As soon as the Car and Track road test crew were told about the 1969 Dodge Dart Swinger, "they hopped on quick". Watching this vintage road test, it isn't hard to see why. Even if the reasonably priced Dart Swinger didn't have "a lot of frills and gadgets" according to Host Bud Lindemann the little "supercar" did have "a ton and a half of go".
Read MoreThis Car and Track test is a bit of a departure from the vintage "super car wring-outs" we are used to from the show. Instead of a muscle car with a little bit of luxury, the 1972 Buick Riviera GS is a luxury car with a little bit of muscle.
Read MoreAll auto writers, even those of us here at Jalopnik, have sometimes been guilty of turning out crap car reviews. And when a review fails, it's likely because it falls into one of these seven, fail-encrusted categories.
Read MorePilots who fly above Mach 1 sometimes speak of a supersonic moment that causes the instruments, ever-so-briefly, to blur. Charging down a track in the 1,200-hp Henessey Venom GT there's a moment when my eyes pull the same trick. This isn't a car, man, this is the best way to die.
Read MoreThe CIM-10 Bomarc surface-to-air missile was a lunatic collaboration between the Michigan Aerospace Research Center and Boeing. A rocket/ramjet hybrid of the rip-roaring postwar military-industrial complex, the Bomarc was designed to hurtle itself into an advancing formation of Tupolevs at 2 1/2 times the speed of sound and detonate a 10-kiloton atomic fireball. With the rise of the ICBM, the Air Force took to using them as target drones and had retired the arsenal by 1972. The very next year, t
Read MoreHow does a car salesman walk onto "The Late Show With David Letterman" and sell the irascible host a new Ford Fusion in a few seconds? We asked Manhattan Ford salesman Ahmed Younes, who did just that last month.
Read MoreIn a couple of weeks, this rare 1966 Shelby GT350 will cross an auction block after spending 26 years ensconsed by junk in a shed behind a Kansas apartment complex. Here's how the state of Texas liberated it.
Read MoreThe Ford Pinto was born a low-rent, stumpy thing in Dearborn 40 years ago and grew to become one of the most infamous cars in history. The thing is that it didn't actually suck. Really.
Read MoreIf you foolishly thought Boating was the great American sport for 1968 this Pontiac Firebird commercial from the same year was quick to correct. The great American sport for '68 was actually "wide-tracking".
Read MoreBefore Paris Hilton, hell, before Gloria Steinem, there was Liz Taylor as Gloria Wandrous in Butterfield 8, a model-slash-call-girl whose personal shame was the shot heard round the world for the women's movement. She also drove a sweet Sunbeam Alpine.
Read MoreYou may remember a certain Swede named Bo Stefan Eriksson. He’s the Swedish criminal-masquerading-as-tech-executive at the smoke and mirrors company Tiger Telematics, makers of the Gizmondo game console, and who, on a fateful day in February 2006, propelled a Ferrari Enzo at 200 mph into a pole on the Pacific Coast Highway, an event which resulted in a criminal investigation that unraveled his illicit empire and launched a thousand internet memes, amongst them our very own Save The Enzos campaig
Read MoreOne month after Chris Harris attacked Ferrari for juicing tests in his must-read rant found exclusively here on Jalopnik, we've finally heard an official reaction from the Italian automaker.
Read MoreAs fears rise in Japan about nuclear disaster at the Fukushima plant, the first and best line of defense are the reactor's six inch thick steel-walled chambers, made by a company that still forges samurai swords by hand.
Read MoreCar lovers are losing junkyards like the ones shown to time, increased environmental regulation and the rising cost of scrap metal. As the amount of old untouched junkyards dwindle catching a glimpse of the ones that remain, like this collection of old trucks in Canada, becomes that much cooler.
Read MoreToday we simply endorse these comments by PaulJones and its responses.
Read MoreOn an April evening four years ago I wandered into an underground parking garage and happened upon the Mercedes–Benz pictured above: one of Ralph Lauren’s cars to be exhibited in Paris this coming summer.
Read MoreMitsubishi's shifting its focus away from cars with good dynamics, cheap prices and fervent motorsports-bred street cred toward an electric vehicle future. Rather than make the next Evo an electric appliance, it really should just commit Seppuku.
Read MoreIf you were to believe this advertisement, the new for 1979 Mercury Capri was capable of producing miracles wherever it went and was best described as "sexy". We aren't sure which was more of a stretch.
Read MoreVolkswagen successfully transitioned from a car for '70s hippies to an entry-level status car for '90s yuppies. With the re-imagined VW Bulli Concept the company's making a stab at both markets. Hipyups? Yuphips?
Read MoreEven though the Chevrolet Camaro left the gate late in the pony car race, according to host Bud Lindemann 1971 was the year Camaro caught the Ford Mustang. We know that seems like high praise to heap on a car, but there weren't a lot of indicators in this vintage road test that anyone at Car and Track was overly impressed with the Camaro.
Read MorePut on your weird metallic silver gloves and brace yourself for the self congratulatory glimpse into the future that is this 1984 Chevrolet Corvette commercial. At the time Chevrolet was so confident you'd never seen anything like the entirely redesigned ‘Vette before, they needed 90 seconds to tell the world.
Read MoreRiffing on yesterday's unfortunate (and possibly alcohol-related) 911 GT3 RS wreck, the chaps at Axis of Oversteer found an even more egregious example: the wheelless McLaren SLR of Roberto Parli.
Read MoreA poster over at the Houston-Imports forum put up these photos of a severely wrecked new Porsche 911 GT3 RS with the line "Need to learn how to drive it.....especially in the combat zone of the Woodlands, TX." Who can make jokes at a time like this?
Read MoreAn Oregon man and two women were driving in a sudden windstorm when a massive pine tree fell on their 2007 Subaru Impreza STI. All three survived, thanks, the owner says, to his car's go-fast modifications.
Read MoreWhen men were men and race cars looked like cars, men and women were dying on Grand Prix weekends like flies. The early history of Formula One is a horror of burning flesh, and a new one-hour BBC documentary puts the easy nostalgia for the early days in a sad new perspective.
Read MoreRecently, Chinese authorities created a horribly graphic accident compilation video from surveillance cameras to encourage safe driving. Over 12 million Chinese watched it online. Now it's making the rounds here. Why are people so obsessed with car crashes?
Read MoreThe twin-turbo Hinson Motorsports C6 Corvette Z06 joined two special clubs at this weekend's Texas Mile: the 230 mph+ club and the oh-my-God-how-did-they-survive-that-accident club. More scary for the driver, both membership cards were punched at the same time.
Read MoreThe chaps at CAR magazine discovered the difficulty of talking to the camera while simultaneously driving a car when they crashed their Ferrari FF while trying to do just that. UPDATE!
