Chrysler Group Sales Plunge 36% in June

Posting one of the worst sale drops amongst major car manufactures, Chrysler LLC reported that it sold 117,457 units in June, which is 36 percent below the same period last year. “The June results reflect the industry-wide impact of U.S. consumer confidence being at its lowest point since 1992,” Jim Press, President and Vice-Chairman of Chrysler LLC said in an official statement. As for the first six months of the year, Chrysler LLC’s sales were down by 22 percent compared to the first half of 2007 (867,826 vs 1,113,093 units).

2010 Mazda3 Renderings Italian Style

From what we gathered by looking around the net, the forthcoming 2010 Mazda3 is one of the most highly anticipated future vehicles. That was more than evident with the supposedly official Mazda3 Concept pictures (see here) that managed to create quite a hype on the internet. Unfortunately for some, these new renderings come from the Italian website “Infomotori”.

The designer of these new chops took a different approach, applying elements from the Nagare, Ryuga, Hakaze, Taiki and Furai concept cars to a an enlarged version of the Mazda2. Not bad but we would have definetely preferred a different styling for the front-end. –More pics after the jump

Via: Infomotori

Tatra 903 Fuel Cell Concept

Tatra, not to be confused with the Indian carmaker Tata, is a Czech vehicle manufacturer founded in 1850 that produced its first motor car in 1897 and the last one, in 1999 (it continues to build trucks today). Though the company has no official plans to create a new car, Czech magazine AutoDesign&Styling summoned designer Mike Jelinek to draw up a concept of a futuristic Tatra model. Jelinek came up with the Tatra 903 Concept, a fuel-cell powered 4door-coupe. -Continued

Here’s what Jelinek had to say about his creation:

“The water drop shaped back refers to one of the most characteristic values of Tatra, the aerodynamics – same as covered rear wheels. It may look retro, but in the term of aerodynamic optimization it has its own purpose,” said Jelinek.

"The A-pillar has moved in the axis of the car – again, not just a quotation of split screen theme pointing back to the original models, but certainly a safety factor designed to offer a better view from the car. I didn’t want to refer to any model from the history of this legendary manufacturer, but I tried to catch something like the spirit of Tatra cars and bring it to aesthetics of the 21st century.” added Jelinek.






Source: AutoDesign&Styling , Via: Carbodydesign

Hummer Sales Freefall in June: Down Nearly 60%

The way we see it, unless some Saudi prince or Texan gas-ilioner decides to drop the price of an oil-barrel under the $100 mark, by the end of the year Hummer might manage to put itself out of its misery. In June, GM’s brand sold a mere 2,072 units, down 59.3 percent compared to June 2007 when it sold 5,093 vehicles. During the first half of the year, Hummer sales declined a whopping 40.4 percent compared to the first six months of 2007 (16,158 vs 27,108 units). Think Hummer will make it till the end of 2008?

Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X Wallpaper Gallery

We have a habit of constantly changing our desktop –slash- laptop wallpapers, sometimes even twice a day. Since we already did the hard work of finding and downloading these beautiful, high-resolution images of the new Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X, we though it would be a nice idea to share. Just follow the jump and pick out the one(s) you like. -Continued

Toyota Breaking Every Sales Record in Australia

Toyota has set two new sale records in Australia. First of all, it became the first carmaker in the land down-under to surpass the 25,000 sales mark in a month as it sold 25,600 vehicles in June. The previous record of 24,539 sales was set again by Toyota last June. Additionally, for the financial year that ended yesterday, June 30, 2008, Toyota said it sold more than 247,500 vehicles. That’s another all-time industry record as no other automaker has sold more than 200,000 vehicles in Australia in any 12-month period.

Ford Motor Co. June Sales Down 28%, F-Series Plunges 45%

Ford Motor Company’s downfall this year doesn’t seem to end. In June, Ford, Lincoln and Mercury June sales totalled 167,090 vehicles, down 28% versus a year ago while the first half sales totalled 1.1 million units, down 14 percent compared to the same period in 2007. Understandably, no thanks to the huge increase in gas prices this year, sales of large SUVs/pickup trucks received the worse beating.

In the first half, retail sales for the company's SUVs declined 40% versus a year ago and retail sales for trucks and vans declined 31%. The once almighty F-Series saw its June sales plunge 40.5% compared to June 2007 (38,789 vs 65,156). During the first half of the year, the F-Series’ sales were down 22.7 % compared to last year (274,713 vs 355,438).

Even worse, sales of the Expedition were down 59.8%, while sales of the Explorer dropped 52.0% in June! On the bright side, Ford's new Focus retail sales increased 53% versus a year ago.