ON THE TABLE

September 26, 2012

 Tesla. Speaking of electric car company start-ups dining on Federal funds, Tesla is having some serious financial issues. Elon Musk & Co. are finding out that this whole "makin' cars" business burns through cash at a prodigious rate. Flush with a $465 million loan from the government not long ago, the company is now selling five million more shares to raise cash, and the government has revised the terms of the original loan in order to give Tesla more time to make a future payment. But time is running short. Already five weeks behind and counting in delivering its much-ballyhooed Model S, Tesla's stock has taken a huge hit. Seems that reality has hit home for the Muskateers. Boo-frickin'-hoo.

Sergio Marchionne. VW's Ferdinand Piech has clearly gotten under Sergio's skin with his very public statements about wanting Alfa Romeo. The only thing is that Sergio has basically staked the future of the whole Fiat-Chrysler shebang on his ability to position Alfa as a global brand, so he's having none of it. In a speech in Turin (as reported by Bloomberg), Marchionne blasted Piech by saying, “Mr. Piech drop it, go and sing somewhere else. I am not surprised by the German boasting.” VW declined to comment. Between Fiat's tailspin in the market and the fact that Italy's political climate is starting to turn against him, Sergio is in line for some really bad days in the coming months.

Dan Gilbert. The now officially obnoxious Quicken Loans entrepreneur - whose smarm quotient seems to go up exponentially by the day - weighed-in on Sergio Marchionne's increasingly shaky stance in Italy by telling Bloomberg News: "Sometimes to get the medicine in the patient, you have to do so at the end of a needle. He's putting the needle in and they don't like it." Really? And what makes you the least bit qualified to comment about the manufacturing-political crisis in Italy? What, because you're leasing office space to Chrysler in a building you own in the city? Or is it because you actually believe people give a shit about what you think? Truly pathetic.

Editor-in-Chief's Note: A film about wingsuit flying? Check it out here. - PMD

(Rolls-Royce)
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Monaco hosted the grand reopening of the sole Rolls-Royce showroom in the famous principality last week. The Monegasque dealer and the British manufacturer of super luxury automobiles celebrated the occasion with a prestigious event that attracted the 'crème-de-la-crème' at the Côte d´Azur, including prominent members of the business community and officials. The new state-of-the-art showroom is located at the fashionable Avenue Princesse Grace near the coast of the Mediterranean. The 300-square-meter facility provides space for displaying three Rolls-Royce cars and a configuration lounge, which includes colour and trim samples from the Home of Rolls-Royce at Goodwood. To highlight these possibilities Rolls-Royce Bespoke Designer Alex Innes was in attendance, offering insights into how to make a Rolls-Royce as unique as its owner’s fingerprint. In 2011 nearly every Phantom sold in Europe and more than half of the Ghost models were manufactured under the Bespoke program. Probably no down-stroke concerns or lease specials applicable there, we would imagine.

Editor-in-Chief's Note: Our "quick take" this week has us in the 2013 Audi allroad 2.0T quattro tiptronic. Call us jaded but this is an Audi A4 wagon with cladding, a fraction more ground clearance and the allroad name. Now for allroad aficionados it might ring the correct buttons, but this is a marketing package pure and simple, folks. So now that we've got that out of  the way I'm happy to say that this Audi wagon is still excellent, because first and foremost it's an Audi. And that means it drives superbly, the interior is first rate in its ambiance and its fittings, and it just feels right. Pricey? In comparison to its competition, no. And when you look at all that it comes with in standard configuration, it's really right on the money. Audi seems to be getting that Porsche option disease with its pricing (see the cost of the Prestige model below), however, but in the end if you want a true wagon and you want something that you don't see everyday, the allroad might just be the ticket. - PMD

2013 Audi allroad 2.0T quattro tiptronic: $50,670 ($39,600 Base Price; Phantom Black pearl effect, $475; Black interior; 2.0-liter turbocharged, direct injection 4-cylinder with 211HP and 258 lbs-ft of torque; 8-speed tiptronic gearbox with sport and manual shift modes; quattro permanent all-wheel-drive with 40:60 split;Electro-mechanical power steering; Independent front and rear sport suspension; 18" 5-arm-rotor-design alloy wheels (allroad specific); allroad Prestige model - Audi adaptive light, Audi side assist, Audi advanced key, Bang & Olufsen Sound System, Audi MMI Navigation plus package - $9,200; Sport interior package - Front sport seats with four-way lumbar support, 3-spoke steering wheel with shift paddles - $500; Destination charge, $895)

We've added a new dimension to our "Quick Take" auto reviews by discussing brand image, in which we will ask ourselves a simple question: Does the vehicle we're driving adhere to the stated image of the brand? Or is it just a placeholder until they figure it out? We will be very clear as to what we think here, unlike some of the manufacturers in question who aren't quite sure as to who they are and what they stand for. - PMD

Adherence to Brand Image: Spot on. Until further notice Audi is really hammering BMW, Cadillac, Mercedes-Benz and Lexus in terms of image because they continue to not only get it, but there are no signs that their commitment to building superb cars that satisfy them is wavering. That's an interesting perspective. You hear the other luxury-performance automakers talk a lot about pleasing their customers, which is the now obligatory stance. But you get the sense that even though Audi has ascended to the top tier, they still adhere strictly to their "march to a different drummer" attitude, the very same attitude that got them where they are today. Audi rolls on, and that is a very good thing. - PMD

 

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