1975 Cadillac Sedan Deville on 2040-cars

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40+ cars that barely avoid the gas guzzler tax

The Gas Guzzler schedule, with mpg ratings and charges that haven't changed since 1991, lays out which fuel-swillers owe what to Uncle Sam.
I started thinking about the "Gas Guzzler Tax" - considerably less well known as The Energy Tax Act of 1978 - when I was driving Dodge's new Challenger SRT Hellcat last week. Unsurprisingly for a car that can burn 1.5 gallons of gas per minute at max tilt, theoretically able to empty a full tank of premium in about 13 minutes, the Hellcat will be subject to the Gas Guzzler Tax schedule when it goes on sale.

Cadillac to vie for Secret Service armored car contract, new Beast?

President Obama has used the same armored limo since his inauguration in 2008. Known by many as The Beast, the Presidential Limo was provided by Cadillac and earned its nickname in large part because of its massive size, which isn't surprising considering that its Caddy-shaped bodywork is said to sit atop a heavy-duty truck chassis.
It seems the Secret Service may be in the market for a Beast replacement, having issued a request for proposals for a new armored limo. According to Motor Trend, Obama's backup limo is a leftover from the Bush Administration, so it will be interesting to see if this new machine will serve as a replacement for The Beast or for its backup. The contract is to be awarded by September 29, 2013.
The boys from MT contacted Cadillac, Lincoln and Chrysler, and Chrysler is the only one that would confirm that it is not pursuing the contract. Cadillac may have the inside track, as it has provided Presidential limos since 1993, but Lincoln also has a long and storied history of chauffeuring the President.

No, Eminem is not giving away the Cadillac Ciel concept, Facebookers

Damn it, Facebook people, stop being so gullible. When you see something on social media that requires you to share or like a status or page in exchange for a chance at winning something, it's almost always a hoax. This goes for iPads, or Bill Gates giving away cash or, yes, an Eminem fan page giving away a Cadillac Ciel. Now, normally we'd simply ignore this utter hogwash, but it's getting some traction on Facebook and, annoyingly, is beginning to clog our newsfeed. Ignoring the fact that the Ciel is a pure concept car that likely can't even be registered for regular use, there are more than a few things that should give this nonsense away as a hoax. First, Eminem has only ever gotten in bed with one automaker – Chrysler. It seems unlikely that he'd defect simply to give away a car on Facebook. Secondly, the page that is putting on the giveaway isn't even a verified page – Eminem's real Facebook fan page has 97 million likes, this one has 622,000. Third, a quick look at the caption for the Ciel's photo, shown above, reveals the sort of grammatical mess that no serious contest would allow. Take a look (sic implied throughout): "Only 24 Days Until Christmas, Can you Imagine yourself driving this Car? I'm about to make that happen, Its Official, I Will be giving away this 2014 Cadillac Ciel to one random lucky fan, all you gotta do is follow these three easy steps, Step 1) Share this photo, Step 2) Like my page, Slim Shady Step 3) Like this photo, Winner Will be picked On December 5th 4 Days Away, Good luck to Everyone!!" We reached out to Cadillac spokesman David Caldwell just for fun. Apparently, this photo and schtick pops up every few months with virtually the same text, only to vanish at the end of the "giveaway." You're as shocked as we are, right? So, once again folks, just because it's on the Internet doesn't mean it's true. If your friends, family and acquaintances are blowing up your Facebook feed and social network channels with this nonsense, be sure to set 'em straight with a link to this story – we're sure the real Slim Shady will appreciate it.