Feed: Automotive Discovery - AggScore: 45.3

Chevy SS Caught on Test Run

While most automakers test their vehicles on more discreet racetracks, General Motors wanted to test their new Chevy SS model for what it’s being made for, specifically the U.S. roadways. It is being kept heavily camouflaged, but the music of the super performing V8 couldn’t be covered. From the sound of it, the Chevy SS is going to be a super sports car fans dream come true. It is rumored that it will include a 6.2 liter naturally aspirated engine, but no word on how it will be further supercharged. While we were all afforded a quick peek of the covered up Chevy SS and our ears were tempting with the sound of pure power, the engineers quickly snuck back into the plant to get to work on the final designs.

The new Chevy SS isn’t expected to be released until late next year as a 2014 Chevy SS version, but this early peek gave us a good idea that General Motors is fawning over this next new edition as if it were their new baby. They had it triple wrapped in camouflage to protect it from the spy cameras, so while it was still clear that the lines and styling are going to hold true to what super sports car lovers value the most, we will have no idea of any more detailed style designs.

Some details that did show through on the upcoming Chevy SS looked to be vertical fender vents and LED running lights. There was also either a bulging, ventilated hood, similar to what Holden’s VE Commordore HSV performance division has offered, or just another way for General Motors to keep the true hood under wraps. Of course, General Motors promises that there will be some classic Chevy SS elements on the new model to keep it warm in the hearts of the diehard fans of this particular beast.

Small Used Car Values Fall with Gas Prices

According to the Detroit News, the price of small used cars is dropping as fuel prices continue to decrease. They found in a recent National Automobile Dealers Association study a statement that gas prices have dropped 3.5% from last year. With this in mind, used car sales are expected to fall off by about a 2% rate while truck sales, especially light trucks will only drop about 1%.

You can expect the resale values of most compact and midsize cars to drop about 5% in June and continue throughout the summer. This news was shared by a senior analyst with the National Automobile Dealers Association Used Car Guide, Jonathan Banks. He noted prices on used vehicles had made double digit gains from January through May. He said, “The trend of rising prices for used cars will reverse course in June because of declining gasoline prices combined with a normal seasonal slowdown in consumer demand for used cars. Rapid depreciation for hybrid vehicles is not uncommon after surging gasoline prices reach a peak and then begin to quickly fall,” Banks said. “During periods of rapidly changing gasoline prices, values of hybrid vehicles become more volatile because consumer demand for hybrids rises and falls along with the price of gasoline.”

Because the gas prices are lower, on average about dollarsignr3.71 per gallon, down more than ten cents per gallon from April, and 3.5% from this time last year, that people are going to want to start considering SUVs pickups and minivans again. Hybrids and electric version models are the hardest to sell when gas prices are down. But for those of you expecting gas prices to go back up again, as most of us suspect, this could be your prime time to get a bargain on the eco friendly, gas saving vehicles.

The 2013 Audi A3

The Audi A3 made its first appearance in 1996 and was the first car to fully establish the high-end compact class of vehicles, but mainly only in Europe. It’s taken some time to warm up in America and the Volkswagen Golf took advantage of that and was able to root itself as a true premium hatchback. Of course the Mini Cooper made its appearance as well to sky rocket up to top selling premium compact sales status. Many were left scratching their heads over the point of spending so much more money for another compact, even if it did boast the Audi brand name. This has left Audi challenged to redefine the A3 in hopes of boosting its sales numbers to a more respectable profit margin.

Part of Audi’s strategy with the 2013 Audi A3 is to offer it as a sedan style along with the five door sportback version. They also intend to save costs on production and make efforts to boost the sales volume so they can see a better profit margin. Of course all the new A3 versions will include the recently launched MQB vehicle architecture. Audi is the first of the Volkswagen Group to offer this style of having transverse engines upfront.

Both the four and five door version of the 2013 Audi A3 is expected to be ready to show off at the traditional Detroit Lions Thanksgiving Day game next year. We can expect that these versions will host engine options including the latest 1.8 TFSI four cylinder which gives 177 horsepower, a refreshed 2.0 TFSI that offers 208 horsepower and a redesigned 2.0 TDI diesel engine. This engine is expected to give about 143 horsepower. The base starting price for a manual transmission sedan will probably start at about dollarsignr26,000 with additional destination fees.

2013 Honda Accord Prototype

The 2013 Honda Accord is the most important car for Honda’s future that they’ve ever built. The competition, especially from Ford, Hyundai and Kia has been getting fierce, and after their Crosstour and boring 2012 Civic models failed to hit any significant sales levels, a redesigned midsize sedan with the promise’s the Accord holds may be just what they need to push them out of the bottom of the pile of automakers.

While the prototype is still being tested, we aren’t sure what the final designs are going to be, but the rumors about the continuously variable transmission and a refreshed sport trim is some of the most exciting news from Honda for quite some time. It looks as if the prototype currently has a lower grille that’s similar to the mesh honeycomb design that showed up on the Accord Coupe concept at the most recent Detroit Auto Show, while the upper grille and horizontal slats looks to be the best of what could be taken from the updated Crosstour.

