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AMC Trans Am Javelin SST, an ultra-rare underdog, is up for auction

Among the rarest of the American muscle cars that went racing in the early Seventies — cars including the Camaro Z/28 and the Boss 302 Mustang — the 1970 AMC Trans Am Javelin SST may be the most hard to find, and among the most valuable. Only 100 units of this unique Javelin were produced, and one of them is up for auction at the Mecum event in Dallas on September 20. The Trans Am Javelin was fashioned in a patriotic livery of tricolor paint — red, white and blue — and arrived after the American Motors Corporation had decided in 1968 to compete in the Trans Am racing series against Ford and General Motors. The company's chief driver, Mark Donohue, would dominate the 1971 season, taking seven wins in his Javelin AMX and that yearÂ’s SCCA Trans-Am Championship. AMC took the trophy with 82 points, well ahead of Ford's 61, Chevrolet's 17 and Pontiac's paltry 7. The example listed for auction came equipped with a 390-cubic-inch V-8 engine with 325 horsepower at 5,000 rpm and 420 pound-feet of torque, power steering and brakes, dual exhaust, BorgWarner four-speed manual transmission and Hurst competition shifter. Its “ram induction system” sealed a chamber around the air filter so that cool air from the functional hood scoop would be funneled into the intake. This JavÂ’s factory price was $3,995 — a mere $32,000 or so in today's money, though it was expensive by the standards of the time. The 100 Trans Ams were among 19,714 Javelin units built in 1970, so they started out rare, and today the surviving examples are highly collectible, if and when they come up for sale. No bid estimate is available yet. Related Video: Motorsports Chevrolet Ford Pontiac Auctions Automotive History Racing Vehicles Classics

Chevy teases next-gen Volt at fan event in LA

Barely two months before its planned debut at the 2015 North American International Auto Show, Chevrolet has released yet another batch of teaser images of its second-generation Volt. Unlike the first image, though, which just showed the car's rear badge, there's a lot more to this quartet of shots. The first three images show off the nose of the next-gen model and come from a fan event in Los Angeles. What we can see is a sleeker front end, with an evolution of the silver grille inserts previously seen on the original Volt and Spark EV. Gone is the current car's split upper grille, in favor of a more conventional arrangement. The sharper, more angular headlights are also an evolution of the lamps seen on the current Volt. Chevrolet also took the opportunity to announce a new location-based charging system that uses GPS to adjust the vehicle's charge settings, including the charge level, while also announcing that the next-gen car will feature more intuitive charge indicators that will be better able to inform owners of their car's charging level. The tech will mean that the Volt 'knows' when it is parked at home, and can thus automatically optimize charging for off-peak times, and so on. Take a look at the teaser images at the top of the page, and then head below for Chevy's press release announcing the new features. Next-Gen Chevy Volt Offers More User-Friendly Charging 2014-11-20 GPS makes charging more convenient Portable charger is easier to access Intuitive visual cues show charge status DETROIT – If there's one thing Chevrolet Volt owners love about their cars, it's being able to recharge the battery easily. Evidence of that is a U.S. Department of Energy study that shows more than 80 percent of all trips by Volt owners did not use the range extender. Chevrolet has made the charging system in the next-generation Volt even easier for customers to recharge the battery – and to check the charge status. The next-generation Volt debuts in January at the North American International Auto Show. "Chevrolet used the real-world experiences of today's Volt owners to make the charging process simpler and more convenient in the next-generation Volt," said Andrew Farah, chief engineer for the Volt.

Nissan Leaf ends 2013 with best sales month ever, but can't catch Chevy Volt

Nissan and Chevrolet both ended 2013 with solid sales figures for their plug-in vehicles, the first two that were released (all the way back at the end of 2010) from major automakers. As has been the story for most of 2013, December sales for the Nissan Leaf and the Chevy Volt were roughly the same. When we left the year-to-date running tally at the end of November, the Volt was at 20,702, while the Leaf was at 20,080. As you can tell from the image above (if you've been noticing the trend in these EV sales monthly flash-reports), the Leaf outsold the Volt, but was it enough to put the Nissan on top for the year? In 2013, Nissan sold 22,610 Leafs, more than twice as many as in 2012. Almost. The Leaf made a valiant attempt, and did have its best month ever with 2,529 units sold. That means that for 2013, Nissan moved a total of 22,610 Leafs, more than twice as many as in 2012 (that year, Nissan sold only 9,819 Leafs in the US) and actually more than 2012 and 2011 Leaf sales combined (which was 19,493). Nissan continues to see the effects of its price drop and expanded sales areas, with Georgia rapidly becoming a Leaf hotbed. Nissan's Paige Presley said that Atlanta was once again the Leaf's number one market and that, "sales are expanding deeper into Georgia markets such as Macon and Columbus." The Volt saw a boost upwards from a November slump and sold 2,392 units in December. That puts the plug-in hybrid's annual total at 23,094, just down from the 23,461 sold in 2012. For all of 2013, though, the Volt outsold the Leaf by 484 vehicles. In a competition like this, we'll count that as a win for both sides. We will our more detailed monthly green car sales report, which covers more of the fuel efficient vehicles on the market, up soon. News Source: GM, Nissan Green Chevrolet Nissan Electric Hybrid PHEV ev sales hybrid sales