and occupants in the vehicle will be able to communicate directly with the 911 operator.

Later this year, SYNC will offer a Vehicle Health Report functionality as well. Again, using your current cellphone, SYNC will gather data from the vehicle's control modules and send that information to Ford via an 800-number. The whole process, which in some vehicles will include a routine check of more than two dozen systems, takes a matter of minutes.

You can then receive these health reports regularly either by email or by text-message alerts. And it's all free.

It's interesting to see that Ford/Microsoft are accepting the fact that users all have their own devices that do the same thing as competing systems in the car. Rather than embedding a harddrive in the car (e.g., MyGig), SYNC uses your iPod/MP3 player. Rather than embedding a cellular connection (e.g., OnStar), SYNC uses your current cellphone.

They're not focusing on convergence, they're focusing on integration. And that's important, because it future-proofs Ford for whatever may come.

The new Hyundai Genesis, the automaker's first foray into premium sports sedan territory, will also be the first Hyundai to offer the XM NavTraffic real-time traffic service as an option.

XM Radio will of course be standard on the Genesis, as it is on nearly all Hyundai vehicles.

XM NavTraffic, which is available in 80 major North American markets, will be made available as part of the Genesis' navigation system. Every 2009 Hyundai Genesis equipped with XM NavTraffic comes standard with a free 3-month subscription of the traffic service (XM Radio also comes with a 3-month trial subscription).

“While Genesis will compete for customers with cars like Chrysler 300 and Pontiac G8, our engineering benchmarks were Mercedes E-Class, BMW 5 Series, Infiniti M, and Lexus GS,” said John Krafcik, VP product development and strategic planning at Hyundai Motor America.

Genesis is built on Hyundai’s all-new, rear-wheel-drive architecture with three powertrains offered, including 3.3-liter and 3.8-liter V6 engines, and Hyundai’s all-new 4.6-liter Tau V8. The Tau will produce an estimated 375 horsepower using premium fuel (368hp using regular unleaded) leading all competitors in specific output with 79.5 to 81.0 horsepower per liter.

Hyundai's new flagship vehicle will also be the most advanced Hyundai ever. From its 8-inch navigation display (which also sports a 30-gig harddrive), to its Adaptive Front Lighting System (AFLS), Smart Cruise Control, and its Lexicon state-of-the-art audio system featuring LOGIC 7® technology (which, by the way, is only available on the Rolls Royce Phantom in addition to the Genesis). The MSRP is unknown at this time, but I'll make a bet that it will be a big seller for the automaker.

For this week's North American International Auto Show, Chrysler has officially unveiled the 2009 Dodge Ram truck - the first truck ever to feature Sirius Backseat TV.

Chrysler is looking to make waves with this all-new redesigned truck, featuring their first-ever crew-size cab, giving Dodge an entry into the largest and fastest-growing part of the market. Crew-size cab sales accounts for nearly 50% of market share.

The interior is fastly improved as well (driven by consumer demand of "rough on the outside, smooth on the inside" offerings from automakers). The Dodge Ram's interior now sports premium seating, soft-touch materials, redesigned controls, floor console with shifter, and nearly double the storage options.

Infotainment choices include Chrysler's MyGIG Multimedia Infotainment System with 30-gigabyte hard drive, navigation system, and a rear-seat DVD entertainment system available in the Quad Cab and crew cab.

And rounding it all off is Sirius Backseat TV - for the first time ever in a truck - and the segment-first surround-sound audio.

More than anything, it seems that Sirius Backseat TV is an added value for automakers (currently, only Chrysler) meant as a differentiator against competitors. Whether that will drive subscribers is unknown right now, but it definitely adds brand-awareness (plus it doesn't hurt to remain on the good side of OEMs).

Full Disclosure: I own a Dodge Ram, and I really really like it.

XM is jumping the gun a bit and announced the unveiling of their new XM NavWeather personalized weather tracking service for GPS nav systems, at the 2008 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS).

While CES is ready to kick off this week, NAIAS will be held next week (January 13-17) in Detroit.

There's no official word about whether this new "infotainment vehicle" would be on display at CES as well - but you can bet I'll try to find out.

XM NavWeather - which we first heard about at last year's CES, and then later learned the product name back in August - enables drivers to view live, personalized weather forecasts and conditions on top of their existing navigation display. Sure, it was known that this personalized weather service was coming for the Bushnell ONIX400, but what we didn't know is how this would apply to OEM versions.

Another feature we didn't know about is XM's exclusive "Threat Matrix" technology which provides immediate alerts on developing weather conditions, such as hail, tornado and storm warnings, mapped to the driver's specific location and driving route. Drivers will get the option to view current and developing road weather conditions and multi-day forecasts for cities across the country, and also view weather maps to monitor conditions anywhere in the United States.

XM NavWeather was developed with Baron Services, who is XM's weather partner for the award-winning XM WX Satellite Weather service that provides "professional grade" real-time weather information direct to aircraft cockpits and marine navionics instruments.

This is the "consumer friendly" version of XM WX.

XM plans to announce the first auto partners to offer XM NavWeather in early 2008, and the service will be available for the portable Bushnell ONIX 400 within 30 days.

Ford Motor Company released their sales figures for the Ford SYNC recently, and stated that the Microsoft-powered system is on track to reach 1 million sales in early 2009.

Ford SYNC topped 30,000 sales in 2007, with sales in the final quarter of 2007 averaging approximately 10,000 units per month, the company said. This makes it one of the fastest growing new products in the auto industry.

The company also confirmed that nearly every new Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicle will be available with Ford's SYNC system by year end. Approximately 85 percent of Ford's retail volume will be offered with SYNC connectivity.

During 2008, SYNC will be offered on the new 2009 Ford Flex and F-150; the 2009 Ford Escape; Escape Hybrid; and 2009 Ford Expedition. The 2009 Lincoln MKS - being launched later this year - will have SYNC as standard equipment (and will offer Sirius Travel Link as well). SYNC is being added to the 2009 Lincoln Navigator, as well as the 2009 Mariner and Mariner Hybrid.

"The average commute in America is now 30 minutes, and people want to maximize the time they spend behind in the car," said Jim Buczkowski, director of Electrical Systems Engineering at Ford. "Ford has delivered the plans and technologies to accommodate customers' entertainment and infotainment needs while allowing them to stay focused on driving."