Have you Driven a Tata Lately?

The question is simple: Who got the better end of the deal, Ford or Tata Motors in the sale to the latter of the Jaguar Land Rover operations?  Is it possible that the answer is “Neither”?

Essentially, the deal is that Tata will pay Ford $2.3-billion.  However, Ford will contribute approximately $600-million to the Jaguar Land Rover pension plans.  Which means, of course, that there’s a good bit of money that’s being taken out of that $2.3 billion.

However, according to the official news release from Ford - Read More.

autofieldguide April
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2008 Volvo C30
2008 Hummer H2
Driven Archives

autofieldguide April
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The Cloud Behind the Silver Lining
Replacing a large percentage of today’s vehicles with plug-in hybrids or full electric vehicles would make a big dent in the 380 million gallons of gasoline used in the United States every day. However, according to an analysis printed in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, it also would greatly increase water usage. - View More

A Hummer for the Risk Averse
This one is a bit strange. It seems that Dr. James Brighton of Britain’s Cranfield University and his team converted a new right-hand drive Hummer H3 into a life-size remote control vehicle. The vehicle is capable of climbing a 407-mm vertical wall, traversing a 60% side slope, and operating in up to 610-mm of water. - View More

Make Friends with Mini
A study by British used car chain Carcraft shows that thousands of car owners are joining groups on the popular web social networking site Facebook dedicated to exchanging messages and advice with owners of the same make of car. The most popular make, according to the study, is Mini with 310 fan groups and nearly 23,800 members. - View More

Real Vehicle Personalization
At the New York Auto Show, "urban artist" Tristan Eaton used the roof panel from Ford’s Flex crossover as a canvas. Born in Hollywood, Eaton skateboarded through England in his youth, and spent his teenage years in Detroit. He is the founder of creative agency and toy maker ThunderDog Studios. - View More

Th!nk Small
The new Th!nk city car is a fully electric two-seat runabout equipped with ABS, airbags, three-point seat belts with pretensioners, and meets all applicable European and U.S. safety standards. Capable of a top speed of 65 mph, the Th!nk EV goes from 0-50 mph in 16 seconds, and can do 124 miles of city driving on a charge. - View More

Upcoming Industry Events:
SAE World Congress - April 14-17
Auto China 2008 - April 22-28
MoldMaking Expo 2008 - April 22-24
REACH Symposium - April 23
WCBF's Lean Six Sigma Summit -
April 29 - May 2
        i2 Planet - April 30 - May 2           

"Keep America Rolling"
You might think that so far as some people in Washington are concerned, Detroit doesn’t exist. Admittedly, the state political leaders within Michigan made the state less relevant than it otherwise might have been by conducting the presidential primary elections far earlier than the national committees said was permissible
- Read More..