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Report: No Volkswagen Polo R for you!

Filed under: Performance, Hatchback, Volkswagen, Off-Road

2011 Volkswagen Polo GTI

2011 Volkswagen Polo GTI – Click above for high-res image gallery

If you thought that Audi’s adaption of the A1’s platform for all-wheel drive would open the door for an AWD version of the Volkswagen Polo as well, think again. Although the A1 and the Polo share the same platform, the latest reports indicate that Volkswagen has no plans to apply the technology for an all-wheel-drive variant of the CrossPolo or a hotter Polo R.

This platform was never intended to accommodate all-wheel drive, but Audi saw it fit to tweak things in order to accommodate a Quattro version of the A1. The potential had sparked speculation about how this could be adapted for Volkswagen use, but according to reports, VW feels that a Polo R – with AWD or without – would crowd the already limited space between the above-pictured Polo GTI and the Golf GTI. Meanwhile, the automaker says that the soft-road CrossPolo is already popular enough in front-wheel-drive form, and even with Audi already laying the groundwork, the added expense of adapting the high-riding Polo to all-wheel drive wouldn’t be worth the return.

Gallery: 2011 Volkswagen Polo GTI

[Source: Autocar]

Report: No Volkswagen Polo R for you! originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 14 Feb 2011 16:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Crashvertising coming soon to a traffic jam near you?

Filed under: Etc., Marketing/Advertising, Videos, Humor

Crashvertising

Crashvertising – Click above to watch video after the jump

One thing’s certain: where there’s a car accident, there’s a crowd. The severity is irrelevant; people gawk. To capitalize on this untapped audience a team of marketers has introduced the concept of Crashvertising.

If the Crashvertise team is notified of an accident, head to the scene quickly with posters and roadside emergency triangles highlighting whatever campaign is being promoted. To further draw in onlookers, the Crashvertisers will hand out related swag to further drive home whatever message the advertiser du jour is looking to spread.

A video, available after the jump, highlights how the Crashvertise concept works. Now, before you go berserk in the comments… be aware that this is satire. That said, we wouldn’t be surprised if someone decides to run with this…

Gallery: Crashvertising

CrashvertisingCrashvertisingCrashvertising country breakdownCrashvertising

[Source: Crashvertise]

Continue reading Video: Crashvertising coming soon to a traffic jam near you?

Video: Crashvertising coming soon to a traffic jam near you? originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 18 Dec 2010 20:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Study: Car buyers not impressed by celeb endorsements. How about you? [w/poll]

Filed under: Car Buying, Etc., Celebrities

Kate Walsh Cadillac ad

As Americans, there’s no denying we have a healthy obsession with the lives of celebrities. From movie stars like Will Smith down to reality television “stars” like The Situation, people are curious as to what’s going on in their world. What clothes do they wear, where do they get their groceries and what kind of car(s) do they buy? Sometimes a celebrity won’t have much say in the vehicle they drive because they sign a sizable endorsement deal to tell us which vehicle we should be driving. As sales numbers for thousands of celeb-endorsed products will tell you, their stamp of approval can make a difference in a bust or boom period for a product. Well, as long as that product isn’t a car.

According to WhatCar, celebrity endorsements only affect one percent of car buyers. They polled over 1,000 folks and just 11 said they could be encouraged by someone famous telling them what to buy. Obviously, a car buyer should purchase the vehicle that makes the most sense to them, not the one that Kate Walsh (above) likens to trying on a good dress. Exceptions can be made, however, for anyone who purchased a Chrysler Cordoba because of its soft Corinthian leather, of which the virtues were extolled beautifully by Ricardo “KHAN” Montalban.

What say you? Can Justin Timberlake convince you to buy an Audi or does Mike Rowe explaining how great the Ford F-150 is make you picture a Chevrolet Silverado in your driveway?

View Poll

[Source: WhatCar]

Study: Car buyers not impressed by celeb endorsements. How about you? [w/poll] originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 20 Sep 2010 14:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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V8 Supercar champ in Australia wants kids to learn to drive at age 12. How about you? [w/poll]

Filed under: Motorsports, Etc., Government/Legal, Safety, Australia

Albert Einstein has commonly been quoted as saying that stupidity (or insanity, depending on your source) is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. Which begs the question, with over 100 years of traffic enforcement behind us, why are we still relying on the same methods of catch and punish to modify driver behavior? If it hasn’t worked over the last century, chances are it won’t work over the next. But Australian V8 Supercar champ Jamie Whincup has come up with a zany idea that just might cut down on his country’s driving death toll – education.

In a move likely to draw some knee-jerk guffaws, Whincup is calling for driver’s education to begin at 12 years-old. The tweens in question wouldn’t actually be behind the wheel, but would begin to receive lessons on the components of a car, the effect of drugs and alcohol on your ability to operate a vehicle and the consequences of excess speed. We’re not entirely sure the average pre-teen is going to be able to wrangle enough synapses away from Hanna Montana to make a difference, but we’re all for improved driver education as a means of improving road safety.

Have a look at the story below, then chime in with your own opinion by taking our poll and leaving your thoughts in Comments.

View Poll

[Source: Drive | Image: Matchbox]

V8 Supercar champ in Australia wants kids to learn to drive at age 12. How about you? [w/poll] originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 28 Jul 2010 19:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Study: Americans prefer tolls over fuel taxes… how about you?

Filed under: Government/Legal, Earnings/Financials

One fact seems indisputable: Americans have come to hate taxes and any suggestion by a politician to raise them is tantamount to political suicide. The problem is that public infrastructure requires funding – and lots of it. Critics of this disparity would argue that a lack of political will to raise fuel taxes has left roads, bridges and tunnels across America crumbling in recent decades.

A new survey conducted by HNTB Corporation suggests that Americans would prefer to pay tolls or let their roads crumble rather than pay higher fuel taxes. While this may well be a valid survey, it’s important to note that HNTB is an infrastructure firm that supplies toll collecting equipment, among other things.

In any case, the study’s findings note that “when given a choice between new roads funded by an increased gas tax, by new tolls or no new roads at all, Americans prefer tolls (41 percent) or no new roads at all (41 percent) over increased gas taxes (18 percent).” Further, “A strong majority of Americans (84 percent) feel tolls should be considered project-by-project or as a primary source of transportation revenue. Only a small minority (16 percent) say tolls should never be used.”

In the old days, toll booths were a pain because every car had to stop and pay. The advent of affordable radio frequency transponder systems like EZ-Pass now allows commuters to drive toll roads and pay automatically without stopping – or even thinking about how much money using such systems costs them. Of course, this type of toll collecting raises other issues including invasion of privacy concerns, since the operators know where specific cars are at certain points in time. There’s also the possibility of account hacking or errors where someone could end up charging their driving to other accounts.

What do you think about tolls? Check out the full press release after the jump for more of the study’s findings, then drop your fellow readers a line in Comments.

[Source: HNTB Corporation | Image: Wikimedia Commons]

Continue reading Study: Americans prefer tolls over fuel taxes… how about you?

Study: Americans prefer tolls over fuel taxes… how about you? originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 26 Jul 2010 15:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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