<![CDATA[Jalopnik: Tennessee]]> http://cache.jalopnik.com/assets/base/img/thumbs140x140/jalopnik.com.png <![CDATA[Jalopnik: Tennessee]]> http://jalopnik.com/tag/tennessee http://jalopnik.com/tag/tennessee <![CDATA[Snake on a car gives family ultimate driving distraction]]> A Tennessee family on a road trip discovered they had a stowaway when a snake slithered onto the windshield and hung out for several miles. Happy airlines? Even snakes think plane travel is too expensive. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5826493&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[What's the link between meth labs and Nissan?]]> Thanks to a record-breaking 2,082 meth lab shutdowns in 2010, Tennessee now leads the nation in meth lab busts. What does this have to do with Nissan? No clue. But that didn't stop Bloomberg from writing this. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5784358&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[The 2011 Volkswagen Passat: More Wagen, More Volk?]]> Here it is: the new 2011 Volkswagen Passat, the sedan VW wants to take America by sturm. How will it do so? By being $7,000 cheaper than the previous Passat, while getting bigger. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5729079&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[This Woman Was Arrested After Whistle-Blowing On Nissan]]> For over a year, one former consultant at Nissan's Tennessee headquarters has waged an online campaign accusing the automaker of discrimination and misspending government money. She's been arrested and even surrendered custody of her child "to keep fighting." UPDATE below. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5656372&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Republicans Applaud Jobs From GM Bailout They Opposed]]> Happy days came back Friday to Spring Hill, Tenn., when General Motors announced it would rehire 483 laid-off workers to build four-cylinder engines. On hand to cheer the news: Three Republican lawmakers who opposed the bailout that saved GM. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5641416&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[OnStar Leads Perp To Justice, GM to Republican Senator's Good Graces]]> The cross-dressing 22-year-old who carjacked the Tahoe belonging to anti-Detroit Tennessee Senator Bob Corker's lovely daughter was just sentenced to two years in prison, thanks in part to GM's OnStar system. Good thing she wasn't driving a Volkswagen. [Washington Post] More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5594925&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Man Jumps From Moving Car Because Wife Won't "Shut Up"]]> A 23-year-old Tennessee man bailed from a moving vehicle last Thursday during an argument with his wife, who was driving, because she wouldn't "shut up." He's in critical but stable condition after being helicoptered to the hospital. [The Leaf Chronicle] More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5542694&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Welcome To The End Of The World]]> It's official: Tennessee flooding is destroying the heart of America. This picture was taken on Highway 7 near Columbia. A word of caution — whatever you do, do not go in there. (Hat tip to intern Kelsey and EricInDenver!) More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5531908&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Volkswagen's New Mid-Size Sedan: First Look]]> This image, captured by WRCB-TV, is our first look at Volkswagen's new mid-size sedan, which is set to go into production in 2011. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5152424&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Senator Corker Comes To Detroit, Cavorts With Ze Germans]]> Senator Bob Corker, Nissan Republican, toured the Detroit Auto Show to talk to auto executives and Jalopnik in the video below. Note how much security he has around him. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5130749&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Ten-Year-Old Drives Drunks Home, Rolls Van At 90 MPH]]> Last Sunday, a 10-year-old Tennessee boy was happily cruising along in a van at 90 MPH, taking some apparently too-drunk-to-drive associates home when he lost control and rolled the van, which came to rest on its roof. The only adults in the car, whose relation to the children (including another 10-year-old and one aged 6) in the van was not disclosed, were 43-year-old Randy Lewis (pictured) and Paula Elaine Evans. When the authorities arrived on the scene, Lewis admitted to having consumed at least 15 beers as well as some alcohol while Miss Evans pounded down as many unidentified pills as she could before police arrested her. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5060707&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Volkswagen Will Build Plant In Chattanooga, Tennessee]]> Volkswagen will build its first American plant since the 1980's in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The city bested competing bids from Alabama and Michigan for the plant, which will cost up to $1 billion to build and could employ as many as 2,000 workers. Chattanooga had a major advantage due to the state's lack of unions and ease-of-access for European travelers. According to their plans, this 1,350-acre facility will produce 150,000 vehicles, one of which will be a new mid-sized sedan for the US market, which is set to see production in early 2011. Press release below the jump. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=398558&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Put The Kid In The Trunk And The TV In The Backseat]]> People will do some pretty stupid things for a TV, or so we're learning today. First, it was the idiot burglar with the alligator in his Buick Regal and now we have the story of a trio of not-so-bright Tennesseans who really wanted to get a television home. But there were three of them and a television, and not all of them could fit in the passenger area of their Toyota Corolla. Their solution? Put the kid in the trunk and the television in the backseat. They'd have gotten away with it, too, but someone called the cops after seeing the kid, who apparently consented, get into the trunk. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=380468&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Nissan Drops $100 Mil On Green...Buildings]]> Yes, the green trends currently dominating the auto industry have reached as far as the actual headquarters buildings of the automakers. Case in point: Nissan's new HQ. The U.S. headquarters for Nissan is set to open up in Franklin, TN this July and it is loaded to the gills with all kinds of green and environmental technology. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=366093&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[When Shriners Go Bad!]]> According to the Washington Post, no charges have been filed against James H. Brooks, who apparently heard Judas Priest's "Hell Bent For Leather" playing at max volume in his head and hooned his miniature dune buggy into the crowd at a Chattanooga parade. Eight were injured in the mishap, five of whom were hurt badly enough to require hospital visits. While this incident wasn't anywhere near as tragic as the horrific Selmar burnout incident a while back, it's still gotta be tough for Tennesseans to have the crowd-hit-by car nightmare strike again. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=294359&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Father of Teen Killed In TN Pro-Mod Accident Sues]]> The father of fifteen-year-old Scarlett Replogle — killed in the Selmer, Tennesee accident when Troy Critchley's Pro Mod got out of line during an exhibition burnout at the Cars for Kids charity event earlier this month — is suing for 2.5 million dollars in compensatory damages, on top of $7.5 mil in punitive damages. Bruce Replogle has named Cars for Kids, Critchley and car-owner AMS as defendants in the case. In other news pertaining to the tragedy, the Tennessee Department of State is checking into whether Cars for Kids was correctly licensed as a charitable organization under the state's tax code. – Davey G. Johnson More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=272985&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Troy Critchley and AMS Issue Statement on Weekend Pro Mod Debacle]]> A couple of Los Jalops have spent a fair amount of time covering drag racing or hanging out with drag racers (or in Bumbeck's case, actually wrenching on Fuel cars). While the signal-to-signal, station to station contest is the provenence of any teenage hoon in any part of the world, it's one motorsport whose apex is a truly American thing. Quarter-mile competition was invented here. And while we've seen all kinds of amazing motorsport between us, there truly is nothing quite like a top-rank dragster burnout. Fuel cars may stoke the sense the most, but anything from Pro Stock on up is still pretty mind-blowing. And we have to say, we've been on the barrier during NHRA Fuel burnouts snapping photos, and it's seriously an exercise in fight or flight. It's an absolutely exhilarating experience for those lucky enough to experience it. As impressive as it is from the stands, being ten feet from a car with that much power as it willfully chews rubber to get hot? And that in the back of one's mind that there's a remote possibility that a chunk of the engine's reciprocating mass may shoot right through one's skull, reminiscent of that one scene in Glory? Total, body-wide rush. It may have been irresponsible for the Cars for Kids people to allow people at the big end of the burnout. But at the same time, you also can't blame people for wanting to be close to it. It's sad when the awesome turns tragic. Critchley/AMS statement after the jump. – Davey G. Johnson More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=270013&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Tennessee