Master Auto Tech
Master Auto Tech: offering premium quality service with practical pricing for Bellingham's discerning import car owners. All European and Asian makes are welcome.
We Proudly Service
Types of Services
| Apr 29 |
Daimler agrees to unload remaining Chrysler stake
|
| Mar 20 |
Mercedes prepares to expand Alabama plant
|
| Feb 23 |
GM had no advance notice of Saab filingJamie LaReauAutomotive News EuropeFebruary 23, 2009 06:01 CETGeneral Motors executives were surprised by the speed at which Saab filed for court protection from its creditors last week, leaving them with few answers for anxious U.S. Saab dealers.GM tried to provide that information during a dealer broadcast Friday, but dealers said details were sketchy.“The GM leadership was surprised by the filing and didn’t know it was coming, so they are going through scenarios right now that they don’t have the answers to, such as buying back inventory and so on,” said a Saab dealer who listened to the broadcast.A GM spokeswoman said the company had no advance word about the timing of the filing. Although GM owns Saab, it had moved to set Saab up as a separate entity with its own board.“We knew a filing was a potential, but it could have happened this week or later,” Joanne Krell, spokeswoman for the Saab brand in Detroit, said Friday. “It just wasn’t entirely clear.”The Saab dealer who heard the broadcast said GM assured them it will honor warranties and prepaid maintenance and provide parts.GM leaders told dealers they will be putting more incentives on Saab vehicles in March to help move inventory.GM also said it will begin paying suppliers to Saab Automobile AB the $127 million due for parts shipped as of today, Feb. 23, say GM sources.The move comes after Sweden’s government rejected a request for financial aid from GM, the carmaker’s U.S. parent. On Friday Saab said it had filed for reorganization under a self-managed Swedish court process.Saab said it would continue to operate normally during the reorganization, with GM and the Swedish government providing some support.The Saab reorganization is headed by an independent administrator appointed by a Swedish court. The administrator’s job is to formulate an outline for restructuring and present it to creditors in three weeks.The process will be concluded in three months, at which time the reorganized company either emerges as viable, with new funding from private or public investors, or moves into liquidation.John Revill of Automotive News Europe and Robert Sherefkin contributed to this report |
| Feb 05 |
More from our BBJ Infomercial on TiresMy next topic came to me some time ago in dramatic form. The shelf life of tires was featured on an ABC News info drama. I choose to leave the fearful drama aside but think it’s a topic worth noting. The video can be found on ABC’s website. I broach the topic for the Bellingham Business Journal with the help of our ever present inquisitive customer. Q: My father in law asked me how old my new tires are? I just bought them they are new, right? A: Not necessarily. Like milk, eggs or corn chips, tires have a “best if used by” date printed on them. Only outdated tires could be a lot more hazardous than tainted treats. On the side wall of every tire is a sequence of letters and numbers beginning with the letters DOT. For example: DOT B97R FW6X 2202. The numbers at the end of our example are the week of the year the tires were manufactured. In our example the tires were manufactured in the twenty second week of two thousand two. Tires older than six years may be unsafe and should not be used. A reputable tire store will readily make this date available for you. I recently bought a set of tires for my wife’s Toyota. The dates of manufacture; 0309, the third week of 2009 were conveniently printed on the invoice. MMMM fresh tires. |
| Jan 31 |
Uber Muscle Car
In 1988, while Fredric was living in Anchorage Alaska, his mechanic suggested he look at a very special Mercedes Benz. So Fredric took the 6.3 liter Benz for a test drive. You might say it was love at first linear G force. The huge mechanically fuel injected, V-8 pushed him back in the sear at wide open throttle. 300 horse power was still a lot back in 1988, especially for a luxury sedan built in 1970. The Air suspension maintained a firm grip while the rear of the car gave a little wiggle as the automatic transmission shifted in to third gear. Even by today’s standards it will get your heart pumping. “This luxury sedan from Germany turned in quarter mile times comparable to the iconic Pontiac GTO muscle car of the same vintage,” coments Bob Taylor, owner Master Auto Tech What set this car apart was that it could cruise at over 120 mph carrying five people in complete comfort. The claim by Mercedes Benz that this was the fastest luxury car in the world along with its modest styling, make the 300SEL a real sleeper. The uninitiated who fail to notice the 6.3 stamped on the rear deck could be in for a surprise at the next stop light. Fredric kept the car as his daily driver and brought it to Bellingham with him in 2003. The interior wood trim is like new and the leather seats have all been replaced. The fresh factory anthracite gray paint and service and repairs using original manufacturer equipment parts make this a well kept true classic. “It’s still a real head turner, especially among classic car aficionados.” Fredric notes and laments tongue in cheek that until he owned this car he had never had a speeding ticket. That horse power can get expensive can’t it.
|
| Jan 03 |
LONDON — An extremely rare 1937 Bugatti has been found in a garage in England and is expected to draw a record price when it is auctioned in Paris next month.
The dusty but intact Bugatti Type 57S Atalante is one of only 17 ever made. It had a top speed of 130 mph at a time when most cars could only go half as fast. The powerful two-seater car from the heyday of the celebrated Bugatti marquee is expected to be sold for more than 3 million pounds ($4.3 million). It was hidden away in the garage of an elderly doctor who last used it around 1960. His relatives found it after his death. British race car driver Earl Howe was the car’s first owner. |
| Dec 15 |
Toyota halts U.S. Prius project |
| Dec 08 |
Honda quits Formula One to cut costsHans Greimel
TOKYO — Honda Motor pulled out of Formula One racing Friday to save more than $978 million a year as it scrambles to cut costs amid the global market meltdown. President Takeo Fukui is looking to sell the team and won’t field a car when the next F1 season starts in March. The company also won’t supply engines to other teams. The 350 engineers working on Honda’s F1 project will be transferred to other duties, including the development of environmentally friendly hybrid drive trains, Fukui told reporters. “This difficult decision has been made in light of the quickly deteriorating operating environment facing the global auto industry,” Fukui said. “Honda must protect its core business.” Honda has cut jobs in Japan, reduced production and lowered its profit forecast in the face of the global credit crisis and falling sales. Fukui said it costs 20 billion yen ($978 million) a year to operate the F1 team, not including costs for developing the engine and body. Honda finished ninth of the eleven teams in the F1 constructors’ championship last season and has suffered a dearth of checkered flags since it returned to the racing series in 2000, logging only one first-place finish. |




