Monday, August 22, 2011
For Advertising Information Contact Your Local Cars.Com On-The-Move Sales Team at 599-2329
Ethanol blend raises ire of classic car buffs, manufacturers By Bill Laitner Detroit Free Press
DETROIT — The presence of ethanol — an alcohol additive made from corn — in gasoline is hardly noticed by consumers. “Most likely, you’re getting ethanol everywhere you drive in the country,” generally with 10 percent added ethanol, said Kirk McCauley, a spokesman for the Service Station Dealers Association of America. Federal regulators leave it to the states to decide whether pumps must be labeled disclosing that they dispense fuel blended with E10. About a dozen states don’t require ethanol label-
ing on gas pumps. Classic car buffs say 10 percent ethanol already in widespread use hurts their vehicles. But the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says it’s safe. Periodically, when an old car breaks down or a chain saw or boat motor selfdestructs, the owner blames ethanol-blended gasoline. Trade groups for the ethanol industry and corn producers vigorously dispute such complaints, saying ethanol is safe for any new car and that, for older cars, parts can be adapted and fuel additives used during storage as safeguards. The makers of engines and
other parts side with classic-car owners and their mechanics. “You can have people keeping a collector car in the garage, taking very good care of it, but the ethanol in there is corroding the vehicle,” said Stuart Gosswein, senior director of federal government affairs for the Specialty Equipment Market Association, which represents manufacturers of racing and custom auto parts. T h i s ye a r, t h e E PA approved allowing even more ethanol — a 15 percent mix. That proposal upset automakers and small-engine companies, who said that at 15 percent ethanol even newer
cars and newer small engines would be damaged. “We’re basing our concerns on the cars that are on the road today,” and on the corrosive effect that 15 percent-ethanol fuel could have on fuel pumps, fuel tanks, hoses and emissions parts, said Gloria Bergquist, vice president of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, a trade group that includes the Detroit Three automakers and other manufacturers, including Toyota and Volkswagen. The alliance, along with other trade groups, sued the EPA in January to stop the introduction of E15. Small-engine manufacturers are concerned about
the effects on boat motors, chain saws and lawn mowers. Despite the lawsuit, the EPA approved the sale of E15, with labels, for vehicles made in model year 2001 and later. That’s drawing cheers from the American Coalition for Ethanol, a Washingtonbased trade association of ethanol producers and corn growers, who say ethanol is perfectly safe for cars and small engines sold today, and say it’s boosting the economy by adding jobs in corngrowing states. Foes of ethanol worry that E15 will become the norm in time and they won’t be able to tell when they are buy-
ing it. “The answer is not to stop this 15 percent ethanol, it’s to get all of the ethanol out of gasoline,” said classic-car mechanic Ed Syrocki, owner of EMS Classic Car Care in Warren, Mich. Officials at the Renewable Fuels Association, representing the ethanol industry, said ethanol fuels can be safely used in old cars if owners adapt the fuel systems with new parts. Association spokesman Matt Hartwig said the cost would “be minor in comparison to what (owners) would be willing to spend on the exterior of the car, for example.”
Fiat hopes Gucci version will boost US 500 sales The Associated Press
DETROIT — Fiat will introduce a Gucci version of its stylish 500 mini car in the United States later this year. The black special edition of the car features glossy paint, chrome detailing and a leather interior with white accents. It has the Italian fashion label’s interlocking “GG” inscription on the headrests and wheels, and Gucci’s signature green-andred stripe along the body side, the seat belt and seat backs. It will be introduced Sept. 8 at the start of New York Fashion Week but won’t hit showrooms until December. It’s an effort to boost sales of the car, which have been slow since its U.S. debut in March. Fiat has sold about 11,500 of the mini cars in the United States and Canada, well short of its 50,000 goal for the year.
Fiat has been slowly opening U.S. dealerships. It now has about 100 nationwide and says it expects higher sales through the rest of the year. The company plans to have a total of 130 dealers nationwide, mainly in larger metro areas. Fiat stock was trading down by as much as 6 percent, at $6.99, on the Milan Stock Exchange on speculation that it would not meet the 500’s sales targets in North America. The Gucci 500 unites two of Italy’s most emblematic brands: the Fiat automaker and the historic Gucci leather goods and fashion label. The Gucci version of the car was the brandchild of Lapo Elkann, an heir of the Fiat-founding Agnelli family, who persuaded Frida Giannini, Gucci’s creative director, to collaborate on the project over lunch in Rome. The Gucci version was launched
in Europe earlier this year to coincide with the 150th anniversary of Italian unification and the 90th anniversary of Gucci’s founding in Rome. The 2012 Fiat 500, a three-door hatchback with rounded styling that evokes the original 500 from 1957, is Fiat’s first vehicle in the U.S. since it pulled out of the market in 1983 because of rust problems and other quality issues. Fiat said it will announce the price of the Gucci edition closer to its U.S. debut. The 500 starts at $15,500 in the United States. A Gucci convertible version also will be offered. Fiat now owns 53.5 percent of U.S. automaker Chrysler Group LLC and is looking to combine the companies. Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne was given management control and a 20 percent stake in Chrysler after it left bankruptcy protection in 2009.
Fiat Spa/the aSSociated preSS
The Fiat 500 special edition by Gucci features a leather interior with white accents. It has the Italian fashion label’s interlocking “GG” on the headrests and wheels, and Gucci’s signature green-and-red stripe along the body side, the seat belt and seat backs.