Automobile News & Reviews
An Altered from the Archives
Just like the old song says, Im on the road again. By the time you read this, Ill be up in Washington soaking in as much hot rod... continue reading
Mecum On The Move Podcast| Ep 63: Splashing Back Into the Sunshine State: The Orlando Summer Special
The Jeep Grand Wagoneer Vigilante Is One Of The Most OutrageousVintage Off-Roaders That We Have Ever Seen
The Grand Wagoneer name is making a comeback after three decades. But, for fans of the old one made until 1991, Texas-based Vigilante, which specializes in restoring vintage Jeeps, has now created a resto-mod of the classic Jeep Grand Wagoneer. Vigilante has managed to retain the Grand Wagoneer's well-known iconic styling.
This Tesla Model S Plaid Roars And Grunts Like A Dodge Hellcat!
Switching to EVs isnt just the next step into the future. Its a friggin paradigm shift. One of the things that is putting off a lot of people is how silent EVs are. If youve been driving an internal combustion-engined car for decades, EVs will disappoint you in the aural department. While many governments have mandated that EVs come with external speakers to notify pedestrians about the EV approaching them, Tesla has taken this to the next level. Tesla allows... [read more]
This Cobra Jet 1400 EV Is World-Record Fast
Renowned Drag Racer, Bob Tasca III, drove a one-of-a-kind Ford Mustang Cobra Jet 1400 to a quarter-mile time of 8.12 seconds at 171 mph at Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio, shattering the previous record of 8.27 seconds established in its debut last October. Because this new class isn't that hot yet, the Mustang Cobra Jet has been breaking its own quarter-mile record for full-bodied all-electric racing vehicles.
The Last Peaceful Place on Earth
Bonneville. Every year around this time I start sharing stories and videos about it, telling every damn hot rodder with a pulse to go just once in their... continue reading
Volvo C40 Recharge - The Swedish Automakers Crossover With A Sloping Roofline
Volvo announced the C40 Recharge for the U.S. market back in March this year. It is essentially a crossover version of the XC40. The U.S. market is known to welcome crossover coupes with arms wide open and Volvo accepted the invitation. For the 2022 XC40, Volvo introduced two new trims Plus and Ultimate. But, the C40 will be offered only in the top-spec Ultimate spec. Aside from the looks, it comes with a premium cabin and a ton of creature... [read more]
Cyberpunk 2077 Is Getting Trolled Hard by Disgruntled Fans
Cyberpunk 2077 has been somewhat disappointing. In addition to not living up to players expectations, the game has been notoriously buggy. There have been literally zero updates on the open-world, first-person shooter for a while, other than the occasional filler content, across Cyberpunks social media channels. The game did come back to PlayStation stores, where it previously topped the download charts, but players are still waiting on those free DLCs and much-needed updates, said to arrive by the end of... [read more]
Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II
Audis R8 track-only lineup is getting bigger and better. The R8 LMS has 83 driver titles and 106 additional championship victories under its belt already. To make sure this record only gets better in the future, the company has come up with an Evo II iteration of the LMS GT3. It features a new wing, a redesigned air intake, and an upgraded suspension setup amongst other things. It breaches the half-a-million-dollar mark after price conversion.
BMWs Return to The Big Grille Actually Dates Back to 1996 and This 7 Series Concept Proves It
The topic of BMWs large kidney grille is still a much-debated one. The prolonged grille design is actually a design cue that dates back to the 1930s, with cars like the 1936 BMW 328. Now, the long kidney grills have made a return, with most of BMWs current lineup proudly wearing it (or shamefully, depending on how youre looking at it). However, BMWs recent decision to bring back this grille design isnt as recent as you may think. Back in... [read more]
Watch A Scania Skip Truck and A Scania Grab Truck Gang Up On A Volvo Pump Truck On A Drag Strip
The folks at Carwow organized a different type of race this time. They got hold of three big lorries (known as Trucks Stateside, but well stick to calling them lorries to avoid confusion) to compete against each other in a series of drag and rolling races, along with a brake test. They all do different kinds of stuff. One of them is a grab lorry, the other with a concrete pumping machine, and the final one a skip lorry. In... [read more]
Take a Nice Tour of the Koenigsegg Jesko Before Seeing It Exercise Its Grunt
Hypercars are at the top of the automotive food chain. They have the best drivetrains, the most advanced tech, and are the most capable. The Koenigsegg Jesko is one of the latest and best examples of that. And although most of us will not be able to afford one, we can at least watch in awe as Koenigsegg founder and CEO, Christian von Koenigsegg, gives us a tour around the pre-production Jesko before engaging in some spirited driving.
Ford GT40 Electric by Superformance and Everrati
Founded in 2019 by Justin Lunny, Everrati as a company specializes in converting iconic vintage cars into electric cars. It is riding the wave of the current EV revolution where people certainly want to go electric, but at the same time dont want to give up on some of the most timeless shapes from Automotive history. Everrati and countless other startups are addressing this demand for Resto-modding. With the latest project, the company wants to work on one of the... [read more]
The Trophies
I'm running a little late this morning, so I figured I would turn back to my inbox for content. After my last post on the found Orange County... continue reading
The Hennessey VelociRaptor 400 Badlands - The Original Velociraptors Little Brother
Hennessey, the famous Texas tuner and producer of some absolutely insane automobiles, adds another special edition to its repertoire, this time based on the Ford Bronco. It's not their first, as they debuted the full-fledged Ford Bronco VelociRaptor with a 750 horsepower V-8 engine last October. This is, however, that VelociRaptor's little brother.
The Nano of Combat Vehicles? The MBPV from Tata
Indian automaker TATA Motors has created the MBPV "Micro Bullet-Proof Vehicle, not as a typical combat vehicle, but instead, it is a protective mobile solution that operates in confined spaces.
Tang Orange Pearl Is The Right Color For the Koenigsegg Jesko
I think we can all agree that certain cars are made for a certain color. When it comes to super-fast high-performance machines, there are usually two ways to go about it. Either go for a dark and sinister look (think of the Koenigsegg Thor and Vader models of the Agera) or you can go with a very bright, visible from 10 miles, exterior finish, which is exactly the case here. What we are looking at is a rare pre-production version... [read more]
Mercedes-Benz E450 Wagon - Driven
Being on the market since 2017, it might seem logical to glance over the Mercedes E-Class until a new-gen model arrives in a few years. That actually couldnt be further from the truth because the E-Class lineup was refreshed for 2021 with new technology, and updated appearance, and a more efficient powertrain. Weve been itching to see how the new E-Class stands after its most recent refresh, so Mercedes let us spend a week with the E450 Wagon. It didnt... [read more]
A New Chinese EV Crossover Will Have Over 620 Miles of Range
EVs have slowly been rising in popularity and have proven to be an alternative to the internal combustion engine, at least to an extent. The introduction of solid-state batteries is expected to bring EVs to the next level, although they are far from mass production. However, the Chinese carmaker GAC could get ahead of the game with their latest Aion LX. While many EVs currently on sale struggle to do 350 miles on a single charge, the new Aion LX... [read more]
RAM Believes Electric Trucks Shouldnt Come With Compromise
Ram officially announced the electric 1500 a couple of weeks back without a whole lot of details. Rams parent company, Stellantis, celebrated an EV Day earlier this month wherein announced EVs from Dodge and Jeep, and of course, Ram. The 1500 EVs production is slated to commence in 2024, but this could give it an edge over its rivals which arrive earlier as Ram can study the market better and come up with a well-rounded product right from the launch... [read more]
BMW 5 Series - A Retro Look With Modern Tech?
The BMW 5 Series has long been one of the brands most significant models. With nearly 50 years of history and millions sold, the 5er has enjoyed great success. The current G30 generation was recently updated, so its not going away in the next couple of years. That said, weve already seen spy footage of the next generation BWM 5 Series, set to debut around 2024. This is what we know so far.
Apocalypse Warlord 6x6 - A Reincarnated Beast Based On The Ram 1500 TRX
If you have an inclination towards 6x6 trucks, theres a good chance you wouldve heard of Apocalypse. Remember the Hellfire 6x6? After building a six-wheel-drive truck based on the Jeep Gladiator. the aftermarket company has now taken a bigger truck under its wing for a similar build presenting to you, the Apocalypse Warlord, a 6x6 truck based on the Ram 1500 TRX.
Cable Racing = Tether Cars = Spindizzies
Here in the US, we called them tether cars, sometimes know as Thimble Drome' racers or Spindizzies', but the concept was the same: Gas-powered scale racers attached to... continue reading
Porsche Macan
The Porsche Macan has been on the market since 2014. Following a revamp in 2018, Porsche has reworked the Macan once again to make it ready for life alongside an all-new electric model that will shortly join it. With its second facelift, the combustion engine model is buying more time. The upcoming Electric Macan will be the first vehicle to be constructed on the Audi and Porsche PPE (premium electric platform).
Watch An Audi RS7 Get Schooled By A BMW M5 CS On A Drag Strip
The Audi RS7 and the BMW M5 CS are both quick vehicles, but how they do fare against each other? Daniel Abt finds out the answer by pitting the two together in a drag race. While the Bimmer makes more horsepower, the Lord of the four rings produces a lot more torque. Both the Germans are powered by V-8s and feature an all-wheel-drive system. With similar specs, youd expect them to have a close race. However, the M5 CS blows... [read more]
Lamborghini Huracn EVO Mexico Editions
Its been a decade since Lamborghini opened its first dealership in Mexico. To commemorate this, the automaker has come up with four special editions based on the themes of Mexicos culture Life, Death, Dream, and Time. These are all aesthetic changes and come with no upgrades under the skin. The Mexico models are all about the ideology and the reasoning behind the four themes. Which edition is your favorite?
This New Trailer for Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown Will Get Your Adrenaline Pumping
The Test Drive series is one of the longest-running automobile video game franchises of all time. The very first title was released way back in 1987, and the series has been worked on by various developers over the years.
Porsche Denies Rumors About a New Halo Hypercar, But That Doesnt Mean It Isnt Happening
Porsches sports car lineup is quite diverse, having numerous high-performance models based on both the 911 and 718. That said, the German carmaker currently doesnt have a proper flagship model. Previously that role was filled by the hybrid 918, but its production was ended back in 2015. Of course, Porsche brought back the 911 GT2 RS, which was based on the 991 and they even did a homage to the 935 Moby Dick, based on that GT2 RS. With this... [read more]
Jaguar E-Type Series 3 Unleashed
E-Type UK, a brand thats well known for restoring classic Jaguar E-Types with utmost precision has decided to take a different path with the announcement of the new brand Unleased. This new sub-brand wont only restore classic Jaguar E-Types, but will bring them into the modern world via a hefty list of updates that some purists might find a little offensive. Of course, if you keep an open mind, youll find that Unleashed is doing something pretty cool. The first... [read more]
Orange County Drag Races
I got an email this weekend from a reader named Keith that included photos of a couple of trophies he had recently ran across. He noticed the Art... continue reading
Lexus RXL Black Line
Lexus is growing its exclusive Black Line series with the new RXL Black Line for the 2022 model year. This new special and limited-run edition will be based on the RX 350L or RX 450L, with the former being limited to 389 examples and the latter being produced in just 106 examples. The main highlight is, arguably, the new Cloudburst Gray or the optional Eminent White Pearl, however, its the black accents outside that really tie the package together. The... [read more]
Watch The Rimac Nevera Go For The Kill Against The Porsche Taycan And The BMW M5
Rimac unveiled the production form of C_Two concept last month. Christened with the name Nevera, this electric hypercar debuted with jaw-dropping specs. Stuff like 1,900 horses from a quad-motor setup, 0-60 mph in 1.85 seconds, etc. were the best for any production car. It came with a heavy price tag, too, costing around $2.5 million after currency conversion. A car with these specs cant be a match to any production car (Tesla Model S Plaid being the closest, but not... [read more]
Kia Telluride
Kia launched the Telluride SUV at the 2019 Detroit Auto show as an eight-seat competitor to the Honda Pilot and Volkswagen Atlas. It shares underpinnings with the Palisade but, despite being basked on the 2016 Telluride Concept, is shares very little with the vehicle it was based on. Being just two years old as of the time of this writing, you wouldnt expect Kia to give the Telluride any kind of update at all, yet thats exactly what the company... [read more]
Should Lamborghini Finally Give Us the Estoque
Do you remember the Estoque? Yes, that evocative sedan that Lambo showed us more than a decade ago. The concept car broke cover at the 2008 Paris Motor Show. This, of course, was pre-Aventador, back when Lamborghini was just trying to garner market reaction to the idea of a four-door sedan.
