By Rob Einaudi

Editor-in-Chief

Thomas Friedman, a columnist in the New York Times, is delighted by the current high gas prices--so delighted that he is proposing that the US government establish a "price floor" to make sure gas prices stay above $4 per gallon. He also makes some pretty absurd statements about Chrysler's "Let's Refuel America" program, which Rich Truesdell skillfully deflates over at Automotive Traveler.

I found it interesting that Friedman mentions how he recently went to his local Toyota dealer in tony Bethesda, Maryland "to trade in one hybrid car for another." I guess he would never consider actually maintaining a vehicle and/or driving something that isn't brand new. And since he carefully avoids mentioning the Prius when discussing his trade, I'm gonna guess he's talking about Camry hybrid (33mpg city/34mpg highway) or the Highlander hybrid (27mpg city/25mpg highway). Neither of these vehicles do as well as a plain jane Civic, for example. Or an old Geo Metro. But that isn't the point, is it? The nice thing about driving a hybrid is that you get to keep your giant house and huge heating bill. You can fly all over the globe on business trips and exotic vacations. You can buy and eat as much crap as you want. In other words, you can have a massive carbon footprint but still communicate to the world that you "care" about environment. And when gas prices go up and put the squeeze on people with less money and less efficient vehicles, you can feel smug as hell.

Edit--the mention of Bethesda, Maryland set off some alarm bells for me, but it's worse than I thought--I just found this on Wikipedia: "Ann and Thomas Friedman live in Bethesda, Maryland, a suburb of Washington, D.C. The July 2006 issue of Washingtonian reported that they own "a palatial 11,400-square-foot house, currently valued at $9.3 million, on a 7 ½-acre parcel just blocks from I-495 and Bethesda Country Club." Oh, and wifey's $4.1 billion family fortune comes from developing shopping centers. Think of all the wetlands they paved over. 

By Jen Dunnaway

Editor

Over the weekend, the New York Times ran this human-interest piece on DeLorean owner Lauren Reilly (her vanity plate: "DELAUREN"). It documents the daily realities of running a DMC in NYC, fielding a lot of flux-capacitor jokes and getting pulled over by cops out of simple curiosity—but much of it should ring true for just about anyone who drives a weird old unconventional love-'em-or-hate-'em ride in an area where everyone else has a shiny, generic new commuter-pod. Check out the article and the cool slide-show, which features a voice-over by Lauren talking about her ride.

By Rob Einaudi

Editor-in-Chief

As John mentioned Tuesday on New on the Net, the New York Times is already talking about "the car of the decade." Yeah, it's a bit premature. But their pick? The Porsche Cayenne. Now, I can understand that the Cayenne was a great financial move for  Porsche, but  I think it did some major damage to the brand. And seriously, it's just a Touareg with a Porsche emblem. Big freakin' deal.

So I started to think, what would I pick as the car of the decade? Sure, we almost have two years to go, but there are already some strong contenders. The New York Times also floated the new GTR as a possibility. There has been a lot of buzz about this car, and it's cool and all, but I don't think you can swoop in at the last minute and claim car of the decade. You need a car that has shown itself to have real influence throughout the decade, a car with some staying power.

When it comes down to it, I'm torn between two cars. So I'm gonna cheat. I'm gonna pick the domestic car of the decade, and import car of the decade. For domestic car, I'm gonna go with the S197 Mustang (I'd put the 300C a close second). But the Mustang redesign for 2005 was huge. It was huge for Mustang fans, it was huge for Ford, and it was huge for Detroit. Heck, its success made GM and Chrysler bring back their pony cars. How cool is that? And at the end of the day, you just can't argue with 300hp for $25k. Power to the people.

For import car of the decade I'm gonna say second generation Prius (and if you put a gun to my head and made me pick just one car for the decade, I'd probably say Prius, even if it made me feel a bit ill). I don't think anyone thinks that hybrids are the ultimate answer to our transportation problems, and frankly, the fuel efficiency of the Prius isn't even as good as a 80s CRX. But this car was hugely important in terms of getting people to accept new technology, and was clearly a step in the right direction. Toyota was so successful with it that all the other manufacturers have practically let them own the entire category. I just wish it didn't look like the automotive equivalent of a Birkenstock.

Finally, because this is CarDomain, I have to mention the cars of the decade when it comes to modding. For domestics it would undoubtedly by the Chevy Caprice. The Donk. Hate 'em or love 'em, they helped to define the 00s. And for imports I gotta go with the Nissan 240 (mostly cause they are more plentiful and popular than the AE86 Corolla). Drifting has been a big part of this decade.

So what would you pick as the car (or cars) of the decade?

By John Coyle

Editor

So I'm back home after a great few days the Big Apple, and I have to say that city makes Seattle feel like a strip mall. But that said, it's my strip mall, and I love it. Big time thanks to the General for treating me far better than I deserve while I was there. Here's the news:

• This year will mark the 60th anniversary of Lotus, one of my favorite manufacturers. Is there any point in the company's history where the brand has been in a better position?  World Car Fans
• Bob Lutz has said that initially, the General "won't make a dime" on the Volt. Given how much it's costing to develop this car, that makes perfect sense. Is anyone really surprised? Wired
• Ever wonder which states have the highest car ownership cost? Well, here's the breakdown. New York Times
• Ok, now this is really getting ugly. The strike at the American Axle has lead to a 6% rise in unemployment benefits across the nation. Now, I hate math, but I know that when you're talking about the United States, 6% of anything is a big number. Freep

