Chevrolet auto news

REPORT: Bob Lutz "crapped all over [GM's] advertising," went on holiday

It's no mystery that Bob Lutz wasn't particularly pleased with Buick's recent "Photo Shoot" advert, and according to Ad Age, the tri-shield's spot wasn't the only campaign to incur Maximum Bob's maximum wrath.

On July 14, General Motor's new Vice Chairman sat down with the automaker's branding teams, and according to one source, "crapped all over the advertising," then left on a Caribbean vacation.

Specifically, he took issue with the aforementioned Buick commercial, as well as the Kate Walsh (of Grey's Anatomy fame) Cadillac ads, saying the spots were "too dark" and that Chevrolet's new campaign - which has yet to run - is "too lifestyle-focused."

Speaking with various insiders at GM, its advertising agencies and the creator of the Buick spot, Ad Age reports that Lutz will be spearheading in-depth reviews of current and upcoming campaigns to best represent the General's post-bankruptcy rebirth, and taking an old-school approach that highlights the products and features in its line-up.

Lutz said in a webcast before the meeting, "I think you will very quickly see a drastic change in the tone and content of our advertising. And if you don't, it will mean that I have failed."

GM: No Chevy Volt pricing until mid to late 2010, could sell first cars on eBay

During a live webchat the other day, Jon Lauckner, General Motors VP for Global Program Management, said that pricing for the Chevrolet Volt would not be finalized until mid to late 2010. Although cars are generally developed to a target price point, Lauckner responded to a pricing query saying, "We typically do not lock in on pricing until about 3-6 months prior to start of production. The reason is primarily so we have an opportunity to take a look at the market, competitors and other factors. So stay tuned."

As for alternative versions of the Voltec, such as a lower cost non-plug-in version, Lauckner ruled that out as defeating the whole point of the Volt. Without the benefits of running on grid power, the Volt's architecture would likely be less efficient than a current parallel hybrid because of the losses in constantly going from mechanical to electrical and back to mechanical energy.

What does seem likely to eventually change is the configuration of the range extender. Lauckner ruled out the possibility of using a Wankel rotary - an engine design that offers high power density compared to a piston engine but isn't very fuel efficient. One alternative that was highlighted as an alternative that does have promise for increased efficiency was HCCI. In any case, none of these alternatives are likely to appear before the second-gen Volt at the earliest. The first-gen Volt will be e85 capable at launch just as announced when the original concept appeared. More after the jump.

Gallery: 2011 Chevy Volt

Continue reading GM: No Chevy Volt pricing until mid to late 2010, could sell first cars on eBay

GM European sales chief Brent Dewar named head of Chevrolet

Dewar, who started his career with GM of Canada in 1978, became the European sales and marketing head last year after stints as the vice president of field sales, service and marketing, executive director of sales in Brazil and Chevrolet's general marketing manager, where he was in charge of the brand's "American Revolution" ad campaign.

Dewar's appointment comes in the wake of the announcement that Bryan Nesbitt, former North American design head, would become the new man in charge of Cadillac on August 1. Chevrolet, Cadillac and Buick/GMC's lead executives will all report to newly-appointed vice chairman of marketing, Bob Lutz as GM continues its reinvention campaign.

Hello? Chevy reportedly vows to call Camaro owners who may have bad transmissions

Last week, we told you about a problem some members of the Camaro5 forums who own V8-powered SS models equipped with the Tremec six-speed manual transmission were reporting. The owners were experiencing a broken output shaft on hard launch; a serious problem that will likely render their brand new Bowtie pony car immobile. General Motors responded by putting a hold on V8 Camaros with manual trannies at its Oshawa assembly plant, but until now, there hasn't been a definitive plan for replacing the affected transmissions.

Camaro5 is now reporting that GM will pick up the phone and call all owners who may have the defective gearbox, presumably to schedule time at the dealership to fix the problem parts. GM told Camaro5 that the calls will take place in a couple weeks, after an internal investigation regarding the issue is complete.

At this point, we don't know what happened to cause the problem with the Tremec 6060 transmission, nor do we know exactly what parts GM will need to repair. What we do know, however, is that we'll update you as soon as we have more information.

Gallery: One Night Stand: 2010 Chevrolet Camaro

Jay Leno could be second buyer of Bertone Mantide

Following its official unveiling in Shanghai, the Bertone Mantide has begun to make the auto show rounds, beginning with an appearance at the Goodwood Festival of Speed where its designer, Jason Castriota, drove the coachbuilt coupe up Lord March's driveway. The next stop on the Mantide's world tour includes a stint at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance in August, where the rebodied Corvette ZR1 will either be shipped or driven to Monterey by the Mantide's owner, a British ex-pat residing in the States.

Although the video after the jump doesn't reveal exactly who purchased the first of ten Mantides (he's a gentleman racer who owns a substantial car collection that includes a McLaren F1, and has raced in the Ferrari F430 Challenge Series), according to our sources, Jay Leno is potentially in the offing to receive the next production model.

Leno, who attended Goodwood earlier this month, spent a considerable amount of time with Castriota during the event and apparently fell in love with the Mantide. According to reports, Leno would be the fourth or fifth client to put an order in for the re-imagined 'Vette, at a reported cost of around $2 million. Thanks to Bradley Farrell from Kinetic Fin for the update.

Gallery: Bertone Mantide

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Camaro5 provides 68-point checklist when picking up your new Camaro

It's not unusual for a new car model to have a few glitches early in its production run and the new Chevy Camaro is certainly no exception. With that in mind, the helpful folks at Camaro5 have compiled a handy 68-point check-list for people heading out to their local Chevrolet dealer to pick up their new pony.

The list was generated from real-life problems, with some of the items falling into the annoyance category (#8 "Loose Rocker Panel "Chevrolet" causing it to peel off" and #23 "Correct speedo/tach gauge ring color") to more serious items (#17 "Broken Tranny", #1 "Loose Bolts that hold fluid back causing leaks (ex: on oil pan, tranny fluid)" and #4 "Loose Spoiler/installed correctly"). You can check out the full list after the jump.

Gallery: One Night Stand: 2010 Chevrolet Camaro

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2010 Transformers Special Edition Chevy Camaro unveiled

Today at Comic-Con, General Motors officially announced the 2010 Chevy Camaro Transformers Special Edition. The $995 appearance package can be applied to LT (V6) and SS-trim Camaros in Rally Yellow with or without the optional RS package. So, whadda ya get for the dough? It's very straightforward:

• Autobot insignia fender badges and wheel caps
• An embroidered Autobot insignia on the center console
• Gloss-black rally stripes with Transformers logos
• Transformers-logo doorsill plates

Gallery: 2010 Chevrolet Camaro Transformers Special Edition

Continue reading 2010 Transformers Special Edition Chevy Camaro unveiled

Camaro5 provides 68 point checklist when picking up your new Camaro

It's unusual for a new car model to have a few glitches early in its production run and the new Chevy Camaro is certainly no exception. With that in mind, the helpful folks at Camaro5 have compiled a handy 68-point check-list for people heading out to their local Chevrolet dealer to pick up their new pony.

The list was generated from real-life problems, with some of the items falling into the annoyance category (#8 "Loose Rocker Panel "Chevrolet" causing it to peel off" and #23 "Correct speedo/tach gauge ring color") to more serious items (#17 "Broken Tranny", #1 "Loose Bolts that hold fluid back causing leaks (ex: on oil pan, tranny fluid)" and #4 "Loose Spoiler/installed correctly"). You can check out the full list after the jump.

Gallery: One Night Stand: 2010 Chevrolet Camaro

Continue reading Camaro5 provides 68 point checklist when picking up your new Camaro

Italian-American Pride: Corvette-based SV 9 Competizione

Reclothing Corvettes with Italian coachwork is a time-honored tradition; one that sadly lapsed for years in between the age of classics and the modern era. But in an industry where old designs and old badges are resurrected with increasing regularity, this is one practice we're glad to see come back. Following such recent examples as Castagna Aznom comes the SV 9 Competizione, a re-skinned C6 Corvette with a touch of Italian flair.

Imagine a cross between an Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione - from which this creation clearly draws its inspiration (as well as its name) - and a contemporary Corvette and you're well on your way towards summing up the SV 9 Competizione's design. And while we have some reservations over the front-end styling with its protruding snout, overall, the design strikes an intriguing balance between American muscle and Italian style. And when you consider the price of many contemporary coachbuilt customs, the $99,995 sticker price - including the donor Vette - doesn't seem all that outlandish.

Along with the carbon fiber bodywork, SV has tweaked the interior, fitted a new intake and exhaust for a 14-horsepower boost to 450 and fitted a new set of wheels with Pirelli Pzero Rosso tires, giving the SV 9 Competizione a claimed 0-60 time of four seconds flat, a 12-second quarter-mile sprint, a braking distance from 60 of 107 feet and 1.03g of lateral grip. Not too shabby by any standard. And with configurations based on 25 exterior colors, five interior trims and four wheel choices, SV figures there's no reason any two of the 1,000 units to which production is limited will ever need to turn out the same. We wouldn't mind seeing one up close ourselves; the first example is set to debut in San Francisco this weekend ahead of its unveiling at the local Concorso Italiano next month, but in the meantime you can check out the computer renderings in the gallery below.

Gallery: SV 9 Competizione Corvette

IIHS tests two-door coupes, ratings mostly positive

It comes as little surprise that two-door automobiles perform differently when crash tested than their four-door stablemates, particularly in side crashes. Due to the vastly different structural makeup of coupes versus sedans, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has decided to test both two- and four-door versions of automobiles for 2009, and the results aren't always predictable.

For instance, the 2009 Ford Focus Coupe joins Volvo's 2009 C30 as a two-door vehicle that earns the agency's Top Safety Pick rating, yet the four-door Focus scored a lower Acceptable rating in previous IIHS side crash testing. Conversely, the 2009 Honda Civic flips those ratings with the newly-tested coupe garnering an Acceptable side crash score versus the sedan's Top Safety Pick rating.

While the Chevrolet Cobalt, Ford Focus, Honda Civic, Scion tC and Volvo C30 all performed fairly well in both frontal and side crash testing, the tC was judged the poorest performer overall and was the only vehicle that failed to earn either a Good or Acceptable rating for rear crash protection. Check out the gallery of smashed-up coupes below and see the official press release after the break for additional details on the testing results.

Gallery: IIHS 2009 Two-Door Crash Tests

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