Oh, how we’d like to go all grumpy-old-man-get-off-my-lawn on for this latest bit of hipster marketing. But dammit, it’s got robots in it. Real robots, industrial robots, installed inside a 2012 hatchback. And it’s just so cool.
The robots are there to help Jeff Soto paint a mural on an empty brick wall, and while we’re pretty sure the final product of this collaboration is still something like 90-percent man and 10-percent machine, we really like what we see. Chevy calls Soto a “respected street artist,” which we figure just means a graffiti artist with a degree rather than a rap sheet. (Soto’s is from Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, CA.) Soto, in turn, refers to the compact Sonic as the first “robotic art car.”
While Soto did a lot of conventional work on the mural, he also used the Sonic’s robotic arms, which were controlled from within the car and could be operated while Soto drove. The painting appendages emerged through the Sonic’s windows, sunroof and hatchback, and seem to take up all the available space inside the car, save for the driver’s seat.
While we were fairly impressed seeing the Sonic , we definitely think the little car should focus on its art. There’s some real talent there.
Last year aimed cameras at the the 150 Camaros making the drive to Phoenix for Camaro5 Fest. The footage has been pieced together into a ten-minute documentary called Alter Ego, a celebration of owners in celebration of their cars.
It’s more than that, though, since it pauses to take a look at the model that made the name, and the annus horribilus of 2002 when Camaro production ceased.
There’s also lots of tire smoke. Naturally. to watch.
Along with Renault- CEO Carlos Ghosn, CEO Alan Mulally is confident in the growth of the electric car segment. It’s a long-term play, though, so Mulally isn’t committing the electric Ford Focus EV to making a strong sales statement. For now, Ford’s chief says he’d be fine moving fewer than 5,000 Focus EVs in the model’s first full year. And even that would mean a steep rise in uptake based on in December and January.
TheWall Street Journal reports that Mulally has also let slip the cost for the battery pack in the all-electric Focus: “around $12,000 to $15,000,” which makes a bit more understandable. Given that price range and the EV’s 23-kWh battery, that means Ford’s cost is between $522 and $650 per kWh, which is lower than the so far this year.
Reportage on the current sales of EVs is a bit schizophrenic – for example, , , but the commentators and the numbers seem to support Mulally’s confidence. If the Focus EV did manage 5,000 sales this year, that would be a little more than half of the 2011 tally for the , yet according to Bloomberg, EV market share grew more quickly than any other segment in Q1: Nissan is still working through its Leaf pre-order list, sales to 2,129 units vs. March 2011, the Opel Ampera has exceeded sales expectations, and other electric vehicles and their marketing pushes will come online later this year. Oh, and gas prices are still climbing.
There were no Focus EVs sold in February or March, but the retail push is gearing up now for the Spring season.
The 1961 Impala SS inaugurated the SS trim line to the brand, and its SS cars have found more than a million homes since – examples helping the way. Turns out, though, that just got around to patenting the designator SS on April 13, 2012. Since the SS descriptor has historically indicated a model variant or trim level, distinctions that apparently don’t normally warrant trademark protection, the questions are why now and what for?
The evidence would seem to lead to this being a model designator, not just a trim, and there have been of the will hit the market and simply be called SS. But if that’s the case, what would the we’ve seen in spy shots be named, and what – if anything – would happen to the SS trim available on other Chevy models?
Click the image below for a look at the patent application, and we’ll be looking forward to finding out what is going to go where.
has been kind enough to give us all a glimpse of the company’s ahead of the super SUV’s debut at the 2012 Beijing Motor Show. A 5.5-liter AMG-built twin-turbo V8 engine lurks behind the updated face, complete with a heady 544 horsepower and 560 pound-feet of torque. The direct-injection engine is also laden with fuel-saving gear, including a start/stop system and an intelligent alternator that only charges the vehicle’s electrical system when needed.
We’re guessing the tech may help move the boxy Geländewagen’s fuel economy from supremely abysmal to merely exceptionally atrocious. Mercedes-Benz hasn’t released any solid estimates beyond saying the numbers have improved by around 13 percent on the EU cycle. Keep in mind, that’s with 44 more horsepower than the outgoing G55 AMG. A seven-speed automatic transmission handles shifting duties.
If the G63 AMG doesn’t provide enough power for you, there’s always brawny . With its twin-turbo 6.0-liter V12 engine, the monster delivers 612 horsepower and 737 pound-feet of torque. For perspective, that’s more thrust than vehicles like the with a Duramax turbodiesel, the or the . This dog will surely hunt.