Read More72-year-old Margaret Alverson crashed her Camry into a Chico, California boutique Wednesday. Rather than blame the car, she admitted mixing up the pedals. Since she was visiting a "bookkeeping service" I'm guessing she'll never read this, but good work Margaret.
Read MoreThe guards on tractor-trailers designed to stop the back of a truck full of 20-gallon mayonnaise drums from decapitating you in a rear-end collision are often worthless even in crashes as slow as 35 mph, according to insurance industry tests.
Read MoreRemember that time Top Gear gave the Tesla Roadster such a thrashing it broke, except it really didn't break? Tesla does, and it's now filed suit against the BBC and Top Gear accusing the Beeb of defamation. UPDATE
Read MoreA tipster sent us this leaked video of what's purportedly the first 15-minute summary of Top Gear's new China version. The changes for a Chinese audience? Donkey vs. Cadillac in a grindstone-off, for starters.
Read MoreIf, say, BMW invites you to ride in a new BMW M5 on a Swedish lake, the cynic in you might expect one of those shambolic "passenger" rides where the hapless journalist attempts to glean something of use riding shotgun.
Read MoreWelcome to Found Off The Street, our look at cars found on the cape that rust liked so much it decided to summer there; Cape Cod, MA. Today we have a 1960 Ford F100
Read MoreThree weeks ago, members of our staff were approached to run a combined Autoblog and AOL Autos under the umbrella of The Huffington Post. All staff approached declined. Undaunted, the media moguls behind such world-beaters as Luxist, KitchenDaily and commoditized dial-up internet access found a way around Jalopnik editors. They simply bought us from a redesign-ravaged Gawker Media. And that's why I'm resigning, effective immediately.
Read MoreWhat's in a name? If the name is "sport," there should be fun in store, right? But we all know how presumptuous automakers can get when it comes to sport-designated models. What's the least-fun "sport" model ever built?
Read MoreThis young man is Igor Walilko, a 13-year-old national junior champion driver from Poland and owner of a flashy, hilariously translated official website. In June 2010, Walilko tested positive for a banned substance called nikethamide after competing in an international kart race in Germany. He was 12 years old at the time.
Read MoreSome concepts are so wrong they traverse the globe like Phileas Fogg and come around on the other side suddenly in the right. A Toyota Prius with an upgraded 600-hp LS7 V8 wedged in the nose? So bad it's good again. UPDATE:
Read MoreA rural Oregon sheriff's deputy had some explaining to do after his 2010 Dodge Charger cruiser with less than 6,000 miles caught fire Sunday while on duty. The fire reportedly started in a passenger-side rear wheel well. H/T Larry!
Read MoreIn a stroke of public relations ingenuity, General Motors and the UAW on Tuesday threw a handful of Detroit-area journalists onto the mock assembly line used for training hourly workers. The result? A renewed appreciation for manual labor.
Read MoreThe person behind the official Acura Twitter account appeared to pull a Chrysler and let slip a strange tweet accusing a fellow employee of giving himself a manicure at his own desk. Turns out it was intentional
Read MoreSome cars spark brand associations that last for decades: Corvette. Mustang. BMW 3-Series. Toyota Corolla. Others arrive and hang around for a while, but never make it to that crucial generational update, or six. What car is the ultimate dead-ender?
Read MoreJaguar's announced that the soon-to-be-revealed 2012 Jaguar XF will be fitted with a new 2.2-liter turbo diesel. Great, a powertrain we won't get when it shows off this newish nose at next month's New York Auto Show.
Read MoreWhen someone emails in a tip about an individual losing their car to flames I usually feel bad. Even when I saw the ridiculous headline, Audi 'just poofed into flames' in Santa Rosa, I still felt bad. Then I took a closer look at the guy.
Read MoreConundrum alert gearheads! Does your lust for diesel outweigh your desire for speed? Is a sexy BMW drop-top more or less sexy when you drop in a more powerful motor for a top-o-the-line diesel fourbanger? Would you rock AC Shnitzer's 99d concept car?
Read MoreIf you believed the real problem with the Porsche Panamera is it just needed a bit more power — and not that it's a four-door Porsche — then today's your lucky day. Here's the 550 HP Porsche Panamera Turbo S.
Read MoreToday's desktop accoutrement comes from Jason Chatterley, who says this shot was produced while he was at Saleen but never used. The story is below, the 1600-px version is here and the giganto-desktop version is on our Facebook page (no, you don't have to "like" our Facebook page or even sign in to the service. It's right there in the "photos" section on the left).
Read MoreTo raise the $15,000 needed to keep his home, Utah resident John Maxim pledged to burn his Ford Escort wagon if he got the money. He did, it burned, and now he has a criminal record.
Read MoreBetween autobahn-limiting greenies and petrol-hating bureaucrats, car fans now more than ever need a few good ideas. Like the one The Big Cone dreamed up:
Read MoreWankel's Rotary engine found little following in Europe after the demise of NSU, but Mazda embraced the technology like RX-8 owners embrace 2-for-1 Castrol deals. Here's a 1960's educational animation from Mazda explaining why the rotary engine is an advancement on that old piston-powered buggy your grandma drives.
Read MoreAfter a winter off-season extended by the cancellation of the Bahrain Grand Prix, Formula One finally returned on a windy autumn afternoon in Melbourne. Four months without a Grand Prix, it would have been a fun race even if it weren’t fun. But it was fun. Warning: spoilers.
Read MoreBill Caswell became famous for telling Jalopnik of his adventures taking a $500 Craigslist car and beating $400K rally machines to stand on the podium at last year's Rally Mexico. Now he's doing LeMons in an E30.
Read MoreSpeed TV's "Car Warriors" pits the show's hand-picked team of mechanics against a rotating cast of outsiders in a 72-hour challenge to rebuild a junker. Now one challenger has sued, saying the show cheated to ensure he lost. UPDATE
Read MoreWhile the debate boils in the United States about how many gadgets we should have in our dashboards, European makes are streaming ahead with broadband-quality wireless connections built-in. Will America lose an auto broadband race too?
Read MoreOn Friday we noted numerous media reports and a statement from AOL claiming Autoblog's littler brother AutoBlogGreen was being folded into its larger sibling — or just outright getting killed. AutoBlog "publisher" John Neff said we were wrong. Before Neff had even gone on the hard-nosed defense, we'd received a statement from Huffington Post PR person Mario Ruiz saying that we were, in fact, correct in our throwaway story that was less about anything other than informing you, our readers, of wha
Read MoreDavid E. Davis, Jr., former editor and publisher of Car and Driver and founder of Automobile magazine, died today following cancer surgery in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Davis was 80.
Read MoreAn early morning wake up to the news your garage is on fire is every car collector's worst nightmare. That is precisely what happened to Indar Bhan of Eugene, Oregon.
Read MoreHinson Motorsports' C6 Corvette Z06 crashed at speeds in excess of 230 miles an hour yesterday at the Texas Mile. Amazingly the driver walked away from the crash without injury.
