Detroit Free Press writers Katie Merx and Tim Higgns have reached new heights of hyperbole. After boldly proclaiming "A new U.S. auto industry emerges" because of the new UAW contract with GM, they tone down their rhetoric a bit– but not much. They speculate that the new agreement will make "GM more competitive against its foreign rivals." They also claim the contract has the "potential to shape a new Detroit auto industry that can compete on a more-level playing field with … foreign rivals not burdened by huge retiree legacy costs." But then they temper their enthusiasm by admitting "GM, Ford and Chrysler still face challenges to consistently develop vehicles that resonate with Americans, to slim down their dealer networks and to improve their image on quality." So what's it gonna be– a "more competitive" GM because they now have a "level playing field," or a return to business as usual before the ink is even dry on the contract? Watch this space (General Motors Death Watch 147 later today).

J.D. Power and Associates has just released their 2007 Escaped Shopper Study (an APB has been issued). After surveying 31,355 new-vehicle buyers between May and July 2007, J.D.'s mob says that 80 percent of US new car buyers won't cross-shop an import (if they're domestically inclined) or a domestic (if they're a import inclined). That's bad news for The Big 2.8. But it gets worse. The 20 percent of buyers up for grabs "frequently decide against import brands for financial reasons, most often citing that the import didn't offer aggressive rebates or other incentives." In other words, Detroit's fire sales have caught up with them but good; they're high cost producers appealing to a price-focused audience. At the same time, the study says import buyers who reject a domestic model cite "perceived vehicle attribute deficiencies:" concerns for reliability, gas mileage or poor resale value. J.D.'s automotive retail research manager connects the dots. "To win back market share, domestics are faced with two alternatives," Kara Steslicki opines. "Either continue outspending imports on incentives, or find vehicle specific opportunities, such as styling or promoting a positive dealer experience, that can have an immediate impact on consumer perceptions of the brand." Not bloody likely then.

According to Jacksonville.com, the legislation requiring that Florida drivers carry no-fault personal injury policies (PIP) expires next Monday. Insurers welcome the end of the (PIP) system, which is rife with fraud. Problem: the Florida legislature may attempt to pass a measure that will renew the requirement. If so, insurance companies will need time to re-program their computers, figure out new rates and apply for their approval. Fort Lauderdale Rep Ellyn Bogdanoff sums up the mess: "The companies simply do not have the capacity to turn around in 24 hours." In the meantime, Sam Miller of the Florida Insurance Council has a message for drivers with current PIP policies: "Your contract with the insurance company is not voided by PIP going away." Yes but… Florida drivers who renew or take out a new policy after October first may find that a wreck may leads to a court fight over fault.

I recently found myself in London working on a large project for an even larger corporation. I took particular interest in the Ford models plying British roads. In contrast to America’s Blue Oval offerings, these Euro-Fords looked clean, modern and, above all, right-sized. And then, bombing around London in a Ford Mondeo estate (station wagon), the chariot’s gentle diesel clatter brought sudden clarity. If Ford hopes to preserve America’s mildewed Mercury brand, Euro-Fords are the way to go.

Auto Motor und Sport (via Just-auto [sub]) reports that Toyota is withdrawing the Land Cruiser from their Eurozone dealerships after this model year. The move comes as ToMoCo seeks to trim its entire fleet's CO2 averages to 140g per kilometer, as per voluntary European Union (EU) regulations. As the heavyweight SUV wasn't exactly a stellar seller and a new, more environmentally friendly Land Crusher Cruiser is about to debut, it's no biggie. More interestingly, Toyota plans to increase the price of their hot-selling, recently redesigned RAV4 in order to curtail demand– and meet the CO2 target. The changes to Toyota's lineup illustrate the difficulty faced by smaller manufacturers like Porsche, who don't sell low CO2 machines that "average out" their gas guzzlers' emissions. Hence German manufacturers' campaign to get the EU to set CO2 limits based on vehicle size, rather than fleet averages. Just-auto figures that idea's a non-starter. Next question: can a brand under a corporate umbrella (i.e. Volkswagen's Bugatti) rely on the meta-group's high mileage cars to meet the regs? And even if they can, will the detrimental effect on the larger brand encourage the corporate mothership to jettison the CO2-spewing boutique brands?

