Video: Chevrolet Kicks Howie Long To The Curb (For Now)
![Screencap from the 'Scavenger Hunt' ad for the 2010 Chevrolet Equinox [by Publicis]](http://images.thecarconnection.com/sml/screencap-from-the-scavenger-hunt-ad-for-the-2010-chevrolet-equinox-by-publicis_100306719_s.jpg "Screencap from the 'Scavenger Hunt' ad for the 2010 Chevrolet Equinox [by Publicis]")
General Motors has seen a lot of changes in the past year: new staff, new board -- heck, technically speaking, it's a whole new company. GM has also begun using a new ad agency, Publicis, for much of its Chevrolet lineup, and the differences are immediately apparent in the latest spots for the Chevrolet Equinox, Malibu, and Traverse.
Apart from things like setting and tone, devoted Chevrolet fans will notice two things missing from the new Publicis campaign: Chevy's "An American Revolution" tagline and spokesman Howie Long. We're ambivalent about the first one -- it was kind of an empty phrase -- but the second item is welcome news to some folks here at TCC, who've had issues with Long over the years.
To be fair, our problems with Howie Long haven't stemmed from the guy's performance so much as the scripts he's been given. See, most of Long's commercials involved bashing other brands (calling them out by name) while touting Chevrolet's quality, fuel efficiency, and so on. It's tough to do that without coming off like a jerk, and it's even tougher to make people remember the brand you're promoting while forgetting the ones you've critiqued. Long was...not always successful.
In lieu of imposing spokesmen and grand taglines, Publicis has opted for a simpler approach: showing everyday people (well, okay: everyday models) using the vehicles as they're meant to be used. Our favorite is probably the spot for the 2010 Chevrolet Malibu called "Dependable Friend", where one woman rescues another from a date gone wrong. Unfortunately, that clip doesn't seem to be playing on YouTube right now, so here's another one called "Scavenger Hunt", which gives a fun, 360-degree tour of the 2010 Chevrolet Equinox by showing viewers the SUV instead of telling them about it. The difference is subtle but obvious:
It'll be interesting to watch this campaign plays out on the sales floor. The Equinox, Malibu, and Traverse helped push Chevrolet sales up 14% in December 2009 compared to a year earlier. And the individual models saw even greater gains: Equinox sales were up 137% over December 2008, the Malibu rose 34%, and the Traverse, 92%. That, of course, happened under the supervision of Chevy's previous agency, Campbell-Ewald, which is now relegated to the Silverado and the Chevy's retail showrooms (which GM is encouraging dealers to renovate, but apparently without the incentives offered by Ford). We'll see if Publicis' ads can maintain Chevrolet's forward momentum.
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
2011 Hyundai Azera: More Power, Higher MPG, Still Very Comfy
Hyundai has announced some significant changes for its Azera for 2011 that should altogether help this large sedan perform better, use less fuel, and look a bit sharper inside and out.
The V-6 engines in the 2011 Hyundai Azera lineup are the same size as last year, but they're more powerful and significantly better on gas. The 3.3-liter now makes 260 horsepower and 233 pound-feet of torque (almost as many horsepower as the larger engine last year) and has fuel economy figures that have improved by two in both the EPA city and highway cycles, to 20 mpg city, 28 highway. The larger 3.8-liter V-6 gets a bump up to 283 horsepower and 263 pound-feet, with ratings up 2 mpg in city driving and a mile per gallon on the highway, to 19/27.
The engines in the 2011 Azera have been modernized to include Hyundai's Dual Continuously Variable Valve Timing (DCWT) and a variable intake system; they have all-aluminum construction and a four-valve-per-cylinder design.
Paired with either of these revised engines is a new six-speed automatic that Hyundai designed in-house. Hyundai says it's one of just three automakers to design their own six-speed automatic; the new transmission is lighter than the former five-speed automatic. Like nearly all the automatics in Hyundai's stable, it comes with Shiftronic manual control in a separate gate.
Video: Mythbusters Test Golf Ball Theory On Ford Taurus
We've mentioned the FastSkinz applique a couple of times on TCC. It's a wrap for cars that's dimpled like a golf ball, and the manufacturer says it boosts fuel efficiency by 18% to 20%. According to what we've read, those claims are wildly inaccurate, but that didn't deter the Discovery Channel's Mythbusters team from running a similar experiment using a Ford Taurus, some modeling clay, and 1082 dimples. Their results? Mildly surprising. The whole episode is embedded below, but you can jump to the 40 minute mark if you're short on time.
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
Bentley Launches New, Possibly Hybrid Powertrain In 2011
Bentley isn't known for making gas-sippers. In fact, some of its current models rank among the least fuel-efficient in the country (down to the single digits). But that reputation may change a bit when Bentley launches its new, top-secret powertrain in 2011. There's speculation that the engine may be a hybrid and that it will be capable of running on E85 bioethanol like the new Continental Supersports. No word yet on efficiency, but we know that it's set to reduce CO2 from 396 g/km to under 240 g/km -- still far above the industry average, but hey, a 40% cut is a 40% cut. [AutoExpress]
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
German Luxury Brands Face Uncertain Future In U.S.
As we mentioned a couple of weeks ago, new fuel efficiency and emissions regulations issued by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Transportation could have a serious impact on gas-guzzling luxury vehicles. If approved as they stand in draft form, the regulations provide very little room for deviation, which could result in some very uncomfortable mergers and partnerships among brands like BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Porsche.
Current regulations allow manufacturers to pay fines on vehicles that fail to meet U.S. efficiency and emissions standards. Those fines are fairly small, and they're passed on to luxury consumers, who don't really bat an eye. However, the new regulations are much stricter, and the proposed fines may be quite high. (Ironically, higher than the per-vehicle cost of implementing fuel-efficient technology.) There is even the suggestion that vehicles that don't meet the standards won't be allowed on the lots, period. Of course, the rules are far from finalized, and there are loopholes for manufacturers that sell less than 400,000 vehicles per year in the U.S., but those loopholes aren't quite as gaping as automakers would like.
Analysts at Bernstein Research of London see this as a huge problem for German automakers -- far more so than for manufacturers from other parts of the globe, many of which long ago incorporated fuel-efficient technology into their lineups. By 2012, high-end German vehicles will need to get around 31 miles per gallon, which is a 25% increase from their average today. Four years later, in 2016, they'll need to average 35.5 miles per gallon, which is a 40% increase from today. That's a little daunting.
There are at least three ways this scenario could play out for manufacturers:
One: automakers could actually work hard and meet the standards (though the technology costs passed onto the consumer might render their vehicles less competitive in showrooms).
Two: automakers could downgrade some of their performance-oriented gear, moving to more sensible, efficient four-cylinder engines (though that's likely to put off many loyal customers who continue to buy those brands precisely for their muscle).
Three: luxury automakers could merge with larger brands, which could absorb the formers' high-end, low-efficiency figures into their more mid-range, high-efficiency fleets. (Porsche may be heading down this path, even as we speak.)
More likely than not, we'll ultimately see a combination of those scenarios. But hey, it's Friday, so maybe we're wrong, or maybe we've missed something. By all means, let us know.
[DetNews]
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
Fisker Scores $529 Million Low-Interest Loan From DOE
A couple of weeks ago, Fisker gleefully announced fuel efficiency stats for its upcoming extended-range Karma sedan (67 mpg, though the math is a little fuzzy). Now the upstart automaker has another reason to celebrate: the U.S. Department of Energy has awarded Fisker a $529 million low-interest loan, which will help the company develop the $87,000 Karma and the upcoming Nina, a lower-priced sedan that will ring in around $45,000.
Roughly $169 million of Fisker's loan will be applied toward development of the Fisker Karma. Those funds will go toward the design of tools, equipment for manufacturing, and coordination of materials from U.S. auto suppliers to build the vehicle. The final product should arrive at dealerships by next summer.
