I'm not surprised I'd never seen the company before. It was founded in 2006 in China, apparently the flagship around several sister companies (although information about the company is hard to find). But I did find automatic watches with favorable reviews for $40 (and even less, but I liked the design I chose). I wasn't looking to buy a watch, but I thought this was a unique enough timepiece to go ahead and buy. And so I did. I chose the s1150-1 model, which has a "Special Design [that] Reveals Your Fashionable Point of View." How could I resist? In terms of what that actually means, it means a two-tone silver and blue automatic watch with a (fake) tourbillon and a moonphase dial. It's got a stainless-steel strap with mineral-tempered glass. After a long delay in shipping, the watch arrived. And it exceeded my expectations. It's not a great watch by any means. And it's not a particularly-sophisticated movement; the case is 13mm thick and it's far from silent. But honestly everything came as advertised, and that's a win. The balance wheel might be incorrectly advertised as a tourbillon, but Forsining is hardly alone in that. The moonphase works and the watch is a functioning automatic. Functioning and accurate are certainly different, but the watch holds time acceptably-well for me. After a few days of wearing it, the time needs to be adjusted about a second to compensate for it running fast. The power reserve isn't long: I can't find the actual number anywhere, but it definitely won't last more than a day. On that note, it didn't come with any manual whatsoever; not much of a problem, but interesting nonetheless. All of that doesn't answer my headline, though. It is my favorite watch for the simple reason that it's interesting. It gets compliments, and although probably the same number as any nicer watch, they allow me to tell someone the story behind it. I've owned it for a year, and I keep wearing it. Quite a bit more than other, nicer watches, too. It is beautiful, and it does everything a good watch should: tell the time while also telling a bit of a story. On another note, the Forsining did get me thinking about the Chinese market in general. There's always a reason why Chinese prices are lower, and the lack of regulation and fair laws is something to keep in mind. (Of note, Forsining and its parent company have not been accused of slave labor or anything similarly egregious.) But it's not surprising that China offers cheap watches. And sure, that's interesting proof that a bare-bones automatic watch doesn't need to be expensive. But if you want to pay for quality, the Chinese market can offer that. High-end Chinese products, at least according to a GQ article from last year, undercut Swiss prices primarily based on lower costs of land and salaries, not materials or assembly. Still, the article points out, Chinese buyers also aren't convinced and Chinese brands struggle to make profits even at home, let alone globally. The cheap watches are an established part of the global scene, but Chinese watchmaking is varied, and I think it'll be a growing player (mirroring, and hopefully simultaneously with a continuation of, the rise of luxury Japanese watches). At the end of the day, if you want a nice watch, don't buy a Forsining. Watches with famous names deserve them. However, it might be worth considering a quality brand outside the norm; maybe even from China.
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Drivers and teams were quick to share their excitement with the package and their appreciation for NASCAR letting them have input. At the end of the day, these changes mean the cars are harder to drive - the opposite direction the Cup Series has been headed for the last several years. Steve O'Donnell, Executive Vice President and Chief Racing Officer with the sport said, "You’ll hear this from the drivers is that this package with the Next Gen car puts it back in the drivers’ hands and we’re excited about what that will do in 2022, for sure." Fans are, he added, "going to see the best drivers and the best engineers in the world go out there and attack this car and attack each race track, and it will be hard to drive." The first real showing of this car in a race will be the Busch Clash and the Los Angeles Coliseum, where the new package will make its racing debut. The next week's car, for Daytona and other superspeedways - potentially including Atlanta following the repave, with a future test scheduled - is yet to be finalized, though. "We’re close,” said O’Donnell. “We’ve done a number of tests already but our next step in the process for superspeedways will be in Atlanta...to confirm what package we want to put on that race track. We expect that to be the superspeedway package." That package will try to improve cooling and probably lower the downforce levels as well. Ultimately, it's a win for fans and drivers who've pushed for more power, limiting the influence of aerodynamics in races and making the cars more difficult to drive. NASCAR continues to listen to its fans, with its new schedule echoing some fan favorites, and this is no different. In this case engine builders and designers should be pleased as well, with only one package to focus on for the season.
He says the future for the brand looks a lot brighter than it did under Volkswagen, pointing out that although VW had the money to invest in the brand, it didn't make sense to invest in a hypercar platform that couldn't be shared across the many Volkwagen-owned brands. Under Rimac, though, Bugatti will finally have a passionate and purposeful ownership. It's an owner, in fact, who wants to make "something absolutely insane that no one thinks about." The first order of business for the company is to get production of the extreme track-focused Bolide started. Next, it'll be interesting to see whether the Chiron's replacement uses the same 8.0-liter W16 that was in the Veyron since 2005. Either way, it looks like an exciting future for the iconic French brand.
