Author: Zach Bowman

Filed under: Sedan, Wagon, Europe, Hatchback, Buick, Opel, Rumormill, Luxury

A fresh batch of rumors kicking around the web are claiming that General Motors is seriously mulling bringing hatchback and wagon versions of the all-new Buick Regal to the States. In the brand’s ongoing quest to shed its status as a synonym for all things elderly, the Tri-Crest has raided the Opel parts bin, slipped a waterfall grille on the nose of the Insignia and called it a day. We were simply glad to hear that the car would be available with a turbo mill and a third pedal, but according to Car and Driver, things are about to get even more interesting.

It turns out the Insignia is available as a hatchback and a wagon in more civilized portions of the world. Jim Federico, the man who led the Regal to the fountain of youth, told C/D that the U.S. will be getting at least one of the other body styles within a few short years, and that there’s a good chance that both of them will show up on dealer lots at some point in the near future. Chances are that’s not exactly ground-breaking news by anyone’s standards, but it gets better. Federico has said that since American wagon buyers are suddenly smitten with the likes of the Jetta TDI Sportwagen, the Regal long-roof will boast an oil-burning powerplant.

Needless to say, our eyes are dish-plate sized at the news. Could Buick possibly offer an all-wheel drive diesel wagon with a six-speed manual transmission? We want to believe, but our skeptical side is in full go-mode on this one.

[Source: Car and Driver]

Rumormill: Buick wagons, hatchbacks and diesels, oh my! originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 28 May 2010 13:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Etc., Humor

As a nation, we’re pretty attached to our cars. Thanks to generations of poor civil planning and rampant urban sprawl, we’ve come to need personal transportation like most civilizations require fresh water. Turns out we aren’t the only ones, though. Our amiable neighbors to the north seem to be just as hooked on the automobile as their surly cousins down south. A new survey of Canadian drivers has found that car owners would gladly give up a number of essentials before parking their car once and for all – including sex.

According to The Toronto Star, the study found that two percent of the population would rather give up sex and just one percent chose driving as the thing they could go without, while 14 percent of those tallied would sacrifice coffee and 36 percent would ditch junk food.

The survey was organized by the World Wildlife Fund as a way to get people thinking about the benefits, both financially and environmentally, of taking public transportation. Of those surveyed, nearly 30 percent said that they always drive wherever they’re going. Our guess is that number would be significantly steeper if the survey took place here in the land of the deep-fried free.

[Source: The Toronto Star]

Survey: More Canadians would go without sex than cars. Canuck that! originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 28 May 2010 10:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Hybrid, Government/Legal, Technology, Toyota

Things aren’t looking good for Toyota in a legal battle over whether or not the Japanese automaker has infringed on a Florida-based company’s hybrid drivetrain patents. A U.S. International Trade Commission judge recently ruled to deny Toyota’s request to end the lawsuit brought by Paice LLC. Toyota’s initial argument was that the plaintiff’s patent was invalid, but so far, the courts have sided with the smaller of the two companies time and time again. Earlier in the legal battle, a judge ruled that Toyota must pay Paice LLC a royalty for every Prius, Highlander Hybrid and Lexus RX400h model sold. Paice originally wanted Toyota to halt sales of those vehicles entirely.

In response, Toyota has begun the process of arguing against the royalty amount per vehicle, while Paice has filed a new complaint over the technology present in the third-generation Prius, Hybrid Camry, Lexus RX450h and HS250h.

Paice’s base complaint is over how the manufacturer is supplying torque from both the electric motor and the internal combustion engine to the drive wheels on those vehicles at the same time. The company has also gone after Ford for the design of its Fusion Hybrid and Escape Hybrid models.

[Source: Bloomberg]

Report: Toyota loses bid to dismiss hybrid patent infringements from Paice originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 28 May 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Etc., Marketing/Advertising, Videos, BMW

BMW advertising gurus have a big job ahead of them when it comes to supplementing their longstanding “Ultimate Driving Machine” slogan with the company’s new “Joy” campaign. Bimmer fanboys had lived and died by the company’s proclamation of superiority for years, so it’s going to take some coaxing to get BMW loyalists to swallow the new ads. Fortunately, BMW has never been one to skimp on advertising dollars, and the company has pulled a stunt in Singapore to make sure the ball gets rolling in the right direction.

BMW has used two buildings for a massive, unique 3D projection display right in the middle of downtown Suntec City. Talk about cool. Two massive hands appear to disassemble the structures and rearrange them for their own diabolical, Joy-soaked plans. You can hit the jump to see the whole shindig for yourself. Thanks for the tip, John!

[Source: YouTube via BMWBlog]

Continue reading Video: BMW turns Singapore buildings into amazing 3D Joy

Video: BMW turns Singapore buildings into amazing 3D Joy originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 27 May 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Volkswagen, Earnings/Financials, Rumormill

It looks like Volkswagen may be continuing to raid the global buffet of lesser automakers. According to reports, Malaysian carbuilder Proton has been in talks with ze People’s automaker in an attempt to establish some sort of alliance, thought for now details are sketchy at best. Proton has made it clear that it’s more interested in upping its exports than anything else. Given that fact, it wouldn’t surprise us to see Proton-built machines wearing VW badges in some far-flung corners of the globe.

On the other hand, reports have surfaced that claim that VW has already admitted to looking into sharing platforms and engines with Proton as part of some sort of agreement, and that both companies have already explored badging the current Jetta as a new-and-improved Proton Perdana. Either way, we’re told to expect a more solid announcement to come from the two companies by early next month. We’ll keep our ears to the ground until then.

[Source: Canadian Business | Image: David Hecker/AFP/Getty]

Is VW looking to buy Malaysia’s Proton? originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 27 May 2010 17:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Chrysler, Fiat, Celebrities

Now here’s a juicy rumor. Word on the web is that Chris Bangle may be looking to step back into the auto-design mainstream by revisiting one of his former employers. Don’t expect new BMW models to be wearing any of the guy’s influences though. From what we understand from our Google Translator, Caradisiac believes that Bangle would be the perfect choice for Fiat to give its products an extra level of pizzazz as the company wades even deeper into international waters.

On one level, the move makes sense. After all, Bangle called Fiat home before he moved to BMW in 1991, and the designer cut his teeth and made a name for himself while working on the likes of the Fiat Coupe way back when. But we haven’t heard word one from the designer about making a return to the mainstream auto world.

For now, we’ll simply file this one under rampant rumor and wishful thinking. Fiat isn’t having any trouble cranking out stylish products, and one would think the company has its hands too full dealing with bringing Chrysler back to life to bring on a big name like Bangle. Doesn’t hurt to ponder “what if?” though, especially since the guy’s non-compete dried up in March.

[Source: Caradisiac]

Is Chris Bangle headed back to Fiat? originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 27 May 2010 14:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Government/Legal, Safety

A massive auto safety overhaul bill has made its way out of committee and onto the floor of the House of Representatives for voting. According to Automotive News, the biggest changes that the bill proposes is the mandatory addition of black boxes and brake override mechanisms to all new cars and trucks. The event-data recorders would track information shortly before and after an accident for a specified period of time in order to help investigators determine the cause of an accident. Legislators and manufacturers alike began to push for the recorders in the wake of multiple accidents associated with Toyota’s unintended acceleration woes.

Originally, the bill would have required the black boxes to record data for a total of 75 seconds, though the House Energy and Commerce committee changed the legislation to allow the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration to determine the length. The bill also deals with regulations concerning pushbutton starts, pedal placement and a number of other auto-safety issues. If the bill passes the House of Representatives, it will be sent to the Senate for a final vote before becoming law.

[Source: Automotive News – sub. req.]

Report: House committee passes bill requiring black boxes, brake overide systems originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 27 May 2010 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Etc., Videos, South America

If you live in a rural area, odds are you’ve had that heart-sinking feeling that comes along with hitting an animal with your car. Be it a squirrel, opossum, snake or skunk, no one likes killing another being while driving, an it’s made a million times worse by smacking someone’s pet. A Chilean driver was recently busting down the local highway when a dog ran out in front of his car. After hearing the thud, the driver apparently realized that the chances of survival were pretty slim and took his ride to a local body shop to survey the damage.

Believe it or not, the technicians found one very scared, slightly roughed-up pup nestled behind the broken front fascia. Workers then set about removing the necessary bodywork to get the dog out and to a vet. So far, there’s no word on how the dog’s doing or if the owner was located, but we’re hoping for the best. Hop the jump to see a remarkable video of the pup getting extricated from the grille of the car.

