Blake Noble

G. Noble Editor/Reporter CheersandGears.com March 14, 2012 Here’s a big chunk of unexpected news for you; the boys over at Chevrolet announced yesterday that the Impala will be bowing out of the grid for the 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. That’s certainly interesting given that the Impala has earned Chevrolet 79 wins since 2007 after the Monte Carlo went out of production. As Jim Campbell, vice president of Chevrolet Performance Vehicles and Motorsports, said in Chevrolet’s press release yesterday, “The Impala has been a critical part of Chevrolet’s success in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.” That’s only the tip of the iceberg, though. When Chevrolet returns to NASCAR next year it says it “will be racing a vehicle based on a new nameplate to the brand’s lineup.” And like the recently redesigned Ford Fusion and Dodge Charger stock cars, Chevy says the new racecar will “closely resemble the production version.” Monte Doran, a Chevrolet spokesperson, also mentioned that the new vehicle would specifically debut at the 2013 Daytona 500 and would be in production sometime during next year. Evaluating the news at face value, it means Chevrolet won’t be racing the new Malibu and it certainly isn’t considering entering the Cruze. That means that either the Cadillac XTS-based next-gen Impala, which is set to debut next year, may be renamed or — fingers and toes crossed — the current rear-drive, police duty-only Caprice PPV will be repurposed for civilian buyers. Sources: Chevrolet, Motor Trend, The Detroit News Hit page 2 for Chevrolet's press release. DETROIT – The countdown to the debut of Chevrolet’s next NASCAR Sprint Cup Series racecar is underway. Chevrolet announced today that for the 2013 season, Team Chevy will be racing a vehicle based on a new nameplate to the brand’s lineup. Taking advantage of the new NASCAR rules, which allow manufacturers to display more of their brand identity in their racecars, the new Chevrolet racecar will closely resemble the production version. Both cars will be unveiled in the coming year. “We are keeping the wraps on the new car for now and will continue to prepare for next season by testing camouflaged vehicles,” said Jim Campbell, vice president, Chevrolet Performance Vehicles and Motorsports. “We know that Chevrolet fans are eager to see the new racecar and we hope that the prospect of being able to own one just like it will make the wait a little more bearable.” The current Chevrolet racecar, the Impala, took three out of top five spots at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday including the win by Tony Stewart. Since 2007, the Impala has dominated the series, taking the checkered flag 79 times. Chevrolet drivers have also won five NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Manufacturers' Championships, and Jimmie Johnson (4) and Tony Stewart (1) have collected five NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver's championships in the Impala. “The Impala has been a critical part of Chevrolet’s success in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and we are confident the new racecar will allow us to remain the most successful name in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series history,” Campbell said. A legacy of racing competition runs deep in Chevrolet’s 100-year history, dating to co-founder Louis Chevrolet’s passion for racing automobiles. Chevrolet has won the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Manufacturers’ Championship 35 times. Chevrolet Corvette Racing has taken seven class trophies at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. A Chevrolet-branded V-8 racing engine won the Indianapolis 500 seven times between 1988 and 2002. As Chevrolet continues to define itself as a 21st Century global automotive leader, motorsports remain integral to the plan. The racing version of the Chevrolet Cruze, which since its 2009 debut has become the bowtie brand’s best-selling car globally, claimed the World Touring Car Championship (WTCC) Cup in 2010 and 2011, and is the first ever General Motors-branded vehicle to win such honors in a FIA-organized series. Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world's largest car brands, doing business in more than 140 countries and selling more than 4 million cars and trucks a year. Chevrolet provides customers with fuel-efficient vehicles that feature spirited performance, expressive design and high quality. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com View full article

G. Noble Editor/Reporter CheersandGears.com March 12, 2012 Recently at the Geneva Auto Show, Fiat/Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne expressed that the upcoming Dodge Dart compact sedan may have its release date rescheduled. Why? Well, Marchionne says the production launch will be moved around for no other reason except — and we’re not making this up — “to avoid being jinxed.” Previously the Dart was on track to hit dealers on April Fools Day, April 1st. So when should you expect to be able to drive the Alfa Romeo-based small Mopar? While hopeful minds might wish for a March 31st launch date, perhaps April 2nd could be the targeted day since it is, after all, the day proceeding April 1st. Since Marchionne didn’t specify when, it’s really anyone’s guess. Marchionne went on to say the Dart is “a huge step forward in terms of moving the brand into the American heartland.” With the promise of some class-leading features and very good fuel economy, who’s to argue with that? Source: USA Today View full article

