Subaru Impreza 97 on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Auto Show Notebook: Legendary Continental name inspired Lincoln's designers

What's in a name? A lot for the Continental concept, and it gave Lincoln designers a sense of purpose as they styled the brand's upcoming flagship sedan. "The moment that we told them, it was amazing," Lincoln president Kumar Galhotra said. "They totally got it." "It" is cutting-edge technology wrapped in stately, large-sedan design. It's a nod to Lincoln's storied past, but a signpost for where the brand is heading. Though the Continental name dates to the late 1930s, Lincoln designers avoided making the concept overtly retro. "You can't let it pull yourself back too far in history, but you've got to design a car that lives up to the name," Galhotra said. Speaking to Autoblog on the floor of the New York Auto Show where the Continental formally debuted Wednesday, the Lincoln president reiterated that the car is on track to launch in 2016. It will compete against the Audi A6, Lexus GS, BMW 5 Series and other large luxury sedans. After its debut, the concept in New York will fly to China – another critical market for Lincoln – for display there. It will be replaced in New York by a prototype without an interior. The Continental is the latest high profile play by Lincoln to raise its image with consumers, who have either ignored or forgotten about it amid steep competition in the luxury sector from German and Japanese brands and a potentially resilient Cadillac. Lincoln sales are essentially flat compared with 2014 through the first quarter of this year, with total volume of 21,478 units. The middling start to 2015 comes on the heels of nearly 16-percent sales growth last year spurred by the launch of the MKC and the prominent signing of Matthew McConaughey to star in Lincoln advertisements. Other News, Notes & Quotes Speaking of names, Chevrolet did its homework before deciding to proceed with "Malibu" for its new generation of midsize cars. "We went out and researched it," said Alan Batey, president of General Motors North America. "People actually like the name 'Malibu,'" he said. Admittedly, the current Malibu has struggled in the marketplace against entrenched competitors, Batey said, but he's optimistic its awareness and historical value are assets to the dramatically redesigned sedan."The name's strong," he said. Meanwhile, in other Chevy news, the brand kicked off a new marketing campaign, "Real People, Not Actors" Wednesday. It will show consumers interacting with Chevys and their spontaneous reactions to the vehicles.

Automakers drop support for Trump effort against California emissions

WASHINGTON — Toyota, Fiat Chrysler (now known as Stellantis following its merger with Peugeot) and other major automakers said on Tuesday they were joining General Motors in abandoning support for former President Donald Trump's effort to bar California from setting its own zero emission vehicle rules. The automakers, which also included Hyundai, Kia, Mitsubishi, Mazda and Subaru, said in a joint statement they were withdrawing from an ongoing legal challenge to California's emission-setting powers, "in a gesture of good faith and to find a constructive path forward" with President Joe Biden. The automakers, along with the National Automobile Dealers Association, said they were aligned "with the Biden administrationÂ’s goals to achieve year-over-year improvements in fuel economy standards." Nissan in December withdrew from the challenge after GM's decision in November shocked the industry and won praise from Biden. On Monday, the Justice Department asked the U.S. Appeals Court for the District of Columbia to put the California emissions litigation on hold to "ensure due respect for the prerogative of the executive branch to reconsider the policy decisions of a prior administration." Biden has directed agencies to quickly reconsider TrumpÂ’s 2019 decision to revoke CaliforniaÂ’s authority to set its own auto tailpipe emissions standards and require rising numbers of zero-emission vehicles, as well as Trump's national fuel economy rollback. Asked to respond to the automakers' action, White House climate adviser Gina McCarthy said in a statement that "after four years of putting us in reverse, it is time to restart and build a sustainable future, grow domestic manufacturing, and deliver clean cars for America." California Governor Gavin Newsom praised the automakers on Twitter for "dropping your climate-denying, air-polluting, Trump-era lawsuit against CA" and urged them to join the voluntary framework. TALKS WITH BIDEN Separately, an industry trade group on Tuesday proposed to start talks with Biden on revised fuel economy standards that would be higher than Trump-era standards but lower than ones set during the prior Democratic administration. The Trump administration in March finalized a rollback of U.S. Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards to require 1.5% annual increases in efficiency through 2026, well below the 5% yearly boosts under the Obama administration rules it discarded.

Gymkhana 11 will be hosted by Travis Pastrana

Amidst the chaos and tragedy that has proliferated in 2020, American action sports legend Travis Pastrana has had a year of growth. In March, Subaru announced his return as a full-time rally driver, and this week, he announced that he will be the first person to host Gymkhana other than Ken Block. Pastrana has been assigned Gymkhana 11, and he'll be using a tuned Subaru WRX STI as his trusty steed. Block, Pastrana, and both of their families have participated in a fun challenge recently. In early May, Block set the stage at the Hoonigan Racing Division shop in Park City, Utah, with a makeshift Gymkhana GRiD-style course (Gymkhana GRiD was scheduled to return in 2020 before the Covid-19 pandemic). He used a Can-Am Maverick X3, and his kids and wife filmed him ripping through the course. At the end of the video, he called on Pastrana to attempt a superior answer.   And Pastrana delivered. Using a hot dog suit, a Can-Am Maverick X3, a kids kart, a Subaru WRX STI, and a Harley-Davidson with a sidecar, the Pastranas executed their own course with dirt track jumps, wheelies, burnouts and two-wheel driving. The competition wouldn't be complete without judging, so that was left up to the viewers. In online voting, audiences preferred Pastrana's performance more than Block's video at a 288 votes to 140 votes, as of this writing.  It seems the challenge was a lead-up to this week's announcement posted to Pastrana's Instagram: Got some awesome news today! @kblock43 passed the torch to me for Gymkhana 11. I have some big shoes to fill but more than excited to give it a go. Kens guidelines for me are pretty simple. Keep the essence of Gymkhana with -epic vehicle -unattainable location -precision driving with close proximity to catastrophe. The @vermont.sportscar team has already started work on building the baddest #subaru of all time. Need to find a location that I can make this car fly and drive it like I stole it. #gameon #nopressure @subarumotorsportsusa are you guys ready for this!!! @yokohamatire I’m going to need a lot of tires ?? @hooniganracing @redbull @dirtfishrally Vermont SportsCar is the technical partner to Subaru of America and has been the hub for Subaru Motorsports USA since 2005, so there's no question Pastrana's WRX will be monumental. As part of the event, there is also a competition to win a chance to be at the filming of Gymkhana 11 and hang with Pastrana. All proceeds go to a good cause.