Not to be outdone by GM CEO Rick Wagoner's $2.2m salary re-raise, 165,563 shares, 500k stock options and 75k restricted stock units; FoMoCo has just paid CEO Alan Mulally $4m in Blue Oval stock and $3.56m worth of stock options. (That is, of course, on top of Mulally's $2m base salary and the $35m in compensation Ford's paid their CEO for his first 14 months of service). As Automotive News [sub] reports, the former Boeing executive's new compensation package comes hot on the heels of his employer's $2.7b '07 loss. More to the point (if not for shareholders), the gravy train rumbling through Dearborn could anger Ford's union workforce looking at buyouts, buydowns and piss-offs. Or not. Coincidentally enough, Mulally's bonanza comes just two days after Big Al announced a $1k bonus for all Ford's United Auto Workers (UAW) members. And the fact that the announcement is hitting the wires on the weekend? More uninvited serendipity, surely. Bottom line: the bottom line has no relation to Motown executive pay. 

For me, driving bliss is all about the setting. Give me an empty road, spectacular scenery, good company and the freedom to explore without an itinerary or time constraints, and I’m in Heaven. Sure, a nice set of wheels enhances the pleasure. But if it came down to it, I’d take an inexpensive reliable car and an endless open road over a garage full of under-used toys that never really get off their leash. I knew the basic formula intuitively in my youth.

We like Jack. Aside from being a hell of a race driver and future LeMons teammate, Jack Baruth is one of the most refreshing voices in the auto rag biz. His take on the new GT-R? Not good. While he's got nothing against the car per se, he's asking, "Who's going to buy it?" Jack argues that the GT-R's main competitors (Corvettes and 911s) have deeply entrenched, well-heeled fan bases with multiple owners clubs and racing series. The GT-R has fat kids in Mom's basement with carpel tunneled thumbs and a Slurpee's chance in Hell of getting the $70,000 needed to buy "Godzilla." He's also doubtful that the "Car Formerly Known as Skyline" will be much of a halo vehicle for Nissan, pointing out that the best thing about previous Skylines was that they didn't actually exist. They were myth. Now that they are bloated, expensive reality? Meh. Furthermore the GT-R is going to turn the 350Z into the "Nissan with panties." And finally, for those that can afford such a beast, are they going to enjoy slumming it down to their Nissan dealer where they might accidentally be seen next to a Versa? Nope. And Jack should know; he's the proud owner of two Volkswagen Phaetons.

Yeah, you know– trick. Think Smokey Yunick. In case you don't know, Mr. Yunick is widely renowned for tricks such as building a 7/8 scale NASCAR that was significantly faster than the competition and (my favorite) installing extra long fuel lines that held an additional five gallons of gas. 'Cause in racing, it's all about the gray areas. I've also heard non-Smokey rumors of mini-nitrous systems hidden within fake batteries. But today's question isn't about racing. Street driving can be filled with all sorts shenanigans. One that I enjoy: you're zipping along on the freeway when you notice a highway patrol cruiser sitting on the shoulder. Of course, you can jam on your brakes, letting the officer know that you know you're speeding. Alternatively, you can pull up on your handbrake. No lights, and it slows the car. Got a good one?

Chinese firm BYD (better known as an industry leader in NiCad and Lithium Ion batteries) unveiled its second plug-in hybrid at the Geneva Auto Show. Green Car Congress says its unique three-mode hybrid drivetrain starts in full-electric mode, switches to range-extending serial hybrid mode, and finally to Prius-style parallel hybrid setting (with gas and electric motor operating together). Scheduled for 2010 (isn't everything?), the new F3DM is aimed at the European market. BYD is not shy about its chances for success in the hybrid and electric car markets. "Battery technology is our core competency," Chairman Wang Chaunfu boasts. "And we think we are well-placed against GM and Toyota." No surprise then, that the company's 20kWh lithium-iron phosphate battery pack can go 70 miles on a single (long-ish) nine-hour 220 VAC charge… with a gas engine ready to kick in to extend range or increase power at any time. With a BYD test-fleet of taxis preparing to take to the streets of Shenzhen, the first automaker to sell an out-of-the-box, plug-in hybrid could well be Chinese. 

