Auto Mobiles

Filed under: Minivans/MPVs, Japan, Honda

Honda's JDM Odyssey - not to be confused with the U.S.-market people mover that shares the same name - has been hailed as one of the best handling minivans in Japan. For 2009, Honda has taken everything good about the outgoing third-generation model and made it better, beginning with a sleeker exterior that pulls a few cues from the Honda FCX Clarity.

Underneath the new, slightly stretched sheet metal lies a reworked chassis sporting double wishbones at all four corners, optional all-wheel-drive and a 2.4-liter four-cylinder i-VTEC powerplant putting out 171 hp in standard guise and 203 hp in the range-topping Absolute model.

The interior is adorned with all the techy tidbits that made previous generations a hit with family-toting geeks, including a sci-fi inspired dash and a new multi-positioned camera system that allows drivers to get a bird's eye view of the vehicle. Similar to the Fit sold in the States, the seating can be arranged in a multitude of ways, including folding flat to create something resembling a bed. We'd like to scam one out of Honda during our next trip to Japan so we can post on the move and don't have to worry about heading back to our hotel - which is traditionally only slightly smaller than the new Odyssey.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Aftermarket, SEMA, Tuners, Sedans/Saloons, Lexus

Lexus is gearing up for a big showing at SEMA. In addition to bringing four tuned IS Fs, including one from our friends at 0-60 magazine and another from Fox Marketing/Artisan Performance, long-time Toyota collaborator, Five Axis, will be debuting a heavily reworked GS 460 in Vegas.

Also on hand will be IS Fs from Import Tuner/Tein and MotorworldHype, along with an ICON-designed LX 570 sporting serious off-road upgrades, an IS 350 kitted out with F-Sport accessories and a prototype body kit, plus the 2009 IS F with a handful of upgrades and a new interior color. Hit the jump for all the details.

Continue reading SEMA Preview: Lexus GS 460 by Five Axis

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Auction Action, Supercars, Mercedes-Benz

It's the end of the run for the McLaren SLR Roadster, but Mercedes wants to give Yanks another shot at owning one. Beginning November 1, those of you who still have bank accounts can sign up for the auction of the final topless SLR to be sold in the U.S.

You'd be right to assume the final edition of a limited run model would bring a huge premium when it goes on the block, as collectors have always put higher values on the first and last of most anything. But if you plan to take this particular knick-knack home, prepare to drain both savings accounts. Mercedes says the car will be the only SLR Roadster wearing Sienna Pearl metallic paint and Tobacco Brown leather. So when you show up to accept your Oscar, no one else will be driving the same one.

The auction begins November 20 at 1 p.m. EST and ends that night at 5 p.m. Bidding starts at $529,500, and anything above that will go to St Jude Children's Research Hospital. Thanks for the tip, James!

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Hirings/Firings/Layoffs, GM

The old equation holds true: fewer cars sold means fewer workers required to assemble them. This basic truth has been proven once again with GM's announced lay-offs of some 1,500 hourly workers, The cut's breakdown includes about 700 workers from General Motor's Pontiac assembly plant, about 400 each at both its Wilmington, Delaware, assembly plant and its Detroit-Hamtramck facility.

In Pontiac, where GM assembles full-size trucks, the worker reduction is necessary as General Motors reduces its output to just 24 trucks per hour from 55 per hour. In Detroit, the General will cut its Buick Lucerne and Cadillac DTS production from 56 units per hour to 38, and in Delaware where the Pontiac Solstice, Saturn Sky and Opel Roadster are built, production has already been cut in half. This announcement comes just days after GM said it would close plants located in Grand Rapids, Michigan and Janesville, Wisconsin.

[Source: The Detroit News]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Automotive paint supplier PPG says the color of tomorrow's car is blue. According to Jane Harrington, PPG's manager of color styling, "It's one of those colors that complements vehicle shapes... It's a globally acceptable color. It doesn't have any bad connotations."

The company studies trends in fashion, interior design, and consumer products to predict the tastes of fickle consumers. PPG isn't the only company predicting more blue sheetmetal on our roads and highways. An April report by chemicals giant DuPont also predicted a resurgence in the color, adding it was influenced by ecological concepts such as the sky and water. Consumers in 2008 apparently haven't caught on to the new "blue" trend yet. So far, 20 percent of the cars sold this year have been silver ("A neutral color that works on just about any car," says Harrington). White is second (18 percent), followed by black (17 percent) and red (13 percent). Although blue may be the new green, most consumers will still stick with black, white, and silver -- core colors that are always offered on nearly every vehicle.

