Car Chute

Directed Electronics today announced the availability of its popular Viper SmartStart app on the Google Android smartphone platform. The free app is available at www.viper.com and the Android Market.

Viper SmartStart is available to users with iPhones, BlackBerry smartphones, and now Android smartphones. When the Viper SmartStart hardware is installed on the user’s vehicle along with a compatible Viper remote start or security system, the app allows users to control their car from virtually anywhere with their smartphone.

Users with a Viper remote start system can start their engine with the push of a button, to pre-warm it in the winter or pre-cool it in the summer.

Depending on the installation, users can also lock and unlock the doors, pop the trunk, or arm their security system and get an alert on their smartphone if their alarm is triggered. Users can even control multiple cars from one smartphone.

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A rare 1991 Formula 1 Scuderia valued at $700,000 has been named among the list of new collectible vehicles from Aero Toy Store set to be listed in JamesList. This is one of the last turbo-charged Ferrari Formula One cars that was originally designed by the Maranello team.

Other cars up for grabs in the $700,000 price range are a 2005 Ferrari 575M GTC/2220 Michelotto Competizione, originally created by N Technologies and a 2008 430 GTC designed by the FIA GT3 European Championship.

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Spyker is all set to unveil a new model of the 92 Classic model of Saab. Spyker is said to be in talks with unnamed automakers for the technology behind the new small-sized vehicle.

Saab is all set to sell the new 9-5 model by the end of this month and are aiming to sell between 50,000 to 55,000 cars. For 2011 the company targets to roll out 100,000 cars, including 40,000 9-5s and 10,000 9-4X models.

This 9-4X is a mid-sized crossover that will be manufactured beginning from April next year. Saab is also close to signing a dealership agreement with a Chinese company and rumor has it that its BAIC (Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Company).

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Jaguar Land Rover will start assembling cars in China. At least two models will be made in China where it will reportedly take up to two years to set up. This is of course until they can find a suitable partner.

The move should not be seen as a move to shift out of the UK. The new assemblies in China stands to be good news as it will bring in more jobs, about 1,000 additional workers this year. However, these jobs will only be temporary and are linked to the expected production of a smaller Range Rover model due to be released next year.

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In a survey of 42,000 owners rating their new 2010 model year cars and trucks, Porsche owners have ranked the 911 as the best sports car in satisfying customers, according to the 14th Annual Vehicle Satisfaction Awards (VSA) by AutoPacific.

The AutoPacific VSAs are based on owners’ ratings of their new 2010 model year cars and trucks across dozens of key vehicle attributes. The awards have become an industry benchmark for measuring how satisfied an owner is with his/her new car. AutoPacific is a California-based automotive marketing and product-consulting firm.

This is not the first time the iconic 911 model has been chosen as the winner of the Vehicle Satisfaction Award.

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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…

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Do you remember last time that there was a contest on how car designers view cars in the year 2030? Well it got a lot of entries but naturally there can be only one winner. And the one who won it is the Nissan V2G.

The Nissan V2G (Vehicle to Grid), was chosen for its holistic approach in answering the future’s design questions. With the consensus that the future will be much more integrated, the V2G offered a great vehicle design that took environmental aspects into consideration.
“The scope of this year’s concepts and designs – from the initial sketches to the final presentations – were very impressive,” said Chuck Pelly, director of Design Los Angeles and partner in The Design Academy, Inc. “In the end, it came down to which team had the most inventive and solution-oriented design. Nissan’s designers showed passion and were able to create the ultimate Youthmobile for 2030 with their V2G design.”

Well, there’s no note on whether the cars who joined this contest would be running on gas or not, but I guess they focused more on the design. It would be great if they can also figure in the “green” aspects of a car.

Entries were judged by multi-discipline design professionals who selected the winner based on its originality of creative concept, integration of futuristic design elements and level of adaptation to the needs of the youth consumer in 2030. All of the Youthmobile 2030 entries delivered a great variety of answers to the question posed by this year’s Design Challenge. However, the Nissan’s V2G design was most distinguished with its combination of story and design.

Well, here’s hoping that they include the green aspect next year.

