Tag: truck

2011 Chevrolet Montana compact truck unveiled in South America

Filed under: Truck, Chevrolet, South America

2011 Chevrolet Montana

2011 Chevrolet Montana – Click above for high-res image gallery

Say hullo to this little truck: It’s the 2011 Chevrolet Montana and it might just make its way up from South America into U.S. dealer showrooms. It’s a small two-door, two-passenger ute that rides on the same platform as the Brazilian Chevy Agile, a hatchback city car.

According to Mike Levine over at PickupTrucks.com, General Motors has no successor planned for the U.S.-version of the Chevy Colorado/GMC Canyon twins. This car-based, front-wheel-drive trucklet could provide a nice stepping stone into its family of larger pickups. The engine would likely have to be beefed up for this market, since potential truck shoppers might be scared off by the Montana’s 1.4-liter four-cylinder (it’s good for 97 horsepower, 95 pound-feet of torque, and 30 miles per gallon on the highway). Despite its modest power numbers, the Chevy Montana is capable of hauling 1,671 pounds in the rear cargo area – a number comparable to the payload ratings of several full-size pickups.

Is North America ready for a pint-sized, front-wheel drive truck? That’s a tough call, especially one with such Aveo-like unique styling. The 2011 Chevrolet Montana might not arrive in the form you see above (and in the gallery), but it could provide a glimpse at what’s waiting down the road.

Gallery: 2011 Chevrolet Montana

2011 Chevrolet Montana2011 Chevrolet Montana2011 Chevrolet Montana2011 Chevrolet Montana2011 Chevrolet Montana

[Source: PickupTrucks.com]

2011 Chevrolet Montana compact truck unveiled in South America originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 02 Oct 2010 11:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Is Daimler interested in buying Fiat’s Iveco truck ops?

Filed under: Truck, Europe, Work, Earnings/Financials, Fiat, Rumormill

Iveco semi truck

Although many suspect that Daimler wants to buy Iveco from Fiat Industrial S.p.A., the German automaker denies it is angling to purchase the commercial division. According to The New York Times, there were supposedly talks during the summer about Daimler purchasing the “non-car business” – we’re not sure if that means the agricultural and the truck side – but apparently the two sides couldn’t agree on a price.

Daimler is the largest of players in the heavy truck industry – its various brands being among the market leaders on at least three continents. Outside opinion is that the German firm wants Iveco in order to help it penetrate Asia, where its current offerings are priced out of the mass-market competition. If nothing else, it’s being suggested that Daimler might try to work out some sort of partnership agreement with Iveco. Doing so could help keep integration costs way down and avert the scrutiny of anti-trust authorities. Fiat hasn’t commented on the matter, but this kind of tie-up is perhaps exactly what Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne had in mind when he split the company in two.

[Source: The New York Times]

Is Daimler interested in buying Fiat’s Iveco truck ops? originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 24 Sep 2010 11:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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New Laws: Commercial truck and bus drivers banned from texting while driving

Filed under: Government/Legal, Safety

Ray Lahood mimics phone

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration claims that in 2009 alone, 5,500 fatalities and half a million injuries occurred as a direct result of distracted driving. The problem is so severe that Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood (above) recently felt compelled to address Autoblog readers directly in an effort to spread the word about how dangerous it is to multitask while driving.

The Department of Transportation isn’t resting its hopes on Autoblog, though. The DoT has initiated the second National Distracted Driving Summit this week to shine light on the problem, and the government’s latest offensive isn’t going out to texting teens or phone-obsessed commuters. The early pressure is on drivers transporting hazardous materials, commercial truck and bus drivers and rail operators. LaHood opened this week’s summit by talking up new laws that ban commercial bus and truck drivers from texting and driving, while train operators can no longer legally use cell phones or other electronic devices from the driver’s seat. Companies are also getting in on the act, as 1,600 corporations have banned distracted driving, affecting 10.5 million drivers. Another 500 companies will reportedly follow suit in the next year.

Beyond new laws covering commercial drivers, LaHood and friends are also touting the results of heavily increased enforcement. In Hartford, Connecticut 4,956 tickets have been passed out to texting or talking drivers. Syracuse, New York police have issued another 4,446 citations. We usually get anything but excited when hearing about increased tickets and fines, but the results of the texting and talking crackdown are difficult to ignore. The DoT press release after the jump tells us that surveys and observations claim that phone usage is down 56 percent in Hartford and 38 percent in Syracuse. Further, texting is down 68 percent and 42 percent, respectively. Hit the jump to read over the press release.

