AutoTribute » 2010

Video: New Saab 9-5 Commercial is Relaxing

Tim Howard — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 16:00:09 +0000

In preparation for the launch of the long-awaited 2011 Saab 9-5, the Swedish automaker has released a one-minute video that showcases the 9-5′s exterior design. We even get to see a driving footage. The background music serenades the viewer with some soft guitar and piano, combined with lyrics suggesting “it’s going to be alright.” After coming so close to death, perhaps the new Saab video is an indication of better things to come. Check out the commercial after the jump…

Ford Mustang Sales Tops the Camaro in May 2010

Tim Howard — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 16:00:23 +0000

Since its launch last year, the all-new Chevy Camaro has outsold the Ford Mustang month-over-month, stripping the Blue Oval of its muscle car sales crown. In April, Chevrolet sold a total of 9,150 Camaros, while Ford sold 5,145 Mustang. This gives the Camaro the lead for 2010 with a total 29,907 sold through April compared to the Mustang’s 20,836 units. The Dodge Challenger sells relatively so few that it’s not in contention.

But it’s not over until the fat V8 sings. With May’s sales numbers in, the Mustang has finally outsold the Camaro with a total 10,225 sold versus 8,931 Camaros. But is this a one-time victory or is there more come? We’ll keep you posted.

KBB’s 2010 Coolest Cars under $18,000

Tim Howard — Tue, 25 May 2010 21:23:57 +0000

Looking for an affordable car that doesn’t scream “cheap”? Looking to impress your friends? Well, Kelly Blue Book has just released its top 10 coolest cars under $18,000. Yes, these cars are frugal, but if KBB is to be believed, they look cool being so.

“Certainly, there are many good cars available for less than $18,000 that will get you from point A to point Z with a minimum of fuss,” kbb.com said in a statement. “However, many of them also will do it with a minimum of fun, which is something the kbb.com editors feel is “just plain wrong” for their coolest cars list.”

Check out the list below and tell us if you agree with it.

2011 Ford Fiesta
2010 Honda Civic
2010 Honda Fit
2010 Hyundai Elantra Touring
2010 Kia Soul
2010 Mazda3
2010 Mitsubishi Lancer
2010 Nissan Cube
2010 Scion xB
2010 Suzuki SX4

Source: KBB

Ford Earns $2.1 Billion Profit in Q1 2010

Kwame Owusu — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 15:00:43 +0000

Ford Motor Co. reported a $2.1 billion profit for the first quarter of 2010 and has raised its forecast for the full year. The is the forth quarter in row — since the second quarter of 2009 — that the company has reported a profit. It has boosted its second-quarter North America production by 30,000 vehicles. The announcement is in contrast to the $1.4 billion loss the company realized in the same period last year.

“We remain cautiously optimistic about positive signs emerging in the global economy while knowing the recovery is fragile and the global auto industry continues to deal with excess capacity,” Ford Chief Executive Alan Mulally said in a statement.

Riding on the wave of Toyota’s recall woes and on a new poll that found that more Americans believe the U.S. builds better cars than Asian automakers, Ford now expects to produce 625,000 new cars and trucks during the second quarter, a 39% increase over the same period last year. The increase reflects strong consumer demand and the need to replenish dealer lots.

In Europe, the American automaker’s sales were helped by scrappage incentives offered in a number of countries. However, the European car market is expected to begin declining starting this month.

Ford finished the first quarter with $25.3 billion in automotive gross cash, an increase of $400 million since the end of 2009. It’s automotive debt was $34.3 billion.

Source: The Detroit News

Toyota Stops Sale of Lexus GX 460 due to Rollover Risk

Tim Howard — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 15:30:17 +0000

Consumer Reports recently gave the all-new Lexus GX 460 SUV a “dont buy” rating due to problems that came up during routine handling tests. In the test, the rear of the vehicle was able to slide until the vehicle was nearly sideways. The main reason why the GX obtained the “don’t buy” rating was because its stability control took longer than normal to correct the situation.

Toyota later responded to these findings by halting the sale of the 2010 Lexus GX until the problem could be resolved.

“For more than 20 years, Lexus has made customer safety and satisfaction our highest priorities,” Toyota said in a statement. “We are taking the situation with the GX 460 very seriously and are determined to identify and correct the issue Consumer Reports identified. At this time we have asked our dealers to temporarily suspend sales of the 2010 GX 460.”

“For any customer who has purchased a 2010 GX 460 and is concerned about driving their vehicle, we will provide a loaner car until a remedy is available,” Toyota said. “As always, Lexus is committed to providing our customers with outstanding products and service.”

Video: 2011 Mustang V6 vs 2010 Genesis Coupe vs 2010 Camaro RS vs 2010 Challenger SE

Kwame Owusu — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 02:38:01 +0000

As a follow up to its comparison between the 2011 Ford Mustang GT, the 2010 Camaro SS and the 2010 Dodge Challenger SRT8, MotorTrend decided to compare the 2011 Ford Mustang against the base variants of its Detroit rivals — the Camaro RS and the Challenger SE. To make things a bit more interesting, a 2010 Hyundai Genesis 3.8 was tossed into the mix. Which muscle car or “pseudo muscle car” came up on top? Find out after the jump…

Ford Fusion Continues to Sell Strong in 2010, 60% Buyers are New to Ford

Tim Howard — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 16:30:26 +0000

If there is one product responsible for Ford’s resurgance, that product is the 2010 Ford Fusion. Ford’s redesigned med-sized sedan — in both hybrid and non-hybrid trims — continues to maintain its sales momentum, bringing in a total of 60 percent of new buyers to the brand, a figure that is up 54 percent from January and 49 percent from 2009.

