Vogue Tyre and Rubber Co. announces new signature model

A leading manufacturer of custom-built tyres for more than 96 years, Vogue Tyre and Rubber Company has announced the debut and availability of its 20-inch Signature V to retailers, wholesalers and new car dealerships. With its sidewall sporting a raised gold V and an asymmetrical tread design (10/32 inch tread depth), the new tyre features enhanced driveability and a quieter drive while returning longer wear. The mud and snow rated Signature V allows enthusiasts to purchase only one set without sacrificing performance or safety and eventually saving money. The Signature V is the first all-season luxury performance blackwall touring tyre

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BMW reaches 95th birthday with new models, more U.S. production

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For nearly 95 years, BMW has been synonymous with luxury, value and performance automobiles. With MINI and Rolls Royce Motor Cars also under the BMW Group umbrella, the manufacturer founded in 1916 as Bayerische Flugzeug- Werke (BFW), has vast and diverse offerings across its three-brand canvas. BMW car prices range between $30,025 for the entry level 1 series to $103,225 for the top-of-the-line M6 model. Beginning with its first brief tenure as a small company building military aircraft engines, BMW experienced rapid growth throughout its history. In recent years, BMW's commitment to "sheer driving pleasure" as a top priority throughout

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Mazda MX-5, 2011 review

Since its debut in 1989, The Mazda MX-5, still often known to purists as the Miata, has maintained a strong reputation as among the leading small two-seat convertible sports cars in the United States. Substantially refreshed for 2009 and updated for 2010, the Mazda MX-5 is unchanged for 2011, keeping its same fun factor and value pricing from previous years. Change isn’t always a good anyway, and it must present a dilemma for Mazda. With the Mazda MX-5, appropriate updates have been warranted through the years. Then again, since 850,000 Mazda MX-5/Miatas have sold (the most of any sports car

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Nissan Leaf, 2011 review

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The Nissan Leaf hatchback sedan — the first mass-produced all-electric car —drives like a regular, pleasant five-passenger economy car. However, some  owners may worry they’ll run out of charge before reaching their destination. However, Nissan says 90 percent of the U.S. population, on average, drives less than 100 miles a day. It says typical consumer weekday and weekend driving patterns are mostly less than 50 miles. The ran of the Leaf with a fully charged battery is touted as  100 miles. Key Takeaways First mass-produced all-electric car: The Leaf made history as the first purpose-built, mass-market battery electric vehicle, driving

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Porsche Cayenne, 2011: The Weekly Driver car review

The extensively redone 2011 Porsche Cayenne SUV finally looks like a Porsche. The bland appearance of its predecessor, however, didn’t stop it from being Porsche’s top seller here soon after it arrived in America in March 2003. Porsche always had been a sports car company, but it ignored protests from many Porsche owners and its often rabid fans when it introduced the Cayennne. But business is business, and Porsche needed the money the Cayenne would produce. Besides, it has lots of pride and was tired of seeing its sports cars sitting in garages next to expensive SUVs from competitors. As

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Oprah reveals free 2012 Volkswagen Beetle to 275 audience members in 'favorite things' giveaway

Oprah Winfrey and Volkswagen have unveiled marketing genius by not unveiling the 2012 Volkswagen Beetle, but making a collective promise to give the soon-to-retire talk show host’s 275 audience members a free new edition of the iconic car. The redesigned 2012 Volkswagen Beetle was selected as part of Winfrey’s wont for giving away some of her favorite things to audience members. Winfrey owns and drives a 2011 Volkswagen Beetle. She asked Volkswagen for the assistance and the carmaker said it would donate the vehicles. “Oprah Winfrey and the Volkswagen Beetle are two American icons, so when the “Oprah” show approached

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Great American classic cars: Buick, Mercury, Ford, Rambler

Or how about a head-turning 1955 Nash Rambler cross country wagon or a 1958 Mercury Turnpike Cruiser? Owning a Duesenberg you don’t drive is fine. But how about taking a Sunday afternoon cruise in 1951 Chrysler Thunderbolt? Here are 10 vehicles The Weekly Driver would like to own and drive: James RaiaA sports, travel and business journalist for more than 45 years, James has written the new car review column The Weekly Driver since 2004. In addition to founding this site in 2004, James writes a Sunday automotive column for The San Jose Mercury and East Bay Times in Walnut

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Fiat set for North American return with three 2012 models

Fiat marked its return to the North American market with the unveiling of the 2012 Fiat 500 at the Los Angeles International Auto Show and showcasing the carmaker’s ingenuity to build a small car through simple design like it did 50 years ago. Fiat 500 Pop Designed for the individual who wants Italian style, efficiency and personalization options, the new Fiat 500 Pop includes a manual transmission, 15-inch steel wheels with chrome-accented wheel covers and all-season tires, seven standard air bags, air conditioning, AM/FM/CD/MP3 radio with auxiliary audio input, power windows, power door locks, power heated mirrors, speed control and

