Archive for the ‘News’ Category

 ”I don’t really think of this as a bailout at all,” Ford CEO Alan Mulally told CBS’ The Early Show.

Then what exactly is it Mr. Mulally? For years the Big 3 in Detroit have operated under a certain ideology that seemed to almost stick it’s tongue out at the rest of the world and reality. The oil bubble loomed large on the horizon yet all you seemed to feed us was larger vehicles, larger price tags, and larger excuses on why. Ford released a 65 MPG turbo diesel in Europe but has stated that the vehicle will never make it to American shores, why not? Because they say the car is not economically viable to import. The main reason being the cost of the motor, which is built in the UK, and then the cost to ship it to the U.S. They then follow this up saying that the vehicle would cost around $26,000. Last I checked Toyota was doing well with the Prius in that range. Build what we want and need, not what you want. Building what you want isn’t doing that great with your sales down almost 47% in just the first nine months of this year. Are Detroit’s executives really that errogant and pompous. Build something we’ll buy and your sales will go up, keep building crap we don’t want and go out of business crying to Congress for money.

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Detroit over the past few years has been on a Jurassic Park style mission to revive the late 60′s. Ford has reinvented the Mustang, Dodge has the Challenger, so it is only right that Chevy bring back the Camaro.

Since its departure a few years ago many have thought there was a hole missing from Chevrolet’s line-up. Sure they still had the Corvette, but the Camaro was just as iconic. With Chevy playing Dr. Frankenstein, the Camaro is getting a new shot at life.

There are slated to be a couple of engine choices. There will be a 6 cyl version to act as an entry level option and of course a high output V8 for those baby boomers with a little extra disposable income. BUT WAIT, could it be? News has floated around that Chevy may include a version of its two-mode hybrid motor currently found in the new Tahoe and Escalade hybrids.

Why not? Ford and Dodge seem stuck in the 60′s and this would be a huge leap for the Big 3 of Detroit. We are in the 21st century and engineers at Chevy realize that the new Camaro fits the profile of a vehicle who could use their new hybrid drive-train. Also accorinding to GM Chairman and CEO Rick Wagoner, Jr., they plan on releasing a new hybrid every three months for the next 4 years. WIth new techonologies such as their hybrid system, ethanol, and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle, GM is positioning itself to be the worlds leading producer of gasoline-electric hybrid vehilces by 2012.

Could the new Camaro be a step forward for Detroit or will the Big 3 sluff it off and slowly become the next passenger pidgeon?

The Fast and the Furious franchise is back and looking towards its roots as Justin Lin and Chris Morgan are behind the cameras again. And finally Vin Diesel and Paul Walker return as Dom and Brian O’Conner as many are touting this installment to be the best of the 4. In reality this installment should be Fast and the Furious 2.5 since it’s plot is actually a prequel to F&F Tokyo Drift. It tells us what happens after Brian lets Dom go at the end of the first movie.

Of course no one expect Oscar worthy performances, but then again the Fast and the Furious franchise is built on cars, women, and music. It almost single handily built an entire subculture into what it is today, a multi-billion dollar industry. Thanks to Latino Review we have been given a sneak peek into the first scenes of F&F 4.

Click Read More if you want some good insite into the new movie and if you don’t want to know details I suggest not reading any more of this post

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Hot damn! With Lexus flirting with european styling for quite some time. Now, they have not only flirted, but they have taken it to dinner, a movie, and got some action on the first night. With the introduction of the 2008 Lexus IS F, the Japanese car marker has stepped to the front of the line and given BMW the crazy eye. The 5.0L V8, 32 valve, VVT-i, 2UR-GSE power plant delivers a heart pounding 416 hp and 371 ft-lb of torque through an 8-speed Sport Direct Shift automatic with paddle shift and Manual mode. These stats lead to a 4.6 sec 0-60 mph and a top speed electronically limited to 170 mph. With all of the goodies like, adaptive front lighting, bluetooth, SmartAccess keyless entry with push button start and pretty much anything else you would expect from a top of the line vehicle. Big thumbs up Lexus and to the rest of Europe watch your back because Japan is pushing out more than just cute little sub compacts.

23 MPG, 500 HP, and 738 lb-ft of torque with Lamborghini DNA running through its veins. Damn, sign me up. The 2008 debut of the updated Audi R8 with the all new 6.0L V12 from their Q7 concept from last year was all but subtle. I believe it will make a large splash on this side of pond. With a target price of some where just over $100k there is now an eco-friendly option for those with the cake and the want to eat it too. The R8′s power delivery system will even surpass 2014 EuroVI emissions standards and is proving that diesel is not just for large trucks and heavy equipment any more. This is a great step between normal petrol driven dreams and the eventual rise of hydrogen powered vehicles (even though BMW has already proven hydrogen as a viable power source). Good job Audi, now send one my way for an in depth review.