Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - (Page 24) 24 • NOVEMBER 10, 2008 SEMA DINO DALLE CARBONARE Souped-up, tricked-out — and headed for the showroom Big boys grab some of the SEMA show spotlight The annual Specialty Equipment Market Association show in Las Vegas is a cornucopia of automotive delights. This year was no exception. While SEMA’s roots are in small, independent garages that customize cars, automakers have joined the party. Automakers increasingly use SEMA to push design and specialty concepts out of the nest to see which ones will fly. Here are a few of the most intriguing vehicles from automakers that will appear in showrooms. DINO DALLE CARBONARE Ford F-150 Raptor flies off-road Mark Vaughn mvaughn@crain.com LAS VEGAS — Ford Motor Co. hit the truck category hot buttons while unveiling the F-150 Raptor in the Nevada desert. “This is a high-speed, off-road performance truck,” Hermann Salenbach, director of Ford Motor Co.’s Special Vehicle Team, said. The Raptor, based on the F-150 pickup, will debut next summer with a 320-hp, 5.4-liter V-8 driving all four wheels. The next winter, a 400-hp, 6.2-liter engine will be available. The truck comes in SuperCab configuration only. Wider front and rear fenders accommodate the big Goodrich tires. Most impressive were the high-tech shocks engineered by Fox for better control over sustained off-highway driving. Ford engineers flung Raptors about the desert with members of the press strapped into the passenger seats, rattling off shock-calibration stories while the reporters held on for dear life. The trucks soaked up plenty of rut wallop with a surprisingly smooth ride inside the cab. Why go the off-road route instead of following the paved route of the last SVT Lightning? “Most of the major manufacturers have focused (on) on-road performance, so when we looked at what was available in off-road truck performance, it was somewhat limited,” said Mark Grueber, Ford product marketing manager for pickups and large SUVs. “This was the perfect opportunity for Ford to further differentiate the F-150 from other trucks.” Prices will be announced closer to the truck’s summer debut. c MARK VAUGHN Honda offers peek at future Fit LAS VEGAS — Three years after Honda was the featured marque at the show — with what seemed that year like wall-towall Civics in all the halls — Honda Motor Co. came to SEMA this year with a smaller passel of cool cars. This Mugen body kit for the Fit small car showed what will be coming for public consumption next spring. — Mark Vaughn All of the goodies that make the Chevrolet Camaro Black distinctive, from the black chrome wheels to the rocker panels, can be bought off the shelf at a Chevrolet dealership. Camaro Black: Eye-catching, affordable and available Greg Migliore gmigliore@crain.com LAS VEGAS — The most eyecatching Chevrolet Camaro at SEMA is the Black Concept. Says who? Well for starters, the man who designed four of the custom Camaros on the General Motors stand. “If I have to pick out of all these cars, it’s my favorite,” said Sangyup Lee, GM design manager for rear-wheel-drive and performance cars. His reasons: The Black Concept is sinister and — unlike most of the toys at SEMA — able to be reproduced for everyday driving by anyone. The 21-inch black chrome wheels, the splitter, the rocker panels — everything — can be bought off the shelf at a Chevrolet dealership for an estimated cost of less than $30,000, which includes the sticker of the V-6 Camaro RS. The Black Concept is a slight departure from the traditional redwhite-and-blue crowd that flocks to the Camaro. Lee expects a selection of tuners, iPhone fans, nightclubbers and, in a nutshell, Generation Y members to be attracted to the idea behind the car. Clad in a green shirt and jeans and with hair slightly mussed, the 38year-old Lee doesn’t look that far removed from his target market. His take on the car: “I really like the spooky feel to it.” And more than the genre-busting potential, this car shows what the base V-6 with 300 hp can look like with some relatively inexpensive upgrades. That’s key, Lee said, because that model is expected to make up the lion’s share of Camaro sales. c MARK VAUGHN Honda sees green in Civic HFP’s street performance LAS VEGAS — Honda Motor Co.’s street-performance side was highlighted here by the smooth, angular Civic HFP Concept sedan. It looked nice enough. But Honda presented the Civic HFP as a green car, suggesting that the HFP aerodynamic body kit, light alloy wheels and lightweight exhaust system would improve fuel economy. Honda gave no numbers to back up those claims. — Mark Vaughn
Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Automotive News - November 10, 2008 Life at 11 million: Slash, rethink The options: Bailout or disaster Can Toyota reheat the frozen Tundra? Chrysler dealers cheer halt to merger talk VW will unveil roadster at Detroit auto show BMW boosts dealers' year-end ad money Mercedes' $220 million flagship Mercedes hit hard in Northeast, once a sales stronghold Mercedes will kill CLK, add larger coupe, convertible Mitsubishi reclaims its finance business Toyota's Esmond to speak at congress Loss is more: Europe snatches bigger share of U.S. market Cash burn rates threaten GM, Ford GMAC: We're nobody's captive As losses mount, suppliers risk cash-flow crunch Tata: Yes to Jaguar XF derivative, no to SUV U.S. aid is needed now, but not to help Cerberus They are too big to fail Why should we help GM and Chrysler? First and foremost, you must be flexible U.S. trade policy gives it all away To the Editor: A rough ride is nothing new for autos Dealer's politics were pertinent Chrysler's 1st electric: Probably a cargo van Auto meltdown forces Mercedes to scrap prediction of sales record Boosting mpg will bump up stickers, too Adding up the tab for fuel economy Camaro Black: Eye-catching, affordable and available Honda sees green in Civic HFP's street performance Honda offers peek at future Fit Ford F-150 Raptor flies off-road Souped-up, tricked-out â and headed for the showroom Report: Toyota plans $5,000 car Amid gloom, Mazda chief sees revival in 2009-10 Report: Past-due subprime loans jump Toyota aims to win loyalty with credit card Study: Car buyers turn green for different reasons Thanks, buddy Hyundai helps Dealers Metaldyne offers pennies to bondholders Obituaries Personnel As expected, Oct. sales sank Another Chinese automaker plans Mexico factory Honda backs off U.S. clean diesels Industry pal, foe vie for key post in Congress Industry expects more activism from D.C. N.A. output falls 19.9% Toyota moves in striking distance of GM's U.S. sales crown Going, going . . . An ex-GM exec's view: It's going to get nasty Sex, Nazis, chicken and BMW: A scandal that puts fiction writers to shame Recession rips up roadster market Toyota takes heat for 'the herpes of the advertising world' Want to boost mpg? Turn up the heat on AC Cutting energy loss: A nibble here, a nibble there ... Carbon slashes weight, but it's still too pricey Carmakers shift to gears in search of mpg gains Natural gas draws interest as alternative fuel Friction? Ay, there's the rub Electric for a week Automotive News - November 10, 2008 Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - (Page Intro) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - (Page Bellyband1) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - (Page Bellyband2) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - The options: Bailout or disaster (Page 1) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - The options: Bailout or disaster (Page 2) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - VW will unveil roadster at Detroit auto show (Page 3) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Mercedes hit hard in Northeast, once a sales stronghold (Page 4) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Mercedes hit hard in Northeast, once a sales stronghold (Page 5) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Loss is more: Europe snatches bigger share of U.S. market (Page 6) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Loss is more: Europe snatches bigger share of U.S. market (Page 7) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - As losses mount, suppliers risk cash-flow crunch (Page 8) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - As losses mount, suppliers risk cash-flow crunch (Page 9) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Tata: Yes to Jaguar XF derivative, no to SUV (Page 10) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Tata: Yes to Jaguar XF derivative, no to SUV (Page 11) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - First and foremost, you must be flexible (Page 12) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - First and foremost, you must be flexible (Page 13) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Dealer's politics were pertinent (Page 14) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Dealer's politics were pertinent (Page 15) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Auto meltdown forces Mercedes to scrap prediction of sales record (Page 16) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Boosting mpg will bump up stickers, too (Page 17) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Boosting mpg will bump up stickers, too (Page 18) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Boosting mpg will bump up stickers, too (Page 19) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Adding up the tab for fuel economy (Page 20) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Adding up the tab for fuel economy (Page 21) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Adding up the tab for fuel economy (Page 22) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Adding up the tab for fuel economy (Page 22a) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Adding up the tab for fuel economy (Page 22b) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Adding up the tab for fuel economy (Page 22c) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Adding up the tab for fuel economy (Page 22d) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Adding up the tab for fuel economy (Page 22e) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Adding up the tab for fuel economy (Page 22f) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Adding up the tab for fuel economy (Page 22g) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Adding up the tab for fuel economy (Page 22h) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Adding up the tab for fuel economy (Page 22i) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Adding up the tab for fuel economy (Page 22j) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Adding up the tab for fuel economy (Page 22k) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Adding up the tab for fuel economy (Page 22l) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Adding up the tab for fuel economy (Page 23) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Souped-up, tricked-out â and headed for the showroom (Page 24) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Amid gloom, Mazda chief sees revival in 2009-10 (Page 25) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Toyota aims to win loyalty with credit card (Page 26) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Hyundai helps (Page 27) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Dealers (Page 28) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Personnel (Page 29) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Personnel (Page 30) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Personnel (Page 31) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Personnel (Page 32) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Personnel (Page 33) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Personnel (Page 34) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Personnel (Page 35) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Personnel (Page 36) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - As expected, Oct. sales sank (Page 37) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Honda backs off U.S. clean diesels (Page 38) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Industry expects more activism from D.C. (Page 39) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Industry expects more activism from D.C. (Page 40) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - N.A. output falls 19.9% (Page 41) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Toyota takes heat for 'the herpes of the advertising world' (Page 42) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Toyota takes heat for 'the herpes of the advertising world' (Page 43) Automotive News - November 10, 2008 - Toyota takes heat for 'the herpes of the advertising world' (Page 44)
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