A couple of months ago, Aaron Robinson of Car & Driver wrote an expansive article about Scion.
This quote pretty much summarized his view on the brand.
“I have no doubt that Scion will eventually go the way of Plymouth.”
I’m sure he wasn’t implying that cheap Scions will someday morph their way into becoming Toyota equivalents that offer fake wood trim exterior panels and trombone case red interiors. As a long-time automotive writer and columnist, he was simply reading the proverbial writing on Scion’s firewall that has been ever deeper ingrained into their product line.
Those are the words of Antony Sheriff, managing director of McLaren, who spoke to a Dutch publication regarding the future of its supercars. The new Mclaren MP4-12C, with its compact, turbocharged V8, is an impressive machine, but Sheriff may be exaggerating the demise of exotic, multi-cylindered engines.
In 2010, when everybody was going ecstatic about EVs, PSA Peugeot Citroen said to Mitsubishi: “send us some of your i-Mievs, with our badges. Say, 100,000 for starters.”
While everybody has their eyes on China and possibly India, the car market in smaller South East Asian countries is exploding right below the RADAR screen. By themselves, car sales in a country like Vietnam don’t seem to amount to much. Now, go to the trouble and add a few South East Asian countries together. The Nikkei [sub] did and notes to its amazement that the car market in Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Singapore jumped 21 percent in the first half year to 1.6 million units.
Now why would The Nikkei be so excited about this? Read More >
Troubled battery maker A123 is getting another lifeline. This time, from China. Wanxiang Group will invest as much as $450 million in the company, says Reuters. Wanxiang, one of the largest Chinese auto component makers. A123 will soon be Chinese. Read More >
China is the world’s largest market for heavy trucks. People who are suicidal enough to have personal experience with Chinese highways will readily agree. Nearly 1 million units of the heavy (and usually blue) units were sold last year, more than in North America, Europe and South America combined. Ford wants a chunk of this interesting market.
The grim reaper may not be at American Suzuki’s door step after all. We’ve learned ASMC is healthier, at least financially, than we thought. But, in order to be profitable last year, ASMC had to completely cut almost every non-essential (and some essential) function of their business. Read More >
I never thought I’d see the day when the Japanese copy the Koreans on styling but here we are. This is the 2013 Honda Accord, and it’s going to have to be really good to go up against the bland (2013 Nissan Altima), the beautiful (2013 Ford Fusion) and the default choice (Toyota Camry). Not to mention the Koreans.
Our own Alex Dykes will be attending the launch event shortly. Until then, this is all we’ve got.
Just when America’s most promising generation turns up its nose at cars, new technology rides to the rescue of the embattled industry: Cars that do away with drivers. A study by the automaker and union-funded think tank Center For Automotive Research (CAR) and the CPA firm KPMG comes to the conclusion that with self-driving vehicles, “the industry appears to be on the cusp of revolutionary change.” Do you buy that? Jay or nay? Read More >
Bringing suit against GM for not letting Saab live another day could be turning into a popular sport. Lars Holmqvist, former head of Europe’s automotive supplier body CLEPA, and as such an insider when it comes to the latest Saab dirt, says that spurned Youngman of China is also thinking of suing GM. Read More >
So what are people driving in America’s wealthiest Zip codes like 10274, Lower Manhattan, where the average annual income stands at $5.7 million? Must be all Bentley daily drivers with a few Aventadors for weekend fun, right? Wrong, says TrueCar, as it publishes the list of the top vehicles purchased in the wealthiest zip codes. Well, you are kind of right: There isn’t a single domestic vehicle amongst the top ten. Read More >
The Daily Caller says it has emails that prove that the pensions of 20,000 salaried retirees at Delphi were terminated “solely because those retirees were not members of labor unions.”
The emails, says the conservative website “contradict sworn testimony, in federal court and before Congress, given by several Obama administration figures. They also indicate that the administration misled lawmakers and the courts about the sequence of events surrounding the termination of those non-union pensions, and that administration figures violated federal law.” Read More >
Growing up, my parents were adamant about prohibiting video game consoles in the house; TV was time-limited as it is (the permitted shows included South Park and The Simpsons…go figure), the computer was for “educational purposes” (i.e. school work or reading about cars) and recreational activities took the form of a book or outdoor activities. Until that fateful day in Target.
In our second installment, we take the Scion FR-S to the track, along with the heavier, but more powerful Hyundai Genesis 2.0T and its spiritual antecedent, the Mazda MX-5. Oh, and there are special guests from Japan and America.
While a number of automakers have been complicit (and still are) when it comes to badge engineering, Suzuki in North America has been on the forefront of whoring out or johning platforms since its introduction in the 80s. The ‘Japanese brand that could’ has either slapped the stylized S on Daewoos and Nissans or let GM have their dirty ways with the grilles of small Suzuki cars and SUVs.
While a number of automakers have been complicit (and still are) when it comes to badge engineering, Suzuki in North America has been on the forefront of whoring out or johning platforms since its introduction in the 80s. The ‘Japanese brand that could’ has either slapped the stylized S on Daewoos and Nissans or let GM have their dirty ways with the grilles of small Suzuki cars and SUVs.
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