By John

Editor

It's not always easy to tell whether someone is right for you. But if you're attempting to flee a dispute, and your partner clings to the roof of your vehicle and punches you through the window, it's best to assume you aren't going to make beautiful music together. Over the weekend, this awful situation actually played out between William Kremer and Stacey Sperrazza, and culminated when Sperrazza hit Kremer with the car. Unfortunately, Kremer received only minor injuries. Stacey, please DTMFA. Here's the news:

• Ford has been mum about the whole thing, but it looks like it's official: Tata is going to buy Jaguar and Land Rover. Expect an announcement in early March—but don't expect the new XF to sell for 2000 bucks. Automotive News
• Early this morning, there was an explosion at the Porsche factory in Stuttgard. Two workers we injured, but both have been treated and released. Production of the 911 is expected to be suspended for two to three days. Detroit News
• Ma Mopar had a real hit on their hands with the 300C, and now it looks like they're aiming for the same success on across the pond. A diesel version has just been announced for customers in the UK. CarScoop
  
• Fewer kids are getting their drivers license at 16. It's official: there's just something really wrong with kids today. New York Times

By Rob

Editor-in-Chief

I mentioned last March that the New York Times had started their own automtive community (for the tweed cap set, as Jen would put it). They recently got over 1,000 rides signed up, and I must admit there are some pretty cool cars over there. They also just held a Collector Car of the Year contest, and after the votes were counted, a Triumph TR3A won (beating Ferraris and a bunch of other high dollar cars). Gavin Rodes, who won, seemed pretty surprised. He restored the car fifteen years ago when he was in high school, and it's still stored at his dad's house in New Mexico (he lives in New York City, where garages rent for $300 per month).

We have over 2,600 cars in our Restoration rating category alone. What are some of your favorite collector cars on CarDomain? Oh, and if you like TR3s, be sure to check out Al's TR3 restoration.

By John

Editor

At the beginning of the year, I pledged I wouldn't drink on school nights. It was a great plan, and I wish I'd stuck to it. Then I wouldn't have this massive hangover. Here's the news:   

• Ford is bringing back the Taurus. But will it ever be number one again? The New York Times
  
• Aston Martin is changing its colors. Look, the Shell scheme is cool and everything, but no racing green? Smells like heresy. Auto Express
• After 76 years, it looks like the General might lose the title of the world's largest automaker. Freep
• I though that Jag's venerable XJ was going to be replaced by the XF, but they aren't ready to give up on it yet. Winding Road

By Rob

Editor-in-Chief

In October BMW opened its new delivery center, the "BMW Welt" (BMW World) in Munich. It was designed by some hot shot Vienna-based architectural firm, and The New York Times sent one of their architecture writers out there to check it out:

Set against a backdrop of hulking factory sheds and 1970s office towers, the building weaves together the detritus of a postwar industrial landscape, imbuing it with a more inclusive spirit. Its undulating steel forms, suggesting the magical qualities of liquid mercury, may be the closest yet that architecture has come to alchemy.

Its cavernous main hall is packed with restaurants, a cafe and a shop hawking BMW merchandise. Clients arriving at the main showroom to pick up their new cars are handed frothy cappuccinos and led into a small booth where they can try out the car’s special driving features by computer simulation. They then proceed down a grand staircase to a platform lined with BMW cars. As they approach the bottom of the staircase, spotlights light up underneath their car, which begins to rotate on a platform.

Honestly, it all seems pretty damn silly and ostentatious to me. I'd much rather see BMW offer a more affordable 1-series than build some big fancy building designed to make yuppies wet themselves. But I guess it made the BMW execs happy. Anyway, you can read the rest of the article in The New York Times. You can also learn more about it at BMW's Welt website.

By John

Editor

Jason used to write this post. But honestly? I've had it with his lazy ass. Because when I went to bug him about it today, like always, he was curled up under his desk sleeping. Which is the first place everyone looks for him. It's like he doesn't even care anymore. Here's the news:

• Chinese Engrish faux pas are legendary, but Guangming Li's is so out there, we were all left speechless. You can practically hear the VW execs screaming. New York Times
• Aston Martin's gorgeous DB9 won the GT1 class at LeMans last year, now some Brits are predicting an outright win in 2009. Top Gear
• Hyundai may not advertise during the Super Bowl after all. Do you think they'll still have to pay Kevin Federline? Automotive News

By Jason

Marketing Lackey

Getting your driver's license yanked for a month seems like it would hurt off-season preparation work if you're an F1 driver. Does anyone else think that some enterprising cop will camp out at McLaren's test track?

• Some of the folks here bike to work. I don't get it, but I'd miss them if they weren't here. That's why the Danish solution to bikes and cars not playing well together sounds like a good idea: Jalopnik
• As more jobs are created or moved to non-union companies and industries, the UAW is giving its image a facelift to show its relevance in the 21st century—and they're doing it on the internet! DetNews
• It looks like BMW is going to get a "C" on it's report card for "Plays Well with Others." Leftlane News
• In defense of wussy scooter [Full disclosure: My other "car" is a scooter]: NY Times 

By Jason

Marketing Lackey

Sorry this is a little late. Today I've been alternating between hanging out in the break room and sleeping in my car. Hopefully, this is the only work I'll do today. Here's the news:

• The New York Times car blog is great. There aren't many places that would spend 600 words on explaining the appeal of a car that goes 0-60 in 13 seconds: NYT Wheels
• Al Gore must have gotten to me, I'm all over the EV scene this week. This just in: The Volt is just the beginning, GM is going to have a whole design studio for electrics: Wired
• The Cadillac CTS may have tv commercials that I hate, but the LA Times is calling it a triumph of American engineering: LA Times 
• The sale of Jaguar and Land Rover is nearly done, but with little time left before execs jet off to Aspen, or wherever, for Christmas, the sale probably won't go final until 2008: