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Cars with personality aren’t dead

Are cars with personality, charm and charisma dead? Jason Harper from Bloomberg seems to think so. In his recent article, Harper asks “In this age of mass production and global distribution, have we seen the last taillights of cars with personality? Where are the oddball autos that appeal to only a heartfelt few?”

Buick Riviera

Cars that Harper digs from the “good old days” are the Citroen DS-19, the Morris Minor Traveller or the Buick Riviera. Sure, those were cool cars, but isn’t it natural for people to look fondly at the past? It’s why after every Super Bowl, people say the commercials were disappointing inferring some sort of benchmark was set in the past. People were more wholesome too, our country was stronger, gas was cheaper, Adam Sandler made funnier movies and cars had more personality.

To his credit, Harper does believe electric cars from Fiskar and Tesla are a sign of change. Their interiors, their curves and wacky details have stimulated excitement in the car industry. Nonetheless, beautiful design aren’t just limited to electric cars. It could be argued a whole host of quirky and charming cars can be found at a dealership near you. Here are a few. [keep reading]

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Top 10 Used Car Wheel Designs

Motor Trend recently published Top 10 New Car Wheel Designs on Wide Open Throttle. These are the cars that can be driven right off the lot with wheels that don’t fail to impress. This means that a new car buyer won’t need to contribute coin to the auto aftermarket for a new set wheels which MSN Autos estimates to be a $295 billion business.

Corvette ZR1 wheels

So what if you’re not in the market for a new car? No worries, here’s our Top 10 list of wheels found on used cars between 2000 and 2012 that have designs standing the test of time so hopefully the previous owner took care of their wheels. Make the jump to see if you agree with our picks. [keep reading]

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What car shoppers search for is misleading

Auto Remarketing wrote a similar article based on our data. You can read that here.

The discrepancy between what people search online and what they actually end up purchasing can, often times, be entirely different. It sort of makes sense – people are aspirational. It’s the whole reason you see young and beautiful models in advertisements, not the middle aged and overweight. For real, who wouldn’t rather have a BMW over a Kia?

Take the minivan, for example. Most people don’t want the minivan. They will do anything they possibly can to get an Acadia, a Pilot or anything that can fit 8 people, tow a boat and not cost more than half of their median income. In most cases, practicality prevails and people end up with that affordable Grand Caravan and their dreams dwindle away in the internet history folder.

This is not always true, however, it really just depends on the vehicle they’re searching. For example, the numbers and Google Analytics and SQL man at Mojo Motors, Michael Milstein pulled up some data nuggets on the cars members search for most and the cars they actually bought. Make the jump for some surprises. [keep reading]

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The Monday Grind: Tuesday Edition

If it’s the Monday Grind on Tuesday, shouldn’t it just be the Tuesday Grind? Probably. In any event, it’s Tuesday and this is what you missed over the Holiday weekend.

Vampire GT Lego

- That Vampire GT (above) was sold on eBay for $1,626 and made entirely out of Legos

- Lotus engines couldn’t cut the mustard at the Indy 500 and were black flagged

- The story of a $25,000 BMW that was probably underwater

- Car apps may just be another driving distraction

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Cool Used Cars of the Future: Geneva Motor Show

The auto shows in the United States are stages for American automakers to debut their practical vehicles. You know, a Fusion, Malibu or some compact car nobody will buy. Sometimes General Motors, Ford Motor Company or Chrysler will premier an outlandish concept vehicle, but that’s rarer than seeing a hamster drive a Kia. The auto show in Geneva, however, is where super cars capture the spotlight.

Funny Picture of a Toyota

Sure, there were some “practical” cars premiering in Geneva. Take the 2013 BMW 6 Series Gran Coupe, for instance- four doors and an inline six (just ignore the price tag of $77,000). See? Practical. There’s also the Toyota FT-Bh Concept vehicle that gets 112 MPG. Perfect for eco-concious buyers or anyone trying to save money on gas. It’s also perfect for anyone that doesn’t care about looks or what people might think when they pull up to a restaurant driving in what looks like an amphibious vehicle. Yep, it’s practical alright.

