Archive for July 2007

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Buying (5)

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Jalopnik Reviews: 2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8, Part 3
Why you should buy this car: Because you want an SUV that packs over 400 horsepower, runs a low 13-second quarter mile, handles like a slot car, and goes 0-60 in under five seconds. Because you like the idea of a vehicle assembled in Detroit, USA and Graz, Austria - next town over from Thal, where California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger was born. Why you should not buy this car: Because you are one of the few people that actually uses the towing, hauling, or off-road capability of an SUV.
By Mike Bumbeck Read More
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Jalopnik Reviews: 2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8, Part 2
Exterior Design: **** The SRT crew took a Grand Cherokee and meaned it up track style. The result is a low-slung brick fronted by a giant front air dam. Center exit dual exhaust on the other end puts a stop to any ridiculous ideas about towing. Why even pretend the thing is going to go off-road or tow a boat? The utility in this monster is apparent once you stuff it into a corner and hit the throttle. The exterior design is a case of form following modified function. Interior Design: *** Bols
By Mike Bumbeck Read More
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Jalopnik Reviews: 2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8, Part 1
Legend has it Igor Ivanovich Sikorsky, father of the modern helicopter, had a sign made up for display in the lobby of his company's technical office. The sign said this:
By Mike Bumbeck Read More
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Ten Observations About A Rented Toyota Corolla
The WRX is getting re-clutchified, so for the past three days we've been tooling around the greater Los Angeles area in a 2007 Corolla. Our impressions are thus:
By Jonny Lieberman Read More
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Jalopnik Reviews: 2007 Ducati Superbike 1098
Riding the 1098 away from Southern California Ducati came with a warning. Three busted-up 1098's sat in the repair queue outside the shop. As the foreman explained, the monobloc brakes could very easily pitch you right over the grips or low-side you onto the tarmac. With those images fresh in mind I rode around the shop a few times, through a few intersections, and up onto the freeway. There I found riding the 1098 in a straight line is an exercise in torture. With each passing mile a thousand o
By Mike Bumbeck Read More

Entertainment (6)

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Top Gear's "Polar Challenge" is now up and online. Get your copy today...or whenever the torrent of bits is complete. [FinalGear]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Thank you Jeremy Clarkson for hating 'merica — now we'll never get Top Gear. Bloody 'ell. [The Sun]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Sniff Petrol gets a new look including a forum. We have a snarkgasm. [Sniff Petrol]
By Ray Wert Read More
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James May has found himself the "Clarkson-proof" car. [Telegraph.co.uk]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Top Gear is back July 25th with the Polar Challenge special! [FinalGear]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Clarkson On The 1964 Ferrari 275 GTS
We love it when old Jezza starts talking cock-o-meter. We believe he first used the analogy in his (404 page missing) review of the Saab 9-3 Sport Wagon. The metaphor goes as such: Based on the car you are driving, your threads and your haircut, the cock-o-meter tells you how much of a cock you look like. All BMW drivers score a 5 (highest score). Saab drivers on the other hand? We forget exactly, but it was pretty low. Here's how JC explains it this time:
By Jonny Lieberman Read More

News (379)

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Rod Stewart's daughter Kimberly "stole" Sean "Diddy" Combs' Maybach, then returned it. [SFGate]
By Ray Wert Read More
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GM's US sales are "soft?" We're actually hearing they may be more close to "flaccid." [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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I Voted No On The 250 GTO
Why? Partially because I'm a rank contrarian and love the underdog. I will go at you all day as to why Jawbreaker was better than Led Zeppelin. Mainly making the argument that hobbits are ridiculously silly unless Peter Jackson is involved, but being busted up over a girl or singing Sonoma-Coast-evocative songs with lashing, slashing guitars and punk rock's version of Bonham on the drums is just, well, better. Sometimes you just don't need "The Immigrant Song." Which is, oddly enough why I'd rat
By Davey G. Johnson Read More
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Project Car Hell: '72 450SEL Or '69 Corona?
As we all saw yesterday, a Wankelated Hillman Minx stomps Grandma's '71 Ford LTD in the Project Car Hell competition, with close to a 75/25 pro- (or anti-, depending on how you define the term "Project Car Hell") Minx split in the voting. Today's PCH contestants should be a bit more evenly matched in the Hell department, as we go for a couple of Axis Specials...
By Murilee Martin Read More
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Mazda Reveals Updated Scrum Vans
Perhaps the best part of living in Tokyo with your parents as a 29-year-old Web developer is the wide variety of vanlike vehicles at your disposal in the marketplace. Even at the micro, keicar level, such movable basements can provide the young, single male with the privacy mom and dad's flat never could. Mazda hears the call, and has just updated its Scrum wagon and microvan line. The top line PZ Turbo now comes with a chrome grill and new interior fabrics with which to woo the young salarywome
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Car dealer boss in Atlanta allegedly kills two employees because they "kept asking for pay raises." We knew the profit margins were bad, but we didn't know they were Scarface bad. [IHT]
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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BMW Sauber test and reserve driver Sebastian Vettel is replacing American Scott Speed on Red Bull's Scuderia Toro Rosso. Vettel will debut as a starter at this weekend's Hungarian Goulash. [ITV]
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Ferrari 250 GTO
"You can't give one without the other." My mother repeated these words every time my father would buy a new bicycle for me but neglect to do the same for my sister. Fair, after all, is fair. I mention this because after researching last week's Fantasy Garage superstar, the Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe, not including the 250 GTO would be sacrilege. We can't have one without the other. After all, the reason the Daytona is so breathtakingly fantastic is because it had to compete with this Ferrari. Pu
By Jonny Lieberman Read More
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Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione Stateside Debut
We're out here on the rolling Rochester Hills at the site of this weekend's Meadowbrook Concours d'Elegance for the US press reveal of the Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione. But just as important as showing the 159,300 euro (Alfa folks claim the US price will be over $200K when it hits here late in 2008), 450 HP V8-powered supercar, for the Alfa Romeo folks this is the first event for a US-bound Alfa Romeo since the halcyon days of yesterday — and by yesterday we mean 1995. We'll stop talking and l
By Ray Wert Read More
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Lamborghini reports huge pretax profits, a nearly four-fold increase over last year, on a 62% increase in sales. [Malaysia Star]
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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1957 Chrysler New Yorker
The first thing we need to know about this car is that it has enormous fins. While GM liked sharp pointy fins on its cars of this era (as we've seen a few blocks from this car), Chrysler decided that fins needed to be thick, with bulk.
By Murilee Martin Read More
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China wants Rover to come here...and sit? Roll over? Play dead? [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Gaz wants nothing to do with FoMoCo's Jaguar and Land Rover. We love the sensationalism of the Russian press. [Reuters]
By Ray Wert Read More
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GM Shows Quarterly Profit Globally — And In North America — Umm — Something
The General released earnings numbers for it's most recent quarter just moments ago, beating analyst expectations of a slight profit. The biggest US automaker showed $45.92B in net revenues and a net income of $891 million ($1.56 per diluted share) for the second quarter of 2007, an improvement of $4.3 billion compared with a reported net loss of $3.4 billion ($5.98 per diluted share) in the year-ago quarter. Those numbers also include $520 million ($.92 per diluted share) in net special items
By Ray Wert Read More
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Hoons wanted for research study. Seriously. [abc.net.au]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Project Car Hell: Rotary Minx Or Dearborn Barge?
Friday's Choose Your Eternity poll was won by the '71 Datsun 510 wagon, which beat the Gremlin (though not by an ass-whooping margin). Today we're going to go seriously low-buck, with a pair of projects available for a mere five Benjamins... or maybe even less, depending on the ruthlessness of your dealmaking chops...
By Murilee Martin Read More
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Hyundai confirms a RWD Tiburon replacement. Duh! We mean, why the heck would they have that test vehicle out like, everywhere? [Automotive News via Autoblog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Today's The Day: Vote One Fantasy Out
A commenter by the name of Akirachan had a pretty good answer to this past weekend's Fantasy Garage question. Instead of just booting out the car that gets the most votes, why not assemble the ten inductees that got the most hate votes, have the lot of you vote on which of these ten you like the best, and then toss out the bottom three. I really that idea, except that I don't want to toss out three cars. One is plenty. So, we'll just stick with the bottom three vs. bottom three format I thought
By Jonny Lieberman Read More
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TechArt Porsche Cayenne: Coming To Frankfurt
One reason we dig going to the Frankfurt auto show is to cruise the bahnhofstrasse district, so we can point out window mannequins whose mouths appear to be pronouncing the letter "O." Another is for the massive "tuner floor" where Europe's largest tweaker shops gather their latest over-the-top wares. One such shop is Germany's Porsche-fiddling TechArt. They'll be showing off their latest 911 Turbo kit, and rolling out their take on the newest Cayenne. Such is the hot number shown here. Mainly a
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Peugeot 308 RC Z Concept Car
Peugeot's just released images and a release on their new 308 RC Z concept car they'll be introducing at this year's Frankfurt Auto Show. The very TT-esque 2+2 coupé is powered by a 1.6-liter THP, the same as the one in the 207 RC. The only difference is Peugeot says the engine under the bonnet of this concept car's got some better engine management going on — bumping up the HP from 175 to 218 HP. Oh, and it's got multi-directional bi-Xenon headlamps too. Full press release below the jump.
By Ray Wert Read More
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GM to post "modest" quarterly profit. Now we'll ask everyone to define "modest." [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Can You Identify This Car?
Looks like folks had a good time with Friday's Mystery Car, so we've dug through our files of as-yet-unpublished DOTS photos to come up with another one. Who can be first to correctly state the year, make, and model of this vehicle?
By Murilee Martin Read More
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"Cajun Boy" wonders whether Subaru thought about using other Manhattan neighborhoods for names of its cars. Our thought is maybe the "Subaru Harlem" wouldn't sell quite as well. "Subaru Meat Packing" however... [Cajun Boy In The City]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Japan unveils a hybrid train. No, it's not a Prius. [Channel 4]
By Ray Wert Read More
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What does a "strategic review" of Volvo mean? Wethinks maybe it means asking "how much can we get." [Taipei Times]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Well of course Chrysler employees get to take their cars to a good auto shop. [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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New York Cabbie September Strike Threat Still Looms Over Tip Monitoring GPS System
A couple of weeks ago one of us snagged a cab with a very chatty cabbie on the west side of Manhattan to run uptown and meet some friends for dinner. The driver had a bone to pick with the Big Apple over a new GPS system set to be installed inside city cabs later this year and somehow he thought I could help him make this not happen — or maybe he was just venting, we're not sure. Whatever the reason, Ackmaz apparently wasn't the only cabbie upset by the plan to install satellite positioning sy
By Ray Wert Read More
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Apparently "minicars" are "the thing" in Japan. Who knew? Well, we did. [Yahoo! News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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1969 Lincoln Continental
The area right around Alameda High School has been a good one for DOTS cars; within a block of today's car we have the '68 Ranchero, the '78 Jaguar XJ-6, and a couple other cars I haven't got around to posting yet.
