by Mike Davis | Nov 14, 2011
This is my third in a series of columns about City Cars, the possible future of American motoring if Washington and the Greenies – and perhaps common sense — have their way. Actually, there is a reasonable alternative view to “Greenness” about the future need...
by Mike Davis | Oct 25, 2011
The Fiat 500, returning to the American market after a long absence, and under the guardianship of Chrysler LLC, is cute, fun to drive and well-executed. But are American motorists ready yet for an “A-sized” vehicle? That’s the big question for Fiat, Chrysler, the...
by Mike Davis | Oct 17, 2011
It’s been a year since TheDetroitBureau.com reported first driving the innovative Chevrolet Volt, the first fully developed gas-electric plug-in hybrid. In the months since there has been a lot written about the Volt, its rivalry with the pure battery-electric Leaf...
by Mike Davis | Oct 7, 2011
Jack Miller is a persistent man. You would expect that of a man who claims to be “the world’s last Hudson dealer.” For those who don’t recognize the name – brought back by the character Paul Newman voiced in the original animated Pixar film, Cars – Hudson was a once...
by Mike Davis | Sep 20, 2011
As an “Ol’ Kentucky Story-teller” and, here, an automotive historian, I have always been fascinated by “What If” interpretations of history. To cite just a couple of examples: In modern terms, “what if, after its invasion, the U.S. had discovered that Iraq indeed was...
by Mike Davis | Sep 11, 2011
Originally posted in November 2001; updated and edited for TheDetroitBureau.com for the 10th Anniversary. On its Tenth Anniversary, Americans are still reeling from the unthinkable attacks of September 11, 2001, on New York City’s World Trade Center and Washington’s...
by Mike Davis | Sep 6, 2011
The latest sales numbers saw a steady increase in demand for small cars and crossovers but there were a few anomalies. Based on the sales of the Ford Crown Victoria you might have thought it was the hottest new product on the market. Anything but. Long beyond its...
by Mike Davis | Aug 17, 2011
There’s curious news for the Dream Cruise coming to Detroit’s Woodward Avenue this weekend. An icon of the muscle car era will be going through a dramatic change. Last December, the historic Vinsetta Garage unexpectedly shut its doors. Perhaps nothing along the...
by Mike Davis | Jul 25, 2011
Nearly one-fifth of North American car and truck production originated in Mexico during the first half of 2011, according to industry production statistics — more than from our neighbor to the North, Canada. And lest the UAW and its supporters get their drawers...
by Mike Davis | Jul 18, 2011
In the dark days before America was plunged into war, the nation’s smokestacks were finally beginning to belch smoke again, and nowhere was that more apparent than in Detroit, the auto industry finally ramping up after more than a decade of the Great Depression....
by Mike Davis | Jul 5, 2011
At this point in the calendar, with six months of calendar 2011 auto sales behind us, there is a lot of thumb-sucking going on among automotive writers and analysts. The tsunami upset the Japanese apple cart and deliveries of the two top selling cars, Accord and...
by Mike Davis | May 26, 2011
The last tangible evidence of one of Detroit’s iconic brands was rapidly disappearing this week as demolition contractors tore down the last of the DeSoto plant, 50 years after Chrysler Corporation discontinued the car line. Moreover, the Albert-Kahn-designed DeSoto...
