MOTORTREND, August 2008

By Frank Markus

Maserati has tampered with the Quattroporte, a sedan that inspires visceral, carnal automotive lust wildly out of proportion with its size and door count. Perhaps fearing cries of “blasphemy!” the factory proffered these historic precedents: DaVinci’s do-over of his “Virgin of the Rocks” masterpiece and Henri Matisse’s reinterpretation of “Le Luxe.”

Well, okay, in that context, we might forgive Pininfarina for extending the nose 1.4 in. and the tail by 0.4 in. and giving it a larger grille with vertical slats (chromed to distinguish the new S model) to strengthen its resemblance to the GranTurismo. It’s also incorporated new bi-Xenon and LED lighting and expanded the already staggering array of interior trim choices to 10 leather colors with 11 piping hues and myriad woods or lacquers from which to choose. Other interior upgrades include new cluster graphics, reshaped seats and a new multifunction wood and leather steering wheel with sporty thumb rests. We can certainly forgive the infusion of 25 extra horses and 22 lb-ft of torque that come with the S model’s half-liter-larger V-8. If you take umbrage at these aesthetic amendments, you’ll surely embrace the quantum improvement in ergonomics brought by Bose’s new multimedia/nav system, standard on base and S models (only these two trim levels are offered; the outgoing Executive model’s many extravagances are now optional on either).

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CNNMoney - Special Report Mortgage Meltdown, Last Updated: August 8, 2008: 1:47 PM EDT

In wake of huge losses, Fannie Mae announces changes that will make home loans harder and more expensive to obtain.

By Les Christie, CNNMoney.com staff writer

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — The good news: Mortgage giant Fannie Mae is taking steps to shore up its finances. The bad news: You’re going to pay for it when you take out a mortgage.

Fannie plays a central role in the market for home mortgages by purchasing loans, securitizing them and selling them to investors. In announcing announcing a $2.3 billion loss on Friday, it also said it would make major changes that could have a significant effect on mortgage liquidity and pricing.

The company said it will increase its fees, stop buying certain high-risk loans and charge a higher risk premium for buying loans in the declining market.

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BUSINESSWEEK - Market Snapshot August 8, 2008, 5:21PM EST

Major U.S. stock staged a huge rally Friday to cap a wild week of trading. Traders ignored a larger than expected loss from mortgage finance giant Fannie Mae (FNM), focusing instead on a fresh plunge in crude oil prices and a big move higher for the U.S. dollar.

On Friday, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 302.89 points, or 2.65%, to 11,734.32. The broader S&P 500 index added 30.25 points, or 2.39%, to 1,296.31. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index rose 58.37 points, or 2.48%, to 2,414.10.

On the New York Stock Exchange, 24 stocks gained in price for every seven that fell. The ratio on the Nasdaq was 19-8 positive. Trading was slow.

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CNNMoney - August 7, 2008: 4:42 AM EDT

The Heinekes may be good savers, but like most Americans, they need to put more cash into a rainy-day fund.

By Joe Light, Money Magazine staff reporter

(Money Magazine) — Lindsay and Patrick Heineke seem to be doing everything right, financially speaking. The Whitinsville, Mass. couple are aggressively paying down mortgage debt and are saving for retirement at a pace that would put most of their twentysomething peers to shame.

There’s just one thing Lindsay, 26, and Patrick, 27, are missing. And in today’s turbulent economic climate, it might be the most vital investment of all: a sufficient emergency fund.

This cash account is a kind of insurance policy against financial calamity. When you’re suddenly faced with a bill you couldn’t possibly have budgeted for, the money is there. In a worst-case scenario, like a computer replacing your job, the fund can cover your family’s living expenses while you look for work.

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BUSINESSWEEK - Investing August 7, 2008, 5:00PM EST

Even though housing prices are still falling, some bargain hunters are already getting to work. What takes patience these days is the financing

by Lauren Young

Is it safe to venture back into the property market? Some real estate pros are switching into full bargain-hunting mode even as home prices continue to fall nationwide. But if you’re tempted to join them in bottom-feeding, look out. Not only is there a chance home prices will fall more and not recover for years, but even seasoned professionals are struggling as they try to work out deals.

Among the bargain-seekers is Jim Gillespie, president and chief executive of Coldwell Banker Real Estate. In April he closed on a 35-year-old, three-bedroom, two-bath ranch house just south of Santa Rosa, Calif. A year and a half ago the seller paid more than $450,000; Gillespie got it for $320,000. He wasn’t trying to make a killing: “The way I look at it, I got a fair market price,” he says. “I’m not saying it will go up to $450,000 overnight, but it’s going to be a good investment. People shouldn’t try to time the market.”

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Sillicon Alley Insider - Peter Kafka | August 8, 2008 10:50 AM

Boilerplate disclosure in Google’s quarterly report (GOOG):  A list of projects/units that aren’t making the search company any money. As it did last quarter, Google notes that YouTube isn’t making any kind of “material” revenue contribution; other units on the goose-egg list include Postini, Google Audio Ads (dMarc), Google Checkout, etc.

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InformationWeek, Aug 8, 2008 09:15 AM

Posted by Eric Zeman

Just in time for today’s opening ceremonies, Google has unfurled a new mobile search tool to help track down Olympics results quickly from your mobile phone. It also set up a mobile Web site specifically so followers of the games can peruse results and events at leisure. Let the Games begin!

I really enjoy the Olympic Games. Watching the world’s best athletes compete for the gold is always thrilling (especially since I competed in track and field events when I was in high school). The Internet will surely be a great tool to use to keep track of my favorite events. Google has decided to extend the power of its search engines and create specific Olympic-based tools for Internet-capable mobile phones.

According to the Official Google Mobile Blog, Google has “launched a new mobile search tool that gets you sport results, country medal count, and event schedules right at the top of your search results.”

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