Jalopnik: New York Times

NYT Automobiles Gives Chrysler Minivans A Seemingly Unnecessary Smack-Down

Ray Wert — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 07:00:00 EDT

We don't know if New York Times Automobiles writer Christopher Jensen's got kids, but if he had them, he'd know that handling is not really the most important requirement for a minivan. More important is the need — which he admits in his smack-down this weekend on the new minivans from Chryslerberus almost reluctantly — to pacify children to the point of "superstupor" (Yes C.J., we do like that one and may use it as often as is possible). But to levy charges of inadequacy against the new 2008 Dodge Grand Caravan and the 2008 Chrysler Town & Country simply because the handling is merely "average" misses the point. No self-respecting driver's driver would ever be caught dead driving one of these, or any other people hauler down the road. No amount of fine-tuning, mechanics or changes in structural rigidity's going to make a minivan with this level of options (and weight) fun to drive.

Yes, yes, we know that's not the normal tack our site takes, but can you blame us? What in the segment is really all that fun to drive? Frankly, the Econoline's too big to compete, despite our desires to make such a head-on competition happen, and C.J.'s not impressing us with comparisons to "fun" vehicles like the Buick Enclave and most definitely not winning points with a Honda Odyssey. Sure, you could get a Honda Odyssey, but the average selling price — as C.J. points out — is almsot five grand more than the average selling price point on the Town & Country and Grand Caravan. It may not necessarily (it may be, someone check this one out for us — do some configurator work in the comments below if you could) be because they're just so much cheaper (re: crappier), but rather that the toys Mom & Dad want to keep the little brats quiet in the back two rows of seats are so much cheaper to get to in the Dodge and the Chrysler.

Also, let's be clear here — Dan Neil says the twin Chrysler minivans are the bestest people movers ever built. And if you're going to go negative on it, you certainly don't have the same panache as Clarkson. Frankly Ms. Cregg, you sir are no Jeremy Clarkson.And that's all there is to it. [NYT Automobiles]

NY Times Profiles Vagina-Equipped DeLorean Owner

Travis Hudson — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 16:15:00 EDT

Cue the sirens! This just in! There are female DeLorean owners out there and now there is officially proof because The New York Times decided to profile one Lauren J. Reilly, the owner of a completely stock 1981 DeLorean DMC-12. The 31-year-old advertising firm producer lives in Midtown Manhattan and milks the car for all the attention she can get from tourists and jaded onlookers. Reilly described owning a DeLorean as "5 percent being a rock star," which is debatably accurate. The design enthusiast decided on the DeLorean as a birthday present for herself after doing lots of research prior to buying a hers on eBay. Unfortunately the near legendary French V6 is performing exactly as the stereotype would suggest

Apparently the 2.8-liter PRV6 in the 1981 DeLorean isn't holding up too well and, gasp, stalls out on occasion. We know, we're just as shocked as you are. Hold on to your hats though fellas, because the most unbelievable fact here is Ms. Reilly is single. She's probably more than willing to accept applications from novelty car junkies or creepy Back to the Future fanatics. [NYT via Dethroner]

Commenter Of The Day: Page Six Edition

Matthew DeBord — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 18:00:00 EDT

They say you haven't really arrived in New York until you've made it into a certain tabloid. Which sells for less than a buck. And was founded by Alexander Hamilton. And is at least glanced at by just about everyone in town. And likes big headlines. Big loud headlines. This publication is fun, more fun much of the time that the Big Apple's more reputable "paper of record." The Jalopnik commentariat knows this. Which brings us to our COTD.

After Wert basically wrapped up our New York Auto Show caminogasm with his post earlier today on The New York Times's assessment of Pontiac's intro of its Down Under Ute to the U.S. market, the commentators started weighing in swiftly and decisively. This comment, from
Ω βгåғғ™ , takes the honors because it just hit the right note, with concision and wit:

I bet the NY Post loves this car...

New York Times Goes Negative On Jalopnik El Camino Campaign

Ray Wert — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 12:00:00 EDT

The New York Times's Lawrence "Lars" Ulrich took a swing at pithy commentary on the 2010 Pontiac G8 "El Camino" sport truck today, deciding to heap the bed full of liver-lilied liberalism and haterade. To wit:

"Who exactly was clamoring for a two-seat, gas-guzzling pickup with the cheapest-looking interior this side of a Motel 6?"

Who? Well, us for one. But we wouldn't expect Ulrich to understand anything about a vehicle...

...he misnames as the "Pontiac Sport Truck," forgetting those strong G8 roots. But he makes up for it with hackery like calling our beloved El Camino the "Like Hell Camino," the "Pontiac Wallaby" and the "Haulacious." Isn't that precious? It's like he studied at the school of me, but without the love of real cars. [New York Times]

Go Ahead, Ask New York Times Automobiles Editor Jim Cobb Anything

Ray Wert — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 09:15:00 EST

So Jim Cobb's the editor of the Automobiles section at the Ol' Grey Lady. If you didn't realize the section existed, that's OK, many people confuse it with the classified section. Yeah, you know, it's that section of the Sunday New York Times with a couple of reviews, a couple of feature-y stories and an absolute crapload of ads for car dealerships and luxe brands like Lexus, Mercedes, Lexus, BMW, Lexus, Cadillac and umm, Lexus. But if you've ever wanted to know more about big Jim and his adorable little section, he's answering Times reader questions this week.

