The Lada Niva has long been a favorite here at Jalopnik. Despite being born into the Soviet Union where cars weren’t just basic, they were boring, the Niva managed to impress us as both capable and full of character. The little 4x4 kept impressing buyers long after the Iron Curtain fell, at least until this year.
Read MoreMost places that built their economies around catering to cruise ship passengers are suffering. Stay-at-home orders intended to contain the spread of COVID-19 have cancelled vacations around the world. But Arctic seaports like the popular tourist destination of Tromsø, Norway are still busy, despite the disappearance of the cruise ships that usually stop by every month.
Read MoreThere are over 7,000 domestic shipping vessels in Japan, constantly churning a hydrocarbons and particulates into the atmosphere. These boats are vital to the Japanese economy, obviously, as the country is built entirely on a chain of islands. And make no mistake, Japan is running headlong at electrification to keep its air clean and reduce its impact on the environment. Part of that effort is seen in e5's new zero emissions battery electric tanker.
Read MoreCarnival on Monday laid out a plan to get its boats back out to sea packed to the gills with Americans who apparently have learned nothing from the last three months’ events. The CDC has recommended that nobody go on a cruise right now, for obvious coronavirus-related reasons, and that recommendation was extended for 100 days, and is set to expire in late July. The following week, August 1, Carnival is planning to restart its cruise operations out of three ports; Galveston, Port Canaveral, and
Read MoreAs Jalopnik’s resident car buying expert and professional car shopper, I get emails. Lots of emails. I’ve decided to pick a few questions and try to help out. This week we are discussing dealer inspection fees when buying out a lease, buying a used EV from a rental car company, and trading in a much newer car for an older one.
Read MoreKelsey is a freelance sports writer who lives in DC. She hasn’t owned a car in a long time but given the current circumstances, she isn’t jazzed about using transit and rideshare. She is looking for a car that can get her out on the weekends and go hiking, but is also easy to park around town. What car should she buy?
Read MoreTesla prides itself on being different than every other car company in the world. It doesn’t advertise, except when it does. It doesn’t do profits, except when it does. It doesn’t do incentives, except when it does.
Read MoreLike most hyped-up sports cars the all-new Toyota Supra suffered from the usual dealer markups when it first launched. For those of you who held out and don’t care about the upgrades for the 2021 model, Toyota has some deals for you with 0 percent financing and a hefty rebate
Read MoreAs Jalopnik’s resident car buying expert and professional car shopper, I get emails. Lots of emails. I’ve decided to pick a few questions and try to help out. This week we are discussing how states’ reopening will impact car deals, expensive dealer installed tow-hitches, and whether to fix or trade
Read MoreTy is from Kentucky and has some friends who are encouraging him to get into overlanding. His buddies have access to all the accessories, but he needs a platform that is preferably not a Jeep Wrangler. What car should he buy?
Read MoreI’m not going to claim a car that costs $94,120 is “practical” in every sense, but if you’re cashed up and want an easy-to-use luxury vehicle that’s fairly fun to thrash–and basically elite at everything it does–the Macan Turbo is undeniably impressive. Purist Porsche it ain’t, but, I’m a performance crossover cynic and I can’t deny that this thing is just good.
Read MoreCar dealers don’t have the best reputations, but you usually can expect them to hold on to your vehicle. Someone should have told that to this now-disavowed Hyundai dealer who allegedly abandoned customers’ cars, then had them towed leaving the owners on the hook for storage and fees.
Read MoreIf you have around $60,000 to burn and are a fan of really fast Corvettes that look like giant bumble-bees, we have some good news for you. The used car market is falling, and Hertz is currently managing bankruptcy, so the company has dumped a large chunk of used cars on the market including a bunch of 2019 Z06 Corvettes.
Read MoreSteve is taking is family from Seatle to Georgia and needs an affordable long-distance hauler that he’s only going to own for about six months. He’s looking for something reliable and comfortable to make the trip. What car should he buy?
Read MoreIn response to Covid-19's impact on the automotive marketplace, automakers stepped in with cheap financing deals to get people into the showrooms. Now that things are slowly starting to normalize, automakers are dialing back some of their special offers.
Read MoreAs Jalopnik’s resident car buying expert and professional car shopper, I get emails. Lots of emails. I’ve decided to pick a few questions and try to help out. This week we are discussing dealers “making deals count,” the covid-19 impact on specialty cars, and negotiating a better buyout on a lease.
Read MoreAlex lives in Vermont and his beloved Saab has gone on to automotive Valhalla. He plays keyboard in a few bands and wants something practical, but unique that can haul his equipment. He has a modest budget but doesn’t mind something older. What car should he buy?
Read MoreIt was only a year ago when Audi unveiled the refreshed Audi A4, but the company has already overhauled the model again for the 2021 model year, with a power bump and newly-standard all-wheel drive.
Read MoreThe covid-19 lockdown in India was so effective it prevented the nation’s massive population of 1.35 billion people from buying a new car for the entire month of April.
Read MoreDue to the economic impact of coronavirus many areas are under stay at home orders, which means car sales have dropped. In most cases, this can mean an opportunity to score some serious deals on cars with heavy discounts and cheap financing. However, that doesn’t apply to all models, especially with the Hyundai Palisade and Kia Telluride.
Read MoreCoronavirus has meant near-catastrophe for almost every major carmaker in the world (and for a lot of minor ones, too) but the supercar market has fared a little better. Take Ferrari as the the latest example. The company said Monday that despite everything it still expected to make a decent profit in 2020.
Read MoreAs Jalopnik’s resident car buying expert and professional car shopper, I get emails. Lots of emails. I’ve decided to pick a few questions and try to help out. This week we are discussing lease returns and equity with COVID-19, and trading down to save some money.
Read MoreYour mind wants this car to be red. It adjusts the balance somewhere between the cones in your eyes and the Ferrari receptors in your brain, making you believe it was red all along, just as it should be. At least my mind does. Probably because I’m a little colorblind.
Read MoreIt was distressing to hear that Renault’s Dieppe plant, home to sportscar sub-brand Alpine, will likely be closed as the french Automaker attempts to right itself after the impact of the pandemic on business. We thought that closure would once again be the end of Alpine, but apparently there’s still hope.
Read MoreWe’ve plenty of carmakers and brands over the years. Unfortunately, lots of them were the ones that challenged norms, pursued new ideas, and pushed the boundaries of what cars can be. But that hasn’t always paid off.
Read MoreHBO Max launched this week—a new streaming service combining the HBO catalog of movies and TV with the Warner Media catalog. If you’re thinking of signing up, I’ve painstakingly sorted through the library to find all of the car content worth watching.
Read MoreThere’s been a lot of car safety advances more widely deployed in the last decade—think things like automatic emergency braking, lane departure warnings, and even better headlights–but driver death rates have actually gone up in that time, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. It’s a little complicated.
Read MorePretty much everyone assumed the 2021 Corvette would be a little pricier than the 2020 version, because historically that’s been the case for the second year of a new model car. And, Chevy is said to be losing money on the lower trims of the ’Vette. But, apparently because of the pandemic, the 2021 C8 Corvette’s $59,995 base price will carry over from 2020.
Read MoreAt the beginning of this hellish week I awoke from a deep slumber with a start. “What if my engine explodes tomorrow?” I said to myself. My half awake wife told me to shut up and go back to sleep. Maybe she’s right. Maybe I’m overthinking it.
Read MoreThe new-for-2021 Porsche 911 Turbo S is an apex predator on pavement. It’s simultaneously an elite 200-mph sports car and an earnestly comfortable, accessible luxury vehicle. I died and went to heaven behind the wheel, but before I got there, I connected with photog Jonathan Harper to get a set of his signature ultra-glossy after dark images with the car. Enjoy.
Read MoreThe 2021 Buick Envision has a fresh redesign, and I dare say it’s damn decent looking for a normie people mover. It’s certainly a big step up in elegance from the current model, and, whew, that’s about all the energy I have for opinions on Buicks today.
Read MoreUber has a new way of shipping humans for the relatively low hourly rate of just 50 bucks.
Read MoreIf you’re a freak for track-focused muscle cars, you may as well invest in those new racing shoes now. After Ford announced the return of a track-attack Ford Mustang Mach 1 earlier today, Dodge is reportedly answering by developing a Dodge Challenger ACR.
Read MoreWelcome back to another episode of a Jalopnik-approved workout, with me, Erica, as your tour guide to the town of Swoleville. I am assuming you are here for this advanced version of working out with your car because you did the first one so many times and its too easy now. I get it. But buckle up, because this time I am back with an intense full body burner, using weights. No, not real weights. None of us were smart enough to invest in those back before this started. But hey, if you did, congrat
Read MoreThere are probably too many Mustangs currently on sale. If you don’t already like any of those for some reason, the iconic Ford Mustang Mach 1 is officially returning this year, and Ford is promising track-focused performance and it’s got the holes to prove it.
Read MoreElon Musk’s compensation package at Tesla is based entirely on various benchmarks tied to revenue and the company’s stock price. Put in place in 2018, Musk in theory could earn up to $55 billion in the form of stock options by 2028. Today, Tesla said the first tranche of those stock options has vested.
Read MoreThe corner of the internet that’s obsessed with cars has been alight with praise for the 2021 Acura TLX Type S design all day. Indeed, it’s a huge step up in style from the automaker’s post-2009 sedans. But let’s chat: Is the new Type S prettier than the legendary Type S from the end of the 2000s?
Read MoreFiat Chrysler, an automaker that made $3 billion in operating profit last year, is having 24,000 of its workers pay back an average of $500 in unemployment benefits they received from the company after the U.S. government raised its unemployment allowance.
Read MoreThe hot and sporty side of Acura jumped out with Acura Type S concept, and almost all of it has made it to production as the new 2021 Acura TLX, a car that is better on paper in every way compared to any other Acura sedan of the last decade.
Read MoreThe current Z car has become somewhat of a joke to buy brand new, as it’s older than the Iraq War at this point. But its overdue replacement just showed up in a teaser video, and it looks fantastic.
Read MoreLast week, we brought you the heartbreaking story of Timothy R. Evans and his wife Linda, who lost everything in their shop dedicated to Pontiac Fieros in a historic “500-year” flood in Midland, Michigan. Now the couple are offering up salvaged Fiero parts, shop tools and assorted bits of merchandise from their business, Fieros Forever, to anyone who can claim them. The only catch: the parts need to be collected soon.
Read MoreLast year British firm Swindon Powertrain teased a compact lightweight electric powertrain for generic application. The intent was to make it easier for hobbyists and industry alike to convert existing platforms to electric propulsion, be it a delivery van, a sports car, or an ATV, this diminutive motor should be able to fit almost anywhere. The motor, called “HPD E” is now available to order from Swindon, and I want to know what you’d put it in!
Read MoreIf you are like me, you worry about your cars sitting in the garage at night, confused and alone in the dark. They long to feel pavement beneath their tires. But if you’re rich enough to be losing sleep over your cars in storage facing long-term road withdrawal, you are probably rich enough to build them an entire charming village street just to assuage that guilt.
Read MoreWe already saw the redesigned 2021 BMW 5 Series a couple of weeks ago, but here it is for real now. The headlights are sharper, the wheels are funky and, of course, the classic kidney grille has gotten bigger than it was before.