By Murilee Martin Read More
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How did Henry Ford bring "power to the people?" By bolting a 65-horsepower V8 onto a deuce coupe and inadvertently inventing the hot rod. [NYT]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Ann Arbor EPA lab comes up with 93 gadgets that don't help save gas. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Mitsubishi To Unveil Concept-cX At Frankfurt Show
An Evo SUV? It may be the answer to an unasked question, but such a vehicle exists in the form of Mitsubishi's latest concept car. The company announced it's unveiling a prototypical SUV based on its Concept-X, the style concept that begat its latest-generation Lancer Evo X. It's dubbed the Concept-cX, and it employs a new 1.8-liter clean turbodiesel engine hooked to Mitsubishi's electronically controlled 4WD system and new Twin Clutch SSG (sport shift transmission), which will be available on t
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Wait — including Detroit in the Woodward Dream Cruise? What a novel concept. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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The new Mini Clubman, the "first car ever to come as standard with a set of fiberglass disguising panels, just like the ones used by car test drivers on their exciting engineering prototypes." Gawd, does Sniff make us happy. [Sniff Petrol]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Car dealers hate taking cash for cars. [NYT]
By Ray Wert Read More
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AutoWeek's Natalie Neff sheds a little light on the new 2008 CTS and its assault into German-occupied territory. [AutoWeek]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Fantasy Garage: Ideas For Monday's Vote
OK, so as of (hic) 12:56 am PST on this fine Friday evening, the winning loser from Round One is the Buick GNX and its companion from Round Two is the Maserati Quattroporte Executive GT. But we can't just put 'em heads up can we? As Dan Harrington paraphrases Thomas Hobbes in Harrington On Hold 'Em Volume II: The End Game, that'd be "nasty, brutish and short." So, I'm thinking that we take the bottom 3 from each of the rounds. That would be GNX vs. Maserati vs. Honda vs. Rambo Lambo vs. Corvette
By Jonny Lieberman Read More
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Who knew Lindsay Lohan's DUI could be good for GM SUV's? [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Porsche Shows Off Cayenne Hybrid
Porsche showed off a pre-production version of its new Cayenne Hybrid to journos today. Here's the takeaway: It can go off road. That's a bold statement, considering there's not a single other hybrid SUV certified for rough duty. (Outside military applications, natch.) According to some in attendance, the Cayenne Hybrid can ford 20 inches of water without shorting out like a black-and-white TV left in the rain. Mileage is reportedly improved by 20%, with additional savings planned by launch. A j
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Project Car Hell: 510 Wagon Or Famous Gremlin?
Yesterday, we had our closest Choose Your Eternity poll yet, with the '58 Rambler just barely edging out the Buick-chassis '54 Packard by a couple of percentage points. Today we've decided to take a break from the 50s stuff and look at a couple of low-cost-of-admission project cars hailing from the Malaise Era.
By Murilee Martin Read More
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Dieter Zetsche e-mails his goodbye to Chrysler. Parting is such sweet sorrow — or as one Freep commenter writes: "Later Stache." [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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2008 Ford Crown Victoria Special Edition
According to some shots procured by Popular Mechanics' Jim Dunne (he's still alive? Really — who knew?), Ford's gone Dave-alicious to the 2008 model of Ford's cop-car. That's right, the three-bar grille that screams "Hi, I'm An American" is the extent to which FoMoCo's changed the exterior of the 2008 Crown Vic. Oh wait, no, they've also dropped a special "Special Edition" chevron on the side of the front quarter panel and an odd little strip of chrome below the Dave look. We're going to go an
By Ray Wert Read More
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GM's Allison Transmission and Aisin Seiki Japan are parting ways on their joint venture — sort of like GM's looking to part ways with Allison Transmission. [Dow Jones via CNNMoney]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Quote: "Americans may not be interested in buying American cars anymore, but American investors sure are buying GM's turnaround story." [Motley Fool]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Tata is closing in on Land Rover and Jag-oo-ar. Because in India, the empire no longer rules you! [Times of India]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Volvo recalling certain 2005 XC90 SUV's for "fire risk." No word yet on if it's the same "fire risk" causing FoMoCo trucks to shoot flames out the exhaust. Oh wait, no, it's got something to do with the vehicle's jack. [SeattlePI.com]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Swiss name the Prius "world's greenest car." Since when do the Swiss make decisions for the rest of us anyway? [Reuters]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Replace Axle And Oil Seals
The automobile contains a number of fluids that should all stay where they're supposed to be. Oil spots, coolant leaks, mystery drips, and other tell tale signs of fluids leaving their rightful place in the automobile are a sign to take heed of maintenance. Denying the existence of the ever-growing number of oil spots on the driveway is not going to make them go away. The source of the leak needs to be fixed.
By Mike Bumbeck Read More
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Kick A Fantasy Out Of The Garage: Round Two
I think I speak for many of us Jalops, and espcially my man Danio, when I say, "WHAT IN THE FUCK!?!" What was up with yesterday's voting? The GNX? Really? OK, so to recap, we now have 20 cars in the Fantasy Garage (21 if you count the Rotus). Time to kick one out. Yesterday you voted on what we'll call the odd cars (1,3,5, etc.) and today you get the even cars. Then, on Monday we'll put together a final bracket and let y'all vote on that. The winning loser gets to join the Volkswagen Phaeton W12
By Jonny Lieberman Read More
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Is an IS coupe in Lexus' future? [Dieselstation via Autoblog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Chrysler dealer mailing takes a really tough tone. And by tough, we hope they don't mean they'll have a Dodge Nitro shoot them with force lightning. [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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FoMoCo gaining traction? Yes, losing less in North America is totally better than losing more. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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1975 Pontiac Grand LeMans
Some of the more observant readers noticed the old Pontiac in the background when the DOTS car was the '70 Ford LTD, a couple weeks back. Well, here's that Pontiac, a beater '75 Grand LeMans.
By Murilee Martin Read More
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2008 Mini Clubman Official Specs And Photos Revealed!
Thanks to AutoWeek, the folks over at Inside Line, the auto news add-on to the 600-lb computer-accessed consumer automotive juggernaut Edmunds have gone live with all the man-of-Club fun. Official details and photos are spilling out all over the place, and here's what we know about the not-so-mini Mini. First of all it rides on a longer wheelbase than its standard siblings. And although it maintains the retro look making the regular Mini such a hit, it has three extra portals — a short one alo
By Ray Wert Read More
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Project Car Hell: Buicked Packard Or Rough Rambler?
The $495 Mercedes 230S won yesterday's Project Car Hell poll, beating the VW Type 3 by a decisive margin. It has come to our attention that some of you are confused about exactly what it is we're voting on in the Project Car Hell series- is it the car you'd most want as a project, or the one you most fear? Well, the answer is: yes! Vote for the project you'd have to be a total idiot to take on, but that would also be the most fun when finished. If you could ever finish it, that is...
By Murilee Martin Read More
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There's chatter in the pipeline about Mitsubishi's new turbocharged Lancer that'll give the Mitsu kids a 250+ hp answer to Subaru's WRX. If a turbo decal and straight pipes are any indication, a proto model may have been been spotted. [EvolutionM.net]
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Kick A Fantasy Out Of The Garage: Round One
I would like to repeat something important from the headline: Round One. As in there will be a round two. We currently have 20 cars in the Jalopnik Fantasy Garage (plus the honorary Rotus) and one of them needs to go (but not the Rotus). However, we're going to employ a mini-loser playoff format. Today you vote on half the cars, tomorrow the other half, and then on Monday we vote the loser out. Sound good? Good. Happy voting.
By Jonny Lieberman Read More
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A tipster just informed us Chrysler Group will announce this morning that all new car buyers will receive a lifetime powertrain warranty, excluding excludes SRT, diesel, and police/commercial vehicles. Oh, and It's I before E, buddy.
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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1950 Plymouth Deluxe
Since I continue to get emails from readers expressing skepticism that all the DOTS cars were actually spotted while parked on the streets of Alameda (today's is #47), I'm going to say it again: Unless I state otherwise, every single car you see in this series was found street-parked on this one-by-five-mile island in the San Francisco Bay. So, let's get on with today's car, a very clean '50 Plymouth.
By Murilee Martin Read More
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Apparently for Ford, the net benefit to selling fewer cars in North America is you don't have to build so many damn cars. That can get super expensive. Also, someone should send those guys in Europe and South America a fruit basket or something. [Ford]
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Kia Reveals Three-Door Cee'd
It may not look like a big deal, but the Kia C'eed three-door hatch is the most significant vehicle to hit European shores since that 1911 Gräf & Stift Rois De Blougne tourer blew a rod, killing Archduke Franz Ferdinand and subsequently starting World War I. Maybe not quite that, but the C'eed three door is significant for its leading-edge design by former Audi scribbler and head of Kia's European design office, Peter Schreyer. The Slovakian-built hatch will show up at the Frankfurt show before
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Project Car Hell: Finback Mercedes Or VW Squareback?
Looks like the '55 Packard Patrician crushed the '50 DeSoto Deluxe in Monday's Project Car Hell poll, with a whopping 78% of the vote going to the V8 machine. Today we're going to go with a couple of Los Angeles-area 1966 German projects with low admission cost and high potential coolness factor...
By Murilee Martin Read More
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World's First Flying Car Enters Production
In a moment we've been waiting for since the first time we saw The Jetsons, the first flying car has finally gone on sale. Just like the car George uses to drop off the kids, the Moller M200G Volantor is shaped like a saucer. To avoid the need to pass FAA regulations, the civilian version of the Volantor is restricted to heights of 10 feet, but can travel as fast as 50mph and fly for up to 90minutes. Military or rescue versions could be unencumbered by such limitations. Depending on the number
By Wes Siler Read More
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A satirical look at Chinese automaker Chelfing making a Freudian slip on what they think about female drivers. [Autoblog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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BusinessWeek's David Kiley says he's got the aspirin for VW's headache called the United States. [BusinessWeek]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Mercedes second quarter profits surge to $1.65 billion. No second quarter results announced for Chrysler because of the impending sale. That's probably a good thing wethinks. [Forbes]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Mercedes Reveals DiesOtto Engine: It Runs On Gas
1.8 Liters, 240bhp, 295 lb/ft and 40mpg in a vehicle as heavy as an S-class. According to Mercedes, this is the future of gasoline engines. Featuring direct injection, a turbocharger, variable compression and a hybridized starter motor, the DiesOtto engine would be impressive with these features alone. The real innovation, however, is the controlled auto ignition, a combustion process similar to that of a diesel engine. No word yet on when it goes into production or in which vehicles it'll be us
By Wes Siler Read More
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Chevy HHR SS will have an available automatic tranny. [Autoblog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Sub-prime loan meltdown causing Cerberus buy-out debt financing of Chrysler to "hit the skids." Still, they're not expecting an impact on the sale closing date. [Times Online]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Who knew Jerry Garrett was a Ford truck man? [NYT Wheels Blog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Ford reports earnings on Thursday. Forbes has a preview. [Forbes]
By Ray Wert Read More
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The future of Ford Australia is all about diesel. Funny, we don't remember that scene from Mad Max. [news.com.au]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Volvo AB seeing shares drop along with the truck market. [Canada.com]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Delta Township adds production on increased demand for the Enclave, Outlook and Acadia. Looks like the Tri-Lambda CUV's are actually selling. [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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1967 Porsche 912
Is the 912 a real Porsche? That is, do driving-glove-equipped dentists drive it? Sure, it looks like a 911, but that little four-banger in back won't exactly make you feel like a Prussian officer brandishing his riding crop at his cringing inferiors. And, really, isn't that what it's all about?
By Murilee Martin Read More
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DaimlerChrysler Financial Services offering counseling to employees traumatized by the Daimler-Chrysler breakup. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Avis is expanding their "cool cars" with...hybrids? [CNNMoney.com]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Callaway Reveals Speedster: Latest Corvette C16
If you're planning a junket to Pebble Beach for the Concours d'Elegance next month, pack your seersucker fedora and don't forget to stop by Callaway's tent. That's where the longtime 'Vette tuning shop and coachbuilding house of late is rolling out the latest and flagship model in its line of reskinned Corvettes. It's the C16 Speedster, a take on the short-windshield roadster construct introduced in 1954 with the Porsche 356 Speedster and a throwback to the 1990 Callaway Speedster. A supercharge
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Project Car Hell: '50 DeSoto Or '55 Packard?
Since I'm already scouring Craigslist every day for my next project (having come dangerously close to taking a shot at the 20R Austin-Healey) and running across all sorts of potential Choose Your Eternity project cars, we might as well keep the series going for another day (looks like the Biscayne hearse edged out the Rover 2000 yesterday). Today we have a couple of classics from now-defunct marques vying for your votes...
By Murilee Martin Read More
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GM to cut pickup truck production. [Oakland Press]
By Ray Wert Read More
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GM debt offering for the sale of Allison Transmission may not go through. Oh noes, Mr. Wagoner! [Reuters.ca]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Fiat CEO said speculation of interest in Ford's Volvo is "only noise." So no 500-chero? Darn. [CNNMoney.com]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Wait no, this is the most obvious auto-related headline of the day. [StarTribune.com]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Most obvious consumer insurance story ever: "It pays to comparison shop." [CBS News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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The new Autoblog project car is a Toyota MR2 Spyder. Hopefully the project's to drop a larger engine in it. [Autoblog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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ArvinMeritor gets itself into a chassis venture with "Cherry." We were going to ignore the Detroit News misspelling of "Chery" but it was the only interesting thing about this article. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe
Last week we asked you to name your favorite automotive legends. While the answers were (of course) stellar – Smokey Yunick rules – we're a little disappointed that no one mentioned the genesis of this week's Fantasy Garage candidate, the Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe. Though, it is worth mentioning that almost everything Carol Shelby does eventually winds up as someone's favorite anecdote (let's just forget the Shelby GLHS). For instance, Carroll used to place a $100 bill on the Cobra's dashboard
By Jonny Lieberman Read More
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Motor Trend takes an illustrated look inside the Corvette LS3. If you ask us, we'd like to take a look anywhere while being inside a Corvette LS3. [Motor Trend]
By Ray Wert Read More
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To understand the Buick Enclave in China, we feel you must do as Ty Webb says and be the Buick Enclave in China. Nah-nah-nah-nah-nah-nah-na-na-na-na! Be The Enclave! Nah-nah-nah... [Washington Post]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Spiked Squire: Denver Rolls Out The Not-So-Welcome Wagon
Our friend Kitt in Denver sends in these photos of an evil-looking '66 Country Squire she spotted menacing her neighborhood. Now, when you take a family hauler and attempt to make it look mean, you're walking a pretty thin line between looking good and looking lame (the same rule applies to tattoos, of course). We think bolting 1981-punk-style spikes on a car is a longshot bet, but the overall effect here gets the Jalop Stamp-O-Approval.
By Murilee Martin Read More
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Pimp my tank?!? [Gizmodo]
By Ray Wert Read More
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GayWheels.com Drops A New Top Ten List Of Cars Gays Are Searching For
While not ourselves gay, we're proud to support our man-loving brothers and women-loving sisters in making whatever choices they feel most comfortable making. That includes cars — like the latest fabulous list of most-researched vehicles on Gaywheels.com. Apparently the Toyota Yaris continues to take the top spot, with the Saab 9-3, both the sedan and the drop-top took second place. We'll let you see the full super list right after the jump.
By Ray Wert Read More
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All new Infiniti FX to debut at the 2008 Geneva Auto Show. [GT Channel via Autoblog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Chrysler's looking to seal the proverbial deal with Cerberus this week. [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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1973 Mercury Cougar
Poor Cougar, always forgotten in the big shadow of its Mustang sibling! I found this car parked just down the street from the '61 Valiant of a couple weeks ago.
By Murilee Martin Read More
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Nissan reporting a 16% drop in quarterly profit. That's no good thing especially considering they sold more vehicles this past quarter than the same quarter last year. Damn you rising material costs, incentives and new models! [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Audi Dropping New 1.4-Liter TFSI Four-Banger In A3, A3 Sportback
The 2.0 TFSI engine from the knights of Bruce has already taken some serious metal in the "Best of" categories. Now Audi's using that technology to create a smaller version of the award-winning 2.0-liter engine, announcing a new, "ultra-modern" (we're pretty sure that's code for über-Bruce) 1.4-liter four-cylinder Turbo Fuel Stratified Injection (TFSI) engine. It's ready to be dropped right into the engine bay of the Audi A3 and A3 Sportback. With 125 HP at 5,000 RPM and a maximum torque of 14
By Ray Wert Read More
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Romanesko has the Detroit News bye-bye note on Truby. It's the flip-side of the Ford memo. [poynter.org]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Project Car Hell: Rover 2000 Or Biscayne Hearse?
The 20R-powered Sprite won last Friday's Project Car Hell poll, so now let's take a look at two more fine project cars available on Craigslist today...
By Murilee Martin Read More
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Ford's Truby-Snagging Now Official
Here's the official e-mail from Ford chief PR man Charlie Halloran on FoMoCo's snatching up of Mark Truby, business editor of the Detroit News :
By Ray Wert Read More
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DragTimes dyno's the LS3 Chevy Corvette. [DragTimes via Autoblog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Inside Line sits down with BMW M Vice President Gerhard Richter, and no an "M" will not be getting a diesel engine anytime soon. [Edmunds Inside Line]
By Ray Wert Read More
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The Malaysia government is denying they've got a "subsidy scheme" for Proton car buyers. Nah, they're just giving them money — that's not a "subsidy," right? Oh wait... [Forbes]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Is it in some way ironically terrible the next OPEC production meeting's occurring on September 11th? [Bloomberg]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Batpod And Batmobile From New Batman Movie Caught On Film
In case you haven't heard the next Batman movie will include a motorcycle that's been nicknamed the "Batpod" — yes, we know it's a lame name. But whatevs, thanks to tipster Ninan, we've got the snazzy little cycle on film moving for the first time (not including Meredith Viera straddling the Batpod on the air), along with the Batmobile in the foreground. No, there's not a single sighting of Christian Bale anywhere to be seen. We're OK with that. [via 29MotoGuide]
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States pushing for truck-only lanes. [USA Today]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Volvo hiring Indian dealers — just in time to get sold to Tata? Probably not — but Tata is the only Indian car manufacturer we find to have a truly humorous name. [NDTVProfit.com]
By Ray Wert Read More
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A new evolution for the Evolution — no more Roman numerals? [Auto Express]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Chinese car buyers are moving online. Maybe they'll find us? [vnunet.com]
By Ray Wert Read More
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TGP Capital made a surprise bid for Jaguar and Ford says they'll make a decision on proceeding with the offers next week. [Financial Times]
By Ray Wert Read More
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When There's No Snow, Vail Is Nothing But Kobe Bryant And Hybrids
("Follow us as we lift the hood on the world of industrial automotive espionage in From The Car Spy's Dossier, a series of road reports from A-list spy shooter Brenda Priddy and some of the world's greatest car spies!)I barely had a chance to unpack at my motel right across from BMW's so-called "top secret" hot weather test garage last week before Toyota called and invited me to Colorado for a few days to drive their new Highlander Hybrid. I used to think that an invitation from a auto company
By Ray Wert Read More
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Toyota says the quake cost them a drop in output of 55,000 cars. [Forbes]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Court TV's biggest car-crash smash jobs. [Court TV Informer]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Cheney Was A Racecar Driver
You may remember author and neocon mouthpiece Stephen F. Hayes from such hits as attacking Bill Moyers and Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's wooden leg. Turns out he's also The Penguin's Vice President Cheney's official biographer. His latest on Dick is, Cheney: The Untold Story of America's Most Powerful and Controversial Vice President. Why are we mentioning this here? Because of a vehicular anecdote retold in a review of the tome by Newsweek's Evan Thomas:
By Jonny Lieberman Read More
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Toyota says they'll still wax GM's butt this year. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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2009 Ford Fiesta 5-Door
Although we're still one year out from the Euro production debut, and on the heels of the three-door spotted last month, the car spy photographers of KGP have snapped the first photos of what looks to be the 2009 Ford Fiesta five-door caught testing in Europe. We'll let KGP take over the story from here, speculation on a 2010 US version included at no extra charge. Oh, and for some reason KGP calls the "Dave" design language "Red-White-and-Bold," in case you're wondering about the translatio
By Ray Wert Read More
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Survivor: Ford Motor Company [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Champ car's suffering from a "visibility issue." [Merury News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Contract talks, where "the future" of the industry is at stake. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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1977 Chevrolet Camaro
The disappearance of 2nd-gen F-bodies has been a very slow process, compared to most of the platform's contemporaries. You still see them now and then, but such sightings get a little less common as each passing year sends more '70-'81 Camaros and Firebirds to the cold jaws of The Crusher. This '77 wouldn't have attracted a passing glance in Alameda even five years ago, but now it stands out as a nice original car.
By Murilee Martin Read More
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The Daimler and Chrysler executive shuffle continues. [Detroit News]
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Moto GP At Laguna Seca: It's Over, And No Surprise
Just when we though the deflating balloon of Valentino Rossi and the Yamaha team would give MotoGP a needed butt shot of nitromethane — and hand a few more victories to American homeboy Nicky Hayden — out pops 21-year-old Australian Casey Stoner to ride Ducati's labcoattails to superstardom. No surprises today at Laguna Seca, as Stoner broke a 12-race MotoGP pole-position curse to take the win — dominating the field and besting countryman Chris Vermeulen, who took second. Uncontested wins make u
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Casey Stoner has won the 2007 Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix at Laguna Seca. We can't believe we typed out that many words, just for that. Vermeulen was second, Melandri third, and Mister Rossi took fourth.
By Davey G. Johnson Read More
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Pole-sitting Duc-mounted Casey Stoner put the knee pucks to the asphalt and dropped a Laguna Seca lap record in practice. The decimating digits? 1:21:975 [San Jose Mercury-News, Live lap timer at MotoGP.com]
By Davey G. Johnson Read More
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MotoGP At Laguna Seca, 2007: Ready To Race
Qualifications were in yesterday and practice runs wrapped earlier this morning, West Coast time, for today's Cali motofest at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. Post for the MotoGP US Grand Prix is 2:00 and the AMA Superbike at 3:45. The MotoGP field is as about as tight as eight guys could be without a class ring — with the top eight splitting one second among them. Bumbeck was there with his lens and a talent for subterfuge to capture a gallery of practice runs earlier today. We're heading out to a d
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Thank You Federalism, For Helping Keep Our Roads Deadly
According to statistics compiled by the New York Times this Sunday, the United States was the leader in motor vehicle safety...in 1970. However, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the United States has moved from that number one slot to the not-so-distinguished spot of 42nd out of 48 industrialized nations. This, despite the fact cars have gotten significantly more safe since 37 years ago.
By Ray Wert Read More
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Over at the Freep, Mark Phelan goes diesel-dizzy today. [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Fake Steve Jobs hates Jerry York. So does Rick Wagoner wethinks. [fakesteve.blogspot.com]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Casey Stoner is splitting seconds between number one and two qualifier with Chris Vermeulen in Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca Moto GP qualifying action. [Moto GP]
By Mike Bumbeck Read More
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Don't get all excited folks, it's not a real Ferrari — just really expensive grills. [NYT]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Who knew being honest about shortcomings at Ford could get you lunch with Alan Mulally? We're expecting our phone call from the FoMoCo CEO shortly. Yup, any minute now...we're almost positive he'll call...we've got a bunch of open dates that'll work. C'mon phone, ring... [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Maybe the 94-year-old woman just wanted some of those delicious asiago cheese bagels. [Chicago Sun-Times]
By Ray Wert Read More
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V-Dub hoping to hit break even by 2009 in North America. Good luck with that guys! [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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The PaddockTalk Champ Car "Fast Facts" for this weekend's race at Alberta. [PaddockTalk]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Project Car Hell: Fiat Or Austin-Healey?
Not being content with a fleet consisting of a couple of reliable 90s beaters, I've been itching to take on a fun car project of some sort. So, I've been scanning the Craigslist car listings, looking for just the right starting point. Lots of interesting stuff can be had for cheap, but I've played this game long enough to know that what starts out as a "fun" project can become an inescapable quagmire...
By Murilee Martin Read More
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Truck Trend drives the new 2008 Dodge Dakota. [Truck Trend]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Tom LaSorda says the Cerberus deal is close to done. Well, one would think it would be, right? [Reuters.ca]
By Ray Wert Read More
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This is what happens when a Honda dealer outsources something important — like a lottery for $1000. [6ABC.com via Winding Road]
By Ray Wert Read More
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What's Your Favorite Automotive Legend?
