Auto blog

2013 Chevy COPO Camaro announced with two new engines and manual option

Chevrolet is following up the 2012 COPO Camaro with another limited run of the drag-strip-ready production car for 2013. Ditching the superchargers, the 2013 COPO Camaro can only be equipped with one of three naturally aspirated V8 engines, and other new features include the option of a manual transmission, new front springs, some minor styling changes and a lower starting price of $86,000. All cars are designed to abide by the rules of the NHRA's Stock Eliminator or Super Stock classifications, depending on in which series buyers wish to enter their Chevrolet Camaro.
Returning for 2013 is the 427-cubic-inch V8 producing 425 horsepower, but the new engines include a 325-hp 350-CID V8 and a 375-hp 396-CID V8. Buyers can select to purchase all three engines, and each will be matched with the sequence number of that car; the track-only COPO cars will not have vehicle identification numbers and can't be registered for street use.
Chevrolet is also offering unique enthusiast-specific options such as a COPO Build Book and the opportunity for owners to help assemble their car's engine at the Chevrolet Performance Build Center in Wixom, MI.

Recharge Wrap-up: Chevy teases Bolt driving range, China pursues EV subsidy cheaters

Chevy is teasing the Bolt's driving range, which it is set to reveal on Tuesday. It will certainly be able to travel more than 200 miles between charges, but the second and third digits in that value, as it stands today, are still question marks. On its Facebook page, Chevrolet is asking fans to try to guess the official range. Of course, Tesla fans have already started posting their own snide remarks in the comments. Chevy fans are certainly hoping to see the Bolt's range eclipse that of Tesla's upcoming Model 3, which the California-based automaker puts at 215 miles. See Chevy's post on Facebook to make your own guess, or check back there (or here at AutoblogGreen) for the official number once it is unveiled. Fuel cell company PowerCell Sweden says it has signed an agreement with a Chinese company to make range extenders for commercial trucks. The unnamed Chinese customer has placed an order and signed a memorandum of understanding with PowerCell Sweden, and the partners will develop methanol reformer fuel cell range extenders for electric distribution trucks. "Our unique expertise in fuel cells and reformer technology is receiving an increasing attention worldwide and we are truly pleased to get another Chinese order," says PowerCell Sweden Sales Director Andreas Boden. Read more at Green Car Congress, or from PowerCell. China is accusing major automakers of violating EV subsidy rules. After the country's Ministry of Finance penalized five companies with fines and, in one case, revocation of production license for subsidy cheats, China has since named 20 more potential violators, including Nissan, Hyundai, JAC, and a subsidiary of BYD. Of the first five companies to be punished under the investigation, Suzhou Gemsea Coach Manufacturing is having its production license revoked, while four others, including a subsidiary of Chery, are being fined for about half of the subsidies received. The scandal is bad new for China's subsidy program, which has helped spur sales of plug-in vehicles. Read more from Fortune, or at Hybrid Cars.

Here's how Detroit is selling more luxury vehicles than Germany and Japan

Now there's an attention-grabbing headline, eh? Although the answer to the riddle - pickup trucks and SUVs - might be somehow deflating, the numbers involved deserve a going over. According to TrueCar's figures (click on the table to enlarge), six of the year's ten best-selling vehicles in the US that sell for a transaction price above $50,000 are body-on-frame, and the Mercedes-Benz E-Class is the only foreigner to crack the top five. Every enthusiast knows that pickup trucks are 'Murica's most popular vehicle by a colossal margin, and there have been plenty of reports about the popularity of luxuriously appointed trucks and SUVs, but compare these figures from TrueCar: 70 percent of Chevrolet Tahoe sales have a transaction price above $50K, and The Bowtie is expected to make $3.9 billion in revenue on 66,945 predicted high-dollar sales; 95.1 percent of E-Class sales break $50K, so the German company will make $4.0 billion on 67,006 predicted sales in that pricing sphere. It's about the only time you'll see the Tahoe ranked right next to Mercedes' bread-and-butter sedan. Ram is ahead of those two with $4.2B coming from $50K-plus sales. The Ford F-Series does almost as much revenue as the next three combined, with an expected $10.8 billion coming from sales of trucks over $50K - more than a quarter of the model's total sales, when a base F-150 can be had for about $26,000. Yes, the Germans make a lot more money on fewer sales, but considering the comparison, the bottom line isn't too troubled by such facts. Weighing like-for-like, the full-size Ford walks it in every category; elsewhere, the Chevrolet Silverado outsells the Ram, but the Ram outsells the Chevy by 6.7 percent above $50K. And for all the flak GMC takes over swapping out grilles, the Sierra also outsells the Chevy in the well-appointed segment, 16.1 percent of sales versus 11 percent – the Professional Grade brand is a huge profit center for The General. You'll find more info in the TrueCar press release below. TrueCar finds pickup trucks far outsell premium brands among top 10 vehicles over $50,000 Ford F-Series pickup sales over $50,000 surpass combined BMW 3, 5, 7 Series luxury car sales SANTA MONICA, Calif. (December 10, 2014) - TrueCar, Inc., the negotiation-free car buying and selling platform, finds mainstream pickup trucks and sport-utility vehicles dominate U.S.