Lt 5.3l 4wd Sunroof Dvd Nav Rear Camera Heated Leather Seats Pwr Liftgate on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Junkyard Gem: 1987 Chevrolet Turbo Sprint

Fifteen years ago, I wrote my first-ever automotive article under the name Murilee Martin, and it didn't take me long to start writing about one of my favorite automotive subjects: the junkyard. Before I'd refined my system for documenting discarded vehicles, however, I shot a lot of boneyard photos that never got used. For today's Junkyard Gem, I have four shots from early 2007 of one of the rarest turbocharged machines of the 1980s: the Chevrolet Turbo Sprint. The Chevrolet Sprint was really a rebadged Suzuki Cultus, from the pre-Geo era when General Motors sold the Isuzu Gemini as the Chevrolet Spectrum, the Daewoo LeMans as the Pontiac LeMans and the Toyota Corolla as the Chevrolet Nova (soon enough, the Spectrum became a Geo, and the Nova became the Prizm). The second-generation Cultus appeared in 1988, becoming the Geo Metro on our shores the following year. The Turbo Sprint was available for just the last two years of the Sprint's 1985-1988 American sales run, and it appears that just a couple of thousand were sold; if I'd known at the time just how rare they were, I'd have shot more photos of this one at the now-defunct Hayward Pick Your Part. The turbocharged 993cc three-cylinder produced 70 horsepower, 22 better than the naturally-aspirated version. Since the Turbo Sprint weighed just 1,620 pounds (that's about 500 pounds lighter than a barely more powerful '22 Mitsusbishi Mirage), it was plenty of fun to drive. For 1988, the regular Sprint hatchback cost $6,380 while the Turbo Sprint listed at $8,240 (that's about $15,375 and $19,855 today, respectively). Believe it or not, a Turbo Sprint actually raced in the 24 Hours of Lemons 10 years ago, though it didn't end well. This ad is for the regular Cultus, not the Cultus Turbo, but the screaming guitars sound reasonably turbocharged. For the most part, Chevy Sprint marketing was all about cheap purchase price and stingy fuel economy… at a time when gasoline prices were cratering. Related Video:

Top horsepower-per-dollar cars in 2017

Bang for the buck. That quasi-scientific statistic is bandied about by motor heads everywhere from classrooms to barrooms, though the truth of the matter is that it's exceedingly complex to measure. A fair performance-per-dollar index would include something like cross-referencing MSRP (Manufacturers Suggested Retail Price) with point-to-point times on a track or driving route, which is obviously hard to do comprehensively. But, for the sheer joy of talking about cars and playing with a big spreadsheet, there's always the horsepower-per-dollar index, which is more straightforward, albeit hilariously flawed. There are vagaries even with this simple formula, of course: MSRP for vehicles can change at a moment's notice, to say nothing of the bottom-line shifting that happens with local deals or showroom negotiation. For this list we're running with the straight MSRP wherever possible, and as recently reported as we can get it. All the vehicles on this list are 2017 models, and all trims are reported where the lowest price and differing power levels intersect. Some choices were made for personal preference and some for sanity, avoiding things like all 48 trim levels of the Ford Transit, all with the same horsepower). If this list were a simple top ten, or even a top fifty, you'd be bored to tears with all the red, white and blue that is represented. Following perfectly with conventional wisdom, American cars really do lead the world where hp/$ is concerned. So, for the sake of variety (and the sheer joy of seeing a minivan 'win' one round of this thing) I've sorted out some top five and bottom five lists for broad power categories. Let's dive in. Less Than 100 Horsepower Okay, okay, this is hardly a category we'll grant you. But we've often tried to click off all the sub-100-hp cars on sale in the US, and making this list gave us an excuse. It also illustrates that none of these smallish vehicles bring cheap horsepower to the table - for that you'll need a motorcycle. The segment-leading Chevy Spark (above) asks just over $139 for each hp, and that Smart Fortwo Electric Drive has hp on sale for about the same price as its very distant family cousin, the Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG (insert your favorite Smart joke here... we know you want to).

Next Chevy Silverado could get this built-in tailgate step

General Motors just received patent approval for a tailgate step in a pickup bed. And given the timing, don't be surprised if you see this on the upcoming 2019 Silverado pickup (not the mention its GMC Sierra twin), expected to arrive in late 2018. According to the patent, granted in December of last year, the whole mechanism is housed in the tailgate assemble. The magic happens when a portion of the top half of the tailgate swings down and a step folds out. There's also a handle that locks into position to help climb up into the bed. As trucks get bigger and taller over the years, it gets harder and harder to access the cargo bed. Ford's solution with the 2009 F-150 was a step that slides out from the end of the tailgate. Back then, Chevy made an ill-advised ad highlighting the feature for Ford. And while Howie Long mocked the F-150's "man step" Ford saw almost a third of its trucks with the option in the first year. The GM design seems to improve on Ford's idea as it appears to be wider and has a back to the lower step. That is, you don't have to worry about stepping through the ladder-rung design as on the F-150. Ford's tailgate step later spread to the F Super Duty, and other cargo access assists have proliferated through the truck world. On the most recent redesign, the Chevrolet Silverado took a trick from the Avalanche and added cutouts to the corners of the rear bumper that act as a foothold. Ford also offers a deployable side step, Chevrolet has running boards that scoot rearward with a kick of the boot, and Ram offers fixed wheel-to-wheel side rails. Nissan is in on the game too, with an optional folding step that tucks under the rear bumper. We don't expect Chevrolet to comment on when or if we'll see this feature in the showrooms. But given that engineers are already hard at work on the next Silverado and the timing of this patent lines right up with the new truck's development cycle, we'll be disappointed if this patent stays in the file cabinet. Related Video: