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Friday, January 8, 2021

What You Missed | Your Autoblog Daily Digest for January 8, 2021

Jan 08, 2021

Top Stories of the Day

Honda Civic Type R TC Track Drive | The ultimate ultimate Civic

THERMAL, Calif. — Honda has always done a fantastic job of offering a variety of grades for its ubiquitous everycar, the Civic. There have been fuel-sipping hybrids, sedans for people clueless to the untapped performance potential of their commuters,…

Mazda's upcoming inline-six, rear-wheel-drive platform detailed by suppliers

A report out of Japan has uncovered several details about Mazda's upcoming rear-wheel-drive cars powered by a new straight-six engine. In conversations with suppliers, the Nikkei has learned that production will begin in 2022, and that they will "pro…

GM takes 2020 full-size pickup sales crown

It's no secret that 2020 was an unconventional year for auto sales . Extenuating circumstances or not, it was a year of upheaval even for ever-resilient (and ever-profitable) pickups, with General Motors taking the crown from Ford in the full-size seg…

2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee L vs Big Three-Row Crossovers | Spec comparison

The three-row 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee L is here , entering an ever-growing segment of big crossovers that Jeep has ignored since the Commander of the late 2000s. Of course, the Dodge Durango is basically a three-row version of the current Grand Chero…

Tesla Model Y prices drops by $8,000 with new Standard Range version

Tesla has launched a cheaper variant of the Model Y , bringing its sport utility vehicle's price closer to that of its Model 3 sedan, the electric-car maker's least expensive car. The new Standard Range Model Y is priced at $43,190 including destinati…

Chevy Equinox update will finally arrive for the 2022 model year

Chevrolet traveled to the 2020 Chicago auto show to introduce the face-lifted Equinox it planned to release for the 2021 model year. The on-going coronavirus pandemic derailed those plans, and the crossover sailed into 2021 without any major changes.…

Honda brings an off-road Fit and a tiny food truck to virtual Tokyo Auto Salon

Although the Tokyo Auto Salon custom car show won't be opening for in-person visiting next week, it will be operating virtually, and automakers still have plenty of neat reveals. We've already seen Daihatsu's charming crop of tiny customs , and now Ho…

Next-generation Honda HR-V spy photos reveal major redesign

Honda's smallest crossover, the HR-V , has hardly changed since its introduction to the U.S. as a 2016 model, and we'd say it's overdue for a remodel . Honda seems to think so, too, since one of our spy photographers caught the company testing a comple…

New spy photos reveal next-gen Range Rover interior

The next-generation of Land Rover's flagship Range Rover SUV has been spied in the wild yet again. 2020 was a year of slow-drip news on several new model fronts, but the upcoming Range Rover redesign has been one of the more egregious offenders in th…

Fiat eyes droptop SUV market with 500X convertible

Fiat will add a convertible version of the 500X crossover, Automotive News Europe has confirmed . The droptop variant will retain the side structure of the hardtop version, including the doors and door frames, and will utilize a roll-bar canvas top th…

Thursday, January 7, 2021

What You Missed | Your Autoblog Daily Digest for January 7, 2021

Jan 07, 2021

Top Stories of the Day

Statements from auto industry leaders about the attack on the U.S. Capitol

We've all been transfixed by today's violent siege at the U.S. Capitol by supporters of President Donald Trump. This afternoon, automotive leaders issued statements regarding these events: From Ford CEO Jim Farley and Executive Chairman Bill Ford Jr…

2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee L revealed with three rows, new platform

This is a big year for Jeep SUVs, and we mean that quite literally. Not only is it launching a full-size SUV in the form of the Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer , the Grand Cherokee midsize SUV is being completely redesigned and expanded, both in model off…

Mercedes-Benz EQS Hyperscreen tries to make the whole dash a screen

We knew from spy shots that the Mercedes-Benz EQS electric flagship sedan would have a seriously big infotainment screen . But what we saw was actually the small one. Ahead of the virtual Consumer Electronics Show, Mercedes-Benz has revealed the optio…

