HOTTEST CAR, SPORT COMPACT, TRUCK AND 4×4-SUV ANNOUNCED AT THE 2012 SEMA SHOW
— Ford Mustang, Scion FR-S, Ford F-Series and Jeep Wrangler Named 2012 SEMA Award Winners –

This year’s SEMA Award for the top trending vehicle models in four categories were announced today at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas. The Ford Mustang was named Hottest Car, the Scion FR-S took the Hottest Sport Compact honors, the Ford F-Series won Hottest Truck and the Jeep Wrangler received the Hottest 4×4-SUV award.

“The SEMA Show has always been about innovative products and trends,” said Chris Kersting, SEMA president and CEO. “The SEMA Award amplifies the industry’s special ability to identify and set trends that consumers follow.”

The SEMA Award recognizes vehicle models that specialty-equipment manufacturers believe are the best platforms for accessorization and that showcase the year’s coolest products. It also underscores the cooperative relationship between the automakers and SEMA-member companies. Read more!

The dream of millions of Hot Wheels® fans of all ages will come when the Camaro Hot Wheels® Edition arrives at Chevrolet dealerships early next year. It’s the first time a full-size, production Hot Wheels® car has been offered for sale by any manufacturer.

Blister packaging and orange race track not included.

“Millions of us grew up playing with Hot Wheels,” said Chris Perry, vice president of Chevrolet Marketing. “Offering a special production model of the Camaro Hot Wheels is an opportunity to bring those memories to life, for kids of all ages.”

The Camaro Hot Wheels® Edition debuted at the SEMA Show, in Las Vegas. A special run of the Camaro Hot Wheels® Edition will be produced in the first quarter of 2013 – and like the collectable toys on which it is based – when they’re gone, they’re gone.

“It’s been nearly 20 years since I started designing cars for Hot Wheels and I have yet to drive one home,” said Felix Holst, vice president of creative for the Mattel Wheels Division. “Personally, I can’t wait to open the doors and see the Hot Wheels Camaro sitting in the garage.”

The appearance of the Camaro Hot Wheels® Edition echoes the cues that Hot Wheels enthusiasts recognize, including a vibrant, graphics-accented metallic paint scheme and even the red-lined wheels. The result is instantly recognizable as a Hot Wheels. Click on Read more!

Cutting the weight of new cars and trucks by up to 750 pounds by the end of the decade is a key component of Ford’s strategy to improve fuel efficiency. In order to help achieve that goal, Ford Motor Company is partnering with Dow Automotive Systems, a business unit of The Dow Chemical Company, to research the use of advanced carbon fiber composites in high-volume vehicles.

“There are two ways to reduce energy use in vehicles: improving the conversion efficiency of fuels to motion and reducing the amount of work that powertrains need to do,” said Paul Mascarenas, Ford chief technical officer and vice president, Research and Innovation. “Ford is tackling the conversion problem primarily through downsizing engines with EcoBoost® and electrification while mass reduction and improved aerodynamics are keys to reducing the workload.”

Ford is investigating a range of new materials, enhanced design processes and new manufacturing techniques that would enable automotive structures to meet increasingly stringent safety and quality standards while cutting weight. Read more!

NEW YORK – March 27, 2012 – Shelby American, Inc., a division of Carroll Shelby International (CSBI.PK), will introduce its most powerful Shelby yet on April 5, 2012, at the New York International Auto Show. Carroll Shelby and his team created the Shelby 1000 by starting with a 2012 Ford Shelby GT500 and kicking its handling, horsepower and braking to the performance edge.

The Shelby 1000 will be offered in both a street and a Shelby 1000 S/C “off-road” track version. The street legal, pump gas version dyno’s out at approximately 950 HP, while the track oriented S/C edition is rated at over 1,100 HP.

“Carroll Shelby is a visionary who has pushed the boundaries of performance his entire life,” said John Luft, president of Shelby American. “He challenged the Shelby American team to develop the Shelby 1000 and wanted to unveil this amazing new Shelby at the New York Auto Show celebrating 50 years since he unveiled the very first Shelby Cobra that changed the face of high performance. We will have that very car, Cobra #1 (CSX2000) along with Shelby 1000 on display in our Shelby American booth in New York.”

Chevrolet will build 69 COPO Camaros for 2012, the brand’s first purpose-built Camaro drag-racing specialty car designed to compete with the quickest in NHRA’s Stock Eliminator and Super Stock classes. National records for quarter-mile times in these contests are in the nine-second range.

As such, the COPO Camaros are expected to be the quickest Camaro ever offered by Chevrolet.

“The COPO Camaro is going to shake up the sportsman drag racing ranks this summer and give Chevy fans a great new reason to cheer on the Bowtie,” said Jim Campbell, GM U.S. vice president of Performance Vehicles & Motorsports. “COPO builds off the strengths that have made the Camaro the best-selling sports car in America. And while it was developed strictly for the drag strip, the COPO Camaro is infused with the same performance pedigree that every Camaro shares.”

The 69-car production for the 2012 COPO Camaro matches the number of “ZL-1” COPO Camaros made in 1969. COPO stands for Central Office Production Order and was Chevrolet’s special-order system in used by dealers to build high-performance models in the 1960s. Read more!