[Source: YouTube via Carscoop]

Continue reading Video: Dog rescued from inside car grille after highway hit

Video: Dog rescued from inside car grille after highway hit originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 27 May 2010 12:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Safety, Earnings/Financials, Canada

Ford Motor Company of Canada has pleaded guilty to two counts of failing to take all reasonable precautions to protect the safety of two workers, and the automaker faces a $850,000 fine as a result. According to The Canadian Press, an employee was accidentally crushed to death between two forklifts in 2008 at the company’s Oakville, Ontario assembly plant. The worker was standing beside one of the lifts when another worker reversed a separate forklift into the individual.

In a separate incident one year later, a lift truck driver was crushed to death between a loose pallet and the vehicle while driving down a narrow storage aisle at Ford’s Bramalea, Ontario parts distribution center.

Ford was charged for the violations under the Occupational Health and Safety Act, and is being charged with an additional 25 percent victim surcharge in addition to the $850,000 fine.

[Source: The Canadian Press]
Image by John Neff / Copyright (C)2010 Weblogs, Inc.

Report: Ford faces $850,000 fine for deaths of two Canadian workers originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 27 May 2010 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Truck, Chevrolet, GM, GMC, Rumormill

The Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon have never exactly been the sales successor to the S10 throne. While the original baby pickup from General Motors sold like Tastykakes at fat camp, the public has never exactly warmed to the newest generation of short beds. That fact has grown even more apparent in recent months – according to PickupTrucks.com, sales of the Colorado have fallen off 30 percent since last year. But the Colorado isn’t alone – small truck sales have plummeted from their once lofty heights, thanks in part to their mediocre fuel efficiency, outdated designs and often surprisingly high price tags. These days, buyers who really need a truck tend to simply step up to a full-size and call it a day.

But word on the interwebs is that The General is legitimately considering cranking out another take on the small pickup – something that would offer vastly improved fuel efficiency, relatively small dimensions and pint-sized price tag. When can we expect the new truck to show up? Who knows, but it can’t come soon enough for our tastes.

[Source: PickupTrucks.com]

Report: GM working on new small truck originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 27 May 2010 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Coupe, Performance, Videos, Ford, Celebrities

It was only a matter of time before Jay Leno got his hands on the new 2011 Ford Mustang GT. It’s no secret that the guy is a fan of Detroit ponies – he owns a minty 1965 Shelby GT350 that he claims is one of his favorite cars to drive. Now it looks like he’s added the newest generation 5.0 to the flock. As you might expect, he’s been so kind as to share his impressions with the interwebs via an episode of Jay Leno’s Garage.

You might be surprised to hear what the comedian has to say about the car. On more than one occasion, he compares the new Mustang to high-end metal from Mercedes-Benz and BMW. This isn’t the first time we’ve seen that connection drawn. Hop the jump to see the video.

[Source: Jay Leno’s Garage]

Continue reading Video: Jay Leno’s Garage welcomes 2011 Ford Mustang GT

Video: Jay Leno’s Garage welcomes 2011 Ford Mustang GT originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 26 May 2010 12:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Classics, Coupe, Auctions, Ford, Racing

Here’s your chance to lay your hands on a piece of muscle car history. One of Dan Gurney’s 1969 Ford Mustang Boss 302 racecars is up for bid on eBay Motors with a chilly Buy it Now price of $1.1 million. The car campaigned in a number of race series, but the biggest feather in its cap is that it helped Ford secure the silver in the 1969 Trans-Am manufacturer championship. According to the listing, this particular example was the prototype for the rest of the Trans-Am Mustangs driven that year, and it was built for Caroll Shelby’s team by Kar Kraft.

Gurney whipped the car around the track at Kent and used it for practice at Sears Point, but Peter Revson piloted the Boss to its best finish of the ’69 season – fourth at Laguna Seca. After Shelby walked away from the Trans Am series, the Ford spent some time as a wind-tunnel test car and made its way around a variety of race circuits, nabbing an SCCA Championship along the way. In 2003, it was restored to its 1969 configuration in concourse condition, complete with a 527 horsepower 302 under the hood.

The auction includes a mountain of documentation, including signed letters of authenticity from Carroll Shelby himself, Kar Kraft engineering drawings and a stack of period photos of the car going fender to fender. Hit eBay Motors to check it out.

