GM Boss Mark Reuss Builds a Fantasy Supercar Out of the Company’s Parts Bin

Almost every car fan has, at one point or another, considered building his ideal car: for example, one with a Ferrari or Lamborghini bodywork, a Pagani interior, a Veyron engine, Porsche everyday usability and all this at the price of a used 300,000-mile Ford Escort… Well, the automotive term for this is a parts bin special; that is, a model built by borrowing only (or mostly) existing parts from other models. Mark Reuss, GM’s North American president, was asked by Car & Driver to assemble his dream car by using components that already exist on the company’s shelves.
We have to admit that, even though General Motors is not the first carmaker that comes to mind when picking components to assemble our dream car, Reuss has managed to conjure a pretty interesting vehicle.
The bodywork would come from the 2002 Cadillac Cien concept, which Reuss believes “defined Cadillac”.
 
Up front, the Chevrolet Volt's 149HP electric motor would power the front wheels, while GM’s turbocharged 2.8-liter V6 linked to a Corvette differential would power the rear axle, making the car an all-wheel drive hybrid.
The Volt would also donate its T-shaped battery pack (after it has been cleared by the NHTSA, we presume), mounted between the seats and wirelessly charged through an inductive mat making cables unnecessary.
America’s favorite supercar, the Corvette, would contribute in the handling department with its magnetorheological dampers and the ZR1's carbon-ceramic brakes, while GM’s pony car, the Camaro, would provide the ZL1’s Goodyear F1 SuperCar G performance tires.
Reuss is even talking numbers: the hybrid powertrain would churn out a total of 440HP and 450 lb-ft of torque, enough for a 0-60mph [96km/h] acceleration time of 3.2 seconds. In fact, he went as far as predicting his dream car’s Nürburgring lap time: 7:46. Not ZR-1 or GT-R territory, but quite fast nevertheless.
What about the interior? Well, Reuss would choose the suede steering wheel from the Caddy CTS-V linked to an electric-power steering system, the Recaro bucket seats from the Opel Insignia OPC and a Volt-like multifunction display for energy and VBox info.
Last, but not least, GM North America's president would like his dream car to have a silent interior when in EV mode so he would add a Bose active-noise cancelling system and offer perfect visibility courtesy of a Hughes night-vision system, front and rear cameras and a blind-spot monitoring system.
We applaud Mr Rauss' choices, which would make for one of the best "parts bin special" GM has ever thought of building.
He did omit one thing though: his passenger of choice. Therefore, we feel compelled to make a suggestion: Gisele. She did make a name for herself in the automotive crowd in a CTS-V after all...

GM PARTS BIN

2002 CADILLAC CIEN CONCEPT

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1969 Dodge Charger V/C: Are You Happy to See me or is that a Viper Under Your Hood?

We've seen the Viper's 10-cylinder engine slithering out of its old skin and sliding under the bonnet of many different cars ranging from a Chrysler PT Cruiser and a 300 sedan, to a Dodge Challenger and a Saab 9-3 Sport Combi, but what could be more fitting than seeing it in a classic muscle car like the 1969 Dodge Charger? This bad boy was found for sale on eBay with the seller claiming to have modified or replaced just about everything on the original 1969 Charger, from the upper and lower control arms and the independent rear suspension to the rack and pinion steering system, all of which are said to have been sourced from the Viper.
The highlight of the Charger V/C is of course the driveline that includes the third generation Viper's massive 505 cu.in. (8.3-liter) V10 engine (slightly massaged) and manual gearbox. You can read more details about the upgrades in the seller's description below.
At the time this article was written, the highest bid for the '69 Viper V/C on eBay was US$80,200 [€61,400] but the seller's reserve had not been met.

From eBay Seller's Description:
Let me start by saying you never seen another car like this one. If you think it looks like any other 69 Charger, look again. The only thing under the car that is Charger is the front frame rails. The rest of the cars chassis is hand built to accommodate the complete Gen 3 Viper drive line..
The car was built by a local shop and the completion took a few years and the final result was worth it. Everything was hand built, fitted, welded, bolted then taken apart to be painted in the mile deep GLOSS BLACK. The under side, door jams, under the hood and trunk lid have a better paint job than most cars do on the outside!
The original plan was to put the Viper V-10 engine in the Charger, then that led to putting the whole drive line in which required the rear frame & floors to be hand built. Then that led to customizing the whole car.
After it's completion there has been 320 test miles on it. Everything works and is a joy to drive as you can image. The V-10 was completely rebuilt with some goodies added, the interior is leather and cloth, with power windows and a Kenwood Stereo with Navigation in the special built console. There is a aluminum radiator, and hand made air cleaner and air inlets.
The wheels and tires are new Viper ones, the exhaust is built to come out of the side of the car(see pic). There is nothing hanging low, everything is tucked and hidden nice.
The pics and description do NOT do this car justice! If you see anything wrong with the paint, let me tell you it is a reflection from the paint. The car is the most straight and shiny black car I have ever seen.
I will probably revise this listing many times due to so many things I have forgot.
I have more pics if you want. Non-refundable $500 due within 24 hours of auctions end. No warranty, sold as is. If you have less than 10 feedback or neg. feedback or no money, don't bid before talking to me.
If you want to talk to me, send your phone number, I will not post it.
*When I said the front frame rails were the only stock part left, I should have said up until the firewall. From the firewall forward it is hand built k-member with Viper upper and lower control arms with rack and pinion steering. The rear is Viper independent suspension.
*The gas tank is hidden between the back seat and the trunk panel. The battery is in the trunk. The Air Cond. is hidden under the dash with the lines behind the pass. front wheel in the wheel well.

