Archive for the ‘2009’ Category

Many investors and auto hobbyists alike are understandably still pretty shaky about putting money down on the stock market. But that hesitation hasn't shown any lasting sign of translating to the top of the market for collector cars.

That's the verdict after last weekend's big Monterey auctions, long considered some of the top sales of the year, and strong indicators of what's moving and shaking.

According to the LA Times, this year's Monterey auctions together made more than $116 million; that's down from last year's pre-stock-market-plunge $130 million total, but very respectable all considering.

While those without a personal fleet...

Earlier this year we got the chance to drive the production 2009 Honda FCX Clarity, which is the first publicly available hydrogen sedan.

The FCX can't yet be considered a mass-produced vehicle. Looking at our test vehicle and its rough edges underneath, it was clear that the FCX is hand-fettled, even if it now drives without a hitch.

Despite recent blows to hydrogen infrastructure development, Honda this week reaffirmed that it will be mass-produced. The automaker still has plans to make a future version of the FCX on a mass-production scale within ten years.

California has kept with that long-term vision, along with a short-term one to...

On quiet residential streets, the 2009 Dodge Ram Heavy Duty is about as far from subtle as you can get. From the front it looks like a (slightly) scaled-down semi, its hoodline almost at average eye level; and in the week we had the Ram, we actually looked down on a Suburban that was just ahead of us at the traffic light, and feared all week of sideswiping another vehicle with the huge, protruding towing mirrors.

I'm a lanky six-foot-six and had to heft myself -upward- to get into the truck. That's a rarity. Anyone normal sized will want to get running boards, or at least a step, installed.

And on a trip to the park, a worried-looking...