Car Blog

A jury of 49 veteran automotive journalists has selected the Ford Fusion Hybrid as the 2010 North American Car of the Year and the Ford Transit Connect as the 2010 North American Truck of the Year.

It was only the third time in 17 years that one automaker has won both awards. Honda won both awards in 2006 and General Motors won both in 2007.

The awards are unique because — instead of being given by a single media outlet — they are given by automotive journalists from the United States and Canada who represent magazines, television, radio, newspapers and web sites.

The awards are designed to recognize the most outstanding vehicles of the year based on factors that include innovation, design, safety, handling, driver satisfaction and value for the dollar.

There were three car finalists: The Ford Fusion Hybrid got 241 points, the Volkswagen Golf/TDI/GTI got 146 and the Buick LaCrosse got 103.

There were three truck finalists: The Transit Connect had 213 points and beat the Chevrolet Equinox with 183 points and the Subaru Outback with 94.

Juror Csaba Csere said, “Though not the first hybrid on the market, or even the second or third, The Fusion Hybrid is simply the best one ever built. In addition to delivering terrific mileage, it looks and drives like a regular car — and a very good one indeed.”

Jim Mateja, of the Chicago Tribune, said, “A U-Haul that fits in your garage. Holds people and soooo much of their stuff — bikes, snowmobiles, lawn mowers, skis, tents, boats, ladders, furniture, you name it. Defines multi-purpose and boasts a reasonable price even when you add side and rear windows and back seat.”

To be eligible, vehicles must be “all-new” or “substantially changed” from the previous model. This year the jury considered more than 50 vehicles and finally focused on 16 cars and 10 trucks.

Michelle Collins, Vice Chairman Automotive at Deloitte LLP, was responsible for counting the ballots, which jurors sent directly to the accounting firm. The winners were kept secret until today at a news conference at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

At that news conference Ms. Collins handed over the car and truck envelopes to Tony Swan, a member of the awards organizing committee and a senior editor at Car and Driver magazine. Mr. Swan announced the winners.

Last year the North American Car of the Year was the Hyundai Genesis and the North American Truck of the Year was the Ford F-150.

This is the 17th year of the awards, which are funded exclusively by the jurors. During that time:

* Domestic automakers have won North American Car of the Year nine times. Japanese automakers have won three times. European automakers have won four times. A Korean automaker has won once.

* Domestic automakers have won North American Truck of the Year 11 times. Japanese automakers have won four times. European automakers have won twice.

Here are the vehicles on which the jurors voted:

2010 North American Car of the Year nominees:
BMW 335d
Buick LaCrosse
Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon
Chevrolet Camaro
Ford Fusion
Ford Fusion Hybrid
Ford Taurus/Taurus SHO
Honda Insight
Kia Soul
Mazda3/MazdaSpeed3
Mercedes-Benz E-Class
Porsche Panamera
Subaru Legacy
Suzuki Kizashi
Toyota Prius
Volkswagen Golf/GTI/TDI

2010 North American Truck of the Year nominees:
Acura ZDX
Audi Q5
Cadillac SRX
Chevrolet Equinox
Ford Transit Connect
Honda Accord Crosstour
Land Rover LR4
Lincoln MKT
Subaru Outback
Volvo XC60

More information on the awards — including the names of jurors as well as previous finalists and winners — is available at: www.northamericancaroftheyear.org.

With tailgating season upon us AutoWeek reveals the Ultimate in tailgate rides.

Fans across the country have long since graced the fields and parking lots of football stadiums across the country in anticipation for the big game. And before they start packing their coolers, loading up the trunk and firing up the grill, prospective tailgaters need an affordable (well, in most cases), reliable, and spacious ride that will leave plenty of room the necessities that make this Fall tradition worthwhile. AutoWeek editors pick their list of favorite tailgate vehicles.