Read MoreIn these turbulent times, it’s nice to have things to not worry about. For example, the probability of my ever owning and driving a Rolls-Royce Cullinan SUV are somewhere between zero and never going to fucking happen. And I am absolutely, completely fine with that. Even if I had special surgery to implant an advanced waste-donation cybernetic organ in my colon, I could not give a shit about this boring-looking overpriced SUV. So when Rolls-Royce announced that they were selling 1:8-scale models
Read MoreThe upcoming 2021 Acura TLX is supposed to be a legitimate sports sedan built on an “all-new, Acura-exclusive sport sedan platform” according to Honda’s luxury brand. We’ve heard rumors about powerful new engines and a new suspension, but now we have leaked technical info and photos. Check it out.
Read MoreLike many of you, probably, I’ve gotten into video games since the coronavirus has closed down much of society. Now, every Tuesday at 4 p.m. pacific time, you can hang with me on Twitch while I narrate virtual off-road adventures. Or, peep some highlights here and get an idea of what the heck I’m talking about.
Read MoreEven though most of us aren’t technically “stuck at home” now, the lucky and prudent among us are still going out into public spaces as little as possible—even if this is when we usually start to buy our Halloween stuff.
Read MoreTraffic sucks, so why not start your morning off with some music? You provide the toast and we’ll provide the jams.
Read MoreTraffic sucks, so why not start your morning off with some music? You provide the toast and we’ll provide the jams.
Read MoreLots of cars are named after animals. The Ford Mustang and Bronco, of course, but there are plenty more. There’s the Chevy Impala, the Volkswagen Beetle, Rabbit, and Fox. Hell, there’s even the AMC Marlin.
Read MoreWhile many automakers are feeling the slowdown of the Pandemic, the lockdown, and the resulting economic turmoil, Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is looking for speed and. they think they’ll find it in their Special Vehicle Operations (SVO) unit, creators of the Jaguar XE SV Project 8, and the Range Rover Sport SVR among other things.
Read MoreHere at Jalopnik, we believe car enthusiasm is for everyone, so I can unashamedly admit how much I loved learning “Fiat 500 Twitter” exists. When I heard a Fiat 500 fan wrote her university dissertation on the car subculture, I slid on my cutest heart-shaped reading glasses and got ready to hit the books.
Read MoreUsually AAA issues a press release on its holiday travel and gas price predictions right before long weekends, like this Memorial Day. This year they didn’t bother; Covid-19 lockdowns and our varying levels of commitment to those rules have made all modeling useless. The organization did predict some good news however: the resurgence of the American road trip
Read MoreAfter weeks of hardship due to decimated demand, the car rental giant Hertz filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy late Friday night. Hertz has been struggling to keep its head above water since the Covid-19 crisis began, and it seems the company has held out for as long as it could. Its fleet of used cars are now hitting the market, and one company’s misfortune will soon become some car buyer’s killer deal.
Read MoreAs you know, very soon I’ll be the owner of a brand-new Changli electric car, which is a kind of low-speed mobility vehicle from China that seems to be considered an “old man car” over there. There’s a shocking amount of companies building strange little cars like this, and the show Big Crazy Car had an episode pitting three of them against each other, Top Gear-style. The results are, um, mind-bendingly good. And terrifying.
Read MoreThe rental-car industry is in shock right now after months of zero demand and virtually no business. Talks between Hertz and its creditors don’t seem to be going anywhere, leaving the company staring bankruptcy in the face.
Read MoreOkay, everyone, let’s all just try to stay calm. I mean, I know you can’t but, I had to at least ask you to try. I know calmness is no longer an option because just today I got the notice from the freight warehouse in Wilmington, NC, that my brand-new Changli New Energy Mini Electric Car for Adults (NEMECA), very likely the cheapest new car available in the world, has arrived. Get excited, mothertrusters.
Read MoreWelcome to the very first installment of Jalopnik at Home, The Workouts, where I, Erica Lourd, a wannabe fitness expert, give you fun exercise ideas involving your car. Seeing as Alanis King, former Jalop/ actual fitness instructor (RIP) isn’t here to tell me not to, I thought it would be a great idea to show all of you how to get super yoked, using your car.
Read MoreYou never expect that the history of a car will teach you a life lesson. However, upon learning about the production of the third generation Maserati Quattroporte struck a chord. I had to look deep inside myself. A lot of buried emotions came back to light, and I even shed a tear. From the history of the development of the Maserati Quattroporte I learned a lot about the sort of relationship I deserve.
Read MoreAs I mentioned in an earlier post, I’ve had some wonderful opportunities to pester Ford’s archive department for interesting bits of weirdness that may be lurking in their voluminous stacks of records. One of the things I asked the dedicated archivists to look out for would be any rear-engined Ford experiments, and they came up with something really interesting and strange for me to share with all of you, fellow lovers of strange things. Even better, this one has some pretty unexpected Volkswage
Read MoreEver since Elon Musk introduced the radical-looking electric Tesla Cybertruck late last year by smashing its windows in front of a crowd, one thing has been certain: Tesla will have to build them if they want to sell them. I did the math, it’s true. Tesla is planning on building the Cybertruck in an all-new Cybertruck Gigafactory, the location of which seems to have been narrowed to two candidates: Austin, Texas, and Tulsa, Oklahoma. In an effort to entice Tesla, Tulsa has dressed up their most
Read MoreSomehow we missed the call for Jerry Seinfeld’s most recent press junket promoting his Netflix special 23 Hours To Kill. It was two weeks ago, and I think I was busy that day. Or maybe they never asked us to listen in. Either way, reports Deadline, erstwhile funnyman Seinfeld indicated through the course of this call that not only was this possibly his last stand up special, but Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee has run its course after 11 seasons and 84 episodes, too.
Read MoreThe huge drop-off in demand for oil because of the coronavirus pandemic has some analysts talking about Peak Oil, something we’ve been talking about in these parts for what seems like forever. It still doesn’t seem likely to happen anytime in the near-term, though because of the slow rise of electric cars, we are getting ever closer.
Read MoreI’m fully aware that I have a basement full of crap, and, yes, to many eyes, my collection of crap really may be analogous to a firm, healthy turd, but if I accept this unpleasant analogy, then I’d have to say one of the most golden, gleaming kernels of corn in that turd would have to be the machine I want to show you today, the Vectrex. The Vectrex is a fascinating machine, a technical dead end, an elegant and fascinating look at a path not taken, technologically. Yes, it’s just another 1980s g
Read MoreThe humble American state of Alabama is now responsible for manufacturing both the Mercedes-Benz GLS Maybach and the all-new 2021 BMW Alpina XB7 is in South Carolina. Who would have thought the south would become the hub for ultra-luxury crossovers?
Read MoreEverybody, get over here, now. Drop what you’re doing! You with the plasma cutting torch, just let it drop to the ground! You, pediatric dentist doing an emergency filling, just let go of that drill, crank that gas, and leave the kid there, because I have something important to tell you about AMC Pacer grilles, and my opinions on them: I have one a prefer significantly, and the other I dislike. There. I said it.
Read MoreWe’re trying to turn the car reviews tap back on as safely as possible over here, and luckily for us (and you!), automakers are willing to loan out some hardware for Jalopnik to test and talk about. So, what do you want to know about the 2020 Porsche 911 Turbo S?
Read MoreThe 992 series 911 has mostly improved over the previous generation. Sure, the rear end still has a little too much Sir-Mix-A lot influence, but the driving dynamics are on point. However, Porsche lovers hoping for a naturally-aspirated variant are going to be disappointed. The automaker says it’s not happening.
Read MoreBack in 1960 the Maserati Tipo 61 was the epitome of power-to-weight ratios. With a two-point-nine-liter inline-four engine making around 250 horsepower, and an all-in weight under 1350 pounds, it was ready to run. The chassis, weighing just 155 pounds on its own, was built from a series of thin metal tubes (much like the internet) welded together in an erector-set latticework fashion, with more tubes added until the car achieved its necessary stiffness.
Read MoreFoMoCo went into the 2020 calendar year with an ambitious launch schedule on deck, with a new cash cow F-150 on the way, along with buzz-generating Bronco, and mass-market-EV Mustang Mach-E SUV. All of those were meant to launch this year to great fanfare, pomp, and indeed circumstance. Then a global pandemic popped up and threw a fuck-off-huge wrench in the works.
Read MoreIt was June 29, 2010, when Tesla had its initial public offering. Shares now priced at more than $800 could have been had for $17, at first. The models X, S, 3, and Y didn’t exist. The future was uncertain.
Read MoreIf you still somehow inexplicably think that SUVs or crossovers are cool and minivans are not, it’s time to grow up, already. Toyota’s just-unveiled new Sienna minivan is a good, concrete reminder of why this is. The 2021 Toyota Sienna should, if the world were a more rational place, be a formidable competitor to any popular SUV out there. It has basically everything any mainstream SUV has in the same exterior dimensions, but so much more inside. It’s a minivan, and it should be proud of that.
Read MorePerhaps even more than the steering wheel, pedals, and shifter, the part of your car that you have the most contact with are the seats. When you think about it that way, we ought to be giving them a lot more attention.
Read MoreThe Bugatti Veyron has an unending list of accolades to its name. There was a time when it was the most sophisticated, powerful and, let’s not forget, expensive car on the road. It was mind blowingly powerful when it was released and it continues to be a wonder today. Such a chariot could not be built in something as gauche as a normal factory using average manufacturing techniques. No, even how the car was made needed to be a symphony of mechanical wonder.
Read MoreIt’s the end of the week, and we’re going to send it out in proper fashion. As we head into another weekend of fettling around the house doing what we can to keep our minds occupied during this bizarre ugly time we live in right now, it’s time to blow up the week that was with a good bit of tire shredding and high-RPM shenanigans. In other words, hey y’all, watch this!
Read MoreI’m moving next month. I’ve been living in this house for almost five years, but it’s too big, too far out from town, and we need to make a change. Luckily my wife and I managed to find a new place that also has a workshop I can use for my ridiculous car shenanigans. The garage I’ve wrenched out of for the last few years is no longer mine, and I have to outfit a new shop with the stuff I need to make the wrenching process more comfortable. So I am asking for your help. Show us your totally aweso
Read MorePutting upsized tires and a little lift on sports cars has been A Thing for some time. You might have seen these luxury rally cars described as “safari builds.” This Porsche 924 could be classified as such, but it’s actually set up for camping and pushes the safari idea further into overlander territory in a cool way.
Read MoreWhen I was a little kid, the two cars my family had were a 1968 Volkswagen Beetle (Semi-Auto! And I’ve written about how important it was to me before) and a 1973 Ford LTD Country Squire, a massive, fake-wood-paneled station wagon. I liked that big-ass Squire, but there’s three things I remember about it most vividly: the surprising number of little trios of cats on it, the way the power windows never seemed to work, and, what I’m thinking about now, the fantastic rear bumper guards that were al
Read MoreTesla has narrowed down the home city for its next factory to either Tulsa or Austin, according to the Associated Press. A report from Electrek today indicates that sources within Tesla have actually decided on Austin and Tulsa is no longer in the mix. In either case, the new facility will be similar in size and scope to the company’s Nevada Gigafactory, and will be used to increase production of the popular Model Y, as well as the upcoming Cybertruck.