The less resources available to a group that needs them, the more fierce the competition for those resources becomes. If you're a consumer and the fight's for your dollar, this is a good thing. For the companies chasing your custom, the struggle to compete can exhaust their resources and lead to extinction. Which is good for you and a bad for them. (Survival of the fittest and all that.) All of which is a preamble to the fact that the deals on GM wheels are getting seriously serious. Regional GM dealers– including Cadillac and Saturn— are offering "pull ahead" leases until March 15. In other words, they'll forget six months of your GMAC Smart Lease to get you into a new lease. If you fancy a Chevrolet Silverado, well qualified (i.e. vertical) buyers can pick up a pickup on a 60 month zero percent loan. Can GM afford to offer these kinds of incentives? No. But they can't afford not to offer them either. Darwin, eh?

TTAC commentator Winklovic recently posted a link to an interesting website that introduced me to aftermarket air horns. I don't mean the pissant little Marchel and Hella beepers. Go to www.hornblasters.com and you can hear them; by God they're straight out of a Johnny Cash train song. I drive an ambulance with an air horn– the kind where you reach up and pull a chain when the kids on the sidewalk pump their elbows– and I'm here to tell you, those things can evoke miscarriages, soiled pants, split colostomy bags and pacemaker misfires. I was never aware that it's legal to put them on a car. A search of FMVSS, ISO and DOT standards turns-up nothing about maximum-horn-noise regulation. There are, however, numerous local noise regs that can get you ticketed for blowing one (apparently silent ownership is perfectly legal). Unfortunately, people who actually have these things seem to use them solely to cruise city streets at 15 mph and get close enough behind pedestrians to literally blow them into the weeds. That ain't right.

I've always liked Pagani's Zonda, though for different reasons than Farago. He thinks it's a rear-wheel drive brute, with a killer 7.3-liter V12 and a classy interior. I think it looks like a bug (i.e. I like strange looking cars).Well friends, hopefully I haven't seen anything yet. Motor Authority reports that Sr. Pagani has just announced that AMG will soon stop making the aforementioned V12, so that's the end of the Zonda. A new car is on the horizon: the C9. Horacio's new carbon fiber supercar will lose four cylinders to pack some sort of monstrous (Mercedes?) V8. In the immortal words of Sgt. Schultz, other than that, we know nothing. Well, we hear that Pagani is moving into a new factory, where production will increase from the 16 cars a year to 60. So a U.S. street legal Pagani may finally be in the offing. Joy.

Britain's Advertising Standard Authority has called-out a Saab ad for its E85-capable, "BioPower" vehicles. The ad claims "bioethanol consumption does not significantly raise atmospheric levels of CO2." The watchdog agency also received complaints about the ad's claim that E85 reduced C02 emissions by 70 percent over normal gasoline– but dismissed them. Saab was able to prove that the assertion is factually true… if you use Brazilian sugar-ethanol. Still, it seems like Saab ad execs could have done the math and discovered that even with a best-case 70 percent reduction in C02 emissions, 30 percent of a gas-powered Saab's emissions still qualify as a "significant contribution" towards atmospheric carbon. Of course they didn't, which is why the ASA ruled that the ad is "misleading" as readers are "likely to infer that bioethanol did not add a significant amount of CO2 to the atmosphere." What a concept: requiring fairness, math skills and even-handedness of people who are just trying to save the world by selling more cars. Now if only we had a watchdog to similarly debunk the pro-E85 falsehoods spewed by America's business and political leaders. Oh wait… you're reading it. 

Ford has spent considerable amounts of money trying to make its North American workforce more cost-effective. Last year's contract with the United Auto Workers (UAW) allowed Ford to hire new workers at lower pay rates, while trimming higher-paid labor through buyouts and early retirements. But when the 54k buyout offers translate into actual gains in efficiency is "anyone's guess." That's the straight dope from VP for Labor Affairs Marty Mulloy [via Wards]. Ford's cost savings are directly related to the number of employees actually taking the buyout offer ('natch), and Ford still isn't saying how many workers are expected to sign up and bail out. Meanwhile, Mulloy says the American automaker will not be making any new entry-level hires this year. That's because five thousand highly-paid Ford workers still languish at the 11 factories once owned by Automotive Components Holdings (ACH), which Ford (in its infinite wisdom) bought in 2005. While Ford wants to sell or shutter the plants by year's end, it has to either hire or buy-off the ACH employees. Folks, it could be years before the Blue Oval's labor costs approach those of Toyota, Honda and other transplant competitors. And Ford's talking about insourcing?

