Accelerate Mpls

Last week Chrysler introduced the 2011 300C Executive Edition at the New York Auto Show. Chrysler told us this is for the person who wants understated luxury. True luxury. American Luxury. I’ve got to say, it hit the American luxury part on the head. I’m not sure how understated it is, but the lack of chrome does help. Below is a video walkaround from the New York Auto Show.

While Detroit has been down in the dumps for a while, this years auto show definitely shows things might be back on track in the D. Of course it had to snow while everyone was in town, but it gave those from the warmer climates a chance to see what us snow belt state peeps live through on a daily basis.

Some of you will remember that last year I wanted to differentiate myself. I started tweeting pictures of cars with the models and tagged them as #EyeCandy. This quickly became a hot topic. A few of my followers mentioned this year that I was not really tweeting any #EyeCandy and asked why not. The simple answer, there wasn’t any. Few booths had the babes that were in attendance last year. Though Chrysler group and Ferrari still pulled through.

But lets get down the to the product. The new Chrysler 300 looks terrific. In reality, many wondered when they saw the pictures if it can recapture the market that the 300 once had in 2005. Upon seeing the car in real life, I am happy to report that it looks much better in person. The interior really does deliver on the promise that the 300 made back in 2005. American luxury. From the great new Pentastar V6, to the growling Hemi V8 in the 300C, this is American luxury in a rear-wheel drive car.

Another car I was anxious to see in real life was the new Chevrolet Sonic. The Sonic is Chevrolet’s new B-Segment car which will take on the likes of the new Ford Fiesta, Honda Fit, Toyota Yaris and many others. I have to say, while I think the new Sonic is a home run from a styling perspective, I can see how many will not. It will be either a love it or hate it vehicle. From the exposed barrel headlights to the ridiculously short rear overhang and really long front overhang, the styling is nothing short of eye catching. The interior gauge cluster is also interesting, as they actually put into the production model the Aveo RS concept’s gauge cluster. With a racing like analogue tachometer and a digital speedometer, the gauge cluster is more reminiscent of a race car or motorcycle than that of a sub-compact car. Going on sale later this year I can’t wait to get behind the wheel and see how the driving dynamics compare to the competition.

The new A6 has already won a design award without even leaving the show floor. In my opinion the new A6 takes everything that is right with the new A8 and A4 while dropping everything that is wrong with them. Smashing all the good together to make a great looking Audi. The design language has really come together for this car. The interior is terrific and the exterior is eye catching. The optional LED headlights are very intricately designed when inspecting them up close. You will see the new A6 on the road later this year.

I’m not going to really cover the CTS-V Coupe race car but I wanted to make mention of it. Two words come to mind when you walked past it on the turntable, menacing and awesome. Ok, moving on.

Toyota has finally unveiled a larger Prius. The model is called the Prius V. This is especially confusing to some since the regular Prius has trim level packages that are in roman numerals. Right now if you go buy a Prius in the top trim level you are buying a Prius V. Wait, that can’t make sense. So when you buy a top trim level Prius V will you be buying a Prius V V? This is clearly not well thought out. I wonder if Toyota realizes this yet. Maybe someone should send them a note. Regardless, I heard many people comment on how the Prius V rear end has a lot of Honda Fit in it. I can see that. The front, well it looks like a third generation Prius with a few slight tweaks. You’ll still know it’s a Prius. You will see the people mover Prius at a dealership near you in the Summer.

Ah the Honda Civic Concept. Honda waltzed Pete Wentz from Fall Out Boy on stage to talk about the new Civic Concept. Here’s the problem, either Wentz was drunk or he really could care less about being there. He enthusiasm was worse than the new Civic’s styling. He barely stumbled through his words off the teleprompter. Note to Honda: make sure your spokesperson is somewhat excited about your luke warm product.

But getting back to that product, the new Civic Concept looks as if a new Odyssey and the current generation Civic got it on in the back room. That, or a designer of the current Civic got wasted one night, and just took the current Civics lines and tweaked them a little. For a mid-cycle refresh, I am not sure how this will be competitive until 2016 with new competition from Hyundai, Ford and Chevrolet. We will have to wait and see when the new Civic comes out, but I am not holding my breath.

