Think Maximum Bob has maximum final say at GM? Uh, no. In response to a blogger's question about the lack of paddle shifters on the G8, Lutz responded "The marketing guys didn't want it. Some things we don't necessarily agree with, we have to do." Welcome to WTF country. Marketing input is absolutely critical, but Lutz and GM's golden circle of executives shouldn't be allowing the "marketing guys" to nix anything. Did they have access to a survey showing people were offended by paddle shifters? Did the gear lever manufacturer lobby interject about the threat paddle shifters posed to their business? Otherwise, it's a shock that they are able to give GM's "Car Czar" a headache and even twist his arm into doing anything.

Have you heard a Ford marketing slogan… lately? After "No Boundaries" and "Bold Moves," FoMoCo is pulling the wraps off their latest rhetorical gambit: "Ford. Drive One." The new tagline– which thankfully doesn't include the words "We're Begging You"– is aimed at stemming Blue Oval defections (I'm leaving that joke alone). According to The Wall Street Journal, this latest effort differs from previous head office marketing initiatives; Ford's actually coordinating their efforts with their dealers. "In the past, when it came to the corporate or Ford primary brand campaign, it was their campaign, they developed it on their own and let the dealers know what it was going to be," says Mark Smith, chairman of Ford's dealer council marketing committee. "I'd say there's been a little bit of frustration among the dealer body." Hold the hosannas. The "Ford. Drive One" is targeted at "consideration:" a marketing term for getting consumers to consider the brand. Sales are something else entirely. Obviously. 

Even though they don't have one hybrid or E85-compatible vehicle (or customer) on the showroom floor, Saab wants you to know they're eco-friendly. GM announced today that Saab is launching the "Pure BioPower Eco Clothing Collection." At an "exclusive pre-New York Auto Show party," the erstwhile Swedish brand trotted-out the 9-X Hybrid concept, "designed to reflect the priorities of youthful customers seeking progressive looks, responsible performance and high-tech communications in a fun-to-drive package." Yes, well, how about Saab's new line of "100 percent ecological/organic cotton" clothing? The apparel features buttons made from the Coroso Nut ("its harvest leaves the rain forest untouched"). If that wasn't enough (and for me, it is), Saab also announced they're donating $40k to the Earth Pledge FutureFashion Initiative. This salve the conscience of the sweat-shop fashionistas org "promotes renewable, reusable and organic materials and methods." A noble goal, indeed. If you don't want Saab clothes (to wash in Bio-Power detergent), you can "help the non-profit organization with an exciting program to be announced at a later date." Will it be before May? That's when Saab's "first collection" will be available at saabexpressions.com. The line forms… somewhere else.

Since 1936, Oscar Mayer's hot dog-shaped vehicle has been keeping the company's weiners in the automotive limelight. (We're talking MECHANICALLY SEPARATED TURKEY, PORK, MECHANICALLY SEPARATED CHICKEN, WATER, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF SALT, FLAVOR, SODIUM LACTATE, CORN SYRUP, SODIUM PHOSPHATES, DEXTROSE, SODIUM DIACETATE, SODIUM ERYTHORBATE (MADE FROM SUGAR), SODIUM NITRITE on wheels.) And during that time, the Wienermobile has always ridden on an American chassis. As The New York Times reports, the previous gen was no exception, sitting on a Chevy W-4 series truck platform. No more. As you can see here, the new Weinermobile is a based on the German-owned, British-built MINI Cooper (S no less). It's a change that didn't escape the attention of NYT scribe Robert Peele. "I asked [spinmeister] Big Dog Bill if the smaller vehicle was a signal that Oscar Mayer was adjusting to concern over gas prices and fuel efficiency. Was this an attempt at a greener Wienermobile? The answer was slightly disappointing. While the Mini Wiener will indeed be more fuel efficient, he said, its true raison d’être was to celebrate Oscar Mayer’s 125th anniversary." (Way to press the point, Mr. Peele.) Too bad the Weinermobile doesn't sit on an old Subaru platform. Then they could could take it international as a Bratwurstmobile. [thanks to starlightmica for the link]

C/Net reports that Zap, failed smart importer and provider of the TTAC one-star Xebra electric vehicle, has big plans. Again. Still. Two years ago, Zap was trash talking about a luxury, all-electric SUV called the Zap-X. It was due, uh, now. Anyway, forget about that, for now (Zap says later, Dude). Zap is now busy hyping the three-wheeled Alias, supposedly set for production in 2009. Following the Tesla template for over-promising and under-delivering, Zap says the $30k Alias will top-out at 100mph and travel 150 miles on a single charge (or less, obviously). The Alias will "likely" come with a hybrid range extender: a small gas motor that can power the car or charge the battery. And just in case that doesn't sound totally Tesla-like, "Zap and China's Youngman Automotive Group [the same carmaker responsible for the execrable Xebra], through a joint venture called Detroit Electric, will then follow up with an economy car, roughly coming out in 2010 or 2011, then a four-seater sedan similar in size and price to a Honda Civic. Subsequently, it will come out with a four-seater sedan that will compete in the Audi class." As if.

