Torque-steering six feet under.

Thumbing through the Chrysler product guide for 2010, we noticed the absence of the SRT4 model in the Dodge Caliber’s powertrain chart. A quick call to the Pentastar’s PR department and it was confirmed: the Caliber SRT4 has been euthanized. Chrysler didn’t attribute its death to a lack of sales, saying instead that it wants to focus on strengthening the higher-volume Caliber models. After the roughest year in company history, one that included filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, we can understand the move.

Keep Reading: Dodge Caliber SRT4 Discontinued for 2010 – Car News

Related posts:

1. 2009 Dodge Caliber and Caliber SRT4 – Review
2. 2008 Dodge Caliber / Caliber SRT4 – Review
3. Dodge Durango Not Dead – Car News

Reducing U.S. gasoline dependency, one middle-class family at a time.

For the middle-class—and middle-aged—the hugely popular Lexus RX350 is the crossover of choice. It offers lavish comfort, lots of room, designer-label good looks, and the requisite premium badge right up front. The same traits apply to its hybrid brother, the new Lexus RX450h.

The RX is in its third generation, but this is just the second-generation RX with hybrid technology, and the meat of the mixed powertrain is carried over wholesale from the last RX400h. The same rear-driveshaft-less, all-wheel-drive system remains available, for example. There is one big change: the 3.3-liter V-6 has had its displacement enlarged to 3.5 liters, and the result is 27 more horsepower from the combined system, to 295.

Keep Reading: 2010 Lexus RX450h All-Wheel Drive – Short Take Road Test

Related posts:

1. 2010 Lexus RX350 / RX450h – Second Drive
2. 2010 Lexus RX350 / RX450h Hybrid – Auto Shows
3. 2010 Lexus RX350 / RX450h Hybrid – First Drive Review

There’s only so much racing you can watch, so I spent Saturday glued to the IRL at Chicagoland and Sunday morning viewing the Belgian Grand Prix from Spa-Francorchamps, one of the few proper circuits left on the schedule.

The IRL race was another corker, with Ryan Briscoe—who looks like the real deal—just staving off Scott Dixon at the line. The first 13 cars were covered by 0.8 second, which is amazing. Perhaps even more incredible, that teams like KV Racing, Coyne, and Dreyer & Reinbold are now competitive on ovals, although they still can’t quite beat the Ganassi and Penske powerhouses.

Even the F1 race managed to keep me viewing until the end, in the vain hope that Kimi Räikkönen might make a mistake and let the Force India of Giancarlo Fisichella claim a first victory for the tiny, Silverstone-based team. But the Kimster drove superbly, and even drank the champagne on the podium prior to spraying it.

Spa had the weird spectacle of teams like Ferrari, Force India, and BMW looking heroic, while McLaren, Brawn, and Red Bull didn’t look so clever. But when you look at the times from the second session of qualifying, it becomes apparent that the teams are now so evenly matched—0.6 second between first and fifteenth on a 4.4-mile track—that small errors make a big difference in grid position. A locked wheel here or a missed apex there, and people like Lewis Hamilton went from being at the sharp end of the grid to being mired in mid-pack.

Fisichella remains an enigma to me, much like Jarno Trulli. Both are artists, their hand movements minimal, their driving so fluid on the in-car shots. But they have their off days and I’m not sure teams can afford to employ drivers who are sublime one weekend and invisible another. You rarely see that with Alonso or Hamilton and never saw it with Michael Schumacher or Ayrton Senna.

Related posts:

1. Monday Morning Crew Chief, Friday Edition: Spicing Up the Show
2. Monday Morning Crew Chief: Accidents Will Happen

+ We outline Volkswagen’s future products for 2011, 2012, and beyond. [Car and Driver]

+ Ford has announced an all-new diesel engine for the 2011 F-series Super Duty trucks. The new 6.7-liter Power Stroke diesel was designed and engineered in-house, unlike the  previous 6.4-liter engine that was a result of  collaboration with Navistar. [Car and Driver]

+ Nissan announces pricing and a new package for the 2010 Rogue. [Car and Driver]

+ BMW will use the Frankfurt auto show to unveil its Vision EfficientDynamics Concept. Check out the images that have been released ahead of its official debut. [Car and Driver]