Read MoreYou know a hyped new car has proven itself when some of the very first cars delivered to owners start getting totaled with just 15 miles on the odometer, like this brand-new Porsche Taycan Turbo driver.
Read MoreCar sales have certainly fallen off a cliff amid the coronavirus pandemic, but trailer sales are even worse, in an abyss so deep that you only need three digits to count how many were sold in April.
Read MoreIf you’re on sedan death watch, sound the alarm because we’re about to lose the Acura RLX. That’s the big one Acura sells.
Read MoreThe Nissan 370Z is one of the oldest new cars you can buy in 2020. The sixth-gen Z34 platform hasn’t been significantly revised since it was introduced circa 2009, so it’s hard to justify recommending you go out and buy a brand new one. But this week, used 370Zs are my favorite thing to window shop for.
Read MoreThe Renault Espace, which we once (wrongly) referred to as the world’s first minivan, is reportedly dead. Long live the Renault Espace.
Read MoreAs much as I want this joke to literally be about Audi offering people nose jobs to buy its cars, it’s actually about something equally as absurd—the elite team of sniffers Audi employs to make sure its cars don’t smell bad.
Read MoreOnce the near exclusive domain of pro-drivers and the hardcorest of hardcore racing game dorks, iRacing has seen thousands of new users sign up for their hyper-realistic racing sim since Covid-19 shut the world down. Driven by televised races featuring real drivers and you know, the desperate need to spend as little time in our own heads as possible, iRacing is more mainstream than ever. I wanna give it a whirl!
Read MoreI have to admit, while I know that’s a fairly cumbersome headline, I really like just how much is packed in there, and, even better, it’s all true. The very first internal combustion to actually power a vehicle was, at least in part, fueled with a type of moss, and that engine powered a boat that worked on the same principles as a Jet Ski, and, yes, the person who developed it later went on to take the first ever photograph. Sometimes the world is just delightfully weird like that.
Read MoreWhile we likely won’t see a pure M-version of the BMW X7 crossover from BMW outright, tuner company Alpina is apparently showing off an officially-sanctioned Alpina XB7—rumored to have 600 horsepower—in just five days.
Read MoreOnly days ahead of the first NASCAR event since March 8, Darlington SC police have arrested a man for leaving threatening messages describing an explosive device and the damage he could do to the historic southern racing facility.
Read MoreAston Martin, which wasn’t doing great before the coronavirus pandemic, really isn’t doing great amidst it. Meanwhile, its incredibly rich new dad is sure that this will definitely be its year.
Read MoreThe roughly 20,000 new drivers in Georgia who got drivers’ licenses without passing road tests won’t get behind the wheel as easily as it initially seemed. A new executive order from Governor Brian Kemp makes his first order merely an extension, and now those new drivers have until September 30, 2020 to take the road test or risk losing their licenses.
Read MoreIt’s not often that a car company gets to kill off a brand name twice. After retiring the Datsun name in 1986, it was brought back as Nissan’s brand for developing market cars in 2013. Now, just seven years later, it appears Nissan is killing it again. Make up your mind, guys. Jeez.
Read MoreI believe I have made my position on Thomas the Tank engine quite clear: he, and all of his related indentured rail-servants on the Island of Sodor, are creepy as hell, and the ashen-gray sliced-off cherub faces they have slapped onto their boilers represent the laziest and most unpleasant form of vehicular anthropomorphization. Send all the angry emails you want. It won’t change the truth, and neither will this bizarrely jacked-up Hot Wheels take on Thomas.
Read MoreUsed car prices have been wonky through the current crisis, but it now seems they’ve decided on which direction to head: Down. Way down. And the eventual fate of car rental giant Hertz could flood an already underwater market.
Read MoreI’ve been playing with the off-road sim SnowRunner on the Twitch platform lately in an effort to access what I miss most about the world we’re all quarantined from: Adventure driving and socializing. Here’s a highlight cut of my first broadcast, which gives you a pretty good primer on the game and some of the trucks in it.
Read MoreIs there anyone who doesn’t love a good mystery? I mean, other than the low-level real estate fraudsters with a dramatic flair and a penchant for mummy costumes that butted heads with those teens who lived in that van with their Great Dane? We all love a good mystery, especially a car mystery, and a reader named Michael sent us a very good one, involving buried cars on a beach.
Read MoreIf you’re a Chevrolet Camaro fan with a hankering for horsepower, Chevy tuner Callaway will deliver it to you. The new Callaway SC630 is based on the bargain LT1 Camaro, which is the cheapest way to get a V8 Camaro without all of the fancy stuff that comes with the SS package like LED headlights and Brembo brakes. For under $54,000, the Callaway will deliver near-ZL1 horsepower numbers for ten grand less. And it’s still covered by the factory warranty.
Read MoreAs you may be aware, I’m in the process of buying a new car for the first time in my life, and I’m probably in my 70s. The car is, of course, the Changli NEMECA, which has been called by websites I don’t work for the cheapest car in the world. It was listed as being $930 on Alibaba when I bought it; of course, like everything else, it’s actually way more expensive by the time you factor in batteries and shipping and customs and all kinds of tedious handling stuff. It’s still pretty cheap, though
Read MoreParking lots at Tesla’s Fremont, California, factory were full today as the factory comes alive again despite not being given permission to do so by Alameda County officials. According to one report, Tesla made around 200 Model Ys in recent days.
Read MoreIf you’re in to Wankel-powered Mazdas (and other things), you might have heard the name Rob Dahm before. Yeah, he’s the guy who built that four-rotor all-wheel-drive FD RX-7 a few years back. Now he’s got a new project. He’s putting four rotors in the middle of a wrecked C8 Corvette.
Read MoreHappy Mother’s Day, Jalopnik readers. I trust I’m not the one to remind you, right? Good. We owe an awful lot to our mothers. I know I do. I’d like to someday get her the car she deserves for raising me. I’ve already got one picked out.
Read MoreWhile Mazda has been making waves with rumors of new products with exotic powertrains that have the potential to shake up its sales, the rapid downturn caused by the Coronavirus pandemic has the company searching for some additional cash.
Read MoreA mere five days after welcoming his son, little X Æ A-12, into the world, Elon Musk went on a tear on Twitter, angry that officials in the state of California won’t be signing off on getting Tesla factories up and running in the middle of a pandemic after all.
Read MoreFifty years ago today, UAW president Walter P. Reuther, his wife and four others died in a mysterious plane crash while on their way to a union recreation and educational center at Black Lake in the northern portion of Michigan’s lower peninsula. I’ve always been fascinated by Reuther. He was a fearless leader from an era when just being a member of the UAW, let alone being an organizer, could mean your death.
Read MoreIt’s a pretty common refrain among gearheads to complain about how all modern cars look the same. And, sure, you can absolutely make a valid argument that they do, and go to any parking lot and wave your arm over the sea of nearly indistinguishable grayscale SUVs, but if it helps, gearheads have been bitching about this for most of a century, and they’re always sort of right. This 1969 issue of Popular Science is just a bit different, as the author is mostly complaining that all the new car gril
Read MoreThe term “death cult” is certainly potent and evocative, but it’s also so sensationalizing that it tends to deaden any objectivity when it comes to any culture that gets associated with the term. That’s why I’m reluctant to bring it up now when talking about the cars made by the Redhorn Republic, but it’s conceptually crucial to the understanding of the car, so we’ll just have to do our best.
Read MoreTesla, which is currently not producing any cars anywhere on Earth, badly wants to change that, with plans to reopen its Fremont, California, factory today. The problem, of course, is that it still may not be safe to do so, despite what Tesla CEO Elon Musk thinks.
Read MoreWhile most of America is still deep into covid-19 lockdown, Germany is loosening things after successfully flattening the curve. That means the Mercedes-Benz Museum will soon be welcoming some guests again. But before the crowds return, Benz sent a drone around for a bird’s-eye look at its collection, which is a fun sight to behold.
Read MoreIt’s possible that the past couple of months have been the biggest era in human history for sitting on one’s ass and watching TV. In our Golden Age of television, we have a vast array of options, some of which include some pleasingly if unsettlingly cynical portrayals of the near future. One show like this, Amazon Prime’s Upload, also happens to have what may be the most prescient portrayal of autonomous vehicles that I’ve seen anywhere.
Read MoreWhile Europe is busy playing with the new 268-horsepower 2020 Toyota GR Yaris rally special, us Americans are just going to have to wait for whatever possible hot hatchback the automaker keeps teasing us with.
Read MoreChantay Osborne and her husband Phil Jensen were at a junkyard in Utah looking for a parts car for their 1985 Pontiac Fiero GT. What they discovered, and subsequently purchased for the low price of $400, was a vehicle with a mysterious, but fascinating history—one that I became a bit obsessed with. So get ready to descend into the deep rabbit hole of GM history.
Read MoreTraffic sucks, so why not start your morning off with some music? You provide the toast and we’ll provide the jams.
Read MoreAfter Harley-Davidson’s former CEO Matt Levatich was ousted in February, Harley’s chairman Jochen Zeitz was appointed Acting CEO, while the company said it would name a permanent successor. Today, Harley revealed that Zeitz, in fact, is its permanent choice for CEO.
Read MoreThe most adorable little convertible and I were born in the same year, we’re both incredible, but only one of us came with zebra-print seats.
Read MoreGM isn’t taking it easy with the all-new first-ever production mid-engine 2020 Chevy Corvette. One of the few facilities its kept running during the covid-19 outbreak and lockdown is just to crank out Corvette chassis, because we need our Corvettes at all cost.
Read MoreAn under-appreciated service of enthusiast engagement will end later this year when BMW shuts down its European delivery program, where U.S. customers could fly out and pick up their car at the company’s German museum. It seems that party is over.
Read MoreIt’s pretty telling of this strange era that this contest seems so very long ago. I mean, it kind of was, but that’s on me, but the even longer perception, well, that’s because the world has gotten so weird. But, back when the world was still running, I asked you to show me your very well-packed trunks, and you certainly provided. So let’s finally pick some winners!
Read MoreI’m Rory Carroll, the new editor-in-chief of Jalopnik, my favorite website. I just heard I’m the first Jalopnik EIC to be hired from a not-Jalopnik place—but I’ve been around a while.
Read MoreAfter using the last seven weeks to binge the entire Breaking Bad anthology on Netflix, I’ve drained my entire being of feeling and needed something to lift my spirits, even slightly. On Sunday I committed myself to a screen-free day and spent much of it out in the sunshine of my fenced backyard reading a good book. In this case, it was a discarded first-edition copy of Brock Yates’ awesome book Sunday Driver.
Read MoreTake the A22 Autrostrada to Modena from Milan and on your right you’ll notice a big blue building. The signage has faded over the years but you can still make out the letters enclosed in a familiar oval shape: BUGATTI. It’s hard not to notice this space age facility on the side of the motorway, especially painted in bright Bugatti blue. But this state-of-the-art factory is anything but these days. There’s nothing there anymore.
Read MoreFord really likes Mustangs, to the point where it slaps the name on vehicles filled with shrimp which clearly aren’t Mustangs. No doubt the Mustang GT deserves the name, though, and it just got even more so with a new company-certified performance kit that will eke out an extra 19 horsepower and 18 lb-ft of torque.
