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Friday, February 12, 2021

What You Missed | Your Autoblog Daily Digest for February 12, 2021

Feb 12, 2021

Top Stories of the Day

Are half-ton pickups too expensive? Pondering the $68,000 2021 Ford F-150 Platinum

If you pay even occasional attention to the pickup truck market, you've probably been exposed to a common complaint about the modern half-ton: It's expensive. The cheapest 2021 Ford F-150 rings the till at just over $30,000, and for that, you're gett…

2022 Kia Carnival is more efficient than the Sedona it replaces

Information on the 2022 Kia Carnival continues to trickle out. This time we have fuel economy numbers, and they show that it's more efficient than the Sedona it will replace. The EPA's FuelEconomy.gov website shows that the Carnival gets 19 mpg in t…

Mercedes-AMG's next C63 will downsize from a V8 to a hybridized four-cylinder

Mercedes-AMG is leveraging electrification as a replacement for displacement as it develops the next-generation C63. While the current model is powered by a twin-turbocharged V8, the company confirmed its successor will make its debut in the not-too-…

2021 BMW 540i First Drive | It has grown up, accept it

Today's BMW 5 Series doesn't have the same mission statement as it did a decade or two ago. For years, the German automaker's middle sedan was designed to be the absolute sharpest tool in the luxury car shed. Its steering was perfect, its ride was cr…

Mercedes-Maybach S 580 production launch marks 50-millionth passenger car from Mercedes

Mercedes-Benz just produced its 50 millionth automobile, a testament to just how long Mercedes has been screwing together cars. The 50-millionth vehicle also marks the beginning of Mercedes-Maybach S-Class production, as the car is the first of this …

Lexus flagship SUV, a true three-row crossover and an EV on the way, dealer says

Lexus is working to update its mostly dormant portfolio with new cars to populate currently unfilled segments. These will include a full electric vehicle, a true three-row crossover, and a flagship SUV. Many existing models will be getting updates as…

Trio of Chevys to set the pace at Daytona this weekend

There's something special about pace cars. Even though they're typically a marketing exercise by the automaker supplying them, it's still an occasion to see a notable model in a distinctive, often bespoke, livery leading the pack on a famed circuit. …

Indian celebrates the Chief's 100th birthday by launching three new motorcycles

Indian Motorcycles is celebrating 100 years of the Chief, one of its best-known nameplates. It marked the occasion by releasing three new models for 2022 named Chief, Chief Bobber, and Super Chief, respectively. While all three motorcycles are built…

Peugeot's American future looks dead, but Stellantis intends to keep all brands alive

The years-old promise of a Peugeot return in the U.S. is looking bleaker by the second. Peugeot said the French brand would come back to sell cars in the U.S. five years ago, but now that FCA and PSA have transitioned to one Stellantis, that promise …

Ford CEO Jim Farley asks LG Chem, SK Innovation to bury the hatchet

WASHINGTON — Ford CEO Jim Farley on Thursday publicly encouraged South Korean electric vehicle battery makers LG Chem and SK Innovation to reach a settlement on LG's battery allegations that SK stole trade secrets. The U.S. International Trade Commi…

Thursday, February 11, 2021

What You Missed | Your Autoblog Daily Digest for February 11, 2021

Feb 11, 2021

Top Stories of the Day

2021 Audi E-Tron Sportback Interior Driveway Test | Q5 bones, Q8 interior

The Audi E-Tron Sportback is the automotive equivalent of a neutron star: small yet unimaginably dense. Now, I was a bit off in the above video when I said it's equal to the Q5 in size. Though it shares the Q5's platform, it's actually closer to the …

2021 Mercedes-Benz GLB-Class Review | Bigger, boxier, better

Most subcompact luxury SUVs come across as a bit cynical; built to a price on less sophisticated bones than its pricier, more refined siblings. It sure seems like people buy them cause they can't make the payment on one of those pricier, more refined…

