Porsche fanatics, hang on to your defibrilators. The oil-burning Porsche SUV bastard spawn known as the Cayenne Diesel is coming to America, and it will be priced fairly reasonably.

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Car owners have a warped view when it comes to their automobile’s cost.

When you ask someone the, “How much did you spend..”  question, their usual response is to take the price they paid and just let that be that.

“Oh, I got this Mercedes for $50k.” They then will usually go about telling you the options they chose, and other trivial realities related to the car.

But as we all know,  that’s not the question.

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Not only did Americans return to showrooms en masse in March, the also opened their wallets wider. Transaction prices are on a steady climb, says TrueCar. Manufacturers on the other hand show less largesse and tighten incentives. (Read More…)

Today, record March new car sales will be announced. We will keep our eyes on the numbers throughout the day, come back for details. The so far best numbers were released by Chrysler. Chrysler reports U.S. sales of 163,381 units, a 34 percent increase compared with sales in March 2011. According to Chrysler, these are “the group’s best monthly sales in four years.”

Best performing brand in Chrysler’s stable is Fiat. (Read More…)

Paul writes:

Good Morning Sajeev,

Today is my 2010 GTI’s 15th day in the shop (shocking, right?). Earlier this month it was in for 13 days, I had it back for 6, and I dropped it back off two days ago. The issue is somewhat strange, but in my mind, easily fixable. I have been getting CEL 2294 and when I run my own VCDS scans, I have been getting the following logs (edited down).

• 004501 – Fuel Pressure Regulator Valve (N276)
• P1195 – 000 – Open or Short to Ground – Intermittent
• 008852 – Fuel Pressure Regulator Valve (N276)
• P2294 – 000 – Open Circuit – Intermittent (Read More…)

Dan Neil says the Maserati Biturbo is one of the worst 50 cars of all time, but I still see Biturbos in the junkyard every year or so. This probably means that Biturbo owners cling to their dead, hopeless project cars for decades before reality— in the form of angry landlords and/or spouses and/or homeowners’ associations— summons the tow truck. (Read More…)

Top Gear called it the “Sony Ferrari.” Daihatsu calls it quits. Toyota’s mini car division Daihatsu will stop production of the only convertible minicar on the Japanese market, the Copen. (Read More…)

That was close. (Read More…)

GM’s new partner PSA Peugeot Citroen needs more cash. To raise money, PSA sells its headquarters building in Paris and will turn into a renter. Signing GM as a new 7 percent partner apparently hasn’t improved PSA Peugeot Citroen’s cash position. Au contrair, PSA’s credit rating had gone to junk. (Read More…)

Ford wants to rekindle old flames and hopefully find new beaus and babes for its geriatric Lincoln brand. One item to make hearts beat quicker will be a retractable 15-square-foot moon roof, a must have for lover’s lane. If that’s not enough to entice buyers to a little make out (of a check,) Lincoln will invite them on a real date. (Read More…)

A while ago, the UAW started passing out signature cards at Volkswagen’s factory in Chattanooga, TN. It looks like most landed in the garbage can. (Read More…)

Here’s the 2013 Lincoln MKZ, and just as many of us suspected, the Ford Fusion is the much nicer looking car. Redundancy, thy name is Em Kay Zee.

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Since the early days of the Volt, the folks at GM loved to compare the car to putting a man on the moon. That analogy wasn’t without its problems. The moon program did cost more than three times its original budget of $7 billion, all it produced was a few rocks, and it ran out of money before it could get going in earnest. 40 years after Eugene Cernan and Apollo 17, the moon has remained untouched by human feet. But what the heck, GM loves the symbolism. To death. (Read More…)

Murilee’s piece on the Acura Vigor brought back some fond memories for me involving that car, and an utterly bizarre bit of automotive trivia that was thought to be lost forever – a Japanese-market commercial for the Honda Vigor that features sexual deviancy (panty sniffing, anyone), Italian art house cinematography and the requisite badly-garbled English slogans.

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Taxes and fees are the pedal and the metal of state governments. Without em’, all you would be looking at is a bunch of big buildings with no one doing anything in them.

Most police cars would be busy hiding out in secret hideaways awaiting the next revenue source. Property taxes would go way up. Appraisals for those properties wouldn’t follow market realities, and the state and county governments would be busy up trying to drum up every pork barrel budget possible from the Federal government. From airports with no aviation traffic. To winding roads that lead to the eternal fountain of no accountability.

But then again, my kids need to be educated. Roads and sewers fall apart. Bad guys (and girls) need to be put away and rehabilitated.  Parks need to be protected. The roads need to be repaired. Restaurants need to be hygenic.  Fire departments. Libraries. Electric power. Water.  Disaster relief…. and dare I say it… health care. That last one is a real big issue for a lot of folks.

How does the government pay for it all? Simple. By trying to be fair. Stop laughing.

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