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Autoblog Minute: Ferrari F12 TdF, Tesla Autopilot, Fiat brand leadership change

Ferrari unleashes the F12 TdF, Model S owners get an exciting announcement from Tesla, and Fiat North America undergoes a leadership change. Senior editor Greg Migliore reports on this edition of Autoblog Minute Weekly Recap. Show full video transcript text [00:00:00] Ferrari unleashes the F12 TdF, Model S owners get an exciting announcement from Tesla, and Fiat North America undergoes a leadership change. I'm Senior editor Greg Migliore, this is your Autoblog Minute Weekly Recap. Ferrari's new F12 TdF gets its name from the legendary Tour de France race that Ferrari dominated back in the 50s and 60s. [00:00:30] This new Ferrari is derived from the naturally aspirated F12 Berlinetta's engine. There are styling and performance upgrades, and the company highlights changes in aerodynamics, weight reduction, and faster shifts. The result, Ferrari says, is a blistering zero to sixty-two time of, 2.9 seconds. It's pretty fast. Tesla released software version 7.0 for Model S owners. The big takeaway from this update is the much anticipated Autopilot mode. Tesla says Autopilot [00:01:00] allows Model S to steer within a lane, change lanes, and manage speed. Software version 7.0 will also allow for digital control of the motors, brakes, and steering for collision prevention. Now do you hate parallel parking? Tesla's got you covered. The Model S can park on command, right after it scans for a spot and alerts you when one becomes available. Jason Stoicevich resigns shortly after losing control of the Fiat brand. Automotive News reported that Stoicevich's leadership role at Fiat was handed over to the company's [00:01:30] head of the Dodge brand. That's Tim Kuniskis. The report cites diminished sales figures as a key reason for the personnel change at Fiat. This change resulted in Stoicevich leaving FCA altogether. Those are the highlights from the week that was. Be sure to check out my full recap this Saturday. Plus I'll have some added insight into BMW's M2. For Autoblog, I'm Greg Migliore. Autoblog Minute is a short-form video news series reporting on all things automotive. Each segment offers a quick and clear picture of what's happening in the automotive industry from the perspective of Autoblog's expert editorial staff, auto executives, and industry professionals.

Maserati and Lamborghini pull out of Iran

Daimler is out, Toyota is out, Porsche is out, Hyundai, PSA Peugeot-Citroën are out and when it comes to selling cars in Iran, now Maserati and Lamborghini are out, too. The definitive pullouts of those last two automakers are said to be reactions to a press conference held by a group called United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI). The group highlights businesses that sell in both the US market and Iran, and works to get those businesses to choose one market or the other.
UANI said it had sent letters to Maserati and Lamborghini about their dealings in Iran, but that the letters went unanswered. Mark Wallace, head of UANI and a former US ambassador to the United Nations, held a press conference in October of last year that referenced the two companies. Apparently Lamborghini contacted Wallace just after the press conference and told him "they were out, they weren't doing any business in Iran anymore."
Discussions with Maserati then took place, and the Italian automaker said it had been out of Iran ever since Fiat announced it was leaving the country in May 2011. UANI said Maserati had been in talks with an Iranian distributor, however, and that distributor was continuing to use the Maserati name. The carmaker has since cut all ties with Iranian interests and has prevented its name from being used, adding that its new models will not be able to be sold there because they won't pass regulations the country's regulations.

Junkyard Gem: 1985 Bertone X1/9

Sales of the Fiat X1/9 began in the United States in 1974, and the price tag was very reasonable for a mid-engined Italian two-seater. For a time, these cars were common sights on American streets, at least in non-rusty areas. Then Americans became disillusioned with the Fiat brand, and the company folded its tent and departed the continent after 1982, not returning until 2010. Automotive dealmaker Malcolm Bricklin saw an opportunity at that point, and his company began bringing in 124 Sport Spiders badged as Pininfarinas and X1/9s badged as Bertones. Here's an '85 Bertone in a California wrecking yard. Fiat had hired Bertone to design the X1/9 in the first place, so the badging change wasn't so jarring to those Americans familiar with the car's history. Bricklin introduced Subaru cars to the United States in the late 1960s, started his own car company in the middle 1970s, then went on to bring a Yugoslavian-built Fiat 127 variant to these shores, via the same company that was already bringing in the X1/9. Power came from what amounted to a Fiat 128 engine/transaxle assembly, mounted just behind the rear window. In 1985, the Bertone X1/9 had 75 horsepower and weighed just over a ton. This car still has the allegedly valuable hardtop. I'm pretty sure that every American X1/9 owner has several of these stashed away by now. Optimistically, Bertone used a six-digit odometer in this car. 188,285 miles would have been pretty respectable in a 1985 Corolla, never mind a Fiat known for shaky electrical systems and poor build quality. I still see quite a few X1/9s in the big self-service wrecking yards, and even more 124 Sport Spiders. The seat upholstery is very stylish. I checked this car's VIN on the California smog-check database, which shows that it last passed the emissions test in 2009. Perhaps something broke soon after that and the car awaited repairs that never came. It has both a trunk and a frunk. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Just a thing for a nice leisurely drive on a salt flat.