Volkswagen has decided to drop the Rabbit nameplate and return to calling its hatchback the Golf. All part of a global naming strategy, the company says. Rabbit was the name from 1975 until 1984, when the Golf name was first used as part of a global naming strategy.
Green Car Journal, a magazine dedicated to covering vehicles friendly to the environment, will present its Green Car of the Year Award this morning at the L.A. Auto Show. The nominees this year are the BMW 335d, Ford Fusion Hybrid, Saturn Vue 2-Mode Hybrid, smart fortwo and Volkswagen Jetta TDI.
They’ve got the world on a string
Yesterday’s overview of the upcoming L.A. Auto Show might have sounded a tad too enthusiastic. Apologies. The reality is that the show is a reflection of the dire situation automakers find themselves in, only it’s representative of a few months ago with the exception of GM’s recent cancellation of its press conference and display of anything significant.
The L.A. Auto Show starts this Friday, filling the Los Angeles Convention Center with the industry’s latest offerings. The show hasn’t always had much in the way of exclusive debuts and, before moving to the current November dates, it overlapped the Elvis Presley of car shows, Detroit. Now it leads off the U.S. auto show season, which includes Detroit and Chicago.
