Nissan has produced some amazing race cars over the decades and its NPT-90 IMSA GTP racer is one of the very best. Just six examples were ever manufacturer and chassis 90-01 is currently up for sale.
Nissan is done selling its NV line of commercial and passenger vans in the U.S. and Canada, Automotive News reported Friday, confirming a move that AN reported a few months ago. The automaker is going to push its sedans and SUVs for fleet sales instead.
Nissan will end production of its full-size NV vans in Canton, Miss., and the compact NV200 in Cuernavaca, Mexico, next summer.
In this week's Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Road Test Editor Zac Palmer. This week's news includes Subaru teasing the next-generation Subaru BRZ, the Jaguar XE departing and the XF getting an update, Honda unveiling the new Ridgeline pickup and the Acura NSX suffering from slow sales. This week they talk about driving two vehicles on opposite ends of the spectrum: the Ford Mustang Shelby GT350 and the Volkswagen Atlas.
The 2021 Honda Ridgeline just received a significant refresh that brought squared-off truck-like styling to Honda's only pickup. Whether or not it's more attractive is in the eye of the beholder, but it certainly looks tougher. According to Motor Trend, that tough look will spread to other models.
The news outlet spoke with Honda's marketing vice president Jay Joseph, who said future Honda crossovers would have a more rugged design. We reached out to Honda, and a representative confirmed that Ridgeline design cues will make their way to Honda's other light-truck models (i.e. crossovers). Though the representative couldn't share timing of redesigns or specificity of which models will be included. So without specifics, here are some of our theories on how the redesigning could pan out.
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Act fast if you want to explore the outdoors in a new Toyota Land Cruiser. It seems 2021 will be the current-generation SUV's last model year on the American market, according to a recent report, and it's not coming back.
An anonymous dealer source confirmed the off-roader's demise to Motor Authority. "Unfortunately it's gone, which I'm pretty bummed about. It's a punch to the gut for all of us enthusiasts who love the product. There's no illusion it's coming back, and it's completely dead for the moment, " the incognito employee told the publication.
Being bland used to be a pretty solid way to ensure a car's popularity. Bland may not inspire, but it won't offend, either. That sure seemed like Toyota's playbook for decades, but things have changed (in the marketplace and with Toyota), and nowhere is that more evident than the 2021 Toyota RAV4. Rather than being vanilla enough to appeal equally to as many people as possible, it instead offers an unmatched selection of flavors to cater more specifically to a wide variety different people and purposes. There are regular, sporty and off-road-oriented RAV4s. There's a regular gas engine and two hybrid choices, including the new 2021 Toyota RAV4 Prime plug-in hybrid (pictured above). There are vibrant colors, two-tone roofs and flashy styling flourishes available along with more traditional, subdued choices. Again, something for everyone.
Yet, underlying all those different flavors is a base vehicle that generally nails the basic fundamentals demanded of a compact SUV, regardless of whether you're getting a simple RAV4 LE, a sporty XSE Hybrid or the TRD Off-Road. It has more passenger and cargo space than most, as well as more ground clearance. Its infotainment system is easy to use and amply contented, if not the flashiest or rapid in response. It's fuel efficient, especially the two hybrid choices. It's surprisingly responsive to drive. Finally, its resale value and maintenance costs should continue to be excellent. Now, there are rivals that match or better the RAV4 in these regards, especially the Honda CR-V, but few do them all as well and none offer the same variety as the RAV4.
After teasing us with an exterior image of the fourth-generation Acura MDX a week ago, Acura has now followed up with images of the interior. The exterior teaser was done up in "Tron" style, but these interior shots go beyond outlines to reveal some details that are much less obscured.
Acura promises the MDX will be the "most premium and performance-focused" version of the SUV yet and has earned "elevated status" as the brand's flagship. (Only about 1,000 of the RLX were sold in North America last year, vs. 52,000 of the MDX, so it seems the big sedan got demoted as flagship. Aw.)
The Toyota RAV4 lineup is expanding for 2021 as the company has announced a new RAV4 Hybrid XLE Premium.
Since it's only a couple of years old, it's no surprise that the 2021 Toyota RAV4 is generally unchanged from the years before. But there are a couple of noteworthy additions to the range. There's a slight price increase, too.
Possibly the most significant change is the addition of an XLE Premium trim to the RAV4 Hybrid line. It falls squarely in the middle, offering more features than the LE and XLE, but not being as sporty or as luxurious as the XSE or Limited trims. It's priced between those trims, too, with a base price of $33,675. Included for the price are 18-inch "super chrome-finished" alloy wheels, LED projector headlights with automatic high beams, fog lights, leather-wrapped steering wheel, leatherette upholstery, eight-way power driver's seat and dual-zone automatic climate control.
The 2021 Honda Odyssey is a modern minivan, and as such it's absolutely gigantic. That is obviously not news. And yet, the Odyssey still managed to blow me away with its cargo-carrying ability.
Now, like the various three-row crossovers and SUVs I've luggage tested, I only checked to see how many pieces of luggage from my garage would fit behind the raised third-row seat. The most voluminous crossover I've tested and indeed one of the most voluminous three-row crossovers, period, the Hyundai Palisade, could fit the four biggest suitcases I own. Pretty good, but sorry Palisade, you're about to be crushed.
Over 1,700 motorists were stuck in traffic in Southern California on October 4, 2020, but it wasn't due to one of the region's horrendous traffic jams. They got together to form the largest parade of Subaru cars ever recorded.
Certified by Guinness as a new world record, the two-mile-long parade included 1,751 cars made by Subaru. Photos from the event show a diverse selection of models ranging from a late-model WRX STI to a 1980s GL. It doesn't look like the parade included a 360, the first car Subaru sold in America, but we spot a bright yellow Baja.
Infiniti just revealed an off-road prepped QX80 that will take on the Rebelle Rally this week. Beginning today, the Rebelle Rally is an all-female rally where racers navigate off-road terrain from Lake Tahoe to the Imperial Sand Dunes by the U.S.-Mexico border. It's 1,200 miles of rough terrain, so the luxurious QX80 needed a little help to get ready for it.
The big bruiser of an SUV was handed off to Calmini Products Inc. in California for the prep work. It got a three-inch lift, heavy-duty control arms, off-road performance shocks, high clearance front and rear bumpers and thicker skid plates. The new Off-Road Monster 18-inch wheels are wrapped with chunky Nitto Terra Grappler all-terrain tires. We wouldn't normally say this about an Infiniti, but this QX80 looks badass.
Vans are generally boring things. Oh, you can spray paint sexy, psychedelic valkryies on the side or buy some right-hand-steer Japanese import with a name like Sambar Try Dias, but by and large, they're boring. That goes triple for the minivan variety, but since their invention in the early 1980s, one minivan has been the obvious exception. There was and continues to be absolutely nothing boring about the Toyota Previa. In fact, it's one of the most interesting vehicles Toyota has sold in this country in the past 30 years.
Early minivans were less cookie cutter in shape and layout than they are today, but even by that standard, the Previa was different. For starters, just look at the thing as it balloons above its tiny wheels and lower cladding. I imagine its design language was nouveaux blimp. There's so much glass! Just look at those windshield wipers. And remember, the Dodge Caravan looked like this when the Previa came out ... and Chrysler had just redesigned them. Yet, the styling is just the tip of the wacky pants iceberg.