Indholdsfortegnelse for May 2023 i Car and Driver

Once again, Dodge summons a Demon. The dragstrip-ready, street-legal Challenger SRT Demon returns as Dodge says goodbye to its aging pony car and hello to electric muscle. On the model’s way out, it salutes its gas-fed past with the Demon 170. This 1000-plus-hp send-off wouldn’t exist without the Challengers that melted the pavement along the way. 2015: HELLCAT The Challenger SRT Hellcat debuted with a headline-grabbing 707-hp supercharged 6.2-liter V-8. It was the Dodge that humbled the Camaro and Mustang and made the Hellcat name synonymous with tire-spinning shenanigans. The blown Challenger hit 60 mph in 3.6 seconds and covered the quarter-mile in 11.6 ticks at 126 mph. At around $60K, the Hellcat’s hypercar-rivaling power was a relative bargain. 2018: DEMON The first Demon arrived boasting more superlatives than the…

Anyone who’s sad about missing out on the $3 million Aston Martin Valkyrie will soon have another chance to buy a mid-engine supercar from the British brand—and at substantial savings. Deliveries of the Aston Martin Valhalla will begin in 2024, with buyers paying around $800,000 for what promises to be a technical tour de force. Originally, the Valhalla was to get a hybrid powertrain with a bespoke V-6 that Aston would develop. Aston’s last CEO, Tobias Moers, nixed that plan in favor of using a twin-turbo 4.0-liter V-8 sourced from Mercedes-AMG (no great surprise, as Moers had formerly been in charge of AMG). This engine will use the same flat-plane crank as the AMG GT Black Series and makes 740 horsepower. Two electric motors supplement that output; one powers the…

A new generation of the BMW 5-series, code-named G60, is on the way. More exciting, in July 2024, the M division will launch a new M5, which will use a twin-turbo 4.4-liter V-8 plug-in-hybrid powertrain cribbed from the polarizing XM SUV. The M5, though, will skip the 644-hp unit fitted to the base XM and jump straight to Label Red high-performance version with 738 horsepower and 737 pound-feet of torque. An even brawnier Label Black highflier that would marry the 627-hp V-8 of the defunct M5 CS to a more powerful electric motor is also a possibility. The new M5 should have an electric range of close to 60 miles and a maximum speed of 87 mph in EV mode, sources say. On the debit side, it will carry a…

The Lotus Emira has only just launched, but work is already advancing on the all-electric model that ultimately will replace it. Currently known only by the internal design code Type 135, the two-seat sports car will be clearly aimed at the bit of the market the British manufacturer is most associated with. Basically, it’s an EV successor to the Elan and Elise. Whereas Lotus plans to engineer its SUVs and sedan in Germany and produce them in China, the brand is developing the Type 135 in the U.K. and intends to produce the model at its longtime home in Hethel, initially alongside the Emira. The sports car will be the first model to use Lotus’s new LEVA platform—that’s Lightweight Electric Vehicle Architecture—that combines a bonded-aluminum structure with a so-called “chest…

Today Maserati has two sedans—the smaller Ghibli and the larger Quattroporte—but a single model will replace the pair to compete in the sedan landscape that includes the BMW 5-series, the audi a6, and the Mercedes E-class. The Quattroporte nameplate (it literally means “four doors”) wins out over the Ghibli. Sorry, not sorry, Ghibli. We can hear you saying, “Is a Maserati sedan really worth waiting for?” yes. Well, assuming it’s done right. But after our recent exposure to the GranTurismo [see “Electrified Beauty,” page 76], we’re confident the new Quattroporte will deliver. The current cars feel a bit too Fiat-Chrysler, like the investment was made only for the trident grille and not for exceptional engineering or dynamics. There is a lot of passion associated with Maserati, and the new QP…

Lotus has produced its own versions of other automakers’ sedans—such as the Opel-based 377-hp Lotus Carlton sold in Europe in the ’90s—but it has never produced a four-door model from the ground up. That’s set to change with the arrival of a fully electric sedan due to go on sale late next year and aimed at the Porsche Taycan, Lucid Air, and Tesla Model S. Lotus Technology is developing the new model, with production set to take place in Wuhan, China, alongside the Eletre SUV plus a smaller crossover model. Sitting on the same EPA platform as the Eletre, the sedan will feature an 800-volt architecture and use the same underfloor battery pack with a 112.0-kWh capacity. All-wheel drive will be standard, with a single motor turning each axle but…

Many of the world’s leading luxury marques built their names around two-door coupes or convertibles—“halo cars,” if you will—that loudly broadcast the brand’s ethos even if they didn’t sell in huge numbers. Genesis has been doing a good job of establishing itself as a bona fide luxury player without one, but that could change soon. The company has been toying with a range-topping two-door and finally appears ready to take the plunge. Over the past few years, the automaker has released what it calls a trilogy of concept cars that wear the Genesis X moniker: an elegantly proportioned coupe, then a fascinating shooting-brake design study called the Speedium Coupe, and lastly a beautifully rendered convertible. As much as we’d like to see a production version of the Speedium, we’d bet…

The STI badge has been conspicuously absent from Subaru’s lineup ever since the latest WRX hit the scene, but rest assured, this high-performance nameplate isn’t gone for good. Subaru says it’s working on some sort of electrified version of the top WRX, which could mean a hybrid or battery-electric powertrain. This likely won’t arrive until the current generation of the gas-powered WRX runs its course. That model may last until late in the decade, so we’re in for a long wait. All of Subaru’s hybrid and EV efforts have so far been tied in with Toyota, as the Crosstrek plug-in hybrid used components from the Prius, and the Solterra electric SUV is a twin to Toyota’s bZ4X. We could see this collaboration continue to the next-gen WRX and WRX STI,…

LIKE MANY A FAMILY VACATION, everything was perfect when we started out. The sky was sapphire blue, Palm Springs was just closing out its fashionable Modernism Week, and we had scheduled several days of activities designed to challenge our convoy while highlighting how minivans have evolved from bare-bones people-hauling boxes to sophisticated and feature-laden luxury transports. The plan was to soak up the February sunshine in the desert, alight through power-sliding doors in the valet drop-off at hip farm-to-table eateries, and test the sturdiness of the many cupholders on the twisting roads surrounding the valley. Then there was a sandstorm, a windstorm, a wildfire, a power outage, a canceled hotel, and a blizzard, all within the first 36 hours. It was decidedly not luxurious, but you only really appreciate the…

ARRIVAL: OCTOBER 2022 MILES: 9213 OBSERVED MPG: 25 We are struggling to find fault with our second-generation Subaru BRZ. Go figure: It’s a 2839-pound rear-wheel-drive sports coupe with a 228-hp 2.4-liter flat-four mated to a six-speed manual. It’s also a 10Best winner, along with its Toyota GR86 twin. What’s not to like? Well, its center cupholders aren’t great. It’s also a bit loud on the highway, though we’ve somewhat remedied that by disconnecting the speaker that pumps fake engine noise into the cabin. Our model is the top-spec Limited, which, for $32,115, includes heated front seats, blind-spot monitoring, and 18-inch Michelin Pilot Sport 4 summer tires in place of the standard 17-inch Primacy HPs. It hits 60 mph in 5.4 seconds, and it’s handily beating its EPA fuel-economy estimates with a…

Off-road prowess and perceived toughness increasingly define mid-size pickups. The Toyota Tacoma has owned that territory, but the 2023 Chevy Colorado has undergone an extreme makeover and is ready to mount a serious challenge. The changes go beyond chiseled looks. The reworked air dam and shorter front overhang resulted in a healthy 29.1-degree approach angle for the Z71, which formerly had a low-hanging spoiler that barely cleared a parking block. The spare tire tucks up 2.5 inches higher for better departure clearance, and Chevy moved the lower rear shock mounts closer to the rear springs. The new Trail Boss is a budget off-roader that sits below the ZR2 while outperforming and costing less than a Z71. Its wide stance nearly equals the ZR2’s, and it gets 32-inch all-terrain tires, flared…

