The Shelby 427 Cobra is a curious car. There are few vehicles that more worthily deserve the description iconic. The originals are so historically significant and rare that each is worth hundreds of thousands of dollars (and in the case of the six Daytona Coupes, millions), yet stylistically identical replicas are ubiquitous. Chances are, if you see a Cobra, it’s probably not real baby seal. Over the decades thousands of replica Cobras have been produced to varying degrees of fidelity by a variety of kit car and turnkey manufacturers. When Carroll Shelby realized that he couldn’t sue the replicar makers into submission, he decided to make his own “continuation series” Cobra replicas (in your choice of carbon fiber, fiberglass or original aluminum bodies). He’s also come to a licensing agreement with Superformance, who make superb Cobra and Daytona Coupe reproductions. I’m a big supporter of the idea of intellectual property, and Ol’ Shel is entitled to make a living off his name and accomplishments, but Carroll Shelby’s proprietary attitude towards the Cobra borders on the absurd.
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It’s no secret that I’m a bit doubtful about the runaway success of the all-electric vehicle. The infrastructure obstacles are just too great. There is one market where plug-ins make sense: Light delivery vehicles. Never cruise too far from the warehouse. Can be charged while van is being loaded. Lots of regenerative braking. Mitsubishi and PSA think the same. They will co-develop a compact commercial electric vehicle for the European market. Production will begin by 2012, says The Nikkei [sub]. (Read More…)
Jay writes:
I’m spoiled.
I’ve been blessed to drive three BMW 3-Series over the past several years (BMW employee leases). I’ve been spoiled by their comfort, performance, and quality. Now I’m out of the car industry and my lease is going up. I’m looking to buy a car for $17K or less and build up my investment portfolio. I plan on driving the wheels off this car, so I would like to like it at least a little.
Hyundai plans to raise its worldwide production capacity (including Kia) to 6.5 million a year by 2012, company sources told The Nikkei [sub]. To put that into perspective: In 2009, the Hyundai/Kia chaebol sold 4,645,776 cars. To put it further into perspective: GM sold 6.5m cars worldwide in 2009. Here is the expansion blueprint: (Read More…)
We spent Labor Day doing what we like best: driving into the mountains and hiking to a remote lake. The wild huckleberries and blueberries at Vivian Lake were ripe, and there was a hint of fall in the crisp dry air and brilliant blue sky. And on the way back, we made the obligatory refreshment stop in Oakridge. For years, that was at the DQ, right on Hwy. 58. Now that the kids are gone and our tastes have changed, we meander into the mostly boarded-up downtown to the recently-opened Brewer’s Union Local 180, for authentic English-style beer from their own casks and excellent food. And of course, the Curbside Classics that line the side streets.
The NY Times reports on a growing phenomenon: the crash tax. Though ambulance fees have long been born by those who use their services, Police, Fire Departments and other first responders in 26 states are reportedly charging users for their services, and they’re generating quite a bit of debate in the process. In one instance, Mr Cary Feldman of Chicago Heights was in an accident that he didn’t cause, did not use any emergency services, and was still billed $200 for the dispatch of a fire engine to the scene of his wreck. The AAA’s take on such fees
Generally, we see that public safety services are a core government function that should be properly budgeted for with general taxes and not addressed by fees after the fact
On the other hand, charging those who cause accidents for emergency response costs helps keep taxes lower for safe drivers and provides an incentive against reckless driving. So are fees worth the occasional misapplication, or are they an unfair tax on victims?
I hate to get all “workers of the world unite”, but management seems to get away with a hell of a lot more than the rank and file. Take Prudential’s bid to take over AIG’s Asian arm. The bid failed and the whole exercise cost Prudential £377m (about $579.5m). Digest that figure for a second, then digest the next fact. The CEO, Tidjane Thiam, refuses to stand down over this mistake. Now consider this, if you, as a rank and file member, would cost the company you work for just 1 percent of that previous figure, could you honestly expect to keep your job? Now let’s look at the FIATsco incident. The whole affair cost GM $2b. Again, had you have cost the company you work for just 1 percent of that figure, could you keep you job? After writing this paragraph, I find the next story almost heartwarming. (Read More…)
The use of automotive journalism in car commercials never ceases to fascinate. For example, do consumers really consider Audi over BMW because Audi won three straight Car and Driver comparisons? Has an ad built around the winning of a Motor Trend Truck Of The Year ever “moved the needle” for an actual buyer? More importantly, does Autoblog Dot Com take actual decibel readings before declaring the Chevy Cruze’s interior “Lexus Quiet,” or is that just, like, their opinion? This is, after all, one of the most prominent uses of an automotive blog’s work in car television advertising to date… and for all the advantages that car blogs hold over the buff books, old-school, scientific testing isn’t one of them. On the other hand, at least our online colleagues aren’t quoted stooping to the level of Automobile Magazine, which apparently compared the Cruze to a Cadillac. But are Cadillacs “Lexus Quiet”?