Car-related lore goes back a long time; to the very beginning in fact. Legend holds that Karl Benz's wife Bertha "borrowed" the car (and we mean the car) to take their two children to her folks' house some 50 miles away. The farthest Karl had ever driven it was perhaps a mile or two. I'm going to let Dan Neil take it from here:
By Jonny Lieberman Read More
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Four-door Wrangler accounts for 82% of Toledo Jeep plant's output. [AutoWeek via Winding Road]
By Ray Wert Read More
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UAW taking a step towards a Delphi strike? [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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GM to build Opel Astra in Serbia. We're sure it'll be fine — but when we think "Serbia" we're not entirely certain we think "quality" in the same thought. [EuroNews]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Fox News issues new terror alert on Canadian study linking car seats to sudden baby deaths. Remember, we're fighting them over there so we don't have to fight them over here. [Fox News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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GM global sales soar like an eagle past Toyota for the second quarter of the year. ToMoCo still has the crown on the six-month mark however. [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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AM General's new HumVee gets itself snapped by car spy photogs. Don't they know loose lips sink Hummers? [Autoblog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Why didn't Chrysler and the UAW let reporters in to the LaSorda-Gettelfinger handshake ceremony this morning in Auburn Hills? Afraid they'd be asked questions? [NYT]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Accessorizing runs amok at Baltimore area car show. [Baltimore Sun]
By Ray Wert Read More
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1973 Corvette Stingray
Venturing out to the part of the West End near the former Alameda Naval Air Station (departure point for the Doolittle Raid), I ran across this rough-around-the-edges '73 Stingray.
By Murilee Martin Read More
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Hey UAW and Chrysler...let's get ready...to...rumble! [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Dodge Dog-Gate Continues, Fake Puppy Snuff Viral Vid Still Available On Internet
Chrysler Group PR main-man Jason Vines dropped a press release yesterday claiming he's working hard to get the Dutch viral video of a dog being electrocuted by the Dodge Nitro SUV off of YouTube. The only problem is it doesn't look like it's doing a lot of good. Actually, if you do a simple search of the popular pop video site for the words "Dodge Nitro Electrocuting Dog", you'll find there's still a copy up there. Gasp! In fact, the video's seeped out of the corporate-capitulating confines
By Ray Wert Read More
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According to the Detroit News GM's waxing the competition everywhere...except the United States. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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What is up with non-police driving cars that look like police cars in Dallas? [nbc5i]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Dodge "Crew" Crossover
We've seen all sorts of fully clad shots of Dodge's new crossover car-based ute, but this is the first time we've seen it disrobed in any way. True, it's just sans black leather chaps on the doors, roof and grille, but it's most assuredly the new "top-secret" crossover. Sources close to the Dodge division have called it the "Crew," but we do know the codename — JC49. After the jump, we've got what we've been told by spy photog Brenda Priddy about the "Crew" spotted in these new Chris Doane-s
By Ray Wert Read More
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Gary Halverson wants you to make love to his '63 Corvette. [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Ford's totally received some bids for Jaguar and Land Rover. We won't speculate on how many, who or why they'd even want to bid on it — but we're told someone did. [TheStreet.com]
By Ray Wert Read More
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See, this survey totally shows you people who buy Ford cars don't hate them. [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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The Chevy Volt goes to Capitol Hill! [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Chrysler Group Drops Price On Jeep Liberty To Make It More Of A Square Deal At $20,990
Well, the new 2008 models for Jeep are almost out — and Chrysler Group's released pricing on the newly re-designed and very much Nitro-like Liberty. They've dropped the base price on the 4x2 SUV letting freedom ring in at an MSRP of just $20,990 — $1,270 less than the 2007 model. The 4x4 on the other hand will start in at $22,600 — $1,170 less than the current model. Now up at the high end, the top of the line "Limited" model will go out the door with the 3.7-liter V6 for just $26,785. Not too
By Ray Wert Read More
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Parking in New York friggin' sucks worse than that time when the street exploded. [NYT Wheels Blog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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General Motors showed an uptick in global sales last quarter. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Subaru developing a CVT?!? [Winding Road]
By Ray Wert Read More
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The coolest merger of knives and muscle cars we've yet seen. [Autoblog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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New Zealand man buys Prime Minister's old Vauxhall Cresta at auction. New Zealand man defaults on payments for Cresta. New Zealand man tries to get opposition party to pay for demolition derby of car to allow him to make payments. [stuff.co.nz]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Remember To Thank Your Road For Not Exploding Today
Roads really are great. Without them we'd all need SUV's in order to go from place to place because the ground would be all rocks and dirt and shrubs and stuff. But there's another reason I like roads this morning — they usually aren't exploding. Usually is the key word there, as I now have first hand experience with what it's like to see a road do the unusual — explode. Yesterday I was minding my own business, walking down 42nd street here in Manhattan towards Grand Central station — on my wa
By Ray Wert Read More
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Bloomberg columnist Doron Levin has a daughter who's too good for a Buick. [Bloomberg]
By Ray Wert Read More
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1952 Dodge
Parked just down the street from the '68 Fairlane 500, this bright pink customized Dodge caught my eye from blocks away.
By Murilee Martin Read More
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UAW talks to be all about retiree health care costs. [NYT]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Dodge Nitro Kills Dog, Makes Us Cry A Little
We think we know where Dodge is going with this little commercial viral video we're assuming was made for the Euro market showing the Dodge Nitro electrocuting a dog that gets too close to those chrome rims. We think they're trying to separate themselves as the Chrysler Group's "boy brand." But our only issue is — should a brand all about the message of "Grab Life," be taking it away? Just askin'...and plus, isn't the dog getting it in the end kinda anticlimactic? We still cried a little, but
By Ray Wert Read More
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UAW targets...Ford. Mission...destroy? [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Ford Bringing Iosis X-Based Kuga To Europe For 2008
Although the name's pronounced kinda like "Cougar," it's anything but the old Mercury. Still, it's a hot looking little number FoMoCo of Europe will introduce at the Frankfurt Auto Show this September based off of the Iosis X concept car (pictured below) introduced in Paris last year. Unfortunately, we'll not be seeing it on this side of the pond — it's for the Euro market only. We feel like that's always the way it is with these guys. Full release after the jump.
By Ray Wert Read More
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Today's the last day to bid for Land Rover and Jaguar, so you know, grab your checkbooks. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Ferrari F430 Scuderia Revealed!
Mama Mia! Ferrari's just dropped a few shots of their next Italian supercar they'll be officially unveiling in Frankfurt. It's the Scuderia edition F430, a 2-seater berlinetta with an extremely low weight-to-power ratio of just 2.45 kg per hp thanks to a low dry weight of just 1250 kg - 100 kg less than the standard F430, and to the naturally-aspirated 4308cc V8's 510 hp at 8500 rpm. Full press release below the jump. [Hat tip to Supercars.net]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Delphi accepts that $2.55B Appaloosa offer. Jeez, and you thought we liked saying Geelong. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Cerberus hates the Senate fuel economy proposal, just like a real automaker. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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GM to invest $500 million in Latin America. We're hoping it's in something car-related. [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Chrysler breaks ground on the nation's most "green dealership." It's in Miami. [GreenBiz News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Spy Photos: Next-gen Opel Vectra gives us a preview of the 2010 Saturn Aura. [Autoblog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Tata to buy Jaguar, Land Rover? Boob jokes for all! [Telegraph]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Michigan Democratic Party buys GOP MI Supreme Court Chief Justice's taxpayer-bought car at auction...just because. [MLive]
By Ray Wert Read More
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An SUV carrying PA Governor Ed Rendell's wife was broadsided by a "luxury car" today. She's unhurt because unlike some people, she was wearing a seat belt. We won't mention any names...except Governor Jon S. Corzine of New Jersey.[Forbes]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Explain Your Nomadism
Today's question comes to us courtesy of commenter AdamSonar and it reads like this:
By Jonny Lieberman Read More
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Is V-Dub looking at a new logo — or just a more 3-D version of the current one? [German Car Blog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Delphi may get $2.55 billion to move ahead with restructuring. [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Madison Heights, MI gas station announces "giveaway" gas pricing of $2.89 per gallon for unleaded from 11 AM until 2 PM today. You'll also get the chance to enter a contest for a Ford Taurus or a year's worth of gas. Frankly, we'd rather have the gas. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Kia To Show Off Sports Coupe Concept In Frankfurt
Kia's all set to reveal a sports coupe concept car in Frankfurt this September. The 2+2 concept's coming out of Kia's Euro studio run by chief designer Peter Schreyer. The name may remain a secret at present, but what we do know from the grinning shot above is it should have less of the dour and sad face we saw in the Kia ex_cee'd cabrio concept shown in Geneva earlier this year. Full press release after the jump.
By Ray Wert Read More
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In Russia, Ford drum YOU! [NYT]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Wayne County police bust 'kiddie crime wave' targeting new Chrysler cars in Detroit. Man, talk about some dumb criminals — they should have been focusing a little more upscale. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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SwatLax wanted everyone to know about this Hummer getting busted up in DC. [Washington Post]
By Ray Wert Read More
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First there was quality, then there was cost cutting. Now, for Danny Howes, simplicity is apparently "job one." Only problem is — we think we read this article already on the front page of the business section of yesterday's New York Times. [Detroit News via NYT]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Help, we're being smothered by Honda Fits! Yargh! [Autoblog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Yup, the Australian Ford engine factory at Geelong will be long-gone in 2010. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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The only thing that can stop Toyota? EARTHQUAKE! [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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1969 AMC Ambassador SST Wagon
Just in case we haven't already made it perfectly clear, we love station wagons here at the Jalop. We also love AMCs, so it made my day when I spotted this sharp '69 Ambassador wagon parked in Alameda's South Shore neighborhood.
By Murilee Martin Read More
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OK, Ford wins the coin flip. They have decided to receive. UAW, you will be kicking off. [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Honda increasing NorAm production to keep up with demand. Let's flip a coin — heads, it's Mexico and tails, it's Mexico. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Cars keep putting on the pounds like they're eight months pregnant. [USA Today]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Toyota to bring a "hot trifecta" to this year's SEMA. "Hot trifecta?" What the heck does that mean — three Camry's on fire? [Popular Mechanics]
By Ray Wert Read More
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In Michigan if you were to allow motorists to choose less medical coverage on their auto insurance, they could save 10%. Also, they'd spend 90% more when they get hurt in a car. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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E85-powered Dodge Viper sets speed record with 220.7 mph! [Edmunds Inside Line]
By Ray Wert Read More
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New York Times Lede blog name checks our commenter BIMINITWST name checking our post of NPR on their name check of Jag-wahr. Feel free to join the discussion there and show them the meta-power of Jalopnik! [NYT Lede blog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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The world's worst taxi rides. [Forbes]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Champ car needs a hero...and he's gotta be strong, and he's gotta be fast, and he's gotta be fresh from the fight. Or they need a really hot female racer. [Canada.com]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Virginia's got a new $3,550 speeding ticket for hitting 75 in a 55. Guess which state we just added to the list of places we shall not tread? [MSN Money]
By Ray Wert Read More
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DaimlerChrysler expects higher FY 2007 sales from Mercedes than they saw during FY 2006. But only by a wee bit. [CNNMoney]
By Ray Wert Read More
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2008 Subaru Impreza pricing starts at $16,995, WRX starts at $24,350. [NASIOC]
By Ray Wert Read More
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The Kia Amanti is apparently the hyperbolic manifestation of Dan Roth's father's Oldsmobile. [Autoblog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Does A Vette Really Get 'Em Wet?