+ While the 2010 Fiat Punto Evo will debut at the Frankfurt auto show, we can’t help but wonder if this Italian hatchback will find its way to U.S. soil. [Car and Driver]

+ The production version of the 2011 CTS coupe makes an appearance in Cadillac’s new “Re-Igntion” commercial. [YouTube]

+ Penske Automotive Group has announced it will close the doors of all remaining Saturn dealerships in Canada. The decision to kill the brand will directly effect 2000 Canadian jobs. A Penske spokesman said that GM and Roger Penske made the decision jointly. [Autoblog]

+ Swedish business newspaper Dagens Industri reports that China’s Geely Automotive has been the only company to submit a solid bid for Volvo. The newspaper expects Ford to make an announcement next month in regards to who it will choose to make final negotiations with. [Automotive News]

+ Some Manhattan real estate developers are banking on the popularity of electric vehicles in the future and installing car-charging stations in their apartment buildings. Coulomb, one of the charging station providers, had previously only had charging units on Long Island, Middle Island, in Oyster Bay, and in Lexington, Massachusetts. [The New York Times]

Related posts:

1. Daily Downshift: August 4, 2009
2. Daily Downshift: August 19, 2009
3. Daily Downshift: August 24, 2009

Filed under: Coupe, Marketing/Advertising, Videos, Cadillac, Luxury

With the tagline "America, we have re-ignition," Cadillac is out to reintroduce itself to buyers. After bursting out of their underground bunker, the spot showcases all of the models in the line - and at least one to come. The ad has begun to hit the airwaves, and it features what appears to be the production version of Cadillac's much-anticipated CTS Coupe. The only question is: will consumers feel the fire? Follow the jump to see the spot and check out our high-res gallery of the concept below. Thanks for the tip, Matt!

Gallery: Detroit 2008: Cadillac CTS Coupe Concept - Live Reveal

[Source: Cadilac via YouTube]

Continue reading VIDEO: Production Cadillac CTS Coupe breaks through in new 60-second spot

VIDEO: Production Cadillac CTS Coupe breaks through in new 60-second spot originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 31 Aug 2009 14:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Car Buying, Buick, GMC, Pontiac

From a bird's eye view, bad old bankrupt General Motors' transition into the new, solvent "good GM" looks pretty much okay. From a marketing point of view, Chevrolet matches up well with Ford, Buick is akin to Mercury and Cadillac is the brand Lincoln would love to be. Or maybe Chevy matches up with Toyota, Buick with Lexus and Cadillac... er... point being, in some justifiable, mostly non-abstract way, those three brands make sense. But GMC? Every truck GMC sells (and all they sell is trucks) is already available as a Chevrolet. In fact, counting the Colorado and the Avalanche, Chevy sells more types of trucks than truck-only GMC. Someone then might raise the question, "Why is new GM keeping GMC around?" Ask a Buick dealer.

Automotive News is reporting that by October 2010 there will be no stand-alone Buick or GMC dealerships. They will all be consolidated into Buick-GMC "duals." This decision will affect around 3,000 dealerships that peddle/peddled Buick, GMC and/or Pontiac - they will be consolidated into 2,000 Buick-GMC dealers. Said Susan Docherty, general manager of Buick and GMC, "All our franchise agreements will be renewed then, and we'll only offer one contract: a dual Buick-GMC." When asked how many stand alone stores will be left selling just Buicks or GMCs, Docherty said, "none."

Small side note: if you want to buy a Pontiac, you'd better hurry up. The prices have been slashed, they're selling like hot cakes and Docherty is saying by tomorrow there will only be 16,000 to 17,000 left - and that's it.

[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd | Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty]

REPORT: Stand-alone Buick, GMC dealers to be dualed, only 17k Pontiacs left originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 31 Aug 2009 13:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Because Fiat plans to bring some of its Euro-designed models to our shores with Chrysler badges, we’ve started paying special attention to the company’s latest products. The Punto Evo is one of those Italian products that piqued our interest.

The Evo will go on sale in Europe this October and replaces the Grande Punto. The three- or five-door hatchback is attractive and looks much more grown up than the cutesy 500. At 160 inches by 65 inches, it’s practically the same length and height as a Honda Fit. Powertrain choices will include a 1.3-liter diesel or 1.4-liter gasoline engine, the latter using the MultiAir technology that’s likely to see use in American vehicles.

