Square-jawed linebacker and sometimes-Alfa chief Reid Bigland took the covers off the 2016 Alfa Romeo Giulia QV for the first time in North America on Tuesday.
The car, which has been delayed about six months, will boast 505 horsepower and a price tag in the “$70,000 range” when it goes on sale next year. According to Bigland, the Giulia QV’s 7:39 lap around the Nurburgring is the quickest for any sedan.
Lincoln will give its MKZ the Continental treatment for 2017, including a 400 horsepower, 3.0-liter twin-turbocharged V-6 engine and all-wheel drive.
According to the automaker, the engine will be exclusive to the brand. The 400 horsepower and 400 lbs-ft of torque will be kept in check with Dynamic Torque Vectoring available in the optional Driver’s Package.
Driver’s Package? Lincoln? I like the sound of this.
The sounds a car makes can elicit strong emotions for enthusiasts. Some love the guttural burble from an American V-8, each marque emitting distinct noises. Others, the fan-dominated sounds of an air-cooled Porsche. A modified straight-six, like that found in a Datsun Z, emits a wail that buckles my knees.
As a gearhead kid, these sounds were the object of my obsession. I still have a copy of “The Sounds of Sebring” in the basement, with no corresponding phonograph with which to enjoy it. While others were trying to find porn, I used my school Compuserve account to try and pirate CDs of Formula One engine notes, unsuccessfully.
Yes, I’m old. I was in high school before Netscape existed.
Steve writes:
Sajeev,
My wife drives a first-generation R50 Mini base model with the dreaded CVT. This is a transmission widely reported (read: complained about on message boards) to not last well beyond 75,000 city miles. Hers is just now clearing 80,000 and it shows no signs of early struggles, even under the hellish torment of stop-and-go traffic in Houston temperatures.
Perhaps coincidentally, my wife has never put premium fuel in this car, despite it being a requirement. Premium fuel would supposedly generate 114 horsepower; without premium fuel, I would guess 7-9% lower, at, say, 105 horsepower. It is a slow car no matter what, but at least it makes up for it in urban maneuverability.
To quote the immortal Denny Green, the 2016 Honda Civic Coupe is who we thought they were. The two-door compact broke cover Tuesday before the Los Angeles Auto Show and confirmed our suspicions for the eagerly anticipated coupe.
The Civic Coupe will be powered by a pair of four cylinder engines, a 158 horsepower 2-liter and 178-horsepower 1.5-liter turbo four.
AutoGuide has an early image of the 2017 Fiat 124 Spider in full pixelated glory ahead of its reveal Wednesday at the Los Angeles Auto Show.
The two-seater sports car, which shares a similar skeleton as the Mazda MX-5 Miata, will reportedly sport a Fiat engine underneath its long hood — probably borrowed from the Fiat 500 Abarth. That 1.4-liter turbocharged mill produces 160 horsepower, which is only 5 more than the Miata.
Volkswagen announced Tuesday, one day before the opening of the 2015 Los Angeles Auto Show, that it will sell two new special editions of the Beetle that harken back to previous specials offered up by the automaker.
The Beetle Dune is as close as you can get to a Murano CC without getting all-wheel drive or a Land Rover Evoque. The jacked-up Beetle will wear unique body cladding and Dune stickers that are in no way a nod to the Frank Herbert novels of yesteryear.
Our friends over at AutoGuide have wonderful leaked photos of the new Mazda CX-9 that will be announced Wednesday.
The photos show a sleeker CX-9 than the current model, although not nearly as dynamic as the concept sketch released more than a month ago. A lower belt line and bigger windows should help the three-row SUV be a little brighter inside. We still can’t get much of a look at the car’s grille, but the headlights are clearly much sharper and the bumper has a whole lot going on there.
For the discerning pickup buyer who can’t spend enough, GMC announced Tuesday its 2016 Sierra 1500 Denali Ultimate edition complete with 22-inch wheels and chrome all over the place.
According to a GMC spokeswoman, the truck will start in the low $60,000-range when it goes on sale near March next year. Denali sales represent 20 percent of GMC’s light-duty sales.
In addition to bigger wheels and chrome, the truck sports standard automatic steps for passengers and to load the forward section of the bed, magnetic ride control and trailer brake. GMC’s 5.3-liter V-8 paired with its 8-speed automatic transmission is standard; the 6.2-liter V-8 that makes 420 horsepower and 460 pound-feet of torque is optional on the truck, but probably going to be on every single Sierra Denali Ultimate anyway.
Ford unveiled Tuesday its refreshed 2017 Ford Escape complete with two new-ish engines and a slew of new technologies, including stop-start, that could help the crossover catch the best-selling Honda CR-V.
The base Escape still comes equipped with a 2.5-liter four, but Ford replaced its 1.6-liter turbo four with a 1.5-liter turbo four that produces the same power in higher trims. The outgoing 1.6-liter engine was the subject of at least two different recalls, including an incorrectly installed fuel line and overheating problem that could potentially cause fires.
A 2-liter boosted four from the Edge will also be available in the Escape. That engine produces 245 horsepower and will be available in SE and Titanium trims. (Read More…)
Like the song says, I always feel like… somebody’s watching me. But rarely are they as obvious as this old Taurus I spotted north of Columbus, Ohio over the weekend.
What’s going on here, B&B?
The value of a first-generation Grand Cherokee that’s even slightly rough crashed hard quite a few years ago and has remained just a hair above scrap value ever since, so junkyards here in SUV-crazed Colorado tend to be packed with these trucks. XJ Cherokees are plentiful as well, but I tend to notice them more than the bigger and more Chryslerated Grands.
This ’97, however, is one of the (presumably) super-rare Orvis Editions, and so I broke out the camera when I saw it in a Denver yard last week. (Read More…)
Arley writes:
Dear Sanjeev, [Oh, come on!!! —SM]
I have a ’03 Jetta 1.9-liter TDI. Do you know if the emission controls were tampered with on these models? If they are not part of the recall, am I to assume everything is as it should be? Resale value has dropped noticeably.
After officially giving the Mazda2 its North America reveal in Montreal, Quebec, Canada in January, Mazda Canada announced, nearly 10 months later, it will not sell the subcompact hatchback in the country.
“Following a thorough evaluation of the B-car segment, Mazda Canada has decided not to launch the new generation Mazda2 in Canada,” Mazda Canada said in a statement released Monday.
Instead, the company will focus on its CX lineup, including the CX-3, CX-5 and new, upcoming CX-9 to be revealed for the first time this week in Los Angeles.
Like Randy Newman, automakers love Los Angeles this week as the industry descends on Southern California for two days (really, one-and-a-half days) to showcase their latest and greatest.
Automakers are lining up to show off their wares Wednesday (Cadillac is a lone exception for Thursday) so we’ll reuse our tuxes without dry cleaning for two days, we guess. We’re animals.
We’ll be on the floor live Wednesday to cover everything we can, but in the meantime, here’s a primer to whet your appetites for the show. (Read More…)
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