Ltz, 6.6 Duramax Trbo Diesel, Tow Kit, Leather, Navi, Btooth on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Veyron and C7 Corvette join cast of Transformers 4

Like the Fast & Furious franchise, the Michael Bay-directed series of Transformers movies has become known as much for its bad acting as its impressive lineup of cars. As filming just started for Transformers 4, Bay's website has confirmed two new cars for the next installment as well as a makeover for everyone's favorite tractor trailer hero, Optimus Prime.
Joining the cast of T4 are a "race-inspired" Chevrolet Corvette Stingray and a Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse. While Bay's website did not supply names for either car, Bugatti is reporting on its Facebook page that the Veyron will join the Autobots. Speaking of the good guys, top Autobot Optimus Prime is getting an all-new body based on a Western Star with a gaudy appearance that was seemingly inspired by Trick My Truck - right down to the six smoke stacks and side pipes!

Subprime financing on the rise in new car sales, leasing too

We all remember the financial crisis that began several years back. At its core was a splurge of subprime lending for housing loans. The housing bubble burst, triggering a collapse of the mortgage-backed securities market. Apparently, those types of loans still exist in the automotive industry, and the market share for these types of "nonprime, subprime, and deep subprime," loans has grown 13.6 percent compared to the third quarter a year ago.
According to an Automotive News report, high-risk lending expanded to 24.8 percent of total loans in Q3, up from 21.9 percent for this time last year. As this level increased, average credit scores of borrowers dropped to 755, down from 763 a year ago. In that time, the average financing amount increased $90 per vehicle, to $25,963.
At 818, Volvo maintains the highest per-owner credit score, while Mitsubishi has the lowest, at 694. The highest rate of borrowers was at Toyota, with 14 percent of the market, followed by Ford with 13.1 percent and Chevrolet at 11.1.

GM says hybrid Corvette no laughing matter [w/poll]

When Mark Reuss was in LA recently, he sat down to have a few words with the scribes at the Los Angeles Times. When the issue of a hybrid Corvette came up, Reuss answered with "Don't laugh." The General Motors president is a complete fan of the possibility, calling it "attractive" and "really fun," believing it would improve GM expertise and that "people would love it."
Naturally, the president being supportive of an idea doesn't give indication that a hybrid Corvette is on the way. However, with supercars like the Porsche 918 Spyder and Ferrari LaFerrari giving hybrid tech a solid, if remote, place in the performance car world, the inexorable trickle-down of technology means we shouldn't be surprised if and when it does happen.
And now that we have that non-negative half-answer to a speculative question, it would be irresponsible for us not to commence rumormilling for the C8 Corvette. Taking Reuss at his word, the C8 will obviously be a hybrid with all-wheel-drive - the left side wheels driven with electric motors, the right side with the mid-mounted, four-cylinder diesel engine. With coefficient of drag of just .16, figure on a 0-to-60 mile-per-hour time of under 2 seconds and an all-electric range of something like 30 miles at top speed. Don't forget, folks, you read it here first.