As established in a previous article, the Volkswagen-Porsche 914 was rather more profitable for Volkswagen than it was for Porsche. No wonder, then, that VW was anxious to repeat the experience. This time, Porsche was explicitly hired as the engineering subcontractor, and the end product was meant to be badged solely as a Volkswagen. The result was what you see above: “EA 425”, a front-engine sporting hatchback using the four-cylinder water-cooled engine from the Audi sedans (and, infamously, the Volkswagen LT van).

The energy crisis made VW reconsider the production of a rear-wheel-drive sporting car. The bigwigs decided to produce the Scirocco instead. At that point, somebody had the bright idea: Hey, let’s sell the project back to Porsche and build the cars for them! Cue the ominous music…

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When we reported that FAW will revive the monstrous Red Flag CA7600L limousine, it received mixed reviews. Some wanted it sight unseen. Others puked in the corner. Ever since I arrived in China, my secret wish had been to own the real thing, the huge handmade Red Flag car that luminaries used to drive down Chang’an Avenue. I had been told they don’t exist anymore. I had been lied to. (Read More…)

Doesn’t it bug you when other countries give their carmakers money? Doesn’t it bug you a hell of a lot when other countries give their carmakers money with they express  purpose to increase exports? Shouldn’t those felonious countries be dragged in front of the WTO and shot? Well, there are exceptions. (Read More…)

Watch it if you must, and if you haven’t already: this is “Top Gear USA”. The three people involved are:

• Rutledge Wood, a television personality best described as “professional douchebag”;
• Adam Ferrara, stand-up comedian and character actor;
• Tanner Foust, a fanatically self-motivated and successful individual who has made a name for himself participating in a variety of low-talent driving events such as X-Games Rally and “Formula D”.

Even if you don’t watch the trailer, you should be able to figure out that this series will be an absolute train wreck. With that said, the original Top Gear has never exactly been compelling television, yet it’s found a worldwide audience. The USA version won’t, and here’s why…

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Yesterday, Cammy asked what could be the ugliest car. She said  “currently on market,” but that limitation that was soon forgotten. Being a customer centric blog, we opened it up to the ugliest of all times. And who knows, ugly as they are, they still might be  “on market,” looking for a buyer with a vision problem. Or a warped sense of humor. And with this, we present to you:  TTAC’s Top Ugly Car Picks Pics. The Best and the Brightest pick the worst of the worst. (Read More…)

I really love talking about cars with people. Notice that does not say “being talked at by people about cars.”  That exact circumstance, however, happens on a daily basis at my job. It’s enough to make me wish I never had to say a word to anyone and instead take up Tawny Kittaen’s post on the hood of a Jaguar.

One of the biggest pet peeves of any sort of expert is having some twit run his mouth about a subject on which he obviously has little knowledge. “Knows just enough to be annoying,” we call it at the auto show. Complaining for a solid half hour about the differences between this supercar over here and that supercar over there falls into that category.

Why? Because nine times out of ten the person doing the complaining has never driven the vehicle they’re moaning on about. (Read More…)

Oops! Under the influence of “Ketel One Citroen” I misnumbered this. Fixed now – jb

During the Seventies, Porsche was, as Katt Williams might say, in turmoil. Some very strong-willed men were fighting to determine the direction of what was then a very small firm. Ernst Fuhrmann, famous within the company for developing the quad-cam “Carrera” engine that made the 550 Spyder such a giant-killer, was running the show, and he wanted the 911 dead. His arguments were all quite valid: the 911 was not aging well, it was not selling well, and nobody had any idea whatsoever how to make a decade-old car conform to a raft of upcoming safety and emissions regulations. (Read More…)

I was watching TV the other day and on came “National Lampoon’s Vacation”. I absolutely LOVE this film. The thought of driving 2408 miles across the United States to visit “Wally World” is something I’d love to do (OK, maybe not “Wally World”, but you get the idea). If I drove 2408 miles across the UK, I’ll end up driving my car off a cliff as we’re such a small country. However, what DOESN’T appeal to me is driving 2408 miles across the United States in a “Wagon Queen Family Truckster” (which, according to IMDB trivia was actually a modified Ford LTD Country Squire station wagon). As the picture will show you, it’s a bit of a monster. But it got me thinking… (Read More…)

India’s Mahindra & Mahindra is putting in a binding bid to buy a majority stake in troubled South Korean automaker Ssangyong Motor. Ssangyong went bankrupt in 2009 after China’s SAIC dropped the ball. They nearly went up in flames, when militant workers incited a riot and threatened to blow up the paint shop. (Read More…)

Toyota’s capacity utilization at U.S. plants dropped to 60 percent in the second half of 2008 after the economic crisis hit the U.S.  Enough of this.  Utilization is  up to 90 percent already. Next year, Toyota plans to run its N.A. factories at full tilt. More than that: Workers will be doing overtime, work weekend and holiday shifts, says The Nikkei [sub].

Of course, the fact that NUMMI is off-line could also have something to do with it.

Japan’s Internal Affairs Ministry has bad news for Japan’s automakers: Japanese citizens are dumping their cars and take the train. Domestic car ownership has declined for the first time since 1964, with declines particularly pronounced in big cities, report The Nikkei [sub]: “Less-status-conscious city residents are abandoning cars for public transit.” (Read More…)

Gestalten, a German publishing house specializing in books on design, has published an intriguing book on a subject that surprisingly has previously only been addressed tangentially but is sure to appeal to most auto enthusiasts: the graphic designs of race cars.

While the shape of racing cars has been the subject of endless technical and aesthetic discussion, Voelker points out that the history of the colors and liveries that have been applied over those shapes has not been particularly well documented. Considering the emotional and aesthetic impact of the colors and graphics used, this is surprising. As Voelker says, who would want to watch a plain white Ferrari race?

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Up on the month! Up on the year! Second best month of the year! Cars now selling more than before, even with incentives gone! Wow, our tropical wonderland just gets better and better. Sales are up 15.27 percent on June and 4.27 percent better than the same month last year, for a grand total of 285,299 (according to Brazilian car mag’s Quatro Rodas website). Comparing to the last two months (here and here), both month-to-month and year-to-year (8.48 percent better) numbers register positively. However, incentives are gone, so naturally sales should be down. Not! Now, I’ve read far and wide on Brazilian internet sites, car rags and whatnot, and nobody has had the guts to explain what’s going on. So I’ll call like it is (or, at least as I see it). There’s a new phenomenon out there. I’m branding it the Uno effect. Not to be modest, but I called it first (here and here). I want my laurels! (Read More…)

Nitrobahn reports that Kimmel and Silverman, a law firm, has noticed that cases that have the fuel pump on BMW cars as Exhibit A are on the increase. According to both, bad fuel pumps have been found in 1, 3 and 5 series BMW’s. Kimmel and Silverman have fought these cases on behalf of claimants and have been awarded refunds and cash recoveries. (Read More…)

Anybody who made it through the last 12 months or so with their passion for the Saab brand intact deserves some kind of free psychological screening and endangered species protection award. Hell, anyone who made it through the last 20 years… you know what, this isn’t the moment for cynicism. Through the wrenching chaos of GM’s often-abortive attempts to sell Saab, the website SaabsUnited has stood  by its brand, aggregating the most complete Saab sale coverage on the web, and generally consoling the faithful. Oh yes, and suffering through a relentless stream of cynicism from yours truly (sorry guys, it’s all we know). Anyway, for being the keepers of hope when all hope seemed lost, Saab has named and annual award after SaabsUnited which

will be made annually as the company’s way of expressing its gratitude to people like [SU founder Steven Wade] and others who continue to show us such great support.

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