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Ferrari's ?400 baseball cap
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Thursday, 01 January 1970
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For many motorsports aficionados, allegiance to Ferrari transcends the lines of age and social class. Young and old, from the everyman to captains of industry, on race days the differences are tossed out the window and they gather en masse, a sea of red in the stands, as tifosi. Ferrari knows this, and as a result, its strength as a merchandiser is unparalleled in the automotive landscape. Leveraging its iconic logos, rich history and legions of owners and fans, it has created a machine that churns out collectibles and accessories designed to fit almost any budget.
And now, the tifosi have a new bauble to fight over, and it's priced for the deeper-pockets crowd. In honor of the 1-2 podium finish at the Turkish GP for Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari has offered 50 signed baseball caps. Each lid is autographed by both Felipe and Kimi, arrives in a big red Ferrari cardboard box, has a certificate of authenticity, and costs a whopping €400. On the Ferrari Store website, the conversion to USD is helpfully provided. $526.20 (plus VAT) worth of available credit on your plastic of choice is all it'll take. We don't recommend wearing this one to go out and mow the lawn. For that, we suggest the vastly more economical (yet still pricey at $33 USD) un-autographed version.
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 29 August 2007 )
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Opel Corsa OPC sets Nordschleife record
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Thursday, 01 January 1970
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During the same round of the OPC Race Camp that saw the introduction of the Opel Astra OPC Nürburgring Edition, former Opel works driver Manuel Reuter decided to update the official Nordschleife record book. He did this by taking a production-spec Corsa OPC and lapping the course in 8 minutes, 47.99 seconds -- a new record for superminis on The Green Hell.
The Corsa OPC is no stranger to the Nordschleife, as Opel uses the track regularly during the development of its automobiles. The little hot hatchlet is driven by a 1.6-liter turbocharged four-cylinder that delivers 192 horsepower. Its peak torque rating of 169 lb-ft can be bumped up an additional fifteen percent thanks to the car's Overboost function. We sit here waiting patiently for the next Corsa revision, so that we can see a Saturn-badged version take on the forthcoming Ford Fiesta/Verve/Whatever when both ultimately arrive Stateside. If the Detroit automakers cooperate, we'll get a Red Line vs. SVT duel, too. (Fingers crossed.)
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 29 August 2007 )
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Porsche flower wheel found in Russia
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Thursday, 01 January 1970
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English Russia, our favorite site of kitschy Russian culture, this unique form of self-imposed vehicular vandalism is all the rage in the former Soviet country. This particular example was caught in Moscow, and appears to be the wheel of a Type 996 Porsche 911 Carbriolet that's overflowing with flora. Hmmm... hippies used to rave about flower power, perhaps the colorful decoration adds a few horsepower.
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 29 August 2007 )
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AutoblogGreen for 08.29.07
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Thursday, 01 January 1970
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ABG drives two of GM's new offerings: the Opel Astra 1.4L Turbo and the 2008 Saab 9-3 Diesel. Japan wants to make fuel from used disposable chopsticks. And so much more from the world of green automobiles:
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 29 August 2007 )
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New WRC regulations might push Suzuki's SX4 out
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Thursday, 01 January 1970
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Suzuki's newest entrant into the WRC may never grace the gravel if changes in car regulations take place earlier than anticipated. Originally, the new vehicle regulations changes were to take effect in 2012 under the World Rallies Commission's "Vision for 2012" plan. That's up in the air, however, as a competing plan targeted at 2009 would make WRC incorporate modified Super 2000 regs that retain turbocharging and 4WD, while still embracing simplified technology. (The standard S2K regs prohibit electronic driving aids in cars.) Using a revised flavor of Super 2000 might be very attractive to the WRC teams, as the simpler tech could potentially lower operating costs.
Nobuhiro "Monster" Tajima, head of Suzuki Sport, recently sat down with the automaker's senior execs to mull over the possibility of nixing the SX4's planned entry in October's Corsica rally. According to Autoweek, Tajima even questioned the development of a new car at all "when it will be quite useless in two years time."
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 29 August 2007 )
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Pennsylvanian has kept his Model A 78 years
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Thursday, 01 January 1970
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Last week we told you about Clarence Curtiss, the 84-year-old Connecticut man who's still driving the 1929 Ford he bought in 1938.
