The end of the world is night! You're going to need an alternative heat source in your whip. But you've got the solution, you say. It will be brilliant, you say.
You wanna do what? Install a fireplace in your car? And you wanna generate power for you "smart" phone, too. You're out of your post-apocalyptic mind.
Okay, it's going into a motorhome, but seriously. Is that even possible? According to this guy, it is. Please don't blame us if your Firenza, Fiero or Maserati burn to the ground. Even Bowser is wondering if this was a good idea.
Let's welcome (nearly) 2016 in with a car-related New Year's prediction; hey, why not? If it ends up wrong, you have our permission to say so. What could be an interesting one that would maybe not be so obvious and also be a bit surprising? Here goes...
Two days ago, we cogitated on the upcoming Tesla Model X. We keep these things short and sweet because a) we know you're busy and b) to expound at length about technical details is downright condescending. Besides, we know you guys know many, many things about cars already and we aspire to not repeat what you already know.
Why is Dodge pouring marketing money into promoting the guaranteed blockbuster hit Star Wars: The Force Awakens? Sure, it's going to be the biggest movie in all history, at least in terms of opening weekend. And coverage will be huge. But what does the following Dodge ad have to do with converting moviegoers into Charger buyers? For that matter, what is up with FCA pushing the latest installment of The Hunger Games franchise, too?
The International Business Times had this to say about the matter;
Dodge, a subsidiary of Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles, was another one of
the official sponsors of “The Force Awakens,” and it had a number of
tie-ins with Disney/Lucasfilm, starting on Sept. 4, when it partnered with Uber
to offer free rides in Stormtrooper-wrapped Chargers in Manhattan. (The
Uber promotion was also a triple-cross with Mattel, which gave riders
special Stormtrooper-wrapped Hot Wheels cars.) Dodge also ran co-branded
spots for its Ram pickup truck line.
“Collaborating with Disney and Lucasfilm on ‘Star Wars: The Force
Awakens’ once again provides the opportunity to deliver the unexpected
— relevant, entertaining and immediately noticed end-of-the-year retail
commercials true to the individuality of each of our brands and
featuring the Star Wars music and sound design known around the world,"
Olivier François, head of marketing for Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, said
in a statement. That's all well and good, but the ads also serve as a reminder that no vehicle will ever be as cool as the Millennium Falcon.
None of the Dodge “Star Wars” promotions, it should be pointed out, are anywhere near as mortifying as the Dodge Ram ad
that “salutes the heroes of ‘The Hunger Games’” as a cross-promotional
spot for “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2.” Nothing says “fighting
the excesses of corrupt capitalism” like buying a new gas-guzzler.
Sounds to us like somebody (or somebodys) in FCA marketing should be fired; we can't see how any of this marketing is going to equal sales.
Don't think the world of online car buying enthusiasm ever intersects with the real world? Au contraire! Recently (Season 2, Episode 3) on the television show Car Matchmaker, there was a guest appearance by Randy Nonnenberg of BringATrailer.com. Unfortunately, that show is either poorly edited or just plain bad because they'd ask him a question and the answer was never given onscreen. We'll choose to believe those answers ended up on the cutting room floor, as Randy surely gave his best, informed and intelligent reply. But those two worlds -online and offline- do intersect occasionally and that's our point!
Today, we're exploring the
origins of the Toyota motorhome; production by third-party manufacturers began in 1973. Toyota was involved, expressing interest in selling motorhomes
converted by those outside contractors through their independently-owned
dealerships.
Will GM bring the German-built Opel Insignia Sport Tourer to the States? To us, this is a no-brainer but nobody asked us. This car is related to the Malibu, Regal, LaCrosse, XTS, Impala and the last Saab 9-5.
From Car and Driver: General Motors has filed two intriguing U.S. trademark applications for its Buick subsidiary that hint at a future station-wagon variant. Yes, you read that right—the first Buick wagon since the Century and the Roadmaster might be on its way, and it could be a Regal! The filings were discovered by AutoGuide, and are for the names “Tourx” and “Regal Tourx.”
Let's add insult to injury to one of your favorite targets of scorn; BMW. This report details the latest information that BMW will be fined $40 million for screw-ups regarding safety recalls for the 2014 and 2015 MINI. Nice going, folks; you truly are the ultimate driving machine. You're worth every bleeding cent of the horrific premiums you charge and there's no issue with you ripping off people who actually want to keep your car past the warranty period. Now you prove that you don't care much about the safety of your customers, either. Nice.
Remember the “Hey Mon” skit on the sketch comedy classic
television show, “In Living Color”? In the skit, the premise is that members of
a West Indian family all have an unbelievable number of jobs and find it
outrageous if a person has less than two or less. They’ve got nothing on the
subject of our next interview. This time around, we’re interviewing the founder
of what is possibly the largest Toyota motorhome appreciation group on one of
the biggest social media sites out there, Facebook.
Well, we couldn't lure anybody into adding to our list of 2-door Wagons and Shooting Brakes (sad face). So we'll just add this one that we'd missed previously; the Alfa Romeo Alfasud 2+1-door Giardinetta. Powered by a 71 (some sources say 75) horsepower 1.3-liter four-cylinder engine, the Giugiaro-designed 3-door estate was produced from 1975-1978.
Ever wonder why it was named Alfasud? That's because it was produced at the then-new Pomigliano d-Arco facility in the south of Italy. Get it? Sud? South? But you knew that already, didn't you.