Again, for the record, TTAC has never accused Chris Bangle of being a racist. We accused the BMW designer of racial insensitivity. He singularly failed to realize the potential impact of his "axis of white power" remark on a minority audience. Invidious distinction? Well, the fact that Bangle's apology-free reply dealt entirely with the inadvertent origins of his faux pas— rather than its possible effects on sensitive listeners– does nothing to allay our misgivings. The subtext of his defense: it's all about me. Of course, it isn't about Bangle. It's about his desire (or lack thereof) to respect the dignity of those people who may be offended by an unfortunate turn of phrase. And BMW's responsibility to this same audience. TTAC is no stranger to these issues; we've stepped over these same boundaries. When commentators have pointed out our racial, sexual or political insensitivity, we have immediately withdrawn the offensive text and apologized– despite the fact that we meant no offense. That's the right thing to do. It also seems strange that Bangle felt obliged to deal with criticism of his work BEFORE dealing with the "axis of white power" remark. Clearly, that was really got his goat. Which is just as well. There are those of us who believe the aesthetic indignities that Bangle inflicted on otherwise superb automobiles is a longer-lasting and more egregious error. Your thoughts below.   

Is there an ICLU (as opposed to the ACLU)? If so, they may want to have a word with the Indian government re: their plans to require automotive manufacturers to equip all new cars with radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags. The Economic Times reports the Ministry of Heavy Industries' rationale: "violations by motorists could be tracked and all violations identified." But it's RFID-enabled tolls that's really got the Powers That Be all excited. Clearly, India is not unaware of the potential revenue possibilities environmental benefits of an RFID-based congestion charges. The article cites Connaught Place in Delhi, MG Road in Bangalore and Colaba and Andheri in Mumbai as the most toll-deserving of traffic hot spots. In fact, "the Delhi government is planning to substantially increase the parking fee and entrance charge in such core areas to convert them into traffic-free zones." Traffic-free? Wow, that's harsh.  

The strike is over. The United Autoworkers Union (UAW) has announced they've reached an agreement with General Motors which will lead to a new contract for their members. Everyone's gone back to work. Everyone is happy, and all's right with the world– at least until the full impact of the agreement hits the workers. At that point, they might realize that they gave up two days' pay and got practically nothing in return. Let's see how it adds up.  

The Register reports that the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) is set to test the StarChase Pursuit Management System. Officers involved in a chase will use a compressed-air laser-sighted launcher mounted at the front of a patrol car to fire a miniature GPS receiver, battery and radio transmitter embedded in an epoxy compound. The tracking device will stick to the absconding villains' car. Police can then back off during high speed pursuits, knowing that the GPS tracker and the cellular radio data will provide the fleeing felons exact 10-20. The Register is not impressed: "You'd probably hear the trackers splatting into the back of your car – they'd need to be flying fast. If not, you'd notice the targeting lasers glaring from the pursuing police cruiser.." They theorize that GPS tagged criminals will switch on a GPS/cellular jammer or stop and "scrape off the sticky bug with a knife." We reckon the average criminal will do no such thing, and that the system could save thousands of lives lost during high speed police pursuits.

Prius/hybrid bashers have a new angle of attack, thanks to Cardiff University and UK automotive consultancy Clifford Thames (who currently features Toyota's logo on its website). The Financial Times reports that the dynamic duo studied a range of vehicles and concluded that many conventional petrol or diesel engined machines (e.g. the Mini Cooper D diesel hatchback and Fiat Panda) are "greener" than the gas – electric Prius. How's that then? "The Cardiff/Clifford Thames ranking gave CO2, nitrogen oxide and other emissions a 50 per cent weighting in assessing cars’ overall environmental friendliness. For the other 50 per cent, it ranked vehicles on their construction, energy and end-of-life costs, based on their length, width and weight." We'd like to see a  bit more detail on that formula. Meanwhile the study's author was aware that their results were a bit, um, skewed. “We’re not saying that any car that is the same size as the Prius is better," Clifford Thames’ Richard Barber admitted. "but the gap is closing very rapidly, and conventional technologies will pass the Prius." In fact, “Conventional technology will overtake the Prius over the next 12 to 18 months, and consumers won’t have to pay a premium for it,” said David Riemenschneider, Clifford Thames’ chief executive. Let the eco-games begin! Oh wait; they already have.

