2002 Chevrolet Astro Van Awd Ls on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Michael Jordan's cars showcased in 'The Last Dance' documentary

After the masses begged and pleaded for an early release, ESPN finally unlocked the doors to the biggest production in company history last month. Episodes 1 and 2 of The Last Dance, a 10-part documentary special about Michael Jordan, the Chicago Bulls, and the 1997-1998 season, was released at last on April 19, 2020. Each week since, two new episodes have aired on Sunday nights, and the next two, episodes 7 and 8 are scheduled to drop this weekend on May 10. With unprecedented video access to MJ, who became averse to the media during his playing days, a byproduct from The Last Dance is a look at some of Jordan's cars. The Goat's taste ranges across a number of brands, but they all had one thing in common: performance as a top priority. Below, we have listed the rides that have already appeared in the series, and each week, we will update with new car cameos. Chevrolet Corvette C4 The photo above somewhat epitomizes one of the themes of The Last Dance. Everybody, whether that was men, women, children, franchise owners, reporters, coaches, teammates, or opponents, wanted a piece of Jordan. If that meant stopping in the middle of the road to get an autograph, then so be it. Around town, MJ was fairly easy to spot due to his flashy cars that occasionally wore Bulls red. Jordan has driven numerous Corvettes throughout the years, but the C4 is unique in that it was Chevy's top ride when Jordan signed an endorsement deal with the American company during his rookie year in 1984. Two famous photos, one in front of the Chicago skyline, show him standing next to a C4 with the license plate "Jump 23." This exact car, however, came later, as indicated by the squared-off taillights. He went on to star in a number of Chevrolet commercials with vehicles such as the Blazer and S-10 pickup truck. Chevrolet Corvette C5 The most notable Corvette His Airness ever owned was likely the C4 40th Anniversary ZR-1, but he also drove a C5 coupe at one point. Roughly nine minutes into the first episode, Jordan is seen driving the chrome-wheeled targa top into the parking lot at the Berto Center, the Bulls old practice facility.   Ferrari 550 Maranello Roughly three minutes into episode four, viewers get a glimpse of Jordan's exotic taste in the form of a red Ferrari 550 Maranello.

This map reveals the cleanest vehicles based on location

Naysayers love to point out how dirty the electricity grid mix is when it comes to charging electric vehicles. Curmudgeons are eager to jump into any conversation about EVs to enlighten the lucky listeners about how plug-in cars contribute to pollution, sometimes even throwing in a dash of climate-change denial for good measure. (Thanks, buddy. Pray, tell me more about the plight of oppressed SUV owners.) Unless someone buys an EV just because they think they're cool (which, yeah, they often are), they probably have at least a passable understanding of their environmental pros and cons. As many EV owners are already aware, location has a lot to do with any particular plug-in car's carbon footprint. Still, there's always more to know, and knowledge is not a bad thing, especially if one uses it to do the right thing. That's why this handy-dandy map from Carnegie Mellon University is so interesting. CMU researchers have compiled information about the lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions of various EVs based on where they're charged, as compared to gasoline-powered vehicles. The researchers looked at the Nissan Leaf, Chevrolet Volt, and Prius Plug-In Hybrid versus the gasoline-dependent Toyota Prius hybrid and the stop-start-equipped Mazda3 with i-ELOOP and compared grams of CO2 emitted per mile. CMU takes into account the grid mix, ambient temperature, and driving patterns. CMU takes into account the grid mix based on county, as well as ambient temperature and driving patterns in terms of miles traveled on the highway or in the city. For instance, if you drive a Nissan Leaf in urban areas of California, Texas, or Florida, your carbon footprint is lower than it would be if you were driving a standard Toyota Prius. However, if you charge your Leaf in the Midwest or the South, for the most part, you've got a larger carbon footprint than the Prius. If you live in the rural Midwest, you'd probably even be better off driving a Mazda3. Throughout the country, the Chevrolet Volt has a larger carbon footprint than the Toyota Prius, but a smaller one than the Mazda3 in a lot of urban counties in the US. The Prius and Prius Plug-In are relatively equal across the US. Having trouble keeping it straight? That's not surprising. The comparisons between plug-in and gasoline vehicles are much more nuanced than the loudest voices usually let on.

Autoblog Minute: VW finds CO2 'irregularities', Takata dropped by automakers, SEMA recap

Volkswagen's diesel emissions scandal gets a new wrinkle, US regulators hit Takata Corporation with a substantial fine, and we head to Las Vegas for a look at tuner paradise at the 2015 SEMA show. Autoblog senior editor Greg Migliore reports on this edition of Autoblog Minute Weekly Recap. Show full video transcript text [00:00:00] Volkswagen's diesel emissions scandal gets a new wrinkle. US regulators issue a significant fine to Takata Corporation. And we take a peek inside tuner paradise at the 2015 SEMA show. I'm senior editor Greg Migliore and this is your Autoblog Minute Weekly Recap. The VW diesel emissions scandal, first brought to light in September, gets a new wrinkle, as an internal investigation by the German automaker revealed [00:00:30] irregularities in CO2 emissions that could affect approximately 800,000 vehicles. VW estimates the issue could pose a 2-billion euro economic risk. VW claims that most of the vehicles affected have diesel engines, but industry analysts say a 1.4-liter gas engine is also affected. VW says that fuel consumption figures were set too low during the CO2 certification process. During all of this, sales of some diesel-powered Volkswagen, Audi, and Porsche models [00:01:00] have been halted. Takata Corporation is back in the news in connection with its deadly airbag scandal. Federal regulators fined Takata $70 million. If the parts supplier does not comply, the fine could balloon to $200 million. Takata was also dropped this week by its biggest customer, Honda. And now, Toyota and Mazda will be following Honda's lead in dropping Takata. We're also hearing that Mitsubishi and Subaru are considering a switch in air-bag inflator suppliers. SEMA 2015 [00:01:30] came and went. We saw offerings from Mopar, like the AWD Challenger concept. Honda unveiled a Ridgeline that it will race at the Baja 1000, which gives us a hint at what future production model could look like. The celebrity presence was also felt in Vegas as it always is. Kid Rock brought a Duramax Diesel Chevy Silverado, and Acura restored and presented Ludacris with his now famous 1993 Acura Legend. Those are the highlights from the week that was. Be sure to come back on Saturday for my full recap, [00:02:00] where I'll have some added insight into Hyundai's foray into the luxury sector. For Autoblog, I'm Greg Migliore. Autoblog Minute is a short-form video news series reporting on all things automotive.