Autoblog

Yep, that's Jeremy Clarkson talking up the Chrysler Sebring convertible in his column for The Sunday Times today. What, you expected anything less than a wholesale evisceration? Clarkson weighing in on the astoundlingly sub-par Sebring is pretty much the motor-journalistic equivalent of using a Stinger missile to take out your kid's SpongeBob birthday piñata. It didn't stand a chance.

The laughs come early and often as the Chrysler gets mercilessly worked over like one of Mike Tyson's sparring partners in the '80s, but be forewarned: by the time Jezza puts down his pen, America's Number One Fan has managed to work in AIG, Lehman Brothers and the Iraq war as he slips in his obligatory jabs at the country, which the Chrysler becomes symbolic of.

The way Clarkson sees it, quality sucks in the Sebring and other American cars because we Americans have no sense of history and are thus incapable of planning for the future (by making something built to last). Whatever -- he's entitled to his opinion. Speaking for myself, I can deal with the crappy Sebring in the grand scheme of things; that's a miniscule tradeoff for having something to celebrate on July 4th. Besides, it's not all tea and cookies in the former motherland, anyway...


[Source: TimesOnline | Tip: Kris]

This week, Detroit got its $25B bailout loan approved by Washington, and according to The Wall Street Journal, European carmakers are making like this is a game of "Simon Says." The Journal reports that Fiat has proposed the idea of hitting up the European Commission for €40 billion ($55B USD) to help the European auto industry make the move to cleaner, greener cars ahead of the strict new emissions regulations currently being bandied about. Like we said, this rationale is very similar to the one Motown used to get its money.

Fiat's grand idea was presented to other automakers at the ACEA meeting on Friday, and according to a spokesman for the automaker, "All European carmakers agree on the [€40 billion] demand." What a shocker. Said demand hasn't been formally made to EC bigwigs yet, but the lobbying is obviously well underway.

[Source: The Wall Street Journal]

In the wake of Paul Newman's passing just over a week ago, we've seen countless, wonderful tributes to the man written from different points of view. He's remembered as an actor, a colleague, a racer, and most importantly, a towering philanthropist. One of the best non-written remembrances, however, comes from the mouth of David Letterman, who paid respect to Newman in one of his monologues on The Late Show last week.

The whole thing's worth watching, but at around 3:45 in, Dave gets to the story about when Newman called him up one day and talked him into buying a custom Volvo wagon (a 960) with a supercharged Ford V8 underhood. You see, Newman was having one made and was very pumped up about it, so he asked if Dave wanted one, too. And you know, how do you say no to Paul Newman? Dave recounts the whole affair beautifully, and of course, it's also funny.

After you watch the clip, head over to Swedespeed, where in 2003 they profiled a third car just like the ones built for Newman and Letterman, with even more background about Newman's car and what went into the build. This is the very definition of "sleeper."

[Source: The Sheila Variations]

Last week, our heroes survived magic napalm, chased a Spanish babe who inflicted curb rash on a Spyker, and we learned Mike has amnesia of sorts. Then, to mask Mike's identity, they faked his death, gave him no plastic surgery, and let him take on the name used by his dad. Yeah, we're sure he'll stay really low-profile that way.

Anyway, tonight:

"Journey to the End of Knight". Mike infiltrates a racing gang with the help of an old army buddy; Sarah and KITT join him.

It's after the jump, kids.

Late Sunday night, Mazda issued a press release from the mothership in Japan touting the arrival of the new home-market AZ-Wagon kei car. Those of you who paid attention to Autoblog last week may be experiencing twinges of deja vu as you look at the enclosed photos. Yes, you have seen this car before: the new Mazda AZ-Wagon is simply a rebadged version of the new Suzuki Wagon R, just like it was before. The regular AZ-Wagon is the standard Wagon R, while the AZ-Wagon Custom Style (above) is the Wagon R Stingray. We'd happily sign up for one, but alas, Mazda's Stateside rebadge-o-rama is limited to the Tribute and B-Series.