Now that Tesla's delayed the delivery of their $100k lithium-ion-powered Roadster for the third time, and lowered production expectations again, you'd think that the automotive media would begin to share TTAC's skepticism about this Silicon Valley venture. Not so. Perhaps that's because A) The media really want it to happen and B) Tesla's wrapped the delay in [increasingly familiar] hyperbole. In a letter to Tesla Club Members ($50k and you're in!), Tesla's freshly-minted CEO apologizes for the delay and resets customers' expectations. "While we expect to produce a limited number of production cars in the fourth quarter," Michael E. Marks writes. "I have set a production goal of shipping fifty cars in the first quarter of 2008, with an additional 600 cars in the 2008 model year." (In case you're not a lawyer, "expect" and "goal" are not legally binding terms.) And then the really good news: "Range: 245 miles on the EPA combined cycle, confirmed!" Confirmed by… Tesla! Although the company feels free to use the term "EPA" in their claims, nothing about the Roadster is government certfied. And there is still no independent confirmation of the Roadster’s safety, range or recharge time. Yet the press continue to repeat Tesla's claims as if they were gospel. Rest assured, the Devil's Advocate will keep you posted.

Buyers of the first generation KJ Liberty fell into two camps: those who appreciated the trucklet for its off-road, severe weather and towing capabilities; and those who thought it was adorable. Let’s face it: the oh-isn’t-it-darling? brigade made the Liberty a star; they drew it to their collective bosom like a Hollywood starlet clutching the only real friend she ever had (a Chihuahua). The Liberty became one of America’s hottest selling mini-SUVs. As fashion dictates, those days are gone. Upon the redesigned Liberty, dubbed the KK, Chrysler’s cute ute comeback hopes reside. But this time its neither fish nor foul.

BMW has responded to the furor surrounding Chris Bangle's inadvertently inappropriate "axis of white power" remark by yanking the original video (which is now on YouTube) and allowing the designer to answer charges of racial insensitivity on BMW-web-tv. Bangle warms-up by telling us how much he loves car design: "I believe design is about the human contribution to our culture" (as opposed to?). Next, Bangle has a message for those of us who share a distaste for his over-wrought designs: wake up! "When anyone… moves the whole design language forward and puts a cutting edge to what had maybe been a little bit of an industry asleep, then certainly there's going to be some controversy. Some people are not going to wake up maybe as gently as they would have liked to." Zzzzz. Huh? What? I LOVE IT! Anyway, the main event. Without repeating the remark (as if), the interviewer asks Bangle about the allegation that "your statement was very racial [sic]." "I was shocked," Bangle says, looking shocked. "Seriously shocked and extremely… disturbed by what was really a statement about some great cars at a car show… I made a statement about those cars [M-Power cars] with that color [white] and now I've seen that this has been taken into a complete political context. I would never support any type of political activism on that level and on that subversive bent." So, no idea of what the Hell he was talking about and no apology for his slip of the tongue or BMW's inability to foresee the offense his remark could cause, or has caused. Again, BMW clings to the belief that they never make mistakes (iDrive?), even when they do. 

Day two of the UAW strike and media consensus has been reached: chill. Amongst The Detroit News’ (DTN) hopeful headlines: “Gettelfinger: Strike may prod bargainers to end stalemate.” Uh, isn’t that the point of a strike? Anyway, in a piece entitled “GM Can Handle A Short Strike,” the DTN rounds-up the usual suspects to allay fears that the automaker and its union are headed straight to Hell. In sum, “Analysts view GM's tough bargaining as a calculated gamble that is likely to pay off.” That’s a bit like saying Russian roulette offers its players terrific odds.

The Kansas City Star reports that sluggish sales of Ford's former cash cow, the F-150 pickup truck, have led to a dramatic production slow-down. For two weeks in October, FoMoCo will idle half their operations at the pickup-producing Claycomo plant. Some 2100 (of 4400) hourly employees will be paid for doing nought. And thanks to "competitive operating agreements" negotiated with the United Auto Workers, returning employees will work 10-hour shifts for four weekdays with Fridays off. Current, Ford dealers are holding 185,400 F-series trucks in their lots, which represents a 72-day inventory. (This after Ford's Norfolk F-150 plant was permanently shuttered last year.) Hot on the heels of GM's pickup truck pull-back (now a full stop, obviously), the F-150 slowdown is more proof that the entire pickup segment is undergoing a radical contraction. The trend will hit The Big 2.8's bottom lines but good.