April 18, 2006, 6:38 PM PDT
The VW Rabbit is back
Posted by:
Wayne Cunningham
Remember the Volkswagen Rabbit from the '80s? Ever wonder what happened to it? Volkswagen decided to standardize its model branding and use the same name as the model in other countries: Golf. Someone at Volkswagen realized people in this country have an affection for the old VW Rabbit and decided to put the old name back on, beginning with the restyled 2007 Volkswagen Golf, er, I mean Rabbit.
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April 14, 2006, 1:56 PM PDT
Lincoln shows off MKS, MKX, and MKZ
Posted by:
Wayne Cunningham
The Lincoln MKX was supposed to launch as the
Aviator.
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For the past year, Lincoln has been on a rebranding kick, getting rid of names for its cars in favor of letter designations beginning with
MK. It had three of its recently MK-branded cars on display at the New York Auto Show. The Lincoln Zephyr, which launched last year, got its name pulled in favor of
MKZ for the 2007 model year. A small SUV, the Aviator, had been set to launch, when Lincoln swapped its name for
MKX. A new full-size sport-luxury sedan, the MKS, seems to have been given its letter designation before a formal name was applied. Lincoln may be onto something here, as names tend to get associated with a decade and become dated. How could an El Camino be anything but a car from the 1970s? Of course, Lincoln sells so many Town Cars and Navigators that it won't mess with its branding anytime soon.
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April 14, 2006, 8:56 AM PDT
Chevy Tahoe fleet promotes corn-based fuel
Posted by:
Wayne Cunningham
A whole bunch of Chevy Tahoes line up at the New York Auto Show.
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Walking to Jacob Javitz Center on Thursday morning for the
New York Auto Show, I came across the most Chevy Tahoes I've ever seen in one place, all parked right at the front entrance. All the cars were black, and all had a sign saying
livegreen goyellow.com in the back window. (That's
www.livegreengoyellow.com, if you want to follow the link.) I surmised that Chevy brought this fleet out to promote its flexible fuel vehicles that can run on E85 fuel, a mixture of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline, and offer ride-alongs so that people can feel what it's like to drive in a car running on mostly corn. On the show floor, GM promotes that it has the most flexible fuel vehicles of any automaker. GM is putting a huge effort behind its livegreengoyellow.com campaign, touting that ethanol can be produced from corn grown in the United States, reducing our dependence on oil imports. The E85 fuel mixed from domestically produced corn also causes substantially less pollution. Growing our own fuel and polluting less are all major wins, but it has been pointed out that ethanol doesn't have the same energy capacity as gasoline, and we couldn't grown enough corn for every car to run on E85.
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April 14, 2006, 8:05 AM PDT
Honda retails natural gas Civic
Posted by:
Wayne Cunningham
This natural gas-powered Civic gives off almost zero emissions.
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Phill lets people fuel up their Civic NGVs at home.
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At the New York Auto Show, Honda showed off its Civic NGV, which runs on compressed natural gas, gives off almost zero emissions, and can be fueled at home for half the price of gasoline. Honda is just starting to make the Civic NGV available in California and New York, and given its environmental and economical superiority, it should be a success. Based on the Civic LX, the natural gas-powered Civic NGV comes standard with an automatic transmission. The EPA has already rated the NGV as getting the equivalent of 28mpg city/39mpg highway, which is only a little inferior to the standard Civic's 30mpg city/40mpg highway. Because natural gas refueling stations aren't common, Honda also displays Phill, a home natural gas refueling station made by Fuelmaker Corporation. This unit taps into residential natural gas lines and automatically shuts off when it senses a full tank. Currently, natural gas is much less expensive than gasoline, so why doesn't everyone have a natural gas car? Honda has been pioneering alternative fuels, even leasing out its FCX fuel-cell vehicle to private parties. Other carmakers may follow in Honda's steps if it is successful. However, natural gas is cheap only because it's not in high demand. Prices have been known to spike during harsh winters because it's also used for home heating. Although the Natural Gas Supply Association claims North America has more than a 100 years' supply at current rates of consumption, that number would go down drastically if all cars ran on natural gas.
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April 14, 2006, 7:59 AM PDT
Tuner Yaris
Posted by:
Wayne Cunningham
An Eclipse nav/entertainment system makes the cabin comfortable.
