Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com Autoblog http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.autoblog.com/media/feedlogo.gif Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com en-us Copyright 2009 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Yep, trolls are ugly: Brazil's Troller Pantanal]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2007/08/23/yep-trolls-are-ugly-brazils-troller-pantanal/http://www.autoblog.com/2007/08/23/yep-trolls-are-ugly-brazils-troller-pantanal/http://www.autoblog.com/2007/08/23/yep-trolls-are-ugly-brazils-troller-pantanal/#commentsFiled under:


In all fairness, we know there is a designer out there who felt his or her work met the requirements for the design brief: Keep it simple, stupido. The obvious emphasis of this Brazilian appliance is to haul stuff in a no-frills manner. The Troller Pantanal is a functional full-size pickup that does look rugged enough to get almost any job done. With an International 3.0-liter common-rail turbodiesel underhood and dent-resistant plastic panels all around, it definitely screams function over form, which is what you want in a cheap utility vehicle like a pickup truck. And yet, there appears to be some attempt at making it look a little flashier than just the basics, and that's where things seem to go wrong. The extra bits of style slapped on might actually keep people away from this decent truck, which seems a little counterintuitive if you are trying to sell them. Perhaps it's just a clever theft-deterrent system.

[Source: Winding Road]

Yep, trolls are ugly: Brazil's Troller Pantanal originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 23 Aug 2007 19:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>BrazilTroller PantanalTrollerPantanalThu, 23 Aug 2007 19:34:00 EST<![CDATA[Ford trolling for new Brazilian products]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2006/11/13/ford-trolling-for-new-brazilian-products/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/11/13/ford-trolling-for-new-brazilian-products/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/11/13/ford-trolling-for-new-brazilian-products/#commentsFiled under: , ,



Ford operates three factories in Brazil where it has a 12% market share. According to a Detroit News article in July, 20% of Ford's 2005 worldwide profit came from its Brazilian operations. But it looks like hefty competition from the usual suspects (Honda, GM, Toyota) have the Blue Oval looking for new product. Thus it's no surprise that Ford of Brazil is in buyout talks with Brazilian automaker Troller Veiculos Especias, Reuters reported Friday.

Troller was founded in 1997 and with its 500 employees turns out about 100 vehicles a month. The company makes two models, the very Jeep Wrangler-like T4 (shown above) and the Pantanal pickup. Both are powered by a 160 HP, four-cylinder, 3-liter, common rail, International turbo-diesel. No word yet on when the deal might conclude or how much it would be worth.

[Source: Reuters via Yahoo, with information from The Detroit News]

Continue reading Ford trolling for new Brazilian products

Ford trolling for new Brazilian products originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 13 Nov 2006 17:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>BrazilFord BrazilFord buying TrollerFord of BrazilFord TrollerFordBrazilFordBuyingTrollerFordOfBrazilFordTrollerPantanalTrollerTroller of BrazilTroller PantanalTroller sale to FordTroller T4TrollerOfBrazilTrollerPantanalTrollerSaleToFordTrollerT4Mon, 13 Nov 2006 17:54:00 EST