MARCH 25, 2020

(GM)
Editor-in-Chief's Note: The 1961 Corvette Mako Shark I (XP-755) and 1965 Corvette Mako Shark II concepts photographed at the GM Technical Center in Warren, Michigan. The Mako Shark I was designed by Larry Shinoda under the direction of GM Styling legend Bill Mitchell. It was largely inspired by the 1959 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray racer which, of course, heavily influenced the 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray production car. The Mako Shark II obviously influenced the 1968 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray production car. The inspiration for the paint on the Mako Shark concepts originated from Bill Mitchell, who caught a real one while fishing off the Gulf coast of Florida. He had the fish mounted on the wall of his GM Styling office, and insisted that his paint shop paint the Mako Shark I in gradations to match the colorization of his prized mounted Mako Shark. True story? After several attempts to paint the Mako Shark I concept, Mitchell was still not pleased, and the project ground to a halt because the paint wasn't "right" according to Mitchell. So, the next time Mitchell was away from the office on a trip, some ingenious designers had the idea of removing Mitchell's prized fish from the wall late one evening, and painting it exactly like the latest paint job on the Mako Shark I concept. Mitchell came back, and with no knowledge of what transpired, he pronounced the paint work on the Mako Shark I concept "perfect" and the concept headed to the show circuit. -PMD

(VW images) 
Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles (VWCV) has unveiled the e-BULLI concept, an all-electric vehicle that produces zero emissions on the road. Equipped with the drive system components of the latest Volkswagen electric vehicles, the concept vehicle is based on a T1 Samba Bus produced in 1966 and comprehensively restored. VWCV partner eClassics is planning to offer T1 conversions in the style of the new e-BULLI to European customers.

(FCA)
We're not the pickup truck target market around here, but we thought our readers in Texas might like to see this. Ram has unveiled the 2020 Ram 1500 Laramie Southwest Edition, "a new luxury trim aimed at the largest truck-buying region in the world," according to FCA PR minions. The Ram 1500 Laramie Southwest Edition packages together popular appearance and luxury features and will be offered exclusively in Texas and neighboring states. The Laramie Southwest Edition features body-colored bumpers, mirrors and grille; subtle chrome highlights, including tow hooks, grille inserts, body side moldings and polished 20-inch wheels. Power side steps are also included. Inside, the Ram 1500 Laramie Southwest Edition has the Uconnect 4C infotainment system with a 12-inch touchscreen, a dual-pane panoramic sunroof and electronic trailer brake control. Other stuff? Automatic high beam headlights; Blind-spot Monitoring with Rear Cross Path detection; ParkSense® Front and Rear Park-Assist with Stop; a remote tailgate-release and rain-sensing windshield wipers. Buyers can choose a bench or buckets seats. All Ram 1500 Laramie Southwest Editions are delivered with a heavy-duty Mopar locking console when the bucket seat option is selected. The new truck will be available in all powertrain options. Buyers can choose Quad and Crew Cab body configurations and 5 ft.-7 in. (Crew only) or 6 ft.-4-in. bed lengths. The 2020 Ram 1500 Laramie Southwest Edition’s MSRP starts at $45,380, plus $1,695 destination and it will go on sale in the second quarter of 2020.

AE Song Lyrics of the Week:

Heard of a van that is loaded with weapons,
Packed up and ready to go
Heard of some grave sites, out by the highway,
A place where nobody knows

The sound of gunfire, off in the distance,
I'm getting used to it now
Lived in a brownstone, lived in a ghetto,
I've lived all over this town

This ain't no party, this ain't no disco,
This ain't no fooling around
No time for dancing, or lovey dovey,
I ain't got time for that now

Transmit the message, to the receiver,
Hope for an answer some day
I got three passports, a couple of visas,
You don't even know my real name

High on a hillside, the trucks are loading,
Everything's ready to roll
I sleep in the daytime, I work in the nighttime,
I might not ever get home

This ain't no party, this ain't no disco,
This ain't no fooling around
This ain't no Mudd Club, or C. B. G. B.,
I ain't got time for that now

Heard about Houston? Heard about Detroit?
Heard about Pittsburgh, P. A.?
You oughta know not to stand by the window
Somebody see you up there

I got some groceries, some peanut butter,
To last a couple of days
But I ain't got no speakers, ain't got no headphones,
Ain't got no records to play

Why stay in college? Why go to night school?
Gonna be different this time
Can't write a letter, can't send no postcard,
I ain't got time for that now

Trouble in transit, got through the roadblock,
We blended in with the crowd
We got computers, we're tapping phone lines,
I know that that ain't allowed

We dress like students, we dress like housewives,
Or in a suit and a tie
I changed my hairstyle, so many times now,
I don't know what I look like!

You make me shiver, I feel so tender,
We make a pretty good team
Don't get exhausted, I'll do some driving,
You ought to get you some sleep

Burned all my notebooks, what good are notebooks?
They won't help me survive
My chest is aching, burns like a furnace,
The burning keeps me alive

"Life During Wartime" - Talking Heads - from the album "Fear Of Music" (1979)* Watch a live performance here. 

*Punk music is very much about going against the mainstream and disrupting life as we know it, and while the Sex Pistols sang vengefully about destroying the government in "Anarchy In The U.K.," this song has a similar sentiment with a different tone. Here, David Byrne sings from the point of view of an insurgent who is a bit paranoid and has a problem giving up the creature comforts you lose when you enter into guerilla warfare, not the least of which is giving up music.The song is remarkably prescient in its theme of technology leading to a society where information is exploited. Corporations and governments were using computers in 1979, and hackers found the flaws. David Byrne drew inspiration from a book he read about computer crimes, which included a story about a guy who forged deposit slips with his bank account number and got patrons to inadvertently put money into his account. Another story was about someone who used a touch-tone phone to break into the General Electric computer network and steal supplies. With the big boys owning this technology but having trouble controlling it, Byrne saw a bleak future. He told NME in 1979: "There will be chronic food shortages and gas shortages and people will live in hovels. Paradoxically, they'll be surrounded by computers the size of wrist watches. Calculators will be cheap. It'll be as easy to hook up your computer with a central television bank as it is to get the week's groceries. I think we'll be cushioned by amazing technological development and sitting on Salvation Army furniture. Everything else will be crumbling. Government surveillance becomes inevitable because there's this dilemma when you have an increase in information storage. A lot of it is for your convenience - but as more information gets on file it's bound to be misused." About the album title: David Byrne came across a book called Music And The Brain, which discussed a phobia some people have regarding music. The book explained that music is so distressing to some people that they have to be sent to the countryside where they can't hear it. Byrne thought the contradiction between the intent of music and this reaction was interesting. (Courtesy of songfacts.com)