Automotive News [AN, sub] reports that Ford is limiting plans for the new line of big block V8 engines, codenamed "Boss" (after Hurricane Katrina made the name "Hurricane" politically unwise). The plan was: stick a 6.2-liter Boss engine in the F-Series pickup trucks. Truck delayed. Plan delayed. AN reckons the Mustang's future 5.0-liter V8 is still on the table; Mark Fields is on record saying they plan to make future V8 engines as fuel efficient as possible. The bad news: without a much-needed boost in horsepower, those few people willing to buy a large SUV or truck are going to pass. That said, the market for big trucks with big engines right is currently in apocalyptic mode. Hell, Ford's in apocalyptic mode. Pumping development cash into a bad-ass V8 makes no sense whatsoever. Ford needs every penny to get the European Focus and Fiesta into the U.S. market– without a Focus 1.0 style failure to launch (with decent quality). This is another sign that CEO Alan Mulally is serious about prioritizing resources– and the dire state of Ford's potential profits. 

USA TODAY reports Saudi Arabia offered to boost crude oil production by over 9.7m barrels per day (bpd) in July. That's if– and only if– the market requires it. Anyway, say the Saudis, under-supply isn't the problem. "I am convinced that supply and demand balances and crude oil production levels are not the primary drivers of the current market situation," Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi announced at the global energy summit in Jiddah. King Abdullah joins both John McCain and Barack OBama in blaming "speculators who play the market out of selfish interests." The Saudis remind us that they have already boosted production twice this year (by 300k bpd in May, and 200k bpd in June), and neither increase has had much effect on climbing prices. American and British diplomats expressed disappointment with the Saudi position, having hoped for a promise of specific production increases. Echoing US sentiments, British PM Gordon Brown said that with a clear production increase "instead of uncertainty and unpredictability, there is greater certainty, and instead of instability, there is greater stability." But the Saudis aren't alone in looking away from production levels for the cause of high oil prices. The joint statement issued by the Jiddah summit is deliberately vague, reflecting deep divisions over the causes of the oil price shock– and the cure.

A bit of navel gazing is good for the soul. When I sent in the Volkswagen V10 TDI review, I knew that ranking it as a 5-star vehicle would prove to be a bit controversial. But, let me restate why I rated the behemoth like that. First and foremost, the Touareg has the finest interior in terms of  materials, controls and fit & finish I've yet encountered. The power is Biblical. The ride is subliminal. The handling is an engineering feat for the ages. And did I mention the power? I'm well aware that the fuel mileage, price and badge are wrong, but so what? If I'd driven this car when diesel was cheap, I only would've loved it that much more. Yet reading through the comments, people were shocked I gave such a gas hog so many stars. Though I remember almost zero complaints when Sajeev gave the Ferrari F430 5-stars, and it's gets much worse mileage. Others couldn't believe I didn't take depreciation into account. Still others were upset that the Touareg could "only" tow 7,700 pounds. Towing? Depreciation? Really? These should be part of our star system? When I was writing up the review I remember thinking to myself, "If this sucker isn't 5-stars, what is?" So I'm asking you — what is?

GM has stated publicly and repeatedly that they're fully committed to cutting back on incentives. Unfortunately, as the saying goes, what they're doing shouts so loud we can't hear what they're saying. Automotive News [sub]  caught wind of a conference call between GM dealers and Marketing Maven Mark LaNeve. GM's [non-PHEV] volte face starts tomorrow, when the ailing automaker will offer 0 percent financing for 72 months on "most Chevrolet and Buick-Pontiac-GMC products." On a $30k rig, that’s about $8100 in savings versus a standard 9 percent rate. If you're buying instead of leasing, The General will add in another $500 in bonus cash (they have to clear the lots before the 2009s start rolling in with their 3.5 percent price increase). And yet, with so many lightly used trucks and SUVs on the market– many with a great GM warranty– even this offer may not move the needle. GM's facing disaster; some analysts reckon their sales could tumble by 28 percent in June. Hence the fact that the special financing will run until they sell something June 30. Or longer. Meanwhile, LaNeve also revealed that his employer's hired Citibank to help it "complete their study" on HUMMER and they're open to "all options" for the brand. Except incentives? Go figure.

