William Maley

William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com August 20, 2013 Sometimes, you get very lucky when taking spy shots. Case in point, new spy shots came out today revealing the face of the upcoming 2015 Mustang. The shots show the new Mustang sharing almost the same figure as the Ford Evos concept. The front has an athletic stance and features such touches as slimmer headlights and a hexagonal grille. The 2015 Mustang is expected to debut next year Source: Automobile Magazine William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster. View full article

William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com August 20, 2013 The Cadillac Elmiraj concept made quite the splash last week at Pebble Beach with a number of people talking about it. It could be that the Elmiraj could make the transfer from show car to production car. Automotive News had the chance to speak with Cadillac's senior vice president of global operations, Bob Ferguson. Ferguson said that the Elmiraj “is very doable." "Sometimes you go through these exercises to make a design statement. This car is marketable. It's practical enough to be put through the production process," said Ferguson. "Our dealers really want a vehicle like this." If given the green light, the Elmiraj would likely appear sometime after Cadillac's new RWD flagship is introduced. Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required) William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster. View full article

Maybe they could bring back Sterling.. No wait, bad idea.

William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com August 19, 2013 Scion has billed itself as being the offbeat, youth oriented brand in the Toyota group. So it comes as a bit of surprise to find out that Scion currently has 1,100 dealers across the U.S. - 200 fewer than Toyota. Considering Scion's small lineup and declining sales over the past few years, this isn't good news. With all of these factors in play, it doesn't come as a surprise that Toyota's US group vice president, Bill Fay said to Wards Auto that Scion's dealer network "might actually go down a little bit." Then this week, a Texas dealer told Automotive News that Toyota will allow dealers to stop selling Scion with no repercussions. "If you don't want Scion, if it doesn't work for you, it's OK if you want to walk away," the dealer said. How did so many dealers end up with Scion? They wanted a piece of the massive sales success the brand was experiencing in the first few years. In 2006, Scion moved 173,034 units, well above the niche-level sales the brand was projecting at time. But since then, sales have been falling. Total sales in 2012 were 73,505 units. “Mini has about 115 (stores), Volvo has about 300, Lincoln wants about 325, Infiniti has about 200, so I would probably expect Scion to have between 350-500 but placed in more strategic locations,” said Dave Sullivan, analyst for AutoPacific. What lies ahead for Scion? Fay mentioned that Toyota is considering a few possibilities for the brand. One of those includes moving the brand to a premium level. Toyota also showed dealers a couple of products that are in the pipeline; the FR-S Cabriolet which is or is not dead and a subcompact crossover. Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required), Wards Auto William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster. View full article

William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com August 19, 2013 From the 'this isn't really happening, is it?' file, a new report from Autocar says that Jaguar is considering a lineup of small, front-wheel drive models. Why? Economy and emission regulations. The European Union wants to have a manufacturer's lineup to produce an average 95 grams of CO2 per kilometer by 2020 and get lower in the coming years. In April, the European Parliament voted in laws that would accomplish this. Manufacturers who make more than 300,000 vehicles per year must meet these targets, a big problem for Jaguar and Land Rover since by 2017, they are expected to be churning out 700,000 vehicles. Even with a new compact sedan and possible crossover on the horizon, that might not be enough for Jaguar to meet those standards. Enter the small, front-wheel drive vehicle which could help the company get to those standards. Jaguar has a couple options available. The company could develop a new compact architecture for a line of compact vehicles, but it could prohibitively expensive. Jaguar has also been taking a look at using the architecture from the Range Rover Evoque. Source: Autocar William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster. View full article

William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com August 18, 2013 Its been over a year since we last reported on Mazda's rotary engine plans. At last check, Mazda was hard at work on it. A new report from Autoblog says the next rotary engine, named 16X is coming very soon. An insider told Autoblog that the 16X rotary engine will be coming within the next two years in a new model. The insider also said the 16X would be addressing many of the concerns that have plagued rotary engines before. "The key to both higher torque and better fuel consumption, is creating a longer stroke engine." Okay, this is a rotary engine we are talking about with a triangle rotor and a unique camshaft. How do you determine a long stroke? "By the path of travel within the combustion space dictated by the engineers," said the insider. Source: Autoblog William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster. View full article