European G-Class buyers can look forward to shelling out €137,504 (circa $180k USD) for the G63 AMG, including Value Added Tax. The G65 AMG, meanwhile, starts at a breathtaking €264,180 (roughly $347k). Mercedes-Benz suggests we should see the G63 AMG in the States beginning in August, but it’s remaining mum on the G65’s prospects, and it has not disclosed U.S. pricing. Learn more in the official release .
It may come as a shock, but diesel cars are doing well outside of their traditional European home. The just-released shows that , but the real story is that we might be seeing the start of a golden era for diesel-powered cars in the U.S. In fact, clean diesel sales were up 35 percent in the first quarter of 2012 over Q1 2011, a trend – and it is a trend, since diesel sales were up 27 percent in 2011 – that the Diesel Technology Forum (DTF) says is due to higher fuel prices pushing people into the efficient oil-burners.
Allen Schaeffer, DTF’s executive director, said in a statement that, “I expect clean diesel auto sales to increase further as several new diesel cars are introduced in the U.S. market in the next year.”
Right now, it’s pretty much all Jetta TDI, all the time.
Once those other vehicles arrive, we’ll see how the market shakes out. Right now, it’s pretty much all , all the time. A while back, we spoke with Lars Ullrich, the director of marketing and business excellence, diesel systems North America, for Robert Bosch LLC. He told us that diesel Jettas made up 44 percent of all diesels sold in the U.S. last year, which makes the Jetta sort of the Prius of diesels in America. Last year, had 58 percent of all diesel sales in the U.S.
Does this mean the Jetta TDI is “the” diesel in the U.S.? Ullrich said it depends on how you look at the numbers. About 60 percent of all s sold in the U.S. in 2011, for example, were diesel, but the A3 sells in smaller numbers overall than the Jetta. When you have diesels available in high-volume models, he said, you end up selling a lot of diesels.
Diesel-powered passenger cars and medium-duty pick-ups had around three percent market share in the U.S. in 2011.
What does the big picture look like? Overall, diesel-powered passenger cars and medium-duty pick-ups had around three percent market share in the U.S. in 2011. That may not sound like a lot, but compare it to the hybrid market share, which has gone from 2.7 to 2.4 to 2.1 percent over the last three years, Ullrich said. Today, there are 25 clean diesel models available in the U.S. By 2014, that number will double, he said, which gives us an indication of where the market is moving. Echoing Schaeffer, Bosch’s prediction is that the U.S. will see diesels grab 10 percent of the market by 2015.
While increasingly popular, diesels are not perfect. There are issues like the , for example, and a fossil fuel is a fossil fuel. But it’s clear that Americans are considering diesel more than they used to. The question is what happens when the and arrive? Or more of ’s -D models? And, further down the line, when we see more merging of electric and diesel powertrains, where the diesel – perhaps – is burned in an efficient generator to generate electricity. That’s when things get even more exciting.
High gas prices are helping and do quite well in the U.S., too. The Diesel Technology Forum says hybrid sales increased 37.2 percent while plug-in electrics jumped 323 percent. Overall, vehicle sales were up 13.4 percent. For more number-crunching details, see our monthly green car sales charts for , and of 2012. The DTF has compiled a list of all the diesel-powered vehicles available in the U.S. .
If you’ve got an hour to kill and an itch to watch some exciting Targa Newfoundland action, we’ve got good news for you. SPEED has been kind enough to stream the network’s one-hour special free online. The episode spends plenty of time following both the Modern and Classic divisions with barely a nod toward Open or Grand Touring. That’s a shame for plenty of reasons, both because the competition was incredibly tight across the board this year and because I hung out with in both the latter classes during my .
Still, the Flyin’ Miata guys get a little time on screen. The rest of the coverage details the fight between Scott Giannou in his and Bob Yuille in his . There’s also plenty of interviews with Ralph Gilles. You can check out the full episode by clicking .
Last week, a battery research lab in Warren, Michigan. General Motors has since said the fire was caused by a battery that was being tested under “extreme stress.” Engineers were trying to get the pack to fail, which it did, but not to ignite, which it also did when gases leaked out and somehow caught fire.
There’s one detail we have not heard yet, and that’s how much the fire could end up costing GM: up to $5 million, the The Detroit News reports, based on information that the automaker’s representatives submitted in a police report. The local fire department has estimated that the damage could be closer to $3 million, with one million of that due to property loss – at least two labs were damaged – and $2 million worth of damage to the labs’ contents. An investigation into the cause and extent of the fire continues.
The battery pack involved was not the same as the one used in the and GM says that the incident . Media reports have suggested the battery is be intended for the and that the prototype battery pack was made by A123 (which has had recently). Multiple people were injured in the fire but only one remains in the hospital because of “an estimated four-inch gash to the back of his head.”
That’s the crux of the changes in store for the extended-range plug-in electric vehicle. Changes for the 2013 model year will include a driving mode that lets drivers force the car into gas-powered, extended-range mode in situations where it’s most advantageous to switch out of EV-only mode, GM Inside News reports.
Drivers can choose the Volt’s “EV Hold Mode” in certain cases, such as when the route consists of a bunch of highway driving prior to city driving, according to the publication. Switching over to extended-range mode, in which the gas-powered on-board generator is used, would be better in that situation because high speeds drain a plug-in’s battery charge a lot more rapidly than city driving. “EV Hold Mode” is , the . The closest that U.S. drivers can do with today’s Volt is .”
Additionally, the Volt will eschew its black roof and trunk backing and will go to body colors for those parts of the car for 2013. Other improvements include a lane-departure warning system that’s becoming commonplace on many U.S. vehicles.
GM released details of the 2013 Volt following the model’s since its late-2010 debut. The automaker sold 2,289 Volts in March, a monthly record that is more than three times higher than figures from a year earlier. The Volt missed the 10,000-unit target set by GM for 2011, moving just 7,671 units last year.
General Motors has released pricing for the bi-fuel option for the and , and it’s a pill that probably won’t go down easy. Buyers who want their workhorses to suck down either compressed natural gas (CNG) or gasoline can look forward to ponying up $11,000 for the pleasure. That big chunk of change adds a Type 3 tank in the bed for CNG, and GM says that with both fuels, the trucks will have an effective range of 650 miles. The bi-fuel option is available on any heavy-dutytruck configuration, including four-wheel drive and extended cab models.
The automaker says the bi-fuel trucks are a way for business owners to safeguard themselves against volatile gas prices, and that the option could save anywhere from $5,000 to $10,000 over the course of three years depending on fuel fluctuations. However, any option on a work truck that only might break even in three or four years seems like a tough sell in our book, especially given the reduction in useable bed area. for the full press release as well as a quick video.
Episode #278 of the is here, and this week, Chris, Dan, and Zach are joined by of Autoblog and AOL Autos to chat about Dodge Dart pricing, the next Ford Mustang shying away from retro styling, Chevrolet quietly developing an Impala SS, and a NHTSA proposal to mandate brake override systems. Your questions and comments power the end of the ‘cast, and for those of you who hung with us live on our , thanks for taking the time. We’ve embedded our Q&A module for you to scroll through and follow along, too. Thanks for listening!
Autoblog Podcast #278:
In the Autoblog Garage
Hosts: , ,
Runtime: 01:34:50
Get the podcast
[] Listen live on Mondays at 10PM Eastern at UStream
[] Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes
[] Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator
[] Download the MP3 directly
is not going to take attacks on the electric car lying down – the closest he’ll come to that is . After spending for their attacks on the , he is switching to a positive message about how plug-in cars can help with American national security. It is not surprising that Lutz, a former Marine, co-authors the article with two former U.S. Marines commandants and the CEO of FedEx (the three are all members of Securing America’s Future Energy’s (SAFE) Energy Security Leadership Council). The gist? Well, here’s part of the opening paragraph:
When … threats exist because the United States is the protector of the world’s global oil supply lines, it is a clear illustration of how our nation’s over-reliance on a single, globally priced fuel impacts our national and economic security.
America’s addiction to gasoline costs the government billions of dollars a year, an estimated $80 billion, in fact, to guard the sea lanes, including one little area by Iran:
From a national security perspective, the U.S. military is forced to protect the world’s vital oil infrastructure. The single greatest chokepoint is the Strait of Hormuz, through which 17 million barrels of oil per day passed in 2011 – 20 percent of global supplies. Protection of the sea lanes of commerce has become an American burden and will remain so, costing the United States Treasury an estimated $80 billion per year while taxing our military, which is already engaged on multiple fronts.
It’s arguments like this that have made the recent right-wing criticism of the Volt such a mystery. If we use less gasoline, we can spend fewer lives and less treasure importing the fuel (of course, we don’t lose many lives at the Canadian border, which is where most of our imported oil comes from). The Army says that .
Lutz and his co-authors are quite clear that high gas prices are hurting Americans’ pocketbooks, “essentially” wiping out tax cuts that Presidents Bush and Obama put into place. That’s why, they say, “government action is needed to mitigate the risks of oil dependence, because there is no free market for oil.” This intervention contains both expanded domestic production and – surprise – plugging in our light-duty transportation fleet as much as possible and feeding our big trucks lots of natural gas. To that end, they write:
Regarding electrification, the beauty of plug-in hybrids and pure electric vehicles like the Chevy Volt and the is that they are powered by electricity, which can be generated from many sources: nuclear, coal, natural gas, and renewables. Best yet, these are all domestic energy sources, meaning OPEC won’t be able to corner the market. And the retail price of electricity is far less volatile that the price of oil.
We’re almost ready to record Episode #278 of the Autoblog Podcast with of Autoblog and AOL Autos joining us, and you can check out the topics below, add your own to the and join us live via , as well, and we’ve embedded our UStream player . Thanks for listening!
Discussion Topics for Autoblog Podcast Episode #278
Ward’s AutoWorld is well known for its annual list, but the trade publication has been compiling a second list for interiors for a few years now. Formerly known as the competition, Ward’s rebranded the list last year, naming the coolest cockpits under the “10 Best Interiors” moniker.
This year’s winners are a relatively diverse lot, with hatchbacks, sedans and crossovers all making the list. While Ward’s lists them in alphabetical order rather than crowning a single winner, we’re choosing to present them with the lowest as-tested MSRP first:
($15,925)
($18,745)
($21,485)
($25,195)
($30,415)
($36,875)
Luxury ($44,855)
($49,745)
($54,800)
($67,430)
The first thing we noticed then is that while fully half the models carrying base sticker prices under $25,000, Ward’s was clearly not testing the base models of any of these vehicles. The Chevy Sonic, for instance, starts nearly $5,000 below the price of the car Ward’s drove. Even so, that half of the cars on the list could be legitimately called “affordable” is impressive.
Ward’s says 40 vehicles qualified for the competition by having “new or significantly improved interiors,” and while 13 of those were luxury vehicles, they only made up half of the winners. Ward’s says it judged the interiors based on design, fit-and-finish, comfort, ergonomics, safety, material selection, overall value, aesthetics, and human-machine interface.
Check out all the award winners in our high-res image gallery above.
We record Episode #278 of the Autoblog Podcast tonight, and we’re joined by of Autoblog and AOL Autos. Drop us your questions via our Q&A module below, and chime in to direct our conversation. Our main focus will be recapping what we saw at the , but who knows where the conversation will take us! Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast if you haven’t already done so, and if you want to take it all in live, tune in to our (audio only) channel at 10:00 PM Eastern tonight.
Discussion Topics for Autoblog Podcast Episode #278
[] Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes
[] Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator
Well… look who lives! Our spy photographers have managed to snag a few photos of what may very well be the next interpretation of the . Long thought to be a casualty of the General Motors bailout, the biggest member Club SS was reportedly shelved a few years back. The Impala line hasn’t offered an SS performance variant since 2009, and the more aggressive grille, front fascia and tweaked head- and taillight arrays on this prototype hint at something more sinister than any topped-out LTZ model could offer. Our spy shooter’s supplier sources indicate GM is, in fact, still working on an Impala SS, and they suggest the sedan may bow with a new LF3 twin-turbo 3.0-liter V6 under the hood.
If true, that means the brawny Impala could scoot down the road with a heady 380 horsepower. As far as we know, no vehicle since the limited production 350-hp Ford Focus RS500 has tried to push anywhere near that many ponies to the front wheels, which begs the question: will the Impala offer all-wheel drive despite ?
Doing so would seem to position the Impala SS quite well against the freshly updated . Either way, we’re excited to give this big boy a go.
Matt Ramsey from The Wall Street Journal claims that the next-generation will be ditching its ’60s-inspired retro styling. Citing people familiar with Ford’s plans who have seen the new Mustang, Ramsey claims the new model will look more like the and be a dead ringer for the that debuted at the last fall. The reason for abandoning the retro-inspired styling, says Ramsey, is Ford’s desire to appeal to Generation Y consumers – people born between 1980 and 1999.
It may very well be the case that the next Mustang, which Ramsey says will be a 2014 model (we suspect it will be labeled a 2015), will look a lot like the Evos concept, but we don’t buy some of the author’s reasoning for why the Stang’s retro look might be going away. He cites declining sales of certain retro-styled vehicles like the and Mustang itself, but having just experienced an economic recession, many models saw their sales decline during the past two years compared to prior peaks, not just ones with retro styling. In particular, he cites Volkswagen selling just 6,468 units of the New Beetle last year compared with over 81,000 in 2000, but last year was that generation’s final year of sales. It has been replaced with the all-new-but-equally-retro 2012 Beetle, sales of which are up 2,722 percent so far in 2012.
And as for the Mustang, after enjoying a competition-free pony car market from 2002-2010, it’s now sharing that segment’s sales with worthy competition from both and . Its sales are certainly below their peaks from last decade, but again, a recession and new competition where there was none before will do that.
So while we have no reason to argue against Ramsey’s claim about the next Mustang moving away from its retro roots, we’re not sure we buy his evidence for the reason behind it.
The enthusiast world typically falls into two camps: those who love rat rods and those that loathe them. As with every corner of automotive world, not all rats are created equally, but we tend to find ourselves firmly rooted in the former camp more often than not. That’s especially true when we catch a glimpse of something as perfectly blasphemous as this BMW 2002. Crafted by the twisted minds at , the car actually started life as a running, driving round-taillight 2002 that owner John Lee had owned since high school.
During a slow day at the shop, Lee rolled the car in, busted out the plasma cutter and got to work with parts just collecting dust in the garage. After crafting a frame from spare tubing, the suspension went together using coilovers from a , a steering rack from a Cobalt SS and control arms from a derelict Panoz racer. While not originally a right-hand drive car, Lee swapped things around to accommodate the newer components. The rat Bimmer even uses a roof-mounted shifter for reasons that remain unclear.
APF keeps the lights on with Corvette modification and small-block conversions, so it’s no surprise power comes from an LS1 V8 bolted to a TH350 automatic gearbox. Throw in a set of custom fabbed headers and you have the beast above. to watch a quick video of the BMW 2002 rat rod coming to life for the first time (Warning: there’s some brief foul language), then head over to the for the full build thread.
With the compact segment becoming ever more crowded, is getting aggressive with its new . , pricing on the Italian-bred sedan will start at $15,995 (*before a $795 delivery charge). That undercuts key rivals like the $16,800 , $16,500 , and $16,130 . You can still buy a sedan cheaper, but by only $40.
Above the base Dart are four more trim levels. However, even the $15,995 SE gets Dodge’s 160-hp, 2.0-liter Tigershark four-cylinder and a six-speed manual. Occupants get 10 airbags, a seats clad in “denim” cloth, power windows, LED taillights, a CD player with MP3 hookup and projector headlights.
Anyone living in warmer climates should definitely look at the SXT, though. An extra $2,000 gets the most-appreciated feature ever: air conditioning. We can’t imagine living without it, but not every competitor offers A/C on their base models. The SXT also adds 17-inch alloys, power door locks, keyless entry, split rear seat, a security system and upgraded sound system. Options include navigation (natch), backup camera, sunroof and a 506-watt sound system.
Go for the Rallye level for $18,995 if you want the Multiair turbocharged 1.4-liter engine that has more torque (184 pound-feet) but no additional horsepower. The force-fed powerplant is optional, but the Rallye’s sportier body trim and wider selection of interior colors are standard.
The $19,995 Limited level adds a seven-inch “reconfigurable instrument cluster display,” fog lamps, active grille shutters and premium accent stitching. Leather seats also become optional at this level.
At the top of the heap is the Dart R/T (shown above) starting at $22,495. In the third quarter of 2012, Dart buyers will be able to buy the R/T and get a 2.4-liter, Tigershark four-cylinder with 184 horses and 171 lb-ft yoked to either a six-speed manual or Autostick automatic. The R/T also comes with all the goodies on the Limited but adds 18-inch alloys, sport suspension, more aggressive front fascia, dual exhaust, unique seat leather and a heated steering wheel.
The first Dart shipments will hit dealers beginning in June.
Check out the press release after the jump for even more details.
Some would say that the already looks like a car come to life when fitted with the factory installed 20- or 21-inch alloy wheels. But others – including the folks in this video, apparently – would say that those wheels simply aren’t large enough. Twenty-fours? Still too small. Twenty-sixes? You’re getting warmer.
No, the Camaro you see here is rolling on 32-inch wheels – in chrome, of course. We can’t even imagine how this hinders the Camaro’s drivability, but as for whether this modification is hot or not, we’ll leave that for you fine readers to discuss in the comments.
to see two videos starring the donked-out Camaro coupe, as well as a matching droptop model, as well.
