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Bring back the Bronco! Trademarks we hope are actually (someday) future car names

Trademark filings are the tea leaves of the auto industry. Read them carefully – and interpret them correctly – and you might be previewing an automaker's future product plans. Yes, they're routinely filed to maintain the rights to an iconic name. And sometimes they're only for toys and clothing. But not always. Sometimes, the truth is right in front of us. The trademark is required because a company actually wants to use the name on a new car. With that in mind, here's a list of intriguing trademark filings we want to see go from paperwork to production reality. Trademark: Bronco Company: Ford Previous Use: The Bronco was a long-running SUV that lived from 1966-1996. It's one of America's original SUVs and was responsible for the increased popularity of the segment. Still, it's best known as O.J. Simpson's would-be getaway car. We think: The Bronco was an icon. Everyone seems to want a Wrangler-fighter – Ford used to have a good one. Enough time has passed that the O.J. police chase isn't the immediate image conjured by the Bronco anymore. Even if we're doing a wish list in no particular order, the Bronco still finds its way to the top. For now (unfortunately), it's just federal paperwork. Rumors on this one can get especially heated. The official word from a Ford spokesman is: "Companies renew trademark filings to maintain ownership and control of the mark, even if it is not currently used. Ford values the iconic Bronco name and history." Trademarks: Aviator, AV8R Company: Ford Previous Use: The Aviator was one of the shortest-run Lincolns ever, lasting for the 2003-2005 model years. It never found the sales success of the Ford Explorer, with which it shared a platform. We Think: The Aviator name no longer fits with Lincoln's naming nomenclature. Too bad, it's better than any other name Lincoln currently uses, save for its former big brother, the Navigator. Perhaps we're barking up the wrong tree, though. Ford has made several customized, aviation themed-Mustangs in the past, including one called the Mustang AV8R in 2008, which had cues from the US Air Force's F-22 Raptor fighter jet. It sold for $500,000 at auction, and the glass roof – which is reminiscent of a fighter jet cockpit – helped Ford popularize the feature. Trademark: EcoBeast Company: Ford Previous Use: None by major carmakers.

Now at Costco: Bales of toilet paper and a Volvo or Pacifica to haul them

Costco, the beacon of bulk buying, where you can buy everything from gasoline to your own casket at deep discount, is offering some Costco-only incentives through its Auto Program in partnership with specific car brands: for now, Volvo and Chrysler, with other brands planned for later. First, Volvo: Now through Oct. 2, you can get both special incentives AND employee pricing (aka "A-Plan" pricing) AND whatever rebates and incentives Volvo might already have going on. The Costco incentives are: $3,000 on 2017 and 2018 S90 sedans. $750 on 2017 and 2018 S60 sedans. $750 on 2017 and 2018 V60 and V90 Cross Country wagons. $750 on 2017 and 2018 XC90 SUVs. $750 on the outgoing 2017 XC60 crossovers. Automaker incentives usually vary by region, but in the Detroit area, at least, Volvo currently has a $2,500 incentive on the 2018 XC90 and $3,500 on the 2017 model. Those end Aug. 31 but could be renewed in September, and others could be added then as well. Volvo is also offering special interest rates on financing some of the other models. And when all is said and done, if you fill out a Costco customer survey you'll get a $200 cash card. The Chrysler Pacifica deal, also through Oct. 2, is even simpler: Go to the Costco site, print out a certificate worth $1,000, and take it to a Chrysler dealership — any dealership, not just those that usually work with Costco, which is a first. The incentive covers both 2017 and 2018 models. And like the Volvo promotion, these Costco incentives can be combined with whatever Chrysler's doing — and it currently has a myriad of incentives on 2017 Pacificas, in various combinations that differ depending on whether you're leasing or buying. If you register at the Costco Auto Program website, you'll be put in touch with a dealer who can review the bottom line after all the discounts are factored in. Participating dealerships have offered special pricing to Costco members for years, up to the price automaker employees get. Costco's program doesn't typically work the way these Volvo and Chrysler programs do, though a similar joint promotion with Volvo back in 2013 sold 7,500 cars. If you haven't used the Costco Auto Program, but you don't like haggling at a dealership, you might give it a try. The beauty of it is that a dealer is obligated to offer you a set price and is also obligated to treat you by certain rules, such as not trying to upsell you. Last year, 490,000 vehicles were sold to Costco members through the program.

What will Detroit do with the abandoned AMC headquarters?

As with so many other industrial and residential properties in Detroit, the former headquarters for the American Motors Corporation is having a hard time finding a reputable buyer. In October the Wayne County Treasurer held a tax foreclosure auction of 25,000 properties that included the AMC building, the starting bid being $500. Nicholas Casab won the building for $500, but the county voided the sale when Casab didn't pay the $232,000 in back property taxes. Detroit authorities haven't commented on the failed sale, but the city has until January 4 to decide if it wants to keep the building. If it doesn't want to hold onto it, the 1.5-million-square-foot property on 57 acres might be ceded to the Wayne County Land Bank Corporation. No matter who holds the deed come January 5, all anyone really wants is for someone to take possession of the building who will actually turn it into something useful and viable. The property opened in 1927 as a factory for the Kelvinator Corporation. Over the following decades, Kelvinator merged with the Nash Motor Company, and that merged entity merged with Hudson Motor Car Co, becoming American Motors. Chrysler took over the building in 1987 when it bought AMC, then shuttered it in 2009. The complex has produced refrigerators, Sikorsky helicopters, Jeeps, AMCs, and was used as an engineering center for Jeeps and other Chrysler products. Having been through several hands in the past six years, it is cited as part of the cycle of abandonment plaguing Detroit. Related Video: News Source: Detroit Free Press Government/Legal Chrysler Jeep Auctions Detroit amc