So feel free to drop him any questions to askthetimes@nytimes.com. I'm sure he'd love to have a whole slew of Jalopnik readers asking questions like "What's your favorite Toyota Hybrid?" or "Why run a drag race between a Toyota Highlander Hybrid and a Toyota Highlander and allow the writer to declare the Hybrid 'kept up' but give no 1/4 mile times for either like Sunday's review?" You know, all the important stuff. [NYT]

New York Times Takes Bill Vlasic for a Ride as New Detroit Chief

Ray Wert — Thu, 27 Dec 2007 17:01:00 EST

Looks like there'll be a new sheriff in town for the New York Times. The Old Grey Lady's gone and stolen Bill Vlasic, veteran of many a Detroit automotive battle, from the Detroit News to act as their new ~~whipping boy~~ Detroit bureau chief. If you'll remember, Vlasic penned the classic story of the famed "merger of equals" between Daimler and Chrysler dubbed "Taken for a Ride." We're told the NYT even likened it to "Barbarians at the Gate...a spellbinding tale, juicy gossip and all, of how business is really done among the world's largest companies." Yes, it was exactly like "Barbarians at the Gate" except for the part about it making a big pot of money through selling lots of copies. We kid the new Times main-man and look forward to ~~finally seeing~~ continuing to see Bill at auto press events in the near future. Full press release from Larry Ingrassia below the jump.

I'm pleased to announce that Bill Vlasic will be the Times' new Detroit bureau chief, taking over from Micki Maynard, who will be moving on to a new assignment in Washington next year.
Micki is hard to replace, with her knack for seeing around corners, and for writing smart and bright enterprise that tends to walk onto Page One. But we're confident Bill can continue the Times' tradition of first-rate coverage out of the nation's automotive capital.

With more than a dozen years' experience covering the industry, most recently for the Detroit News, Bill knows the business inside-out. Detroit is a company story, a consumer story, a labor story, an environmental story and a political story, and Bill has demonstrated an ability to approach the beat from all these angles.

He won a Loeb Award in 2005 for a series on safety problems with car roofs, and was a Loeb finalist in three other years. And he wrote a gripping series on Heinz Prechter's battle with manic depression, and how it drove the prominent auto executive to take his own life.

His book, "Taken for a Ride," about Daimler Benz's buyout of Chrysler, which he wrote with Brad Stertz, was lauded by our own Keith Bradsher in the Times' Book Review. He likened it to "Barbarians at the Gate...a spellbinding tale, juicy gossip and all, of how business is really done among the world's largest companies."

Bill is a Detroit native and the father of two sons, ages 24 and 21, and a 16-year-old daughter. Please welcome him when he arrives in New York for orientation in the next few weeks.

NYT Name Checks Jalopnik Over Vines Resignation, We Name Check Back

Ray Wert — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 09:15:00 EST

New York Times name checks Jalopnik on our mourning of the loss of Jason Vines at Chrysler. Parting is such sweet sorrow. But wait, why are we receiving all these inquiries from GM PR over where he's going next? Is someone else interested in the former Chrysler PR main-man? We guess we'll have to wait and see. [NYT Dealbook]

We were disappointed — we totally thought ...

Ray Wert — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 09:45:00 EST

We were disappointed — we totally thought Jerry Garrett of the New York Times would mention the potential for blizzards in Detroit during the LA Auto Show. [NYT]

NY Times Reports on Unique Performance... Finally

Matt Hardigree — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 07:45:00 EST

The Gray Lady finally catches on to something we've been reporting for more than two weeks and we learn absolutely nothing new. One thing the author focuses on is that the likelihood that the value of these cars, which was probably not going to increase anyways, could seriously decrease. What we know and what all of this means after the jump.

After reading reports and following up with local police and former associates, here's what we've learned:

First, the owner of Unique Performance and everyone at the company (whoever is left, we hear most were laid off already) ain't talking. There are serious legal issues and the lack of attempts at saving face mean that UP probably isn't coming back.

Second, there have been no formal charges made by the Dallas County District Attorney. This doesn't mean anything because the DA isn't obligated to file charges yet and it's possible that part of the investigation continues.

Third, if you've given Unique Performance money and haven't gotten your car yet things aren't looking good. It's a little unclear what the end-game is here but the ability to get money back (probably punitively) is likely tied to there being money and significant assets at the end of the day.

Unfortunately, the behavior of this company is not indicative of a company awash in cash. If we're generous in our assumptions, Unique Performance got in this situation because they weren't able to generate enough revenue to cover expenses and accrued significant debt. But this is only speculation as we haven't seen the company's balance sheet yet (and probably won't until it becomes an exhibit for the prosecution).

