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U.S. issues new tariff threat, this time against British-built cars

WASHINGTON — Britain is the United States' closest ally but their long friendship may be sorely tested as the two countries try to forge a new trade agreement after Britain's exit from the European Union. U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Saturday in London that he was optimistic that a bilateral deal with Britain could be reached as soon as this year. But Mnuchin gave up no ground after a second meeting with his UK counterpart, Sajid Javid. Javid has insisted that Britain will proceed with a unilateral digital services tax, despite a U.S. threat to levy retaliatory tariffs on British-made autos. Mnuchin told reporters after Saturday's meeting that such taxes would discriminate against big U.S. tech companies like Alphabet Inc's Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon. The UK Treasury declined to comment on the private meeting. The divide highlights the challenges ahead as the Trump administration seeks a new bilateral agreement with Britain, part of a broader push to rebalance relations with nearly all its major trading partners. The stakes are high — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has pegged the trade deal with United States as a way to ease the pain of breaking with Europe, Britain's largest trade partner. U.S. President Donald Trump, has promised a "massive" trade deal to support Brexit, the product of a populist movement similar to his "America First" agenda. The goodwill and special relationship the two countries have enjoyed for decades may not count for much, experts say. "Trump is not going to be doing Johnson any favors," said Amanda Sloat, a senior fellow with the Brookings Institution in Washington. "He's not going to give him a trade deal without major concessions." Even before the digital tax issue arose, the Trump administration threatened to tax foreign car imports, which could hit British-made Jaguar, Land Rover, Mini, and Honda Civic hatchback cars. Stiff U.S. trade demands include increased access for U.S. farm goods, concessions that will be difficult for Britain's entrenched natural food culture to swallow. The United States also wants Britain to change the way its National Health Service prices drugs and allow in more U.S. pharmaceuticals, which could prove politically unpopular for Johnson's government. Washington's demand that London block Chinese telecoms equipment maker Huawei Technologies Co Ltd for national security reasons could also cloud talks.

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).

At St. Moritz, the Ferraris and Bugattis are small wonders

The Little Car Company is once again taking to glitzy St. Moritz in the Alps to show off an array of scaled-down automotive classics that will include a Bugatti Baby II, Ferrari Testa Rossa J (for junior) in both base and Pacco Gara models, and an Aston Martin DB5 Junior. The elegant, electrified miniatures, all available for test drives, will be assembled at the upcoming International Concours of Elegance at St. Moritz this Friday and Saturday to entertain the rich and famous, and others perhaps not so well positioned. The Little Car Company is a U.K.-based firm that has re-created everything from a pint-sized Bugatti Type 35 to a life-sized dune buggy based on a Tamiya R/C kit from the 1980s. Their cars run on electric power. Other models are put on static display, and one of those at St. Moritz is to be its newly launched Bentley Blower Jnr. "A step into new territory for the brand," the company says, the Blower Jnr is an 85 percent scale electric version of the British manufacturer's legendary original, and is The Little Car Company’s first road-legal automobile. Said CEO Ben Hedley, "This year will be the third time that we have participated in this wonderful event, so it is only right that we bring even more unique pieces for guests to get behind the wheel of, but also that we bring something new for guests to look at: the Bentley Blower Jnr." Operating for about five years, the Little Car Company hand-builds licensed products in entertaining partnerships with some elite manufacturers. Its cars are aimed mainly at collectors but can be driven. Among its recent offerings, the Testa Rossa was launched in 2021 as a 3/4-scale replica of the legendary "red head,” powered by a 12kW battery and able to reach a top speed of 47 mph, Little Car Company planned to build only 299 examples of the Testa Rossa. One of them was on display at Harrods in London just before Christmas, priced at just about $100,000. A terrific gift, but youÂ’ll need a bigger tree.   Featured Gallery The Little Car Company at St Moritz Design/Style Aston Martin Bentley Bugatti Ferrari Electric