[Source: AP via Google News, photo by Magic Super Toys]

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Car Buying, Etc., GM

General Motors is telling its dealers that there's a shiny nickel or two in it for them if they can sell cars without getting the GMAC finance arm involved. For every sale closed with outside financing, salespeople and managers will each receive $100, with an additional $50 going to someone the dealer designates. GMAC has already cracked down on borrowers with FICO scores below 700, and this looks like another move to discourage putting GM on the hook for risky loans; let someone else take that chance, the automaker seems to be saying to its dealers. Not all dealerships are happy with the plan, but GM and Cerberus Capital, which owns 49 percent of GMAC, must take steps to reduce potential losses. We can imagine that GM might lose some business to the newly tightened lending criteria, though there are plenty of third party loans out there, many even halfway reputable.

[Source: Automotive News - Sub. Req. | Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Videos, Porsche

"The first true sports car for four." That's what Porsche wants visitors to take away from its Panamera microsite after viewing a minute-long teaser. The only problem in our eyes (hyperbole aside) is that it never actually shows any images of the four-door sports "coupe," save for a shot of the Panamera's logo, which we've seen before. Regardless, Porschophiles might enjoy the clip as the automaker attempts to quell dissent among the brand's faithful with its tagline, "Four, uncompromised."


[Source: Porsche Panamera Microsite]

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Hirings/Firings/Layoffs, Plants/Manufacturing, Chrysler, LLC., GM, Earnings/Financials, UAW/Unions, Rumormill

In 1987, Chrysler purchased the American Motors Corporation from Renault, and all AMC models ceased to exist shortly thereafter. The only survivor was Jeep, which was really the only brand worth rescuing. Could something similar happen today if GM "merges" with Chrysler? Once again, Chrysler's most desirable asset is the Jeep brand, along with its minivans - a segment that General Motors has completely abandoned in favor of three-row crossovers. In such a scenario, the Chrysler and Dodge brands would basically cease to exist, with General Motors phasing the products it wants into its own lineups. Newer, efficient plants could be converted to build GM vehicles, which would allow the General to close older plants and lose excess production capacity that isn't needed. Any cash that Chrysler has on hand would allow GM to float its own operations that much longer before returning to profitability. This is a simplistic overview, but it is a possibility being floated around by analysts that would explain why GM has any interest in Chrysler at all. We imagine there would be huge opposition to the situation playing out like this, not the least of which would come from the United Auto Workers union, which makes us wonder how likely such a "merger" could possibly be.

[Source: The Detroit News]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: China, Government/Legal, Hyundai

According to a report by Reuters, the Chinese government has suspended the importation of Hyundai and Kia products from South Korea. The importation ban allegedly stems from complaints filed by dealers that the automaker violated anti-trust laws in China by throwing more support behind its own dealers and thus limiting the support offered to independent retailers.

A Hyundai spokesperson confirmed that the automaker has not received import permits since mid-September, but that the Chinese government and Hyundai are working to resolve the matter.

While any ban imposed on Hyundai would temporarily hurt the company in China, only about 50,000 units are imported from South Korea each year, with the majority of Hyundai and Kia's combined 520,000 annual sales in China coming from vehicles produced locally in a joint venture between the automaker and Chinese companies.

[Source: Reuters]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Sedans/Saloons, Sports/GTs, Etc., Audi, Lifestyle, Celebrities

We know first hand that the current 2008 Audi RS4 is epically awesome, but a new A4 has arrived for 2009 and following that in 2010 will be an all-new RS4 with either a carry-over V8 or supercharged V6. The dilemma for dealers is how to move the current $67,000 super sport sedan when the new ones aren't that far off. An enterprising dealer in Miami has commissioned the help of renowned pop artist Romero Britto to do up an RS4 in his trademark cartoonish art style. The car is sitting outside under the Florida sun in front of this dealership where it was spotted by a pair of editors from TopSpeed.com. They make a point to mention that the pop art RS4 is not just a vinyl wrap, but an honest to goodness hand painted job by the sought after artist whose paintings and pop art pieces go for big bucks on the art scene. We admit, the unique RS4 certainly attracts the eye, but we'd rather have one painted in plain old Avus Silver. Thanks for the tip, philippe!


[Source: TopSpeed]

Permalink | Email this | Comments