I'm no longer going to express any shock that my island city continues to provide a seemingly inexhaustible supply of street-parked vintage cars and trucks; we got to 150 Down On The Street posts late last year, we're up to 200 as of today, and I've got enough photos in the can to get us to 250, no sweat.  read more »

WASHINGTON -- The insurance industry named dozens of new cars and trucks, led by Ford Motor Co. and its Volvo subsidiary, to its annual list of the safest vehicles Tuesday, helped by the increased use of anti-rollover technology.

Ford and Volvo had 16 vehicles in the 2009 model year on the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's list of the safest new cars, followed by Honda Motor Co. with 13 vehicles.

Seventy-two cars, trucks and SUVs received the top safety pick designation for 2009, more than double the number of vehicles in the 2008 model year and three times the number in 2007.

"The sheer number of this year's winners indicates that automakers have made huge strides to improve crash protection," said Institute president Adrian Lund.  read more »

Ford officially rolled out the 2009 Edge Sport at the Chicago Auto Show, and while the moniker might be dubious, it is at least a nicely done factory tuner.

The 2009 Ford Edge Sport is not the return of the GMC Typhoon, or a Porsche Cayenne for those with average credit scores.  read more »

Anyone remember the Chevrolet Traverse Concept from the 2000 Chicago Auto Show? No?  read more »

Isuzu began notifying its dealers Wednesday that next year the Japanese automaker will stop selling its entire consumer lineup, including the midsize Ascender SUV derived from the Chevrolet Trailblazer and the midsize i-290 and i-370 pickup trucks derived from the Chevy Colorado. One source said he wasn't sure consumers would even notice, since Isuzu only sold 7,098 vehicles in the U.S. last year. Isuzu sells only SUVs and trucks here, no cars. Sales will stop after Jan. 31, 2009, but service will not, the automaker said. Consumers who own an Isuzu SUV or truck will continue to be offered service and warranty work, company spokesman Chip Letzgus said. He wouldn't provide details on how that will work until all dealers have been told how the service program will work.    There are 200 Isuzu dealers in the U.S., but only about a dozen are stand-alone Isuzu stores. The rest are duals with other brands, many Chevrolet, which is why those dealers can continue to service the vehicles; both are rebadged Chevrolets. One Chicago Isuzu dealer said his store got a phone call this morning advising them of the action. He said his business has basically been limited to service rather than sales for some time. It doesn't help that Chevrolet is expected to sell its own version of the Buick Enclave, GMC Acadia and Saturn Outlook crossovers, called the Traverse, for 2009. That car will cater to those who previously shopped for the TrailBlazer SUV in Chevys lineup, thus taking away Isuzu's source for its SUV. There has been speculation that the slow-selling Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon midsize pickups days are numbered, though Chevy insists they are still in the product cycle for at least three years. Letzgus said Isuzu will continue to sell some commercial vehicles in the U.S.  read more »

