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Oil Prices Drop 10% After House Rejects $700 Billion Bailout Bill

| суббота, 3 октября 2009 г.

Yesterday, after the House of Representatives rejected the $700 billion dollar bailout plan designed to rescue the U.S. finance industry, the Dow Jones plunged a record 700 points - the biggest single-digit loss in history. There was, however, an unexpected bonus to the defeat that went largely unnoticed amid the chaos: the price of crude oil dropped an entire 10%. Following a trend sparked last week when U.S. November crude dropped 11.8%, yesterday November crude reached a session low of $95.04 a barrel, the second biggest drop since April 23, 2003.

The price of crude oil began taking a [relative] nose dive last week, and within the past seven days has fallen a total of $25 per barrel, or 20% overall. Today, however, the New York Mercantile Exchange recorded a $1.31 increase for November crude, elevating it to $97.68 a barrel. Market analysts don’t believe the slight upswing is indicative of a growing trend, and actually predict that crude oil will fall to $80 a barrel through the course of the next six months - possibly even falling as low as $60 a barrel.

What this means to you: Now, it won’t be quite so costly to refuel the vehicle you and your family will be living out of shortly.

[News Sources: CNNMoney.com & AutoNews.com]



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First “Entry Level” Ferrari California Sold For $500k

| среда, 30 сентября 2009 г.

Although not scheduled to make its first official appearance until next week at the Paris auto show, the first “baby” Ferrari California was sold at an auction recently for nearly double its projected retail value. Hosted by California Governantor Arnold Schwarzenegger, the auction was held to benefit the After School All Stars program, an initiative which dispenses funds to underprivileged school children. Held in both Maranello, Italy and Santa Monica, California, the charity event successfully hauled in a significant chunk of change for California’s disenfranchised demographic, ultimately awarding the coveted pre-production baby Ferrari to the highest bidder for an estimated $520,000. Since it’s for a good cause, I’ll refrain from making any of the usual remarks about the obviously insignificant size of the buyer’s genitals.[News Source: Auto Unleashed]



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Man Slapped With Littering Fine After Throwing Beer Can Out Car Window, With Video Bonus

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In Mississippi Mills, police officers stopped a man under the suspicion of driving under the influence after a can of beer was tossed from the window. According to the OttoawaCitizen.com, the Lanark County officers had been monitoring traffic with a radar gun when Terry Samek drove past, throwing an open container of beer from his window. Apparently, the open container landed right in front of the cruiser. Astutely observing that Samek could possibly be driving drunk, the officers pursued the vehicle. When Samek was finally pulled over a short distance away, he was charged with littering and having an open container of alcohol in his motor vehicle.

Not specifically related to the above story, but an oldie but goodie in the world of funny DUI videos.



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Ford, Toyota Call Shenanigans On “The Check Is In The Mail” Excuse

| понедельник, 28 сентября 2009 г.


Cash flow shortage going to make paying the bills this month a tight squeeze? Well better put your car payment right up there between “rent” and “light bill”, because new technology can confirm for that collections agent whether you really mailed that check or not. According to Auto News, the finance arms of Ford and Toyota are adopting the same encoding technology as the online movie rental company, Netflix, to begin tracking your finance payments as soon as they hit the post office.

With computers created by DST Output of Kansas City, Missouri, bar codes embedded in the payment stubs/return envelopes are scanned and recorded as soon as the tender is processed at the post office. Conversely, the system also records all outgoing mail, tracking the status of each statement mailed to Ford or Toyota lease customers. Besides providing a more efficient system for the company, the DST tracking also does the customers a service too. If complications at the post office prevented the timely arrival of payment, DST is aware of it. Explained DST vice president Mury Salls, “We could actually identify which statements got delivered in the flooded Midwest a couple months back. We also knew which statements were waiting to be delivered and which ones were in a post office under six feet of water.” Essentially guaranteeing that responsible borrowers don’t suffer for corporate mistakes, the scanning technology also allows the auto lenders to better identify more aggressively pursue delinquent accounts.



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GM Mans Up, Prepares To Launch New HUMMER H3T

| суббота, 26 сентября 2009 г.

2009 HUMMER H3T

After effectively scaring off what few prospective buyers they had left by publicly placing HUMMER in the stocks, GM has apparently grown a pair and decided to finish what they started. Although they haven’t completely ruled out the possibility of selling off the line, GM has committed themselves to an aggressive new marketing campaign aimed at promoting the release of the new HUMMER H3T pick-up truck. Said HUMMER general manager Martin Walsh, “Launching the H3T is valuable to us whether we opt to keep the brand or not.”

