Tag: don

Toyota iQ Disco makes us glad we don’t live in Germany… or the Seventies

Filed under: Concept Cars, Europe, Hatchback, Toyota, Specialty

Toyota iQ Disco – Click above for high-res images

If you thought the recently green-lit Aston Martin Cygnet is little more than an over-glitzed version of the Toyota iQ, then you’ve got another thing coming. Well, to Germany, anyway. And it comes straight from Toyota.

It’s called the iQ Disco, and it’s here to remind us that if you like the latter, the former needn’t apply. Fortunately it’s a promotional one-off. Aside from the disco-ball mirror finish, the show car features Lambo doors, multi-spoke 18-inch alloys and a full DJ booth, complete with a set of Numark NDX 800 turntables and a two-channel mixer pumping through 1000 watts and 130 dB worth of speakers and amplifiers.

Suddenly that gilded Fiat 500 looks decidedly tasteful. The iQ Disco will be hitting the floor at a concert in Cologne and will then tour Toyota’s dealerships across Germany as a promotional tour. Makes us want to put a down-payment on an Avensis, how about you?

Gallery: Toyota iQ Disco

[Source: Toyota]

Toyota iQ Disco makes us glad we don’t live in Germany… or the Seventies originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 13 Oct 2010 18:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hatchbacks: Who says Americans don’t buy ’em?

Filed under: Car Buying, Budget, Hybrid, Sedan, Hatchback, Design/Style

2011 Ford Fiesta hatchback

Hatchbacks and their sedan counterparts – Click above for high-res image gallery

There’s a well-worn cliché that is uttered periodically by just about every product planner and PR wonk in the auto industry – one that’s been dutifully parroted by the journalists and enthusiasts that surround them, and it goes something like this: “Sorry, fellas, Americans just don’t buy hatchbacks.” Typically, that chestnut is trotted out whenever an automaker is compelled to explain why a particularly desirable new hatchback won’t be sold in U.S. showrooms. Thing is, this commonly accepted bit of wisdom isn’t as true as we’ve been led to believe.

The hatchback accounts for 60 percent of Fiesta sales.

Just ask Ford, who announced today that its new-for-2011 Fiesta is selling more in five-door guise than it is in its more traditional four-door sedan format. According to figures the automaker has sourced from Ward’s Auto, the jaunty hatch accounts for over 60 percent of the Fiesta’s sales. Little wonder, perhaps, as Ford has seemingly devoted the Fiesta’s entire marketing budget to that particular bodystyle.

As a further statement of faith in the viability of the utilitarian bodystyle, the Blue Oval is readying its 2012 Focus in both sedan and five-door formats, with the two-door Focus coupe being discarded in favor of the hatchback – a configuration unavailable since 2007. Ford sales analyst George Pipas nutshells what he sees as a growing trend:

“American car buyers have grown accustomed to the convenience of hatch bodystyles after years of owning SUVs and crossovers. Combined with a generation of younger drivers who have been exposed via the Internet to popular high-performance hatchback offerings in Europe and Asia, we may be seeing the beginning of a shift in buyer acceptance of hatchbacks.”

Ford isn’t alone in its bid to disprove that consumers are inherently averse to two-box designs because they feel they’re cheap and frumpy – sensible as opposed to stylish. Autoblog recently inquired with a number of automakers who offer entry-level models available in both hatchback and sedan bodystyles, only to find out that in many cases, bubbleback models are outselling their trunked counterparts.

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Gallery: Hatchbacks and Their Sedan Counterparts

2011 Ford Fiesta hatchback2011 Ford Fiesta sedan2010 Toyota Yaris hatchback2010 Toyota Yaris sedan2010 Hyundai Accent hatchback

Continue reading Hatchbacks: Who says Americans don’t buy ’em?

Hatchbacks: Who says Americans don’t buy ’em? originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 28 Sep 2010 12:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Redneck Visionary bus jump something you don’t see every day

Filed under: Videos, Work, Humor

Magic Bus

Yep. That’s a bus in mid-air – Click above to watch video after the jump

For all of the wonders that the internet has unleashed, it has also desensitized an entire generation. Once upon a time, we’d have been shocked to watch someone shove a nine iron into a blender, but thanks to the proliferation of online videos, gratuitous and rampant destruction barely elicits a yawn nowadays. Perhaps that’s why we’re so taken with this video.