Every so often, a vehicle born of a “let’s do it” attitude debuts. That go-for-it approach usually creates track-ready sports cars. This time, it created an electric SUV. From the rear doors forward, the Hummer EV SUV is identical to its pickup sibling—the one that weighs 9640 pounds and required a trip to the truck scales because it tilted our scales. GMC says the SUV isn’t as heavy as the pickup, but we’d still beware of bridges rated at four tons. The weight loss is largely due to a smaller battery pack. Instead of 24 modules, the SUV packages 20 below the floor. The estimated 177.3-kWh pack should result in at least 250 miles of range. On a Level 2 plug, the Hummer SUV charges at up to 19.2 kilowatts.…

In the late 1980s, fresh out of the industrial-design program at Pratt Institute, Michael Santoro took a job at Chrysler. He was one of a cohort of young designers, and since they had access to the corporate fleet, sometimes they’d borrow a car and drive from Detroit to New York City. One weekend, a colleague cadged a Chrysler minivan. “We all looked at each other like, that’s the last car we’d want,” Santoro says. But they piled in and headed out. Not only did they arrive in record time, they enjoyed the drive too. “It was super comfortable. You could sleep. You had your own space. It was the coolest thing from a packaging standpoint, from a livability standpoint, from a functionality standpoint,” Santoro says. It just lacked a compelling…

You may not know that Mazda attempted a Lexus-style sub-brand of its own in the early 1990s. That’s because the automaker has mostly succeeded in quashing the story of its failed luxury spinoff, Amati, that collapsed with Japan’s economy and never saw the light of day. But while we’ll never know if the rumored 12-cylinder Amati 1000 could’ve been a bigger deal than the Lexus LS400, we haven’t seen the end of Mazda’s upscale ambitions. Nearly three decades after the Amati experiment died, Mazda is pushing upmarket again. There are new head winds this time around—namely a global pandemic that has hurt Mazda’s bottom line—but the company appears to be staying the course. It confirmed recently that it’s working on inline-six engines and a longitudinal-engine vehicle architecture, which could transform…

I am curious why a 2022 Mercedes-AMG SL63 takes 150 feet to stop from 70 mph [“Connection Restored,” November 2022] and a 1954 Studebaker Champion four-door stops in the same distance from 60 mph. The Mercedes has disc brakes with 15-plus-inch rotors in front and 14-plus in the rear and massive tires front and rear, plus it benefits from anti-lock brakes. The family-friendly Stude had 10-inch drums in front, nine-inch in the rear, and 6.40-15 bias-ply tires all around. A testing magazine (October ’54 issue) used an “electrically actuated detonator” for accuracy and reported the Studebaker “just sat down on its haunches and stopped, in a straight line, and faster than any other U.S. car.” Yes, both cars have superior brake performance for their time, but why has there not…

Before today’s Screenozoic era, automobile “infotainment” mostly meant “stereo.” Modern systems, such as the 2023 BMW X7’s iDrive, let you do way more than just play tunes. Controlling the myriad functions is increasingly done through massive touchscreens, leading some car buyers to ask, “Can’t we just have a knob?” We gave our illustrator free rein to imagine a touchscreen-free cockpit for the X7 that still offers all the features we want in a modern car. LET THERE BE LIGHT The 2023 X7 M60i’s interior lighting offers 15 color options on top of 11 brightness levels for the background and accent lighting. And you can adjust what the interior lights do when you change driving mode, receive a call, play music, or enter and exit the vehicle. Not to be outdone,…