GM admits that rising gas prices and lagging truck sales will make the HUMMER H3T a difficult sale, but they are willing to forge ahead regardless. Scheduled to begin in October 2008 and run through 2009, Walsh explained that the campaign’s primary focus will be “…communicat[ing] to the prospective purchaser that we’ve got a pickup truck.”

Careful not to tread in uncharted waters, traditional media ads will aim the HUMMER H3T at 30-something males who average an annual income of around $90,000 and are heavily into outdoor sports/activities. The ads, which are still in the development stage, will push the HUMMER H3T has a vehicle that will allow the extreme sports enthusiast access to areas traditional off-road vehicles wouldn’t while simultaneously offering the utility of a full-size, 4×4 pick-up truck.

<a href='<object width=\"425\" height=\"344\"><param name=\"movie\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/bV65Z7p2Xy8&hl=en&fs=1\"></param><param name=\"allowFullScreen\" value=\"true\"></param><embed src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/bV65Z7p2Xy8&hl=en&fs=1\" type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" width=\"425\" height=\"344\"></embed></object>‘ >One of our favorites, the HUMMER \"Soap Box\" ad</a></p><p>[News Source: <a href="http://www.autonews.com/article/20080818/ANA09/675841241/-1/MARKETING">Automotive News</a>]</p><p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/Ride-Lust?a=SNxSTY"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/Ride-Lust?i=SNxSTY" border="0"></img></a></p>



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Ralph Gilles Is Bringing Sexy Back To Chrysler LLC, From The Inside Out

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Chrysler ecoVoyager Concept

Chrysler ecoVoyager Concept

Ralph Gilles, Chrysler LLC’s new design chief, announced that he plans to lead Chrysler in a more “organic” direction. Steering [sorry] away from the blunt edges and raw masculinity of vehicles like the Dodge “Man Wagon” Magnum and the Dodge Nitro, Gilles says consumers can look towards the Dodge Zeo and Chrysler ecoVoyager for future design cues.

Dodge Zeo Electric Concept Car

Dodge Zeo Electric Concept Car

Prior to assuming the role of design chief, Gilles sat at the helm of Chrysler’s interior design team. Admittedly, one of his first priorities is distancing Chrysler from their reputation for bland, plastic interiors. With the 2009 Dodge Ram 1500, Gilles believes he has successfully taken the first step in the right direction.

2009 Dodge Ram 1500 Photo Gallery after jump

In addition to the 2009 Dodge Ram 1500, both the 2009 Jeep Compass and 2009 Jeep Patriot can also serve as a sneak peak of the cosmetic overhaul that is to come. Besides upgrading interior quality, another top priority of Gilles will be to bring a sleeker, subtler styling to the Chrysler line as a whole. According to Gilles, their main goal will be “getting our cars to be sexy again.”

[Source: Automotive News]



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Hydrogen-Powered Honda Clarity Stopped For Speeding, We Admit To Being Heavily Skeptical

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<i>Photo Source: Blueweeds.com</i>

Photo Source: Blueweeds.com

From Falls Church, Virginia: this week, city councilman Dan Szu was pulled over for traveling over three times the legal limit in his hyrdogen-powered Honda Clarity. When the officer who stopped him realized what Szu was driving, he offered to let Szu off with a warning, but Szu insisted upon being issued a citation. The reason for his bizarre behavior? Said Szu, “People are not about to take a hyrdogen car seriously, until it gets treated like a real car.”

Read Original Story: Blueweeds



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Mercedes-Benz: Circling The Wagons

| понедельник, 7 сентября 2009 г.

Mercedes-Benz, German luxury automaker, has reluctantly revealed its plans for production cut-back at its Vance, Alabama-based production facility. The plant, which employs about 4,000, is primarily responsible for the manufacture of Mercedes’ GL and M-Class SUVs as well as, more recently, the R-class crossover. Effective beginning in August, the reductions include “extended shutdowns” during the holiday season and various modifications to shift length/occurrence.

Largely tight-lipped in regards to plan specifics, a spokeswoman for the plant answered inquiries about motivating factors by saying, “Obviously, we made this decision to stay competitive and guarantee our long-term success.” Admirably, Mercedes has managed to remain largely unscathed by fluctuations in the market and economy since the birth of it’s United States production 11 years ago.

[Source: Automotive News]



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