William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com August 17, 2013 Let's go back in time to 2003, when Ram was still part of the Dodge family. It was around that time when a special model of the Ram was introduced. Called the Rumble Bee, this special Ram 1500 regular cab donned a yellow and black paint job and a number of touches to pay homage to the Rumble Bee cars of the sixties. Well Ram is doing it again. At the Woodward Dream Cruise today, Ram unveiled a concept version of the Rumble Bee. Starting with the lightest configuration of the Ram 1500 (regular cab with 2WD), Ram applies a Drone Yellow paint job with a matte finish, back accent strip with the Rumble Bee logo, and a Mopar ground effects kit to give it an aggressive stance on the road. Blacked out twenty-inch wheels and trim pieces finish the exterior touches. The black and yellow theme continues inside with leather and mesh bucket seats. The Rumble Bee logo appears on the chairs and floor mats. Now the coolest or oddest feature is the actual amber-encased bee found within the rotary shift knob. This isn't a joke. Power comes from a 5.7L HEMI V8 with 395 horsepower and 407 pound-feet of torque. An eight-speed automatic with a revised 4.10 final drive ratio should make this very quick off the line. There is also two buttons below the shift knob that you can control how loud the Mopar cat-back dual-exhaust system. The two settings are 'loud' and 'LOUDER!'. Source: Ram William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster. Press Release is on Page 2 Ram 1500 Rumble Bee Concept Buzzes into Detroit for Woodward Dream Cruise - Inspired by the Super Bee of the late 60's, the Rumble Bee concept celebrates its 10-year anniversary at the 2013 Woodward Dream Cruise - Ram Truck brand continues with tradition and creative design, building unique pickups for consumers to enjoy Woodward Dream Cruise, Mich., Aug 17, 2013 - Ten years ago, the Ram Truck Brand introduced the Rumble Bee, a popular model inspired by the Super Bee muscle car of the late '60s. Today, Ram unveiled a new HEMI-powered Ram 1500 Rumble Bee concept to celebrate the 10-year anniversary and the heritage of Ram's unique truck designs that include the Lil Red Express, Warlock and Power Wagon. "The Ram 1500 Rumble Bee continues to have a strong fan base and what better place to celebrate its 10-year anniversary than Woodward Dream Cruise," said Reid Bigland, President and CEO of Ram Truck Brand, Chrysler Group LLC. "There's a lot of energy surrounding concept trucks and buzz models, and the Ram Design Team revels in creating something that is unique for our customers to enjoy." The Rumble Bee concept began life as a 2013 Ram 1500 R/T. Keeping with tradition, the lightweight, two-door; 2WD configuration is covered in "Drone Yellow" paint with a unique matte finish. The rare color/finish flows over the entire truck including the bumpers, flares and the Mopar ground effects kit. True to form, a new "Speed Bee" design is swathed on both sides of the truck within a gloss black stripe that fades into honeycomb. The stripe glides front to rear, around the top of the bed and over the Mopar tonneau cover to memorialize HEMI-powered vehicles of the late 1960s and early 1970s, which dominated the racing scene. Factory 22-inch wheels are replaced with gloss black, 24-inch, Vellano VRH custom rollers and a 2-inch drop provided by King Suspension enhances handing performance and appearance with the help of a reservoir shock at each wheel. The grille, hood vents, badging, fuel door and the dual exhaust tailpipes are coated in gloss black, carrying the theme on all sides. The colors and graphics spread through the Ram R/T-based interior, featuring black and Drone Yellow leather sport mesh seats with two-tone yellow/light-grey stitching. "Rumble Bee" lettering and Ram logos adorn chairs, floor mats and door bolsters. The interior center-piece is an actual amber-encased bee mounted into the 8-speed rotary shifter knob that lights up to expose a honeycomb pattern background. Two buttons below the knob control exhaust cutouts to bypass the Mopar cat-back dual-exhaust system, allowing the full sound force of a 5.7-liter HEMI V-8 to escape - loud and LOUDER! The unique honeycomb pattern is shared with door trim and the dash, where a milled aluminum "10th Anniversary" commemorative badge serves as the truck's ID. Under hood, the Ram 1500 Rumble Bee concept houses a 5.7-liter HEMI with 395 horsepower and 407 lb.-ft. of torque, mated to a TorqueFlite 8-speed automatic transmission. The HEMI is fitted with a custom gloss yellow and black engine cover with honeycomb graphic pattern. Mopar's cold-air intake system gives the HEMI a bump in performance and relentless torque is transferred through a 4.10 gear set for quick jumps off the line. View full article

William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com August 17, 2013 What do the Honda Civic, Chevrolet Malibu, and upcoming Audi Q7 have in common? All of them have undergone an emergency redesign. Motor Trend reports that Audi has ordered a emergency redesign on the next Q7. The original design was described as being "Too Brutal and Ostentatious"and was negatively received. This is possibly one of the reasons that former head of product development at Audi, Wolfgang Dürheimer was pushed out. The cost of this emergency redesign? $260 million and being pushed back a year. Source: Motor Trend William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster. View full article