After decades of epic sports-car battles between Chevrolet Corvettes and Porsche 911s, Chevy is queuing up a new rivalry against Stuttgart’s highest-performing SUVs. Rather than expend resources to designate a new lineup of high-test sport-utility vehicles, Chevrolet will call its sub-brand a name synonymous with performance: Corvette. It’s shocking General Motors took this long to add a true performance SUV to one of its model lines. After all, Porsche’s high-roof five-seaters—the Macan and Cayenne—continue to be its bestsellers year after year. Their high profit margins fund insanity such as the 718 GT4 RS and the 911 GT3 RS. Remove any previous expectations that the Corvette SUV will be electrified, at least not at first. The SUV will be built on the celebrated Alpha platform that underpins the Camaro and the…

WHAT IT IS: Reports of the Maxima’s death are greatly exaggerated. While the internal-combustion Maxima is set to conclude this year, we won’t have to wait long for its electric successor. We expect it to carry some of the sharp styling from the 2019 IMs concept, a car Nissan referred to as an “elevated sports sedan.” To our ears, that sounds pretty close to “Toyota Crown.” WHY IT MATTERS: Nissan remains dedicated to sedans even as automakers are abandoning the segment in favor of SUV-ing everything. Putting a genuinely futuristic electric sedan at the top of its lineup would help solidify the notion that sedans are here to stay. PLATFORM: The Maxima EV will ride on Nissan’s CMF-EV platform, which underpins the Ariya electric SUV and is shared with partners…

The next M5 will be offered as a sedan once again, but we hear that the M5 Touring wagon at long last will be considered for North America. BMW previously offered a longroof M5 in the inline-six-powered E34 (1992–95) and V-10 E61 (2007–10) generations, but those cars were never sold in the U.S. BMW doesn’t sell the current 5-series Touring here, but it may take a page from the Audi A6 Allroad by offering a high-riding 5-series wagon for buyers looking for something SUV-adjacent. A normal 5-series wagon, like the i5 imagined below, is the least likely to come stateside, but we’d love it if it did.…

WHAT IT IS: Fiat’s 500 city car will return to the U.S. market, this time sold only in electric 500e form. WHY IT MATTERS: The 500e will serve as a sort of relaunch of Fiat in North America as an urban-focused EV brand. Dealers surely are desperate for fresh metal, but this shift to electrics means the 500X will be phased out. PLATFORM: The U.S.-market 500e will be a lightly modified version of the car that Fiat sells in Europe. The new 500e looks more refined than the previous-generation 500 and is packed with more modern equipment. POWERTRAIN: We expect a 117-hp electric motor and an estimated 37.3-kWh battery, good for about a 150-mile driving range. COMPETITION: The 500e will be up against other offerings at the low-range end of…

We’re glad the Mercedes-AMG GT will see a second generation, as the original was one of our favorite answers to that perennial head-scratcher: “What sports car should I buy instead of a 911?” The new AMG GT reaches the U.S. by end of year. It’s essentially a coupe version of the SL-class roadster, sharing the SL’s spaceframe Modular Sports Architecture platform, much of its exterior design, and its 2+2 seating. While some markets get a four-cylinder SL as the base model, the GT seemingly will only offer V-8 power, the familiar M177 AMG twin-turbo 4.0-liter unit (we’ll have to wait for final output figures). Above the standard V-8, a more powerful plug-in-hybrid version will combine the same V-8 with electrical assistance. This will likely carry GT 73 branding, and we…

WHAT IT IS: Lucid’s follow-up to the Air sedan. And because everyone wants an SUV, that’s what it is. WHY IT MATTERS: Lucid is trying to gain recognition in the premium-EV space. It has made a few very quick and very nice-to-drive sedans that also happen to be very expensive. But this is a company that built just 7180 cars last year, which is just over half as many as Ferrari made. Lucid has already shown how to turn a small fortune (reportedly $5 billion) into Air—Gravity may just be what it needs to bring it into the black. PLATFORM: The skateboard chassis that underpins the Air will serve the Gravity as well. It will be modified to carry the substantial carriage of an SUV with an optional third row.…

WHAT IT IS: The last Camaro before Chevy replaces it with an EV. This track-focused version is the spiritual successor to the fifth-generation Z/28. WHY IT MATTERS: Among never-ending bar arguments over cars, none is more heated than Camaro versus Mustang. It’s as American a rivalry as Ohio State versus Michigan, Cowboys versus Eagles, or “Tastes great! Less filling!” After this Camaro though, the debate may die out. PLATFORM: Like the current Camaro, the Z/28 rides on GM’s longitudinal-engine Alpha platform. The chassis will get spool-valve dampers from Multimatic and carbon-ceramic rotors and calipers from Brembo. Any and all fat will be trimmed. Massive R-comp tires will offer race-car-like grip. POWERTRAIN: We’re hoping for a version of the 670-hp LT6 from the Corvette Z06, which here will be choked a…

WHAT IT IS: Does an electric muscle car still sound shocking? Well, Dodge appears to be making one. The next Charger is a muscular two-door with styling cues from its second-generation ’60s namesake and a powertrain from the future—or at least, the leading edge of the present. WHY IT MATTERS: We would have bet that Dodge would be the last gas-burning holdout, striping 11s on internal-combustion island as the automotive market quietly whirred and recharged around it. Instead, Dodge CEO Tim Kuniskis declared the “brotherhood of muscle,” going forward, will be battery-powered. PLATFORM: Beneath the Charger’s bulked-up body is Stellantis’s STLA Large platform. POWERTRAIN: The entry-level Charger 340 gets a 400-volt propulsion system and 455 horsepower, while the midrange 440 (the electric Scat Pack, if you will) boasts 590 horsepower.…

WHAT IT IS: Ram’s first electric pickup will be a blend of the familiar and the unfamiliar. While the CES concept that previewed the 1500 REV was chock full of cool elements like three rows of seats and two separate pass-throughs, the production version is far less avant-garde. It’ll separate itself from the crowd with a gas-fed range extender, something the competition has yet to introduce. WHY IT MATTERS: Getting pickup electrification right is a major challenge for Detroit’s Big Three. The Ram is the last to the market after Ford and Chevy, and the segment is also attracting newcomers like Rivian. Ram can’t afford to make a mistake in this high-profit segment. PLATFORM: STLA Frame, the Stellantis platform that exists solely for body-on-frame EVs. POWERTRAIN: We know at least…

At some point, a memo must have gone out. It decreed that all super-SUVs would hew to the same template: twin-turbo V-8, a torque-converter automatic transmission, and all-wheel drive, all stuffed into a rakish but conventional four-door body. That’s the formula Mercedes-AMG, BMW, Porsche, Audi, Maserati, Aston Martin, and Lamborghini practice. Ferrari, though, didn’t get the memo. Its first SUV, the Purosangue, uses a 715-hp naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V-12 and a rear-mounted dual-clutch transaxle. A separate two-speed transmission delivers drive to the front axle. The rear doors are rear hinged and power operated, offering primo access to a pair of heated, ventilated, massaging back seats. And there’s Multimatic active dampers, four-wheel steering, and bodywork that has more aero tricks than a Formula 1 car. Ferrari was cognizant that its first…

Aside from the stunning MC20, modern-day Maseratis quite often go unnoticed. In small-town Italy, however, the trident emblem and the brand’s distinct engine arias possess the ability to stop bystanders in their tracks. Pedestrians approve via a raised thumb. Now the 2024 Maserati GranTurismo Folgore and its warbling electronic soundtrack at idle bring a new reaction: head-scratching. The Folgore shares the body and styling of the internal-combustion GranTurismo, except it has bronze-colored trident badges and brake calipers and lacks tailpipes. While the synth soundtrack won’t rattle the bricks of ancient structures in the Old World, it represents Maserati’s foray into an electric future. Beneath the Folgore’s striking sheet-metal, there’s a wallop of power courtesy of three electric motors, one driving the front axle and two powering the rear. Each motor…

Having a Subaru Crosstrek in your driveway is like keeping a fishing pole in the living room or a mountain bike in your kitchen. You may not be about to run out the door and into the wilds, but it signals that you’d like to. Redesigned for 2024, the Crosstrek offers small but welcome improvements, like the option of wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. The respectable fuel economy (an EPA-estimated 29 mpg combined) remains, and the $26,290 starting point is unchanged. The Premium version we drove, with a power sunroof, blind-spot monitoring, and the All-Weather package, came in under $30,000, which is a lot of implied outdoorsiness for the money. Subaru draped new sheetmetal over the Crosstrek’s stiffened structure, added some padding to the seats, and quieted the cabin.…

At Car and Driver, our belief has always been that cars should be a joy to operate, work with slick and refined precision, and place the person behind the wheel at the heart of the experience. As we’ve found over the years, Mazda’s vehicles often chase those same values. This special section looks at the history of C/D reviewing, playing with, and enjoying Mazdas. As you’re reading about a record-setting 238-mph run in an RX-7, the fun-to-drive magic of the original Miata, the performance of the 2007 Mazdaspeed 3, and the novel design of the latest Mazda 3, you’ll be informed about the brand’s new three-row CX-90 flagship and explore how it’s linked to Mazda’s ethos and past. Twenty years ago, a much younger C/D fell in love with the…

As modern cars become ever quieter, trading roaring V-8s and grumbling six-cylinders for muffled turbocharged small-displacement engines and near-silent electric motors, the cabin’s soundscape is now a mélange of small ticks and tones previously masked by combustion noise. Without engine noise, electric vehicles don’t have much to hide ancillary rowdiness coming from climate-control fans, coolant systems, and tires. “There are no tricks: We need it all to be quieter,” says Tim Bohn, a noise, vibration, and harshness engineer at General Motors. “The levels from each subsystem have to be lower than we’ve ever had, especially in electric-vehicle cooling systems, where we now put much more effort into isolating coolant lines.” You might not think of cooling systems as noisy, but their hums, bubbles, and gurgles are a prime generator of…

Do not tell people I’m an expert,” says David Burge. “I’m just a reasonably okay amateur when it comes to identifying cars.” Okay. Burge is not an expert, but he’s awfully good at figuring out the make and model of an automobile from just the smallest corner of a bumper. “A ’25 Hudson,” he’ll declare on a blurry snapshot showing an embossed curve of fender and a single open door. “It’s the suicide door,” he explains later, “a rarity in the ’20s.” Those “reasonably okay” car ID skills have made Burge a bit of a celebrity in a certain nerdy corner of the internet. Every weekend, as @iowahawkblog on Twitter, he takes on the task of naming the manufacturers and years of cars in photos submitted to him from all…

WHAT IT IS: Aside from the follow-up to one of Porsche’s best models, it will be Porsche’s first electric sports car. Not a big deal, right? WHY IT MATTERS: An established Porsche model going electric will send shock waves through the industry. The 911 may be Porsche’s gold standard, but the 718 is a high-visibility car, and its success or failure could dictate the market direction of electric sports cars. PLATFORM: This will be the first Porsche on the Volkswagen Group’s PPE platform. That means almost nothing will carry over from the current 718. Chassis balance will remain, well, balanced because the battery will occupy most of the space aft of the firewall where the engine is today, to ensure that the current car’s mid-engine handling will remain intact. A…

When Volkswagen announced in May 2022 that it had acquired the rights to the long-dead Scout nameplate to build electric vehicles for the U.S., our inner monologue was: “Okay. Take a drag. Let’s see where this goes. Exhale.” If Scout’s plan comes together, groundbreaking on a South Carolina assembly plant will happen later this year, we should see the first prototype SUV in 2025, and customer deliveries will commence in late 2026. Underneath the stubby and undeniably International Harvester Scout–inspired styling, you’ll find a lot of VW Group parts, but no unibodies. The Scout SUV (and pickup that comes later) will use a skateboard-style ladder frame that incorporates all the major drive components. Expect at least two motors, a battery big enough to earn a 300-mile range on an EPA…

WHAT IT IS: Toyota’s venerable mid-size pickup is finally getting a major overhaul. Everything from the frame to the infotainment will get a heapin’ helpin’ of 21st-century engineering. WHY IT MATTERS: Toyota isn’t usually one to mess with success, so all eyes are on the automaker to see whether its radical revisions resonate with buyers. This truck is a certified darling here, but the competition features some equally radical revisions that could eat into the Tacoma’s popularity. The Taco is also the only truck with a delicious nickname. PLATFORM: We expect the Tacoma to move to Toyota’s TNGA-F body-on-frame architecture, which also underpins the latest iterations of the Sequoia and Tundra, as well as the Lexus LX. The current Taco’s rear leaf springs will get swapped out in favor of…

McLaren has expended huge effort launching the plug-in-hybrid Artura, but it hasn’t forgotten about the more powerful Sport Series. The 720S is set to be replaced by a new model that, as its name suggests, will mark a relatively subtle evolution. The 750S is to be built around the same core carbon-fiber structure as the 720S, and it will use an evolved version of that car’s twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V-8 engine. Output will be slightly increased to 750 metric horsepower, which works out to 740 American ponies, pretty much splitting the difference between the 720S and the 765LT. We also expect the 750S to look more aggressive than the 720S. The new cabin will be similar to the Artura’s, including a fast and slick infotainment system. Both Coupe and Spider versions…

Traditionalists will have plenty to grumble about when Mercedes electrifies its G-class SUV next year, possibly as a 2025 model. As always, though, the survival of this iconoclastic off-roader depends on it evolving in line with modern technology. The brand’s recent EQG concept reveals that the production version will closely resemble today’s gas-burning G-wagens, meaning it will look like a glitzy box on wheels and should go like stink on any terrain. Details remain limited, but we know the EV will feature a body-on-frame layout with an independent front suspension and a live rear axle. Videos of a development mule spinning around its center axis on dirt—what Mercedes calls a G-turn—indicate that an electric motor will power each wheel, which together also should be able to mimic the action of…

Remember the last time Lexus built a supercar? Of course you do, because the LFA was a memorable two-seat stunner with an even more memorable V-10 engine. So when Lexus reveals a concept previewing an electric supercar claimed to be the “spiritual successor” to the LFA, we listen. Unfortunately, we won’t hear the scream of 10 cylinders revving to 9000 rpm this time, but plenty of enticing details about this new sports car excite us. For now, it’s referred to only as the Lexus Electrified Sport, and it carries the expected claims for lightning-fast acceleration and a long driving range. Lexus says the car will accelerate to 60 mph in the low-two-second range, which would certainly beat the LFA, and it could have solid-state batteries providing 430 miles of range.…

When the eighth-generation Corvette Stingray arrived for the 2020 model year with its engine behind the passengers and the proportions of a mid-engine Ferrari, a host of rumors rumbled down the road behind it. The Stingray, we heard, would ultimately go for the throat of Lamborghinis, McLarens, or anything with the word “hypercar” or “exotic” in its dating profile. Those whispers will become a reality in the next couple of years with the arrival of two ultra-high-performance Corvettes: the ZR-1 and the Zora. The foundational elements of both cars are currently hiding in plain sight in the 2023 Z06 and the upcoming 2024 E-Ray hybrid. The ZR-1 and Zora both use much of the brilliant Z06 as a starting point, including a majority of its structure and its flat-plane-crank V-8,…

A PAIR OF HANDS PLUG MY HELMET INTO A FILTERED air feed. Another clips the window net in place. In the seat next to me, Curt LeDuc, Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Famer, keys the intercom. “We’re going to take it easy till the shock oil has warmed up.” Oh, God. I peer past the reassuring lattice crash structure into the interminable lunar topography of the Southern California desert outside and ponder at which point my spinal fluid will be warmed up. Starting at $295,000, the new ultra-hardcore Ford Bronco DR—for Desert Racer—is the Bronco lineup’s ultimate off-road mission statement. The DR channels a decades-long legacy of desert racing that began with a stock first-gen Bronco’s class win of the legendary 1967 Baja 1000, followed by an outright race win in…