Flexcar started as a Seattle-based alternative to traditional rent-a-car agencies. Members could rent cars by the half-hour and feel like part of a forward-thinking community that took care of the cars and generally looked out for each other. Flexcar never turned a profit though. Last year, Flexcar merged with their main competitor Zipcar, also in the red. Meanwhile, Hertz and Enterprise decided to start renting cars by the hour, threatening Flex/Zip's customer base. As reported in The Stranger, after a spotty transition, the merged Zipcar seems far less "Flex-ible" towards its members. Both annual fees and hourly rates are higher and rentals are hourly– rounded up, of course. Zipcar also levies more fines and offers no grace periods. Zipcar spokeswoman Kristina Kennedy insists that fines will force members to "take responsibility for the cars while they are using them." Or really piss them off.

What do you do when you don't want to fight the bumper-to-bumper traffic in the McLaren SLR? Gizmag suggests you take its smart fourtwo "tender." Borrowing from the yachting world, BRABUS is offering a package deal that consists of a tuned SLR (good for 211 mph) and an identically-painted and equipped BRABUS ULITMATE 112– a 112hp two-seater based on the latest smart fourtwo Cabrio– as a runabout. Both cars are painted white with lipstick-red interiors with aero packages and suspension and tire upgrades. The SLR goes 0-100kph (62mph) in 3.6 seconds, while the ULTIMATE 112 takes 9.5 seconds to achieve the same velocity. Both can be yours for a mere €699,000 ($1.1m). The line forms over there, somewhere.

First it was $30k. Then it became $40K-ish. Now, who knows? There's no way to guess how much GM will want for a Volt if when it finally hits the market in 2010. Bloomberg reports that Product Developer Supremo Bob Lutz is warning that "We are going to bake in a very substantial warranty cost for the battery in our overall pricing calculation. We need to be conservative, simply because it's the first time we've done anything like this." Maximum Bob gave no indication what that warranty cost would be. With experts estimating that each Volt battery pack could cost as much as $10k, it won't be pocket change (except for GM's management). Between the warranty costs and the workarounds for power-sucking accessories, the Volt's guinea pigs first generation customers may find out it's no fun living on the bleeding edge.

Reuters reports Honda has published a driver's guide for women in Japan that includes info on, among other things, how to pump their own gas, how to safely transport the kids, how to park, and advice for aging female drivers. Honda says the pamphlet "erases all your fears about driving." When asked if this meant Honda thinks women are worse drivers than men, the company's PR flack replied "We don't think so. There are some specific cases of women drivers, and we focus on those cases." There are specific cases of men who drive like idiots too, but HoMoCo doesn't seemed all that bothered about that, now do they? It makes us wonder if Honda will be introducing an Accord La Femme.

Remember long ago (yesterday) when we talked about how the Chevy was doing the Camaro a disservice by cataloging every step of the development process? Well, one day after we see pictures of what looks like a finished car, they've just extended that process. WardsDealer.com reports that the Camaro will be released in the Spring of 2009 as a 2010 model. At that point, gas will probably be seven bucks a gallon. Again, it's not that the development cycle is taking forever; it's that GM is making it seem that way. Especially with the mechanically-related Pontiac G8 going on sale imminently. What's the explanation? "The auto maker ruled out an earlier arrival in calendar 2009, because it would have meant a short model run before changeover to '10 production." Delay sales of a hot car because you're worried about changing the number on the brochures? But don't worry. When gas is $9/gallon (it went up two bucks while you were reading this) in the Spring of 2009, and Dodge has been selling Challengers for a year already, Chevy expects to sell 100k Camaros per annum.