Mercedes had its SLS E-Cell electric car on display. In a word it is blinding. The paint job on this car can literally sear your retinas. Beyond the paint job, it looks fairly identical on the outside to the current SLS. The interior changes a little as most of the gauges and center stack are now LCD screens. This car will go into production, but if you have to ask range or price, you can’t afford it.

I don’t really want to spend much time on the Passat as I’m not sure it deserves it. I’ll reserve final judgement until I drive one. Until then, I’ll say this, Volkswagen is going downmarket to sell more cars. Is that really a good idea? Why alienate all your current customers. People that buy current Passats pay more because they expect to get better quality materials. Cheapening the car for a lower base price is going to hurt your brand image. This is no longer just German engineering, it is German engineering to a price point.

While I skipped Porsches press conference to eat breakfast at my hotel (it was at 6:30 AM), I will say looking at the car in person, it is stunning. Seeing that huge flywheel in the passenger seat, yea. This is how you build a hybrid. It is good to see Porsche looking at new technology for racing. If this car does go into the racing circuit it could change the game. With less fuel stops needed and more power on tap for instant bursts, it could be a whole new era of racing.

At the end of the day I was exhausted. Most journalists were up at 5 AM and didn’t leave the show floor till nearly 8 PM. I ran to nearly every press conference and went through approximately 6,600 milliamps of battery power for my iPhone4. It was a good show with some great product. Not everything was great, but it was a good to see where each automaker is going in 2011.

Full Disclosure- My NAIAS travel and accommodations are being provided by General Motors

Aston Martin DB7 Vantage

Another month, another gathering of man and machine.  Of course I speak of Cars & Café, out at the AutoMotorPlex in Chanhassen.  This month promised, as usual, to be eventful.  I woke up a little early (4:40 am), as I did poor planning.  I had not washed the 300ZX (note to self: next month wash the 300ZX before the morning of Cars & Café). So, I washed the 300ZX and popped off the T-Tops.

As I was cruising out West to meet up with my buddy in his S2000, I saw black sky in front of me – then lightning  – and then I saw a car come over the hill with windshield wipers on (this was not going well).  I hit the gas and made it to his garage with the 300ZX still clean and dry.  We ended up taking his daily driver and leaving the 300ZX and his S2000 there, as it started pouring down rain right after I pulled into the garage.

Upon arriving, it was clear the rain, which was at this point a nice steady rain coming down, had affecte turn out.  Nooooooooo I cried to the car gods.  Luckily some of the cooler rides still managed to show up.  As I was admiring a nice Ford F150 Lightning, I heard something loud pulling into the complex.

I turn to see a true hard core car guy (you would have to be) driving a Cobra in (remember no top) through the rain.  Two Dodge GLH Turbos sat next to each other, both in ridiculously good condition.  I also counted not one but two Nissan 300ZX Twin Turbos (I drooled a little).  Quite a few Acura NSX’s showed up, along with a Lexus IS-F.

Two BMW’s caught my eyes this month.  One was a early 90′s 540i manual white on black with only 28k on the odometer.  The kicker?  It is for sale and they are asking only $25k!

Someone buy that car or buy me that car!  There was also a mid 80′s M6 in fantastic condition that caught my eye., along with an early 2000′s black Audi S8 that is a regular at Cars & Café.  I just love that car!

So good story,  I am walking by the club house and hear tires squealing like a burn out.  I look around and am quite confused.  Suddenly I realize that the sound is coming from behind this building in the VIP section.  I go running through the crowd, and as I turn the corner I almost fall over.

This Lamborghini Miura owner clearly had put the car in reverse instead of first gear (as best I can tell from the situation).  The car had gone backwards off the cement and onto the pebbles directly below.  Part of  the car definitely was resting on the cement.  The tires were squealing and these two guys were pushing the back of the Miura trying to get it back onto the cement.  Finally after a few minutes they accomplished this task, but not before you could smell the clutch and tires.  It was quite a scene.