ARRIVAL: JULY 2022 MILES: 16,547 OBSERVED MPG: 29 To show restraint is a helluva thing. Whether we’re considering horsepower, grip, or pampering creature comforts, we always hunger for more. Not this time. When we spec’d our GTI, we flipped the script. Life with the bottom-rung $30,540 GTI S means no sunroof, ventilated front seats, or rear-seat warmers. It also means living without 15-position electronically controlled dampers, which is okay because that’s about 12 positions too many. The 241-hp turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four and six-speed manual are what matter, the latter even more so because a fundamental hot hatch should focus on the basics. The biggest omission is the lack of summer tires, which Volkswagen reserves for the top-dog Autobahn trim at $39,425. Even without them, the eighth-generation GTI has good grip.…

For about $175,000, Maserati will sell you a GranTurismo with an engine. No, not a Ferrari-sourced V-8 like the previous-generation car had, but a version of the twin-turbo 3.0-liter V-6 that debuted in the MC20. Maserati dials back the Nettuno V-6 for GranTurismo duty by fitting the engine with smaller turbos. In its humblest form (in Modena trim), the six produces 483 horsepower and 442 pound-feet of torque, but even this output surpasses the previous 4.7-liter V-8’s. In top-spec Trofeo trim, the engine delivers 542 horses and 479 pound-feet. A ZF-sourced eight-speed automatic is the only transmission available, and standard all-wheel drive caters to an Alpine clientele. The GranTurismo functions primarily as a rear-driver, but up to 50 percent of the torque can be sent to the front axle. Maserati…

The Dodge Hornet R/T has a PowerShot mode that delivers an extra 30 horsepower for 15 seconds. It has functional hood scoops and Koni dampers. Dodge is reviving the old GLH moniker for its in-house tuner parts, and GLH stands for Goes Like Hell. The premise of the first TV spot for the Hornet is that the vehicle’s arrival is an apocalyptic event. This is what happens when the company that builds 700-plus-hp Hellcats tasks itself with building a vehicle to compete against, you know, the Honda CR-V. “What else did Dodge do,” you ask, “name one of the paint colors after a strain of weed?” Yes: Acapulco Gold. If Dodge hasn’t yet licensed Beavis and Butt-Head as spokesmen, we don’t know what the marketing team is waiting for. The…

A small crowd assembles at this desolate setting in northwestern Utah every year for but one purpose: to speed across the salt flats as fast as their tuning abilities will carry them. Sponsored by the Southern California Timing Association and Bonneville Nationals, Inc., Speed Week is motorsports competition in its simplest form: go when the man at the starting line says to, stand on the gas to your heart’s content, and don’t lift until you break a record. Twice before in the past dozen years, the sirens of Bonneville beckoned us. Each time we answered the call with velocities worthy of the record book, but the 1986 event will be the one we won’t soon forget. On the way to a 244-mph blitz, we will encounter our share of hurdles:…

“With a base price of$22,835, this package is unbeatable.”—10Best 2007 “The [Mazdaspeed] 3’s secret isn’t exactly a secret: Big horsepower in a small car predates even the hot-hatch phenomenon.”—10Best 2008 It’s been a contender for our cover ever since we spotted a prototype circling the Nürburgring in August 2005. It was all black, sucking air into a huge hood scoop and blatting it out the back through an oversize stinger. It was a wagon, and it looked bad. Mazda is a company with a rep for taking care of asphalt jockeys. Low-carb curb weights, spry handling, and approachable sticker prices are the norm under its tent. We’ve been fired up by new Mazdas before, only to be disappointed. Two recent Mazdaspeeds only rated “medium fun” on our scale. Deficient in…