[Source: eBay Motors]

eBay Find of the Day: Ex-Gurney 1969 Shelby Trans Am Mustang Boss 302 originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 26 May 2010 11:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Coupe, Performance, Europe, BMW, Racing

Oh yes, kids and kiddies. BMW has just dropped the juicy details on the spanking new M3 GTS. Here’s the skinny: under the hood is a 4.4-liter V8 with 450 horsepower and 324 pound-deet of twist. All that muscle kicks at the rear tires via a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox and helps the car get to 60 mph in under 4.4 seconds and on to a top speed of 189 mph. BMW’s army of Bavarian engineers managed to slim the car’s weight down to around 3,373 pounds, which should make the already wicked M3 even more devilish on track.

Speaking of tossing the M3 GTS around on track, BMW has fitted the car with a bolted-in roll bar as well as factory mounting points for an additional cage. While the standard three-point belts are par for the course, the race-bred German comes with six-point belts for both front occupants as well. Stopping duties fall on hefty six-piston calipers squeezing on 14.9-inch rotors up front and four-piston blocks out back.

If you want it – and lets face it, we all want it – get ready to shell out a lofty $170,000.

[Source: BMW]

Droolworthy: BMW releases M3 GTS specifications originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 26 May 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Minivan/Van, Sedan, Safety, Luxury

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has just announced that a total of three new Toyota vehicles have been given Top Safety Pick awards. Both the 2011 Toyota Avalon and 2011 Toyota Sienna were awarded the institute’s highest ratings in front, side, rollover and rear crash tests. The 2010 Lexus RX also nabbed a Top Safety Pick nod. All of the vehicles come with electronic stability control as standard equipment – another parameter for receiving the award.

Toyota’s Sienna earns the honor of being the first minivan to receive the Top Safety Pick since the IIHS added rollover data to its list of crash criteria in 2010. The news is likely to come as music to the ears of Toyota engineers and dealers, both of which have had to stand by and watch their brand’s quality and safety reputation erode under a hail of recalls. Thanks for the tip, Eddie!

[Source: Insurance Institute for Highway Safety]

Three Toyotas latest to earn IIHS Top Safety Picks originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 26 May 2010 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Tokyo Motor Show, Earnings/Financials

According to The New York Times, the 42nd installment of the Tokyo Motor Show will continue to shrink next year. Organizers have decided to move the shindig to a new, smaller convention center that is closer to downtown Tokyo. The show hasn’t actually been staged in downtown Tokyo in some 24 years. For 2011, the event will also run for just 10 days instead of the traditional 14, and the date has been moved from October to December. The changes have come after last year’s event where multiple big-name automakers skipped Tokyo in favor of other higher profile auto shows.

Not too long ago, the Tokyo Motor Show was the largest automotive event in Asia, but it has since been eclipsed by the likes of China’s Beijing Motor Show and Shanghai Motor Show events which alternate years. With high-end marks like Ferrari and BMW rushing to the wealth of new money in the People’s Republic, odds are the Tokyo show won’t recover anytime soon.

[Source: The New York Times | Image: Tokyo Motor Show]

Report: Tokyo Motor Show downsizes again, moving back into city originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 26 May 2010 09:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Coupe, Hybrid, Performance, Porsche, Design/Style, Racing

Like most of the motoring world, our automotive lives really got off the ground at age 13. We suddenly realized that in just three short years, we would be legally allowed to drive our very own cars, and that revelation started a chain reaction of magazines, posters and models that eventually led to our first set of keys. We may have even been known to sketch a barely recognizable dream car or two. We weren’t, however, cranking out professional-grade renderings of a Le Mans version of the Porsche 918 Spyder Concept.

Here’s the deal: Team Speed forum user PorscheCarreraGTMay6 has been so kind as to share his vision of what a genuine Porsche hybrid racer might look like. That’s all fine and good. After all, the internet is awash with plenty of Photoshopped what-ifs, but what makes these really special is that A) the person claims to be 13 years-old and B) the renders are drop-dead gorgeous and C) there’s a good chance we’re going to see a 918 Spyder racer within the next few years. The user even cranked out a YouTube video and a solid description of the reasoning behind the model.

You can check out the full forum thread here, and be sure to hop the jump to see the video for yourself. Keep your eyes out. If this kid is actually 13 years-old, they’re going to set the auto world on fire.

