<![CDATA[Comments from stephdumas]]>

<![CDATA[Comments from stephdumas]]> <![CDATA[Comments from stephdumas]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Which Dead US Automotive Nameplates Should Remain Buried?]]> @Deezee: it was the Fusion was was originally planned to be called Futura but the name's rights was owned by someone else despite then Ford used once the Futura name for a Fairmont variant and more earlier, a Falcon model and a Lincoln "dream car". [en.wikipedia.org]

Also, the Flex was originally planned to be called Fairlane.

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Which Dead US Automotive Nameplates Should Remain Buried?]]> @biminitwst:
the irony is the Lumina name is revived in the MiddleEast with a rebadged version of the Holden Commodore.

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on GM Firebird Turbine Concepts Visiting California, Pennsylvania]]> @Smells_Homeless: Jay Leno did do another shot with the EcoJet car showed at SEMA in 2006 [jalopnik.com]

I wish to see a modern interpretation of Chrysler turbine car

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Honda Cuts Odyssey, Pilot Production, Boosts Civic]]> @SeanKHotay:
GM still own a small stake of GMAC while Cerberus owns the rest [en.wikipedia.org]

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Is the 2010 Camaro A Home Run, Strike Out Or Double Off-The-Wall?]]> @Fourstring85:
I think they might keep it for the future next-gen Camaro who could use the Kappa II/Alpha platform

And someone on the Diesel Power Magazine imagined the following pipe-dream like a Camaro D28 (or D-28) with the upcoming 4.5L Duramax engine under the hood [blogs.dieselpowermag.com]

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on 1960 Peugeot 403, With Bonus French Car Poll]]> @layabout: Yes, Columbo drived a Peugeot, it's a 403 convertible [www.columbo-site.freeuk.com] they even once released a diecast of it [www.tvacres.com]

@Steel_ETC: It's Renault who's partially owned by the French government (around 15-20%, there was once completely nationalized from 1944 to the early 1990s). But for the current situation of Citroen, you're right on the target. I won't be surprised to see Peugeot-Citroen doing more additionnal joint-ventures with Mitsubishi for example like they did with the Outlander/Peugeot 4007/Citroen C-Crosser [en.wikipedia.org]

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on 1973 Chevrolet Chevelle]]> I spotted a 1973 Chevelle SS on this site [chevynova.ca] and some pictures of its sibling the 1973 GTO [ultimategto.com] last year before the GTO moved to the X-body for 1974

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on What Muscle Car Should They Revive Next?]]> @IamZardoz:
I could call it Capri, (I knew there was a Mercury model who weared that name as well as a Euro Ford model. But that name was once used by Lincoln in the early 1950s racing the Carrera Panamericana (Mexican Road Race)[auto.howstuffworks.com]

As for the others Buick: GSX and GNX, if Olds was still around:442, Pontiac: Trans-Am, GTO (they could built it in the same size as the Holden Torana concept-car so it'll still be "Little GTO"). Javelin, Swinger, Duster, Cuda, AMX, Cyclone, Cougar Eleminator.

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Opel GT: Choice Of Screaming German Hippies!]]> @Elhigh:

I found some others Opel GT videos, if it could comfort you

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Blue Steel: $2500 Tata Nano May Become Slightly More Pricey]]> @thunder: Good idea and also even going with hemp like this old Ford prototype showed in Youtube

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Top Ten Best Car Ads Of The 1990s]]> Here in Quebec, Canada we got some ads like the 1993-97 Corolla with the Simpsons

and others French-Canadian commercials
Ford Escort 1991 with Jacques Duval who created a book called "Le Guide de l'auto"

Chevrolet pick-up Cheyenne/Silverado 1993 [www.tontuyau.com]

Mazda 1992

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on GM To Get More Layoffs, Lose A Brand]]> for GMC, there is some rumors then the deal between GM and Navistar is off [www.gminsidenews.com] and Nadepalma posted a interesting rant at
[www.gminsidenews.com] about GMC refocused for the commercial truck market.

I don't know if Renault is still interested to Saab however
[www.autoblog.com]

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Gas-Mileage Savings Calculator Shows True Cost Of Trading Your Guzzler For A Sipper]]> I wonder if it would be more simple to swap the Yukon gas engine for a flex-fuel version to use E85 or even a diesel engine to use biodiesel like that 1965 Impala showed on "Pimp My Ride"? [car-reviews.automobile.com]

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on 1975 Chevrolet Nova Custom]]> More funny trivia, there was also the 2-door Novas of the same era with the nice "coke-bottle" roofline which included the Nova SS who was still available in model years 1975-1976 [jpss.monchar.com] [novaresource.org] the Nova of these years are good candidate to be a good "sleeper" or Hot Rod.

And the Nova sibling at the BOP (Omega-Apollo/Skylark-Ventura/Phoenix) are also worth to check. Also the GTO in 1974 used the Ventura/Nova chassis, the GTO was dropped for 1975 but there was some plans for a 1975 Ventura GTO [ultimategto.com] and there some scans of a magazine article about the 1975 GTO that never was on the fallowing link [www.pontiacventura.com]
Oldsmobile briefly revived the F-85 moniker for the Omega in 1976 [www.cardomain.com]

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Are You Proud To Buy American Cars?]]> @chrismcdowell25: sorry to burst your bubble [www.autoblog.com]
[www.nlcnet.org]

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Are You Proud To Buy American Cars?]]> @F50F60:
they don't caught the fire but they still have some glitches they call sometimes "TSB" for technical services bulletins [www.autoblog.com] [www.hondaproblems.com] it'll be a while before that made the headlines of Fox, CBS, NBC or ABC

On a off-topic subject, some Japanese manga (comic books) authors like Kenichi Sonoda creator of the manga Gunsmith Cats, seems to enjoy drawing American cars. I spotted a clip of a short Gunsmith Cats movie in Spanish on Youtube (there was some English dubs clips but they was removed

)

While "Toyonda" had softened the "soul" of their cars. The mangas authors have their imaginations rolling ;-)

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Ford To Bring Mustang SVO Badge Back For 2010 With 300 HP Eco-Boosted Four-Cylinder]]> Perhaps the SVO when it was originally introduced might have been ahead of its time, when the original SVO left the scene, the Acura Integra arrived and later came the 1st-gen Mitsubishi Eclipse aka Eagle Talon/Plymouth Laser. Just imagine if there was a comparaison test of the SVO vs the Talon/Eclipse... ;-)

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Which Automaker Would You Vote Off The Island?]]> @Hodo: Acura did a rebranding of the Civic for the Canadian market with the CSX [www.acura.ca]

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Car Industry Carnage: US Auto Sales Down 18.8% For June]]> @sos10: looks like France is the current only exception in Europe for a sales downturn according to this French article (sales rises of 2.1%) On LeBlogAuto [www.leblogauto.com] however Mercedes takes a big hit there

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on New Chrysler Minivans Selling So Well They're Closing The Factory]]> Allpar got a good rant about this
[www.allpar.com]

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Top Ten Best Car Commercials Of The 1960s]]> oups, I did a typo about the Rebel one, here the correct link

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Top Ten Best Car Commercials Of The 1960s]]> @tonyola:
here it is

as a bonus the 1969 Rebel ad
and a 1968 Javelin ad with Richard Dryfus

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Top Ten Best Car Commercials Of The 1960s]]> I spotted some others old ads
French Renault 6

1969 Plymouth

with 2 featuring Will E Coyote and Road Runner

1969 Dodge Coronet

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Jim Cramer: GM Screwed, Is The Citigroup Of Automakers]]> @mikedrawcar is back! (limited time only):
Some rumors and some "insiders" like Pete DeLorenzo of Autoextremist think then Carlos Ghosn of Renault-Nissan. might buy Chrysler from Cerberus. There was even an article from Businessweek from May 1 when the journalist already imagined Ghosn as CEO of Chrysler [www.businessweek.com]

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Ford In Talks With Chinese About Volvo Sale]]> I digged the web for some old articles like this one from 2007 [www.motorauthority.com] we knew then Renault wasn't interested to Volvo but the temptation might be too hard to resist if it's the case.

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Which Car Company Benefits Most From High Gas Prices?]]> @TheTooth:
They might commit for V8, some rumors mentions then they study the possibility of letting Acura having a V8 version for the RL [www.autoblog.com]

I'll go with Mazda for a change (they might bring the Mazda 2 here) and felling less to be "just a brick in the wall" of Hondas and if they was available in North America: Fiat, Citroen, Peugeot and Renault.

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on 2008 Nissan Sentra SE-R Spec V, Part One]]> It could be interesting to see if the upcoming RWD coupe Nissan (a modern incarnation of the Sylvia/200SX/240SX might cannibalize some Sentra sales? I spotted a French article from LeBlogAuto [www.leblogauto.com]

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Why Aren't All Small Cars Selling?]]> @JONNRG:
maybe they chosed the Focus because Civics are everywhere and common and wants something different or Focus is less cheaper to insure (at least in the province of Quebec, Canada) then the Civic (who was often in the top 10 stoled vehicules in Quebec in the past).

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Why Aren't All Small Cars Selling?]]> With the current high popularity of the Civic (to the point of being too common and too mainstream), I wonder what's the demography of their buyers? I spotted an article about the Corolla slowdown (in the US, in Canada it's sold more) [adage.com] and the main and big obstacle to its image, it's the aging consumer base (at some French forums like Autonet.ca some avoid the Corolla for the grand'pa/grand'ma's car image). And here in Sherbrooke, Quebec. I see more edderly/aging peoples going to.... Civic and Accords.

And now, some don't like small cars because of the cheap image but in France with the success of the Renault/Dacia Logan (who came however at the expense of the Clio and Twingo), when you check the price of the Twingo and see the Logan who's a bit bigger then the Clio and the price is a interesting bang for the bucks. Some Honda dealers might pray then Renault don't bring the Logan (who's also sold in Mexico as the Nissan Aprio) here.

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on DOTS-O-Rama Sunday: 1959 DeSoto Fireflite]]> The more I see some DeSoto pictures (and articles from magazines like Collectible Automobile), the more I wish to see a revival of DeSoto. I wasn't born yet when DeSoto vanished from the auto scene.

I spotted a interesting "what if" scenario, if Chrysler had decided to keep the DeSoto for 1962, here a pic of a fictionnal 1962 DeSoto Adventurer at
[www.whatifcars.com] and there some pictures of mock-up clays of planned and aborted 1962 DeSotos on the Consumer Guide (not related to Consumers Reports) website [auto.howstuffworks.com]

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Doomed Datsun 610 Remembers When People Drove Small Japanese Wagons]]> I spotted these Japanese old-school station-wagons pics at the www.stationwagon.com site (who wasn't updated since a while however) like this Nissan Cedric
[www.stationwagon.com]

and this pair of old Corollas, a 1974 and a 1983
[www.stationwagon.com]
[www.stationwagon.com]

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Which Car Is The Biggest Death Trap?]]> I don't know if the following could be classifield as death traps, I'll let you judge.
Civic 1992 vs a Mitsubishi Montero 4x4

then a test-drive of a Acura Integra by a young folk around 2000 filmed by his friends in Dosquet at the southwest of Quebec City

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Automobile Mag's Top List Of Road Trip Vehicles Gives Sprinter The Nod, Finds Way Into Our Hearts]]> I wonder how long the Sprinter will be in its current form? I spotted a rumor from Autoblog dated from mid-May
[www.autoblog.com]

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Kirk Kerkorian: 5.5% Of Ford Or Another Shutout?]]> there a French article from the newspaper "Le Figaro" who mention then Kirk might push Ford to marry someone (Ghosn of Renault-Nissan or someone else like Peugeot or Fiat) but Ghosn said he don't want to work in a company controlled by the family
[www.lefigaro.fr]

then here a article from April 28 from BusinessWeek [www.businessweek.com]

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Civic Pries Best-Seller Crown Away From Ford F-150's Cold, Dead Hands]]> @hapless:

maybe they was scared by this old video of a 4x4 vs a 1992 Civic [fr]

It would be interesting to do a remake of this car-crash simulation with the current Civic

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Want To Buy A New Fiat 128? Head To Egypt!]]> Speaking of retro, here another gem, the Lada Signet (as it was known when it was offered in Canada), a derivative from the Fiat 124 built under licence by Lada (AVTOVaz)
[en.wikipedia.org]

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Civic Pries Best-Seller Crown Away From Ford F-150's Cold, Dead Hands]]> Maybe I'm a bit too pessimistic, but since the current Civic and Accords are more bigger, longer and wider then the previous generation and now they sells like hot cakes or hot breads, I have a felling then Honda might think to do the next-gen Civic and Accord even more bigger.

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Avoid E85 Like A Plague Of Corn-Eating Locusts]]> besides aglae or swichgrass, I spotted some articles about cellulosic ethanol from other sources like sweet sorghum,
[www.autobloggreen.com]
this link go to a French article
[www.actualites-news-environnement.com]

]]> <![CDATA[stephdumas commented on Breaking...In Half?! 50% Of Chrysler Sold To Group Of 90 Investors]]> It could be interesting to know who are the 90 investors?
Looks like PeteDeLorenzo might be wrong on this one [www.autoextremist.com] unless one of those 90 investors have some connections with Carlos Ghosn.

]]>