Since Mercedes is making product announcements on the scale of Coca-Cola changing the cap on its 20 oz bottles, they get rolled into a double pointed post. First, for the first time in recent years, Benz will be selling a 4Matic coupe. Although the sedans are all available with all wheel drive, the 2 door range has been left in in the cold. To begin with, only the CL550 will get 4Matic, which from a marketing standpoint is questionable since owners of such an expensive car frequently maintain a separate all weather vehicle. My choice would have been to give it to the CLK, which tends to be more of a daily driver and competes directly with the BMW 3-Series coupes already available with four wheeled propulsion. Second, Benz has priced out the new C63 AMG sedan at $53,800. And at first blush, that sure does sound like a lot of money. But it's actually only $1,775 more than a basic run of the mill base E350. At that point, it's the 450 horsepower AMG-ICBM sounds like a damn fine deal. Benz also released pictures of the C63 plutonium powered wagon, but Benz PR Manager Robert Moran tells me "there are no plans" to bring the wagon Stateside. So we'll have to make do with the sedan. Will 5,380 people loan me ten bucks each please?

GM may soon be feeling some of Chrysler's pain over bankrupt suppliers. The CarConnection reports Cobasys, supplier of the NiMH batteries used in the light-hybrid Vue, Aura and Malibu and holder of "a key contract in the development of GM's much-anticipated plug-in hybrid, the Volt," is out of money. The battery maker lost more than $76m last year and expect to lose $82m this year. To make matters worse, the company's joint owners, Chevron and ECD, can't agree on the 2008 budget. So Cobays' operating budget is $92m short. Cobasys is now on GM's "distressed supplier list;" the General refuses to comment on the situation. In the meantime, GM has struck a deal to buy batteries for its two-mode hybrid trucks from a Panasonic – Toyota joint venture.  

As reported by OneNewsNow, more than 10k people have attended public hearings to "discuss" the proposed  four-thousand-mile network of toll roads known as the Trans-Texas Corridor (a.k.a. the "NAFTA superhighway").  "They're taking huge swaths of land. Some of it is prime agriculture land," Terry Hall of Texans Uniting for Reform and Freedom (TURF) protests. "And they're going [to] hand it over to private entities for commercial gain." Texas Governor Perry calls such critics "unenlightened." Perry claims people need the road system so they "don't spend all their time in gridlock instead of being with their kids at soccer practice or back home with their families." The Houston Chronicle reports on the public hearing in Katy, where dozens of speakers decried the road system as "un-American." "These are the things that started the American Revolution– the seizing of houses and land, and taxation without representation," according to Dianne Hodge of Waller. "If we need a new American Revolution to restore a government of the people, by the people and for the people, then let it begin in Texas."

The Detroit Free Press reports that Chrysler has extended its short-term agreement with bankrupt supplier Plastech. The deal was expected by industry observers after Chrysler lost a court battle to strip Plastech of the toolings required to manufacture many of the plastic components in Chrysler's vehicles. The previous interim agreement was scheduled to lapse tonight, potentially stopping production at other Chrysler plants, but the extension will keep factories open through at least March third. This incredibly short-term measure keeps the prospect of further wrangling between Chrysler and its troubled supplier on the front burner. Between Plastech's reputed quality issues, Chrysler's clearly adversarial attitude towards its supplier and the ongoing resolution of Plastechs $488m in debts, this story is just starting to get interesting. Watch this space. 

A survey by organizers of the British International Motor Show shows that Britons are more likely to remember their first car better than their first kiss. In fact, the survey shows that over 40% of the study group remembers the license plate number of their first car. The poll of 2,011 adults also shows that younger respondents anticipated getting their first car more than first kisses and 18th birthdays. Why the strong attraction to first cars? More than a third of respondents reported engaging in carnal acts in the back seat of their first car, and over half left home after securing their first set of wheels. "People develop powerful bonds with their cars, especially their first," says show organizer Kirsty Perkinson. "First cars represent an explosion of independence and a gateway to untold adventures, which is why they are so special." No word yet on whether carbon-hating London Mayor Ken Livingstone plans on challenging the results of this survey.

