After three years of being bested by Toyota, General Motors is once again the world’s best selling automaker. General Motors sold 9,025,942 in 2011, a 7.6 percent increase over last year’s figures. General Motors even bested Volkswagen, who have made it a public goal to become the biggest automaker on the block. Toyota trailed both GM and VW though, whose sales dropped 6 percent in 2011.
If you haven’t seen these Jaguars in their very cool commercial on TV then you’ve probably been hiding under a rock! Either way the 2012 Jaguar XFR, XKR-S and XJL Supersport are beautiful cars and sound incredible in this clip. Looks like someone at Jag knows how to get people’s attention again and that’s great for the brand.
Usually when automakers “go green” their product includes electric motors and a heaping helping of tepid performance. Bentley is not one of these automakers. In order to improve their range of cars to meet new emission and mileage requirements, Bentley has engineered a new V8 engine to slot into their Bentley Continental GT and GTC.
This new twin-turbocharged motor displaces 4.0liters and produces 500hp and 487lb. ft. of torque. Direct injection, low restriction turbos, and variable valve timing also play a part in to help the Continental slash emissions and raise mileage by 40%.
Bentley is quick to point out that the V8 is just as refined as the W12 as well. So not only can you enjoy the perpetual thrust of traditional Bentley motors, but also hold your nose up to Prius drivers as well since you too are also saving the planet. But if you absolutely must have the W12, don’t worry, it is still available alongside the V8. No need to get your Saville Row suit in a bunch, the new V8 Bentley Continentals have everything you love about Bentley, with more efficiency than ever before .
It has been a long time coming, but Saab’s curtain call seems to be just around the corner. Yesterday, Saab filed with the Swedish courts for bankruptycy proceedings. Today, Saab North America announced that all Saabs sold from December 19th forward will not have warranty coverage. This move follows a significant period of financial turmoil for the brand as they continue to struggle after being sold by General Motors in 2010. It is not known at this time what will happen to Saab post bankruptcy, but suspending warranty coverage is not a promising sign of Saab returning to produce cars any time soon.
When the inside of your car starts looking like the land of food wrappers, dirt, and miscellaneous papers, odds are you drag a vacuum over and clean the clutter. How detailed is your tidying up, though? Are you really cleaning well, or are you just making it look bearable and going on your merry way?
If you want your car’s interior to look pristine, you’ll probably need to do some detailing work. Detailing involves taking care of the smaller aspects of a car rather than just generally vacuuming or picking up the miscellaneous items. If you don’t really feel like paying someone else to do the detailing for you, here are some DIY tips you might find useful.
All-Purpose Cleaner is Your Friend
There are a lot of different specialized cleaning tools out there, but according to Consumer Reports, there are many household cleaners that can do the job and save you money. Just make sure you match up the right household product, and if you’re not sure, test it on a small area of the car.
All-purpose cleaner is great for cleaning your interior trim. Popular Mechanics recommends using a cleaner like Simple Green diluted at about 10:1. Use this type of cleaner and a clean, damp cloth to get the dirt off the hard surfaces inside of your car.
Cleaning the Nooks and Crannies
DMV.org recommends having Q-tips along with toothbrushes or paintbrushes on hand while you do your detailing work. These common household objects can help you with the smaller cleaning jobs. For example, after you’ve cleaned the plastic and metal parts of the car door, dry them and use a Q-tip or brush to get out the smaller stains you see.
Making Fabric or Leather Spotless
Leather cleaner, saddle soap, or some type of mild leather soap can work for cleaning your leather trim, according to Consumer Reports. Just make sure you get all of the excess soap off the leather once you’re finished. According to 21st.com, purchasing a complete detailing kit will often provide all the products you need.
The same article recommends using a spray-on upholstery cleaner and a soft brush to clean cloth upholstery. Popular Mechanics mentions that avoiding products that leave surfaces feeling glossy or slippery might be a good idea, as well, so passengers won’t be constantly sliding around in their seats.
