GM says yes to the Cadillac of Volts, eBay offers some free online car buying protection, electric cars you fill up--not charge up--and a ride in a car that has the Sport on it, but not really in it.
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EPISODE 144
SHOW NOTES• GM will build the Cadillac Converj
• TomTom iPhone app gets better--but not cheaper
• Europe envisions cars forming highway trains
Yesterday's clip was all about some blazing hot custom made Ford Mustangs making their presence felt at the 2009 SEMA Show last week in Las Vegas. Chevrolet reportedly also got in on the act with pimpin' out Camaros a plenty for SEMA insiders and car enthusiasts alike. Well, if you're thinking Dodge didn't have something similar up their sleeves, then like Judas Priest says "you've got another thing coming."
Today's Web video features Edward Loh from Motortrend.com gushing over some flashy custom 2009 Dodge Challengers, and with damn good reason. These Challengers are spectacular to look at, and a hot green convertible in particular is given a lot of camera time for its blingtastic wheels and 560HP V-8 engine. Roughly half way through the video, we get to scope a red Challenger that's been infused with a Viper V-10 engine and all sorts of custom options built in. Anyone who thinks that modern American muscle cars aren't something to get excited about should probably think again.
DETROIT -- Chrysler brand CEO Olivier Francois startled an audience of more than 400 journalists and analysts last week by showing video footage of a couple passionately making out in the back seat of a Chrysler 300.
A voice says: "Let's design cars people want to make out in again, cars people want their pictures taken in." The clip shows such fashion icons as Coco Chanel and Giorgio Armani and lays out a bold new vision for the Chrysler brand.
The voice says: "What ever happened to style? It wasn't too long ago America had it. At Chrysler, we believe it's time to get it back, to regain the style."
Last week Francois was one in a parade of Chrysler Group brand bosses seeking to reclaim lost glory with daring plans. Group CEO Sergio Marchionne is betting Francois and his peers at Dodge, Jeep and Ram truck will redefine their brands for new customers with the help of fuel-efficient, Fiat-based vehicles.
The challenge is daunting. In recent years, General Motors gave Saturn highly regarded vehicles based on European Opels. The brand failed anyway.
On the other hand, the Mercedes-influenced Chrysler 300 was the biggest hit of the decade-long DaimlerChrysler alliance.
Observers were impressed by the plan unveiled by Marchionne and his team to reinvent its old brands for a new generation of customers.
Chrysler will spend up to $23 billion on new products, manufacturing and brand building over five years, hoping to push market share from its current 9 percent to more than 13 percent. Planned are about a dozen new vehicles underpinned by Fiat platforms and technology.
... Read moreThe small and powerful Fiat 500 rolled into the scene in the 1960s. Since then, Fiat's vision of the 500 hasn't really changed.
The Fiat Abarth 500 was unveiled at the 2008 Geneva auto show. A 1.4-liter Fire engine with an IHI variable geometry turbocharger powers it. The Abarth 500 has 135 horsepower (101 kW) and 180Nm of torque, with the option with 160 horsepower and 206Nm in sports mode.
In this Web video, Vicky Parrott, and Autocar reviewer, takes a Fiat Abarth 500 Trophy on a test drive around a track.
(Credit:
Screenshot by Antuan Goodwin/CNET)
eBay Motors is attempting to give used-car buyers a little more peace of mind when purchasing used cars online by offering vehicle history reports through Experian's AutoCheck service.
The AutoCheck report includes information such as frame-damage announcements, major flood damage, and odometer rollback issues. Additionally, the report will include a vehicle history score, which summarizes all the information in a vehicle's history in a numerical score (on a scale from 1-100) that is quick and easy to understand.
We took a look at a few sample vehicle history reports for randomly selected listings and found title history information, a history of reported odometer readings with dates, detailed vehicle use history (useful for learning if the vehicle you're about to buy used to be a rental car), and a full chronological vehicle history for the cars' VIN.
eBay vehicle history reports are currently available for free on all listings for used vehicles no older than the 1981 model year.