A couple of days ago we learned that Jalopnik is infested with girls. Cooties too, most likely. But we also learned that one of the things girls like least about cars are the guys who drive them. Which begins to surprise us until we start thinking about it. Still, women are human, too. But are they goofy enough to bed down with a guy just because of his car? For fear of sounding like a boastful frat boy, we're keeping our anecdotes top secret. But for the record, the Z06 gets us very wet, indeed
By Jonny Lieberman Read More
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Ford sells Fairlane Club to Dearborn investors. No word on how much they got out of the deal, but we're assuming they'll take pocket change at this point. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Rambo's Lambo: The Lamborghini LM002
We've got enough hopped-up supercars and luxury coupes in the Fantasy Garage, yeah? There's the Veyron, the world's fastest production car in a straight line and the Group B Audi quattro S1, one of the world's fastest around a gravel corner. You can't get more sinister than the Daimler Drophead Coupe and Buick GNX, but you can get more überholprestige (that's German for, "I see the car behind me. I must get out of its way.") Lamborghini's LM002, of course, is überholprestige. Once in Newport Bea
By Jonny Lieberman Read More
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VeraSun and Enterprise to promote E85 use in rental cars. Yay, energy independence! Boo, fuel economy! [Houston Chronicle]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Ford will build a small car in India, but they won't be looking to beat Tata's predicted $3,000 price point. [CNNMoney]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Toyota to merge manufacturing of Hino and Isuzu to make super-awesome-Hin-uzu-mega-zord? [Automotive Business Review]
By Ray Wert Read More
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JE Design Audi Q7 Widebody FSI
Germany's JE Design, those wicked Leingarteners, have finally put a bow on their tuned Audi 4.2-liter V8. And they've done it in context of the Q7 SUV, which they've bulked up with a body kit, 22-inch wheels and suspension kit. A supercharger provides the boost to 500 horsepower (from 350) and 443 lb-ft of torque, along with a water-fed intercooler, sport exhaust up to the header and computer tweaks. The result is zero to 62 mph in 5.6 seconds and a top speed of 169 mph. If there's a footballer
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Chrysler does a great job enticing people to leave — meets 2007 buyout goal. [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Diesel interest is up, hybrid interest is down. How will Hollywood react to buying environmentally efficient "dirty" diesels? [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Ford Goes Troll-Ing Consumer Auto Forums For Compliments On The 2008 Mercury Mariner Hybrid
We just got the latest press missive from Ford on the 2008 Mercury Mariner in both hybrid and non-hybrid flavors. The release, headlined "2008 MERCURY MARINER IS A HIT WITH ONLINE CONSUMERS" is a list of supposed owner comments culled from the posts of consumer auto-site forums. As you can expect, the remarks provide glowing recommendations on the '08 Mercury mini-SUV using words like "best," "love" and the always forum fan fave of "WOW!" All of this gushing got us wondering whether every Ma
By Ray Wert Read More
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The NYT Wheels Blog weekly motorsports roundup. [NYT Wheels Blog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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1968 Ford Fairlane 500
Today we have one of my personal favorites, a late-60s midsized Ford with a fastback rear. I've had a couple of these, including a '68 Mercury Cyclone that served as my daily driver for several years, so I know their flaws and strengths pretty well.
By Murilee Martin Read More
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Albany says "no" to Bloomberg's NYC traffic tax. D-bag I-bankers lift their double lattes to cheer. [NYT]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Ford learns how to count...one, two...eight billion! [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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How many syllables are in the name "Jaguar?" [NPR]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Paris Hilton's cousin Brooke settled her lawsuit today relating to the 2004 freeway accident she's accused of causing. We can now all sleep easy tonight. [TMZ]
By Ray Wert Read More
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If you see a Carrollton, TX police car where it shouldn't be, or one that looks suspicious, call this number: 972-466-3333. It very well may be a fully loaded 2007 Crown Vic stolen off a Dallas-Fort Worth dealer lot on Friday. [Fox 4 News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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GM to snag a 50% stake in VM Motori S.pA., the Italian diesel engine maker owned by Bloomfield Hills, MI-based Penske Corp. So that's where they'll be getting those diesel engines from, eh? [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Mercedes-Benz makes glasses? Who knew? [Carscoop via Autoblog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Haha, there's a blog giving away an R/C car. Oh wait, that's us. How meta is that — us talking about Autoblog talking about us? Our minds are positively reeling. [Autoblog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Bud... Weis... Umm...No Ear-nahrdt. [Edmunds Inside Line]
By Ray Wert Read More
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UK insurance business prompts fibbing, fibbing, fibbing! [BBC]
By Ray Wert Read More
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A "square deal" drives the UAW? Maybe they should be worried more about retaining three "square meals" a day? [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Autoblog plays with clutchless shifting in a street car, determines it's really stupid to do in a street car. [Autoblog]
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Remember that Chevy SS we showed last week? Apparently the House of Saud gets its own Chevy SS. It's just the thing for sandal surfing and executing four-wheel drifts across the Hijaz/Wadi Hanifah junction. [Popular Mechanics]
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So when Ford PR spokesfolks told press yesterday there wasn't a deal being negotiated for Volvo — were they in the dark, lying or what? [Forbes]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Michael Corvino, CEO of Jansport, died yesterday after he lost control of his 1970 Dodge Charger. [Forbes]
By Ray Wert Read More
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The "axe" is close for the Aussie Ford Geelong plant. We just like saying "Geelong." [TheAge.com.au]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Lear shareholder reject Icahn deal. [CNNMoney]
By Ray Wert Read More
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We salute the UK Department for Transport for basically creating a "gallery of hoons." We'd like to remind everyone where they can find the original. [Top Gear]
By Ray Wert Read More
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A "joint" venture between Ford and the UK to develop cars made from cannabis? [Winding Road]
By Ray Wert Read More
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The UK is just as dependent on their cars now as they were ten years ago. In other news, the sky is still blue and grass is till green. Except, of course, in the UK. [BBC]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Top rated car stereos for your iPod. [San Francisco Chronicle]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Porsche 911 GT2 Online
Porsche rolled out a new web presence for the recently homologated 530-horsepower, 204-mph GT2. From the school of counterintuitive market messaging, the company's touting the widowmaker's estimated fuel economy, which is the equivalent to a combined 22.6 mpg in the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC), which begins emissions sampling at a cold start instead of after a designated idling period. Of course, most GT2 buyers who will slap 189,496 Euros on the barrelhead this November will care as much
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Spy Photos: Ford Flex-ing minivan-like muscles. [Autoblog]
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Did the New York Times Wheels blog just use the words "hybrid" and "hype" in the same headline with Lexus? That splat sound was a snowball hitting the devil in the back of the head. [NYT Wheels]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Cars, Spies And Brothels!
(A-list spy shooter Brenda Priddy lifts the lid on the world of industrial espionage, with road reports from the world's greatest car spies! In this, the first installment, Priddy airs some dirty laundry...) My twentysomething daughter and I arrived at our home away from home at 10:30 pm on a very hot July evening (about four hours after we passed Holy Moses, Wash) and rang the little silver bell for the desk clerk, Norman. It was obvious we woke him, but fortunately for us, he threw on some (
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Most obvious conclusion ever — luxury car brands give the best service. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Looks like GM's making a boldly transparent move — disclosing political contributions. Good for the General — now if only we can get them to do the same thing about financial results. [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Last week in Washington they had a very (Rob) Low(e) moment. [Detroit News]
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1978 Dodge Colt
Since starting this series, I've kept my weather eye open for 70s Japanese cars parked on Alameda's streets, without much success. They're important cars, historically speaking, but just about every last one seems to have been crushed by now; no doubt it just never seems worth keeping that Corona or B210 going once it's got 300,000 miles and something expensive breaks. So, when I saw this little Mitsubishi parked in front of the hospital, I had to run back home to get my camera.
By Murilee Martin Read More
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US automakers working with Toyota to — gasp — lower fuel economy standards! Well, at least they're not trying to play the "SUV's are safer" card this time. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Chevy Volt prototype driven in...Massachusetts? [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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The AP reports Ford strongly denies they're in talks to sell Volvo. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Hopefully he'll remember her on Secretary's Day, and not just with some crappy flower vase shaped like Ziggy. (graphic version here) [Carzi.com]
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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MOD Squad Hits Triple Diamonds In Third Year
Having been to the first annual Mitsubishi Owners Day three years ago, the sheer number of Lancer Evolutions tearing up the roads today seems almost impossible. So many EVOS appeared that the cars overflowed onto the nearby streets of MMUSA HQ. While there was some temporary grumbling that Prototype X showed up instead of the production version, there were plenty of 3000GTs, Starions, and Eclipses to keep everyone happily distracted. Stay tuned for some mini-galleries focusing in on some of the
By Mike Bumbeck Read More
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Jalopnik At The D1 Grand Prix, Day Two: Finals
[Las Vegas stringer Curtis Walker, who hasn't yet sublimated in the desert heat despite short odds to the contrary, brings us day two of the 2007 D1 Grand Prix.]. Narratively, we're always drawn to both underdogs and classic, rear-drive Japanese cars. So we caught up with John Russakoff to get the lowdown on his 1984 Toyota Corolla, the oldest drift car competing in this year's D1 circuit. The AE86 entry started out as a $200 "piece of shit." Twenty-five thousand bucks and a year- and-a-half lat
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Ford preparing to sell Volvo for $8 billion according to report in the Sunday Times. [USA Today]
By Ray Wert Read More
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It ain't just lowered fleet sales that are causing lower total sales for US automakers. [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Jalopnik At The D1 Grand Prix, Day One: Practice
[Our Las Vegas stringer Curtis Walker is on scene making with the photos and words — ed.] With temps pegged in the triple digits by Friday afternoon, the air above the Las Vegas Motor Speedway hinted at a firestorm. The Formula D Grand Prix is in town, and that means wafts of tire smoke and smolder hanging over the Mojave for most of the weekend. Last year, D1's inaugural drift event was such a hit with the drift kids that more drivers and cars are here from Japan. With 13 of Nippon's finest and
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Swap your car for a bike? Are you for serious? Oh wait, it's in Seattle. [SeattlePI]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Top 25 car names that are funny when the word "anal" is placed in front of them. [College Humor]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Jalopnik Gets A New Look, Gives Away R/C Car!
[UPDATE: As the post states, use the bullet points found in the picture of the back of the box. You do not need to use ALL of the words on the box, nor should you use "some of them." Just use the bullet points starting with "Race Ready!" and ending with "working headlights, tail lights & highbeam feature.".] Some sites give away a free car when they get a new and spiffy look. Not Jalopnik — seriously, do you think we're made of money or something? However, what we lack in money, we make up for
By Ray Wert Read More
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One man's search for his Rosebud muscle car. [WSJ]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Saint Paul woman takes off on the hood of a car, baby in hand. We're assuming charges of child endangerment will be quickly forthcoming. [kare11.com]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Eisenstein drives FoMoCo's Interceptor concept car. [Business Week]
By Ray Wert Read More
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The Graf Scooter
Electric scooter manufacturer Vertrix is working up a fuel-cell powered machine that'll run 155 miles on a tank of Zeppelin juice. The 500-watt cell gives the two-wheeler a top speed of 62 mph and features regenerative braking to dump juice back into the NiMH battery pack. It'll also run on reformed methanol, or can be plugged into either a 110 or 220v wall socket. We'll take ours in silver with ribs. Swastika-delete option, please. [Vectrix PDF via Hydrogen Cars and Vehicles Blog]
By Davey G. Johnson Read More
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Dura Automotive files for re-org. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Is the Aussie Labor party being protectionist towards their auto industry? [Sydney Morning Herald]
By Ray Wert Read More
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India's become an absolute hub of car exporting goodness. [Forbes]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Euro car sales are up a whopping 0.7%! [IHT]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Low cost Chinese cars are making a "restrained entry" into the European market. What the heck does "restrained entry" mean? [NYT]
By Ray Wert Read More
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The Toyota Prius — Is It The Ronnie James Déesse?
