If you like your appliance-style Toyota (there is statistical proof that you are not alone) then better run and buy it now. The Nikkei [sub] rattles its readers this morning with the news that Toyota “plans to build vehicles that are more eye-catching to counter criticism its cars are too bland,” (Read More…)
The Congressional Oversight Panel, which oversees the TARP program on behalf of the legislative branch, has released an update on the auto bailout [full PDF here] acknowledging the successes of the government intervention, while airing a number of important concerns. As has been typical of mainstream media coverage of the auto bailout, the good news has already been well-reported. The report, for example, notes that the bailout brought GM and Chrysler’s capacity utilization up, labor costs down, and allowed them to “[start] to reverse” their decades-long declines in market share. Furthermore, estimated government losses on the bailout have been halved, from $40b to $19b. The report’s summary concludes
While it remains too early to tell whether Treasury‟s intervention in and reshaping of the U.S. automotive industry will prove to be a success, there can be no question that the government‟s ambitious actions have had a major impact and appear to be on a promising course. Even so, the companies that received automotive bailout funds continue to face uncertain futures, taxpayers remain at financial risk, concerns remain about the transparency and accountability of Treasury‟s efforts, and moral hazard lingers as a long-run threat to the automotive industry and the broader economy.
Which brings us to the concerns that have received considerably less media attention…
In my first Denver winter after a driving lifetime in coastal California, I’m now experiencing my first real taste of driving in snow. My ’92 Civic is doing pretty well (i.e., I haven’t crashed or become stuck yet), but I’m starting to eyeball Craigslist listings for IHC Scouts and FJ40 Land Cruisers. After spotting this Toyota in my neighborhood, I may have to forget about the Scouts. (Read More…)
In recent years the organizers of the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) have been especially eager to demonstrate that Detroit’s show is still relevant. Yet they crammed every OEM press conference save Volvo’s into a single day, leaving the second day for Li-ion Motors Corp., Mach 7 Motor Sports, and such. In years past there were two-and-a-half days of manufacturer press conferences, with little filler. Maybe next year everything will be back to normal?
Audi’s A6 was one of the bigger single-model unveilings at this year’s NAIAS, and was rewarded with the “Eyes on Design” award for best production car design, beating the Bentley Continental GT, BMW 6-Series Convertible and Hyundai Veloster. The new A6’s dimensions are hardly changed from its long-serving predecessor, but the stance is closer in line with Audi’s current, long-hooded look. Audi hasn’t released fulls specs for the US market, but the 2.0 TDI version will weigh in around 3,472 lbs thanks to more use of aluminum. That engine will make 177 HP, and is the most efficient option in a global engine range that tops out with the 300 HP 3.0 TFSI supercharged V6. If Audi doesn’t bring the diesel stateside, our most efficient option will likely be the A6 Hybrid, which adds 45 HP and 156 lb-ft of electric power to the 2.0 TFSI engine. That option gives the A6 fewer than two miles of EV range, but allows it to use electricity at speeds up to 62 MPH… and is visually almost indistinguishable from gas-only variants (the silver model in the gallery is a hybrid). Oh, and those LED headlights that everyone instantly latches onto? Optional.
I spotted this sticker on a (disc brake-equipped) Nissan pickup in the parking lot of the San Jose North Pick-Your-Part during my last trip to California. (Read More…)
Why did someone from Atlanta keep this? An all-wheel-drive SUV is not exactly the best choice for Atlanta’s hot climates and long commutes. You get abysmal fuel economy. A mediocre safety record. Higher repair costs due to the all-wheel-drive system. Did I mention the solarium effect out here that takes dashboards and discolors and deforms them? When I bought this for $1000, I was seemingly going against the conventional wisdom. But I wasn’t… here’s why…
“A naked woman on the beach and much more accessible.”
Chrysler Group design chief Ralph Gilles, after having been asked what designers have in mind when they draw the replacement of the Dodge Viper. We’ll show you the clay model of the new Viper. But you have been warned. (Read More…)
Whoa! Is there a doctor in the house? We seem to have a bit of a situation here. UAW’s President Bob King threatened that the union will label anti-union companies as human-rights abusers. (Read More…)
One of the most pervasive memes that seemed to unite the independent thinkers covering the North American International Auto Show was that this year’s Detroit extravaganza offered “no surprises.” The lesson of this “Detroit Consensus”: clearly the motoring press doesn’t spend much time in the current, unloved Chevy Aveo.
After 45 years of work, it’s time for this 1965 F-100’s steel to return to the foundry. Will it be reborn as a shiny new F-150… or as a FAW Tianjin Weizhi? (Read More…)
Poor Professor Higgins! On he plods/Against all odds! Well, he had a tough job: changing a girl from the proverbial wrong side of the tracks into a prim and proper member of society. I had a simpler task in mind. I wanted to make sure that my hairdresser/girlfriend/bodyguard, the infamous Vodka McBigbra, could legitimately attend all this year’s auto shows with me. She actually works pretty hard at the events, lugging the Steadicam and obtaining everything from AA batteries to front-row seats so I can keep my Kiton jackets free of wrinkles, but a few of the shows don’t permit “assistants”. Publish or perish is their motto. Not a problem. I decided to make an authentic automotive journalist out of her. How tough could it be?
Meanwhile, our friends at General Motors were working on a not entirely dissimilar project. They’d identified some “bloggers”, given them all-expenses-paid trips to Detroit, and led them on a two-day adventure where they would be fed plenty of talking points to uncritically reTweet along the way. It isn’t cheap to fly people from the coasts to the Midwest, put them up in a top-notch hotel, feed them, and keep them entertained, so naturally GM would want to make sure they got their money’s worth.
The stage was set for a titanic contest. Sure, the playing field wasn’t level. After all, I’ve never gone bankrupt, the UAW doesn’t control my labor supply or my finances, and I didn’t design the 1984 Eldorado. Still, the plucky underdogs from the RenCen had a few tricks up their sleeves to even the odds…
Our friends on the wrong side of the pond were talking all night about the new Caterham release today… but when it arrived, it turned out to be a race car, not a road car. The SP300R was co-developed with Lola and offers 305 horsepower to move about 1200 pounds, courtesy of a supercharged Ford Duratec.
If you’re a fan of cars you can’t buy here and wouldn’t want to race here (the pretty LED nose and tail lamps probably wouldn’t survive a single club race weekend here in the US), check it out. Or for another UK-built alternative that you can buy here, try Radical USA.
EVs are the darling of the media. In Europe, the Leaf is the COTY. In the U.S. and Canada, the range extended Volt is the COTY. Then why are most big European manufacturers (except Renault) and most Japanese manufacturers (except Nissan) dragging their heels when it comes to wholesale electrification of their fleets? Maybe because they are working on wholesale adoption of hydrogen. As previously reported, there are agreements between automakers and governments in Europe, North America, Korea and Japan to prepare for the mass introduction of fuel cell cars by 2015. Japan is ahead of the game. (Read More…)
Japan is the world’s center of gravity for plug-ins one actually can buy. News from the land of Nippon also illustrate a little detail that prevents EVs from wholesale adoption.
There is an EV conundrum that had been largely overlooked or ignored amongst the hype: So you need a charging station in your garage. What if you don’t have your own garage, because you live in an apartment complex? Range-challenged EVs are targeted at dense cities, and where do people live in dense cities? (Read More…)
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