Automobile News & Reviews
Whats New on the Book Shelf?
You might have previously read a some of my suggestions for hot rod book essentials and another one on vintage photo reference books. Today I want to share... continue reading
2019 New York Auto Show - Worst In Show
With all the big debuts from the 2019 New York Auto Show now written into the history books, its time to take stock of what went down. Weve already covered the best wins right here, but what about the big misses? What about the lamest special editions and the weakest model updates? Welp, weve got em compiled right here in the following Worst In Show list.
All-New Land Rover Defender Debuts This September, Goes On Sale In 2020
After years of working on it, Land Rover is going to reveal an all-new Defender this year. The old Defender was phased out in 2016 mainly due to the fact that it did not meet safety standards for both occupants and pedestrians - they couldnt even equip the old one with airbags, so a ground-up redesign was decided.
The Next-Gen R36 Nissan GT-R Wont Be Here for a While, But Thats a Good Thing
Nissan is currently celebrating five decades of the GT-R with the debut of the 2020 GT-R 50th Edition at the 2019 New York Auto Show. While were happy to see Nissan paying tribute to one of the greatest Japanese sports cars of all time, youd be forgiven for saying the automaker is dragging its feet when it comes to introducing a new generation for Godzilla. However, recent comments made by a few folks high in the Nissan corporate food chain... [read more]
Were Ready For Summer Cruisin and Leaving The Snow Behind
How big is a Ford ignition control module? The size of a sandwich? You decide. Wherever you listen to the show please SUBSCRIBE and rate and review the show. It would mean a lot to us. Thanks! Press "Play" below to listen to this episode
Junkyard Refugee: 1978 Malibu Wagon Cheating Death One Burnout At A Time
Carl Turners 78 Malibu wagon cheats death by being fun. I saw it sitting behind a friends auto repair shop when I stopped to ask him his advice about a car I was working on. Morgantown, Kentuckys Carl Turner recalls the first time he saw the faded 1978 Chevy Malibu wagon. Turner had his own auto repair business in Eatonton, Georgia, and though the wagon was rough, Turner saw potential. It would be the first of three times owning the... [read more]
The Vintage Mustangs of 55 Years of Mustang
Typically, most car shows are dominated by late-model cars, and thats also true of Mustang events. The 55 Years of Mustang show at Charlotte Motor Speedway, however, was packed with the early model Mustangs that Mustang Monthly fans are fond of, and we tried to capture every single one of them here, so check out the gallery below. And if you attended the event, you should be able to find your car! The event kicked off with the opening of... [read more]
Fords Latest Patent Filing Hints at the Name of the New Baby Bronco
The Ford Bronco is the next hot thing in the world of SUVs. Relying on the cache built up by the original Bronco that was discontinued in 1996, the new model is tipped to sell in big numbers if Ford gets the recipe right and revives an off-roader revered for its no-nonsense attitude. We're now hearing that the name 'Scout,' along with the 'Bronco Scout' moniker are in the process of being trademarked by Ford through the United States Patent... [read more]
Aston Martin DBS Superleggera Volante
The 2020 Aston Martin DBS Superleggera Volante is the cabriolet version of the company's latest range-topping grand tourer. Introduced to replace the already iconic but old Vanquish S Volante, the DBS Superleggera name returns after a six-year absence with a brand-new design, underpinnings from the 2018 Aston Martin DB11, and a turbocharged V-12 engine that generates in excess of 700 horsepower. Designed to replace the aging Vanquish Volante, the 2020 DBS Superleggera Volante benefits from Aston Martins new design language... [read more]
Porsche 911 Speedster
The 2020 Porsche 911 Speedster is a limited-edition version of the 991-generation 911. Based on the 991.2 model discontinued in 2019, the 2020 911 Speedster is the last iteration of the eight-year-old sports car. It's also the first Speedster since 2010, when Porsche sold a limited-edition model of 356 units based on the 997-generation 911. Previewed by a couple of concept cars used to celebrate the company's 70th anniversary of building sports cars, the 2020 911 Speedster is actually very... [read more]
2020 Mercedes GLS vs 2020 Porsche Cayenne
I picture you glancing over this article and thinking, "How can he compare these two SUVs, they're not even playing ball in the same field?", and while that is true, it's not an exercise in futility. Both the 2020 Mercedes-Benz GLS and the 2020 Porsche Cayenne offer buckets of luxury and are expensive, so it's worth putting them head to head to see what type of SUV is, ultimately, better. In this matchup, you've got on the one hand the... [read more]
Ford Invests $500 Million in Electric Truckmaker Rivian
Ford will invest $500 million in Rivian, aligning the maker of the industry-leading F-Series pickup line with an upstart thats electrifying gas-guzzling trucks and sport utility vehicles. The second-biggest U.S. automaker also is forming a partnership with Rivian, which Amazon.com backed with an investment announced in February. Ford will build a vehicle using the platform that Rivian founder R.J. Scaringe said last week he plans to share with several companies. Ford plans to bring a gas-electric hybrid version of its... [read more]