Read MoreIn our current age of electrons and photons and lasers and shit, most of our car-related information is gotten online, via these computer machines. It wasn’t always like that, though! Once, you learned about cars from books and magazines, and, yes, brochures, glossy, exciting brochures you’d collect by the armful from car shows, or yank from the hands of reluctant salespeople at dealerships. Many were wonderful, and I’m lucky enough to have some good ones to share with you.
Read MoreWith travel at a standstill, rental car companies like Hertz are hurting so bad they’re beginning to look at bankruptcy options as they default on their lease payments.
Read MoreAs you may be aware, Elon Musk and Grimes have rubbed their space-genitals together over a Tleilaxu Axolotl tank and crafted themselves a human child. That child is now complete, and it’s a little boy, and, contrary to recent rumors, he’s not named Influenza. That would be ridiculous. Don’t be silly. He’s named X Æ A-12.
Read MoreThis is a pretty remarkable story for a number of reasons: perhaps most obviously is that the kid in this picture seems really damn big for a five-year-old, and also because of the reason the kid was driving a car in the first place, which was to buy a Lamborghini. I’m glad no one was hurt, but, beyond that, I’ve got a lot of complicated and conflicting feelings here.
Read MoreFrance is still reeling from the effects of the global coronavirus outbreak that has thus-far killed 25,204 Frenchpersons. With serious restrictions and a national focus on the problem, the country has managed to get new daily cases down to just 400-ish countrywide. Over at Bugatti in Molsheim, workshop artisans are back to work crafting multi-million dollar automobiles.
Read MoreA decade ago, the then-new BMW i brand of hybrid and electric vehicles was destined to be the future of the company. But today, the brand is only known for a recent string of cancelled plans, and covid-19 reportedly just cancelled more.
Read MoreNissan, which hasn’t done anything interesting in roughly 10 years, is in the throes of a deep, post-Carlos Ghosn, mid-coronavirus crisis, as sales fall off a cliff and its volume aspirations have revealed themselves to be fantasies. But now, a report says all of that might have forced it into possibly maybe trying again.
Read MoreWhile most of us are sheltering at home in crude blanket forts floored with empty corn chip bags, Tesla CEO Elon Musk is in his palatial, immaculate home, in the lotus position, hovering three feet above a reflecting pool, levitating with The Power of Ideas and emitting beams of coherent light and a never-ending stream of ideas. Of course, some of those ideas kinda suck, like the one he brain-tweeted this past weekend about the potential to play video games with your car, while driving, kind of
Read MoreBeing interested, deeply interested, perhaps clinically interested in cars involves an awful lot of attention to detail. Cars really can be thought of a 3,000 pounds of details, hurtling along all around you! So let’s take a moment to reflect on one particular detail, the detail of the practice of repurposing one car’s door handles on another car’s tailgate.
Read MoreFor the sake of brevity, I’m going to assume you’re all familiar with Professor Torchinsky’s infamous Homunculous Theory of Physiology as it relates to Pixar’s Cars universe. You’re not? Okay, well, here’s a refresher.
Read MoreI know Mercedes-Benz likes to crow about “inventing the automobile” in 1885, but we all know that’s complete bullshit. Motorized, wheeled vehicles capable of transporting a human being have existed since at least 1769, and there were actually quite a number of these very early cars built. They were powered by steam, electricity, and internal combustion engines, though in the first century of automobiles, steam was king. So, just to piss off Mercedes-Benz a bit, let’s rank the top ten cars from 1
Read MoreWe’ve covered the recent invention of drive-thru swabbing for covid-19 testing, but one strip club in Oregon has taken things to a new level—they opened a drive-thru right through the stage so people can still come get a show.
Read MoreI do not have any particular infatuation with the BMW 6 Series Gran Turismo, the easiest vehicle to forget BMW makes. But BMW remembers, and for some reason updated this five-door family hatchback, a car that probably shouldn’t exist.
Read MoreClassic Restorations has been turning out officially-licensed Ford and Shelby American continuation cars and restorations for a long time. (They’re good.) Now, in collaboration with SpeedKore Performance Group, it’s turning out a carbon fiber-bodied fastback Mustang.
Read MoreMazda knows that it is capable of great design. Its cars are arguably among the most beautifully styled on the planet right now, turning smooth curves and soft creases into real world sheet metal isn’t easy but Mazda manages it. Back in 2015 the Hiroshima-based automaker unveiled the RX-VISION concept car with what it promised would be ‘the compact and lightweight next-generation SKYACTIV-R rotary engine’ which is still nothing more than an empty promise. Today, Mazda took the digital covers off
Read MoreCar names can give a sense of context to history, like that time the best-selling car in America was an Oldsmobile and we’re all left wondering why that was OK now. But there’s one current car with a real name that’s about to be history: the Kia Optima.
Read MoreIf I had to pick one upside of this whole pandemic/quarantine fever dream we’re all living in, it might be that Ford’s archive department is now extremely willing to dig around and find cool stuff for me to show you. One bit of this cool stuff is the original Ford Explorer, a vehicle very, very different from what you normally think of when you think “Ford Explorer,” mostly because it’s a mid-engined pickup truck with a huge pop-up batwing-like canopy.
Read MoreLook, I know we’re splitting hairs here, but when an automaker produces a million versions of the same car, the spec race has got to come down to the wire. And the new 2021 Porsche 911 Targa’s roof deployment time is borderline unacceptable.
Read MoreThe Toyota Venza is back after a short break, and it comes with some striking styling ripped from the Japanese domestic market’s Toyota Harrier crossover.
Read MoreI’ve seen these around for years, but somehow the actual maker and seller of these delightful kits has eluded me. We’ve talked about other Kei-van costumers before, but I’ve wanted to know which one makes those fantastic conversion kits to turn Suzuki Lapins into shrunken Chevy C10s or Toyota Hiaces into Dodge A100 vans or Honda Vamoses (Vamoose?) into Ford Econolines, and, thanks to someone named Joel, now I know. The company is called Blow, and they have all kinds of fun stuff in zero danger o
Read MoreI think of all the cars that were designed and prototyped but not actually put into production, one of my favorites is Volkswagen’s 1969 EA 266 prototype, an incredible mid-engined marvel of small-car packaging. I wrote about it back in 2014, but now, thanks to our pals over at Car Design Archives, a new batch of photos and renderings of the EA266 has been found, and they just make me even more sad that this is not the path our universe followed.
Read MoreLast week, the new JL-generation Jeep Wrangler made history by being the first model tested to ever tip over in the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety small-overlap crash test. While the automaker claims the result doesn’t reflect its real-world data, it’s also currently working on a fix.
Read MoreJust when I thought flamboyance was back, leaked pics of the new Mercedes-Benz S-Class seems to indicate that the German automaker’s going another way with its flagship. It’s minimalist, digitalist, and you’ll be able to order it with about 1,000 square feet of glossy blackness.
Read MoreMost special editions or design packs on American cars these days are very monochromatic, dark, and often dull. Some go for the full murder-out, black on black, and most do some variation of that. But the 2021 Chevy Camaro will reportedly buck the trend with a red hot Wild Cherry package.
Read MoreI could have sworn I’ve written about this architectural masterpiece before, but, somehow, it seems like I haven’t, so let’s just solve that right now. My friends, please allow me to introduce you to 19611 Ventura Blvd in Tarzana, California, otherwise known as The Fleetwood Center, other-otherwise known as That Strip Mall What Looks Like A Cadillac.
Read MoreJust when the RAV4 finally ascended to a new level of pseudo-toughness with a Tacomaesque grimace, Japanese tuner Albermo went and made a knockoff Lamborghini Urus-looking body kit for it which is actually amazing. Amazinger still though, is the fake Ferrari face that Albermo makes for your Prius.
Read MoreLaw enforcement in Finland has an insignia that looks like a stubby sword with a lion’s head for a hilt. It’s on their uniforms and vehicles, which makes sense. It’s also used as the grille emblem in police vans, replacing “VW” or a Mercedes star, which is unique and mildly interesting.
Read MoreIt feels like only yesterday I was picking up fish and chips for lunch in what was then the new BMW M5. And yet, there’s already a refresh for the 2021 BMW 5 Series, which has now just leaked.
Read MoreOver the weekend, I had a near-miss while driving that was harrowing and close enough that it’s been lingering in my head since it happened. I was very nearly in a head-on collision with a huge SUV in my Nissan Pao, a situation that could have ended very, very badly for me. I’m okay, danger was averted, but the incident has made me think about how we talk about car safety, and an important element of driving safety that I think remains under-appreciated.
Read MoreA man charged in three hit-and-runs in Michigan might just be the first serial killer to use his car as his weapon of choice. Lawrence Paul Mills III of Garden City, MI, was charged with another hit-and-run attack on four Detroit woman. At least two of the attacks Mills is charged with were fatal.
Read MoreCoronavirus and associated stay-at-home guidelines have reduced road traffic around the world, leading some speed-hungry drivers to open the taps on their sports cars. Just this past weekend, Canadian police pulled over a 19-year-old Mercedes C63 AMG driver after clocking him doing 191 mph. One officer was so baffled, he made multiple videos expressing his astonishment. “This is the fastest speed that I’ve ever heard of,” he says in one. Have a look.
Read MoreHas it really been five years since the post-apocalyptic off-road opera of Mad Max: Fury Road? Indeed, the eyeball-searingly beautiful movie about an angry post-apocalyptic convoy is just about five years old now. Entertainment writer Kyle Buchanan collected an oral history of how it came together for The New York Times and I highly recommend reading it.
Read MoreIn 2002, Aston Martin made a big splash in its big return to the James Bond franchise with its newest model, the Aston Martin Vanquish. Naturally they wanted the movie’s star, Pierce Brosnan, to make the car look cool—but that would come with a price.
Read MoreThe well-known model and actress Chrissy Teigen revealed a heretofore unknown acting role yesterday, as she announced on Twitter that her boobs were in the 2006 JDM-fetishist touchstone movie, The Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift. She also put a call out to the internet to help her find a clip of her boobs in the movie, and, unsurprisingly since the internet is effectively a colossal boob-image storage-and-retrieval network, the internet provided.
Read MoreThe organizers of the New York International Auto Show had said in March that instead of April, the show would be moving to August this year because of the coronavirus pandemic. Now those dates are off, too.
Read MoreI want a Maserati Ghibli. No, not the new one. Not even the second one. The original. Just like this one. But there’s a problem. I worry about the man I would become if I actually got behind the wheel.
Read MoreThis lot of solid stainless steel cars on offer at the annual Auburn Auction redefines the meaning of “Detroit steel.” Of course, the three unique cars come heavy with history as well as body work.
Read MoreAn Acura Legend that was stolen from a dealership lot brand-new in 1991 before resurfacing in 2011 with only 7,000 miles on the odometer is for sale. The car’s changed hands a few times since resurfacing, and 57,650 miles are now on the odometer, but it still looks pretty clean.
Read MoreI have had dreams of driving an Alpina. Visions of triple-digit speeds across Germany in a decal-decked super-sedan. In these premonitions, the car looks a lot like this one. And I think I need to turn them into reality at some point.
Read MoreI’d argue that there is no automotive company with a more emblematic figurehead than Anthony Colin Bruce Chapman. From 1952 until his death in 1982 he was Lotus Cars. The car company was inspired by his desire for lightweight and simplicity in a sporting automobile, and from the multifaceted racing team to the small manufacturing concern it was all his child. Now is your chance to own the big man’s own Esprit, as it’s for sale.
Read MoreIf you’re looking for a unique daily driver without shelling out for one-offs, customs, and supercars, it’s hard to find something more unique than this 1992 Volkswagen Passat. Where else are you going to find Syncro all-wheel drive mated to a G60 supercharged engine with a 5-speed manual gearbox? You’re not, is the short answer. I’m in love with this thing, but I already have too many cars and don’t need any more. Ergo, you should buy it so I don’t have to. Please.
Read MoreWe’re all big fans of the Toyota Century around here. Most automakers don’t build a flagship that so defiantly bucks the norms of its segment. But what if the Toyota Century was just a little too common for you? What if you needed a Toyota luxury car that was a bonafide one-off and a factory-produced one at that?
Read MoreThis 1989 Dodge Grand Caravan used to belong to Forrest Swatman, a now-99 year-old World War II veteran and former mechanic who took meticulous care of his minivan. The vehicle is now for sale on Facebook Marketplace in St. Johns, MI, and it is so beautiful, you’ll probably forget that it was originally designed to be a form-follows-function utility vehicle.
Read MoreWe know there are some all-time great BMW coupes. The E24 6-series. The E31 8-series. The E30 3-series. But what if BMW decided to go in a different, slightly more Italian direction? The BMW 3000 F is the answer. And this one is even for sale.
Read MoreThe idea of comparing the pace of development of computers to cars has been around a while. Snopes traces the idea all the way back to some early-internet joke in 1997, even. Fundamentally, it’s sort of an absurd comparison—the two technologies are so different, they’re really not comparable. I did it anyway.
Read MoreThink back to what you were doing in 2013. Do you even remember? I was living on the other side of the country, and I didn’t own any of the cars I own now. Back then Nik Blackhurst and Richard Brunning were just getting started on a ridiculous little project car in a small shop in Shropshire, England. They turned the project into a little YouTube sensation in the process. And guess what, it’s still not done.
Read MoreThere is nothing wrong with a good old-fashioned motor pedal. I’m a fan of the two-stroke mopeds that were all the rage in transportation back before I was born. Puchs, Tomos, Garellis, Honda Hobbits, Peugeots; Yes to all. But while there has been a recent resurgence in popularity this last decade, I didn’t expect to see the motor pedal concept revived quite like this. On the German-built eRockit electric motorcycle, the pedals don’t actually power the bike, they stand in for a right hand bar th
Read MoreDuring much of the 1990s, if you wanted to buy a new Harley-Davidson, you could expect to wait three or four months for delivery, in what was a deliberate strategy by the company to sell on exclusivity. According to a new report, it sounds a whole lot like where Harley will head in the 2020s.
Read MoreIn the immortal words of Limp Bizkit front man Fred Durst, ‘everything is fucked, everybody sucks.’ That’s just the world we live in right now. Things are bad and there doesn’t seem to be any indication of an end in sight. In an attempt to do something good for the terrible world we inhabit, Harley-Davidson is auctioning off one of its ungodly expensive, yet incredibly fun to ride LiveWire electric motorcycles to benefit the United Way Worldwide’s covid-19 community response & recovery fund.
Read MoreA team of six third year students in the art department of Ehime Prefectural Yawatahama Technical High School in Hachimanhama City in Shikoku, Japan have built what must be the most faithful cardboard recreation in the history of cardboard recreations of things. This project is incredibly overwhelming for a non-engineer like me, and I wouldn’t even know where to begin. There is art in the machine, and from the machine these students have created art.
Read MoreMy favorite genre of motor-based enthusiasm is putting a big engine in a small thing. Small engine in a big thing is a close second, however, and this Harbor Freight Predator 212cc-powered Harley Davidson Ultra Classic certainly qualifies. It’s so exceedingly dumb that it must be 100 percent cool. Who doesn’t want to pull-start their big cruiser?
Read MoreAs rage over the police killing of an unarmed black man named George Floyd earlier this week in Minneapolis, Minnesota, morphed into demonstrations and protests the country over against police brutality, numerous incidents of cars being used as ramming weapons against demonstrators have occurred, including by police in marked vehicles.
Read MoreSomewhere in the middle of all this—I can’t remember when any of it started, or what day it is, or where I live, or who I am, my life is pretty much Memento thanks to the pandemic—a lot of people began to worry that the bottom might fall out of the used car market.
Read MoreWith workers lighting tires on fire in protest, the government of Spain is now stepping in to try and patch things up with Nissan. That and more in The Morning Shift for Friday, May 29, 2020.
Read MoreThe tenth Gymkhana film was released a bit over a year ago to great fanfare. Ken Block has been releasing these automotive shenanigans videos since 2008’s iconic Gymkhana Practice was uploaded to YouTube. That original video has over 16 million views and it knocked me square on my ass when I first saw it. After having done pretty much everything in a car in pretty much every locale you could want to all over the world, Ken Block is passing the torch to his former Rally America teammate Travis Pa
Read MoreAfter blitzing through the entire Bad Obsession Motorsports catalog in a little over a week, YouTube’s algorithm has me pegged as the kind of person who would enjoy some gnarly DIY project vehicle builds. And for possibly the first time ever, YouTube’s algorithm is 100 percent correct. So when it delivered up a build series developing a 2006 Ford Crown Victoria into a desert racer truck for me to watch, I was hooked instantly.
Read MoreThe Trump administration finally rolled back Obama-era fuel efficiency standards in March even though it seemed like a stupid fight to pick in an industry that wasn’t seriously asking for it. This was always going to be a mess, and now 23 states and several cities are suing the administration over it.
Read MoreThe economic impact of the global coronavirus pandemic isn’t even close to reaching its height, and the will almost surely outlast the disease itself. With thousands of jobs lost, businesses shuttered, and global decreases in purchasing power and consumer confidence, this is likely going to be the worst global economic disaster since the 1930s. Surely if anyone can weather this storm, it’ll be a supercar manufacturer whose billionaire clientele consists largely of robber barons and kleptocrats.
Read MoreDeep in the shadow of more famous races like Le Mans and Daytona, the 12 Hours of Sebring gets short shrift sometimes. But in 1986, the action was fierce, the cars were beautiful, and the aesthetic was rad. And you can catch all of that right here.
Read MoreTo get an old Lada wagon into a small room in a house, a group of zany Russian “scientists” chopped the car to pieces. Watch them weld it back together, get it running, attempt a burnout in the room, and then try to extract the vehicle from the house through a small window. It’s absolutely absurd.
Read MoreThe Renault-Mitsubishi-Nissan alliance seems more or less haunted, with Mitsubishi embracing irrelevance, Nissan contracting, and Renault, a French official said this week, possibly “disappearing.”
Read MoreGM hasn’t had to shut down production at any point after the restart because of coronavirus, unlike its rivals Ford, who had to temporarily shut down two different plants. GM also wants you to know that it hasn’t had to shut down production, unlike its rivals Ford.
Read MoreTake one Mercedes-Benz 6.9, strap a fancy camera to the front of it, and drive it at a blistering pace through the streets of Paris at 5:30 in the morning, and you’ve got the entire idea behind Claude Lelouch’s famous 1976 short film C’etait un Rendezvous. This weekend, when the principality of Monaco was scheduled to be shut down for its now-cancelled Grand Prix, Ferrari ace Charles Leclerc will recreate the cinéma-vérité fell of Rendezvous.
Read MoreSales were up in April at Advance Auto Parts, its CEO said this week, a sign that a lot of people are at home with time on their hands, time they are using to work on their cars.
Read MoreNot far from the fabled automotive steering gear town of Saginaw, Michigan multiple dams broke and flooded homes and businesses Tuesday, including one in Sanford called “Fieros Forever.” Sadly, water claimed rare variants of America’s beloved 1980s mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive Pontiac sports car. Prepare to shed a tear for drowned Pontiac Fieros.
Read MoreBack in March, as it became clearer and clearer that the economy was about to drive itself into a ditch, many people quite reasonably assumed that we would also begin to see a huge wave of auto loan defaults. But two months later, according to new data, that mostly hasn’t happened—yet.
Read MoreWhen Nissan’s former chairman Carlos Ghosn escaped Japan in December, he had help, reportedly in the form of an ex-Green Beret, among others, in addition to an audio equipment case. Now, two of Ghosn’s accused accomplices have been arrested by American law enforcement.
Read MoreThe Genesis G80 has been gunning for the Audi A6, Mercedes E-Class, and BMW 5 Series since 2016 with some cause for hope, even if Genesis only sold about a fifth as many G80s than the 5 Series in North America last year. The second-generation 2021 G80 should be its sternest challenge to the Germans yet. The looks are stunning, and its cheaper than the competition, even with a modest price bump.
Read MoreOur favorite mad scientists at Garage 54 ENG recently asked the perfectly reasonable question: what do you do when winter ends and you don’t have summer tires? The reasonable answer, at least in Garage 54's native Russia, is probably to wait; it’ll be winter again soon enough. Or you could buy a new set of summer shoes for your car. But if those two course of action strike you as far too reasonable, there’s a third, surprisingly viable, option: flip your winter tires inside out.
Read MoreThe empty roads created by lockdowns around the world has led to a massive uptick in street racing, and Atlanta is no exception. But now the Atlanta Mayor’s Office and Bloomberg Philanthropies are exploring a new approach to the issue: providing a venue.
Read MoreIt’s not a stretch to say that General Motors is an American icon. You don’t need an ad executive to tell you that. So when the “Baseball, Hot Dogs, Apple Pie, Chevrolet” ad boomed out of television sets across the country in the 1970s, the image fit. But could that same strategy work for an American company abroad? It worked better than you might think.
Read MoreIt’s Friday! Hot pickles, it’s Friday, which may or may not still have relevance in this weird-ass period anymore, but if it does, please celebrate or even sale-abrate with this Ford of Britain prototype Cortina variant called the Saxon, which looks kinda like a shrunken Thunderbird with better taillights. Pretty cool!
Read MoreYou may have seen some pretty alarming headlines about the Food and Drug Administration’s recently released guidelines for returning refrigerated trucks converted for storage for coronavirus victim’s bodies back to service in food transportation.
Read MoreThis image is important because it shows some crucial things: first, the Allegro Estate was a pretty cool-looking little wagon, and second, when you’re planning to drive a car into a lake, it’s smart to pack it full of the appropriate safety equipment.
Read MoreWe first heard about the Maserati MC20–what looks like a direct successor to the MC12—in February, but that was before the coronavirus pandemic hit, when it still maybe seemed prudent (?) for automakers to dump a bunch of money into making a new supercar. Right now, that proposition seems shakier, but Maserati is forging ahead.
Read MoreDisgraced former UAW president Gary Jones has been under investigation for what feels like a lifetime now. It was all going to come to some kind of a conclusion in March, when a plea hearing was scheduled. Except that was just as coronavirus was shutting down the world.
Read MoreMany of the best Oversized Gynoids of the 1960s were impressive machines, capable of speech, self-programming, and feats of strength, but keeping them running required colossal amounts of biomass, usually in the form of flowering plants. Often a whole Autobianchi’s worth per day.
