2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution

Dark clouds obscure the horizon, rain is bucketing down and the race track is soaked.

In any other situation you would probably watch from the sidelines, marvelling at the foolhardy drivers.

But not in the new generation Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution.

On sale this month, the Evo exhibits the kind of aggressive tenacity that can only come from a four-wheel drive rally-bred car, capable of delivering velcro-like grip even in soaking conditions, and enough surging turbo acceleration to make you grin like a kid in a candy store.

With more all-wheel drive gubbins and traction trickery than ever before, the new generation Evolution has arrived in Australia, and yes, it lives up to the hype.

It's got a more advanced, light weight, all aluminium 2.0-litre turbo engine, a fancy 4WD torque distribution and traction control system controlled by a new super-computer brain, and a brand new twin clutch automatic transmission to ensure rapid power delivery, all of which contributes to one of the most satisfying and drivable performance cars ever made.

Put simply, one of the best just got better.

And the icing on the cake? This is the first time an Evo has been offered with a 10-inch sub woofer. Rock on!

The Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution (it's only known as the Evolution X in Japan) is arguably the boldest update of Mitsubishi's most famous model since it first emerged in the early 1990s.

It's still got an insane 4-cylinder turbo engine that gives the car the sort of acceleration usually only experienced in 8-cylinder sports cars, it's still got mad levels of AWD grip and cornering tenacity, but it's demeanour has changed somewhat.

It's a much easier (or should I say less painful) car to drive day to day.

Chris Maxted, the product strategy manager for Mitsubishi Motors Australia, talked about moving the car in a premium position. The new Evolution is about "not just raw performance, but livable performance," said Maxted.

The Evo's shift from raw to regal is already having an effect: of the more than 100 pre-orders for the car, 80 per cent of these were for the $70,000+ fancy pantsMR model, and 95% of all pre-orders have been ordered with the SST (sport shift transmission).

Indeed, one of the biggest changes for the new Evolution is the SST dual clutch gearbox, which now gives the Lancer Evolution a 6-speed automatic with which to entice drivers.

Together with a slightly more compliant ride, the range of luxury enhancements includes a thumping stereo, high resolution touch-screen sat nav and iPod connectivity, smart key system, Bluetooth phone connectivity with voice recognition, rain sensing wipers, seven airbags, and for the first time on an Evolution model cruise control.

Mitsubishi Motors Australia was very clear and quietly confident when it said it wanted to attract a broader range of buyers, the kind of drivers who would normally opt for vehicles like the Nissan 350Z, Mazda RX-8 and Volkswagen Golf R32.

It's a much nicer and more refined car to cruise around in thanks to a more tractable engine with more low end shunt (but still keeps its banzai 7000rpm+ character), and it's not as rattly and raw as it used to be which will displease the die-hards but will benefit Mitsubishi in the long run.

There are two models: Evolution ($59,490) and Evolution MR ($71,690). The entry-level Evolution comes with 18-inch Enkei wheels, Brembo brakes, the storming 217kW 2.0-litre turbo engine, seven airbags, 6-speaker CD/MP3 stereo, proximity 'smart' key, cruise control, rain sensing wipers, Bluetooth and voice recognition and a 5-speed manual transmission. The 6-speed SST dual clutch automatic is a $5,000 option.

The Evolution MR costs about $10,000 more but adds the SST dual clutch gearbox, two-piece front brake rotors and BBS wheels that together shave off about 6kg of weight, Bilstein shocks, Eibach springs, the fancy touch-screen system, HID headlamps, heated leather Recaro seats plus external chrome accents and a Rockford Fosgate audio system with 10-inch sub woofer.

Mitsubishi will also offer a "performance pack" for those who want to stay with the 5-speed manual but want the improved chassis. It costs $5,500 and adds the two piece brake rotors, Bilstein shockers and Eibach springs plus the lighter 18-inch forged aluminium BBS wheels.
On The Track

It's been raining cats and dogs, it's bitterly cold, and the race track doesn't look very inviting. But we were eager to drive the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution.

As it turned out, the slippery track allowed us to test the various electronic AWD and traction systems rather intensively.

After settling into the tight-fitting Recaro racing seats - an Evolution staple - and being waved on by the track marshals, it became clear that the Evo spirit endures. Though the Evolution has grown up in a lot of ways, the fundamentals are still there: direct steering, rigid chassis, storming engine and excellent communication.

The engine generates huge amounts of torque - 366Nm @ 3500rpm - and the turbo rush that typified Evo's of yore returns. The car is super quick, but for myriad reasons (mainly reduced noise, vibration, and harshness levels) you never feel as though you're going quite as fast, which is testament to the improved chassis because in reality you will be lapping just as quickly, if not moreso, than past Evolution models.

The 4B11 T/C engine replaces the outgoing 4G63 T/C mill and is the first all-new engine since the Evo VI came to Australia. Because it replaces the cast iron engine block with an aluminium one it's 12kg lighter and a new turbocharger developed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries adds around 20% more poke at low revs.Here are the vitals:

217kW @ 6500rpm
366Nm @ 3500rpm

As Mitsubishi explained, the various scoops and vents on the bonnet, the large rear wing and diffuser are not just for boy-racer aesthetics: they actually help increase thermal efficiency in the engine bay and improve high speed stability respectively.

We took the first few laps fairly gingerly but after a couple of circuits it was as if there was almost no water on the track. The new Evolution develops unparalleled levels of grip thanks to generous 245/40 R18 tyres and the extra-clever S-AWC, or super all-wheel control system, which conjures traction magic and makes the 217kW power hit eminently manageable.

Hideyuki Iwata, Project manager for the Lancer Evolution and the technical director of Mitsubishi's Dakar Rally team was flown out from Japan to be at the Australian launch and summed it up nicely saying the vehicle provides "speed with control".

No argument there.

Iwata san explained that "After improving cornering performance, we beefed up the performance of the AYC [active yaw control] system, which helps to alleviate tyre scrub, and also developed a new Active Stability Control (ASC) system that constantly monitors and operates to stabilise vehicle body attitude."

Simply put, the 'beefed up' active yaw control system splits engine torque between the left and right rear wheels, essentially eliminating understeer and giving the car a hugely positive cornering attitude.

It changes direction very keenly, aggressively even, which is helped by the engine mounting which is 10mm lower, a 40 per cent increase in torsional rigidity and a 60 per cent increase inbending rigidity.

The all-new suspension delivers 23% more lateral stiffness at the front of the car compared to Evo IX and you can feel this as the car turns in - it feels more direct and eager.

The stability control is also very clever, and rather useful in wet conditions. It allows a lot of scope for drivers try different lines and approaches to various types of corners without too much fear of completely losing control. The 4WD trickery allowed us to push the car a bit further each lap and by the end of the session we were confidently drifting deep into corners under brakes and powering out with the odd fish tail. Colin McRae would have been proud.

Not only fast, the new Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution is a remarkably involving car to drive and hugely enjoyable to steer - especially in the wet.

The two most impressive things I discovered about the Evo on a circuit with no speed limits and no traffic, were the communication - you can clearly feel how much grip either the front or rear end has left and when it's about to let go - and the brakes.

With 30mm larger rotors front and rear (350mm and 330mm diameters respectively) compared to the Evo IX, and clamped by Brembo calipers, the new generation Lancer Evolution has staggering stopping power. Even in the wet the thing generates huge G-forces under brakes, and they truly are one of the best aspects of the Evolution.

There does seem to be slightly more body roll than on previous models, but it is still tracks resolutely through corners with a firm, flat attitude thanks to the rigid chassis which makes the car eminently controllable - even in shite weather.

While the 5-speed manual transmission offers short, sharp shifts and feels quicker (and louder) than the 6-speed automatic versions, the SST is probably the pick of the two, offering lightning quick shifts that can be left to the car to figure out (which it does well), or controlled by the driver via paddle shifts or the +/- on the gear lever.
On The Road

While the Evo is bona fide track day tool, it's also an incredible road car. For the asking price of around $60,000, it makes bad drivers look good, and good drivers look amazing.

