Autoblog

Ford says Volvo's not for sale, and the Blue Oval would be smart to hold on to its remaining vestige of the Premier Auto Group as long as it can, especially since engineering and platforms have become so entwined with Dearborn's product line. For its part, Volvo is angling to take on the high end Germans. Volvos have long been premium products, having built a reputation on exceptional durability, meticulous engineering, and of course, safety. Try as it might, however, Volvo has a hard time competing head on with BMW, Audi and Mercedes. The cachet of the Swedish automaker is diminished compared to the Germans, and dynamically, Volvos tend to get schooled hard despite being good, capable drivers when taken alone.

Operations chief Steven Armstrong tells Automotive News that Volvo is looking to be mentioned in the same breath as its intended targets, even as losses mount and layoffs ensue. Volvos already occupy the same pricing arena as the premium Germans, but that's partly due to a weak dollar and transport costs. The possibility of building its cars in the United States might bring prices down and allow better developed performance versions, versus the outclassed R models of the past. Also hurtful is the model range's appetite for fuel -- we've gotten mileage in the teens from some Volvos in the Autoblog Garage. Armstrong says that the fuel economy issue will be addressed soon as technologies like start-stop, energy recovery from braking, and further down the road, hybrid powertrains are brought to market. Green is a good way for Volvo to go, given the Scandinavian proclivity for low-impact, gentler consumption. What it all means is that soon, we may see a kinder, gentler, meaner, faster Volvo product lineup -- possibly managed by Russian, Chinese, or Swedish owners.

[Source: Automotive News – sub req.]

UPDATE: Once again, our sharp commenters FTW! This may be a scam, we'll be following up, but head to the comments for more details. The post was written several days ago and we were not aware of the dustups at that time.

You can pre-pay for cellphone minutes, here in New England it's popular to lock in your heating oil price for the winter, and now you'll be able to bank gallons of gasoline on a debit card, thanks to MyGallons.com. While you're screwed out of the money if the price of fuel drops, it's not looking like that's going to happen soon. MyGallons uses your zip code to determine what price you'll pay to add gallons to your card, which is accepted just like a normal debit or credit card at most fuel stations. It's a creative way to smooth out the fluctuations in the price of fuel, and it could also be a boon to those wanting to run a tighter budget, or at least know what they'll be spending on fuel for a given time period, as they've pre-bought. Shoot, it could even be a decent gift idea for the person who has everything!

[Source: Reuters]

Click on the image for more high-res shots of the Night Rod Special

As you may have noticed, we've been featuring more two-wheeled content lately as interest in motorcycles and scooters has risen rather dramatically along with the increase in fuel prices. While we can appreciate the reduced cost of operation that sometimes goes along with choosing a motorcycle over four-wheeled transport, the enjoyment some of us get from bikes easily eclipses our desire to save at the pump. After all, this particular blogger has been riding since the days of buck-a-gallon gas. Still, the growing trend of drivers dropping half their wheels in the name of gas conservation deserves close examination and has even caught the attention of Consumer Reports. In fact, a recent survey conducted by the group has found that a staggering 26-percent of respondents have considered downsizing from four wheels to two. According to CR, their team is intently studying this two-wheeled phenomenon in an effort to become acquainted with the products on the market, how often they are ridden and the newly-found fuel savings of their riders.

[Source: Consumer Reports]

Click above high-res gallery of the 2008 Dodge Grand Caravan SXT

Now that General Motors and Ford have completely abandoned the minivan market for good, the American originator of the species faces only Honda, Toyota, Nissan, Kia and soon Volkswagen as manufacturers that also offer competitive choices. Perhaps you'd think that Chrysler would be benefiting as the only domestic automaker currently playing in the segment, but it seems that sales are down this year by 13 percent for the Chrysler Town and Country while the Dodge Grand Caravan is down an alarming 35 percent. High gas prices are the obvious reason why the minivan market is seeing such a harsh downward trend, and likely the culprit behind Chrysler's impending move to idle its St. Louis South minivan plant as early as December, which would leave some 1,500 employees jobless.

Utility vehicles have been the biggest gas-price casualties, and slow sales are said to be forcing the Jefferson Avenue assembly plant in Detroit where the Jeep Grand Cherokee and Commander are assembled and the Toledo, Ohio North assembly plant which builds the Jeep Liberty and Dodge Nitro into extended shut-downs, as well.


[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]

This is the kind of photo Rich Truesdell will teach you to create

We've actually talked about doing this ourselves before, at least internally here at AB HQ. Giving some practical pointers on basic photography theory for new bloggers trying out their DSLR skills for the first time. Basic stuff like composition and lighting, focal lengths and depth of field. Well, our pal Rich Truesdell beat us to the punch, and did a much better job than we probably could have done in the process. Check out the series of articles he wrote to learn the basics and a whole lot more. While not everyone wants to be the next Ansel Adams, these tips can help you capture the best angle of your ride for that craigslist or eBay ad, or to show it off on your forum of choice. The article even gets into tips on catching the eyes of editors if you want to get your shots published. Really good information for anyone with a camera really. Click over and read the whole thing for yourself.