G. Noble Editor/Reporter CheersandGears.com March 12, 2012 You could probably see this one coming from a mile away; Mazda is saying that after 2012 has run its course, the CX-7 crossover SUV will be leaving the U.S. market. So who’s the hot dog pushing the cool dog out of the dog house? It’s none other than Mazda’s newest Lorax-approved CUV, the 2013 CX-5. This means that the CX-5 will now not only replace the old Ford Escape-based Tribute, but the CX-7 to boot. And although the CX-5 is smaller overall than the CX-7, it actually boasts better cargo room and overall interior volume, not to mention better fuel economy, thus making any sort of theoretical gap in Mazda’s showrooms non-existent. As Mazda product communications specialist Beverly Braga explained, “CX-5 has a clearer competitive set, unlike the CX-7, which was in the middle of two segments.” It’s easy then to see why Mazda didn’t have much of a business case to keep the CX-7 here. That's not to mention the money Mazda would've had to spend to keep the CX-7 in line with the stricter U.S. fuel economy and emissions standards looming on the horizon, as Robert Davis, Mazda's U.S. operations guy, mentioned recently to the automotive press. Mazda also didn’t feel the need to saturate showrooms with too many crossovers. In this day and age where many automakers are plum slap-happy about building more and more SUVs and crossovers — not looking at you Ford, Nissan … Bentley — it’s nice to see Mazda bucking the trend just a little bit. While dealers initially fought back to keep the CX-7 when they received the news, opinions changed once they saw how little of an advantage the CX-7 had over the CX-5. Once again, Robert Davis sheds additional light on the situation: “After they saw the CX-5, they said don’t muddy the waters with the two of ‘em.” As for buyers elsewhere, don't worry. The CX-7 will continue to be sold at a Mazda dealer near you until ... well, whenever Mazda says so. Sources: Wards Auto (sub. req.) via Autoblog, Automotive News View full article

As a follow up to my last post, the Domestic/Foriegn parts content of the Sonic is 47 percent, with the major source of foriegn parts coming from Korea which I think was about 12 to 17 percent. I was going to snap a photo of the window sticker, but my phone decided to take a nap, so my apologies on that. Also worth noting is that I didn't notice the production date of that particular car. If it was produced at the start of the Sonic's production run late last year, then the Domestic parts content is sure to increase as the year goes on. It's hard to assume that.

I'll be heading to a Chevy dealer in the area I'm in to confirm the Foreign/Domestic parts ratio of the Sonic, but GM has pretty much said the Domestic parts content of the Sonic would be increasing when production hit full swing, which it currently should be.

Welcome to the boards, Mr. Green. We're glad to have you on board. You're going to have to back yourself up on this one. 1.) New GM (GM post-bankruptcy) has been very good about keeping jobs here in the U.S. For example, the Chevrolet Sonic, which replaced the old Korean-made Aveo, is built in Michigan. In fact, the Sonic is the only subcompact car that's produced Domestically — the North American Ford Fiesta is built in Mexico I believe, the Toyota Yaris is made in Japan, and the Nissan Versa is also built in Mexico. It's a big deal, too, because American automakers have never managed to turn a profit on a domestically-built car of the Sonic's size class, hence why most of them were produced overseas. 2.) All vehicles sold everywhere have a certain percentage of foreign parts content. It doesn't matter if you buy a brand-new Chevy, brand-new Ford, or a brand-new Nissan. Welcome to the warm, fuzzy reality of Globalization where almost nothing is 100 percent home grown anymore.

