Red. Sex. Lips. Sky. Rocks. Wings. Blood. Lust. Heart. Pepper. Sauce. Stop in your tracks. Love letter. It’s red, it’s the 2010 Shelby GT 500 Ford Mustang and it’s waiting for me.
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Live from the Equinox in Manchester, Vermont, I’ve arrived in an 2010 LR4 chariot, complete with splashy new refinement. I’ve just heard about this video that’s all the craze in the UK as a 5.0-liter Supercharged Range Rover Sport goes head to head with a 4.2-liter Supercharged RR to 100mph then back to 0. My Range Rover experiences are more central to the woods, the jungle and the open terrain, but I wouldn’t mind doing this 0 to 100 mph test on asphalt either.
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A Jeep Commander on the Lodge Freeway was the perfect setting for fresh music reviews on a crisp July evening. Inside the cozy, tawny-colored cabin was a track bonanza of Dudley Perkins and his beat offerings, the 500 Days of Summer soundtrack (loving the Hall & Oates and Smiths throwbacks), the cheeky band the Verbs and more. Commander’s sophisticated electronics have been slept on – UConnect is self explanatory and easy to use — the hallmark of practical technology, and audio was clear and balanced. It was helpful to navigate easily between NAV and tracklistings. I was never lost, on the streets or on song titles.
On the outside looking in, Commander’s exterior design grabbed one area family that fell in love with the subtle vintage cues in the angular design, and the fold-down third row of seats. Commander manages to leave enough glass intact despite the hard edges, making for a pleasant and safe outlook on the streets. This design has road life; we hope it gets the opportunity to live up the challenge.
Stay tuned for critical notes on the tunes and tuning.
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If I had a penny forever supposed automotive expert that told me Chrysler would be dead by spring, I’d have a full tank of gas. I couldn’t help it — I bet for Mopar every time. While the dangling Pentastar has taken a few nicks, it’s still glimmering with hope for Michigan people who lean tough on some aspect of the domestic automotive industry.
Here it is June, and the assembly lines are cranking up for first, second and third shifts, and pension checks have been sent out. Chrysler, who has long been the bronze contender of Detroit, is still hanging on as Big GM and Classic Ford switch from first to second.
Chrysler emerged from bankruptcy freeze last week. They’re not out of the woods, but they’re still in business. My father, a Chrysler loyalist forever, in his usual stoic die hard way has been forwarding me emails circulating amongst his fellow retirees, with cautious, skeptical splinters of pride. While many of those who bleed Chrysler blood have lost big this year — from line workers, to engineers and admin assistants to vps and 789 dealers and their employees — it’s still astounding that this scrappy company knows how to morph into viability. (How many new Chryslers are on the road? How many new cars, period, are leaving dealerships?)
It seems at last the company is back to business as usual — management reconfigurations. For as long as I’ve known Chrysler execs they’ve played musical jobs. At least some of their key players have held on, like everyone’s favorite 300C design chief Ralph Gilles.
A lot of work remains ahead and probably some more growing pains, as Chrysler attempts to blend with Italian leadership. This wasn’t a smooth process when Daimler swooped in after the then CEO sold his company out. I have my own war stories from a summer stint in the U.S. Newsroom in ‘98 racing to get the company clips out first.
There are positives in quality of life for workers with this exposure to the Italian way of doing business– expect really good coffee in the Auburn Hills cafeteria and possible shutdown at lunchtime. Fresh from my own adventures in Italy, I can help but think that some notion of irreverent romance will add a little sauce to the pragmatic Midwestern disposition.
Sometimes mergers produce twists of fate in the epilogue from — I’ve heard that for those Chrysler investors who didn’t dump stocks, their Daimler holdings are looking up. I’m not throwing my vintage Dodge gear on eBay anytime soon.
Here’s how company docs are explaining business as usual:
Chrysler Group LLC, formed in 2009 from a global strategic alliance with Fiat Group, produces Chrysler, Jeep®, Dodge and Mopar® brand vehicles and products. With the resources, technology and worldwide distribution network required to compete effectively on a global scale, the alliance builds on Chrysler’s culture of innovation, first established by Walter P. Chrysler in 1925, and Fiat’s complementary technology.
Headquartered in Auburn Hills, Mich., Chrysler Group LLC’s product lineup features some of the world’s most recognizable vehicles, including the Chrysler Town & Country, Jeep Wrangler and Dodge Ram. Fiat will contribute world-class technology, platforms and powertrains for small- and medium-sized cars, allowing Chrysler Group LLC to offer an expanded product line including environmentally friendly vehicles.
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The 2009 New York Auto Show will grab the public eye starting Wednesday, but for the automotive insiders, the action kicked off Tuesday night. We hit the pre-show events spending time with executives from Audi, Nissan, Toyota, and Volvo, catching up on product news and the realities of the tenuous market place, and we even saw a few cars along the way – such as the Audi Q5 TDI– the newest diesel to go streetside next month. Stay tuned for live auto show coverage on Twitter and Gotryke.com all week long.
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It features a gleaming polished aluminum with carbon fiber, as well as a specially tuned 8.0-liter, quad-turbo W16 engine that cranks over a thousand horses.