The traction control system came across as more refined than on previous Lancer Evolution cars on some of the damp roads we drove through in the Victorian alps, keeping the rear of the car on the straight and narrow. Though there was the odd case of understeer when we went into corners with too much heat, on the whole the Evo package is remarkably well sorted.

It tips into corners very nicely and tracks through corners with aplomb, the active yaw control diverting torque to the outside rear wheel to reduce the effects of understeer. It's less concerned with mid-corner bumps and cracks in the road too, as the subtle increase in suspension compliancy allows the Mitsubishi to better absorb rough patches.

On dry roads it's simply superb. As mentioned, the new Lancer Evolution is one of the most communicative cars you can buy. Period.

It feels very stable thanks to a 30mm increase in track width, and the battery and washer fluid container have been moved to the boot which reduces cargo space sllightly but improves the Lancer Evolution's balance.

The engine is revvy little thing, happy to spin up well past 7000rpm and even when you're banging on the rev limiter it doesn't feel strained or stretched.

It charges forward with the kind of pace that is usually only found in more exotic cars, and though there is an unofficial benchmark time of 5.7 seconds for the 0-100km/h sprint, it feels more like a 5.5 second car.

The small tiller delivers ultra direct steering, meaning you don't need much input to turn the car. Even riding shotgun you can feel exactly what the car underneath you is doing, such is it's talkative chassis; when it's nearing it's grip limit; when one of the rear wheels wants to spin; or whether it's going to understeer on turbo boosted full throttle corner exits.

The 350mm front and 330mm rear brake rotors, clamped by 4-pot Brembo calipers up front and Brembo 2-potters at the rear, are one of the best aspects of the performance package, giving the car the ability to strike deeper and more confidently into corners than almost any other car I've tested.

It's quite stunning how deep you can push the new generation Evolution into corners before you have to jump the brake pedal: it washes off speed like a windscreen wiper washes off water.

Mitsubishi has kept the Evolution's jaw-dropping performance levels intact, but by adding a range of comfort and luxury features to the package and including things like an automatic transmission and cruise control, it's well and truly up there with cars like the VW R32 in terms of refinement and ease of use.

Keen to attract a wider audience to the new model, which is larger in every respect than its predecessor and therefore roomier, Mitsubishi now offers a complete luxury package with the range-topping Evolution MR.

In the past it was a brave driver who used the rally-bred Mitsubishi Evolution as a daily driver, but not anymore. Somewhere along the way the Evolution has learned the meaning of civility, and that Mitsubishi has managed to do this without diluting its berserker attitude is astonishing.

While the car is still very stiffly sprung - you still feel most bumps in the road - it has a smoother, more compliant ride than previously and everything feels far more sophisticated. The cockpit looks better, the materials are of a higher quality, and thank Zeus someone had the foresight to include cruise control.

If you opt for the Evolution MR, you'll be surrounded by leather and suede as you call up maps on the high resolution touch-screen display, but both models have the heavily bolstered Recaro sports seats that do a great job of keeping your body immobile as you spear through high-G corners.

On the road the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution has more civility than before, particularly when paired with the dual clutch SST, but loses none of its tractive tenacity nor its blazing acceleration.

I really want to wax textual for hours about how good this car is, how far it has come in this last generation, how scintillating it is to drive, how rewarding it is to power out of corners on full turbo boost, how good the dual clutch gearbox is,and how intriguing the match-up against it's arch-rival the Subaru WRX STI will be.

But that will have wait for our full week-long test drive...
Conclusion

As one of the most famous Japanese performance cars of the last two decades, the Evolution is back in its most potent form yet.


Mitsubishi's engineers and designers wanted to improve two aspects of the Lancer Evolution - the pleasure of driving and the satisfaction of ownership.

It has succeeded in both, creating a more complete car.

At times the 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution doesn't feel as fast or as raw as its precursor, which will appeal to those looking for day-to-day car as well as a high performance automobile. But in reality the Evo's speed and agility are somewhat masked by the improved refinement and compliancy, and it's not until you look at the speedometer or the lap timer that you realise how fast it can be.

It took 300,000 man hours to develop, but takes only a few corners to appreciate. It's one of the best driver's cars ever created, with a huge amount of power and the levels of grip and mammoth stopping power totally blew me away. The way it holds fast through corners - even in the wet - has to be experienced to be believed.

Honda Insight: No Smooth Operator

Oh I am duly impressed with the car's value proposition, I approve of its packaging, I'm fine with its riff on the iconic Prius's profile, and I'm truly smitten by the speedometer digits which appear to hover in space above a background that changes colors like an eco-mood ring. But the way it transitions from "Auto Stop" to engine-on, to pulling away from a stop is borderline non-commercial -- at least in our test car. The transition from regenerative to friction braking was better but also noticeable.

The jerks, fits and starts that happen when stepping off from a stop would have me checking for a stuck accelerator pump, a clogged fuel filter, a finicky choke, or suggest lubing my throttle linkage if one of my 1960s era-carbureted cars behaved the same way. And switching out of ECON mode didn't seem to smooth things out much. The modest 10-mph or so winds that blew early-springtime weather through Detroit this weekend seemed to shove the little ovoid Honda around more than necessary too, perhaps due to the tall, skinny, low-rolling-resistance tires.

At least the fuel economy appeared to be impressive. For the first ten or fifteen miles I drove it, the indicated range kept increasing (my colleague Motor City Blogman admitted to driving it "normally," not in hypermiler mode). Indeed, on my last 12-mile drive into the office the bar-graph history chart indicated over 60 mpg, achieved by driving on mostly deserted neighborhood roads, accelerating gently with nobody behind me to 30 mph, and never letting the speedo background go blue. But then, to my immense disappointment, the little display that grades your performance when you power off the ignition still indicated an eco grade of just one leaf pair (two and three pairs are apparently better). Presumably that display is not grading the most recent trip (180 mpg seems highly unlikely), but rather some longer interval. Clearly I have to interest Mr. Lassa in hypermiling if I want a decent "grade" on the next Insight that rolls through here...

2010 Ford Mustang: Near Enough is Not Good Enough

At the launch of the S197 Mustang in late 2004, Ford countered criticism of the live rear axle -- a setup last considered state of the art by the rest of the world's automakers back in the 1970s -- by claiming an independent rear end would have added thousands of dollars to the cost of the car. That would have been correct had the S197 Mustang shared elements of the heavy and expensive DEW98 platform, which underpinned the Lincoln LS, Ford Thunderbird, and Jaguar S-Type. But it's not quite the whole story.

The S197 was in fact originally planned to share a lighter, simpler, less expensive independent rear suspension with the Australian-designed BA-series Falcon sedan, which launched in 2002. In fact, the rear half of the S197 platform was to be common between the two cars, with the Falcon eventually picking up the Mustang's front structure when Ford Australia could afford to replace the Falcon's ancient 4.0-liter straight six with the 3.5-liter Duratec V-6.

The programs diverged because of the Falcon's need for three passenger rear seating, and the Mustang team's insistence on a subframe-mounted rear suspension, which improved isolation but compromised the rear passenger package. With the Falcon due to hit the market two years ahead of the Mustang, the Ford Australia engineers cut to the chase and developed their own independent rear end without a subframe. The Mustang team eventually gave up on a subframe, mainly for cost reasons, and developed a similar, light and low cost independent rear end of their own.

Late in the S197 program, however, product development executive Phil Martens reportedly managed to convince Bill Ford Jr. he could save Ford $100 a car if the Mustang was switched to a live rear axle. The S197 platform was hurriedly torn up and reworked to accommodate the old-tech suspension. Martens was named Ford's group vice-president, product creation, North America, in October, 2003.

Mustang chief engineer Hau Thai-Tang did a great job with the hand he'd been dealt, and the detail tweaks to the chassis for the 2010 model give the Mustang remarkable poise... for a live rear axle car. And there's the rub: Good as it is, the 2010 Mustang could have been better.

There are a lot of good reasons why the rest of the world's automakers stopped using the Mustang's rear suspension layout decades ago. No matter how well set up, a live rear axle will never deliver the refinement, ride quality, and all-round traction of a well set up independent rear end. Yeah, yeah, I know drag racers like live rear axles, but let's be honest, how many S197s actually spend their weekends pounding quarter miles? I'd be astonished if it's more than a tiny fraction of the total number of Mustangs sold.

Now here's the punchline: My well-placed sources say that once the noise, vibration and harshness, and driveline angle issues were solved, the S197's live rear axle actually ended up costing Ford $98 per unit MORE than the low cost independent rear end originally developed for the car.

2010 Mercedes-Benz GL550

To be honest I was a little worried about the dubs. Giant 21 inch alloys and low profile tires seemed about the last thing Mercedes-Benz's comfortable and capable GL-series SUV needed; pointlessly expensive Beverly Hills bling that would surely prove as useful as a chandelier on the Space Shuttle.



I like the GL-series a lot. It was our 2007 Sport Utility of the Year, and deservedly so. It's the best vehicle Benz builds off the hardware that also supports the ML-class and the R-class, offering just the right mix of roomy functionality (including a third row adults can use, with seats that fold in and out of the floor at the touch of a button), confident road (and off-road) manners, and quiet Mercedes luxury.

The GL550 is the top of a three model GL range for 2010. It boasts a number of minor cosmetic tweaks, including a bolder, deeper grille and LED daylight running lamps up front, and quad exhaust outlets at the back. Under the hood is Benz's muscular and versatile 5.5-liter V-8, which develops 385hp and 391 lb-ft of torque, a useful 75 percent of which is available from just 1000rpm. And then there are those standard-issue dubs: Gorgeous five spoke AMG alloys, shod with meaty 285/40/R21 Continental Cross Contact all-season run-flat tires.

Dubs might look cool, but they add a lot of unsprung weight, as Ron Kiino pointed out a few months back when he tested Ford's Edge Sport, which rolls on giant 22-inchers. More unsprung weight makes it harder for suspension engineers to deliver superior ride quality, as spring and damper rates invariably have to be stiffened to keep the heavier wheels under control. Compounding the problem is the fact bigger diameter wheels also demand lower profile tires with stiffer sidewalls.

Sure enough, I noticed a little edge to the GL550's ride that our long term GL450, fitted with 19-inch wheels and plumper 275/55 tires, never had. Then there was the subtle disconnect between the super-sharp initial response of the low profile Contis and the languid transients you'd expect from a 5313 lb SUV. I was prepared to be annoyed. But in the middle of a 436-mile stint behind the wheel, on a quiet two-lane that alternated from fast open stretches to a yee-hah! roller coaster ride along a twisting, heaving canyon, I learned to love the dubs

The big Benz was more fun down that road than any truck had a right to be. And what made the GL550 impressively quick and composed through the twisties were those massive Contis, which offered a ton of grip, and plenty of mid-corner feel. I flicked the air suspension into sport mode, and made the most of the 385-horse V-8, using the steering wheel mounted paddles to run up and down the seven-speed automatic transmission's ratios, left foot braking into the turns. I can't think of another seven passenger vehicle that would have been as good along that stretch of road. Caddy Escalade? Nope. Honda Odyssey? Forget it.

Minivans bore me to death and most full-size SUVs corner like a drunken water buffalo. So if you really have to carry more peeps than you can fit in a luxury sedan, and still want to enjoy the drive, there's probably no better way to roll than a GL550. On dubs.

Piech Wins Again: Finally, Volkswagen Buys Porsche

This just in from Wolfsburg: Volkswagen's supervisory board has met in an "extraordinary meeting to create an integrated automotive group with Porsche..." From Porsche's first sports car, the 356 in 1948 through the original air-cooled 911, the VW-Porsche 914, the 924 meant for Audi, and right on up to the Cayenne-Touareg, the two companies have been closely intertwined.


