9/6 Autoblog

Please add updates@feedmyinbox.com to your address book to make sure you receive these messages in the future. Autoblog Cars & Coffee: 2010 Suzuki Kizashi gets shown off September 5, 2009 at 9:19 pm Filed under: Sedan, Suzuki 2010 Suzuki Kizashi - Click above for high-res image gallery Another week, another "debut" of sorts at Irvine's Cars & Coffee show. Last week we brought you pics of the Ford Ka and the Dunkel Brothers' luxury 4X4 RV, but this week it was Suzuki's turn to show off something new. Folks from the nearby Suzuki facility brought over an perfectly adequate SX4 and the car we were hoping to see in person, the all-new 2010 Suzuki Kizashi. The lighting was pretty harsh, but hopefully you can see what we saw while there: namely, one handsome sedan. It could easily wear a VW badge on that grille, but the car we heard it compared to more often was the Saturn Aura, itself a smart-looking four-door. While the Kizashi doesn't seem as big as the Saturn, it's being pitched as an alternative to the even larger Toyota Camry, Honda Accord, VW Passat and Ford Fusion. The fit and finish looked good on this pre-production car, and the Suzuki's interior looked pretty well turned-out. Glancing inside, we might have mistaken it for a 2010 Mazda3. Nice materials and textures, with simple, straightforward controls and gauges. Although Suzuki has targeted the Accord and Camry with this new segment-stretcher, the Kizashi seems closer in size to the Civic and Corolla in the flesh. It's perhaps a bit bigger than those benchmarks, but at least in this color and in this setting it didn't seem like the large midsize vehicle the class leaders are. At any rate, the Suzuki Kizashi is a good-looking sedan that should drive pretty well if reports are to be believed. It ought to be a bargain, too, with prices starting in the low-to-mid 20s. Hopefully, it won't be a case of too little too late if Suzuki can't draw more customers into its dealerships. Gallery: 2010 Suzuki Kizashi at Cars & Coffee Photos copyright (C)2009 Frank Filipponio / Weblogs, Inc. Cars & Coffee: 2010 Suzuki Kizashi gets shown off originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 05 Sep 2009 20:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments REPORT: Share and share alike, Panamera platform may get used elsewhere in VW group September 5, 2009 at 8:13 pm Filed under: Porsche, Volkswagen 2010 Porsche Panamera - Click above for a high-res image gallery With the addition of Porsche, the Volkswagen Group now has ten brands in its stable. Over the last decade, VW has become pretty adept at sharing platforms and hardware. Porsche and the rest of the group already share an SUV platform between the Cayenne, Touareg and Q7, and the factory-fresh Panamera four-door could be next. VW executives have already indicated that the Panamera is unlikely to live past the first-generation model as a Porsche. That said, like the previous generation Audi A4 that lives on as the Seat Exeo, the Panamera could see new life in the Bentley, Audi, Bugatti or (however unlikely) Lamborghini ranges. If Bugatti is to survive beyond the Veyron, it needs new product and a sedan based on the Panamera would likely make more sense than the Porsche. Bentley reportedly favors an aluminum Audi platform to replace the steel Phaeton underpinnings of the Continental range, so the winged B may be out of the picture. An Audi is also unlikely for the same reason, since the two-ton Panamera is made of steel. With so many possibilies, it'll be interesting to see how Porsche evolves over the next decade. Gallery: First Drive: 2010 Porsche Panamera [Source: Inside Line] REPORT: Share and share alike, Panamera platform may get used elsewhere in VW group originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 05 Sep 2009 19:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments REPORT: BP finds big oil in Gulf of Mexico September 5, 2009 at 7:03 pm Filed under: Plants/Manufacturing Even during the recession, oil is hovering at around $70 per barrel. There are many reasons for elevated oil prices, such as emerging markets demanding more crude and market speculators. Perhaps the biggest reason of all, however, is that oil is just harder to come by, as all the obvious spots have already been drilled. So when a massive oil reserve is uncovered, it's big news. British Petroleum has made just such a find, as it has reportedly discovered between three and six billion barrels of crude oil and natural gas in the Gulf of Mexico about 250 miles off the coast of Texas. The find was made after BP drilled down a record seven miles, giving the oil giant another massive reserve a few hundred miles from where the natural resource is used most. Autoline Daily notes that BP already pumps about 400,000 barrels per day in the region, and experts say the find could result in another 250,000 barrels of black gold a day towards the end of the next decade. That sounds mighty impressive until you remember that the U.S. uses about 20 million barrels of oil every day. Follow the jump to watch the latest edition of Autoline Daily. [Source: Autoline Daily | Image: Roslan Rahman/AFP/Getty] Continue reading REPORT: BP finds big oil in Gulf of Mexico REPORT: BP finds big oil in Gulf of Mexico originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 05 Sep 2009 18:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments Mint.com flowcharts the state of the auto industry September 5, 2009 at 5:35 pm Filed under: Chrysler, Ford, GM We all know the state of the auto industry right now, especially with regard to the Detroit three. We'd say it's somewhere between normal and completely screwed. Sales volume has been mostly woeful, two of the Detroit automakers needed a taxpayer bailout to survive, and Chrysler has been passed around like a hot potato. Ford has more debt than Miami Beach has sand, yet the Blue Oval is considered the healthiest patient in the ICU. Beyond the cash infusion, the migration away from SUVs, and the desperate scramble for fuel efficiency, Detroit automakers have morphed, moved, cut and shrunk their way through the 21st century. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and we'd add that the above graph is tantamount to an engaging novella. It charts the massive brand exodus among the Detroit contingent, which looks like a quadruple reverse drawn up on the telestrator by John Madden. If that isn't sobering enough, the text below shows just how much Detroit automakers have shrunk since 2006. Overall, attrition at Ford, GM and Chrysler accounts for an astonishing 144,600 workers in only three years. No wonder Michigan has the highest unemployment rate in the nation. The chart also gives a brief look at the up-and-coming members of the US auto industry, including Tesla, BYD, Tata and Smart, along with a quick blurb about the future of each of the automakers represented. Click on the graphic above to view the chart in full. Hat tip to M.Sharma. [Source: Mint] Mint.com flowcharts the state of the auto industry originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 05 Sep 2009 16:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments Recession vacation: bike-pulled camper built from salvage September 5, 2009 at 4:02 pm Filed under: Budget, Etc., Specialty, Alternative Fuel, Off-Road Paul Elkins' homemade bike-towed camper - Click for hi-res gallery Designed with an eye toward post-apocalyptic living, Paul Elkins whipped up this trailer to pull behind his bicycle at the Burning Man festival. It's 100 pounds of home away from home, built from aluminum tubing reclaimed from a satellite dish and skinned with the same type of plastic commonly used for political campaign signs. A card table and some wheelbarrow parts are also in the mix, following the idea of using what's on hand after a disaster. While Elkins designed another version of this idea that's more suitable for road use, this rig looks pretty comfortable and well equipped. It harnesses the energy of the sun to charge batteries and dehydrate food - you'll be able to read a book at night while enjoying your own beef jerky recipe. Hot water for a shower is also provided courtesy of the sun. It's all pretty cozy, and it's way cheaper than an Airstream. Checking out Elkins blog reveals plenty of ingenious projects that might give you something to do during the coming winter months. Gallery: Homemade Bike Trailer [Source: High Mileage Trikes via Neatorama] Recession vacation: bike-pulled camper built from salvage originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 05 Sep 2009 15:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments Unique 1965 Dodge Deora Concept going up for auction September 5, 2009 at 2:34 pm Filed under: Concept Cars, Classics, Auctions, Dodge 1965 Dodge Deora Concept - Click above for a high-res image gallery Have you ever wanted to own your very own life-sized Hot Wheels car? Here's your chance! As part of RM's Icons of Speed and Style auction at the Petersen Automotive Museum on September 26, a 1965 Dodge Deora Concept will cross the block and go home with the highest bidder. Built by legendary hot rodders Mike and Larry Alexander, the one-off pickup truck won the Ridler Award at the 1967 Detroit Autorama and was immortalized a year later as one of the original 16 Hot Wheels model cars. The unique design, based on a Dodge A100, includes no side doors but instead a forward-opening glass hatch that is essentially the back of a 1960 Ford station wagon turned 180 degrees. RM estimates that the Deora, which was restored to its original show specs just over ten years ago, should command between $350,000 - $550,000 when it goes up for auction. Follow the jump for more info on this unique showcar and how it came to be. Gallery: 1965 Dodge Deora Concept [Source: RM Auctions, Images courtesy RM / Darin Schnabel] Continue reading Unique 1965 Dodge Deora Concept going up for auction Unique 1965 Dodge Deora Concept going up for auction originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 05 Sep 2009 13:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Spy Shots: Camo-free 2010 Hyundai Tucson on U.S. soil! September 5, 2009 at 1:07 pm Filed under: Spy Photos, Crossover, Hyundai 2010 Hyundai Tucson - click above for high-res image gallery Just last week, Hyundai revealed the new ix35 compact crossover in its home market of South Korea. When it arrives at U.S. dealers late this year, it will retain the Tucson nameplate used on the current-generation model. This week, we stumbled across what looks to be a production-ready Tucson here in Michigan, completely devoid of camouflage and missing only its badges. As we saw in the photos from Korea, the new Tucson is very similar to Hyundai's ix-onic concept shown in Geneva last March. The biggest exterior differences are the front foglights, the rear taillamps and the CUV's lower fascia. From what we were able to see of the interior, the design of the concept is also carried over verbatim. We expect for the Tucson to make its official U.S. debut at the Los Angeles International