[Source: Automotive Traveler]

Porsche and Suzuki rarely come up in the same breath, but here is something they both share: neither will be in Cobo Hall when the Detroit Auto Show opens in January. Joining the Stuttgart sportscar/SUV/SUS maker in skipping the show, Suzuki has said that they are pulling out for a slightly different reason. Whereas Porsche had said that Detroit wasn't a very important market for them, Suzuki is saying they didn't like the space they were offered. Here, Suzuki is hitting closer to what many people feel is the real problem with Cobo, there just isn't enough room. It's a fine hall with a storied past, and as a journalist it's nice to be able to get to any press conference within a minute from the media center, but it's not very big compared to the other halls around the world. With a name like "2009 North American International Auto Show" it needs more square-footage. It's still the most important auto show in the country, if not the world, and maybe losing Suzuki and Porsche don't hurt it too much, but this move by Suzuki could be marking a trend that can only be stopped with a major expansion. Back in January, we mentioned that a plan is being formulated to expand Cobo Hall, but the project is still in the financing stage as far as we know. Hopefully something can be done before long to save this great show's reputation.

[Source: Detroit News]

With so many automakers celebrating big landmark anniversaries, Scion's fifth could easily be passed over as insignificant. But in five years of business, as The Car Connection's Paul Eisenstein notes, Scion has managed to do what few others could, both capturing the young demographic (the average age of a Scion buyer is 31) and attract customers new to the brand (72% of Scion buyers are new to Toyota altogether).

That's no mean feat for a brand that started in June 2003 with just two models and a handful of dealerships in California. Since then, the Scion line-up has expanded, as has its dealer base, with the vast majority (982 out of 1231) of Toyota dealers in the United States also selling Scions. The big question remains over whether Scion will last another five years to double-digits, or fade away as the brand loses the plot.

[Source: The Car Connection]

Toyota's bet that it could sell more vehicles in 2008 than in 2007 may not have been a wise one. Though Toyota's hybrid models and small cars are selling very well in the U.S., sales of pickups and SUVs have truly tanked, and Toyota had been counting on those sales just as much as its competitors. Of course, the giant automaker from Japan couldn't have known that far in advance just how high gasoline prices would go or the impact that it would have on auto sales and the economy in the United States in general. Booming markets like China have apparently not been able to make up for the shrinking pot in the States.

Even with the acknowledgment that meeting its target of selling more than the 2.62 million vehicles the company sold last year in the U.S. would be "difficult," Toyota's place in the automotive landscape is surely envied by the Detroit 3. After all, even with its sales revised downward, Toyota remains profitable, something which cannot be said of the U.S. automakers.

[Source: AP]

The Detroit Free Press is reporting that the national average for premium gas is now $4.48 a gallon, some 40 cents more than regular, and that drivers are just refusing to buy it.

Truth be told, most people who've been buying premium probably don't need it at all, but even among those whose engines specify 91 or higher, demand is way down. The Freep says it's actually at its lowest level since 1984. The higher-octane fuel accounted for 16% of gas sales at the height of its demand in 1997. Last month it was half that at 8%. Demand for premium is so low that in some areas it takes gas stations 3 or 4 weeks to sell out a shipment of premium compared to just a couple of days for regular.

Experts say that demand is dropping for a number of reasons. People are switching from luxury and performance models to more efficient cars that only require regular. Many owners of premium-only vehicles are just driving less. And some people who choose to buy premium despite their cars and trucks only requiring regular are just wising up. When looking at the situation, Consumer Reports has gone so far as to say that "many cars that are supposed to only use premium perform just as well with regular." So keep those extra bucks in your pocket and go with the 87 for now. Just don't yell at us if something starts knocking underhood.

NOTE: This picture was taken on March 3, 2007... in Nevada.

[Source: Detroit Free Press]

Click above to view gallery of more happy and confident cars

Each year, DuPont does a study on color trends in the automotive industry. As the leader in supplying finishes for both the new and aftermarket auto realms, this is the kind of information that the company needs to know. Thankfully, DuPont's researchers always share their findings with the rest of us, and last year it was reported that white had taken over from silver as the color in which to be seen. This year, the pigment company decided to shake things up with a mid-year check on the multi-hued situation around the world, and it seems that blue, which is also the new green, is making a bit of a run at adding some pizazz that's been missing from simple achromatic white. Interestingly, the masses seem to be reacting just a little bit to the economic downturn that this country has been facing, choosing simple solids instead of more flashy hues. Perhaps those downers are just lacking in self-worth.


[Source: DuPont]