Read MoreMuscle cars are over the top vehicles by nature. More power, bigger engines and faster quarter mile times have driven the advancement of muscle cars even before the term became popular in the early 60s. We want to know what you think is the ultimate muscle car.
Read MoreDon't be fooled by the outward appearance of this 1962 Pontiac Catalina. Although there are few hints beyond the "Caution Aluminum" printed on the fenders, what appears to be merely a low trim level Catalina is actually a rare and high performance Super Duty equipped beast.
Read MoreWhat would you do if you came upon an impressive car collection being seized by US Marshalls and the DEA on your way to work? Luckily for us, when faced with that exact situation recently YouTube user Speedracer38 (UPDATE: Jalopnik pal Jason Thorgalsen) stopped and videotaped a parade of impressive cars being loaded onto transporters. According to the video description:
Read MoreThe story of a man without a home building a car from junk parts brought a reminder from The Guacanator about how the bureaucracy can frown on innovation:
Read MoreManufacturing defect or faulty repair? That's the debate on 6SpeedOnline over a member's rim that suffered cracks in two spokes while he was driving his Porsche 911 (996) GT2. He got extremely lucky, but what's the story?
Read MoreThis is Orismar de Souza, a homeless man in Brazil, who decided to build the car he couldn't buy using junk, spare parts and a hammer and chisel. Four years later, the "shrimpmobile" has him back on his feet.
Read MoreCharlie Sheen isn't an F-18, but he is an EC-130 cargo plane specially configured for psy-ops. Some EC-130 flights over Libya have been going by the call-sign "SHEEN"— as in, "SHEEN 53, what's your altitude?" Other flights are "CYLONs."
Read MoreThose who can do, and those who can't sometimes don't know until they try. Ken Block challenges in World Rally brought some interesting commentary from a certain Mr. Caswell:
Read MoreThe seventh running of the 12 Hours of Sebring in 1957 has a lot going for it as the best-looking motor race ever. For starters, the car and the man above: World War II hero John Fitch driving Zora Arkus-Duntov’s Corvette SS.
Read MoreAn accidental prelude to the most important change in Formula One for 2011 resulted in the most exquisite pass in the 2010 season. Before Grand Prix racing kicks off for another year this Sunday, come and savor the dismantling of Fernando Alonso by Jenson Button at the 2010 Canadian Grand Prix.
Read MoreScott Burgess, who resigned as auto critic of The Detroit News after his editors bowed to an advertiser request to water down his negative review of the Chrysler 200, is heading back to The Detroit News.
Read MoreSeñor Spin's taxonomy of the seven sad types of automotive reviews sparked several readers to come up with a Magnificent Seven of their own. Among those, solomonrex assembled a list worthy of Brynner, McQueen & Co.:
Read MoreThe news of Detroit's plunging population decline surprised even the city's worst forecasts. Micki Maynard, senior editor at Changing Gears, a public media project about the future of the industrial Midwest, explains why. — Ed.
Read MoreResidents of tiny Rosebud, Texas, were upset enough with a flurry of speeding tickets that they put signs just outside city limits warning of speed traps. Now a Rosebud officer has lost his job after attempting to remove the sign.
Read MoreLike tales passed down by old wives, common car wisdom isn't always the most accurate. Of all those things you've heard about cars over the years, which one stands out? What is the most common automotive misconception?
Read MoreJennifer Jo Cobb was supposed to drive at last Saturday's Nascar Nationwide race, until the owner of her car told her to "start and park." Rather than pretend to race, Cobb quit — and won a bigger victory.
Read MoreA 27-year-old man is under arrest on suspicion of DUI after accidentally running over a 23-year-old woman at a strip club in Dallas with his jacked-up custom Ford F-250. No joke here, this is just really sad.
Read MoreHaving grown accustomed to the modern safety engineering of today's race cars, this excellent compilation of historical crashes by the Jalopy Journal hits several chords; it reminds us how rare it is for today's cars to go airborne, or spit fire, or throw out their drivers in most of today's crashes. It also puts an edge on the whole notion that racing improves everyday vehicles; there were real risks to life and limb to garner those extra few tenths. Which is why the idea of Ferrari putting a
Read MoreWe're running out of ways to tell you NOT to hack electronic road signs, but after some recent unpleasantness we're grateful the quality's going up. South Carolina has hunters, zombies, and tanks… oh my!
Read MoreThis is Karin Mackaliunas of Scranton, Pennsylvania. Police found — upon searching her after finding a connection with a minor burglary — 54 bags of heroin, cash, empty bags and assorted sundry pills in her vagina.
Read MoreA Delta Airlines pilot on his first flight over the Pacific had to declare an emergency to land a 767 following the 9.0 magnitude earthquake that struck Japan ten days ago. Here is his first-hand account. UPDATE
Read MoreTime again for outrageous pre-war German vehicle designs. You’ve already seen the Nazi rocket plane built to nuke New York from orbit. The propeller-driven aluminum train Schienenzeppelin is miles tamer but every bit as magnificent. And unlike the Amerika Bomber, it really ran—at 140 mph in 1931!
Read MorePorsche officially announced this morning the fabulously gorgeous 918 Hybrid first shown at last year's Geneva Motor Show is now a production reality with an eye-watering $845,000 price, a 500-plus horsepower engine and a plug-in electric powertrain. Do want.
Read MoreFinding affordable microcar projects like this Taylor Dunn Trident that sold on Ebay yesterday is a rare occurrence. Spending time lusting after obscure Ebay finds with regret after they have found a new home is unfortunately anything but a rare occurrence.
Read MoreOne Arizona Lexus owner named Jeff decided to try and replicate the 1989 Lexus LS400 advertisement shown here on his LS460 in the video up above. Comparing these two videos is a nitpicker's dream, so instead of trying to cover all the bases, we are simply going to suggest Jeff wear more appropriate footwear next time he is using his luxury sedan to dispose of excess wine glasses. Update: Lexus decided to prove the problem was not a newer Lexus or false advertising but Jeff and his questionab
Read MoreWelcome to Found Off The Street, our look at cars found on the cape that rust liked so much it decided to summer there; Cape Cod, MA. Today we have a 1966 Chevrolet Bel Air.
Read MoreIt was a long day for Nissan Signatech racing, and a longer one for Lucas Ordoñez, the "digital kid" who won Nissan's first GT Academy. The team's inaugural 12 Hours of Sebring culminated in a nail-biter of a second-place finish. [UPDATE]
Read MoreEarlier this week we told you about one Chinese Lamborghini owner who had his Gallardo publicly destroyed to protest the manufacturer's poor service. While most of us don't have the means or desire to actually destroy automobiles in protest, what if you did? What car would you publicly destroy to prove a point?
