New Car Reviews, Ratings & Pricing, Auto News for New Models

Capsule Review: 1970 911 Porsche 2.2S

By Robert Farago
November 18th, 2008 - 1,047 views

In 1965 Porsche introduced the 901, the 2-plus-2 successor to the 356. The car, designed by Butzi Porsche in 1963, wasn’t a clean sheet or revolutionary design. Even so, Porsche later changed the name to the iconic 911 due to a dispute with Peugeot, which claimed ownership to all cars with “0″ as the middle digit.The early 911s were under-powered and gasp… underdeveloped until they lengthened the wheelbase in 1969, and gave it more power.The extra grunt arrived in 1970 via increased displacement, in the form of the 2.2-liter engine.

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Posted in Capsule Reviews | News Blog | 20 comments

While America Slept. Tuesday, November 18, 2008

By Bertel Schmitt
November 18th, 2008 - 1,061 views

While America Slept (WAS) is a morning round-up of the news that happened in other continents and time-zones while America was tossing and turning. From Japan to Jakarta, a network of sleep-deprived TTAC correspondents provides round-the-clock coverage of everything that has wheels. Or that has its wheels coming off. Here are the latest animals in TTAC’s morning zoo.

Ford dumps Mazda. Tormented U.S. automaker Ford Motor Co may announce plans to sell a 20 percent stake in long-time affiliate Mazda Motor Corp as early as today, Japan’s Nikkei business daily (sub) reported as the sun rose in the land of the rising sun. Japanese broadcaster NHK had reported more than a month ago that Ford is looking to severely lighten-up on Mazda. Currently, Ford has a controlling stake of 33.4 percent in the Japanese automaker, but Ford needs the cash.

Sell-off drives up shares: Selling a 20 percent stake will net Ford around $850 million, or more. Mazda’s shares jumped 6.4 percent on the report of Ford’s sell-off. The estranged lovers share vehicle platforms and engineering resources and own several assembly plants together in the United States, Thailand and China. With Ford out of control at Mazda, those plants should receive some Japanese gardening.

Deal done. Later in the Japanese day, Mazda sent out an official release confirming the story. It’s in Japanese, but a usually reliable source (my Japanese wife) says it’s the real McCoy-San. Ford is down to 13 percent. Kawaii!

GM-Europe-VP: “The end may not be near.” Brent Dewar, multipurpose VP for Sales, Marketing, and After-Sales at GM Europe penned an inspirational letter to dealers: “As bad as the current results may sound, we don’t know whether we already have reached the end of the crisis.” Autohaus has a copy. From his bunker in Zurich, Dewar commands his sales forces to “fight to the last sale.”

And that WASn’t all, there’s …
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Posted in Media | News Blog | WAS | 12 comments

New Ford Mustang

By Robert Farago
November 17th, 2008 - 2,026 views

Posted in New Cars | News Blog | 44 comments

Bailout Watch 205: GM Blackmails Dealers

By Edward Niedermeyer
November 17th, 2008 - 2,381 views

Detroit’s slow-mo meltdown has been rife with tipping points for years now. As bad decisions piled upon bad luck, we’ve seen the signs become increasingly ominous. The light at the end of the tunnel has become so faint now that each new misstep comes hard on the heels of the previous one, each taking on ever more existential significance. Perhaps though, we have reached a new low in the news coming out of GM today, as Automotive News [sub] reports that GM will delay incentive payments of $302.4m to its dealers for two weeks. If this decision was made based on GM’s liquidity crisis, it means that GM can’t come up with $300m until December 11: A stuffed stocking of not good. On the other hand, if it’s another twisted ploy to generate political support for a bailout, it’s some inspired stuff. Based on the letter (after the jump) sent by GM VP of Marketing Mark LaNeve, it’s looking like a little of both. After all, blackmail has always been a crime of desperation. (more…)

Posted in Bailout Watch | Dealer News | Incentives | News Blog | 34 comments

Ford “Temporarily” Idles Nine Plants

By Robert Farago
November 17th, 2008 - 901 views

WardsAuto.com reports that Ford is following up on its pledge to cut fourth quarter production by, wait for it, 211k units. That’s a 35 percent drop from year-ago manufacturing levels. To implement the cuts, FoMoCo is “temporarily” idling nine plants:Louisville, KY; St. Paul, MN; Oakville and St. Thomas, ON, Canada; Kansas City, MO; Avon Lake, OH; Flat Rock and Wayne, MI; and Hermosillo, Mexico. In terms of the who what when where and for how long and how much longer than normal, and whether or not people are getting paid to work (jobs bank-wise), Ford spokesfolk Angie Kozleski was slightly… vague. “In terms of down weeks, some may have been scheduled and some are new,” says Kozleski. “But we’ll continue to adjust production capacity to demand.” True enough, but it’s not the most reassuring thing a spinmeister has ever said.

