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Report: ‘Car Czar’ post nixed as part of federal budget deal

Filed under: Etc., Government/Legal, Earnings/Financials

Ron Bloom

Last week, the government avoided a costly shutdown by cutting $38 billion from the 2012 federal budget. The American people are just now hearing what those cuts consist of, and it appears the auto industry and industry regulation have been affected.

The Detroit News is reporting that the currently vacant Car Czar posts was among the positions that didn’t make the cut. The post was last held by Ron Bloom (above), Senior Adviser to the Secretary of the Treasury, who left the job in February. The Car Czar was originally appointed to oversee the government’s investment in the industry in the wake of the bankruptcies of General Motors and Chrysler.

We’re guessing the task force position won’t be missed much by the auto industry, but a $408 million cut from a $ 2.3 billion program to research fuel efficiency technology might be. Also getting the axe? A whopping $2.9 billion from light rail initiatives and $37 million from a program that advocates seatbelt usage.

[Source: The Detroit News]

Report: ‘Car Czar’ post nixed as part of federal budget deal originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 12 Apr 2011 14:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Autoblog Podcast #194 – Bentley Continental, Lamborghini teaser, Mexico’s Mastretta and budget Toyota sports cars

Filed under: Concept Cars, Podcasts, Coupe, Performance, Etc., Paris Motor Show, Bentley, GMC, Lamborghini, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Military

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It’s Episode #194 of the Autoblog Podcast, and Chris, Sam and Dan talk about the 2011 Bentley Continental, what Lamborghini has in store for the Paris Motor Show, Mexico’s Mastretta MXT and budget sports cars from Toyota. Two questions cap it at just over an hour this week. Thanks for listening!

Autoblog Podcast #194 – Bentley Continental, Lamborghini teaser, Mexico’s Mastretta and budget Toyota sports cars

In the Autoblog Garage:

Nissan Pathfinder
GMC Sierra 3500 HD
Mitsubishi Outlander

News:

Budget Toyota sports cars
Lamborghini teaser
Mastretta MXT
2011 Bentley Continental GT

Hosts:
Dan Roth, Sam Abuelsamid, Chris Shunk

Runtime: 63:00

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Feedback:
Email: Podcast at Autoblog dot com
Voicemail: 734-288-8POD (734-288-8763)

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Autoblog Podcast #194 – Bentley Continental, Lamborghini teaser, Mexico’s Mastretta and budget Toyota sports cars originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 08 Sep 2010 17:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Toyota plans budget sports car line

Filed under: Aftermarket, Concept Cars, Coupe, Budget, Hybrid, Japan, Hatchback, Toyota

Toyota MR2 Sports Hybrid Concept – Click above for high-res image gallery

Akio Toyoda may want to bring driving excitement back to Toyota, but he and his team have two major hurdles to overcome: The brands’s limited enthusiast base and the fact that Japan’s youth have very little interest in cars.

To combat both fronts, Toyota plans to launch a new line of budget-oriented vehicles that offer a modicum of sport. But so far, things don’t look too promising.

Despite debuting an FT-86-based concept at this year’s Tokyo Auto Salon, Toyota’s G Sports line of products have mainly focused on the Voxy and Noah minivans, while a “sports” version of the Prius is apparently in the works.

More interestingly, the Mainichi Daily News reports that a version of the GRMN sports car concept has been given the greenlight, meaning a mid-engined hybrid successor to the MR2 is in the works.

All these developments come after Toyota established a sports vehicle management division in January, which now has a hand in the brand’s overall product planning. We should get a look at the fruits of their labors during next year’s auto show season and could see this new breed of budget sports vehicles on the market – at least in Japan – within the next few years.

Gallery: Toyota MR2 Sports Hybrid