Say it Ain’t So: Aston Martin and Rolls-Royce Among Clunkers Casualities?

Clunker?

The official Cash for Clunkers website has released a list of cars that were traded in on the program, and some the vehicles on the list are downright shocking.

Most are not… there are at least 60,000 Ford Explorers on the list, most of them from the early to mid-90s, though a couple of 2008 models were turned in.

But check out these cars that were on the list, and keep in mind that the law requires the engines of these vehicles to be permanently disabled. Try not to weep:

• 1997 Aston Martin DB7 Volante (I found one for sale here for just $69,500. )
• 2006 Audi A4 Cabriolet Quattro (OK, so it’s not a supercar, but still…)
• 1992 BMW 850i (For sale here for $24K.)
• 1987 Buick GNX (Only 547 were ever built.)
• 2007-2008 Chrysler 300 AWD (There were 3 of these.)
• 1987 Excalibur Autos Phaeton (No joke, but still hard to believe.)
• 2000 Jaguar XK8 convertible (I would’ve gladly paid that guy 5 grand for his car rather than see it killed just to get $4,500 off a Hyundai.)
• 1985 Maserati Quattroporte (You just don’t junk a Maserati.)
• 2005 Mazda RX8 (Still worth about $15K)
• 1997 Rolls-Royce Continental R (Ever heard the words “Rolls-Royce” and “clunker” in the same sentence?)
• 2008 Scion xD (Wait a minute. This thing is rated at 29 mpg, for one thing. Secondly, it’s still worth about $16K. How’d this one slip through?)

You can see the full list here, but I’m warning you, it’s got everything. Corvette and Camaro fans may want to stay away.

Would you have taken any of these cars off owners’ hands before they were sent to the crusher?

-tgriffith

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How General Motors Is Already Screwing Up

GMC Acadia: Coming next year as a Denali

One of the great things about being an auto blogger is that I get to pick apart what companies are doing wrong without having the responsibility to come up with a way to make it right.

That said, I have had my share of great ideas and am pretty sure I’d do a reasonably good job of running a car company, mostly because I seem to have something GM lacks: common sense.

Here’s my proof: I read an article today saying that GM is planning a Denali version of the Acadia.

At first that might not seem so odd, since there was also a Denali Envoy. But dig a little deeper and find out that the Buick Enclave is based on the same platform as the Acadia and serves as the more luxurious sibling.

So an Acadia in Denali dress will be a fancier Acadia… just like the Enclave is a fancier Acadia.

Umm… so much for consolidation, I guess.

In other wacked-out GM news, the company announced a concept that would serve to compete with “boxy” entries like the Honda Element and Scion xB. While it’s only a concept, GM officials have indicated they feel the need for a “premium” offering in the segment.

But there isn’t a need for a premium boxy vehicle. They are called “econoboxes” for a reason. Making a premium econobox would be like offering a premium version of Chiclets - utterly pointless and equally as ridiculous.

Is GM going back to old habits, or have you seen evidence of a real turnaround?

-tgriffith

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How Are the Green Bay Packers Like General Motors?

Sen. Alexander plugs in his Prius

It’s not every day that one of our blog posts gets the attention of a U.S. Senator.

A post yesterday mentioned Sen. Lamar Alexander’s Auto Stock for Every Taxpayer Act, a plan to distribute GM and Chrysler stock free to American taxpayers. That post resulted in an invite to a conference call with the Senator this morning to discuss his plan (the full 16-minute phone call is below).

At the beginning of the call, Sen. Alexander got my attention by likening his plan to the Green Bay Packers, an NFL team owned by its fans. Under the Senator’s plan, the 120 million Americans who filed tax returns for 2008 would become owners of GM and Chrysler. Or as he put it:

120 million Americans who have a vested interested in their success.

While this proposed act is mostly a gimmicky political stunt, it’s a nice thought.

When I first heard about this plan, I was all for it, though admittedly only for the slight possibility that I might get some monetary gain. I have to assume the majority of Americans would be like me, since most of us were against saving GM and Chrysler in the first place. Give us free stock, and we’ll sell it as soon as we can to generate some free cash.

Of course a mass sell-off of stock might cause the value of the companies to plummet and could lead right back into bankruptcy court, only this time as a natural consequence of the free market rather than being forced into it by the government.

As a right-wing Republican, letting the free market decide GM and Chrysler’s fate is Sen. Alexander’s ultimate intent.

Getting back to the Senator’s football reference, here’s the difference between the Packers and GM/Chrysler: Packers stockholders are passionate and dang-near rabid supporters of their team. I’m not convinced American stockholders of GM and Chrysler would feel the same.

If you had free stock in GM and Chrysler, would you hang onto it or sell it as soon as it was worth money?

-tgriffith

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The Most Satisfying New Cars

What makes a car satisfying? According to AutoPacific’s recently published 2009 Vehicle Satisfaction Awards, a car is deemed satisfying if the owner would recommend it to a friend. Makes sense to me! They surveyed 25,000 new-car buyers and asked them that question. The results are below. If your car’s missing and you want to recommend it to your fellow CarGurus, let us hear it!

