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Monday, November 11, 2019

What You Missed | Your Autoblog Daily Digest for November 11, 2019

Nov 11, 2019

Top Stories of the Day

Why the LT2 is worthy to be the 'jewel' of the mid-engine 2020 Corvette

PONTIAC, Mich. — Chevrolet lovingly refers to the LT2 in the 2020 Chevy Corvette as the "jewel" of the car. We don't disagree. It's a pretty engine, far prettier than any other base Small Blocks we've seen in Corvettes past. You can gaze upon the eng…

Next-gen Porsche 718 Cayman and Boxster EVs could pack 400 hp

Porsche hasn't yet determined whether the next-gen 718 Cayman and Boxster will go all-electric . In April this year, Porsche boss Dr. Oliver Blume told Autocar , "We have prototypes of the 718 running in electric now, and a hybrid prototype is being bu…

Refreshed 2020 Volkswagen Passat costs less than its predecessor

Volkswagen has released pricing information for the refreshed 2020 Passat it unveiled at the 2019 Detroit Auto Show. Developed specifically for the American market, the firm's biggest sedan carries a base price of $23,915 once dealers add a mandatory…

2020 Honda CR-V Review & Guide | A must-drive gets better

If you're looking for a small crossover, and especially if you'll have a family in tow, the 2020 Honda CR-V should be considered a must-drive. Though not especially characterful and certainly not the most rugged sort, the CR-V nevertheless impresses …

Dodge recalls 173 Chargers and Challengers for front wheels that don't fit correctly

Dodge is recalling 173 Challengers and Chargers because they're equipped with an incompatible front wheel and brake package. All the vehicles are 2019 model year cars built between May 28 and September 25 this year, according to the official NHTSA do…

2020 Toyota Tacoma earns Top Safety Pick rating with better headlights

The 2020 Toyota Tacoma has just earned itself a rarefied commendation. It's now only the third pickup truck to get the IIHS Top Safety Pick rating. And like so many recent Top Safety Pick recipients, the award comes following headlight improvements. …

Jeep adds Wrangler Freedom edition with military-themed design accents

Jeep is resurrecting the military-themed Freedom special edition for the 2020 Wrangler , and we now have details and pricing for the package, which joins two other limited-edition models, the Willys and the Black and Tan models. The special edition fo…

Karma Automotive debuting SC2 concept and Revero GTS in L.A.

Karma Automotive continues its slow-burn return to mainstream awareness. The California-based EV maker showed the SC1 Vision Concept roadster at Pebble Beach this year, and has now teased a follow-up called the SC2. To be revealed at Automobility L.A…

Tesla Roadster 1:18 model costs $250 but is a CAD copy of the real deal

The Tesla Roadster 2.0 is due on sale sometime next year. Hordes of folks look forward to the first road tests, anxious to find out if the production Roadster can back up the claims made for it two years ago. For anyone who needs a refresher, the sta…

New Lego Batmobile re-creates the 1989 movie car in 3,306 pieces

Of the many "Batman" movies, director Tim Burton's adaptation had much to recommend it, including Michael Keaton's brooding, understated Batman, and Jack Nicholson's Joker. Also on that list is the Batmobile, perhaps the most recognizable iteration o…

Friday, November 8, 2019

What You Missed | Your Autoblog Daily Digest for November 8, 2019

Nov 08, 2019

Top Stories of the Day

2019 SEMA Show Mega Photo Gallery | Wild West show

LAS VEGAS — Car shows across the planet are struggling, as automakers look for fresh ways to reach the buying public. But out in Las Vegas at the SEMA show (SEMA stands for Specialty Equipment Market Association, in case you didn't know), things have…

Chip Foose cooks up a custom 1974 Jaguar E-Type for SEMA

Avert your eyes, purists. California-based designer Chip Foose traveled to the 2019 SEMA show to unveil a resto-modded 1974 Jaguar E-Type built at the request of a customer. With a custom design and an American heart, the roadster took over 2½ years …

Ford Mach E Mustang-inspired EV crossover spied wearing hardly any camouflage

Looks like we don't have to wait until Nov. 17 anymore to see the Ford Mustang-inspired EV crossover! One of our intrepid spy shooters just bagged photos of the car in super thin camouflage driving on Ford's proving grounds. We can see practically ev…