Cnet reports that it all starts innocuously enough: upgraded Sync-based navigation systems with live, local updates. Next, Mircosoft will offer "points of interest" navigation to local businesses and attractions featuring fresh information on products, prices etc. And then… in-car advertising. We're talking pop-up ads on your navigation, free mp3 downloads when you stop at a Starbucks, and anything else Bill Gates' boffins can think of to suck the cash out of your wallet. While web-based ads are unlikely to inspire immediate action (i.e. significant click-through revenue), the head of MS' Automotive Unit says in-car advertising's worth will be "measured in dollars." Martin Thall reckons that's because the driver is out of the house and more likely to follow through on the ad's suggestions. Because after all, you're just driving. You've got plenty of attention to spare. Especially when it means 35 cents off your next Frappuccino.

The demise of the Camaro left the Air Force's U-2 Dragonlady pilots with a problem. The Camaros were used as chase vehicles for the take-offs and landings of the surveillance jet. One Camaro "sees" for the pilot (who literally can't see the runway), and another carries the removable wing landing gear that detach upon take-off. After years of hard abuse, the Camaros finally started to give up, and the USAF needed a very fast, stable platform to chase the jet down the runway. Corvettes were too expensive, and couldn't carry a wing strut. That left the Mustang GT, GTO, Charger R/T or something "ferrin" (other than the GTO). After several trials, they selected the GTO 6.0-liter as the quickest, most reliable chase car. If you're looking for a used GTO and can't find one, blame the Boys in Blue. The GTO of your dreams is probably chasing a U2 down a runway somewhere. No shit.

Jeremy Clarkson is wrong! Top Gear demonstrated the Toyota Hilux survives drowning, fire, a tree, a wrecking ball, and the destruction of a skyscraper. However, the one thing he didn't try was handing it over to the average American Airmen/Soldier. Just like the Nissan Urvan, the Hilux' manual transmission couldn't handle the abuse heaped on it by America's finest and ended up with stripped synchronizers and chipped gears. To rectify the situation, the USAF recently purchased a fleet of Chevrolet Silverado Z71 6.0-liter uber-trucks for several deployed locations, with automatic transmissions, and push-button four-wheel drive. I wonder how those would hold up to Jeremy Clarkson?

Wait, it's worse than that… The Bath Chronicle reports that Ilya Galic drove into the spa town and parked in a pay-as-you-go parking lot. He fed a ticket machine £1.20 ($2.38) for his one-hour stay. The meter only registered £1, missing 20 pence (about 40 cents). Galic complained to the parking attendant, who told him the machines often “went wrong,” and promised to sort out the matter. Just to be sure, Galic phoned the parking office, who told him someone would look it. Last month, Galic received a letter demanding a £353.74 ($701) parking penalty payment. A bailiff turned up at Galic’s house to claim one of the family’s cars as payment for the debt. When Galic asked the bailiff to leave, he called the police. Four policemen arrived at his Newbridge home. The bailiff eventually “settled” for £410.99 ($815.52), around six weeks worth of Galic’s pension income (which covered assorted additional fees). A council spokeswoman was unmoved. The authority had not received any complaints in writing, so that’s that. 

Last month, U.S. Jag dealers sold just over a thousand new cars, despite cut-rate financing. While the entire U.S. car market is going South, Jaguar's stuffy image is sending the venerable marque Hades-wise in a supersonic hand basket. The new XF midrange sedan is supposed to reverse these declining fortunes by burying memories of the bulbous, fusty, pudenda-fronted S-Type (not to mention the execrable X-Type). I grabbed an XF fresh off the transporter to see if Jag’s lobbing snowballs in Hell.