A guy says he’s stopped using premium gas in his “premium gas required” car because it’s too damn expensive. It’s a joke, right? He’s saving 30 cents now, only to threaten his warranty and pay thousands in repairs later? “Yes” is the easy answer. But the truth about cars can be a funny thing, especially when you add fuel and flames.

With apologies to the chemists, theoretical physicists and tuners out there, here is an octane apercu: octane rating measures knock resistance. It has nothing to do with energy content. Engine knock (or ping) occurs when fuel detonates before the piston is in the right spot. The temperature and pressure in the cylinder cause the fuel-air mixture to detonate prior to the spark.

Bloomberg reports that Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is proposing new rules to increase government interven… err… oversight in energy markets. He wants to "require the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission to regulate trading in energy futures contracts and direct the commission to investigate ways to lessen speculation, such as increasing margin requirements." As oil takes an extended sojourn in the neighborhood of $135/barrel, Obama joins the growing chorus blaming high oil prices on greedy speculators. While Sen. Obama rails against the "Enron loophole"– allowing energy speculators to speculate without Uncle Sam riding herd– he's also busy promoting ethanol. And ethanol is promoting him. According to the New York Times, one of Obama's advisors, Tom Daschle (yes, that one), identifies himself as a man who spends "a substantial amount of time providing strategic and policy advice to clients in renewable energy." (That's a lobbyist, to you and me.) Obama's also traveled on a corporate jet owned by "Archer Daniels Midland, which is the nation's largest ethanol producer and is based in his home state;" not-so-coincidentally the nation's second-largest corn producing state. In fairness to Senator Obama… no, that's all I got. 

While energy ministers and diplomats wrangle over the supply side of high oil prices, Americans are already tackling the demand side. USA Today reports that Americans drove 22b fewer miles in November – April compared to the same period in '06 – '07. That's the biggest drop since the Iranian Revolution in 1979 – '80. Sticking with the stats, miles driven has fallen by one percent, down to 2005 levels. Way back then, there were eight million fewer [documented] U.S. citizens. So… U.S. drivers are cutting back by considerably more than the one percent average. According to Federal Highway Administration data, the sharpest declines are taking place on rural roads. Marilyn Brown says Americans have concluded that the "the era of cheap energy is a thing of the past." The Professor of energy policy at Georgia Tech says she thinks "the difference between now and 1979, when prices were comparable when you adjust for inflation, is there's a sense of sustained pain."

In an excellent E85 editorial we published two years ago, Michael Karesh pointed out that U.S. corn growers would need a landmass nearly the size of Texas to make a significant dent in American gas consumption. And now a lot of the existing corn-growing land is under water. Ethanol opponents reckon the recent flooding will mean that even more of the current corn crop will be devoted to E85 production– driving-up food prices even further, faster. They want the feds to suspend its ethanol "mandate" (i.e. .51 per gallon subsidy, tariffs on imported ethanol, price supports, CAFE credits, etc.). That little piece of business currently stands at a directive for 15 billion gallons of biofuels by 2015, and 21 billion gallons by 2022. The ethanol industry says HELL NO. Instead, they want the feds to release protected land for their profit patriotic efforts. According to The Detroit News, "Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa… and other farm state members of Congress argue that the Agriculture Department should allow more planting in 35 million acres of conservation land as a way to help ease the price increases." It just gets worse. 

With inflation around 30 percent, interest rates over 20 percent and fuel at all-time highs, auto dealers in Sri Lanka are facing worse times than their American counterparts. (And that's saying something; ChyrCo's U.S. sales are down 19.3% year-to-date, 25.4% in May.) One dealer is trying a time-honored tactic to move the metal: a buy-one-get-one-free promotion. Lanka Business Online (LBO) reports that Diesel and Motor Engineering company (DIMO) is offering a free Tata Xeta when you buy a new Jeep 4×4 or Chrysler Grand Voyager van. Chryslers aren't selling in Sri Lanka because of "their high prices and maintenance costs and consumer preference for cheaper rival brands." LBO also points out they have lower fuel economy ratings than other cars, because "Chrysler is a US firm, where fuel has been lightly taxed compared to the rest of the world." DIMO said the promotion should also "help liquidate the stock of older models of the Xeta." Perhaps U.S. Chrysler dealers should try a reverse tactic: buy a Caliber, Sebring or Compass and get a Durango, Aspen or Commander free.

