2008 Jeep Grand Cherokee 3L Diesel

I was browsing the Net for reviews on new vehicle models. I stumbled upon a review of the new Chevrolet Camaro, but I found it still lacking. It’s perfectly understandable because the 2008 Camaro hasn’t yet been unveiled, but there have been a few who have been granted an exclusive peek at the new model, so I was kinda keeping my fingers crossed there. Unfortunately, there was still nothing much about the new Chevy in the news. On other hand, I did stumble on a great review about the 2008 Jeep Grand Cherokee 3L Diesel written by Rex Roy, a columnist for the Detroit Bureau of the Auto Channel. Here are a few lines from his first-hand review:

…In industry parlance, this SUV is mid-cycle—another way of saying that its middle aged, old news, not worthy of much attention, and completely out of the media limelight. However, when fitted with the 3.0-liter clean diesel V-6 produced by Mercedes-Benz, the Grand Cherokee suddenly becomes a newly-relevant SUV.

With the exception of a small badge on the rear hatch, you'd never know this Jeep packed a huge diesel punch while sipping fuel like a tree hugging hybrid.

It's not that the tried-and-true Grand Cherokee isn't a fine SUV when powered by any of its three gasoline-fired engines. The Jeep's lightweight unibody and trail rated suspension deliver performance and refinement that compare favorably within the class of five-passenger SUVs.

Certainly, the 420-horsepower SRT-8 models lives in rarified air because of its mind-bending acceleration and cornering performance. However —more like HOWEVER—in 2008 the biggest newsmakers are attracting attention by "out greening" their competition.

…

The specifications on the diesel are this: 215 horsepower at 3800 rpm, 376 lb-ft of torque at a low1600-2800 rpm, and a towing capacity rated at a maximum of 7,400 lbs. What these numbers don't tell you is that while racking up such impressive performance figures, the diesel produces approximately 30-percent fewer C02 emissions than its gasoline-burning counterparts…

For an SUV, this information is definitely very surprising. And it’s also promising to say the least. How I would wish this same technology can be applied to Hummers so I won’t feel guilty every time I drive one. Maybe next week I’ll get to read a review of the new Chevy Camaro.

Tata Motors: Hoping to Breathe Life into the Jaguar

Here’s more on the Tata Motors acquisition of British auto marquee, Jaguar, and its counterpart, Land Rover.

It seems that the desire of Tata Motors for European-owned companies is already bordering on obsession. That may be a bit of an exaggeration, but just take for instance their acquisition of Tetley, the second largest manufacturer and distributor of tea, as well as Corus, which is one of the largest producers of steel. It seems like it’s all a ploy to get back at their former colonizers, but in reality it actually pans out well in the end. The incorporation of the Corus Group into the company which also owns Tata Steel, ensures the monopoly of the production of steel in most countries, and even continents. As for Tetley, well, people love tea especially the British. In fact, Tetley products are widely popular in over 40 countries. Once the transfer of the ownership of Jaguar and Land Rover is finalized, expect Tata Motors to make a play to make these two marques, which by the way are beleaguered by low sales over the past year, the best in the world. It wouldn’t be surprising, because most of the companies that this firm touches turn into gold.

Here are just a couple of the firms that the Tata Group owns:

Ø Tata Motors

Ø Tata Steel

Ø Tata Power

Ø Tata Petrodyne

Ø Tata Chemicals

Ø Indian Hotels

Ø Tata Consultancy Services

Ø Tata Sky

Ø Tata Teleservices

Ø Tata Communications

Ø Tata Ceramics

Ø and others…

That is just about a tenth of the number of firms they own. And to think that those are leading companies in their respective sectors. Ford has made a good play of selling Jaguar and Land Rover to Tata, especially if they have the best interest of the auto-makers name/s at heart. No doubt, Henry Ford, founder of Ford Motors would have sold the marques, if need be, to Tata Motors as well.

Tata Motors Acquires Jaguar and Land Rover

There previously have been talks that Tata Motors was eyeing British marques, Land Rover and Jaguar. Rumors of that began to circulate and then died down after a couple of days. In a stunning turn of events, Ford agreed to sell these two prestigious automakers for a “mere” 2.3 billion. I know it’s a lot of money, but it’s “mere” compared to what Ford paid for Jaguar alone when it first acquired the marquee. What more for both, right? Maybe it’s because of the plummeting sales of Jaguar this year. Moreover, Ford, under the sale agreement, still has to cover the pension plans of these two, meaning they’ll still be paying for the manufacturing and distribution of these two for a period of twelve months. This will be to ease the transition of ownership. It is certainly very generous of them.

The sale is not yet final though, as it will take the two companies’ months to sort out regulatory approvals. The rough estimate when the sale can be finalized is probable by mid-year. So far, this deal has benefited none of the two companies. In an article in the Business Standard, it was cited how the acquisition of Jaguar and Land Rover has affected Tata Motors’ stocks. The writer stated that:

The Tata Motors stock fell the most in two months on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) on concerns of decline in profits of the company after it agreed to buy Jaguar and Land Rover (JLR) from Ford Motor for $2.3 billion.