You can forget finding one of these for sale in the States. Still want one? Here's your best bet.
Concept cars don't really interest us much because they're so far removed from reality. But one catches our eye occasionally, for various reasons. Here's one that did; the 1972 Toyota RV-2.
We've got Bemidji, Minnesota on the mind. Ask us why if you're interested but in the meantime we decided to peruse the local Craigslist ads to see what struck our fancy. Here's what we found; a gorgeous, all-original, low mileage 1968 Ford Galaxie 500 for only $6.8K.
Like the VW Jetta limo featured here on REVolution recently, a Pontiac Grand Prix is not the expected basis for a limo stretch instead of the standard Lincoln or Cadillac. But that's what whomever chose to do to this car that had a $23K base MSRP. Maybe they figured it would turn heads, like a Barbie pink Hummer stretch limo does. Well, it did catch our eye, that's for sure! Here's what the seller has to say about this, uh, thing.
Sorry about that poor quality of the image. Couldn't find a better one. Saw one of these 2016 Toyota 4Runners on the street the other day and noticed the up and down buttons on the back tailgate (on the chrome, to the right). As far as we can tell, the buttons are only on some trim levels or even possibly just one...? Not sure about that one. If you know answer to this conundrum, drop us a line!
We’ve always found Land Rover to be an interesting company.
Perpetually stuck at the bottom of every reliability index and often the cause
for simultaneous reckless admiration and constant hair ripping frustration, they’re a common
sight amongst the rich and fabulous. Their off-road capabilities seem distant
as they roll from boulevard stoplight to stoplight. How can the BMW-owned
(there’s a clue there) company be an over- and underdog simultaneously?
It's time for another update on the depreciation of our example 2015 Volkswagen Jetta TDI!
It's been a month since we last checked in and since then it's lost another $584. Our comparison vehicle, a 2015 Honda Accord, lost nothing. While that may make the Jetta TDI seem like it's been pushed over the cliff of depreciation, it seems to us that it isn't losing value any more than normal. The fuss over the diesel debacle doesn't seem to be changing things from that perspective; neither accelerating it, which wouldn't have been surprising, nor slowing it, which would.
When does 5.5 hp look like a whole lotta laughs? When it's a Dune Cat! I wasn't able to dig up much history on these bits of fiberglass fun but this one appears to have been manufactured by a company named HPE Muskin. There were several other companies that produced similar go karts; even Sears sold them. If you know more about them, please share!
"Put this under the tree this year!! Super fun! 1972 Dune Cat go cart.
Fiberglass body, heavy steel frame, ( stripped, sanded and painted) bran
new 19 inch rear knobby tires, 16 inch front tires. 5.5 hp robins motor
, runs great. Double seat belts mount to roll bar and frame for safety.
Has lights installed, just need to be wired. 500$" Photos: Craigslist
It turns out being from the SouthWest coast doesn't necessarily prepare you for driving in the NorthWest winter snow. Who knew? And thus we have become devotees of the mighty Bridgestone Blizzak. On the Shadowagon, they turn what's already a decent winter driver into a nearly unstoppable tank, limited only by ground clearance. We've now gone through multiple sets of these incredible tires and so it will come as a shock (well, it was to us) that we've chosen a new make and model this year - the Michelin X-Ice Xi3. After a hefty rebate, these are a screaming deal and the reviews of this new offering are that they're even better than the Blizzaks. We'll see and will report our findings in the months to come. Bring on the snow!
Due to the recent brouhaha, we've switched comment moderation on for the time being. We still want to hear from you so don't let that stop you! Hopefully, we can go back to a more open discussion process soon and don't forget that we love hearing from you via private email, too.
Thank you for your patience and support, Lower Management
Picking our favorite wagon of the exhibit proved to be more
difficult than we anticipated; they were all spectacular in their own way. But
our wandering eye kept roaming back to this rarely seen 1981 Renault 18i, also
known as a Sportwagon.
"This is an original MI Sportster, which originated from the 1951 Mechanix Illustrated November issue. This car was built according the MI plans and is all hand built during the 1950s. This car was started in 1952 by the original owner and completed 3 years later. This article boasted plans for the builder to create a 100MPH roadster for less than $500!!!! By taking parts from the 1930s & 1940s cars the builder could build one fast sportster!! Car is in great shape for its year and being hand built. Has an amazing running flathead Ford V8!!
Hopped in the Shadowagon last night to go to work. It was raining kittens and puppies. Noticed that the driver's side wiper wasn't starting from the usual position. The more we drove, the worse it got. Uh oh. By the time we got about a mile from work, it had stopped working altogether and we were leaning over towards the passenger side to see, like we were gangsta or something. Jeez, we're not hip on today's lingo.
Recently overheard; "Mazda is one of the smallest car companies right now." Is it? Is it really? Let's take a look at facts instead of random statements; so far for 2015 it's #18 out of 36 major nameplates in the US. That's not the smallest by any measure. Guess who is #17? Yep, Volks"We're going to be the biggest car company in the world!"wagen. No, we're not adding up total car sales and getting the VW gross. We're just talking the size of the nameplates based on sales. So there you have it.
From the seller…"This
is a very rare truck- It is licensed for the road. It is a slant 4 fuel
injected engine. It has 9,000 miles. 2 wheel drive, 5 speed star xtracab. It
has a 2000 lb payload and weighs 1352lbs."For sale with 9K miles for $6,500.
