Bet you didn't see this coming! It turns out that many old gas pumps, those usually found in remote and rural areas, can't register over $3.99 per gallon. It is estimated that there may be as many as 17,000 of these mechanical dial-based pumps still in use. The cost to replace these old units with modern ones run anywhere from $10,000 to $15,000 each. Another option is an upgrade to the existing pumps, but that can be as much as $650 each.

Now before all you penny-pinchers out there in cyberland scream YES!, there is a solution: That being "half pricing," which is, as you might expect, cutting the price in half and then doubling it when you go to pay the service station attendant.

Full story here.

As might have been expected, the tiny Smart car does quite well in the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's crash testing.

"The big question from consumers is, 'How safe is it?' " said Adrian Lund, the institute's president. "Among the smallest cars, the engineers of the Smart did their homework and designed a high level of safety into a very small package."

Full story here.



On the flip side, those huge 15-passenger vans fared quite a bit worse in safety studies, as the fatality rating is pretty bad when these behemoths flip in accidents when fully loaded. True, many passengers in these things don't buckle up, which is certainly a big factor here, but even so the results aren't good.

Full story here.

In the latest incentive to move vehicles off dealer lots, Chrysler has introduced their "Let's Refuel America" plan, in which Chrysler will pay for part of your fuels for the next three years.

They will lock in a price of $2.99 for that time span. That's what you the customer will pay. Anything over that Chrysler picks up the tab. For owners of diesel-powered Dodge Rams, it could mean a savings of $3000 or so over that time span.

Full story here.

Here's AutoObserver's take: Chrysler Unveils New Gas-Price Guarantee Incentive: “Let’s Refuel America”

Suzuki too
It looks like Suzuki is jumping on the free fuel bandwagon too, at least for three months. No word yet from the other automakers.

Seems like there's a serial sign prankster down under, as humorous road signs keep cropping up in and around Frankson Australia. While many in the community think it's funny, others don't.

"On April 12 while driving I couldn't help but notice a blasphemous and absolutely obscene sign on the side of Cranbourne-Frankston Rd," said Minnie Turner, of nearby Langwarrin. Mrs Turner said she had never encountered such distasteful signs in her 63 years of living in the area.

Needless to say the local constables are none too happy either, as they have yet to locate the person responsible.

Full story here and here.

Ford is the first automaker to join Climate Registry, which is an organization that keeps tabs on greenhouse gas emissions.

Ford’s willingness to join the registry will allow it to allow it to focus on reducing greenhouse gases as opposed to be concerning itself with reporting standards that vary around the globe.

The hope here is that Ford will voluntarily measure, verify and report greenhouse gas emissions annually and members of the public will be able to see these figures, meaning Ford will have to make a concentrated effort to reduce greenhouse gases in order to keep public opinion in its favor.

Full story here.

Presidential candidates McCain and Clinton have proposed a gas tax holiday for the summer; while Obama has not, stating that it's nothing more than a political gimmick that will not yield any meaningful gain for consumers.

Among the many automotive-related sites I check daily, Edmunds Carspace blog Alternate Route is one that oftens gives me a giggle or two, as the logic often expressed there is just soooooo obvious it's hard to ignore. Today's installment is just such a case, as ModBob, a.k.a. Dub Schwartz, a.k.a. Bob McDonald takes on this topic—and once again tells it like it is.

Escape From Reality

...And YES! DUB SCHWARTZ FOR PRESIDENT!

And you think our elections are nutty!

UK Conservative Party politician Boris Johnson (pictured) ousted Labour Party Ken Livingstone in Friday's mayoral elections in London.

Ken Livingstone, if you recall, raised a real ruckus in the UK recently by wanting to heavily increase the already existing London congestion tax, as well as reduce speed limits in London residential areas. It turns out that the new mayor, Boris Johnson, is just as wacky, if not more so. Here are a few choice quotes from the mayor-elect:

He called members of the Commonwealth "piccaninnies" — a derogatory term for people of color. He referred to Africans as having "watermelon smiles," and compared his party's internal squabbles "to Papua New Guinea-style orgies of cannibalism and chief-killing." On the topic of gay marriage, and in his book "Friends, Voters, Countrymen," he said that if homosexuals could marry then why not "three men, as well as two men; or indeed three men and a dog."

And finally, a Johnson quote some gearheads might appreciate:

“Voting Tory will cause your wife to have bigger breasts and increase your chances of owning a BMW M3.”

Full story here and here.

As they say, "Only in England"...

Image: Ian Jones

We all knew that Chevy had a hit on their hand with the new Malibu. What we didn't know was how would the public react? Would it be just another failed attempt from a domestic automaker at winning back foreign car buyers? Or, is this baby the real deal?

Well, early results seem to indicate the latter, J.D. Powers and Associates (via Winding Road) is reporting a fair number of import buyers are trading in their old cars on the new Malibu. In fact nearly one-fifth (19.8 percent) of all trade-ins for the new car were imports. That compares to 12.5 percent for the last model.

Full story here.

While Honda and others are reaping the benefits from selling loads of smaller cars, the makers of big trucks an SUVs are taking it it on the chin. In it's latest move GM will cutting one shift in all four of their factories that make full-size pickups and SUVs. The cuts will occur at Pontiac, Flint, MI;  Janesville, Wis; and Oshawa, Ontario.

States GM North America President Troy Clarke: “With rising fuel prices, a softening economy and a downward trend on current and future market demand for full-sized trucks, a significant adjustment was needed to align our production with market realities.”

Full story here and here.

Dodge Ram hurting too
AutoObserver points out that Chrysler LLC is spending more than anyone on truck incentives in order to move Ram trucks off dealer lots.

Dodge Ram: Spending Most for Incentives

Same with Toyota
High inventories of Tundras and Sequoias are hurting the "Big T."

Image: Patricia Beck / Detroit Free Press

Feeling the increasing pressure of social responsibility, AMG, Mercedes-Benz's in-house performance arm, will no longer be chasing just ultra high horsepower numbers. Instead they will be balancing high performance with a degree environmental restraint with their future powerplants.

Their current top engines, the 6.2L V8 and the 6.0 V12 twin-turbo engines will eventually be replaced with a smaller 5.0 V8 twin-turbo. The 6.2 engine reportedly get miserable mileage under full throttle, and has less low-end power than the previous supercharged 5.5L unit.

Full story here.