2012 Fiat 500 on 2040-cars

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Yes, we still love sports cars | Autoblog Podcast #490

This week, David Gluckman and Mike Austin talk sports cars of all kinds. We hit the week's big Mustang news, talk about a variety of cars we've been driving, and then respond to some questions from listeners. We also threw in a trivia question for you to ponder while you listen. The rundown is below. Remember, if you have a car-related question you'd like us to answer or you want questionable buying advice of your very own, send a message or a voice memo to podcast at autoblog dot com. Please send trivia questions, too! Autoblog Podcast #490 Get The Podcast Apple Podcasts – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes Spotify – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast on Spotify RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Topics and stories we mention The four-cylinder Ford Mustang can produce nearly V8-level torque for $699 Ford halts Mustang production in wake of September sales dive 2017 GMC Sierra 2500HD All Terrain X eyes Ram Power Wagon 2017 Lotus Evora 400 2017 Fiat 124 Spider 24 Hours of LeMons: Racevan is no more (and for sale!) Rundown Intro - 00:00 The news - 01:31 What we've been driving - 15:13 Spend My Money/listener questions - 34:08 Total Duration: 53:27 Get The Podcast iTunes – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Feedback Email – Podcast at Autoblog dot com Review the show in iTunes Podcasts Fiat Ford Lotus fiat 124 spider lotus evora 400

Auto Mergers and Acquisitions: Suicide or salvation?

We love the Moses figure. A savior riding in from stage right with the ideas, the smarts, and the scrappiness to put things right. Alan Mullaly. Carroll Shelby. Lee Iacocca. Andrew Carnegie. Steve Jobs. Elon Musk. Bart Simpson. Sergio Marchionne does not likely view himself with Moses-like optics, but the CEO of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles recently gave a remarkable, perhaps prophetic interview with Automotive News about his interest and the inevitability of merging with a potential automotive partner like General Motors. Marchionne has been overtly public about his notion that GM must merge with FCA. For a bit of context, GM sold 9.9 million vehicles in 2014, posting $2.8 billion in net income, while FCA sold 4.75 million units and earned $2.4 billion in net income, painting a very rosy FCA earnings-to-sales picture. But that's not the entire picture. Most people in the auto industry still remember the trainwreck that was the DaimlerChrysler "merger" written in what turned out to be sand in 1998. It proved to be a master class in how not to fuse two companies, two cultures, two continents, and two management teams. Oh, it worked for the two individuals at both helms pre-merger. They got silly rich. And the industry itself was in a misty romance at the time with mergers and acquisitions. BMW bought Rolls-Royce. Volkswagen Group bought Bentley, Bugatti, and Lamborghini, putting all three brands into their rightful place in both products and positioning. No marriages there, so no false pretense. Finally, Nissan and Renault got married in 1999. A successful marriage requires several rare elements in this atmosphere of gas fumes and power lust. But a successful marriage requires several rare elements in this atmosphere of gas fumes and power lust, the principle part being honesty. Daimler and Chrysler lied to each other. The heads of each unit, the product planners, and finance all presented their then-current and long-range forecasts to each other with less-than-forthright accuracy. Daimler was the far greater equal and no one from the Chrysler side enjoyed that. The cultures were entirely different, too, and little was done to bridge that gap. Which brings me back to the present overtures by Marchionne to GM. "There are varying degrees of hugs," Marchionne stated in the Automotive News piece. "I can hug you nicely, I can hug you tightly, I can hug you like a bear, I can really hug you." Seriously?

2016 Fiat 124 Spider to debut this year

Those enthused by the prospect of a nimble little convertible but not enamored with the styling of the latest Mazda MX-5 Miata (shown above) have been eagerly awaiting the arrival of the Fiat version. And now we know it's going to break cover later this year. According to Edmunds, which spoke with the Fiat brand's North American chief, Jason Stoicevich, the Fiat 124 Spider will debut later this year either at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September or the LA Auto Show in December. It is expected to begin reaching dealers in 2016. Fiat has yet to confirm whether it'll offer the 124 in North America, but the chances are looking good. "There is a ton of heritage behind that," Stoicevich told Edmunds. "I think that just kind of puts the bow on the showroom for us and fills it out completely." The roadster would bolster a Fiat US lineup that's made up of versions of the 500: the original hatchback, open-roof 500C, electric-powered 500e, and 500L and 500X crossovers. Fiat offers other models overseas, but is said to be preparing a change in direction even in Europe, aligning its portfolio in two pillars built around the 500 and the Panda. Though the 124 will be based on the MX-5's platform and be built alongside it in Japan, the Italian brand will give the convertible its own bodywork and styling. The Italian version of the MX-5 was originally earmarked to wear an Alfa Romeo badge, but Fiat brass decided that Alfas needed to be developed in-house and built in Italy. The decision was then made to give the Fiat brand the convertible instead, though details on what form it will take and what engines will be offered remain a mystery. Related Video: Featured Gallery 2016 Mazda MX-5 Miata Club View 30 Photos News Source: EdmundsImage Credit: Mazda LA Auto Show Frankfurt Motor Show Fiat Convertible 2015 LA Auto Show fiat 124 spider fiat 124