For 2020 and 2021, Ty scored 13 wins in ARCA, as well as four more in the ARCA East and West series, on the hunt for the championship. Critics of his performance have pointed his dominant equipment and agressive racing style, sometimes wrecking leaders for the win. That might be one of the reasons he struggled to land sponsorship outside of his Monster Energy deal, sometimes winning with an unsponsored car. Ty's real breakout performances this year have been in the XFinity Series, where he's racked up three wins in eleven starts, along with eight top fives. That's got him on the national stage, which has helped his sponsorship issue. Once again, this is a chance that his name helped him get, but one he's capitalized on. More than that, he's winning while his teammates aren't. That convinces me that he's a real talent and a next-generation star. His path to success echoes that of another NASCAR driver, Joey Logano. Like Logano, he found success in the lower series before jumping straight to the XFinity Series and winning young (Gibbs is now the second-youngest XFinity winner after Logano). And like Logano, it seems like he'll bring his talents to the Cup Series in Joe Gibbs equipment. It took Logano being dropped and finding a seat a Penske to find his fit, but from there he went on to be a champion. So for Dale Earnhardt Jr. to compare Ty Gibbs to Logano is high praise for the young talent.
Used car sales have been helped immensely by the chip shortage, pushing new-car customers into looking at used cars. And while every automotive group has capitalized, with record sales across the board, Carvana has managed to pull more buyers. CEO Ernest Garcia credits this to the brand's outreach and experimentation, and says he foresees even greater growth ahead. Time will tell if Carvana can continue its trajectory and beat CarMax.
The order form for the car reveals the power figure for this engine, which is kept down at 430 horsepower to meet NHRA class regulations. (Chevy does make a 572 crate engine that produces up to 727-horsepower, though.) If you want more power, you'll have to look at smaller engine options, with an NHRA-rated 470 horsepower 427 (7-liter) V8, along with a supercharged 350 (5.7-liter) V8 producing 600 horsepower While sales have typically been restricted to under 70 per year, meaning there have been less than 700 COPOs since 2012, this model will be available to anyone, with deliveries on a first-come, first-serve basis. So if you're looking for the ultimate modern Camaro, you should be able to take yours to the drag strip starting late 2021. Prices start at $105,500 for the 571, going up to $117, 500 for the 427, and peaking at $130,000 for the 350.
If all that wasn't enough to show you that this is a special Atlas, the car features a rare Kingfisher Blue paint that's only available on select European-market models, gloss black trim, and GT badges. Inside, blue Recaro sport seats match the custom gearshift, wheel, door panels, seatbelts, and footrests. And, because it's built by Volkswagen, the release points out that no interior fittings use animal-based materials.
Volkswagen would like you to know that there are no plans to put this model into production. However, if you're enthused about fast VW SUVs, then this probably signifies some future models to come, like the Ford ST line of SUVs.
It looks like this is just mirroring what's going on throughout GM, though. The Automotive News report said that Cadillac's Lyriq, Optiq, and Symboliq are all replacements for the XT4, XT5, XT6 respectively for 2025. Also seeing the end of the line, if the report is to be believed, are the Chevy Spark, Chevy Trax, Buick Encore, and Chevy Malibu.
This is a natural result of GM's drive towards an electric future. What interests me here is the future of the marquee in NASCAR, a sport which just unveiled a Next Gen car that Chevrolet fields under the Camaro brand. Not only could the Camaro be out midway through the Next-Gen run, but Chevrolet might not have a gas-powered muscle car to go to altogether.
The lifted crossover-style Cross Country trims will continue on though. They're popular in the US, combining the styling with the high-riding feel of an SUV. But if you want a true Volvo wagon in America, you'll only have a Polestar to get as of next year. And that's sad to hear from the maker of some of the greatest wagons in history, but understandable given the market.
So, apart from a three-race deal next year with Valvoline, HendrickCars.com will continue to be the livery carried on Larson's Chevy Camaro. And Larson appreciates it. “I want to be at Hendrick for the rest of my career and if I can have this sponsorship attached to me, I think that goes a long way for my brand and my fanbase." He'd even like to consider a leadership role after his career, like Jeff Gordon. And the whole organization's happy too. Speaking to the AP, Hendrick said: “My dealerships, the general managers and the employees, they didn’t want anyone else on the car."
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