The stock dropped as much as 7.3% to a low of Rs 630 and traded at Rs 647 at 1320 hours on the BSE. The benchmark index of the BSE, the Sensex, was down 110 points.

Analysts are of the view that Tata Motor's loans to finance the purchase may increase interest payments and profit may fall by 30% next year. The company had tied up $3 billion of short-term loans to fund its acquisition, seeking overseas markets and new technology.

The only good thing that it has brought Tata Motors is the recognition as a major player in the global automotive industry. And combined with China’s play on being the # 1 automobile market in the world, it seems the future is bright for the Asian automotive industry. To strengthen this idea, here are a couple of comments placed in an article in the Financial Times: Mergermarket, to wit:

The deal is small by the standards of the global automotive industry – or of other big mergers and acquisitions in industry and finance – but has been closely followed as a new high-water mark for an Asian company in acquiring two world-renowned automaking marques.

“Their [Tata’s] acquisition of the Jaguar and Land Rover brands will make the world sit up and take notice of India’s growing prominence in the global automotive arena,” said Anand Mahindra, managing director of rival Indian automaker Mahindra & Mahindra, which also considered bidding for the marques.

It may not be a big deal today since Tata Motors is still recoiling from the shock of getting two highly-renowned auto-makers. But once they take the reins, I am willing to bet that they can turn this slump around and turn it into a good thing. I won’t be surprised at all if in the following years, Indian and Chinese companies will buy-out more and more foreign marques, cementing their hold in the process on the global automotive industry. The only thing that they have to face is the challenge of building automobiles that are at par or even better than what are being manufactured today. And considering their impressive business portfolio, I wouldn’t be amazed at all if they rise up to the challenge.

The Transporter’s Mode of Transportation (Part II)

I’m still very much feeling the Jason Statham fever today so I feel like continuing the post about the cars he used in his movies. This time it’s all about The Transporter 2. And if you wait long enough, maybe in 2009 I’ll write about the cars that’ll be used in the third installment. But that would have to wait. Maybe it’s the cars and not the actor that I really like. Oh, well! Anyhow, the second installment was released in 2005. I know it’s about 3 years old already, but I feel my auto-blog won’t be complete without it, or am I just bein’ too melodramatic? I’ve already started it so I might as well finish it.

Audi A8 (W12 6.0)

I mistook the first car Jason Statham used in the movie for an Audi A8, but it turned out to be a 1999 Black BMW 735i. This time around, he did use an Audi A8. And get this: he uses it to transport a rich guy’s kid to and from school. That’s a $120,000 car. He might as well have used a limo while he’s at it. But then again those types of cars are not built for quick getaways. Compared to the first car, this one’s more fuel-efficient especially in highway driving. It is able to go as far as 23 miles on a gallon. It has a 6.0 L, W-12 engine that’s able to produce 450 hp. And that’s surprising given the fact that it’s more fuel-efficient than cars which are less powerful than it. It is highly maneuverable because it has a 6-speed automatic transmission with overdrive. In the hands of Frank Martin (Statham’s character) it becomes one mean machine.

Lamborghini Murciélago Roadster

If the Audi A8 W12 is fuel-efficient, the Lamborghini Murcielago Roadster clearly isn’t. It can only travel half of what the former can travel on one gallon of gas, and maybe even less. So what’s the big deal with this car? For one, billionaires love to drive ‘em. Also, in the movie you’d see that it can catch up to a helicopter and even a jet which is about to take-off. It’s mainly because the Murcielago can reach speeds of up to 211 mph with its 6.5 L, V-12 engine. I’ve featured this in a previous post and I’ve stated that it was also used in Batman Begins as the car that Bruce Wayne, billionaire extraordinaire, favors. And you know what, I get the feeling that whenever there is a chase scene in any action flick, there has to be a Lamborghini in there somewhere. And it’s always the good guy who gets to drive it. You’ve seen it in The Rock, Bedazzled, Die Another Day, Gone in 60 Seconds, The Italian Job and even Dumb and Dumber. That’s a list of very exceptional movies, if you ask me.

Audi A3 Sportback 3.2 Quattro

I don’t remember seeing this one in the movie, although I remember it being mentioned in an interview about the movie before. It’s far less economical than the Audi A8 and smaller. It’s actually too petite for my taste. But being in the movie, it deserves a spot in my post. It’s half the size of the A8 even in fuel capacity. It also has a V-6 which is again half the number of cylinders the Audi A8 has. At first glance, it would not seem to be something that Frank Martin would drive. But, in reality it is a good car. Its top speed is 250 km/h and it can accelerate from 0-100 kmh in just 6.6 seconds. That’s not bad at all.