Recent Comments:
Rumormill: 350 hp Volvo C30 R in the works {Autoblog}
Jul 23rd 2008 12:57AM After driving a 2007 Honda Fit Sport for 6 months, I traded it in on a 2004 R w/ 6-speed tranny. With 18" rims and summer high performance tires, this car pulls and rails like the Acela at full throttle. It is seriously nailed down and chomps at the bit with 4C suspension (500inputs/second), and 300lb/horse&295lb/torque. I haven't even played with ECM or downpipe/exhaust upgrade to push it over 400hp. It is such a pleasant drive, with the bespoke Atacama leather interior. There is fine detail in the interior of car: My neighbors with a new 2008 Audi A6 feel their interior is mass produced and "old man" looking. The R interior color scheme was designed from a show motorcycle. Even the twin exhaust outlets are angled to look like the sawed off shotgun in Pulp Fiction. How cool is that? I've clocked 5.4 to 60, & hitting the 4 caliber 14" Brembos all-the-way-around, puts you right down to zero. Boring Volvo R? This has to be one of the best saloon vehicles ever made.
Spy Shots: 2009 Ford F-450 Harley-Davidson Edition {Autoblog}
Jul 3rd 2008 7:14AM AngeloD => you are blindly wrong here, and need to wake up! EVERYONE knows Ford ignored the fact their models were melting the ice caps, and providing NO alternatives in efficient and earth friendly vehicles. They spend MILLIONS lobbying against CAFE regulations, and it worked! The wake up call was in 1974! How could they claim ignorance of the facts...you actually bought the excuse they had just miscalculating? They make more money on big unsophisticated truck platforms that cost over 30k and aren't subjected to passenger car regulations. Do you get it now? Here say this phrase: "MORE MONEY is what they want. Not a frozen North Pole." Toyota developed a whole line of cheap economical cars off their Tercel and put it out as a SCION brand in 2005...that means they were planning this in 1997? You think they knew something Ford didn't? Maybe Toyota had a secret crystal ball on the world? Ford didn't care except to make MORE MONEY. Only having 2 products: a Ford Focus, and a Hybrid Escape/Mariner is what they chose. They haven't improved the Focus line-up significantly (since it was introduced in Europe in 1998) with more than a facelift in 10 years, that means they developed it in 1990! What have they been doing since 1990? You think that's NOT enough time to grasp the oil problem, huh? You sound insane to argue for them. GM at least has tried and offers low mileage alternatives to their SUV's and Pickup 12mpg hogs. They had the Aveo, the Matrix, Nova, Saturn S Series & Ion, the Cobalt lines. Honda has been making fuel efficient options for decades, despite their newer gas guzzling Pilot, Odessey, Element, and Ridgeline. What does Ford have? A 2 decade old Focus. And you as a cheerleader. "Oh, Hurrah Ford!" What is wrong with you for being so stupidly faithful? Just look around you on the highways, would you? Everyday, I drive to work, amongst 10,000's of cars in Boston, and I see ONE driver/vehicle. And many are in Ford Explorers, Expeditions, F150's because Ford made it possible. And now two new guzzlers, the Flex and a Super-duty 450. What is wrong with people like you?
A gentler tap - IIHS suggests car bumper standards for light trucks {Autoblog}
Jul 2nd 2008 3:46PM Can this be any more obvious? I always said that ANY SUV, Pickup, Work truck registered in a city where primarily passenger cars travel, should pay a $500 surcharge on their insurance per year. Work vehicles that have offset bumpers cause $1,000's of dollars in accidents. On the farm, in the suburbs, I don't care. But when you're in dense passenger car areas, they should have to pay for their obvious battering ram guilt. But do you think big business would fight for this? No, they would rather surcharge the passenger car drivers for being in costly accidents. The body shop and parts industry is so gleeful at the present situation, it's extortion. If a car/truck's bumper cannot withstand a 5mph collision from the front and rear, it should not be legal, or be surcharged. Period. I lost a Shelby 2dr coupe and a 280ZX being rammed by a Mitsubishi Rodeo and a POS Chevy Silverado. Minimal damage to both ramming vehicles, and total of my sweet sports cars. I also had the pleasure (sic) of coming out to my parked 1970 restored Alfa Spyder to find the MIDDLE of the aluminum hood total depressed into the cam cover from a pickup who parallel parked "by feel." Nice. What is wrong with this country when such obvious wastes of money and time aren't regulated by the government because business doesn't give a damn and even makes serious MONEY off our losses?
First Drive: 2009 Ford Flex Limited AWD {Autoblog}
Jul 2nd 2008 2:29PM Great! Just what we need from the Ford line-up: A 4400lb station wagon that gets 16mpg in the city. Nice planning, huh? Meanwhile, Honda upgrades its Fit and can't make enough of them. Note to Ford: You lost. Where's your Fit, where's your Prius? The re-warmed Focus is a sorry pathetic entry for a fuel sipper in your lineup of bloated vehicles. What were you thinking 5, 6, 7 years ago? No sympathy from anyone, you dug your own grave.
UPDATE: GM sold more in 2007 than Toyota {Autoblog}
Jan 25th 2008 11:20AM Yes, it isn't usually good to buck the trend, but I have two words for that, "buy Ford." They're doing all the right things and at 6.5/share it's not going much lower.
UPDATE: GM sold more in 2007 than Toyota {Autoblog}
Jan 24th 2008 8:21AM Good for GM, and good for me. I bought their stock at 18 in jan 06 because it was low, and it is one of the biggest manufacturers in the world. Naysayers and Autobloggers were predicting the end of GM, gleefully. I've made so much money off the peaks that hit near 40, that I'm quite comfortable. Say what you want, they sell vehicles, a lot of them.
For all the acrimony spewed at GM on here, it's also to their credit they are #1 in customer loyalty, again, a continued crown for held for the past 7 years. That's of all auto manufacturers, Toyota, Mercedes, BMW, Ford, Chrysler, Nissan, Suzuki, Volkswagon...all the marques with very vocal fans. #1.
GM considering small, premium MINI-fighter? {Autoblog}
Jan 11th 2008 11:18AM Don't you mean to say it should be AWD to compete as a luxury car in this class? Rear wheel drive isn't the standard at all, as you imply, there are mostly FWD with AWD optional. The 1 Series was first offered to the market in 2004...is the only rear-wheel drive in its class.
Presentation is Everything: gift-wrapping a car {Autoblog}
Dec 20th 2007 8:03AM Pretty paper, too bad it's not an Enclave, on my wish list!
Detroit Preview: Mitsubishi to unleash Concept-RA {Autoblog}
Nov 28th 2007 9:10AM Finally! Mitsubishi has been lagging in design for almost 2 decades. Their autos and SUV's are a joke in the design world, and performance aside in the EVO, the Lancer is the low water mark for good style. The current Lancer is a high water mark for ugly. It makes the new Focus and last 2 gen Sentras look acceptible and classy. Let's hope this design saves the Mitsu brand and permeates all levels of their auto building.
Outrage expressed over Harry Connick Jr.'s Lincoln ad {Autoblog}
Nov 17th 2007 4:44PM what? who is injured here? "outrage" is a strong word. were these PC'ers outraged at Tiger Woods ad where he's waving in a Rendezvous? what about all the songwriters and performers who do the song jingles and sell them to car mfr's. the beatles? the 5th dimension? are we outraged yet? never belittle someone for how he has to make a living in this country. there are no handouts for being green and naive. make your money and leave others alone. now if you want to have a cause, get car ads banned since they're damaging to the world and health of humans, like cig and liquor ads. but harry is one of the most kind community minded people in show biz. his pay is probably all going to some N.O.'s rebuilding charity.
