Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley (D) is expected to sign into law recently passed legislation authorizing a massive expansion in the use of speed cameras throughout the state. The measure is the culmination of a coordinated effort by photo enforcement companies, their lobbying firms and the insurance industry to sway the opinions of key legislators. TheNewspaper reviewed state records over the past ten years and found that parties with a direct financial interest in automated ticketing showered members of the Maryland General Assembly and the governor with $707,725 in gifts and campaign cash.
Audi and BMW have been at each other’s throats since Audi tried to compete with the 2002 by fitting a juiced up Volkswagen engine into its Fox/80 in 1978 to create the GTI/GTE. Now that BWM has trotted out the 335d to supplicate the masses of Americans clamoring for an oil-burning wunder-mobile just like za Germans drive auf der autobahn, Audi has rumored they might bring over something to tempt image conscious yuppies (who still have a job). After sampling the cheapest of the diesels offered in the A4 platform, I can honestly tell Audi, don’t waste your time.
Mike Dulberger recently gave us the 411 on Forbes magazine’s “Most Dangerous Vehicles of 2009.” According to the safety campaigner, Forbes spiked his concerns about the [S]mart ForTwo’s safety. During the course of our discussions, I asked Mr. D. to right that wrong: send me the “real” 10 most dangerous new vehicles for sale in the US. And so he did. Those of you of a statistical bent can download Dulberger’s data dump for the dangerous decernhere, including all the factors that comprise his SCORE index. And here are the updated stats for ALL 315 new vehicles for which Dulberger’s non-profit, informedforlife.org, has calculations. As you might expect (if you knew the man), Mike’s got something to say on this terrible table. Jump for same, and his list of the ten most potentially deadly vehicles . . .
There are growing indications that GM’s “surgical bankruptcy” is imminent. They are already scrubbing down the surgical theaters around the world. The operation may just happen within a few weeks, and the “good brands”/”bad brands” not-so-final solution will create another mushrooming government agency that would be loath to put itself out of business. One of the many indications for rapid action: The patents tug-of-war between Opel and General Motors (or rather between the German and U.S. governments) appears to be solved.
I oppose driver cell phone usage bans on principle. It is already against the law to drive while distracted in every State of the Union. Even so, several states and many cities have enacted wholesale bans on the use of hand-held cell phones by drivers. Other states and local governments ban teenagers from using the devices or prohibit their use in school zones. So what’s the harm? The additional legislation is surely no worse than wearing a belt and suspenders – by itself either will keep your pants up, but it’s nice to know that there’s a backup in case one of the modesty preservation systems fails. Comforting, isn’t it? NO! It makes my liberty loving soul retch. I say, down with the tyranny of the Nanny State! Nonetheless, the more time I spend outside of my ivory attic and driving America’s highways and byways, the harder it is for me to maintain this ideal.
I have a friend that is an incurable GM F-Body fanatic; he currently owns a Camaro (daily driver) and a Firebird (big block restoration project). He just turned 29 and should have outgrown these pubescent urges by now. His life is a never ending automotive drama of slumming around junk yards for cheap fixes, trolling online forums and classified ads, and experimenting with mail order enhancements to cure perceived performance problems.
I know you haven’t been able to kick your Fox Platform habit. Even so, I would like to know what you think I could do to help cure him from this filthy F-Body addiction.
Words of wisdom spoken on the eve of the Shanghai Auto Show: “The longer the crisis lasts, the bigger the chance of failure or a scale-down of some American and European automakers.” Words of wisdom from Xu Liuping, Chairman of Chongqing Changan Auto Co. on the sidelines of a news conference. “And that has provided a chance for entry by Chinese manufacturers.” The Chairman politely omitted to add “for pennies on the dollar,” but why stress the obvious. And guess who the Chairman’s company is coveting? “Changan, Ford Motor’s China partner, is among several Chinese auto makers that have expressed interest in the Volvo car brand, which the Detroit automaker is seeking to sell in an effort to raise cash,” writes Reuters. “Asked about progress on a possible Volvo deal, Xu declined to comment, citing disclosure rules mandated by the Chinese securities regulator.” Changan? Doesn’t that ring a (wedding) bell?
Next week I’ll be knee deep in carnauba, doing Q&A with the folks at Turtle Wax in Willowbrook, IL. I have questions of my own and none pertain to the wine they’ll serve at dinner. Readers of this series expect more than the standard PR spin; commenter Tosh previously warned me of giving hollow endorsements. With that—and TTAC’s mission—in mind, I will never forget who is the boss ’round here (hint: you).
So what would you like to know about wash/wax/polish/glaze/clay or interior care? Questions can be general or relate specifically to Turtle Wax branded stuff. No holds barred, obviously. And while we’re at it, thank you all for your continued support of “Piston Slap.”
It’s been a while since we’ve run an E85 BOTD. The big news on the corn-for-fuel front: the E85 lobby is pressuring the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to allow states to raise the minimum required amount of ethanol from 10 to 15 percent. For some reason, Agweek seems to think ethanol producers haven’t yet hit “the blend wall”: the point at which there’s more ethanol than demand. (The fact huge swaths of the food-for-fuel industry have gone bust may have provided a clue). But at least they acknowledge the Everest ahead. “Many environmental and consumer groups and small engine and car manufacturers are concerned that the increased blend rate might damage pollution control equipment, reduce air quality, and undermine vehicle and equipment performance and warranties. The EPA and Department of Energy are currently testing the effects of higher blend rates on engine performance and emissions.” We’ll keep an eye on that one. Meanwhile, the Minnesota Auditor’s office has had a look at the state’s $93 million worth of ethanol subsidies and asked the logical question WTF is that all about?
One of our Best and Brightest offered the following observation:
Isn’t there another problem lurking for Presidential Motors?
Is my grasp of history wrong (or did I just live for a while in the wrong part of the country) but is not there a perception or urban legend or canard, how to put this gracefully, that Fords were for rednecks, and that Ford dealers were rednecks, and that GM, especially Pontiac and Cadillac, was much more open to the idea of having minority-owned dealerships, and that that went back to the early days of both Ford and GM?
When I lived in the South, I was told “Pontiac” meant “Poor Old N[egro] Thinks It’s a Cadillac.”
What if “too many” of the dealers whose contracts are about to be impaired outside the bankruptcy process and in clear violation of the clear text of the Constitution, turn out to be minorities?
The Tennessee state Senate Transportation Committee on Tuesday voted 9-0 to authorize the use of speed cameras in so-called “work zones” on interstate highways. The vote was unusual in that state Senator Tim Burchett (R-Knoxville) presented his legislation as if it would prohibit the use of speed cameras, even though the actual legislative text has the opposite effect. “The amendment basically just says surveillance cameras shall not be permitted on federal interstate highways,” Burchett explained to the committee. “Except for department of transportation designated work zones.”
In November 2007, VeeDub head honcho Martin Winterkorn announced his version of the Schlieffen Plan. Dubbed “Strategie 2018,” Winterkorn plotted the overthrow of GM and Toyota from the top of the worldwide sales charts. Winterkorn called for VW to rule the world in sales, profits, innovation and customer satisfaction by 2018. When the plan was announced, the MSM feted it, insiders (this reporter included) rolled their eyes and denounced the announcement as the usual hubris of an incoming CEO, a suit who’d be busy collecting his pension by the time 2018 rolled around. In any case, by 2018, the Generalstabsplan would long be forgotten and superseded by at least five other grand strategies.
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