The Rhode Island Automobile Dealers Association hosted a reception on Thursday evening and the star of the show was Bob Tasca III, who gave the keynote speech.

Tasca is the grandson of Tasca Automotive founder Bob Tasca Sr. and the son of the dealership’s current president Bob Tasca Jr. Following in the footsteps of his grandfather, who was a major force in drag racing, Tasca III has already established himself as a top Alcohol Funny Car drag racer in just a couple of seasons.

Following a short video focusing on his racing, Tasca told business leaders in the Rhode Island auto world that he is bullish on the auto industry and bullish on Ford. (That on the same day that Ford announced a record $12.7 billion loss in 2006.)

He said industry is seeing a return to the car and that Ford was planning to bring in a number of small, fuel-efficient models it has already developed in Europe. “Gas prices are on people’s minds,” he said. “A few years ago, people were buying pickup trucks as cars. Last year, gas prices got people’s attention. It’s high on their radar screens and that’s why they’re looking at crossovers.”

As far as alternative fuels are concerned, he said he did not believe hybrids were the answer. “There are too many environmental issues,” he said, citing problems associated with disposing of batteries, the charging of batteries, which requires electricity, which is created by burning fossil fuels, and the extra cost of buying the vehicles in the first place.

He said flex-fuel vehicles that can run on E85 – the ethanol-gasoline mix – offered a real alternative but they need an infrastructure of fuel stations that does not yet exist in New England. Tasca said he thought hydrogen offered the best solution, but it was still “20 years down the road.” In the meantime, he said, he expected that better design of existing engines would make them more efficient and less polluting.

He said one development that he was looking forward to was the integration of such high-tech applications as the Internet, iPods and Blackberries into vehicles in the near future.

He said he expected the center console, where radio and heating controls are currently located, to become the high-tech center of the car, controlling access to the Internet, navigation and audio e-mail.

“The cell phone will become the portal to the car,” he said, adding that high-tech applications will be integrated right through the car. “If a light fails, the dealership will be informed what part failed and we’ll call the customer,” he said, adding that he thought such applications were less than three years out.

Tasca also referred to a recent trip to China he took with California auto entrepreneur Malcolm Bricklin. While he declined to get involved in a business venture with Bricklin that would have imported Chery cars into the U.S., he said the experience had impressed him greatly.

“China is a force to be reckoned with,” he said, noting that he dubbed their business culture a “war ethic.” He said he visited multiple city blocks that were being built but which were only half full. He said he wondered at so much over-building. “Why are you building so much? What are you preparing for?” he said he asked Chinese officials. He said they replied: “We are preparing to enter North America.”

“They’re coming,” he said. “No question.”