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Payne: NACS, EVs and VW — the latest in LA Auto Show fashion
Posted by Talbot Payne on November 25, 2024
Los Angeles — Hyundai got NACS, VW returned to affordability, and Cadillac’s gone EV.
New car reveals were few at the 2024 LA Auto Show, but those few said a lot about industry trends. Automakers are facing a complicated landscape of rapidly-changing tech, government regulation and softening consumer demand as vehicles prices have escalated.
California is at the center of industry turmoil as host to the electronics revolution, aggressive emissions mandates and the biggest U.S. auto market. It offers opportunities for brands as diverse as Hyundai, Volkswagen and Cadillac, say industry insiders.
“Automakers are pushing the envelope with electric vehicles. It’s a chance to redefine themselves,” said Jessia Caldwell, head of insights for Edmunds. “They are putting themselves on the map where they haven’t been before.”
2024 LA Auto Show: Hyundai Ioniq 9 unveiling at the famed Goldstein Residence in Beverly Hills overlooking LA. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Hyundai Motor Co. and its luxury arm, Genesis, have committed themselves to following Tesla Inc. — and its trillion-dollar market cap — into an electric future. Tesla has a small presence on the LA Convention Center floor this year but an outsize influence on the industry.
Key to the Texas automaker’s dominance of the U.S. EV market (over 55% of California sales) is its network of lightweight NACS (North American Charging Standard) Supercharger connectors, which industry competitors rejected for the European standard, the bulky CCS (Combined Charging System). After fighting Tesla and encouraging a national network for CCS fast chargers from Electrify America, EVGo and ChargePoint, the establishment has waved the white flag to the rebel.
2024 LA Auto Show: Tesla Cybertruck interior. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
New Hyundai and Genesis models (and those from sister Korean brand Kia) introduced in LA are equipped — not just with the latest screen and interior goodies — they also are the first production vehicles equipped with NACS charger ports so they can take advantage of Tesla’s vast network. Want to charge on the antiquated CCS charger? Get a CCS adapter.
That ease of use will also assist Hyundai in meeting draconian 2026 state mandates requiring that EVs make up 35% of sales. The three-row 2026 Hyundai Ioniq 9 SUV and compact 2026 Genesis GV70 Electrified models that debuted here are in two of the market’s biggest volume segments.
“Vehicles like these help with the EV transition by giving customers more options,” said Caldwell. “If you get EVs into mainstream vehicles, it sets you up for the best sales gains.”
2024 LA Auto Show: Hyundai CEO Jose Munoz with the 2026 Hyundai Ioniq 9. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
EVs come at a price, however, with the Ioniq 9 and GV70 Electrified starting north of 60 grand. EVs are a driving force behind vehicle price inflation (average transaction costs hover around $50k), both for their window stickers and because automakers have to inflate gas-powered prices to subsidize EV development.
Volkswagen, too, has strayed from its reputation for affordable cars by introducing pricey electrics like the $60k ID.Buzz. Its volume customer, however, is still a budget shopper.
So while EVs aim to assuage green consumers’ climate change crisis concerns, VW dropped an all-new gas-powered Tiguan to address the broader market’s worries of an affordability crisis.
The compact VW is the brand’s most popular chariot, but it lags segment sales leaders like the Toyota RAV4 and Honda CR-V. The redesigned 2025 Tiguan was the biggest non-electric news here, sporting a significantly upgraded interior and exterior. Now built on the more dynamic EQB evo platform that undergirds VW’s iconic Golf GTI hot hatch, the new Tiguan leans into the brand’s sporty image and bumps horsepower over 200.
2024 LA Auto Show: 2025 VW Tiguan is all-new. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Following the redesigned entry-level Jetta sedan, Tiguan looks leaner, weighs less and could be easier on the wallet when it comes to market next year.
“There is a lot of buzz around the ID.Buzz, but it’s a bit of a niche vehicle,” said Caldwell. “The opportunity here is for affordability. People want what they can afford, and they are being priced out of the market.”
Caldwell says that ICE vehicle sticker prices have swelled while manufacturers have been cutting EV prices to goose sales and meet government mandates.
“But manufacturers can’t abandon internal combustion vehicles. The transition is going to take longer than they planned,” she said.
That said, Cadillac showed it is committed to a historic redefinition as an electric brand.
2024 LA Auto Show: Cadillac EVs front and center. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Its Optiq, Lyriq and Escalade IQ electrics are front and center here. Not a petrol-powered XT4, XT5 or XT6 in sight. The only ICE vehicles on the stand are the track-focused V8-powered, CT5-V Blackwing sedan and the IQ’s Escalade ICE sibling.
“People in California will like the Cadillac lineup,” said LA-based Caldwell. “It should resonate because Teslas are as common in LA as (Toyota) RAV4s. People are looking for the next cool thing to own.”
Hyundai wants to ride that fashion wave too, and it has created a separate Ioniq-badged lineup of EVs. Priced below the Caddies, they are NACS-ready. Cadillac says its coming EVs will be NACS equipped too.
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Payne: Here’s my Top 10 from the LA Auto Show
Posted by Talbot Payne on November 25, 2024
Los Angeles — Auto shows are past their peak, but they are still great shopping malls. Better than your average mall, in fact: You can test the products outside.
Like Detroit and New York, the 2024 LA Auto Show has lost a number of automaker booths, including those from Audi, BMW, Mini, Jaguar Land Rover, Volvo, Polestar, Infiniti, Mercedes, Mazda and Porsche (though local dealers did a nice job filling in for the latter). But the anchor automakers are still there — Chevy, Jeep, Ram, Ford, Toyota, Honda, VW, Hyundai, et al — and, like a mall, there were plenty of cool boutique stores in between.
Best of all, there’s lots of action outside thanks to LA’s balmy weather (oof, Detroit is going to be chilly in January). You can test drive everything from a Subaru to a Cybertruck — and even take a self-driving Jaguar to the show courtesy of Waymo.
Here are my Top 10 vehicles from the show:
Nilu
Every auto show needs hypercars and LA’s standout is the limited-edition Nilu. The V12-powered rocket is an analog reaction to today’s hybrid, forced-induction, 1,000-horspower cyborgs. This is an old-school, mid-engine beauty powered by a normally-aspirated engine and good ol’ stick shift between the seats.
Built around a carbon-fiber tub, the 2,645-pound Nilu features gorgeous styling, as you’d expect, from designer Sasha Selipanov, whose resume includes the Bugatti Chiron, Koenigsegg CC850 and Lamborghini Huracán. His company, Nilu27, is adorably named by combining the names of his daughters — Nika and Lucia — and the number of his favorite race driver, Gille Villeneuve.
Behind the cockpit is an adorable, exposed V-12 engine developed by New Zealand’s Hartley Engines — complete with snake exhaust reminiscent of 1960s Formula One cars. The specs? 1,070-horsepower at a screaming, 11,000 RPM, 2-second 0-60 mph time and 248-mph top speed. Fifty-four will be built for a cool $2.8 million each.
Chevy Corvette ZR1
Or you can put down a deposit on a $200,000 ZR1 making 1,064 horsepower. The King of ‘Vettes is on display for its first major auto show and it’s dressed in yellow just like the King of Beasts.
The Chevy Corvette ZR1 made its auto show debut in LA with eye-catching yellow paint and 1,064 horsepower. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
This lion sports huge front and side air scoops, and a menacing black tail — er, wing — out back. Unlike the track-focused Nilu, the engine isn’t exposed — since you can use it as a daily driver — but underneath is a high-revving, twin-turbo V-8.
Ford Maverick Lobo
Ford’s affordable entry-level pickup just keeps on giving. This is an all-wheel-drive pickup with the soul of a Focus RS hot hatch. Lobo steals the RS’s twin-clutch out back for maximum traction (and drifting), throws on wicked 19-inch black aero wheels, and slams the chassis to the ground.
Equipped with Mav’s spunky, 238-horse, 2.0-liter engine option, the pickup aims to eat Miatas at autocrosses.
Jeep Wagoneer S
Don’t be fooled by the Wagoneer name. This is not a variation on the giant truck-based mega-ute, but Jeep’s first all-electric compact SUV aimed at the Tesla Model Y.
Bearing signature Jeep elements like a seven-slot fascia and Uconnect infotainment system, the S stands for speedy with a 0-60 mph dash in 3.4 seconds. It’ll also clean out your wallet in a hurry starting at $72k.
Hyundai Ioniq 9
Ioniq is redefining Hyundai with an upscale EV sub-brand. The 9 joins the 5 hatchback and 6 sedan in the Ioniq lineup and bears familiar cubed lighting touches. Inside, it’s a different animal with three roomy rows for the family, a moving center console and panoramic roof.
With around 300 miles of range, the 9 will require a long charging stop on a road trip, so the kids can stretch their legs.
Kia EV9 GT
Not to be outdone, Hyundai’s sister brand Kia stays one step ahead with a performance version of its own three-row EV.
The EV9 GT sports 510 horsepower and a 4.9-second 0-60 sprint so you can get to the next charging stop more quickly.
Volkswagen Tiguan
The LA Show is all abuzz over the ID.Buzz, a high-tech, electric resurrection of the iconic VW Microbus. But at a lofty $60k, the Buzz will only be affordable to a few.
The ID.Buzz is VW’s show-stopper in LA but the redesigned Tiguan, left, combines sharp styling, practicality and a reasonable price. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
At half that price is an all-new model of the brand’s meat-and-potatoes Tiguan SUV. Now based on the same platform as the Golf GTI hot hatch, Tiggy should be more fun to drive — including a horsepower boost to 201.
With sleek styling, this is the most attractive VW SUV in a long time.
Tesla Cybertruck
This is Hollywood and the Cybertruck looks like is just rolled off a sci-fi movie set. Pick your visual analogy — trash compacter, door stop, cheese wedge — the stainless steel, exoskeleton-chassis Cybertruck looks like nothing else on the road.
The Tesla Cybertruck looks like nothing else on the LA Auto Show floor, or on the streets outside, for that matter, where show goers can get a ride inside the unconventional electric pickup. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
And with Tesla’s familiar, spare screen layout, it looks like nothing else inside either. The Cyertruck is front and center at the Tesla stand — but you can also drive it around the Convention Center outside. The Tesla is one of dozens of cars available to drive, including electric Polestars and quick Subaru WRXs.
Ineos Grenadier
Like the Nilu to ZR1, Ineos is the yin to Cybertruck’s yang. The Grenadier is an old-school off-road brute.
No fancy screens or exoskeleton here, just an all-terrain-tire clad, ladder-frame SUV that can run through walls. Engineered in Austria, built in France and named after a London pub owned by the Ineos conglomerate, Grenadier turns the clock back to ‘80s Land Rovers.
Tesla/Waymo
Next to the Cybertruck at the Tesla display is the brand’s Robotaxi, scheduled for 2026 release at $30k.
You can see a prototype of Tesla’s promised Robotaxi at the LA show. Or to experience autonomous driving now, step outside and hail one of Waymo’s self-driving Jaguars. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
The fully autonomous vehicles features a pair of seats, roomy hatchback, and single screen. And no steering wheel.
Unlike Cybertruck, you can’t take a ride outside. But you can hail an autonomous Jaguar with the Waymo app. Waymo is the show’s official ride-share partner, and its driverless Jags will take you anywhere across LA’s 72 square miles.
I hailed one back to my hotel. Maybe GM’s autonomous Cruise service will be available at the Detroit show some day.
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
GM entry edges toward F1 grid with Andretti team changes
Posted by Talbot Payne on November 25, 2024
Las Vegas — Slowly but relentlessly, Andretti-Cadillac is moving closer to securing its position on the Formula One grid.
GM’s commitment to the program, as well as personnel changes at Andretti Global and Liberty Media — which owns Formula One and has resisted the Andretti-Cadillac effort — appear to have removed roadblocks to entry for the American team.
With a restructuring at Andretti Global that pushed Michael Andretti into a smaller role, the chances of his organization landing a Formula One team have substantially increased. At the same time, Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei, a fierce opponent of Michael Andretti joining the world’s premier motorsport, is steeping down at the end of the year.
Mercedes driver George Russell, of Britain, drives during a practice session for the Formula One U.S. Grand Prix auto race, Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024, in Las Vegas. The chances for General Motors Co. to be approved to enter a team into the series appear to have increased. John Locher, AP
So dramatically have the personnel developments reshaped the landscape that F1 and Formula One Management (the 10 teams that make up the current grid) could have a decision to grant the General Motors Co.-backed entry a spot as the 11th team on the grid in the coming weeks.
“I kind of know what I’m hearing on the grapevine. We’ve not been officially told anything but we partner with GM with our IndyCar team, so I’ve seen them here and they seem to have big smiles on their face,” McLaren CEO Zak Brown, who has been supportive of the American entry, told Sky Sports F1 ahead of Las Vegas qualifying. “So I believe an announcement is probably imminent and it will be exciting to have yet another manufacturer alongside Audi joining our sport.”
Despite the sport’s politics, General Motors has remained steadfast in its commitment to joining Formula One for the 2026 season and has pushed ahead with Andretti Global in development of a hybrid-election drivetrain.
As Cadillac goes all-electric by 2030 and expands its international footprint to Europe, it sees F1 as an opportunity to showcase its technological chops. F1 “power unit” regulations change dramatically in 2028 to a 50-50 hybrid requirement and GM is focused on developing a competitive drivetrain to that standard.
In so doing, it would join an elite group — including Ferrari, Mercedes, Honda, Renault, Audi, McLaren and Red Bull Ford — that make F1 powerplants. Ford Motor Co. is supplying battery components to England-based Red Bull’s powertrain effort, which makes for an enticing crosstown Detroit F1 rivalry.
“We continue to work with the FIA and FOM regarding our expression of interest and are excited about our progress,” GM spokesperson Michael Albano said Friday. “In parallel, development of our team, car and power unit continue. We have no additional news to announce at this time.”
Dan Towriss, who took Andretti’s position at Andretti Global and is now the majority owner of the Andretti organization, is at the Las Vegas Grand Prix this weekend scoping his chances of entering the top motorsports series in the world.
Also ahead of the Vegas GP, Liberty Media confirmed that Maffei is stepping down at the end of the year with chairman John Malone assuming the role of interim CEO. Friction between Maffei and Michael Andretti is well known. In May, NBC News reported that Maffei told Michael’s father, Mario: “I want to tell you that I will do everything in my power to see that Michael never enters Formula 1.”
Formula One racing legend Mario Andretti talks to fans following a news conference at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, April 30, 2024. Andretti is demanding answers from Formula One about its decision not to admit Andretti Cadillac to the racing circuit. J. Scott Applewhite, AP
Las Vegas is one of three U.S. F1 Grand Prix event — more than in any other country — as Americans have embraced the sport in the last five years. The F1 Netflix series “Drive to Survive” accelerated fan interest and made the U.S. one of the fastest-growing F1 markets in the world.
The addition of the all-American team of Andretti-Cadillac is seen by many as another generator of fan engagement here. Cadillac’s entry would be a feather in the cap of GM President Mark Reuss, a passionate motorsports proponent who has led successful Cadillac and Chevrolet campaigns in sportscar racing and IndyCar, respectively.