“It’s extraordinary that a car could set sales records and continue to excel in an environment where overall industry sales in the midsize segment are down 19 percent from a year ago,” said Ken Czubay, Ford vice president of Marketing and Sales and Service.

Having gone on sale in March 2009, the new Ford Fusion has set sales records, beating its predecessor in every month but one. Just last month, the Fusion was the 7th best selling vehicle in the U.S., beating the Nissan Altima and almost on par with the Honda Civic and Toyota Camry.

Ford Outsells GM and Toyota in Februrary

Kwame Owusu — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 16:00:08 +0000

There is no stopping the Blue Oval. The month of February has come to an end and FoMoCo has just racked up another victory — with sales up 43.14%, it was the largest automaker in the US for the month, surpassing both General Motors (sales up 11.51%) and Toyota (sales down 8.72%). Sure 471 unit is not a big difference, but the last time Ford outsold GM was 12 years ago.

With sales down all across the Toyota lineup (thanks to its recall woes), the Dearborn automaker was hoping to attract Toyota buyers into its dealerships, but many of these customers sat on the sidelines instead of purchasing elsewhere, waiting to see what incentives Toyota has coming.

Nevertheless, Ford brand vehicles were up 46%; Mercury +24%; Lincoln +19%. Thanks to the critically-acclaimed Ford Fusion, sales of passenger cars were up 54%; SUVS and crossovers were up 39%; and trucks where up 36%. Retail sales were up 28%; the rest of the sales boost can be attributable to fleet sales. Ford estimates its February market share at 17%, a 3% increase from a year ago.

Audi RS6 Limited-Edition Packages

Tim Howard — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 13:30:25 +0000

Audi has announced that it will offer two new special equipment packages to the list of options for the V10-powered Audi RS6. With production limited to just 500 pieces, the Sport and Audi exclusive packages will each feature carbon fiber trim in the engine bay, 20-inch wheels with a five-spoke design, the sports suspension plus system and a numbered plaque in the interior.

The Sport package also gets a leather-covered instrument panel hood and center console, while the Audi exclusive option allows customers to choose unique colors for both the exterior and leather interior.

Aside from these features, both special editions share the same hardware as their standard counterparts, featuring a 5.0-liter twin-turbocharged V10 with direct-injection that produces 580HP and 479.42 lb-ft (650 Nm) of torque. That’s enough to launch the RS6 from 0 to 62mph (100 km/h) in 4.5 seconds and to a top speed of 188 mph (303 km/h).

More details on these limited edition packages can be found in the press release below.

PRESS RELEASE:

Audi is offering two new limited-edition equipment packages for the RS 6 – restricted to just 500 units. With a top speed of 303 km/h (188.28 mph), a Carbon design package for the engine compartment, 20-inch wheels bearing a 5 segment-spoke design, and the sports suspension plus, each of these RS 6 models will be truly unique. In fact, each of them will be a one-of-a-kind thanks to a numbered badge in the interior. Customers can opt for one of two packages: RS 6 plus Sport or RS 6 plus Audi exclusive.

The Sport version features an instrument-panel hood and center console covered in leather; an RS 6 logo adorns the front floor mats. Concerning the Audi exclusive package, customers can also specify a custom paint job by choosing from the color range of quattro GmbH. In addition, the seat upholstery, controls, door trim inserts, front center armrest, and the armrests in the door trims are covered in leather of an attractive color from the Audi exclusive program. Seat add-on parts are adapted to match the color of leather in question.

Thanks to FSI direct gasoline injection, twin-turbo supercharging, and dry sump lubrication, the high-performance V10 delivers 426 kW (580 hp) and maximum torque of 650 Nm (479.42 lb-ft) between 1,500 and 6,250 rpm. This sedan mirrors the performance of a high-performance sports car: from 0 to 100 km/h (0 to 62.14 mph) in just 4.5 seconds and it exceeds the 200 km/h threshold (124.27 mph) after just 14.5 seconds. The sports suspension plus with Dynamic Ride Control (DRC) reduces pitch and roll by purely mechanical means. The driver can switch among the three operating modes of the MMI operating terminal’s shock-absorber control system: comfort, dynamic, and sport.

The RS 6 offers all the comfort of the A6 line of business models and is in the hands of quattro GmbH, a fully-owned subsidiary of AUDI AG. High-quality materials such as carbon fiber, aluminum, leather, and Alcantara create a cultivated and dynamic atmosphere in the interior. And intelligent assistance systems grant drivers yet more control. Audi lane assist warns the driver should the car inadvertently veer out of its lane.

Audi side assist alerts the driver to possible critical situations during lane changes. Audi adaptive cruise control maintains proper speed and following distance. In addition to three-dimensional road maps, the MMI navigation plus offers a DVD player for navigation/audio/video DVDs as well as a radio with dual tuner and a 40 GB hard disk drive which can store up to 3,000 musical tracks in addition to navigation data.

The RS 6 plus Sport and RS 6 plus Audi exclusive equipment packages are available now. The Sport version costs 3,250 euros; the Audi exclusive package 8,310 euros. This equates to savings of about 50 percent compared to purchasing the items individually.

New (2010) Toyota Rav4 Preview

Kwame Owusu — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 23:46:30 +0000

Toyota has revealed an image of its redesigned Rav4 crossover, which will be revealed at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show next month. The redesign mostly takes place in the small crossover’s front fascia, which now features a new grille, more rounded headlamps and fog-light surrounds.

Reports indicate that the Rav4′s interior will be restyled to make it more luxurious. It’s 2.0-liter patrol four-cylinder engine will be tweaked to increase fuel efficiency and decrease C02 emissions.

More details on the 2010 RAV4 will be provided in two week’s time when it bows at Geneva.