Sopranos' Porsche Cayenne brings US$100,000 at auction

Atlanta, Georgia - A Porsche Cayenne used in the television show The Sopranos brought US$100,000 at auction earlier this month, at the Andre Agassi Charitable Foundation's 12th annual Grand Slam for Children event in Las Vegas. The 2005 Cayenne was presented as a gift on the show from Tony Soprano to his wife Carmela and was driven by her in several episodes. The car included a bronze plaque bearing the signatures of Sopranos actors James Gandolfini and Edie Falco; it has 6,758 miles (10,875 km) on the odometer. Richard and Theresa Beauchamp of Steamboat Springs, Colorado placed a winning bid of US$90,000; auctioneer Jack Williams added US$10,000 of his own money to bring the total price to US$100,000 for the charity. Founded in 1994 by former tennis professional Andre Agassi, the Foundation provides recreational and educational opportunities for at-risk children in Southern Nevada.

Nova Scotia Michelin facility produces its 100-millionth tire

Bridgewater, Nova Scotia - Michelin's facility in Bridgewater, Nova Scotia has announced the production of its 100-millionth tire. The milestone tire is an LTX A/T2, a new light truck tire design. "The production of the 100-millionth tire is an important event for everyone here at Michelin in Bridgewater," says plant manager Dana LeBlanc. "Since 1973, the Bridgewater facility has been a leading example throughout Michelin of producing quality tires. Achieving this production milestone again demonstrates how Michelin in Bridgewater is dedicated to being a leader in the manufacturing sector in Nova Scotia." In July 2007, the plant announced plans to modernize and increase tire production capacity; in August 2006, an announcement was made to expand the facility's steel cord products operation. Michelin opened the facility in 1971, beginning with the production of steel cord product, and followed with its first passenger tire in 1973.

Toyota reliability slips in Consumer Reports survey

Yonkers, New York - Data from Consumer Reports' 2007 Annual Car Reliability Survey shows that Toyota is slipping in reliability ratings, while Ford's domestic brands have made considerable improvements. The announcement was made before the Automotive Press Association in Detroit yesterday.

The Toyota Camry V6 and Tundra V8 four-wheel drive, both redesigned for 2007, now rate below average in Consumer Reports' predicted reliability rating, as does the Lexus GS all-wheel drive sedan. Because Consumer Reports does not recommend models with below-average reliability ratings, these models no longer make the magazine's "recommended" list. The Camry four-cylinder and hybrid models, and GS rear-wheel drive models scored above-average in reliability and continue to be recommended.
Despite these ratings, Toyota - including Lexus and Scion, a nameplate not sold in Canada - still ranks third in reliability among all automakers, behind only Honda and Subaru. However, Consumer Reports says that it will no longer recommend any new or redesigned Toyota-built models without reliability data on a specific design. Previously, such models were recommended because of the automaker's track record, even if the magazine did not have sufficient reliability data on the new model. Consumer Reports say it may resume this practice if Toyota returns to its previous record of outstanding overall reliability.

The 2007 survey also shows that the odds of getting a reliable new vehicle from Ford are the best Consumer Reports has seen in years; 41 of 44 Ford, Lincoln and Mercury models in the survey scored average or better in predicted reliability. The Ford Fusion and its sister car Mercury Milan (a model not sold in Canada) are among the most reliable, and along with the Ford F-150 V6 two-wheel drive, make up three of the four domestic models on Consumer Reports' "Most Reliable" list. In addition, the Ford Edge, Lincoln MKX, Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator were all average or above.
" Ford continues to improve," said David Champion, senior director of the Auto Test Center. "The reliability of their cars has steadily improved over the years, and is showing consistency. We believe Toyota is aware of its issues and is trying to fix problems quickly."

Overall, U.S. brands accounted for 20 of the 44 models on Consumer Reports' "Least Reliable" list, with 13 from GM, 6 from Chrysler, and one from Ford. European makes accounted for 17 models, including six from Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen/Audi. The list also includes the Hyundai Entourage, Infiniti QX56, Mazda CX-7, Nissan Armada 4WD, Nissan Quest, Nissan Titan 4WD, and Toyota Tundra V8 4WD. Other models with declining reliability include the Chevrolet Tahoe, GMC Yukon and Volkswagen Passat V6.

Nineteen domestic models have been added to the "Newly Recommended" list, including the GMC Acadia, Saturn Outlook and Dodge Charger. When ranked overall by make, Honda and Acura have the highest average scores of the 36 brands, followed by Scion, Subaru and Toyota; Buick is the highest-ranked domestic brand, while Land Rover on average is the least reliable.

Findings are based on responses on almost 1.3 million vehicles owned or leased by subscribers to Consumer Reports or its web site, www.ConsumerReports.org. The survey was conducted in the spring of 2007 by Consumer Reports' National Survey Research Center and covered model years 1998 to 2007.

Survey reveals what features women want most in their car

Miami, Florida - LeaseTrader.com, a U.S. company that helps people transfer car leases, recently polled a number of its female customers on their favourite car features. Surprisingly, the highest percentage of those women surveyed wanted fold-down back seats that provide more storage area. More than half of all women polled - 62 percent - listed this is their number one choice. Following are the top five features women enjoy in a car, according to female LeaseTrader.com customers:
1. Fold-down back seats for more storage room
2. Bluetooth capability
3. MP3/iPod connectivity
4. Automatic open/close hatchback
5. GPS technology
Women who participated in the survey said the sunroof is the most overrated feature found in a car. "Although the results covered a wide variety of car features, it's interesting to note that women want functionality over technology in their cars," said Sergio Stiberman, CEO and founder of LeaseTrader.com.

Ontario's 407 toll highway sets new one-day traffic record

Toronto, Ontario - The 407 ETR toll highway in the Greater Toronto Area celebrated the 10th anniversary of its first-ever tolled trip by announcing that it recently set a new one-day traffic record. A record 445,822 trips on Friday, October 5 beat the previous record of 434,670 trips set on June 22, 2007. The highway's first day of tolling was October 14, 1997, when the highway was only 36 km long, stretching from Highway 410 to Highway 404. By 1999, the highway was lengthened to 68 km and privatized. During the past eight years, 407 ETR has spent over $800 million to lengthen the highway by 40 km and to widen busy sections. As part of its 10th anniversary celebrations, 407 ETR is offering public tours of its Operations Centre. Tours are conducted once daily throughout October and must be booked in advance. To register, visit www.407etr.com.