1986 Chevrolet Corvette Base Hatchback 2-door 5.7l on 2040-cars

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Ford, Toyota clean up in Best Car For The Money Awards

The U.S. News Best Cars for the Money Awards picks winners by looking at the average transaction price, five-year total cost of ownership, the regard a car has from the automotive press, reliability figures from J.D. Power and Associates and safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The result, according to the magazine, is "the best combination of critical acclaim and long-term value."
Ford nabbed six of the 21 categories that received awards this year, the Focus, Fusion, Fusion Hybrid, Taurus, Escape and Edge getting trophies. Toyota and its Lexus and Scion sub-brands took another five, the Tacoma and Tundra owning the two categories given to pickup trucks. The other ten awards were split between Honda with three, Buick with two, and one each for Subaru, BMW, Hyundai, Chevrolet and Mazda.
Follow the link to see all the winners and read about why they were chosen.

Jeff Gordon to pace Indy 500 in Corvette Z06

The Chevrolet Corvette has served as pace car for the Indianapolis 500 more than any other vehicle in the century-long history of the race. And this year it'll be at the front of the pack again in the form of the Corvette Z06 driven by Jeff Gordon. With 650 horsepower on tap, the Z06 is among the fastest, most powerful cars ever to serve as pace car for the Greatest Spectacle in Racing – right up there, at any rate, with the ZR1 that led the field in 2012 and the Viper GTS from 1996. For this year's race, it's been decked out in white with special graphics, strobe lights and a red interior. The 99th running of the race will mark the 13th time a Corvette has been tapped for the honor. Gordon, a name better known to NASCAR fans, but certainly no stranger to the track, will handle driving duties. The four-time Sprint Cup champion has won the Brickyard 400 no less than five times, including the very first time it was held back in '94. No driver has won at Indy more than Gordon – a record he shares with Michael Schumacher, who won the US Grand Prix there five times. (AJ Foyt, Al Unser and Rick Mears share the record for Indy 500 victories at four apiece, in case you were wondering.) It'll be a busy Sunday for Gordon, who will also be competing in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte on the same day. Jeff Gordon to Drive Corvette Z06 Indy 500 Pace Car Five-time Brickyard winner will lead pack for 99th running of the Indianapolis 500 2015-04-29 INDIANAPOLIS – Five-time Brickyard 400 winner and four-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Jeff Gordon will drive a Corvette Z06 pace car for the 99th running of the Indianapolis 500 mile race, May 24 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It is the 13th time a Corvette has served as the official pace car, dating to 1978, and the 26th time a Chevrolet has led the pack for "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing." Corvette has served as the pace car more than any other vehicle in the race's history. Gordon, who grew up in nearby Pittsboro, Ind., is no stranger to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. In 1994 he won the inaugural Brickyard 400 – the first-ever NASCAR race at the Brickyard, and has visited the winner's circle there four more times. That makes him one of only two five-time winners at Indy in any series. Michael Schumacher won five Formula One races there. "It's great to have Jeff Gordon serve as this year's pace car driver," said Jim Campbell, Chevrolet U.S. vice president of performance vehicles and motorsports.

GM's redesigned full-size 2021 SUVs face delay over coronavirus

As General Motors works to conserve cash for the coronavirus pandemic, the automaker reportedly told suppliers that it is postponing development of several future vehicles. The situation may cause GM to delay the launch of the 2021 Cadillac Escalade, GMC Yukon, Chevrolet Tahoe and Chevrolet Suburban SUVs, which had been planned to roll out in April. The original launch plan for the redesigned full-size SUVs, which are some of the most profitable vehicles produced by GM, had called for production of the current models to end at its plant in Arlington, Texas, this week. After a retooling process, the redesigned SUVs were slated to begin production late in the month of April. In an email to suppliers viewed by Reuters and confirmed as authentic by GM, the automaker also said it was suspending development work on six future vehicle programs, including updates of the Chevrolet Equinox, GMC Terrain, Cadillac XT4, Bolt EV, Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra. GM said preproduction work on those programs would be pushed back to calendar year 2021, with most of the updated vehicles scheduled to be launched as 2022 models. According to the Detroit News, work has also been paused on the Chevy Camaro and a future version of the Corvette that has yet to be unveiled and wasn't planned for production during the 2020 calendar year. Last week, the automaker told employees and suppliers it was delaying work on some future vehicles while pushing ahead with near-term models such as its redesigned full-size SUVs and the GMC Hummer EV, Cadillac Lyriq, Chevrolet Bolt EUV and Cruise Origin, as well as its new Ultium battery system. A GM spokesman who spoke with Reuters reiterated on Monday what the automaker had said last week — that the situation with its U.S. plants was "fluid" and that the automaker would "continue to evaluate" whether and when to reopen those plants on a week-by-week basis, with "employee safety" guiding that decision. GM said previously that it was closing most of its U.S. plants indefinitely. In its Monday email, GM asked suppliers to stop work on all pre-production tooling and pre-production parts manufacturing, but also not to dispose of any tooling or materials. GM told Reuters it had solicited volunteers from its workforce to finish the build-out of the current SUVs on a single shift in Arlington.