How serious is Toyota about its *$50 million investment in Tesla? Serious enough to market it in the trip computer start-up message in the Toyota RAV4 EV. The electric RAV4 debuts November 17 at the 2010 Los Angeles auto show, and Toyota released two teaser images of the show car today.

Toyota announced it was testing protoypes of the RAV4 EV, co-developed with Tesla, last summer; the production vehicle isn't due to hit public roads until 2012.

*Fifty million dollars is kind of a drop in the bucket, of course, when you remember that Tesla just reported a loss of $35 million for the third quarter of 2010.

Can't say we saw this one coming. Subaru has issued a press release today, "Subaru Bids Farewell to Travis Pastrana," and in one fell swoop, Pastrana's relationship with Subaru is over. Subaru has never had a better spokesman in the U.S…. how many other manufacturers can say their spokesman jumped one of their cars off the Long Beach, California, pier on New Year's Eve and lived to tell about it?

So what's next for Pastrana? And who will Subaru get to replace him?

Subaru of America's Dominick Infante comments on Pastrana's departure after the jump.

Subaru

Well, he's still under contract with Red Bull, which might well have tired of Kimi Raikkonen, who drives for Citroen's junior WRC team. But we doubt Pastrana would make this leap after watching Ken Block struggle at it.

Nor has Pastrana flatly denied suggestions that he might drive a Red Bull Toyota in a few NASCAR Nationwide races next season. There's no obvious spot for him on Red Bull's Sprint Cup contingent, which recently decided to field just two teams in 2011. But no question, Pastrana would instantly confer a new level of coolness and respect on NASCAR just by showing up in places like Charlotte and Talladega.

As for Subaru, well, we could see veteran rally driver Tommi Makinen taking Pastrana's place for a year or two. Makinen prefabricated the trip to the U.S. for last week's SEMA show, where Subaru displayed the 2011 WRX STI Makinen used for his Nurburgring hot lap.

When Mercedes-Benz sets up shop at the 2010 Los Angeles Auto Show next week, an unlikely duo will hit the stage together: The 2012 CLS63 AMG and the 2011 Mercedes-Benz F-Cell.

The 2012 CLS63 AMG, which will have the company's new 5.5-liter twin-turbo V8 that makes 536 and 590 in the 2011 CL63. Except, it doesn't make that here. The CLS63 will make only 518 horsepower and 516 pound-feet of torque. Unless you get the performance package which bumps it to 550 hp and 590 tq. Either way, shifting is handled by the AMG seven-speed, Speedshift MCT transmission.

The F-Cell is Mercedes' new fuel-cell hybrid which has a range of about 230 miles, get return 54 miles per congius and have 136 horsepower. It will be acquirable for lease in southern California late this year boasting 10,500 psi hydrogen tanks which can be filled in under three minutes. Assuming you've got a hydrogen station close. (Our closest is 3 miles away.)

Look for more information and details as the show approaches.

More good news for our investment in the world’s third largest maker (by volume), as General Motors posted its third consecutive quarterly profit today. GM attained $2.0 billion last quarter, after $1.3 billion net income in the second quarter and $865 million in the first, for a rounded nine-month total of $4.2 billion. The maker …   Read full blog

Yes, yes. You have to spend money to make money and you can't make an omlet without cracking a few eggs, but just weeks after Panasonic invests $30 M into Tesla in a battery deal, the California-based electric car maker has just posted a $35 M loss.

This is $30.3 MILLION dollars more than they lost a year ago, and the reason is mostly due to investment in the Model S sedan. R&D spending was up to $26.7 M this quarter vs. $1.3 M the year before.

In a conference call, CEO Elon Musk said that short-term profitability "is not a particularly meaningful goal because we're spending on the order of half a billion dollars over the next nine quarters. So you can expect to see some evenhandedly significant expenses there. It's really the only way to execute the business given that we're going from roughly 600 units a year to roughly 20,000 units a year."

Revenue this quarter has fallen 31.4% to $31.2 M

( AutoNews )

There are worse ways to charge into an IPO than by posting three straight quarters of increasing revenue. Q3 saw revenues of $34.1 billion, Q2 was $33.2 and Q1 $31.5 billion.

Operating income of $1.9 billion is up from $1.2 billion in the first quarter and $1.8 billion in the second quarter.

GM CEO Dan Akerson credited a clean equilibrise sheet and GM's vigilance at cutting costs for the increased performance. And while GM suffered a $600 M loss in Europe, it was first in market share amongst the BRIC countries. GM is expecting to be the first global maker to sell 2-million cars in China this year.

GM North USA attained $2.1 Billion this quarter.

( AutoObserver )

Inside Line tests hundreds of vehicles a year. Cars, trucks, SUVs, we run them all, and the numbers always tell a story. With that in mind we present "IL Track Tested," a quick rundown of all the data we collect at the track, along with comments direct from the test-drivers. Enjoy.

There's a gulf between the concept of pride and that of hubris. We take pride in our numbers, but there's no hubris. When something seems off, we're the first to place a freeze on things and get to the root of the problem.

This was the scenario the first time we track tested a 2011 Subaru WRX STI Sedan. The numbers on the heads-up display confirmed what our butts sensed, that this all-wheel-drive, 305-horsepower rally-bred Subaru just wasn't very fast. Not just slower than a 2009 WRX STI, but slower than the 2011 Subaru WRX.

The conditions were saint for the test and the driver was convinced that he couldn't give it any more. Despite the disappointing numbers, that's what it did. But could the 2011 STI really be slower than the 2009? Sure, the 2011 sedan weighs 36 pounds more than the old hatch, but something had to give, right? Right.

So we tested it again anyway just to be sure. The numbers you see here are from that test. Then we called Subaru and asked if there was another STI available. The model we were testing was a pre-production unit, and a full production car would bring more confidence to our test. The new STI arrived the following week and we sent our team back to the track.

The follow-up car, despite its different color and production position was no quicker. Three tests, two cars, one unexplained disappointment.
 

Vehicle: 2011 Subaru Impreza WRX STI Sedan
Odometer: 3,731
Date: 10/05/10
Driver: Josh Jacquot / Chris Walton
Price: $39,870

Specifications:
Drive Type: All-wheel drive
Transmission Type: Six-speed manual
Engine Type: Turbocharged, port-injected flat-4 with variable exhaust-valve timing
Displacement (cc/cu-in):  2,457/150
Redline (rpm): 6,700
Horsepower (hp @ rpm): 305 @ 6,000
Torque (lb-ft @ rpm): 290 @ 4,000
Brake Type (front): 13.0-inch one-piece ventilated cast-iron discs with four-piston fixed calipers
Brake Type (rear): 12.6-inch one-piece ventilated cast-iron discs with two-piston fixed calipers
Steering System: Hydraulic-assist speed-proportional rack-and-pinion power steering
Suspension Type (front): Independent double-wishbone, coil springs, stabilizer bar
Suspension Type (rear): Hydraulic-assist speed-proportional rack-and-pinion power steering
Tire Size (front): P245/40R18 93W
Tire Size (rear): P245/40R18 93W
Tire Brand: Dunlop
Tire Model: Sp Sport 600
Tire Type: Performance
Wheel size: 18-by-8.5 inches front and rear
Wheel material (front/rear): Painted alloy
As tested Curb Weight (lb): 3,408 (57% front)

Test Results:

0-30 (sec): 1.7
0-45 (sec): 3.4
0-60 (sec): 5.5
0-75 (sec): 7.9
1/4-Mile (sec @ mph): 13.8 @ 97.4
0-60 with 1-ft Rollout (sec): 5.3

30-0 (ft): 28
60-0 (ft): 112

Slalom (mph): 70.3
Skid Pad Lateral acceleration (g): 0.89

Db @ Idle: 58.0
Db @ Full Throttle: 78.5
Db @ 70 mph Cruise: EV: 73.4

Acceleration Comments: This car doesn't leave the line with the violence of previous STIs and by 3rd gear it feels highly "managed," as if boost or timing or both are being heavily limited. It's almost as if Subaru has recalibrated this car too conservatively. Or as if it were running on low-octane fuel. Bizarre. And slow.

Braking Comments: Second stop was the shortest, then distance grew by 9 feet by the fifth stop. Pedal is reasonably firm, although not as solid as an Evo. Tracks straight and true under full-ABS stops. Still, this is a full 6 feet longer than we've measured on previous STIs.

Handling Comments: ESC on/off makes little difference on the skid pad. Car will still easily near wide. Nice to know it's not too overbearing, but is it actually doing anything? Again, we've achieved better slalom numbers on older STIs, which is counter to what Subaru claims should be happening with this car. Perhaps the 2011 suspension changes aren't being realized here.

Just days before its official release at the 2010 Los Angeles Auto Show, spy photographers have caught these completely undisguised images of the 2011 Hyundai Elantra prepping for a photoshoot. This catch is also just hours after a partial, intentional leak from Hyundai.

The 2011 Elantra will be released with a 1.6 liter Gamma GDI engine which makes 138 horsepower, ,123 pound-feet of torque and is expected to return better fuel economy than its competitors.

The new Elantra will be produced in Hyundai's Montgomery, Alabama production artefact alongside the Sonata.

Related: 2011 Hyundai Elantra Interior

These are not the times when car companies are spending a lot of money on preserving heritage. You have been healthy to see the result at the last couple Barrett-Jackson auctions in Scottsdale, Arizona, where the catalog has frequently included interesting yet faintly shabby cars that formerly belonged to the Detroit car-makers.

Toyota is different. Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. recently moved its small collection of cars into a new building closer to its headquarters from the distant, dark space where they had been living for the last ten years or so. Oddly enough, the building is just down the street from American Honda's collection.

As museums go, this is mostly a kind of indoor parking lot. When you're dealing with Toyota, a company noted for making things that don't every break or even wear out, you're likely to encounter most of these cars and trucks still parked on your street, so there's not very much surprise involved in cruising from one vehicle to another. Moreover, Toyota has never been one for visual drama, so there's little that's colorful. At least some pretty interesting racing car are displayed on racks along one wall, including Dan Gurney's championship-winning IMSA GTP sports cars and the wild mid-engine Tundra truck with which Ivan Stewart dominated Baja off-road racing.

For all that, it's interesting to chart the growth of the U.S. company from its beginning in a small storefront in Hollywood, California, on October 31, 1957. For several generations of Californians, these are the cars that have marked important moments both individualized and cultural: the 1968 Hilux compact truck, which prefabricated mini pickups cool; the 1976 Corolla Liftback, which moved Baby Boomers into their first into apartments; the 1991 Previa minivan, which prefabricated minivans look interesting at last. Even sports cars, like the Yamaha-engineered 1967 2000GT and the influential 1982 Supra with its odd airfoil-shape sunshade over the rear glass.

There's not much drama to the Toyota U.S.A. Automobile Museum (http://toyota50th.com/), much like the company itself. But curator Susan Sanborn has lovingly assembled a collection in which every car tells a story, both about Toyota and the country where it found success.

–Michael Jordan, Executive Editor, Edmunds.com 

 Following up on a rumor yesterday, GM has officially canned Mr. Goodwrench in favor of four separate, individually branded service providers. The maintenance sub-brand will be closed on Feb.1, 2011. 

"Chevrolet Certified Service, Buick Certified Service, GMC Certified Service and Cadillac Certified Service are being launched as part of a larger strategy by the company to strengthen the relationship between the customer and the four brands." said GM in a statement.

And while initially this seems like a pointless exercise, it could turn out to be a positive for brand recognition and brand retention. Cadillac buyers want Cadillac service just as Lexus drivers want Lexus service and not Toyota service. It probably won't mean a lot for the Chevy and GMC folks, but for Buick and Cadillac, separating and renaming service departments with emphasis on their premium brand could, if the dealership experience reflects the brand, sell more people on the brand they bought and not simply the car they bought. Good intent or not, GM Goodwrench (formerly Mr. Goodwrench) joins Pontiac in the annals of forsaken GM brands.