[Source: Mazda]

Many thanks to Autoblog reader Aaron, who appears to have been in the presence of printed materials pertaining to the 2010 Nissan Cube, which is set to be unveiled next month at the LA Auto Show. Aaron captured the moment with his camera phone, and thus, we have what may be the first unofficial official look at the U.S.-market Cube's design. Or it could be something else entirely, but it sure doesn't look that way. Up front, the new headlamps and grille form a thin line above the front bumper, giving the boxy little dude a face we expect to see start talking at any given moment. Follow the jump for more analysis, and check out the scans in the gallery below.


[Source: Aaron]

And now, a brief public service announcement and reminder. The Garage419 Invitational takes place exactly four weeks from today at Grand Prix New York in Mt. Kisco, NY. All proceeds from the event benefit benefit Racing4Research and the Children's Tumor Foundation, as they work to raise awareness and find a cure for neurofibromatosis. I'm driving in the pro-am-style kart event with Garage419 fan Mike Duffy, and you can make a tax-deductible donation in support of us (or any of the other participating driver teams) by punching in your credit card number on the online donation form. We'd like to help raise as much as possible for the charity. Autoblog readers are legion, and you guys can definitely make a significant impact. Remember, no donation is too small!

If you're in the area, feel free to swing by, say hi, and be a part of the festivities, which we hear will include a car show out in the parking lot and some sort of opportunity to get onto one of three driver teams being held open until race day. It'll be a good time for a good cause, and we appreciate your support.

Click above for a gallery of possible 2010 Audi A8 images

The Audi A8 is understated and elegant...but its design is a little long in the tooth. It stays as is for model year 2009, but a significant revision is due for 2010, and we should expect to see that car unveiled sometime during the upcoming show season. Thanks the Gulf4Cars forum, we might have our first look at what to expect. Our Arabic's a little rusty, so we don't know where these scans (at least they appear to be scans) came from, but they look fairly solid, so let's comment on what we can see.


[Source: Gulf4Cars]

MotoringFile, ground zero on the web for all things MINI, has the scoop on the long-awaited 2009 MINI Cooper Convertible. Someone slipped MF seven official shots of the Detroit-bound R57 Cooper ragtop along with some additional inside information. Obviously, it's based on the current chassis and powertrains, so you know what you're going to get there. Additionally, the JCW package is supposedly going to be available at launch as well.

One of the most obvious visual changes in the new convertible is the use of pop-up roll hoops instead of the fixed units featured on the old car. This, in addition to looking cleaner, should improve rearward visibility with the top down. Speaking of the top being down, the new car includes a cutesy little gimmick called the 'Always Open" gauge. Located next to the tach housing, it tells the driver the percentage of miles driven with the top open. Look also for new paint and top colors outside, plus a new black chrome interior trim package inside. MotoringFile says we'll see the car in showrooms come Spring 2009. Look for more info on the new MINI convertible as we get closer to the Detroit Auto Show. In the meantime, hit up MotoringFile for their full preview report. Thanks to Gabriel for the heads-up.


[Source: MotoringFile]

As of today, Suzuki has a new Wagon R on the market in Japan. It's joined by a new Wagon R Stingray variant (above) as well, and the duo will set about filling the shoes of their bestselling predecessors. The new Wagon Rs don't lose their signature boxiness, but they wear all-new sheetmetal and sit on a longer wheelbase. The standard Wagon R gets a friendly face with large, tall headlamps, while the sportier-themed Wagon R Stingray gets a chrome grille strip that runs between its thinner, horizontal lamps.

The rest follows the standard kei-car formula. Darker, more masculine colors characterize the Stingray, while the Wagon R clearly includes women in its target audience, sporting a color palette loaded with the lighter solids and pastels. Normally-aspirated and turbocharged 660cc engines are offered, mated to either 4- or 5-speed automatics or a CVT, depending on trim level. The turbocharged Stingray with CVT even gets paddle shifters to give drivers complete control over the 64 ponies corraled underhood. A snazzier, dark interior with some nifty lighting is also available in the Stingray.

Suzuki hopes to sell 18,000 new Wagon Rs every month, and if the previous generation showed us anything, we can expect to see a variety of spinoff models over time.



[Source: Suzuki]