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Mitsubishi boss labels French minister a "retard" for "ruining the lives of motorists" [UPDATE]

Arnaud Montebourg (pictured), French Minister of Industrial Recovery, was recently the target of a rather despicable slur at the hands of Mitsubishi France's leader, Jean-Claude Debard.
Frustrated by Montebourg's attempts to encourage the purchase of lower emitting vehicles and discourage use of high-emission vehicles - by way of tax breaks and tax hikes, respectively - Debard reportedly used the occasion of a new product launch to call the minister "stupid," a "mental case" and a "retard" before members of the media. Here's the full quote, as reported by the French newspaper La Provence by way of The Telegraph:
"This mental case, this retard, increases ecological taxes, reduces the speed motorists can go on Paris' ring road and ruins the life of motorists from all social origins all suffer as a result of him. He is stupid and understands nothing, you can quote me on that."

Junkyard Gem: 1983 Mitsubishi Starion

Americans had been buying Mitsubishis with Dodge or Plymouth badging for more than a decade when the first Mitsubishi-badged cars began showing up on these shores. For the 1983 model year, Mitsubishi USA offered the Cordia, the Tredia, the Mighty Max, and the Starion; the latter was a futuristic-looking rear-wheel-drive sports car that took direct aim at potential buyers of the Supra, the 280ZX, the RX-7, and even the Camaro. Here's a rare first-year "narrow-body" Starion in a Denver self-service wrecking yard. Even though every Starion sported a turbocharged engine, the word TURBO was considered so magical during this era that no self-respecting car company in 1983 would have refrained from adding at least a couple of TURBO badges. Later Starions (and Conquests) even had TURBO badging sewn into the seat belts. In 1983, the Starion's 2.6-liter Astron packed 145 horsepower, which compared favorably to the optional 175-horse engine in the much heavier 1983 Camaro Z28 (the base Z28 engine made 150hp). The 280ZX cost more and offered 145 horsepower; the 280ZX Turbo cost lots more but had 180 horses. This car looks tired but not rusty. The pins stuck into fuel-injection electrical connectors tell a sad story of its final days on the road; a frustrated owner tried to use a multimeter to figure out hard-to-diagnose electrical woes. Auto-reverse was a high-end audio-system feature in 1983 cars. Mitsubishi made (and still makes) plenty of good consumer electronics, so the sound systems in these cars were considered high-quality stuff for their time. I shot this car with a circa-1983 cereal-box-prize film camera, because it seemed like a good idea. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. With music by Osamu Kitajima and artwork by Shuse Nagaoka (whose work you may know from all those 1970s ELO and Earth, Wind & Fire album covers), the Japanese-market ad for this car reveals its SUPER POTENTIAL.

Autoblog's guilty pleasure cars

Guilty pleasures are part of life – don't even try to pretend like you don't have one (or two, or six). In the non-automotive space, this could come down to that secret playlist in your iPhone of songs you'll only listen to when you're alone; or think of that one TV show you really do love, but won't admit to your friends. I've got plenty, and so do you. Going back to cars, here's a particularly juicy one for me: several years ago, I had a mad crush on the very last iteration of the Cadillac DTS. Oh yes, the front-wheel-drive, Northstar V8-powered sofa-on-wheels that was the last remaining shred of the elderly-swooning days of Cadillac's past. Every time I had the chance to drive one, I was secretly giddy. Don't hate me, okay? These days, the DTS is gone, but I've still got a mess of other cars that hold a special place in my heart. And in the spirit of camaraderie, I've asked my other Autoblog editors to tell me some of their guilty pleasure cars, as well – Seyth Miersma, as you can see above, has a few choice emotions to share about the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution. Read on to find out what cars make us secretly happy. Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG This decadent convertible is the epitome of the guilty pleasure. It's big, powerful, fairly heavy and it's richly appointed inside and out. It's a chocolate eclair with the three-pointed star on the hood. Given my druthers, I'd take the SL65 AMG, which delivers 621 horsepower and 738 pound-feet of torque. That output is borderline absurd for this laid-back convertible. I don't care. You don't need dessert. Sometimes you just crave it. The SL line is about the feel you get on the road. The roof is open. The air, sun and engine sounds all embrace you. It's the same dynamic you could have experienced in a Mercedes a century ago, yet the SL gives you the most modern of luxuries. An Airscarf feature that warms my neck and shoulders through a vent embedded in the seat? Yes, please. Sure, it's an old-guy car. Mr. Burns and Lord Grantham are probably too young and hip for an SL65. I don't care. This is my guilty pleasure. Release the hounds. – Greg Migliore Senior Editor Ford Flex I drove my first Flex in 2009 when my mother let me borrow hers for the summer while I was away at college. The incredibly spacious interior made moving twice that summer a breeze, and the 200-mile trips up north were quite comfortable.