Ford Steals An Eventful Detroit Auto Show

In a world where it is becoming next to impossible to keep a good secret, most brands have given up trying and often reveal their auto show gems as early as a month ahead of schedule. With that in mind the power of a true surprise has grown exponentially, especially if that surprise is a poster worthy supercar. The Acura NSX was supposed to be the supercar star of the NAIAS but then the Ford GT concept happened. There have been rumors of a GT resurgence and but nothing could quite prepare for a supercar more than worthy of an exotic badge. It's the Asterion that Lamborghini wished it could have debuted in Paris. The fact that the first shots of the GT came directly from the floor made this reveal that more exciting. Aside from the simple Lotus Evoraesque interior and a poor take on a racing steering wheel, the GT looks to challenge the very best much like the original GT40 did in the 1960s and a decade ago. Bucking most trends again Ford quotes as on sale date of 2016. The GT also gives credence that Chevy will finally make a mid engine "Corvette" after all those years. Following the no teaser route Ford rounded out its tremendous Monday with a worthy second generation Ford Raptor powered by a preview of the GT's EcoBoost and topped it all of with a track special Mustang GT350R complete with carbon fiber wheels from the factory. Likely a first for a car you can pronounce or hope to see. The only demerit was Ford's lack of actual horsepower numbers but others (Acura, Toyota) are just as guilty.

 

Toyota Urban Cruiser Fails Euro NCAP Test, Toyota PR Responds

The Toyota Urban Cruiser, the European version of the Scion xD, received a poor overall rating of 3 stars from the European New Car Assessment Programme. The reason for the three star rating was the poor score of 58% for adult occupant protection. Of the dozen cars tested in the last release, the Chevrolet Cruze had the highest adult protection score of 96%, the second lowest score was 81% for the Chevrolet Spark. The Spark was the only other car not to get a perfect five star overall rating, it got four stars.

Full details of the dozen cars tested.
In response to this poor showing, Toyota PR replied saying that they are surprised that the Urban Cruiser got a three star rating and thought that it's side air bag system should be good enough to get a five star rating. Instead, the Urban Cruiser received zero points in the Euro NCAP pole test, "In the side pole test, the head curtain airbag failed to prevent a hard contact of the head." Toyota spokesman concluded by saying, "Once again, we remain fully convinced that Urban Cruiser is a safe car."

While that is probably true, the fact is that other cars are safer and consumers are free to pick a Toyota competitor that did better in the Euro NCAP test.

The full PR response in an Autocar article is here. Of note is this Autocar blog arguing that the ubiquity of five star ratings (aside from Urban Cruiser) creates the need for a sixth star to distinguish cars with excellent safety from those with very good safety.

The Dirtiest Cars for Sale Today

The current cars and trucks for sale in America are significantly cleaner than the vehicles sold in the past, emitting only fraction of the pollution of the old days. The vast majority of the models listed in the EPA Green Vehicle Guide have an EPA pollution score of at least 6. However, there are quite a few bad apples that don't fair nearly as well when it comes to pollution.

• The vast majority of "heavy duty" pickups and vans have EPA pollution score of 1, 2, or 3 out of 10 depending on configuration. (Ford F-250/350 and E-250/350 , Dodge Ram 2500/3500, Silverado 2500/3500 and Express 2500/3500, GMC Sierra 2500/3500 and Savana 2500/3500)
  
• The Dodge Avenger and Chrysler Sebring with the 2.7 V6 have a score of 3 in all states except California and Northeast.
  
• The Lexus SC 430 has a score of 3 in the same states.
  
• Toyota Scion xD has a score of 3 in the same states.