“US audiences are already very familiar with the Andretti name, so what better way to entice viewers to stick around at a time when viewership is threatening to wane in the (US)?” wrote racing business analyst site Blackbook Motorsport in a recent analysis.
But the F1 politics became a quagmire for the U.S. effort in January as Formula One Management’s 10 teams resisted spitting revenues with an 11th entry, and Liberty and Andretti personalities clashed. Andretti turned up the heat by asking for a federal antitrust investigation into F1 and holding a defiant Capitol Hill news conference with members of Congress.
The FBI is also in Vegas this weekend, allegedly, as part of the Department of Justice investigation into why F1 denied the Andretti organization expansion into the series. Of the 10 teams (fielding two cars each for a 20-car grid), only one — the organization owned by California businessman Gene Haas — is U.S.-owned.
The logjam seemed to break in September when Andretti scaled back his role with his namesake organization. Now with Towriss in charge, talks have amplified, even though it is not clear what the name of an Andretti-less F1 team would be. Cadillac is working towards its 2028 powerplant — but the Towriss-led F1 team wants to join the field in 2026 to get its feet wet in the demanding sport ahead of 2028 regulations taking effect. In that case, the team would still brand with GM, but would need an interim-partner engine supplier.
Most of the existing teams have been largely opposed to an 11th team entering F1, citing a dilution in prize money and the massive expenses they’ve already committed to the series. But Andretti, among others, believed the teams’ position was personal in that they simply didn’t like him. He ran 13 races in the 1993 season and his father, Mario, was the 1978 F1 world champion.
The Andretti application had already been approved by the FIA, which is F1’s ruling body, but F1 management is a three-legged stool with FIA, owner Liberty Media and FOM approval all required for new teams. F1 promised in January to revisit the issue once General Motors had an engine ready to compete, and GM has continued to invest in that effort.
Though the existing 10 F1 teams have no actual vote or say in if the grid is expanded, they have publicly warmed to an Andretti-Cadillac effort. The Associated Press asked Mercedes boss Toto Wolff on Thursday why the sudden chance of acceptance in a potential 11th team.
“We have an obligation, a statutory obligation as directors, to present the standpoint that is the best for our company and for our employees, and we’ve done that,” Wolff said. “I think if a team can add to the championship, particularly if GM decides to come in as a team owner, that is a different story.
“And as long as it is creative, that means we’re growing the popularity of the sport, we’re growing the revenue of the sport, then no team will be ever against it. So I’m putting my hope in there.”
Wolff has been eager to hear from Towriss directly on what the plans for the organization are now that Andretti has a smaller role.
“No one from Andretti or Andretti Global or whatever the name will be has ever spoken to me a single sentence in presentation of what the creative part is,” he said. “But they don’t need to because the teams don’t decide. It is the commercial rights holder, with the FIA; we have no say. If I want to be invited to a party and go to the party, I’m sitting down at the table and telling who I am and why I’m really good fun and sitting here and everybody will enjoy my presence.
“That hasn’t happened, but you know, that’s now my personal point of view, not a professional, because there’s nothing we can do, nothing we can say,” Wolff continued. “And I don’t know the people. I’ve obviously spoken to Mario. I didn’t speak to his son. I didn’t speak to any other people that are behind that. I don’t know who they are. So I know GM, GM is great.”
Fred Vasseur, team principal at Ferrari, said he’s not opposed to another team if it adds value to F1.
“The discussion is between FIA, the team, and FOM. It’s not our choice,” he said. “For sure, as Toto said, that if it’s good for the sport, good for the show, good for the business, and adds value on the sporting side, that we are all OK.”
That’s progress from earlier this year, when nearly all team principals rejected an 11th team and FOM rudely dismissed the two icons of American motorsport as “a novice entrant” with little “understanding of the scope of the challenge involved.”
GM pushed back hard on F1’s assessment, saying it “strongly disagreed with its content,” and drivers like ex-F1 ace Oriel Servia weighed in, saying “the arguments that Formula One gave, in my opinion, were pathetic and insulting.”
Andretti-Cadillac refused to give up, and opened an English base (where most F1 teams are located) for Andretti Global in addition to its U.S. headquarters in Indianapolis.
The team has conducted extensive wind-tunnel work using Toyota’s facility in Cologne, Germany, hiring key personnel while making steady progress on building and crash-testing a 2026 chassis.
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
LA Show: New hybrid Jeep coming in 2025
Posted by Talbot Payne on November 22, 2024
Jeep North America CEO Bob Broderdorf addresses the media at the 2024 LA Auto Show. The compact, 600-horsepower Wagoneer S will go on sale early next year as a 2025 model estimated to start at $65,000. Henry Payne, The Detroit News Los Angeles — Jeep will add a hybrid gas-electric vehicle next year as it replaces the compact Cherokee SUV. Jeep brand CEO Antonio Filosa made the announcement at the Los Angeles Auto Show while outlining a series of aggressive moves the brand plans as it faces market headwinds. Jeep parent Stellantis NV recently announced it would lay off about 1,100 workers and cut a shift at a Jeep plant in Toledo, Ohio. The hybrid would be part of a planned Cherokee SUV model line replacement — one of five new models that Jeep will unveil in 2025. The compact Cherokee went out of production in February 2023 when Stellantis idled the Belvidere Assembly plant in Illinois. “2025 will be landmark year for Jeep,” added Jeep North America CEO Bob Broderdorf as it invests $3.2 billion in new products. Jeep markets 4xe hybrid models across the vehicle lineup including the Grand Cherokee and Wrangler 4xe models in the United States. The latter is the industry’s best-selling plug-in hybrid model. In Europe, Jeep sells 4xe versions of the Compass and Renegade. Broderdorf also touted Jeep’s first all-electric model, the compact, 600-horsepower Wagoneer S that will go on sale early next year as a 2025 model estimated to start at $65,000. Posted by Talbot Payne on November 21, 2024 Finalists for 2025 North American Car, Truck and Utility Vehicle of the Year (NACTOY) were announced to kick off the Los Angeles Auto Show Thursday. In a variety pack of nominees, Detroit brands scored four nominations. Car of the Year finalists are the $29,845 Honda Civic Hybrid, $23,145 Kia K4, and $29,535 Toyota Camry. The truck category will be a showdown between the $34,575 Ford Ranger, $42,270 Ram 1500, and $32,995 Toyota Tacoma. And the 34,995 Chevrolet Equinox EV, $35,615 Hyundai Santa Fe, and $61,545 Volkswagen ID.Buzz will vie for Best SUV. 2025 NACTOY finalist: Chevy Equinox EV. Henry Payne, The Detroit News “The competition for these awards will be fierce this year,” said NACTOY president and WWJ Radio-Detroit automotive reporter Jeff Gilbert, , standing in front of the LA Convention Center. “We have a well-balanced crop of EVs, hybrids and gasoline-powered vehicles. It will be hard to narrow each category down to just one winner – they’re all great choices.” The winners will be announced on January 10, 2025, ahead of the media days at the Detroit Auto Show which is returning to its traditional winter slot. The vehicle choices reflected the jurors’ practical streak as the three nominees offer affordable transportation in a market saturated by high-priced EVs, SUVs, and an average transaction price approaching $50,000. Though electric vehicles made up nearly 50% of the 25 semifinalists that jurors considered, only two EVs made the last round. Manufacturers are flooding the market with pricey EVs to meet onerous government mandates but the market has cooled to just 8% EV sales. The average, base price of the 25 semifinalist entries was about $66,000 – some 35% higher than the average US transaction price. NACTOY finalists average price, by contrast, is nearly half that at $36,057. Not surprisingly, the costliest entry on the list is a $61k EV – surprisingly, it is a Volkswagen, once one of the industry’s most affordable brands. The cheapest finalist is the Kia at $23,145. Cars An early favorite for Car of the Year was another $61k EV, the Dodge Charger Daytona, complete with artificial V8 sounds from its Fratzonic Chambered Exhaust. The Dodge EV, however, has not been available for testing and so it dropped down the juror’s list of choices. 2025 NACTOY finalist: Toyota Camry, Toyota, Toyota The Civic is a three-time NACTOY winner and the current lineup marks the first time the compact has offered a hybrid model. The Civis’ first hybrid effort starts at about the same price as the bigger Camry, which is only offered with hybrid drivetrains. A Camry win would be a first for the badge. Though perennially the best-selling sedan in the US, Camry has never won in NACTOY’s 31-year history. The Kia is a Civic competitor – and the brand’s replacement for the Forte compact sedan. The K4 is not offered as a hybrid and significantly undercuts the Civic Hybrid’s price. Trucks Odds are the truck wars will come down to battle between the Ranger and Taco. The mid-size segment competitors have been significantly upgraded for ‘25 with state-of-the-art electronic systems and high-flying off-road variants like the Tacoma TRD Pro and Ranger Raptor. 2025 NACTOY finalist: 2025 Ram 1500 RHO, Stellantis, © 2024 Stellantis The Ram 1500 is remade and continue to lead in style and ride quality. The range-topping, $71k RHO super truck replaces the $100k TRX and is aimed squarely the the F-150 Raptor. EV semifinalists Rivian (the $70k R1T) and GMC ($90k Sierra EV) did not make the cut. SUV Compact SUVs are the biggest segment in the market and the $35k Chevy Equinox EV aims to make a mark. The Equinox EV beat out the also-new, gas-powered Equinox SUV this year. Though 5 grand more expensive than its ICE sibling the EV undercuts it when a $7500 federal subsidy is applied. The three-row Hyundai Santa Fe is the favorite here with its attractive pricing (it starts at the same price as the compact Equinox EV) and premium exterior and interior design. Despite its high price, the three-row ID.Buzz wowed jurors with its update of an icon for the EV age. Few vehicles get more looks on the road and the V-dub beat out formidable three-row competitors like the screentastic Lincoln Nautilus and stylish Volvo EX90. 2025 NACTOY finalist: Hyundai Santa Fe, Hyundai, Hyundai The finalist trio also beat out contenders Honda Prologue, Jeep Wagoneer S, Porsche Macan EV, and Toyota Land Cruiser, In its 32nd year NACTOY honors vehicles that excel across several criteria including innovation, design, safety, performance, technology, user experience, driver satisfaction and value. Judged by an independent jury of 50 journalists (including the author of this article) from the US and Canada, NACTOY is one of the industry’s most prestigious trophies. Jurors test new vehicles all year long and gather for a semifinalist test in Ann Arbor each fall to winnow the field. Spanish and French versions of this release are available on NACTOY’s website. For more information about NACTOY and its history: http://northamericancaroftheyear.org. NACTOY finalist list Cars Honda Civic Hybrid Kia K4 Toyota Camry Trucks Ford Ranger Ram 1500 Toyota Tacoma SUV Chevrolet Equinox EV Hyundai Santa Fe VW ID. Buzz Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or Twitter @HenryEPayne Posted by Talbot Payne on November 21, 2024 Los Angeles — Tinseltown’s auto show is undergoing a transition like the Detroit and New York shows. Once a Big Top circus tent for star-studded, media luxury reveals and egghead panels on the sci-fi future of robot cars, the 2024 Los Angeles Auto Show has lost the glitter of premium European automakers — even Porsche, despite the Golden State being its biggest U.S. market. Instead, the show has gone mobile. Complementing indoor static displays, the Nov. 22-through-Dec. 1 circus has moved outdoors to the so-called City Street Drives paddock where ticket buyers can take rides on LA’s sun-splashed streets in local, dealer-provided chariots from Volvo, Polestar, Tesla Cybertruck and Fiat. More significantly, the egghead dream of driverless cars has arrived. Showgoers can now hail driverless, electric Jaguar Waymo taxis, which will deliver them to the downtown LA Convention Center. Google’s autonomous service covers 79 square miles of LA from downtown to the beaches of Santa Monica to Hollywood and the University of Southern California. Waymo’s service — which also operates in San Francisco and Phoenix — opened Nov. 12 and is accessible via an Uber-like app. Waymo is the “Official Ride-hailing Partner” of the LA show and has a display on site. Waymo’s display dovetails with Electric Avenue, an outdoor, one-mile test track loop around the convention center where show attendees can jump into the latest EVs, including Lucid, VinFast, Rivian and Detroit’s own Cadillac. California is the United States’ largest auto market, and the LA Convention Center has retained mainstream manufacturer displays that Detroit has lost. Like a retail mall, the convention center is anchored by big manufacturer displays, including Honda, Nissan, Subaru, Toyota and VW, as well as Ford, GM and Stellantis brands. “It’s a surprisingly healthy show given the circumstances,” said California-based Kelley Blue Book Senior Editor Jeff Glucker. “The European automakers have backed out from all North American shows even though the foot traffic has been really good. California is such an important market and EVs sell well here in part because it’s the perfect climate for them.” LA boasts a wealthy demographic attracted to EVs, and manufacturers are also keen to push their latest electrics as strict California EV mandates loom. Washington may be transitioning to a new, deregulatory Republican administration, but California is solidly blue and on course to ban new internal combustion engine sales by 2035. On its way to that goal, the state will require that 35% of new car sales be electric in the 2026 model year. Failure to meet the goal will results in substantial fines.
LA Auto Show: North American Car, Truck, Utility of the Year finalists unveiled
Robotaxis, test drives, and anchor brands: the LA Auto Show rolls with changing times
“We are the biggest economy in the U.S., and we are leading the way in customer adoption of EVs,” said David Fortin, LA Show vice president for marketing. “Our market adoption is going up, and sales are good for automakers post-pandemic. Over 60% of the product on the show floor is gas-powered, so we have a healthy mix for people to shop.”
That includes Japanese behemoth Toyota, which has only introduced one EV (the bZ4X) into the U.S. market, given limited demand.
“I have not seen a forecast by anyone … government or private, anywhere that has told us that (the California) number is achievable,” Toyota Motor North America CEO Jack Hollis told media last week. “Demand isn’t there.”
California leads state adoption of EVs at 27% of new car sales this year, but 55% of those are from one brand: Tesla. That dominance is down from 60% in 2023, but most automakers’ EV sales are in the single digits here.
Significantly, Chinese EV makers have not rushed in even as makers like BYD populate European shows. NIO, a Chinese brand that made a big splash here last decade with a promise of entering the U.S. market, is absent. Vietnamese startup Vinfast has beat the Chinese to the U.S. market and has a display in LA.
“Chinese automakers haven’t gained a market presence here,” KBB’s Glucker said. “There also may be some broader hesitation given the incoming administration and high tariffs.”
Like its Euro-peers, Land Rover will not be at the show, and that’s just fine for Ineos, the English luxury startup. It will have its Grenadier SUV on hand — an old-school, body-on-frame off-road dirt-kicker that thinks the unibody Land Rover Defender has gone soft.
The show once leveraged Hollywood stars to introduce exotic chariots like the “Ironman” Robert Downey Jr. pulling the wraps off an all-electric Audi e-tron GT in 2017 in front of adoring media. Such debutante parties were part of a three-day, AutoMobility media preview (which inspired Detroit’s similar AutoMobili-D confab) leading up to LA public days.