Read MoreWhen it came time to introduce their redesigned for 1959 model, Desoto called upon movie star Rock Hudson to give a convincing "off screen" endorsement. Between the styling, swivel seats and "back lot" off road testing in this vintage commercial, we think the 1959 Desoto might have been okay selling itself.
Read MorePurchasing this eight wheel drive Tatra "Heavy Prime Mover" is almost guaranteed to draw groans on par with the worst puns from at least someone in your life. If you aren't concerned with the effect this Tatra will have on your personal relationships, wallet or property value and want to enter long term project car hell in eight wheel drive style, this could be the Czechoslovakian made military vehicle for you.
Read MoreOur piece on U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner's defense of NPR and "Car Talk" drew out several discussions of Click and Clack, whom as true listeners know are only able to accomplish their weekly bout of lucidity with the help of dozens of unappreciated staff whose jobs are now as shaky as the engineering in a Lucas solenoid. The better part of "Car Talk" tend to be the stories that seem to go nowhere then end up somewhere, like CSUL provided in his comment on Margaret Alverson's runaway Toyota
Read MoreFive decades ago, inside a grand villa off Lake Geneva, Jaguar unveiled the E-Type. Journos got so heated that Sir William Lyons ordered another be delivered from Coventry for demo runs. Test driver Norman Dewis did the honors.
Read MoreAs Japan struggles to control the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, radiation has made the work dangerous to workers for even brief periods. Imagine if a drone helicopter could precisely drop water or chemicals on the reactors. One can.
Read MoreOur story about the crackdown against imported Nissan Skylines raised another set of questions about which foreign exotics can be brought into the United States. Keith Barry at Wired's Autopia explores the murky world of "show and display." — Ed.
Read MoreWhile an increasing portion of our filmed entertainments come courtesy of a server farm, the uncanny valley and financial concerns still requires nods toward realism. Which is how these two Lotus Cortinas (and a MG 1100) came to be parked on a New York street. As Automobile ace (and possible owner) Jamie Kitman notes, they're background for a TV pilot of "Pan Am," essentially a "Mad Men" in the skies. QuatlooMillionaire had some ideas of his own about how Hollywood works after our post on change
Read MoreIn the latest issue of Forbes magazine, writer Patrick Michaels trashes the Chevy Volt and General Motors, saying the Volt is the socialist evil Ayn Rand warned of. What Michaels doesn't mention? How the oil industry pays his bills.
Read MoreWe broke the story about Scott Bartosiewicz, the former account supervisor for New Media Strategies who accidentally fired off an f-bomb using Chrysler's Twitter account and then was fired himself, but WXYZ and the Detroit Free Press scored the first interviews with the now unemployed social media strategist.
Read MoreScott Burgess resigned today as The Detroit News auto critic after his editors bowed to a request by an advertiser to water down his negative review of the Chrysler 200. This is why we can't have nice reviews anymore. UPDATE
Read MoreFor a singer whose solo career spanned just a few records, Nate Dogg, who died Tuesday at the young age of 41, has more hits and more importantly, more memorable hooks under his voice than most superstars, including this one with Ludacris. While there's ample explanation for flying cross-country in a Gulfstream for personal appointments (namely, "booty,") other kinds of conspicuous consumption make far less sense, like destroying a Lamborghini with a sledgehammer. Wheatieboy offers one explana
Read MoreAmazingly, videos of tsunami waves coming ashore in Japan this week showed many people driving away from the water. If you find yourself in a similar situation, how can you increase your chances of survival from nil to slim?
Read MoreChrysler has sued the owners of Detroit apparel and tchotchke company Pure Detroit for violating the automaker's trademarked "Imported from Detroit" marketing tag line by using it on apparel sold through their shops.
Read MoreHoly Ride of the Valkyries, what's this? Caught this week testing at the Nürburgring with all the other BMW M-Class models was this El Camino "Die Straße" coupe, with a truck bed. UPDATE: Sorry, folks. Not happening...
Read MoreThe estate of Steve McQueen and Gateway Classic Mustang teamed up to build the ultimate tribute to his highland green Mustang from Bullitt. It's got a Roush 450-hp V8 small block and trick suspension. All it lacks is a name.
Read MoreIf you spent the weekend watching scenes from Japan and worrying whether the devastation might have in some small way affected the planet's most important class — namely, American celebrity talk-show hosts — your prayers were answered today. Jimmy Kimmel was on vacation in French Polynesia when the tsunami alert came in, and as his worthwhile story relates, the wealthy types who shared his resort behaved about like one might expect in an emergency. How the wealthy comport themselves also shaped
Read MoreBefore a presentation at SUNY Plattsburgh on March 8, someone scrawled the chirographically and intellectually challenged message "Faggets + Dikes Need to Die" on the driver's-side window of the "fag bug." [Vanity Fair]
Read MoreFeaturing a tauter skin and a more powerful engine than the last-gen ol' and busted 6 Series, the new 2012 BMW 6 Series Coupe is a nice way to whet your whistle before the new M6.
Read MoreWhile it might be a desirable attribute in the car you drive every day, fuel economy is not usually one of the features that keep you up at night lusting after your dream car. In the wake of rising gas prices and the associated hysteria we want to know what you think is the most automotive fun you can have in a car capable of 30+ MPG?
Read MoreAlthough this 1964 Ford Ranchero may look like your average vintage Ranchero (if there is such a thing), don't be fooled by your first impression. Under the hood of this unassuming car/truck hybrid lurks an equally unassuming but loud and smelly 198ci Nissan Diesel.
Read MoreSaying it wants to slake the thirst of rental-car customers for pillowy crossovers, General Motors will exhume the Saturn Vue, slap a Chevy grille on it and sell it as the Captiva later this year for fleets only. Say what?
Read MoreFrom his office at AFG Moto in Tokyo where he designs custom motorcycles and safety gear, vice president and chief operating officer Jason Fullington experienced the worst earthquake to hit Japan in 1,000 years. - Ed.
Read MoreIt's been a rough few days for New Media Strategies, the Virginia-based social media firm that borked its business with Chrysler over a mis-Twittered profanity regarding Detroit's drivers. Now it's taking shots from Craigslist posters warning of more woe ahead.
Read MoreNissan's reporting that two employees at the company's Tochigi Plant suffered minor injuries, and that small fires broke out at the company's Tochigi and Iwaki plants, but they've been extinguished. Dealerships in the Kanto region have reported damage.
Read MoreAt the port of Kesennuma in northern Japan, cars and other debris were swept away by ferocious, 20+ foot tsunami tidal waves. Hundreds have been killed. Police say 200 to 300 bodies were found in coastal Sendai. (Photo: AP)
Read MoreWatch as an amazing four-meter-high wave of water washes over the airport in Japan's Miyagi prefecture. The water was part of the deadly tsunami that hit Japan after an 8.9-magnitude earthquake struck the island nation hours ago.