Cadillac Lyriq infotainment system will be 33 inches of something totally new

It's screen day! Mercedes was first up with the EQS screen . Now, Cadillac just dropped more information on the massive infotainment screen going in its upcoming Lyriq EV , and the details are intriguing. GM asked for some rather nontraditional help …

Lifted Ford Fusion replacement will be more Honda Crosstour than Subaru Outback

The lifted, more crossover-like car slated to replace the Ford Fusion is coming into clearer view. These spy photos you're looking at paint a different picture from the more Subaru Outback -like vehicle we saw in the initial prototype shots more than …

Zombie cars: A dozen discontinued vehicles people still buy new

IIHS: Rear automatic braking is 'standout feature' in 2020 crash avoidance tech roundup

The IIHS just finished a new study on rear automatic braking systems and found that they're highly effective at reducing minor crashes and reducing collision/damage claims. A previous study done by the IIHS' Highway Loss Data Institute from 2017 (usi…

South Korean-market Kia Sedona becomes a first-class limousine

Mercedes-Maybach transformed the latest S-Class into a limousine by adding seven inches to the wheelbase . Kia wanted to make a limousine, too, but it started with a model that doesn't need additional sheetmetal. One of the most luxurious cars in its …

2019 Subaru Forester Long-term Wrap-up | Nailing the fundamentals, blandly

Our dog-toting Subaru Forester days are over. The 2019 Subaru Forester Touring that lived with us over the past year has moved on to new pastures, and now it's time for the verdict. We took this Forester in to see if Subaru's latest iteration of the…

Ann Arbor police will deploy a pair of Ford Mustang Mach-E patrol cars

Ann Arbor's police department announced it will replace a pair of gasoline-burning patrol cars with two examples of the electric Ford Mustang Mach-E . It's the first law enforcement agency in America to enlist the new EV. Michigan-based news outlet M…

Wednesday, January 6, 2021

What You Missed | Your Autoblog Daily Digest for January 6, 2021

Jan 06, 2021

Top Stories of the Day

Cars we're most looking forward to driving in 2021

Huzzah, it's 2021! Everything's totally better now, right? No, not in the slightest, but at least there are some new cars we can all look forward to. Without the traditional auto show circuit, new car reveals were more scattered throughout 2020, and…

2022 Honda Civic Hatchback emerges in new spy photos

The five-door variant of the new Honda Civic was caught by a spy photographer in Europe this week, giving us a good idea of what to expect from the new hatchback. Honda revealed the design of the production 2021 Civic sedan back in November, stayin…

2020 sales wrap-up: The good and the bad of an ugly year

Automakers are awakening from their holiday slumbers with full-year sales data for 2020. It goes without saying that the coronavirus pandemic had a massive impact on global auto sales last year, but just about every player in the market reported impr…

Honda and Acura electric crossovers will be built by General Motors

General Motors will partially offset the cost of developing electric technology by manufacturing battery-powered cars for Honda and Acura, according to an unverified report. Ultium battery technology is at the center of the deal. Without citing sour…

Here's your chance to buy Carroll Shelby's personal Dodge Omni GLHS

Carroll Shelby's personal 1965 427 Cobra could fetch over $2 million when it crosses the auction block in January 2021. Collectors who want to own one of Shelby's former cars without venturing into seven-digit territory will have the opportunity to b…

Kia unveils new logo and slogan, sets Guinness World Record for fireworks

Kia introduced its new logo by bringing out the fireworks — literally. It unveiled the design by setting a Guinness World Record in the skies above Incheon, South Korea, and it also revealed its new global brand slogan. Every member of the Kia range…

2021 Nissan Kicks First Drive | Adding value and attitude

The Nissan Kicks is one of Nissan's better ideas of the past few years. It's a lightweight, super-spacious and efficient crossover that's priced to fly off lots. Nissan's 2021 refresh addresses a few of our biggest quibbles, and it doesn't mess up wh…

