Archive for July 29th, 2008

Filed under: Hybrid, MPG, Ford, Lightweight
Click above to enlarge this image of the 2009 Ford Ka.
We’ve been seeing spy shot after spy shot of Ford’s upcoming second-generation Ka minicar, so it’s nice to see it in production form via a leaked photo on the internet ahead of its official unveiling. While the original Ka has… »

Looking for a BMW from the era of diminished expectations and runaway inflation? Maybe you’re considering a mid-70s BMW 2002 with huge bumpers and an automatic, which you should be able to obtain for a bit under a couple grand. Come up with, say, a hundred times that amount, however, and you could fire a… »

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Lightweight

It had seemed like the Swiss-born psycho-looking three wheeler from Cree had died in 2003 when the company closed its doors but now comes word that the “SAM” project has been adopted by a Polish company and may be rolling out of factory doors soon. Just like Steve Austin, after the crash… »

We’ve commented on the Ugly Sexy Factor before. It’s also known as the Lyle Lovett Effect or the Jeneane Garofalo Paradox. This is where a person, or an object, can be ugly to some and sexy to others or, rarely, simultaneously both obviously unattractive by common measures and still irresistibly magnetic. This is especially present… »

We’ve commented on the Ugly Sexy Factor before. It’s also known as the Lyle Lovett Effect or the Jeneane Garofalo Paradox. This is where a person, or an object, can be ugly to some and sexy to others or, rarely, simultaneously both obviously unattractive by common measures and still irresistibly magnetic. This is especially present… »

A group that keeps tabs on toxic car chemicals has released a study showing that new cars are improving in terms of the amount of interior toxins they off-gas: What we euphemistically call “new car smell.” General Motors, Mazda and Nissan showed the greatest improvements over the inaugural year of the survey, according to HealthyCar.com…. »

The Ann Arbor-based Ecology Group has some good news for the few new car buyers left out there: Your purchase is less likely to kill you via poisonous off-gassing than it was last year. Interior plastics, dyes and adhesives give off all sorts of nasty fumes, but manufacturers have been taking major steps to improve… »

The name of the passenger in Shia LeBeouf’s alleged DUI accident in LA this weekend wasn’t initially released: Turns out it was Transformers 2 co-star and Aussie hottie Isabel Lucas. If you happen to be Shia “The Beef,” and find yourself inexplicably famous after last summer’s Transformers movie and this summer’s horrible crap-fest Indiana Jones… »

Tata may attempt to extend its luxury business by resurrecting the Daimler luxury brand, according to reports from an investor meeting. Tata secured the rights to the Daimler name as part of the Jaguar-Land Rover purchase, though currently the only car with that name is the range-topping Jaguar Daimler Super 8. As we reported, Tata… »

Filed under: Etc., EV/Plug-in, Tesla Motors, USA

Well, we have good news and bad news. The bad news is that a Tesla Roadster, number six it seems, has been crashed in San Francisco. The good news is that the machine is likely not totaled and its battery pack is undamaged. So, the owner of the car… »