As of lately the car manufacturers have been strategically bringing back a few of the cool cars of yesteryear… the Dodge Charger, Chevrolet Camaro, Pontiac GTO, etc. While these are great and I’m sure that many of us couldn’t be happier to see these old friends, there are still a few models out there that we still wished they’d bring back. Let’s open this discussion with a few favorites and see if we can’t get something rolling with a few of these manufacturers.

Buick Grand National GNX-

This would have to be one of the baddest slabs of American muscle that ever came packaged within the format of a V-6. With the humble 1978 beginnings with a 3.8 liter turbo engine capable of 165 horsepower, The Grand National soured the ranks of ultimate respect when it introduced its 1987 limited edition GNX.

1987 was the last year of the Grand Nationals productions and Buick decided to go out with a bang. This has been called the height of the Buick’s decade of existence. The limited edition GNX was fitted with a Garrett turbocharger and ultra lightweight ceramic impeller, which allowed the turbo charger to be set at 15 psi. This transformed that original 165 horses into 275 bhp and 360 lbs torque.

The transmission of the GNX had to be substantially strengthened to handle the extra power, and it was given plenty of gleaming chrome accents to foster its “bad” look. This combination continues to be potent today, and few cars today can still hold up to one of these sleek black (the GNX only came in black) beauties at a stoplight. We can only imagine how a retro styled grand national GNX might look, and some of us wouldn’t mind finding out.

You hear that Buick!

Porsche 930 (“Wide Body”)-

The 930 was basically the race version of the infamous 911 built from 1976 to 1993. The Type 930 S Coupe basically took the stock 911 body, added flared fenders to protect the wider wheels and tires, a whale tail rear spoiler, and boosted the engine with the infamous (albeit ‘lag’ prone) KKK turbocharger.

Mostly intended for racing, the Porsche 930 S had a 3.3-liter six-cylinder engine with two valves per cylinder, producing 300 horsepower. The 930 could sprint from 0 to 60 in around 5 seconds, which is still respectable today. The 930 continues to be quite a rare find today and was not even sold in the states from 1979 through 1985.

Okay, okay… before anybody says the obvious, we understand the new 911 turbo is the American version of the same thing, but we still think it would be awesome if Porsche would open up a new can of 930 whoop a__, complete with a race suspension, heavily boosted turbo, wide rear tires, fender flares, and fully equipped to be taken out on the track right off the showroom floor!

What cars would you like to see brought back?

The e-vine has a tendency of listening to such requests on occasion you know…

While the Senate considers whether or not to accept the rise in the conforming loan limit passed by the House, numbers are being released showing home foreclosures in 2007. It’s not a surprise that home foreclosures in 2007 were up. Rather dramatically.

Inman News reports on the staggering number of households that were in some state of foreclosure during 2007:

The number of households in foreclosure increased 79 percent in 2007, with about one of every 100 U.S. households at some stage of the foreclosure process, according to the latest numbers from data aggregator RealtyTrac.

However, it remains unclear whether or not any of the attempts to fix the mortgage crisis and the economy in 2008 will actually work. A mortgage rate freeze for resetting ARMs may stave off foreclosures for now, but unless those homeowners sell in the next five years, we will likely remain as we are.

The Center for Responsible Lending points out that the plan championed by the Treasury Department, HOPE NOW, will barely make a dent in the looming foreclosure crisis:

This analysis shows the Treasury plan, plus existing lender modifications, barely make a dent in the growing foreclosure crisis and will allow subprime damage to continue spreading through the entire economy.

The Treasury plan calls for mortgage lenders to volutarily change mortgage rates to fixed rates for at-risk borrowers. So far, it doesn’t look to be effective.

Other programs fall woefully short of making an impact in the now-estimated 3.5 million subprime ARMs due for reset through 2009.

However, the possible impact of the conforming loan limit has not been factored in. If the conforming loan limit rises to $625,000, and FHA expands its programs to include homes of more than $700,000, some foreclosures may be avoided since it will be easier for mortgagees to sell their homes.

Tags: fix mortgage crisis, mortgage lenders, home mortgage loan, mortgage loan blog,
foreclosures 2007, resetting ARMs, mortgage rate freeze

Foreclosures in your neighborhood can hurt you in more ways than one. Of course, the property is typically unkempt and neglected for a time. It also directly affects your ability to sell your house, should you desire to do so. This is because of the obvious eyesore factor and also the fact that people get leery when they see too many houses on the same street for sale simultaneously.

But hopefully, you won’t have an experience like the poor residents of Staten Island, New York. In Staten Island, where the rat population could reportedly be as high as 5 million, the neglected foreclosure properties have become a festering ground for the rodents, much to the chagrin of neighbors.

This, according to the Staten Island Advance:

“It’s not fair,” said Debra Hanwacker, a Travis resident whose backyard abuts a property on Beresford Avenue that has been vacant and heading toward foreclosure for nearly a year, leading the yard to become overgrown. Trash on the site has attracted rats, who have burrowed into Ms. Hanwacker’s yard in search for food. “We’re regular people who clean our yard and take care of our stuff. My kids can’t go outside. I feel helpless.”

Of course, should you have a rodent infestation of a similar kind, the Advance kindly provides some tips for keeping them at bay. These include removing clutter, trash, fixing leaky faucets and other water sources, sealing wall cracks and small holes and installing screens in front of interior vents.