For 2024, AutoMobility has shrunk to one day, Nov. 21. Reveals of new cars are scarce now, with Kia, Hyundai, Fiat, Genesis and Volkswagen the only brands with new car debuts. Kia, Genesis, and Fiat will show updates to existing models, while Hyundai and VW will premiere, respectively, the all-new 2025 Ioniq 9 EV and Tiguan ICE.
More:Hyundai unveils upscale, electric, three-row Ioniq 9 at LA Auto Show
In a new media age of YouTube and social media, automakers’ schedule model debuts away from auto shows. To entice attendees into the convention center’s main South and West Halls beginning Friday, manufacturers have expanded their indoor displays similar to what Detroit automakers Ford and Jeep have done in Detroit.
Ford will host rides on its Bronco Built World roller coaster, and Jeep will give rides in Camp Jeep. Hyundai and Volkswagen have also built indoor test tracks. Should more automakers want to build track space in the future, the LA Convention Center should have the room — it’s undergoing a major renovation/expansion that will connect the South and West Halls in 2025.
Where automakers have abandoned the show, entertainment, hot rods, and dealers have stepped in. Porsche dealers (not the automaker) will hold a press conference on Thursday to showcase the first electric Macan SUV. Tesla hasn’t attended the show since 2017, but Unplugged Performance, an aftermarket Tesla mod shop, will display their latest Cybertruck complete with custom bed storage, enhanced lighting, lift-kits, and more.
Filling Porsche’s old convention space, West Coast Customs will show off its custom mods. The Monterey Motorsports Festival Concours has brought 20 supercars aimed at motorheads with a sweet tooth for horsepower. And in the South Hall atrium (similar to the Huntington Place lobby), the All Roads Stage offers rotating exhibits, including Nilu, an American hypercar maker, and Mr. Car Sounds.
“Mr. Car Sounds can mimic the sound of any auto engine,” said Fortin. “He’s really quite entertaining.”
And if Bronco, Jeep, and Ineos aren’t your taste in overlanding vehicles? Then OVRland Outpost Powered has a sprawling display of gigantic, custom-built RVs complete with the latest outdoor goodies.
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Payne: GMC Sierra Denali EV goes toe-to-V8 with heavyweight champ, Sierra Denali ICE
Posted by Talbot Payne on November 21, 2024
Woodside, California — Forget Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul. The heavyweight fight to watch is GMC Sierra Denali Ultimate vs GMC Sierra Denali EV.
That’s right, the gold-studded GMC brothers are facing off in a V-8 vs. battery death match.
Along with Honda, General Motors Co. is the most committed legacy automaker to an electric future. It even says it will beat Honda there by 2035. So confident is GM of its transition to electron power that it isn’t testing the EV waters with a separate EV model line — think Honda 0 Series or Hyundai Ioniq or Volkswagen ID.
No, the General is hitting the EV front lines with battery-powered versions of ICE badges like the Chevy Equinox, Silverado, Blazer and GMC Sierra. Heck, it’s ditching its entire Cadillac lineup for EVs — even accelerating the demise of its popular ICE ute, the XT4.
So far the EVs have struggled to better their ICE peers — take the Equinox EV and ICE I recently tested back-to-back with the EV giving up a whopping 148 miles of range to the ICE while having to call in $7,500 government subsidies to make up for its $5,000-more-expensive sticker price. And that taxpayer sugar is in political peril with a new sheriff in D.C.
The GMC heavyweights, meanwhile, are a straight fight. Sure, the $91,995 Denali EV is five grand more expensive than the $86,995 Denali ICE, but that’s pocket change when we’re talking near-six figure automobiles.
GMC knows, like Porsche, that EVs are a luxury niche, so its first electric is the top-line Denali trim. Porsche did the same for its first EV with the Taycan sedan EV at the same price point as its Panamera sedan ICE.
And for the extra $5K, the Sierra EV comes loaded with tools you won’t find the in the Sierra ICE tool box.
OK, Payne, since this is a heavyweight fight, let’s talk some smack. Better tools than the Sierra Denali ICE’s, ferocious, growling, 420-horsepower, 6.2-liter V-8? Seriously? The same small-block V-8 as in the Corvette C8?
Oh, yes. On California Route 35, I floored the Sierra EV throttle and flattened my face. The 760 horsepower from the 205-kWh battery came on like a light bulb and I hit 60 mph in just 4.5 seconds, a second quicker than the Denali V-8.
Holy Mother of Pearl. But, dude, a 205-kWh battery? That must weigh as much as the Titanic! No way it’ll stay with the 5,586-pound Denali ICE.
Yeah, the Denali EV weighs, ahem, 8,960 pounds — a shocking number for a brand known to make the lightest-weight, best-engineered pickup chassis on the planet.
But with all that weight down low plus four-wheel-steer (another Sierra EV-exclusive tool), the Denali EV was surprisingly nimble through the Route 35 twisties. I even had some fun with an Alfa 4C that came up behind me. I would have loved to see the look on the driver’s face when I came off corners like a rocket ship.
Speaking of that carbon-fiber Alfa 4C, the Denali ICE has a carbon-fiber bed. How’s that for a sharp punch?
Punch absorbed, and right back ‘atcha with another haymaker. The Denali EV brings the most unique bed in large trucks: a midgate. I dropped the midgate behind the second row seats, stored the rear window in it and promptly opened another three feet of length to the standard, 5-foot-11-inch bed.
I grabbed a kayak, dropped the MultiPro tailgate in back and walked up the steps into the bed. I secured the kayak — its nose extending into the cabin — then stored my luggage in the frunk where the engine used to be. I activated Super Cruise when I hit the Route 101 freeway so I could drive hands-free.
Dragging a 5,500-pound trailer behind me like it was a matchbox, I merged onto the freeway with authority. Did I mention the EV has 300 pound-feet more torque than the Denali V-8 and can tow more weight?
Holy Mother of Pearl ! But I repeat myself. Frunks, midgates, and Denali EV has the same MultiPro gate and Super Cruise as the Denali ICE?!
Of course. It’s a Denali, a luxury suite on wheels. And with a Sierra-first: 24-inch wheels, I might add. The interior is exquisite just like the Denali Ultimate ICE: tasteful materials, jumbotron screen, head-up display, open-pore wood trim, even the longitude/latitude of Mt. Denali etched in the dash.
Though, to be fair, the blank fascia leaves me cold. Sierra Denali ICE grilles are such works of art, they could hang in the Met.
Art is nice, but what if your passions run to race cars or boats? Can the Denali EV go 480 miles without refueling like the ICE?
Ah, what took you so long to get to towing and range anxiety, the bane of EV pickups?
GM has done a good job addressing range with its 460-mile Ultium battery platform. The Denali EV should be able to tow the same distance as a Denali ICE — losing about 50% of range. That’s a big gain from, say, the Ford F-150 Lightning, which can only tow 100 miles (30% of range).
But head up I-75 with a sailboat behind you in a Denali ICE and you’ll sail though Marathon service stations with their parallel docking stalls and generous space to turn around. GULP! A Denali ICE will take on 480 miles of gas in two minutes and be on its way.
Not only is charging infrastructure for EVs poor, most stations aren’t designed for towing. Pull into, say, Electrify America chargers in Bay City and you’ll have to unhook the trailer …
Whaaaat?!
… then back into the stall on the edge of the Meijer parking lot for an hour to get your full, 390 miles of charge. At least you won’t have to wait too long if the four EA chargers are occupied, because GM EVs can now charge on Tesla fast chargers at the Meijer, too — with an adapter, of course.
That’s important if you’re towing in rural America, where often the ONLY fast chargers are Tesla’s.
Oof, Payne. Another EV KO’d by charging.
Charging will be the deal-breaker for many, no doubt. Eighty percent of Sierra pickup drivers tow, after all. But if you have $90K to spend on a Denali and don’t tow long distances, the EV is a superb product with a frunk-full of features that will have your buddies in awe. Did I mention Crabwalk is standard, too?
Holy Mother of Pearl!
Next week: 2025 Ford Ranger Raptor vs. Toyota Tacoma TRD Pro
2025 GMC Sierra Denali EV
Vehicle type: Battery-powered, all-wheel drive, five-passenger pickup truck
Price: $91,995, including $2,095 destination ($100,495 Max Range battery as tested)
Powerplant: 205 kWh lithium-ion battery mated to electric motors
Power: 760 horsepower, 785 pound-feet of torque (Max)
Transmission: Direct-drive automatic
Performance: 0-60 mph, 4.5 seconds (mfr.); towing, 10,500 pounds
Weight: 8,960 pounds
Fuel economy: EPA est. range, 390-460 miles
Report card
Highs: Pickup bed versatility; long range
Lows: Deep screen; charging challenges while towing
Overall: 4 stars
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Hyundai unveils upscale, electric, three-row Ioniq 9 at LA Auto Show
Posted by Talbot Payne on November 21, 2024
Los Angeles — While other manufacturers have moved away from auto show reveals in recent years, Hyundai Motor Co. has embraced the big tent. That includes the Los Angeles Auto Show, where the brand has pulled the sheets off a parade of new vehicles in the last four years including the gas-powered Palisade and Santa Fe SUVs and the battery-drawn Seven concept, Ioniq 5 N and Ioniq 6.
Hyundai continued the Tinseltown trend this year by introducing the electric, three-row 2025 Ioniq 9 family SUV.
Based on the three-row Seven concept that debuted in 2021, Ioniq 9 is the biggest vehicle the Korean automaker makes, along with the three-row Palisade. It will also likely be the most expensive, continuing the run of pricey EVs aimed at premium buyers willing to pay $10,000-$20,000 north of petrol-powered peers.
If the 2025 Palisade models run from $38K-$55K, expect Ioniq 9 models to sticker at $55K-$80K when they go on sale by mid-2025. Unlike the Korea-made, gas-powered Palisade, Ioniq 9 will be assembled in Georgia and eligible for the $7,500 federal EV subsidy at purchase (which the incoming Trump administration has talked about canceling).
Hyundai is keen to sell the Ioniq in California, which is home to plenty of high-income earners with a sweet tooth for electrons. Some 27% of new vehicle sales this year have been EVs, the majority of them Teslas. Fittingly, the Ioniq 9 was introduced Wednesday night (ahead of its Thursday Media Day appearance on the LA Show floor) at the famed Goldstein Mansion near Beverly Hills.
The multimillion-dollar mansion’s modern design has been the backdrop for numerous movies including the “Big Lebowski” and “Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle,” and the Ioniq 9 is a rolling living room on wheels.
Taking its cues from the roomy, ‘21 Seven concept, the Hyundai brings homey touches into the auto cabin. It includes a lovely, hoodless, 24-inch curved jumbotron housing the instrument and infotainment displays. The front row console can slide up to 7.5-inches backwards into the second row like a table — its armrest door hinged so passengers in either row can use it for storage as well as a lower drawer. All three rows feature USB-C charging ports for electronic devices, and the second and third rows fold flat for enhanced storage space — or vacuuming, as the case may be.
The signature living room feature, though, is the middle-row seats that swivel (when the vehicles is stationary) so passengers can face third-row occupants and converse or play games. The feature will not be available in North America at launch because it does not pass regulatory muster here.
Subscribers:Robotaxis, test drives, and anchor brands: the LA Auto Show rolls with changing times
The swiveling seats are a recognition of electric vehicles’ biggest drawback compared to their gas peers: charging. Ioniq 9 aims to make charging less of a burden with creature comforts for drivers to pass the time at long charging stops (the so-called Relaxation Seats also recline and offer massages) and technology to make the stops shorter. The Hyundai is built on the brand’s 800-volt, so-called Electric-Global Modular Platform platform that promises a recharge from 10-80% in 24 minutes. Fully charged, the 9 can travel up to 338 miles.
That pales in comparison to the gas Palisade, which can be fueled in two minutes to its 451-mile range, but Ioniq 9 is aimed at an affluent, green demographic. Such buyers (Tesla makes up 55% of the EV market in California) are familiar with the drill of making multiple, 15-30 minute stops on long trips (while charging at home for daily use) while the rugrats stretch their legs, grab a bite to eat or visit the restroom. If it’s raining, the family can swivel the Hyundai seats for a card game.
Ioniq 9 sits atop the Ioniq 5 SUV and Ioniq 6 sedan in Hyundai’s EV lineup (thus the Seven concept, but Hyundai clearly saw room for more nameplates between the 5 and 9 as it promises 23 EV models by 2030). It is aimed at Ioniq 5 (or Tesla Model Y) owners who need more interior room. The Hyundai is one of the first three-row electric SUVs in the market, joining the Volkswagen ID.Buzz and Kia EV9.
The electric SUV shows off the Ioniq model line’s premium aspirations as it is competitively priced against luxury, three-row EV entries like the $78K Cadillac Vistiq, $77K Rivian R1S, $81K Volvo EX90 and $82K Tesla Model X while offering similar amenities like 300-plus mile range and big screens. Ioniq 9 occupants can get in touch with nature thanks to a panoramic roof and premium interior materials including eco-leather, recycled fabric, and bio-suede fabric.
The Hyundai even sports goodies that competitors like the Vistiq don’t offer: a front truck, for example. The rear-wheel-drive Ioniq 9’s “frunk” measures 3.1 cubic feet (the all-wheel-drive model nearly two feet). That beats the Volvo EX90’s 1.2-cubic feet though it’s well shy of segment pioneer Model X’s 6.5 cubic feet.
The Hyundai promises a smooth, electric carpet ride while packing a large, 110-kWh battery under the flooboards. Don’t expect the explosive, sub-4 second 0-60 mph acceleration of a Vistiq or Model X, however. Hyundai says the quickest, AWD Ioniq 9 will reach 60 mph in 4.9 seconds.
Hyundai has pursued an innovative styling direction, eschewing “Russian doll” design. The Santa Fe, Sonata and Ioniq models all sport unique looks. Ioniq 9 is no different.
The interior is wrapped in a distinctive wardrobe that combines elements of its Ioniq stablemates as well as gas models. The front end bears the thin, mask-like LED lighting of the Sonata sedan while the chunky rear fenders echo the Tucson SUV.
The profile is both boxy (befitting a large, three-row SUV) and aerodynamically clean (behold the flush door handles and hinges) to extract a low, 0.28 drag coefficient for longer battery range. You’ll know the 9 by its unique boat tail and signature Ioniq cubed lights.
It will roll on 19, 20 and 21-inch wheels — with a special 21-inch saucer for the top-drawer Calligraphy model.
“Ioniq 9 embodies Hyundai Motor’s unwavering commitment and confidence in electrification,” said CEO Jaehoon Chang. “Based on Hyundai’s acclaimed E-GMP platform, Ioniq 9 offers outstanding interior space, providing customers with unique value while solidifying our leadership in the global EV market.”
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Chevy Malibu, RIP: 1964-2024
Posted by Talbot Payne on November 21, 2024
The Chevy Malibu is dead, long live the Chevy Malibu.
