Recent Comments:
Mystery supercar revealed! Meet the MCE MC1 {Autoblog}
Jan 22nd 2008 11:26AM I want to like it...
But it looks too much like anime rendered in reality.
just a little too far fetched.
2009 Chevy Camaro a no-show at auto shows {Autoblog}
Jan 22nd 2008 11:23AM Right here with you, Richard, and Jesse, too.
These re-hashes of old designs pull at the heart strings of those who remember the old ones fondly. Even some who weren't alive when the old ones were new.
What the true dissappointment is, that there isn't any sort of modern counterpart to each of those retro cars.
No Modern Cougar, No Modern Firebird planned, and no Modern Chrysler variant of the Challenger. (The Firepower concept showed a little bit of promise, style wise...)
I don't want to deny those who like these designs their choice. The government might, with it's over-regulation, but I don't.
But I don't think the industry can look forward and move forward with it's head turned, and eyes fixed firmly on 40 years past. It's like riding a motorcycle... LOOK where you want to GO, and you'll go there. Where do the 'domestic' companies seem to be looking?
In the mean time... All that is left to those looking for the next big thing, are left with the G37 coupe, which is largely without major competition. (Audi A5 might become a competitor, but is getting up there in price.)
So, until the domestics decide to play another tune besides nostalgia (which can be played simultaneously... they all have several brands with which to do that.) Those of us who want something more than "just the good 'ole boys" are left no options but to consider only imports, which there still aren't that many options.
This leaves me looking at G37, and wishing for Mazda (RX9/Kabura coupe rumors), Subaru (Legacy-based SVX replacement which will probably never happen), or Mitsubishi (Concept RA with EVO drivetrain) to bring something compelling in.
And Hyundai could have done that, but the pics of the Genesis coupe are not looking so good. Softly styled, and a bad side profile with the stupid quarter window-kink.
The other one, the BMW 335i coupe looks like a 2-door chopped down sedan, as it always has. There are sleeker coupes possible. The BMW is a good car. It just looks too much like the 335i sedan. Why not have the practicality of the extra doors, if they are going to look the same anyway? I'd buy the 4-door version of the E90 M3, for the same reason... why not?
Not everybody wants a retro muscle car. Some people want a sport coupe. FoMoCo, GM, and Chryslerberus could do it, but they aren't and probably won't.
The camaro is already overplayed, and GM knows it. That is why they aren't showing it this year. Bad position. They should be announcing job one next month, not a year from then. I know they are just now tooling up the Ontario plant, but Zeta has been in production for some time. If GM wanted to push this faster, they could have.
Spy Shots: Aston Martin Rapide in the round {Autoblog}
Jan 17th 2008 7:22PM Looks like the same length as the DB9, to me...
There are twelve cylinders in there, you realize... and a radiator, and crush zones...
http://www.autoblog.com/photos/aston-martin-db9-lm-2/
Spy Shots: Aston Martin Rapide in the round {Autoblog}
Jan 17th 2008 6:06PM "Raa-Peed". of course derivative of 'rapid', of course meaning fast; (not sure which form is older language.) It is an old european nameplate for sports cars and motorcycles. I would have to look up which ones specifically.
I have no idea what the naysayers here are even talking about. This four-door looks every inch of an Aston Martin. Jaguar has NOTHING on this, and I tend to like jags, too.
S-type was a bit retro, the XJ sedan is traditional. This car is sex on four wheels.
This certainly is nowhere near the same ballpark as conspicuous as a crass stretched hummer limo.
Maserati is going to have to play catch up, Maybach is a bit different, and more about being driven around than actually driving it around, although people likely do drive their own Maybachs... And Porsche, as much as it pains me to say, looks like it might have missed the boat entirely on the Panamera, if the mules bear any resemblance to the production version.
And Paname---ra, is missing a syllable. It is supposed to be Panamericana, or Panamerica, after a long-tradition mexican endurance race, La Carrera Panamericana. They didn't butcher the Carrera, Cayman, Cayenne, I don't know why they butchered Panamericana, rather than simply choosing a different C-name that is easier to say.
Rapide is a better name than Panamera, anyway, and is almost sure to be a more sublime car, especially if it is treated to some of the niceties of the DBS development.
I wonder with Aston's entries in to all the GT racing series classes, if the Rapide will join touring car racing, like other 4-doors... that would be sweet. :D
Ford hybrids to turn a profit in 2008 {Autoblog}
Jan 17th 2008 12:37PM Imagine that...
Tax breaks actually making a difference.
Try pulling the taxes out of a lot of things, and we wouln't be looking down the barrel of a nice big economic crap-storm.
Detroit 2008: Steve Saleen presents... a bargain Chinese pickup! {Autoblog}
Jan 17th 2008 12:32PM Does this not look like the Rest-of-World Ranger? The four-door compact truck that few americans have ever seen, even in pictures?
I had a 2000 Ranger XLT 4x4. It was a good truck, but a dinosaur, and not easy on fuel for it's smaller size.
This looks quite cheap, but it might not be such a bad idea.
The ridgeline is about the only other truck in that size segment, and it is dressed like an accord inside. The Toyotas are getting bigger and more expensive, and the Nissan Frontiers still somehow look like toys, but cost more than toys.
Colorado/Cheyenne don't seem to be getting overly positive results, either. I certainly don't see them in the kind of numbers that I see dinosaur Rangers.
If someone could adequately span the $12K-24k compact truck market, I think it would work. Something small but utilitarian for it's size. Dressed up at the top of the range, but not completely useless at the bottom.
Rubber floor and cloth/vinyl seats, and no exterior flashy trim shouldn't preclude a good transmission, and 4-wheel drive. Inexpensive doesn't need to mean useless and cheap.
And a common-rail I4 diesel with a good manual transmission and low-range 4-wd or AWD would be nice, especially if it were cheap enough to just save and pay cash for as a utility vehicle. (a big, enclosed, highway-capable ATV with a cargo box, basically.)
Burn used-veggie-diesel in it, and have a PTO for an electric generator, air compressor, or small fluid pump, and you are good to go, and smellin' like french fries.
Sorry Holden: GM cancels VE Sportwagon for US market {Autoblog}
Jan 17th 2008 12:12PM Damned fashion.
It is fashionable to drive an SUV, and then bash it when any of the greenies sees you with it.
It is not fashionable to drive a wagon, for the completely idiotic and illogical social reasons that people have mentioned. Bad reasons and fashion obsession don't mean they are any less real.
Subaru Legacy: Cancelled.
Dodge Magnum: Cancelled.
Pontiac G8 Wagon: Cancelled before release.
What is left?
Audi A4 and A6 Avant. Rare
Mercedes E-Class Wagon. very rare, possibly not offered in US.
Mercedes R-Class: Flop.
BMW 3 and 5 series Touring: Very rare or unobtainable.
Volvo wagons
Saab 9^3 SportCombi, maybe 9^5 wagon.
Subaru Outback tall wagon.
Then there are vehicles like the Taurus X which was a flop, and now the Ford Flex/Lincoln MKT, and upcoming Dodge Journey, which are being pushed as CUVs, designed with slightly less frontal area than the others, and more of a wagon look.
It is a strange dichotomy. People want practicality and useability, so they buy SUVs and CUVs. Wagons have been doing the same thing for a VERY long time, but are shunned. I can see why people don't cross shop Chevy Suburbans with Volvo S40 wagons. I get that.
But why a GMC Acadia, and not a G8 Wagon? A small people mover CUV vs a Moderate size car-based wagon. It is all irrational, and based on fashionable styling, and what OTHER PEOPLE will see you driving.
And on the other hand, it has become fashionable also to be "green" and efficient and conserve. Wagons do that better than CUVs and SUVs can, due to low height, low frontal area, and lower weight. Yet they are still shunned.
Don't try to think about it too hard, or blood will shoot out of your eye. It doesn't make sense, it isn't going to make sense.
Mind the Gap: VW planning another sedan to slot in between Passat CC and Phaeton {Autoblog}
Jan 17th 2008 11:46AM I can't believe I missed Mazda. I knew I forgot something.
Tier 3.
Mostly economy and mainstream cars, even despite trying to go a bit upscale with CUVs.
Mind the Gap: VW planning another sedan to slot in between Passat CC and Phaeton {Autoblog}
Jan 17th 2008 11:42AM Amendment: (note that some brands span tiers with their model lines, some brands may have individual models in tiers above or below their listing)
Premier: Maybach, Bentley, Rolls, Bugatti, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Aston Martin.
Tier 1 Brands: Mercedes Benz, BMW, Audi, Porsche, Lexus, Cadillac (moving into this group), Maserati, Jaguar, Range Rover.
Tier 2: Volvo, Saab, Lincoln, Infiniti, Lower BMW, Lower Audi, Lower Mercedes, Acura, Buick, Pontiac G8/Holden. Saturn (barely, now that it is Opel USA), Land Rover. Alfa Romeo, if it comes to US.
Tier 3: Toyota, Honda, Chevrolet, Pontiac, Hyundai, Kia, Ford/Mercury, Subaru, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep.
Tier 4: China, India, and other developing countries cars, like Tata Nano.
Mind the Gap: VW planning another sedan to slot in between Passat CC and Phaeton {Autoblog}
Jan 17th 2008 11:03AM Because Hyundai does not have a luxury brand that it is duplicating with it's main line brand.
Hyundai is just getting better, and offering more for less. Ironically, that is what capitalists usually do, when things are going the way they should.
VW, on the other hand, is the most everyday brand VAG has in the US. It is supposed to appeal to the masses. That is what Volkswagen means in german. People's vehicle.
Audi, formerly Auto Union, was and still is more upscale. Why does VW feel the need to duplicate luxury vehicles?
Not only that, but now VAG has lots of premium brands, including Lamborghini, Bentley, and Bugatti. What are they going to do next? a VW supercar as an alternative to the Veyron?
It makes no sense, regardless of whether the Phaeton or CC is a good car. The brand image doesn't support it. People constantly wonder why these cars aren't Audis, or why VW feels the need to compete with Audi on Audi's turf.
Hyundai doesn't have that same problem of stepping on its own toes. It just has to change it's image with the public, which is probably why Genesis is taking first billing, and the Hyundai badges aren't as bold (and missing from the front end.) as they try to blur the lines between make and model branding. Note that the Genesis is not branded as a Kia. Then it might share the same confusion as the VW products...
