1989 Chevrolet C/k Pickup 2500 K2500 on 2040-cars

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Artist imagines eerie world where cars have no wheels

The wheel ranks right up there with the telescope and four-slice toaster in the pantheon of inventions that have moved humankind forward. But what if a circle in three dimensions had never occurred to anyone, and we all had just moved on without it? Perhaps we'd be driving around in Lucas Motors Landspeeders with anti-gravity engines. Or maybe we'd have the same cars we do today, just without wheels.
That's the thought experiment that seems to have led French photographer Renaud Marion to create his six-image series called Air Drive. The shots depict cars throughout many eras of motoring that look normal except for one thing: they have no wheels. The models used include a Jaguar XK120, Cadillac DeVille (shown above), Chevrolet El Camino and Camaro, and Mercedes-Benz SL and 300 roadsters.
Perhaps one day when our future becomes our past, you'll be able to walk the street and see with your own eyes the rust and patina of age on our nation's fleet of floating cars. Until then, Monsieur Marion's photographs will have to do.

The Jitterbugs somersaulted at the 1986 Chicago Auto Show for the Chevy Nova

Judging by the vintage videos that the Chicago Auto Show has been uploading, if you wanted to check out the latest vehicles and watch some dancers in the same place in the late '80s and early '90s, then the Windy City event was definitely the place to be. We've already seen the Footlockers pitching the Cavalier in '88 and a troupe of women singing about the Geo brand in '91. Apparently, the trend went back even further, though. Just take a look at this group called the Jitterbugs selling some badge-engineered products from Chevrolet at the 1986 show. Flanked by the Chevy Nova and Spectrum, these guys managed to do a few pretty impressive jumps and somersaults but mixed them with some rather uninspired spins, as well. Also, wait for 1:24 into the clip to see the least enthusiastic backup dancers that the world has ever known. The Jitterbugs are even further proof that Chevy's habit of mixing dancing and its vehicles goes back even further than the Volt. News Source: ChicagoAutoShow via YouTube Auto News Marketing/Advertising Chicago Auto Show Chevrolet Videos Chicago chevy nova

OnStar to offer 90-day driving assessment, possible insurance discount

General Motors has announced a brace of new features for OnStar, two of which could help you save money assuming you're willing to sign over some (more) personal details. The first is a driving assessment program in which OnStar takes note of certain driving parameters for 90 days, then provides the driver feedback on their driving, both individually and when compared to other drivers in the program, as well as driving tips. Think of it as OnStar's ICE version of the Nissan Leaf's CARWING feature that compares how efficient your electric driving is compared to other BEV drivers. In this case, though, certain drivers will have the chance to share their assessment with Progressive Insurance, and if the numbers are right they might get a "driving-based" discount from the insurance company. The assessment program is voluntary, and requires opting in. It will be available this summer on all new GM cars and some GM vehicles back to 2013. In case this sounds like Big Brother, let's not forget that Big Brother is already here and moved in so long ago that he's a member of the Kiwanis club and is hosting neighborhood block parties. Progressive already has a million enrollees in a program called Snapshot that tracks OBD II data to offer usage-based insurance to provide annual pricing based on how much you drive your car, with discounts of up to 30 percent. The OnStar effort is just another way to do that. The second feature is proximity offers through AtYourService, which notifies drivers to deals and information on their driving route and provides coupons from RetailMeNot and Entertainment Book. Beyond that, a deal with Priceline will let OnStar agents book hotels for you starting this year, there's a tie-in with Dunkin' Donuts, too, but we're fuzzy on those benefits, and third new feature lets Chevrolet owners know when certain parts need replacing. News Source: Detroit NewsImage Credit: AP Photo/Carlos Osorio Chevrolet GM Technology