Happy Thanksgiving

From All Of Us At Dick Scott Automotive Group

Happy Thanksgiving

Pumpkin Contest Winner

Congradulations to Derek Baer, winner of our pumpkin carving contest. Derek and his wife Sara stopped by yesterday to claim their $500 gas card. Thanks to Derek and everyone else who made our contest so successful.

2009 Nissan Cube: It's Here!

by Tim Joseph

The Los Angeles Auto Show is underway right now and here is a picture of the American Spec 2009 Nissan Cube. It is 10 inches longer and 4 inches wider than the previous model sold in Japan. Many critics said that this vehicle would never sell well here with only 95 HP so Nissan put the 1.8L Versa engine in and we get 122. It is lighter than the Versa so it should have a little bit of pep to its step. You will have the choice of either a 6-speed manual transmission or a CVT transmission. High end features such as push button start, blue tooth and rear sonar will be available. The Cube will come in an S and SL trim just like the Versa and Sentra. While pricing is expected to be just under $15,000, Nissan may surprise us when pricing in announced in February at the Chicago Auto Show.

For more information please check out the article at InsideLine.com.

November 2008 Best Shot Deal for Nissan

November 2008 Best Shot Deal for Motormall

2008 Chrysler 300 C

Buy for

$21,665*

A Savings of OVER $15,000 off $37,195 MSRP

Automatic, Air Conditioning, Cruise Control, Power Locks/Windows/Seats, My Gig Media Radio System and much more! (Stock #28022)

Call 800-486-2415 to set up your test drive today!

*Plus tax, title, plate, DOC Fee and destination charge. Must qualify for Lease Loyalty Rebate. Must provide valid Chrysler Employee or CDI Control Number. All rebates to dealer. See Dealer for all details. Prices subject to change without notice. Must buy from dealer stock for ad price. Offer Expire 11/30/2008

November 2008 Best Shot Deal for Motormall

2008 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara

Buy for

$19,835*

A Savings of OVER $10,000 off $29,855 MSRP

Silver with Black Freedom Hard Top, Automatic Trans., Air Conditioning, Power Locks & Windows, Remote Start and much more! (Stock #70961)

Call 800-486-2415 to set up your test drive today!

*Plus tax, title, plate, DOC Fee and destination charge. Must qualify for Lease Loyalty Rebate. Must provide valid Chrysler Employee or CDI Control Number. All rebates to dealer. See Dealer for all details. Prices subject to change without notice. Must buy from dealer stock for ad price. Offer Expire 11/30/2008

November 2008 Best Shot Deal for Dodge

2008 Dodge Nitro SXT

Buy for

$12,953*

A Savings of OVER $10,000 off $23,085 MSRP

24C SXT Customer Preferred Order Selection Package. Stock #88152

*Plus tax, title, plate, destination and DOC Fee (due at signing). Must qualify for Employee Discount and provide a valid Chrysler Employee Control Number, must be a Returning Lessee and qualify for Lease to Purchase Loyalty and must qualify for the Military Discount. All rebates to dealer. See Dealer for complete details. Expires 11/30/2008. One at this price.

2009 370Z Debut

By Tim Joseph.

The all new 2009 Nissan 370Z is about to make it's North American debut at the 2008 Los Angeles Auto Show... kind of. Aparently there was an unveiling party thrown by Edmunds.com's Inside Line this weekend and here is a picture of one of the new Z cars. I love that Nissan is bringing back a bright blue color. I was sad that they decided to drop the Daytona Blue from the 350Z. When I first wrote about this vehicle on October 9th I said that it looked like they were trying to get the look of an old Datun 240Z but updated with the look of a 350Z. Below I'll post a link to a video where others make the same observation. There was one of the exterior design engineers on hand who said his first car was a 240Z and that is the look they were going for. The new design is more aggressive looking, has Nissan's new boomerang style headlights and the new Nissan interior design. The vehicle is shorter and more powerful than the 350Z. I'll get my first look at this car at the 2009 North American International Auto Show here in Detroit in January. If you're in the Los Angeles area next week you can see it there.

