Speed cameras have emerged as a top political issue in the province of Manitoba, Canada. The ruling New Democratic Party (NDP) is standing by its controversial decision last week against issuing refunds for motorists who were issued speed camera tickets in so-called highway work zones when no workers were present. In January, a court declared that such tickets violated the law (view opinion), but the NDP maintains that payment of a ticket is an admission of guilt. The opposition parties are making the most of the situation.
In an article about US Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner’s inability to tie his own shoes, the Washington Post leads with the heretofore disclosed fact that Wagoner’s looking forward to a $20 million payday. While the Post paints Geithner as an incompetent manager, that’s a no-win proposition no matter how you look at it. Stiff Rick and the guy’s bound to reveal the finer points of Uncle Sam’s takeover of a [former] blue chip company, including the deal they promised Wagoner to get him to jump. Pay him off and the howls of indignation will rile the nation, pissing off potential GM customers, further sinking “good” GM’s ability to sell someone a car.
Another one bites the dust: The Volkswagen Santana, the car that provided the foundation of China’s mass motorization, will be put out to pasture in 2012, Gasgoo reports. The car’s history in the PRC provides a unique insight into the country’s move towards motorization.
Today, the supervisory board of Porsche has a sit-down in their super-secret R&D center in Weissach near Stuttgart. On the agenda: “How do we get out of this mess?” The meeting might not be very constructive. The board is heavy with members of both sides of the feuding Porsche and Piech clan. Ferdinand Piech himself will be there, along with Uwe Hück, head of the Porsche workers council. Last week, the former professional Thai boxer Hück had threatened he would report Piech to the authorities, on grounds of yet to be specified violations of securities laws. Only fools make idle threats to Piech.
Folsom, CA (Yuppie-burb of Sacramento) is in my neck of the woods. I was browsing the online car ads of my local struggling newspaper, the Sacramento Bee, and was struck by the number of trucks for sale.
“We’ve got more trucks than ever before . . . ” Yes, over 1,000 is quite a lot. (Get it?)
Automotive News [sub] reports that Chrysler’s national dealer council has filed a motion in U.S. Bankruptcy Court to “save” the 789 ChryCo dealerships slated for termination. The council’s asking federal judge Arthur “Fast Track” Gonzalez to stay Chrysler’s dealercide in the name of Joe Q. Public. “Fewer dealers will mean less inventory available to the public,” the document maintains, placing Chrysler products on the same level as, say, foodstuffs. “Lower inventory reduces the chances that a customer will find the car they are looking for and therefore hurts sales.” A federal ruling to protect consumer choice in an industry with 40 percent plus overcapacity and enough excess inventory to choke an entire industrialized country? That’s just silly. Arty is scheduled to hear objections to Chrysler’s request on June 4, five days before the axe falls for good (or, in this case, “bad”). Never mind. Here’s where the REAL battle lines are forming . . .
His cell phone line was dead. A disconnected phone is always the first sign that one my automotive “investments” has gone south. Number two: timing. His payment was due that afternoon. By 2:00 PM I was at the house. My car wasn’t there. Common scents told me his associate, DJ Jazzy Dumbfuck, was inside getting high. Angry rap songs blasted from inside. Knocked on the door . . . doorbell . . . knock . . . doorbell . . .
“Dear thetruthaboutcars.com, I am asking your advice on what type of car would suit me best. I am a high school student who is the not-so-proud owner of a 1997 Pontiac Sunfire. I recently took a ride in my neighbor’s Acura RSX and was impressed with the overall quality of the car, especially the interior and the car’s performance in general. It looked like my neighbor had so much fun, flawlessly shifting through the gears. I was amazed at how superior this car was to my low-quality Sunfire. I came to the conclusion that the RSX would be a perfect car for me because of it’s high quality ,small size, and because of how much fun it looked to be behind it’s wheel. When I go off to college and have the money, I plan on buying a better car for myself. Is there any car out there that is similar to the RSX that matches it in quality, size, and performance that I can look into? Any advise is appreciated.”