Auto Show this November. Gallery: 2010 Hyundai Tucson undisguised Photos Copyright (C)2009 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc. Spy Shots: Camo-free 2010 Hyundai Tucson on U.S. soil! originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 05 Sep 2009 12:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments REPORT: Cash for Clunkers leads to shortage of destruction derby cars. Oh, the humanity! September 5, 2009 at 11:37 am Filed under: Etc., Government/Legal With 690,000 vehicles sentenced to one final gargle of sodium silicate, thanks to the now-defunct Cash for Clunkers program, demolition-derby drivers seem to have been left holding the short end of the driveshaft. What the government seems to have forgotten is that many cars, hobbling and sputtering as they near death, prefer to make one final trip to the local county fair (assuming they escape a 24 Hours of LeMons team). There, stripped of glass and with fuel tanks moved safely inward, the clunkers die an honorable death smashed gloriously to pieces in front of large (and often well-hydrated), cheering crowds. "Obama is an anti-demo-derby guy," says Tory Schutte, head of the Demolition Derby Drivers Association. "He's targeting the cars we've been using." (But let's not just blame the President. Scrap metal prices have skyrocketed in the past two years, so many last-leg heaps are heading straight to the junkyard for recycling.) According to those who keep track of such things, there were 3,500 demolition derbies in the U.S. last year. The orchestrated pageantry of bent steel, blown radiators, and dislodged wheels is often the main draw at local county fairs... and the drivers prefer to keep it that way. [Source: Time | Image: Illinois State Fair] REPORT: Cash for Clunkers leads to shortage of destruction derby cars. Oh, the humanity! originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 05 Sep 2009 10:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Honda releases more pics of Accord Crosstour in red. Does it help? [w/POLL] September 5, 2009 at 10:01 am Filed under: Wagon, Marketing/Advertising, Crossover, Honda, Design/Style 2010 Honda Accord Crosstour - Click above for image gallery Honda is now in full-on damage control mode over the Accord Crosstour Facebook fiasco, a PR catastrophe that will likely be discussed in college marketing courses for years to come. As you probably know by now, the 2010 Honda Accord Crosstour quickly became a bubble-butted piñata after its global unveiling via Facebook, where social media users get to vent their spleens have their say, and what they had to say, in a nutshell, was "Ugly!" The situation became more embarrassing when Honda got snagged deleting select comments from the stream, including one from a pro-Crosstour individual who wound up actually being a Honda product planner. Unfortunately, he neglected to identify himself as such before posting. Honda finally saw fit to respond to the awkwardness with several paragraphs of PR boilerplate that included, among other things, an explanation that the car's really not all that ugly, you see. It simply doesn't look good in the pictures that were posted initially, and new shots would be forthcoming to "clear things up" on the matter of the car's apparently regrettable styling. Well, those new Honda Accord Crosstour shots are up on Facebook now. Do they help? Frankly, we don't think so. Sure, the car's more red, but it's no less the homely hatchwagon. We've added a new poll after the jump, so let us know if your minds have changed as a result of the new images. [Source: Facebook] Continue reading Honda releases more pics of Accord Crosstour in red. Does it help? [w/POLL] Honda releases more pics of Accord Crosstour in red. Does it help? [w/POLL] originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 05 Sep 2009 09:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments VIDEO: Gymkhana 2.1 - Electric Boogaloo: Block vs. Dyrdek September 4, 2009 at 9:00 pm Filed under: Motorsports, Performance, Etc., Marketing/Advertising, Hatchback, Subaru, Humor, Specialty Gymkhana 2.1 - Block vs. Dyrdek - Click above to watch the video after the jump Driftmeister Extraordinaire Ken Block is at it again, only this time, with a bit more of a sense of humor on display. The tire-immolating Subaru WRX STI rally driver has teamed up with pro skateboarder Rob Dyrdek for a "Me and My Shadow" video extravaganza dubbed Gymkhana 2.1. While we have to admit that the finished product isn't filled with as many jaw-slackeningly awesome moments as the pair of videos that proceeded it, it's an amusing coquet while we wait for Gymkhana 3.0, a film that will presumably involve a borrowed space shuttle, a runway full of banana peels, and at least one octogenarian goat herder. The 3:49 production is worth watching just for Dyrdek's custom "Mini Me" go-kart, which we want parked in our lawnmower shed yesterday. Enjoy watching the video after the jump, and be sure to check out the slightly less-than high-res images in the gallery below. Hat tips to Adam and Christian! Gallery: Gymkhana 2.1 - Block vs. Dyrdek [Source: DC Shoes] Continue reading VIDEO: Gymkhana 2.1 - Electric Boogaloo: Block vs. Dyrdek VIDEO: Gymkhana 2.1 - Electric Boogaloo: Block vs. Dyrdek originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 04 Sep 2009 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments   This email was sent to motortradeinsider.in51der@blogger.com.  Create Your Account Don't want to receive this feed any longer? Unsubscribe here.