This 1956 Packard pickup conversion imagines a progenitor to today's luxury trucks

Packard never built a pickup truck — if they had, maybe they'd be in business today — but that didn't dissuade the enterprising folks at Speedwell Garage in Parkton, Maryland. The result is this custom-bodied conversion created from a 1956 Packard Pa…

Mazda MX-30 coming to the U.S. in electric and rotary forms

Ever since Mazda revealed its first electric car, the MX-30 , and especially after it it announced there would be a range-extended version using a rotary engine , we've had one question: will it come to America? And as you probably noticed in the headl…

Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon spied testing with half doors, coming for 2021

Update: A commenter found that an option for half doors is listed in the 2021 Jeep Wrangler configurator already. It's a $3,995 option on four-door Unlimited models and a $2,350 option for two-door Wranglers. Jeep doesn't provide any official photos …

Tuesday, January 5, 2021

What You Missed | Your Autoblog Daily Digest for January 5, 2021

Jan 05, 2021

Top Stories of the Day

Singer reimagines the Porsche 911 as an all-terrain racer

Singer has an extensive history modifying awesome Porsches. Porsche has an extensive history modifying its own cars to go off-road racing. The two finally meet with the Porsche 911 Reimagined by Singer – All-terrain Competition Study (which we will h…

2021 Toyota Mirai First Drive | The sequel is far better

It's an ecological fantasy about as old as the automobile: Drive as much as you want, but spew nothing but pure HO out the tailpipe. Though hydrogen cars can seem ideal in theory, the first-gen Toyota Mirai faced monumental hurdles when it launched i…

2021 Ford Expedition XL STX is a new base model with fewer seats, lower cost

For 2021, Ford is lowering the price of entry for its Expedition SUV with a new base model, the XL STX. (Previously, the Expedition XL was a fleet-only model.) At a starting price of $49,995, the XL STX represents a savings of $2,815 compared to the …

Toyota Grand Highlander could be on the way as bigger three-row crossover

The Toyota Highlander is one of the better three-row crossovers on the market, but one consistent knock against the recently redesigned vehicle is size. Sure, there are three rows, but the rearmost of those is rather cramped with a paltry 27.4 inches…

Walter de Silva reveals never-before-seen 2008 Porsche 550one concept

One of the unreleased concepts that Porsche shed light on in late 2020 was a modern take on the 1954 550 RS Spyder built in 2019. It wasn't the first time the German firm tried to channel that part of its heritage. Walter de Silva, the Volkswagen Gro…

2021 Ford Mustang Mach-E Luggage Test | Escape for the weekend

Rest assured, there's a lot more coming down the pipe from Autoblog about the exceptional 2021 Ford Mustang Mach-E . As we prep those pieces, however, here's a quick appetizer. The Mach-E looks pretty big and crossover-y in pictures, but whether on …

MG will return to the sports car segment with an electric coupe

MG's on-again, off-again electric sports car has received the green light, according to a recent report. Previewed by the 2017 E-Motion concept, the coupe is scheduled to make its global debut before the end of 2021. Sports cars are a significant pa…

Electric cars rise to record 54% of market share in Norway in 2020

OSLO — The sale of electric cars in Norway overtook those powered by petrol, diesel and hybrid engines last year, with German auto-maker Volkswagen replacing Tesla as the top battery-vehicle producer, new data showed on Tuesday. So-called battery el…

Ford Bronco will reportedly add a Heritage Edition trim for 2022

Production of the hotly anticipated sixth-generation Ford Bronco won't start until May 2021 at the earliest , but the company is already planning the truck's second model year on the market. Leaked documents seemingly confirm that the 2022 lineup will…

Fisker electric pickup truck previewed in rendering

Fisker CEO and car designer Henrik Fisker has posted an illustration of an electric pickup, promising class-leading efficiency and radical design. The rendered truck features muscular flared fenders, a rooftop spoiler that doubles as a center high-mo…