The next move we expect to happen is that the Dallas DA will file charges and then UP will make some sort of statement... maybe. We'll keep you posted as we learn more. [NY Times]

Oops: New York Times Erroneously Reports Tesla Delays "Battery Related"

Jonny Lieberman — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 09:30:00 EDT

OMG! Ann Coulter is right. Just like when Dale Sr. took one for the team and the New York Times failed to put it on the front page, once again the Gray Lady gets it all wrong when it comes to cars. Oh wait, the New York Times actually did run Earnhardt's death on the front page and Coulter is a freaky looking drag queen/performance artist. Exhale... Anyhow, in a profile on Silicon Valley "technologist" Shai Agassi, who is planning on sticking battery recharging stations everywhere, Times writer John Markoff mistakenly reported that the delay in the much anticipated electric Tesla Roadster was due to "battery related issues." Tesla's VP of Sales, Marketing and Service — Darryl Siry — was all over it and the New York Times issued a retraction. Funny how that works. Turns out that the delay was and is continuing to be caused by transmission woes. Having spent some time behind the wheel of an Elise, the car the Tesla is based on, we can see how the tranny — the Elise's Achilles' heel — would be an issue. [Update:: Now I have to publish a retraction. What I meant by my bad tranny comment is that the worst part of the Lotus Elise by far is the transmission. Therefor, even though the Tesla has a totally different 2-speed gear-swapper, I'm not shocked because... oh, forget it. I'm just going to re-read Godless: The Church of Liberalism.]

Top Ten "Green" Automotive Sites

Ray Wert — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 12:45:00 EDT

In case anyone is interested, some ~~hack~~ writer wrote up a piece in today's copy of the New York Times listing the top ten "green" automotive sites. Jalopnik for some strange reason, wasn't listed. To this very moment, we still can't figure out why. OK, that's a lie — we know why. But we swear we had nothing to do with the headline — mostly because we all already know how I feel about one hypegasmic site after a particular transgression occurring after the piece had already been submitted. Oh, the graphic? What can we say — a couple of us here happen to be Spartans. [New York Times]

NYT Wheels Blog Examines The Shift Away From Shifting

Ray Wert — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 10:45:00 EDT

It's always been our contention that the point when automatic transmission vehicles began to outsell manual transmission vehicles here in the United States was the same point 'merican drivers became less concerned about the trip and more about the destination. Looks like the Wheels blog over at the New York Times has just come to the same conclusion. Travel with them on their journey towards enlightenment. We've already seen how it plays out. [NYT Wheels]

Thomas Friedman Takes It From Both Ends: First GM, Now Toyota Attacks!

Ray Wert — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 15:00:00 EDT

The New York Times editor's taking it from every angle today — first from the punditocracy from guys like MotorTrend's "Motor City Blogman" and Fortune's Alex Taylor. Next he took one in the eye from the "other" Tom, GM's Tom Wilkinson. Even we took a shot at him. But now Friedman's taking it from the company he was shooting at to begin with. Yup, now he's taking it from Toyota's 'merican communications man, Irv Miller on Toyota's Open Road blog. Actually, this one's pretty funny — not in what Irv says — that's spot on. What's funny are the comments from Prius owners acting like Toyota just kicked a dog because they make trucks and SUV's. Ah, silly little uninformed environmentalists — what, did you not think Toyota was a company that looks to make money? [Open Road Blog]

GM's Tom Wilkinson Engages In Epic "Battle Of The Toms" With Thomas Friedman

Ray Wert — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 12:00:00 EDT

GM decided not to take yesterday's peppering by Thomas Friedman's shotgun laying down. Mere minutes after we dropped our post on Tommy Boy's anti-Toyota tirade, the General's FYI blog had quickly dropped a retort penned by GM's Tom Wilkinson. Wilkinson, who is not at all the same Tom Wilkinson as the actor who played Carmine Falcone in Batman Begins pictured to the left, proceeds to point out a number of "issues" GM had with Friedman's piece. These "issues" include his perceived lack of understanding of why gas prices are higher in Europe and that trucks are ~~people~~ vehicles too, comprising 40% of the new vehicle market. In addition, Wilkinson asked Friedman to "step off his soapbox and use his gifts as a reporter to develop a deeper understanding of this complex, fast-moving and vitally important industry." Wilkinson then went on to point out Friedman's mother was a hamster and his father smelled of elderberries. Tommy Boy, the soapbox is now yours. [FYI Blog]

Thomas Friedman Again Fires Shotgun Blast At Auto Industry, Hits Toyota, Everyone

tingwall — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 10:35:00 EDT

New York Times columnist Thomas L. Friedman is shaking a finger at the American automotive market again, and this time it's Toyota that he's ticked at. Friedman seems to have difficulty wrapping his head around the fact Toyota, with the most fuel-efficient vehicle on the market, has joined the automakers formerly known as the big three in fighting the Senate bill to increase combined corporate average fuel economy to 35 mpg by 2020. We thought it was pretty obvious that Toyota was, you know, a company, and would be looking to maximize profits, as companies are wont to do. While Toyota's suffering the worst of the blast, they're not the only one Friedman hit in yesterday's blast.

Tommy Boy also takes a shot at Michigan Representative John Dingell for fighting the 35-mpg standard, claiming Michigan lawmakers are partially responsible for the downfall of Detroit automakers by constantly sheltering the auto industry. Unfortunately, he neglects to mention Dingell's the guy proposing a 50-cent gas tax increase and if Friedman really thinks automakers should be importing the fuel-efficient cars they sell in Europe and Japan, there needs to be demand for those cars — similar to Europe's $6 per gallon gas — before there is a place in American showrooms for them. [The New York Times]

Cab Catches Fire One Block From New York Times Office, Times Web Team Gets Crappy Video

Ray Wert — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 09:15:00 EDT

We caught this off of the NYT YouTube feed this morning. We're betting they're totally glad they invested in all that video equipment. We wonder if anyone thought to run downstairs and actually get close to the taxi cab caught on fire — or was everyone worried it was a terrorist attack? Maybe this means there's going to be one more medallion up for auction — woo-hoo! A new top price story! Yay!

Wait — what is this new html coding ...

Ray Wert — Wed, 08 Aug 2007 11:15:00 EDT

Wait — what is this new html ~~coding~~ code the New York Times Wheels Blog has ~~finded~~ found? It's like they're a real live blog! Now if only they could have used it on like every ~~post~~ article ever written by Jayson Blair. [New York Times Wheels Blog]

The New York Times is soliciting reader opinions ...

Ray Wert — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 07:30:00 EDT

The New York Times is soliciting reader opinions on the question of "What changes do you think are needed in the American auto industry?" We just lurve the "America's Sagging Automakers" headline — it makes us feel like all they need is a face lift or something. [New York Times]

Who knew Jerry Garrett was a Ford truck man? ...

Ray Wert — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 10:45:00 EDT

Who knew Jerry Garrett was a Ford truck man? [NYT Wheels Blog]

First there was quality, then there was cost ...

Ray Wert — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 10:30:00 EDT

First there was quality, then there was cost cutting. Now, for Danny Howes, simplicity is apparently "job one." Only problem is — we think we read this article already on the front page of the business section of yesterday's New York Times. [Detroit News via NYT]

Did the New York Times Wheels blog just use ...

Ray Wert — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 12:45:00 EDT

Did the New York Times Wheels blog just use the words "hybrid" and "hype" in the same headline with Lexus? That splat sound was a snowball hitting the devil in the back of the head. [NYT Wheels]

Jerry Garrett of the New York Times parrots ...

Ray Wert — Wed, 11 Jul 2007 11:45:00 EDT

Jerry Garrett of the New York Times parrots the "Hyundai is a luxury brand" line and then swallows it, the hook and the sinker in a little horsepower envious piece. [NYT Wheels Blog]

How Many Drinks Was That? Whoa, Wert...Whoa

Ray Wert — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 12:30:00 EDT

Wert was On The Money last night, arguing whether union negotiations can "Save Detroit" with "Hey" Micki Maynard, Detroit Bureau chief of the New York Times and author of "The End Of Detroit." At some point in the convo (maybe at exactly 01:42 left), we're not sure how it happened or even why, but for some strange reason our senior editor from the D decided things just needed to slow down for a minute. Then, just like "Whoa," things did just that. Maybe he was merely trying to figure out what next to say? We guess we'll just never know what that may have been. Now all we need to do is determine just how many drinks was this round of the only Official Car Pundit Drinking Game.

Detroit Forecast: Colder Winter Ahead

Ray Wert — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 10:00:00 EDT

Jerry Garrett of the New York Times link-baits one of us here in Detroit with anti-Detroit hyperbole. Predictably, one of us here in Detroit links. [Wheels Blog]

Learn All About The Chrysler Sale On Your iPhone

Ray Wert — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 13:00:00 EDT

The most recent AT&T-Apple ad for the iPhone shows just how much iPhone users are ready and waiting to care about the sale of the former 'merican side of the German-American hybrid — if only given the opportunity. The new über-phone is shown running through such fundamentals as "how to turn it on", how to listen to music, how to check e-mail, etc. But when it gets to "this is how you surf the web," we're treated to a web shot of the New York Times from a few weeks back featuring an article by Micki Maynard and Mark Landler — "Chrysler on Verge of Sale to a Private Firm." But then — just as these two automotive industry writers are about to become famous as the hands of Jobs (or whomever) ready themselves to tap on the article — just as the whole of the technology-obsessed world readies itself to find out all about the ins and outs of the imminent sale of the Chrysler Group to Cerebus — friggin' John Appleseed calls. God, I hate that man and his apple tree-spreading ways. – Ray Wert

How To [Apple.com]

New York Times Drives Toyota Tundra, Falls Flat On Face

Ray Wert — Wed, 09 May 2007 15:30:00 EDT

Now don't get us wrong — we love it when we get the opportunity to tweak the Old Grey Lady once in a while, especially when they forget things like checking the weather report (as opposed to the weather forecast) or revamp their efforts in the brave new world that is the blogosphere. But it's hard for us to make fun of Micki Maynard for her attempt at a review of the new Toyota Tundra falling, quite literally, flat. I mean, it's not like the Times has much in the way of experience in heavy (or even light duty) trucks — what with New Yorkers predisposition towards hatred of anything that's meant to carry. Well, maybe not everything — I mean, they do love those little cozy coffee carriers from Starbucks. – Ray Wert

Dancing With The Tundra [NYT Wheels Blog]

New York Times Kills "DriveTimes" E-Mail To Focus On Making "Wheels" Blog Less Sucktastic

Ray Wert — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 17:45:00 EDT

Anyone who's a subscriber to the NYT's DriveTimes weekly e-mail knows two things. First, it's a re-hash of the weeks stories in the Times having anything to do with cars with random stories from elsewhere peppered in. Second, it sucks. Lucky for those of us who've been on the receiving end of this amazingly dull weekly re-cap, it looks like today's e-mail will be the last. Or at least that's what we're told:

"A note from the editors: This is our last issue of DriveTimes. A new e-mail newsletter is coming that will keep you up to speed on the latest automotive news. In the meantime, visit the Wheels blog for news and notes about new products, about trends in automotive design and technology, and about the business of producing cars."

Rest In Peace, dear friend — we hardly ever read you. In its place, we've now heard the Times will be focusing its time and efforts on Richard Chang's new baby, the Wheels blog. We look forward to the daily recaps, YouTube clips, mini-articles or whatever the hell else is deemed appropriate from the automotive blog of the newspaper of record. – Ray Wert

Peter Horbury: Still Has Big Balls, Now Believes In Magic

Ray Wert — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 16:15:53 EDT

Peter Horbury, FoMoCo's designer of the now infamous Gillette-like "Hi, I'm Dave!" grille is not only a designer with the "big balls" necessary to design FoMoCo out of their Nasser-created product design nightmare, but now he believes in magic. That's right, the always lovable, huggable and eminently quotable Horbury dropped this little tidbit on Phil Patton when asked about the doors of the Lincoln MKR concept

"In the future you will simply touch the car and the door will magically open."

What will FoMoCo think of next? Maybe Horbury's next design will be based on a Nimbus 2000. We can only hope to see a car shaped like a flying broom coming out of the next Detroit show. – Ray Wert

Look, Ma, No Handles [NYT Wheels Blog]

And In New York...There Was A Blizzard!

Ray Wert — Fri, 06 Apr 2007 21:30:41 EDT

Ok, not really, but the few flakes we did see yesterday outside the Javits Center as we left another New York Auto Show were significantly more than those I saw during the 60-degree-plus temperatures we had in Detroit during the LA Auto Show. But because that didn't stop Times freelancer Jerry Garrett from making the claim a few months back that we were suffering from a cold and snowy blizzard, we figure we'd return the favor of tossing this inaccuracy out there, mostly because it would seem we've found Jerry pitting yet another set of auto shows into a competition. Except this time, he's being Manhattan-centric instead of fluffing up the West Coast.

"As in any beauty pageant, contestants will be judged on their personality, poise, performance and sex appeal. Think of New York as the final elimination round in a series of competitions over the last four months at auto shows in Los Angeles, Detroit, Chicago and Geneva. The winners here advance to the true test: the showroom floors of America's car dealerships."

It would seem J-Dawg believes that the New York Auto Show is some kind of...

..."show of shows," with Detroit, LA, Chicago and Geneva the prequels and New York playing the role of final arbiter of what's good enough to show up on dealer lots here in the land of the red, white n' blue. That must explain why he included the Dodge Demon and Chevy Trax, Beat and Groove in his top twelve list — all of which are global concept cars. Those are cars which won't be showing up state-side anytime soon. Maybe it's not so much that the New York Auto Show is the "final elimination round" in his alleged show-of-shows comparison, but maybe it's just a really small and not-so-important show. Somehow we feel like that's all right for Jerry, a man we're convinced truly believe it when people tell him something is a "really good size." – Ray Wert

Big Blue Oval Day: Didn't The Wall Street Journal Get The Memo?

Ray Wert — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 14:57:40 EST

Well, there's one big story on everyone in the auto industry's mind — what's up with FoMoCo's 2006 earnings? Although it was expected by all but the biggest Kool-Aid drinkers in and around the Glass House in Dearborn, one thing's true — almost everyone's sporting the blue oval on the front pages of their web sites. You already know we rock a stylized version here on the Jalop, but we thought we'd check out how other online sites were throwing down with the mortgaged-to-the-hilt logo. The Freep's got their blue oval reflecting trucks on the upper chrome band, while the Times has trucks being reflected on the lower chrome lip. Heck, even the Detroit News is doing the best they can with the web site MediaNews has given them — although no truck reflection, they've at least got the best li'l bue oval their a-href-dorable little web software can muster. But apparently the still-sees-things-in-black-n-white Wall Street Journal didn't get the memo. What happened guys, where's the blue oval? But maybe not rocking the big n' blue badge is what it's all about — let's find out what you think. – Ray Wert

Hi, I'm Jerry Garrett: New York Times Now On YouTube

Ray Wert — Mon, 11 Dec 2006 11:03:19 EST

This is Jerry Garrett. Jerry was a contributor to the New York Times out at the LA Auto Show, and in addition to his coverage in the dirty ink and paper world, he's also pioneering Times Autos invasion of YouTube. In addition to Jerry's little orgasmic roundup above of the size-envious show, he also spent some time checking out the Giugiaro mustang (which he thinks has headlights which "scream Camaro!") and Honda's FCX concept car. But it's the above video which draws our attention — where Jerry, displaying a hindsight less than 20/20, misreports a blizzard in Detroit (at around 1:10 into the video). Apparently the record high temperatures and rain were a figment of my imagination. – Ray Wert

The New York Times Gets Irreverent: VW Tiguan Highlights "Friends With Benefits" Relationship Between Automakers

Ray Wert — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 11:02:00 EST

It would appear even the mainstream media's got a bit o' irreverence left in it — even if it's only in the web pages of the Old Grey Lady. Here's the caption from one of the pictures from yesterday's slideshow on the new VW Tiguan concept on the Times web site:

The engine was developed through the friends-with-benefits trifecta of VW, Audi, and Mercedes-Benz.

Even though it's "just" digital ink, we're relishing what was probably a spectacularly spicy thought process highlighting the friendly (and precise) m nage trois of VDub, the fabulously precise Audi, and the German side of the German-American hybrid. The Times is of course referencing that the three automakers have combined wits, like Ace & Gary, to help create the next gen of diesel power called Clean TDI, an engine system using Benz's Bluetec technology. Bluetec, of course, is the nitrogen-oxide reducing system for diesel that uses urea to clean the car's emissions. Urea, of course, is an organic compound found in urine. So does this mean that in this threesome, pissing is involved? Wow — I wonder if the Times realized that? [Hat tip to Greg!] – Ray Wert

VW Tiguan Design Study Slide Show [NYT]

Breaking! Ford's Way Forward 2.0: The Markets And The New York Times Wait For No Man Or Mulally

Ray Wert — Thu, 14 Sep 2006 15:12:58 EDT

Despite the completion of today's FoMoCo board meeting, there's no official word yet from the Dearborn-based- and-still-Number-2 automaker on version 2.0 of the company's Maotastic Way Forward plan. The automaker's instead got a press conference planned for early tomorrow morning (issuing a release at the ungodly hour of 7:00 Am — have they no decency?!). But for those of you who simply must have that information now — like if for instance you're an employee of FoMoCo or you know, have your life savings all in that shit, the cat and kitten over at the New York Times, the tag team of Micki Maynard and boy wonder, Nick Bunkley, have read the tea leaves and pulled from the ethereal plane a UAW fax to leadership providing clear indication on the moves the automaker's making — and it's way, way, way big n' bold. Like, 75,000 job cuts bold! And that's a hella lot more than the 30,000 previously discussed in the media — talk about beating expectations. And whenever you've gone and beaten back the pundits expectations, the first question, after "who the hell cares?" is always "how's the market reacting to the story?" Pretty well, considering FoMoCo's shares were down 3% earlier in the day on indications of big quarterly and annual losses. Now, the Big Board's "F" is merely down a half a point —

not too shabby considering the circumstances. We're still interested to hear what the first Bill Ford-less "Way Forward" press conference will sound like tomorrow morning — so who knows, we may end up heading down to Dearborn for a first-person perspective.

75,000 to Leave Jobs at Ford Under New Plan [NYT]

Related:
All Brand: Ford Stays Regular [internal]

Tom Friedman Will Be On Every User's Page: New York Times Building A MySpace For Cars

Ray Wert — Thu, 06 Jul 2006 09:25:50 EDT

At some point soon this whole MySpace thing will jump the shark. We don't know when, we don't know how — but we do know we've seen a number of harbingers of the end. If it's not ESPN looking to become the MySpace for sports fans then it very well could be the ol' grey lady's desire to get into the whole community-sharing-is-caring thing by becoming a MySpace of sorts for car lovers. The Times' newest feature will allow members to:

• Search the gallery by vehicle type, make and model.
• Archive the user's vehicle and comments on a customized page.
• E-mail car submissions to friends.
• Receive random comments from chinese Pr0n dealers looking for you to "clik thi linc four mre pikturs!"

Ok, so the last one hopefully won't be an issue — maybe it's just a MySpace problem. But we shudder at the thought of a strange website set up just to allow people to rant and rave about their cars and gossip about industry stuff without care — cause hey, that's our job.

NYTimes Autos (box; middle of the page) [NYT]

Times Reporter Explains Technical Service Bulletin, Kisses Honda Ass

Ray Wert — Sun, 02 Jul 2006 14:00:00 EDT

The ol' grey lady reports on automakers' Technical Service Bulletins (TSBs), those handy missives sent to dealers (and the NHTSA) to inform service folk of problems auto shops see in its vehicles. What's great about TSBs is consumers can view them via NHTSA's TSB search tool. Though, in highlighting this service, Scott Sturgis of the New York Times either inadvertently (or quite vertently) extends his hand too far in Honda's direction. While Sturgis...

...remained even-spoken in his description of service bulletins for BMW, Buick, Chevrolet, Ford, etc...when it comes to Honda, out come the smooches. His description starts as such:

"Though Hondas are known for trouble-free operation, there are exceptions..."

Yes, well the same holds true for many Buick, BMW, Chevy and Ford models with similar trouble-free operation, despite a few noted exceptions. Let's throw the Honda Accord and Ford Fusion down the gullet of NHTSA's TSB search tool and see what comes out the other end:

Honda Accord: 7 TSB results
Ford Fusion: 3 TSB results

Obviously TSBs can't determine what constitutes "trouble-free operation," but automakers — whether Japanese, American, German or even Swedish — have all improved reliability and increased mean time between failure (with the exception of Chery — who admit some "quality issues"). Is the Times falling back on old stereotypes to advance an argument when, as is the case here, one need not be made? We're just asking.