Posted in Chapter 11 | News Blog | 14 comments

Chrysler Fought Reality And Reality Lost

By Edward Niedermeyer
November 17th, 2008 - 1,149 views

We’ve had a few confused comments on the Dodge EV vs. Challenger “drag race” video, so we thought we’d fill in some details. And post something between Bailout Watches. First of all, the stunt was choreographed by Chrysler. ENVI President Lou Rhodes is behind the wheel of the Dodge EV while a weak-ankled Chrysler employee handles a Challenger 6.1 with octegenarian restraint. Clearly this was intended as a PR two-fer. Chrysler gets to show off its Tesla wannabe and its muscle car, while giving the LA Times the opportunity to write about how Chrysler’s EVs and EREVs are the future. And clearly the point was to give the Challenger the fuzzy end of the lollypop in order to show just how advanced the Chrysler EV program is. Maybe next time they could be a little more convincing. The video doesn’t so much make the Dodge EV look like a muscle-car-beating dynamo, as it makes the Challenger look like a secretary special. The LA Times’ Dan Neil admits that the Challenger was launched in second gear in both runs, and that it “seems to let up” on the second run. Nobody will say for sure if it was a lift-off or an audio effect caused by the rev limiter. Regardless of the actual details, the real point of these video stunts is to look cool, and it’s in this crucial consideration that the video really lets down. Had the Challenger sat on the starting line, dramaticaly gasifying its tires while the EV scooted to victory, the PR “message” would have remained the same and it would have looked a lot better. As it went down, the stunt looked staged and neither car came out looking heroic. Better luck next time.

Posted in News Blog | Whiskey Tango Foxtrot | 13 comments

New Audi: A2 Brute?

By Martin Schwoerer
November 17th, 2008 - 1,420 views

When they built it, from 1999 to 2005, the Audi A2 was a flop. Lots of Euro-car nuts like me loved it: a sub-Golf sized, lightweight (900kg), aluminum bodied four seater with great aerodynamics (CW 0.25). Its interior was beautiful and high-quality, it was quiet and it handled well. Ideal for city driving yet happy on the autobahn. This car was worlds ahead of the competition and left the Merc A-Class in the dust. I remember renting one TDI model with but 75 horses that felt happy and smoothe at 110 mph; I drove the hell out of it for a few hundred miles and still got 38 mpg. 50mpg was reported to be easy to attain. But the market hated it. It was pricey, and with gas prices low, it only looked like a sensible buy to tree-huggers. And the looks… the Bauhausian, spartan, slimline styling I loved was judged to be week-kneed and feminine.

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Posted in New Cars | News Blog | 18 comments

Bailout Watch 204: Freep Loves Them Some Bailout pt. 2

By Edward Niedermeyer
November 17th, 2008 - 708 views

I think it’s about time to dub Freep the official home of pro-bailout agitprop. When you make the Detroit News look like it’s being run by H.L. Mencken’s Tabasco-marinated ulcer, it’s time to rethink your priorities. Or adopt the tagline “fair and balanced.” Anyway, the Freep’s unabashed Detroit boosterism is reaching a fever pitch, with everyone capable of wielding subject and predicate pitching in for the noble cause of disguising self interest as principle. From old standby (and former Cassandra) Mark Phelan, to financial columnist Susan Tompor, to a condescending missive by the Freep’s editorial board, the latest issue rotates faster than a Baghdad Bob interview in Spin magazine. Let’s pop a Dramamine and take a look, shall we? (more…)

Posted in Bailout Watch | News Blog | 15 comments

Tesla Death Watch 37: Number 16 Delivered

By Robert Farago
November 17th, 2008 - 1,452 views

We’ve often wondered how many cars Tesla has actually delivered to paying customers. The company claims there are some 60 cars out there, somewhere. Well, thanks to Jason Calacanis’ patience over the last two years, we can now bring you this update: 16. Well, at least 16, as Jason has just taken delivery of Roadster number 16 (says so right on the VIN plate). But wait! That’s number 16 after the “Founders’ Series” of 27 Roadsters. So that would be… 43! But wait! Calacanis says the numbers aren’t delivered sequentially. His is 16, but, ’cause he asked for special paint job, cars with higher VIN numbers may have been delivered earlier. Anyway, after an intro that makes the opening credits of the original Batman series seem like a subliminal message, the 169th edition of TWIT (This Week in Technology) reveals all. Calacanis describes the prototype Tesla four-door as an Aston Martin combined with a Porsche and a Maserati, and says Tesla’s problems are now behind it. Which probably means they’re dead ahead.

Posted in News Blog | Tesla Death Watch | 28 comments

Michigan: Police Chiefs Admit Traffic Enforcement is for Revenue

By The Newspaper
November 17th, 2008 - 1,209 views

Dwindling property tax revenue has forced local governments in Michigan to look to motorists to refill their municipal budgets, according to a Detroit News analysis. In 2002, the city of Detroit issued a total of 126,007 traffic tickets. Last year, that figure grew to 245,249– a 94 percent jump. The percentage increase was even greater in small towns like Plymouth, which saw the number of tickets skyrocket from 440 to 2,584 — up 487 percent — over the same period. “When I first started in this job thirty years ago, police work was never about revenue enhancement,” Utica Police Chief Michael Reaves told the DetN. “But if you’re a chief now, you have to look at whether your department produces revenues. That’s just the reality nowadays.” Utica issued 3540 tickets in 2003 and 5518 in 2007 — a 56 percent increase. A few communities like Pontiac saw ticket revenue decrease in proportion to the number of police laid off, but eighteen jurisdictions overall reported a ticketing increase of more than fifty percent. The National Motorists Association cited Detroit suburbs as home to the worst speed traps in the country.