Today, the Wall Street Journal ran a story stating that GM could shutter many of its brands, not just Hummer, which the company has already publicly said is up for sale or closure because of tough economic times. The only two safe brands, the article states, are Chevrolet and Cadillac. Buick, GMC, Pontiac, Saturn and Saab are all up for discussion, meaning sale or the chopping block. Its obviously too early to tell what will happen, but we can still speculate. GM is already consolidating Buick, GMC and Pontiac dealerships into single stores. Buick has a hit with its Enclave crossover, but the other two brands havent a single success to point at. Saab has had little investment by GM and is most likely after Hummer to go the way of the dodo by sale or shutter. Saturn has an all-new lineup, and GM has spent a massive amount of money relaunching the brand, but not much has taken hold. Only the Saturn Vue crossover has had much long-term success; the hybrid version has virtually sold out. Closing Saturn would be the biggest and hardest chop GM could make because of all that new investment. However, many of Saturns vehicles could head straight to Pontiac with a quick badge slap here and there. A smart move for GM might be keeping the Buick/GMC/Pontiac triplets and axing Hummer, Saab and Saturn. Follow me here a second: Buick could pick up the upcoming Saab 9-4x crossover, and a new sedan to replace the LaCrosse is already in the works. With a solid sedan, a midsize crossover and the hot three-row Enclave, Buick would be pretty well-rounded. If GM had to cut even more, I could also see it killing Buick entirely and moving the Enclave to Cadillac, as well as shutting down GMC, which has no unique vehicles.  Pontiac has sold quite a few G6 sedans and Vibe hatchbacks lately. The company needs to build on that success. A new G6 could be imported from Europe, like Saturn had planned for its next-generation Aura. The next Saturn Astra could also become a compact Pontiac two-door hatchback and sedan (so as not to overlap with the Vibe). The Saturn Vue is a sporty crossover that could be rebadged as a Pontiac, but a Chevy version is already planned. That would mean Pontiacs lineup would have a solid, sporty entry-level car in the Astra, plus the Vibe, a new G6 sedan and the powerful rear-wheel-drive G8, which might not sell well with high gas prices but would keep the performance aspect of the brand intact. Pontiac has already shown some creativity in advertising for the G8, has a lot of brand equity and a fan following. That leaves GMC. It would be pretty easy to dismiss the nameplate because it sells the same out-of-vogue pickups and SUVs as Chevy. In that regard, GM could go nuclear and kill GMC and Buick, leaving just Pontiac to pick up the pieces. GMC still sells a significant number, though, of those out-of-vogue SUVs and pickups, and it doesnt cost much to run the brand. However, even the costs associated with marketing and advertising might be case enough for GM to axe it, let alone the factory workers salaries. Just think, though: Pontiac may be the sole survivor in a massive bloodletting, besides the core or Chevy and Cadillac. Id rather GM wait to see how much really needs to go before any of these actions are taken, but most folks probably wouldnt miss a Hummer, Saab, Buick or GMC. What do you think? How many could or should survive?  read more »

GENERAL MOTORS' BUICK DIVISION USED its yearlyNew York Auto Show luncheon at Cipriani to talk about art and design: the former being the theme of a pair of new TV spots featuring golfer Tiger Woods, the latter a key to Buick's design continuity since the '40s and the direction for forthcoming global products.

On hand were GM's global VP of design, Ed Welburn, and his subaltern, David Lyon, formerly design chief at GM's Shanghai studio and currently executive director, interior design.  read more »

Chevrolet will join the trio of big GM crossovers with a fourth family vehicle, the Traverse . On display at the Chicago auto show , the Traverse is based on the same mechanicals as the Buick Enclave, GMC Acadia and Saturn Outlook. Chevrolet says it's targeting the likes of the Ford Edge, Toyota Highlander and Honda Pilot with the new seven- or eight-passenger Traverse.  read more »

We told you about Chevrolets new incentives Tuesday, but there are also new deals available for 2008 Buick, Pontiac and GMC models. However, most arent as much as competitors are offering right now. GMC trucks typically have some of the higher incentive offers available, and this month is no different. The automaker is offering between $2,000 and $3,250 on its 2008 GMC Sierra trucks (the specific deals vary based on trim level and features). GMC is also offering $2,000 on its Envoy and Yukon SUVs, and each model gets at least 2.9% financing for up to 36 months. Pontiacs and Buicks deals are less exciting. Buick is offering 2.9% financing or $1,000 cash back on the Lacrosse and 2.9% or $1,500 on the Lucerne.  read more »

Detroit's automakers and their top Japanese rivals all suffered March sales declines in a market that sank to its weakest level since 2005 as the dual impact of a slowing economy and a credit crunch kept consumers away from showrooms.

The weaker-than-anticipated sales led some auto executives to caution that demand might fall further before it starts to recover.

"I'd like to be able to tell you that the worst is behind us, but I can't give you that assurance," said Jim Farley, global sales chief at Ford Motor Co. "Our sense is, the second quarter may be the most difficult of the year."  read more »