Taxpayers may never get back about $16 billion of the bailout money extended to Ally Financial, Chrysler, Chrysler Financial, General Motors, auto suppliers and used to guarantee warranties, says a new White House report entitled "The Resurgence of the American Automotive Industry."
If the White House is willing to admit that losses could hit $16 billion, imagine how big the real numbers probably are. Meanwhile, Ford keeps going from strength to strength without having taken a taxpayer dime, which calls into question the Obamabots' claim that our fearless leader saved the American auto industry by throwing taxpayer dollars at the problem.
As proof that there's a group of enthusiasts for just about everything, owners of the lowly Ford Pinto are taking to the roads in celebration of the car's 40th birthday.
Pinto owners are driving from Denver to the Carlisle Ford Nationals in Pennsylvania this week, a journey of approximately 1,600 miles.
I must confess that I owned one, which looked pretty much like this:
It actually was a pretty well made car. I drove it into the ground over 9 years of college, grad school, and law school, and until the very end it never needed anything other than (often skipped) routine maintenance. But what was Ford--what was I?--thinking when it came to that stupid porthole?
The new chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee was criticizing Republicans who opposed President Obama's bailout of the American automakers union, oh, no, make that American automakers.
"If it were up to the candidates for president on the Republican side," said Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida, "we would be driving foreign cars. They would have let the auto industry in America go down the tubes."
So Michael O'Brien of The Hill newspaper went and checked what kind of automobile loyal-American-car-supporter Debbie Wasserman Schultz owns.
The 50th anniversary of the Jaguar E-type (which for the benefit of those of you joining us late was/is one of the two iconic sports cars for which I yearned as a lad) is prompting all sorts of interesting news. Here's another one that caught my eye:
British company Eagle makes a business of selling and restoring E-types. Its latest project takes the classic sports car and upgrades it with some modern technology.
Eagle plans to roll out the Jaguar E-Type Speedster Lightweight at the Salon Privé in London on June 22.
Eagle founder Henry Pearman says the car has been reworked to take out weight and give it more muscle to match the performance of a contemporary supercar. From the outside, it is identical to the original 1960s version.
The car's 4.7-liter inline-six produces 310 hp and 340 lb-ft of torque. The car's curb weight of 2,204 pounds gives it a power-to-weight ratio similar to that of a Porsche 911 Turbo, Pearman says.
The Salon Privé show and concours d'elegance will be held at the Syon House in west London. Visit www.eaglegb.com for more information on Eagle.
Very cool. When I learned that the Eagle costs about the same as a brand new Aston Martin or Ferrari, of course, purchase plans went out the window. Sigh.
High on the list of cars I'd like to own someday would be a Jaguar E-Type. Preferably a coupe. Preferably right hand drive. Preferably in British racing green. Preferably a Series I from about 1965 or so.
Apropos of which, Autoweek has posted an appreciation of the E-Type that set the old ticker to palpitating once again:
Jaguar's stunning E-type defined 'car' for an American generation
You could start with the stunning good looks that make the Jaguar E-Type a permanent fixture at New York's Museum of Modern Art or with the style and character that defined an era. You could start with the technological innovation, the impressive performance or the value that the E-type's contemporaries simply could not match. ...
It's enough to say that at its unveiling in Geneva, no less a car guy than Enzo Ferrari called the E-type “the most beautiful car ever made.” Clearly, the people who created the E-type had some innate grasp on the dynamics of visual pleasure. ...
There's no science to measure precisely the E-type's impact on car culture in America or on the culture at large. We'd quite arbitrarily estimate that each of the 72,000 E-types was responsible for creating 10 or 20 Jaguar people and 40 or 50 car people whose tastes, demands and outlooks were shaped by this piece of modern art. If you're still reading, you're probably one of them.
New federal fuel economy and emissions rules took effect Jan. 1, requiring automakers to hit 35.5-mpg corporate average fuel economy by the 2016 model year.
But automakers and regulators from the EPA, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the California Air Resources Board already are haggling over a tougher proposal initiated by President Barack Obama last October. That plan calls for a CAFE range of 47 mpg to 62 mpg by the 2025 model year. ...
"That would require a market that's 64 percent plug-in hybrids -- that's the only way we can get it to 62 mpg," said McAlinden, chief economist and executive vice president of the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Mich.
New-vehicle prices would rise by an average of $9,970, McAlinden said. Other estimates are lower; the alliance cites a possible price increase of "as much as $6,400." Either way, industry groups say they fear that sticker-shocked consumers would hold on to their old cars.
To be sure, the ecomentalists claim the increased costs will be lower and offset by fuel savings. But suppose Obama goes forward with the proposal to tax drivers based not on how many gallons of gas they use but the number of miles they drive. That would negate much (all?) of the fuel savings claimed by the ecomentalists. As of now the administration is disavowing its trial balloon, but it's clearly an idea that's going to keep recurring if fuel consumption goes down and gasoline tax revenues stagnate.
Forcing us all into plug-in hybrids is going to impose another major cost; namely, retrofitting houses to provide decent charging stations. A Chevy Volt takes up to 15 hours to charge on regular 115-to-120-volt house current, after all.
