Another Ridiculous Mercedes

Are you serious, Brabus? (Image courtesy of Topspeed.com)

Have you ever thought, 'This Mercedes GL is just not fast enough for taking the kids to soccer practice?' Well, you are in luck because Brabus, the horsepower-hungry Mercedes tuner, has introduced the GL63 Biturbo. While Mercedes' AMG division has (wisely, perhaps?) not produced a tuned version of the GL, Brabus has picked up the slack and, as usual, in grand fashion.

The the 6.3 liter V8 GL63 Biturbo boasts a 650hp engine, coupled with two turbochargers (because one was clearly not enough). The list of other additions to the standard GL goes on and on, reading like something off a SL63, from the 23 inch rims to the tweaked seven-speed transmission. While it has not officially been released yet, you can order yours now for a mere $518,000--quite reasonable, I think...

Putting aside the absurdity of a tuner producing a 650hp SUV while some automakers struggle to stay afloat, I am still left with little to justify the GL63 Biturbo. Granted, I like absurd engine-to-automobile combinations as much as the next enthusiast (M5 Wagon, anyone?), but I have to draw the line with this Brabus creation--and, perhaps, even before that. Now, I must admit that I question the need for a GL in the first place--they are ugly, heavy, and greatly over-priced for their purpose--and the Brabus additions only further this sentiment. But, I suppose if you have roughly $500k to spend on a SUV, you are not much concerned with costs and practicality...

Toyota's Reliability Reduction

The Last Reliable Toyota? 

I have never been a huge fan of Toyotas. While I will concede that Honda has always been a bit of a maverick (if they have grayed slightly in recent years), Toyota has persisted in being a purveyor of soulless auto-appliances to the masses. One purchases a Toyota with the same enthusiasm and consideration that one buys a refrigerator: is it big enough, what color is it, and (maybe) how much energy does it use? Despite this, I have always had to acknowledge their record for superlative build quality. One of my good friends in high school had a Camry with more than 300,000 miles on the clock and it was still going strong (even if it did burn a fair percentage of oil as well as gas).

That is what I find so shocking about this Economist article detailing Toyota's decision to stop producing and selling cars in North America. It seems that new Toyotas have become death traps that propel their occupants at full-throttle into highway embankments. Without any trace of sarcasm and in full seriousness, here is a point of education that may save your life:

If the accelerator in your car sticks:

1) Put the car into neutral
2) Pull slowly to the side of the road if it is safe

If necessary, practice doing this if you don't think you can do this in a panic situation.

Public service announcements aside, this is a reversal of public opinion and character perception that would make even the most depraved former child star proud. One moment you are the faultless darling, the next you're a walking example of poor choices, selfishness, and the destructive pursuit of fame and glory. I wonder if the same sort of hubris that overcame General Motors had infected Toyota, as well. Getting to the top means staying at the top. Too often, though, does success breed complacency. Perhaps slipping will bring out the competitive fire that propelled Toyota to that top spot. It's a rough market these days, though, and now was certainly not a time to tumble.

The (Forgotten) Enjoyment of Driving

The open road. (Image courtesy of flickr.com)

While running errands earlier today, I found myself reflecting on driving. All too often, our time spent on the roads is dominated by traffic difficulties, rushing from Point A to Point B, and so forth. For many drivers--most, I submit--driving is a necessary nuisance and, when you factor in fuel and repair bills, a financially costly nuisance. Our car is the means by which we get to work, to the grocery store, to dinner--it is an intermediary between the things that actually matter in our daily routine. We rarely look forward to getting in our cars--when is the last time you have looked forward to your commute?--and dread trips to the repair shop, as if we were having to go to the dentist's office.

Having spent a great many years in cities, I can say that my love of driving has diminished. By this point, I barely need more than third gear in my daily travels, and spend more time being upset about other city drivers' idiotic actions on the roads, than I do relishing in the sound of the motor. On a recent roadtrip, however, I found myself enjoying the open road, despite the mundane stretch of pavement that is Interstate 95. While I do lament my lack of time on winding, empty, back roads as of late, I do appreciate these fleeting moments when I remember why driving is enjoyable. I encourage all of our imaginary readers to remember the pure freedom inherent in driving and the beauty of the machine in which they are seated. With any luck, the morning commute will feel just a little bit shorter.

Welcome to a New Year

Remember When You Thought These Guys Would be Around Forever?

(Image Credits: Universal Television)

Suffice to say, 2009 was probably the roughest year the automotive industry has seen since the gas crisis years of the early 1980s. If FY 2009 for the automotive industry was a TV series it would be Miami Vice's 5th and final season: formulaic episodes, bad makeup, and plotlines that left you thinking how could it possibly get any worse, and then it did. What made it so bad is that we remember when things were so good, when GM and Ford were the Crockett and Tubbs of the automotive world. Both managed to scrape and claw into the next decade; GM only with some serious fleecing generosity of the American people. 
So, as we flip the clock over into 2010, we at Fuel Interjected would like to say thanks to you, our imaginary readers for sticking with us. It's a rough time to be car bloggers, but it's a great time to be graduate students (depending on how you look at it). 2010 promises to be a big year for us here at FI; we'll be rolling out a new look sometime in the first quarter. Expect more frequent posts outside of exam and heavy work times. We're poised on the cusp of the future of personal transportation and we want to be there telling you what we think.

Happy New Year.

- W