PHOTO GALLERY

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Lexus Won't be Getting BMW Diesels Despite Toyota's Tie-Up with the Bavarian Brand

Earlier this month, Toyota and BMW signed an agreement to share engines and hybrid technology to spread the cost of developing low emission vehicles. Under the new deal, BMW will supply Toyota with 1.6-liter and 2.0-liter four-cylinder diesel engines starting from 2014. At the time, many were wondering if Toyota's premium brand Lexus, which competes with BMW, would also receive diesel engines from the Bavarian firm. As it turns out, the answer is no.
''The agreement with BMW does not include any supply of BMW engines to Lexus,'' Toyota Europe representative Etienne Plas told Autonews Europe.
Asked by German business publication WirtschaftsWoche if the technology tie-up with the Toyota Group would give Lexus an advantage, BMW's development chief Klaus Draeger said that this won't happen as the diesel engines "are not planned for use in the Lexus brand".
Professor Ferdinand Dudenhoeffer from the Center for Automotive research at the University of Duisburg-Essen in Germany told the publication that due to Lexus' low sales, it makes more sense for Toyota to position the brand as an "innovation leader" in Europe and to "go in the direction of plug-in hybrids and full hybrids".
Lexus' European sales in the first 11 months of the year were 24,623 while the BMW brand delivered 590,453 cars in the same period.

PHOTO GALLERY

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This is What the Fastest Christmas Card in the World Looks Like [Video]

What defines the fastest Christmas car in the world? Well, the answer depends on whom you ask. For BMW's M division, it's a card that was designed in a speeding 2012 M5 sports sedan. The Bavarian firm's performance arm asked Swiss illustrator Gavin Patterson to draw a cliché Christmas motif but with a twist (and a few turns, for that matter…); he had to do it in the passenger seat of an M5 while precision driver Urs Inauen flogged the car around the Circuit de l'Anneau Du Rhin.
To find the outcome, follow the jump and watch the video. 

VIDEO

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Court Rejects Saab’s Administrator Resignation, GM Rejects Any Chinese-Related Plan…

There are so many turns and twists in Saab's road to salvation or closure on an everyday basis, that it’s very easy to lose track of what's actually going on with the Swedish automaker. On Monday Guy Lofalk, the court-appointed administrator who proposed the termination of the carmaker’s restructuring process, quit. Two days later Saab announced the appointment of another administrator, Lars-Henrik Andersson.
On Thursday, after Andersson turned down the job, Saab said that Lofalk would eventually be replaced by Lars Soderqvist.
Now we learn via Autonews that on Friday, the Vanersborg court, which will decide on Monday if the process will continue or be terminated, effectively closing down Saab, announced that Lofalk couldn’t quit his post just days before the hearing, despite his and Saab’s requests.
"With regard also to the short time remaining until the matter will be tested ... the district court assesses that there are insufficient grounds to immediately dismiss Lofalk", read the court’s statement.
Meanwhile, General Motors said that it could not support the latest investment and loan proposals to save Saab.
"Saab's various new alternative proposals are not meaningfully different from what was originally proposed to General Motors and rejected", said GM spokesman Jim Cain.
"Each proposal results either directly or indirectly in the transfer of control and/or ownership of the company in a manner that would be detrimental to GM and its shareholders. As such, GM cannot support any of these proposed alternatives”, he added.
Either way, Monday’s court hearing may put an end to the whole saga for better or for worse. But we wouldn't hold our breath - just yet…

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Ron Paul Weighs in on NTSB's Proposed Ban of Cell Phones in Cars

We're not the only ones surprised by the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board's [NTSB] call for a ban on all cellphone use - yes, that includes both talking and text messaging- by drivers. The controversial federal proposal also caught the attention of Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul, who on Wednesday, called the NTSB's (doesn't the acronym sound like something Comedy Central would come up with?) recommendation "ridiculous."
According to a report from CNN, Paul talked about the matter at a campaign stop at Joey's Diner in Amherst, New Hampshire, after being asked about it by a voter.
 
"I was thinking about that because it was in the news today," said Paul. "So I went to the Constitution and I looked at Article 1, Section 8. There is nothing in there about telephones. Then I thought, 'Well there is nothing in there about what you can do and can't do when you are driving in a horse and buggy either."
Paul said that the federal government shouldn't be involved.
"It's taking away the responsibility from you as the individual, that if you mess up and you do something wrong in a car you should be held responsible," he said. "The basic principle of being responsible for all your actions would handle all these kinds of circumstances."

VIDEOS

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