The list includes:

Four Winds Serrano. . .a luxury motorhome for a base of operations
Dodge Ram. . .with the tailgate cooler box. Honorable mention: Honda Ridgeline, again with the trunk in the bed that can double as a cooler
Chevrolet Suburban. . .the quintessential American tailgate vehicle
Honda Element. . .you can hose out the interior in case anything gets spilled
Ford Flex. . .funky and flexible
Land Rover LR3. . .with an actual tailgate!
Acura MDX. . .spacious and luxurious enough for a long weekend
Chrysler Town & Country. . .the minivan; haul your entire kitchen to the tailgate site
Subaru Forester. . .roomy enough to bring all the necessary supplies
Lamborghini Gallardo. . .pull up in the Lambo and you don’t need to bring anything else to the tailgate. Everyone will want to be your friend.

Source: AutoWeek Magazine

Prizes Include Enough High-Performance Hardware to Build The Ultimate Street Machine & Treasure Trove of Hot Wheels Collectibles

Performance Therapy, a “social media car show”, launched this week with backing from top automotive aftermarket brands. The site, PerformanceTherapyContest.com asks enthusiasts to show the world how they enjoy their car by submitting a photo. The Grand Prize Winner will receive parts to build an incredible, high-performance supercar. Popular vote determines category winners – whom receive a $250 gift certificate. Sixty runners-up will receive a free t-shirt.

Performance Therapy Defined

Despite tough economic times, auto enthusiasts are packing car shows, races and events. Across seven continents and hundreds of niches, car fans have one thing in common: high-performance vehicles make them happy. Owning, modifying and driving cars is more than a hobby, it’s a lifestyle. It’s the cheapest form of mental therapy and provides quality entertainment for the entire family.

The Contest

The Performance Therapy Contest is a chance for enthusiasts to participate in one of the biggest online car shows of all time, show off other enthusiasts around the world and win a variety of fantastic prizes. The purpose is to help people have fun with their ride. For three months any enthusiast can submit a picture, show it off to friends and get as many votes as possible. With six categories and nine fantastic sponsors, there are dozens of ways to win and nearly 70 prizes will be awarded!

The Prizes

The Grand Prize is enough hardware to build a muscle car dream machine, including a Hotchkis Sport Suspenison system, Baer Brake system, Rushforth Wheels, Yokohama Tires, Flowmaster Exhaust, an MSD Ignition System, Red Line Oil & Lubricants, a Lifeline Fire Safety System and enough Hot Wheel Collectibles to fill a dream garage!

To enter or vote for your favorite car, go to www.PerformanceTherapyContest.com. For more information, email info@performancetherapycontest.com or click for more information on the rules, prizes and sponsors.

The Performance Therapy Contest is brought to you by Hotchkis Sport Suspension, Baer Brakes, Flowmaster, Hot Wheels Red Line Club, Lifeline USA, MSD Ignition, Red Line Oil, Rushforth Wheels and Yokohama Tire Corp.

Source: Performance Therapy Contest

Global automotive supplier Visteon Corporation has launched a reconfigurable cluster platform on Jaguar Land Rover’s new Range Rover – available as a standard fit on all derivatives in Land Rover’s global markets.

Replacing the conventional instrument cluster design, the reconfigurable 12.3-inch full color Thin Film Transistor (TFT) display integrates multiple functions and operating modes to present on-demand driver information via virtual gauges, graphical displays and a message center. Developed for the 2010 Range Rover model range, this is Jaguar Land Rover’s first “virtual cluster” application.

By introducing an advanced graphics interface, the reconfigurable cluster presents information to the driver in an innovative way, while helping reduce driver distraction. The cluster redefines the functional role of instrumentation by providing an interface to safely manage the complexity of the Range Rover’s advanced vehicle systems through the reconfigurable message center, which acts as the information hub for the vehicle.

“The new display technology used by the 2010 Range Rover is a major advance. It gives us tremendous flexibility in presenting information, so that the driver gets precisely the data he or she requires, in all driving conditions,” explains Nick Rogers, chief engineer, new vehicle architecture, Range Rover.