When I was twenty, I studied in Germany. Bonn, to be exact. I had a friend there named Kai who loved techno and had just received his first car, some sort of Citroën hatchback. It was red, and he hoped someday to buy an Audi with an S in front of its numeral. But at that point, he had what we all ended up calling Kai's Rote Heiße Citroën des Liebes. I don't remember the model, but a couple of days before I met Kai, I'd seen a 2CV parked on the street. It was covered in bad EKG tape stripes, Lane
By Davey G. Johnson Read More
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There's now a study suggesting Cadillac's appeal may be slipping. [Winding Road]
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Mazda MX-R01 Not Forgotten
Funny what you find in warehouses. Yesterday we spied this unrestored Mazda racer sitting in wait to show off display style at the Moto GP next week at Mazda Laguna Seca Raceway. The car is currently owned by Mazda, and formerly ran LeMans - at one point existing as a Jaguar XJR-14. The folks on hand said the last time it tore up a racetrack was in 1993. The plaque next to the driver's headrest signifies the blessing of the car at a Japanese shrine. [MX-R01 via Wikipedia]
By Mike Bumbeck Read More
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Crash tests are really a "pain in the neck" for automakers. Ha. Ha. Ha. CNN slays us. [CNNMoney]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Ferrari Group Hug: A Non-Dino Dino Takes Shape
[UPDATE: The Dino tribute in question isn't the work of Mr. van den Brink. It's by Ernesto Freitas, he of Luso Motors based in Guimarães, northern Portugal. Dino love knows no international borders. The project is a spin-off of a thread Mr. van den Brink started on Ferrarichat. His real baby is the GTO.] Maybe you've already answered our question of the day. But what's the deal with that Dino in the picture, you ask? Dutch designer Michiel van den Brink, artiste behind the Spyker D12, is on a mi
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Kyle Busch no longer feeling team spirit at Hendrick Motorsports. [courant.com]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Autoblog likes to live live on the Dave-engineered Freestyle Taurus X-uh! Our verdict: My, what pretty teeth you have...and what an ugly rear-end. [Autoblog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Finding Repair And Service Manuals
In our explorations into parts and parts replacement, we often mention the service manual. While there are certainly a large part of the monkeywrenching public who would throw directions to the wind, instructions can be a good thing when it comes to things like working brakes and wheels not falling off the car. Finding the service manual can be half the battle. Read on for a few tips for locating the books for everything from a 1971 Ford Pinto Rallye to a late-model Honda That's.
By Mike Bumbeck Read More
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Who wouldn't want a hydrogen-powered bus? [AutoWeek]
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Danny Howes equates the UAW / US automaker negotiations as "one of the great industrial dramas of our time," then dramatically whines about Wall Street not caring much for drama. Doesn't he know Wall Street doesn't care about drama — that's Broadway. [Detroit News]
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Autoblog's Chris Shunk enjoys squeezing and playing with his tennis balls. Sorry folks, sometimes the easy joke's the most funny. [Autoblog]
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'57 Olds Dominates The Streets Of London
When we see some crazy bastard trying to use some oddball orphan British car- say, a Triumph Stag or Humber Sceptre- as a daily driver in the heart of a major American city, we generally feel a mix of admiration and pity. But how do you judge the owner of a '57 Olds who parks his car on the street in the Finsbury Park neighborhood of goddamn London? Hell, this thing probably can't even fit in a third of the streets in The City Where You're Always Lost. Not only that, but the car has vintage Okla
By Murilee Martin Read More
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Chinese automaker Geely looking to buy up four new car factories, plans to go upmarket. Hopefully they're also looking to build a crash test center. Just sayin'... [Reuters]
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Subaru WRX: The "Legend" Reborn?
Hey, how did those quote marks get in there! Anyway...hey Subie fans, you know what they say: "Once you go black, you never go back to boy racer blue."
By Ray Wert Read More
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According to The Economic Times, Renault and Indian automaker Bajaj may join forces and build a $3,000 small car. [Forbes]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Barack Obama trades in his Hemi for a hybrid. [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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1976 Buick Skyhawk
We've seen some beautiful beater Down On The Street cars in recent weeks, cars that proudly show off their battle scars and thumb their collective noses at their trailer-queen hyperrestored counterparts. Then we have the other kind of vintage beater, the cars that depreciated to 2% of their purchase price within several years of rolling off the showroom floor and were so unloved that nearly all of them went to The Crusher before they even made it to age 15. This Skyhawk is such a car.
By Murilee Martin Read More
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Porsche 911 GT2: Brochure Leak!
A copy of the factory brochure introducing the new Porsche 911 (997) GT2 — yes, thats the light sweet crude version of the most famous porker — has fallen precipitously into our greedy hands. And the numbers within prove what's been on the lips of Porsche lovers for at least a year — that the GT2 will be the first Porsche 911 to hit more than 200 miles per hour right off the shelf (204, if we're being precise). The new, rear-drive GT2 is powered by a de rigeur turbocharged 3.6-liter boxer six
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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BMW sells 50 pct stake in Tritec Motors JV to DaimlerChrysler [CNNMoney]
By Ray Wert Read More
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McLaren officially charged with spying on Ferrari. Bad McLaren, bad! [nelsonmail.co.nz]
By Ray Wert Read More
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This is the ultimate robogasm — every single G1 Transformer. All in Mint In Box condition. Pricetag? $1 million. [eBay]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Startech Jeep Compass
Possibly the only thing that could send the Jeep Compass upward a few points on the beeotchin'-o-meter would be this: select the Jeep-delete option (get on that, Chrysler), add a few Brabus badges and bolt on some sort of turbinomic force feeder. If you're really up for a challenge, add a set of black, powder-coated rims, replace the rearward windows with sheetmetal and cut in a porthole. The combination of autobahn cool and 1970s kitsch would make us go all kundalini shakti with delight. Of cou
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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GM Plans Diesels In Cadillac And Saturn Cars By 2010!
According to Automotive News, the General's product maven "Maximum" Bob Lutz just dropped the following diesel-fueled bomb:
By Ray Wert Read More
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Michigan's got the nation's highest gas prices. #$%@^! [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Give your pet a joyride. No...not that way. [WSJ]
By Ray Wert Read More
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New Nobility: Rossion Q1 Is The New Noble
If you'll remember, UK auto manufacturer Noble was totally on the ropes a few months back due to capital needs on development of the M15. And as UK automaking companies are want to do, they looked to sell the right to build their vehicles overseas. In Noble's case, they tossed overboard the rights to the M12 and M400. Here in the good ol' US of A the Noble distributor based out of Cincinnati snapped up the rights and here's the result — a Noble-like sports car called the Rossion Q1. It's got a
By Ray Wert Read More
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Anyone hear Simon Cowell caused a car accident in Cardiff? Seriously. Around Detroit, the only stars who cause accidents are CNBC's automotive reporter, Phil LeBeau. [icWales]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Ford To Save Environment By Using Magical Fruit In Seats Of 2008 Mustang
You've really got to love Ford for giving the environmental messaging the old college try — they've put out yet another press release touting the magical petroleum-reducing soybean-based foam in their seats. This time, it's not just that they've invented a new way to make seat foam out of the fruit that makes you toot. Nope, this release is all about promoting the first vehicle they'll be offering the new seat foam in — the 2008 Ford Mustang. While we could go with more easy jokes about puttin
By Ray Wert Read More
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Watch the thrill of a Cars.com blogger and spouse making a choice between the Hyundai Santa Fe and the Subaru Outback in not-at-all real-time! See the exciting process not-at-all-in action! We're glued to our seats. [Kicking Tires]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Jalopnik Presents The Se7en Se7en Se7en Awards
To recap: About 55 Se7ens from USA7s descended on the idyllic hamlet of Deal's Gap to beat the bejesus out of the Dragon. Naturally, Jalopnik was there. You can read all about the exploits in yesterday's Se7en, Se7en, Oh My Se7en! . Today we're going to focus on some of the individual cars that piqued our fancy and hand out some "awards." The word "awards" in quotes because this article is 5 egos past subjective. The deal is that the entire 7-7-7 event was a function of a car club (USA7s). As su
By Jonny Lieberman Read More
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Forbes drops another top ten list. This time, they go for the bottom of the high-net-worth demographic — "Most Affordable Luxury Cars." [Forbes via Autoblog]
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Nevermind An Apartment Or Condo In New York, For $250K We'll Just Buy A Parking Space
Sure, you could play the parking game and try to find yourself an alt-side parking spot on the Upper East Side, or you could drop the couple of grand necessary for a parking spot in a rat-infested plebeian public underground garage. But if you really want your own little spot of land to park your ride, you'll have to pony up some serious bank in the big red n' delicious.
By Ray Wert Read More
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Formula One won't be returning to Indy next year. Hope you saved your ticket stubs from this year — it'll be a collectors item. [TheIndyChannel.com]
By Ray Wert Read More
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The 2008 Dodge Viper Is A Rainbow Warrior!
Oh man, have we gone and done it — we showed you the SRT10 in snakeskin green the other day. Now, thanks to our man Nick, we've come upon the mother lode. That's right, here's the whole range o' colors for all the world to see. Just clicky the "more" link below and check out the rainbow of fruity flavors for yourself.
By Ray Wert Read More
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V-Dub sales are representin' Deutschland in the US — up 15.8% in June. [Reuters UK]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Chrysler Group to cut prices on the newly redesigned 2008 minivans by as much as $3,585 to fend off an assault from foreign automakers with their own egg-mobiles. [Bloomberg]
By Ray Wert Read More
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1971 Toyota FJ40 Land Cruiser
First off, I'm going to admit that I'm just simply unable to pin an exact year on this thing- I'm pretty sure it's somewhere in the '69-73 period (license plate indicates early-to-mid-70s), but a guess in the middle of the range is the best I can do (and, yeah, I could have looked at the VIN tag while I was photographing it). Therefore, you FJ40 freaks out there are encouraged to point out the identifying features that indicate the exact year of this truck.
By Murilee Martin Read More
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In addition to the CAFE-talk yesterday, John Snow of Cerberus claims he is totally "committed to Chrysler." But umm, didn't both Schrempp and Zetsche say the same thing? [NYT]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Fact Versus Fiction On The New Hyper-Amazing Corvette SS Or Whatever
The boys at Popular Mechanics seem to be fed up with all the rumor-mongering going on out there in the internet chat rooms, the enthusiast forums and the (gasp!) blogosphere about the next-gen super-Corvette. This is the same Corvette Super-Super (or whatever) the General's designed to compete with and blow away the 600 HP Dodge Viper SRT10. To combat and beat down anyone talking any of that false jive, they've put always-on-the-prowl spy photographer Jim Dunne on the case to come up with the
By Ray Wert Read More
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Why do we get the feeling the workers at Belvedere being paid the least are the ones working on the Jeep Patriot? Just sayin'... [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Ferrari CEO Jean Todt talks racing and says they'll not for even a moment be pondering a four-door sedan. Frankly, Jean Todt is upset the WSJ even asked the question. [WSJ]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Gerald L. Shaheen, president of Caterpillar, Inc., becomes the newest board member for Ford. Oh, and did we mention his appointment brings the total number of FoMoCo board members up to the magical and not-so-lucky 13? [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Tower Automotive just got the $1 Billion OK for sale to Cerberus. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Is the next big incentive from automakers free car insurance? Apparently they already be doing it down under, mate. [MSNBC]
By Ray Wert Read More
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2008 Dodge Dakota pricing announced, ranging from $20,080 up to $31,745. Let's be honest here — if you're paying $31K for a pickup from Dodge, shouldn't you just bite the bullet and spend the extra $19.99 or whatever and upgrade to the Ram? [Road & Track]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Chrysler UAW Veep General Holliefield is quoted as stating: "All contract talks are difficult." Detroit News reports it as news. Slow news day today, boys? [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Nissan recalling 140,000 2007 Altimas. Not to worry, they just need to replace the air filters. You know, so they don't catch fire from a cigarette and burn your Altima to the ground. [Edmunds Inside Line]
By Ray Wert Read More
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So-Cal LS7 Chevelle
Former GM CFO John Devine needed a vehicle to spend his retirement bux on. And Pete Chapouris of So-Cal Speed Shop is a pretty reliable guy to spend a lot of money with. We've been fans of most everything that has rolled out of Chapouris' various shops over the years, we can't take much exception with this '66 Chevelle. It's pretty standard restomod fare; the original 283 yanked in favor of latest and greatest production GM V8, Global West suspension, Baer brakes, and some big Budnik salt-flat s
By Davey G. Johnson Read More
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If you didn't make it to the Detroit Economic Club for the luncheon, John Snow of Cerberus supports CAFE standards. Also, they had chicken. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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The new Honda CRX will be a hybrid, but will not be out until 2011. [Winding Road]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Autoblog drives the Harley-Davidson F-150. Someone really needs to mention something to Ford the truck bed's too small to hold a Harley-Davidson. [Autoblog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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The European Union will have to pry the steering wheels of our sports cars from our cold, dead hands. Don't they know once fast cars are outlawed only outlaws will have fast cars? [Bloomberg]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Jerry Garrett of the New York Times parrots the "Hyundai is a luxury brand" line and then swallows it, the hook and the sinker in a little horsepower envious piece. [NYT Wheels Blog]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Audi Sport Quattro S1 Pikes Peak
A few weeks back you all voted Audi's 600 hp, 1,000 kilo hoonatic racing monster, the Sport quattro S1, into our rapidly expanding Fantasy Garage as the king of all Group B rally cars. While we weren't 100% behind the results (Peugeot cough, 205 T16 cough), we're not actually against it in any way, either. And as serendipity would have it, today marks the 20-year anniversary of Walter Röhrl's record setting romp up to the top of Pike's Peak. One of the aspects that is so amazing about his run (b
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Note to self: Do not drive through ammonia. [Des Moines Register]
By Ray Wert Read More
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2008 Corvette Dyno'd, Power Proven
Anyone watching for evidence of the 2008 Corvette LS3's ascension over its predecessor can thank the crew at Lou Gigliotti's LG Motorsports. They dropped a spanking-new '08 on the dyno and took what could be the first rating of the latest 'Vette to hit the wires. We'd heard tell of 435 horsepower at the crankshaft, and Lou's boys calculated the translation to the rear wheels as 388 — courtesy of its L92 heads and intake. According to Chris at Corvette Masters of Maitland Florida, that number is
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Sports Car, Bulgarian Style: The Sofia B
It's impossible not to admire the huevos of that wacky Bulgarian engineer, Velizar Andreev. In the early 80s, he decided that Bulgaria needed to manufacture its own sports cars. Bulgaria being behind the Iron Curtain and firmly in the grip of Moscow's "no fun cars for the masses" ideology at the time, this belief did not go over well with Andreev's tractor-centric superiors. But Andreev persisted, building several prototypes with fiberglass bodies and Soviet VAZ (Fiat) drivetrains and, eventuall
By Murilee Martin Read More
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John "Informer" Snow of Cerberus to discuss impact of Chrysler sale today at Detroit Economic Club. Hurry and snatch those tickets up before they're gone — we hear they're serving chicken! [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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There's a site that's "a hipper, more flippant approach to the auto industry" than Sweet Peet's AutoExtremist? Who knew? [NPR]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Nein! Zehr eez no problehm mit zee sale of zee Chrysler Group! [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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According to Joel Hall, even in the land of giant freaking robots, the black guy still gets it first. [Clayton News-Daily]
By Ray Wert Read More
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1968 Ford Ranchero
Old cars that are nice and shiny are great, reminding us of bygone days and so on. However, when you take the cars out of the picture, the bygone days kinda sucked in many ways. Take 1968, f'rinstance. You never hear old guys at car shows reminiscing fondly about the Tet Offensive or the '68 Democratic National Convention as "Dock Of The Bay" plays for the 55 millionth time, do you? That's why it's good to see an old car that reminds us that the old days would rip those pink-tinted nostalgia gla
By Murilee Martin Read More
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Peter Horbury presents Ford "innovation." We would have gone too except we had a thing. Namely, picking our navel lint. [Freep]
By Ray Wert Read More
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The bankruptcy bill for Delphi will top $200 million and may go as high as $300 million. [Detroit News]
By Ray Wert Read More
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It's Like A Cadillac Escalade ESV, Only Supercharged!
We knew it was coming and we're surprised it took this long to happen. The folks at Big 3 Performance have released a supercharger system for the 2007 Cadillac Escalade ESV to mark "yet another leap forward in the never ending quest for more power." For serious — that line's pulled directly from the press release. And why shouldn't they be tooting their own horn? For a mere three drachmas $6,895 you can toss them your plain-Jane standard 6.2-liter 2007 Cadillac Escalade ESV, and in short ord
By Ray Wert Read More
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Dr. Bruce Kennedy, husband of Nascar executive Lesa France Kennedy among five dead in Florida plane crash. [SI.com]
By Ray Wert Read More
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Ford Announces Plans For Plug-In Hybrids
UPDATE:FoMoCo PR asked us to replace the 2007 Escape photo we had up top with one that more accurately reflected the new and hard look that represents a more "masculine" and "manly" design in the new 2008 Escape mini-ute. So we went with a shot of it with the adorable and cuddly widdle puppet. Isn't it cutesy-wutesy? Yeah, it was either that or a picture of Ruben Stoddard next to the butt-end of one, Ford CEO Allan Mulally announced yesterday plans to have Plug-In Hybrid Vehicles on sale in th
By Wes Siler Read More
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What's Your Mostest/Leastest Favorite Bumper Sticker?
We've never really understood the impulse to plaster slogans on the back of one's vehicle. True, in high school we did order a bunch of stickers with pictures of a screw on them out of National Lampoon and for a week most of our neighbors' cars suddenly announced, "I [Screw] My Kids," and "I [Screw] My Horse." Thinking back, it turns out that we've only ever had one bumper sticker affixed to an actual bumper, and it was for our old band. Which hardly counts. By and large however, bumper sticker
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Jalopnik Fantasy Garage: Which Nissan Skyline?
As car legends go, few have had their flames as passionately fanned as the Nissan Skyline. Despite extensive research proving only seven Americans have seen one on the street, and four have actually driven the mythical machine, it's astounding how often its tale is told. We're reminded of a particular Jonathan Gold restaurant review, in which he tells of intercepting scratchy CB conversations between truckers about a taqueria hidden somewhere in East Los Angeles. It's allegedly home to the world
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1937 Cadillac V8
During my searches of Alameda streets for vintage iron, I've found a fair number of 50s cars but nothing much older than that. Until now, that is.
By Murilee Martin Read More
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Mitsubishi's New Evo Hardware
How will Mitsubishi make its new Evo X a tool for super amusement? We know it'll be the 2.0-liter turbocharged MIVEC4 engine with aluminum cylinder block and the potential for 300+ horses out of the box. But what of the ground-drive system? (Yep, there's a press release for that.) Mitsu released new details about its Twin Clutch SST dual-clutch tranny and Super All Wheel Control (S-AWC) system — sporting more sensors than a Seawolf-class sub. S-AWC includes active yaw control (ask a pilot) and a
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The 1993 Lincoln Mark VIII Rolling Door Concept Car Hides Your Heavy Doors
We've no idea whether it's fact or fiction, but according to the nice people putting this one-of-a-kind up for sale on eBay, here's the "lore" on this here '93 Lincoln one-off:
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You Are There: The 2007 ALMS Northeast Grand Prix
There's a bit of folk wisdom that goes, "It 's not who you are, it's who you're with." Once, in Miami visiting my sister, we went to one of those impossibly hip clubs in South Beach, where her friend knew the staff. We were whisked past the plebes in line to a section of the club cordoned off just for us, while champagne, magnums of vodka, mixers and fresh strawberries were set on our table. Without a connection, they'd have tossed my khakis-and-plaid-shirt-wearing ass into Biscayne Bay. In raci
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Smart Fortwo With Stop-Start Coming; EV, Hybrids Concepts Get Earthy
What's smaller than a Maytag and runs on a gas-electric hybrid powertrain? If you answered Tom Cruise, give yourself an air punch. If you answered the Smart Fortwo, jump up on the couch and declare your love for someone half your age in an awkward display of borderline sociopathy. But we kid the Smart Fortwo. And in honor of Earth(TM), Smart showed off new alt-dot-energy versions of its minicar. They're just concepts, but expect a production model or two down the road. The zero-emission Smart Fo
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Domestic Automaker Share Of Market To Drop Below 50% This Month?
If you're one of those people who keeps track of such things — that would be all of y'all who play the drinking game — July could be a watershed month in the history of meaningless auto industry statistics. With the June sales numbers in it looks as though the domestic automakers barely managed to hold on to a greater-than-half share of the market for new vehicles here in the United States — by our count only 50.2%. And Automotive News tells us this morning if the Big-Three-in-name-alone see
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Transformers Takes In $152.5 Million As Giant Freaking Robots Become Giant Freaking Piles Of Cash
Looks like even the directon of Michael Bay couldn't dent the huge opening week take of Transformers. The movie all about cars that turn into robots swallowed up $67.6 million in ticket sales over the weekend and $152.5 million since the movie opened a week ago from the 22 million-plus people experiencing a robogasm in the theater. That huge haul gives the Bay-directed film the title of "biggest first week revenues ever for a non-sequel." Does Bay get like a trophy or a plaque for that or some
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Dodge "Grabs Life" By Going Bold And Killing Horns In New Ad Campaign
The horn-y brand has got a new owner and now they've got a newly shortened tagline. Dodge is going from "Grab life by the horns" to just simply "Grab life" and now they've got a new ad campaign to sell it. They've done it on the cheap though, snagging images from old commercials, tossed together with images of sporting Americana — Red Wings and Nascar. All of that's re-mixed with an amerigasm of what we'd describe as "freedom rock." I guess our only question after watching the new ad is — when d
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1970 Ford LTD
Today's Down On The Street car could be looked at two different ways. You could see it as a beat-up heap, suitable for nothing but lowering property values and no doubt owned by the evil silhouetted guy on the Neighborhood Watch signs, or you could look at it the way you'd look at a once-glorious mansion now fallen on hard times. I'm pretty sure you know where we stand on that question.
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Opel Astra GTC In Colorado!
We'd already seen it getting hot and bothered in Death Valley, but it appears the General wasn't yet done putting the new Saturn Astra's Euro cousin through its paces. Jalopnik reader Bill was out with the family when he snagged us these shots of what appears to be an Opel Astra GTC (Gran Turismo Coupe) complete with Arizona manny plates in the Rocky Mountain high-altitude (10,100' above sea level) of Leadville, Colorado. We're assuming this here GTC was out doing a bit of last minute testing
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Race Day Preview: The 2007 American Le Mans Northeast Grand Prix
Photo: Darrell Ingham/Getty Images The American Le Mans Series returns to Lime Rock Park in Lakeville, Connecticut tomorrow for the Northeast Grand Prix — the first race since Le Mans for some teams, and the first after a seven-week break in the action for others. Qualifying times are already at near track-record levels, and the fastest times are coming from the smaller, less powerful P2 cars. Romain Dumas turned a 44.659 in his #7 Penske Porsche RS Spyder, a full five P2 cars and two seconds ah
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2009 BMW X6
According to the report from the wily spy shooters of KGP, they happened upon a group of BMW engineers out testing the new BMW X6 who'd run into a bit of trouble in the 128-degree heat of a "desolate California road." We'll let KGP take over from here:
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2008 Chevrolet Malibu Hybird: A Coconut And Rum-Flavored Fastball Released Just In Time For All-Star Game!
Mixing baseball with Chevrolet seems like a good mix, eh? Mixing it with the mild hybrid car named the same as a coconut-flavored rum seems even better. That's right — the General's chosen the MLB All-Star game as the perfect location to release deets and show off the mildly-hybridized Malibu for the very first time. Well, at least since we saw it yesterday. All the rest of the details are in the press release below the jump.