What is still unknown is what size the 2013 Honda Accord will be. It is listed in the midsize sedan category but looks to be verging into the large sedan segment. This is quite a change from the small sized compact this Honda version started out as being. Of course, since this is still in a prototype version, any changes are likely to happen before Honda is ready to unleash it for the world.

The Accord currently hosts four cylinder and six cylinder engine options. The six cylinder 3.5 liter V6 with cylinder deactivation recently went through some revisions to offer more power. The four cylinder Honda is using is a 2.4 liter that offers 181 horsepower and 177 pound feet of torque. We suspect direct injection will be added to boost the performance on both engines.

Volkswagen Amarok Pickup May be Heading for Canada

While Americans may never enjoy driving a Volkswagen Amarok pickup, rumor has it that Canada may be getting just that option. North Americans love full size pickups and sales of the small and midsize versions just aren’t getting nearly as much interest in the market. Favorite small trucks such as the Ford Ranger have passed away, Ram retired their Dakota small truck, and Chevrolet Colorado/GMC Canyon has replacement models on the way, but won’t be ready for the showrooms for some time yet. There are only a few truck versions left at this point including, The Toyota Tacoma, Nissan Frontier and Honda Ridgeline, but they aren’t exactly the talk of the town anymore.

Even with the dismal outlook with the smaller sized pickups in the American market, Volkswagen thinks there may be some hope for their Volkswagen Amarok in Canada.

Media Relations Manager at VW of Canada, Thomas Tetzlaff was on hand to comment. He stated, “The German automaker is presently in the ‘evaluation stage,’ where we are pouring over data with a fine-toothed comb. Bottom line? We are very interested, but are proceeding very slowly and very cautiously.” He goes on to confirm, “Yes, we have had discussions with our dealers and they have given us some very positive feedback. The challenge is to justify the project ‘on our own’.”

While Tetzlaff could not verity which cab styles or powertrain options are on the table for Canda, he would confirm that, “The powertrain solution would certainly give Canadian buyers a real alternative in the light pickup market.” Currently the Volkswagen Amarok is built in single and double cab configurations with options of rear wheel drive or four wheel drive. They seem to sell well in South America, Europe, Russia, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. They may be a great seller for the Canadian market as well.

Dodge Ram Pickup Named Number One Most Dangerous Car in America

A recent report from 24/7 Wall St. combined the scores from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, data from Consumer Ratings Reports ratings, information from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration crash safety results and J.D. Power’s Initial Quality Study numbers to create a comprehensive listing of America’s most dangerous cars. It looks like the Ram Pickup was the unfortunate winner. These scores reflect vehicles that did poorly in crash testing including side and rear impact tests and rollover tests. The Jeep Wrangler is the only vehicle listed that did not receive a bad rollover rating.

1. Dodge Ram 1500 for bad ratings especially in side-marginal; rollover-marginal

2. Chevrolet Colorado Super Crew Cab for side-poor; rollover-marginal; rear-marginal ratings

3. Mazda CX-7 for bad ratings in rollover-marginal; rear-marginal

4. Mazda CX-9 also for bad ratings in rollover-marginal; rear-marginal

5. Nissan Pathfinder for rollover-marginal; rear-marginal               ratings

6. Jeep Wrangler for side-marginal (2-door); side-poor (4-door); rear-marginal (both) ratings

7. Suzuki SX4 for bad ratings in rollover-marginal; rear-marginal

Despite these safety rating consumers appear uncaring, or maybe just uninformed because the 24/7 Wall St. report stated, “The poor ratings of these models do not appear to have affected their sales. In fact, sales of all models are up from last year. In all but one case, according to data provided by Edmunds.com, sales grew at least 19% last year. And while most of these models’ sales are still below 2007 levels, sales the Jeep Wrangler not only increased the most but also jumped 50% since then.”

Now that the list has been published it will be interesting to see if consumers will demand higher safety ratings from their favorite brands, or if they will just make the choice to switch over to something that will give them a better piece of mind on these treacherous roadways.

Is Your State Asking Congress for Toll Roads to Close Budget Gaps?

Traditional sources of revenue are declining and there is an urgent need to add capacity and repair to the highway infrastructure system. States are finding it next to impossible to come up with the funding they need for these expenses and are turning to Congress to request permission for toll roads to help raise money they need. Simply keeping up with the roadways is a dollarsignr137 billion expense according to a Congressional commission report recently released. But there is less and less money going into that budget and zero is going to be the number in the federal highway funds as early as 2013.

The decrease in operational budgets for our roadways is due in part to the recession, but it is compounded due to people driving less, less tax coming from fuel expenditures caused by more fuel efficient cars and people refusing to drive as much. But road and bridges are becoming more expensive to maintain and construct. With the traditional sources of revenue declining, toll roads may seem like a viable option for the states requesting it, but harder on the wallets of the citizens who survive there.

