Fans of Volkswagen products who hoarded canned goods and ammunition in anticipation of the VWpocalypse – the launch of “Americanized” versions of the Jetta and Passat – may be unhappy with how their new product lineup is shaking out. But the market is responding favorably. The Volkswagen Jetta outsold the Hyundai Elantra in January (the two finished 11th and 10th in 2011 respectively) and the Passat spends half as much time on dealer lots compared to the industry average.
Yesterday on Name That Car Clock, we went to Germany for a subdued ’84 VW Golf timepiece. Today, we’re going… well, that’s for you to decide. Guess the year/make/model of this clock, than make the jump to see if you guessed correctly. (Read More…)
We have been saying for quite a while that Honda looks a bit pale around the nose. The Nikkei [sub] agrees. According to the Tokyo business paper, Honda blew it by relying too much on the U.S. market, by ignoring the emerging markets, and by disregarding the fact that Japan has a love affair with 0.6 liter midget-mobiles, a.k.a. kei cars. All of this has to change in a hurry, and Honda’s turn-around hinges on the success of a new kei car, the N Box. Says The Nikkei: (Read More…)
Yesterday, we saw a majestic Cartier chronometer out of a ’76 Lincoln Continental Mark IV, which was a pretty easy call for many of you. Today’s NTCC contestant should be a little more difficult, though it should be an obvious call to certain single-marque-obsessed types. Make your guess, then make the jump to see what it is. Year/make/model? (Read More…)
When the stock markets close in Europe today, PSA Peugeot Citroen and GM should announce that they are going ahead with the plan of GM buying seven percent of PSA. That according to “sources with knowledge of the discussions” that talked to Reuters. (Read More…)
12 cylinders. 740 horsepower. 509 lb-ft of torque. A 7-speed dual clutch gearbox. 3,362 lbs. 211 mph top speed. Non CGI-pictures after the car gets its debut next week at the Geneva Auto Show.
There is nothing wrong with updating the logo of a car company once in a while. At Volkswagen, we did it about once every twelve years, to the joy and enrichment of corporate design houses and makers of backlit signage. But did you ever notice that the Volkswagen logo changed? You are not supposed to. The holy grail of logo updating is doing it while the world remains oblivious and thinks it’s the old one.
Jaguar blew that bigtime, says the branding blog BRAND NEW. Boy, did that logo update ever get noticed. (Read More…)
Diesel, manual wagon – pick two. Jaguar just missed the Holy Trinity by offering their new XF Sportbrake with two diesel engines; a 2.2L 4-cylinder or a 3.0L V6 coupled to an 8-speed automatic gearbox. The Sportbrake only weighs 150 lbs more than the XF sedan.
From London’s Telegraph to Fox News, from Autoblog to Autoguide, the story this week is that the Chinese will turn against foreign carmakers by mandating that the Chinese government only buys Chinese cars. Why was TTAC not writing it? I learned to ignore that story. I have lived in China since 2005, and just about every year, there was an announcement that the Chinese government will from now on only buy Chinese. It never happened. Despite the annual announcements, foreign brands still account for 80 percent of the Chinese government motor pool. But maybe it’s different this time? (Read More…)
Last May, the Nissan Leaf was the hottest thing on the green radar. Limited production and a long waiting list for the press meant that Nissan was lending out Leafs (Nissan tells us that is the correct way to pluralize a Leaf) 62-hours at a time. With my long commute and lengthy 120V charging times, […]
After yesterday’s yesterday’s ’71 Fiat Junkyard Find, we should check out the slower, uglier version of the 124 Sport Spider that resulted from Fiat’s attempts to meet American safety and emission standards. Fiat did a better job than British Leyland in this department (e.g., black-bumper MGB, Malaise Spitfire), but that’s clearing an extremely low bar. (Read More…)
Frank writes:
Good morning,
I am planning a transmission swap in my 2006 five hundred from a 2WD CVT to the offered 6speed of the same vintage. So far as I have discerned, I will need the trans, flywheel, axleshafts, computer and harness. A few compatibility questions though, trans mounts? speedo cable? Shifter and/or linkage? How about the PCM that controls the trans. They offer a few different ones, specifically: (Read More…)
My name is Dr. Greg Gulbransen, and I am a pediatrician practicing in Oyster Bay, New York. I spend most of my time caring for the health and safety of children. I would consider myself to be a very safety-conscious professional and parent. My tragic story could absolutely happen to any family in America.
On October 19th, 2002, my wife Leslie and I returned home from an evening out. It was 9:30 p.m., and I went outside to put my SUV in the driveway. Inside were the babysitter, my wife and my two sons – or so I thought. While I was backing up the car into the driveway, I felt the wheel go over a bump. I jumped out of the SUV so I could figure out what I had hit. There on the driveway was my 2-year-old son Cameron, bleeding to death from massive head injuries.
I can’t begin to describe the shock and devastation. How did this happen? He was in the house and I looked where I was going. How could I have missed him? I had looked in the rear view mirrors, the side mirrors and out the back window, but I never saw him. I never even had a chance of seeing Cameron. He was too small.
Before becoming a parent, I would have described this fellow as “publicity-seeking douchebag egomaniac who used what was probably a semi-intoxicated speedbumping of his designer yuppie baby to stick his nose in the business of other people who have yet to negligently speedbump their own kids, attempting to get his son’s name on some intrusive legislation for the purpose of calming down his wife so he doesn’t lose his Chihuly collection in the divorce.”
Now, in 2012, as a parent of a nearly three-year-old child myself, I realize that calling him a drunk on a major website could get me sued, which could negatively affect my ability to pay off the parents of the first girl my son knocks up at a rave twelve years from now. So let’s assume that Dr. Gulbransen was totally sober after his night out when he tossed that pup in reverse and tragically killed his own son. Regardless, let’s discuss the “Cameron Gulbransen Kids Transportation Safety Act of 2007” and what it now means as of this past Wednesday.
As a member of The Tribe with an Iranian best friend, the general policy on politics pertaining to the Middle East is “don’t talk about it” (although like most young Iranians, my friend’s take on Ahamadinejad would make Rick Santorum look like a capitulating Ayatollah-sympathizer). The same policy seems to have come up in the last week or two, as talks of a General Motors/PSA tie-up have surfaced. Peugeot has an Iranian best friend, and it may have some interesting implications if the deal goes through.
The styling of the Volvo V40 has taken a bit of a hit among the B&B, but here’s something that’s hard to argue with; a 254 horsepower turbocharged 5-cylinder engine as the range-topping engine. Yes, it’s front-wheel drive. It will also be available with a start-stop system and regenerative braking across the entire range. Hopefully a manual gearbox will appear on the T5 as well.
Recent Comments