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Auto Moto - Page-118 | Japan Bullet

2021 Toyota Corolla Apex First Drive | Impressions, Price, Comparison

2021 Toyota Corolla Apex First Drive | Impressions, price, comparison

Toyota has had something of a performance car revival over the past few years. It has released the Toyota 86 and Supra sports cars, and has even developed TRD versions of the Camry and Avalon. Things are even more exciting overseas with the wild, turbocharged, all-wheel-drive Yaris GR, which will reportedly spawn a fast Corolla for the United States. In the meantime, Toyota has spiced up its humble compact sedan with the 2021 Corolla Apex Edition.  It's a limited edition with an aggressive body kit and chassis upgrades. Unfortunately, while it looks cool, it's frustrating to drive and expensive for what you get.

So what exactly do you get with the Apex? On the outside, the Apex picks up a unique body kit incorporating a front spoiler, side skirts, and an aggressive rear diffuser, all in gloss black. The trunk spoiler is optional and costs $375. These parts all match the pearl black roof and mirrors, as well as the 18-inch alloy wheels. Toyota claims the wheels are designed to aid brake cooling and each one weighs 2.2-pounds less than the equivalent wheels for the regular SE and XSE Corollas. The Apex also features bronze accents and LED lighting, and a rear spoiler is available as an option. Inside, not much has changed, but each car gets unique upholstery, cloth for the SE and leatherette for the XSE, with bronze-colored contrast stitching. It's a mean, sporty-looking thing, and conjures up images of Scion's glory days.

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2021 Nissan Rogue Roof Rail Driveway Test | They're Fake!

2021 Nissan Rogue Roof Rail Driveway Test | They're fake!

I'm in the process of reviewing the new Yakima CBX Solar roof carrier. I've mounted it to a Subaru Outback and my own Audi Allroad, while a new Subaru Crosstrek Sport will be next. Alas, the 2021 Nissan Rogue SV currently in my driveway won't get the chance to ride around with Spock's coffin on its back. 

You see, the Rogue has fake roof rails. Although they appear to be flush rails at first glance, they are in fact made of plastic and lack the grooves necessary for rack towers to clamp onto. Instead, there are little plastic covers that pop off with a flathead screwdriver to reveal static mounting points. These are vaguely similar to what you can find on various BMW sedans and even the Porsche 911 that are hidden behind little doors in their roofs. 

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Paul Newman's 1979 Championship - Winning Datsun 280zx Race Car For Sale

Paul Newman's 1979 championship-winning Datsun 280ZX race car for sale

Actor Paul Newman's other great passion was auto racing, and unlike some with boldface names who dabble in the sport, Newman didn't just race, he won. He also co-owned racing teams. An early highlight of his decades-long motorsports career was during the 1970s and '80s driving for the Bob Sharp racing team, which campaigned Datsuns/Nissans. This Datsun 280ZX racer was driven exclusively by Newman during the 1979 season. In it, he won races at Summit Point, Watkins Glen, Brainerd (Minn.), Lime Rock, and Road Atlanta, culminating in an SCCA National C-Production Championship. (That same year he would race at Le Mans, finishing second in a Porsche 935.) Now restored to its '79-season spec and livery, this ex-Paul Newman racing car is for sale at Motorcar Classics on Long Island.

The car is sold with documentation including the notarized bill of sale from Bob Sharp. After Newman's race-winning season, the 280ZX was sold in 1984 to a privateer, who campaigned it for several more years before putting it into storage. At the time, it was just another used-up race car. Eventually, though, it was exhumed and brought back to its original condition. Recently, the car turned some laps at what was effectively Newman's home track, Lime Rock Park in northwest Connecticut, at the Lime Rock Vintage Festival.

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Subaru Forester Luggage Test | Cargo Capacity, Suitcases, Specs

Subaru Forester Luggage Test | Cargo capacity, suitcases, specs

Our 2019 Subaru Forester long-term test car has been a pack rat for many of us on staff at Autoblog. We've stuffed in camping gear, tires, landscaping supplies and much more over a number of months. However, we haven't given it a proper luggage test until now.

West Coast Editor James Riswick has tested a number of compact crossovers that the Forester competes against with his own set of luggage: Ford Escape, Mazda CX-5, Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4. But since our long-term Forester lives in Michigan, we'll be using the same set of luggage that we've used for all other midwest luggage tests.

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2021 Infiniti Qx50 Adds More Features And Gets A Higher Price

2021 Infiniti QX50 adds more features and gets a higher price

The 2021 Infiniti QX50 is out, and Infiniti has made a couple changes of note. Most of them are equipment related, but the luxury crossover's price is going up this year, too.

A base QX50 Pure is $700 more expensive this for 2021, with the new total being $38,975. That gets you the front-wheel-drive model. If you want all-wheel drive, that'll be another $2,000. For your extra coin, Infiniti has added a Wi-Fi hotspot, acoustic laminated front side glass, rear seat-mounted side-impact airbags and a new automatic emergency call system for when the vehicle is involved in a collision. All those features are standard across every QX50.

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