We’ve heard plenty of stories of ‘old’ turbo Buick Regals, ones with solid rear axles and blown V6s hitting high speeds, but 162 mph from a front-drive four-banger?

Recently, Buick division engineers Bill Rietlow and John Townsend enrolled a 2012 Regal GS in the Nevada Open Road Challenge. The car was stock save for mandated safety and data logging equipment (roll hoop, harnesses and onboard computers).

The purpose of the NORC is to obtain average speed consistency over a 90 mile stretch of state highway 318, with the idea of balancing speed on the low velocity sections with top end running over an extended period of time. During the high speed stage, race operators recorded a top speed of 162 mph for the Buick, which was driven by Rietlow, with Townsend performing navigator duties.

Ultimately the duo finished with 0.4 seconds of their 40 minute target time, placing second place in the 135-mph class and putting them on the podium.

Upon finishing the event, Rietlow remarked that “the Regal GS is an incredibly capable performance sedan. In addition to the strong acceleration from the engine, the chassis maintained its composure well while running across these closed public roads at high speeds. Likewise, the Brembo brakes were easy to trust coming hot into a corner.”

Kind of makes you want to run out and buy a Regal GS doesn’t it? Can anybody say “sleeper.”

General Motors has started the expansion of its Wentzville, Missouri plant, essentially taking the first steps toward brining the new Chevrolet Colorado to the U.S. 

The $380 million expansion to the assembly plant will retain or create 1,260 jobs as GM starts to build the next generation of its midsize pickups at the location. No details have been given on when the plant expansion will be completed or what products will be built at the plant, but we’re confident that the new Chevrolet Colorado will be built there.

However, the midsize pickup might not be called the Chevrolet Colorado as it is now, when it launches. Currently, GM is working on completing its refresh of all its full-size pickups as 2014 model years before bringing the new midsize to market.

“This is the first of many of what we hope are many good news announcements” at the plant, said GM spokeswoman Stephanie Jentgen.

[Source: Detroit News]

The latest rumblings from Down Under are suggesting that GM subsidiary Holden will soon announce its plan to export the V8 Commodore to the American market as the Chevrolet SS Performance sedan.

If and when that announcement comes, as it’s expected to, it will confirm speculation that the mysterious “SS” badge recently filed with the U.S. Patent Office and then leaked through the OnStar app is, in fact, the next generation Commodore. Another big hint in what’s really more of a sure thing, Holden has been testing left hand-drive versions of the Commodore, presumably in preparation for other-side-of-the-road markets like America.

It also seems the upcoming nameplate might be tied NASCAR. News.com.au speculated in the same article that GM’s decision to scrap the Impala from the sport will leave a slot open to be filled by by the SS Performance.

As we’ve reported before, the upcoming car will almost certainly be a revived Pontiac G8, which was the previous attempt at selling a Holden to U.S. consumers. Financial difficulty brought a swift end to both the car and brand, as GM couldn’t justify maintaining it while floundering.

[Source: News.com.au]

General Motors, the world’s largest automaker, has confirmed its plan to pull $10 million worth of ads from social media behemoth, Facebook, just days before the site’s IPO. 

The move reflects  a lack of faith on GM’s part that its paid advertising affects the consumers being targeted enough to justify continuing the ads. This isn’t the first time in recent history that the company cut its ad spending. Earlier this year we reported that GM had consolidated most of its ad spending to Aegis Group’s Carat London operation, cutting several smaller companies out of its budget.

With so much speculation surrounding Facebook’s ground-shattering IPO, having the U.S.’ third-largest advertiser pull out can’t be a good sign, but it isn’t clear if, and by how much, the decision will affect the network moving forward.

Greg Martin, A GM spokesperson told the Detroit News, that the company regularly re-evaluates where its advertising dollars go, and that this was a routine move.

“In terms of Facebook specifically, while we currently do not plan to continue with advertising, we remain committed to an aggressive content strategy through all of our products and brands, as it continues to be a very effective tool for engaging with our customers,” he said.

While the higher-ups at Facebook might be sweating a little, most car fans probably couldn’t care less about the ads disappearing — exactly the mentality behind the move.

What they (you) probably do care about are the fan pages, which GM says will remain intact.

[Source: the Detroit News]

After losing its crown as the world’s largest automaker in 2011, Toyota looks to regain its position at the top of the heap, out-selling rivals General Motors and Volkswagen through the first quarter of this year.

With sales up 18 percent globally, Toyota moved 2.49 million vehicles, putting the Japanese auto giant just ahead of GM’s 2.28 million tally. Germany’s Volkswagen AG, which has said it will become number one on the list by 2018, currently sits third with 2.16 million units for the first three months of the year.

Toyota first claimed the top spot as the world’s largest automaker in 2008, aided by low sales for GM as it underwent bankruptcy protection. The Japanese automaker then managed to hold on to its number one position for the following two years before last year’s Japanese earthquake and tsunami significantly impacted production, dropping Toyota from first to third.

Along with restored production, Toyota is seeing improved sales as it begins to significantly revamp its lineup, rolling out a new version of it’s top selling Camry mid-size sedan, while also introducing new versions of the Prius hybrid like the Prius c and Prius v.

[Source: Bloomberg]

This year has been rough for Porsche designers. Last month Ferdinand Porsche, designer of the 911, passed away; and now Tony Lapine (second from left), former chief designer at Porsche passed away at the age of 81 on Sunday, April 29.

Lapine is most well-known for his front-engined Porsche 928 design as he headed the Style Porsche design studio from 1969 to 1988. The Porsche 924 and 944 models were also under his direction. During those years, the German automaker saw its biggest changes in corporate structure including the foundation of an Executive Board whose members came from outside the Porsche family. Both the 924 and 944 models that Lapine helped design are important to Porsche’s history because both models represent the growing relationship with Audi and the Volkswagen.

Previous to his stint at Porsche, Lapine created memorable concepts for General Motors including the 1960 CERV I, 1962 Corvair Monza GT, 1963 Corvair Monza SS, and the 1963-1964 CERV II. More importantly, he teamed up with Larry Shinoda on the classic design of the 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray.

Born in 1930, Lapine began his automotive journey with an apprenticeship at Daimler-Benz before traveling to the U.S. to work for GM. GM eventually transferred him to Germany to head the Opel Research Center where he was snatched up by Porsche in 1969.

“As a designer, he didn’t follow fashion, but was forever setting new trends with his concepts,” said Porsche’s current chief designer Michael Mauer.

Marking a milestone in one of the key hindrances to plague electric vehicles (EVs) thus far, eight of the word’s automakers have agreed to unify on a harmonized charging system capable of a 15-minute recharge.

Offering a harmonized system or a lack thereof isn’t the problem, but offering an efficient way of charging EVs across the range of makes is. Much like any other device that relies on batteries and needs to be charged, anything that simplifies and speeds the charging process is helpful to consumers. Imagine a unified cell phone charger. It would enable pubic charging stations to keep your mobile juiced.

The same idea applies to EVs, and it seems automakers are recognizing the merit of offering broad customer convenience. With that in mind, Audi, BMW, Chrysler, Daimler, Ford, General Motors, Porsche and Volkswagen have agreed to cooperate in implementing a fast charging system. The system will be demonstrated at the Electric Vehicle Symposium 26, taking place from May 6 though 9 in L.A.

With the new system, cars will be able to accept varying forms of AC and DC charge to create a dynamic system capable of receiving ultra-fast DC-charging at public stations as well as AC charging, fast three-phase AC charging and DC-charging at home.

Each of the participating automakers already have vehicles in development that will be capable of using the new combined charging system which was chosen by the Society of Automotive Engineers to become the standard which will be officially published this summer.

While fast charging technology still lags behind the time it takes an average gas car to refuel, offering sub half hour speeds is a big improvement over the 20 hours it takes to recharge a Nissan Leaf on a standard 120-volt household outlet.

Having renewed its long-term business relationship with GM, Walt Disney Land has renovated, or “re-imagined”, an older test track feature at Epcot for a more up-to-date experience.

With an atmosphere that combines Tron themes and the appearances of a development lab, the new ride incorporates a new design center concept that allows visitors to design and create their own GM vehicles. Guests use interactive design and styling workstations to come up with their own prototypes, and will later hop aboard to experience their thrilling creation first-hand on the twisting and turning Test Track. After the ride, participants can also make their own pretend commercial, or take a picture with the new car.

Sponsored by Chevrolet, the ride is intended to provide a fun learning experience, sharing a look inside the process of vehicle testing and development.

Expect the new Epcot Center Test Track to be revealed this fall. To car enthusiasts planning a fun trip to Orlando, don’t miss out!

GALLERY: Epcot Center’s Test Track

A series of very public Li-ion defect related incidents have caused the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) decision to hold a meeting with automakers and battery suppliers with regards to the safety of the new technology.

“The purpose of this symposium is to bring together relevant stakeholders to share information on the status of safety activities related to the use of Li-ion batteries in vehicles designed for on-road use,” NHTSA explained.

Public concerns were raised last year when a Chevrolet Volt plug-in electric vehicle had ignited following a NHTSA crash test. Then, the reliability of battery packs were put into question when a brand-new Fisker Karma EV had inexplicably stopped working during testing with Consumer Reports. In more recent news, a prototype battery extreme testing related explosion occurred at the Warren, Michigan GM Technical Center laboratory, injuring five employees.

Investigations on the Volt have found that GM’s electric vehicle is no more of a fire risk than cars with conventional gasoline engines. The Fisker defect was caused by faulty calibration of battery supplier A123′s battery welding process. Finally, the GM Tech Center incident was caused by a prototype and certainly not intended for production. None of these incidents indicate that Li-ion batteries are particularly unsafe, but amid the negative publicity, the public and the administration are struggling to understand the nature of the technology.

What’s more, supporters of the electric vehicle blame the safety issues surrounding Li-ion batteries as the cause of the lackluster sales numbers of electric cars. Both the Chevy Volt and Nissan Leaf missed the 10,000 unit sales target last year.

NHTSA is looking to clear the air when it conducts the safety meeting on May 18 in Washington, D.C.

It’s called “Super Cruise” and is essentially a semi-autonomous technology that enables a vehicle to incorporate fully automatic steering, braking and lane centering under certain driving conditions. Furthermore, Cadillac says this technology could be ready for production by mid-decade. 

Some of the fundamentals of this Super Cruise technology can already be found in existing Cadillac models, notably the 2013 XTS and ATS, as part of the Driver Assist Package. Notable features within this umbrella include adaptive cruise control at all speed ranges, lane departure warning, intelligent brake assist, automatic rear braking, automatic collision preparation and rear vision camera with dynamic guidelines.

Super Cruise will essentially take this technology to the next level and according to Cadillac, has been designed to ease driving stress on the freeway by gleaning information from ultrasonic sensors, radar, cameras and GPS map data.

“Super Cruise has the potential to improve driver performance and enjoyment,” remarked vice president of Cadillac marketing Don Butler. “Our goal with advanced technologies, like this and our CUE system, is to lead in delivering an intuitive user experience.”

However, even GM acknowledges there will still be limitations with the system. Because it relies on positioning data, namely forward looking cameras to detect lane markings and GPS data to examine road curvature, in poor weather, such as fog or heavy rain, it won’t be able to operate and drivers will still have to do the steering themselves.

John Capp, GM’s director of Global Active Safety Electronics and Innovation, believes the fundamental concept behind Super Cruise and other autonomous vehicle programs is safety. “In the coming years,” he said, “autonomous driving systems paired with advanced safety systems could help eliminate the crash altogether by interceding on behalf of drivers before they’re even aware of a hazardous situation. More than ever, consumers will be able to trust their car to do the right thing.”

General Motors announced pricing for its bi-fuel Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra 2500 heavy-duty pickup trucks today, saying the vehicles will cost $11,000 above base price. 

Customers may begin placing orders for the CNG trucks on March 19 and will be available in standard or longbox configurations with either two- or four-wheel drive.

“The announcement of the bi-fuel Silverado and Sierra has been well-received among customers, which sends a clear message that businesses are looking for alternative fuel options to meet their needs,” said Ed Peper, general manager, GM Fleet and Commercial Operations.  “The addition of the full-size bi-fuel pickups to our product portfolio is part of our commitment to offer great products, innovative business solutions and an exceptional customer experience.”

Running on either compressed natural gas (CNG) or gasoline, the trucks are powered by a 6.0-liter V8 that can seamlessly transition between fuels. Doing so will allow for between $5,000 and $10,000 in savings annually, according to GM. Although the trucks are initially more expensive, over time the reduced fuel costs will save money for the businesses that use them.

“Businesses are looking for ways to control their costs while reducing vehicle emissions and becoming less dependent on fluctuating gas prices. The low cost of ownership makes these vehicles a realistic solution,” said Joyce Mattman, director, GM Commercial Product and Specialty Vehicles.  “CNG has maintained a significantly lower retail price than either gasoline or diesel. The current average price of CNG is equivalent to $1.89 per gallon of gasoline.”

Yesterday, an explosion was reported at the General Motors Technical Center in Warren, Michigan and early reports had one or two people injured. An official statement was released by GM that five people were injured, one seriously.

“We are aware of five employees being evaluated on scene by medical personal and only one employee is being further treated,” said GM.

The one employee who was injured seriously is expected to make a full recovery and no one suffered life-threatening injuries in the accident. According to GM, the explosion “was related to extreme testing on a prototype battery,” and of course the American automaker had to include that it was “unrelated to the Chevrolet Volt or any other production vehicle.”

It is being reported that the prototype lithium-ion battery that exploded was manufactured by A123 Systems, who recently had to deal with all the negative press surrounding the Fisker Karma and is already facing financial obstacles.

Watch the news report below.

[Video source: ABC 7 News]