Car Chute

If you want to impress people you need to be over the top sometimes. You should have something that will make people stop, give a second and a third look before going away and either tweeting it to their friends or putting up a picture in Facebook. An added help would be having a mountain load of cash available to rent the Royal Luxury Limousine’s 2010 Audi Q7 Limousine with Gull Wing Doors. Yes folks you read it right: GULL WING DOORS.

This latest Audi Q7 Jet Door limo is the latest addition to the Royal Luxury limo’s fleet of exotic vehicles. This car is equipped with smoke machine, fishtank, 2000 watt stereo system, fireplace, disco color changing floor and ceiling, upgraded upholstery, iPod hookup and more.

Ok, this seems to be going way over the top–a fishtank and a smoke machine? I would understand using a smoke machine for grand entrances, but a fishtank would just be too much. About the fireplace: I hope it’s all artificial or we’ll be hearing from the Fire Department soon.

The owner of the limo, Mark Bauer is especially pleased with how people are reacting to the limo.

Mark says that during the prom season he sells out of these limos way before his competition does. “Kids these days want the latest and greatest” says Mark. Clients want to show off at their prom in something that Wows the crowd. And these jet door limos definitely due the job. Just imagine when 20 kids pull up to their prom where the party is and driver rolls out the red carpet and opens up the 5th door up in the air, like you see on the movie “Back to the Future”, smoke comes out of the car (from the smoke machine), disco floor and ceiling is changing colors, strobe lights inside and under the car are flashing, loud music is playing, kids are coming out and you see all the spectators are shocked. That is how you make an entry.”

Yup! With this limo, your arrival will be the stuff of legends.

Source

It’s almost the end of the decade for the 2000′s and it’s time to look back and review what trucks were the most significant. PickupTrucks.com and AutoPacific has just announced a list of the Most Significant Trucks of the Decade. As expected the list were made up of trucks that were technologically cutting edged advanced and who pushed the envelope in terms of quality and design.

So here they are:

• 2000 Nissan Frontier Crew Cab
• 2001 Chevrolet Silverado / GMC Sierra Heavy Duty with 6.6-Liter Duramax Diesel
• 2002 Chevrolet Avalanche
• 2004 Nissan Titan
• 2005 Toyota Tacoma
• 2006 Honda Ridgeline
• 2007 Toyota Tundra
• 2009 Dodge Ram 1500
• 2010 Ford F-150 SVT Raptor

And the Most Significant of the Decade:

• 2009 Ford F-150

Why It’s Significant: Remains the gold standard against which other half-ton pickup trucks are compared.

Ford gave its F-150 half-ton pickup a major revision for 2009 and gave buyers an astonishing seven different models to choose from before they even considered engine choice or cab type. Two more models have been added for 2010! It’s not the most powerful truck but the F-150 features an excellent six-speed transmission and innovative features like Ford Work Solutions that make doing jobs with a truck easier. From contractor to urban cowboy, Ford has an F-150 to meet almost anyone’s needs.

“On balance, we thought the 2009 Ford F-150 was the most significant pickup of the last decade,” said Jim Hossack, vice president of consulting for AutoPacific. “It sells in high volume, owners like it and its body, chassis and powertrain are all first rate. Features abound, and there are more models, series and options than can be counted. It’s a good looking truck and suitable for the widest possible range of tasks and uses.”

Congratulations to the Ford F-150 team for creating a Pick-up Truck that ruled a decade.

Press Release

Want to buy a new set of tires but you’re down on your luck when it comes to finances? We all know that having good tires mean a better and safer way of travelling, but sometimes they’re just too expensive! Well, you ‘re in luck as Belle Tire just announced a Year End clearance Sale!

Belle Tire management has agreed that the best way to close out 2009 is to offer additional discounts on close-outs, one-of-a-kinds, special purchases and more. Customers will also have the opportunity to take advantage of 90 days no interest and no payments with approved credit.

