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Honda cuts Odyssey and Pilot production; makes room for more Civics

Click above for high-res gallery of the 2009 Honda Pilot

Honda has got to be happy that it has a hot selling compact car to take some of the pain out of the slowing minivan and SUV markets. Hurt by the sky-high price of gasoline, both the Odyssey and Pilot, both recently redesigned, are sitting on dealers lots longer than Honda would like. In order to match production with consumer demand, Honda will close its plant in Lincoln, Alabama for two days next month and cut second shift production at the plant every Friday in August through October. Displaced workers can choose to take either unpaid time off or use paid vacation leave. Some of that unused capacity will be taken up by the Ridgeline, which will now be assembled at the Lincoln plant instead of in Ontario where it is currently being built.

The Civic, on the other hand, will see its production boosted at the East Liberty, Ohio plant and in Alliston, Ontario, where capacity will be available due to the Ridgeline’s departure. Score another point for Honda’s modular manufacturing techniques.

VIDEO: This is not how cars are built - Fiesta Love Factory

If Willy Wonka made cars, this is what it would look like. The cold, hard reality is that automobiles are ground out like sausages in huge factories that ingest raw materials at one end and spit out shiny metal boxes filled with ticky-tacky at the other end. Marketing’s a funny thing, though; building an emotional connection to your product can often lead to sales gold, so Ford’s slathering its Fiesta marketing effort in pheromones to make it irresistible to buyers. It’s all very trippy and fun, full of primary colors and smiling faces, but the thing is, we already love the Fiesta. They could put Orson Welles out there at his most cantankerous, and that’d be fine. We do dig the creativity, and since it’s an entry level car, maybe the target market will be entirely comfortable with the campaign, having just recently graduated from Sesame Street, anyway.

The seller states he’s not really sure what this car is worth. Here’s our estimate: it’s worth even less than a regular ‘89 Scirocco with 123,000 miles. Why? Because it’s been molested into a Delorean imposter. Not just any Delorean, either, but the Back To The Future Delorean, which so many people feel compelled to recreate as a rolling manifestation of their overdeveloped love for a movie prop. Don’t get us wrong, the BTTF DMC’s masterful design has had astounding resonance with the public, becoming a real icon of its time. It’s just that while the original design by Andrew Probert and Ron Cobb was something new, rehashing it endlessly for twenty-five years has gotten tiresome.

With that out of our system, let’s go on to say that the seller has a sense of humor about this car. It was used to promote a primary school play, +1 for kickin’ it with the kiddies, and there’s obviously a lot of effort here. It’s also heartwarming that the mods were perpetrated on a somewhat more common Scirocco, versus a rarer Delorean. The Flux capacitor and time circuits have not been tested, according to the seller, so caveat emptor. If it actually works, we’d love to go back and whisper in VW’s ear to build more Sciroccos, and do likewise with Johnny Z, too. Bids currently stand at £156 with the reserve not met, so you’re not yet OUTATIME. Thanks for the tip, Tim!

By Michael Russell
The Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren is inspired by the Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR design. Co-developed by DaimlerChrysler and McLaren Cars, this sports car/super car hybrid can go from 0 to 62 in 3.6 seconds with a bas price tag of $455,500.00 (this includes the $ 3000.00 gas-guzzler tax and $ 2500.00 freight). It is often assumed that “SLR” stands for Sportlich, Leicht, Rennsport (translated as Sport; Light; Racing), but it really means Super-leicht, Rennsport (Super-light, Racing). A new version was presented in 2006 called “Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren 722 edition”. The “722″ commemorates the 1955 Mille Miglia victory of Stirling Moss and his co-driver Dennis Jenkinson with their Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR (722 refers to 7:22 am which happens to be their start time)

AMG technicians optimized the capacities of the original SL-55 engine by enlarging the fuel pump and cylinders and placed a larger cooling system for the engine. This modification produced a 5.5 liter dry sumped V8 and an unusual 3 valves per cylinder with SOHC. This is contrary to the prevalent design of super cars that uses DOHC and 4 valves per cylinder. The engine is also uniquely mounted in the front-mid section of the vehicle, which is 1 meter behind the front bumper and 50 cm from the front axle. Because of the great engine power of this car, fade resistant, carbon-ceramic based brake plates are used with calipers that would automatically skim the surface of the brake plates to keep them dry when driving in a wet situation. Spoilers are also mounted on the rear and pops up when breaking at high speeds. The SLR has a five-speed automatic transmission that comes with three separate modes: Sport, Comfort and Manual. Sport is mainly for everyday use while Comfort is for bumpy roads and lastly, Manual that allows the driver to shift gears with the touchpad or the levers on the steering wheel. The transmission used in the SLR is the same with other performance models such as the SL65. However, the SLK-55 engine cannot handle the torque and power output of the SLR therefore a five-speed transmission is used.

The SLR has a top speed of 208 mph making it the fastest automatic car in the world until 2005, when the Bugatti Veyron came into the picture. The SLR makes use of carbon fiber for its body, which supposed to make it lighter but the car still weighs at 3898 pounds after adding all the luxury items included. In 2004, the German magazine Auto Motor und Sport tested the SLR at the Nardo test track in southern Italy. And reported that the car’s quarter-mile time is 11.5 seconds. Top Gear host, Jeremy Clarkson, notably praised the SLR for how easy it is to drive even at top speed. On the same episode of Top Gear, Jeremy was able to out run a 25000 bhp cruise liner in a race with co-hosts Richard Hammond and James May from London to Oslo (1320 miles). The SLR is often categorized as a “grand touring car” rather than a “super car” because it is extremely fast yet does not sacrifice comfort.

Michael Russell Your Independent Sports Car guide.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com

Click above for a high-res gallery of the 2008 Audi R8.

A few of the Autoblog crew are former (or current) musicians that have tempered our insatiable lust for all-things-automotive with a healthy appreciation of the aural arts. So whenever an automaker attempts to combine the two, we’re keenly interested in the outcome.

Audi teamed up with the German group Bullet and the graphics and video crew at Campana to create an orchestral masterpiece to launch the R8 in Brazil. With 41 musicians, three DJs and one conductor providing the soundtrack, the video clips integrate with the score and sound effects to create an impressive experience. Our only gripe is that the first two videos aren’t nearly long enough, but they’re worth checking out after the jump.

Continue reading VIDEO: Audi’s “The Art of Performance”

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Richard Petty has been involved in racing for well over 50 years and has seen it all and then some. Over the past few days, NASCAR marketers have been helping him celebrate the 50th anniversary of his first NASCAR start, taking him to New York Read More

Sports Car Clubs World Wide Entry Date:10/13/99 Club .. Group Performance Members .. 17 Contact .. shane duke` - Position president Address .. Learn More

The Sports Car Club of La Crosse, La Crosse WI I’ve waited over 7 months for this. I’m bad fast and can prove it. I’ll be bringing a friend for ballast. Learn More

Australia’s peak motoring group wants the federal government to limit fuel consumption by Australian-made cars as part of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s response to climate change. The Sunday Telegraph newspaper says an NRMA campaign for new engine Read More

Rain dampens Ultima GTR ‘Ring record attempt

Filed under: Supercars, UK

Click above for a high-res gallery of the Ultima GTR720 at the Nurburgring

There is no shortage of automakers out there claiming to make the ultimate “race car for the road”, but few of them can touch the Ultima GTR. While others try to make their road cars as close to racing cars as possible, the British sportscar-maker set about making their Noble-based racing car as close to a road car as possible. The result is blistering performance, with the latest GTR720 setting several Guinness-verified world records, including a 0-60 time of 2.6 seconds, a quarter mile below ten seconds and a 0-100-0 time in 9.4. With those numbers in the books, Sport Auto Magazine set its sights on setting a new Nurburgring road car lap record.

Unfortunately, after booking two, half-hour sessions at the ‘Ring, the heavens opened up and soaked the track, so the attempt was aborted. The current record, held by the Pagani Zonda F Clubsport, stands at 7:27, but Ultima ambitiously projects that its car could undercut that with what would be a staggeringly fast lap time under 6 minutes, 55 seconds. Sounds impossible? Consider the performance stats quoted above, and that the lightweight track demon has hit a top speed of 231 mph. That was with the previous gearing setup, but with a taller fifth gear ratio, Ultima thinks it can reach even higher speeds. After the disappointment of a failed attempt due to the bad weather, the company’s founder Ted Marlow turned around and headed back to England, claiming to have hit 220mph on a derestricted Autobahn along the way. We’ll just have to wait until a more successful attempt to see if the record is shattered, but in the meantime we can enjoy the images in the gallery below and the press release after the jump.

Abarth releases limited-edition 500 “Opening Edition”

Filed under: Hatchbacks, FIAT, Special/Limited Editions

Click for hi-res gallery of Fiat 500 Abarth Opening Edition

At its unveiling at this past March’s Geneva show, it was immediately apparent that Abarth had carried off a transformation of the Fiat 500 from a demure retro-hatch into a veritable pocket rocket. But for those for whom the 135 hp turbo four is just not enough, the performance division has unveiled a new limited edition “500 Abarth Opening Edition”.

Although the name might suggest a convertible, the 500 Opening Edition is a fixed-roof hot-hatch distinguished by a 160hp engine, dropping a half-second off the conventional 500 Abarth’s 0-60 time, now down to a sprightly 7.4 seconds. The Opening Edition also gets red brake calipers behind special 17″ alloys in white or titanium finish, tinted glass and a revised interior with red leather and special badging with a serial number plate. Available in either pearl white or Campovolo gray (the latter available with a red-and-white checkered roof), only 100 examples of the 500 Abarth Opening Edition will be offered, complete with a special car cover to keep the exclusive vehicle protected from the elements.

Check out the big gallery of high-resolution images by clicking the thumbnails below.