September 2007 Straightline Archives

Well, that UAW strike against GM was over faster than you can drive through a one-light town in the middle of the Mojave, but then that's good news, so let's hit the road for this week's drive around the auto blog block, shall we?

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Categories: Carnival of Cars

Well, not exactly, but close enough to make a point...

"This is like deja vu all over again."

This VEBA health care funding idea is not exactly new, as Caterpillar tried it back in 1998. Guess what? It didn't work, and now 20,000 Caterpillar retirees have to foot the bill for much of their medical expenses...

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Categories: Auto Industry,General Motors

What's a Tiguan? A cross between a tiger and an iguana. We don't get it either. But it's VW's new compact SUV...

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Categories: Volkswagen

We doubt we'll see Bill Gates tooling around in the new 2008 Focus. But Ford did wire it up with Microsoft's Sync technology. It's a voice-activated media player on wheels. But what about the rest of the car?

Read the Ford Focus First Drive on Inside Line...

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Categories: Ford

Toyota announced that they've developed a fuel-cell car with a range of up to 480 miles, which is roughly twice the distance of their existing model. In a real-world situation, two of these new fuel-cell vehicles traveled from Osaka to Tokyo, 350 miles or so, without refueling, while keeping their air conditioning on. They still had about 30% of the fuel left when they arrived in Tokyo.

Full story here...

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Categories: Green Tech,Toyota

It seems like the Texas State Fair is fast becoming a major stop on the auto show circuit, as more and more vehicle manufacturers (make that truck and SUV manufacturers) are using this venue to introduce new models to the public. Hey, it makes a lot of sense, as they have exactly the audience—and a huge one at that—corralled.

So along with Ford (The iconic Ford F-Series turns 60 ) and Dodge (2008 Ram Resistrol here ), GM is using this state fair as a stage to unveil their new GMC Yukon Hybrid and Chevy Tahoe Hybrid.

From this link you can find other links to all the vehicles on display at this year's Texas State Fair...

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Categories: All Auto Shows,Chevrolet,Dodge,Ford,GMC,General Motors,Hybrids,SUVs

Fifty five year old car racing aficionado Tom Wieringa has spent his whole life in Chicago. Next Wednesday (October 3) he’ll be in the most important car event he’s ever been in yet.
 
He’ll strap himself into a 1,525 pound 675 horsepower IRL Indy Series race car, accelerate from 0 to 100 miles per hour in three seconds and hurtle down the race track at speeds up to 210 miles an hour.
 
If he qualifies, he’ll set a new record as the oldest driver ever to get a license to drive in the 92 year history of the Indy Racing League...

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Categories: Motorsports

BMW's CEO Norbert Reithofer, at a press conference in Munich, hinted that BMW may offer a fourth brand beyond BMW, Rolls-Royce and Mini, sometime in the future. As to what it may be, or as to what market segment it may enter, little was disclosed.

Reithofer did mention that, if it happens, it could very well occur in conjunction with an alliance with another already established automaker, in which “synergies and efficiencies” could be maximized. So will it be FWD, or be smaller than anything currently offreed, or go in a completely new new direction, we just don't know yet...

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Categories: BMW

Inside Line drove the new Saturn Astra on Germany's autobahn.

The 3- and 5-door hatchbacks feature a 138-horsepower, 1.8-liter 4-cylinder engine, a 5-speed manual transmission, and starting price in the mid-to-high teens.

Could the Astra be the best small car GM has ever sold in the United States?

Read the Saturn Astra First Drive on Inside Line.

Donna DeRosa, Managing Editor

Categories: Hatchbacks,Saturn

If you're like an increasing number of people, you LOOOVE your Internet. I'm rarely without access, and I recently paid too much for a new smartphone primarily so that as long as I have cellular coverage, I have the Internet -- albeit a very slow version -- in my pocket.

A company out of Cambridge, Massachusetts, known as WAAV (formerly Omniwav Mobile) aims to change the clunkiness and slow speeds of mobile Internet by introducing a new generation of in-car broadband Internet routers. Drivers and passengers (mostly passengers, we hope) will be able to access the Internet at speeds comparable to a DSL or cable connection and use all of their favorite applications, up to and including broadband gaming...

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Categories: Car Tech