We imagine Frank Hartmaier of Pennsylvania enjoyed reading the story since it shared so many elements with his own. Well, except for one key element. The 1929 Model A roadster he can be seen driving today was purchased new on May 16, 1929. That means Hartmaier has owned the same car for 78 years, besting Curtiss by almost a decade.
Hartmaier's car has been out of service only three times in its long history, each time for restoration.
Daniel Strohl of Hemmings Auto Blogs interviewed Hartmaier for Hemmings Classic Car magazine, but the complete story is not yet online. We look forward to reading all about the car's and the owner's long history together.
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 29 August 2007 )
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Toyota has no intention of meeting with union organizers
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Thursday, 01 January 1970
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The union talk is stirring again at Toyota's Georgetown, Kentucky plant, but management at the automaker has no intention of meeting with workers trying to unionize. A group of current and former employees at the plant called the Kentucky Workers' Rights Board have drawn up a laundry list of complaints, which include what they perceive to be unjustified firings, the use of too many temporary workers, and job-related injuries.The committee is putting together a recommendation which includes limiting low-paid temps to 90 day terms, and the establishment of a safety committee. Toyota's decision not to meet with the group came after the would-be organizers declared that they would hold a press release after a management meeting. Oops.
For years, there has been a lot of talk about organizing the Georgetown plant, and as of yet, the 7,000 full-time workers have never even voted for or against a union. A push to unionize a Toyota plant couldn't be coming at a worse time, however, as the UAW may have to take big cuts from the Detroit automakers. Since most Toyota workers make roughly the same hourly rate as UAW workers, we don't think the transplant workers will want to vote for a potential pay cut. If Detroit automakers get concessions, however, Toyota could cut worker pay anyway to keep its advantage.
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 29 August 2007 )
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GM says Malibu is best car in class, takes direct aim at competition
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Thursday, 01 January 1970
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When GM launches the 2008 Malibu this fall, look for it to go directly after the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord. Mark LaNeve, GM's sales, service, and marketing VP, says GM will be laying out the reasons why it feels the Malibu is better than its competition in the new ad campaign. We hope to see the fur start to fly in the bread-and-butter sedan arena, with response ads upping the ante before being met with another challenge. LaNeve acknowledges that it will be a hard battle to pry backsides out of the Camry or Accord (especially with an all-new version of the latter), but GM's got an excellent car in the new Malibu. The assault on the incumbent evergreen models is already going on over in Saturn stores, where GM's actually placed the competitor's cars in the showroom next to the award winning Aura.
Customer research has told GM that import owners would be persuaded to buy a different brand that is as good or better than their current car, but only actual results will prove the hypothesis. One possible bone of contention is residual value, where the well-burnished reputation of the segment leaders has them holding on to nearly 50 percent of their original sticker after three years, versus about 35 percent for the Malibu. Instead of buying a car based on how much you can get for it in three years, we suggest you buy a car you're happy with, and we see a lot that's encouraging in the new Malibu. Heck, you might even want to keep it after it's paid off -- imagine that! Besides, if the car lives up to the expectations GM is whipping up for it, resale values will rise as word spreads. We can't wait to try one.
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 29 August 2007 )
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We've heard this before: USA Today reports hatches are coming back
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Thursday, 01 January 1970
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Being the auto-obsessive types that you are, we're sure you can recount endless conversations with potential car buyers about the variety of body styles on the market, and how several of the CUVs and wagons currently available are, at times, far superior to their overblown SUV counterparts. The reasons behind the current boom in hatchbacks and crossovers are obvious: better fuel economy, more car-like handling and ride, all with many of the same attributes of an SUV.
 USA Today ran a piece that details some of the offerings that are either making a splash in the marketplace already, or that are pegged to be winners as the movement away from big 'utes continues. Much of the discussion centers on some of the new high-end crossovers that are currently in the works, specifically the BMW X6 and Infiniti EX35, which offer a bit more luxury over outright utilitarianism.
The real crux of the article is that American consumers have put to rest the moribund offerings of the 70s, like the Ford Pinto and Chevy Vega, and are finally warming up to the sloping rooflines of modern five-door designs.
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 29 August 2007 )
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