Things are looking dire at Korea's Ssangyong Motors, which, as you might recall, was unable to make payroll last week due to a total lack of cash on hand. The sordid tale continues this week as Ssangyong's largest creditor, Korea Development Bank (KDB), suggests that it will simply liquidate the automaker if Shanghai Automotive Industries China, otherwise known as SAIC, isn't willing to prop up it
Autoblog has had a spectacular 2008 and we hope the past 365 days has been as equally rewarding for you. The auto industry itself, however, has suffered through a miserable '08 and will probably be toasting its conclusion when the ball drops at midnight. While the year began mild enough, summer brought $4/gallon gasoline that highlighted the relatively weak small car and hybrid lineup that our own domestic automakers are working feverishly to fix. And then the long-festering mortgage crisis turn
Studying history can be a tiresome pursuit, but once in a while something comes completely out of left field to make you sit up and pay attention. This is one of those moments. The Australian national archives have released government documents which reveal that, in 1978, the Australian government was prepared to endorse a deal that would have... wait for it... traded beef for cars. Alfa Romeos, to be precise.
A rear seat that faces backwards. Powered by compressed air. Name like the AirPOD and FlowAIR. A windshield that doubles as the door. There are a lot of hurdles that MDI's compressed air line of vehicles needs to jump before people will consider them "real" cars - or at least a solid alternative. At least one North American journalist was recently given the chance to see if riding in a prototype
Some people we'll just never understand. Like those who'll look at a high-performance sports car and ask, "But where are you going to drive it?" Or the cops in Scottsdale, Arizona, who have given a speeding ticket to Danica Patrick yet again.
In 2004, China set up an official government body to regulate the business of automobile recalls. Previous to that, some car companies simply wouldn't recall faulty vehicles due to the lack of regulation. The head of that official body recently announced that in the four years it has been tracking recalls, there have been 1.84 million vehicles that needed a little more work done.
Click above for more high-res shots of the Piaggio MP3 hybrid
Click above the view a gallery of this custom convertible BMW 850i
Mercedes-Benz is hard at work on the replacement for its mid-range E Class line-up, as these spy shots snapped in snow-capped Finland suggest, cunningly camouflaged in white paint to blend in with its surroundings.
