To be fair to the judges (some of whom are now grazing at the great PR buffet in the sky), most of the problems with most of these cars are related to reliability - hard to assess when new.
CAR magazine blew the whistle on the political machinations of the European CotY award years ago, which went a long way to explaining Fiat's 9 awards and Renault's 6, compared to BMW's big fat zero.
I knew the weather had been bad in England, but Pic 10 is really something!
The last time I went past Corby, it was at least fifty miles from the sea...
2005: Fiat pockets $2bn for NOT hooking up with GM
2007: Fiat launches the 500, platform sharing with Ford Ka
2009: Fiat acquires 35% of Chrysler.
2007: Fiat launches the 500, platform sharing with Ford Ka
2009: Fiat acquires 35% of Chrysler.
So Fiat and Opel/Saab/Cadillac/Suzuki share engines, Fiat and Peugeot-Citroen share an MPV and engines, Fiat and Ford share the Ka platform, and Fiat builds the Tata Indica.
Amazing there's even room for a Chrysler alliance.
Bristol Fighter with bespoke Zagato coachwork.
Here in jolly Yurp VW's Polo BlueMotion has CO2 emissions of 99 g/km and the Ford Fiesta Econetic 98 g/km, versus 104g/km for the current Prius 1.5 VVTi.
Both the VW and the Ford manage this with conventional drivetrains - less cost, complication and energy to manufacture.
Looking forward to the new ad campaign:
"Toyota - Applying last year's technology to tomorrow's problems."
"I am a bad driver. I am British. Therefore all Britons are bad drivers. QED."
A novel approach to national stereotyping, (and Euclidean logic).
Although this table from the OECD shows the UK is one of the safest places to drive.
Just like the old joke:
"Have you finished painting my porch yet?"
"Sure have, but it's not a Porsche, it's a Ferrari."
"Have you finished painting my porch yet?"
"Sure have, but it's not a Porsche, it's a Ferrari."
@The Name's Ash78, Housewares: "Fast Tango in Paris" because you might need a pound of butter to slip into something that tight?
5-seater hatchback, V8 engine, and about the same size as a 5-series BMW?
Like a 2009 Rover SD1?
Like a 2009 Rover SD1?
Trying to follow the photos... It looks like the Mini arrives on the podium, they plug it in for a charge, and then it either catches fire or launches some kind of poison gas attack.
Sinister, whatever happened.
Sinister, whatever happened.
Going by the shape of the doors, this is a pre-'59 Series I Land Rover - parts much harder to come by than the "Daktari" '60s SIIa. In fact, they'll probably be in the same store as the Patrol, next to the rocking horse dung and hen's teeth.
Maybe they're reading Jalopnik for ideas.
@rlj676-new job, same problems: When you get a gold star you have to stay late on Fridays to clean the milkshake machine.
No, sorry, that's McDonalds.
No, sorry, that's McDonalds.
All the bits, but no badges?
Why not tap your local junkyard (or Murilee) for some Oldsmobile emblems?
Apparently, the sat nav keeps sending him to Volgograd, and no further...
Here in Blighty it's still manuals by about 3:1. That is, looking at 275,000 cars less than 5 years old on Autotrader.co.uk, 76% are manual, 24% auto/semi-auto.
So, as demand is still strong in Europe, I guess you'll still have a choice (if only on a few imports) for a long time to come.
The only man who could believe that a Grandad coffin carrier is worth six grand just had to be someone who also owns an Austin Allegro estate.
2009 Ford F-150 by Cuisinart
This functional machine combines "Built Ford Tough" performance with a man-sized custom loadbed food processor. Stainless steel chopping blades combine effortlessly with the massive torque of the 320hp E85 V8 engine to produce finely puréed Toby Keith at the flick of a switch, vastly improving road manners and reducing CO2 emissions.
This functional machine combines "Built Ford Tough" performance with a man-sized custom loadbed food processor. Stainless steel chopping blades combine effortlessly with the massive torque of the 320hp E85 V8 engine to produce finely puréed Toby Keith at the flick of a switch, vastly improving road manners and reducing CO2 emissions.
Any others?
@deluxe2000plus: Or just maybe they should take on board another concept fashionable in the Sixties and use some of their cash pile to pay a dividend on their stock?
Barrel-scraping trivia #487: Hummer is Swedish for lobster.