And where's the electricity going to come from? The ecomentalists are using the Japanese nuclear accident as an excuse to kill off nuclear power once and for all. Renewables remain a minor portion of the energy system. So we'll be burning fossil fuels to power these cars one way or another.
Finally, it's sort of sad that we might be the last generation to know the joy of putting your foot down on a massive V8.
When I was a kid, there were two iconic sports cars after which I lusted: The Porsche 911 and the Jaguar E-type. I was lucky enough to scratch my 911 itch a few years ago. But video by AutoWeek associate publisher Dutch Mandel celebrating the E-type's 50th anniversary has brought the E-type itch raging back to the fore:
Gawd, that's a gorgeous car. I'm not a car collector. But I would dearly love to find a E-type in driver condition to tool around the Southern California canyons on the weekend. In an ideal world, it'd be a right hand drive version in British Racing Green.
Mini has called on its business cousin, Rolls-Royce, to create the Mini Inspired by Goodwood. The car will debut next week at the Shanghai motor show.
Mini turned the Rolls design staff loose on a Mini Cooper. That led to an interior awash in exquisite Rolls-Royce leather on the seats and dash pad, a cashmere-covered headliner and lamb's wool floor mats--all in the Rolls-Royce cornsilk color, walnut burr wood trim and piano black surfaces.
I think this is a very cool idea. Take a small, fun car like the Mini, ultra-lux the interior, and maybe give it a plug-in hybrid drive train tuned for performance. Maybe Bentley could do a version of a brand sister like the VW Golf R? Or a Ford Focus RS with an all-leather and wood interior by ex-stablemate Jaguar?
The Texas House has passed a measure that would allow the state's Department of Transportation to establish a speed limit of up to 85 mph on designated lanes or entire stretches of the state highway system. The Texas Senate is considering a similar proposal.
If approved, the new 85-mph limit would be the highest in the U.S., according to Reuters, which noted that Texas and Utah are the only two states currently with posted limits of 80 mph on remote stretches of the interstate.
As somebody who went through a long BMW period in the mid 90s to mid 00s, I'm always interested to see a major new model release from the good folks in Munich. Car and Driver has a bunch of photos of the new M5 and it is a stunner. The slight slant to the headlights gives the front an angry look. The prominent character line is visually dynamic and exciting. The blacked out wheels look mean and purposeful. All in all, I like it a lot.
On the outside. But here's the thing about cars. I spend very little time sitting outside my car admiring the exterior. I spend a lot of time inside it. So I care a lot about the interior. I want it roomy (I'm a big guy, after all). I want it luxurious. Soft touch plastics, metal switches, polished wood, lots and lkots of leather. I want it warm and appealing. A happy place to be.
I haven't liked BMW interiors in a very long time. I find them cold, stark, even austere. At least, I guess they've finally figured out how to make the iDrive system manageable.
When I comparison shopped the 5 series and the E class, a big reason I went with the latter was that the interior felt more welcoming. High quality combined with high tech, swathed in leather and wood, without being stark or austere.
Unless the M5's interior is a huge improvement on the current 5 series (which it won't be), it wouldn't be my choice when compared to, say, the E63 or, especially, the CLS 63.
Now as for the new Audi A7, however, that's a story for another day.
Tesla Motors Inc.'s (TSLA) shares surged Thursday on the heels of a presidential endorsement for clean-fuel vehicles and a bullish call from Wall Street analysts.
In an address Wednesday, President Barack Obama said he would direct federal agencies to purchase alternative-fuel vehicles, including electrics, by 2015 as part of a broader national energy policy.
"There are few breakthroughs as promising for increasing fuel efficiency and reducing our dependence on oil as electric vehicles," Obama said in Washington.
Tesla shares jumped as much as 21% and closed up 17% at $27.75. The company is the largest U.S. maker of highway-ready electric cars, with nine dealers in the U.S. and eight others in Europe and Japan.
Some are ready to crown them as the plus one of the Big Three plus one:
Morgan Stanley ... dissected the business case for Tesla Motors and issued a research note Thursday that called the Silicon Valley company “America’s fourth automaker” and raised the price target for Tesla’s stock to $70. That’s more than doubling what the shares are trading these days, at mid-$20s. Shares shot up as much as 21 percent on Thursday on the news of the report.
This is absurd. They've sold maybe 1500 cars. Their only current model is a high end sports car and their next model will be a high end sedan. How do they compete with the cheaper models in the pipeline from established makers? Not to mention the whole range question. Can a Tesla get me to Vegas on a single charge? Not if you believe Top Gear:
Of course, Tesla claims that Top Gear rigged the test. Nova Scotia lawyer/blogger Damian Penny sent along a link to news that Tesla is suing Top Gear for libel:
Tesla's point is that Top Gear had an idea in mind (that electric vehicles are lame) and staged the show to prove it. On Tesla's blog site, Vice President of Communications, Ricardo Reyes, writes:
The show's script, written before the cars were tested, has host Jeremy Clarkson concluding the segment by saying, "in the real world, it doesn't seem to work." ...
