TheCarConnection

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Saving Buick, Ford flexes at the auto show, and Imus feedback.

Can Buick be saved? If Ford ready to Flex more muscles through a hip-hop DJ? Was Don Imus fired for good reason? And where the hell is Knight Rider’s KITT car? TheCarConnection.com takes its letters to the airwaves this week with a podcast of letters sent in by our readers. Listen in as editor Marty Padgett and fellow TCCer Mollie Platt cover ground with Buick’s Chinese Riviera and Park Avenue, a scoop on the Funked-up version of the Flex, why gay cars and Don Imus titillate our readers—and how KITT can be yours for about $149,000, blinking red light included.

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In the beginning, there was BMW and Mercedes. And then came Lexus.  Now Hyundai is about to weigh in with its Concept Genesis luxury car.  Hyundai?  Aren’t those the guys who make cheap and cheerful little econoboxes?  Once upon a time, maybe, but now Hyundai is moving up-market and is eyeing the luxury segment with this soon-to-be-in-production sedan that will cost barely half as much as its European and Japanese competition. Find out more in this report from Paul A. Eisenstein, Publisher of TheCarConnection.com.

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Small cars are “the fastest-growing segment of the automotive market,” notes Dave Lyons, who heads Asian design operations for General Motors. On a global scale, minicars now account for about 5 percent of total sales, but by some estimates, Lyons notes, that could triple over the next decade. So it’s no surprise that General Motors has chosen to unveil three promising minicar concepts at this year’s New York International Auto Show, prototypes primarily developed at the former Daewoo operations, in Inchon, South Korea, but with the assistance of GM designers and engineers from around the world. Hear more about the Trax, Groove and Beat with publisher Paul A. Eisenstein.

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Those little “Access OK” stickers you see on some Toyota Priuses, out in California, could be worth $4,000 or more when an owner goes to trade in, a new study reports. That’s because commuters are willing to spend thousands extra to get instand access to the HOV commuter lanes that can save them an hour a day in driving time. Paul A. Eisenstein, Publisher of TheCarConnection.com, has this report.

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Be careful what you ask for. As the newest Honda assembly plant shows, Detroit’s Big Three probably shouldn’t have pushed the Japanese automakers to set up production in the U.S. Is the $550 million Honda plant, in Greensburg, Indiana, another nail in Detroit’s coffin? Paul Eisenstein, Publisher of TheCarConnection.com, has more.

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It’s one of the year’s most important industry gatherings, with dozens of manufacturers from all over the world coming together to display their latest products at the Geneva Motor Show.  And this year is no exception, with products ranging from the new Audi Coupe to the Rolls-Royce Drophead; in all almost four dozen different concept and production vehicles are making their world debut at Geneva’s PALExpo center, and this report from TheCarConnection.com looks at some of the most important, including BMW’s next-generation M3, the striking Opel GTC Concept, Ford’s Mondeo, the Dodge Demon roadster, Toyota’s alternative to the Prius, the Hybrid X, Maserati’s elegant GranTurismo and more.

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At first glance, the BRP Can-Am Spyder looks like another motorcycle, but get a bit closer and you’ll notice its unusual, Y-shaped layout, with two wheels up front and one in the rear.  That’s mean to enhance stability — and lure in nervous Baby Boomers who’d love to relive their Easy Rider days.  Developed by Bombardier, the company that ave us the Ski-doo and Sea-doo, Spyder goes on sale later this year around the world.  Will it create a huge new market — or sink like the Segway?  Find out in this review from TheCarConnection.com.

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Does an environmentally-friendly automobile HAVE to look like the Toyota Prius?  Not to Jay Leno.  The talk show host and car collector teamed up with General Motors to secretly design and develop the Ecojet supercar.  Sure, it’ll deliver Autobahn speeds, but it also runs on bio-diesel, which can be produced with anything from soybeans to used French fry oil.  Ecojet puts the spotlight on alternative fuels, like biodiesel and ethanol, as TheCarConnection.com reports.

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A year ago, it was being hailed as the most successful of America’s Big Three US automakers.  Today, however, Chrysler is in crisis, losing market share and losing money, with its German parent, DaimlerChrysler AG, ready to sell the American automaker off.  Will General Motors buy it?  Hyundai?  Perhaps a Chinese automaker?  But can Chrysler survive, whomever owns it?  Find out some answers from TheCarConnection.com

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