Yeah.. I with you on the name. I loved what someone wrote on twitter. "El Miraj? Really? Is it a Cadillac or an 80's R&B singer? Cmon, Cadillac. Eldorado. Just go with Eldorado." --> https://twitter.com/bentoboxx/status/368202260339126273

William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com August 15, 2013 Remember the days before SUVs became the symbol of luxury. If you wanted a luxurious vehicle back in the sixties or seventies, you went down to your Cadillac or Lincoln dealer and picked up a luxury coupe. Cadillac wants to revisit that idea of a luxury coupe, but bring it into the modern era. That brings us to the Elmiraj Coupe Concept which has made its debut at Pebble Beach Cadillac says the Elmiraj pays tribute to the past and looks toward the future of Cadillac design. The name and proportions of the Elmiraj pays homage to the late sixties Eldorado Coupe, while the design gives us a sneak peek of what's coming down the line at Cadillac. “This concept is the second chapter, following the Ciel Concept, of our exploration of the personas of true luxury. This project originated around the simple persona of “the drive,” or the visceral experience of driving a great luxury coupe. It’s an expression of the confidence and poise you feel driving a high-performance car, which we feel is an essential element of top-level luxury,” said Clay Dean, executive director of advanced design. The Elmiraj design is very much an American coupe. A long front end with a large grille and vertical LED headlights flows into short rear deck with stacked tail pipes. Those with very attentive eyes will notice a new Cadillac emblem with no wreath. We reported back in July that Cadillac was considering to change the emblem and would appear on a concept that would appear at Pebble Beach. We're not kidding on the Elmiraj paying homage to the proportions of the sixties Eldorado. The overall length of the concept measures out to 205 inches or 2.5 inches longer than a standard Escalade. Overall width measures out to 76 inches or just three inches narrower than an Escalade. It wears a set of wheels that are 22 inches in diameter by 9 inches across. However the Elmiraj Concept is light, tipping the scales at approximately 4,000 pounds. This is thanks to a lightweight chassis and structural elements that will be appearing in a future Cadillac. Inside the Elmiraj is a feast for the senses. You have an abundance of leather throughout. Backlit titanium and Brazilian Rosewood accents line the door trims and dashboard. The gauge cluster uses an analog tach and speedo. A high-res driver information display sits behind it. A 10-inch display pops up from the center stack and provides navigation and other key features. The seating layout is 2+2 and features a system that moves the back seat forward to allow for easier access. Plus, the rear seats recline Under the hood of the Elmiraj is a all-new 4.5L twin-turbo V8 making an estimated 500 horsepower and 500 pound-feet of torque. No mention of the transmission or drive wheels, but we're guessing an eight-speed automatic and rear-wheel drive. Source: Cadillac William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster. Press Release is on Page 2 Elmiraj Concept Explores Top of Cadillac's Range CARMEL, Calif. – Cadillac today revealed the Elmiraj Concept, a grand coupe expressing the pure enjoyment of driving and exploring new dimensions for Cadillac's ongoing expansion. The Elmiraj Concept showcases a new vision for luxury driving and the top of the brand's expanding range. "Cadillac is fueled by the creativity of our designers, led by Ed Welburn," said Bob Ferguson, senior vice president, Global Cadillac. "Elmiraj provides a look inside the Cadillac Studio on how we envision performance and luxury for the next generation of luxury drivers." A modern update to the classic format of a two-door grand coupe, Elmiraj is a pure expression of streamlined design and engaging rear-wheel drive performance. At 205 inches (5207mm) in overall length, Elmiraj is four-seat coupe with presence and poise. Taking up from where the memorable Ciel Concept left off, Elmiraj is a statement of pure luxury and performance with a purposeful character and proportion. The concept advances Cadillac's philosophy of dramatic design and performance, and its commitment to lightweight, agile cars. Elmiraj is constructed with chassis and structural elements of an ongoing Cadillac vehicle development project slated for future production. This new vehicle architecture expands the brand's commitment to lightweight RWD performance, exemplified in the ATS sport sedan and the all-new and elevated 2014 CTS launching this fall in the U.S. "Elmiraj advances Cadillac's provocative modern design and performance, contrasted with bespoke craftsmanship and luxury," said Mark Adams, Cadillac design director. "It explores performance driving, as well as how we're approaching elevating the Cadillac range and new dimensions of Art & Science philosophy." Elmiraj is powered by a 4.5-liter twin turbocharged V8 delivering an estimated 500 hp. The engine takes the baseline technology from the new Cadillac Twin Turbo V6 featured in the upcoming 420-hp 2014 CTS Vsport edition, and expands it to the classic performance format of