The automotive press is obsessed with new cars, and the automakers know it. As The Big 2.8 flounder on the shoals of their broken branding, badge engineering and bloated dealer networks, they highlight the latest bright shiny object as proof of future salvation. Jerry Flint: “The best news from the domestic industry is that the product, particularly at GM but also at Ford, is getting better.” Meanwhile, car hacks are ignoring the fact that the domestics’ business is collapsing, as startling new data from J.D. Power illustrates.

Thomson Financial News [via CNN Money] reports that GM will announce a joint venture with the GAZ Group of Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska's Basic Element company. The team plan to build the Chevrolet Lacetti (Suzuki Forenza/Reno) at a factory based in Deripaska's home oblast of Nizhny Novgorod. The plant will initially produce 50k of the Daewoo-designed vehicles per year, increasing to a planned to 300k units p/a. Basic Element, will invest a billion dollars in the project. This is not Deripaska's first flirtation with the American car industry. Last May, he bought a $1.5b stake in Magna International, a move which allowed the Canadian company to tender an ultimately unsuccessful bid for Chrysler. Despite his new joint venture with GM and a crucial stake in Chrysler's supply line, Russia's youngest and richest billionaire in Russia isn't allowed to visit the United States due to "suspected links to the criminal community" Given this inconvenience, Mr. Deripaska will likely look once more to Magna to act on his behalf when American automakers start holding holding pre-bankruptcy fire sales.

Remember back in January 2005 when we saw the Ford Fairlane concept at the Detroit Auto Show? After that proto-debut, Ford started flashing around pre-production Flex at various events here and there. In January 2007, Ford brought the production version of the Flex to the Detroit Auto Show again. On sale date? Summer 2008, as a 2009 model year car. Three-and-a-half years between concept and production ain't bad. But the fact that Ford has been trotting around production-ready versions of this vehicle roughly 18 months ahead of its on-sale date, well that's just asinine. But not as bad as the price, which Ford announced today. The three-row tall wagon will start at an almost reasonable $28,200. Want all wheel drive? Want a white roof? Leather? Gadgets? It'll cost you, all the way up to $37k or more. At least it's got the 3.5 liter V6 engine standard, and eventually an optional turbocharged EcoBoost engine. I'd still prefer an S-Max or Galaxy, but that's just Eurosnobbery. If this thing was on sale two years ago for $4k less…

Autocar reports that a new poll financed by Porsche suggests that 74 percent of Londoners think London's new, higher (for some) CO2-based charge is "unfair." Having released complete polling data from that study, Porsche is challenging Livingstone to produce similarly comprehensive data from the Ipsos-MORI poll which the left-wing mayor claims to show support for the environmental measure. The incompleteness of available data from the Ipsos-MORI poll has prompted Porsche to file a complaint with the British Polling Council for failing to uphold public transparency standards. Porsche clearly smells blood in the water; Livingstone has staked his re-election campaign on environmental issues. With a May first election looming, and two opponents who oppose the fee, Livingstone is retaking the offensive by attacking Porsche at a recent press conference. "(Porsche) should be redoubling efforts to produce less- polluting cars,'' said Livingstone. "I can imagine how annoyed Berliners would be if a British company tried to intervene in a mayoral election.'' Meanwhile, Livingstone has still not released his polls data, showing that whatever his purported allegiance to the environment, his populism does not prevent him from hiding information when his political survival is at stake.

While GM was wooing the greenies with their big PR event at the Oscars, Audi was busy thumbing their nose at The General. GM trotted out the Yukon Hybrids, Equinox Fuel Cells and "ethanol-compatible GMC Yukons" and put the concept Volt (that looks nothing like the eventual production model) on display to impress the easily-impressed. Audi, on the other hand, "chauffeured [nominees and winners] through the Audi VIP fleet of more than 55 exclusively equipped A8L W12's and Audi Q7's." The press release lists a number of stars who "selected Audi as their preferred mode of transportation for Oscar week." Not surprisingly, Ed Begley Jr. and George Clooney don't appear on that list.