This month, for the second time in the last 60 years, one of General Motors Co.’s most recognizable nameplates is discontinuing production at the Fairfax Assembly Plant in Kansas. But it’s likely not the last we’ve heard of it. The Malibu is a time capsule on four wheels, tracing the evolution of the U.S. auto industry from 1960s muscle car to the 1980s regulatory turmoil that caused the Chevrolet’s first retirement to its resurrection as a family sedan to the current SUV trend that has sidelined it again.
It has traced industry technology trends from frame-rail to unibody chassis, from Turbo Hydra-Matic transmission to Android Auto connectivity, and from V-8 engines to hybrids.
Named after the hip California beach community north of Los Angeles, the Malibu arrived on the scene in 1964 as an upscale trim of the Chevelle. It was the also the year that another American icon, the Ford Mustang, debuted. LBJ was president, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 became law, Beatlemania invaded “The Ed Sullivan Show,” Muhammad Ali, then known as Cassius Clay, knocked out Sonny Liston, Richard Petty won the Daytona 500 and “Dr. Strangelove” opened at the box office.
“Malibu endured, in part, because it had a cool, evocative name,” said veteran auto author and editor Matt DeLorenzo. “A lot of car badges have lost that romance. The industry has gotten hung up on alphanumeric badges and made-up names.”
Here’s a look back on nine generations of Malibu and what made each unique.
First generation, 1964-67
Malibu debuted as an upper-trim family car for the Chevelle lineup, and was built in multiple forms: sedan, coupe, station wagon, convertible. It was produced on a rear-wheel-drive ladder frame, a similar architecture to that of today’s Detroit Three pickup trucks. Both 6-cylinder and V-8 engines were on offer.
Along with cars like the Pontiac GTO, Oldsmobile 442 and Mustang, the Malibu SS helped define the 1960s muscle car era with its 327-cubic inch, 300-horsepower V-8 engine — a number that climbed to 350 ponies in 1965.
Detroit makers dominated the U.S. market, and the Malibu was produced in plants across the U.S. and Canada. The trim sold 200,000 copies its first year — today, Malibu sales hover just over 100,000 units a year with a dependency on rental fleet sales.
Second generation, 1968-72
The car’s sleek, muscular design really came into its own in 1968 with a swept, coupe-like look. Malibu offered a short and long wheelbase to accommodate the variety of body styles. A 5.7-liter V-8 topped a healthy menu of engine options that drank leaded fuel — before ‘Bu transitioned to unleaded in 1971.
The interior got upgrades, too, including a new instrument panel with round gauges — similar to what fellow muscle car Camaro featured.
Third generation, 1973-77
The Chevelle got a complete redesign for 1973 with the face distinguished by a stacked pair of headlights on either side of the grille. Malibu in 1974 became Chevelle’s entry-level badge — and Laguna the premium model.
Befitting its muscle-car image, Malibu entered NASCAR from 1973-83, appearing in the winner’s circle 25 times. That success translated to sales — win on Sunday, sell on Monday — as Malibu was the best-selling Chevelle nameplate.
Fourth generation, 1978-83
For its fourth act, Malibu in 1978 became its own model line — replacing Chevelle — as mpg regulations forced Chevy to downsize its lineup. Malibu was downsizing as well — a foot shorter, 500 pounds lighter, with a V-6 on offer as well as the V-8. The SS model was axed and the two-door coupe style was discontinued after 1981.
The sedan proved popular with U.S. police departments, and the 1981 model also caught the eye of Iraq’s Saddam Hussein-led government. Iraq placed an order for 25,000 specially configured Malibus to be used primarily as taxicabs. Only half of the “Iraqi Taxis” were ultimately delivered.
Like a lot of downsized, rear-wheel-drive muscle cars, Malibu saw its sales struggle, and the model was discontinued in 1983.
Fifth generation, 1997-2003
The comeback kid. The Malibu was reborn after a 14-year hiatus — not as a muscle car — but as a front-wheel-drive, regulation-friendly, more fuel-efficient family sedan riding on a modern, unibody chassis. With the V-8 era in the rearview mirror, the ‘Bu offered a choice of four and six-cylinder engines.
“It’s like a hot dog with everything on it,” declared a 1997 ad for the car, which featured standard anti-lock brakes, theft-deterrent system, AC, zinc-coated body for rust prevention and a 4-speed automatic transmission. It advertised a drivetrain so advanced “you can travel up to 100,000 miles before the first scheduled tune-up.”
“The name was still magic,” recalled DeLorenzo of the car that replaced the Chevy Corsica. “It was a name that would resonate in a market where Chevy was facing increased competition from Japanese automakers like Toyota and Honda.”
Its trophy case also grew as the new model was awarded 1997 Motor Trend Car of the Year.
Sixth generation, 2004-07
In 2004, the Malibu made another significant platform change, shifting to GM’s global architecture. This generation sported perhaps the Malibu’s most understated design language — available in both sedan and wagon (Maxx) body styles.
In a blast from the past, Chevy for 2006 revived the SS model with a 240-horse, 3.9-liter V-6 and upgraded transmission to add some fudge ripple to the vanilla car’s reputation.
Seventh generation, 2008-12
The 2008 model was received with huzzahs from the press, winning 40 awards, including North American Car of the Year. While the new ‘Bu was hardly a head-turner, it was an upgrade from the previous gen’s anonymous looks, and Kelley Blue Book awarded it the “2008 Best Redesigned Vehicle.” The huzzahs didn’t translate to the hybrid model as Chevy tried its hand at the latest green trend. Introduced in 2009, the Malibu Hybrid landed with a thud and was discontinued after one model year.
“The standard, gasoline-only Malibu turned out to be an impressive family sedan. But it’s time to add the Malibu Hybrid to the growing pile of hybrid failures from General Motors,” panned the New York Times. The model was screwed together in Kansas City, Kansas, at Fairfax Assembly.
Eighth generation, 2013-15
Sold on six continents, the Malibu became a global nameplate. The interior gained a big console touchscreen. A hybrid model returned, part of a lineup of three four-cylinder engines for the North American market — half the cylinders from the ‘Bu’s V-8 beginnings.
Europe also got a sippy engine in the form of a diesel. Malibu was wrapped in safety tech, including front, side and even knee air bags. In 2014, the Chevy scored the highest marks from JD Power’s 2014 Initial Quality Study.
Ninth generation, 2016-24
The last-generation Malibu drew design inspiration from the 1960s fastback look — though the awkward, split-grille face didn’t match the athletic body. To meet ever-stricter mpg rules, it debuted stop-start technology, shed 300 pounds, and gained a hybrid model boasting 47 mpg. Though the base 1.5-liter turbo engine only had four cylinders, it still produced 35% more horsepower than the original 1964 car’s base 6-banger.
The 2016 car optioned a 2.0-liter turbo engine that put out 250 ponies. Notably, the front-wheel-drive Malibu era never ventured back to the NASCAR track. Even as Toyota raised its Malibu competitor, the Camry, to NASCAR Cup status, Malibu deferred to the more muscular Camaro.
“Malibu has been a performance car, an economy car, and a family car,” DeLorenzo said. “It has a great legacy. Shame it’s dying as a fleet car as customers flock to SUVs.”
As Malibu wraps up production, Fairfax Assembly is being retooled for another Chevy nameplate that’s being revived: the all-electric Bolt crossover.
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne
Revealed: Sporty, entry-level Acura ADX SUV goes head-to-head with BMW X1, Lexus NX
Posted by Talbot Payne on November 14, 2024
Acura has jumped into the affordable, compact luxury SUV segment with the sporty ADX.
The long-awaited entry-level SUV from Honda’s luxury brand will be the complement to Acura’s spicy compact Integra hatchback. Think BMW’s X1 and 2-series coupe tag team, or Audi’s Q3 SUV and A3 sedan. In an SUV-dominated age, Acura is the rare automaker to offer both an entry-level compact car and SUV.
Though sharing a front-wheel-drive/optional all-wheel-drive platform with Honda’s entry-level, Mexico-built HR-V SUV, the Acura will be more performance minded — upgrading to the peppy 1.5-liter turbo-4 engine found in the Integra and performance-focused Honda Civic Si. The otherwise practical HR-V has been panned for its 158-horse, four-cylinder engine, but expect 200 horses from the ADX mill.
The ADX, however, will not get a performance Type-S model like the Integra sedan. It will come in three trims: Base, A-Spec and A-Spec Advance. The ADX slots into the Acura lineup below the three-row, midsize MDX, and compact RDX. ADX shares those models’ sharp, sculpted exterior but nixes their unloved remote console touchpad for a proper 9-inch touchscreen.
ADX will go head-to-head with segment competitors like BMW X1, Lexus NX and Volvo XC40. Though pricing won’t be released until closer to its early 2025 launch, expect it to come in below those $40k-something utes.
“The all-new Acura ADX is an exciting new gateway model for the Acura brand, expanding our performance SUV lineup to four exceptional models in the most popular segments,” said Mike Langel, assistant vice president of sales for Acura USA. “ADX will hit the heart of the premium compact SUV segment, which has grown significantly over the past few years.”
The base model comes loaded with standard, so-called AcuraWatch safety features, including blind-spot assist, automatic emergency braking, rear cross-traffic alert and adaptive cruise control. Also standard are 18-inch aluminum alloy wheels, phone-charging pad, 9-inch touchscreen, 10.2-inch digital instrument display, eight-speaker premium sound system and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Like new GM products, Acura is also introducing a smartphone-like Google Built-in operating system — but it will initially only be available on the top Advance trim.
The A-Spec appearance trim upgrades with a sporty interior package including flat-bottom steering wheel, suede seat inserts, panoramic moonroof, ventilated front seats, 19-inch aluminum alloy wheels, rear-seat USB-C charging ports and four-way power adjustment passenger seat.
Step up to the A-Spec Advance Package and buyers luxuriate with leather seats, 15-speaker Bang & Olufsen sound system, the aforementioned Google Built-in OS, five distinct drive modes, surround-view camera, rain-sensing windshield wipers, heated steering wheel and more.
All-wheel-drive is available on all three trims, which will be good news to Michigan drivers bracing for snow drifts. All models also share Acura’s signature, frameless Diamond Pentagon grille and “chicane” LED daytime running lights and brake lights.
The aesthetics are complemented by state-of-the-art aerodynamics to enhance fuel economy, including an active grille shutter, front lip spoiler and underfloor cover. The grille is flanked by air curtain inlets routing air through the bumper and around the front, all-season tires. MPG figures will be announced closer to launch.
The 2025 ADX will be available in six exterior colors, including a new-to-Acura Adriatic Sea Blue Metallic. Three interior colors include Ebony, Red/Ebony, and a new-to-Acura Orchid/Blue. Blue is the new fashion in lux seats with examples including the Aston Martin DBX and Cadillac Vistiq.
Like the Integra, the ADX boasts generous 38-inches of rear seat legroom, which will be among best-in-class. Fold the rear seats flat and ADX boasts 55 cubic feet of cargo space.
Unlike the turbo-4-powered Integra and Civic Si, the ADX will not offer a manual gearbox, but instead offers a sport-tuned continuously variable transmission (CVT) with paddle shifters. Acura’s Step Shift programming simulates gear changes like an automatic transmission under acceleration.
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Payne: On and off-road with the downsized Toyota Land Cruiser
Posted by Talbot Payne on November 14, 2024
Antrim, Michigan — The dirt track of 10 Pines Ranch here is alive with American Motocross Racing District 14 racing during the summer/fall months. Bike racers young and old show up to show off their physical skills and fitness over the one-mile track’s diabolical mix of high-speed turns, jumps and moguls. Their steeds? A spicy international mix of Japanese and Austrian-made bikes.
The four-wheel world of off-road SUVs is getting spicier as well with the introduction of the all-new 2024 Toyota Land Cruiser.
Land Cruiser? The hulking, three-row, Tundra-based SUV that Toyota Motor Corp. retired two years ago? Toyota has brought the badge back as a midsize, two-row SUV to take on American icons Jeep Wrangler and Ford Bronco in the wildly popular off-road class. It’s a class that General Motors Co.’s Chevy and GMC brands have ignored, and Toyota has filled the void with a trio of off-road warriors: Land Cruiser, 4Runner and Lexus GX.
I spent a week with the Land Cruiser cruising all over Michigan from 10 Pines Ranch to four-lane highways to the off-road trails of The Mounds ORV Park in Flint. The robin-egg blue Toyota got a lot of attention.
“Ooooh, I see you have the new Land Cruiser,” said my friend Andrew in Charlevoix. “How do you like it?”
“It’s really smooth on-road for a truck-based SUV,” I said. “But it seems pricey for a Toyota SUV at $70K.”
“That’s cheap,” laughed Andrew. “My old one cost 90 grand.”
Oh.
Buyers are willing to pay a lot of coin for off-road macho, obviously — just take a look at the $62K Wrangler Rubicon 4xe and $80K Bronco Sasquatch I’ve tested. The Land Cruiser certainly looked the part with its two-tone roof and fashionable Lego-block exterior that compares favorably to modern Land Rover Defenders and Merc G-Wagons.
The ol’ Land Cruiser built its reputation as a high-end, off-road-focused full-size SUV that sat next to the three-row full-size Toyota Sequoia in the showroom. Toyota is positioning the new midsize Land Cruiser as a premium version of the Toyota 4Runner, which has been thrilling dirt-lovers for years.
Like the forthcoming remade 2025 4Runner (which I’ll test soon), Land Cruiser is based on the midsize Tacoma pickup’s ladder frame and shares off-road hardware like disconnecting front sway-bar and two-speed transfer case. Unlike the 4Runner — which options a base, rear-wheel-driver four-banger as well as a hybrid turbo-4 — Land Cruiser is only available with all-wheel drive and the hybrid powertrain.
So armed, it takes aim at high-end models in the segment (think Wrangler 4xe and Bronco Sasquatch) with a hybrid drivetrain and suitable on-road manners. In keeping with the industry trend of electronics narrowing the gap between mainstream and luxe brands, the Land Cruiser compared favorably to a $62K Range Rover Evoque I had in the driveway at the same time. Optioned with the $4,600 Premium Package, the Toyota was the Range Rover’s match with head-up display, JBL sound system, wireless phone charger — even a refrigerator in the center console.
Indeed, the Land Cruiser’s hybrid turbo-4 not only put up luxe-like numbers (326 horses and 465 pound-feet of torque) — but its stop-start engine shutoff at stoplights was barely noticeable compared to the Rover’s rough system.
Land Cruiser wants your $70K off-roader to be a pleasant, all-season daily driver.
There are no removable doors and roof here like those in Wrangler and Bronco. Instead, Land Cruiser floated up I-75 on its big 20-inch wheels like a regular SUV. Smooth, handsome, quiet. Well, almost quiet.
The Toyota is boxier than the 4Runner, with a tall greenhouse that reminds of the Merc G-Wagon. Entry and egress was a cinch for your giraffe-necked reviewer, but the Cruiser has the aerodynamics of a brick and A-pillar wind noise was constant. Still, it was easier on the ears than the Jeep/Ford twins and their big, knobby all-terrain tires.
The Land Cruiser was outfitted with Dunlop Grandtrek rubber — an all-terrain tire but with a noticeably less-aggressive tread pattern.
Watching bikers fly over jumps in their Kawasakis, Suzukis and Hondas at 10 Pines, I got the urge to take my Japanese dirt-kicker off-road as well.
At The Mounds ORV Park outside Flint the next day, the big Toyota proved that it belongs. Where the OG Wrangler is old-school analog when it comes to going off-road (even the transfer case shifter requires muscle to yank into Neutral), the Land Cruiser is all buttons and dials.
Still, Land Cruiser can’t match the Bronc’s high-tech digital system. Where the Toyota’s off-road mode selector gives you options of Sand, Mud, Dirt, Deep Snow — it’s up to you to choose which off-road tools to use. The Ford goes further, displaying graphics that match the landscape out your windshield — then engaging axle lockers, anti-roll bar disconnect, etc., depending on the mode you select. Now that’s premium.
Don’t like what Bronc recommended? Tool buttons on top of the dash can be engaged.
Heading out into The Mounds sandbox, I stopped, shifted to Neutral, then pushed a button to disconnect the front sway-bar. With the front wheels moving independently of one other, I comfortably navigated uneven moguls. Cruiser and I had a blast.
When I was over-aggressive, the rugged truck rails — WHUMP! — or front skid plate — WHUMP! — absorbed punishment. True to its comfort vibe, Land Cruiser has a less aggressive off-road setup (8.7 inches of ground clearance, 31-degree approach angle) than the Detroit twins, but it’s enough for most off-roading.
More problematic was the Toyota’s mileage.
The ol’ three-row Land Cruiser boasted a stonkin’ V-8 engine, 24.6-gallon gas tank and 8,100-pound towing capacity. Cruiser 2.0 offers half as many cylinders, 17.9 gallons of fuel and 6,000 pounds of towing. Though the ’24 model advertises itself as a 25 mpg-highway hybrid fuel-sipper, my mostly-highway travel returned just 17 mpg.
As a rule, I assume half that when towing, meaning the Land Cruiser may have to fill up every 150 miles with a motorbike trailer behind it. That’s a lotta gas stops. No wonder most tow vehicles I saw in the 10 Pines paddock were full-size Ram, Chevy Silverado and Ford F-150 pickups. The latter has a 36-gallon tank and over 800 miles of range (400 when towing).
My Toyota road trip was passenger and cargo-friendly. The interior lacked the personality of the exterior, but digital displays and phone connectivity were state-of-the-art — if not as intuitive as the Ford and award-winning Jeep systems.
Only the clever, aviation-style oval vents interrupted the Lego-block interior (round headlights are also an option). Heading home from The Mounds on I-75, I navigated rough construction-zone pavement. Ah, Michigan, where it’s often hard to tell the difference between on-road and off-road.
Good thing all-terrain tire, rugged SUVs are all the rage. Welcome back, Land Cruiser.
Next week: 2024 Mercedes-AMG GT 63 Coupe
2024 Toyota Land Cruiser
Vehicle type: Gas-powered, four-wheel-drive five-passenger SUV
Price: $57,900, including $1,395 destination charge ($70,589 as tested)
Powerplant: Hybrid-electric drivetrain with 2.4-liter, turbocharged inline 4-cylinder
Transmission: Eight-speed transmission
Power: 326 horsepower, 465 pound-feet torque
Performance: 0-60 mph, 7.7 sec. (Car and Driver, 2.0L); towing, 6,000 pounds
Weight: 5,639 pounds
Fuel economy: EPA est. 22 city/25 highway/23 combined
Report card
Highs: Head-turning looks; comfortable on and off-road
Lows: Noisy at highway speed; thirsty hybrid
Overall: 4 stars
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Unveiled: Three-row, $78K Vistiq completes Cadillac’s ambitious EV lineup
Posted by Talbot Payne on November 13, 2024
Sterling Heights — Behold the transformed Cadillac.
With the 2026 Vistiq three-row SUV completing Caddy’s five-model EV lineup, GM’s luxury brand has gone back to the future. The transformation is not only one of the most complete in the industry but places its models at the forefront of what Cadillac hopes will be an electric revolution.
The Vistiq joins the Mercedes EQS, Rivian R1S, Tesla Model X and Volvo EX90 in the electric three-row luxury SUV segment. That leading position follows two decades of Caddy playing catch-up to European brands on luxury performance with athletic, V-8-powered sedans and SUVs.
The EV lineup, viewed by media in Sterling Heights ahead of its public unveiling Tuesday, marks a return to Cadillac’s stylish, powerful, 20th century boulevard cruisers with an emphasis on exotic light displays, cutting-edge tech and lush interiors.
The $78,790 three-row Vistiq slots into the lineup below the estimated $340K Celestiq and $100K Escalade IQ and above the two-row $59,990 Lyriq and entry-level, $54,390 Optiq crossovers. The Vistiq’s price will be competitive with the $77K Rivian, $81k Volvo and $82K Tesla when it goes on sale in the second quarter of 2025 and will undercut the $105K Mercedes. The Vistiq adopts signature elements of its sister EVs, including IQ-suffix, Ultium battery platform, explosive acceleration from a 102-kWh battery, the horizontal dashboard screen, and lighted, so-called Black Crystal Shield front grille.
“Cadillac continues to set the standard for American luxury. The introduction of the Vistiq will continue to propel us into the EV future,” said Global Cadillac Vice President John Roth. “With the addition of Vistiq, Cadillac will be one of the only brands to offer an EV entry in every luxury SUV segment.”
As Roth’s role suggests, Cadillac is now a global brand as it uses its electric transformation to reintroduce itself to the world. Caddy is opening dealerships in Europe with its continental flagship in downtown Paris. Expect the three-row Vistiq, however, to be focused on North America with European dealerships carrying the smaller Lyriq and Optiq models. Cadillac will continue to sell its more affordable, gas-powered lineup in North America. The $50K XT6, for example, is the Vistiq’s gas-powered doppelganger.
The XT6, however, does not get the Vistiq’s considerable design and tech upgrades, beginning with an eight-inch longer wheelbase that opens more interior legroom and cargo room.
The EV also gains the 33-inch jumbotron first seen on the Lyriq. It is complemented by a command screen in the console for climate control, digital instrument display and optional head-up display. A second-row command screen is available so passengers in the back can control their environment.
“(For) differentiation with the XT6, we bring in a new suite of technology for Cadillac,” said Vistiq marketing manager Jim Hunter. “Noise cancellation, five-zone HVAC system, standard Super Cruise. XT6 has 18-inch wheels, with 20-inch wheels on upper trims. Right out of the gate, we have 21s on the Vistiq and we walk it up to 23s.”
Also new is an infotainment system controlled by the Google Built-in operating system with interface and navigation similar to an Android smartphone. The system does not support Android Auto or Apple CarPlay apps like Cadillac’s gas-fired chariots but will mirror a customer’s phone by syncing with Google Workplace tools.
Road trips will require extra time for charging, but the Google Built-in system can navigate a journey integrating charging stops where needed. Like other GM EVs, Vistiq is bi-directional charging capable so that it can charge other EVs or receive charge from them.
With an estimated 300 miles of battery range, the Vistiq lags the XT6’s 550-mile gas range and will add 79 miles of range in 10 minutes of fast-charging compared with the gas vehicle’s filling to full in two minutes.
The Vistiq’s roomy interior is stuffed with standard features for either the Sport or Lux base trims. Standard goodies include leather seats, 23-speaker AKG stereo, hands-free Super Cruise, blind-spot assist, blind-zone steering assist, side bicycle alert, automatic emergency braking, OnStar crash response and an extended panoramic sunroof. The massive sunroof includes a second window in the rear for third-row passengers.
“The dual panel roof extends over the front, second and third rows,” Hunter said. “Every seat is the best seat in the house. This is a luxury three-row to make sure all passengers are taken care of.”
Interior material options include black carbon-fiber trim, Lumen open-pore wood and Black Ash Cluster wood. Curiously, the Vistiq eschews a front truck (frunk) that adds significant cargo space in Rivian and Tesla competitors.
This rolling living room is wrapped in a striking, upright exterior design. If the 1960s Golden Era of Caddy sported chromed grilles and bumpers, then the 2020s EV Era is all about lit grilles with graphics. The Sport and Lux models get unique faces that Cadillac designers say were inspired by the Mandalorian’s helmet in the Star Wars series of that name. The Sport model sports an ebony theme while Lux shines with chrome. Big, 21-inch wheels come standard with options for 22- and 23-inch saucers on upper Premium Luxury and Platinum trims, respectively.
Choosing Premium Luxury also options a head-up display, night vision, adaptive air suspension and a larger 19.2-kW onboard battery for quicker charging. The pinnacle Platinum trim opens the door to goodies like a blue or Kona Brown interior.
All Vistiq trims ride on an all-wheel-drive platform with 614 horsepower (almost double the XT6’s 310 ponies) and massive 649 pound-feet of torque (nearly equal that of a Dodge SRT Hellcat) that will propel the land yacht to 60 mph in just 3.7 seconds (or about the same as a gas-fired CT4-V Blackwing sedan). That eyeball-flattening acceleration is achieved in what Caddy calls Velocity Max mode.
“The V button on the steering wheel is for Velocity Max mode,” Hunter said. “It allows (for) very exhilarating performance. All these components together make a large vehicle like this feel light and nimble where you are always in control.”
Premium Luxury and Platinum trims also option rear-wheel-steer for more nimble handling and parking lot maneuverability.
As impressive as Vistiq’s performance specs are, the family hauler’s focus is on traveling comfort. Cruise Metro Detroit byways and interstates, and Vistiq will drive itself and change lanes automatically while motorists sit back hands-free to relax, get a seat massage or eat meals.
Under its own sunroof, even the roomy third row is designed for comfort with smartphone holders, USB charging sports, cupholders and padded armrests. A Cadillac Mondrian graphic (named after the abstract Dutch artist, the graphic echoes the Cadillac crest) decorates the third-row window from the outside while offering privacy to passengers inside.
Vistiq will be assembled in Spring Hill, Tennessee.
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Pontiac-based GT1 births its first 1,400-horsepower hypercar based on the Ford GT
Posted by Talbot Payne on November 11, 2024
Pontiac — From the 1,063-horsepower, Formula One-inspired, hybrid Mercedes-AMG One to the 1,900-horsepower electric Pininfarina Battista to the screaming, 1,063-horsepower twin-turbo V-8 Corvette ZR1, this decade has seen an explosion in all-new mid-engine technologies promising unheard of hypercar performance.
But there is nothing quite like the old-school performance of the 1,400-horsepower GT1.
The first customer for the Pontiac-based, limited-edition hypercar startup took delivery this week. The GT1 marries two Detroit performance icons — the mid-engine Ford GT and push-rod, 427-cubic inch NASCAR Roush V-8 — to create one of the most explosive cars on the planet. The Detroit News got an exclusive look at the instant classic, its V-8 growling, when it rolled out of the garage for the first time at M1 Concourse before shipping to Indianapolis.
The brainchild of Michigan entrepreneur Fred Calero, GT1 began as a barn find in 2019 — the same year the Academy Award-winning “Ford v Ferrari” made Ford’s mid-engine Le Mans prototype a household name. As The Detroit News first reported in 2022, Calero discovered the last 30 chassis made for the 2005-2006 GT supercar — chassis kept out of an obligation to owners should a car require an extensive rebuild or be totaled.
Working out of a garage at the private M1 Concourse auto club, Calero and his elves are stuffing each chassis with a twin-turbocharged NASCAR engine and state-of-the-art suspension and aerodynamics technology. The results: head-turning 1960s GT40 design powered by head-snapping 21st-century speed.
“We toyed with a lot of different powerplants. We (went) with something that paid tribute to the 1966 Le Mans winner and the 427-cubic-inch pushrod, old-school, big V-8,” Calero said in his M1 garage. “There is something to be said for new modular engines producing tremendous horsepower. But from sheer cool factor, this is pretty cool.”
Each of the 30 limited-edition cars is a canvass onto which owners can paint their dream hypercar. Options are endless: an homage to the black #2 1966 Le Mans-winner, or the classic Gulf oil colors of the ‘68 winner, or the special-edition #98 paint job created by 2005 GT designer Camillo Pardo as a tribute to racer Ken Miles.
The first GT1 out the door is bound for a car collector in Canada (he prefers to remain private) who imagined his GT1 as an exotic show car dressed in tinted-red exposed carbon fiber, twin gold stripes and gold pinstriping. GT1 dubbed the tinted red color Eau Rouge after the famous corner at Belgium’s Spa racetrack.
The owner picked up his $1.3 million GT1 in Indianapolis. It’s a work of art that will hit 60 mph in less than three seconds with a top speed north of 200 mph.
“It was a laborious process looking at what we could do with the carbon-fiber body,” Calero said. “We looked at different colors and . . . landed on this tinted burgundy. We think it looks amazing, especially in the bright sunlight.”
Under the blazing red skin of the GT1 Chassis #1 is 58 years of automotive history.
When Ford created the GT40 in 1966 to take on Ferrari at the world’s greatest sportscar race in Le Mans, France, it birthed a legend that defines the company to this day. The GT40 lifted off six decades of Ford performance, including four straight Le Mans victories, the GT racing success of the Ford Mustang, two more generations of mid-engine GT production cars, another Le Mans win in 2016, and the debut this year of a global GT3 Mustang racing program.
The GT40 design isn’t getting older, it’s just getting better. The car’s timeless design inspired the 2005-2006 and 2017-2022 GTs – both of which Calero owns. Developed in parallel with the 2016 race car that won the Le Mans GT class on the 50th anniversary of the 1966 GT40 win, the 2017-2022 GT was on the bleeding edge of supercar performance.
The 2005-06 generation, be contrast, was never a factory racing machine, and so its personality is more malleable. Witness the GT1.
In the engine bay sits the pushrod 427-cube engine — the same size as the 1966 Le Mans race car. Built by Livonia-based Roush Yates, the so-called RY45 straps twin turbos to its back to make up to 1,400 ponies. That’s nearly three times the 550-horsepower V-8 originally in the 2005 GT. That power is translated to the track via huge 20-inch rear rims wrapped in 13-inch tires, 19-inch rims up front with 11 inch-wide tires, and state-of-the-art shocks developed by JRI.
“We think that . . . a beautiful body from Camillo and space-age chassis is a good start,” smiled Calero. “Our intention was not to create our own car. Matech, a team out of Switzerland, had campaigned (a similar race car) at Le Mans in 2010. We have the chassis (and) body. . . so we started to put pieces together with a lot of engineering from a lot of people. (There’s a) great ecosystem of suppliers based not far from here in Pontiac.”
Calero developed a test mule and put it through over 2,000 miles of testing in order to establish the performance cred expected of a $1 million-plus collectible.
The advent of high-performance electric vehicles has ignited a historic rush of startup auto companies, but GT1 is at the forefront of another one of the auto industry’s hottest trends: retrofitting classic cars with state-of-the-art tech.
