VOA标准英语2016--汽车制造商依靠客户所需与其保持联系

Carmakers Count on Customers’ Desire to Stay Connected 汽车制造商依靠客户所需与其保持联系

The annual Washington Auto² Show opened its doors to the general public Tuesday, after a three-day delay caused by a snowstorm that hit the U.S. East Coast.  More than 30 world-class auto makers¹ exhibited their latest models, placing special emphasis on connectivity.

Coming on the heels of the larger shows in Los Angeles and Detroit, the Washington Auto Show has carved out a niche³ as the one that emphasizes new technologies, especially those that cause less damage to the environment.

But with falling oil prices, the promotion⁴ of thriftier⁵ hybrid⁶ or all-electric vehicles was somewhat muted, shifting the auto show's focus to connectivity and automatization.

Automotive engineering professor, Zoran Filipi, says the technology in this Mercedes S-class model shows that we are at the dawn of cars that almost drive themselves.

“It has lane-keeping ability, it has advanced radar-based system to keep the vehicle’s speed also in sync with other vehicles and this can completely alleviate⁷ your effort, driving effort, in stop-and-go situations too, and finally the collision avoidance," said Filipi.

Very soon we will see these technologies trickling-down to more affordable⁸ models as car makers work to develop fully⁹ autonomous-driving cars.

In the meantime, says Filipi, fuel efficiency has improved 20 percent over the last 10 years.

“This has mostly been achieved with advanced engine technologies – direct injection, turbo-charging, coupled to very modern transmissions, eight, nine, ten speeds that keep the engine running in the best possible region," he said.

Almost all new models have built-in display screens that connect the vehicle to the driver’s smartphone and the Internet, helping¹⁰ in navigation, taking voice commands, and sending and receiving messages.

“Therefore you can use all the applications you are used to, everything that is tailored to your needs in your car and it’s very seamless," said Filipi.

Larger manufacturers, such as Toyota, say their all-electric fuel-cell cars are ready for the market and the only obstacle is the lack of charging stations.

Others promote their hybrid gas-electric models, saying that the number of charging stations is constantly rising while the price of home chargers is dropping.

South Korean carmaker Hyundai even offers a lifetime warranty¹¹ for the battery in its top-of-the-line model, hoping to make the hybrid car more attractive to customers.

1 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 auto   

n.(=automobile)(口语)汽车

参考例句：

• Don't park your auto here.别把你的汽车停在这儿。
• The auto industry has brought many people to Detroit.汽车工业把许多人吸引到了底特律。

3 niche   

n.壁龛；合适的职务(环境、位置等)

参考例句：

• Madeleine placed it carefully in the rocky niche. 玛德琳小心翼翼地把它放在岩石壁龛里。
• The really talented among women would always make their own niche.妇女中真正有才能的人总是各得其所。

4 promotion   

n.提升，晋级；促销，宣传

参考例句：

• The teacher conferred with the principal about Dick's promotion.教师与校长商谈了迪克的升级问题。
• The clerk was given a promotion and an increase in salary.那个职员升了级，加了薪。

5 thriftier   

节俭的( thrifty的比较级 )； 节约的； 茁壮的； 茂盛的

参考例句：

6 hybrid   

n.(动，植）杂种，混合物

参考例句：

• That is a hybrid perpetual rose.那是一株杂交的四季开花的蔷薇。
• The hybrid was tall,handsome,and intelligent.那混血儿高大、英俊、又聪明。

7 alleviate   

v.减轻，缓和，缓解(痛苦等)

参考例句：

• The doctor gave her an injection to alleviate the pain.医生给她注射以减轻疼痛。
• Nothing could alleviate his distress.什么都不能减轻他的痛苦。

8 affordable   

adj.支付得起的，不太昂贵的

参考例句：

• The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
• There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。

9 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

10 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

11 warranty   

n.担保书，证书，保单

参考例句：

• This warranty is good for one year after the date of the purchase of the product.本保证书自购置此产品之日起有效期为一年。
• As your guarantor,we have signed a warranty to the bank.作为你们的担保人，我们已经向银行开出了担保书。