Yet the show continues to air. ... The programme's lies are repeatedly and consistently re-broadcast to hundreds of millions of viewers on BBC channels and web sites, on other TV channels via syndication; the show is available on the Internet, and is for sale on DVD around the world.
Yet, even if you believe Tesla rather than Top Gear, you still can't get more than 2/3 of the way to Vegas on a single charge. For American drivers who want to use their cars for anything besides local commuting, a pure electric makes no sense, even if it's an affordable one.
A plug-in hybrid makes so much more sense to me and, I suspect it will to most US drivers.
Tesla's suvival to date has depended on government largesse bestowed upon it by the Obama administration at the behest of venture capitalist and major Obama fund raiser Steve Westley, who is a major Tesla investor:
As a top fundraiser, Westly is in elite company: 52 so-called bundlers who raised more than $500,000 on Obama’s behalf in the 2008 race, according to records maintained by Public Citizen. ...
Westly’s success is striking for the string of victories by companies in his portfolio, and for his timing in tapping into a rare area of government growth: Alternative energy, infused with more than $8 billion for research and development in Obama’s budget. He has become the green bundler with the golden touch — and the president’s ear.
Tesla is among the beneficiaries of Westley's golden touch:
The government largesse started with $465 million in loans that helped Tesla develop electric cars that cost $54,700 each. ...
Over the last four years, Westly emerged as something of an entrepreneurial superstar in the clean technology movement. Then, in August, he gained a seat at the table when it comes to national energy priorities that affect his business interests.
On the White House’s recommendation, Chu appointed him to his 12-member Advisory Board, a government-stamped seal of approval as The Westly Group pursues a $175 million round of fundraising to expand its portfolio. Westly cites that appointment on his company bio.
Meeting minutes show he is leading a Chu subcommittee exploring “building energy efficiency.”
In his venture capital firm, Westly is actively investing in energy efficient building materials, an area he describes as something of a new investment frontier.
This February came perhaps the prized jewel for a Westly investment, when the Obama administration proposed to stimulate sales of electric cars by offering consumers a $7,500 federal rebate at the dealer.
Stock in Tesla, the Silicon Valley electric car maker that went public last year, rose 6 percent with the news. Westly sat on Tesla’s board for more than two years, and though his firm recently sold its nearly 2.5 million shares, he personally remains a shareholder. “I think Tesla’s best days are ahead of it,” he told Bloomberg West TV March 11.
It's time to cut Tesla off from the government teat and see if it can compete on the merits.
Other than the SSC Aero, the Ford GT and the Saleen S7 were the last real American supercars. (I'm defining supercar as a mid-engined two-seater sports car.) Sadly, even the Saleen name is now being phased out.
Which prompted me to wonder: Why is the Corvette ZR1 the only American car left that could even compete for the supercar title, provided we were willing to broaden the definition to include front-engined vehicles? Why aren't there more American sports cars? Muscle cars we have by the ton. Sporty coupes we have some. But where are our everyday exotics like the Porsche 911 or real exotics like the Zonda?
But it especially got me to wondering why Europe is crawling with major supercar makers like Ferrari and Lamborghini, but also small boutique makers like Pagani, Gumpert, McLaren, and Konigsegg, and they're essentially nonexistent in the US?
Why does Audi have the R8 and Mercedes the SLS AMG, but Ford let the GT go out of production? Why didn't the Ford Shelby Cobra or the Ford Shelby GR-1 go into production? Doubtless there's economic reasons, but that just leads us to the question of: How come the Europeans seem able to finance building supercars but US manufacturers don't?
Obviously, I'll never be able to buy a true supercar. (I occasionally breeze through the used Ferrari ads on eBay but the thought of 5 figure service bills always stops me from bidding.) As a patriotic American, however, I'd like to see an American supercar kicking ass on Top Gear.
When it's time for my next car, moreover, I'd love to get the American equivalent of a 911. An everyday exotic I can use as a daily driver but still take out to a track day with my head held high. I'm not a Corvette guy and never will be, so that's just not an option. What's annoying is that it seems to be my only option.
Don't take my word for it. My friend, UCLAW colleague, fellow UK Top Gear fan, and co-author Bill Klein, who is older and much wiser than I, tells me that:
It has always been annoying to see how they messed up the wonderful British show with their feeble, forced humor, misguided metaphor, and stilted lead characters, but I stuck with it to see some interesting cars while skipping most of the rest. This week, however, was the last straw. Despite having a live audience they used what was obviously a laugh track--than which there is nothing that I find more abhorrent. I've had all I can take . . .
Me too. It's sad that the US can't seem to make a decent car show. Of course, it's even sadder that we can't seem to make a decent car. (Now that'll bring out the comment trolls.)
Update: I stand corrected. A friend points out that there are lots of decent cars made in the USA:
The Accord made in Ohio
The Camry made in Kentucky and Indiana
The Odyssey built in Alabama
The Tundra made in San Antonio
The X series of BMWs built in South Carolina (except for the X6, which is not only goofy looking but also a crappy performer according to Top Gear)
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