Ferdinand Piech, the big winner in this deal, is a grandson of Ferdinand Porsche. He has been playing corporate games with his cousin, Porsche chairman Wolfgang Porsche, at least since the sports carmaker's holding company started buying up shares of VW.

The story goes something like this: Porsche SE has been buying up VW AG shares for the past couple of years. Porsche needed to expand its corporate lineup in order to meet future European CO2 regulations, which are figured similar to the United States' Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards. Buying a company that sells diesel Polos and Golfs means Porsche wouldn't have to build its own small, fuel-efficient cars. What's more, Porsche Chairman Wendelin Wiedeking thought he could do a better job of running a Porsche-VW than VW Chairman Martin Winterkorn.

By this year, Porsche had accumulated 51 percent of VW AG's shares. Problem is the state of Lower Saxony's unusual shareholder interest in VW. It's not unlike the Ford family's special stock ownership in Ford Motor Company, which gives that family shareholder control without owning a majority of common stock. For VW, it prevented Porsche from taking control. Meanwhile, Porsche has run up 10 billion euro in debt ($12.8 billion) as it has been buying up shares.

A large portion of that debt came due this summer, allowing VW to turn the tables on Porsche. Thursday morning, Porsche's supervisory board announced what had been expected for weeks; it dismissed Wiedeking and his finance chief, Holger P. Haerter. VW will take care of some of the Porsche debt in the merger, and Porsche is charging ahead with an injection of Qatari capital.

Considering how Piech has run VW, expanding the Porsche lineup might seem likely. The first two would be a small, midengine four-cylinder Porsche sports car based on the coming VW BlueSport and the so-called Roxster, a smaller-than-Cayenne crossover based on the Audi Q5.

On the other hand, Wiedeking's successor, named Thursday morning, is Michael Macht, an engineer whom Wiedeking often credited for driving the project to get the 996 and original Boxster to share platforms and production lines, to cut costs and to improve quality. Macht, 48, recently told Motor Trend's Paul Horrell that Porsche would fight for its independence and would remain a low-volume, high-priced brand. "Never a car cheaper than the Boxster," he said, and no fifth model line like the "Roxster."

"He laughed at the prospect of Porsche doing a version of the VW BlueSport."

The big question now is, what does Ferdinand Piech think?

Healthiest Patient in ICU: Ford Posts $424-million Operating Loss

DEARBORN, MICHIGAN - It's not party time, yet, at Ford Motor Company's World Headquarters. Ford's $2.3-billion in net income for the second quarter of '09 is the result of "special items," those bookkeeping procedures that in past years have reversed the fortunes of the Detroit Three, especially General Motors. Probably the most important line item is this: Ford has cut automotive structural costs by $1.8 billion, of which $1.2 billion came from North American savings.

Cost reduction is the New GM's key goal, of course, and both Ford and GM are quickly slashing costs in order to transform themselves into companies that can make profits even when no more than 10 million cars and trucks are sold each year in the United States. Thursday's Q2 results for Ford proves the automaker is on-track with what it used to call The Way Forward Plan.


Ford still plans to "get back to profitability and positive cash flow in 2011," says Alan Mulally, president and CEO. And it won't happen any earlier, considering the current economic climate and predictions that any recovery will be slow in 2010. Mulally says Ford is heading for profitability thanks to improvements it has made in customer satisfaction, revenue and margins. Some of Ford's numbers:

* Pre-tax loss of $424 million; net income of $2.3 billion in the second quarter, equal to 69-cents per share.
* Special items totaled $2.8 billion, and Ford reduced its debt by $3.4 billion.
* Issued 345 million new shares of common stock, which raised $1.6 billion. "Completed actions" to cut automotive debt by $10.1 billion.
* Pre-tax profit of $646 million compares with a pre-tax loss of $294 million for the second quarter of '08.

*Market share is up significantly. In the U.S., Ford/Lincoln/Mercury have 16.4-percent market share, up two points. So FoMoCo is on solid ground to remain one of the Big Three in North America. We've been heading, for some time, to the European model, in which three automakers lead that market with about 18-percent share each. In the U.S., the new Big Three are GM, Ford and Toyota. And yes, Ford is nipping at the New GM's heels.

*European market share is up a half-point, to 9.0 percent, highest second-quarter level in 10 years. In South America, share is up one point, to 10.4 percent.

Mulally deserves a lot of credit for, first, changing the business culture in Dearborn, and perhaps foremost, for having the insight or the luck to hock the entire company up to and including the Blue Oval emblem in exchange for some $23 billion in credit, before the credit market collapsed. It seemed like a foolhardy idea at the time, and frankly, Ford isn't in the clear. It's the proverbial healthiest patient in intensive care. Any downward blips in the global or U.S. economy, and/or in the North American automotive market could prove fatal.

Mulally figures Ford has gained some consumer equity by not taking taxpayer money, although he stresses that Ford has been on-record in supporting the government's restructuring of the U.S. auto industry.

Another factor is gasoline prices. When the economy finally improves, that will put pressure on oil supplies, sending gasoline prices higher. And Ford is well poised with Mulally's One Ford plan to rationalize most car and truck lines for the world. Whether gas is $2.25 or $4.50 a gallon, the Fiesta and an all-new global Focus arrive in U.S. showrooms next year. Ford's margins are up, especially in Europe, and our midsize car, the Fusion, is selling well here with higher levels of content. Ford dealers here sell Sync-equipped cars three-times more quickly than non-Sync cars, says Lewis Booth, executive vice president and chief financial officer.

Still, here's the problem: the Fiesta can typically sell for $25,000 or more in Europe, at current exchange rates. That gives Ford of Europe good margins on a car with a wealth of features and a nice interior. The margins will be razor thin for the U.S.-market Fiesta, even with it being built in Mexico. And Ford will have to be careful with how it prices the new Fiesta against the next-generation Focus when they both arrive here.

Ford's success in the car line rides on the Fusion, which for now is different than Europe's midsize Mondeo. Can Ford take enough cost out of the Fusion's replacement, when it converges with the Mondeo for the 2013 model year? Even when higher fuel economy standards kick in, the heart of the U.S. car market will remain the four-cylinder midsize sedan. Ford is starting to dig into the Camry/Accord's sales with its Fusion. Save for the hybrid model though, a $30,000+ Fusion -- the price range for the European Mondeo -- is very much a stretch.

Mulally says Ford can sell European models at U.S. prices by using its innovation and global scale. He also believes Americans are more willing to pay more for high-quality, high-content small cars. Every new b-segment car is not a Mini, however. I believe that if Ford wants to be the healthiest athlete in the gym when the Great Recession finally ends, it's going to have to revert to its Model T-era roots and figure out how to keep car prices from rising too quickly. Another car company that posted better than expected second quarter results Thursday, Hyundai, will see to it.

Art Center Car Classic 2009

Art Center has produced some of the world’s best transportation designers. And for the last several years, this iconic institution has produced one of the world’s great car shows too. Taking place July 19 at Art Center College of Design’s Pasadena, California campus, the Art Center Car Classic was small but mighty. Small, because its grassy, undulating quad can only hold so many machines. Mighty, because the show’s organizing committee makes every square inch of it count.


As you would expect of a show put on by professional car designers, faculty, and transportation design students, every show has a brief. Last year’s theme could have been called “Missing in Action” as the show was on hiatus for 2008. Oh and did we miss it. Fortunately, it came back with a roar – several, really – this year. 2009's theme was “By Air, Land & Sea.” You don’t have to be a psychoanalyst to figure that this meant the field would be made up some combination of cars, boats, and aircraft. Sure enough, and to the delight of everyone who attended, it was. There was a lot of room for crossing over, too: cars inspired by aircraft, cars powered by aircraft style propulsion, cars that looked like boats, boats that looked like cars…

Art Center always augments the hardware with speakers and presentations, and this year's programs set a high standard. Burt Rutan was the obvious choice as they keynote speaker, as his design career encompasses a wide variety of transportation design innovations and accomplishments.