[Source: Department of Transportation | Image: AP]

Continue reading New Laws: Commercial truck and bus drivers banned from texting while driving

New Laws: Commercial truck and bus drivers banned from texting while driving originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 22 Sep 2010 18:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ford letting 20,000 people drive EcoBoost F-150 before truck lands in showrooms

Filed under: Car Buying, Truck, Marketing/Advertising, Ford

Test drive the 2011 Ford EcoBoost F-150

Test drive the 2011 Ford F-150 – Click above to enlarge

Ford is ready to show off the 2011 F-150… in fact it’s so excited about it that it wants you to drive one (or four) before the truck arrives in dealer showrooms. The F-150 is receiving a slew of new powertrain options, including the all-new 3.5-liter EcoBoost unit. The twin-turbocharged. direct-injection V6 mill is capable of great power numbers and is rumored to come in around the 400 mark for both horsepower and torque. Also making their debut in the 2011 F-150 are the 3.7-liter V6 base engine, the 5.0-liter V8 and the top-of-the-line 6.2-liter V8 for the Platinum edition truck.

Ford is taking a fleet of trucks on a whirlwind tour around the country and expects to put 20,000 butts in the driver’s seats. The Built Ford Tough Roundup is going to kick off in Texas on Saturday, September 25th, 2010. It will then make a great big convoy across the USA as Texas gives way to Maryland, Georgia, Florida and finally California. All those stops will be hit before the 2011 Ford F-150 checks its on-sale date off the calendar.

If you are interested in checking out these updated trucks for yourself, you can register online at DriveF150.com. If you are on Facebook (at this point, who isn’t on Facebook?), you can sign up by going to Facebook.com/FordTrucks.

This is a great way to give consumers a sneak peak at a new product before it’s for sale. If you plan on going, make sure you get in line early for the EcoBoost, 5-point-0 and the big ‘ol 6.2 because those waits are bound to be just a bit longer than the those for the 3.7-liter.

[Source: Ford]

Continue reading Ford letting 20,000 people drive EcoBoost F-150 before truck lands in showrooms

Ford letting 20,000 people drive EcoBoost F-150 before truck lands in showrooms originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 17 Sep 2010 19:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Bad Habits’ monster truck world record practice session doesn’t go as planned

Filed under: Motorsports, Truck, Videos, Off-Road, Racing

Hey ya'll, watch this!

Bad Habits takes a dive – Click above to watch the video after the jump

Few realms of motorsport live the “Go big or go home” mantra to the fullest quite as well as the monster truck world. Aside from one of the largest voiceovers in the industry (“Sunday, Sunday, SUNDAY!!“), the guys who wrangle the epic horsepower, rear-wheel steering beasts of the Monster Jam circuit also boast some of the biggest egos. You know, the kind of sheer will of character that it takes to look at Bigfoot’s 202-foot, record-setting jump over a jetliner and think, “Nah, I can do better.” Such is the case with Joe Sylvester, the 26-year-old driver of the Bad Habits truck.

Sylvester has got it into his mind that he can embarrass the Bigfoot record, and has set about building a truck and a ramp to do just that. Only thing is, things didn’t go so swell during a practice session this week. After nailing his homemade ramp, the Bad Habits truck promptly began to turn its nose back toward terra firma, and it wasn’t long before the machine evaporated into a cloud of giant tires and red clay. Sylvester was unharmed in the accident and plans to officially attempt to break the record at this weekend’s Cornfield 500 at Columbus, PA’s Miller Farm. If you can’t make it, don’t worry – the folks at DirtVision plan a live webcast of this Sunday’s attempt.

Either way, we wish Sylvester the best of luck. You may want to do the same after hitting the jump and watching his failed practice attempt for yourself. Thanks for the tip, Shawn!

[Sources: YouTube, Cornfield500, DirtVision]

Continue reading Video: Bad Habits’ monster truck world record practice session doesn’t go as planned

Video: Bad Habits’ monster truck world record practice session doesn’t go as planned originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 12:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Man spends nearly $200,000 to win right to park truck in his own driveway [w/video]

Filed under: Truck, Etc., Government/Legal, Videos, Work, Ford

Man pays nearly $200,000 to park truck in his own drive – click above to watch the video

Beware of the home owner’s association. Considered this country’s most basic, ruthless unit of government, HOAs are typically organized and manned by retirees with little better to do than tell you what to do with your property – something A.J. Vizzi recently learned the hard way. When Vizzi purchased his home in Odessa, Florida, he was told he would be allowed to park his Ford F-350 Super Duty in his home’s driveway, even though the neighborhood’s rules forbade keeping vehicles anywhere other than the garage. The truck didn’t fit in the home’s garage.

The local HOA soon changed its mind, and before long a lawsuit ensued. In 2008, a judge ruled in Vizzi’s favor, but the association quickly appealed the decision. In March, a second judge sided with Vizzi, and the courts awarded him $187,000 in legal fees to be paid by the HOA. In total, the association claims that the ordeal has cost over $300,000, including the cash it now has to pay to Vizzi. Take a look after the jump to watch a local news report on the legal battle. Thanks for the tip, Sea Urchin!

[Source: My Fox Tampa Bay]

Continue reading Man spends nearly $200,000 to win right to park truck in his own driveway [w/video]

Man spends nearly $200,000 to win right to park truck in his own driveway [w/video] originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 29 Jul 2010 18:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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