A biweekly roundup of automotive news, good, bad and just plain weird.
Last Phantoms include parts of production line
In a rather clever marketing move, Rolls-Royce has just announced that they’ll be inserting a piece of the actual production line into each of the 50 last Phantoms as they are all built. Each of the so-called Zenith Phantoms will receive a chunk of metal in the dashboard which will be numbered and laser-engraved and encased in aluminium. The word bespoke is used about 78 times in the press release.
From a collectability standpoint, this is a smart move by Rolls. Their well-heeled clientele may now rest assured that their last-of-breed cars will not be replicated. Odds are the next Phantom will have some kind of turbocharged engine too, so maybe there’s a case to be made that these things will hold their eye-watering price tags.
But I really don’t think they will. An old Rolls-Royce is a classic, and represents rolling artwork that may be restored to its former glory. A new Rolls-Royce is a consumable, filled with miles of electronic wiring harnesses and dozens of electrical components all waiting to fizzle out. Also, the Phantom is a bit of an imposing lump of a thing. A colleague memorably noted that it looks like Oswald Mosley commissioned BMW to come up with a staff car for the British Fascist Party.
So sure, package up the factory if you want to and line it with walnut burls and polished geegaws. I’d rather have the 1930s version and a butler.
Nissan absorbs one-third of Mitsubishi
The global fuel-economy falsifying crisis claimed another victim this week after Mitsubishi admitted to fudging their mileage numbers. Actually, what am I saying: we’re the victims here, not the auto companies. If they’re damaged by their malfeasance, then too flippin’ bad.
Nissan was quick to swoop in as Mitsu’s stock dived, buying up 34 per cent of the stricken Japanese company’s shares. The two companies already have a strong history of co-operation, with Mitsubishi already supplying several Nissan-badged cars in the European markets.
So, while this doesn’t mean that you soon won’t be able to buy a Mirage any more, it does perhaps mean that there’ll be more overlap between the two brands. Maybe the new Mirage will actually be a decontented Versa, and the Rogue will get Mitsu’s excellent all-wheel-drive system. We shall see.
Hyundai builds Aliens-style exoskeleton
In Korea, factory workers are expected to be punctual, hard-working, polite, and capable of fighting off a Xenomorph invasion. OK, maybe the last is a bit of a stretch, but Hyundai certainly seems to be taking inspiration from the Aliens trilogy of films. They’ve just come up with a functioning robotic exoskeleton, like that used by Sigourney Weaver to fight the big bad Alien Queen.
The wearable robot allows workers to lift hundreds of kilograms worth of heavy components, or carry smaller 50-kilogram bits over very long distances. It also makes the wearer look a bit like a low-budget version of Iron Man.
Exploding alarm wards off thieves
The car alarm as we know it is a useless annoyance that almost nobody pays attention to any more. If you hear the whooping of a siren or the honking of a horn, chances are you’ll ignore it. A gun going off? Now you’ve got my attention, and my interest.
That’s the idea behind Bike Mine, a simple anti-theft device that incorporates a blank shell and a trigger mechanism. Intended to be strapped to a motorcycle or a bicycle, if a thief sets off Bike Mine, he or she can expect a 150 decibel blast and a cloud of smoke.
Given the amount of thievery of bicycles that goes on in the Lower Mainland, widespread acceptance of Bike Mine could soon mean the North Shore could sound a bit like parts of Afghanistan. Still, if you’ve ever had your bike stolen, the idea that an anti-theft device could give a thief a heart attack is a charming one.
Ford GT receives thousands of applications
Ford is making just 500 examples of its mid-engined supercar, but has received more than 6,500 applications from potential buyers. A lot of people are going to be disappointed, but then again, it’s this limited availability that has kept the price of the previous generation GT sky high.
Ford returns to Le Mans this year, which is drumming up interest in the car, but let’s compare the GT to the Acura NSX. The GT is manual only, very limited in numbers, and rear-drive only. The NSX is a much more complex all-wheel drive turbocharged hybrid machine, a bit like a budget McLaren. It’s the former that’s getting all the accolades.
That’s a shame for Acura, but not surprising. Even if Ford never makes a dime selling their GT, its popularity elevates the whole brand. They’ll sell a lot of Ecoboost Mustangs off the back of this thing.
Watch this space for all the best and worst of the automotive world, or submit your own auto oddities to [email protected].