Most satisfying cars

Most satisfying trucks

There you have it! There are a couple of winners that make me wonder if someone, somewhere got paid off. The Dodge Nitro? Seriously? I rented one once and was tempted to drive it into a river and claim it was stolen, just so the next person would be spared driving it.

What car(s) do you drive? Would you recommend it to your friends?

-tgriffith

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Jay Leno’s Advice to Car Collectors

Jay Leno writes a column for Popular Mechanics that you may have read, especially if you have an interest in classic or collectible cars. In addition to his comedic talents, Jay is of course one of the great car enthusiasts, and his thoughts are always worth reading. For the May issue, he talked about what makes cars collectible and which ones might be valuable in the future.

The gist is:

• Buy cars you like; don’t buy them as an investment.
• Buy cars that are simple, like the original Miata; technically innovative, like the first Prius; or styling breakthroughs, like the first-generation Taurus.
• Buy styling goofs, like the Aztek, or popular “nerd cars” like the AMC Pacer and Gremlin.
• Buy cars that will generate nostalgia: the Cadillac CTS-V with standard 6-speed, or the Hummer (“the ’59 Cadillac of 2025”).
• Avoid all newer Ferraris, which will cost you an arm and a leg to repair.

1988 Buick Reatta

Now we’ll add our two cents. First, don’t just jump in, but get smart about the car collecting field and investigate current values. It’s easy to get burned.

There are lots of online and print resources you can rely on—e.g., blogs like Duffy’s Collectible Cars, print mags like Hemmings Motor News, Automobile Quarterly, and Collectible Automobile, and sites with pricing info like NADA’s Classic Car Pricing, which gives data on collectibles, special interest cars, exotic and muscle cars, etc. Listed are cars from Alfas and Allards to Zimmers.

1990 Mazda Miata

Implicit in Jay’s advice is another admonition: Buy newer cars and wait for the value to accrue. Unless you’ve got lots of cash, leave the early Cobras and the Packards to the pros. The collectible market is like any other: Right now, it’s mostly in decline, except for the really high-end cars, but that doesn’t mean it’s a bad time to buy. Here’s one collector’s list of collectibles over the past 25 years.

Trust your instincts and your research!

Have you ever bought a “collectible car,” either because you loved it or because you thought it would appreciate? Tell us about it.

—jgoods

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Will Toyota Cut Prius’ Price or Let Honda Insight Be Cheapest Hybrid?

2010 Honda Insight

Looks like Honda is changing the dynamics of the hybrid wars.

The new Honda Insight, priced in the States at just over $19K, comes in well below the Toyota Prius’ starting price of nearly $23K.

Rumors are beginning to circulate that Toyota will cut the price on the current Prius to match the Insight’s, but there has been no confirmation of that from the bigwigs at Toyota.

Is a lower price on the way for Prius?

A price reduction sure makes sense to me, as the Prius’ reign as king of the hybrids is being challenged by the Insight and the new Ford Fusion hybrid. The other option Toyota has is to stuff all the technology it can into the Prius and hope buyers see the value and fork over more money for it.

That’s a tactic we know will happen, as the third-generation Prius is expected to offer, among other things, a solar panel on the roof that will power fans to keep the car cool when parked in the sun. I’m guessing that’ll be a popular feature among celebs in Los Angeles! (You can check out the third-generation Prius here.)

It’s also possible that Toyota will offer the Prius in two versions: one that is essentially the current model with a lower price that matches the Insight’s, and one with technology and safety upgrades priced at a premium.

One thing is for sure: Selling hybrids is going to become more difficult as competition stiffens and more diesels enter the market.

What do you think: Buy a hybrid or skip the hype?

-tgriffith

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You’re not a man unless you drive one of these

For as much flack as girly cars catch, at least they’re functional and reliable. Owning them makes sense, because they serve a purpose and are usually quite practical.

Manly cars, though, can be placed in one of two categories: fast or powerful. If a car fits in both, it gives up all practicality and serves only to fuel our flow of testosterone.

Here are some of the “manliest” cars in existence right now:

This one’s for the guys who feel like they need an extra boost of manliness, an extra touch of toughness. Sure, if you own a construction business, you might need one. Odds are, though, men buy these trucks because they feel big and strong in them.

Don’t confuse this with any version of the H2 and especially not with the H3, which borders on girly. The H1 though, as wasteful and as pointless as it is, still creates a sense of masculinity, and I’ve yet to meet a guy who will admit to not wanting one.

Men are simple creatures. If it’s sexy and fast, we’re interested. The Viper is especially desirable because it’s sexy, fast AND hard to get.

Sometimes a guy wants to show he likes speed, power and class. The only reason to buy an M5 is because it goes faster than the neighbor’s 535i.

A throwback to the 60’s here… nothing says “I think I’m cool” than a white T-shirt, blue jeans, sunglasses and a ’69 Goat.

It has 1,001 horsepower. If men didn’t exist, neither would this car.

When a guy thinks about buying a car, he knows that he SHOULD buckle down and buy the Kia minivan. But given the choice, he’ll spring for the H1 every time. Come on, guys, you know I’m right.

What do you think is the ultimate manly car?

-tgriffith

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