Hudson

Mine was S-Brown as well....but it was Metallic S-Brown with aftermarket white pin stripes. Mine didn't have the Mitsubishi 2.6L (the "Hemi" you referred to) but had the Chrysler 2.2L 2bbl SOHC four mated to a 4-speed manual. It had to be one of the last 6-passenger (mine had six sets of seatbelts and vinyl bench seats) cars with a floor-mounted stick shift. For a mid-sized (it was, according to the EPA) 2-door sedan, it carried passengers relatively comfortably (plus 15 cubic feet of trunk space) and turned 25-32 mpg daily. And, because my car was woefully lacking in options (AM radio and cruise control but no A/C or power steering), it was relatively quick....and handled surprisingly well for a skinny tired (5.5-inch wheels) FWD econo sedan. I wish I still had it.

I've been reading this book "Vinyl Junkies" and I've got some thoughts. What are your favorite records (actual vinyl...actually OWNED by you)? If it's your "favorite" and you don't own it, it's only your "favorite" to impress others (read: vinyl snobs...some of us here). Oh...and WHY? I'll give a longer list later (I want to see some other answers first), but I'll give one here. I have a European copy of Roger Waters' "The Pros and Cons of Hitchhiking." A friend from Sweden sent me this EMI copy of "Hitchhiking" which is in a "double album" sleeve, even though it's a single disc. And the cover does not include the K-Mar inspired "black tape" over the hitchhiker's bare rear.

The 1988 Grand Prix was NOT offered with a DOHC engine nor was it offered with a turbo (came out in 1989, I believe) nor was it offered with a 5-speed (again, came later). The "winner" of the 1988 COTY award had a 2.8L OHV V6 and a 4-speed automatic transmission...and a recall of which I previously mentioned. Similar arguments can be made AGAINST the Seville since it wasn't offered with the Northstar V8 in 1992. I'm not joking about the K-Car. I owned one for 95,000 miles and had very few problems. Granted, I've had good luck with "bad" cars, but my Aries impressed even hardened muscle car guys (one particular GTO restorer thought my Aries had surprising balls). And yes, I do know what "300" meant in the original Chrysler series (I'm an automotive historian...don't underestimate me). I have more of a problem with calling it "M" than "300" (there were many "lesser" 300s offered over the years. The 300M was, at the time, the best sport luxury sedan offered by an American brand in 1999...just like the C-300 was in 1955. The styling of the 300M was masculine, actually (and designed to be exported to compete against the Europeans). The power was substantial for 1999 (listed as 253hp in 1999). Try again.

Then I'll save you some time. My book has yet to be completed. But my published history of Vector was in a car magazine a few years back.

I'm trying to find a way to prove this theory right or wrong. The bad quality security camera doesn't help much. I don't, however, see the rear door vent window found on the Skyhawk in the picture. It could be there, but it doesn't seem to be.

It's not a Dodge Aries or a Plymouth Reliant (they both had one light bulb on each side in the rear, where this car has two). It's really hard to tell from this angle, but it looks like a late-model A-body Buick Century with its full-width taillights and angled rear window. And that's assuming that the CHMSL is out. If it doesn't have a CHMSL, then it's automatically a 1985 or older vehicle.

The forerunner to the Vector Aeromotive Corporation was founded in 1972 with the first Vector prototype being shown at the LA Auto Show. The company showed its first running prototype, the W2 in late 1977. Car and Driver tested the W2 in 1980 (top speed of 237 was claimed). It was powered by a Chevrolet small-block based 5.7L twin-turbo V8 producing an estimated 625hp and driving a modified Toronado 3-speed automatic transaxle (ratchet shifting manual mounted to the left of the driver). The car was re-engineered in the late 1980s and became the W8. The 5.7L engine now measured 6.0L but power still remained in the 625-650 range and it was still mated to a 3-speed automatic. Production began around 1990 (18 years after the first car was shown). There was one W2 prototype (shown in many colors with different wheel designs through the years) and a total of 21 W8s (four prototypes and 17 customer cars). More concepts were shown including the Avtech coupe and convertible, which became the starting point for the production M12. Wiegert lost control of the company and production was moved from California to Florida. The M12, powered by a Lamborghini V12, was produced from 1996 until the company folded in 1999. A total of 14 M12s were built (plus three prototypes including one that was converted into a race car). The final car built by the Florida group was the SRV8, which was an LT1 powered M12 with fixed headlights. Production of the SRV8 was announced by the factory closed its doors a month later.