Read MoreBack in 1968, comedian and talk show host Dick Cavett underwent an experimental procedure where his consciousness was temporarily implanted into a 1961 Glas Isar while his body was being renovated in preparation for his new ABC talk show. The network scheduled a stand-up tour while he was a car, and plenty of live appearances, which this poster was promoting. He remains the only entertainer to have undergone the procedure.
Read MoreIt’s Friday, so you may as well say hello to this strange (to American eyes) Chrysler, the Hunter. The Hunter is—wait a minute. What’s going on with those sheep? Why is the inside of the car getting all steamed up there? What the hell is going on here? Oh God. Oh no no no. I’m so very sorry. I’ll look into this immediately.
Read MoreJalopnik’s sixth weekly Virtual Car Trivia is going down Friday night at 8:30, and this time we have two special guests: Jalopnik’s new Editor-In-Chief Rory Carroll and Jalopnik staffer/James Bond expert Justin Westbrook. It’s going to be a good one.
Read More“You four decide amongst yourselves who rides up here. And, remember, the dog still gets a vote, even if he is a felon. Scraps has paid his debt.”
Read MoreEvery week, Jalopnik hosts a virtual car trivia night and asks readers from around the world extremely difficult car-related questions. The point is to help car enthusiasts interact with one another during the coronavirus shutdown. Here are the 40 questions from last week; see if you can guess the answers.
Read MoreAh, the Great Lime Lake, the source of all the lime green color and flavor in the world. Every year Limers and Limeons make the pilgrimage out to the citrusy shores, where they recharge their limeiness for another year. It’s achingly lovely.
Read MorePlymouth used this car to show available colors in a brochure, but honestly they should have just sold them like this. It’d be even better than those VW Harlequin cars, and they could have advertised it as being harder for police to describe when they caught you speeding, since they wouldn’t know what color to call the car. Though that does sort of assume police don’t know the word “striped.”
Read MoreHello, pals, let me welcome you back to the work week with a reminder of America’s Carpet Cults of the 1970s. The “Rugger” movement was once huge, with groups of usually young people roaming the country in vans with scraps of holy carpet (and occasionally composite flooring), praising the humble selflessness of carpet as an ideal to be emulated. They’d be at airports, too, shoving books of carpet samples in people’s faces. It was a simpler time.
Read MoreBack in March, Alfa Romeo showed us a render of what it’s 2021 Giulia GTA/GTAm super-sedans are going to look like when they launch. The 540 horsepower track-day toys are going to be limited to a mere 500 units, but now we know what at least some of them will look like. In some more renders, of course.
Read MoreBack in the ‘80s, golf was massive in Japan. That’s just what happens when a country finds itself flush with cash and looking for a way to assert its ascendancy on the weekend as well as in the office during the week. Nissan noticed and thought it might sell some Glorias.
Read MoreI know it’s hard to tell, but it’s Friday, and somehow, improbably, it’s May, even. Everything’s still weird in the world, so you better take a moment and enjoy this wonderfully spaceshippy car, this 1963 Panhard CD. It’d be fun to have one of these, an early Porsche 356, and maybe a Saab 92, just so everyone was clear you have a look.
Read MoreThe seller of today’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe A6 describes it as “essentially an S4, Stage 1, in a better package.” Let’s see what that package might realistically be worth.
Read MoreWhile the second-generation Miata may not be as well-loved as its predecessor, it’s still shocking that today’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe NB has done less than break-in miles over the last 20 years. Could its premium condition equal a premium price?
Read MoreIt seems that at present, mini-trucks are having a moment. Today’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe Datsun is one of those, and we’re just going to have to see if it’s priced to make a nice present for a new owner.
Read More“Whoa, cool Camry” is something no one ever says, Seeing as today’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe Camry is a turbo diesel with a five-speed, we might just have to alter our perception of what cool is. Let’s also see what this oil-burning sedan’s price tag should reasonably be perceived to be.
Read MoreAs we honor those who have given their lives in the service of our country, we can also consider a military service survivor from another nation—today’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe Volvo L3314N. Let’s decide what exactly one should pay for this veteran vehicle.
Read MoreToday’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe Land Cruiser comes with folders full of maintenance records. The truck has amassed those along with nearly 300K on the clock. Let’s see if those big numbers fully add up to this J80’s asking price.
Read MoreFord’s original Mustang was based on the company’s small-car platform, which makes today’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe Falcon the four-door Mustang we never got, right? Let’s see if this long-dormant donor deserves its reawakening.
Read MoreThe Mary Kay Cadillac has long been an iconic symbol of the MLM cosmetics brand. Today’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe Allante is claimed to be just such a car, and a rare example that has seemingly escaped a respray. Let’s see if its price makes it worth a close-up.
Read MoreIt’s hard to believe today’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe MR2 Spyder is almost 20 years old. The seller notes that fact and says that the car shows its age. Let’s see if it’s egregious enough to prevent a buyer from showing up.
Read MoreThe seller of today’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe hot rod Grand Cherokee says he’s offering it at a discount because it needs a gas cap. Let’s see if that’s to be believed, and if that fuel-filler discount caps this truck’s bona fides.
Read MoreWhile the top on today’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe SLK320 may be fully automatic, its five-speed transmission is still gloriously manual. We’ll just hove to figure out what such dichotomy is due.
Read MoreFord never offered a wagon edition of their fabulous Taurus SHO but as today’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe candidate proves, enterprising individuals are filling in the gap. Let’s see if this custom longroof is worth taking the SHO on the road.
Read MoreToday’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe Mazda has one of the tiniest V6 motors money can buy. Let’s see if that unique and fascinating attribute alone is worth what is being asked to actually buy it.
Read MoreThe E46 Touring was the first 3-series wagon BMW officially imported into the U.S., and as today’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe 325i proves, it was one of the prettiest too. Let’s see if this estate is priced to make a lasting impression.
Read MoreThe seller of today’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe Acura TL describes it as a “unicorn of a car.” With its A-Spec additions and 6-speed stick, it really isn’t something you come across every day. Let’s see if its price makes today that day.
Read MoreThe seller of today’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe E55 AMG describes it as being “Insanely RARE.” Of course, rarity doesn’t always translate to value, and hence we’ll still have to decide if you’d need to be insane to pay its asking price.
Read MoreRange Rover is known as one of the world’s premier luxury off-roader marques, but not known necessarily the most dependable. With over 250K on the clock, today’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe 1993 edition calls that rep into question. Let’s see how questionable its price might be.
Read MoreBeing called basic is often meant as an insult, but when applied to something like today’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe Toyota, it can be a badge of honor. Let’s see what wearing that badge should realistically cost.
Read MoreSome people say you should never look back. Today’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe Caprice proves that adage wrong and lets you go forwards backward owing to its rear-facing third-row seat. Just what might you pay to get in arrears?
Read MoreColin Chapman famously claimed that he made his cars go faster by adding lightness. At about 1,500 pounds, today’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe Europa is appreciably light. Let’s see if it’s worth lightening your bank account to own.
Read MoreToday’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe Miata is offered by a self-described “motivated seller.” One look at the car and you’ll realize that it was also modded by a motivated builder. Let’s see if its price motivates you to give it a big thumb’s up.
Read MoreMost of the buzz around the damage covid-19 pandemic has had done to aviation has centered around passenger travel. That’s not surprising, as fears about transmission through travel and just sitting aboard planes are not unfounded and flights have cratered as a result. But while passengers are staying home, some planes are still flying. They’re flying a lot.
Read MoreWhile most airlines are implementing procedures to attempt to maintain some sort of social distancing on flights, most commonly by blocking middle seat passengers and requiring passengers to wear masks, Frontier Airlines is the only carrier that seems to really understand how valuable not catching the potentially deadly Covid-19 virus is: about $90, which is how much you have to pay Frontier to make sure you’re not sitting inches away from another potential carrier of the virus. Gee, thanks!
Read MoreWest Germany did its best to introduce a jet transport that could take off and land within its own footprint. They called it the Dornier Do 31. It never ultimately made it, but damn was it a good shot.
Read MoreBritain in 1985 was wild. Thatcher was in charge, the Battle of Beanfield took place, the Sinclair C5 both entered and exited production, and Group B rally cars tore up Wales in one of the most sensational showings in rally history.
Read MoreOn Friday, Williams Grand Prix Engineering announced a bunch of bad news. It lost a bunch of money in 2019. It just parted ways with its title sponsor ROKiT. And the Formula One racing team that has existed since Sir Frank Williams started it back in 1966 is for sale, either in part, or in its entirety. The team has had some ridiculous highs, but last year was the lowest of the low. Can the team rebound? Is it even worth it to try? The team deserves better than this.
Read MoreWe tend to think of rally driving as being all perfectly balanced slides, intentional, with the driver and co-driver working in tandem to make a car go faster than the tires would allow, gliding around loose corners. This is not what you see here.
Read MoreThis past weekend, the Coca-Cola 600 NASCAR race was run, marking NASCAR’s return to in-person, humans-in-cars racing after the coronavirus pandemic, or at least what may be the first part of the pandemic. Who the hell knows. Anyway, one curious-looking thing happened before the race that’s probably worth talking about, a bit: something that looked like a really, really heavy brick had to be removed from the track.
Read MoreDaniel Abt got dropped from Audi Sport team ABT. The team with his name on it. How do you get dropped from your own team? Getting a ringer to sub in for you during an online race and getting caught.
Read MoreDaniel Abt, who usually drives for Audi in the Formula E electric car racing series, was fined and disqualified from the remainder of the Race At Home Challenge online series this weekend that had replaced regular Formula E races since the pandemic began after he confessed to allegations that he had someone else drive for him.
Read MoreFormula One has long been a battle of who can spend the most, with a major German manufacturer and an Austrian fizzy drinks companies dominating the last decade with dollars. Teams have recognized that some parity is needed to make the racing more interesting, retain fans attentions, and hopefully make the entire grid more competitive. That’s what we want to see, right? Racing. In order to accomplish that, teams came together on Friday to e-vote for a lower budget, open-source parts, and a total
Read MoreThe Austin, Tex. economy has been hit particularly hard by the coronavirus pandemic. Back in early March we saw the abrupt cancellation of the city’s massive music and other stuff South By Southwest festival. Austin thrives on events and with large gatherings posing a public health issue the city has rightly sacrificed for the health of its citizens. According to Austin’s senior public health official, large events are unlikely to take place in Austin at all in 2020.
Read MoreThe lifespan of a racing series is rarely quite so curtailed as the Jaguar I-Pace eTrophy. The eTrophy series kicked off in 2018 as a Formula E support series for two seasons. Its aim was to promote electric cars and Jaguar hoped it would keep its electric crossover at the top of mind of attendees, I guess. After having reviewed its strategy in light of the ongoing covid-19 viral pandemic, Jaguar has decided to cancel the series at the end of the current 2019-20 season.
Read MoreHistory was made recently when this bright orange dart of a car became the first electric car to eclipse 200 miles per hour in the quarter mile. Running a 7.520 second pass at 201.07 miles per hour, the Current Technology 2.0 dragster ran a world record pass in only its second pass of the day. Of course, this isn’t near as quick as the professional Top Fuel folks are running, but it’s a milestone that deserves celebration nonetheless.
Read MoreIt was October 1997 and the entire racing world was looking down on Curcuito Permanente de Jerez to see who would take the driver’s cup. Would Michael Schumacher win it all in his Ferrari, or would Jacques Villeneuve make up the single point that separated him from the series win?
