Apprentices designed, engineered and built the lightweight 0.5 horsepower electric racer with minimal support from the Crewe factory. Three Bentley apprentices piloted the car during the race at Goodwood, while the rest served as the DC’s support team.

The high-tech green solutions touted by auto makers are proving to be too expensive and often impractical in the developing world, where consumers are just beginning to afford the combustion engine. For instance, in China, where passenger-car sales soared 21% to more than 5.2 million vehicles last year, some consumers are environmentally conscious, but they also care about price.

In the past year, Mr. Mulally, a former Boeing Co. executive with no auto experience, has improved year-on-year earnings each quarter. In 2007, Ford startled the industry by reporting $400 million in positive operating cash flow, something General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC have been hard-pressed to match. At the same time, the quality ratings of Ford vehicles spiked (a trend that started before Mr. Mulally arrived) and now approach the lofty levels of Toyota Motor Corp. That chopped $1 billion off Ford’s warranty costs last year.

executive director of the Innovation Center for Energy and Transportation, agrees. “I don’t think Chinese hybrid vehicles are ready for large-scale production,” he says. “Companies want recognition for being the first to have them. It’s mostly about PR to start with, although it’s also about developing capability in the technology for the future.”

Two years ago, when a ship carrying 4,703 shiny new Mazdas nearly sank in the Pacific. The freighter, the Cougar Ace, listing at a severe 60-degree angle, before finally being righted. The mishap created a dilemma: What to do with the cars? They had remained safely strapped down throughout the ordeal — but no one knew for sure what damage, if any, might be caused by dangling cars at such a steep angle for so long.

I attended the annual Fabulous Fords Forever show at Knott’s Berry Farm in Buena Park, California, over the weekend. It’s a superb all-Ford event, and I’ve been going on and off for 20 years (we’ll have a gallery of pix up in a day or so). Yet in spite of all the Shelbys, Boss Mustangs, Thunderbirds, Lincolns, Tigers, Pantera, Crown Vics, and every other sort of hot Ford you can name, this mirroriffic Pinto was the talk of the grounds. I’d run into someone, and within 30 seconds, they’d say “hey — didja see the Disco Ball Pinto?”

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