Belle Tire stocks over 250,000 tires ready for immediate installation. Customers at all locations have access to top tire brands including:

• Goodyear
• Michelin
• Toyo Tires
• Kelly Tires
• BFGoodrich
• Bridgestone
• Continental
• Sumitomo Tire

Belle Tire is always working hard to bring customers the best tire price and get them Out-The-Door with more value, services and protection including:

• Lifetime Alignment Checks
• Nitrogen Tire Inflation
• Lifetime Tire Rotation
• Lifetime Spin Balancing
• Lifetime Flat Repairs
• Pro-Rated Road Hazard Warranty
• Mounting Tires
• Tire Disposal
• Rubber Valve Stems
• Hand Torque of Wheels

No need to rush to the store as it will be open until 8 PM.  Sale starts on Dec.26 and ends on Dec. 31.

For those who want to dispense of tires it’s best to send them to a recycling facility in order that it be recycled to become new tires or other products. I think it’s the best way to try out your new tires: riding down to the recycling station.

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If you’re looking for a strong yet safe vehicle then look no further than the 2010 Ford Taurus. This car was just earned the illustrious five star rating for both driver and passenger side crash tests. It also just won the “Top Safety Pick” from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

So what makes this car safer than the others?

The new Taurus features crash-avoidance technologies, such as a segment-first, radar-based forward collision warning system that helps drivers avoid accidents. The system, enabled by Adaptive Cruise Control, uses a radar sensor to detect moving vehicles ahead and provides a visual “heads-up” warning signal and an audible warning when slower-moving traffic is detected ahead.

Instead of the car reacting to accidents, it actually helps you avoid them in the first place. Now that’s what I call safety!

But what about when the accident does occur?

The new 2010 Taurus earned the five-star and “Top Safety Pick” ratings based in part on advanced features such as the Personal Safety System(TM) – a suite of protection technologies, including dual-stage front air bags and front-passenger weight classification, which work together to help protect occupants in moderate to severe crashes. The Ford-exclusive Safety Canopy® features side curtain air bags that help protect front and rear outboard passengers in both rollover and side-impact crashes.

It used to be that only the front driver and passenger had bags, now the Ford Taurus has them also at the sides and back passenger side.

The 2010 Ford Taurus should be on the list of anyone who wants to buy a car.

Press Release

If you remember, we last reported that the Ford Flex was so good it could still be considered as a great car in the year 2030, well, it seems to have won another award for the present day: it and the Ford Fusion Hybrid are named 2010 All-Stars by Automobile Magazine.

Reasons for why the Flex won:

Jason Mase, Ford crossover marketing manager, says it is the design and features available with the Ford Flex that make the vehicle stand out.
“We’re delighted that AUTOMOBILE Magazine has named Flex an All-Star two years running,” he said. “The AUTOMOBILE editors recognize Flex stands apart from the rest of the crossover crowd with unmatched style, tremendous passenger comfort and space, and leading technology features like the available EcoBoost engine, Active Park Assist, Ford SYNC® and a refrigerated second-row console.”

It seems that the Flex is good on its own even if it wasn’t considered as a Green vehicle, granted, its EcoBoost engine is enough.

As for the Ford Fusion Hybrid:

Jennings says what makes the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid special is that it doesn’t drive like a hybrid.
“Its very ordinariness is what makes the Fusion Hybrid an AUTOMOBILE Magazine All-Star,” said Jennings. “The Fusion Hybrid is not a performance machine, but neither does it feel hobbled or inadequate for daily driving. Perhaps the best thing about it is that, apart from the LCD color screens, you might never know you’re driving a hybrid.”

Eventhough it’s not as strong as the other cars, being green was enough to win the award. Hopefully, more high performing green cars will be rolling out the production line soon.

Press Release

After a couple of best cars awards list, I think it would be fair to look at the other extreme: the worst ones. Although it may not seem nice at first, it’s a way for the auto industry to look back and learn for their past mistakes to ensure that they don’t name a particular vehicle the wrong way. A good way to start would be Cars.com’s Worst Named Cars of All Time List.

After 30 years of looking back at the automobile industry, Cars.com presents the Worst Car Names of All Time!

10. The Entire Lincoln Lineup
Lincoln is a brand with a considerable history, and we know they know how to give cars strong iconic names such as Continental or Navigator. Somewhere around 2007, many of those easy-to-remember names went out the window, leaving consumers with a hodgepodge of names starting with “MK.” That’s a shame because Lincoln has a strong lineup right now. What’s the difference between the MKZ, MKX and MKS? Gimme a second to look it up because I honestly can’t remember which is which.

