Corvette ZR-1 at Detroit Auto Show
The recent editions of the Corvette have been delivering a lot of bang for the buck. It seems to be the star of the Detroit Auto Show:
From zero to 60 in well under 4 seconds. Top speeds in excess of 200 miles per hour. These are the kinds of gaudy numbers typically reserved for the Italian and German sports cars of the world. And matched up against the storied European competition, the new Corvette is still relatively affordable. MarketWatch
Pretty fast, but most people, given the choice, still would prefer the sex appeal of the Ferrari 430 or 911 Turbo.
GM showcases the super `Vette at a 6-figure price
MarketWatch
Mahalo Daily Debuts with new Tesla Roadster
Jason Calacanis’ new Mahalo Daily show just had its debut, and early plans call for 4 shows a week.
This is the first episode, where you get to ride with host Veronica Belmont in the electric Tesla Roadster. These cars sneak right up on you, and it is unnerving how quiet they are. Given it will probably beat my Twin Turbo Porsche to 60 MPH, and saves the environment to boot, they just might be on to something. For now they limit the car to 125 MPH top speed, which should take care of most pizza runs.
I have been dying to see this car in action, congrats to the Tesla folks and Calacanis for getting these ambitious projects off the ground.
Strong Buy on The Last Tycoons
Catching up on my reading has been made more difficult by a commitment to WillIam D. Cohan's The Last Tycoons, The Secret History of Lazard Freres.
The book was released last spring to a bit of fanfare, all of which was lost on me as I was traveling. This book is a fascinating account of the nonsense that is typical of day to day life at the most political corporations in America, otherwise known as investment banks.Lazard, of course, is not just any investment bank, and dominated the league tables worldwide, making wealthy men of many partners. The authors stint was a brief one near the end of its long run as a partnership, encompassing 6 years in the early 1990's.
Still, Cohan performed exhaustive research to bring the 700-page tome together, and covers the origins of the firm and the succession of "Great Men", legendary and mercurial bankers who the current crop of working stiff MBA's can only hope to emulate. Of course, that is probably a good thing given the petty politics, backstabbing, deception, and greed displayed in the offices and boardrooms of Wall Street. The sterotype usually fits, although their are thankfully some exceptions.
Cohan covers everything from one of the first known rogue traders, who nearly bankrupted the firm in the 1930's, to the mad dash of many European partners to escape one step ahead of the Nazi's, to the eventual public offering of Lazard that enriched Bruce Wasserstein at the expense of many long-time employees.
Power and greed are everyday themes on Wall Street, along with sexual escapades. The book insinuates that Felix Rohatyn got busy behind locked doors, on the desk in his office, with Andre Meyer banging on the door telling the saviour of New York City to get a room. The many sexcapades of Rohatyn, Michel David-Weill and Wasserstein are chronicled along with the death of Edouard Stern, whose bizarre murder thankfully took place before the rise of most of the current crop of Wall Street blogs came of age. They would have had a field day with this one.
Porsche GT 2 Set to Roll
The wicked Porsche GT 2 is inching closer to the showrooms, and this beast should get tongues a wagging as the fastest factory produced 911 from Germany. Hard core fans thought the Cayenne made them soft, but this car should disprove that thought.
The first cars will be delivered in just a few weeks.
Respect Required
Porsche.com
48 Hours: Porsche GT 2
1440 Wall Street