a V8 engine. Dramatic Exterior Proportion With a heritage of imaginative designs, Cadillac approaches concept cars as a method for projecting design forward rather than simply exaggerating or "teasing" future production models. Elmiraj was created from this mindset, and therefore suggests new territory for Cadillac Art & Science. "This concept is the second chapter, following the Ciel Concept, of our exploration of the personas of true luxury," said Clay Dean, executive director of advanced design. "This project originated around the simple persona of "the drive," or the visceral experience of driving a great luxury coupe. It's an expression of the confidence and poise you feel driving a high-performance car, which we feel is an essential element of top-level luxury." The dramatic proportion communicates power and performance. A long dash-to-axle front profile, a Cadillac signature, gives the coupe a performance-oriented form. The long wheelbase and clean body side characterizes the car's spacious dimensions and elevated status. The fast cabin sits within a fuselage where taut fender lines spline through the full sectioned body, literally blending art and science. Cadillac's vertical light signature is represented in both the headlamp graphic and tail lamp. A gently applied feature line in the sheet metal extends the full length of the body side, connecting those vertical front and rear elements. "Elmiraj is about poise and proportion," said Niki Smart, lead exterior designer. "We wanted a mature statement for Cadillac, where simplicity and subtle adornments create a purposeful presence." Elmiraj contains design elements emphasizing Cadillac's capabilities for engaging driving performance in its production portfolio. Two vents in the car's long hood are functional, acting as hot air outlets for the twin turbo engine. Elmiraj has 22-x-9-in. aluminum wheels are backed by large ceramic brakes with Cadillac monoblock calipers. The car's rich blue exterior finish wears the brand's Vsport designation, Cadillac's new level slotting directly under the high-performance V-Series. The face of Elmiraj experiments with new visual elements, yet is unmistakably Cadillac. The grille emphasizes the car's substantial road presence. The Cadillac Crest appears in a conceptual form, streamlined and tailored to the car's overall design. This design idea for a revised crest reflects the fact that Cadillac's unmistakable symbol has evolved dozens of times through history to mark new eras or design achievements. Exquisitely Crafted Interior The interior of Elmiraj blends elegantly crafted luxury and generous space with driver-focused performance elements. The upper section of the instrument panel is a single piece extending across the full width of the car, while the lower forms a cockpit space tailored for performance. "A concept provides not only an opportunity to explore new design ideas, but to pursue new techniques for elegant craftsmanship and materials," said Gael Buzyn, lead interior designer. Backlit titanium trim curves from the cowl to the doors, dividing the rich upper camel leather from the wood trim. Cadillac Studio craftsmen handpicked fallen Brazilian Rosewood, a wood veneer prized for its use for hundreds of years in home furnishings and musical instruments. The wood is hand-cut into three dimensional sections for perfect control of the grain flow. The car's instrumentation features an analog tachometer and speedometer that are transparent. Directly behind the analog gauges sits a wide screen, high resolution display which projects driver information and the output of a front-mounted camera. A 10-inch touchscreen for navigation and connectivity can be concealed inside the instrument panel when not in use. The 2+2 layout features high-performance seats, designed to support spirited driving while also delivering luxury accommodation. Elmiraj passengers might actually lobby to sit in the back. The rear bucket seats each contain a valet feature to ease entry and exit. The front bucket seat slides 10 inches forward while the rear bucket seat slides 4 inches forward to meet the passenger, then slides him or her back into position once seated. The rear bucket seats recline for additional comfort. Many of the most celebrated automotive designs through history have been luxury coupes "We were influenced in particular by the 1967 Eldorado, both its actual design and the fact that in its time that car was a very stark contrast and a new direction. More recent design like the CTS-V Coupe and the ELR are provocative," said Dean, the advanced design director. "Both of these cars were major statements of performance and luxury and drove Cadillac forward into new territory." Designers at General Motors' advanced design studio in North Hollywood, Calif., under the direction of Frank Saucedo, led the development of the car's interior and exterior. Elmiraj was hand-built by in-house craftsmen in Michigan. Cadillac Elmiraj Specifications Model Elmiraj Concept Body Style 4-passenger, 2-door grand coupe Dimensions Height 55 in / 1397 mm Width 76 in / 1930 mm Length 205 in / 5207 mm Curb Weight Approx. 4000 lb / 1814 kg Powertrain Engine 4.5-liter Twin Turbo V8 Power 500 hp / 373 kW Torque 500 lb-ft / 678 Nm View full article