The 2022 Audi RS3 Is All Show and All Go With Aggressive Design and a 401-Horspeower Inline-Five
The 2022 Audi RS3 promises to retain the formula of the 1980s, turbocharged, inline-five, all-wheel-drive, 1980s Audi Quattro. The philosophy evolution, not revolution is often synonymous with the Porsche 911, but it appears that Audi is also (partially) following the same recipe. About 40 years ago, they gave us the boxy Quattro a turbocharged, five-cylinder, all-wheel-drive rally monster that dominated the scene. Now, we still get the same basic recipe, but in a more modern, more practical shape, in the... [read more]
First Ford Tried to Ruin the Mach 1 Name, Now It Wants to Ruin the Skyline Name
One could easily argue that the Skyline name belongs to Nissan. It brings back memories of cars like the 1957 Nissan Prince Skyline and, more importantly, cars like the R32, R33, and R34 Nissan Skyline GT-R the godfather of Godzilla itself, the current Nissan GT-R. The name has been kept alive in certain markets as a sports sedan the same car we call the Infiniti Q50 here in the States, and now it seems a new Skyline could be coming... [read more]
A $7 Part Killed the $3.25 Million Valkyries Debut Run At the Goodwood Festival of Speed
A Cosworth-built 6.5-liter naturally-aspirated V-12, 11,000 RPM, hybrid powertrain, 1,160 horsepower (865 kilowatts). Those are just some of the astonishing numbers of the $3.0+ million Aston Martin Valkyrie. The car is able to hit 60 mph (97 km/h) in under 3.0 seconds and only 150 units will be produced with deliveries starting in September. Moreover, there is an even rarer Valkyrie AMR Pro, limited to just 40 units. Nevertheless, the Valkyries debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed turned out... [read more]
The 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz Is Almost $4k More Expensive Than Ford Maverick
Hyundai has announced that the Santa Cruz pickup will go on sale at the end of July 2021. It will carry a price tag of $23,990 for the entry-level, FWD, SE model, while the range-topping limited trim with the 2.5-liter turbocharged engine and AWD will command a steep price of $39,720. In comparison, the new Ford Maverick starts out at just $19,995, and its coming from an automaker that knows a thing of two about trucks. It will even be... [read more]
The 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz Is Almost $4k More Expansive Than Ford Maverick
Hyundai has announced that the Santa Cruz pickup will go on sale at the end of July 2021. It will carry a price tag of $23,990 for the entry-level, FWD, SE model, while the range-topping limited trim with the 2.5-liter turbocharged engine and AWD will command a steep price of $39,720. In comparison, the new Ford Maverick starts out at just $19,995, and its coming from an automaker that knows a thing of two about trucks. It will even be... [read more]
10 Cars To Watch Out for at the 2021 Chicago Auto Show
The 2021 Chicago Auto Show is underway right now. It is being held between July 15-19 at McCormick Place south of Downtown, Chicago. Pretty much all of the mainstream auto manufacturers will be present at the venue. Considering how the EV trend has really taken off, there will also be a slew of electric vehicles on display, from legacy and EV manufacturers alike. The Chicago Auto Show is the first major auto show to return since the pandemic began, and... [read more]
This Years Grand Tour LOCHdown Special Airs July 30th
Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May are most renowned for their time at BBC's Top Gear, but they've been making their new series the Grand Tour, for Amazon Prime since 2016, and they're back for this year's special, The Grand Tour: Lochdown, which premieres on July 30.
Worthy Alternatives to the BMW M240i
The BMW 2 Series is arguably the hottest model of the brand right now. Its roots can be traced back to the 2004 E87 1 Series, which was a hatchback, but later coupe and convertible models were spun from it. Eventually, the 1er became front-wheel-drive, but luckily for us, the coupe version, now called 2 Series, still had a rear-wheel-drive platform. The M240i, in particular, is currently the most exciting of the bunch (until a proper M-version arrives), with its... [read more]
Audi Grand Sphere Concept - A New Direction for Audi and The Next-Gen A8
Here's a look at Audi's Grand Sphere Concept, which will usher in the next-gen of the flagship luxury sedan from Ingolstadt. What started as a design exercise three years ago is now ready to be showcased as a concept to take on the likes of other luxury EVs like the Mercedes Benz EQS, the yet to be announced BMW i7, and the electric Jag XJ.
The Ford Mustang Mach-E Set a Guinness World Record for Efficiency
Lately, the Ford Mustang Mach-E has been the most talked-about EV. It was initially met by mixed reactions as Ford not only slapped the Mustang name on it, previously belonging exclusively to the two-door pony car, but they also gave it many of the Mustangs design elements, such as the front fascia and the tri-bar taillights. However, as it turns out, the Mach-E has one key redeeming feature, as it recently got into the Guinness world records book thanks to... [read more]
A Remote Control Car Steps Up Against The Invincible Model S Plaid... And Defeats It!
The folks at That Racing Channel laid their hands on the new Tesla Model S Plaid. Weve seen the quickest production EV in action many times, but it still manages to surprise us every single time. The Model S Plaid has slaughtered the GT-R on a drag strip in the past, and a slightly tweaked version has made short work of the Pikes Peak recently. All this made the Tesla Model S look invincible, but the car seems to finally... [read more]
Ardun Chevy
Ive seen a lot of engines in my day, but last weekend I stumbled upon one that has me scratching my head. Its an Ardun, and its aChevy?... continue reading
This Triumph GT6 Concept Is A Call to BMW to Bring Triumph Back
We often get a glimpse of how certain classic cars from the past may look, had they made them in our time. One perfect example of that is these stunning renderings of a Triumph GT6, courtesy of Martin Aveyard. From his website, we can deduct that he is not only a skilled graphic designer, but also a fabricator. He has showcased all of his projects, one of which looks to be a replica of Ariel Atom. On one of his... [read more]