Read MoreUPDATED AT 11:50 PM EST Before 3pm Japan time (1 am EST) Friday, an earthquake measuring 8.9 on the Richter scale rocked the island nation 200 km north of Tokyo. Quickly thereafter, a massive, horrifying tsunami hit Japan's Northeast region. Now 1,400 people are estimated to have died, and Japan is still being hit with scores of aftershocks.
Read MoreThis is Scott Bartosiewicz. For the past eight months, he's worked as an account supervisor for New Media Strategies. Until yesterday morning. That's when, according to one source, he accidentally fired off an f-bomb using Chrysler's Twitter account and then was fired himself. So why did this guy lose his job over an accidental f-bomb when Chrysler has as its spokesperson a misogynist who drops them profusely as his profession.
Read MoreSingle-seat track-day toys are apparently the world's new jetskis, albeit at ten times the price. The latest entrant could be the BAC Mono. That is, if it ever makes it past the CGI stage. Of course we hope it does.
Read MoreMeet Jessica Murray. Jessica's the Community Manager for Social Media Club Global, a non-profit organization for social media professionals. Jessica attended Boston's Simmons College. Jessica just tattooed a ten-inch Chevy logo on her back for a free ride to SxSW.
Read MoreYesterday, Chrysler apologized for a profane message about Detroit drivers that was sent into its Twitter feed by an employee at social media firm New Media Strategies who was then fired. Today, Chrysler announced it fired New Media Strategies. UPDATED.
Read MoreNow that electric-powered Nissan Leafs have been driven by the first owners for several weeks, Nissan's claimed 100-mile range is being tested in reality. The result? Reports of Leafs running out of juice and stranding drivers with little warning.
Read MoreArgentina’s Andean northwest is a wonderland of absolutely epic driving roads. The fun starts in Tucumán province on Ruta Provincial 307: a mad jungle climb of 5512 feet up the Río de los Sosa gorge.
Read MoreYesterday was International Womans' Day? Sorry, gals, we forgot! Russian boutique carmaker Dartz didn't, and, somewhat honoring IWD, it's building a version of its SUV for the daughter of a Kazakh oil king. Also, no whale penis for the ladies!
Read MoreIt's easy enough to mourn the great shift in mental output from making durable goods with our hands to less worthy pursuits, like dreaming up food puns for old R.E.M. songs then spraying them all over the Twitters. But Haywood Jablomey had some constructive advice for those who complain about the way things are going.
Read More1. Toyota Prius Powertrain: 1.8-liter 4-cylinder hybrid Gearbox: Continuously variable automatic transmission Fuel economy: 51 mpg city, 48 mpg highway
Read MoreJust as soon as we'd lamented the loss of Sabine Schmitz's BMW M5 Ring Taxi she announces she's giving out rides in the Frikadeli Porsche 911 GT3 RS Race Taxi. The price is $730, but worth it.
Read MoreReports of the Ring Taxi's demise — formerly shuttling enthusiasts around the Nürburgring under control of blonde motoring goddess Sabine Schmitz — were half right. Schmitz and her M5 are gone, with inferior Sabine-less BMW M3 Nürburgring Taxis replacing it. Update!
Read MoreSomeone in control of the official Chrysler account (@ChryslerAutos) apparently had a bad experience driving to work today and dropped one mother of an anti-Detroit tweet and some profanity on their 7,000+ followers. UPDATE
Read MoreSpin's piece on why Mitsubishi should quietly pass the baton of all-wheel-drive fun from the Evo drew a massive amount of response from the fans who care enough for their Evos to not crash them into mountains. Among those, EvoCS was the best:
Read MoreWhen motorsports president Max Mosley was caught in a sadomasochistic orgy by a British tabloid, we assumed it was his end. Far from it. Riding high on a court victory he's pushing reforms in Europe that will clamp-down on the free press.
Read MoreIt is, instead, a Ford. A European Ford. It’s lightweight, it’s mid-engined, and it's designed to race. It’s called the GT70. It was also dead before it was born.
Read MoreIf the Beastie Boys had just given us "(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)," they would have gone down as a welcome member into the pantheon of one-hit wonders. But instead they followed up with "Paul's Boutique," and songs like "High Plains Drifter" proving they had more to say, with more style, than one album could hold. So it is as well with Desu-San-Desu, who scores the rare comment of the day twofer with his take on Ford's Raptor:
Read MoreLast month we told you about the North Carolina man who, on a whim, sold the hearse used for Dale Earnhardt's funeral over Craigslist for $8,800. The new owner has it on eBay for a slight markup: $1.5 million.
Read MoreAfter reading about the 1,000-car rattlesnake-infested junkyard in Texas last week, a Jalopnik reader decided to survey the scene. Google's satellites were right: What Detroit makes, the earth takes. Here's a look inside a huge rotting classic car graveyard.
Read MoreWarplanes from both sides of the Cold War stand guard under a blanket of snow outside Berlin's Bundeswehr Air Force Museum. Jets, helicopters, all a reminder of a battle that never took place.
Read MoreGabriel Nderitu, an I.T. specialist in Kenya, spent six months researching aircraft on the Internet and a year building this airplane in his front yard. His dream of flying won't die even if reality — and Kenyan authorities — are keeping him grounded.
Read MoreWe've seen a few of Car and Track's "super car wring-outs" before, but in the words of host Bud Lindemann this week's 1968 Oldsmobile Hurst Cutlass might be "the silkiest bomb ever nestled between four wheels". Hint: It's a good thing.
Read MoreThere was just something about this rusted old Mustang found while perusing car porn on Flickr. Although the photo's from 2006, we wondered if we could find it in Google Street View. Turns out we could. Now the only question is — is it still there?
Read MoreWelcome to Found Off The Street, our look at cars found on the cape that rust liked so much it decided to summer there; Cape Cod, MA. Today we have a 1972 Lincoln Continental
Read MoreMost super heroes have one weakness or Achilles' heel which if discovered can bring them to their knees. Some cars have a similar weakness common to their model or even manufacturer. What is the best example of an automotive Achilles' heel?
Read MoreWe hesitate to call any Batmobile undesirable for obvious reasons (It IS a Batmobile) but if there were to be one that fit the bill, this would be it. Used in 1995's "Batman Forever" (which we do not hesitate to call total crap) this Batmobile is being sold today at Auction America by RM's sale in Ft. Lauderdale, FL with an interesting stipulation.
Read MoreJaguar first put a 5.3 liter V12 in a road car for the 1971 model year. While we aren't sure exactly what vintage this Jaguar V12 is, it sure is pretty. (Photo Credit: Timitrius)
Read MoreNeko Case isn't just one of our favorite musicians, she's also a gearhead with a philanthropic streak currently raffling off her '67 Mercury Cougar. She's here live, in the comments, answering your questions about the car, the music and the charity.
