Autos
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Cherokee Nation to Jeep: It’s Time to Change Those Names
Earlier this week, Car and Driver spoke with the principal chief of the Cherokee Nation, Chuck Hoskin, Jr., about the names of the Jeep Cherokee and Grand Cherokee SUVs. While the Cherokee Nation has long been opposed to cultural appropriation and naming concerns (note the Cherokee Nation spokesperson’s comments at the Cherokee’s 2013 reintroduction), the statement provided to Car and Driver is the first time the Nation has called directly on Jeep to change the name of its SUVs. In the statement, Hoskin said, “I’m sure this comes from a place that is well-intended, but it does not honor us by having our name plastered on the side of a car. The best way to honor us is to learn about our sovereign government, our role in this country, our hist...
2020 Lincoln Navigator Black Label vs. BMW X7 xDrive40i: ’Gator or Bimmer?
See the Full Model Overview At first glance, this pairing may seem a bit strange, but let us explain. The BMW X7 is the newest kid on the block, and if it’s going to join the three-row luxury SUV club, it has to face a veteran like the Navigator. Until recently, BMW trailed Mercedes-Benz in the market for years. Similarly, the Navigator is yet to reach the sales records held by the Escalade. The underdog status of both the X7 and the Navigator makes it the perfect match. Lincoln Navigator Black Label Vs. BMW X7 xDrive40i: Price Tags and Size See all 87 photos As tested, the Lincoln Navigator Black Label stickers for $98,850, and closely behind the BMW X7 xDrive40i checks out at $96,895. Although the difference between these two luxury SUVs is a mere $1,955, the X7 price includes $22,...
Ford Extends King Ranch Beyond F-Series and Expedition, Possibly to Explorer
It’s been twenty years since Ford first introduced the cowboy-themed King Ranch trim, named after the King Ranch in Texas and featuring liberal use of the ranch’s W-shaped brand. King Ranch has since become staple of the Ford F-150 and Super Duty pickups, slotted above the XLTs and Lariats but below the high-end Limited and Platinum models. From a marketing perspective, a King Ranch Explorer makes sense. It’s possible Ford would pattern such an Explorer after the pickup trucks, slotting it between the $35,890 Explorer XLT and the $46,895 Explorer Limited. We think it’s more likely that a theoretical King Ranch Explorer would follow the Expedition’s lead and be based on the top-of-the-line Platinum model. If that’s the case, a Kind Ranch Explorer would li...
2022 Hyundai Ioniq 5 First Look: Forget the Ioniqs You Know
Do not adjust your screen brightness or call your optometrist—that image above is not a rendering. It’s not a depiction of a concept car, either. As futuristic and cyberpunk as it may appear, this is your first glimpse at the very production-ready 2022 Hyundai Ioniq 5, the first vehicle from Hyundai’s new Ioniq sub-brand and visually in a different ionosphere from the humdrum Ioniq range of affordable electrified compact cars that preceded it. This is roundly one of the most significant new Hyundais we’ve seen since the 2011 redesign of the Sonata, a car that ushered in a new era for Hyundai/Kia design and inarguably elevated the Korean manufacturer onto the same playing field of Toyota and Honda. Multiple Battery and Motor Combinations With the Ioniq 5, Hyundai...
2022 Honda HR-V Is Euro-Market Forbidden Fruit
On the outside, the new Vezel looks pretty nifty. The lines are clean and taught, and it’s notably more attractive than the current HR-V. The same is true for the interior. The steering wheel looks like it’s straight out of the Honda-E (another foreign Honda product we’d love to see here) and the dashboard design is both minimal and clean. The HR-V that we get will likely wear a similar design but is not expected to be a carbon copy of the Euro-market model. Honda says the interior volume of the new Vezel/HR-V matches that of its predecessor, which means cabin space should remain rather generous despite the compact SUV’s diminutive exterior dimensions. Other niceties include fold-flat seats, a new air diffusion system that creates a “curtain of air” both...
The Five-O’s 5.0: 1991 Ford Mustang SSP Police Car Rewind Review
In the annals of Fox Body Mustang history, the SSP police models—that’s for Special Service Package—certainly stood out as notable when new but now, some three decades later, they’re positively legendary. They’ve taken on mythical status, with whispers of how they’d been modified from the factory with performance engines and gearboxes with specific calibrations, but this was often not the case. And while the rumor mill also said each were hand-built by a skunkworks team in Ford’s plant, this is also untrue. In reality, these were built alongside all other Fox Body Mustangs on the exact same assembly line, with the vast majority having the same components as the street-spec, regular cars normal folks plucked from showroom floors. See all 6 photosAs one of ...
Ford Asks Texas Dealers to Loan Out F-150 Hybrids to Serve as Home Generators
As you likely already know, a disaster-level snow-storm that slammed Texas this week. It left millions stuck in the cold with no power whatsoever—and no heat. While the situation has already improved with many thousand residents getting power back yesterday, one clever Ford F-150 owner was able to use his truck to power key appliances while he waited for the lights to come back on. The F-150 with the onboard Pro Power generator was able to power some lights, a toaster, a space heater, and even his fridge—all just by running some extension cords from the truck into the house. That MacGyver-level improvisation caught Ford CEO Jim Farley’s attention, and Ford has now stepped in to play a bigger part in the matter. Today Ford officially asked its dealers in Texas to loan out F-150s with ...
The 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander Is a Nissan Rogue in Disguise, Here’s What’s Different
There are some subtle giveaways—a few shared cutlines on the two compact SUVs’ exteriors being the biggest clue—but on the whole these two look pretty unique. So, what exactly do they share, and where do these two SUVs differ? Platform: Mitsubishi Outlander or Nissan Rogue? Let’s start with the bones. A Mitsubishi spokesperson confirmed to us that both the Rogue and Outlander share a platform that was developed by members of the Renault–Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance. A lot of the technical bits like the underbody, suspension pickup points, and cut lines for body panels are shared between the two cars. The two SUVs even have an identical 106.5-inch long wheelbase. However, despite being mechanically similar, Mitsubishi told us the tuning for the new Outlander is specific to t...
2022 Infiniti QX55 Coupe-UV Thing Costs More Than QX50, Has Less Space
The 2022 QX55 is Infiniti’s spiritual successor to the discontinued QX70 neè FX, a fastback-style crossover designed to be a better-looking version of your typical upright, Wonderbread-bland SUV. (In this case, the regular QX50 compact luxury crossover.) It’s a way of telling the world you want an SUV but you’re also, you know, hip. You’re with it. You appreciate style over practicality. Oh, and that you enjoy paying more for the experience. Infiniti has released pricing for the QX55, its BMW X4 and Mercedes-Benz GLC Coupe competitors, and go figure, it’s pricier than the QX50. 2021 Infiniti QX55 Trim Levels Starting at $47,525, the QX55 is nearly ten grand more expensive than the cheapest QX50 ($38,975). That said, the QX55 isn’t available in the Q...
Off-Road Subaru Outback, Forester “Wilderness” Models Closer to Reality
Well, Subaru fans—it looks like it just might be official. After years of Subaru owners modifying their crossovers for moderate off-roading and overlanding duties with accessory racks and aggressive tires, a set of trademarks filed by the automaker in Canada all but confirms a set of off-road and lifestyle-themed Wilderness trims are coming. These special Subies should bring increased off-road capability (and the appearance thereof) to Subaru’s range of popular crossovers straight from the showroom floor, including the Outback, Forester, and maybe even the Crosstrek. Exciting stuff, but this isn’t hitting us out of left field; spy photographers have spotted jacked-up, high-riding camouflaged Outback and Forester test vehicles over the past few months, and the “Wilder...
2022 Nissan Qashqai First Look: Are You the New Rogue Sport?
See all 81 photos While its name is different, the Qashqai’s bodywork will likely carry over almost completely unchanged to the new Rogue Sport, which we anticipate to reach our shores before the end of the year. That’s a good thing, too, as the Qashqai was and is a particularly handsome little SUV. Sporting Nissan’s latest design language, the 2022 Qashqai is an attractive-looking thing that combines various styling details from a multitude of Nissan products. The Qashqai’s kicked window line resembles that of the 2022 Nissan Ariya electric SUV’s, while its headlights share a resemblance to those of the 2021 Nissan Armada and 2022 Nissan Pathfinder SUVs. See all 81 photos As before, the Qashqai’s dashboard design takes after that of the one-size-up, com...
Maserati Releases Blurry “Spy Pics” of Its New Grecale SUV
The Maserati Levante is about to gain a little sibling in the form of the Grecale compact SUV. Due to debut before the end of the year, the Grecale seeks to take on the likes of the Porsche Macan and Tesla Model Y. Credit Maserati’s decision to offer the Grecale with a variety of powertrains, including gas, gasoline-electric hybrid, and battery-electric options. That said, we wager the latter setup won’t arrive until a year or two after the little Maserati SUV initially goes on sale. See all 18 photos Although the Italian brand is keeping mum on many of the model’s key details, it did release a trio of blurry “spy” pictures of a camouflaged Grecale prototype, and what we see looks promising. At the front, the Grecale sports a long hood and a low-mounted grille...
