New and updates relating to the automotive industry.
Alright, so I’ve looked at the SUVs shown at the 2009 New York International Auto Show, and now it’s time for… everything else. Represented here are examples of speed, sluggishness, beauty, and monstrosity. Lots on the menu here (almost too much?), so shall we begin?
Recently I started following the American Le Mans Series. As I wrote in my post about the 12 Hours of Sebring, I was amazed by the vigor and skill required in this sort of racing… but I had no idea what really goes into this, until now. Originally aired during prime time on ESPN a day before Sebring, Audi’s documentary Truth In 24 highlights the legendary victory of Audi over Peugeot in the 2008 24 Hours of Le Mans in a seemingly impossible battle. This film, narrated by Jason Statham, is truly an epic and definitely the most engaging documentary I’ve ever seen. For more of my thoughts on it, continue on into the post.
Ending late last night, the 2009 12 Hours Of Sebring endurance race was won by Audi’s new R15 TDI with a slight 22-second margin over Peugot’s 908 HDI FAP. This was the first endurance race that I have ever followed (at least in periods), and I couldn’t have asked for a better one to watch. I have to concede, I was only really paying attention to the LMP1 and LMP2 classes, as this is where the clear competition was. Some of my observed highlights and more photos of the cars come after the jump, but, wow, what a race this was. I can’t stress that enough.
I love auto shows. Unfortunately, living in the Northeast means I only get out to one a year: the New England International Auto Show in Boston, which occurs each December. When I’m there, I get to praise some things, ridicule others, and just stand completely baffled by yet more. This is what I enjoy most about going to auto shows: the wide and crazy spectrum of desirability that presents itself on the show floor. Luckily, and although it’s not as great as being next to the machines in person, this same spectrum is easily identifiable when reading about and viewing photos from other shows online.
That’s why I’m going to take this opportunity to share my opinions of a couple of the key showings from the 2009 International Geneva Motor Show… because there’s a lot to share. Europe’s biggest show, which is currently open, has some of the best variation, between the awesomely beautiful and the horrifyingly ugly. Here we go.
Back in August, before I took my ridiculously long hiatus from blogging on this site (due to academia), I wrote an article about why I wanted GM to survive. Unfortunately, due to some news late last night, it looks like it’s going to be much harder for my favorite three brands, not to mention the entirety of GM and the other two of the Big Three, to survive. It saddens me, too: just last Friday I was walking the floor of the New England International Auto Show in Boston, looking at the newest of what every automaker had to offer. All I could think while walking through Cadillac, Pontiac, and Saturn (among other American brands) was “there’s too much potential for them to go down.” Due to a certain UAW (that’s United Auto Workers union), the age of the American automaker may be coming to an end as we know it. Why am I so ready to point a finger at the UAW? Read on.
With all the recent announcements of how American car companies are in danger of bankruptcy in coming years, I’ve been thinking more about what the automotive world will lose if that occurs. Specifically, I’ve been considering the cars, and more specifically than that, the cars GM is currently (or will soon be) giving us. At the beginning of July, there was a particularly drastic piece of news concerning GM and the project cost estimates of keeping the automotive giant alive.
My first thought was, “good, finally Buick and Hummer will get what they deserve,” but then I remembered things like these…