On March 17 (of this year), Tesla Motors supposedly began production of their $98k Lithium-ion-powered Roadster. Ninety-eight days later and nada. Niente. Nix. Nothing. So while we await independent confirmation that a single paying customer has received a single Roadster, here's an article in The SF Gate about the Palo Alto Concours d'Elegance, which has dressed-up its parade of pistonhead perfection with alt power-mobiles. One of which was, of course, the Roadster, presented, of course, with obfuscation and unsubstantiated PR spin intact. "Nearby, Bob Liems walked past a 2008 Ferrari 430 Scuderia, the lightweight $305,000 model with 515 horsepower, and to the Tesla Roadster, the electric sports car with 248 horsepower and a 220-mile range. The Tesla, which takes anywhere from three to seven hours to fully recharge, costs $98,000 and tops out at 125 mph." You can't buy that kind of publicity. Or can you? Anyway, I'd like to suggest that the Palo Alto show was the perfect place to view the Roadster, nested as it was amongst other rare and exotic machinery that have faded into minor, adored and ultimately irrelevant historical relevance. 

I've long argued that the UK's anti-speeding jihad has seriously degraded the relationship between the average British motorist and the police. Despite the public's underlying laissez-faire attitude towards invasive policing– if you're not doing anything wrong you have nothing to worry about– it stops being "fair" when it starts being you. By now, millions of otherwise law-abiding motorists have been trained to see the police as "the enemy." By the same token, the us vs. them gestalt has alienated the police from their so-called employers. The Times reports that the Metropolitan [London] police have been emboldened to the point where they don't even feel compelled to pretend to give a shit about road safety. How else could you explain a Facebook site created by the police where they boast about accidents and, get this, collisions with pedestrians? Needless to say, the Powers That Be have pulled the "Look I’ve Had a Pocol" (slang for police collision) page, and warned 14 officers to cut that out. But not before we learned that "One picture… showed a police vehicle in an accident with a small white car. The officer who posted it wrote: 'I did him a favour. At 82 years old you just shouldn’t be on the road and if you are, then most certainly don’t go through a green light into the path of an innocent police car.' Another member wrote: 'Ran over a drunk. I believe he has a permanent limp and a hefty payout. I was given a three-month holiday from job driving. Ooh, bummer.'" 

Opel is undergoing a serious identity change. The GTC or the Meriva Concept shows a new dynamic line, with intersecting creases on the side and headlights and turn signals mounted on the outside corner. The Insignia– the Jeremy Clarkson anti-matter sedan formerly known as the Vectra– is leading the new design wave. The second Opel to bring the new style on the market will be the fourth gen Astra. The car offers significant stylistic changes. The entire Astra line-up will get more dynamic and exciting. Even the five-door model presented here will have a slopy back and some muscle. The ascending prominence on the sides will became an Opel trademark. Spy shots show that the grill will resemble the Insignia's prow; different headlights will ensure model individuality. The UK will get the Astra as a Vauxhall and the US as a Saturn. You remember Saturn, don't you?

July's Car and Driver pits a new Ford Mustang against a new Dodge Challenger and joyfully proclaims "it's 1970 again!" Wrong. It's 1973 again, the year of the Arab Oil Embargo. This time there's plenty of gas at the pumps, but its price has thrown the U.S. car market into the same chaos/doldrums that afflicted it the year FedEx was born. Back then, the Mustang's pony car competition rolled over and died. Today, the Mustang faces new challengers with a convertible that gets 17/26 mpg. How great is that?

Earlier this year, GM Car Czar Bob Lutz announced that his employer was [theoretically] set to build about 10k plug-in electric – gas hybrid Volts in the car's first year of production, "so we can deal with any issues before we really crank up for high volumes." In an email to the Detroit Free Press, GM's Chairman of Vice confirmed the initial 10k run in 2011, and then set a number for 2012: 60k units. Considering that GM is what's commonly called a "volume automaker," and the fact that Toyota has sold 79,765 Priora so far this year, that seems like mighty small beer. Which just got smaller. Maximum Bob admitted that the production stats are "notional targets." GM may offer even less Voltage in the model's first year "to ensure that all vehicles built are safe and high quality." Oh yeah, and "the actual number [built in the first two years] is highly dependent on electrical component supplier capability and battery experience." So there you have it. GM will produce 10k Volts in the first year. Or not. And produce 60k Volts in the second year. Or not. But they definitely will produce Volts. Or not.