Find a good used CD shop, especially near a college, and you'll find that something like the Mr Mister CD will be only slightly more expensive than the vinyl LP. I've got a nice little collection of vinyl myself. Also, I'm reading a book called "Vinyl Junkies," which you may want to pick up. It's an entertaining view of collecting records.

I don't understand your choices of the 1988 Grand Prix and the 1992 Seville being GOOD choices and the K-Car and 300M being bad. I'd definitely swap those around. And the Civic has been a good choice each and every time it's won the award...1980, 1984, 1988, and 2006

Although (Steve) Saleen is making a few S7s and (Danny) Panoz produces a couple hundred cars a year. Although I don't count it, there's also Avanti. Preston Tucker was in business for just a couple of years and built more cars than Vector did in its quarter-century history. And Wiegert claims that Vector's not yet dead. I had tours of both the Jacksonville and Wilmington facilities. Neither could really be considered to be a "factory," more like large garages.

The nicer thing about the 2nd generation Impulse was its availability of AWD.

Being Canadian, how many Asuna Sunfires have you seen? By the way, the Geo Storm was based on the Isuzu Impulse, not the other way around (see earlier posting).

You've never seen a Vector? I didn't think there was an American car enthusiast alive who didn't know what the Vector was.

Wiegert sued AutoWeek after they related his factory to Peter Pan's Neverland. The lawsuit was settled out of court...along with most of Wiegert's lawsuits. I really think he financed much of Vector by suing people.

What kind of money? Subaru hadn't become a hit until AFTER he left. His own brand failed after less than three years and took New Brunswick's money with it. I doubt he made much money importing the Fiat X1/9 and the Spider (since they were in such small volumes) and, outside of the first year, Yugo sales never really soared...and he did sell out of Yugo America (formerly IAI) just before it went bankrupt.

I haven't driven the Fusion yet, but I have driven the Milan. Perhaps my expectations had been too high (I really wanted to like the Fusion/Milan/Zephyr triplets), but the Milan was a good car...not outstanding. The Civic I drove, however, was the best car in its class.

You're looking at a prototype of their newest sedan. And the badging is actually centered.

I'm fairly knowledgable about Vector. I authored the only-known (to me, anyway) published history of the Vector Aeromotive Corporation.

And I don't think YOU know what you're talking about. Toyota just introduced the Lexus brand in Japan. There's NO possibility that Lexus is going away anytime soon.

He was never found guilty.

I agree that the first two points are very subjective...and the third point is EXACTLY what GM fans complain about. If a magazine said "oh, it's great for a GM product," you'd be up in arms! It has to be great for the automotive industry, not just proof that GM can do something outside it's narrow box. Name one product that should have beaten the Civic. As for the Fusion, it's nice, but it's hardly class leading or a stand-out among its peers. The best thing the Fusion has going for it is that it's a "great car for Ford."

As is pointed out above, Ford employed the MOVING assembly line for the first time in automotive production. That is where many people have the confusion. Many people mistakenly believe that Henry Ford invented the automobile as well. Or that the Model T came before the Model A. Or....

No...the Delorean was ONLY offered with the 2.8L PRV (Peugeot-Renault-Volvo) V6. There were no four-cylinder Deloreans from the factory (or otherwise, as far as I know).

These "250,000" UAW members working for foreign companies aren't assembling vehicles...they're making parts. NUMMI (some Corollas, most Tacomas, and all Vibes), Mitsubishi (Endeavor, Galant, Eclipse), and AutoAlliance (Mazda6 and Ford Mustang) are the only UAW assembly plants owned (or co-owned) by Japanese companies.

It's not like they can just open up a new plant to build these vehicles. And with such short life-cycles as the Japanese have, they can't take the time to tool up a new plant for, what will be, an old model. The first generation Prius was in short supply, and Toyota upped the output (about double or so) for the second generation. Now, Toyota is looking to up the capacity of the NEXT generation Prius again. The problem with flexibility is that it works when all of your products are similar. When you've got a fleet of FWD transverse-engined ICE cars and crossovers, you can move production from here and there. When you have ONE hybrid vehicle, production doesn't easily move.