Read MoreMotorsport fans arose Thursday morning to a whole lot of interesting news. Following four-time Formula One world champion Sebastian Vettel’s vacating his seat at Ferrari earlier this week, it was announced that one Carlos Sainz, Jr. would fill his seat. Within minutes of that announcement it was confirmed that the now-empty Sainz seat at McLaren would be plugged with affable Aussie Daniel Ricciardo. So where does that leave Vettel?
Read MoreIt’s time for a mid-week pick-me-up. We’ve worked hard to get through Wednesday, so reward yourself by riding onboard this Ford GT40 for six raw minutes of flat-out hammer-down driving through the French countryside. These are honest-to-god narrow, tree-lined, dangerous-as-shit French roads that were closed down for the Tour Auto Optic 2000 vintage rally.
Read MoreI didn’t expect when I went to sleep last night to wake up with a nostalgia for 2008, but somehow—thanks to this incredible Porsche drift car—that’s exactly what happened. Back then I was still in college and was consuming possibly even more automotive media than I do now, and I was absolutely enamored with Formula Drift and Tyler McQuarrie’s JIC-Magic Hankook Porsche 993 GT2 drift car. Last night it was doing delicate pirouettes in my dreams.
Read MoreFour-time Formula One champion Sebastian Vettel has recently been in contract negotiation with Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto to extend beyond the 2020 season. The pair have apparently not been able to come to an extension agreement, and Vettel will be leaving the Ferrari team—where he has raced since leaving Red Bull in 2015—according to a report from Auto Motor und Sport.
Read MoreWith Porsche first, and now Chevrolet backing out of racing its new mid-engine Corvette C8.R at this year’s upcoming 24 Hours of Le Mans over covid-19 outbreak concerns, it’s seeming more and more likely that race will end up being canceled.
Read MoreIn the ‘80s, Skoda wasn’t a brand of Volkswagen rebadges, it was a little automaker from a Communist country that kept its motors in the back and its cars on the rally stage, even if they were never big contenders. I like that attitude. I like it a lot.
Read MoreIn the wake of the coronavirus lockdown, every racing sanctioning body is rushing to iRacing as a way to continue racing in this mid-season impromptu off-season. Every major racing series from NASCAR to IMSA to IndyCar is running iRacing every week with professional drivers racing to professional standards (sometimes). The 24 Hours of Lemons is also shut down and looking for ways to engage with its nationwide group of motorsport degenerates. iRacing is still the answer, but with a twist of Lemon
Read MoreMotorsport has infiltrated practically every corner of this planet, and has been around for as long as there have been motors. Hell, racing has been around far longer than cars have been, and it would make sense that racing will continue on into the future after humans expand outward onto the Moon or Mars or Europa or whatever. I didn’t really think I’d see racing on the moon just yet, but a STEM group called Moon Mark will be delivering a pair of race cars to the surface of the moon next year t
Read MoreIn preparation for the Dutch Grand Prix at the newly-revamped Zandvoort circuit—a race I was seriously looking forward to back in January—Red Bull Racing let its two drivers haul ass around the Verstappen’s home country in the old championship-winning RB7 and RB8 from 2011 and 2012. Though they have been re-skinned in the current team’s livery, dropping Infiniti for Aston Martin and Total for Esso.
Read MoreBack in January the ACO figured out that its upcoming Hypercar class was collapsing like a week-old flan, and had to do something quick. Before the economic disaster that has been the covid-19 crisis, the FIA WEC LMP1 class had already practically dissolved, Hypercar was practically a non-starter, and there would be no exciting new battles at Le Mans for the foreseeable future. Enter IMSA’s second-generation DPI class, which the ACO latched onto like a lamprey as its saving grace. The new “joint
Read MoreBack in the far-ago past of 17 days ago, Texas Motor Speedway president Eddie Gossage commented that it would be impossible for IndyCar to conduct a race at Texas without fans or without sharing the weekend with NASCAR, you know, for money reasons. Thankfully IndyCar didn’t risk the safety of its fans to do so, instead choosing to run on the Saturday night taking the NASCAR truck series’ cancelled race weekend on June 6.
Read MoreOn Wednesday Chip Ganassi Racing announced its entry to the Extreme E electric off-road racing series. CGR is the seventh team confirmed to join the series, alongside Andretti Autosport, HWA, Venturi, Abt Sportsline, Veloce, and QEV Technologies. That’s some pretty serious competition.
Read MoreIn recent weeks McLaren driver Lando Norris has become the breakout star of Formula One as he has been streaming video of himself racing in just about every pro motorsport series that will have him. In addition to his F1 Virtual GP duties, he’s been putting in laps in virtual IndyCars, Aussie Supercars, Formula 3, Moto GP, and even Euro Truck Simulator 2. Of course, he’s been broadcasting every session out on Twitch to his growing batch of adoring fans. It helps that he’s funny.
Read MoreCast your mind back to the landscape of motorsport in a post-2008 financial crisis world. Where things were absolutely hopping in 2007, it was like the rug was pulled out from under the whole mess in 2008. Sponsors and teams jumped ship, whether out of an abundance of caution, an actual fear for the bottom line, or simply the perception of being seen frivolously spending while millions were out of work. If you’re a manufacturer, racing is an easy line item to cut. If you’re a sponsor, it’s even
Read MoreBritish racing driver James Calado is not new to the sport, he’s an FIA World Champion with Ferrari in the World Endurance Championship, having won his class at Le Mans last June. Nor is he new to open wheel racing, having spent his formative years rising through the ranks of the European single seater theater to getting a Formula One test with Force India in 2013. He is new to Formula E, however, joining the series last November at the start of the 2019-20 season. A season that has fallen apart
Read MoreI was supposed to be covering the first Dutch Grand Prix in 35 years today. All of us would have sat tight as the current crop of drivers piloted their halo-ed contemporary open-wheelers around Zandvoort for the first time in decades. It would have been exciting to be sure, but I’m not sure it would have topped the last one.
Read MoreThe FIA Formula E season is looking like it’s been left for dead in 2020. While the series started racing back in November and has already completed its first five rounds, the remaining nine rounds of the series have been cancelled or postponed. Without running eight full rounds of the championship, it will not be eligible as an FIA World Championship this year. The last three rounds, which were to be held in New York City on July 11th and a double-header in London later in July, were officially
Read MoreThis is such a wonderfully simple idea that I can’t believe it hasn’t been done before. It’s four well-known launch vehicles, launching, but with transparent bodies so you can see the amount of fuel and oxidizer in them, and how rapidly it gets consumed. It’s almost hypnotizing.
Read MoreIt’s alarming to remember that no astronauts have been launched to orbit from the United States since 2011, when the ambitious but ultimately disappointing Space Shuttle fleet was retired. Sure, plenty of American astronauts have gone to space in that time, working on and maintaining the International Space Station, but to get there they’ve been hitching rides on Russian Soyuz spacecraft. The Soyuzes are legendary and quite reliable craft, but there’s been some recent issues, and, really, Americ
Read MoreFord announced new software Wednesday that will allow police to kill “99.9 percent of viruses” that may be hiding on surfaces in 2013-2019 Ford Police Interceptor SUVs. The software is already in use in some police precincts and is available for all current-generation vehicles.
Read MoreIn 2020 we’re all looking for ways to reduce our impact on the environment, and one big way to do that is to generate clean emissions-free electricity. Whether it be solar, geothermal, hydroelectric, or wind, the renewable and clean energy movement is gaining momentum. What about good old fashioned human labor to create energy, though? Is it possible to hook up an electric generator to the rear wheel of your stationary bike and pedal-power your Tesla Model X to a full charge while getting a nice
Read MoreThe Kia Stinger is, without a doubt, the most exciting car in Kia’s lineup. It feels like a sports car, looks like a sports car, and importantly has the name of a sports car. And that may be enough to force it to evolve into a fully electric car, according to the company’s head designer.
Read MoreThe problems with driving an electric car, if you live in an urban center, pretty much stem from a lack of charging infrastructure. Right now most EV charging is done at home, in a driveway or inside a garage, which is hard to come by in urban environments. The reverse of that is obviously that charging infrastructure is difficult to install in urban centers because it takes up a lot of space, and space is already at a premium.
Read MoreBack in 2013 when the Volkswagen XL1 went into limited production, it was a futuristic and exciting proposal. This low-slung hyper-efficient machine was intended as a marketing exercise to continue VW’s greenwashing of “clean diesel” technology. We all know how that turned out, but what it did do was further aerodynamic research, and proved that a commuter car could get truly astonishing fuel consumption ratings.
Read MoreTesla has been hinting at some revolutionary new battery technology for a few months now, and a Reuters story today revealed that the goals are to create a “million mile” battery design that can finally make EVs on par with the cost of building ICE vehicles. There are lots of elements to what will make this possible, but for the moment I’d like to focus on the one that doesn’t seem to require an advanced degree in chemistry: the switch to “cell-to-pack” batteries.
Read MoreTesla may be looking at itself less like an automaker and more like a power company if plans to introduce a new, lower-cost long-range EV battery that can be easily recycled later this month work out.
Read MoreIf you read about the demise of Datsun, you might also just be realizing Datsun is (was) still around as a low-budget brand outside the U.S. One way it was keeping prices down: Omitting center-console screens for simple phone mounts. That seems like something more cars could adopt across the board.
Read MoreI think we can all agree that pretty much everything sucks right now, and it’s very rare to see even a small bit of good news. That’s why I got so excited to see a little bit of that good news come across my desk this morning. In the wake of a coronavirus-induced national shutdown an Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis study has indicated that renewable energy now makes up a larger portion of America’s power production pie than coal.
Read MoreAutomotive benchmarking company Munro & Associates has been tearing into a Tesla Model Y for a number of weeks now, and perhaps the company’s most intriguing discovery is the amazing cooling system consisting of an “Octovalve” hooked to a fascinating coolant manifold that interfaces with a ridiculously complex refrigerant manifold. Just look at this thing and try to wrap your head around it.
Read MoreGetting your driver’s license is a fading rite of passage for teens these days, but if you happen to be a teen in Georgia you can get one now without even taking a road test because of the coronavirus epidemic. So far, nearly 20,000 teens have.
Read MoreThere’s a hacker/security researcher with the Twitter handle GreenTheOnly that has been doing some interesting work with used Tesla parts. This time specifically, he’s acquired three Tesla Model 3 integrated media control units (MCU) and Autopilot (HW) units (known as the ICE computer, just for Models 3 and Y), and a Model X MCU unit. These were purchased off eBay, and despite having been reset, Green found that plenty of private owner information and passwords were still easily recoverable from
Read MoreSome hardcore Toyota Supra enthusiasts are bothered that the current model doesn’t have a Toyota inline-six, largely wasn’t even developed by Toyota, and is, under the skin, mostly a BMW. And now it looks like it’s an old BMW, at that.
Read MoreI know, this video which popped up Monday shows three skateboarders in Toronto doing something which is crazy dangerous and reckless. And I know, we should always encourage safe fun, especially on major roadways. But this ride down a normally busy stretch of freeway in Toronto’s downtown looks like such a satisfying way to spend an evening, I’m not even mad.
