HOME OF CARS: 2010

Friday 31 December 2010

Ford launches SYNC Destinations mobile app

Around this time last year, Ford debuted its brand new MyFord Touch system, an infotainment setup that will be spreading like wildfire to the full host of Blue Oval products. To further build upon Ford's SYNC technology, the automaker will now be releasing a free mobile application called SYNC Destinations, available for iPhone, iPad and Android-based phones. (Don't worry, BlackBerry folk - your app is in the pipeline.)

This app allows customers with the SYNC TDI (Traffic, Directions and Information) service to search for and save destinations to their individual cloud-based software for easy access back in the car. What's more, the app uses predictive traffic, powered by INRIX, which provides recommended departure times along with estimated travel times for commutes.

Ford says that by using SYNC Destinations, TDI users will be able to better plan the "when and where" of their commutes, simply by using the INRIX features found within the app. Specifically, aids like traffic maps with real-time speed and accident information, traffic forecasts and easy look-up of addresses will make adding new destinations to the user's SYNC system easier than before, and more accessible while on the go (and not in the car).

SYNC Destinations will make its official debut at CES in January. For the full details, follow the jump to read Ford's press release.

Gallery: Ford SYNC Destinations

[Source: Ford]

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Ford launches SYNC Destinations mobile app originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 30 Dec 2010 00:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Facing high gas prices, dealers get cautious with big SUVs

Filed under: Car Buying, SUV, Crossover

The average gas price in the U.S. is over $3 right now, and there's a good chance it'll go higher before too long. What do you do in this situation if you're a car dealer with a lot full of SUVs and big crossovers? You start being cautious.

That's the takeaway point from an Automotive News article, with the key quote coming from a New York Ford dealer, who told the industry publication:

SUVs are still important in this area, but people are downsizing to more fuel efficient SUVs instead. We are still stocking with the idea that it may go either way. Hoping for the best, but prepared for anything.

For the moment, gas prices aren't high enough to make people panic and try to offload their gas hogs the way we saw in 2008, but Kelley Blue Book analyst Alec Gutierrez told Automotive News that SUV sales could drop "dramatically" once gas reaches $3.50 or $4 a gallon, saying, "The days where a dealer could just go to auction and stock up on a bunch of SUVs and hold them for 40 or 60 days are over."

The last time gas jumped up to panic levels was in 2008. That's when Joe Crawford took the picture that illustrates this post. In the accompanying Flickr caption, he writes:

So a local (Culver City) car dealer started storing cars on the top of our parking garage. I always park on the roof, so anytime I am up there I see the cars. I have taken to think of these cars as an economic indicator. They all seem to be SUV vehicles. I wonder about why they are up there, and why there seems to be more every week. I suspect the fact that they're stored here has something to do with the price of gas.

We suspect he's right, and we can't imagine there are dealers out there who want to have to go through a process like that again.

[Source: Automotive News - sub. req. | Image: Joe Crawford - C.C. 2.0]

Report: Facing high gas prices, dealers get cautious with big SUVs originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 30 Dec 2010 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Classic Mashup: 2011 Range Rover vs. 1993 Range Rover

Filed under: SUV, Land Rover, UK

The shape may be very similar, but the technology underpinning a modern Range Rover is light years ahead of what you will find propping up an older model. Inside Line was able to line up two examples of the Range Rover; a 1993 model and the 2011 version. The two were then put through their paces at legendary Eastnor Castle, which sits at the border of England and Wales.

Eastnor is the site where many a Land Rover has been put through difficult off-road situations. Today, the castle serves as the headquarters for the Land Rover Driving Experience and is the perfect place to find out how old and new compare with one another.

Sure, coil springs have been replaced by an adjustable platform that literally rides on a cushion of air and the engine has changed from an old Buick to one sourced from Jaguar, but how do the two off-roaders stack up when the going gets really tough? Head over to Inside Line to read all about it.

[Source: Inside Line | Image: Lee Brimble]

Classic Mashup: 2011 Range Rover vs. 1993 Range Rover originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 30 Dec 2010 08:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Volvo to hire 200 in Sweden in expectation of higher demand

Filed under: Europe, Hirings/Firings/Layoffs, Volvo

2011 Volvo S60 T6 AWD - Click above for high-res image gallery

When the dust settles on 2010, Volvo anticipates global sales of about 380,000 units. That's probably less than Volvo executives (and the new owners at Zhejiang Geely) were hoping for, but a global slump in auto sales is at least partly to blame. Fortunately, many industry analysts are expecting increased demand for autos in 2011, and Volvo apparently feels that the growing appetite for new vehicles will result in more customers at the local Volvo dealer.