[Source: Team Speed]

Continue reading Thirteen-year-old renders Porsche 918 RSR racer

Thirteen-year-old renders Porsche 918 RSR racer originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 25 May 2010 20:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Celebrities

Please excuse us while we take a little trip down TMZ lane. Word on the web is we now know who will be replacing Megan Fox in the next scintillating Transformers flick. Shia Labeouf will be locking lips with none other than Rosie Huntington-Whitley. Who is that, exactly? Good question. Huntington-Whiteley has spent the majority of her days prancing down a runway in her unmentionables as a Victoria Secret model. The best part? The 23 year-old model-turned actress doesn’t have a drop of acting experience. The jokes write themselves.

Fox was reportedly kicked out of the story line to give the main character a new love interest, though rumor was that the actress had also spent her off time berating director Michael Bay for any number of perceived character flaws. Our guess is Bay got tired of hearing the insults and told Fox to take a hike. Now back to your regularly scheduled content.

[Source: The Sun | Images: Getty]

Out Foxed: Meet the new hottie of Transformers 3 originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 25 May 2010 19:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Government/Legal, Safety

The U.S. Supreme Court is set to rule on whether or not current federal regulations protect automakers from being sued under state product liability laws. According to The Wall Street Journal, justices will examine a California lawsuit that claims that Mazda should be held responsible for the death of a passenger in a 1993 MPV minivan. The passenger was riding in the middle seat, wearing a lap belt, when an accident occurred. The belt caused serious internal injuries that eventually led to death. The plaintiff’s argument is that by not installing three-point seatbelts in the center row of the vehicle, Mazda failed to do everything in its power to protect the occupants of the vehicle.

It’s important to note that three-point seatbelts didn’t become a legal requirement in all seating positions until 2007. Before that time, regulations established in 1989 said that three-point belts were only required in outboard seats, so Mazda built the MPV to conform to the laws in place when the vehicle was built and sold.

The lawsuit was originally rejected after Mazda pointed to a 2000 Supreme Court case in which Honda was unsuccessfully sued after injuries occurred in a 1987 Honda Accord. In that case, the plaintiff said that Honda was responsible because it did not install airbags in the vehicle.

The Supreme Court will hear the case in the 2010-2011 term starting in October.

[Sources: The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg | Image: Chip Somodevilla/Getty]

Mazda seatbelt lawsuit headed to U.S. Supreme Court originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 25 May 2010 16:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Humor

Kevin Cotter recently found himself among the other 50 percent of Americans who wind up getting divorced from their first spouse. Rather than wallow in the broken remains of 12 years of marriage, the guy decided to have a little fun. See, his ex-wife refused to take her wedding dress when she left the house. Rather than throw the dress on Craigslist and call it a day, Cotter decided to write a book about the 101 uses a newly-single guy could come up with for a fancy piece of silk and lace.

Only no one was exactly champing at the bit to publish his idea. Instead, he did what any self-respecting freshly-rejected writer would do. He took to the internets! Cotter now runs My Ex Wifes Wedding Dress – a blog all about the wide array of uses he’s come up with so far. While we’re personally fans of the scarecrow, Cotter has also used the gown for a drip cloth when he changes the oil in his Honda Element and a gas cap. Hilarity ensues. Thanks for the tip, Jubby!

[Source: My Ex Wifes Wedding Dress]

101 uses for ex-wife’s wedding dress includes oil pan, gas cap originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 25 May 2010 15:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Government/Legal, Humor

If you’re thinking about taking to the highways of Venezuela any time soon, here’s a little tip for you: don’t speed. Evidently the country’s roads are known for the kind of highway craziness that would make Miami look conservative. While recently driving his own personal motorcade, Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez was harassed by a pickup truck whose driver thought Chavez was going too slow. The driver blew his horn and flashed his lights before passing the president on the shoulder.

According to reports, Chavez proceeded to personally chase down the driver and reprimand him for being such an ass behind the wheel. The whole incident caused el Presidente to address the nation’s lawless road system on his weekly broadcast, and to charge the South American nation’s police with doing a better job of enforcing the local traffic laws.

[Source: Fox News | Image: Juan Barreto/AFP/Getty Images]

Venezuela president Hugo Chavez joins the highway patrol? originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 25 May 2010 10:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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