9. Hyundai Equus
The inclusion of the Equus might be premature considering it’s not even on sale yet, but this could be the push Hyundai needs to give the car a proper name before it’s released. Companies occasionally give Latin names to products to make them sound sophisticated or fancy, but Equus just makes us think of the Broadway play of the same name — most recently starring Daniel Radcliffe of Harry Potter fame — where a young man loves horses a little too much.

8. Toyota Yaris

There was a girl in my dorm freshman year who organized her shoes alphabetically by mood. She majored in dead languages and responded to every single question with “no worries.” She once set the dorm microwave on fire by overcooking a ham-and-cheese Hot Pocket. Yes, that story is ridiculous and nonsensical … sort of like naming a car Yaris.

7. Kia Forte Koup
As writers, we’re particularly offended when companies take liberties with the English language in an effort to be cutesy — and this is no exception. We actually like this car! But Kia is asking us to overlook years of schooling and experience to accept their quirky spelling of coupe. It might require a few sessions with a therapist before we can get to that happy place.
6. Subaru B9 Tribeca
Here we’ve got a family crossover named after a fashionable neighborhood in lower Manhattan and … a World War II bomber? Consumers didn’t understand the B9 moniker either; that part of the name got the ax when Subaru redesigned the SUV for the 2008 model year.

5. Volkswagen Touareg
A few Volkswagens could’ve made this list, but the Touareg was easily the name that tripped up our American mouths the most. Early Touareg commercials in the U.S. even depicted people struggling to say the name. When an automaker has to spend precious time and ad dollars helping consumers learn to pronounce the car’s name — something is wrong.

4. Ford Probe
There are many borderline inappropriate jokes you could make about a 1990s sport compact named Probe, but we’re far too classy for that. Even if you don’t take into account the tasteless jokes, this is just a bad car name. There is nothing cool about a probe (the word, not the car). What thesaurus was Ford using where probe was synonymous with sleek and sporty?

3. Subaru Brat
Although Brat is technically an acronym — it stands for Bi-drive Recreational All-terrain Transporter — it’s a particularly unfortunate one. “Brat” is almost never used to describe something positively. A brat is not a calm, confident driver who knows what he wants and how to get it. A brat is busy throwing a hissy fit in the corner because his mom won’t let him borrow the car to go buy the new Styx album.

2. Isuzu VehiCROSS
Isuzu deserves a little credit for creating an attention-grabbing crossover before it was even a recognized vehicle segment, but the name practically beats consumers over the head with the idea (think SUV plus a cross-training sneaker). Add to that the unnecessary capitalization and the fact that VehiCROSS is a mouthful, and you have one bad name.

1. Ford Aspire
It’s pretty safe to say that many drivers’ dream cars fall under the category of sports car or luxury auto; few children hope to one day spend their commuting hours behind the wheel of a 63-horsepower subcompact hatchback. When Ford slapped the Aspire name on the back of this car, they were basically saying: “Yeah, even our car knows you wish you were driving something cooler.”

Well, there they are, hopefully this list won’t grow longer…

Source

Bloomberg’s Jason Harper’s choice for the Best Executive Sedan of 2009 is the Mercedez-Benz E63 AMG and it looks like I agree with him.

According to Harper’s Bloomberg article on December 10th, 2009, the Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG rules. He notes the vehicle retains classic E-Class elements such as the upright Mercedes badge, supple ride and ample rear seat, while shedding stodginess with new-age technology like a “drowsiness detector” and headlamps which automatically dim.

The new E63 AMG distinguishes itself from the standard Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedans with a newly developed adaptive AMG sport suspension system with electronically controlled damping, revised front suspension and unique exterior and interior design.

With such features like a “drowsiness detector” and the lot it sure seems to be screaming out quality. Although I’m not really sure who gets drowsy on a car when you’ve been travelling around for a long time. Although I do like the automatic dimming lights when you wish to have more privacy out in the back.

For those who are looking at the more technical reasons for the car getting an award, just take a look below:

“The AMG 6.3-liter V8-engine in the new E63 AMG develops an output of 518 hp and a 465 lb-ft of torque, matching the outstanding figures for the SL63 AMG. The high-performance Roadster has also transferred its AMG SPEEDSHIFT MCT 7-speed sports transmission to the new model.”

It seems to be able to speed up on its own power even if its seen as an executive’s car. Good for those people who have a high risk life (like a politician’s) who may need the speed to run away as soon as possible when in danger.

Press Release

If you remember we were looking towards 2030 to see which cars would suit those times, well there’s a curious kind of futuristic award from the Friends of the National Automotive History Collection (NAHC): Collectible Vehicle of the Future! Well, more specifically 2034.

“The NAHC is the world’s largest public archive of automotive lore and a treasure for automotive historians, journalists and collectors. Its collection of books, manuals, photos, company histories and historic documents is open to the public.”

This year, they pinned the award as the Collectible Vehicle of the Future 2009 on the Ford Flex. The reason?

“We are delighted that the Ford Flex has been recognized by the NAHC as having a design that will become a collectible of the future,” said Kate Pearce, Flex marketing manager at Ford.

“We knew from the start that we had a vehicle with stand-out design that looks like nothing else on the road, but that also meets the needs of our customers looking for passenger space with innovative technology and great fuel economy,” she said. “Reaction from our customers has been fantastic and we hope they will enjoy their cars long into the future.”

Previous winners were:

• 2008 Dodge Challenger
• 2007 Dodge Viper SRT10
• 2006 Pontiac Solstice
• 2005 Ford Mustang
• 2004 Chrysler 300
• 2003 Dodge Viper
• 2002 Ford Thunderbird
• 1996 Chrysler Sebring Convertible
• 1995 Buick Riviera and Oldsmobile Aurora

It’s great that the judging body has taken into its criteria the vehicle’s fuel economy features. It looks like the future’s going to be more green come the year 2034.

Press Release

If you had a classic British car around you know how hard it is find any replacement parts in the US as it usually it means importing the expensive parts from the UK. However, two British car enthusiasts from Michigan, Brian Thornton and Keith Leigh-Monstevens, have made it easier for you as they have established Heritage Spares, a distributor for North America of AP Braking (used to be known as AP Lockheed) breaks and clutch replacement parts.

“By reintroducing genuine AP brake and clutch replacement parts to the U.S. and Canada, we are providing the British car enthusiast with the optimal maintenance or restoration solution – the ability to fit factory specified, original equipment replacement parts to their cars,” said Brian Thornton, president and vice president of sales and marketing for Heritage Spares.

The following parts are available:

Heritage Spares customers will have access to: front and rear brake drums; calipers; remote and direct acting servos; single and tandem master cylinders; brake valves; repair kits; brake hoses; wheel cylinders; clutch master cylinders; clutch slave cylinders; clutch hoses; and clutch dampers. The parts will be applicable to models spanning the 1940s, 1950s, 1960s and 1970s for several of England’s classic brands, including: Austin; Austin-Healey; BMC; Jaguar; Land Rover; Mini; MG; Morgan; Morris; Riley; and Triumph.

If you have any doubts to their credibility as British car experts from North America, then it would be wise to know that Leigh-Monstevens spent 40 years in AP companies, including AP Braking as its chief engineer. Know that you are dealing with people who live and breath British cars.

Press Release

So you think gasoline guzzling cars are not really your thing and want to try out “green” cars? Don’t know where to get one or don’t have enough money to buy a brand new one? Well, if you want to buy or try out second hand green cars, then head over to Carlocate.com. There, you’ll be able to search for the green car you want for the budget you have. You have the option to search for brand new or used vehicles:

• Hybrid
• fuel efficient
• Diesel
• flexible fuel cars

“More and more, consumers are interested in buying vehicles with better fuel economy and lower emissions,” said Nicole Case, general manager for CarLocate.com. “But being eco-friendly is more than looking at hybrids. Wading through all the information to find those cars isn’t always easy. That’s why we’ve created the Green Search option for both new and used cars. Now, we’ve made it quick and easy for car shoppers to find vehicles on our site that are more environmentally friendly. This is just one more way we’re building our search function to cut the clutter and take consumers to search results that more exactly fit the cars they want to buy.”

Both new and used cars are guaranteed to have passed the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) standards of 23.1 miles per gallon, and an EPA air pollution score of six or above. It’s a great idea to spread and increase more green cars on the roads and hopefully other businesses, both online and offline, to follow suit what Carlocate.com has done.

Press Release