2022 Infiniti QX60 to get 295-HP V6, dump CVT for nine-speed auto

Infiniti confirmed Thursday that its redesigned QX60 will ditch its CVT in favor of a newer nine-speed automatic, following its platform cousin, the 2022 Nissan Pathfinder , in adopting an updated powertrain. Though not officially revealed, it should …

Listen to the 2022 Porsche 911 GT3's flat-six engine sing its anthem

Porsche will unveil the first GT-badged variant of the 992-generation 911 next Tuesday, February 16. Widely expected to be the GT3, the mystery model has been previewed in a sonorous video a few days before its official introduction. The 14-second v…

SCG's Le Mans twin-turbocharged V8 engine roars to life for the first time

Scuderia Cameron Glickenhaus is busily preparing its entry into the World Endurance Championship's Le Mans Hypercar category. It released details about the engine that will power the car, which is called 007, and it reached a major milestone this mon…

2021 Ford Mustang gets more standard safety features and new colors

Obviously, the big news for the 2021 Ford Mustang is the return of the Mach 1 and all the performance upgrades in includes. But other Mustangs are getting some welcome if minor additions. All of them get new standard features, and there are a few new…

Dallas awakens to massive winter-weather pileups

East Texans encountered dangerous road conditions Thursday morning thanks to a winter storm that plunged deep into the Lone Star State, depositing as much as a quarter-inch of ice on some road surfaces. The weather is being blamed for massive pileups…

Apple Maps introduces user-based road hazard reporting, including speed traps

Apple just released an update for its Apple Maps application that brings Waze-like functionality to the iPhone's native navigation. It allows users to report a number of different road situations, with speed traps being one of them. It's only availab…

Ram introduces 33-mpg Tradesman HFE EcoDiesel

Ram announced Tuesday that its 2021 1500 Tradesman HFE EcoDiesel trim goes toe-to-toe (tow-to-tow?) with the segment's most efficient diesels, offering 23 mpg in the city, 33 mpg on the highway and 26 mpg combined. That's good enough for a first-plac…

Ford Maverick prototype spy photos reveal an independent rear suspension

Spy photos of the upcoming Ford Maverick compact pickup truck have revealed a fascinating development in the truck's design. Up until this point, the Maverick prototypes we've seen have featured a torsion beam rear suspension and front-wheel drive . T…

Wednesday, February 10, 2021

What You Missed | Your Autoblog Daily Digest for February 10, 2021

Feb 10, 2021

Top Stories of the Day

2021 Ford Ranger Tremor First Drive | Capability at a competitive price

While the United States is generally the truck capital of the planet, we've been missing out on one of the coolest pickups of the last couple years, the Ford Ranger Raptor. And the fact that it was a truck from one of our homegrown automakers added t…

Rivian, with Amazon and Ford already in its corner, plans huge stock IPO

Rivian Automotive Inc., the electric-vehicle startup backed by Amazon.com and Ford is looking to go public as soon as September at a valuation of about $50 billion and perhaps more, according to people familiar with the matter. The company's timelin…

Ford Maverick prototype spy photos reveal an independent rear suspension

2022 Audi E-Tron GT revealed as sporty, electric cousin to Porsche Taycan

We loved the look and the thinking behind the Audi E-Tron GT when the concept car debuted at the 2018 Los Angeles Auto Show. With its four-door coupe styling and special performance touches from Audi Sport, the E-Tron GT promised to be a stunner if i…

Porsche Taycan claims indoor speed record with 102-mph run

Porsche's 750-horsepower Taycan Turbo S, with a little help from racing driver Leh Keen, has claimed the Guinness World Record for top speed by a vehicle achieved indoors, hitting 102.6 mph and toppling the 86-mile-per-hour mark set by Tanner Foust i…

Land Rover Defender 110 Luggage Test | Boxy is better

If there's one thing I've learned doing all these luggage tests, it's that boxy is better. Be it the Mercedes GLB, the Toyota 4Runner or Jeep Wrangler, it doesn't take a geometry teacher to tell you that trying to fit rectangular-shaped things into a…

