By Rich Truesdell

Automotive Traveler

It’s official. Chrysler and Fiat have agreed to a world-wide alliance that will see Fiat taking a 35% stake in the Auburn Hills automaker in exchange for the technology and platforms to produce fuel efficient  B-, C-, and possibly D-segment cars that are currently absent from Chrysler’s domestic lineup. This product sharing alliance is two fold. According to a report in today’s Wall Street Journal, the agreement will provide for Chrysler-branded, Fiat-designed vehicles to be built in North American plants that Fiat will retool. But more importantly, and potentially exciting for CarDomain readers, it will allow Chrysler’s dealers to offer Fiat and Alfa Romeo vehicles as well.

Over at Automotive Traveler, we’ve been following the Chrysler saga for months. In fact, back on November 3, 2008, we speculated that instead of GM, a far better potential partner for Chrysler would be the Fiat Group citing Chrysler’s need for small cars and Fiat’s need for North American distribution for its products. We even went so far as predicting which Fiat and Alfa Romeo models were likely to be imported stateside.

Over the past two days, as this story was breaking, we revisited Fiat and Alfa Romeo’s UK websites. Building on our original predictions, and knowing that part of the agreement is that some Fiat models are likely to be built in North America, we have refined our analysis and have taken an even more educated guess as to which Fiat and Alfa Romeo models are likely to reach North America over the next 24 months. Our pick as likely the first? Alfa Romeo’s exciting, New Mini-sized Mito subcompact. You can read the rest of the story over at Automotive Traveler.

By Rob Einaudi

Editor-in-Chief

Via NASIOC. Thanks for the tip, Thomas!

Continue reading "Anyone Want To Go Sledding?" »

By David Freiburger

David Freiburger

One of my favorite rants is about Gassers. Like the fact that too many guys today want to put a straight-axle under the front of any car and call it a Gasser despite the fact that history shows us that not all Gassers had ‘axles and not all ‘axle cars were Gassers. Guys also ran solid front axles in cars that raced in Altered, Modified Production, Factory Experimental, Match Bash, and Modified Sports. The term Gasser refers to the cars that ran in the NHRA and AHRA Gas classes of the late ’50s through the mid ’70s, though the style that guys emulate today is pretty much from the ’64-’68 years.

I say all that as a caveat to viewers of our latest photo gallery, in which I use the term Gasser by today’s loose standards. Some of these cars, with altered wheelbases and such, would not have run in Gas back in the heyday. Nevertheless, they are cool cars to look at. Here are 25 of ‘em.

By Katherine Helmetag

Atomicalex

Everyone (I mean everyone) in my family has some hilarious story about blowing an EFG, and they range from my incredibly loud Rabbit, to flames shooting out of an AMC straight six, to one of my Dad’s trips to LeMans. This particular trip included a buddy’s TR-3 that made a fluttering sound on throttle. They stopped at six dealers along the way from Wiesbaden to the race, who were not only unable to fix it, but unable to identify the source of the sound! Back home on base in Wiesbaden, they resorted to the motorpool mechanic, who laughed and pointed out the failing gasket. Little did Dad know that he was starting a family tradition!

By Mike Musto

RideLust.com

Every once in awhile a car comes along that makes me a bit nervous. Not so much because of what it is, but more because of what it does. Take this 1965 427SC MKIII Cobra from Superformance owned by New York Motor Club founder Larry Kosilla.

I have been very fortunate to have driven some of the fastest, most powerful cars on the planet, and they’ve all been amazing experiences. But this particular car may take the proverbial cake. Weighing in at 2,300 pounds, this Cobra sports a Roush Racing 408 Windsor stroker that puts out 495rwhp. Those numbers make for one seriously fast machine. Continue reading…

Continue reading "The Infamous Copper Cobra" »

By Craig McAlpine

imotormag

The Renault 5 didn’t need much power to go fast, because when it was launched in 1985 there was no such thing as Euro NCAP. No airbags, no traction control, no ABS. As a result it only weighed 850kg (1,875 pounds). Safety was not a huge priority, it was built to showcase the turbo technology that Renault was using in its 1,000hp Formula 1 cars. The 5’s 1.4-litre turbo engine initially produced 115hp (later versions had 120hp), but it was not just a turbo that made the 5 special. Renault tweaked the chassis to make the 5 GT seriously good fun.

Since the hot hatch heydays of the mid 80s and early 90s cars have got heavier. With better safety, comfort and more gadgets, instead of worrying about power they could really do with going on a diet, and that’s exactly what Renault has done with the Mégane R26.R.

Check out the iMOTOR video test drive!

By Jim Brennan

UDMan

If this transpires, it will be just another turning point for Chrysler, which seems to have one crisis after another every decade or so, and yet survives. Continue reading after the jump.

Continue reading "Fiat Ready to Buy 35% of Chrysler" »

By Rob Einaudi

Editor-in-Chief

And between Ron Pratt, Rick Hendrix, and an unknown donor the Darrell Gwynn Foundation was able to collect an additional $175,000. Pretty cool, huh? Part II of the video after the jump!

Continue reading "Goldberg Superbird Sells For $501,000 at Barrett-Jackson" »

By Speedhunters

Car Culture At Large

I suppose the fact that I still have fresh material to post from Tokyo Auto Salon shows just how big of an event it really is. I have just one or two TAS posts left, and in this one I’ll go over some of the compact and kei cars from this year’s show. Just like the vans, to pass up these cars would mean overlooking a big part of the show. Whether it’s strange conversions or VIP style keis, there was something to suit just about anyone’s taste. This year also saw the debut of the Toyota iQ, which is likely to become a popular choice for budget-minded enthusiasts around the world. Continue reading at Speedhunters

By Mike Garrett

By Rob Einaudi

Editor-in-Chief

Ok, we admit it, we got a little off track with our DUB contest. But we are looking to wrap it up by the end of the month. So here’s our eighth finalist: Raider’s Dodge Magnum. We’ll announce finalist number nine and ten in the next two days, and then let you guys vote on the winner. So stay tuned!