Features on the Evo include seven airbags, stability control, hill-start assist, and adaptive headlights. An engine stop-start system and a TomTom navigation unit are optional. Pricing isn’t available yet, but the outgoing Grande Punte starts at the equivalent of $18,500 in the U.K. There are no official plans to bring the Punto Evo to the U.S., but it—or something based on it—could show up here sometime soon.

Related posts:

1. Lexus Compact Concept to Debut in Frankfurt – Auto Shows
2. 2010 Fiat 500C – Auto Shows
3. Driving Miss Fiat: We Sample Engines Likely to Come to the U.S.

BMW’s latest concept combines a three-cylinder diesel and two electric motors to deliver impressive fuel economy—plus 60 mph in less than five seconds.

BMW is using its home-market Frankfurt auto show to display its latest contribution to the hybrid trend, the Vision EfficientDynamics Concept. The 2+2 concept also contributes to the obviously German trend of giving things names as long as a freight train, but it surely provides a vision—so to speak—of things to come from Bavaria.

BMW describes the Vision EfficientDynamics Concept as a four-door coupe (yes, there’s that stupid phrase again) with “outstanding aerodynamic qualities.” BMW says that the slippery shape combines with BMW’s second-gen ActiveHybrid components and “an extremely economical combustion engine” to exceed the fuel efficiency of today’s small cars while delivering impressive performance.

Keep Reading: BMW Vision EfficientDynamics Concept – Auto Shows

Related posts:

1. BMW Teases Vision EfficientDynamics Concept with Video
2. BMW 5-series Gran Turismo Concept – Auto Shows
3. BMW Concept 7-Series ActiveHybrid – Auto Shows

Pricing for the 2010 Nissan Rogue is up only $120 over 2009 levels. Front-drive models cost $21,140 in S trim while SL models command $22,730. Adding all-wheel drive requires an extra $1200 for either version.

There’s also a new 360º Value package for Rogue S models. It bundles 16-inch alloy wheels, tinted windows, a rearview camera, a chrome front grille, and a rear spoiler for $1040. Buying all the components separately costs over $2000.

Read our test of the Nissan Rogue: 2008 Nissan Rogue SL AWD – Road Test

Related posts:

1. 2009 Nissan Rogue – Review
2. 2010 Nissan 370Z Roadster Pricing Announced
3. Nissan Announces 2010 Cube Pricing and Upscale Cube Krōm – Auto Shows

Ford has announced an all-new diesel engine for the 2011 F-series Super Duty trucks. The V-8 displaces 6.7 liters and uses a single turbocharger. No output numbers have been specified yet, but they should be considerably higher than the 350-hp and 650-lb-ft ratings of the outgoing 6.4-liter Power Stroke engine.

The engine is reportedly 160 pounds lighter than its predecessor, thanks to aluminum heads, yet still strong enough to support the increased power output. Ford says the engine should be good for a 250,000-mile life, a claim backed up by extensive testing. There is also a claimed reduction in NVH (noise, vibration, and harshness) over previous generations.

Fancy tricks for the V-8 include an industry-first single-sequential turbocharger—which combines the benefits of a small and large turbo in one unit—and an exhaust manifold routed between the cylinder heads, both of which should help reduce turbo lag. The engine can run on 20-percent biodiesel and injects fuel at up to 30,000 psi. Finally, resonators to cut intake and exhaust noise, as well as “instant-on” glow plugs, should make the diesel more user-friendly.

In order to meet stricter emissions standards, Ford has fitted the new Power Stroke with an aftertreatment system similar to those used by many of the European manufacturers. It uses a urea solution (which Ford calls Diesel Exhaust Fluid) which helps in the process of cleaning and filtering the exhaust to remove nitrogen-oxide emissions.

Now that the engine has been announced, we expect more info on the truck that’s wrapped around it will come shortly.

Related posts:

1. 2008 Ford F-series Super Duty
2. New Ford/CAW Deal Commits to Building New Vehicles Plus Mustang, F-150, and Super Duty Engines at Canadian Plants
3. 2011 Ford Mustang GT: An Even More Potent Track Pack to Complement the 400-hp 5.0-liter