Land Rover's original Defender returns from the dead again with V8 power

Land Rover's original Defender simply won't die. Although the second-generation Defender has entered its second year on the market, demand for the first-generation truck remains high enough to warrant a string of limited-edition models defined by ex…

Subaru and Toyota could join forces on rally-inspired AWD hot hatch

A report out of Japan states that Subaru and Toyota might be working jointly on an all-wheel-drive high-performance car. The rumored hot hatch is said take inspiration from the rally machines both companies fielded from their 1990s heydays. Accordin…

Bugatti begins assembling the first 1,600-hp Centodieci prototype

Created as a tribute to the EB110 , the Bugatti Centodieci is coming to life. The French firm has started putting together the running and driving prototype that it will use to fine-tune the model before it launches production. Although the Centodiec…

Catalytic converter thefts spike nationwide as precious metal prices spike

Catalytic converter thefts are on the rise, and the crime increase is fueled by a number of factors. The New York Times reports that police are sounding the alarm on an unusual nationwide surge in cases. St. Louis catalytic converter thefts were ei…

Tuesday, February 9, 2021

What You Missed | Your Autoblog Daily Digest for February 9, 2021

Feb 09, 2021

Top Stories of the Day

2021 Mazda CX-30 2.5 Turbo First Drive | A lifted, almost-hot hatch

The Mazda CX-30 is already Mazda's second-best-selling vehicle after the CX-5, and it's only been a year since the little crossover went on sale. It's easy to guess why — the CX-30 is an affordable and stylish crossover. What makes it a meritorious v…

Watch as pickup plunges 70 feet off a snowy, icy Wisconsin overpass

A driver in the Milwaukee area is lucky to be alive after his pickup skidded on a highway interchange, was launched over the edge on a ramp of built-up snow and ice, and landed on the interstate 70 feet below. The accident happened Saturday on I-94 …

Tesla leads and Infiniti bleeds in Consumer Reports' satisfaction survey

According to Consumer Reports, Tesla owners are more likely to rave about their vehicles than any other brand. And we're not surprised — Tesla has performed very well in past customer satisfaction surveys, despite the fact that the electric cars them…

Toyota launches a Hilux pickup designed to tame the Arctic

Toyota joined forces with Arctic Trucks to create an evolution of the mighty, Tacoma -sized Hilux that's right at home on some of the planet's most challenging terrain. Called AT35, it was designed specifically to let scientists and adventurers reach …

Jeep will bring an electric Wrangler to Moab this spring

With production of the 2021 Jeep Wrangler 4xe officially underway , now would be a dandy time for America's classic off-road brand to dip its toe a bit deeper into the electrified waters (not literally, that'd be dangerous). And it seems exactly that …

VW ID.Buzz spy photos show it wearing Transporter clothes

Ever since the concept made its debut in Detroit four years ago, we've been anxiously awaiting the production version of the VW ID.Buzz electric minivan . We're getting closer to that moment, as evidenced by these spy photos that show what seems to be…

Redesigned 2022 Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross gets big updates, small price hike

Mitsubishi has released pricing information for the comprehensively redesigned Eclipse Cross it revealed in late 2020. Positioned at the bottom of the firm's crossover range, the soft-roader will go on sale as a 2022 model. The range consists of fou…

Honda Civic Type R crate motor is now easier to install, and anyone can buy one

Honda has announced a limited edition package that will make its Civic Type R crate motor easier to install. Called the Controls Package, it includes a wiring harness, fuse box, accelerator pedal, and ECU programmed by Honda Performance Development. …

2021 Ford Bronco Sport gets five lifestyle accessory bundles from the factory

Ford is making it easier for outdoorsy buyers to build a 2021 Bronco Sport that suits their needs by releasing five lifestyle accessory bundles. Installed by the dealer, the packages all include parts provided by Yakima. Whether you're into biking, …

Koala causes 5-car pileup in Australia, hitches a ride as it's rescued

CANBERRA, Australia — A koala has been rescued after causing a five-car pileup while trying to cross a six-lane freeway in southern Australia. Police said the crash in heavy Monday morning traffic in the city of Adelaide caused some injuries, but no…