CarDomain Slams TTAC

by Justin Berkowitz

August 29th, 2008 10:22 AM

After Captain Mike today posted that he was having a difficult time merely test driving a Challenger SRT8 before putting down his hard-earned cash to buy one, not everyone was sympathetic. In fact, Jen Dunnaway – the editor of the blog section over at CarDomain.com – thinks we're a bunch of whiners/cry babies.

"Sour grapes of the day: The Truth About Cars has been begging Mopar for a Challenger test car, only to be outraged by the fact that "Chrysler LLC refuses to acknowledge TTAC's existence." Gee, why would a domestic automaker do that? Maybe because all TTAC does is spew hate and vitriol for the Detroit automakers, loudly delight in their every misfortune, and smack their lips in gleeful anticipation of the collapse of our nation's auto industry? Obviously Ma Mopar hasn't heard the one about keeping your enemies closer—and TTAC, after being further thwarted from even taking a regular-joe dealership test drive, decided that the Challenger isn't really that big a deal after all.

[For the purposes of this thread, TTAC's normal restrictions on discussing the site's mission and/or biases are lifted.]

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4 of 64 comments

Mokers on Aug 29, 2008
This is so far wide of the mark as to require some form of comment. The vehicles coming out of Detroit right now are of a consistently high standard - independent research backs that. Fuel economy is up with the leaders if not leading, Ford has more vehicles with 5* safety ratings than anyone else. To suggest that the hard working people at Ford, GM and Chrysler have given up competing is quite ridiculous and does a huge disservice to some very stressed but passionate people who are in the process of turning these companies around. The vehicles coming out of Detroit are not at a consistently high standard. There are many cars from Detroit that can compete with the best of what Honda and Toyota bring, but you can't honestly look at Chrysler and say that the Sebrings and Calibers they churn out are a high standard. GM has done a fantastic job with the Malibu, and I bet people here would love if they came out with more cars like that instead of sending re-badged Korean cars to battle the Fit and Yaris and the Cobalt to battle the Civic and Corolla. And even then, most people think GM can compete. The main axe to grind is that Rick Wagoner is running the company into the ground, but nobody seems to want to do anything about it. Ford also has some nice cars that compete, but have admitted to many mistakes regarding their product mix. Again, I think most people here hope they do well. They see world-beating products Ford builds in Europe and hopes they get built here. I say TTAC should continue to do what it does. I wouldn't have written the news item in this way. Perhaps they should interview Ms. Dunnaway and grant her an interview as well. Make the transcripts available as well.

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Blautens on Aug 29, 2008

As much as I love this site (and I really, really do), I'm not sure anything posted on cardomain.com about this site is worth commenting on. Maybe that's just me. Were it my baby, so to speak, perhaps I'd feel different, though.

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DrBiggly on Aug 29, 2008

The person she rode along with during OneLap this past year is my good friend Steven Rankins. I went to the VIR section of that event and helped out both Jon K...and well Steven didn't need any help, but I brought him some of his favorite potato chips. The important part being that of the action that happened at VIR, she was conspicuously absent for. I'm sure she heard plenty about it in the transit section to the next track (I think it was Beaverun). Despite that, her review of the day's events and drama were in the same vein as her review of the Challenger: Weak sauce. Never did get the chance to talk to her while I was there, but she did wander around a bit without saying much and hiding behind what I refer to as the 'hater blocker' sized sunglasses. I hadn't yet thought much of her due to her amazingly simple and really incomplete coverage of what is a seriously packed event. I'm still underwhelmed. -Biggly

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SexCpotatoes on Aug 29, 2008

Bravo, Robert, on extending her an invite (unedited at that) to address the so called "import bias" that some say is apparent here at TTAC. That's what makes this site one of the absolute greatest sites about cars on the internet, the fact that, ANYONE can pen an article and submit it. As long as it has some merit, I'm sure you'd publish it, even if it was contrary to your personal opinion about a company. But no one can spin this $#*@ into gold, the ship has sailed, and it's already sunk, the only question is when it'll slide off of the iceberg it's impaled itself on and finally slip beneath the waves. The majority at TTAC don't want to see that happen, but there is no alternative. Years ago Farago, you even published a damned good plan for saving GM! Pontiac for sports cars, Chevy for entry level, first car, college grads, Cadillac world's premier luxury sedan, Buick as the perfectly tailored old person's car. Had they heeded this back then, and instituted the sweeping changes they needed to, perhaps they'd be thriving by now. Anyone who accuses TTAC of having an anti-American slant is just blowing smoke. Anyone who accuses TTAC of having an anti-mismanagement/theft of taxpayers' or investors' monies/stupidity/vaporware/etc. stance would be spot on.

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