Fighting speed camera and red light camera tickets in federal court is becoming increasingly difficult as yet another US district court judge yesterday embraced the use of automated ticketing machines. Judge Nanette K. Laughrey dismissed the class action lawsuit that Gregory Mills had filed against the city of Springfield and Lasercraft, a private vendor that has since been bought out by American Traffic Solutions. Mills argued that because the Missouri Supreme Court in March struck down the city’s program as illegal (view decision), those who received tickets were entitled to a refund.
When you buy a car new, depreciation is a risk you have to take. So like with any risk, one tries to minimize it. That’s why Toyota and Honda are such perennial favourites. low depreciation. But what cars should you avoid if you don’t want to suffer depreciation that could make you depressed? (Read More…)
As I wrote a few days ago, European car sale figures aren’t looking too great. In fact, for want of a better phrase, they’re bloody awful. (Detailed numbers to follow at around Sept 15.) The reason behind this drop is the detox from the high of “Cash For Clunkers”. Now that the artificial boost has gone (or is slowly dissipating) the market is coming back down to where it should be. And where it should be isn’t good news for auto manufacturers. In the UK, it’s just as bad. The SMMT reported a drop of 17.5 percent in new car registrations compared to August of last year. This is in line with the SMMT’s prediction that the second half of the year would be tough, to put it mildly. “New car registrations were down 17.5 percent in August and conditions will remain challenging through the rest for the year,” said Paul Everitt, SMMT chief executive, “The industry enjoyed a better than expected first half of the year and despite the difficulties, SMMT is forecasting that new cars registrations will close just ahead of 2009 figures.” Shall we take at look at the winners and losers in the UK market for August 2010? (Read More…)
Yes, dear TTAC readers, your humble Editor-in-Chief was unable to fight his impulse, and is the proud owner of a fine automobile. Which means that he is also unable to fight the impulse to spend this federal holiday actually driving the thing rather than sitting in front of a computer all day. So, while I’m out enjoying the fruits of my labor, it falls to you, our most dedicated readers, to guess what kind of car I just blew several paychecks on. Check back tomorrow for a capsule review on the new editorial chariot (as well as the full compliment of TTAC content)… in the meantime, let’s hear your guesses.
Randi writes:
I have a 2000 Civic with 70,000 miles (hoping to hit 250,000 miles). Googled for major repairs to do including the timing belt, and everything listed below should be done…right? Are any unnecessary?
Any not listed that I should fix before it breaks? Here it is:
- Replace fuel filter, air/cabin filter, coolant flush.
- Check bushings and alignment.
- Replace timing belt, water pump, idler and tension pulley, tensioner (hydraulic tensioner, tensioner assembly).
- Check various rollers, valve adjustment and clearances.
Via Autocar come these pictures of a jacked-up Fiesta variant undergoing development testing. Rumors of a Fiesta-based MPV have been rampant, as European competitors have been bombarding the B-segment with bigger, and/or butched-up new models like Kia’s Venga (and it’s forthcoming sibling, the Hyundai ix20), Opel’s suicide-doored Meriva, Toyota’s Verso S,and VW’s PoloCross. Ford’s Fiesta-based entry could resemble the brand’s Iosis-Max concept, and it will probably be built in Romania. Based on the dearth of camouflage, we’d also guess it’s going for the “butch” more than the “big” section of the B segment. Needless to say, it’s unlikely to ever arrive in the US, where the idea of taking a B-segment hatch into the dirt occurs only to the desperately unwell.
The citizen-led groups that want the public to decide the future of red light cameras are racist, according to lawsuits filed by American Traffic Solutions (ATS) in a pair of Texas cities. The Arizona-based photo enforcement firm filed in a state court in Baytown on Thursday and then an ATS-funded front group filed an identical case in a federal court in Houston on Friday. Residents in both cities signed petitions placing a ban on automated ticketing machines onto the November 2 ballot, but ATS cites the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965 as a reason to block these votes.
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