The remaining sum -- just under $340 million -- will be applied to the company's Project Nina. Unlike the Karma, which will consist of mostly U.S. parts but be assembled overseas, the extended-range Nina is expected to be manufactured here in the U.S. The hybrid EV will likely appear in showrooms in late 2012, and Fisker currently anticipates a production run of 100,000 vehicles per year. Both models will be distributed via Fisker's network, which so far consists of 45 dealers in 20 states, though the company hopes to increase that number to 100 by 2012.
The DOE's loan to Fisker is slightly larger than the one it gave to Tesla -- a $465 million package intended to facilitate the roll-out of Tesla's own lower-priced sedan, the Model S, which should have a sticker price around $57,000. However, both amounts pale in comparison to the DOE loans given to Ford ($5.9 billion) and Nissan ($1.6 billion) during the first round of funding from the $25 billion program.
It may seem odd for the federal government to offer these low-interest loans to such vastly different programs. After all, Ford's loan will be used to help develop the Ford Focus EV (among other things), and Nissan's is being put toward the development of the Leaf EV at a Nissan facility in Smyrna, Tennessee. Both of those models are expected to be far more affordable than the Tesla Model S, the Fisker Karma, or the Fisker Nina. However, one could aruge that by funding a range of vehicles, the DOE will encourage (a) interest in EVs from a corresponding range of buyers and (b) development of cheaper, more efficient EV technology. Not that we'd never presume to speak for DOE chair Dr. Steven Chu, but he's a smart guy, so we'll give him the benefit of the doubt for now.
For additional details and perspective, check John Voelcker's article at GreenCarReports.
[DetNews]
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
Toyota, Ford Duel Over MPG
So...remember when we said that the 2010 Ford Fusion (41 mpg city/36 mpg highway) would soon be the most efficient mid-size on the road? Yeah, well, Toyota wasn't too happy with that. They're now arguing that the Prius (at 48/45) is king of the efficiency heap.
The EPA categorizes cars based on combined passenger and cargo space. The Prius boasts 110.6 cubic feet, while the Fusion clocks in at 111.6, which puts both in the 110 - 119 range of mid-size vehicles. (NB: Freep seems to have misstated these stats.) The 2010 Prius won't be revealed until this weekend, and it's supposed to be a bit larger, but probably not large enough bump into full-size territory. In other words, the Prius probably still has bragging rights.
Now Ford seems to be back-tracking on its earlier claims, saying essentially, "Oh, no: we weren't including Toyota's Prius in our comparison, just the Camry hybrid." Which is a little like saying, "We're better than everyone! Except that guy!"
Still, given Ford's less-than-green image and its lagging hybrid sales, producing a runner-up to the 800-pound Prius gorilla ain't so bad.
--Richard Read
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Make sure you check out our partner sites dedicated to focused news, reviews and more for Ford, Chevrolet, Toyota, Honda, and the Toyota Prius.
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
Coming in February: The Auto Moto
Are you an easy-ridin' motorcycle hound stuck in a square-peg, square-hole rut? Want the convenience and fuel-efficiency of a scooter, but concerned about practicalities of living the Vespa lifestyle (including having to hang with other Vespa owners)? Well, perhaps you should consider the new Auto Moto.
At first glance, the Auto Moto looks like a golf cart for supermodels: slim and chic, with a stylin' overhead to keep the rain off the coif. The three wheels give it a bit more heft than your average scooter, but more stability, too--which isn't a bad thing to have when you've got a squirmy rider clutching your ribcage. It even has a little trunk that might hold two helmets and a bottle of Perrier. Picnic time!
On the tech front, the maker claims 83 mpg, which means about 170 miles between fill-ups, given its 2.1 gallon tank. The transmission is automatic, which is especially convenient for first-timers. And despite the Shania Twain-backed demo video, it looks fun to drive. Personally, I wish it could tote more than 350 pounds of people, but then, I'm kinda chunky. And with a package price just under $4,000, I wouldn't mind compromising. Stay tuned for the February 1 launch.--Richard Read
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Make sure you check out our partner sites dedicated to focused news, reviews and more for Ford, Chevrolet, Toyota, Honda, and the Toyota Prius.
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
