Car WTFs
BMW: Buy Our Electric Car and We’ll Loan You A Real Car When You Need It
Here at the 2014 Chicago Auto Show much of the buzz has been about the electric movement. BMW has a couple of entries in the electric market with the i3 and i8 which are no doubt some very cool vehicles.
During BMW’s somewhat lackluster press conference we learned that their best electric offering, the i3, is only capable of an electric range of 80-100 miles in optimal conditions. The presenter went on to say that this range would work for around 90% of people. For that other 10% there was an interesting solution offered: “For those worried about performance for longer trips we have a loaner program.” To clarify, BMW will take your vehicle and trade you for a real car during your trip… for free…for a limited amount of trips.
Don’t get me wrong – I think it’s good that BMW is at least trying to find a way to bridge the electric range gap for its customers, but this is simply not good enough. How long is it going to take automakers to make a viable electric vehicle replacement? At some point they’ve got to realize buyers are not going to settle for a part-time electric vehicle and that they are basically wasting their time living in the middle.
Disappointing BMW… disappointing.
Many of us thought that the Dodge Challenger Hellcat was about as intimidating as a car could get. After all, people couldn’t hardly get them off the lot without crashing them when they first came out. Then Dodge upped the ante with the new Demon. But aside from the raw power, there are some other interesting aspects of the new Demon.
Check out the video below for a full rundown of just how unique this car is.
Think you finally have your Mercedes names mastered? Well, a new challenge appears to be coming, friend.
How to now identify Mercedes models by name
Some moves in the northwoods of Canada by the brand appear to signal a change in the naming conventions that will be used for Mercedes and AMG models. Candian trademarks have been filed for A 40, CLA 40, SLC 40, SLC 50 and GLE 50 in addition to CLA 53, G73 and S73.
If this proves true in the states, it would signal an end to the rule of two digits for Mercedes, three-digits for AMG counterparts. The new world would be two digits, ending in a “0” for Mercedes, and two digits ending in a “3” for AMG. This supports rumors of an AMG ‘73’ model with a hybrid powertrain.
While this change isn’t terribly difficult to comprehend, it certainly makes things interesting when comparing legacy and upcoming Mercedes models. There are a lot of numbers to keep straight, and a lot of explaining to do. And the letter and number combos leave something to be desired in terms of cachet.
It makes one appreciate the simplicity of giving each vehicle an actual name, like the domestic manufacturers do. Sure, that’s how we ended up with the Chevy Nova, but what are you going to do? There are only so many names, surely one for an automobile would end up meaning “no go” in some language, right?…
I like my car. It’s a 2011 Toyota toaster, I mean Camry. If you made a list of everything a car has to do, the Camry would check all the boxes. It gets me from point A to point B with the consistency a learning golfer would envy. It’s a toaster. You put in the bread, choose your level of toastiness, push down the thingy and then wait for it to pop up. But there is one interesting thing about my car. The shifter. That’s it up there. That is definitely not conventional at all. So, what’s with Toyota’s weird shifter pattern? (more…)
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