Autocade nets 25,000,000th page view

25.08.2021/11.09

Above: The new Honda Civic, the 4,500th model added to Autocade. In the next few hours, Autocade will have netted its 25 millionth page view, at a slightly slower rate than the last million by several days (it’s two months, 10 days this time). Therefore, it’s not quite a record rate, but I hope it […]

Volkswagen’s scandal won’t spread to other German car groups

24.09.2015/14.50

If you want a humorous take on what happened at Volkswagen this week, the above video sums it all up. During my 2010 mayoral campaign, I noted that if New Zealand did not diversify its economy to have more of a focus on technology, there could be a problem. Relying on primary products (I didn’t […]

Joan Rivers had better facelifts, but it’s the future of the black cab

06.01.2014/11.59

Part of me admires Nissan for going after the taxi market in a big way in New York and London. Another part of me wonders why on earth the London Hackney Carriage solution is so ugly. I think Nissan should have asked Mr Mitsuoka for advice on how to Anglicize one of its […]

Dodge revives the Dart, while UK Delta owners revive Lancia

07.12.2011/11.54

Fiat has announced that it’s going to bring back the Dodge Dart nameplate on a compact sedan based on a stretched Alfa Romeo Giulietta platform for the 2013 model year. This was actually mentioned when Chrysler was going cap-in-hand to the US Government, so it’s not a total surprise. The nameplate, however, is. […]

I wanted to grow up and be the Dean Martin version of Matt Helm

15.07.2011/11.49

As a child growing up in Wellington, there were a few TV series that shaped my beliefs about being grown-up in the occident. The ﬁrst I’ve written about before: The Persuaders, which is in part where this blog gets its name. I’ve probably mentioned Return of the Saint elsewhere, not to mention the plethora of […]

Chloé chief sees China moving to more understated luxury—or is it?

28.02.2011/09.17

Geoffroy de la Bourdonnaye of Chloé believes the mainland Chinese market is moving toward more understated luxury. I believe there’ll always be a mixture. The understated buyer is emerging probably because of saturation by more extrovert brands—and often, buyers want to get something different, rather than conform. And the top-end luxury brands have […]

Retro moment: the ﬁrst American Ford Granada

28.11.2010/09.31

Above: The US Ford Granada in a contemporary advertisement, as posted at americangranada.com. Not the European car, but the American one of the same name: the Ford Granada was marketed as a US alternative to a Mercedes-Benz. Not as overstyled as, say, the Ford Maverick, this was an extremely heavy car, and Ford’s marketing […]