Rumorpile: Volkswagen Jetta To Drop 2.5L For 1.4T

William Maley Editor/Reporter - CheersandGears.com January 28, 2012 Back in November, we reported on Volkswagen was planning on dropping the 2.5L for a 1.8T due to the company simplifying their manufacturing and to increase fuel economy. Now, there is another engine in play. Volkswagen executives told Car & Driver the Jetta could drop its 2.5L for a 1.4T engine. The 1.4T made its first appearance in the Jetta Hybrid shown at the North American International Auto Show in January. The 1.4T produces 150 HP and 184 lb-ft of torque, both of which would be reasonable numbers in the Jetta’s segment. Plus, the 1.4T should deliver better MPG than the 2.5L. Plans for the swap haven’t been finalized, but executives seem confident in the plan being approved. And if the 1.4T is ap...

GM Launches Ad Campaign To Rebuild Volt's C...

William Maley Editor/Reporter - CheersandGears.com January 27, 2012 The Chevrolet Volt has been getting a lot of negative press over the past few months dealing with the fire that happened a month after a NHTSA crash test and ensuing investigation. Because of this, General Motors has launched a new ad campaign talking about how the safe the Volt is. The campaign will include full-page ads in nineteen different U.S. newspapers including The New York Times, touting the safety of the Volt. Also, GM has a new television ad that calls the Volt "the car America had to build." The launch of the ad campaign coincides with Wednesday's Volt Hearing in D.C. Source: Bloomberg

Mini To Possibly Separate JCW Models, Diesels L...

William Maley Editor/Reporter - CheersandGears.com January 27, 2012 Mini Boss Kay Segler has revealed some interesting information to Car & Driver this week. First, Segler talked about Mini’s John Cooper Works possibly becoming something like BMW’s M performance brand. This idea comes with good and bad news - if it was implemented, that would mean JCW models would be positioned as stand-alone models, which means more power to differentiate them. Unfortunately, Selger said that AWD was currently too expensive to implement in Minis unless the brand sees a large sales volume increase. Executives and engineers know they’re almost hitting the wall on how much power can be sent to the front wheels with the JCW models. The question of how power will be added is up in th...