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New Corvette Feature Keeps An Eye On Valets

Face it. If you own a luxury or sports car, whenever you hand the keys to a valet, you imagine the car going on a high-speed joyride like the Ferrari in the 1980s cult movie "Ferris Bueller's Day Off." Now, General Motors has an option on the 2015 Chevrolet Corvette that takes those worries away. The latest version of the sports car, due out in September, has a feature that records where the car goes with a camera mounted in the windshield trim. It also captures audio in the cabin as well as speed, engine revolutions per minute, gear position and G-force. That all helps the car tattle on any valet who doesn't take a slow, direct route to a parking space. GM says it's the most extensive attempt by an automaker to thwart valet joyriders, although it's not the first. The automotive website Edmunds.com says Hyundai and Mercedes offer "geofencing," a feature that sets a perimeter and then notifies the owner's smart phone if a car goes beyond it. Chrysler has a valet mode that caps engine speed and horsepower, while Audi lets owners limit engine speed for valets. With the Corvette, once the owner activates the feature with a four-digit code, the touch screen tells the driver it's in Valet Mode. But it doesn't warn the valet that he's being recorded. The feature also locks the glove box and a storage compartment in the dashboard and shuts down the infotainment system. Valet Mode started off as a performance data recorder for those who take their Corvettes on the racetrack. GM engineers quickly figured out that it had more uses. "Think of it as a baby monitor for your car," Corvette Product Manager Harlan Charles said in a statement. "Anyone who has felt apprehension about handing over their keys will appreciate the peace of mind of knowing exactly what happened while their baby was out of sight." Data and video from the valet mode can be viewed instantly by the owner on the car's 8-inch color screen when the car is parked, or it can be downloaded to a computer. The system could go into more mainstream models if feedback is good on the Corvette, GM spokesman Monte Doran said. The feature is paired with a navigation system and costs $1,795. A 2015 Corvette starts at just under $54,000. Chevrolet Technology Gadgets

eBay Find of the Day: 1990 Chevy 1500 454 SS with just 7 miles

When trawling the classifieds either on a buying mission or merely a time-wasting mission, we spend a lot of time poring over photographs comparing the seller's idea of "Like New!" with our idea of it. It's hard to argue with seven original miles on the odometer, though, which is what this 1990 Chevrolet 1500 454 SS has. It's being sold by Country Chevrolet on eBay, the same dealer who sold the truck to its one and only owner 25 years ago. The purchaser bought two of them and left this one in a garage under a car cover, said garage being less than seven miles away from the showroom floor. Better yet, you can buy with confidence because the seller "has collected all records," which we expect would be the slimmest manilla folder in the history of receipt-keeping. For those unfamiliar, the 454 SS was a half-ton, regular cab, 2WD pickup powered by a 454 cubic inch (7.4-liter) V8 with 230 horsepower and 385 pound-feet of torque shifting through a three-speed transmission. This was at the same time the Chevrolet Corvette used a 5.7-liter V8 producing 250 hp and 350 lb-ft. The pickup rode on exclusive wheels and only came in black with red cloth inside. The only extra-cost option on this example is an $18 locking fuel filler cap, which, according to the 454ss forum, means it should have cost about $18,460 out the door, the equivalent of about $34,000 today. At the time of writing there are zero bids, but proceedings open at $45,000 and Country Chevrolet wants $49,000 if you have to have your time capsule right now.

GM to squeeze out more production capacity for midsize trucks

General Motors was predicting a strong showing for the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon before they debuted, and demand among dealers for the midsize trucks even exceeded company's expectations. The positive situation has left GM with a problem, though: finding ways to increase capacity for the pickups at the Wentzville Assembly plant in Missiouri. With a third shift already running, GM has continued to look for ways to build just a few more of the trucks at the plant. The company has plans to hire as many as 1,000 more workers for the Saturday and Sunday shifts to construct an additional 2,000 pickups a month, according to unnamed insiders at the factory speaking to Automotive News. The little adjustments even extend to getting rid of an unpaid break to add 18 minute of assembly time over the course of a day, which equals about 3,500 more vehicles a year. All of this effort comes because the trucks are in such high demand. According to GM's figures, the company has delivered a combined 35,720 units of the Colorado and Canyon from January through April 2015, and the Chevy was the fastest-selling truck in the US for the previous three months. In May, it spent an average of just 12 days in showrooms before being snapped up. And even better for the company, 43 percent of these buyers came from other brands. According to Automotive News, the most popular trade-ins have included the Ford F-150, Toyota Tacoma, and Dodge Dakota. Related Video: