Kia recently revealed the best bundle of teaser images we’ve ever seen, as those pics left nothing to the imagination. And while we now know what the 2021 K5/Optima will look like, as it turns out, we don’t know what it will be called. Piqued by the brand filing patents for a new logo in Korea, everyone started digging to see what other changes Kia might be making behind the scenes… and it would appear that the Optima may adopt the Korean market’s K5 moniker for use overseas.

While that should help minimize international confusion, ditching the Optima name comes with a few risks. The sedan is among the brand’s best selling models in the United States. It also has a real name, like most Kia products, instead of an alphanumeric jumble that’s supposed to be indicative of its place in the lineup.  (Read More…)

For a model seemingly older than the domestication of plants and animals, the Dodge Charger manages to foist new things at its intended audience every year. Same goes for its two-door sibling, the Challenger.

For 2020, the Charger offers something the Challenger debuted for the 2018 model year: a GT model with four-wheel grip. (Read More…)

If Cadillac President Steve Carlisle’s vision turns into a reality, we’re in for plenty of disruption by the end of the coming decade.

The brand chief’s vision, shared by many in the industry (especially overseas), depicts a land almost completely devoid of new internal combustion vehicles. That includes a marque that once fielded an 8.2-liter V8. (Read More…)

Few things combine funky and trendy quite like an all-electric version of the Mini Cooper. Such a model almost begs for images of sexy young urbanites embarking on free-spirited adventures as their equally good looking (and musically inclined) friends wave goodbye from the front steps of their Brooklyn apartment.

Well, barring activities of a sexual or criminal nature, those adventures will run out after 110 miles. (Read More…)

Mercedes-Benz wants to take you higher. Not just in terms of social strata, but also in terms of distance from terra firma.

See, in the subcompact GLA-Class, a model line that purported to be a crossover, driver and passengers could have been fooled into believing they were riding in a regular hatchback. Not so for 2021. Mercedes-Benz has done everything in its power to turn the GLA into a bonafide crossover, and height has everything to do with it. (Read More…)

Despite the current-generation Dodge Durango seemingly having been put into production immediately after the solar protoplanetary disk focused enough cosmic debris to assemble our humble little planet, it still moves in decent volumes in the United States. Officially in service since MY2011 (a little more recent than previously stated), sales of the 3rd-gen Durango are still going strong near the end of its life cycle. Deliveries run about 65,000 per year. That’s roughly the same annual volume it’s had since a mild refresh in 2014, and rather impressive considering the model has gone largely unchanged — save for a few performance-focused updates in its later years.

Unfortunately, this heavyweight doesn’t offer idyllic fuel economy. It’s decent for a vehicle with a curb weight between 4,500 and 5,500 pounds, and I’m routinely impressed with the highway miles Dodge manages to eek out from its big V8s, but it’s not ambitious in an era where maximizing mileage is an almost mandatory pursuit. The best the Durango can muster is 19 city/26 highway with its entry-level Pentastar V6.

That is, until the mild-hybrid variant arrives in 2020.  (Read More…)

No, it doesn’t take on water, though we won’t really know for sure until a thorough on- and off-road evaluation puts that assertion to the test. Rather, the headline refers to images of the upcoming Cadillac range-topper that appeared on Instagram Wednesday.

Borrowing a colossal grille inspired by the Escala concept (now firmly in place as the brand’s corporate face), the revamped full-size SUV’s unplanned reveal comes on the heels of the public debut of its Chevrolet Tahoe and Suburban platform mates. (Read More…)

Lusted after by no writer upon its debut, the intentionally inoffensive, strength-projecting Volkswagen Atlas did exactly what the automaker intended. It gave the brand a viable challenger in the midsize utility vehicle space, luring Americans into its Teutonic cabin and generating the margins necessary to help fund VW’s electric vehicle push.

The Atlas is a hit, and the coming year sees it undergo its first refresh. Details follow. (Read More…)

Eighty-five years after its debut, the Chevrolet Suburban is still looking to conquer new lands. This time around, that seized territory lies between the front and rear bumper of the vehicle, and that goes double for its shorter body-on-frame sibling, the Tahoe.

Introduced Tuesday night in the birthplace of it all, Detroit, the 2021 Tahoe and Suburban mark the greatest leap forward in the models’ lineage to date. There’s acres more room, but the big-ticket items lie under the hood and within the rear wheel wells. (Read More…)

Every TTAC reader’s favorite Mercedes-Benz, the subcompact GLA, will soon appear with a new body in tow. It’s taller and more bulbous than before, but it’s also more suited to the segment it’s supposedly a member of: the subcompact crossover segment.

The previous GLA, which had an unhappy sibling in the form of the now-defunct Infiniti QX30, suffered from practicality concerns. With its small overall size and low roofline, interior volume was hardly cavernous. This time around, Mercedes-Benz wants to correct past mistakes. (Read More…)

Remember the ridiculously long lead-up to the release of Dodge’s Challenger SRT Demon? That never-ending trail of breadcrumbs leading to the hottest LX-platform car to date? Yeah, that one.

The teasing grew tiresome after a while. Many buyers and writers (circles that rarely cross) were about to get up and leave the bar, until FCA finally debuted the limited-run, 840-horsepower drag beast.

Well, it looks like FCA’s on the make again. (Read More…)

Maybe Land Rover isn’t so removed from its former parent, after all. Whereas Ford saw the resurrection of the Bronco nameplate as an opportunity to butch up an Escape, Land Rover apparently sees the return of the storied Defender as an excuse to push its lineup downmarket.

No, not with the Defender itself — the range-topping SUV will only go upward in price, Autocar reports, but the opportunity lies in sprinkling some of its design magic over a new entry-level model. (Read More…)

If you’re like the dinosaurs who rumble around this here site, seeing a showroom-fresh regular cab pickup in daily life is a moment to be savored, as it’s a rare one. Barring work crews and contractors, most of which still prefer an extended-cab configuration for indoor tool storage, the once-dominant regular cab is a rare breed. A regular cab/short bed setup is even rarer.

In Chevrolet’s new-for-2019 Silverado 1500 line, regular cabs can be found at the bottom of the ladder, configured in a manner in which the automaker feels it can get the best return on investment. Low-trimmed work trucks for working stiffs, with no option for a short bed. However, the door isn’t shut on something a little more individualized. (Read More…)

As the automotive industry fluxes towards utility vehicles and electrics, the death of familiar nameplates has become an all-too-common occurrence. Goodbye, Focus, Fiesta, Taurus, LaCrosse, and Regal. And goodbye, too, to the Ultradrive four-speed automatic transmission, which meets its end in the coming year.

The Pentastar-stamped unit — seemingly older than Kirk Douglas’ dad — meets its maker after a lengthy career managing power in a dizzying array of models. (Read More…)

Automakers jump through hoops to tease upcoming models or put eyes on just-released ones. General Motors, it appears, has chosen an altogether new avenue for its marketing efforts.

Yes, that image you see above is real. The Chevrolet Suburban will now join the likes of Christina Applegate*, Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, and other celebrities we can’t think to name in receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. At least the star doesn’t mention the model’s upcoming rear suspension swap. (Read More…)