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Among Toyota's Yaris display at the New York Auto Show is a sporty-looking tuned-up version. The Yaris is Toyota's new, inexpensive subcompact, and with only 106 horsepower, it won't be seen on the racetrack. But Toyota Racing Development got a hold of this one and gave it a performance face-lift. This Yaris has Sparco seats, Nitto tires, and Volk wheels. The power train is still the standard 1.5-liter variable valve-timed four-cylinder, mated to a five-speed manual transmission. There is one surprise under the hood: a nitrous injection system.
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April 14, 2006, 7:57 AM PDT
Off-roading in Manhattan
Posted by:
Wayne Cunningham
A Jeep handles uneven pilings in the Camp Jeep course.
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At the New York Auto Show, Jeep demonstrated its vehicles' off-road credibility with a hazard course. I went on a ride-along in a Jeep Liberty, which isn't Jeep's most serious off-roader, yet it handled the course well. One of the first hazards was a 30-degree sideways slope, which shows how far Jeeps can tip without rolling over. The ground looked very close from the passenger seat. A big hill on the course had a 35-degree ascent and descent, even steeper than the hills I'm used to in San Francisco, yet the Jeep handled it easily. The course even included a 20-inch-deep water hazard, which all the vehicles drive right through. The Jeep driver for my ride-along told me she preferred the Jeep Wrangler Rubicon for the course because it practically drives itself over everything.
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April 13, 2006, 11:54 AM PDT
A short Fuse
Posted by:
Wayne Cunningham
The Fuse body echoes the xB, but sits on the tC platform.
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The Fuse dashboard can display vehicle information and video.
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The Scion Fuse concept unveiled at the New York Auto Show features a radical shape, a flexible interior design, and futuristic electronics. With its Scion brand, Toyota showed that it could take successful risks. When Toyota announced it would unveil a new sport coupe concept at the New York Auto Show, I was thinking, "You've already got a sport coupe, the
tC." But the Fuse, with its almost trucklike profile, could sit alongside the tC in Scion's model lineup without intruding on its turf. The concept earns its name (short for
Fusion, since that was taken) by having a body that takes cues from the
xB but sits on a tC platform. I also suspect Toyota engineers wanted to confront the challenge of making a sport coupe with headroom for rear passengers, something they didn't bother with on the tC. In good concept fashion, the doors, opened by a small, exterior push button, butterfly out. The inside is designed for flexibility, where all seats but the driver's can fold flat, maximizing cargo space. The dashboard is one long display that can show vehicle and entertainment information, as well as videos. The wheels have LEDs on their spokes, which light up as turn signals, and the headlight color can actually be customized.
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April 13, 2006, 11:32 AM PDT
What does VW marketing say about you?
Posted by:
Wayne Cunningham
Volkswagen displays statistics about Jetta owners.
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Volkswagen wants you to know that 92 percent of Jetta owners go snorkeling. And that Jetta owners are 40 percent less likely to get separated or divorced. And that 29 percent of these very same owners recycle. It's all part of Volkswagen's marketing campaign for the Jetta, displayed on large, freestanding posters at its New York Auto Show booth. I thought these stats were pretty odd and wondered what happens when a couple sells their Jetta. Do problems start cropping up that never appeared before? Does one member of the couple start having affairs? What magic does the Jetta exert to keep these troubles in abeyance? It's probably the snorkeling. If the Jetta makes most people spend all their time underwater, they can't spend a lot of time arguing. Volkswagen promises to offer more statistics such as these at
The Jetta Report.
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April 13, 2006, 11:30 AM PDT
Suzuki SX4 rally car
Posted by:
Wayne Cunningham
Suzuki's rally concept is based on the new SX4.
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Fast on the heels of its SX4 launch, Suzuki showed off the new four-wheel-drive off-roader in rally trim. I first saw the SX4 at the
Geneva Auto Show and thought it would be a perfect car for the United States. Suzuki must have been reading my mind (or way ahead of me, which is more likely), because the company introduced the SX4 for the U.S. market. With a sophisticated four-wheel-drive system, it looks like a pretty good car for dirt roads and the snow. Suzuki must think so too, as it showed off the rally version, which would compete with legends such as the Subaru WRX STi and the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo. The turbocharged 2.0-liter engine produces 320 horsepower and 470 pound-feet of torque, which, considering the car's light weight, should really make it move.
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