Read MoreCurrently for sale on Ebay, this Porsche replica has the body of a 356 Speedster and an electric heart. This electric Speedster is your chance to be green in style without leaving a long lasting impact on anything aside from your wallet.
Read MoreFrom the great state of Maine comes this award winning motorized ice shack. Built over a six month period from a snowmobile trailer, an ice shack and a 1996 Chevy Cavalier, upon its completion this unique ice shack won the Bangor Daily News' "Original Ice Shack Contest". The motorized ice shack is entirely driveable from the interior of the fishing cabin. When asked about the design and construction of the shack builder Al Conary admitted "I did a lot of head-scratching".
Read MoreJust east of Austin, Texas, sits 1,054 old American cars from the '40s, '50s and '60s, rusting in the elements and infested with rattlesnakes. Sometime today, a deal may be struck to crush what's not pure oxidation already.
Read MoreAfter discovering the wasting of a Jaguar XJ 220 and the Ferrari Mondial, Phil McGovern of Crank & Piston came across another cache of automotive iron abandoned in the Middle East — this time with a different ending. — Ed.
Read MoreThe good news is that KTM's X-Bow track sled is coming to the US. The bad news, depending on your circumstances, is that it'll start at $88,500. Oh, you wanted an engine? Get ready to shell out big money.
Read MoreLike the vanes of a turbocharger, our attention turns quickly to new projects once one ends. Which is why the owner of what's claimed to be the world's fastest 1989 Turbo Dodge Caravan — which can hit 11-second quarter-mile runs — is selling for $6,500 to fund other projects.
Read MoreThe owner of one of the nation's largest forums for Nissan Skyline fans got a call three weeks ago from his wife, telling him that Homeland Security agents were on their doorstep looking to seize his Skylines. Their goal? "To get them off the road."
Read MoreThe new Ford Fiesta has slowly gained converts among Americans, hitting a high in sales last month. But Ford's now facing a growing number of complaints about the Fiesta's new dual-clutch automatic transmission set to go into other Ford models as well.
Read MoreAn offhand comment from Mitsubishi's global product director that "we must stop" making the Evo after the Lancer Evolution X had Subaru fanboys cheering and everyone else worried. But is it true?
Read MoreSubtlety. Discretion. Restraint. Those are words. Big words. Words that aren't often applied to Internet commenters. But those of you who comment on Jalopnik stories aren't like the rest of the chattering web typists spilling their seeds over a few hills and Dells, and not just because we've designed a web site that doesn't work well with people stuck on old versions of Internet Explorer. It's also because we take pride. Pride in every word, every...OK, got enough sentences in to run an image.
Read MoreWhat would the Geneva show be without a radical design from Swiss designer Franco Sbarro's students at France's Espera Sbarro school? It would be the Detroit auto show, probably.
Read MoreAston Martin Racing's spent late 2010 and early 2011 developing a turbocharged, direct-injection inline six to power its new, open-cockpit Le Mans prototype race car. It's here. But does it stand a chance against the diesels?
Read MoreIn what's already being heralded as the "Chilla in Geneva," infamous BMW designer Chris "Big Butts" Bangle tussled with Jason "Cassius" Castriota over the design of the inspired-by-jets Saab PhoeniX. Rhetorical fists fly as Bangle angles to flame Castriota's surfaces.
Read MoreWith the world trending toward smaller but more stylish cars, Mercedes made the right call to revive this, the 2012 C-Class coupe. If you're going to buy a four-cylinder Mercedes, you might as well look like you're having fun.
Read MoreKit cars filled a desire for cars too specialized for automakers' accountants to greenlight in a million years. They still fill that desire, but technology's done wonders for the old fiberglass-and-beetle-chassis construct. What's the most awesome kit car ever built?
Read MoreBMW's not talking much about the Vision Connected Drive roadster as a viable vehicle, only that its interior design employs an intriguing design concept using "layers" of materials and information to better compartmentalize a driver's duties. Fancy stuff!
Read MoreNow that we've seen the 612-replacing Ferrari FF up close, its shooting-brake, hatchback, kammback comportment does appear to be an avant garde comment on the two past decades' patent truckification of motoring. Ah, who are we kidding. It's super dope.
Read MoreThe Saab PhoeniX concept car showcases design features and technologies that'll shape the next generation of cars from Saab.
Read MoreHere it is folks, the compact little brother supercar foretold by the prophecies — the Alfa Romeo 4C Concept. It's like an Alfa Romeo 8C "Mini Me." The good news? It's so sexy that I want to make love to it. The even better news? Alfa Romeo's building it in 2012. Do want. Badly.
Read MoreCars that live long, unmolested lives are considered survivors. Some survive as icons of past glories, while others serve as cautionary tales of historical malfeasance. Today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe Cobra II is a survivor, but will its price survive your scrutiny?
Read MoreRonald Reagan once owned a Jeep Scrambler for trips around his California ranchero. Today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe CJ8 may not be Ronnie's, but does its price make for good Reaganomics?
Read MoreToyota is like Marion the Librarian, whose staid demeanor is punctuated by occasions of raw, unbridled passion simply by letting down her hair and casting off her glasses. Today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe 2000GT happens to be one of those occasions.
Read MoreThere's birthday parties, political parties, and the party of the first part who's always suing the party of the second part. Today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe Ford is named for a Latin party, but is its price worth celebrating?
Read MoreWhile the sport of bullfighting may be falling out of favor globally, one thing's for sure - it's usually better to be the matador than the bull. Today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe AMC proves this, but is its price a load of bull?
Read MoreIt seems that every issue of Cosmo magazine contains an article about how women can improve their orgasms. Today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe Mazda Cosmo is gender neutral, but will hearing its price have you asking, come again?
Read MoreTurbobricks.org was a site that was all about the fast Volvos. It's pretty much gone, but today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe Turbo 242 is still here, and at a price that could mean it may not be going fast.
Read MoreUpon its introduction, Cadillac's Seville was the brand's most expensive standard model, albeit also their smallest. Today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe '78 shows why size does matter, but will you find that extends to its price?
Read MoreThe seller of today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe 318i convertible claims that it is more rare than the more motor 325i. Still, it may be more desirable because it goes more miles per gallon, but is its price more than you'd be willing to pay?
Read MoreFor the ultimate in avoiding high pump prices, you can go electric, however new battery-powered cars from Tesla and Fisker are pretty costly. Today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe electric 914's price proves that needn't be the case, but is it still shocking?
Read MoreDespite common thinking, you needn't have to trade Rubicon-ability for good fuel economy, as today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe diesel Defender proves. You might however, need to be an oil company exec to buy it.
Read MoreThey say waste not, want not, and there's no better example of that than a WVO or bio-diesel-powered car. Today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe Mercedes can go vegan, but does its price make you say, what a waste?
