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Repo man pays off elderly couple's car just in time for Thanksgiving

Repo men get bad raps for a good reason; no one likes having their car taken away. At least one guy in the repossession game proved folks in his profession aren't all bad when he helped an elderly couple hold on to their wheels right before Thanksgiving. According to the Belleville News-Democrat, unexpected bills and the rising cost of prescription medications pushed Stanford and Patty Kipping's fixed income to the breaking point. Unable to keep up with the $95 dollar a month payment on their 1998 Buick, they fell into arrears and the bank sent a repo man out to their home in Red Bud, Illinois to reclaim the car. Jim Ford, co-owner of Illini Recovery Inc., hooked up the old Buick and dragged it away, but later that night his conscience caught up with him. "When I got home that night, I said to myself, 'They are a real nice elderly couple. I gotta do something. I can't just take their car,'" Ford told the News-Democrat. Ford did do something, something surprisingly humane. He set up a GoFundMe and, within just a few short hours, he raised more than $3,500 dollars. This was enough money to pay off the Kipping's loan with a little left over for some maintenance. Ford and a friend then hooked the car back up and towed it back to the Kipping's home. Ford presented the couple with their trusty Buick, and threw in a thousand dollars in an envelope and a frozen turkey for Thanksgiving. "It was a miracle come true," Patty told the paper. "We didn't know what we were going to do." "I got up this morning and I looked up at the sun and I said, 'I hope we get our car back,'" added Stanford. "It's just unbelievable."Related Video: News Source: Belleville News-Democrat Auto News Weird Car News Buick repossession repo man

The Chevrolet Bolt is headed to China as a Buick SUV

When spy photos of what appeared to be Chevrolet Bolt EV with some minor front- and rear-end updates circulated last week, Autoblog surmised that GM was working on some sort of Bolt-based vehicle — potentially a crossover — to be sold in China as a Buick. We may just have corroboration for that theory. On Thursday, Motor1.com spotted a story published earlier this week on the Chinese site Auto Home which claims that GM has applied to sell an all-electric SUV under the Velite 7 nameplate in China.  There's little differentiating the Velite 7's exterior from the Bolt EV's, apart from bumpers, badges, and a little extra ground clearance. Up front, the bowtie is replaced by a round Buick badge, and the bumper picks up an almost Prius-like appearance thanks to contrasting vertical elements and a thin grille bleeding into the head lights to give it a full-width appearance. Chevy Bolt-based prototype View 16 Photos If the Chinese report is accurate, there is one significant difference under the skin. Per the application, the Buick crossover variant is to be powered by a 174-horsepower electric powertrain. That's down 26 horsepower from the Bolt EV's powertrain, and we can't help but think that a lifted Buick variant might just need every pony it can get.  The needs of the Chinese market are unique, and we're certain GM knows what it's doing if these figures are accurate. We have no reason to believe Buick plans to sell the Velite 7 EV here in the States, though we expect an updated Chevy Bolt eventually, and we wouldn't be surprised if Buick brings something along shortly to fill the void left by the departure of the Regal sedan and its variants.  Related Video:

Electric Cadillac Lyriq, Chevy Bolt EUV and more GM electric cars are on the way

GM’s murky and somewhat secretive electric car plan is falling into place, as the company dumped a massive amount of information about whatÂ’s in the pipeline at an event at its Warren, Michigan campus today. New EVs are going to be popping up across the GM brand lineup, with new entries from Chevrolet, Cadillac, GMC and Buick in progress. We also learned some big news about GMÂ’s new Ultium battery tech today, but check out this story for all of those nitty-gritty details. The electric vehicle onslaught will begin with the Cadillac Lyriq, an electric SUV thatÂ’s already been teased out. Naming it the Lyriq is the news today. No explanation for the name was provided, so weÂ’ll have to wait for April to learn more. GM didnÂ’t specifically say if the Lyriq would be launched at the NY Auto Show, but that show (assuming coronavirus doesnÂ’t cancel it) will begin on April 8 this year. Next up in the order of events is the GMC Hummer electric truck that we know will be launching on May 20. This truck will use GMÂ’s modular Ultium battery technology. However, the wait to buy a GMC Hummer will be a long one, as the truck isnÂ’t going to dive into production until fall 2021 at GMÂ’s Detroit-Hamtramck plant. GM revealed that its new modular Ultium batteries can be configured anywhere from a 50 kWh pack to a 200 kWh pack depending on the application. Range is estimated to be about 400 miles on the upper end with the largest battery pack, and GM continues to boast about a 0-60 mph acceleration time of three seconds. Charging estimates for the Ultium battery-equipped Hummer EV were also provided. GM says its truck platform will have 800-volt battery packs and be capable of 350 kW fast-charging. Time estimates werenÂ’t given, but those numbers suggest the truck will be a rapid charger. The Hummer truck on hand, which was the same that previously starred in GMC's Super Bowl spot, showed off removable roof panels that store in the frunk, as well as what appeared to be a version of GMC's Multi-Pro tailgate. It also featured sail panels on the sides, similar to those in front of the bed of the Chevy Avalanche. In addition to the Hummer, expect to see a couple Chevys launching. GM says the refreshed Bolt EV will be launched “in late 2020” with a refreshed interior and what appear to be thicker front seats.