If you just ordered a new Chrysler minivan, you could be waiting some time before you get it. No, it’s not due to a production delay, but instead due to a dispute with their trucking company.

Allied Systems Holdings, the carrier company that is responsible for taking vehicles out of the Windsor factory is in dispute with Chrysler over proposed wage cuts, when Allied workers were asking for a wage increase.

General Motors (GM) is in a similar dispute with Allied, but it has other resources to cover up the slack. Chrysler for the moment is placing vehicles in lots around the city of Windsor to keep the flow of vehicles on the production line. Chrysler currently produces 1500 minivans per-day out of the Windsor factory.

While Allied serves other Chrysler facilities also, this Atlanta-based company mainly serves their Windsor facility. “Chrysler can only move so many cars and park so many cars before they have an issue,” said Rick Laporte, president of Canadian Auto Workers Union Local 444. “If it isn’t resolved within in a certain length of time, I would suggest there is a possibility there to shut the Windsor Assembly plant down.”

Chrysler spokeswoman Katie Hepler wrote in an e-mail; “Allied was one of our carriers, not our only carrier, so the work is being done by others. Vehicles continue to be shipped to dealers, and we do not anticipate any disruptions in production as a result of this change.”

GM while also affected, is resorting to its other carriers and is paying dealers $60 per vehicle if they go pick up vehicles from distribution centers.

Perhaps Chrysler should now also look to explore other options.

[Source: Automotive News]

In stock form, the 412 hp Ford Mustang 5.0 GT is indeed a quick car, but now thanks to the efforts of NASCAR driver Dave Ragan and Ford Racing Performance Parts, it has now set the world record for production cars.

During an instrumented test at Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tennessee, as part of the World’s Fastest Half Mile Speed Trials; Ragan was able to coax his Mustang GT (modified only with a Ford Racing/Whipple Supercharger and FR3 performance handling pack) around 1 lap of the track in just 19.5 seconds. By contrast, a fully prepped NASCAR racer will do the same circuit in 15.5 seconds!

But the most interesting part about all this? Well, for about $45,000 the average guy or gal can basically replicate the car which Raglan drove – a 2011 Mustang GT starts around $30,000, give or take, while the supercharger package, which adds around 212 more hp, costs $7500.

The suspension upgrades, which include lowering springs, adjustable shocks, anti-roll bars, jounce stoppers and a strut tower brace, retails for $1800. So, even adding in labor charges, you’re still going to be in the low 40k range by the time all’s said and done.

Of course, driver skill also plays a part too. Nevertheless, it’s nice to know that good ol’ American muscle is still alive, well and setting records like this. The World’s Fastest Half Mile Speed Trials, in which you can see Ragan drive the Mustang to it’s record setting finish, will air on Speed Channel April 2 (check local listings for start times).

[Source: MustangsDaily]

In classic car circles, especially across the pond, the annual MSA Euroclassic has become known as one of the ‘must-do’ events on the calendar. And the 2011 event, slated to run from 4-11 September, promises to be the most spectacular yet.

In a nutshell, the Euroclassic is an eight-day road trip, which covers some 1480 miles between Troyes, (south east of Paris, France) and Parma (Italy) along some of the most spectacular driving roads in Europe. Along the way, participants stop off at such celebrated towns and cities as St Moritz, in the Swiss Alps, as well as San Marino, Rome, Venice, Verona and Pisa, as well as visiting the Mile Miglia and Ferrari museums.

In addition, drivers are also invited to give their cars a good workout  on the track, thanks to sessions at the Anneau du Rhin, Autodromo d’Franciacorta, Adria, Autodromo Dell’Umbria Magione and Varano circuits.

As its name suggests, the EuroClassic has strict entry criteria, for vehicles 20 years or older, however, for the 2011 event, the organizers will be accepting a very small number of what are deemed  ’contemporary classic’ vehicles, largely due to popular demand.

The price for taking part is £2,250 (approximately $3600 US) per car plus a two-person crew – £2,100 ($3360) if booked before April 28.

However that does include detailed maps of the route, track time, medical and mechanical assistance, lunches and a special Celebration Dinner, plus the chance to embark on a road trip of a lifetime. For more information, click on the link below.

[Source: msaeuroclassic.co.uk]

Mitsubishi‘s diminutive i electric vehicle is undergoing some fairly substantial changes when it makes its debut on our shores, the most significant being a slight increase in length and a 5 inch bump in width, with the extra size added to help the car feel better during high speed highway driving.

While Japanese drivers experience mostly stop-and-go driving, Mitsubishi felt that the revamp was necessary to better adapt the vehicle to North American freeway travel. The car is set to launch in 8 months time, customers will be able to place orders for the $30,000 vehicle starting in the spring.

One sticking point for North Americans will be the extremely long charging times required with a 110 volt power source – as long as 22 hours. Mitsubishi representatives did not specify how long times will be with a 240 volt charger, only stating that it would be virtually necessary to install one.

