It’s been almost four decades since the Pontiac Trans Am was made famous as the co-star of the film “Smokey and the Bandit.” Now that the automaker has since gone bust, the only way for the world to greet a revived classic is through the work of Trans Am Depot, a specialty tuning shop that has introduced a 2015 Chevrolet Camaro-based limited-edition Trans Am.
That’s not all, Trans Am fans, the other co-star of “Smokey and the Bandit,” Burt Reynolds, has signed each of the 77 examples of the new car and was there to introduce the vehicle.
Worthly reports that when asked about the rise of the Trans Am and the movie that made it famous, Reynolds says, “it was hot in every way. It was a love story and most guys like a love story with a car in it.”
The movie also had a special place in Trans Am Depot co-founder Tod Womack’s heart. “To see Smokey and the Bandit, it’s like you remember your first kiss, you always remember where you saw the movie, who you were with,” he said. Gee, doesn’t that just make you all warm and fuzzy?
Brother and co-founder Scott Warmack recalls that within two weeks of the movie’s debut, their father bought not one, but two Trans Ams. I’ve never quite understood why people would buy two of the exact same car, especially a new (at the time) vehicle, but hey, if you love something that much …
And the brothers really must love the cars, because since 1977, the two have owned nearly 50 Trans Ams. Obsession? Possibly, but who else better to build a revival of the iconic Bandit-mobile?
For a long time, the Warmack brothers have been told that Burt Reynolds needs to be part of their business, and finally their dream has come true.
BYD has launched the third-generation Qin Plus DM-i in China, and the first thing that caught my eye is its price. According to CarNewsChina, the plug-in hybrid sedan starts at 79,900 yuan, which is about $11,980. That’s an incredibly low price for a brand-new car, especially by US standards.
What’s even more impressive is the range. The Qin Plus DM-i can drive up to 137 miles on electricity alone, which should cover most people’s daily commutes without using a drop of gas. Once the battery runs out, the 1.5-liter engine takes over. Thanks to its 17-gallon tank and roughly 91 mpg with a drained battery, the combined range reaches up to 1,423 miles.
Apple won the PC market’s worst quarter, but that’s not the entire story. It won the race by stumbling less than everyone else.
PC makers shipped just 57 million computers worldwide in Q3, which might look good, but it’s a 21% year-over-year plunge (via Counterpoint Research). And despite Apple’s Mac shipments falling by 11%, to 5.6 million, its market share rose from 8.7% to 9.8%. How did that happen?
Update (October 22 23:54 PT): In response to our query, GM clarified that offline recording support is already available on eligible vehicles. Like Tesla's Sentry Mode, it requires owners to connect a USB drive to save incident recordings, which can be viewed on the vehicle's infotainment screen. The upcoming Connected Cameras feature will build on this by giving owners remote access to these recordings via the revamped OnStar app, allowing them to check footage without walking out to their car.
General Motors has announced plans to add a new Connected Cameras feature to its OnStar service starting next year, giving drivers a way to monitor parked vehicles remotely and capture footage of certain incidents.