Craig Jackson and Pennzoil unveil re-restored 'Green Hornet' Mustang at SEMA

Craig Jackson, CEO of Barrett-Jackson auctions, and Shell lubricant brand Pennzoil celebrated the unveil of a restored 1968 Ford Mustang prototype nicknamed "Green Hornet" at SEMA. The pony car is one of two mythical creations and collaborations betw…

The 2020 Hyundai Sonata starts at $24,330

The 2020 Hyundai Sonata in base SE trim will start at $24,330, including a $930 destination charge. That's a $750 increase over the previous Sonata that began at $23,850. Not a bad price to pay, considering the sedan was completely redesigned for 202…

Mercedes-Benz announces an electric G-Class is on its way

Mercedes-Benz pledged to add over 10 electric cars to its global lineup by 2022. We've already seen some of them, and we know the identity of others, but the company surprised everyone by confirming it could bolster its electric car offensive with a …

First intel arrives on 2020 Porsche 911 Turbo S

The 992-series Porsche 911 Turbo and Turbo S will introduce themselves next year. Porsche offered a few scribes a taste of what's to come with a shotgun-seat ride in Turbo S development prototypes. The reviews so far commend Porsche for raising the b…

BMW's motorcycle division puts its new flat-twin in a gorgeous concept

BMW's Motorrad division unveiled a follow-up to the R18 concept presented earlier in 2019 at the annual EICMA show. Named R18/2 (pronounced "slash-two," according to the brand), it receives the same flat-twin engine as the first R18 but wears a desig…

RTR Ford Ranger is subtly modified and coming to a dealer near you

The Ford Ranger is one of the unexpected stars of this year's SEMA Show . Ford-affiliated tuner Ready to Rock (RTR) entered the Ranger parade with a subtly-modified four-door model. RTR was founded by professional drifter Vaughn Gittin Jr., but its R…

2019 Nissan Titan XD Dually Project is a one-off workhorse

Nissan may have already introduced the 2020 Titan XD pickup in mid-cycle refresh form ahead of its on-sale date early next year, but the Nissan enthusiasts at Z1 Motorsports in Georgia came to SEMA armed with a current-year Titan XD Dually. The 2019 …

Thursday, November 7, 2019

What You Missed | Your Autoblog Daily Digest for November 7, 2019

Nov 07, 2019

Top Stories of the Day

2020 Honda Civic Si First Drive Review | Still fun, and now a better value

AUSTIN, Texas — The 2020 Honda Civic range has been given a mid-cycle update, the first for this 10th generation of economy cars. That naturally includes the hopped-up Civic Si. The updates are mild, making it a better value than it used to be, keepi…

2020 C8 Chevy Corvette's official 0-60 mph time: 2.9 seconds

Official acceleration times are finally here for the 2020 Chevrolet Corvette . Chevy revealed the times today for both the regular Stingray and a Stingray with the Z51 package. With the Z51 package, the Corvette is said to hit 60 mph in 2.9 seconds. …

C8 Corvette officially delayed until February 2020

What we first indicated weeks ago is now official: Mid-engine Chevrolet Corvette has been delayed. Representatives from General Motors confirmed to Autoblog and other journalists gathered for a C8 presentation that the 40-day UAW autoworker strike ca…

Kia teases K5/Optima again, in two different ways

When Kia teased a drawing of the third-generation K5 sedan for the Korean market — our Kia Optima — the pictured red sedan adopted a fastback shape and detailing somewhere in between evolution and revolution. The South Korean automaker has teased the…

1958 Plymouth Fury 'Christine' tribute has a 1,000-hp Hemi crate engine

We've seen Plymouth Fury "Christine" re-creations before, but probably not quite like this one. It's a 1,000-horsepower version of the red-painted 1958 Fury of film infamy, thanks to the addition of a Hellephant crate engine . The SEMA build comes co…

The Force is with you in this one-off Chevy COPO Camaro

Sixteen-time drag-racing champion John Force teamed with Chevrolet to design a one-of-a-kind COPO Camaro for a good cause. The hot-rodded pony car made its debut during the 2019 SEMA show. Chevrolet builds only 69 units of the COPO Camaro annually; …