[Source: Automotive News]

It’s only a matter of time before the Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG gets adopted by the Ed-Hardy-and-hair-gel crowd as the official car of the Flash and the (steroid-fueled) Furious, but Mercedes has at least put out a video showing some decent b-roll footage of the car being driven at speed.

The 451-horsepower coupe is arguably the most desirable of the C63 range – aside from the awesome C63 wagon, which North American consumers can’t buy. Check out the videos below the jump.

[Source: Mercedes-Benz]

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Famed auction house Bonhams will offer up a Ferrari driven by Formula 1 World Champion Jenson Button, but the car for sale isn’t one of the contemporary mega-buck supercars, but a more archaic model that has never attracted much fanfare from the Ferraristi.

Button’s ride, a 1978 Ferrari 512BB, is a model known mostly to enthusiasts, and pre-dates the iconic Testarossa and was never sold officially in North America. While Button purchased the car with 49,100 miles on the clock, he only drove the car a further 155 miles, lending credence to his claim that “my F1 commitments will not enable me to enjoy the car to its fullest.”

Bonhams claims that the car has had $154,000 worth of mechanical work throughout its lifetime – pretty big numbers for a car that’s only expected to sell for $179,000.

[Source: New York Times]

There once was a time, when turbocharged engines translated to big horsepower and big fuel consumption.

The new generation of turbocharged engines are still producing very decent power outputs, but their main concern is to improve fuel-economy, and a company that is  getting the most out of this type of set-up is BMW.

They have thus-far developed twin-turbo V8′s, twin-turbo and twin-scroll (called TwinPower) turbo straight sixes, and TwinPower four-cylinder engines. Now BMW are planning on even smaller turbo engines. According to the latest reports from Bavaria, BMW is developing turbo-charged three-cylinder engines, which will go into upcoming small BMW and Mini models.

These new engines, which are part of BMW’s long-term goal to cut emissions by an additional 25% will start appearing in production vehicles by 2014.

[Source: Motor Authority]

The countdown until the new Cars 2 movie is underway, and Disney is introducing us to a new character in the sequel. Meet Rip Clutchgoneski, an LMP-style racer from the former European colony of New Rearendia.

In the movie, which will be out in theatres on June 24, Rip is making a name for himself on the racing circuit and has made his way to the World Grand Prix, thanks to some impressive and improbable qualifying wins. He’s got some mad skills, but will they be enough for him to bring honor back to New Rearendia?

Are you excited to meet the new characters of Disney/Pixar’s Cars 2? Will you be going to see it opening weekend?

[Source: Autoblog]

Not only has Ford Motor Co. mounted an incredible industry comeback over the past few years, but they’ve done so without stepping on any toes – including those of Mother Nature. In fact, along with soaring profits, Ford has just been named to the Ethisphere Institute’s list of the World’s Most Ethical Companies, due in large part to the American automaker’s focus on improving its environmental record.

“Ford stood out in its industry for having a particularly strong commitment to improving the sustainability and fuel efficiency of its vehicles. That includes of course its global electric vehicle strategy,” said Cristina Beltran, a spokesperson for the institute, indicating that the company’s focus on environmental sustainability was a “key differentiator” in beating out other companies to make the list.

In fact, Ford was the only automaker on the list, which includes over 110 companies throughout the world.

“Ford is honored to be named to Ethisphere’s 2011 World’s Most Ethical Companies list, said David Leitch, Group V.P. and General Counsel at Ford. “This is a testament to the men and women across the organization who come to work everyday providing excellence in everything they do. At Ford, our values guide and dictate our behavior and we recognize our commitment to corporate social responsibility and all of our stakeholders.”

Leitch’s position heading-up Ford’s litigation department (among other things) is a hint at Ford’s lack of competition. Why the institute won’t reveal the companies that were nominated but which didn’t make the list, Beltran did comment that “legal troubles” could be to blame for some automakers, i.e. Toyota.

In total 3,000 companies were nominated for the list from 100 countries in 38 different sectors. Other automotive industry companies that made the list include Johnson Controls, Cummins and Denso.

While a niche-market vehicle in North America, designed more to help rebrand the stale luxury marque than to create revenue, the CT200h is the car Lexus is counting on in Europe.

At the vehicle’s launch at the Paris auto show, execs commented that they were expecting this one model to double the brand’s sales in Europe. While a seemingly astronomical feat, one must remember that most Lexus vehicles are large and expensive, meaning they either aren’t great for European roads, or they’re expensive enough that the target demographic isn’t likely to budge from their German buying habits. The CT, however, is ideally packaged and priced to appeal to a younger European buyer.

Better yet, thanks to its low emissions, buyers will be able to skip-out on most of the taxes levied on the car’s competitors.

Sales of the car haven’t hit full swing, but if the orders being placed by local importers are any indication, then the CT might just be the hit Lexus was hoping for. According to Dutch news­pa­per De Telegraaf, Lexus Netherlands has ordered 1,000 of the vehicles. While shy of the 1,500 Lexus hopes to move in the country this year, it’s a huge increase considering the total sale of all Lexus models in that country last year totaled just 700 units.

[Source: Telegraaf.nl via LexusEnthusiast]

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