At the moment, electronically enhanced night vision is only available on the BMW 5-, 6- and 7-Series and the Mercedes-Benz S-Class sedan. Our spies tell us that Bimmer's Night Vision option ($2200) is a drug on the market. Merc's Night View Assist would be similarly unloved if it weren't part of a $6190 options package. WardsAuto.com reports that the gizmologists supplying same say their second gen systems will bring the technology to the masses. In fact, Autoliov confidently predicts that sales of their proprietary technology will soar from today's 20k to 2013's 1m units per year. Autoliv's prognostication is based on a J.D. Power & Associates customer survey re: new-vehicle features. Night vision ranked fourth on buyers' wish list– and dropped to 18th when the price was disclosed. Yes, well, the new system is better than the old (surprise). "With the hardware looking for heads, arms and legs and the software evaluating data for false warnings from light poles and tree stumps, [Autoliv MD Stuart] Klapper says drivers typically will get a four-second warning on the night-vision monitor of any living thing in the vehicle’s path." At what speed? As the average vehicle requires about three to four seconds to stop from 60mph (at best), no matter how you parse it, the system is not ideal for Knight Rider wannabes. Just sayin'…

Analysts tell the Wall Street Journal that the low end of the classic car market is getting hammered (so to speak) by sagging real estate values. "Home equity was the ATM out of which a lot of people were withdrawing money to have fun,"  says McKeel Hagerty. The CEO of Hagerty Insurance Agency says the market for mass produced "enthusiast cars" in the $30k to $50k range has tanked by two-thirds in the last two years. Another factor: age. Apparently, the people who pined for cool-but-not-collectible American iron of the 50's and 60's during their youth are getting older and less interested. The president of Hyman Limited Classic Cars claims the high-end of the market remains unaffected by the credit crunch; as collectors who buy hand-built, limited edition classics don't need to mortgage the mansion to pick-up a toy or twelve. Wordsmith Dan Carney would like to leave you with the impression that today's depressed low-level market makes it a good time to buy a classic, but we remember the price crash of the late 90's and reckon the down economy will sink the market even further.   

According to an AutoExpress article that reads suspiciously like a press release, GM's UK subsidiary Vauxhall will be getting a "new" logo. They, ahem, "report" that "the sharp yet simple new logo will set a more upmarket tone for the company as it aims to pitch its forthcoming models against prestige rivals." Translation: many UK consumers think of Vauxhalls as downmarket tat and between the French (Renault mainly) and Germans (BMW and VW), we're under heavy fire. The storied Vauxhall name and its models are so tainted that the Vectra nameplate is being replaced with Insignia this summer. How long will the Vauxhall name survive in the UK? (Ireland switched to Opel in 1982.) The only thing stronger than 3-Series sales in the UK is British nationalism. Vauxhall ain't going nowhere. 

So I get an email from Ford PR man Alan Hall re: "Microsoft To Launch Sync-based In-Car Advertising." Our previous blog post (based on a C/Net article) summarized plans voiced by the GM of Microsoft's Automotive Business. Martin Thall was discussing the possibilities of in-car advertising in general. Our headline and lead mislead readers into believing that these plans necessarily involved Ford's SYNC system. Ford's flackmeister pointed-out that SYNC is Ford's baby. The Blue Oval Boyz will decide whether or not to allow in-car advertising on their version of Microsoft's automotive operating system platform, not Bill Gates' minions. We apologize for leaving the wrong impression about the "ownership" of the possibility of advertising on SYNC-equipped Fords– which Hall wouldn't rule out. "We may have ads on SYNC at some point," Hall said in a telephone interview. "Everything's on the table." Glad that's cleared up. [NB: the original post has been amended to remove the word "Ford" from the headline and lead.]

We like Jack. Aside from being a hell of a race driver and future LeMons teammate, Jack Baruth is one of the most refreshing voices in the auto rag biz. His take on the new GT-R? Not good. While he's got nothing against the car per se, he's asking, "Who's going to buy it?" Jack argues that the GT-R's main competitors (Corvettes and 911s) have deeply entrenched, well-heeled fan bases with multiple owners clubs and racing series. The GT-R has fat kids in Mom's basement with carpel tunneled thumbs and a Slurpee's chance in Hell of getting the $70,000 needed to buy "Godzilla." He's also doubtful that the "Car Formerly Known as Skyline" will be much of a halo vehicle for Nissan, pointing out that the best thing about previous Skylines was that they didn't actually exist. They were myth. Now that they are bloated, expensive reality? Meh. Furthermore the GT-R is going to turn the 350Z into the "Nissan with panties." And finally, for those that can afford such a beast, are they going to enjoy slumming it down to their Nissan dealer where they might accidentally be seen next to a Versa? Nope. And Jack should know; he's the proud owner of two Volkswagen Phaetons.