Service Bulletins Can Explain Repair Mysteries [NYT]

Related:
New Glitch for Ford GT: Oil Leaks [internal]

Word War IV! Steve Harris Slaps Back for GM

Ray Wert — Fri, 16 Jun 2006 09:02:13 EDT

It's almost like after four salvos of this word war they've finally started to talk like civilized opponents. In the beginning it was all fun bitch-fight rhetoric with the Times calling GM a "crack dealer" and GM slapping back with Friedman being "intellectually dishonest." Now everyone's just playing nice — where's the fun in that? Even gearheads like us are getting bored of this crap. Our only consolation lies in Steven Harris' belief that the Fastlane blog is a real blog. To wit:

"Yesterday, Thomas Friedman of The New York Times devoted 1,279 words (subscription required), a full quarter of the Times' Op-Ed page, to respond directly to this blog's June 1 post by Steve Harris, which addressed Friedman's earlier criticism of GM. That the Times would respond in that way to any blog posting is significant. "

Gasp! Wait, is Harris claiming some kind of indie-cred because he posted his response on one of those new-fangled blogs? Oh wait, Fastlane's a corp-log...which is like a blog, but — it gets things normal blogs don't — like money, actual IT staff and corporate PR sponsorship. Calling the Fastlane a "blog" is like calling the New York Times a "zine."

The Times — Again [Fastlane]

Mr. Friedman, It's Your Turn For a Rebuttal: The New York Times - General Motors Word-War Continues

Ray Wert — Wed, 14 Jun 2006 11:35:36 EDT

The campaign word-war between the New York Times editorial page and General Motors keeps heating up — and the latest salvo was fired by Times columnist Thomas Friedman in this morning's Times. Just so you can get your bearings, let's recap — Thomas "World Is Flat" Friedman, in a New York Times editorial two weeks ago engaged in what can best be described as a hyperbol-gasm over GM's latest sales promotion, the fuel price protection program. Friedman called the promotion, an offer of $1.99 gas for one year with no limit on mileage, the equivalent of "crack" and quite literally called GM a "crack dealer." In response, Steven Harris, GM's VP of Communications came right back with a scathing post on their corporate FastLane Blog asking for Friedman to be "intellectually honest" in his claims — and basically asked Friedman to take his own head and shove it straight...

...into GM's Warren Tech Center to see the progress GM's made on flex-fuel vehicles. In addition to Harris, GM must have called for all hands on deck — because there was a second salvo fired from the RenCen in the form of Brian Akre from GM Corporate Communications. Brian was hard at work trying to write the perfect letter to the editor to the New York Times — unfortunately, the "perfect letter" included foul language like "rubbish" — words which just wouldn't pass muster with the conserva-nazis at the Times. Akre pointed out on GM's other corporate blog, FYI, the seperate and totally unequal treatment his wording was receiving in comparison to what Friedman was allowed to use. Apparently if you're a columnist you can use such language as "crack dealer" — not to mention "whore of Babylon", "slut-ho-bag", and "scruffy-looking nerf-herder" when describing GM.

So that brings you up to today — a day normally reserved for Maureen Dowd, but she's on vacation. Instead it's the day...Thomas Friedman struck back. Based on Friedman's first piece we expected this to be a second flinging of steaming hot fecal matter thrown across the face of Harris, Akre and any other GM executive in his way — instead, we received a rational, calm and yes — informed commentary on the long-term inefficacy of GM's strategy of "build bigger, not better...and with less fuel-economy."

Friedman's piece today (subs. req.) is everything his column of two weeks ago wasn't — it loses the hyperbole and bullshit — drops on its knees in front of Toyota a little less and takes GM to task on a number of worthy issues including production of more "9 to 11 mpg cars" than any other automaker, the flex-fuel fleet truck loophole, and of course — our favorite — there still is no family-friendly hybrid on the market. He concludes with a more-than-worthy quote from our friends at Automotive News:

"General Motors' promotion that reimburses some buyers for gasoline purchases is ill-advised for an automaker that is trying to burnish its green image. The program should be dropped, not expanded. ... It's simply a subsidy for vehicles that burn a lot of gasoline. And it's one more example of G.M.'s tone deafness on environmental issues. ... Yes, G.M. can make vehicles that are as fuel efficient as anybody else's. But it acts as though its future depends on gas guzzlers."

And isn't that really GM's problem? The talking points for execs require them to trumpet the GMT-900 and other fuel-hungry trucks and SUV's at a time when the average family is trying to scrape together gas money. These same talking points claim the GMT's are "very important to the future" of GM. Really, isn't that a less-compelling message than the message of a fuel-efficient lifestyle coming from the likes of Toyota, Honda and other automakers? Yes, we realize it's just messaging — but they actually do back up those messages — by providing, for the most part, inexpensive vehicles with higher fuel-economy than other automakers. GM can trumpet it's industry-leading number of 30 mpg+ vehicles all it wants — but when their executive ranks and bottom line still require the sale of gas-guzzlers to remain solvent — well, that provides an alltogether different message.

But Friedman on the other hand needs to quit the hyperbole and maybe focus more on what he did today, actually go after GM for the real reasons — because the facts sans bullshit are compelling enough as it is.

TimesSelect G.M. — Again (subs. req.) [New York Times]

Related:
NYT Not Exactly Sporting When it Comes to GM [internal]

NYT Not Exactly Sporting When it Comes to GM.

Davey G. Johnson — Fri, 09 Jun 2006 17:30:00 EDT

By and large, when we get letters from readers that we feel like posting, we don't edit them much. If it's somebody we like, we might correct a few spelling and grammar errors here and there. If we don't like them, they're free to hang on their command of the English language and their ability to use spellcheck. We, however, are not the New York Times. And when Thos. Friedman lambastes GM in a ridiculously doofy fashion and the automaker justifably asks for the opportunity to respond, the copy desk apparently feels that "rubbish" is not a word to be used in the august pages of the Gray Lady. Because, well, a gray lady would never say something so profane. Arianna's new "Eat the Press" section of the HuffPo's got the dish.