Read MoreAutonomous cars will need to see the world, just like we human drivers do occasionally when we glance up from our phones to peek out the big window up front with the wipers. Currently, all production cars with semi-autonomous features (remember, there are no completely self-driving cars for sale today) use visible light cameras and a lot of computing power to process the images. Other technologies, like LiDAR (Light Direction and Ranging) exist and have been used on prototype AVs, but so far nev
Read MoreThe Environmental Protection Agency has refuted claims made by Tesla CEO Elon Musk that a recent test should have resulted in a 400-mile range result for the Tesla Model S, but was limited by a user error on the part of the Agency.
Read MoreNissan is (still) in a world of hurt, McLaren is (still) as well, ditto for Nio. Everything’s fine, why do you ask. All that and more in The Morning Shift for May 28, 2020.
Read MoreRenault and Nissan finally have some kind of cost-saving plan, Volkswagen just secured a big buy in China, Amazon may get into self-driving cars. All that and more in The Morning Shift for Wednesday, May 27, 2020.
Read MoreAston Martin’s CEO is out, Hertz is in a world of hurt, and Volkswagen is having a time. All that and more in The Morning Shift for May, 26, 2020.
Read MoreIt’s extremely fucked that Alabama is the focus state in a new Bloomberg article American-made car sales booming in China, as our coworkers at Gizmodo are just reporting on them running out of ICU beds. All that and more in The Morning Shift for Friday May, 22, 2020.
Read MoreAmerica’s heartland needs all the trucks, a Ford plant is getting a visitor, and Ultra Cruise. All that and more in The Morning Shift for May 21, 2020.
Read MoreJustice comes for a financial services company known for what many consider predatory auto loans, cars could become more enticing to more people after COVID, GM execs will visit recently-reopened plants, and some news on the PSA-FCA merger. All that and more in The Morning Shift for Wednesday, May 20, 2020.
Read MoreYesterday workers started making their way back to assembly lines in America, but as we’ve covered before, all of their work hinges on supply chains in Mexico. And how are these plants being inspected for safety before re-opening? They’re not. All that and more in The Morning Shift for Tuesday, May 19, 2020.
Read MoreSuppliers are struggling, oil demand is returning, and Subaru luckily cashed in. That and much more in The Morning Shift for Monday, May 18, 2020.
Read MoreThe cost of coronavirus can be measured in how much money people are asking for to survive financially. In the case of Fiat-Chrysler, that number is something between six and seven billion dollars. That and more in The Morning Shift for Friday, May 15, 2020.
Read MoreMazda isn’t great, Henry Ford III is rising, and the cops visited Tesla’s Fremont factory. All that and more in The Morning Shift for May 14, 2020.
Read MoreTesla is close to a (calm) factory reopening, the U.S. auto industry now waits on our trade partners, we may have a good use for old car batteries, and much much more in The Morning Shift for May 13, 2020.
Read MoreWith pickup truck sales staying strong, factories slowly reopening, and car sales in China increasing for once, we’re firmly in the “recovery” period for coronavirus in the auto industry, right? Toyota doesn’t think so. All that and more in The Morning Shift for Tuesday, May 12, 2020.
Read MoreTesla is doing just fine, auto manufacturing is slowly restarting, and regulators still have to rule on the Fiat Chrysler and Peugeot merger. All that and more in The Morning Shift for Monday, May 11, 2020.
Read MoreTesla delays its sports car for the Cybertruck, everybody is back in business in Michigan May 18, Uber is hitting some negative firsts, and more in The Morning Shift for Friday, May 8, 2020.
Read MoreVolkswagen no longer thinks it can even break even in the U.S. this year, Lyft thinks they have a plan for this, and car sales in China are up for the first time in 21 months. All that and more in The Morning Shift for May 7, 2020.
Read MoreU.S. automakers have a new target for when they hope to restart vehicle production, BMW is expecting financial woes, and the feds have concerns about auto safety once folks get back on the road. All that and more in The Morning Shift for May 6, 2020.
Read MoreEveryone is ready for a redemption narrative about car sales, the economy, and coronavirus. But these stories are far from universal. Also, FCA announced that it lost a whopping $1.84 billion in the first quarter. All that and more in The Morning Shift for May 5, 2020.
Read MoreNationwide dealer inventory of pickup trucks is just a fraction of what it used to be just as sales slowly start to rise again. It’s chaos for suppliers as everybody sorts out when to end quarantine. All that and more in The Morning Shift for Monday, May 4, 2020.
Read MoreCar sales are bad, the UAW isn’t convinced by Ford, and Sergio Marchionne’s heirs received more money than GM CEO Mary Barra last year. All that and more in The Morning Shift for May 1, 2020.
Read MoreSince the first fighting broke out in Korea between in 1951, the rail lines that once linked cities in South Korea like Seoul and Busan to their northern counterparts were shut for decades. But, for a short while, things opened back up again, even if only symbolically.
Read MoreLondoners will soon be paying £15 to drive into the city after an agreement between the British Government and Transport for London (or TfL) aimed at keeping London’s transportation infrastructure running as revenue from fares dropped off during the covid-19 lockdown.
Read MoreA seven-speed manual transmission for the upcoming 2021 Ford Bronco has been reported by a tipster with access to exclusive images of the new truck’s center stack, giving more evidence that Ford really is taking the fight all the way to Jeep’s doorstep. It’s what everybody wanted.
Read MoreHoly crap, not only are we getting a new-new Nissan Frontier pickup truck for the first time since the Curse of the Bambino was broken, it actually looks like it might be kind of cool. It also looks a bit like the mid-sized truck Nissan already sells outside the U.S. as the Navara.
Read MoreI just drove nearly 700 miles in my 1985 Jeep J10 pickup, and encountered a failure so absurd, I’m still not sure I believe it: My speedometer is leaking buckets of oil onto my feet as I drive. While this may not seem like a big concern, it could actually be quite dangerous, which is why I will mend this seemingly impossible fault as soon as possible.
Read MoreA 1985 Toyota 4Runner owner from Australia was at a junkyard hunting for parts when he spotted a photo in the glovebox of a rotted out car-cass. The picture shows what a rust-bucket 4Runner looked like 20 years ago; it was a stunning red SUV with awesome exterior graphics and a white top. The contrast between those glory days and the SUV’s current status as a death-row resident will make most car enthusiasts shed a small tear.
Read MoreIt was a little more than a year ago that we saw renders that looked like they could be the next Ford Ranger. After Ford’s lawyers kindly confirmed that they belonged to the company, we knew they might have some bearing on how the next Ranger will look. Now we think we know what will be under the hood, too.
Read MoreIt’s an eternal twilight. Unidentified creatures howl in the distance while little fires burn out of the ground here and there for some reason. If you want to get to the North Lands once called Toronto where legends of flowing water and a life beyond the wastes beckon, you’re going to need to load the whole clan into the Torsus Praetorian and ship out.
Read MoreThe classic car market is just as confused as the rest of the economy right now as society weathers the coronavirus pandemic, but one thing’s constant: Fashion is cyclical, and while ’80s and ’90s hardware’s hot right now, older muscle cars are becoming less appealing. That has me thinking even older stuff must be near the nadir of style. Then I saw Tom Ford’s tweet.
Read MoreThe Nissan Frontier got bagged on for years for being old and inefficient, and it was, but it was also a decent value. While we’re expecting big revisions on the truck soon, the 2020 model’s a unique carryover: Old body, new powertrain. New list price, too. And it makes the best versions of the truck a tougher value proposition against its rivals.
Read MoreThere was supposed to be a debut of the new electric GMC Hummer today, but due to the current societal chaos, GMC has instead decided to show a tease—the new Hummer’s trick roof that functions both as removable t-tops, or even a full Targa top.
Read MoreSomebody followed through on the objectively excellent idea to make a Bullitt Mustang tribute Ford dump truck, and well, here it is.
Read MoreIt seems the redesigned Jeep Wrangler is no match for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety notorious small frontal overlap crash test—it’s the first car to ever flip over in the test.
Read MoreThings are getting weird when, for the first time ever, trucks are now outselling passenger cars in the U.S. This isn’t so much about trucks all of a sudden becoming super popular in a Mad Max kind of way, but more that passenger car sales have fallen off a cliff.
Read MoreI get a lot of emails with pictures of trucks, but Bobby Patton’s new Jimco Reaper here stands out as a particularly fierce-looking manifestation of what’s known as a “luxury prerunner.” So, please, enjoy it with me.
Read MorePatina is a strange thing. It describes how age or use physically transforms an object into something beautiful—but beautiful in a different way than if that object were shiny and new. Basically, it means finding beauty in imperfection, and among vehicles that embody that concept, this 1985 Ford F-250 rises to the top.
Read MoreThere are a lot of off-road adventure/overland-themed meetups, or at least there were before the coronavirus canceled everything. But Overland Expo is one of the OGs, and since annual southwest-based happening was supposed to happen mid-May, its hosting some stuff online that could be fun and educational to watch.
Read MoreI found this dauntless RAV4 in the parking lot of a boneyard over the weekend. Its owner, no doubt, was inside rummaging though other people’s trash for parts to keep it running. I’m not judging–I do the exact same thing. And folks who keep cars alive for cheap will always impress me more than supercar owners or anyone cosplaying Spy Hunter on a “cannonball run.”
Read MoreAuto services are generally considered “essential” to the operation of American society, so as of mid-May, many junkyards are still open during the coronavirus pandemic. Used-part yards are essential to those of us maintaining cars on a lean budget, so if you plan to go, here are some things to expect.
Read MoreI spent the first two days of my Memorial Day weekend wrenching from sunup to sundown, but that doesn’t mean I actually fixed anything. In fact, I managed to seize (sort of) my Willys’ motor, initiate death wobble in my “holy grail” Jeep Grand Cherokee, and fail to make any real progress on two other cars. It was a bit of a shitshow, honestly, but in some ways, still a success.
Read MoreIf you live in the American rust belt, chances are, you’ve broken many, many bolts while fixing your car. It’s an awful feeling—hearing that “snap,” and then experiencing your wrench abruptly give way, possibly sending your knuckles into a sharp and rusty shard of steel. To prevent such a thing from happening again, the ticket is a magical paste called “anti-seize.” This video comparison is what you’ll need to choose the best variant of this rust-inhibitor so you can make every bolt in your car
Read MoreI love shopping at Harbor Freight, where tools are cheap and plentiful. But you mostly get what you pay for. In fact, there’s a tradesperson’s adage you’d do well to heed: “If your job or your life depends on it, don’t buy it from Harbor Freight.” This recently expanding recall on jack stands really drives that point home.
Read MoreA man named Bob is arriving at my house on Saturday to buy my 1948 Willys CJ-2A. He plans to take it on an epic road trip that weekend, which is great, except there’s a bit of a problem: The Willys’ engine is in 1,000 pieces. Oh boy.
Read MoreIf you’ll permit me a brief digression in this story about threading a heavy metal rod through my $220 bicycle and bending it out of its original shape on purpose, I would just like to begin with some good news and get to the more confusing stuff after.
Read MoreI’m facing a dilemma right now. My 1979 Jeep Cherokee Golden Eagle—a beautiful machine—has a bad motor. I know someone with a recently-rebuilt AMC 360 V8 that he’s letting go for $1,000. Do I buy that or do I try to keep my machine numbers-matching and undertake the arduous task of rebuilding my motor from the ground up? I’m torn.
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