It was a magical gathering. As I stood there watching Jay Leno back his turbine-powered Eco Jet concept car into its spot on the grass, the Red Star Formation Flying Team buzzed the field with old warbirds. A twin-supercharged Allison V-12 engine revved and blatted and shot flames out of its open headers, to the pleasure of the crowd. A moment later, the tiny two-cylinder engine of an Isetta wheezed to life and buzzed for all it was worth. It was a humorous and well-timed, if somewhat less visceral, response. The moment was straight out of Tomorrowland; far more dream than reality. Yet the Art Center folks made it a reality. Isn’t that what imaginative designer are supposed to do? Of course. And well done it was. Here’s a look at a few of my field favorites from this year’s Art Center Car Classic.

The dorsal fin on Peter Mullin’s 1938 Tatra T-87 qualified it in the “Air Inspired” class, but pre-war racing boats often carried similar aerodynamic stability devices. This Czech wonder is powered by an air-cooled V-8 engine mounted aft, and Mullin’s Navy blue example is in spectacular condition.


Margie and the late Robert E. Petersen’s magnificent ’29 DuPont Model G proudly wears a boat tailed “Speedster” body not so different from that of the much more widely known Auburn 851 Speedster (one of which was also at the show).


With a name like “Supersonic” you don’t have to guess too hard to understand which category this superbly styled Fiat 8V falls into. The rocket-inspired taillights resemble that of the 1961-63 Thunderbird that came along a decade later. This jewel-like, V-8 engined Fiat belongs to mega enthusiast David Sydorick.


Gullwing -- What else do you need to know? An automotive high watermark on anyone’s list, the 300SL coupe is one automobile we never tire of looking at. This one comes from the collection of John La Barbera, and runs a rare set of Rudge knock-off wheels. Nice.


The Batmobile may or may not be your cup of tea, but is an interesting twist on the “Wings” aspect of this year's show. This is not one of the cars built in the 60s for use in the TV show, but a replica constructed later. No matter, it is owned by Batmobile creator George Barris his own self, who was present and having a blast.


General Motors design chief Ed Welburn supported the Car Classic by allowing Art Center to borrow 1959’s GM Firebird III. Obviously a product of the Rocket Age and one of the most compelling concept cars of all time, it was one of the show's many centerpieces. A magical era, no?


Here’s a twist on the gullwing theme: Rather than use them for passenger access, this DeTomaso Mangusta puts the center-hinged winged doors over the engine compartment and transaxle. The “Goose” is a masterwork of Giorgetto Giugiaro, and is powered by a Small-Block Ford V-8. About 400 were built between 1967 and 1970, prior to the introduction of the Pantera.


Jay Leno’s Eco Jet concept is a joint effort between General Motors Design and Leno’s own Southern California based shop. It’s powered by an Air Force surplus turbine engine, and will run on nearly any liquid fuel that will ignite. No group of handlers carefully trundling this machine around the lawn – Leno drove it in.


Leno and Art Center’s Transportation Design Program Chair, Stewart Reed.


The Long and the Short of It: Microcars in the foreground (Isetta, Gogomobil, Messerschmit) provide an amazing contrast to the looooooooonnnnnnngish Packard tank-engined creation from the hyper-fertile minds of Michael Leeds and Randy Grubb, aka The Blastolene Brothers.


Chuck Swimmer’s 1954 De Soto Adventurer II was one of the many Ghia designed and built “Idea Cars” commissioned by Chrysler design chief Virgil Exner. Like the Fiat Supersonic, aircraft and rocket-inspired themes abound, yet are tempered by Ghia’s typical Italian sense of restraint and elegant detailing.


As with car shows at any level, you’ll often find plenty of cool stuff in the parking lot on your way in and out of the main venue. Besides a nice gathering of Ferraris, an Audi club corral, and other interesting bits, here was a gaggle of Deloreans, including one rather convincing Back to the Future replica. Gotta love it.