Los Angeles-based Singer reskins 1989-94 Porsche 911s with carbon-fiber shells propelled by steroid-fed flat-6 engines. Revology in Florida stuffs classic 1967 Shelby Mustang GT350 bodies with a modern V-8 and electronics.
The GT1 team based its upgrade on Geneva-based Matech’s six race-prepared 2005 GTs that competed in Europe from 2010-11. Ex-Ford GT engineer Jim Dunham joined the GT1 team, applying Matech advancements like a front splitter, widened front track and updated, gooseneck rear wing.
“There is something about the silhouette of the original GT,” said Calero, who boasts a Porsche Cayman GT4 and Ferrari 458 Challenge car in his personal collection. “Ford does such a good job with their retro-designs, whether the Bronco or the GT. Its shape is timeless, and we had to be careful we didn’t do too many changes that would take away from the ‘66 look.”
But for the fashionable distressed leather that Chassis #1 owner chose for the carbon-fiber bucket seats, the interior is race-car spartan with electronic displays and yoke steering wheel. Successful pro race driver Johnny O’Connell helped refine the test mule.
It made its public debut at Indianapolis’s Performance Racing Industry trade show, wowing the 2023 Amelia Island and Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance events.
Each owner will have their GT1 authenticated by Ford Performance before they can pick from options including seat material, livery, wheel colors, dive planes and more. Cool factor comes standard.
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
As government EV regulations rise, performance models fall
Posted by Talbot Payne on November 11, 2024
Sonoma, California — Subaru Corp. this fall rolled out its WRX sedan performance lineup for the 2025 model year, and noticeably missing was an updated, $40,000 WRX STI, the Sopwith Camel-winged, 300-plus horsepower hellion. Previous generations of the STI are known for wowing cars ‘n’ coffee gatherings and speeding past more pricey Porsches at track days.
But the latest model couldn’t outrun government regulations.
“In the current regulatory environment, it’s not possible to sell a vehicle with that kind of capability,” Subaru Product Line Manager Chris Charles said at a Subaru media event here. Automakers are facing federal and state fines if their product lineups don’t meet emissions targets.
Under regulatory pressure, the Subaru WRX STI has been discontinued. Tyler Gourley, Subaru
Not since the 1974 CAFE laws has the U.S. auto industry been under so much government regulatory pressure. Familiar patterns are emerging — Chrysler (now part of Stellantis NV) is in financial duress, regulations have opened the door for low-cost Asian competitors, and low-volume, high-power, internal-combustion-engine enthusiast vehicles are getting the axe.
The incoming Trump administration campaigned on a deregulatory platform to unwind federal emissions mandates aimed at eliminating internal combustion engines sometime in the next decade. But automakers say California — the country’s biggest auto market — is the tail wagging the dog with its stringent Section 177 zero-emission auto sales mandates that zero-out gas and diesel engines by 2035.
Subaru, for example, acknowledged the difficulty of meeting current federal regulations but said the larger concern is so-called Section 177 states that have adopted California’s tough emissions mandates — states including Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Oregon, Vermont and Washington, where foreign makes like Subaru sell well.
Fifty years ago, Detroit muscle cars like the AMC Javelin, Dodge Challenger, Plymouth Barracuda and Pontiac GTO were canceled. Fast forward to today, and once again, popular models like the V8-powered Dodge Challenger, Dodge Charger and Chevy Camaro also have been shelved.
Hemi-V8 powered Dodge products like this Challenger SRT Hellcat Widebody have run afoul of federal emissions regulations and have been discontinued. FCA US LLC, Dodge
This time, it’s not just Detroit performance brands feeling the pain. In addition to Japan’s Subaru STI, European performance icons like the Jaguar F-Type, Audi TT and ICE Porsche 718 are ending production.
“These performance vehicles aren’t coming back, and with regulations in place we don’t expect any model changes until after the 2028 model year,” said Stephanie Brinley, S&P Global associate director of auto intelligence. “Automakers have to meet emissions requirements 18 months before the model year.”
With the support of some automakers, the Trump administration in 2019 revoked California’s exemption from federal law to set its own emissions standards, but the Biden administration immediately reversed it.
With billions in fines looming from the Golden State’s mandates, automakers have been proactive in focusing on EVs while canceling low-volume ICEs. Beginning in 2026, California rules require require 35% of sales to be EV/hydrogen power, though most brands’ EV sales are in the low single digits today. Compliant vehicles earn credits toward meeting the standards, and automakers that don’t have enough credits in a given year must pay fines or buy credits from companies that have extra.
“EVs gain six times more credits in (Section) 177 states than plug-in hybrids,” Garrick Goh, car line manager for Subaru subcompact SUVs, told The Detroit News. “So we’re focusing on EVs like the Solterra.”
Auto analyst Brinley expects the Trump administration will again rescind California’s emissions waiver, but that the state will challenge the move and the rulemaking will become tied up in the courts. She also expects federal rules to be relaxed, but not before the 2028 model year, and that is too late for current-generation engines that are being dropped to meet the emissions regulations.
“Dodge’s Hemi V-8, for example, is gone,” she said, pointing out that automakers are already developing drivetrains for 2028 standards. “It couldn’t meet 2024 standards and no one is talking about retroactively repealing those rules.”
The market shakeout stands to benefit larger automakers, which can better spread regulatory costs. The regulations have driven Subaru into the arms of Toyota Motor Corp., Japan’s biggest automaker, in order to produce its electric Solterra and meet California’s EV sales mandates. But Toyota has also stepped into the ICE performance space vacated by the WRX STI space with its own rowdy GR Corolla, and the Japanese giant now has more affordable sportscars in the U.S. market than Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Co. with the GR Corolla, GR86, and Supra.
“We’ve seen this movie before,” said Karl Brauer, a veteran iSeeCars.com auto analyst and performance car enthusiast. “But in the past, when manufacturers dumped small-volume performance cars, they shifted to a more profitable alternative. What’s different this time is that the regulations are all stick and no carrot. Regulations are killing ICE cars, but EVs are not a profitable alternative.”
To meet tightening international climate standards, Porsche is discontinuing the gas-fired, 718 Cayman sportscar (pictured) and moving to an electric model. Porsche
Brauer points to Chrysler Corp.’s decision in the early 1980s to ditch V8-fired muscle cars, under pressure from federal gas-mileage laws, and pivot to better-selling fuel-efficient cars based on the front-wheel-drive K chassis. Or struggling GM’s decision in 2002 to discontinue the Camaro and invest in more profitable SUVs.
“Today, EVs are not a better profit alternative for the manufacturer,” Brauer said. “They are losing image and profit by discontinuing these popular models in order to meet regulations.”
Big mainstream automakers like Ford have benefited by moving early on battery-powered versions of popular nameplates to gain EV credits so they can continue to build small-volume, halo ICE products like the V8-powered Mustang. The company says sales of its electric F-150 Lightning and Mustang Mach-E SUV allowed it to introduce popular performance models like the seventh-generation, 2024 V-8-powered Mustang and 2024 V8-powered F-150 Raptor.
“Look at high-volume, big automakers like Ford, GM and VW,” Brauer said. “Their overall mix of low-emission vehicles can be spread out to meet regulations.”
Automakers are experimenting with a new breed of electric performance cars as governments push them toward an all-electric future. But raw speed requires bigger, more expensive batteries and so those models also tend to be focused on affluent buyers — think the $60K-plus Hyundai Ioniq 5 N, Dodge Charger Daytona Banshee and electric Porsche Cayman.
Owners forums are full of speculation on whether affordable pocket rockets like the Subaru STI will be reborn as electric cars. Subaru declines to speculate on future product.
Brauer said affordable electric performance cars are unlikely, given battery expense and weight, which works against the nimble handling that enthusiasts expect. But he is bullish on the future of affordable hybrid performance cars.
“Hybrids hold the potential to keep these ICE nameplates going because their batteries are small and can be focused on performance just like fuel injection brought performance and better fuel economy in the 1970s,” said Brauer. “And they don’t require a lifestyle change to operate the way EVs do. Most performance EVs are owned by affluent, multi-car households. Hybrids can serve all the needs of a single-car-owner enthusiast.”
U.S. government EV regulations have raised concern that they benefit Chinese electric automakers like BYD Auto Co., and the Shenzhen-based automaker made news late last month by overtaking U.S. EV maker Tesla Inc. in quarterly revenue. What got less attention, however, was that the Chinese giant’s growth came from a 76% year-on-year increase in gas-electric hybrid sales to more than half of the company’s 1.1 million vehicle deliveries.
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or Twitter @HenryEPayne.
Payne: Five manual hotties vie for best stick
Posted by Talbot Payne on November 7, 2024
Charlevoix — I tested more new manual vehicles this summer/fall than I did electric vehicles: the Honda Civic Si, Mazda MX-5 Miata, Subaru BRZ tS, Toyota GR Corolla, Volkswagen Jetta GLI. All 6-speeds, all joy.
It’s a telling sign as EV sales slow amid indications they are a niche segment, not the mass market many brands and their government allies foresee. An electric motor-driven future would make manual-transmission, internal combustion-engine gearboxes obsolete. Yet, a key ingredient that EVs have been missing is the enthusiast community, as electrics have largely been adopted by luxury and green-class buyers who like their smooth ride.
Enthusiasts, meanwhile, like to be in charge. Pun intended.
Go to an autocross, track day or empty country road, and you will find manuals galore. Drivers rowing boxes, heel-and-toeing, slipping the clutch for burnouts, banging off the redline. EV motors lack that visceral thrill while their accompanying batteries make performance cars heavier and less maneuverable. There are lotsa drag strip videos of Teslas blowing away muscle cars. Outmaneuvering sportscars in the twisties? Not so much.
“This electric transition has generated zero enthusiasm among the motorsports enthusiasts who have always stood in the middle of what’s popular,” said fellow SCCA racer Jack Baruth. “This is the first time in automotive history that we’ve had a class of cars aimed at everyday purchasers … and there is no motorsports interest.”
When EVs reach for emotion, they feel compelled to mimic a manual. The wicked-quick electric Hyundai Ioniq 5 N, for example, has a GRIN SHIFT mode for fake shifting sounds. Would a flying car mimic squealing tires on turns?
Meanwhile, ICE brands continue to perfect sticks — and target the niche audience that covets them. Gone are the days when manuals were the cheapest thing on the lot. The Civic Si, MX-5 Miata, BRZ tS, GR Corolla and Jetta GLI are all affordable pocket rockets with a common goal: put a smile on your face.
Here’s how I rank ‘em.
5) VW Jetta GLI. The GLI is the sedan sibling to VW’s famed GTI hot hatch, but for 2025 it has stepped up with improved interior and exterior styling. Over the whoops and whip-like turns of Hell, I rowed the Jetta’s gearbox, its front-wheel-drive chassis rotating beautifully. Out of the Hankerd Road hairpin in second hear, the growly GLI surged forward with 258 pound-feet of torque from its turbo 2.0-liter.
But upshifting from second to third can be tricky. The V-dub’s box is rubbery compared to competitors, and upshifts need to be executed carefully lest you grab a bag of neutrals. On track, a mistake could ruin a good lap.
Downshifts are easier thanks to automatic rev-matching which saves time over the traditional heel-and-toe foot dance. Less traditional, and more maddening, is GLI’s haptic touch steering wheel — a step backward from the standard Jetta’s adaptive cruise and volume button controls. At just $33K, GLI is flawed — but priced right in this competitive set.
4) Mazda MX-5 Miata. Miata’s six-slinger is the best in this toybox. With short throws, crisp shifts and excellent pedal placement for heel-and-toe (no auto rev-match here), MX-5’s natural habitat is an autocross. With short wheelbase and rear-wheel drive, you can literally throw the Miata around a cone-filled parking lot.
With that wee size, of course, comes compromise, and MX-5 is the least trip friendly of our quartet. At 6’5” I don’t so much drive the Mazda as wear it.
I was stuffed into the driver seat, my head in the roof. Strap on a helmet, and I have to cock my head. Dropping the top brings relief on Michigan summer days. So compact is the cockpit that I could reach up and peel back the soft top like removing a blanket from a bed. WHUMP! In one motion, I secured it in front of the trunk. Speaking of trunks, Mrs. Payne and I could only fit one suitcase.
3) Honda Civic Si. Everything has changed from the 2006 Si sitting in my garage to the 2025 model — and nothing at all. At its core is a slim stick shift with short, notchy throws. The electronics age has blessed the Si’s manual with rev-matching for quick downshifts.
The transmission controls the same 200 horsepower as in ‘06, though the engine is now a 1.5-liter turbo-4 with better low-end torque so you don’t have to row the box as much. Still, I wish there was more top-end horsepower, like the screaming 8,000 RPM red line of the 2006’s 2.0-liter i-VTEC engine.
The cheapest car in this peer test, there is no denying the Si’s value, however. I tore around the twisties of Oakland County and Nashville’s Natchez Trace Highway this summer, never missing a shift. The stick — now exclusive to the Si and Type R performance models — is more intuitive than Jetta GLI, and both sedans have more comfortable interiors than rear-wheel-drive sportscars listed here. Their front-wheel-drive systems mean they are more all-season friendly, too.
2) Toyota GR Corolla. The GR (pronounced GRRRR) is a living, breathing example of the superiority of the manual experience. Arm it with the six-shooter and it is a rockin’, sockin’ hooligan ride as I wrung the turbo-3 cylinder’s neck, induced lurid slides and took advantage of its stiff chassis. No rev-match here, but GR features intuitive shift pattern and pedal placement for heel-and-toe.
Equip it with the auto transmission (new for 2025) and it’s … meh.
With AWD, GR is an all-season Michigan threat. The only downside of this hot hatch is you have to take your legs off to fit in the backseat.
1) Subaru BRZ tS. Rear space is also a drawback of the ‘Ru coupe, but there’s nothing like a rear-wheel sports car when it comes to on-the-limit performance. The new tS model dresses the BRZ in black trim, summer tires and big Brembo brakes. Manual shifter standard.
No rev matching here, but pedal placement is perfect and heel-and-toe downshifts a cinch. The shifter is more substantial than the Civic Si’s unit and makes for quick, notchy gear changes. The tranny is married to Subie’s signature flat-four engine which — like a Porsche Boxer 4 — makes for one of the industry’s lowest centers of gravity. That’s sportscar mojo.
I had a blast up north over M-32’s spaghetti roads — yet when I had to back ‘er down in small towns, tS comes with adaptive cruise control, which maintained the speed limit while coordinating nicely with the stick shift. That livability extended to the cargo space. Like a mini-911 (and unlike MX-5), BRZ has small backseats for storage — and a healthy boot out back for luggage. It’s a road trip car you can comfortably drive to faraway track days.
And with 356 miles of range and two-minute fill-up time, it’s more convenient than an EV. #SavetheManual.
2024 Subaru BRZ tS
Vehicle type: Front-engine, rear-wheel-drive, four-passenger sportscar
Price: $32,265 including $1,170 destination fee ($36,465 tS as tested)
Powerplant: 2.4-liter Boxer 4-cylinder
Power: 228 horsepower, 184 pound-feet of torque
Transmissions: Six-speed manual
Performance: 0-60 mph, 5.8 seconds (Car and Driver est); top speed, 140 mph
Weight: 2,835 pounds
Fuel economy: EPA, 20 mpg city/27 highway/22 combined (manual)
Report card
Highs: Notchy shifter; useful adaptive cruise control
Lows: Small back seat; RWD in winter
2024 Toyota GR Corolla
Vehicle type: Front-engine, all-wheel-drive, four-passenger hot hatch
Price: $36,995 base, including $1,095 destination (as tested)
Powerplant: 1.6-liter turbocharged 3-cylinder
Power: 300 horsepower, 275 pound-feet of torque
Transmission: Six-speed manual
Performance: 0-60 mph, 4.9 seconds (Car and Driver)
Weight: 3,186 pounds
Fuel economy: EPA 21 mpg city/28 mpg highway/24 mpg combined
Report card
Highs: All-wheel-drive grip; notchy stick shift
Lows: Cramped back seat; gets pricey
2025 Honda Civic Si
Vehicle type: Front-engine, front-wheel-drive, five-passenger sedan
Price: $31,045, including $1,095 destination fee (as tested)
Powerplant: 1.5-liter turbo-4
Power: 200 horsepower, 192 pound-feet of torque
Transmission: Six-speed manual
Performance: 0-60 mph, 6.6 seconds (Car and Driver); top speed, 135 mph
Weight: 3,000 pounds (est.)
Fuel economy: 27 mpg city/37 highway/31 combined
Report card
Highs: Roomy back seat; great price
Lows: Engine power trails competitors
2024 Mazda MX-5 Miata
Vehicle type: Front-engine, rear-wheel drive, two-passenger sportscar
Price: $33,650, including $1,165 destination charge ($39,045 Club as tested)
Powerplant: 2.0-liter four-cylinder
Power: 181 horsepower, 151 pound-feet of torque
Transmission: Six-speed manual
Performance: 0-60 mph, 5.7 seconds (Car and Driver); top speed, 140 mph
Weight: 2,368 pounds
Fuel economy: EPA 26 city/34 highway/29 combined
Report card
Highs: Best shifter in test; easy drop-top
Lows: Limited storage; RWD in winter months
2025 Volkswagen Jetta GLI
Vehicle type: Front-engine, front-wheel-drive, five-passenger compact sedan
Price: Base price $33,940, including $1,225 destination charge (as tested)
Powerplant: 2.0-liter turbo-4 cylinder
Power: 228 horsepower, 258 pound-feet of torque
Transmission: Six-speed manual
Performance: 0-60 mph, 6.1 seconds (Car and Driver est.); top speed, 126 mph
Weight: 3,217 pounds
Fuel economy: 27 mpg city/36 highway/30 combined
Report card
Highs: Auto rev-matching downshifts, roomy interior
Lows: Rubbery shifter; haptic steering wheel controls
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
As Cruise reboots, Waymo robotaxis are everywhere in Frisco. Here’s what the ride is like
Posted by Talbot Payne on November 4, 2024
San Francisco — General Motors Co.’s Cruise autonomous ride-share service left ‘Frisco last year after one of its driverless shuttles dragged a pedestrian, but the void has been quickly filled by Google’s Waymo One, which now dominates the city’s robotaxi market.
Waymo’s headless Jaguar iPace crossovers are ubiquitous across the city, and I hailed multiple rides on a recent visit. The white Jaguars have become another bucket-list item in this tourist-friendly city filled with destinations like the Golden Gate Bridge, Lombard Street and Ghirardelli Square.
In a metropolis at the hub of the electronics revolution, robocars fit in with Tesla Cybertrucks, hotel delivery robots and electric scooters. While Waymo and Zoox have also tested here for years, GM’s Cruise was the first to implement a driverless, app-based service in June 2022. Putting its controversial tenure behind it, Cruise is back testing again and its driverless Chevy Bolts are expected to return soon.
It will return to an autonomous landscape that is changing fast.
“It feels like Waymo is part of the culture here,” said Elan Levin, 37, an early Cruise adopter who is a regular Waymo One customer. “Initially, autonomous cars felt weird . . . but now Waymo has opened their drives to all times of day. Waymo has eaten Cruise’s lunch.”
Waymo launched its first driverless service in Tempe, Arizona, in 2020 and now services 315 square miles of Metro Phoenix. Armed with its Arizona learnings, Waymo’s San Francisco operations (covering 55 square miles) have been trouble-free. Had Cruise’s rollout gone more smoothly, it might be on the same track as Waymo today.
I ordered a Waymo One at my hotel on a Tuesday in the growing Mission Bay district two blocks south of Oracle Park where the Giants play baseball. I had the Waymo app on my phone after multiple trips using the service in the Phoenix area.
The app works like those for Uber or Lyft: set your destination, confirm your ride, wait for the car. Unlike Uber and Lyft, Waymo One is more discriminating about where it picks up/drops off customers — avoiding tight spaces that human drivers can intuitively negotiate. For example, Waymo would not pick me up in my hotel’s driveway. It asked to meet across the street.
My destination? The San Francisco Cartoon Museum near Ghirardelli Square. Feeling peckish, I directed the Jaguar to an In-and-Out restaurant nearby — California’s famed fast food burger joint. When in Rome . . .
Waymo entered the San Francisco market in ‘18, testing self-driving electric vehicles on crowded city streets with technicians on board. I’ve been a passenger in every iteration of Google’s autonomous journey since its inception in 2014, when the company outfitted Lexus RX models with autonomous hardware. The Lexus gave way to the Google bot prototype in 2015 (immortalized by Oatmeal.com as the “Skynet Marshmallow Bumper Bot”). The service rebranded as Waymo in 2016, outfitted an armada of Chrysler minivans, and entered Metro Phoenix. I’ve also experienced Tesla’s Full Self-Driving software across the Bay Area.
I hailed a GM Cruise Bolt in November 2022 — not long after it had begun public service.
“Waymos go to every corner of the city. Cruise only served a narrow slice of the city — and didn’t go downtown,” said Levin. “Waymo even goes to Stonestown Galleria (mall) at the south end. They have the big Whole Foods market, which is where the people with cars go.”
Cruise’s Bolt bots didn’t receive approval to run 24/7. In my ‘22 visit, I could only board a Cruise from 10 p.m.-5:30 a.m. Autonomous cars work best at night, when their sensors don’t have to cope with sun glare, and the Cruise machines did a healthy business ferrying tipsy customers home from bars. But if it rained, the Cruises stopped, dumping customers on the street to hail an Uber.
Waymos are licensed to drive 24/7 through rain, sleet or gloom of night.
My Waymo took 13 minutes to arrive at the curb — about three times as long as a comparable, human-driven Uber. In my four rides over two days, that disparity was consistent. Rates, however, were competitive. Indeed, my 35-minute ride to In-and-Out would cost $13.85, cheaper than the $20 Uber alternative.
I hopped into the rear seat and an automated voice welcomed me. “Hey there, Henry!” I pushed START RIDE in the rear console screen and we were off, the steering wheel spinning this way and that as we negotiated San Fran’s complicated streets.
The cabin was noticeably different than my previous Bolt and Waymo rides — or even the typical human-driven New York taxicab. No plexiglass shield separated me from the front compartment. Passengers may be buckled in anywhere but the driver’s seat. The wheel is pasted with a PLEASE KEEP YOUR HANDS OFF THE WHEEL, THE WAYMO DRIVER IS IN CONTROL AT ALL TIMES. If sensors detect a violator, the car won’t move.
Waymo One employs about 300 vehicles in Frisco (700 vehicles nationally with Waymo targeting new markets in Austin, Texas, and Los Angeles). With its Bay Area volume, Waymo provides credible 24/7 service to app-holders in downtown, Daly City, Broadmoor and Colma. When I rode Cruise two years ago, its smaller 80-model fleet limited app access.
Waymo One does not yet provide service to/from San Francisco International Airport.
After a burger and cartoons, I strolled up to Ghirardelli for sweets. Bags in hand, I ordered a Waymo to return to my hotel. A family of four ordered next to me, and both Jaguars arrived at the same time.
On the 35-minute trek back, the iPace negotiated the city’s complex roadscape. Scooters and motorbikes traveled alongside me in a designated lane. Families crossed with strollers. Human cars popped out of parking garages. The Waymos shared the road with remarkable deftness. On a two-lane street, my robot deftly shot the gap between traffic and a curbside dumpster to make a right turn on red.
The Jaguar bristled with hardware: 29 cameras, five lidar sensors, six radar sensors. Waymo began offering fully autonomous rides (without a trained human specialist behind the wheel) through its app to limited members of the public in San Francisco in November 2022. In August 2023 — over a year after Cruise opened its service — Waymo was authorized to charge for rides.
“Autonomous vehicles are going to be a slow rollout,” said Stephanie Brinley, S&P Global associate director of auto intelligence. “We estimate there will only be 230,000 units by 2034. It’s important, but it’s on a slow burn.”
Waymo cut its teeth in Phoenix, offering rides to suburbanites on wide neighborhood streets. On San Francisco’s steep, narrow streets, a variety of customers flock to the service.
“It’s not just tech folks, it’s older folks,” said Levin. “Some of my senior neighbors are still in COVID lockdown mode and they feel safer when they go out in a Waymo and don’t have to share the car with a strange driver.”
At 5 p.m. Wednesday, I booked a ride to California Pizza Kitchen, near Union Square at 3rd and Stevenson about 25 minutes away. Wait time: five minutes. Cost: $15.02 during a busy Wednesday rush hour. I like CPK because I can bring my computer bag, spread out in a booth, and get work done while I eat.
Had I needed the trunk for a larger bag, it was available — an improvement over the Pacifica and Chevy Bolt shuttles with their hatchbacks off-limits due to computer equipment. Waymo has made strides in space management.
As GM looks to return to San Francisco, it has shelved its large Cruise Origin — a sort of autonomous trolley car on wheels — to focus on the Bolt hatchback.
“Cruise made an early play, and they can recover from their problems,” Brinley said. “The (pedestrian) accident was not the vehicle’s fault, though Cruise management was not as forthcoming as was needed. All these services are learning that coming into a new city is not as easily accomplished as envisioned. Waymo is ahead on consumer interaction, but people have short memories.”
Robocar advancement has been relentless. My first autonomous Lexus ride was limited to Google’s campus and required two engineers in the front seat. The 2015 Bumper Bot was driverless but limited to a rooftop Google parking lot. In ‘17, Uber’s autonomous Volvo ventured out into Pittsburgh streets requiring two drivers in front. Waymo now covers two major western cities.
The Jag never exceeded 25 mph. The next frontier is highway speeds on I-280 to the airport 14 miles south.
With darkness blanketing the city at 6:39 p.m., I ordered another Waymo to return to my hotel. Wait time 11 minutes, cost $21.91. Stevenson Street was choked with traffic as the Jag’s headlights slowly made their way towards me.
The iPace swung around the corner and I heard the doors unlock — sensing my phone. Like my previous three rides, the interior was spotless, pleasant.
“If I’m in a hurry, I still take an Uber. But I feel safer in the Waymo,” said customer Levin. “We know the problems with gig drivers working two and three shifts. With Waymo, I trust a billion dollars of technology. They truly feel much safer. I get into a real mixed bag of ride-share vehicles. With Waymo, I have never experienced a stinky vehicle. Never seen anything that wasn’t supposed to be there.”
Like the Cruise Bolt, the iPace has a screen in back with a variety of music stations on offer. “Pick a vibe for your ride” said the display, offering choices including: Pop Top 40, Disney Hits, Kids Pop, and Bollywood. NPR was the only news station offered. Hey, it’s the Left Coast.
“I bring my dog along with me,” said Levin. “If I try that in an Uber, sometimes I get the hairy eyeball from the driver. The Waymo feels premium, and you can shut yourself off from the world.”
I was struck by how comfortable San Franciscans were with the cars. Few stared. At sidewalks, pedestrians checked that the Waymo stopped — then strolled in front of it. Tourists stood out by taking pictures.
If you want to watch the robot cars return to their parking lot in SoMa (south of Market Street) there is a live YouTube channel for that.
Only twice did my Waymo slam on the brakes — both times when a human car lurched out of a public garage into our path. The Jaguar stopped and the human car sped on its way. I didn’t witness any ghost braking as happens with Tesla FSD.
Waymo One has been a target of vandalism. Troublemakers have figured out that a cone over the roof lidar — or on the front hood — will disable the Jaguar. Levin isn’t concerned: “Trust and safety are a big reason locals have embraced it — especially women and the elderly. San Francisco recently had a big concert and ran into a fake Uber problem that sometimes take advantages of people. That’s not a problem with Waymo.”
Analyst Brinley said that, despite the technological progress, the biggest challenge is how to make money.
“What’s the real business case? It’s far more expensive to outfit these cars with technology than it is to hire a driver,” she said. “Right now, there is no business case. These cars are doing a lot of deadhead miles without passengers.”
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Payne: Chinese EV smashes Porsche Taycan Nürburgring record
Posted by Talbot Payne on November 1, 2024
It’s been a tough week for the German auto industry — and it just got gloomier.
Volkswagen AG threatened three plant closures in Germany (and a fourth in Belgium) as the automaker groans under high costs and the country’s green energy and automotive transition. The plant closings in its home country would be the first in the company’s 87-year history. That shocker was followed by Chinese EV automaker Xiaomi, recently praised by Ford CEO Jim Farley, breaking German performance icon Porsche’s electric vehicle lap record at Germany’s legendary Nürburgring racetrack.
The Nürburgring is the world’s most challenging track and a performance benchmark that Porsche has long dominated. A Porsche holds the outright lap record (919 Hybrid Evo race car), the gas-fired lap record for a series production car (911 GT2 RS), and now . . . well, the Xiaomi SU7 Ultra sportscar holds the (unofficial) EV record, smashing the Porsche Taycan’s mark. As Germany forces automakers to ditch petrol-fired cars by 2035, the record is another sign that the Chinese see EV mandates as their market opening.
The Porsche Taycan still officially holds the EV lap record at 7:07.55 minutes, but the staggering, 6:46.87-minute lap on a partially-damp track thrown down by a prototype version of the 1,548-horsepower Xiaomi SU7 Ultra was an intentional shot across the bow of one of Europe’s most revered performance brands. On the 13-mile track, the Ultra hit speeds as high as 200 mph. A $213,995 Turbo GT version of the Taycan earlier this year eclipsed the 1,020-horse Tesla Model Plaid record of 7:35.58 minutes.
When the SU7 Ultra — a performance version of the standard SU7 EV — goes into production in March next year, it is expected to return for the official record.
Xiaomi, owned by one of China’s largest smartphone makers, dropped the lap-time news the same week it opened pre-sales of the SU7 Ultra at the price of $114,200. The EV is aimed squarely at the six-figure Taycan, Porsche’s first electric four-door sedan, which went on sale in 2020.
It even looks like a Taycan with similar, racy, coupe-style roof and body style — save the headlights that echo a McLaren 720 supercar. It’s familiar, knock-off Chinese styling as brands try to mimic design in the western markets they are entering.
