OnStar

Updated: CNET video added.

The Chevrolet Volt hasn't even hit the sales floor yet and there's already an app for that. On Tuesday evening, Chevrolet and its OnStar telematics system announced working smartphone apps for the Motorola Droid, Apple iPhone, and BlackBerry Storm that will allow Volt owners to connect to their vehicles wirelessly to access remote features via smartphone.

The Chevrolet Volt OnStar smartphone app will let users know if the Volt is plugged in or not and whether it's charging on 120V or 240V. Users can also schedule charging times to get the lowest off-peak … Read more

Drivers in China can now subscribe to OnStar. The service welcomed its first subscriber earlier this month. Chinese subscribers receive 14 services through Shanghai OnStar Telematics. Some of the services include: automatic crash response, emergency services, automatic airbag response, vehicle diagnostics, stolen vehicle location, remote door unlock, turn-by-turn navigation, destination download.

The service is available throughout mainland China in Mandarin Chinese. Worldwide, OnStar has more than 5.6 million customers and has performed 253 million customer interactions to date.

The SRX name may not be new at Cadillac, but the car wearing it certainly is. The 2010 SRX is radically redesigned from earlier versions, opting for a more carlike suspension, while retaining a five-passenger SUV-like body. Borrowing much from the CTS sedan, the SRX has angular design cues around its body, and a very modern cabin tech suite, anchored by a very good navigation system. Power comes from a direct injection 3-liter V-6.

Read our review of the 2010 Cadillac SRX.

The North American Aerospace Defense Command isn't messing around this year.

Each year since 1955, the military agency--a joint U.S. and Canada operation--has been providing data on Santa Claus' annual trek around the world for kids (and non-kids, I guess) who really, really, really want to know when those coveted electric hamsters or whatever the big material sensation of the year will be getting shoved under their Christmas trees.

For 2009, the NORAD Santa Web site will also have offshoots on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Google Earth, and Flickr. A partnership with navigation company OnStar also means that subscribers … Read more

It may look like yet another boring SUV, but the GMC Terrain brings the SUV, and GM itself, into this millennium. A direct injection 3-liter V-6 offers plenty of power, an option over the standard direct injection four-cylinder. The interior looks particularly nice, especially considering a base price in the mid-20s. And we were most impressed with GM's new navigation system, a hard-drive-based unit with traffic detouring. The Terrain could change your mind about GM.

Read our review of the 2010 GMC Terrain.

DETROIT--General Motors on Monday opened the doors to the OnStar EV Lab here, a testing center for in-car communications the company hopes will give its electric Chevy Volt more high-tech appeal.

The OnStar EV Lab, housed in GM's downtown Detroit corporate headquarters, is now using the OnStar communications system to gather data on 19 Chevy Volt vehicles for engineering purposes. The same technology will give consumers the ability to tap online services and perform tasks specific to a plug-in electric vehicle, company executives said.

When GM releases the Volt at the end of next year, consumers will be able … Read more

According to some studies, about a quarter of U.S. motorists send text messages while driving. So why not make it safer?

That's the idea behind an upcoming service from telematics service provider ATX Group. ATX plans to introduce hands-free text messaging by voice.

According to ATX, of Dallas, its system, which uses existing speech-recognition technology, will allow people to dictate customized messages with minimal driver distraction.

Other in-vehicle communications systems read text messages aloud to drivers. And some, such as Ford's Sync, allow drivers to send texts--though only from a menu of scripted messages.

Don't look … Read more

OnStar's suite of Stolen Vehicle Assistance services currently includes GPS technology that pinpoints a stolen vehicle's exact location, and Stolen Vehicle Slowdown, which can remotely slow a stolen vehicle to idle speed. Today, OnStar announces Remote Ignition Block, a new tool that will help law enforcement to safely and quickly recover stolen vehicles.

Remote Ignition Block lets an OnStar adviser send a remote signal to a subscriber's stolen vehicle to prevent the vehicle from being restarted once the ignition is turned off. By killing the ignition, OnStar can make sure that the stolen vehicle remains stationary so … Read more

Editors' note: The title of this blog post initially misstated the name of Microsoft Virtual Earth.

When OnStar advisers get an accident response call, they now have another tool at their fingertips to use. The GM subsidiary recently integrated Microsoft Virtual Earth into their response system and are using the 3D features to guide first responders with more accuracy to hard-to-find or rural locations.

"Microsoft is helping automakers, suppliers and customers focus on long-term innovation to reshape the plant floor, in-car and dealership experience," said David Graff, U.S. automotive industry solutions director, Microsoft Corp. in a press … Read more