Via: flylyf
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Detroit is down shifting. It was not long ago that the Big Three were best known for speed, horsepower and big hefty torque. So 2008. While the Camaro, Challenger and Mustang souped-up additions were on display, their presence was subdued in lieu of the electrified concept machines — making a slower go at fuel economy. The most surprising is the Lincoln C-Concept with a 4-cylinder EcoBoost. Yet, the word about town was how great Chrysler’s EVS are to drive, as one of my colleagues enthusiastically bragged. Personally, I think the Cadillac Converj is a sexy take on refined luxury for a brand that showed promise since it broke out of the shell a few concept cycles ago.
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Lotus is all over the news with announcement of a new EV — that’s electric vehicle — that will be unveiled in March. My guess is that it’ll appear at the New York or Chicago auto shows. In the mean time here’s a full frontal view of Lotus’s Evora, the company’s first new design in 13 years.
Many of the hallmarks are there including the recognizable and distinctive front intake, the “Lotus Mouth”, an evolution that’s transformed only slightly since the 1950s.
“Although aggressive aerodynamic and packaging targets meant that the form would have to complement the function, we never lost sight of the fact that sports cars are above all else emotional purchases that seduce the customer through beautiful design,” said Lotus Head of Design Russell Carr. The process has been underway since fall 2006.
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‘Twas the afternoon on Christmas, and the car was packed up. Not an ounce of space to spare in the 2008 Dodge Avenger backseat or trunk. We hugged and bid our farewells, the car was revved and running and they were preparing to depart soon, “To all a merry…” “But wait,” my mother cried, “you’ve left the trunk open!” Indeed my brother had, and in his haste to hit the road he jumped out of the car, slammed the door, and soon realized he had locked the keys inside with the engine running. Merry Christmas, bro!
In a panic, we assumed our positions, mom on the phone with AAA, dad interrogating my brother, my brother frantically pacing on the cell phone on hold, his fiance consoling, my partner in pursuit of a hanger, and me, playing wise guy with the camera, documenting the fiasco.
Only trouble is that my brother doesn’t have AAA. And the hanger trick doesn’t work so well on 2008 model years, risking permanent damage to the electric locks. Uh oh! The pressure mounted as his in-laws to be pulled up in the driveway.
But what my brother did have going for him was his Chrysler LLC 24-Hour Towing Assistance that covers all current model Chrysler, Dodge, and Jeep cars and light trucks sold with the New Vehicle three year/36,000-mile Limited Powertrain Warranty.
While my man went to work with a dangling hanger, 45 minutes later, tow truck man (with a Kris Kringle-style beard) pulled up to the rescue. In case you happen to be into old cars, this is how they used to do it:
Step 1: Straighten out a wire hanger. Then bend one end of the hanger to form either a hook or a triangular handle. Step 2: If the car is an older model, pry open a window by slipping a putty knife between the window and the door. Step 3: Slip the bent wire hanger through the window opening.
Step 4:Maneuver the hanger down along the window. Attempt to either pull up the door lock or push the lock button, depending on your car’s lock style. Step 5: If your car is a newer model, you’ll have to call a locksmith or tow truck.
A detoured day was back on track. Kudos to Chrysler towing service for prompt service on Christmas. My brother made it safely back to Chicago where he unloaded the goods with glee, remembering to lock the door behind him…and to all a good night.
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Senators, please. Or, like they say on the mean streets, put your money where your mouth is. Stop hating on American cars, especially when it’s clear you don’t drive them. If you did, you would see that the myth that Americans don’t make American cars is that — an unfortunate longstanding myth. Indeed, American car companies know how to make a decent family car. In fact, American car companies make some really good family cars. And while these cars are manufactured and conceived by an assembly comprised of a global network — using the same suppliers as foreign subsidiaries — these cars are helmed through the Detroit Mothership — proof in the pudding that many of the changes sought after are already in the mix. Things have come along way since 1964, the calendar year of the first Malibu as the mid-sized sedan reaches its seventh generation.
This week as Congress floundered I tested the 2009 Chevy Malibu. My version was a 4 speed six cylinder automobile. This is not my first jaunt in the Malibu, but it is my first jaunt in the Malibu as a mama, which means that I have now fulfilled a key demographic in the American economy — that of the soccer mom in training. And guess what? The Malibu withstands the mama test. Room for maneuvering a car seat in the interior? Check — and sturdy, too even in a messy rainstorm. Critical acclaim? Check:Car and Driver picked it as one of its 10 Best for 2008 and the Malibu was elected as the North American Car of the Year during the North American International Auto Show in January 2008. Fuel economy? check — 22 city and 30 mpg on the highway and a hybrid version that clocks 26 and 34 respectively.
Like it’s counterparts, the Malibu is not flashy, but it’s sensible, like the jeans that match everything in the closet. And the price is respectable compared to Accord and Camry competition. Admittedly, I’m not the one to drive sensibly, but as a new member of a demographic, I get it. For those who don’t keep up with the car news, the Malibu was refashioned last year, and they pulled it off. Malibu is a stalwart mid-sized ride that made me feel safe inside with a wide open panoramic view. Why can’t this be a real metaphor for the American car industry?
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