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Audi has plans for diesel option for entire U.S. fleet by 2015

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In Europe and other parts of the globe, diesel fuel cars account for about half of all passenger automobiles sales. Of course, that’s not the case in the United States. Audi, which won the 24 Heures du Mans with its Audi R15 TDI, wants to change the U.S. trend. The German manufacturer plans to offer a diesel option of all the models it sells in the U.S. by 2015. Audi currently offers diesels in two models: the A3 TDI compact hatchback and the Q7 TDI large sport-utility vehicle. Neither model represents a large portion of its total U.S. sales, but

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Lights, action, camera: Cars2 coming to theaters soon

The trailer for Cars2, which will debut in theaters June 24, offers a brief glimpse for the upcoming action comedy about Lightning McQueen, the main character, on the road in an international spy caper. Cars2 is the sequel to the original Pixar 2008 animated filabout talking vehicles. The star race car teams up with his pal Mater, the tow truck, to compete with the world’s fastest cars in the World Grand Prix. Detours and potholes finds them tangled with secret agents, villainous vehicles and speed demon rivals. Co-directed by John Lasseter (Cars) and Brad Lewis (Ratatouille’s producer), the footage covers

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Honda, Audi models among most expensive cars to insure

Honda and Audi are among the most respected manufacturers in the automotive industry. But the ZDZ from Acura and the TTS and A5 models from Audi are also the most expensive cars to insure. Conversely, the Kia Sedona, Mazda5 and Ford Escape are cheapest vehicles to insure, according to InsWeb, an online insurance comparison provider. According to InsWeb, the insure price formula called “loss behavior” includes repair costs and the chances the vehicle will be involved in an accident. InsWeb says model loss formulations also include the driving history of a car’s previous owners. High performance and high profile cars

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Tesla Roadster: Fast, lean and green driving machine

As part of its Go Electric Roadster Tour, Tesla Motors showcased its Roadster in Sacramento for the first time last week about two years after the Palo Alto, California-company debuted the high-end electric sports car. According to Tesla, an estimated 1,300 Roadsters are now in circulation worldwide. They’ve have been driven almost seven million electric miles, saving more than 350,000 gallons of gas and 18,000 barrels of oil. Tesla Roadster facts and figures: * The zero-emission Roadster, hand-built from carbon fiber, accelerates from 0-60 mph in 3.7 seconds. * The Roadster is powered by a liquid-cooled battery pack, made up

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Ten great, cheap 2011 cars, Ford Fiesta to VW Golf

The automotive industry is flush with inexpensive, economical, quality cars. The online business site, CNNMoney.com has compiled an impressive list of 10 cars, the Ford Fiesta to Honda Fit, all with entry level prices of under $18,000. In its assessment of the Chevy Cruze, for example, the website editors write: “General Motors makes a really nice small car. The best thing about the Chevy Cruze is that it looks, feels and drives like a real car. It’s not one of those “be happy-you-even-have-a-car” tin cans on wheels. “The interior is made from better-than-you-paid-for stuff while the ride quality and performance

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Nissan recalling more than 600,000 vehicles with potential steering, battery defects

Nissan is recalling more than 600,000 vehicles, mostly in United States and involving Frontier pick-ups and Xterra SUVs, to fix faulty steering columns and battery cables that could result in cracked steering shafts. A lower steering column joint and shaft will be replaced on approximately 303,000 Frontier edition and 283,000 Xterra editions in 2002-2004 model years. Additionally, the positive battery cable terminal will be replaced on approximately 18,500 Sentra sedans made between May 15, 2010 to July 8, 2010 in Aguascalientes, Mexico. Approximately 515,000 of the vehicles involved are in the U.S. The remaining recalls will occur in Canada and

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Bugatti gets dubious honor: worst gas mileage averages

Bugatti is globally praised as among the world’s most innovative, powerful and expensive cars. But it isn’t often the renowned car gets recognition it would rather not have. In the recently released 2011 model list, the Bugatti Veyron has the lowest gas mileage average among all new vehicles tested by the Environment Protection Agency’s (EPA). The Veyron has average 8 mpg (city) and 15.5 (highway). While the Bugatti had the lowest average, several other cars known for their speed had abysmal averages. The Mercedes-Benz G55 AMG, the Bentley Continental GTC and Continental Flying Spur and the Rolls-Royce Phantom/Phantom Coupe/Drophead Coupe

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Ford has new pitch for 2011 F-150: ‘We’ll bring it to you’

Ford Motor Co. isn’t content with the long-standing, best-selling status of its F-150 pick-up truck. So to increase aware of the 2011 model featuring the new EcoBoost engine, an automaker representative will bring the truck to your house for a test drive. Ford is launching a 60-city tour to promote the F-150. Potential buyers can sign up for a Ford representative to bring the truck to the participant’s house or place of work for a 30-minute drive. The new F-150 model has the EcoBoost V-6 engine, which uses twin turbo charging and direct fuel injection. Ford is touting this EcoBoost

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