Ever wonder how various magazines hand out “car of the year” awards and how sometimes the most undeserving cars win? These awards are a staple of regional rags, but the more transparent U.S. media pioneered such awards. And now, their dirty little secret has been exposed, although it has always been obvious to those who pay attention.
Some time ago, Lamborghini announced with much fanfare their “donation” of a Gallardo patrol car to the Italian police. That same Polizia-liveried Lamborghini Gallardo was destroyed after the police officer driving the supercar crashed into two parked cars. The accident took place following an exhibition where Italian police had the car on display, apparently in an event promoting road safety.
In a potential public-relations disaster for Audi, the president of the German company’s U.S. operations, Johan de Nysschen, has been quoted as saying that the upcoming all-electric Chevrolet Volt is “a car for idiots.”
The all-new 2010 Honda Accord Crosstour made its first appearance in early official photos. Aimed at the U.S. market, it is a slightly-lifted crossover based on the Accord sedan, and will likely be offered with all-wheel-drive and a 3.5-litre V6 engine. But the bigger news is the amount of hate it is generating.
Theoretically, the safest place to be during a thunderstorm is inside your car. A woman in the United States found that out the hard way, when her Ford Edge got hit by lightning while she was driving, and she walked away without a scratch.
It looks like imported salvage cars in the UAE aren’t the only ones burning up. A rare and exotic McLaren F1 caught fire last week in the U.S. state of California, after it was taken out for a spin. Apparently the owner had let the car sit unused for six months before finally driving it on that fateful day. The rare supercar will now be sent back to the United Kingdom in the hopes of having the car restored.
When it was first introduced half a decade ago, the Segway was supposed to revolutionise transportation as we know it. However, it soon became clear that is won’t happen, considering its sizeable price and lacking practicality. But then the Segway found a market as a security product. And it would seem that Segway is now actively pursuing a market in the UAE, with the purpose-built Segway Patroller.
It is a popular fact that there are more sheep than people in the island state of New Zealand. The country’s love for domestic animals is being taken advantage of by Mitsubishi. The Japanese automaker in New Zealand is offering a free goat with every Triton pickup sold before August in a novel effort at “correcting the economy.”
The 2010 Chevrolet Camaro has barely been seen in public, but there is already talk that there may be a special edition based on the “Bumblebee” version seen in the upcoming Transformers 2: Rise Of The Fallen movie.
BMW is going to display a customised X6 ambulance at the upcoming RETTmobil rescue vehicle show in Germany. It is the xDrive50i version, and BMW goes to great lengths to describe the purpose of such a cramped ambulance.