When GM pulled out of its Fremont, CA NUMMI joint venture with Toyota during its bankruptcy-bailout, the UAW took the opportunity to bash the Japanese automaker, protesting its dealers based on the false accusation that it, rather than GM, had killed NUMMI. But in fact, despite suffering from overcapacity in the US, Toyota was anxious to keep NUMMI open, and according to interviews with Toyota executives that went into the book “Toyota Under Fire,” Toyota offered something to GM as incentive to keep the plant open. At the time, speculation ran rampant that Toyota offered to rebadge the Toyota Prius for GM, but that didn’t happen. Instead Toyota offered GM something else… and we want you to guess what.

Here’s how the contest works: surf over to TTAC’s Facebook page, find the wall post titled “TTAC Contest: What Did Toyota Offer GM?” and add your guess to the comments section there. The first person to post the correct answer will be contacted for their address, and we will send you a special prize: a Chevrolet Volt-branded pen that was used (briefly) by TTAC Editor-in-Chief to take notes at the Volt’s press launch. You know you want it… now go post your answer on Facebook!

Plenty of things have happened since I began writing for The Truth About Cars that I would never have been able to predict, but perhaps one of the happiest surprises came when Timothy Ogden contacted me for an interview that would go into a book on Toyota’s recent recall scandal. That book, Toyota Under Fire, is now complete, and it references work published here at TTAC as well as interviews with myself and Bertel Schmitt. Not only does the book admirably document the media-fueled scandal, but it also contains profound insights into Toyota’s response to the recall challenge as well as Toyota’s efforts to respond to the economic downturn of 2008-2009. A review will be posted first thing tomorrow, and at 1 PM Eastern Mr Ogden and his co-author Professor Jeffery Liker (author of The Toyota Way) will join us in one of our popular author livechats, in which he will answer your questions about Toyota, its recent challenges, and the culture that helped propel it through its darkest hours. Mark your calendars or, if you can’t make it to the livechat, just leave your questions for Mr Ogden and Professor Liker in the comments section below.

Here’s some food for thought: if you “liked” TTAC on Facebook, your mind would already be blown by this magical tale of Panther Love. Seriously, if I didn’t “like” TTAC myself, I might never have seen it [A tip of the hat to Sajeev and Alex Nunez]. So watch the whole thing, savor the chill that will run up your spine, and then go “like” TTAC on Facebook for a steady drip of more awesomely entertaining detritus from TTAC’s internet adventures.

It has come to our attention that another car blog which will remain nameless has reported that Murilee Martin will be leaving TTAC to work for High Gear Media’s Motor Authority blog. Though Murilee will be writing one post per week for MA, his/her excellent contributions at TTAC will continue unabated (the report in question has since been corrected).

In fact, I am looking forward to meeting the legendary Ms Martin in person for the first time at this weekend’s Sears Pointless edition of the 24 Hours of LeMons. Fans of TTAC and Ms Martin located in the San Francisco Bay Area are encouraged to come down to Infineon Raceway to check out the sights, sounds and yes, even the smells of LeMons racing, as well as to meet TTAC’s Editor-in-Chief and Senior Junkyard Editor in person. Hope to see you there!

Almost exactly three years and one week ago, my dad, Paul Niedermeyer called me up and told me there was an opening for a freelancer at TTAC’s then-new news blog. Little did I know at the time that just a few years later, so much would have changed. In fact, if someone had told me at the time that in three years I would be editing TTAC and that my dad would have moved onto his own site, I might not have taken the job. After all, if it weren’t for him I might not even be interested in cars, and I certainly wouldn’t be writing about them professionally.

Needless to say, there have been some twists and turns along the way… but sharing a profession with your dad is too deeply rewarding a privilege to simply come easily. His decision to leave TTAC was a tough for me to accept at first, until I realized that TTAC’s loss was the internet’s gain. We may have lost a valued contributor, but the autoblogosphere gained a new destination: curbsideclassic.com.

For legal reasons, you can still find an archive of Paul’s TTAC-era Curbside Classics here, but be sure to surf over to his new site for his latest additions to a body of work that is, without a doubt, one of the best sources of automotive history and nostalgia on the web.

TTAC’s march towards media domination continues, as Bertel Schmitt’s excellent piece on Toyota’s factory of the future has been picked up for syndication by Fortune Magazine online. Read it here, read it there… just read it!

One of TTAC’s headlines yesterday asked a provocative question: Does Speed Save? The question came from a “study” by High Road Automotive Research, which posited a common-sense thesis: higher speeds inspire higher reaction times, theoretically keeping drivers safer. The unique approach to the relationship between speed and safety is what caught our eye… but what we should have been looking at were the numerous clues hidden in the report that show the whole thing was a big joke. The Sydney Morning Herald reports High Road isn’t an actual group, and that

The paper – penned by a bogus research team including authors Jeremy James, Clark Hammond and Richard Mayson – suggests that encouraging speeding on our roads makes for better drivers.