G.Noble Editor/Reporter CheersandGears.com March 10, 2012 Life hasn’t exactly been easy for the Chevrolet Volt. Although it was just recently named 2012 European Car of the Year in Opel Ampera guise, GM announced previous to the awarding they were suspending production for little over a month because of slow sales and dealers rejecting further allotments. On top of that, the Volt has had some image issues stemming from the NHTSA’s disclosure late last year about how an example they t-boned caught fire some three weeks after it was tested in May 2011. It’s only insult to injury then Republican politicians have turned to bashing the Volt in debates and interviews, associating the car with radical left-wing environmentalism and government bailout money. Republican Presidential candidate Newt Gingrich decided to fault the Chevy plug-in hybrid for lack of space for a gun rack of all things (the Volt can indeed accommodate one, if you were curious), and frontrunner Mitt Romney said it was “an idea whose time has not come.” Perhaps the worst bit of uninformed criticism came from conservative group American Tradition Partnership Inc. who said the Volt was an “exploding Obamamobile.” GM CEO Dan Akerson testifying before Congress about the Volt in January said, “Although we loaded the Volt with state-of-the-art safety features, we did not engineer the Volt to be a political punching bag. And that, sadly, is what the Volt has become.” How right you are — or were — Dan. Mr. Akerson also went onto say that he thinks Volt sales have been pinched because of the political trash talk. Challengers to the Obama administration, on the other hand, see it as an effective way of resonating with their voters. Art Spinella, an analyst who studies new car buyers as president of CNW Marketing Research, noted Republicans buy Chevys, especially the Silverado pickup, in greater numbers than Democrats do. And while Chevy buyers tend to identify as Republican, less than 14 percent of Volt owners lean to the political right. While it’s difficult to tell how much of an effect the political hate speech has had on Volt sales, Akerson isn’t alone in believing sales could be much better without the GOP bashing it. Volt sales totaled up to 7,671 cars last year, falling short of GM’s target of 10,000 cars by a little over 2,000. In the first two months of 2012 GM only sold about 1,600 Volts, and that sales track is falling way short of Akerson’s year-end goal of 45,000. Art Spinella says part of that huge divide is due to attacks on the campaign trail. Buyers who identify as conservative “will not buy a car that has anything at all that they perceive being associated with the administration,” Spinella said. Akerson isn’t the only non-political figure out there who’s upset that the Volt has founded itself stranded in political crossfire, either. Everyone’s favorite auto-exec and registered Republican who helped to develop the Volt, former GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz, is outraged as well. “I don’t mind criticizing Obama, I don’t mind criticizing the Democrats, and, you know me, I think global warming is huge hoax perpetrated by the global political left,” Lutz said. “But when it comes to telling outright lies to advance your political purposes and damage an American company that is greatly on its way back, hurt employment in Hamtramck, Michigan, I just think it’s totally outrageous.” Source: Bloomberg View full article

Here's the truck: I fixed the electric windows. The driver's side switch panel was the main culprit. It's the same exact one Jeep used in the MCE Cherokee and they're known for using weak solder and that turned out to be the issue. It's intensive to tear the panel down to get into the dirty bits to resolder the connections on the PCB, but I managed to fix it without breaking anything. After that, I gave the connections a good shot of contact cleaner. Problem solved. The transfer case issues are down to a servo motor that's gotten rusty from little to no use. The four-wheel drive works, but only if you know how to get the most out of what the servo motor has left to give. The paint is still hopeless. In direct sunlight, I can see areas in which the clear coat will start to flake off come this summer. The rear-end damage did get to the very back frame of the truck a bit and I noticed the tailgate oddly enough is bowed slightly outward, not inward as one would expect. The paint and frame issues mean I will ultimately get rid of this truck and advertise it as something to go hunting in or for farm work. Aside from sorting out the smaller issues, it isn't worth investing too much money in. I was going to do this yesterday, but didn't get around to it. I think you could be right in that it's a bad u-joint, but while driving the truck today I noticed it's coming from around the driver's side footwell, so I'm still a little baffled. As it turns out, the ball joints are going bad. At full-lock, the front suspension pops like a firecracker. Thanks Z.

This thing is so terrible, it almost speaks for itself. And here's what it's trying to say: <iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/yuDJIGN7XBU" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="560"></iframe>

A falsehood? How? Facts are facts and almost no one ("no one" meaning 5 percent of buyers) buys a brand-new car with a manual transmission these days if they have the option of an automatic. I know a few folks who are fine driving a stick, sure. For example, both of my parents are more than okay with it, but they've consistently bought cars equipped with automatic gearboxes since, well, forever. The two notiable exceptions are my dad's old S10 (which became my first car) which he bought over a decade ago, and a Nissan Pulsar my mom bought all the way back in the '80s. That's only two cars out of ... let's see ... carry the two ... uh, well, a lot. Air-conditioning and a CD player are standard, yes. But the basic Versa sedan gives you those two things by cutting corners elsewhere. For example, the CD player is only hooked up to two speakers that sound like they came out of an old K-mart boombox and the rear brakes are a set of drums that have been pulled from am old farm tractor. The rear seat doesn't fold down in the Versa unless you feel like buying one in top-line trim and Nissan has completely deleted any sort of rear seat ventilation for passengers there when you have to keep the back windows closed. You also don't get coat hooks or rear seat lighting, so forget about easily changing into a suit late at night in the back seat on your multiple-hour drive to your grandma's funeral. Now that I'm done ranting about that, I should mention I grabbed the price of the Versa's CVT option pretty much from Nissan's own site. In fact, that's where all of the MSRPs and prices I posted about the Versa came from. This counterpoint is bogus, no offense. If someone can't afford about $254 a month for the Fiesta on the terms I mentioned, then they probably can't even afford the $234 for the CVT-equipped Versa sedan either. In fact, I can't think of anything that I've bought or could buy where some twenty dollar difference absolutely broke or could break things off. If a matter of $20 bucks — which won't buy most four member families a nice dinner at a sit-down restaurant any more — is preventing someone from buying a car, they should probably be looking at buying a burro instead. The situation I had over my car payments wasn't over a matter of just $20 a month. If it were, I would've had little to worry about. In the end, it was over a figure of about $150 per month. Big, big difference there. Sure you can, but see above. Nissan advertises the base Versa 1.6 S at $10,998 on their own website. Besides, becoming fixated on that number completely misses the point.