Conclusion
There are many ways to clean the interior of your car without having to get it professionally done. Think about all of the materials you already have available in your home and decide how they can apply to car care. What other tips do you have when it comes to at-home car detailing?
In a meeting at the 2011 Tokyo International Auto Show, Tetsuo Iwamura, Honda USA President and CEO, remarked that he was frustrated with slow sales of Honda’s Crosstour stating:
“In the case of the Crosstour, I’m really disappointed because that’s a nice car, [with] very beautiful styling, and it gives very good driving performance as well as packaging. But yet, we went a bit too far.”
Honda wanted to sell 40,000 units of the “lifestyle” crossover, but managed to move only 25,000 in 2010. This year they have only managed to move 16,679. Iwamura is confident that Crosstour sales can be salvaged with further improvements, but I have a different idea for Mr. Iwamura.
Apparently, if people were not rioting over two dollar waffle irons at Wal-Mart, they were buying cars on our nation’s most treasured holiday, Black Friday. The result of the strong sales last weekend caused November of this year to post sales at a 13.4% seasonally adjusted rate, 2% higher than the same period in 2010. In fact, this is the highest seasonal rate increase since “Cash for Clunkers” was operating in 2009. There are more factors contributing to November’s sales success than just Black Friday though.
In a press conference by Toyota Motor Corp.’s president Akio Toyoda today, Toyoda announced that the strength of the Japanese yen may cause Toyota to shift production of compact cars to other countries. Toyota is not the first Japanese car company to come out against the yen. Nissan has also pleaded to the government to weaken the yen, or they would pull out of domestic production as well.
The yen has been incredibly strong against the U.S. dollar as of late, causing profit margins to erode for many of the domestic Japanese automotive manufacturers. Coupled with lagging demand in the U.S., and supply chain disruptions due to the earthquake, Japanese brands have had a difficult set of circumstances as they struggle for sales in a tough year.
Nissan has partnered with 1991 Heisman Trophy winner Desmond Howard, the creator of the most famous in-game Heisman pose, in a search for the greatest off-field Heisman pose. They’re asking fans to submit a photo of the most creative or funniest Heisman pose for a chance to win a trip to the Allstate BCS Championship Game, Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, Allstate Sugar Bowl, or Discover Orange Bowl. Fans can enter the Innovate the Heisman Pose contest on Nissan’s Facebook page today through Wednesday, December 14.
Desmond Howard and Nissan will choose one grand prize winner who will win an all-expenses paid trip for two to the 2012 Allstate BCS Championship Game in New Orleans on January 9th, as well as three runners up who will win trips for two to the Fiesta Bowl (2nd place), Sugar Bowl (3rd place), or Orange Bowl (4th Place). You can watch Desmond’s video challenge to fans below!
Chevrolet captured the spirit of 20th Century America, with its “work hard, play hard” ethic. Perhaps no Chevrolet represents this spirit better than the Chevy truck. Check out the 10 noteworthy examples of Chevy trucks over the decades.
1. 1918 Chevrolet 490 Half-Ton Light Delivery “Cowl Chassis”
Two four-cylinder models marked Chevrolet’s entry into the truck market in January 1918. Both were “cowl chassis” units that came from the factory with only frontal sheet metal. It was customary at the time for the buyer to obtain a wooden cab and cargo box or panel van body to suit their purposes.
Priced at $595, the half-ton Light Delivery cowl chassis was essentially a body-less Chevrolet 490 car equipped with stronger rear springs. Mounted with a pickup box or panel body, it provided an agile and economical light-delivery truck for ‘Main Street’ businesses.
The one-ton capacity 1918 Chevrolet “Model T” (presumably for “Truck”) cost $1,125 without body and was built on a truck frame than was longer and stronger than that of the half-ton model. A 37 horsepower engine gave the larger truck the power to haul heavier loads at a governor-limited top speed of 25 mph.
