Hello,
"Long-time listener/first-time caller" here... I just wanted to point out an interesting discussion regarding use of an Arduino-compatible 32-Bit board (the ChipKIT) and a CAN Communication Interface for the Ford Motor Company called OpenXC (http://openxcplatform.com/). The discussion forum can be found at Redirecting to Google Groups
I have no idea if there's any way these two efforts can be of use to each other, but I figured I'd mention it...
Keep up the exciting work!