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Posted in Crime & Punishment | News Blog | 30 comments

Bailout Watch 203: Delphi Rallies the Troops for Bailout Billions

By Robert Farago
November 17th, 2008 - 502 views

Subject: “PLEASE CONTACT YOUR ELECTED OFFICIALS IN WASHINGTON ASAP”

Delphi has been a part of the successful effort by auto suppliers in the U.S. to assure they are eligible for some of the $25 billion in direct, low interest federal loans to be used by the auto industry to accelerate development of advanced technology vehicles in the U.S. Auto companies and suppliers are now applying for these funds, which won’t be available anytime soon.

But with the U.S. auto industry hit at every level by the global financial crisis, Delphi’s Detroit-based customers are now asking the federal government for further help that can be made available immediately, help that is critical to the industry’s survival. Chrysler, Ford and General Motors are reaching out to their suppliers and other stakeholders for additional help, asking that Delphi and others contact Members of Congress.

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Posted in News Blog | 4 comments

The Now-Obligatory Between Bailout Posts More Car-Related Post: New Eibach Springs!

By Robert Farago
November 17th, 2008 - 406 views

“Be it a famous Hollywood actor or pop star: anyone who is in the spotlight has to keep an eye on their fitness. Eibach have sent the latest VI version of the 26-time ‘millionaire’ VW Golf - one of the best selling cars of all times - to the gym: here, if desired, the Pro-Kit Performance Springs or the slightly ’shorter’ Sportline Sport Springs can lower the centre of gravity of the car.”

Posted in News Blog | Tuners | 7 comments

Bailout Watch 202: Requiem For A Strip And Flip

By Edward Niedermeyer
November 17th, 2008 - 745 views

One point on which the mainstream motor press has always agreed with TTAC is skepticism towards Cerberus’ claim that it doesn’t intend on “stripping and flipping” Chrysler. It’s been conventional wisdom since the Cerberus purchase was announced, and it makes perfect sense. They got ChryCo for a song, so why not break it up and sell? It’s what private equity does, and like a new Sebring, Chrysler is definitely not worth more than the sum of its parts. Well, we were wrong. Maybe. Bloomberg reports today that Cerberus has agreed to give up any profit on a future sale of Chrysler LLC should the company receive federal financial aid. Of course, this is classic bailout fodder, the proverbial spoonful of sugar to make the federal equity position go down smoothly with taxpayers. Chrysler is at a huge disadvantage in bailout wranglings, thanks to its ownership by a secretive private equity fund, and several pro-bailout commentators have already suggested throwing Chrysler to the wolves. Want some hard-hitting analysis on this revelation? “This is a sign they need the money and are willing to do anything to get it,” says Dennis Virag, president of Automotive Consulting Group in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Ya think? Cerberus forswearing profit on a future sale is a metaphor-defying repudiation of everything everyone has assumed about the New Chrysler project. It can only mean that Cerberus would lose even more money breaking Chrysler up and selling its parts than by limping along on a ‘bring and a prayer. Oh yeah, and a federal equity position.

Posted in Bailout Watch | News Blog | 18 comments

Bailout Watch, German Edition, Fünf: A Summit Without Sums

By Bertel Schmitt
November 17th, 2008 - 602 views

While managers and union leaders of Opel and GM-Europe had a crisis summit with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and her ministers at the Kanzleramt, the drumbeat of “disentanglement” of Opel from GM picked up a steady rhythm. On Saturday, it was just whispers being picked up by TTAC from German contacts. On Sunday, it was press reports that openly discussed to jettison the Opel lifeboat from the sinking mothership. Today, everybody says it was their idea. Even Opel managers, who were just privately grumbling before, are outing themselves: “Managers at Opel would ideally like to see the unit spun-off from GM, a move which would decisively disentangle the company from the financial and political dramas unfolding in Detroit,” writes Germany’s news magazine Der Spiegel. “German politicians and union leaders like Armin Schild also support the idea. Schild declared on Monday that GM must “let Opel go free.” Free, but where, and how?

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Posted in Germany | News Blog | 11 comments

Editorial: General Motors Death Watch 214: Whose Car Company is This Anyway?

By Robert Farago
November 17th, 2008 - 3,255 views

In the legend of Faust, the protagonist sells his soul to the Devil in exchange for knowledge and power. Needless to say, things end badly for one member of the transaction (hint: it’s not the guy with the horns on his head). A “Faustian bargain” has come to mean a deal where you surrender what’s truly important to achieve an ultimately worthless goal. Yes, I’m talking about GM. If the artist once known as the world’s largest automaker avoids Chapter 11 via a bailout deal with Washington (a.k.a. Mephistopheles), the contract will ensure its final, irretrievable doom.