Tag Archives: bmw

Idaho

Smoke ’em if you got ’em: First ever (legal) Drift Car event, at the Mall!

Video

The Pine Ridge Mall in Chubbuck, Idaho, hosted three SCCA autocross events this year, and for an encore hosted an Inaugural Drift Car event.

Work began on the evening of 04OCT2024, establishing the area of the parking lot that would be used.  Formula Drift-Rudy Hansen, Apex Idaho, Pocatello Car Club, and a host of others, helped make the inaugural smoke show possible.

The cleanest that part of the parking lot has been in decades!

They were still prepping the parking lot the next morning.

Waiting in the wings, 05OCT2024:

Plenty of seating, at a safe distance.

Warming up (teasing) the spectators who were straggling in:

Too bad they didn’t drift this patriotic van.

The pros show you how:

It’s amazing how cars sliding around light poles can hold people’s attention for several hours. One more time:

The event ran most of the day.  For a fee you could view the action from danger-close in the ‘restricted area’, and for another fee you could take a ride (of your life).  Going by the size of the spectator crowd (which was bigger than any of the SCCA autocross events) I suspect (hope) they’ll be a Second Annual Drift Car Show, in 2025.

At the Mall: Early Halloween, Trunk or Treat

Business/Economics, International

What Economic Recovery? Mitsubishi desperate to sell off European factory, for only one Euro!!!

11 July 2012, NHK (nippon housou kyoukai/Japan Broadcasting Corporation) reporting that Mitsubishi Motors is so desperate to dump its factory in Netherlands, that it’s willing to take only one euro (currently equal to $1.22 USD)!

A Dutch company, VDL, wants to buy it and build licensed BMWs. The factory employes 1,500 people, and Mitsubishi wants to make sure they all keep their jobs with the new owners, so, they’ve made a deal to sell the factory for only one euro with a guarantee from VDL that no one loses their job.

 

Business/Economics, International, U.S.

Global Economic War: China slaps U.S. made cars with tariffs, blames it on the anti-free trade action of the United States

“U.S. vehicles benefiting from subsidies and dumping on the China market have substantially damaged China’s auto industry.”-statement from Chinese Ministry of Commerce

General Motors and Chrysler will suffer the most from Chinese economic action against vehicles made in the United States.

Anti-dumping duties on GM vehicles are 8.9%, and 8.8% for Chrysler vehicles.

GM vehicles will also face anti-subsidy duties of 12.9%, and 6.2% for Chrysler vehicles.

The tariffs target cars with engines bigger than 2.5 liters, and made between December 201 through December 2013.

German car makers BMW and Mercedes will be hit with much much lower tariffs.

Chinese officials say the United States is violating the trade rules of the U.S. dominated World Trade Organization.

GM and Chrysler officials are not to worried.  Why? Because the majority of the cars they sell in China, are actually made in China (another reason for growing unemployment in the U.S.), and the tariffs do not apply to the cars they make in China.

 

Business/Economics, International, U.S.

What Economic Recovery? German Auto Makers making big profits, but economists say the party is over

The Germany auto industry has seen skyrocketing sales this year, mainly in China and India.  But a Center Automotive Research at the University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany, study predicts dire sales in the near future.

CAR boss Ferdinand Dudenhöffer, says the growing debt problems of Europe, United States, and even Japan, will eventually drag down the world economy.  He predicts a “significant fall in growth” for the German auto industry.

Germany has the strongest performing car makers in the world.  According to the Center of Automotive Management, VW holds 1st place, Daimler 2nd, and BMW holds 4th place (Korea’s Hyundai holds 3rd).

However, Center of Automotive Management predicts German car sales in China will soon drop off.  So far Germany has seen 20% to 30% sales gains year after year.  CAM analysts believe that in the near future German car makers will be lucky to see 5% sales growth in China and India.

5% sales growth will not be enough to make up for predicted loses in other markets (like the U.S.): “The gains that will be made in China and India won’t be able to compensate for the slight losses in other markets.”-Ferdinand Dudenhöffer, Center Automotive Research