BMW makes great automobiles—and some very strange marketing decisions. Consider the 1 Series. The company announced a couple of years ago that there would be no M1 nameplate, because that moniker was taken by a car no longer produced.
So they built something they fumblingly called the 1 Series M—terrific car, priced to beat the competition ($47,010 to start), though production of 2,700 cars ended in December 2011. Reviews were outstanding.
The 1M (as some have called it, and so should have the factory) “really was an M3—light with a unique looking bodykit and the bi-turbo N54 powerplant.” And it performed as well as the M3 at the Nürburgring (see video here).
Now comes the introduction of the M135i abroad and the 135is (above) in the U.S. The M135i seems to be not really a BMW M car; it simply pushes in that direction.
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Two recent developments from Dearborn could be used to make the case that Ford has gone crazy.
Or to affirm the fact that the people running Ford are geniuses.
If a company decides to eliminate its name from advertising, well, why bother advertising, right? Naturally, if someone brought up that idea in a marketing meeting, he or she would be labeled as crazy and promptly fired.
“You know, Mr. Mulally, I think for our next corporate ad campaign we should avoid the word ‘Ford’ and quite possibly not show our logo, either.”
Right.
That same guy is probably the one who recommended a motorcycle engine for the next Fiesta, too.
But, you know, both ideas kind of make sense.
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Design study for the F70
We have written about the incredible Porsche 918 hybrid before, with details here and here. Now, 918 Spyder prototypes have been spotted testing, looking a little like the old 917 race cars (see pix here).
The 918 will produce some 770 hp from a V8 and “two independent electric motors, one on the front and one in the drive line, acting on the rear wheels.” All this with decent fuel economy. Production is expected by the end of 2013, so you have time to save up the $850K it will cost.
The new Ferrari F70 is expected to replace the Enzo and may come to market around the same time as the 918, according to Automotive News. The F70 will probably cost more than the Porsche, but has some amazing technology, which we will illustrate below.
Why are these companies building such monster cars?
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A friend wanted to show me her new car.
“It’s a 2004 Subaru Outback,” she said, “and guess how many miles it has on it?”
I looked at the car, which appeared to be in pretty nice shape. No visible dings or dents, clean paint, newer tires. I figured anything under 100,000 miles on the clock would be acceptable. I assumed, since she asked me about the mileage, it must be low. So I guessed low.
“Sixty thousand,” I said confidently.
She shook her head and smiled.
“Nope. Just under 10,000.”
I gasped.
“It was my grandma’s.”
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Shelby and the Ford GT40
Caroll Shelby (1923-2012), whom tgriffith wrote about today, was one of the last true Car Guys. There just won’t be any more like him.
Here’s why. Shelby’s career began with sports-car racing, and there he made his greatest mark. He could never have created the Cobra or the muscle cars that followed had he not raced for Aston Martin, Maserati, and finally won Le Mans as driver, constructor and team manager—the only person ever to do that.
That was the great era of sports-car racing—the late ‘50s-early ‘60s—when the sport had a very big following and a bunch of grand individualists. Pete Lyons offers this tidbit in his tribute to Shelby:
“Old Man Ferrari offered me a job and I said, ‘Well, Mr. Ferrari, I have a family, three children, what kinda money?’ He says, ‘Oh, it’s an honor to drive for Ferrari.’ And I said, ‘Well, I’m sorry, I can’t afford the honor.’ And I had a deal with John Wyer, anyway, and I had another deal with Maserati. I had a choice of four or five different offers. So I turned Ferrari down.”
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Carroll Shelby: Chicken farmer.
Carroll Shelby: Chili entrepreneur.
Carroll Shelby: Race driver.
Carroll Shelby: Car designer.
Word spread quickly when the automotive world lost an icon late last week. Of course, car people knew Carroll Shelby as the legend behind the Shelby Cobra and, later, the Shelby Mustang. The one-time chicken farmer had more than a half-dozen successful careers during his long life, though, including racing-team owner, automobile manufacturer, automotive consultant, safari-tour operator, storyteller, chili entrepreneur and philanthropist.
But, of course, it’s the cars that made him a legend.
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1. You may already have heard that a few dealers are upcharging for the upcoming Subaru BRZ (above)—to the tune of $5,000 over MSRP. Some have called this price gouging, which, of course, it is. Anyone paying this price is a turkey.
One imbecile argues that this is owing to the immutable law of supply and demand. Since the BRZ is in high demand and deliveries are late, if you don’t like the upcharge, “go buy a Civic,” he says. He also questions why anyone would want a BRZ when you can buy a Mustang with over twice the horsepower for the price of the BRZ plus the upcharge (around $30K).
The over-list gouge is not a new thing, of course. It’s been done with the Prius and other cars. Manufacturers should absolutely forbid it and, as one commenter said, take away the dealer’s allocation. It’s a perversion of supply and demand.
2. The Responsible Young Drivers group in Belgium came up with a great idea: Make teens take a driving test in which they are forced to text and drive, with the driving instructor telling them that this is a new legal requirement.
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I know a guy who put a deposit on a new Tesla Model S. Well, okay, I know of a guy who put a deposit on a Tesla Model S.
He’s a friend of my mom, actually, and was in a Bellevue, Wash., shopping mall where the sleek electric sedan sat on display. Immediately stricken, the man wrote a $5,000 check and reserved a Model S of his very own.
That’s the kind of effect a truly revolutionary car will have on people. In fact, this friend is only one of about 10,000 people who have ponied up a deposit on what Tesla hopes is the car that will secure its future.
And it’s arriving a month earlier than planned.
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Chevy Cruze lease: 24 months, $159/mo., $1,879 down, 12,000 miles/year. Good deal?
Why would you buy (rather than lease) something that depreciates as fast as most automobiles? I have never understood the extraordinary need, often a compulsion, that Americans have to own things.
It used to make sense in the housing market, when everyone thought prices would rise forever. We know how that turned out.
The only sensible reason to own a car is the need to drive it more than 15,000 miles a year (the limit in most leases, and overage charges are steep). Or if it has an especially low depreciation rate (i.e., high quality) and you plan to keep it a long time. Or if you got a very attractive deal on a used car. Our listings can lead you to some.
Used car prices are high right now in part because new-car prices just keep rising. Leasing can help beat the high cost of driving, because basically, you pay only for the portion of the car’s lifetime cost that you use. Of course, there are advantages and disadvantages. You need more than ever to be a smart buyer, and there is some good advice here and an explanation of leasing terms here.
We found some very attractive current lease deals, which we’ll pass along, plus a few that are kind of ridiculous.
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This is getting old: Much-anticipated new vehicle receives tons of hype in the automotive press, said vehicle is finally spotted uncovered, groans of disappointment fill the blog-o-sphere.
The latest victim is the Porsche Macan SUV (once known as the Cajun).
Not that there were exceptionally high expectations for a Porsche that could be considered a competitor to the Honda CR-V. But did it really have to look like one?
Porsche styling comes in three flavors:
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