Also filed in the – ahem – interesting category, was the Toyota Camry Solara parked in the American muscle section.  Hey at least it was on dubs!  Sitting next to that was a Chrysler 300C.  Not just any Chrysler 300C, but one riding on 24′s – and wait – it gets better.

The person had welded extensions (eyebrows?) onto the leading edge of the hood.  You can still see where the person welded and sanded them.  They were not painted yet (I am assuming they are going to paint them….at least I hope so).  Let’s not forget the white Toyota Yaris hatch with lime green wheels.

Jensen

On the list of awesome cars I would include the RUF 911, Aston Martin DB7 Vantage, and a Jensen that showed up.  The red GMC Typhoon that was for sale earlier this year was on hand, along with two Ford GT’s (they are Cars and Cafe regulars).  A new Lotus Evora made the trip, along with a Ford Mustang Shelby Super Snake.

One of the cleaner Oldsmobile 442′s I’ve seen was on site as well.  Obviously I have already mentioned the two Dodge GLH Turbo’s but I want to just mentioned them again in this section of awesome.  Last but not least was the regular BMW 200ti. It is a work in progress, but hot all the same.

One cool thing was this garage that had a Corvette Z06 in it.  Ok that car was nice but you know those bag chairs you take to soccer games and such?  Well they had one of those. and then they had a ginormous one that was literally super sized.  To get a idea of just how big it was they let me sit in it and I got a picture!

Overall the rain really put a damper on the attendance, or at least it felt that way.  With most of the people clearing out before 10 AM, it had to be one of the shortest Cars & Cafés I have attended yet.  Thankfully, the doughnut holes provided by Imola Motorsports stayed dry in the clubhouse.

Yes they were tasty,and yes I ate some.  Just for the record, doughnut holes always seems to taste better when they are delivered in a BMW M5.  I can not prove that, but that seems to be my experience.  Here’s hoping for a dry Cars & Café next month!

2011 Chrysler 300 Interior

Dates have been leaked out onto Allpar, a site devoted to all things Chrysler past and present, with the production start dates for many of the new or refreshed Chrysler/Dodge/Ram/Jeep models.

Things to note:

• The LX based cars now have the same date as each other
• It was originally stated that production of the new Charger and 300C would be staggered and now they are pegged to enter production simultaneously
• The Wrangler date has also been moved up slightly
• Rumors now peg the 200C name plate to be replacing the Sebring name
• The Avenger name may soldier on for the Dodge counterpart

Production Start Dates:

2010 Viper – March 29

2011 Ram Chassis Cab – April 5

2011 Grand Cherokee – May 10

2011 Ram 1500/2500 – July 5 (one plant; second plant for Ram 1500 starts July 26)

2011 Caliber, Dakota, Liberty, Nitro – July 26

2011 Wrangler – August 16

2011 Jeep Patriot – October 4

2011 Dodge CUV (Durango replacement, possibly Magnum) – November 8

2011 Journey, Ram 1500 Hybrid – November 16

2011 Avenger  (Sebring?) – November 18

2011 Minivans – November 22

2011 Charger, Challenger, 300 – November 30

2011 Jeep Compass, 2012 Fiat 500 – December 13

2011 Dodge Charger Gauge Cluster

Source- AllPar

The better part of yesterday journalists spent over 6 hours in a Chrysler press conference listening to their detailed plans for the coming 5-years.  Of course most of the people there, including Ray Wert from Jalopnik, were live tweeting all the information for our viewing pleasure.  We now know what will be coming out from Chrysler and can start evaluating the actions they are taking to achieve their plans.  Seems the twitterverse started doing that immediately.  So what exactly happened?  Below I will touch on the highlights.

Ram-

Ram will no longer be known just as the full size pick-up name plate.  Instead it will be known as the truck line of Chrysler vehicles.  All trucks going forth in the future will be known as Ram.  The brand is going to appeal to the commercial side of business.

