Mercedes-Benz has unveiled an all-electric SUV concept at the Paris Auto Show, strongly hinting at what we can expect from its recently announced EQ sub-brand.
The Generation EQ concept offers impressive range and up to 400 horsepower, which the automaker needs to compete with the likes of Tesla and rival BMW’s “i” sub-brand. (Read More…)
Land Rover pulled the wraps off the next-generation Discovery today at the Paris Auto Show, revealing a host of changes to the brand’s storied nameplate.
Not wanting anyone to mistake it for another SUV, the automaker kept some exterior styling cues from the outgoing LR4, but moved the overall shape in the direction of the Discovery Sport. However, the biggest changes hide beneath the Disco’s skin. (Read More…)
Toyota invested plenty of time, money and effort into making its plug-in Prius Prime stand out from its lesser hybrids, and the result may have convinced the company to change its future plans.
According to Autoblog, the automaker now has doubts about keeping the regular Prius as a standalone, hybrid-only model beneath the plug-in version. With conventional hybrid sales faltering, and the Prius Prime looming over the model line, attempting to improve the technology could be pointless. (Read More…)
Looking something like an unborn child peering with sightless eyes from inside an amniotic sack, the Volkswagen I.D. concept vehicle has been revealed ahead of the Paris Auto Show.
The description is apt, as Volkswagen sees the I.D. as an embryo, heralding a long-range electric vehicle slated for production within four years. (Read More…)
Cue the yacht rock.
Aston Martin’s latest offering isn’t a curvaceous, high-performance car. Nor is it an SUV. It’s a boat, and a nice one at that — but it’s also a gamble. The British automaker wants to squeeze money out of previously untapped markets, starting with the boaty set.
After this, the sky’s the limit. (Read More…)
There’s a problem with subcompacts. All sorts of subcompacts.
Subcompact hamburgers. Subcompact basketball players. Subcompact beds. And especially subcompact crossovers.
After years of examining subcompact cars before purchasing a compact, you know the drill. With a subcompact, you save a little bit of money, realize negligible benefits at the fuel pump, and suffer sharp reductions in useable space, not to mention typical losses of power and refinement.
The burgeoning subcompact crossover market is no different. Sure, the base price of a typical all-wheel-drive subcompact crossover is roughly 15-percent lower than the base price of its all-wheel-drive compact sibling, but a handful of subcompacts are just as thirsty as their big brethren and some see catastrophic reductions in cargo capacity.
As a result, and as a general rule, TTAC is no fan of the subcompact crossover genre.
The value simply isn’t there — and we have some math to prove it. (Read More…)
The soon-to-be-dead Chrysler 200’s legendary unpopularity saw many Fiat Chrysler Automobiles workers laid off, but a next-generation pickup is bringing them all back — and then some.
The automaker has received a handout from the Michigan Strategic Fund, allowing it to add an extra 700 autoworkers at its Sterling Heights assembly plant to work on a Very Important Product. (Read More…)
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles has released the first official images of the 2017 Jeep Compass, the solitary model replacing both the original Compass and its slab-sided Patriot compatriot.
Say goodbye to the flag-waving Patriot name, as this is a world model, and global Jeep customers are more familiar with the Compass name. Fittingly, the small SUV’s coming out party was held at its Goiana, Brazil assembly plant. (Read More…)
Move over Chevrolet, Ram and Ford?
It’s hard to say if American van and truck builders have anything to worry about after the head of Volkswagen’s commercial vehicles division publicly mused about jumping into the U.S. market. (Read More…)
American Chevrolet Volt fans have long discussed how the quasi-upscale extended-range EV might have fared with a Buick badge instead of being branded as a bread-and-butter Chevrolet.
It appears the Chinese have gone beyond the discussion phase.
According to Chinese website Autohome, Shanghai GM gets it, and has pulled the strings to rename the Chevy Volt the Velite for a brand that is more prestigious and sells in higher volume in China. (Read More…)
Smart, the plucky and perplexing subsidiary of Mercedes-Benz, has the unique distinction of offering an EV variant of its sole U.S. model that’s generally accepted as being an improvement over the gas-powered model.
Certainly, a vastly reduced range doesn’t boost the tiny package’s appeal, but the two-seat city car really isn’t meant for those long-legged highway trips. That’s what the Ford F-150 and Fiat 500 are for. No, the Smart Fortwo Electric Drive has two aces up its sleeve — instant thrust, and a transmission that mercifully stays in the same gear.
For 2017, Smart has sized up its Electric Drive, accepted its limitations (no, we can’t add a backseat ... ), and made it a bit better in any way it can. (Read More…)
The unveiling of the Jeep Cherokee and Renegade prompted many unplanned chiropractor visits after their, erm, interesting proportions elicited neck-snapping double takes.
As the final months of Compass and Patriot production sell like discount cigarettes on a WW2 airbase, Jeep likely felt pressure to keep styling on the safe side when it came time to craft a replacement.
Well, after seeing leaked images of the model, we can report back with a quote from Dustin Hoffman in Marathon Man: “Yes, it’s safe, it’s very safe, it’s so safe you wouldn’t believe it.” (Read More…)
Having been a player in the small car category since its 2001 reboot, Mini now seeks to take on the burgeoning premium sporty compact segment with this, the new John Cooper Works Clubman.
With sales of the Mini brand reaching only nine-tenths of its 2013 high in the U.S. last year, will this model bait new customers into the brand’s retina-searing showrooms?
The flagship LS built the Lexus brand’s reputation by offering quality on par with the Germans and a V8 engine that was smaller and more advanced than those fielded by the Americans.
The model continued on a relatively fixed course for the next 26 years, slowly increasing the displacement of its V8 and giving a nod to environmental pressure with a hybrid variant. Even in the LS 600h, the battery is still strapped to a 5.0-liter V8.
However, a trademark application uncovered by AutoGuide suggests that the LS’s drivetrain tradition is due for a shakeup. (Read More…)
The LAPD liked them enough to buy a bundle, but lackluster demand for the oddly proportioned i3 has BMW executives locked in a battle over the brand’s product direction.
“Do we, or don’t we?” is the question, aimed squarely at the automaker’s plans to develop a number of electric vehicles. If this one isn’t selling well, some of the company’s top brass figure, why would we invest in building more?
According to Automotive News, the two camps are so divided that BMW’s management board has planned an intervention. (Read More…)
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