We don’t know why somebody decided to see what happens when a full-sized charter bus hits a motocross jump at speed. We’re just happy that they did (and that they brought a camera along). Hats off to the crew that orchestrated this mayhem, which you can watch for yourselves after the jump.

[Source: YouTube]

Continue reading Video: Redneck Visionary bus jump something you don’t see every day

Video: Redneck Visionary bus jump something you don’t see every day originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 25 Sep 2010 19:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Study: Teens don’t think texting while driving is as dangerous as DUI

Filed under: Safety

Texting and Driving

Despite plenty of academic research demonstrating that texting while driving can be just as dangerous as drinking and driving, a new poll shows that most teens simply don’t think that’s the case. State Farm recently sponsored a poll conducted by Harris Interactive in which 14-to-17 year-olds were asked whether they thought they would die one day if they regularly text and drive. Only 35 percent of those asked strongly agreed with that statement. Compare that figure with the 55 percent of teens who think that drinking and driving could prove deadly, and you begin to see the disparity.

Likewise, those polled believed that their chances of getting into an accident are higher while drinking and driving versus texting and driving. The auto insurance giant says that it’s up to parents to underscore the dangers of both activities for their children. We couldn’t agree more – especially after seeing that only a little more than half of the teens surveyed appear to adequately understand the potential consequences of drinking and driving. With public safety groups and parents having already spent decades reminding young people of the dangers of driving under the influence, it looks like it’s going to take at least that long to reach them about the perils of distracted driving. Hit the jump for the press release.

[Source: State Farm | Image: Getty]

Continue reading Study: Teens don’t think texting while driving is as dangerous as DUI

Study: Teens don’t think texting while driving is as dangerous as DUI originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 20 Sep 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Don’t Call It S1: Audi shows off 185-hp A1 ahead of Paris debut

Filed under: Performance, Europe, Paris Motor Show, Hatchback, Audi

2011 Audi A1 1.4 TFSI

2011 Audi A1 1.4 TFSI – Click above for high-res image gallery

As if we needed another reason to salivate over the delicious little Audi A1. The Four Ring’d One has just announced that it will pull the sheets off of a new, hopped-up version of its tiniest hatch at this year’s Paris Motor Show. Here’s the important part: under the hood, there’s a 185-horsepower dual-charged 1.4-liter four-cylinder engine with 185 lb-ft of torque. That’s right, this machine makes use of both a supercharger and a turbocharger, and as a result, Audi says that its new A1 1.4 TFSI can scoot to 60 mph in a quick 6.9 seconds.

By way of salting the wound even further, Audi says that the meanest of the A1 breed returns around 40 mpg U.S., effectively making the Honda CR-Z look both lethargic and overtly wasteful. A seven-speed DSG gearbox handles shifting duties and likely helps with that massive fuel economy number. Quattro all-wheel drive is still not available, however.

European buyers can expect to see the brawny A1 by the end of this year, where it will carry a price tag of around $31,500 at current conversion rates (though the included EU taxes inflate that figure somewhat). As usual, we won’t see it on our shores. Hit the jump to take a look at the press release and the high-res gallery below if you’re a glutton for punishment.

Gallery: 2011 Audi A1

[Source: Audi]

Continue reading Don’t Call It S1: Audi shows off 185-hp A1 ahead of Paris debut

Don’t Call It S1: Audi shows off 185-hp A1 ahead of Paris debut originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 20 Sep 2010 12:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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MotoGP 2010: Don’t call it a comeback at Misano… just yet [SPOILER]

Filed under: Motorsports, Performance, Motorcycle, Celebrities, Racing

When Dani Pedrosa left Indianapolis Motor Speedway last week, there’s little doubt he was the envy of his fellow MotoGP contenders. The Spaniard clinched victory, proving that he possessed not only the speed, but also the fortitude to truly challenge Jorge Lorenzo. The question on everyone’s mind was this: Could Pedrosa and Repsol Honda really mount a solid comeback? Make the jump to find out.

[Source: MotoGP.com | Image: Mirco Lazzari GP/Getty Images]

Continue reading MotoGP 2010: Don’t call it a comeback at Misano… just yet [SPOILER]

MotoGP 2010: Don’t call it a comeback at Misano… just yet [SPOILER] originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 07 Sep 2010 17:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Well, you don’t see a classic diesel Mercedes E-Class wagon drift everyday

Filed under: Wagon, Videos, Mercedes-Benz, Diesel

mercedes-benz e-class wagon drifting

Vintage diesel Mercedes-Benz E-Class wagon drifting – Click above to watch the video after the jump

This might be one of the coolest things we’ve ever seen… this year. There are hundreds of videos floating around the ‘net of people drifting their hotted-up Nissan Zs, Ford Mustangs or Big Wheels around race tracks, public roads and abandoned airports, but this driver earns some extra bonus points for pulling it off in a vintage Mercedes-Benz E-Class. Diesel. Wagon.

As if you needed more reason to click through the jump and watch the video in its nearly seven-minute entirety, know that this driver not only has good taste in drift cars, but he has some serious skills to boot. Now, if we could only see this video remade starring the 2011 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG wagon… Hat tip to Anders!

[Source: YouTube]

Continue reading Video: Well, you don’t see a classic diesel Mercedes E-Class wagon drift everyday

Video: Well, you don’t see a classic diesel Mercedes E-Class wagon drift everyday originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 26 Aug 2010 20:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Dutch VW ‘RollGolf’ proves that Yankees don’t have a lock on junkyard creativity

Filed under: Europe, Videos, Hatchback, Volkswagen, Humor, Diesel

VW RollGolf – Click above to watch video after the jump

Never let it be said that this generation lacks imagination. Sure, these guys could have simply scrapped their diesel VW Golf when it started showing its age, but where’s the innovation? Instead, they did a fairly seamless job of shortening the wheelbase, bolted on a set of steel tube inverted rockers and called it a day.

What more could you ask for in terms of entertainment? Build up a head of steam, stab the brakes and watch as the sky and the ground switch places a few times. It’s very possibly the safest way to flip a car without having to answer to the law or your insurance company. And, to answer the inevitable question… why not?

According to the YouTube description, the builder still has a few tweaks to make to the design. We have to wonder exactly the mastermind behind the contraption has planned. If nothing else, it’d be a great way to get past those pesky tire strips on your next low-speed chase. Hit the jump to take a look at the video for yourself. Thanks for the tip, Joost!

[Source: YouTube]

Continue reading Video: Dutch VW ‘RollGolf’ proves that Yankees don’t have a lock on junkyard creativity

Video: Dutch VW ‘RollGolf’ proves that Yankees don’t have a lock on junkyard creativity originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 06 Aug 2010 14:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Study: One-third of drivers don’t know what this dashboard light means

Filed under: Safety, Ford

Remember the Ford Explorer/Firestone tire debacle from a decade ago? Thousands of the ‘utes rolled-over and much of the blame fell on insufficiently inflated tires, costing the Blue Oval billions of dollars to replace the tires on just about every Explorer still left on the road. The other fallout from Explorer-gate (or Firestone-gate) was institution of the Tire Pressure Monitoring System that’s now a legal standard on every car and truck built since 2008.

TPMS sensors constantly measure the pressure in all four tires, and when one or more tires is more than 25 percent below the recommended amount, a light illuminates on the gauge cluster. Most of us know the light (on right) and if you do, you’re among the 54 percent of drivers who know what it means. But more importantly, less than half of the population doesn’t.

TPMS maker Schrader recently surveyed drivers to see if there were knowledgeable about all things TPMS, and the results had to be a bit disappointing. First, the good news: 96 percent of all drivers surveyed felt that under-inflated tires were a serious safety problem. Now the bad news: Only 44 percent of drivers polled regularly check their tire pressure. Furthermore, one third of drivers surveyed didn’t know what TPMS was or what it was used for. Another 44 percent were unaware what the symbol was supposed to represent, while still another 14 percent thought the symbol identified a problem of the non-tire variety.

In order to combat some of the ignorance among motorists about one of its main products, Schrader has introduced its TPMS Made Simple website. While it’s not exactly riveting stuff, the site is chock full of information about TPMS, including what to do when that (apparently) inscrutable warning light in your gauge cluster illuminates (Hint: check your tires) and the economic benefit of properly inflated rubber, including improved fuel economy and longer lasting tires. Head over to the site to become a TPMS expert.

[Sources: USA Today | TPMS Made Simple]

Study: One-third of drivers don’t know what this dashboard light means originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 04 Aug 2010 11:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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