Poll: American Cars Better Than Imports

Bumper stickers like the one above were very common in the 70s and 80s, when American cars were in their long slide beyond mediocrity to craptasticness and Toyota and Honda were cementing their reputation as bulletproof transportation.

Well, the tables appear to be turning.  A new Associated Press poll shows more Americans believe American cars are better than Japanese cars, 38 to 33 percent.

Full story from The Detroit News here.

Again...This Is The Brake...This Is The Transmission

Common sense is breaking out all over. Hot on the heels of Car and Driver's John Yanca with the intelligent answer to the Lexus GX 460's alleged stability issue comes John McCormick from The Detroit News with how to deal with it if your vehicle ever does something strange on its own. You know, like unintended acceleration.

GM To Add Brake Override Systems To All Automatic-Transmission Vehicles

General Motors says it wants customers to be confident in its vehicles, so it will make brake override systems standard in all of its vehicles with automatic transmissions by the end of 2012.

Toyota plans to do the same next year, and the government is considering making it mandatory for all vehicles with automatics sold in the U.S.

The idea, of course, is to reduce the risk of unintended acceleration...press on the brake and the power to the engine is reduced. But, when data shows that the majority of those cases are actually drivers standing on the wrong pedal, the effect is likely to be minimal.

Full story from The Detroit News.

Lutz: Americans Won't Be Driving In 30 Years

General Motors Vice Chairman Bob Lutz, an auto show floor and reporters are always a recipe for a good quote. But this is one we could have gone forever without hearing.

"Maximum Bob" told reporters at the New York International Auto Show today that Americans won't be driving themselves 30 years from now...the cars will do it for them. Read it yourself at The Detroit News.

2011 Chevrolet Volt: First One Built

The first "manufacturing validation" example of the Chevrolet Volt electric car went down the assembly line earlier this week.

The Detroit News reports that several hundred more will be built for evaluation and testing before production of for-sale cars begins this fall.

Lincoln Hybrid MKZ Unveil At NYC Auto Show

Lexus is rolling out the hybrids, so why not Lincoln? Expect an announcement this week at the New York Auto Show that there will be a 2011 Lincoln MKZ Hybrid.

Not that big a stretch, really...given that the MKZ is a derivative of the Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan, both of which have hybrid models. We loved the Milan Hybrid...but will the MKZ be different enough to justify the Lincoln price tag?

The Detroit News talked to at least one analyst who isn't so sure. Story here.

Mitsubishi To Triple Electric Car Output; Sell i-MiEV In U.S. In 2011

Mitsubishi says it plans to triple its electric car output over the next three years, and will sell the i-MiEV, currently on sale in Japan, here in the U.S. in 2011.

A seven-hour charge is good for up to 100 miles in the i-MiEV, according to Mitsu, but even they admit that it's a pricey vehicle...it costs double what a Prius does in Japan...the equivalent of $51,000 in today's American dollars.

Full story from AP and The Detroit News here.

Unanimous: Harrison, NY PD Agrees: Driver Error, Not Unintended Acceleration

The one on the right is the gas pedal. The one on the left is the brake pedal. The chief of the Harrison, New York Police Department says, yep...the 55 year old woman who crashed her Toyota Prius hybrid into a stone wall two weeks ago...the one he said couldn't have been driver error at the time.....was, well, driver error, the most common cause of fully investigated unintended acceleration incidents.

Captain Anthony Marracccini says his department's investigation confirms what Toyota and the NHTSA's found...that the throttle was wide-open at the time of impact...with no sign of any application of the brake.

AP story via The Detroit News here. Conversations among Prius drivers on the PriusChat forums.

Lexus CT200h Premium Compact Hybrid A Go

Last month, the Geneva Auto Show, next year, your dealer's showroom.

The Detroit News is reporting that Lexus will launch the CT200h hybrid early next year.

It will be Lexus' second compact hybrid. Read our take on the HS250h here, and Prius owners are talking about the video above and the car in it on the PriusChat forums, and there's a second thread about it as well.

GM Sues Corvette Replica Maker

GM's not thrilled that you can buy a $90,000 replica of the '63 Corvette Grand Sport, of which five were built. So they're suing Mongoose Motorsports, the replica maker.

Full story from The Detroit News.

Toyota Sued By Shareholders Over Unintended Acceleration

Three class-action lawsuits alleging securities violations have been filed against Toyota by shareholders who say Toyota "failed to disclose ongoing safety issues"  including faulty gas pedals.

Full story from The Detroit News here.

Memo From 2007 Details Toyota's "Game Plan" For Dealing With Feds About Floor Mat Issue

A three-year old document just released by a Congressional committee gives insight into Toyota officials and their self-described "game plan" for dealing with the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration's growing concerns over floor mats interfering with accelerator pedals.

Interesting reading, to say the least. Full story from The Detroit News here.

GM Supports Mandatory "Black Boxes" In All Vehicles

When the government owns a majority stake in General Motors, you kinda have to expect this stuff:

GM says it's in favor of legislation making "Black Box" event data recorders mandatory in all cars.

Full story at The Detroit News.

UPDATE: NY Prius Case Human Error

NHTSA says the Toyota Prius driven into a wall by a 55 year old woman in Harrison, New York last week did not experience sudden acceleration. Investigators say their technical analysis of the vehicle show the throttle was open and no brakes were being applied.

That's what's called human error...and as we reported last week, that's the most common finding once investigators dig into allegations of unintended acceleration.

So it's two down as Toyota battles back against sensational stories of Priuses that allegedly defied driver attempts to stop.

Full story from The Detroit News here and discussion on the Prius Chat forums here.

Build Your Own Shelby Cobra With The New Mustang 5.0 Engine

Factory Five Racing, which has made more than 8,000 Shelby Cobra kits, has a new one that will accomodate the new Mustang 5.0 V8.

Full details from The Detroit News.