Bloomberg reports that the Swedish automaker is hiring an additional 200 workers to increase capacity at the company's Gothenburg plant. The move will help Volvo increase production from 48 vehicles per hour to 52. That doesn't sound like a huge bump, but over the course of 365, days four vehicles per hour adds up to thousands of additional vehicles. Volvo will reportedly begin hiring soon, with hopes of filling all 200 positions by March.

Gallery: 2011 Volvo S60: First Drive

Photos copyright (C)2010 Chris Paukert / AOL

[Source: Bloomberg]

Report: Volvo to hire 200 in Sweden in expectation of higher demand originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 30 Dec 2010 09:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ford recalling nearly 15,000 F-Series and Edge/Lincoln MKX crossovers

Filed under: SUV, Truck, Recalls, Safety, Ford

If you thought 2010 was going to wrap up with an all quiet on the recall front, think again. Ford and the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration have announced the recall of 14,737 vehicles for a faulty body control module that may short out and cause a fire.

The recall covers certain 2011 models that were built in a six-day period, including some 2011 Edge, F-150, F-250, F-350, F-450, F-550 and Lincoln MKX vehicles. NHTSA says that if the body control module shorts out, it could overheat and cause a fire.

Dealers are expected to inspect the module and, if necessary, replace it free of charge. NHTSA says that Ford plans to start the work on or before January 10, 2011, and that owners may contact Ford directly with questions at 1-866-436-7332. Hit the jump for a look at the full recall notice.

[Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration]

Continue reading Ford recalling nearly 15,000 F-Series and Edge/Lincoln MKX crossovers

Ford recalling nearly 15,000 F-Series and Edge/Lincoln MKX crossovers originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 30 Dec 2010 09:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Toyota recalls fuel massive spike in complaints to NHTSA

Filed under: Government/Legal, Recalls, Safety, Toyota

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration got a wee bit busier this year. As of December 14th, the agency reported that it had received over 64,000 complaints. Edmunds' calculations, which remove duplicates, pegs the figure at more than 40,000 complaints - thanks in no small part to the spate of massive recalls from Toyota.

In fact, NHTSA reports that it received 87 complaints for every 100,000 vehicles sold by Toyota in 2010, more than double the Japanese automaker's performance from the previous year and the highest percentage of any company selling cars in the United States.

Not that other automakers fared that much better. Nissan came in with the second highest ratio at 62 complaints per 100,000 vehicles and Volkswagen nabbed third place with 58. The industry average of 47 complaints per 100,000 vehicles was up from fewer than 30 in 2009. For what it's worth, Ford and Honda had the lowest ratios of complaints, and there was little difference between American and Japanese manufacturers.

These complaints are a good thing, says NHTSA, as the agency can then determine if a customer's problem is singular or part of a larger issue that affects multiple vehicles, possibly prompting an inspection or safety recall. So don't quit yer' complaining!

[Source: LA Times | Image: Alex Wong/Getty Images]

Report: Toyota recalls fuel massive spike in complaints to NHTSA originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 30 Dec 2010 10:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Xenatec Maybach Cruiserio coupe enters production with Saudi investment

Filed under: Coupe, Europe, Maybach, Middle East, Luxury

Xenatec Maybach Cruiserio coupe - Click above for image gallery

Want to get your hands on a Maybach coupe? You've got two options. First would be to commission a replica of the Exelero concept car on the chassis of a Dodge Viper. That'll set you back €550,000, or about $730k at today's conversion rates. Your other choice is to have Xenatec convert a Maybach 57 S limo into a coupe for €675,000 ($894k).

We brought you initial news of the project back in May, followed by details in October. For a quick refresher, the German coachbuilder brought in Fredrik Burchhardt, designer of the original Exelero, to pen the modified shape for the coupe. The result keeps most of the saloon's mechanicals in place - including the 600+ horsepower twin-turbo V12 - only with modified bodywork, cabin and (of course) two longer doors instead of four.

Seen until now only in sketches, the Xenatec Maybach coupe has been (awkwardly) dubbed the Cruiserio, and it has just made its debut at Daimler headquarters in Stuttgart. The project is now being underwritten by a €70 million ($93M) investment from AutoKingdom of Saudi Arabia. Over the course of three years, Xenatec and AutoKingdom ambitiously anticipate building 100 examples, and say they've already got enough orders to keep them busy for the next year or so. Can't wait that long? The first example is up for sale out of Riyadh, with a price tag of just under a cool million.

Gallery: Xenatec Maybach Cruiserio