Archive for July, 2009
This is Rallying
Posted by barista in Vroom vroom on 07/14/2009
Without a doubt, Rallye is my favorite automotive sport.
Honda CR-Z
Posted by barista in Vroom vroom on 07/13/2009
The venerable Honda “Civic” CR-X was the sexiest small car in it’s heyday in north america. Expensive, but within reach, and oh so different in style and verve.
Honda is trying to revive the magic with the CR-Z, a hybrid coupe they claim is going on sale Feb 2010. This is worth watching. The 2007 Tokyo Auto Show concept car does capture the mood of the older CRX, here’s hoping the production version doesn’t dilute it too much.
Leno on Top Gear
Posted by barista in Interweeb!, Vroom vroom on 07/10/2009
Looking forward to this! Props to AutoBlog for reporting on this 
Aquatic Deer
Posted by barista in Interweeb! on 07/09/2009
Chevrotain, aka Mouse-Deer, are small, secretive creatures, now found only in the tropical forests of Africa, India, Sri Lanka, and South-east Asia.
The reason this little animal caught my attention is that BBC article this week claimed a particular one spent “60 minutes underwater.”
Not only that, the same article asserts that:
This has also lent support to the idea that whales evolved from water-loving creatures that looked like small deer.
How about that!
Biked in
Not much of a news, but I do feel pretty good, partly from the ride in. Cleared the lungs a bit.
Ken Block & Cpn. Slow
Posted by barista in Interweeb!, Vroom vroom on 07/06/2009
What that car can do … and what the driver can wring out of it…
Amazing.
It’s Fennec Friday!
Posted by barista in Interweeb! on 07/03/2009
Props to Junko Kimura / Getty Images for the great shot, and NBC for posting it.
VW Jetta Wagon – 81% of sales are TDI in June … in the USA
Posted by barista in Vroom vroom on 07/02/2009
General Motors, Ford, Chrysler, Honda and everyone else may not think there is much of a market for mainstream diesel vehicles in the United States, but Volkswagen would beg to differ.
Now that is what I’m talking about. Props to AutoBlog
Diesel Delay
Posted by barista in Vroom vroom on 07/02/2009
From AutoWeek.
Mainstream carmakers have put the brakes on nine diesel-powered vehicles that had been scheduled for 2010.
Honda, Chrysler, Ford, General Motors, Nissan and Toyota have halted diesel programs because of spiraling costs and other problems.
Just one word for it : morons.
Kevin McMahon, a partner at the Martec Group, a consulting firm, says the way the EPA calculates fuel economy and carbon dioxide standards gives gasoline-electric hybrids an unfair advantage over diesels.
Now that is something I understand : unfair bias.
“Diesel vehicles that perform very well at high-load and high-speed driving–where most of America’s fuel is used in the real world–are penalized,” says McMahon. “Meanwhile, vehicles that perform very well in stop-and-go driving, like hybrids, are overrewarded.”
Nailed it.
The image of the diesel engine may be one reason Toyota has halted its plans. Says McAllister: “One of the obstacles of the diesel is the aged perception that the diesel is smoky and stinky. It’s hard to change the mind-set of consumers. Hybrid technology has such a clean halo to it.”
And now Toyota marketing crap to finish it.
Welcome to the global nonsense. More power to VW, Audi, BMW and Mercedes.
The AutoWeek comments are worth a gander as well.
-
You are currently browsing the archives for July, 2009