Read MoreA Geode is a hollow rock that upon cracking open reveals a crystalline interior. Geo, on the other hand, was GM attempt to crack the small car market. Today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe Metro will save you on gas, but will driving it leave you feeling hollow?
Read MoreFor years the best-selling vehicle in the U.S. has been the 15-mpg average F150 pickup. With gas prices climbing like a frigid scrotum, maybe today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe VW diesel pickup would be better than best?
Read MoreIf you happen to be an extrovert, like say, Charlie Sheen, then an SSP Mustang in full CHP livery might be the perfect car for you. Today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe ‘92 EVOC is just such a car, although I think Charlie'd be more comfortable in back.
Read MoreAs Clarkson and others have said, you're not a true auto enthusiast until you've owned (or more rightly been owned-by) an Alfa Romeo. Well, today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe Alfetta might just be a cheap way to own up to that enthusiast creed.
Read MoreThe most interesting man in the world may prefer Dos Equis, but more interesting is today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe Corona. It comes with a six pack of a motor, but will its price make you interested?
Read MoreThe number of Italian V8-powered executive sedans can pretty much be counted on one hand, and most of those are Maserati Quattroportes. Today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe Tipo 107 has seen better days, but could it use a better price?
Read MoreYou don't have to be Elmer Fudd to like hunting rabbits, and today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe beige bunny seems worthy of the chase. But will its price make you go hu-hu-hu-hu-hu-hu-hu-hu?
Read MoreHalf-baked, half-assed, half-hearted, there's lots of negatives associated with the image of halves. However, as today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe 1970 and a half Z-28 proves, being awesome is half the battle.
Read MoreFew people get all hot and bothered by the Toyota Camry, as driving one is much like eating plain oatmeal. . . from a beige bowl. The seller of today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe '94 Coupe seems to feel differently, but is it just its TRD supercharger that is pressurizing his passion?
Read MoreWhile advanced in design, Fiat's X1/9 was ephemeral in its execution, and few have stood the test of time. Today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe '78 however has not only passed time's test, it went back for some alloy-rim extra credit.
Read MoreWhen it comes to automotive artistic expression, Chevy's Suburban offers a generous canvas. Today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe custom '98 may be more urban than suburban, but is its price a work of art?
Read MoreGermans aren't renown for their wistfulness, at least after they've digested their teenage dose of Ranier Maria Rilke. Yet German automakers have gripped their history and nostalgia in a way that surpasses even the American penchant for yoostabee-ing. This film by BMW Classic is a perfect example; it's nigh impossible to image Ford shooting something similar with a Mustang II owner, or Chevy embracing the idea of a hipster-ish Nova owner who just can't give up his car, even when on the verge o
Read MoreWe take a lot of stands around here, for manuals and cold mechanics and self-imposed danger, but we're always open to hearing the other side, one aptly provided by AMGKiller in today's piece about federales pursuing illicit Nissan Skylines:
Read MoreThere's a certain type of car shopper who wants to pay as little as possible and still be able to say they bought a new vehicle. For this stingy crowd, we present the cheapest 2011 Volkswagen Jetta you can buy. Hope comes optional.
Read MoreFrom microcars to high-end speedsters, future cars will share one common theme — controls through touch screens rather than buttons, if the concepts of last week's Geneva Motor Show are any indication.
Read MoreSwedish carmaker Saab will be the first major manufacturer to bring an Android-powered infotainment system — called iQon— to market next year. And unlike closed systems in other vehicles, Saab's turning over 500 inputs from vehicle sensors to third-party developers.
Read More1st Gear: President Barack Obama announced yesterday that the federal government would buy only advanced technology or "alternative fuel" vehicles for its 600,000-strong fleet by 2015, part of a plan to cut America's great unslakable thirst for oil. Great. Fantastic. The fine print? "Alternative fuel" includes natural gas, fuel cells and E85 ethanol blends — a corn-fed loophole that means the government can keep buying the thousands of full-size SUVs it purchases every year.
Read More1st Gear: After Saab Automobile had trouble paying suppliers, production at its factory in Trollhättan, Sweden was halted yesterday, according to Swedish paper Dagens Industri. Production resumed today. "Certain suppliers halted supplies to Saab Automobile pending discussions about payments and supply terms," Spyker said in a statement earlier this morning. "Saab Automobile expects to resolve these issues in the short term." Spyker said last month it's selling its sports car-division to Vladimir
Read More1st Gear: According to documents obtained by GMInsideNews, the Holden-derived Zeta-platform "SS Sedan" is now operating as an approved program and — as we exclusively reported a couple months ago — the "El Camino" is ever-closer to a return. The "SS Sedan" program is running under the code Z2SC and is expected to launch in North America in early 2013 as a 2014 model year vehicle. Better news? GM is also considering the Holden Ute and Holden Commodore SportWagon for the North American market. Unl
Read More1st Gear: Debt-laden German carmaker Porsche has approved an almost 5 billion euro ($7 billion) capital increase, clearing the way for a merger with Volkswagen, the group said late on Sunday. The carmaker added that it now, finally, expects the public offering to be approved by German financial watchdog BaFin on March 28. Provided that the new shares are fully subscribed, Porsche will raise net proceeds of about 4.89 billion euros, which will be channeled into the repayment of liabilities.
Read More1st Gear: Parts shortages caused by Japan's record earthquake may reduce global automobile production by about 30 percent, research firm IHS Automotive said today. If parts plants affected by the quake don't return to operation within six weeks, global auto output may drop as much as 100,000 vehicles a day, said Michael Robinet, vice president of Lexington, Massachusetts-based IHS. The industry produces 280,000 to 300,000 vehicles daily, he said. "Most vehicle manufacturers will be affected by t
Read More1st Gear: The first reviews of the Ferrari FF have begun to drop. Since our invite obviously got lost in the mail, we're forced to rely on what others are saying about this new bigger, longer and more uncut supercar. For starters, Ferrari's new 4RM part-time four-wheel-drive system, as expected, seems to work great in the snow. The usually-quite-picky Dan Edmunds of Edmunds' Inside Line (no relation) said "as long as the snow isn't too deep, you can drive this V12 Ferrari all year 'round." But t
Read More1st Gear: Bimmerfile is reporting that BMW's M-Team will be doing more than unveiling the M5 ‘Concept' in Shanghai this April. They claim that BMW's performance division will be showing a concept car that likely won't see production. The concept "will show the possibilities of how BMW M can progress in relation to full lightweight bodyshell and chassis using the ideas from the BMWi programme which will filter through to BMW's core production models. It is more of an "engineering and performance
Read More1st Gear: The Japanese earthquake won't stop Nissan from delivering the slightly facelifted and performance upgraded 2012 GT-R. This despite a number of other Nissan and Infiniti vehicles being caught at the dock just in time to get swamped by the tsunami. Nissan spokesperson Rich Latek, however, has confirmed to Automotive News that all 620 dealers expected to get their allotment of GT-Rs will get them.
