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"Why do so many people buy the Nissan Rogue?" It's something we ponder and lament every time we see it on a top 10 list of best-selling cars. We're not alone. Perhaps it's because its styling, size and interior quality made a good first impression at a dealer, but the more you drove it, the worse it got. "Dreary" is a word that comes to mind. With the all-new 2021 Rogue, Nissan is aiming to change the story, and after a couple hours of driving it on a chilly fall day in Michigan, we think Nissan has done exactly that. 

But first, to properly add perspective, back to its predecessor. The steering was a mess; the handling ponderous and the ride hardly special; its droning continuously variable transmission was unresponsive, and the annoyingly buzzy engine was woefully underpowered even in a segment where power is a low priority. Nissan responded with a clean-sheet redesign underpinned by a totally new platform not currently shared with another Nissan. It uses more aluminum and ultra-high-strength steel than the outgoing model, contributing to less weight and higher chassis rigidity.

WASHINGTON — Honda said on Saturday it has confirmed a 17th U.S. death tied to a faulty Takata air bag inflator.

The Japanese automaker said that after a joint inspection with the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), it confirmed a faulty air bag inflator was to blame for the Aug. 20 crash of a 2002 Honda Civic that led to the death of a driver in Mesa, Arizona.

In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Tony Stark has driven an Audi R8, a one-off Acura NSX roadster and, lately, in Avengers: Endgame, an Audi E-Tron GT, but that hasn’t stopped someone from making an Iron Man-themed Mazda Miata.

If you own a Scion xB and want a lesson on how to make the boxy car look unlike any other, just check out this example.

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We'll be honest, not a whole lot happened in the world of racing games this week, and without the hype of new console announcements, there's a bit of a lull in video game news in general. That said, there are still a few things we'd love to highlight in the gaming world this week for the hardest of the hardcore. 

In this week's Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Consumer Editor Jeremy Korzeniewski. They kick things off by talking about Jeremy's recent drive in the new 2021 Subaru Crosstrek. They compare the BMW X1, BMW X2 and Mini Countryman before providing another take on the Cadillac CT5. Recent Lucid Air and Tesla Model S news has them wondering if electric cars are the new performance kings and end with a quick discussion on California's intent to zero emissions by 2035.

It looks like the Mitsubishi i-MiEV is completely out of juice. News outlet Nikkei reports that Mitsubishi will completely end production of its tiny electric car this year. While the i-MiEV had been discontinued in the U.S. for a few years already, it was apparently still on sale elsewhere. That didn't mean it was doing well, as Nikkei notes that global sales were only a little over 30,000 units over its lifetime.

It's not hard to see why the i-MiEV struggled. While its kei-car size and funky styling made it a unique city car, it was compromised in other ways. It only made 66 horsepower and had an official range of 62 miles. While the limited range was augmented somewhat by DC fast charging capability, but it didn't take long for competitors to launch larger, more powerful, longer-range cars for not a whole lot more money. And the gulf between the i-MiEV only expanded over the years.

The Isuzu D-Max midsize pickup is perhaps the brand's best-known product around the world but its SUV variant, the MU-X, is much more exotic – or so to speak.

Honda is ending its participation in Formula 1 in order to focus its research and development on fuel cells and battery EV technologies, the company announced. It currently builds the turbocharged hybrid power units for Red Bull Racing, which sits in second place in the F1 constructor standings, along with Red Bull's adjacent team Scuderia AlphaTauri.

Honda said that it achieved its goal of earning victories with three wins last season and two so far in 2020. However, it believes that the auto industry is going through a "once-in-one-hundred-years" period of transition and it has decided to strive for carbon neutrality by 2050. As such, it will funnel its R&D money into green power unit and energy tech like fuel cell and battery EV technology. All the knowledge it amassed in F1, particularly in the areas of energy management and fuel technologies, will be transferred to its new research center.

Next month, we'll get to see if Acura can keep building steam following its well-received TLX and RDX redesigns. That's because we'll get our first clear look at the new Acura MDX three-row crossover. Before then, we have a unique teaser to analyze.

While there is plenty of the new MDX hidden because of the lighting, the highlights give us a good idea of the shape and some key character lines. The front fascia is very similar to the TLX with wide pentagonal grille, flanked by thin, scowling headlights. There are some unique creases that bend around from the headlights down to the lower air intake. They likely house some small intakes that could be used to create air curtains around the front wheels.

Acura has great expectations for the all-new 2021 TLX sports sedan, the first model to embody the brand's ‘Precision Crafted Performance’ philosophy.

We just had our first look at the next-generation 2022 Honda Civic hatchback via some patent images, and now CivicXI.com has unearthed even more renderings, this time of the sedan version. As expected, the front portions are about the same, but we're surprised to see how similar the two cars are up until the cargo area. And if the hatchback had some Accord similarites, this one is even closer.

Lexus just found a way to make the UX 250h look even more like a regular hatchback. It's called the 2021 Lexus UX Black Line Special Edition, and it follows the path of previous Lexus Black Line models before it (ES, GS, RC). We'll note that this special edition is based on the hybrid version of the UX, and isn't available with the standard gasoline engine variant.

The body-color fenders stand out the most. Instead of ruggedized black plastic, Lexus is painting them in the same color as the rest of the body. Lexus' UX was already one of the most car-like of the tiny crossover class, and eliminating the ugly crossover-like fenders brings it even deeper into hatchback territory. By painting them the same color as the body, it tricks the eye into thinking the car is hunkered down lower to the ground. The gloss black side sills and lower trim bring it down even further visually. Now, Lexus didn't actually lower the UX, but this package makes it feel much less like a crossover. When painted, the flared fenders even come across as sporty, wider hips. We really dig the look.

The 2021 Toyota Camry gains both visual and technology improvements in the new model year. It's not a full-fledged mid-cycle update, but the changes are welcome nonetheless.

Toyota added an XSE grade to the Hybrid trim to start. This brings the sportier suspension tuning and aggressive appearance package to the greenest of models. It's pictured in gray here, and if not for the blue Toyota logo and Hybrid badge, we'd never assume this model was the eco-focused one. It looks just like the XSE grade for the standard Camry, which gets an even bolder honeycomb style grille this year. If boring, hybrid-car looks were keeping you from going Camry Hybrid, Toyota appears to have a solution for that now.