The Lee Pratt 1941 Buick
I've got 19 hours in the photos you see here. I described the problem with the transparencies I got from Lee on Monday, but I figured I would... continue reading
A Deep Look Into Aston Martins Mid-Engined History
Aston Martin is known as a maker of exquisite and refined grand tourers, long-legged cars that offer enough panache to satisfy Ian Fleming's James Bond on many an occasion. You could say Aston Martin knows every trick there is to know when it comes to building a front-engined GT car and that's why they're now looking to build more and more cars with the engine behind the seats. But the Valkyrie, the new Vanquish, and the AM-RB 003 aren't the... [read more]
Twinster-Crazy: AWD-Based Tech That Improves Driving Fun and Fuel Savings Technologue
Global regulations are driving the vehicle fleet toward econobox efficiency and/or increased electrification. But to succeed in a cheap-gas economy, these fuel/electron sippers will need to be as fun and comfortable to drive as our current favorite carbon spewers. GKN Driveline recently showed off several life hack technologies for preserving driving fun as the carbon screws tightenincluding riffs on the companys Twinster all-wheel-drive system, which gave the Ford Focus RS its drifting mojo and saves fuel by disconnecting the AWD... [read more]
2019 Honda Insight EX Long-Term Update 1: The 1,100-Mile Road Trip
One of the challenges of living close to work (less than 3 miles) is getting enough mileage on a long-term vehicle throughout the year. This leads me to have to wheedle and bribe farther-commuting staffers into piling on the miles for me. This wasnt hard when I had a Nissan GT-R , BMW M3 , and even Jaguar F-Pace, but I expected a challenge with the Insight. Not so! Shortly after its arrival, Scott Evans asked me if he could... [read more]
2019 Toyota Prius AWD-e First Test: Get A(ll-wheel) Grip
Its almost impossible to write about the 2019 Toyota Prius AWD-e without mentioning snow. From the beginning, Toyota s been up front about the fact that it developed the all-wheel-drive Prius for snowy climates, even going so far as to show the car driving on snow in most of its press photos. It then launched the Prius AWD-e with a drive event on snow to drive home the point. If you want to be cynical, it would be easy to... [read more]
2019 New York Auto Show - Best In Show
Last week, the worlds biggest automakers swarmed the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center to show off their latest and greatest models, delivering a host of fresh sedans, crossovers, and concepts to an auto-hungry public. As such, weve compiled all the hottest reveals right here for your perusal and enjoyment.
Ride Hailing, LIDAR, Life Span, And Self-Driving Tech - Tesla Has it All Figured Out
Tesla is a small automaker compared to the global giants, yet it leads the pack from a technical and technological standpoint in many areas. One such area is in the field of autonomous driving tech, and the automaker recently showcased its newest self-driving tech and how it intends to use them at a special event held at its headquarters in Palo Alto, California.
Long-Haul Testing With the Updated Model S and a Tesla Semi?
Recently, we got the opportunity to take the updated 370-mile-range 2019 Tesla Model S for a drive to test how far it can actually go on a charge. To read more about that, you'll want to go here . But while we were driving, we came across a Tesla Semi on an evaluation loop of its own. According to Tesla, its Semi-truck team was conducting chassis and powertrain tests with a heavily loaded trailer on its way to Los Angeles... [read more]
McLaren Senna by Hennessey
The McLaren Senna is the company's latest track-ready supercar. A successor to theP1, the Senna dropped the hybrid drivetrain for pure V-8 power and adopted a more aerodynamic design. The Senna is essentially a race car for the road, but it also spawned a track-only GTR version. Come 2019, and Hennessey Performance launched a couple of upgrades for the supercar. Yes, it's hard to believe that the Senna can be further tweaked, but the folks over at Hennessey are known... [read more]
We turn to Topcoats Ultra Kit to bring out our 1994 Cobras shine
Here at Mustang-360, we get many opportunities to try the latest car care products on the market. Were not one to walk away from the door when opportunity knocks, so when F11 TopCoat reached out to us about its line of car care products, we were eager to give them a shot. We couldnt wait to see how the products would work on our Cobra, so we eagerly waited for the TopCoat box to show up on our doorstep. F11... [read more]
2019 Tesla Model S: 5 Important Updates You Should Know About
When it was introduced in 2012, the Tesla Model S blew us away with its luxurious interior, surprising driving dynamics, and usable all-electric rangeso much so that we named it our 2013 Car of the Year . Tesla has made continuous updates to the car over the years, introducing larger battery packs and dual-motor all-wheel drive, among other features. But the electric-vehicle moonshot of making it from Californias Bay Area to Los Angeles on a single charge remained out of... [read more]
EXCLUSIVE: Can a 2019 Tesla Model S Make it from SF to LA on One Charge?
