#holidays

Hi there. You've probably noticed that it's afternoon Eastern time and there haven't been any posts til now. Normally that would mean we're busy working on the content with the plan of posting in the afternoon, but as you know, we're about to come upon a major holiday.

No, we haven't totally taken off for the Fourth this far in advance. But the schedule will be a little different. Click the jump and I'll explain.

As per usual when faced with a holiday weekend, we are going to be off.

I don't like to say we're "celebrating" Memorial Day, so much as we are honoring those who died serving our country.

We're taking a break from car-related QOTDs today because a) it's almost Christmas and b) I can't think of one, anyway.

It's American Thanksgiving! So we are outta here!

It’s Labo(u)r Day on both sides of the border on Monday, so us hard-working bloggers/writers/editors are taking it easy peasy until Tuesday.

The hellfire of a year that 2020 has been is almost over, and while 2021 likely won’t be a picnic — especially at first, as we wait for the pandemic to abate as vaccines are rolled out — I don’t think too many people are going to miss this year.

Christmas is upon us, and New Year’s Eve is lurking just around the corner. So with that in mind, here’s a look at how we’re operating these next two weeks.

Hear ye, hear ye — we here at TTAC are going into winter break mode. What that means for you is that starting this afternoon and running through New Year’s Day, we’ll be operating at around half-speed.

Now that Halloween has receded from the rear-view mirror, advertisers can really start ramping up their winter-themed commercials.

Automotive companies are particularly heavy handed at pushing advertisements highlighting “the season for giving,” without the accompanying specificity of what that phrase refers to.

It’s never too late to snap up a last-minute gift for your teenager, such as a car. Consumer Reports has nifty practical advice for parents looking to make this Christmas one to remember for their teen — until next Christmas when you have top a friggin’ car.

For your teen’s first ride, according to Consumer Reports, avoid anything with a big engine (“Generally speaking, the ideal car for a teenager is a four-cylinder mid-sized sedan”), lots of numbers on the speedometer (“If too much speed is to be avoided, then it should be a no-brainer to avoid high-performance sports cars.”) or minivans (” … a carload of teens is not a recipe for safety.”)

There are other considerations, according to the report:

From our family to yours, TTAC wishes all its readers the best of holiday wishes. We’ll be enjoying the company of our loved ones for the next few chilly winter nights, but we’ll return to regular service on Tuesday. And who knows, maybe Santa will leave something for your reading enjoyment over the weekend…

Usually, at this time of the year, Germany would already be closed down, to reopen some time after the first week of January. Not so this time around. The calendar punishes Deutschland by putting the 25th and 26th of December and 1st of January – all legal holidays – on weekends. Ouch. And if you are working at a German car manufacturer, you might be asked to come in “between the holidays” to make some badly needed cars.

In the first unique Chrysler brand spot since bankruptcy, America is referred to as ChryCo’s “traveling companion.” Which is a bit rich, considering the American people were generous enough to spend billions pulling the wreck that was Chrysler out of a ditch less than a year ago. Who knows, maybe the term “unwilling investors” didn’t play so well in the workshops, a possibility that might also explain why only a single modern Chrysler vehicle (the 300) is allowed to punctuate the ad’s gauzy nostalgia. In any case, notch up another Chrysler Group ad that says nothing about anything that might give one hope for the firm’s future. Ironically enough…

TTAC is something of a family affair these days. Though our contributors are still scattered around the country and the world, TTAC’s Editor-in-Chief and Managing Editor are now a father-son team that, despite living a few hours drive from one another, hardly ever see each other in person. So with the holidays upon us, we’re slowing down our relentless coverage in order to spend some time together as a family. From now through Sunday, we’ll continue to post some content, though at a more leisurely, holiday-like pace. But don’t worry: though on-page content will slow, we will be taking the time to put finishing touches on several new series to debut here on TTAC as we head into the new year. We’ve got some great stuff lined up for 2010, and we’re thrilled at the prospect of another year of automotive truth-telling. So on behalf of the TTAC family, here in Oregon and around the world, we wish you all a very happy holidays.