Ford Launches Pop-Up Stores To Crack Bay Area Market

Over a year after the last domestic car dealership left San Francisco, Ford is hoping to gain a foothold in the Bay Area again with a series of “pop-up” showrooms.

“Pop-up” shops are short-term retail spaces located in trendy areas – often times, the temporary nature of the store is also a way to have some presence in an area where a long-term rental agreement would be too expensive. And in a market like San Fransico, where rents are sky high and local consumers are firmly in the “import camp”, a pop-up showroom might not be such a bad idea.

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Review: 2013 Ford Escape Titanium

The VW Tiguan is strong but soft. The Mazda CX-5 is firm but weak. Might the new Ford Escape combine their strengths while avoiding their weaknesses?

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Capsule Review: 2013 Ford Shelby GT500

Jackie is the first girl to fawn over the Shelby GT500 once it’s in my hands. Hadn’t expected that; make no mistake, it is a dude magnet without exception and the double-X-chromosome crowd usually goes for something cuter. Jackie appears to be the exception, so far. She’ll tell you she’s a bit of a tomboy. She likes cars, long boarding, and gangsta rap. Tonight, she’s traded her usual, Ralph Lauren-catalog attire (not-so-snug pants, a button up men’s dress shirt) for a dress that can only be described as one yard of Tensor Bandage that somehow made its way out of the factory with a muted floral print.

I’m hardly complaining, though it’s clear that she’s not used to wearing this kind of garment. I tell myself that it’s all because of my strong jawline, cleft chin and thick, flowing locks, but that’s a yarn of self-deception long enough to knit Jackie a twin to the sweater I’m glad she left at home.

It’s the car.

Jackie is comfortable looking at brake calipers and superchargers, but the dress is fighting her attempts to check out the machinery tonight. “Turn around,” she tells me, “I don’t want you to see me adjusting my underwear”.

“That dress is ridiculous.” I’m trying really hard to do the gentlemanly thing and focus on the car.

A pause. I’m facing away from her, but I can imagine her eyes running along the length of the racing stripes that trace the Shelby’s sillhouette. The car isn’t running, but I can hear the crackling and pinging of the cooling drivetrain against the humid, lifeless air of the August night.

“Not as ridiculous as the car,” she replies. “How fast did you say it is?”

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Farley Coy About Re-Naming Lincoln

Is Ford about to re-name the Lincoln brand? A Detroit News reporter asked Jim Farley that question point blank, and his answer was evasive.

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GM's Truck Inventories Keep Rising, Sales Keep Falling

What’s up this month at GM? Inventories of full-size trucks. What’s not? Sales of full-size trucks.

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Chart Of The Day: Channel Stuffing Bonanza

Today’s Chart comes from finance blog Zero Hedge, which has taken a periodic interest in General Motors channel stuffing endeavors. While we don’t normally report on stock prices here at TTAC, this one is worth mentioning.

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General Motors, Channel Stuffing And The Return Of 2008

A lawsuit filed by a Florida investor against General Motors over the age-old practice of “channel stuffing”, or sending inventory to dealers and recording it as a “sale”, so that revenue numbers can be pumped up while the vehicles languish on dealer lots. The practice of channel stuffing is universal in the auto industry, but in this case, the consequences are much broader.

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General Motors Looking To Cut Engine Lineup By 40 Percent, Add CNG Capability

GM’s Dan Akerson spoke to the Chicago Tribune’s editorial board on Thursday, and discussed both compressed natural gas capabilities, and the need to streamline powertrains in the post-bankruptcy era.

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Dodge To Allocate Darts Based On Caliber Sales

Dodge dealers looking to get their hands on the 2013 Dart are in for a bit of a surprise – their allocation of the new compact sedan will be based on how many units of the wretched Caliber they sold before the car was killed off.

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2013 Ford C-Max Undercuts Toyota Prius V By $555

Ford has priced their C-Max MPV with a base sticker of $25,995, or $555 less than its main rival, the Toyota Prius V.

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BRB Driving Police Cars

Today is a busy day. Bertel and Ed are off somewhere plotting their next round of skullduggery, Murilee is prowling the junkyards of Denver for the elusive 1991 Isuzu Impulse AWD, Jack is laid up in bed with an illness certainly caught from his child’s pre-school, Steve and Sajeev are collaborating on their next hit column and I am commiting a cardinal sin according to the Church of Panther…fraternizing with the enemy.

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Chevrolet Orlando Finally Becomes Top Small Minivan In Canada

Back when we reviewed the Chevrolet Orlando, we noted that it had trouble catching up to its chief rivals, the Mazda5 and the Kia Rondo. No longer.

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2014 Chevrolet SS Performance – Great Car, Awful Name. Cadillac ELR Also Coming

Technology blogge r Christopher Price has found out that two all-new 2014 models from GM are coming, thanks to doing some digging around OnStar’s website.

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Cadillac Wagon Here To Stay

Even as the German brands are moving away from wagons and towards freak-of-nature pseudo-crossovers like the BMW 5-Series GT and Audi Allroad, Cadillac is standing by their station wagons – and coupes, for that matter. But there may be some product shuffling involved.

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2013 Dodge Dart Priced At $15,995

Dodge has released pricing for the 2013 Dart compact sedan, and the base SE will go for $15,995. The most expensive R/T model will top out at $22,495.

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  • 3-On-The-Tree Redapple2 I specifically wanted that generation Tundra for the V8. I will not buy any car with a turbo after my ecoboost disaster.
  • 3-On-The-Tree Theflyersfan Agreed There are way too many crazy inconsiderate drivers out there. I dove the Autobahn in Germany after an Iraq pre-deployment train up and the drivers were way more considerate. Plus it’s harder to get a license over there. Not here.
  • Dlc65688410 300SL Gullwing
  • EBFlex Still a garbage, high strung V6 for an engine and not a proper V8, ugly af, and a horrible interior. What were they thinking? This will not help it's lackluster sales.
  • TheEndlessEnigma Some of the PHEV's out there boast CHADEMO connectors, chargers accepting that connection method are almost nonexistent in North America. That has more than a little to do with the issue. That and PHEV's as a whole are offered on only very limited models, not necessarily desirable models either.