Porsche Expansion Pack available today for Forza Motorsport 4

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Ten Tiny Bits Of Automotive News – May 22, 2012

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1. Rumors have surfaced that only certain Dodge dealers which receive a special certification will be allowed to sell the new Viper. All I can say is that Dodge needs to do something because in our secret shopper experiences at Dodge dealerships, we’re consistently treated the worst and exposed to the most aggressive sales tactics.

2. The government in China has chastised the Beijing Motor Show because of booth babes. Really? Good thing the Chinese didn’t visit the LA Auto Show – some of those girls actually showed some skin.

3. Lexus has marked EOL (End of Life) on the slow – selling HS 250h. Less than 3000 units were sold in 2011.

4. Acura has recalled 52,000 TL sedans due to a possible faulty power steering hose.

5. Ferrari marked the 60th anniversary of the 250 GT displaying two unique and important 250s from its historical archives. One is the 250 GT SWB Berlinetta that Stirling Moss drove to victory at four races in 1961. The second is the so-called Breadvan, which was commissioned by Count Volpi di Musurata and developed by Piero Drogo and Giotto Bizzarrini. It was one of the original shooting brakes and provided the inspiration for the new FF.

6. At least 200 Shelby Cobras are expected to take place in the 2012 Monterey Motorsports Reunion in honor of the 50th anniversary of the iconic car.

7. Toyota plans 125 new jobs in its Alabama engine plant. The new workers will boost production to more than 700,000 units including the company’s four-cylinder, V-6 and V-8 engines.

8. Steve Jobs had a dream to design the “iCar” and had gone so far as to have talks with VW about the idea.

9. Jeep is recalling 68,000 Wrangler models due to skid plate fires.

10. GM won’t spend $3.8 million for a SuperBowl ad next year. The company is also pulling ads from Facebook saying they don’t work. Where will all that marketing money go? So far GM executives aren’t saying. But it’s a bunch of money.

I Don’t Want A Self-Driving Car

Posted on by scottbourne
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Google – which seems Hell-bent on taking over the world, is working on a self-driving car. It’s probably five to 10 years away from actually being functional but it is coming. The bad news – it’s coming at all.

You see I like to DRIVE cars, not ride in them. If you’re reading this blog, chances are you’re like me. You’re a car nut and you want to be a DRIVER not a RIDER.

Rider’s buy mini-vans, or those ubiquitous boxes sold by any of the manufacturers from Japan. DRIVERS buy Corvettes, Jaguars, Challengers, BMW with the “M” package, etc.

You see if you really like/love cars, then riding in them alone will never be satisfying. You want to be in control. You want to control the downshift. You want to control the car’s stance going down a twisty road.

The notion that self-driving cars will be a good thing comes from outer space if you’re a DRIVER. An automated future when every car looks the same, behaves the same, takes you at the same respectable (slow) speed to the grocery store outright worries me. If they can do that to us – they can do anything to us.