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Tuesday, March 3, 2020

What You Missed | Your Autoblog Daily Digest for March 3, 2020

Mar 03, 2020

Top Stories of the Day

Koenigsegg Gemera hybrid has 1,700-hp, and you can bring all your friends

The rumor was right. Koenigsegg has just unveiled the Gemera, an all-new member to the family that sports four seats, two scissor doors, and a massively powerful hybrid powertrain that still allows for pure electric driving. In the same breath, Koeni…

2021 Porsche 911 Turbo S revealed as the quickest and most powerful yet

Porsche isn't letting the rampant coronavirus ruin its surprise. The new 911 Turbo S that had been scheduled to break cover at the now-canceled 2020 Geneva Motor Show has made its debut online with a generous 60-horsepower bump over its celebrated pr…

Alfa Romeo's Giulia Quadrifoglio gets the GTA treatment

Alfa Romeo will celebrate 110 years of building some of the world's most emotional driving machines with a brand-new Giulia Quadrifoglio GTA. GTA, which stands for "Gran Turismo Alleggerita," is a throwback to the 1965 Giulia Sprint GT, which first g…

2020 Audi S4 First Drive | Sport sedan refreshed and relevant

BORREGO SPRINGS, Calif. — That the most significant changes to the 2020 Audi A4 lineup, which includes the A4, A4 Allroad and S4, are its revised sheetmetal and a new infotainment system should tell us something: We're likely halfway through the life…

Hyundai says the Prophecy concept illustrates the ultimate automotive form

Hyundai is on a quest to extract complexity from its design department in order to make its cars purer and more minimalist. It introduced a concept named Prophecy to illustrate the direction it will take future electric models in. The company calls …

Bentley Mulliner Bacalar is so bespoke, it's a whole different car

Bentley talks a lot about "bespoke" — the customized elements done at the hands of its Mulliner division — but the newly unveiled Bentley Mulliner Bacalar takes the idea to a new level. This isn't just a unique paint color or a special upholstery fab…

BMW i4 Concept First Look | Golden grilles

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — Our brave new world of digital debuts and virtual press conferences makes the spread of automotive news instant and effortless. But there's no substitute for laying eyes on fresh sheetmetal in the flesh. Thanks to a rare case…

2021 Mercedes-Benz E-Class refresh brings All-Terrain and PHEV models to America

The 2021 Mercedes-Benz E-Class is getting a thorough styling update for the new model year, plus a few other detail changes. The V6 is gone, America is finally getting the All-Terrain wagon, and there's a plug-in hybrid sedan on the way. Unsurprisin…

Mansory Bentley Continental GT V8 Convertible is gaudy and green to the max

Mansory is all about excess, and if the Geneva Motor Show were going on, all visitors to its booth would likely need eye protection upon entering. Take this Mansory Bentley Continental GT V8 Convertible for an example. The exterior paint may be matte…

The Mansory Venatus is a widebody Lamborghini Urus that could scar your retinas

Nothing says, "I am a person of exquisite taste with an appreciation for subtlety " quite like the purchase of a Lamborghini Urus, but there are some in the world for whom that is not enough, people who need just a little bit more if they're to be pro…

Monday, March 2, 2020

What You Missed | Your Autoblog Daily Digest for March 2, 2020

Mar 02, 2020

Top Stories of the Day

How to drive the 2020 Corvette C8 for $300

The National Corvette Museum (NCM) isn't just getting one C8 Corvette , or two, or three. The NCM Motorsports Park currently has seven mid-engined Corvettes on order, and they're already built waiting to ship to Bowling Green, Kentucky, where the muse…

Audi E-Tron S and E-Tron Sportback S add a motor, bursts of 496 hp

Audi is next out of the Volkswagen Group gate with hot versions of its battery-electric rides. The Ingolstadt automaker announced S versions of the E-Tron and E-Tron Sportback, which add power and performance by adding a third motor to the drivetrain…

[VIDEO] See the Fisker Ocean electric crossover on video for the first time

We've already seen the Fisker Ocean crossover in the flesh at its global debut at CES 2020 , but, as always, that was just the beginning of its story. Fisker had planned on bringing its new electric car to the Geneva Motor Show, but, sadly, the entire…