Earlier this week, we took a quick glance at a few of the many production and concept cars making their debuts at the 2009 SEMA Show last week at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Well, today's video needs little explanation, simply because I don't have much extra information to give you. This Web clip shows off four nice customized Ford Mustangs that were exhibited at the most recent SEMA Show in Vegas, and really, this video is just a lot of nice eye candy for Mustang enthusiasts. Observe...
This video is more or less a commercial for Stage 3 Motorsports and TheMustangNews.com. Stage 3 Motorsports specializes in building custom Ford Mustangs and is also a supplier of Mustang engines and components. TheMustangNews.com boasts that it is "the Web authority for Mustang and Ford News," and its home page has profiles and reviews of several different Mustangs and Ford products that were on display at the 2009 SEMA Show. It's not the most intellectually stimulating Web clip you'll ever see, but if you just enjoy seeing some pimped-out custom Mustangs, then you will be more than satisfied.
(Credit:
TomTom)
When we took our first look at the TomTom app for iPhone, it seemed like a perfectly competent helper for getting from points A-to-B. But, we couldn't help but notice that a few of our favorite GPS navigation features were notably absent--particularly TTS instructions and graphic lane guidance.
Well, there's good news for users of the TomTom app in the form of a free update that adds these missing features, and a few more.
The update will add text-to-speech (TTS) for spoken street names and points of interest (POI) as part of the device's directions, graphic lane guidance which displays a visual representation of complex highway intersections with indications of valid lanes for the route, and a "Help menu" offering a shortcut to emergency number and directions to the nearest emergency services. TomTom is also enabling in-app iPod player control, so drivers won't have to exit the application to pick a song or playlist.
Also included in this update are a free map update and the inclusion of a safety camera database update. Users will be able to set audio warnings when approaching safety cameras or driving over the speed limit, possibly preventing citations and increasing vehicle safety.
TomTom tells us that the application update has been submitted to Apple and is pending approval. For current users of the TomTom app for iPhone, this will be a free update. For everyone else, the price of the app will remain at $99.
In January, Nissan Motor will steer what has been mainly a luxury-car feature--the navigation screen--into new territory when it offers the standalone option in the Sentra compact for $400.
The color screen, supplied by Robert Bosch, provides navigation but also can be connected to an iPod or MP3 player and a Bluetooth-enabled cell phone.
The nav screen has become like the iPhone for cars--a gold mine for suppliers striving to provide applications such as traffic reports, parking-assist systems, and backup cameras.
This year automakers will install about 1.4 million navigation systems worth $2.6 billion in vehicles sold in North America, according to iSuppli, a Los Angeles consulting firm that tracks sales of consumer electronics. That's up from 890,000 systems worth $1.8 billion installed in 2004.
"By 2016, one in three cars will have a navigation system of some sort," says Phil Magney, vice president of iSuppli's automotive practice. If that prediction pans out, nav screens could be standard equipment in about 5.4 million vehicles sold annually in North America, he says.
| Lots of action |
|---|
| Functions are proliferating on navigation screens. |
| • Active parking assist on Ford and Toyota vehicles |
| • Telephone controls |
| • Traffic and points-of-interest information |
| • Controls for the radio and air conditioner |
| • Route guidance |
| • Fuel economy performance information for hybrids |
| • Live video from backup camera |
| • TV programs |
After driving hundreds of cars to evaluate automotive technology, we've settled on our top 5 car technologies. Amongst the many, many features different automakers are making available, these are the ones we've found the most essential for everyday use. Some of these technologies can be found on most new cars today, while others are rarer, only offered by a few automakers. Some of these technologies will keep you and others safer, some will save you money, and some will just keep you happy.
We had high hopes for the updated Subaru Outback. At recent auto shows, the company seemed like it was going tech-forward, displaying new Harmon Kardon audio systems in the Legacy and Outback. But our review of the 2010 Outback showed us that the company is still well behind the curve of car technology. Sure, the all-wheel-drive system is great, as is the car's general utility. And in how many SUVs can you get a manual transmission? But, aside from that new audio system and a very basic Bluetooth phone system, the new Outback doesn't have much to offer in the cabin tech department.