Tesla s flagship Model S sedan blindsided the industry as the upstart winner of the 2013 MotorTrend Car of the Year awardlargely due to its previously unheard-of long-distance driving range from its battery pack. Until then, electric vehicles were fortunate to reach triple-digit miles on a single charge. Tesla obliterated that range anxiety myth, then added Superchargers to refute the itll take all night to recharge shortcoming. --> But the competition is catching up in EV performance and technology, and... [read more]
Aston Martin DBS Superleggera Volante Is a 211-MPH Drop-Top Super GT
You knew it was coming. After all, if Aston offers something in coupe form, the open-air variant is never far behind. Well, that, and we'd already spied loosely-camo'd prototypes running around last fall. Regardless of our level of surprise, the new Aston Martin DBS Superleggera continues this trend, offering the same stunning good looks and hair-tousling performance as the coupe. There isnt much to unpack here, considering its essentially a roofless DBS Superleggera . To that end, the 5.2-liter twin-turbocharged... [read more]
Viva Las Vegas After Dark! Chopped Tops, Flaked Roofs, and Miles of Pinstriping
All day long at the Viva Las Vegas show at The Orleans Hotel and Casino huge crowds mill about the rows of cars with chopped tops, flaked roofs, and miles of pinstriping taking in the sights as the hot Vegas sun beats down on the parking lot. So we decided to stay till the sun went down and the droves of people scattered into the city for a night of fun. That allowing us to get some photos of the... [read more]
2019 Ford F-150 RTR Package Can Be Yours for $12,750
If you like the most recent Mustang RTR , chances are youre going to love the new Ford F-150 RTR package , which seeks to spice up the already tough-looking truck with more off-road-ready equipment and plenty of style. The look and its mission are inspired by Vaughn Gitten Jr.s personal F-150 Ultimate Fun-Haver and the RTR Muscle Truck concept from 2017. Ford Performance says the package is available for all F-150 trim levels except the Raptor; if you like... [read more]
The 2020 Aston Martin DBS Superleggera Volante Is Your New 211-MPH Open-Top Cruise Missile
Aston Martin just unveiled the 2020 DBS Superleggera Volante! Framed as the convertible version of the brands hugely desirable DBS Superleggera coupe, the Volante pairs all the usual grand touring awesomeness with endless drop-top fun. Mounted in that shapely frontend is the same engine as the hardtop DBS Superleggera, namely a turbocharged 5.2-liter V-12 producing 715 horsepower and 664 pound-feet of torque. Routing the power to the rear axle is an eight-speed automatic transmission from ZF. Top speed clocks in... [read more]
Incoming Daimler CEO Ola Kallenius Talks Mercedes EVs and Future of Diesel
Theres a new sheriff in town. Ola Kllenius, 49, takes over as CEO of Daimler AG on May 22, replacing longtime boss Dieter Zetsche , who faced mandatory retirement but will return as chairman of the supervisory board in 2021. Zetsche, CEO for 13 years, helped groom the Swede who becomes Daimlers first non-German CEO. We recently caught up with Kllenius as he prepared to take over an automaker working to reinvent itself in an age of electrification, ride-sharing, autonomy... [read more]
Mercedes-Benz GLS
The 2020 Mercedes-Benz GLS represents the third generation of the company's already iconic SUV. Introduced at the 2019 New York Auto Show, it offers more space, more comfort, and more luxury while retaining a familiar face. The GLS arrives to take on the BMW X7, the company's first foray in the full-size SUV market, the Lincoln Navigator, and the Cadillac Escalade. The GLS adopts Mercedes' latest styling language, seen most recently on the smaller GLE crossover. The exterior has smoother... [read more]
Tesla's Autonomy Claims Ahead of Earnings Report Leave Analysts Skeptical
Tesla Inc. and its Chief Executive Elon Musk made some bold claims at the companys investor day on Monday, but Wall Street analysts are far from convinced. Musk said Tesla is now making the best self-driving chip in the world, speaking during a discussion that largely focused on the electric vehicle makers plan for autonomous vehicle technology. He noted the company would have self-driving cars on the road next yearwithout any humans insideoperating in a so-called robo-taxi fleet. The CEO... [read more]
6 New Speed Parts for Car Crafters
Steering Column What it is: Self-centering removable steering hub. Why you care: Racers who require a removable steering wheel can now be assured of perfect wheel centering every time, thanks to the ididit quick-release steering hub, which now comes standard with a centering pin. The company has upgraded all of its five- and six-bolt steering hubs to include a centering pin as part of the quick-release hub, which allows the steering wheel to be smoothly engaged with the spline in... [read more]
Stop Worrying About Battery Life If You Own a Tesla Model 3
On April 13, Elon Musk stated that the Model 3's battery should last 300,000 to 500,000 miles, which is the equivalent of 1,500 cycles. The even more exciting announcement from Musk is that Model 3 battery's design allows replacing modules instead of the entire battery, thus saving money for electric cars owners. Musk affirmed that replacing the battery modules will only cost between $5,000 and $7,000. The Model 3's battery pack, which has four battery modules, is guaranteed to keep... [read more]
AMG is Making a Huge Push Toward Electrification, And You Need to Know What to Expect
Automotive electrification may mean that were moving toward a future where the internal combustion engine lives only in the history books, but all of this fancy electric technology actually comes with a silver lining. There will come a day when all you can by is an all-electric vehicle, but this very technology is also extending the life of the internal combustion engine. And, thats a good thing. Take Mercedes-AMG, for example. The brand will one day deliver only electric sports... [read more]
Going Back to the last Paso Robles 2007
Why am I bringing up Paso again? Well, I'm actually heading to Santa Maria this year for the West Coast Kustoms Crusin' Nationals for the first time in... continue reading
Geely Just Introduced a New Electric Car Brand and the First Model - the Geometry A
On April 11, China's highest-profile carmaker, Geely, announced the birth of a new premium electric car brand, named Geometry as well as the first model sold under the new brand, the Geometry A electric sedan. The Geometry A, with a single electric motor that generates 161 horsepower, will be available with two battery options. The standard 51.9-kWh battery allows a maximum range of 255 miles and the long-range, 61.9-kWh battery that extends the range to 311 miles. Both models provide... [read more]
Audi Will Dilute the Taycans J1 Platform a Little More With the E-Tron GTR; A Replacement for the Aging Audi R8
We all now that the Dirty VAG loves to share its technology and platforms among its various appendages a Bentley is just an Audi, and an Audi is Just a Porsche. With that in mind, we already figured out that the J1 platform that underpins the Porsche Taycan will eventually funnel down to other automakers, with brands like Audi, Bentley, and even Lamborghini eventually placing their in-house designs on top of the same chassis and battery technology. Eventually, real-life cars... [read more]
2019 Volvo XC60 T5 AWD Long-Term Update 4: Interior Touches
More expensive cars typically eclipse mainstream cars in countless areas, from improved performance and ride quality to better materials and more creature comforts. But infotainment usability doesnt seem to be one of these areas. Weve seen plenty of luxury cars with difficult interfaces, for instance, and plenty of mainstream cars with functional ones. As we touched on in a previous update, the infotainment system in our long-term Volvo XC60 is OK. But as we live with it longer, its attributes... [read more]
2019 Ford Fiesta ST Review: The First New Ford Car Americans Wont Get
The all-new European-spec 2019 Ford Fiesta ST is the answer to questions few Americans seem to be asking. Like, Whats the best car for shredding a narrow, crowned, potholed country lane? Or, Which car is easiest to squeeze through ancient alleys and street-park in small villages? Even, Which car sips gas while delivering a rousing, muffler-bypassed exhaust note? If these were critical factors in the U.S., home of wide-open spaces, wide roads, and typically available parking, then perhaps this 2019... [read more]
2020 Jaguar XE First Drive: More Than One Way to Skin a Cat
Jaguar had its work cut out for it. The XE compact sedan must compete with a new-generation BMW 3 Series that seeks to regain more of its mojo, a strong Mercedes C-Class , the ever-improving Audi A4 , and other contenders in a crowded and diverse field that range from the Alfa Romeo Giulia to the Volvo S60 . The XE launched with great promise in 2015, but it had a lot of hard plastic packed into an otherwise beautiful... [read more]
2020 Mercedes-Benz CLA is upon us and here are the first reviews
Mercedes not only invented the four-door coupe with the original CLS, but it also eventually launched a smaller version of that car, dubbed the CLA. Now in its second generation, the all-new CLA holds a lot of promise that stems from its exterior styling, bold and upmarket interior, and the news that it drives considerably better than the model it replaces.
Check Out the 2020 BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe on Video During Cold-Weather Testing
BMW has officially teased the 2 Series Gran Coupe, but that doesn't mean we haven't seen the car already. No, I'm not talking about the renders; it's the spy shots. Now, the so-called 'coupe' has again been spotted on video doing some cold-weather test runs. The car has followed the footsteps of its elder sibling, the 6 Series Gran Coupe, and will soon feature a slanted, coupe-style roof. Is this a success mantra, or just a counter-attack to keep up... [read more]
Mazda is Cooking up a Hot Hatch And It Could Take On Some of the Biggest Players in the Game
Mazda doesnt do hot versions of any of its cars anymore, even though the likes of the Mazda3 and Mazda6 MPS (or MazdaSpeed in some markets) were exceptional cars in their respective categories before they were phased out. But now, with the new Mazda3 hatch making its debut and being received quite well, it seems the Japanese automaker is again considering making a hot hatch version, and it on that could arrive before the year 2021.
2019 Jaguar F-Pace SVR First Drive: Flipping Fun
This doesnt feel like an SUV. Its far too much flipping fun. Pop, snort, burble. Quick turn-in, followed by a long sweeper on some epic roads through the mountains from St. Tropez to Nice. Life is good behind the wheel of the 2019 Jaguar F-Pace SVR. When Jaguar showed its first SUV, the F-Pace, at the 2015 Frankfurt auto show, the compact utility vehicle quickly garnered fans. It proved to be a business-savvy move in an SUV-crazy world, quickly becoming... [read more]
Tesla CEO Elon Musk Calls Out Panasonic on Twitter
Elon Musk has engaged in Twitter spats with a long line of folks, from rival automakers to short sellers and the Securities and Exchange Commission. Hes at it again, but this time the stakes could be even higher. Hes in a rare public dispute with a critical supplier: Panasonic Corp., the company that makes all of the lithium-ion battery cells that power Tesla Inc.s electric vehicles. The rift started with reports the companies are tempering expansion plans at their jointly... [read more]
Elon Musk Claims Full Self-Driving Computer Is Unlikely to Fail
At a meeting with investors today, Tesla detailed its full self-driving computer that is now in production. As usual, CEO Elon Musk offered some newsworthy tidbits, saying that the system is unlikely to falter. Any part of this can fail, and the car will keep driving, Musk said. He added: The probability of this computer failing is substantially lower than somebody losing consciousness. Thats the key metric, at least an order of magnitude. Tesla has officially switched from NVIDIAs platform... [read more]
Audi R8 Successor Will Reportedly Go All-Electric, Make 650 HP
If you're in the market for a supercar you can drive daily, it's hard to go wrong with the Audi R8 . It's comfortable, offers great ride quality, and in an era where forced induction is becoming increasingly common, it packs a fantastic, naturally aspirated V-10. But when Audi introduces its replacement in a few years, don't expect that V-10 to stick around. According to U.K. magazine Car , the Audi R8 's successor will be an electric supercar called... [read more]
Modified Mustang Engine Gallery From the Mustangs 55th
At many shows we attend the Mustangs in attendance are there to be judged. Judges walk the show field taking the cars, often by class, and judging them against a set of judging rules. This judging process means the hoods are open to allow the judges to inspect the engine and engine bay area for judging purposes. Of course there are events that are not judged, like your typical cars and coffee events and even there Mustang owners (well all... [read more]
Teslas Refresh for the Tesla Model S and Model X Will Infuse Model 3 DNA at their Core
Tesla is known for breaking from tradition, and that includes the way in which it updates its various model lines. Rather than creating an entirely new generation every five years like the rest of the industry, the California-based brand prefers a steady stream of incremental updates to keep things fresh. However, that could change with the forthcoming Model S and Model X, as rumor has it Tesla has a substantial powertrain update in the works, with tech bits pulled from... [read more]