2020 Audi Q7 First Drive | Still too small?

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. — Point the 2020 Audi Q7's octagonal maw up California's Route 243 and the three-row luxury ute's stoic body control, just-right gear selection and right-now power delivery define an SUV that's at once a respectable driving tool,…

2020 Lincoln Navigator gets a price bump as sales stay strong

The Lincoln Navigator is still doing the business on dealer lots, and as sales climb, so do the prices. CarsDirect reports the flagship SUV's MSRP has gone up again as of February, a letter to dealers explaining that the bump "continues to keep the L…

Volvo dealers say C40 compact electric crossover, big XC100 coming

Two long-lived rumors about Volvo products step closer to tangible reality. A new Volvo product to slot in under the XC40 has been rumored for at least 14 years, when Volvo tuner Heico Sportive built an XC30 in 2006 using a C30 hatchback. Come 2011, …

2020 Mazda3 gets five-star overall rating from NHTSA

Mazda is adding another figurative piece of silverware for its heralded Mazda3 , this time in the form of a five-star overall rating from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The designation applies to both the hatchback and four-door s…

KNine Racing cross-breeds a Ford F-150 Raptor and a UTV

Irish outfit KNine Racing saw the hole between a UTV and the Ford F-150 Raptor and decided to fill it. As The Drive tells it , the result is called Mini Raptor, which places a sealed cabin, convenience features, and Raptor-like bodywork on top of a Ca…

Japan sends official to Lebanon over fugitive Carlos Ghosn

BEIRUT — Japan's deputy justice minister met top officials in Lebanon on Monday over the case of Nissan's fugitive ex-boss, Carlos Ghosn, who fled to his home country late last year while on bail in Japan and awaiting trial. Ghosn was arrested in la…

Junkyard Gem: 1984 Ford LTD Sedan

Ford extracted an amazing amount of value from its rear-wheel-drive Fox platform , which stayed in production from the 1978 model year through 2005 (if you consider the SN95 Mustang to be a true Fox, as I do), and we don't have space here to list ever…

Friday, February 28, 2020

What You Missed | Your Autoblog Daily Digest for February 28, 2020

Feb 28, 2020

Top Stories of the Day

2019 Hennessey Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk HPE1000 First Drive | Sounds like war, goes like hell

LOS ANGELES — To get our hands on Hennessey's 1,000-horsepower Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk HPE1000, we agree to meet Vinny Russo in an alley across the street from the practice facility of the Los Angeles Clippers. Noon sharp. We hear the Hellcat-…

2020 Geneva Motor Show canceled over coronavirus fears

Swiss authorities have indirectly canceled the 2020 edition of the Geneva International Motor Show by banning all public and private gatherings attended by over 1,000 people. The decision is a response to the deadly, highly contagious coronavirus tha…

Hyundai halts work at SUV factory after autoworker tests positive for coronavirus

SEOUL — Hyundai Motor shut down a factory in South Korea on Friday after a worker tested positive for the new coronavirus, disrupting production of popular models such as Palisade sport utility vehicle. Shares of the automaker ended down more than 5…

Porsche Ice Experience in Finland — doing crazy things in high-dollar Porsches

LEVI, Finland — Utter darkness. It is around 6 p.m. in the Arctic Circle and blowing fat tufts of snow. The LED headlamps on the Porsche Carrera 4S barely pierce the icy path, a steeply pitched logging road. Yet I'm full-blast on the gas, eyes strain…

2020 Hyundai Venue SEL Drivers' Notes | Little, with lots to like (depending who you ask)

Road Test Editor Zac Palmer: This car is small. Remarkably small. The Hyundai Kona is a tiny car, but this Venue is five inches shorter, and it shows right away. I parked it next to a new Honda Civic , and the Civic dwarfed this crossover. That may sa…

Lowered widebody 2020 Corvette C8 is just a matter of time

Production of the mid-engined Chevrolet Corvette C8 only started on February 3, but dreamers have been imagining customizations, mods and hacks since the day it was introduced in 2019 . Aside from adding wheels and spoilers, body kits are always some …

[VIDEO] Aston Martin Bulldog gets another chance to wedge its way past 200 mph

Tell us if this sounds familiar: In the mid-1970s, Aston Martin decided it wanted to prove its engineering prowess by building a car that would hit 200 miles per hour, so company designer William Towns penned the Bulldog DP K9 concept ; in 1980, Aston…

Hybrid Ferrari prototype suggests another electrified model besides SF90

Even though its first hybrid, the LaFerrari, was launched several years ago , Ferrari is still new to the hybrid game. That's why the Ferrari SF90 Stradale plug-in hybrid was such a big deal. Well, that and the fact it's the company's most powerful ca…

The Chevrolet Impala through the years: 1958–2020

The Chevrolet Impala has officially been discontinued for the third time. Take a walk with us down memory lane as we explore the model's history.

[VIDEO] SnoShark is one of the most popular ice scrapers on the market so we tested it

If you're anything like us, you probably put just about no thought at all into buying an ice scraper. After all, most are basically the same. They've got a scraper on one end and a brush on the other. Might as well just pick one up at the checkout li…

Thursday, February 27, 2020

What You Missed | Your Autoblog Daily Digest for February 27, 2020

Feb 27, 2020

Top Stories of the Day

2020 Chevy Impala Last Drive | A car that works, heading to retirement

VANCOUVER, B.C. — Over a million Americans had at least one thing in common in 1965: They bought a new Chevrolet Impala. First released as an upmarket evolution of the Bel Air for the 1958 model year, the Impala nameplate was gradually woven into th…

2021 VW GTI is revealed with more horsepower and torque, but of course

The 2021 VW GTI has finally been revealed, and it doesn't mess with the formula. Inside and out, its only a little more aggressive looking than the regular eighth-generation Golf . Those mild exterior changes hide a punchy turbo four-cylinder that's e…

2020 Honda CR-V Hybrid fuel economy and pricing announced

When a car company announces a hybrid, such as the 2020 Honda CR-V Hybrid , the obvious first question is, "What's the fuel economy?" Frustratingly, Honda wasn't giving an answer at the CR-V Hybrid's debut, but now it's provided the numbers on fuel co…

BMW iNext test mules work up a sweat in the African desert

The electric BMW iNext is inching its way toward production. The German carmaker released images showing camouflaged test mules doing their best to stay cool as they explore the Kalahari Desert under the scorching sun. It's not easy being a prototyp…

Coronavirus fears prompt automakers to send fewer staff to Geneva Motor Show

FRANKFURT — Carmakers are reducing staff attending Geneva's car show next week as Switzerland confirmed three new cases of the coronavirus, including one in Geneva. Toyota on Thursday said it is paring back its attendance to include "business critic…

VW ID.3 electric car's software bugs threaten summer launch

Volkswagen's issues with software code continue, according to a report in Germany's Manager Magazin and picked up by Automotive News . In December, Manager explained the VW ID.3's software platform didn't work; nevertheless, the automaker remained com…

Citroen Ami electric car is not even a car, but for $22 a month, who cares?

Citroën expanded its lineup towards the bottom by introducing an electric, two-seater city car you don't need a license to drive. Called Ami, it was developed with both private users and car-sharing programs in mind. The newest addition to the Citro…

2020 Audi SQ7 priced at $85,795 and up; here's what you get

We can now put the second bookend on the 2020 Audi Q7 range. A couple of weeks ago, Audi announced pricing for the entry-level Q7 45 , which starts at $55,795. At the Grey Poupon end of the lineup, the SQ7 will cost $84,800 in base Premium Plus trim, …

Pedestrian deaths in U.S. reach highest level since 1988

New estimates from the Governors Highway Safety Association suggest that pedestrian fatalities rose to the highest levels in more than 30 years in 2019, to 6,590. The report cites familiar culprits, including a lack of safe road crossings, distracted…

A New York man hits a cyclist then sues the cyclist

Bryan Agnello gave up driving an automobile two years ago, but in 2020, he found himself detailing to the police his involvement in a rear-end collision. Agnello was reportedly riding his bicycle in Rochester, New York, on a rainy January evening whe…