The Range Rover “virtual cluster” is the first production program launched from Visteon’s reconfigurable cluster platform and the latest in its range of clusters with graphic displays. The platform also offers vehicle manufacturers the flexibility to use one hardware solution with multiple graphic applications for easier vehicle differentiation or mid-cycle refresh.

“This powerful ‘virtual image’ cluster is an example of Visteon’s global platform strategy, which provides vehicle manufacturers with cost-effective solutions through hardware and software architecture re-use,” said Steve Meszaros, president of Visteon’s electronics product group. “Although this high-end cluster initially is designed for the best-in-class comfort and refinement of the Range Rover, Visteon’s unique system integration approach is set to make large TFT displays a viable and affordable alternative to conventional clusters.”

The cluster was developed in conjunction with Land Rover by Visteon’s engineering teams in Chelmsford, U.K., with support from development teams in the U.S. and software development from Visteon Software Operations, India, and Visteon Software Technologies, France. The reconfigurable platform design is based on a new architectural approach to efficiently manage the complexity of the increased graphics content and display management.

Visteon’s advanced technological expertise has been combined with its extensive proprietary research on consumer perceived quality and product design to bring forward a technology that offers freedom of design for OEMs and maximum ease of use for the consumer.

Visteon is a leading, global manufacturer of driver information systems and central information displays, producing more than 7 million units annually from manufacturing plants across the globe. Visteon’s strengths include its global and scalable product platforms, comprehensive cockpit electronics portfolio, and the ability to provide seamlessly integrated systems and products that connect people to their vehicles and the world around them.

Through its partnerships with leading technology providers, Visteon has positioned itself to be flexible to react to the fast-developing consumer electronics market and is embracing the transition from hardware solutions to software-defined solutions, while its global platforms maintain a central core of robust automotive solutions.

Source: Visteon Corporation

Receives Highest Percentage of Owners Recommendation and wins Luxury Crossover SUV Vehicle Satisfaction Award

Owners of the Land Rover LR2 have rated it top of its class in the Luxury Crossover Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) segment in AutoPacific 2009 Vehicle Satisfaction Award research. In addition, owners surveyed in the Luxury Crossover SUV segment voted the Land Rover LR2 the vehicle they would most recommend to others.

AutoPacific’s Vehicle Satisfaction Award (VSA) is an industry benchmark for objectively measuring how satisfied an owner is with their new car or light truck, and reflects the opinions of consumers nationwide. The VSA Awards summarize the results of AutoPacific’s 2009 model year vehicle satisfaction research. More than 25,000 consumers around the country participated in the survey.

“Winning these awards demonstrate that customers appreciate the breadth of capability that comes standard in a Land Rover and shows the value our owners put on the overall packaging of the LR2 and we are pleased with this recognition,” said Chris Marchand, Executive Vice President, Marketing and Sales, Land Rover North America.

“AutoPacific has conducted this industry research since 1997. Vehicles that score highest in AutoPacific’s Vehicle Satisfaction Awards have hit the mark delivering value and satisfaction with their buyers by performing well in 48 separate categories that measure the ownership experience,” says AutoPacific president George Peterson.

The Land Rover LR2 HSE offers permanent all-wheel drive with a 230 bhp In-line 6 engine, and features 19-inch alloy wheels, seven airbags (SRS), power tilt-and-slide dual-panel panoramic sunroof, and Land Rover’s patented Terrain Response System – Standard. It is this level of premium standard features that allows LR2 to provide tremendous value in its class, while demonstrating the refined on-road performance and off-road aptitudes for which the Land Rover brand is known.

Owner satisfaction is measured across specific areas related to a vehicle’s operation, comfort, safety and the overall purchase/lease experience. The 2009 ratings reflect input from buyers and lessees of new vehicles acquired September through December 2008.

Source: Land Rover North America

12 tips to pay less in auto insurance. Some unexpected factors play a role in how much you pay in premiums.

With automobile insurance costs on the rise, it pays to periodically review your insurance costs and coverage to make sure it is the best deal for your current situation. The strategies presented below will generally position you for the best auto insurance deals.

Read more about  Reduce Your Auto Insurance Premium