I'll try to have one or two up really soon. He was getting trade offers well below $3,500. I started looking into the value of the truck today myself, and I could probably sell it as is for $3,000. Someone is selling a two-wheel drive version of this truck for $5,500 with new paint and only 89,000 miles in my area, so ... Here's the original listing and recent re-listing.

Apparently, the front and rear designs of these Hot Wheel Vipers aren't exactly like the real finished product.

That's the standard reponse when someone criticizes something dreadful and cheap like the Versa. Let's dig into this a little bit further then. The Versa is the cheapest car in the US by the way of a huge, nicely constructed lie. It only earns that title because Nissan advertises the $10,998 MSRP of the sedan without including destination fees, which when included brings the sticker price up to $11,770. Of course, that price doesn't include tax, title, license, and those stupid dealer documentation fees, which if you buy one in the state I live in jacks the price up by an estimated extra grand. So, that means the cheapest car in America — which is so spartan, it makes solitary confinement look like a stay at the Hilton — actually costs in the ballpark of $12,770 big ones on the road. Uh, yuck. It gets worse when you option a base Versa with just an automatic transmission because, let's face, almost no one wants the manual. The Versa's auto-tragic tranny is a $2,130 dollar option. So that jacks the Versa's sticker price up to about $13,900 with destination. Factor in the TTL and doc fees I mentioned earlier as an example and America's so-called "cheapest car ever" will run you $15,000. The base Ford Fiesta, which is a much better car, will cost you about $15,000 as a sedan with an automatic transmission. Factor in those TTL and doc fees I had as an example and you're only looking at a difference of $1,200 bucks, which amounts to about a $20 dollar difference on a monthly payment (figured up with a 72 month term at 4 percent interest with nothing down and no trade-in). For only $20 dollars more, why wouldn't someone buy the Fiesta? The whole story only gets worse if you want the hatchback. A base Nissan Versa 5-door with nothing on it or in it aside from an automatic gearbox costs a massive $16,460 with destination costs and without TTL and doc fees. Know which car is much cheaper than that with an automatic? Yep, the Ford Fiesta hatchback, which rings up at $15,990. It's also very much worth mentioning the Honda Fit is only $16,745 with the desired slushbox, which is a difference of just $285 dollars. Both the Fiesta and Fit hatches look much better than the Versa hatch, drive much nicer, have better standard levels of equipment, and far better build quality. Remind me why someone would buy the Versa again? That's like saying to someone to be thankful they caught lice instead of crabs. See above. Also, what doesn't have more quality than a Yugo these days? By modern quality-to-money standards, the Versa is the Yugo for the early 21st century. It really is that bottom rung. An extra $2,000? How? Where? Why? And by "why" I mean, "Why didn't someone spend that extra $2,000 on the better Fiesta or Fit?" I guess if you made the mistake of buying a Versa and had an extra $2,000 grand left over, that would be enough money for you to buy the best assault rifle money could buy so that you could shoot yourself for buying the worst car in America. See above. If someone wants cheap and new, they should do some research and forget the Versa. The Versa is only the cheapest car on our shores by the way of false advertising. I agree, though, that a smart buyer will and should consider a low-mileage, late-model used car.

That's not the case. The Versa is reviled for many reasons. For starters, the engine is fairly crude and not terribly efficient. In fact, it's so awful it probably runs on pure vulgarity instead of gasoline. The interior build quality is fitting of something from a Vietnamese sweatshop and the styling is so outright insulting there should mobs banning together to burn them en masse. Most lawn tractors can out handle it and entire species can evolve in the time it takes to get it up to freeway speed. It's totally disposable and its ultimate fate with a scrapyard crusher is honestly a fate too kind. The Versa had some potential, though, that Nissan sadly pissed away. Hop on Google Images and look up the concept car that preceeded it. I like the idea of a basic car, don't get me wrong. But just because you build a basic car doesn't mean you have to skimp on fairly essiential things like build quality, styling, and acceptable driving performance. We've seen automakers run with the idea of basic transportation before and the results spoke volumes, so I see little excuse for botching it up in the fashion Nissan has with the Versa.

I spent a little time with the truck today. I think the transfer case issues could be electrical related (i.e. the switch next to the driver on the dash). Sometimes the indicator lights work properly and go from 2WD to 4HI to 4LO when you turn the switch, sometimes the 2WD light doesn't even come on. Sometimes you switch it from 2WD to 4HI and it doesn't go back into 2WD, sometimes you try to switch it out of 4HI into 4LO and it stays in 4HI. I managed to fix a lot of the Cherokee's electrical quirks with a few good shots of contact cleaner, so maybe that could help things. If not, I'd say almost every switch in that truck is probably going to have to be replaced (electric windows, transfer case switch, headlight switch, and so on). If replacing the transfer case switch doesn't fix the 4WD issues, it's probably a bad module or servo motor. I also tidied up the interior a bit. It isn't quite the dirt and junk infested sty it used to be, but it's still kinda rough. It's hard to believe the truck is barely 10 years old with under 150,000 miles and the headliner is already falling down. I'm still completely stumped about what that peculiar metallic spinning noise could be. It happens when the truck is building up steam to shift into second and again briefly when it shifts into third. As I said, the truck has transmission problems as well as a nasty intermittent driveline shudder around 45 to 50 mph as it turns out, so I wouldn't be suprised if it's somehow related. The rear bumper took a good percentage of the impact from the rear collison, so it's pretty screwed. It was getting dark when I started checking around the rear frame of the truck, so I couldn't tell if there was any minor to moderate frame damage. The truck drove okay; no unusual rear-end noises, sway, or jumpiness. The tires also don't show any signs of unusual wear, either. I'll do some further investigation tomorrow morning. I very much appreicate the kind words, GMTG.

Someone in my neighborhood bought a Cruze LTZ very much like the one tested. I've never been the biggest fan of the Cruze's design, but on a sunny day, the styling subtly pops in that shade of red with the LTZ's chrome trim.

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Hm5o6u1b8pw" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> The YouTube video above comes to us courtesy of good old French automaker and new-found GM ally Citroën. In the ad, a strapping young lad pilots a C3 hatchback around a city and is attacked by some fetching young ladies. However, if you watch the ad, something will catch your eye before you make it to the brunette in the black dress 5 seconds in. Okay, never mind the fact the dude is driving a C3 wearing D&G badges. That's not what's strange here. At about 3 seconds in, you notice a taxi cab. It isn't just any taxi cab, though. It's a big yellow Chevrolet Caprice. Since when did GM sell Caprices in France? And it doesn't stop there. The Caprice's long-time rival the Crown Vic makes an appearance near the end of the ad as well as a few other American cars. Bravo, Citroën, for making a mind-f*ck of an ad.

G. Noble Editor/Reporter CheersandGears.com March 2, 2012 According to Nikkei, one of Japan’s leading news sources, Nissan could be setting the stage for a revival of the Datsun brand in 2014. The Datsun brand has been in mothballs for about 26 years (since 1986) when Nissan phased the name out in the American market in favor of its own. However, that doesn’t mean you should expect to see Datsun badges on the next Z car, or any other future Nissan for that matter. Nikkei’s report claims that the revived Datsun brand would dirty its hands by building and selling inexpensive cars in emerging markets for Nissan such as India and Indonesia, which probably means you won’t be able to buy one in North America. A target price for a brand-new 2014 Datsun is said to be about 500,000 yen ($6,200 dollars) and sales are projected to be about 300,000 cars per year. It all sounds fairly ambitious, but when you consider Nissan’s French benefactor Renault builds and sells the Dacia Logan — which costs about the same and sells about 500,000 cars annually — it suddenly seems pretty realistic. A rumored revival of the Datsun nameplate has been around for quite a few years. It wasn’t until CEO Carlos Ghosn recently began pressing Nissan to establish themselves in emerging markets like India, Indonesia, and Brazil those rumors started to make sense. With Datsun a part of the picture, the Nissan brand doesn’t run the risk of associating itself with very cheap entry-level cars like Datsun would build. When Nikkei asked for comment, Nissan declined to speak. And while this two-tier strategy isn’t anything new, the revival of the Datsun brand should prove to be interesting. Source: Nikkei, The Detroit Bureau View full article

So Hyundai News posts to the Reader Reviews section? Huh.