Wheelspin: A Luxury Vacation for Your Car. (You Can Come, Too.) July 16, 2006
Vintage rallies are a combination of vacation, classic car show, adventure, competition and party all rolled into one. WHO would drive a 39-year-old car worth as much as a nice suburban home a thousand miles on twisty country roads, enduring rain showers and broken pavement between stretches of magnificent scenery and leisurely breaks for fine dining? Tom Smith, who owns a 1967 Aston Martin DB6 convertible, would ? and last month he did in the New England 1000, a rally for classic cars. Mr. Smith and more than 50 other enthusiasts entered their valuable vintage cars in the blue-ribbon …
Wheelspin: A Luxury Vacation for Your Car. (You Can Come, Too.)
Vintage rallies are a combination of vacation, classic car show, adventure, competition and party all rolled into one. WHO would drive a 39-year-old car worth as much as a nice suburban home a thousand miles on twisty country roads, enduring rain showers and broken pavement between stretches of magnificent scenery and leisurely breaks for fine dining? Tom Smith, who owns a 1967 Aston Martin DB6 convertible, would ? and last month he did in the New England 1000, a rally for classic cars. Mr. Smith and more than 50 other enthusiasts entered their valuable vintage cars in the …
Town Car?s Next Stop: Retirement
The ubiquitous black-car transportation for executives and Lincoln?s best seller since its debut as a 1981 model will soon be joining many of its owners in retirement. THE Lincoln Town Car ? ubiquitous black-car transportation for executives, soft-riding favorite of septuagenarians and Lincoln?s best seller since its debut as a 1981 model ? will soon be joining many of its owners in retirement. The Ford Motor Company appears set to discontinue the big Lincoln after the 2007 model year. Also going away under a company consolidation plan called the Way Forward is another strong-selling Ford model, the Taurus, …
Green Tech: A Well-Bred Engine Carries Best Genes of Its Parents
Engineers are looking for new ways to combine the pluses of different engine types. NO combustion process for converting fuel to forward motion is perfect. Though engineers can choose from a selection of combustion processes that have been developed for use in today?s automotive engines, each has some shortcoming ? in efficiency, cost or environmental friendliness ? that must be weighed against its benefits. Gasoline engines, for instance, can be designed for very low exhaust emissions, but may leave something to be desired in efficiency. Small diesel engines can return terrific fuel economy, but they are costly, and …
Design: Car Stylists Decide That Now Is a Perfect Time to Vent
More mundane vehicles are beginning to use power vents to insist that they are sporty in their souls. A NOTABLE difference between the Cadillac Escalades of 2006 and 2007 is a bit of bling: the latest model flaunts chrome side vents on its front fenders. Like medals pinned to the chest of a proud general, elaborate vents or fender gills have become gleaming symbols of rank and valor. ?There?s definitely a trend toward side vents,? said Patrick Schiavone, a designer who worked on the Lincoln Navigator and Ford Explorer and was recently named design director for North American trucks and …
Behind the Wheel: A Wind That Blew In and Breezed Out
The forthcoming replacement for the Lincoln Zephyr is a microcosm of the seemingly unending missteps that have plagued Lincoln since the dawn of the 21st century. A TIME-HONORED yarn recalls a losing game for the hapless Chicago Cubs, during which a fan unfurled a banner that said, ?Wait till next year,? the team?s perennial rallying cry. The twist this time was that it was Opening Day. Likewise, the Lincoln Zephyr, a midsize sedan that made its debut last year as a 2006 model, lasted in the big leagues barely long enough for the proverbial cup of coffee. Lincoln is …
Motoring: Safer Streets Just a Chuckle (or an Enchilada) Away July 9, 2006
In California, humor-themed driver-improvement courses help students blot out speeding tickets. In New York, however, it’s strickly serious business. IN California, where traffic offenders can often clear their records by attending driver-improvement classes, Marian Flowers-Loop headed to traffic school several months ago to blot out a speeding ticket. Ten years before, she had attended such a course and found it drier than Death Valley. So this time, Mrs. Flowers-Loop, of Oceanside, Calif., chose a class given by the Improv Comedy Traffic School, one of dozens of providers of humor-themed courses approved by California courts. Six hours into her class …
Handlebars: Cheap, Chic and Sociable: The Buzz About Scooters
Motor scooters may not haul like pickups or growl like motorcycles, but they are inexpensive. And they increasingly come with a ready-made social network. MOTOR scooters may not move like muscle cars, haul like pickups or growl like motorcycles, but they are inexpensive to buy and cheap to operate. And in American cities, they increasingly come with a ready-made social network. For instance, at 8 on a recent Saturday morning on Little West 12th Street in the meatpacking district, some two dozen members of the New York Scooter Club gathered at their usual Wednesday night meeting spot, a dive pub …
Behind the Wheel: Dodge Charger Police Package: Whacha Gonna Do if It Comes for You?
THE Dodge Charger, a favored getaway car for bad guys in memorable roles from “Bullitt” to “The Dukes of Hazzard,” has turned state’s evidence. The shapely muscle cars that won stoplight showdowns and Nascar championships four decades ago have gone straight and joined the police force.One could argue that the 21st-century Charger was born to be a cop car. Even in civilian trim, the brutish design exudes an “outta my way” attitude, its cross-hair grille set in a scowling maw ? not the smiley face seen on so many of today’s models. The brow above the headlights slants upward at …
Jump-Start or New Battery for G.M.? July 7, 2006
Directors of General Motors are scheduled to meet Friday to discuss whether to open talks on a three-way alliance involving G.M., Renault and Nissan. DETROIT, July 6 ? What would Carlos Ghosn bring to the table? It is a top-of-mind question for directors of General Motors, who are scheduled to meet Friday to discuss whether to open talks on a three-way alliance involving G.M. and the two companies that Mr. Ghosn runs, Renault and Nissan.Arguably the most famous executive in the global auto industry, Mr. Ghosn earned his reputation for quick restructurings at Renault in the 1990′s and at Nissan …
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