The Delicate Dance of the New York Times Letters Page [The Huffington Post]

Between the Lines: The New York Times Advertoralizes on Car Design

Mike Spinelli — Mon, 05 Dec 2005 11:55:03 EST

BTL salutes the New York Times. The Old Gray Lady s automotive department boasts the industry s most stringent ethical guidelines. Not only does the NYT refuse manufacturers junkets and shun any writer louche enough to suckle on the proverbial tit, but the section pays for its press cars. The cynical amongst you may attribute the papers late-out-of-the-gate reviews and curiously bloodless copy to these policies, but we re glad that the Times still sets — and upholds — the standard for journalistic integrity (in this at least). Unfortunately, the barbarians are at the gate .

This Sunday s New York Times Magazine featured a ten-page spread: Automobiles as Art: Designers on Design. Although it was clearly labeled a special advertising supplement, we would again point out that the practice of blending editorial and advertising is only slightly less reprehensible than a Catholic priest displaying a worrying familiarity with choirboys. The advertorial s existence pollutes the purity of the Times car coverage by association. It s a classless rebuke to the integrity of the NYT s honorable auto scribes. And, of course, it s crap.

That said, this supplement offers a special kind of crap. Car designers are founts of unintelligible, unmitigated bullshit. For reasons related to the auto industry s lack of self-confidence/irredeemable pretentiousness, a great proportion of a car designer s livelihood depends on his or her ability to say things like You have to combine the beauty of form development with the relationship to the automotiveness of the vehicle. In that sense, the Designers on Design advertorial is like lawyers on law: a laugh riot of hagiography and intellectual obfuscation.

I won t trouble you with the intro, penned by the curiously elusive [links please] Rich Taylor of Taylor-Constantine, Inc.- except to say that the words rock stars, single-handedly, icon, design leader, superstars and artistic brilliance feature heavily. From there, it s straight to Diane Allen; Design Manager of Nissan Design America.

Ms. Allen is responsible for the quote above, and, apparently, drawing inspiration for the current Z car from a cat s abdomen (PETA take note). Her profile also informs us that the QX56 s xenon headlights sit low in the grill to avoid dazzling oncoming drivers. This accounts for the bit of sheetmetal above the headlights, which gives the somewhat-less-than-fuel-efficient SUV a sinister look, sort of hunkered down, like a bull ready to charge. Huh. Ms. Allen states that truck buyers desire to stay with an acceptable vernacular prevented her team from creating something more modern. The mind boggles.

A two-page Infiniti ad separates Ms. Allen from some first-person rambling by Audi s Manager of Exterior Design, Claus Potthoff. The divine Mr. P shares an early career epiphany, when he decided it wasn t enough just to make a nice looking car (God forbid). Potthoff now digs beneath the surface to express the functional roots from which the design grows. Quite how Potthoff s inside out approach manifests itself in the ungainly Q7 (pictured in front of a maximum security prison— I mean modern office building) is anybody s guess. He s too busy claiming credit for the SUV and the A6, and blaming his boss (Walter De Silva) for Audi s inexcusable new snout.

In case, we missed our invitation to celebrate Audi s Bauhaus chic [sic], a full-page ad opposite offers us a black-and-white shot of the A6 and warns You may need to build a Bauhaus garage. Sam, call my architect!

Andreas Zapatinas is up next. A portrait of Subaru s Chief Designer is positioned next to a front three-quarter view of Scooby s flying vagina (a.k.a. Subaru B9 Tribeca). In a move echoing Harry Potters colleagues disinclination to say the word Voldemort, Zapatinas never actually refers to the B9 by name. But we do get a thinly veiled defense. The quote reveals that Zapatinas handiwork represents a great landing — in the wrong universe.

There is a common understanding of beauty that transcends all cultures. I take this as a positive impetus, that I am designing in a universal language that can be understood around the globe.

At least the B9 in the facing ad has the humility to hide its pudenda. And then, finally, we come face-to-PR with Peter Horbury, Ford s Executive Director of Design for North America. Horbury is equally unabashed in his opinion of his own work, claiming to have created a whole new design language for Volvo (based on a chair, if memory serves). Horbury gives us insight into his overall approach: identify brand-specific design cues and graft them onto rubbish motors. OK, I made up that last bit; but the British designer is definitely a flag-waving, my-paycheck s-in-the-details kinda guy. Very.

Americans are very optimistic, very outgoing, very direct, very open, very friendly. Look at the front of our new Zephyr sedan or the 2007 Lincoln Aviator crossover wagon. The Zephyr has a formal waterfall grill; the Aviator has a sporty egg crate grill. But they both have great smiles! That s very American.

The ad for the Zephyr opposite asks us (without a question mark) Why coast through life when you can corner it. Corner life? Where's Nelson Bunker Hunt when you need him? Anyway, it s a question that the New York Times itself should address. Why are they content to coast through their automotive coverage, and allow BS like this supplement, when they have the resources to corner the country s best automotive writers?

[Jalopnik s Between the Lines column parses the rhetoric of the automotive industry, and the media that covers it, from the point of view of that kid at the back of the class with ADD, a genius IQ and a thirst for mayhem.]

Related:
More Between the Lines columns [internal]