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Abt Audi AS5
Audi tuning shop Abt sent word of a new tweaker package for Audi's new A5. It's the AS5, and it includes such add-ons as a front skirt with a grid element that suggests the single-frame grill, side intake gills, rear spoiler and the rear skirt insert. The 3.0 TDI engine, Abt says, gets a significant "power treatment" that ups power from 240 hp to 272 hp — with an extra Abt turbocharger, power reaches 300. Underneath is an adjustable sports suspension, Abt brake system with a disc diameter of 380
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Replace Brake Pads
While there is a difference between brake pads and shoes, the desired result is always the same when the foot goes down on the brake pedal. Brake pads clamp down onto a rotating disc. Brake shoes push out Flintstones-style onto a rotating drum. Inertia gets turned into heat via the miracle of friction. If all goes well things slow down. Each time the brake pads clamp themselves onto the rotor to put on the whoa, a small amount of the pad itself turns to dust. A smaller amount of the brake rotor
By Mike Bumbeck Read More
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BMW Reminder: M3 Ahead Of Frankfurt Show
Lest you forgot what BMW was bringing to the Frankfurt show this fall, considering the long lead into the new BMW M3's official unveiling, BMW released German-market info on said E90 coupe. Please to enjoy the latest press release (German only), including such scintillating terms as "Einzeldrosselklappen" and "Drehzahlspannbreite" after the jump.
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Civic Hybrid Owner Files Lawsuit Against Honda For False Mileage Claims
The dirty little secret on the old-school EPA tests for fuel economy numbers has always been they're not good at showing real world driving performance. There's simply no way to achieve the heights of the numbers they come up with when you're faced with fuel-use affecting factors such as aggressive driving, grade levels and umm — wind. Although the EPA's changing those tests to make them a bit more in line with reality, it didn't come soon enough for John True out in California. Last year the m
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1962 Plymouth Valiant V-200
I keep my eyes open for DOTS cars when I'm out and about on the streets of Alameda, and often I get a flash of something old-looking out of the corner of my eye as I pass a side street. Was that worth going back for? I ask myself; sometimes retro-styled late-models can fool me. In the case of this Valiant, however, I was several blocks away when it caught- and held- my eye with its unmistakable vintage A-body-ness...
By Murilee Martin Read More
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GM To Partner With Segway For Diesel-Powered E-Flex Concept In Frankfurt?
We already knew another E-Flex was coming, but now we're hearing from the folks at the UK-based online mag all about cars the General will be bringing a diesel-engined E-Flex concept car to the Frankfurt Motor Show in September. We've already been told by GM the E-Flex plug-in hybrid platform can be paired with a variety of different systems for generating power for travels greater than 40 miles — and have already seen a gas and hydrogen version. But this is the first time we've heard confirmat
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Bear Stearns Drops GM Credit Rating After "Surprisingly Weak" June Sales
The General took a double punch to the gut his week even Bumblebee couldn't protect them from. First there were sales numbers down 24% for June on a month-to-month basis. That was a drop described by Deutsche Bank as so weak it was "surprising." Given sentiment toward US automakers these days, wethinks it takes a heck of a lot to be seen as "surprising." But then Bear Stearns dropped the second slug to the chest — a drop in credit rating from "overperform" to "peer perform." Maybe the magic of
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Accessorize Me: Fiat 500's Mondo Options List
If you thought Mini buyers had a lot of accessories to pore through, better sharpen your number-two pencil. The Fiat 500's order sheet is like sweating out the SATs, without the raging hangover. Need a refill for the "Summer citrus fruit+Essence of the night+Breath of freedom" diffuser? Better check it off. Frau leather upholstery? Check. Ivory jacket-hanger for front head-restraint? Check. No, a black one. Check. "Italian flag" badge for wing? Check. Barcode racing stripe? What the hell. Click
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Priority Porsche: Ruf 3400 K "25 Jahre Jubiläms-Edition
This month, we've been celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Road and Track comparo piece that introduced the Ruf "Yellow Bird" 911 to our motoring databank. (Celebrating to ourselves, that is.) Now, the Porsche tweakers who stunned the world with a 211-mph Porker are rolling out a "25th Anniversary" edition. It's the 3400 K, and comes in coupe and cabrio versions. They're mild by Alois Ruf's standards — 400 hp and 324 lb-ft of torque at peak — but they're billed as entry models. That's becaus
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Blue & Me And Fiat 500
Fiat Auto, Microsoft and components developer Magneti Marelli whipped up the "Blue & Me" system gracing the Fiat 500's furnishings (along with those of other Fiat models). The tech platform uses Microsoft's Windows Mobile operating system to manage a network that integrates voice activation, steering wheel control buttons and the dashboard display and any Bluetooth-enabled mobile phone. The setup is similar to Ford's Sync system; It reads incoming SMS messages aloud to the driver and incorporate
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1968 Volvo P1800
As many old cars as there are on the streets of Alameda, the imports can be hard to find. It was nice to spot this solid P1800 right in my neighborhood.
By Murilee Martin Read More
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It Was All Part Of The Fun
Chris Economaki slugged it out as an announcer for racetracks across the country before he took the helm of Speed Sport News, or wore the yellow jacket for Wide World of Sports. In the '50s Economaki had followed the promotional efforts of Sam Nunis to Sioux Falls, where he saw a bunch of guys unloading a sophisticated timing device from a truck parked on the infield before the race.
By Mike Bumbeck Read More
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Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG
Message to the 2008 BMW M3, don't go thinking you're a shoo-in for the world's next lower-case supercar. Mercedes just kicked out its entry AMG, the C63, and it's likely a screamer-in-waiting. Powered by AMG's most recent feat — a 6.2-liter naturally aspirated V8 with enough grunt to unseat Zeus's dental work — the C63, Daimler says, will do the zero-62 pokey in 4.5 seconds. That via the 457-hp V8 producing 442 lb-ft of torque. It's planked to a seven-speed automatic that automatically blips th
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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1961 Rambler American
I'm going to go with a fine patriotic machine this Fourth of July, a car literally named American. This little Kenosha coupe lives in Alameda's West End.
By Murilee Martin Read More
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War Without End
Old memes never die, they just want you (like L7) to pretend that they're dead. After the jump, Johnson and Lieberman get punny with the tenacity of portly men in blue and gray wool who just won't let that whole Civil War thing drop. Praise the Lord and pass the ketchup packets.
By Davey G. Johnson Read More
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Duramax-Powered Buick Grand National
We're still confused. Anyhow, reader Mike L. hipped us to a website called 18 to 1 that specializes in oil-burning hot rods. And they just happen to have a Buick Grand National on the homepage that someone stuffed a Duramax into. The obvious question is what in the fuck why? At first I thought I found the answer perusing their forum, where the site's administrator posted up his latest Irwindale Speedway times: 8.258 / 84.81mph. Wow, I thought, that's mad. Like, zero to 80 mph in a second and the
By Jonny Lieberman Read More
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Slate's Swansburg Pits 1986 Transformers Movie Versus 2007 Transformers Movie, Forgets About Generation One
I cannot believe I'm about to engage in a toolerific blogosphere tête-à-tête with John Swansburg on Transformers mythos — but whatever, I must defend an egregious display of fan-boy cultural blasphemy. Swansburg tries to provide a compare and contrast on the 1986 Transformers movie and the 2007 Transformers movie debuting today. The problem is Swany has totally missed the point here and is making the cinematic error of basically correlating apples to Decepticons. The new movie was never meant
By Ray Wert Read More
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Buick GNX
One of the most tired cliches in all of autojournodom is "Darth Vader's Ride." You've read it one million times, I've used the phrase several hundred dozen times and we think of it every time a pitch-black Corvette Z06 passes by. It's old, it's worn and until further notice, the Maybach Excelero owns that appellation forever. Nonetheless, we're old enough to remember the first time an all-black coupe was mentioned in the same sentence as the Dark Lord of the Sith. Twenty years ago, it was good o
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1978 Jaguar XJ-6
Normally, a 70s Jaguar XJ-6 doesn't really grab my attention, but you don't often see a total hideous beater Jag parked on the street. The reason for this is pretty obvious- most Malaise Era Jags didn't last long enough to become beaters.
By Murilee Martin Read More
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Maserati Novitec Quattroporte
Some say the Italian-car tweakers at Novitec are masters of overkill. Eyeballing a typical Novitec job, they'll remark, "If Ferrari wanted the F430 to have twin superchargers they'd have have had God install them when he came to visit the Pope." But Novitec is undaunted by such purism. Nonetheless, their latest is a tasteful semi-mod of the Maserati Quattroporte. No breathing apparatus has been bolted on, just an ECU hack that raises the rev-limiter ceiling to 7,800 rpm, which — through the mira
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Ouch: Many Minivans, SUVs, CUVs And Pickups Have Lousy Headrests
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety performed a battery of tests on new SUVs and determined that in 20-mph crashes the following vehicles performed poorly in the area of neck restraint:
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"Maximum" Bob Lutz Answers Any Question You Have, As Long As The Questions Are About Concept Cars
Looks like everyone's favorite vice-chairman born from jets sat down with the blogging side of the General last week to answer some reader questions from the GM blog that's all about living life in the FastLane. And by reader "questions" we mean one question in particular:
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You Are There: Period Cars Spotted At "Indiana Jones" Sequel Filming
They're filming the fourth installment of the Indiana Jones series at Yale University in New Haven, Conn. this week, and I stopped by to score some photos of the prop cars used in the production. Producers have run several streets on or near the Yale campus through a time machine, giving the already venerable locations a mid-'50s patina. Period delivery trucks line a street on which a corner Starbucks is now a corner bar, mannequins sport contemporary fashions, and parking meters and streetlight
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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Spy Photos: 2008 Honda Accord V6
If you loved the camo-free shots of the 2008 Honda Accord last week, we've got some lovely new photos for you of the V6 version of the next generation of the top-selling car in America for fifteen of the last twenty years. These shots come from a couple of vacationers in Cape Cod drafted into the spy photo-snapping army of Brenda Priddy. We've still no idea what the output of the V6 will be, but we're expecting it to be a 3.5-liter V6 with about 270-horsepower.
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Is It Ever Justified To Mess With Someone's Car?
Of course, the short answer is an unequivocal no. But in life, circumstances are seldom as cut and dried as the law-enforcement community would lead us to believe. Thus comes today's question from commenter Altralosix:
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You Already Bought The Bike: The Legend Of Hoot's Panhead
Some of you folks may have tried to listen to The Legend of Hoot's Panhead last week, but Odeo presented us with total, maddening failure some technical difficulties on the sound playback. Not to worry! Good ol' YouTube to the rescue...
By Murilee Martin Read More
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1971 Mercury Monterey
Venturing off the island part of Alameda and onto the bit of the city on the mainland next to the Oakland Airport (strangely, Alamedans refer to the island as "the mainland" and the non-island part as "Bay Farm Island"), I spotted this very gold '71 Monterey.
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TechArt's Latest: Porsche 911 GTstreet
Poreche tuning haus TechArt is rolling out its latest GTstreet — a concoction first mixed in 2001 with the 996-series 911 Turbo. The new 997 version has been tweaked to 630 horsepower (from 480) via twin VTG turbochargers and intercoolers, new performance air box and manifolds and a stainless-steel sport exhaust system with high-performance catalysts, all managed by a remapped ECU. A wind-tunnel-tested aero kit, including retractable carbon-fiber splitter, adds stability at the double century ma
By Mike Spinelli Read More
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The 2008 BMW 1-Series Coming To America, Now With Official Press Photos!
The 2008 BMW 1-Series coupe has been officially, though somewhat anticlimactically, released. Considering most of the specs and details of the new four-seater rear-drive coupe have made their way online this past week, we're surprised the BMW PR team has anything else to talk about. But they've found a few things, but it's pretty much everything we've been talking about the past week, including the lack of a US diesel. So yes, it's now official — the BMW 128i and BMW 135i are coming to Ameri
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