Read More1st Gear: Porsche is officially announcing this morning that they'll be building the fabulously gorgeous 918 Hybrid first shown at last year's Geneva Motor Show. The supercar gets a 500-plus horsepower V8 engine and a plug-in electric powertrain consisting of two electric motors totaling another 218 horsepower. Porsche will produce no more than 918 units with start of production beginning on September 18th, 2013 (9/18). Suggested retail price is $845,000 (excluding destination and handling charg
Read More1st Gear: The Detroit News actually ran a story today "explaining" the resignation of its auto critic Scott Burgess (see his side project — Hipster Travel Guide and look at his google ads because the dude's unemployed now) — a story we broke here at Jalopnik. Ignore for a moment their inability to credit us with breaking the story, as we're used to that sort of ridiculous behavior from the so-called purveyors of journalistic fair-play that make up the anti-web whiners that pass for the majority
Read More1st Gear: Given you're probably not in the target demographic, you may have missed last night's episode of the Rachel Maddow Show. If you did, then you missed Rachel Maddow casually mention her in-the-closet obsession with everyone's favorite site obsessed with the cult of cars, Jalopnik. It even turns out she's like a lot of Jalopnik commenters — she loves the site, but isn't a huge fan of the redesign. Who knew? All I know is this was the first time I've been this geeked about a media mentio
Read More1st Gear: Porsche is still supposedly preparing an ultra-hardcore 911 as the swansong for the 997-generation car, before an all-new series, dubbed '991' appears toward the end of this year. The new car is likely to be called the 911 GT3 RS Limited Edition. Supposedly, as we've reported before, it'll be based on the current 911 GT3 RS, except with a 4.0-liter version of Porsche's famous flat six rather than a 3.8-liter. Power output will likely hit 500 hp, and a run of 500 cars is expected. We'd
Read More1st Gear: Dangerous levels of radiation leaking from a crippled nuclear plant forced Japan to order 140,000 people to seal themselves indoors Tuesday after an explosion and a fire dramatically escalated the deadly quake and tsunami crisis. The international nuclear agency said a fire in a storage pond for spent nuclear fuel at the Fukushima Dai-ichi complex had released radioactivity "directly into the atmosphere." How bad is it? At the front gates to the facility, radiation levels jumped to ten
Read More1st Gear: Today's top story continues to be the disaster in Japan. The latest news we have is workers are battling to prevent a nuclear meltdown after a second hydrogen explosion rocked an atomic plant north of Tokyo. NHK TV reported minutes ago that at the Fukushima facility, "Reactor number two fuel rods may be completly exposed and no seawater injection has proven successful. This is a state of emergency." while officials said the death toll from the nation's strongest earthquake may top 10,0
Read More1st Gear: GM Vice Chairman and Chief Financial Officer Chris Liddell today announced that he will leave the company April 1, 2011 after just over a year with the just-emerged-from-bankruptcy-and-IPO'ed automaker. He'll be succeeded by Dan Ammann, 38, who's currently a GM vice president, finance and treasurer. Before coming to GM, the native of New Zealand worked for Morgan Stanley for 11 years. Sorry, hold on a second... wow, we just realized he's a 30-something becoming the CFO of the world's l
Read More1st Gear: Volkswagen AG's Audi will roll out 13 new or upgraded models this year, including a revamped A6 sedan, Q3 compact sport-utility vehicle and the etron electric car and expand production in emerging markets as the luxury brand aims to topple Bayerische Motoren Werke AG as the largest premium-car maker. Aww, shoot, remember when the U.S. market was, you know, relevant to anything but image?
Read More1st Gear: BMW's sales and marketing boss Ian Robertson sent AutoCar smoke signals and hand signs they're interpreting as an indication that the Mini Rocketman is likely headed to production. Our only question is — isn't it a sad day when news Mini's going to create a small car become "big news?"
Read More1st Gear: In 2008, drivers panicked and changed their spending habits when prices hit $3.50. On Friday, March 4, the national average price was $3.46. Why no panic now? Easy, because U.S. consumers are stupid. Paul Taylor, chief economist for the National Automobile Dealers Association, says gasoline will now have to reach $4.50 a gallon before consumers change auto buying habits significantly. We're like that frog in a pot, and the water temperature's being turned up ever-so-slowly, aren't we?
Read More1st Gear: Gas prices continued to rise nationwide Friday, with the average price per gallon up nearly 28 cents in the past 10 days. The national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline rose to $3.471 on Friday, according to a daily survey by motorist group AAA. That's up 4.4 cents from $3.427 a gallon on Thursday and $3.368 on Monday. Any real reason why? Other than already-apparent supply disruptions, no, not really. Well, unless you count price speculation.
Read More1st Gear:Upset with his stranglehold of the world's most popular motorsport, Formula 1 mastermind Bernie Ecclestone now wants to control the weather. Noticing that some F1 races are getting a little dry, Bernie wants to turn the sprinklers on to create excitement. Actual quote: "Why not let it 'rain' in the middle of a race for 20 minutes, or the last 10 laps? Maybe with a two-minute warning ahead of it. Suspense would be guaranteed." F1, racing's answer to "The Office."
Read More1st Gear: The Geneva Motor Show isn't the only big event with automotive ramifications going on over here in Europe today. There's also CeBIT 2011. Aside from being the name of the Black Eyed Peas next song, the Hanover techgasm is one of the world's top tech fairs. How important is it? Ford CEO Alan Mulally is there instead of here in Geneva. Why he'd ever want to miss this show, I have no idea. Wait, yes I do.
Read More1st Gear:The Chevy Volt isn't winning a lot of fans at Consumer Reports, if the director of testing is any indication: "The Volt isn't particularly efficient as an electric vehicle, and it's not particularly good as a gas vehicle either in terms of fuel economy," David Champion said Monday. "This is going to be a tough sell to the average consumer." Especially if that consumer pays a $5,000 markup to the dealer for a Volt, as Consumer Reports did.
Read MoreWelcome to Found Off The Street, our look at cars found on the cape that rust liked so much it decided to summer there; Cape Cod, MA. Today we have a 1957 GMC Panel Truck.
Read MoreK-PAX Racing's attempting to turn an off-the-line Volvo C30 into a world-beating race car in 60 days. Driver Robb Holland's going to give us weekly project updates. Part Eight: the finale. —Ed.
Read MoreK-PAX Racing's attempting to turn an off-the-line Volvo C30 into a world-beating race car in 60 days. Driver Robb Holland's going to give us weekly project updates. Part Seven: them's the brakes. —Ed.
Read MoreK-PAX Racing's attempting to turn an off-the-line Volvo C30 into a world-beating race car in 60 days. Driver Robb Holland's going to give us weekly project updates. Part Six: a shocking revelation. —Ed.
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