Although it looks like a Lexus version of the Toyota iQ, the LF-SA concept is intended to be a rival to the Mini, Audi A1 and other premium A/B segment cars in Europe. Pray that the production version doesn't look like this.
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Kansas City's KCTV reported this week on an attempt to repair a 2012 Missouri state law that has led to a dramatic increase in car thefts. The law, which allows people to sell vehicles 10 years or older without a title, was originally intended to help rural property owners dispose of derelict vehicles and outdated machinery that would otherwise be left to rot. Criminals, however, soon discovered that they could scoop up virtually any vehicle that met the standard and sell it to scrap yards for a tidy profit.
The primary culprits, the story asserts, are crooked tow truck drivers. Old cars behind tow trucks are such an ordinary sight that cars can be taken in broad daylight and, at the scrapyard, the drivers take their payout and escape before anyone notices. In many cases the cars are shredded before the owners can even report their theft.
Despite the fact that, in the wake of the law's enactment, many Missouri police agencies noted an almost immediate rise in the number old cars being stolen, "Show-me" State leaders have allowed the situation to persist. Local Leaders, however, did act. Kansas City, for example, enacted a local ordinance directing scrapyards to hold vehicles for three days prior to disposal but many of these laws can be avoided simply by taking vehicles to recycling centers outside of those jurisdictions.
The story ends on a hopeful note with news that one Missouri State representative, State Senator Jason Holsman, is looking to correct what he calls these "unintended consequences of the law." But my personal experience is that the wheels of government often grind slowly and, until the situation is finally corrected, owners of old cars in Missouri need to watch their backs.
The post Missouri Law Let's Thieves Scrap Your Classics appeared first on The Truth About Cars.
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Subaru and Jeep are consistently two of America's fast-growing auto brands. Aided by expanding portfolios and clearly understood branding, Jeep volume jumped 41% in 2014; Subaru sales shot up 21%.
Are any two auto brands more easily identified with winter than Subaru and Jeep?
As the U.S. auto industry grew 14% in January 2015, Jeep sales were up 23%; Subaru volume rose 24%. Together, they accounted for 8% of all new vehicle sales in America in the first month of 2015.
Since January may be the most Subaru and Jeep-like month of them all, the accompanying chart showcases their market share improvements in the month of January over the last decade.
Timothy Cain is the founder of GoodCarBadCar.net, which obsesses over the free and frequent publication of U.S. and Canadian auto sales figures.
The post Chart Of The Day: A Decade Of January Market Share Improvement For Winter's Auto Brands appeared first on The Truth About Cars.
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from Car and Driver Blog http://ift.tt/nSHy27
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Wrangler owners all know that they'll one day wake up with the sudden urge to bolt on a couple thousand dollars' worth of aftermarket parts. And in those precious disorienting seconds, Chrysler wants to them to default to mouthing the word, "Mopar"—hence the mission of this yellow Jeep landing in Geneva.
Beyond its awkward Rocks Star name, this is your basic Wrangler Rubicon softtop with half doors, only with a kickin' 2.8-liter turbo-diesel four-cylinder banned from our home turf. The school-bus-yellow color scheme carries over to the steering-wheel spokes, air-vent trim, and passenger grab handle, while the wheels, grille, gas cap, and the rest of the interior go black.
A light bar/hoop fixed to the bottom of the A-pillars means you can't fold down the Rocks Star's windshield, but in return you'll receive four square LED lamps mounted high and proud of the glass. We know how much Wrangler owners hate square lights —witness the anti-square headlamp vitriol slung at the YJ—so that's a real gamble. A distressed-looking U.S. Army–style star and circle on the hood might makes up for the non-round lights, though. While Chrysler is not adding the diesel to Mopar's U.S. catalog, the rest of the parts should be available soon.
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The last time we reviewed a Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe, it was 2009, and none other than P.J. O'Rourke wrote an enlightened piece full of magnificently qualified praise for the glittery land yacht, with cheeky nods to the people who buy them. We certainly won't attempt to match O'Rourke's sage perspective, social insights, and penchant for literary flourish. But we can tell you about the new Phantom Drophead Coupe "Nighthawk", one of nine produced exclusively for the U.S. market, and how it feels to drive it in an area of the country where the car is even more in its element than O'Rourke's New Hampshire 'hood: Los Angeles. READ MORE ››
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