2008 SEMA Show Highlight: Hemi Jeep

by Tim Joseph

The 2008 SEMA show is going on in Las Vegas right now and the pictures we're seeing are very interesting to say the least. SEMA is the self described premier automotive specialty products trade event in the world.

I found this photo to be particularly interesting. It's a V8 Hemi powered Jeep Wrangler. A 7.0L 426 HEMI with 665 horses under the hood. While I haven't seen anything to indicate that it's built for speed or torque, I'm sure it offers an ample amount of each. The Jeep is code named Orange Crush and they didn't say if it's because you'll have a crush on the vehicle or it'll crush you.

Dick Scott Motormall

Nissan: 0% On 5 Models and Versa Under $10,000

by Tim Joseph

I didn't know what I should write about first so I decided to write one post for two subjects. This has to be one of the most exciting announcements coming from the auto industry in a long long time. Let's face it, the economy is weak and history tells us that it'll rebound but for now we need to do some things to keep our heads above water. Vehicles are essential to our lives and sometimes you have to get a new one.

Nissan announced this weekend that it will have 0% financing for 5 different models through January 5, 2009. The Rogue, Murano, Altima, Sentra and Versa will all start at 0% financing, with approved credit. See Dick Scott Nissan for more information.

How about this one? A Nissan Versa for $9,900 brand new off the showroom floor? Nissan announced that the new "bare bones" Versa Sedan will go on sale November 18th for under $10,000 (minus delivery, tax, title, tag...). This is more than $2,000 less than the current model. Yes, there is a slight catch. You're going to get a smaller engine. A 1.6L, 107 HP engine which puts it on par with a Toyota Yaris and Honda Fit which sell for the price of the 1.8L Versa.

When I get more details about this Versa I will be sure to post them. The Nissan Versa is a vehicle you can't say enough good things about. It offers more HP, options and interior space than its Toyota and Honda competitors at the same price. Now you'll spend a lot less.

A Brief History Of Indian Motorcycle Part 2

From IndianMotorcycle.com

Onward Indian Warriors: The Roaring '20s & Beyond

Of all the inspired "wrenches" who picked up Indian's engineering reins after Oscar Hedstrom's departure, the two most remarkable were Hedstrom's long-time assistant Charles Gustafson and Charles B. Franklin, an Irish immigrant who had ridden for the "Indian Rules" team that swept the Isle of Man TT in 1911.

Under their leadership, Indian celebrated the War's winding down by firing a broadside that resounded throughout the entire racing world, the introduction of the first dedicated board-track factory racer ever offered for sale directly to the public.
Featuring a four-valve-per-cylinder, overhead-valve engine and a lightweight rigid frame without such "nonessentials" as brakes, fenders or throttle (the bikes were run with the carbs wide open), the Model H carried a top speed of over 120mph and a sticker-shocking price of about $375, roughly a third more than a fully equipped Chief of the era. Because not many club racers were both wealthy and brave enough to buy and race one, relatively few were built, but those few --particularly when "loaned" to professional riders by the factory -- took home trophies and track records almost everywhere they competed.
Equally revolutionary, but a lot more practical and affordable, post-war Chiefs and Scouts were based on Gustafson's side-valve, 42-degree, v-twin Powerplus engine. Arguably the most influential motorcycle engine design in history, the Powerplus forced other v-twin makers, including Harley-Davidson, to abandon their OHV designs and develop side-valve motors to compete with the Indians' power and reliability.

The Powerplus platform, in displacements ranging from 37 to 74 cubic inches and chassis engineered by Franklin, remained the gold standard in v-twin design for decades and continues to inspire us at Indian today.

The first significant Powerplus-era street bikes were the 1920 Scout, featuring a 37ci motor, and the 1922 61ci Chief. The low-riding, long-wheelbase Scout , with its innovative semi-monocoque construction, three-speed transmission and helical-gear drive, was an immediate hit with street riders and dirt track and endurance racers and became even more popular after the frame was lowered and the engine bumped to 45ci in 1928.

During the same period, the Chief and the Big Chief, introduced in 1924 with a 74-cubic-inch Powerplus prime mover, began earning the reputation that would soon make the words "Indian Chief" synonymous with "world's best touring motorcycle."
Another Indian milestone of the era was the introduction of the Indian Four in 1927. Featuring an inline four-cylinder engine derived from a design Indian acquired in a buyout of the Ace Motorcycle Company, the new model was initially marketed as the Indian Ace and rebranded the Indian Four after being given an advanced suspension, high-stability frame and more durable motor in 1928.

(In one of the many ironies arising from Indian's pioneering role in motorcycle development, the Four was the progenitor of the transversely mounted inline fours with which Honda -- whose founder, Soichiro Honda, was an avid Scout rider before starting his own company -- revolutionized the sport-touring market in the early '70s.)

While Indian's engineers, assembly line workers, sales reps, factory racers, and customers were soaring through the '20s celebrating race wins and milestones such as becoming the first manufacturer in the world to produce over a quarter-million motorcycles (1923), the front office was equally busy roaring through the company's cash, credit and corporate goodwill.
Whereas Oscar Hedstrom's heirs in Indian's engineering and manufacturing departments were motorcycle devotees of ability, vision, and passion, those who succeeded George Hendee in the executive suite were mediocre mercenaries at best and white-collar pirates bent on looting and plundering at the worst.

Under their misdirection, the highly profitable Indian motorcycle division was bled white to support money-losing "diversifications" into non-motorcycle-related companies, many of which were suspected of being secretly controlled by cronies of the very Indian executives who made the decision to invest in them.

That Indian survived a full decade of financial machinations in the face of powerful competition from Harley-Davidson, Henderson, Excelsior, etc. -- not to mention the even stronger competition from the Model T Ford and other newly affordable four-wheelers -- is a testament to the quality and durability of its motorcycles, the pride and dedication of its dealers and riders and -- to be the truthful -- the gung ho, prairie oysters-to-the-wall economy of the Jazz Age.

Given the rot at the top, there is simply no way Indian -- which was already losing hundreds of thousands of dollars annually during the good years -- could have survived the Depression or even, in all likelihood, the first two years of the Depression, without a miracle.

Fortunately, miracles sometimes happen. Indian's miracle -- which went by the name of Eleuthere Paul duPont -- occurred on the very eve of what was, to the vast majority of American citizens and businesses, the start of an almost 12-year-long national nightmare.

In late 1929, shortly before the Stock Market's "Black Tuesday," E. Paul duPont persuaded his brother Francis to merge the family's luxury car business with Indian and cease production of -- surprise, surprise -- cars!
Though this decision seems bizarre, especially considering that many American motorcycle firms had already been bankrupted by the public's infatuation with the automobile, the fact seems to be that E. Paul, scion of one of America's wealthiest families, was simply more interested in bikes than cars. As a kid he had converted his bicycle into a motorbike by mounting a handbuilt engine of his own design to the frame and he later owned and modified several Indians while still in engineering school.
Then, too, he and Francis had been Indian shareholders since 1923 and had both seen enough to convince them that the only way to recoup anything on their original $300,000 investment was to take over the company and spend as many millions as it took to put it right.

One of duPont's first moves after becoming Indian's president was to the pull the plug on all non-motorcycle operations. One of his next -- and perhaps even more significant -- moves was to lure two extraordinary men, Briggs Weaver and Loren Hosley -- into the Springfield Wigwam.

Chief Designer Weaver eventually parented what almost every motorcycle fanatic alive considers the classic Indian look -- a sweeping, streamlined, timeless style which looks as vibrant and exhilarating today as it did 60-odd years ago. And Hosley, as production manager, converted Indian into a highly efficient manufacturing company with record-breaking income in less than a decade.

Along the way, they -- with E. Paul duPont working hands-on in every area from engineering to test riding -- introduced dozens of new technological advances, virtually dominated AMA Class C racing and made Indian an integral part of the march toward World War II preparedness.

Http://www.IndianMotorcycleDetroit