Press Release

With 2009 about to end, there’s a lot of Cars of the Year awards coming out of the woodwork. Although there are some organizations that stand out to provide a good quality choosing of the winner, and one of them is NADAguides. According to them the Car of the Year goes to the 2010 Kia Forte/Forte Koup. It won the August 2009 Car of the month and it’s won the whole year now.

“Our editorial team realized the moment we got behind the wheel of the Forte that it would be a top contender for our NADAguides.com Car of the Year, but it wasn’t until we extensively drove the sporty four-door sedan and the two-door coupe that it solidified our decision,” said Michael Caudill, NADAguides.com auto expert and spokesperson. “2009 marked many great new entries in the auto industry. With cars like the Ford Fusion Hybrid, Mercedes-Benz E350 and Nissan 370Z Roadster coming in closely behind the Kia Forte, it made our decision difficult, but when you add up the low price point, Best in Class features, and a 10-year/100,000-mile limited powertrain warranty, it made our decision to award the Forte much easier.”

As to why they chose it, they were simply blown away with its money saving and safety features.

“The Fuel Economy Package (available with the EX trim only) adds even more unique elements: electronic power steering, a smart alternator, low rolling resistance tires and aerodynamic improvements to achieve 27 city/36 hwy mpg. What does that ultimately mean for the driver? Fewer trips to the pump, and more money in your pocket!

The safety features on the Forte are evident not only with its 4 dual front, side and full-curtain airbags, but also with the 4 wheel anti-lock braking system and electronic stability control.”

Press Release

Where have all the quality and safety in American cars gone to? It seems that overseas manufactured cars and automotive vehicles seems to be the one that’s taking a look at quality and safety more than it is over here. No wonder our automotive industry is down in the gutters. This is further proven after Car and Driver Magazine just listed down the 10 best cars of 2010: and it’s no surprise that only two of the top ten belong to American car manufacturers.

Following are the 2010 Car and Driver 10Best winners (in alphabetical order), followed by the number of times each model has made the list:

• 2010 Audi S4 (2)
• 2010 BMW 3-series / M3 (19)
• 2010 Cadillac CTS / CTS-V (2)
• 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid (1)
• 2010 Honda Accord (24)
• 2010 Honda Fit (3)
• 2010 Mazda MX-5 Miata (11)
• 2010 Mazda 3 / Mazdaspeed 3 (3)
• 2010 Porsche Boxster / Cayman (3)
• 2010 Volkswagen GTI (7)

The list is not in a ranked order. A panel of 18 Car and Driver editors determined the winners by rating them on a scale of 1-100 with a focus on functional performance, driving satisfaction and value. Vehicles considered for the award must be available in the United States by January 2009 and priced below the cap of $80,000, or 2.5 times the average transaction price as of summer 2009. Winners from the previous year are re-nominated if they are still available under the price cap.

Hopefully this is a wake up call to American car manufacturers to do their best to produce quality cars that will attract not only local buyers but foreign ones as well.

Press Release

Although this is primarily a car blog, I believe that this particular article be added as this may save a lot of people from road accidents. Since the invention of the mobile phone, most drivers just cannot stop checking their email or SMS while driving. Although it’s already been outlawed on a lot of states, some people still risk killing others or themselves just to check out who texted them.

It’s fortunate then that the application called Drivesafe.ly was created to help people hear their SMS and emails while on the road. This allows them to see straight and keep their hands on the wheel while listening to the message on their mobile phone.

“DriveSafe.ly is taking off because people want to stay connected while they drive, and do it in a safe way” says Heath Ahrens, CEO of iSpeech and creator of DriveSafe.ly. “I recommend that everyone install DriveSafe.ly, not because I work for the company behind it, but because I actually use it and it stops texting while driving.”

Indirectly, this also allows blind people to hear messages to their mobile phone. This application could do a lot of good for a lot of people making their lives a bit safer on the road. It’s so good that it has been nominated for an award.

“DriveSafe.ly, which was just yesterday nominated for the prestigious 2009 Mashable Open Web Award for Best Mobile App,reads text messages and emails in real-time without any action from the user.”

Please install it for you and the people around you while you drive.

Press Release