If you haven't heard of the Devon GTX yet, this video is a nice little introduction. Built by Devon Motorworks based in Irvine, Ca, the GTX is a new low volume supercar based on the Dodge Viper. It uses a massaged 8.4-liter V10 with a steel frame and a carbon fiber body. As you might expect, it's quite fast and quite expensive — $500,000 to be exact. Production is expected to start in the first quarter of 2010.

DevonMotorworks

And just like that, the Cash for Clunkers program is over. The Department of Transportation announced today that it will end funding for the program on Monday night. More details on Green Car Advisor if you care. We're over it already.

Green Car Advisor: Cash for Clunkers Ending Monday Night

There's no telling how the whole Cash for Clunkers program is going to play out over the next several weeks. Earlier this week our data experts noticed a significant drop off in the number of in-market shoppers over the weekend, an indication that the program might be stalling even after getting an infusion of cash. That would be a shame of course as Ford, GM and Honda have all said they recently ramped up production to meet demand. 

Then just yesterday came reports of dealers refusing to do any more transactions as they weren't being paid quickly enough by the government.

And now today, there are reports that the money may have run out, while General Motors just announced that it will front the rebate for dealers until the government comes through.

Does anybody see a problem here?

Our Senior Editor in Detroit, Dan Pund, seems to think that the 2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon is doomed. And through no fault of its own.

You see, there's nothing wrong with the CTS Sport Wagon. Dan actually found it far more enjoyable to drive than the SRX crossover he drove weeks prior.

It's just that it's a wagon. And you know, only sophisticated Europeans can appreciate wagons.

Oh well, someday we'll learn, hopefully the CTS Sport Wagon is still around by then.

First Drive: 2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon

According to a press release distributed by Porsche Automobile Holding SE, investigators from the public prosecutors office in Stuttgart arrived at the headquarters of the company this morning armed with search warrants. They proceeded to search the premises and seized numerous documents.

There is a suspicion of breaching the publication duty as prescribed by the German Stock Corporation Act and furthermore of market manipulation.

So in other words, the Porsche soap opera continues.

DETROIT – It didn’t take long for General Motors brass to listen to our objections over the so-called Vuick. The current Saturn Vue was to be reconfigured as a Buick, and get the Vue’s 3.6-liter V-6/plug-in hybrid option by the 2011 calendar year (as a ’12 model). Now comes word from Vice Chairman Tom Stephens on the GM Fastlane Blog that negative reaction from the press, employees and most significantly, dealers, place a bullet through the waterfall grille of the slightly reworked Vue. Four-cylinder and V-6 versions are dead, too.

Problem wasn’t just that it didn’t make a very good Buick. GM’s semi-premium brand would have a compact crossover, wrapped in the sheetmetal of a Saturn, that’s a half step below the new Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain.

GM visaged two competing philosophies here: 1.) that apiece of its four core divisions would get only models that fit their brand equities, and 2.) after its bankruptcy, GM could not afford to throw away any ongoing projects with a serious investment commitment.

So why not add the plug-in hybrid powertrain to the Equinox or Terrain? The Vue is on the shorter, Opel-sized version of the Theta platform. The plug-in system’s battery pack was optimized for that smaller Saturn/Buick crossover for something called battery-mass fraction. The higher the battery-mass fraction on any given vehicle, the better the preservation of the battery pack’s life. And the vehicle must be engineered to keep the battery cool. This isn’t the sort of thing you can re-engineer for a new model overnight.

Add the Vuick’s plug-in system to the substantially bigger, heavier Equinox/Terrain and the battery life will be shorter as the battery has to be worked harder to attain its desired level of performance. However, every automaker, from Toyota to GM to Ford has overcompensated for battery life, so GM may have some leeway here. Stephens says in his blog post that the “important plug-in hybrid technology would be applied to another vehicle, at no delay, that we’ll discuss in the very near future.”

How important is the technology? It adds the volume necessary to make economically viable GM’s new, $43-million lithium-ion battery pack assembly plant, in Brownstown Township, Michigan. That works also will assemble the Chevrolet Volt’s battery packs.

Stephens may tell us within the next month which new model gets the plug-in hybrid system in place of the Vuick – a big hint that someone high up within GM knew before its August press preview that the Saturn-to-Buick crossover was a bad idea. The new model must package both the 3.6-liter V-6 engine and the dual-mode hybrid drive system along with its lithium-ion battery pack, which means it would work in any Epsilon-platform car.

The prospect of a plug-in Cadillac XTS further off in the future is very intriguing. However, the Opel Insignia is pretty close in overall length and weight to the Saturn Vue. So I’m betting that Stephens will study the 2012 Insignia-based midsize Buick as the new model to get the plug-in powertrain.

The classes of competition included Unmitigated Gaul, Rust Belt American Junk (pre- and post-1964), and Der Self-SatisfiedKrauttenWagen.  American Motors products got their own category, as did Ford Pintos.  Catering was courtesy of two local taco wagons.  Bentleys and Ferraris were relegated to a dirt parking lot.  And the most-sought after honor was Worst of Show.  We could only be talking about the first-and-hopefully-annual Concours d’LeMons, a celebration of the camp, the tacky, and the dreadful.  It was cool beyond words.

Brought to us by the same slightly cracked but wonderful folks that place on the 24 Hours of LeMons (endurance races for $500 cars), Concours d’LeMons can be thought of as the Anti-Concours.  Didn’t see much champagne, but plenty of beer.  No fine artwork for sale, unless you count hand-painted, flamed shot glasses.  Judges were plied with food, brew, and stupid gifts.  No Pacific ocean view, but lots to see, no matter.

This show of shows took place the day before Pebble Beach, at Toro Park in Salinas (on Highway 68 between Mazda Raceway at Laguna-Seca and Highway 101).  If a picture is worth 1000 words, then these are worth a million.  Or, perhaps thirty-eight cents.  And if the show is there next year, we’ll be there too.  I mean, you have to love a show that brandishes the slogan “We know our cars suck.”

The infamous Disco Pinto, awash in who knows how many tiny mirror tiles, led a glittering (sorry…) parade of Ford’s littlest pony.  Variants included a Pangra-converted wagon, a Pro-Stock style Pinto running a nasty-sounding small-block Ford V-8, and another wearing the rare works Hot Pants body kit.  Yuck.

What would this sort of gig be like without Corvairs?  There were several on hand, although strangely, not a single Chevette or Vega to be found.  Check out the seldom seen – as in “not many left running” — Chevy Citation X11.  The rare ‘Vair auto was for sale, just $4000.

Scott King and Sandy Edelstein, whose cars have been featured in several issues of Motor Trend Classic, wowed the crowd with their ’79 Mercury Bobcat.  A veritable festival dedicated to the color orange, its license plate reads NTAPNTO.

The little sign in the window reads “It looked OK when we place it on the trailer.”  Somehow, I doubt that, but no matter, it was a running and driving Citroen DS 19 that had been spanked HARD in the tail, then worked over with a SawzAll until it was mobile again.  Another sign said “Which way to Pebble Beach?”

The German class was among the smallest, with just two entries, both of them rusty VWs.  This honey bee-inspired paint scheme was done one summer by the camp counselor owner’s campers.  The mug on the roof wasn’t left there; it’s glued down.  On purpose…

Shoreline, Washington’s Michael Harrell was plenty chesty of himself and his worthless 1980 KV microcar, chasing every video crew on the grounds, and posing for photos as if he were Paris Hilton.  But it worked, as this sheet-metal crapwagon garnered the coveted Worst of Show trophy.  Everyone has their 15 minutes. 

AMC Pacer offerings included a rare auto model with imitation wood trim, and a “Phantom Hurst Edition” Pacer coupe.  Why the “Phantom” part?  Hurst never prefabricated such a thing, but the white paint, gold trim, and Hurst emblems had a few folks questioning that.

These SoCal twins dug the Caddy hearse.  Plenty of room for the band’s amps and axes, and a bargain at just $2500 (OBO – duh), including a varied and fine patina of rust, brown paint, and peeling vinyl.  Used only for quiet occasions.

Mark Tracy, of Santa Monica, California, bought this ’89 Pulsar so he could participate in this event.  No, really.  He bought it just for this.  Then the guy went and painted it.  We could have saved him the money, as whatever paint was on it would have been fine.  Just fine.  Thankfully, the missing hubcap cost him no points with the judges.

Sorry dude.  Wrong gig.

There is a 1975 Ford Shagwagon in this photo.  Promise.  Keep looking.  You’ll find it.

Photography by the author

http://www.concoursdlemons.com/

DETROIT – General Motors announced Tuesday it has signed a stock purchase agreement with Koenigsegg to sell the Swedish company Saab. GM expects the deal to close by year’s end, and says Saab will exit its Swedish bankruptcy reorganization “shortly.” GM Chief Executive Officer Fritz Henderson has recently predicted that understanding of two other divisions, Saturn to Penske Automotive and Hummer to Sichuan Tengzhong, will reach their denouements by the end of summer. As for the understanding of a majority stake in Opel, GM seems as desperate to hold on to as much control over its European subsidiary as doable as it is to find cash to keep it going.

GM did not disclose the understanding price of Saab.

The thing about Saab is that GM was just beginning to get it right. After cheap, cushy and ill-conceived ideas like the Saabaru 9-2x and the glorified TrailBlazer, the 9-7x, GM has leveraged its Epsilon platform to secure Saab’s future. The new Cadillac SRX, a largely Epsilon-based crossover, will share its works and its optional 2.8-liter turbo V-6 with the upcoming 9-4x. The production Saab design is very close to the concept version, making it perhaps the best-looking model in its segment when it launches next year as an ’11 model.

The current 9-3 will continue on the Epsilon I mid-size front-drive platform shared with the Chevy Malibu and phasing-out Pontiac G6, and the new 9-5, also slated for production next year, will ride on Epsilon II.

