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Optimus Prime and Bumblebee head for auction

This month at the Barrett-Jackson auction in Scottsdale, AZ, the customized 1992 Peterbilt 379 of Optimus Prime from the Transformers series and director Michael Bay's own 1967 Chevrolet Camaro SS for Bumblebee will cross the block. The company will sell both with no reserve, and they'll come with letters of authenticity. This specific Bumblebee is the mean-looking restomod from Transformers: Age of Extinction, the fourth installment in the franchise, and Bay apparently liked it enough to hang onto the aggressive coupe after filming. He even autographed the car for this sale. The Camaro would make a great star in a Hollywood chase scene with its LS3 V8, six-speed manual gearbox, Wilwood brakes, and custom suspension. Bumblebee also wears a menacing satin black body with yellow accents and custom carbon fiber fender flares. Optimus Prime's Peterbilt appeared on-screen in the first three Transformers films, the auction house's spokesperson Aaron Cook told Autoblog. An Autobot emblem sits proudly on top of the grille, and the truck wears a flame paintjob. Barrett-Jackson's description says that the semi is fully functioning but no longer street legal and is now for display only. It would likely be the ultimate piece in anyone's Transformers collection. CRAIG JACKSON'S BARRETT-JACKSON TEAMS UP WITH MICHAEL BAY, PARAMOUNT PICTURES TO AUCTION ICONIC TRANSFORMERS VEHICLES Paramount Pictures is auctioning Optimus Prime® (Lot #1325.1), the iconic truck featured in the first three Transformers™ films American filmmaker Michael Bay will auction his 1967 Chevrolet Camaro SS (Lot #1325.2), which starred as Bumblebee™in the blockbuster movie, "Transformers: Age of Extinction" SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Jan. 4, 2016 – Barrett-Jackson, The World's Greatest Collector Car Auctions®, announced today that Paramount Pictures and American filmmaker Michael Bay will auction two vehicles that starred in the Transformers movie franchise, during the company's nine-day 45th Anniversary Auction, from Jan. 23-31, 2016, at WestWorld of Scottsdale. Up for sale at No Reserve is the iconic truck, Optimus Prime (Lot #1325.1), featured in the first three science fiction action films. Bay has consigned a 1967 Chevrolet Camaro SS (Lot #1325.2), which was cast as Bumblebee in the latest film, "Transformers 4: Age of Extinction." "The hottest Hollywood stars at Barrett-Jackson come in all shapes and sizes," said Craig Jackson, chairman and CEO of Barrett-Jackson.

GM's latest production delays: Colorado/Canyon, Cadillac CT4/CT5, Camaro

DETROIT — General Motors Co extended production cuts in North America on Wednesday due to a worldwide semiconductor chip shortage that has impacted the auto sector. The U.S. automaker said its Wentzville, Missouri, assembly plant would be idled during the weeks beginning March 29 and April 5. It will extend down time at its plant in Lansing, Michigan, which has been idled since March 15, by two weeks. The action was factored into GM's prior forecast that it could shave up to $2 billion off this year's profit, spokesman David Barnas said. GM did not disclose how much volume would be lost by the move, but said it intended to make up as much lost production as possible later in the year. The chip shortage came as North American auto plants were shut for two months during the COVID-19 pandemic last year and chip orders were canceled, and as demand surged from the consumer electronics industry as people worked from home and played video games. That's now left carmakers competing for chips. Semiconductors are used extensively in cars, including to monitor engine performance, manage functions for everything from steering to automatic windows, and in sensors used in parking and entertainment systems. Vehicles affected by the GM production cuts include the mid-sized pickup trucks, the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon in Missouri, and the Cadillac CT4 and CT5 and Chevy Camaro cars in Michigan. Meanwhile, GM said its San Luis Potosi, Mexico, assembly plant, idled since Feb. 8, will resume production with two shifts beginning the week of April 5. Last week, GM said it was building certain 2021 light-duty full-size pickups without a fuel management module, hurting their fuel economy performance by one mile per gallon. Exacerbating the shortage is a recent fire at a Renesas Electronics chip plant in Japan. Barnas said GM was assessing the impact of the fire.  

Chevy gives Camaro Red, Black Accents for SEMA

Just the other day, Chevy announced a series of modified show cars it's planning to bring to SEMA this year. Now it has revealed full details on what could prove the most enticing among them in the form of a pair of Camaros. These new Red Accent and Black Accent editions are based on the new, sixth-generation 2016 Camaro SS. The former starts out as a Camaro SS convertible, done up in silver with red trim inside and out. It's got a leather interior, custom grille, hash-mark fender graphics, blacked-out bowtie badge, and 20-inch alloys. Even the engine is visually enhanced with a red cover. While it was at it, Chevy also dropped the suspension and fitted a new air intake and Brembo front brakes. Joining it is the Black Accent concept, based on a red Camaro SS coupe. As its name suggests, it's got a blacked-out aero kit, bowtie badge, and fuel cover, along with darkened tailllamps and satin black stripes. It also gets a black leather interior and its own set of 20-inch wheels, along with the aforementioned lowering kit, Brembo front brakes, air intake, and red engine cover. The Accent concepts are designed to showcase the extent of the accessories Chevy is offering for the new Camaro, and will be showcased at SEMA alongside modified versions of the Spark, Trax, Malibu, Colorado, and Sierra. Feel free to scope out the gallery above and the details in the press release below. Related Video: 2016 Camaro SS Concepts Designed to Inspire Red, Black Accent cars showcase new accessories, preview production packages DETROIT – Chevrolet introduced two customized 2016 Camaro SS concepts that illustrate the possibilities enabled by the new portfolio of Gen Six Camaro accessories and performance parts. Dubbed Red Accent and Black Accent for their respective design themes, each uses components Chevrolet will offer during the first model year of the new Camaro. "These are great-looking examples of what customers can do to personalize their new Gen Six Camaro," said Roger McCormack, director, Accessories & Performance Parts Marketing. "This will be the largest-ever portfolio of Camaro accessories and performance parts.