As we chronicled in GM Death Watch 165, details of the new $33b – $36.5b GM – United Auto Workers (UAW) health care VEBA (Voluntary Employees Beneficiary Association) are beginning to emerge. That said, neither this site nor the 600k+ UAW workers whose health care depends on this trust know the timing or amounts of GM's contributions to the fund. While we await that info, The Detroit Free Press reports that GM's raising money to pay into this Mother of All Health Care Trusts. Regulatory documents reveal that GM has taken on an additional… wait for it… $8.39 billion in debt. The Freep breaks it down to "4.37b in 6.75% bonds, due in December 2012 and convertible into GM shares, and a $4.02 billion, 9% short-term note." As a quick reminder, GM's interest payments on its current debt burden are $2.9b per year. Again, we don't know how much more cash GM will need to fund the VEBA, and when they'll need it.

Holy emerging markets! According to Japan's Nikkei business daily [via Reuters], Toyota's luxury division is boosting production by 35 percent to cater to strong demand in Russia, China and other nascent automotive markets. No question: the brand's on a roll. Last year, ToMoCo sold 518,300 Lexi, a nine percent gain over 2006 totals. Lexus now accounts for roughly six percent of Toyota's total sales. As we reported previously, Toyota plans to expand production generally by 8.4 percent– despite the U.S. downturn and any ripple effect it may have on the global economy. According to Nikkei, that's just a start (continuation?). "Toyota has set an internal goal of producing 11.3 million vehicles globally in 2012, excluding its units Daihatsu Motor Co and Hino Motors Ltd. That would represent a rise of more than 30 percent from 2007." Toyota denied the report. 

Rising food prices, sinking water tables, deforestation leading to increased CO2 levels, billions in taxpayer subsidies; what else could you possibly have against ethanol? How about this [via Yahoo! News]: "Ethanol fires are harder to put out than gasoline ones and require a special type of firefighting foam. Many fire departments around the country don't have the foam, don't have enough of it, or are not well-trained in how to apply it, firefighting experts say. It is also more expensive than conventional foam." Unlike many of the effects of America's rush to ethanol, this is a danger you can see. Have seen. "In the last three months of 2007, three major fires pointed up the danger. In western Pennsylvania, nine ethanol tanker cars derailed and triggered a blaze that tied up a busy rail line. In Missouri, a tanker truck carrying several thousand gallons of ethanol and gasoline crashed near the state Capitol, killing the driver. The flames spurred the evacuation of two elementary schools and forced the state to rebuild a badly damaged bridge. And in Ohio, a train heading through the northeastern part of the state to Buffalo, N.Y., derailed and burned, forcing more than 1,000 people from their homes." Now how much would you pay? [thanks to David Holzman for the link]

According to The New York Times, GM has confidence that Cerberus will fix GMAC. GM CFO Fritz "What Me Worry?" Henderson played down Cerberus chairman Stephen Feinberg's recent warning that "things could get a lot worse" at the finance company. While acknowledging GMAC subprime mortgage market struggles (how could he not?), Fritz believes GMAC has the cash reserves to see them through the current crisis. More to the point, GM's Chief Beancounter says GMAC won't need additional cash from GM. In fact, "We expect that GMAC will turn a profit in 2008." (That's three years before Fritz' predicted return to profit for GM.) Fritz didn't comment on Standard & Poor's recently GMAC and ResCap downgrade, which lowered both to junk-bond status, raising their cost of borrowing. While the storm clouds gather over the troubled lender, GM is doing what they can to help GMAC return to profitability: continuing to offer zero percent financing on a number of vehicles. We'd appreciate a heads-up from our dealer readers as to whether or not they've tightened credit requirements for these killer deals…

“You’re adding an oil shock on top of a crunch on credit and a housing collapse. Even the U.S. economy cannot withstand all of that at the same time.” Nigel Gault, an economist at Global Insight, didn't mention falling new car sales or millions of endangered auto loans in his analysis of the impact of rising U.S. gas prices. But then, he didn't have to. It's been clear for years how this one will shake out, with truck-heavy domestics losing both sales and market share. The New York Times says that when it comes to American gas prices, the only way is up. "Energy specialists predict that, as demand picks up further this spring and summer, retail prices will surpass the high of $3.23 a gallon set last Memorial Day weekend." Surveying  the supply, demand (both international and seasonal) and production equation, AAA spokesman Geoff Sundstrom reckons we could see $4 a gallon gas this summer. “We’ve gone from a worrying situation for gasoline to one that is quite alarming." Meanwhile, automakers placing their bets on oil burners will not be happy to read that "on Tuesday, diesel prices rose to a record $3.60 a gallon, compared with $2.62 a gallon last year."