Just got off the phone with my copyright lawyer. “Bertel, how many times do I have to tell you that ideas are not copyrightable.” “Yes, Sidney, I know, only the expression. But it’s a shame nonetheless.” There goes my last chance to get rich. What happened?
According to the pistonheads at Pistonheads.com, history goes into high RPMs again at Volkswagen. Due to the impending merger of Volkswagen and Porsche (which more and more looks like a takeover of Porsche by Piech) the company might need a new name. After all, Volkswagen-Porsche would sound unwieldy and would bring up memories of the ill-fated Volksporsche 914. Anyway, a holding company shouldn’t carry the name of one of its brands in its name (save for Ford, or Toyota, and many others.) The names of two brands in the name of one holding would be a bit too much. So someone floated a bright idea:
Putting the “continuous” in “continuous improvement,” Toyota plans on replacing 40 percent of its senior managers and half the board members while reorganizing its North American business according to the Financial Times. Akio Toyoda takes over as president of his grandfather’s company next month and clearly wants to set a new tone at the top. “Some people are calling this a revolution or even a coup d’état,” says Koji Endo, a Credit Suisse analyst. “The size of the [financial] loss is huge. Somebody has to take responsibility for that.” Toyoda reportedly wants to bring back former senior executive Yoshimi Inaba, to revive its US operations. That effort could include unifying Toyota’s California-based US sales operation and Kentucky-based manufacturing unit under a single management structure, possibly based in New York. Under outgoing president Katsuaki Watanabe’s leadership, Toyota lost nearly $5 billion last fiscal year despite commencing an $8.22 billion cost-cutting campaign. Toyota lost $7.87 billion last quarter, beating out even GM for the title of biggest loser.
What’s been going through my head is 2 trade-offs: Cayman S with or without PDK (with Chrono Plus either way) and BMW M3 Coupe with or without DKG. Beyond the obvious (cost but better 0-60 for PDK/DKG vs. more driving experience on a stick…), what are folks taking into consideration when making that trade-off? Would love to hear people opinions…
Commentator stephada picked PDK when he recently bought a Carrera, but our man Shoemaker was disappointed by the system. Twice. Lack of consensus? Whatever shall we do? More importantly, what say y’all?
Rick Haglund at MLive wonders aloud if the Chrysler treatment would be an option if it were a Chinese firm assuming the Fiat position. He’s been talking to pundits working on closer Michigan-China business ties, and they claim that a tie-up with a Chinese firm would be better for Chrysler than the Fiat deal already in progress. “They’re not putting in any cash, which is what Chrysler needs,” argues former AMC Chairman Gerald Meyer. And there’s no doubt that Chinese firms have cash. But, “there’s a xenophobia that’s clearly there,” argues Tom Watkins. And he’s right.
With an estimated 44k vehicles sitting on the lots of the 789 lame-duck Chrysler dealers, Mother Pentastar is going all-out to move metal. Although record incentives have already failed to make rain, the DetN reports that ChryCo will be sending “millions” of $1K vouchers to previous customers. Chrysler marketing seems not to have heard of the “fool me once” adage. The move shows that “recognizing the value of our customers has never been more important,” say the spokesfolks. “Chrysler is open for business and welcomes the opportunity to remind its customers just how valuable they are.” And isn’t it nice to know that the Treasury agrees? Too bad everyone’s waiting for a clunker-culling bill to buy. And who knows if/whenthat will happen. Anyway, will a grand tempt current owners? More to the point, what dumped Chrysler dealer would turn down $1K off a listed price to anyone at this point? Or do you haggle a dealer’s shirt off and then bring out the $1K coupon after you’ve broken the poor bastard’s spirit? Color me terrified of the crippling depression that must afflict anyone spending time at a ChryCo shop.
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