Street Drag Race Kills Six Spectators]]> There's six dead and 18 injured in Selmer, Tennessee after the Aussie drag racer Troy Warren went out of control while doing a burnout for the fans at a charity event at a closed street event without guard rails. Warren then careened out of control into the crowd where a Tennessee Highway Patrol spokesman says the fatalities include two 15-year-old girls and a 17-year-old girl. The accident injured 18 others, including a five-year-old boy. The accident occurred at a "Cars for Kids" charity event, an organization set up by a father after a biking accident ten years ago involving his son. The irony: his son survived. – Ray Wert More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=269689&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[And That's The Nissan Way...Where Are My Shoes?]]> Here's the following note Carlos Ghosn, the CEO of the cross-global alliance, sent to his North American staff today to explain why he wouldn't be coming to this year's Christmas party. I feel like I'm reading a speech by Imelda Marcos or something. – Ray Wert More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=244770&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[High in Mississippi: Toyota Highlander, New Crossover to Be Built Near Tupelo]]> According to Automotive News, Toyota is building a $1 billion plant in the wilds of Memphis, Tennessee. At least, they're expected to, which means someone spilled the beans ahead of a local press conference to be held this morning in Blue Springs, Miss — a tiny town outside of big Memph Toupe. That's where the SUV plant will go online, reportedly by 2009, employing 2,100 at first. The company will require additional workers when it ramps up to build a yet unnamed Crossover. Engines will come from Toyota's expanding plant in Huntsville, Ala, according to AN. Music will be provided by a hybrid of Big and Rich. – Mike Spinelli More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=239988&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Breaking! Nissan Vice Chairman Jim Morton Moves Company To Tennessee, Up And Leaves]]>
We just received this news from a tipster at Nissan NorAm's new HQ in out-of-the-way beautiful Tennessee. Apparently the man who made the move happen has decided to move on himself. Jim Morton's retiring from Nissan on April 1st, and we're wondering what he'll do afterward. Maybe some fishing? Some hiking? Some running for Governor, perhaps? – Ray Wert
From: N-COM US
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]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=239195&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Breaking! Nissan Offers "Voluntary" Buyouts To Tennessee Hourly Workers]]> We just received a tip letting us know Nissan will be offering a "voluntary transition program" — otherwise known as a "cash buyout" — to all workers in the automaker's Smyrna and Decherd, Tennessee plants. The Smyrna plant began by building trucks and SUV's, but has recently moved into car production — a less labor-intensive process. Decherd makes engines. All hourly workers will be offered the plan which includes cash incentives of "$45,000 lump sum payment and an additional $500 for each year of service." We've also been told the program will not be offered to employees at other Nissan manufacturing locations in North America. Full e-mail sent to employees is after the jump. – Ray Wert More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=238088&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Jalopnik Road Trip Report: Sevening on the Tail of the Dragon]]> Last weekend, I drove for 32 hours and more than 1,700 miles in the process of making an increasingly popular vehicular pilgrimage. No, not Bowling Green, nor Indy, nor Pebble nor Laguna. There was no factory tour waiting for me at the end of my journey. No concours of priceless Italian bella macchina. Just a $59/night motel and some of the best damn driving roads in the US of A. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=213625&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Towing Corruption in Tennessee]]> Buddy Frazier, Jr., owner of of Chattanooga, TN's Absolute Towing and Recovery, has been busted on numerous counts of auto theft as well as charges relating to running "a shady business," according to Chattanooga authorities. Frankly, every tow yard we've ever dealt with seemed like a shady business to us. We hope they convict you and throw away the key, Frazier. It's punks like you who've ruined it for reputable, fair and decent tow-yard operators everywhere. Then again, we've never met one of those, so we're not quite sure they exist. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=199257&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[The Speed-Trappiest Towns in the USA]]> If one Sheriff R.P. Coltrane ever finally runs permanently afoul of a certain Jefferson Davis Hogg, it would behoove him to look for employment in one of the cities listed after the jump. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=184749&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Kickin' it Like St. George on the Dragon: Tennessee's Public Nurburgring]]> According to a mysterious man known only as El Tonito, every year, especially around the time of the Honda Hoot, motorists and motorcyclists converge on the Tail of the Dragon, a section of US 129 south of Knoxville that features 300 turns in 11 miles, no doubt in search of the ultimate in brake and tire burnination, and possibly leaving a beefy arm or two on the side of the road. We feel like the only way to truly enjoy this section of road is on a consummate V-twin while smoking cigarettes hand-rolled from loose-leaf and sparked up by a BMW lighter. And the Trogdor comes in the NIIIIIIIIGHT! More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=183112&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Honda Throws a Hoot, Everyone Shows Up]]> Bikes of all sortsa stripes have descended upon Knoxville, TN for the Honda Hoot, a rally that's flooded the street and side roads with all manner of motorcycles from ring-dings to rumblers. The Honda people even set up a showing of On Any Sunday, the 1972 film that had tons of kids off popping wheelies on Stingrays, and is often credited with inspiring the invention of BMX. We wish we had a Mini-Trail 50 right about now. Man oh man, do we ever. [Thanks to CTE for the tip] More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=183020&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Viva Nissanvegas: Japanese Automaker's New TN HQ]]> Carlist's got a bit up on Nissan's new Nashville headquarters. While many critics of Mr. Bean Ghosn are decrying the move, and 60% of the company's California employees have decided they'd rather switch than fight, the Volunteer State's bullish on the move, saying that for every new headquaters job at the French-controlled automaker, 10 new jobs will be created downstream. Still, while Gardena's no Pedro, at least it's close to Pedro. And we'll take the home of the Minutemen over the home of hackneyed pop-country any day of the week. Cue "Three Car Jam" and drop the hammer. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=182834&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[The Jalopnik Morning Shift]]> • Oil prices are too high, the environment's gettin' worse — and that's just why this man wants to make it easier for Big Oil to pollute. Well — to be fair — he did wait until after Earth Day. [Detroit News] More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=169661&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Autoextremist on Carlos' Folly]]> You know, we always thought Carlos Ghosn's plan to uproot Nissan North America from Southern California and re-pot it in Tennessee sounded like a risky go. After all, what has Nashville given us of any worth since Hank Sr. and Patsy passed on to the great big Opry in the sky? Meanwhile, SoCal's given us all manner of great stuff Bukowski, X, Black Flag, the Minutemen, dubs, 909ers, Ishtar, etc. Still, Carlos' claim that "most" employees would make the move is turning out to be false. Unless by "most" Mr. Bean's long-lost twin means "less than half." More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=161329&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Meat For Ticket-Dismissal Scandal Rocks Tennessee Highway Patrol]]> Chad Todd of Knoxville, TN is mad. After he dropped a G getting his license reinstated, he was incensed to learn that some people got out of tickets by giving a Tennesee Highway Patrol officer meat. The THP has launched an internal investigation into the matter of corrupt cops and discovered that at least 40 officers are convicted felons. Oops. Thankfully, Tenna State Senator Mark Norris assures people that, "the vast majority of the Highway Patrol is dedicated and competent." Still, even though we've been a vegetarian for over a decade, we're bringing an igloo full of choice cuts with us the next time we've gotta make a quick blast across the Volunteer State. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=144643&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[GM's Spring Hill Plant Teeters on the Brink]]> We remember back when GM's Spring Hill, Tennesee plant opened. In our fourteen years, we couldn't remember more hubbub about the opening of an automobile factory. Nearly sixteen years later, due to total mismanagement of the Saturn brand (whose launch itself pulled badly-needed resources from now-dead Oldsmobile), the plant is at the edge of extinction, with layoffs coming, a line-closure announced and a total shutdown a very real possibility. Now that Saturn seems to be on track to be America's Opel, we ask, "What was the point of the whole adventure in the first place?" More »
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