Currently trials are being conducted in three states to test out toll roads and 15 states are prohibited by Federal law from collecting tolls. Some of the toll roads have increased prices while traffic is more congested which adds an additional burden on commuters that need to pay those tolls to get to their jobs, to make more money, to pay more tolls. At this point, it does look like nationwide approval for these “pay to drive” byways is a long way off, the biggest concern from the federal government is that states seem to want to toll the roads that are most likely to host out of state travelers.

Ford Focus ST Touring America with free Performance Academy

Ford is hosting a variety of consumer driving events all across America to allow the public to check out their upcoming 2013 Ford Focus ST. This includes some free driver’s training and timed laps on planned autocross courses. If you are interested in jumping behind the wheel, set your calendars for June 30 if you are in New York. The tour will then move on to Washington, D.C., Boston, San Francisco and Los Angeles. These events will start promptly at 9am in each time zone and be over with at 6pm. It looks like if you are in the Midwest, you can commute or stay up to date on the news from the comfort of your own state.

Lisa Schoder, Ford Focus ST Marketing manager said, “Our fans have expressed extremely high interest in this car, but we know the proof is in the pudding. We want ST fans, as well as drivers of competitive vehicles, to be able to taste this car firsthand. What better way to do it, than to bring the car to the people with the help of professional driver instruction on closed courses.”

Preregistration for the event is required and is on a first come first serve basis. While it is free, Ford expects to see each event filled to capacity. Along with professional driving instructors armed with a fleet of 2013 Ford Focus STS for the training and timed competitions, there will be 48 foot race trailers and other bells and whistles which will probably be general event and more location specific attractions.

The official schedule is:

• IZOD Center, June 30, New York

• FedEx Field, July 14, Washington, D.C.

• Gillette Stadium, July 21, Boston

• Candlestick Park, Aug. 4, San Francisco

• Dodgers Stadium, Aug. 11, Los Angeles

If you want to be part of the action, pre-register right away at http://www.drivefocusst.com/. There are only so many spaces left.

Compass, Town & Country to Die but Dart SRT is on the Way

Jeep Compass and Chrysler Town & Country vans will be sad to hear that their vehicles will discontinue in the 2014 auto season. Fiat-Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne recently addressed the Belvidere Assembly Plant and stated plans to replace these models with something else. The Jeep Patriot’s demise is still under question, but the Jeep Compass and Chrysler Town & Country vans are on the list to become obsolete. Marchionne did share that the Dodge Dart SRT model will be the schedule replacement and that their biggest dilemma with this right now is trying to figure out how big of an engine they put in it.

While the Jeep Compass and Chrysler Town & Country vans got their pink slips, it was confirmed that The Dodge Grand Caravan is safe from the cut at this point. It will now be the only minivan coming out as Fiat/Chrysler puts their sites on smaller and more upscale crossovers. Speculations point to the Dodge Dart SRT coming out much in the same line as the Mercedes-Benz R-Class, but details are not being shared at this point.

The decisions are based in the attempt to create a more distinctive identity for each Chrysler Group brand and get rid of some of the overlaps that the DaimlerChrysler era had been producing. Chrysler dealers are now selling Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram, and without the distinction, the efforts may get too watered down. While these attempts to recreate the brands are taking out some of America’s favorite vehicles, new ones are being added along with the Dodge Dart SRT. Ram and Fiat also have some new models in the works. An electric version of the Fiat 500 subcompact is expected to make its debut and a Ram pickup powered by compressed natural gas is currently in production.

Ram Runner Duels Raptor

The Mopar Ram Runner and Ford F-150 SVT Raptor faced off in a five mile desert course to prove who the top off road beast was. The best time was set to determine who the winner would be. The duel took place in a loop around the Ocotillo Wells State Vehicular Recreation Area. This area came equipped with overflowing river basins, deeply rutted dirt trails and gravel roads. The starting line had both trucks in four wheel drive high mode.

Chad Ragland, professional driver manned the Mopar Ram Runner. After the battle he said, “I was impressed with Ram Runner’s extreme off-road capability. We jumped, slammed into mounds, cut through deep sand and it came out like a pro, rarely getting into the bumpstops or touching the skid plates. Those front-end shocks are amazing. During our first set of runs, I could feel myself tighten a bit as we headed toward the big rocks and ruts, but then the front end just sucked it all up. Those big springs and shocks had no problems.”

“Our Mopar Ram Runner is the ultimate desert racer based on a production vehicle. Mopar Ram Runner offers superior suspension travel to handle rough terrain and greater approach and departure angles for better clearance, “ were some of the comments made by said Pietro Gorlier, President and CEO of Mopar, Chrysler Group LLC’s service, parts and customer-care brand.

Fred Diaz, President and CEO of Ram Truck Brand and Chrysler de Mexico was also on hand to comment, “We’re proud that – under the most punishing real-world test conditions possible – the Mopar Ram Runner takes PickupTrucks.com’s top off-road honors over the Ford Raptor. Whether you’re into desert racing, rock crawling, hunting and fishing or just need a hard-working dependable work truck, there’s truly a Ram truck for everyone.”

While it looks like the Mopar Ram Runner won out over the Ford F-150 SVT Raptor this time around, we have to wonder if it was due to driving prowess, or true truck performance.