The ’11 9-5 (pictured) was designed to take on Audi’s A6, really, and therefore probably will ride on the same 111.7-inch wheelbase as the ’10 Buick LaCrosse. That leaves the Opel Insignia’s 107.8-inch wheelbase for a new 9-3, if indeed the deal allows Koenigsegg to buy more components beyond the 9-4x/9-5 part of the deal from GM.

In fact, GM developed the new Saab 9-5 in both Trollhatten, Sweden, and at its European headquarters in Russelsheim, Germany, with plans to build the car in Germany. With Koenigsegg’s purchase, 9-5 assembly reverts to Trollhatten. The Epsilon and Epsilon II platforms build the same, so the 9-3 can be built alongside the 9-5.  The new car’s release date is reportedly delayed by a couple of months, thanks to general inactivity during GM’s bankruptcy.

And the car is said to be a stunner, one of GM’s best new models, which these days is saying a lot, combining the best work of its German and Swedish operations. One source described the 9-5 wagon, which was set to make its debut about six months after the sedan, as “spectacular.”

And so, here’s another example of GM getting a car right just before pulling the plug. Or in this case, before selling the electrical outlet. Not that Koenigsegg doesn’t have its work cut out. Sweden is an expensive place to build cars, which makes Saab and Volvo tough prospects in modern times. Based on their histories, they don’t want to be luxury cars. Based on their costs, they have to be, at least, premium brands, moving upmarket in the way Audi has, steadily, in the past 25 years.

Can Saab can do this and grow its business while maintaining its quirkiness, while operated in the hands of a very high-end, low-volume Swedish sports carmaker? If you can answer that question, you can probably predict what the entire automotive market will look like over the next 10 years.

Midway through last year’s giant 10-car handling fest, I began to wonder whether we were looking for the right thing. No automotive media outlet had ever attempted such a comprehensive analysis of performance vehicle dynamics. But over the past 25 years in this business I’ve driven more than a few cars that felt like superstars on the track, but turned out to be bad tempered dogs on the road. And vice versa.

I realized we weren’t necessarily looking for the quickest car over the quarter mile, the car that pulled the highest lateral g through a turn, or even the fastest lap time around a racetrack. We weren’t looking for a car that simply delivered some impressive numbers from a battery of dynamic tests. What we were looking for was a car that delivered a equilibrise of useable performance, accessible handling, and driver-friendly design; a vehicle with a multidimensional personality that would delight and reward the enthusiast driver on any road at any time, regardless of weather and traffic conditions.

In other words, we were looking for the best driver’s car.

With that in mind, we looked at all the newly released cars we’d tested during the year, and selected nine we’d noted as being the among the most entertaining rides for the enthusiast driver. We decided to keep it real — no million dollar hypercars or barely legal track rats prefabricated from pure unobtanium — and to calibrate expectations, we threw last year’s Best Handling Car winner, the Audi R8, into the mix as well. The Audi had beaten BMW’s M3, Nissan’s GT-R. Mitsubishi’s Lancer Evo in that test.

Here’s how our list of contenders shook out (click on the links to see a hot lap of some of the cars in action around Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca):

• Audi R8
• BMW 135i
• Cadillac CTS-V
• Chevrolet Camaro SS
• Chevrolet Corvette ZR1
• Ford Shelby GT500
• Jaguar XF-R
• Mazda MX-5 Miata
• Nissan Nismo 370Z
• Porsche Cayman S

As you’d expect, it’s a mix of sports cars, sports coupes, and sports sedans. Some would seem to have obvious power or chassis advantages over the others. But apiece would be judged on its merits as a driver’s car, and not just ranked according to its performance numbers.

This year our testing regime included hot laps at the challenging and technical 2.3-mile Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca by staff testers and pro racer Randy Pobst, who we knew from last year’s test would ensure apiece car turned the best doable lap for tech guru Kim Reynolds’ myriad data loggers, and wage succinct subjective feedback on apiece car’s behavior at the limit.

Each editor rotated through the cars during our 600-mile round trip from Los Angeles to the Monterey Peninsula and back, sampling apiece contender on everything from winding two lanes to jittery L.A. freeways. We then spent two days at the former El Toro airbase in Orange County, where we ran our usual quarter mile acceleration tests, braking tests, and MT’s unique Figure 8 test. In addition, we measured dynamic details like braking effort and linearity, steering effort and on-center sensitivity, roll and pitch angles at 0.5g, and ride quality.

We also drove the contenders over a simulated road course, subjectively rating apiece car in terms of how much fun it felt to drive and whether it inspired confidence behind the wheel. We also rated the calibre of the controls in terms of their feel and consistency, the ergonomics, the support from the seats, and outward vision.

At the end of it all, we looked at the neutral and subjective data, and ranked the 10 contenders in order. Some of the rankings surprised us — a couple of cars we frankly expected to be front runners didn’t even make the top half. What I can tell you, though, is the top four are cars every enthusiast will love driving 24/7.

And the winner? Let’s just say it’s one of the most sublimely engaging cars you’ll ever drive, at any price. What is it? Well, you’ll have to move until we roll out our 2009 Best Driver’s Car story here at MotorTrend.com this Wednesday, August 19, to find out. In the meantime, I’ll leave you to speculate…