Going back through the report is more than a little embarrassing. The report acknowledges the support of researchers with names like

Mr. Brian Vitara, Mr. Gary Benz, Mr. Garuda Matraman, Mr. Grant Dodge, Mr. Gary Alpha  and Professor James Romeo

Oy vey. Our apologies to our readers for presenting the “report” as at all legitimate (at least we weren’t the only ones), and raspberries to the jokesters behind High Road (Top Gear Australia denies involvement). Thanks to commenter Kiwi_Mark_In_Aussie for bringing the spoof to our attention.

PBS Newshour looked at GM’s future, focusing on the Chevy Volt. TTAC editor Ed Niedermeyer was a featured guest. If you want to skip to Ed’s appearances, they’re at 4:19, 5:43, and 9:08 (Or, in the clip embedded above). Transcript below the jump.

I wonder if I’m the only person that found this ironic. Actually, I wonder if anyone at PBS Newshour even knows who Alfred P. Sloan was.

The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation provided funding for this project

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I know, I know; it’s not the first time I’ve left TTAC, but this time is different. The odor of smoldering bridges in the air has a distinct whiff of finality to it. What happened? The picture above says it all well enough. I just can’t seem to fit in. And it’s time to stop hammering.

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I will be appearing on the PBS Newshour’s report from the North American International Auto Show tomorrow evening (check local listings for times). The interview took place late last Monday, after some 11 hours of press conference goodness, so the end results will be a surprise even to me! I do seem to recall questions about the revival of the American auto industry and the Chevy’ Volt’s price-volume dilemma… but we’ll all have to tune in to find out exactly what I said.

As a site that’s always ready to take a chance on the unheard voices and perspectives in the world of cars, TTAC is proud to have been a starting point for a number of writers who have gone on to other pursuits around the automotive media. Which is why we are taking a moment to celebrate TTAC contributor Ronnie Schreiber, as he launches his own portal for automotive expression, Cars In Depth. Ronnie writes

We’re pretty sure that Cars In Depth is the first car site to feature 3D photos and video. With all the buzz out of Hollywood, the gamer world and the television set industry about 3D, we’re not going to lie and deny that we’re trying to catch a wave as it crests. So yeah CID is a little bit gimmicky, but in the case of cars, 3D makes really good sense. I’m sure you’ve had the experience of seeing a car in real life and realizing that it doesn’t quite look the same as in flat two-dimensional photography. Simply put, the Porsche Panamera and Honda Crosstour are not as ugly in real life as they are in [2D] photos. There was a reason why Harley Earl started the practice of making clay styling models of car designs. For that same reason we’re starting Cars In Depth. The technology works, is mature and this is an ideal application for it…

You may be wondering how we are making the site compatible with the multiple varieties of 3D as well as making the site friendly to 2D viewers as well. Our photographs and videos are posted in embedded players that will work with the vast majority of 3D systems available today, and they also allow for 2D viewing as well.

We wish Ronnie the best in his bold new endeavor, and we’ll certainly be keeping a (cardboard) bespectacled eye on Cars In Depth.

In this age of non-local communities, it’s amazing to be able to make connections with car enthusiasts the world over. Still, there’s nothing like making a personal connection with those who share your passion. In that spirit, and as promised, TTAC invites its community of readers and commenters to come down to the Detroit Beer Company this Tuesday (January 11) at 6:30 to meet TTAC’s NAIAS team. I will be joined by our Detroit staffers Michael Karesh and Ronnie Schreiber, as well as the infamous Jack Baruth at the downtown brewpub for an evening of beer, grub and car chatter. If you’ve got a spare moment, we’d love to have you join us.

I didn’t plan on attending the North American International Auto Show this year… I really didn’t. TTAC generally avoids the expense and hoopla of the major auto shows, focused as we are on analysis more than “check out this new hotness” reportage. But this year things are a little different. After my third New York Times op-eds in the last year or so, I’ve been asked by the PBS NewsHour to appear in their piece on the recovery (or, as we like to say here at TTAC, not) of the American auto industry… so in a few hours I will be hopping a plane to Motown for my first-ever NAIAS. While we’re in Motown (and that’s not the editorial “we”… my beautiful and long-suffering life partner has taken the time off work to come support me and take in the sights of Detroit in January) we’ll be stopping in at the UAW protest, reporting on the new launches and reveals, and rubbing elbows with industry reps as well as meeting with TTAC’s staff and our owners from VerticalScope. But there’s another reason we’re headed to Detroit: it’s time to do a little PR work of our own.

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Dave Garrad personifies the word “hoon”. When I first met him in the smoke and beer filled haze of the Gemutliche Ecke (Translation: Comfy Corner) in Adenau, Germany, he was attempting a maneuver called The Lunge. There’s never a dull moment around Dave. Naturally, I immediately considered him for the last English caretaker of TTAC’s Ford Sierra project, before its journey to Germany and (ultimately) Houston. Upon our (Panther-lovin’) man Dereck’s delivery of the Sierra to his abode northeast of London, Dave remarked at how glorious the brown upon brown scheme truly was. His wife Helen refuses to ride in the chocolate-toned thing, lest her unborn baby develop unnatural tendencies.

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Allow me to be the first (unless someone in Australia beats me to it) to wish any and all a happy and prosperous 2011. May all your whishes (except the devious ones) come true.

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