Behind the Wheel | 2007 BMW 328i and 335i: A Lot More Firepower for BMW?s 6-Shooter September 30, 2006
For 2007, BMW has brought out new fifth-generation coupes, the BMW 328i and 335i, cheering enthusiasts who haven?t seen a new two-door 3 Series since 1999. IT has been nearly 30 years since two debuts, of an engine and a car, ushered in the modern era of BMW. At the 1977 Frankfurt Motor Show, the company displayed a new version of its highly respected in-line 6-cylinder engine. That was also the year when BMW began importing its 3 Series coupe to America. At that point, the first 3 Series car, the 320, had been on sale in Europe for nearly …
Green Tech: Hybrids With a Power Cord: Plug-In Vans Put to the Test September 29, 2006
The DaimlerChrysler Dodge Sprinter delivery van with plug-in-hybrid powertrains can drive 20 miles on batteries alone, powered by a 70-kilowatt electric motor. ARE there plug-in hybrid vehicles in America?s future? Such hybrids could travel 10 to 20 additional miles on battery power alone, but until recently automakers have said ? more or less unanimously ? that it was not practical to add a larger battery pack and plug-in chargers to hybrid vehicles because of the added weight, complexity and cost. The public is already confused about hybrids, they say, with many people still believing that these cars (whose batteries are …
Motoring: Taking Delivery at the Plant to See Their Babies Born September 24, 2006
A few factories let buyers witness the entire creation process, from a roll of flat steel to a vehicle ready to roll down the road. COLOR was the simplest decision James Rasche had to make when he ordered his 2007 Chevrolet Corvette: no question it would be white with a black convertible top and a red interior, to match his cherished ?57 ?Vette. For someone who describes himself as ?a Corvette nut,? the anticipation of owning a pair of color-matched convertibles built 50 years apart was enormous. To savor every step of the experience, Mr. Rasche, a 58-year-old building …
Green Tech: Prequel to a Hydrogen Future: Driving G.M.?s Fuel Cell Prototype
More important than its performance or apparent normalness is G.M.’s latest prototype’s role as a development mule for future production models. IF an afternoon behind the wheel of General Motors? latest prototype hydrogen fuel cell vehicle, the Sequel, is any indication, automotive powertrains of the future will not feel much different from the engines that drive today?s cars and trucks. By a seat-of-the-pants evaluation, the Sequel feels reasonably peppy; acceleration is smooth and nearly silent. And it is capable of reaching 90 miles an hour, said Mohsen Shabana, chief engineer for the Sequel program and my passenger on the test …
Behind the Wheel: 2007 Porsche 911 Turbo: Kinetic Art That Really Moves You
This entirely tractable daily driver performs like a purpose-built racecar. It accelerates with the explosive power of a rifle shot, then stops like a bullet hitting a tree. CREATING a rocket-fast, world-class supercar that is also usable, dependable and workaday-sensible is like persuading an abstract expressionist to paint by the numbers. He might do it for a moment or two if you asked politely, daubing cobalt blue on ?5? and burnt umber on ?23.? But all the while, he aches to fling gobs of paint at the canvas ? not by the numbers, but by the bucket. Which brings …
A Reversal of Fortune at Chrysler, Too September 20, 2006
Chrysler said it would cut its production schedule for the rest of the year by 16 percent because of slumping sales as a result of high gas prices. DETROIT, Sept. 19 ? Maybe Chrysler is not so different after all. After Daimler-Benz merged with Chrysler in 1998, Chrysler vowed to break away from its troubled Detroit brethren and join ranks with the Japanese automakers. It designed innovative vehicles like the gutsy 300C sedan and the spunky PT Cruiser, gambling that an emphasis on bold design, better quality and German engineering would set it apart from the Big Two. “There …
Ford Offering 75,000 Employees Buyout Packages September 15, 2006
The U.A.W. agreed on a program to offer buyouts of up to $140,000 each to all of Ford?s hourly workers in the U.S. DEARBORN, Mich., Sept. 14 ? The Ford Motor Company agreed Thursday to offer buyouts and other incentives worth as much as $140,000 each to its 75,000 hourly workers in the United States to persuade them to leave their jobs. The deal with the United Automobile Workers comes after a similar offer at General Motors earlier this year that was accepted by nearly a third of its union workers. It is also the latest sign that Detroit …
Ford Brings in Outsider to Help Run the Company September 6, 2006
William Clay Ford Jr. took the highly unusual step, for Detroit, of turning to an executive with no auto industry experience. DEARBORN, Mich., Sept. 5 ? William Clay Ford Jr., great-grandson of the founder of the Ford Motor Company, brought in an outsider Tuesday to help run the company, in a tacit acknowledgment that he needs a new approach in his efforts to turn around the struggling automaker. Mr. Ford took the highly unusual step, for Detroit, of turning to an executive with no experience in the auto industry. He gave up the titles of chief executive and president to …
Wheelspin: On the Auto Industry?s Home Turf, Museums With Broad Appeal September 3, 2006
Here is a list of museums to visit in Ohio and Michigan, states that have played a huge role in the development of the American automotive industry. DETROIT?S role as the epicenter of the American auto industry has attracted a wide variety of worthwhile collections to the area. Here is a list of museums to visit in Ohio and Michigan, states that have played a huge role in the development of the American automotive industry. The list will also appear on nytimes.com/wheelspin; museums in other regions will be added. Michigan ALFRED P. SLOAN MUSEUM Regional history, hands-on science and …
The Original Rabbit Rocket Soars Again
The 1983 Volkswagen GTI initiated legions of low-budget enthusiasts into the cult of German performance. The fifth-generation model recaptures the buzz-bomb spirit of the originals. POCKET rocket. Hot hatch. Sport compact. Call it what you like, but the 1983 Volkswagen GTI created today?s class of fun-but-affordable small cars. If there hadn?t been a GTI, the youth of today would be less fast and not so furious. That Rabbit-based GTI was the cool sip that ended a soul-sapping performance drought that had lingered since the muscle-car era faded into gasoline lines and emission controls. The second-generation Golf GTI was even …
older posts »