2020 Hyundai Venue competitively priced at $18,345

Hyundai has released pricing information for the 2020 Venue . While that sounds like a hip nightclub, it's a new crossover positioned at the bottom of the company's range of high-riding models. The entry-level Venue SE carries a base price of $18,345…

Rolls-Royce Cullinan Black Badge combines elevated power, style, luxury

For once, a black-themed special-edition vehicle actually has some depth. And it had better, because it's a Rolls-Royce. The new Cullinan Black Badge is not simply an SUV with black exhaust tips, a black grille, and black trim work, though it does ha…

Jack Roush Edition Mustang brings 775 horses to Ford's pony car

Just as fans of high-performance Ford Mustang s are digesting the first reviews of the 760-horsepower Shelby GT500 , Jack Roush gives them something else to consider. At the SEMA show, the tuner unveiled a new Roush Mustang with 775 horsepower. Wherea…

2018 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid long-term wrap-up | We're really gonna miss this one

Last year, we had the opportunity to live the (mini) van life for a year, with a loan from Chrysler. Even better, ours was going to be a plug-in hybrid. We took delivery of an Ocean Blue 2018 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid Limited late last summer, and it …

Wednesday, November 6, 2019

What You Missed | Your Autoblog Daily Digest for November 6, 2019

Nov 06, 2019

Top Stories of the Day

This Dodge Challenger was stolen, used in police chases and recovered all in the week before its SEMA debut

Most of the drama in a SEMA build is in getting the car ready in time for the big show. That was all Quintin Bros Auto and Performance was expecting when they built a supercharged Dodge Challenger Scat Pack with custom carbon fiber body parts, afterm…

Toyota floods SEMA with a slew of Supra concepts

You can be sure that the halls of the Las Vegas Convention Center will be full of Toyota Supra models past and present as the wave of 2019 SEMA Show attendees descends upon Sin City. A good portion of those will be factory-backed concepts and racers,…

Ringbrothers reveal their 1969 Ford Mustang Mach 1 Unkl

Hunting the wild horse it loves most for custom builds, Ringbrothers included a Ford Mustang build in its SEMA showcase this year. This is the first Mach 1 Ringbrothers has ever turned its attention to among a number of builds going back to 2003. Thi…

Ford Webasto Lithium Mustang EV — 3 interesting facts we learned

Electrification took on a much bigger role at this year's SEMA show than we expected , and one car that demonstrates this is the Lithium Mustang EV from Ford and Webasto . Though somewhat subtle on the outside, the skin covers an electric powertrain ma…

This classic Ford Bronco has a modern GT500 engine and a manual

There are many layers to this one, but the most important is that the seemingly humble 1968 Ford Bronco you see here has a Ford Performance 5.2-liter supercharged V8. You know, the engine that's just been dropped into the 2020 Shelby GT500 . It also h…

Rugged Ridge deep-woods Gladiator leads SEMA Jeep trio of truck heroes

The Jeep Gladiator's been on sale for months, so we're still in the top of the first inning when it comes to accessories for what should become the market's most heavily accessorized lifestyle pickup. Rugged Ridge keeps the river of wares at the high…

Speedkore AWD twin-turbo Carbon Charger, best birthday gift ever

The backstory the Speedkore Performance AWD twin-turbo Carbon Charger teased a couple of weeks ago might be cooler than the car itself. Alan Palermo commissioned the carbon-fiber-bodied Dodge Demon Speedkore brought to SEMA last year, the one that su…

Harley-Davidson Pan America and Bronx coming in late 2020

There's still a lot we don't know about the Harley-Davidson Pan America adventure touring motorcycle and the Bronx streetfighter. But there are a few new details that have us eager to get the full scoop. First, we now know the duo will officially lau…

Hellwig 'Attainable Adventure' Ford Ranger likely still spendy, but cool as hell

Overlanding fever has opened up opportunities for mild-mannered brands that have lived off-road for decades to finally get some spotlight. Hellwig Products, a 73-year-old, family-run company that makes towing, hauling and performance suspension produ…

2020 Dodge Challenger Drag Pak comes solely with supercharged power

The Dodge Challenger Drag Pak has returned for 2020, five years after the last one arrived , and two years after it began development. And while in many ways it looks like past Drag Paks, there are a number of tweaks that should make this the fastest …