TTAC News Round-up: Let's Get Political, Political; Maven is Here; Ignition Lawsuit Changes Direction

President Barack Obama ran a victory lap in Detroit because the bailout worked.

That, GM’s Maven goes beyond “The Tipping Point,” the ignition switch trial takes a turn for the weird, and more Obama … after the break!

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NAIAS 2016: Volkswagen Tiguan GTE Active is a Plug-In Apology

Volkswagen unveiled a new plug-in hybrid concept for the Tiguan, featuring more aggressive styling than the standard model launched in Frankfurt. Interestingly, Volkswagen has positioned the gas-electric CUV as a more fun-to-drive truck than the standard vehicle.

In other words, it’s a Tiguan Trailhawk.

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Honda Civic, Volvo XC90 Take Home North American COTY, TUOTY Honors
The Civic, now in its tenth generation, is built in Indiana and Ontario. The XC90 is manufactured in Torslanda, Sweden.
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NAIAS 2016: Buick Avista Concept - This Is It!

Buick, eager to shed its geriatric image, has at least pulled out a few stops preceding the 2016 North American International Auto Show.

It’s no Grand National, but it is a sporty coupe. Avista is its name, and it packs a 400 horsepower wallop under its hood thanks to the same 3-liter twin-turbocharged V-6 that’s tipped for duty in the 2017 LaCrosse.

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Kia Telluride Picks up Where Chrysler Aspen Left Off

Kia announced Friday that its upcoming concept, to debut at the North American International Auto Show next week, will be named Telluride — continuing the long, illustrious history of vehicles being named after places in the state of Colorado.

If you buy vehicles based on solely their names and currently own a Chrysler Aspen, this is your next luxury SUV.

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The 2017 Lincoln Continental Has Different Headlights, Needs More Pixels

An early leak of the 2017 Lincoln Continental has popped up online at FordInsideNews.com (via AutoGuide) ahead of its reveal at the North American International Auto Show next week.

If the picture is to be believed, it appears Lincoln has kept to most of its promises, short of the LED headlights — which may or may not be on higher trims.

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Here's The 2017 Porsche 911 Turbo Coupe and Cabriolet - Wait, Aren't They All Turbos Now?

Proving that all turbo Porsches aren’t created equal, Porsche announced Tuesday its eye-wateringly expensive 911 Turbo and 911 Turbo S hardtop and droptop versions that make up to 580 horsepower and dropkick the car from 0-60 mph in under 3 seconds.

In the trunk is Porsche’s 3.8-liter flat-six married to twin turbochargers that spin up 540 horsepower in the Turbo and 580 hp in the Turbo S (20 more than the outgoing models). The Turbo produces 523 pound-feet of twist (553 pound-feet on overboost in the Turbo S) on the way up to its 7,000 rpm redline (7,200 in the Turbo S). Porsche didn’t directly specify its gearbox, but it’s a pretty safe bet that the new 911 Turbo will only come with a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic because of course it will.

Both cars for the first time feature a quasi-antilag turbo system that reduces delay from the turbos by interrupting the fuel injection during changes in throttle position, according to the automaker.

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What We Missed in the News, Post-LA Auto Show Edition

While we were hanging outside the Staples Center begging passersby for photos, information and leftover shrimp from the Los Angeles Auto Show to share with you all (well, maybe not the shrimp), there was still news happening that we didn’t get the chance to cover.

So, here it is in condensed form.

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Chevrolet Impalas Going Quickly in South Korea

Buyers in South Korea have flocked to order the Chevrolet Impala by requesting more than 3,000 of the full-size sedans, which is two to three times higher than expected, BusinessKorea is reporting.

The higher-than-expected draw in South Korea is part of a larger trend; according to the BBC, just around 6,000 cars were imported in 2000. In 2014, more than 196,000 cars were imported into the country, although many of those were European luxury models.

GM Korea forecasted 4,000 to 5,000 Impala models would be sold by the end of 2015, but Korean buyers are ordering 200 cars per day, which would exhaust their supply within one month.

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Hantz Woodlands - A Tree Grows (Actually It's More Like 20,000) In Detroit

This story isn’t about cars, it’s about Detroit. One of the nice things about writing for this site is the freedom we have to explore topics not specifically about automobiles.

Of course, the simple truth is anything significant that affects the city of Detroit will, sooner or later, have an impact on the auto industry. Over on the east side, not that far from the infamous ruins of the Packard plant, the city is literally being regrown from the roots up.

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Chart Of The Day: America's 15 Best-Selling American Vehicles In The First Half Of 2015

Remember when the U.S. auto industry was very much an American auto industry? No? I don’t, either.

But there was a time when an American car was an American car because it was made by an American car company in America.

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Mexico, Southeastern US Besting Canada, Detroit In Auto Manufacturing

Despite being unified on the trading front, Mexico and the Southeastern United States are besting Canada and Detroit in the automotive industry game.

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General Motors Announcing Entry Into Stationary Energy Storage Next Week

Forging a different path than rival Tesla, General Motors will announce its entry into the stationary energy storage market next Tuesday.

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Why Does the Packard Plant Have a Bridge Anyhow?

The Packard bridge today.

You may have seen the news that the developer who hopes to renovate the decrepit Packard plant site on Detroit’s east side has covered the factory’s signature bridge over East Grand Blvd in a scrim that reproduces the look of the bridge during the plant’s heyday in the 1930s. I’m sure that you’ve seen dozens of photos of one of Detroit’s more notorious landmarks, but have you ever wondered just why a car factory had a bridge?

That bridge was actually part of Packard’s assembly line.

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Packard Plant Pedestrian Bridge Wrapped In 1930s Glory For Next Year

In shambles with the rest of the property, the pedestrian bridge at the Packard Plant in Detroit is now wrapped in its 1930s glory for the next year.

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