• Dakota will be dead after 2011
• A new midsize unibody truck is under consideration to replace the Dakota in 2012
• Light duty full size pick up (current Ram) major refresh in 2012
• Heavy duty full size pick up (current Ram Heavy Duty) major refresh in 2012
• Chassis cab pick up (current Ram chassis cab) major refresh in 2012
• New large and small commercial vans from Fiat come branded as Ram’s.

Jeep-

They said Jeep is going “back to its roots”.  What that means is yet to be seen.

• Small SUV based off a Fiat comes in 2013
• Current Compass gets refresh (mostly interior) for 2010
• Current Patriot gets refresh (mostly interior) for 2010
• Compass and Patriot merge into one new small CUV in 2013
• Wrangler to get major refresh 2010/2011
• Liberty gets a mild refresh in 2010 and will be replaced in 2013 with a Fiat SUV
• Commander will probably be killed off after 2010
• Brand new Grand Cherokee in 2010

2011 Grand Cherokee coming in 2010

Fiat-

• 500 coming in 2010 as coupe, convertible, and hot Abarth form
  

  Fiat 500 Abarth

Chrysler-

Supposed to be up market and have style with class.  This will remain to be seen.

• Town & Country will get a major overhaul in 2010
• Brand new 300/300C in 2010
• All new crossover coming in 2013
• Sebring will get refresh in 2010.
• Brand new Sebring in 2013. Unknown if it will retain the Sebring name.
• The PT Cruiser is finally being killed after 2010. No seriously, this time they are for real.
• Brand new compact sedan will arrive in 2012
• Brand new small car will arrive in 2013 that will come from Fiat

Dodge-

• Full size CUV arrives in 2010 most likely the next Durango based off of the new Jeep Grand Cherokee
• Grand Caravan gets major refresh in 2010 with a all new model in 2014
• Brand new Charger will arrive in 2010
• Challenger will receive a mild refresh in 2011
• Viper is being killed summer of 2010.  All new Viper arrives in 2012
• Nitro gets refresh in 2011 and the future is uncertain going on from that
• Journey gets a refresh in 2010
• Avenger gets a refresh in 2010 with a all new model arriving in 2013
• Brand new compact sedan arrives in 2012
• Caliber is killed after 2012 and will receive a mild interior refresh next month
• Brand new small car arrives in 2013 based off a Fiat

Engines/Transmissions-

• Fiat 1.4 liter Multiair in Fiat 500 in 2010
• Fiat 1.4 liter Multiair turbo in Fiat 500 in 2011
• Phase out quickly all 4-speed transmissions
• Pentastar V6 debuts in new Grand Cherokee.  Will spread across the line over time
• Pentastar V6 turbo/twin turbo coming in late 2010/early 2011
• Start/stop technology to debut in Jeep Wrangler diesel in late 2010
• Dual clutch transmission debuts in late 2010
• Diesel engines coming late 2010/early 2011

Ram will keep the current ram’s head as the logo.  Dodge’s logo will be Dodge spelled out in black and red.  Chrysler is receiving a new logo which looks very similar to the Aston Martin logo.  Fiat and Jeep will retain their current logos.  It has been confirmed a 6.4 liter Hemi is coming, and will have 450 hp.  Also confirmed is next year the Sebring, 300, PT Cruiser, and the Town & Country will all have special editions next year before the refreshed models (or in the PT Cruisers case, dies) hit the showrooms.  The PT Cruisers special edition, fittingly, will be “Final Edition”.  The 300C will have a “sport” edition while the Sebring’s special edition will be known as “Ocean Edition”.  The Town & Country’s special edition will be a “Fashion Edition”.  Also shown were two photos of the next Dodge Charger.  One photo was the new gauge cluster while the other was of the side of the car looking from the rear fender.  The photo of the outside looks very similar to the 1999 Dodge Charger RT concept car.  The major take aways from the announcement is that maybe Fiat did know what they were getting into and possibly, just maybe, Chrysler could turn out to be on the right course.  The above is a lot to accomplish in a small amount of time so time will tell how this “plan” turns out.

2011 Dodge Charger

2011 Dodge Charger Gauge Cluster

1999 Dodge Charger RT Concept