This blog post is about cool used cars of the future, not practical vehicles with good gas mileage. That’s why we’ve put together our favorites from the show you can only find in Geneva and given you some fun facts to impress family and friends. Who wouldn’t want to know the FT-Bh has only 0.235 of drag coefficient?

keep reading…

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Cool used car of the future: D3 Cadillac CTS-V "Le Monstre"

We caught a lot of flack for naming the BMW M3 Performance Edition a cool used car of the future. Yes, everyone knows the BMW M3 is fast and expensive, but the better choice when it comes to performance and value is the CTS-V, obviously. That’s why this week, the Mojo Motors Blog presents the D3 Cadillac CTS-V Coupe nicknamed “Le Monstre.”

Cadillac D3 CTS-V Coupe Image Mojo Motors Blog

keep reading…

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Cool used cars of the future: Tokyo Motor Show

Suzuki Regina Concept Mojo Motors Blog ImageThe Tokyo Motor Show is now open to the public and continues until December 11. Like all other auto shows, car makers are using the Tokyo Motor Show to unveil their latest concepts. The cars included below are cool. The Suzuki Regina, pictured to the right, however, is not cool. Maybe it’s the color. Maybe it’s the wheels. Maybe it’s because the car is just plain ugly. Save your eyes and keep reading the Mojo Motors Blog cool used cars of the future from the Tokyo Motor Show. We promise they are way better than the Regina.

keep reading…

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What Bob Lutz can teach brands about success

Bob Lutz Cigar Mojo MotorsBob Lutz, legendary gear head and businessman who has worked at BMW, Ford Europe, Chrysler and General Motors tackles the challenges he faced during the decline of General Motors in his book Car Guys vs. Bean Counters. He writes about the disorganized management, layers upon layers of red tape and the embarrassing debacle known as the automotive bailout when General Motors pseudonym became Government Motors.

The book has gotten a bad rap because Lutz blames a large chunk of GM’s downfall on the penny-pinching financial types who were given charge of the automotive design. These folks were focused on cost-cutting, systematizing production and making the most money on each car produced, even if that meant sacrificing quality. As a result, Lutz contends, General Motors was building vehicles notorious for wide body gaps between panels, cheap interiors and being, well, really ugly.

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The Monday Grind

The weekend has come and gone, unless you have Columbus Day off. If you are off today, consider the title of this post irrelevant because you are certainly not on the grind. If you are on-the-clock and crunching those numbers, metaphorically speaking, read on work-warrior.

John Wayne International Harvester Travelall

-Pictured above is John Wayne’s custom built International TravelAll for sale at a modest $1,000,000. [link]

-Per last week’s “Putting it into park” it seems people have heard of the Suzuki Kizashi. Here’s a review. [link]

-Travis Pastrana to compete in 2o12 X Games Rally event but not Moto X Freestyle. [link]

-The shortlist for Car and Truck of the Year was released and the MINI Countryman is apparently a truck. [link]


Photo credit: HemmingsBlog

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Putting it into park: Weekend Linkage

Ending each week on the Mojo Motors Blog is “Putting it into park,” a compilation of newsworthy links from the past five days.

Mojo Motors BMW M5 Image

-If you’re feeling like a BAMF, Mojo Motors advises you check out this BMW M5 with smoked rims and windows. [link]

-Jalopnik has compiled a list of the ten greatest racing interviews of all time.  [link]

-The World Rally Championship is testing out a camera that will stream video during Rallye de France. [link]

-TreeHugger.com wonders if 2012 going to be the year of the utility e-bike. [link]

-The blog SideQuesting is running a design competition for the best apocalypse-proof ride. [link]

-Lincoln is redesigning the waterfall grill and the world rejoices. [link]

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