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Burt Reynolds' movie re-creations fetch $379,500 in Vegas

The recent death of Hollywood legend and automotive enthusiast Burt Reynolds helped drive up the value of four of his former cars from the 1970s and '80s, which sold last weekend at Barrett-Jackson's Las Vegas auction for a combined $379,500. Reynolds, who died Sept. 6 at age 82, had offered three Pontiac Trans Ams — two of them re-creations of the cars he drove in "Smokey and the Bandit" and "Hooper" and the third from 1984 used to promote his United States Football League team, the Tampa Bay Bandits. The fourth was a 1978 Chevrolet R30 pickup truck, styled like the one featured in "Cannonball Run." The "Bandit" re-creation, a 1978 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am that Reynolds ordered to be as "movie-correct" as possible but featuring a custom-built 200-4R automatic transmission, sold for $192,500. The car features a freshly built Pontiac 400 cubic-inch V8 mated to a four-speed automatic and featuring all-new Butler Performance parts and air-conditioning components. Reynolds reportedly said this was his favorite car from his films, and it even came with an authentic movie-correct CB radio and CB antenna. The red retro-rocket "Hooper" '78 Firebird, with a 403 cubic-inch V8 and a three-speed automatic, hammered for $88,000. By comparison, a gold 1978 Trans Am also offered at the Las Vegas auction but not connected to Reynolds fetched $27,500. The 1987 Chevy R30 pickup was a re-creation of the Indy Hauler pace truck seen jumping over a moving freight train in "Cannonball Run." It hammered for $49,500. The fourth car never appeared in any of Reynolds' films but is instead the only surviving example of two Trans Ams used to promote the Tampa Bay Bandits of the now-defunct USFL, having been driven out onto the field by Reynolds and his late friend and co-star, Jerry Reed, during opening day one season. It also sold for $49,500. At the Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale Auction in 2016, Reynolds accompanied a 1977 Trans Am used to promote "Bandit" onto the auction block. That car sold for $550,000. Related Video: Featured Gallery Burt Reynolds 2018 Barrett-Jackson Las Vegas Auction Image Credit: Barrett-Jackson Celebrities Chevrolet Pontiac Truck Coupe Performance celebrity pontiac trans am pontiac firebird burt reynolds

GM follows up Lambda CUV stop-sale with tire recall

In late January, General Motors announced a stop-sale for about 6,281 examples of the 2015 Chevrolet Traverse, GMC Acadia and Buick Enclave because of the possibility for the treads cracking on their 18-inch Goodyear Fortera HL tires. At the time, GM said that this would also eventually lead to a safety campaign to repair the problem, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has just published those details. GM's recall covers 5,876 of the three Lambda platform crossovers to replace their tires. According to NHTSA, if the treads crack, there could be a loss of pressure and possible failure. Goodyear already announced its own recall of the tires after internal testing found small tread cracks. The company did not believe this was safety issue, but the problem did put the rubber out of compliance with federal laws. The business's safety campaign covered an estimated 48,512 tires. Of those, around 32,000 were reportedly made for GM to either be fitted to vehicles or sold as replacements. The remainder went to the aftermarket. Goodyear's portion of the recall is expected to begin around February 20. RECALL Subject : Tire Tread Cracking/FMVSS 110 Report Receipt Date: JAN 28, 2015 NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V044000 Component(s): TIRES Potential Number of Units Affected: 5,876 All Products Associated with this Recall Vehicle Make Model Model Year(s) BUICK ENCLAVE 2015 CHEVROLET TRAVERSE 2015 GMC ACADIA 2015 Details Manufacturer: General Motors LLC SUMMARY: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2015 Buick Enclave vehicles manufactured December 9, 2014, to January 14, 2015, 2015 Chevrolet Traverse vehicles manufactured December 9, 2014, to January 20, 2015, and 2015 GMC Acadia vehicles manufactured December 9, 2014, to January 16, 2015, and all equipped with Goodyear P255/65R18 Fortera HL tires. These vehicles are equipped with tires that may experience tread cracking. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 110, "Tire Selection and Rims and Motor Home/Recreation Vehicle Trailer Load Carrying Capacity Information for Motor Vehicles with a GVWR of 4,536 kilograms (10,000 pounds) or Less." CONSEQUENCE: If the tire treads crack, a loss of tire pressure and possible tire failure may result, increasing the risk of a crash. REMEDY: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the tires that were manufactured within a specific date range, free of charge.

GM already raising prices on 2014 Silverado and Sierra pickups

General Motors must be pretty pleased with sales of its two newest pickups, the GMC Sierra and Chevrolet Silverado, as it's announced price hikes for both models, as part of a planned price tweak.
Prices will be bumped by as much as $1,500, although weirdly, they'll be offset by as much as $1,500 in cash-back offers through the end of October. Fox Business reports that GM spokesman Jim Cain said of the price hike, "With the sell down of the '13 models nearly complete, this price adjustment was planned and is a normal part of business."
The move, as Fox is quick to point out, is an interesting one, as sales of the twin pickups struggled last month relative to the Ford F-Series, while both of GM's crosstown competitors have been aggressively undercutting Silverado and Sierra prices. The F-150 starts at $24,070 and the Ram 1500 comes in at $23,600, not counting any cash on the hood. A base Silverado, meanwhile, retails at $25,575.