Car Stuff

     The New York Auto Show is underway, and two of the models on display that are of special interest to Alabama residents are the Hyundai Sonata Turbo and a Hybrid. That's because the first will be built in the plant at Montgomery and the second will not.
     The New York Times review of both is not especially positive...they don't seem to believe the company will be able to produce the vechicle with the promised power. And they think the Hybrid looks "busy".
     The company says too many changes would be needed at the Alabama plant for the hybrid to be built there, so it will be made in South Korea instead.
     The luxury Hyundai Equus is on display too...for $50,000 you can get the automaker's version of a Lexus. But with the Hyundai vehicle you get a "free " iPad.
     The Millionth car produced at the Hyundai Montgomery is on display at the Montgomery Airport...but no, the company did NOT donate the car in return for that promotional opportunity. The city had to buy it. Hmmm
     As for the Mercedes R-Class wagon, built in Vance, it's being displayed in New York with a make-over. But not enough of one says The Times review.
 
   *The big car story of the year will either be or not be the hybrid car company that is supposedly going to be built in South Alabama by a Chinese company.

   The HK Motors project, a billion dollar hybrid car plant that is supposedly going to be built in Baldwin County, is extraordinarily quiet at the time you would think there would be a flood of publicity. The last news  story posted on their website was in Janaury...and even it was misleading, since the "new" design for the car by an Italian Company was actually an old vehicle design dusted off for the announcement. The state has yet to put a single dollar towards the project. Actually there was a newer story in the Press Register about plant design last month, but the story never made it to the company's website.