Styling aside, analysts are impressed with how fast the Chinese have progressed in EV manufacturing.
“The Chinese are on-par with — and in some cases out-engineering — European and U.S. EV makers. Save design, the Chinese are comparable in performance, features and time to market,” said auto analyst and investor Anton Wahlman, who points to the strides Chinese companies have made since the $100,000 Qiantu K50 electric supercar was teased at the New York Auto Show in 2019. Qiantu didn’t follow through in international markets, though U.S. distributor Mullen Automotive last year rebadged it the Mullen GT for sale here.
Those impressed with China’s progress include Ford’s Farley, who has been test driving a standard $30,000 Xiaomi SU7 sedan.
“We flew one from Shanghai to Chicago, and I’ve been driving it for six months now and I don’t want to give it up,” Farley, a licensed race driver, recently told “The Fully Charged Podcast” host Robert Llewellyn. Like models from other Chinese brands, a Xiaomi would face a 100% tariff were it imported into the United States.
“I don’t like talking about the competition so much, but I drive the Xiaomi,” Farley told Llewellyn. “Everyone’s talking about the Apple car, but the Xiaomi car (is) fantastic. They’re selling 10,000 or 20,000 of them a month; they’re sold out for six months. That is an industry juggernaut, and a consumer brand that is much stronger than car companies.”
The Xiaomi SU7 Ultra received 3,680 pre-orders 10 minutes after pre-sales began, as the company looks to build on China’s EV European gains. Chinese brands have made inroads in the nascent European EV market with 11% market share, though EVs’ market share slumped to 18% this summer after rising over 20% in late 2023.
Chinese automakers account for only about 3% of new car sales in Germany, but 8% of the market for battery-electric vehicles. Chinese brands selling in Germany include BYD, MG and NIO. Like California, the United States’ largest auto market, the EU plans to eliminate the sale of internal combustion vehicles by 2035.
“The Chinese have gotten lucky with Europe’s forced transition to EVs,” said analyst Wahlman who splits his time between the United States and Europe. “They are entering the auto market with new technology at the same time that legacy automakers are also just starting with electric models. So everyone is starting from Square One.”
The SU7 electric sedan went on sale in China in March, offering three variants — Standard, Pro and Max — with the Ultra unveiled in July as a halo model. The car was on display at last summer’s Paris Olympics, but it will likely be two or three years before Xiaomi exports to Europe.
The SU7 Ultra is built on an 800-volt platform and derives its power from three electric motors for a combined output of 1,548 ponies. Xiamo claims the Ultra can rocket from 0-100 km/h (62 mph) in just under two seconds, with a top speed of 217 mph.
Like its goal to be a Top 5 global automaker as governments mandate non-ICE vehicles, Xiaomi has work to do. The Nürburgring Ultra tester was a stripped-down prototype featuring a racing steering wheel and elementary dash. At the 4:10 minute mark, the accelerator pedal failed, and the driver had to jab it several times before it awoke.
Wahlman said the track lap should wake up a few auto executives. “The Chinese aren’t gaining European share on cheap prices as much as they are offering content-rich vehicles like a BYD ATTO 3 versus a Volkswagen ID.3,” said the analyst. “It’s shocking how fast the Chinese have moved up the learning curve.”
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Payne: With RHO, Ram unleashes a rhino to take on the F-150 Raptor
Posted by Talbot Payne on October 31, 2024
Holly Oaks — Raptor, meet Rhino.
The 2025 Ram 1500 RHO supertruck is here and it’s a worthy competitor to segment pioneer Ford F-150 Raptor. RHO is short for Ram High Output, and the acronym’s similarity to rhinoceros is no accident. This is a full-grown, armor-plated, earth-pawing, terrain-chewing, bone-crunching beast.
Better yet, it’s a rhino in tennis shoes.
Barreling into Holly Oaks’ sandy, Back 40 “Lollipop” — foot to the floor, 540 horses snorting, all four corners churning — I nailed the brakes and hooked the 6,000-pound rhino into a 90-degree right-hander. With remarkable agility, we tangoed across the sand, the rhino’s hindquarters nearly overtaking its front end before the massive 35-inch front, all-terrain Goodyear Wrangler tires gripped, propelling us forward across the dance floor. BWAAAAWWRGH! If this were “Dancing with the Stars,” we would have received a perfect 10.
Track geeks like me marvel at the race car-like talents of modern-day $80K supercars like the Corvette C8, BMW M3 and Porsche Cayman — but for the same price, you can purchase off-road animals that sport similar horsepower numbers and astounding, Baja 1000 racing-like capabilities. And supertrucks do this while offering more interior space than a Boeing 737 and a bed that will haul home your tree for Christmas.
Rhino follows in Raptor’s footprints. Finally. It’s been 14 years since the Ford energized the pickup space just as the BMW’s M3 transformed the car market four decades ago with a performance version of a popular badge.
Like M3, the Ram is also a premium vehicle. Trucks are the new luxe, and RHO will go head-to-head against any Mercedes that pulls up next to you at the golf club. That’s right, take your Rhino to the club dressed to the nines.
Nines as in the $9,995 Level 1 package, which adds a 14-inch console screen, head-up-display, passenger-side display, carbon fiber accents, 19-speaker Harman Kardon stereo, memory/massaging/heated/cooled leather seats, 360-degree camera, hands-free self-driving system, and jacuzzi (kidding about that last one).
On I-75, I went hands-free just like GM’s Super Cruise and Ford’s Blue Cruise — two other mainstream brands who make luxurious trucks. I poked the left stalk and the rhino changed lanes automatically. Poked the right — and it moved back into the right lane. I enjoyed a snack and a drink while my luxury yacht — er, pickup — drove itself at 80 mph.
My wee wife might need a ladder to climb into the passenger seat (the RHO towers 11.8-inches above the ground thanks to 35s), but once strapped in, she would love it. She’s the navigator in the family, and the passenger-side screen would allow her to sync her phone using wireless Apple CarPlay, then share directions with the main screen that we both could see (the passenger screen is invisible to the driver).
In total. RHO can be outfitted with nearly 50 inches of available screens, starting with the vertically mounted 14.4-inch console jumbotron. A configurable 12.3-inch digital display is behind the steering wheel, the 10-inch HUD floats over the hood and there’s the aforementioned, 10.25-inch display for Mrs. Payne riding shotgun so she can immerse herself in music ‘n’ apps in addition to charting our course.
If all this luxe sounds familiar, that’s because it’s shared with the Jeep Grand Wagoneer luxury yacht.
What the RHO doesn’t have is the insane 702-horse Hellcat V-8 from the ol’ TRX. Yes, the T-rex is extinct, a victim of federal nannies. But Ram figures the Rhino will be more resilient — and not just because of its lesser appetite for fossil fuels.
The cheaper Rhino will sell in greater volumes — like its nemesis Raptor — and its $69,995 price tag (plus $1,995 destination fee) is closer to the lineup’s other performance trucks (unlike the T-Rex’s $100K sticker): the $56,255 Warlock and $66,190 Rebel with their 33-inch tires, off-road capability and detuned, twin-turbo inline-6.
What Rhino does share with T-Rex is chassis performance specs: 88-inch width for surer footing (thus the three amber lights required of vehicles wider than 80 inches), functional hood scoop, electronic-locking rear differential, gigantic 15-inch front brakes and huge, remote-reservoir Bilstein active shocks enabling 13 inches of suspension travel in front, 14 inches rear. What, no missile launcher?
As awesome as this truck may look swaggering up your country club driveway, the Rhino’s natural habitat is the Baja Peninsula. And since you’re unlikely to go there, may I suggest the Holly Oaks ORV park right here in Detroit’s backyard?
If you own a Corvette, you gotta track it at Waterford Hills or M1 Concourse. If you own a Rhino, you gotta go to Holly Oaks.
“Go on. Just put your foot in it,” encouraged veteran Dodge SRT dynamics engineer and fellow race driver Erich Heuschele. I didn’t need to be told twice.
Holly’s 200-acre sandbox is ideally suited for narrower midsize Jeeps and Broncos, but the Bilstein-shod RHO moves like it’s a size smaller. Roaring up Darlene’s Ridge, the beast stayed true, flattening washboard bumps like Hulk flicking away helicopter fire. It soared over jumps, drifted through corners, slung sand in launch control. To manage this punishment, the dampers feature remote reservoirs to better control shock fluid temperatures.
The 3.0-liter inline-6 and eight-speed transmission were in sync like Grey & Swayze. Where the Raptor’s 10-speed tranny can sometimes stumble, the Ram’s ZF gearbox ripped off shifts like a Porsche.
I missed the supercharged V-8’s rib-rattling roar. But the I-6 is 150 pounds lighter, making the truck easier to control, quicker to rotate. Load the Rhino with the Level 1 package and it matches the base, well-equipped Raptor’s $82K sticker.
Ram shrewdly offers the more accessible, $71,990 starter model without all the digital jewelry, while maintaining its core specs including a healthy 90 more horses than the 450-horse Ford. I kept Rhino in Baja mode for my high-speed antics, but other modes include Auto, Tow, Mud/Sand, Rock, Snow and Sport.
If you still covet a V-8, Ram will walk you across the showroom to a 2500 Heavy Duty Power Wagon. If you don’t need Olympian shocks, then the butch Warlock will do just fine. And if you just like the Ram’s smooth, best-in-class multi-link rear ride and handsome design, the base $42K Tradesman will do.
But for the price of a ‘Vette, RHO supertruck will explore the envelope of off-road capability while still having the capacity to tow up to 8,380 pounds. Enough to pull a real rhino.
Next week: Manual faceoff: Mazda Miata, Subaru BRZ, Toyota GR Corolla, Honda Civic Si, VW Jetta GLI
2025 Ram 1500 RHO
Vehicle type: Front-engine, four-wheel-drive five-passenger supertruck
Price: $71,990, including $1,995 destination fee ($84,965 as tested)
Powerplant: 3.0-liter, twin-turbo inline-6 cylinder
Power: 540 horsepower, 521 pound-feet of torque
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Performance: 0-60 mph, 4.6 seconds (mfr.); towing, 8,380 pounds; payload, 1,520 pounds
Weight: 6,200 pounds
Fuel economy: EPA, 15 mpg city/21 highway/17; range, 693 miles (33-gallon fuel tank)
Report card
Highs: Off-road agility, on-road comfort; powerful I-6
Lows: Won’t fit in your garage; deep console screen takes eyes off road
Overall: 4 stars
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Spooktacular: Stellantis designer haunts office with outrageous Halloween costumes
Posted by Talbot Payne on October 30, 2024
It’s late October and that means Stellantis NV designers have dressed up their latest, highly-anticipated muscle cars and trucks in outrageous, aftermarket costumes for display at the Specialty Equipment Manufacturers Association Show in Las Vegas early next month. Think Plymouth GTX Electromod, Ram 2500 Power Wagon Concept, Moparized Ram 1500 RHO.
Late October also means that chief interior designer Ryan Nagode will unveil his latest outrageous costume for the annual Halloween office party.
Like the full-size Big Bird costume he wore in 2022. The costume required that (similar to the original Muppets character) he put on the full Monty, hold the huge head up with his right hand while cradling a smartphone in his left that carried the video feed from a camera between Big Bird’s eyes so he could see where he was going in the cavernous halls of the automaker’s Auburn Hills U.S. headquarters.
Other costumes have included Animal, Chewbacca, Jack Sparrow, Beetlejuice and C-3PO. What will it be this year?
“Sometimes I’ll drive to work in my costume,” said the 21-year design veteran. “Jack Sparrow or Beetlejuice were good. . . it’s pretty funny to see the looks at a stop light. (But) this year I’m gonna have to put it on at the office.”
Nagode’s over-the-top creations have become the main act of Spooktacular, as the design department calls its annual gathering, where employees show up in costume.
Dozens of designers are scheduled to convene Wednesday in the headquarters’ Design Dome, including Nagode’s boss and Stellantis Chief Design Officer Ralph Gilles, who usually shows up in a black wig. Designers will celebrate alongside a gallery of Nagode’s past designs, then spill out into headquarters to spread the Halloween vibe.
It’s a tradition Nagode began 14 years ago. His then 1-year old son became obsessed with the Cookie Monster after a group of Sesame Street characters greeted passengers at the airport.
“He would not let go of the Cookie Monster,” Nagode remembers. “And I thought he’d love it if Cookie Monster showed back up. That’s the first full-fledged costume I put together. And I dressed him up in a little cookie and held him as if Cookie Monster was taking a bite.”
For fun, Nagode also wore the costume to work for Halloween 2010.
“I was probably the only one in a building of 12,000 people that dressed up,” he said with a laugh. “It was hilarious, just walking around, having lunch. In costume it was a little difficult to eat, but Cookie Monster only ate cookies, so it’s all good.”
Every year he’d show up in a new suit. “I would see a few people dress up, you know, and then after a while, there’s an expectation level, right?”
Chewbacca was a challenge as Nagode recreated the suit that 7’3” actor Peter Mayhew wore in the “Star Wars” movies. It’s a character that could only fit in a Millennium Falcon spaceship. Or Ram 2500 Power Wagon.
“I wear an 18-inch pair of stilts inside the suit, and that gets me up to about the height of May,” smiled Nagode. “He was a tall, tall fella. I think he himself wore four-inch risers. That’s half the fun — trying to replicate exactly what was done.”
Ryan’s creative talents have deep roots.
As he grew up in Buffalo, New York, his mother made him Halloween costumes while Ryan would transform their home into a Halloween scare-scape. His father was a toy designer at Fisher-Price.
“My mom always made costumes. She was going to Joann Fabrics and Michaels and getting patterns, and putting it together,” he said. “I have fond memories of her spending countless hours sewing and creating things. Couple that with I’ve always loved movie set design — so it’s being creative in a couple different ways.”
While Ryan says there were no Halloween costume classes at the Cleveland Institute of Art where he studied auto design, his day job does inform his hobby. Americans live in their cars, and interior designers have access to a variety of materials to make them feel at home. Nagode applies those industrial design skills to his art.
“The paint process, especially — like C-3PO. I used Bondo and fiberglass and automotive paint, that type of stuff,” he said. “I’ve done scale representations in clay. In order to mold and shape Chewbacca, I had to sculpt him in clay in order to pull a cast off.”
Nagode graduated from CLA in 2003, and went right to work at Daimler Chrysler. He was named vice president of interior design for Ram/Dodge/Chrysler/Jeep last year.
Nagode’s attention to costume detail reflects his work on his brands’ interior designs, which are among the industry’s most celebrated.
The annual SEMA Show in Vegas is a chance for designers to take their creations to another level with Stellantis’s Mopar accessories toy box. The SEMA jamboree is led by Nagode’s exterior counterpart, Mark Trostle, but the interior team advises along the way.
“There is the sport-truck flair that we have in the production RHO truck,” he said of the Ram 1500 concept that he posed with in Animal costume. “I think we took it as far as we could go from the production side, (then Trostle’s team) really took it past that. It’s awesome to see.”
Nagode said his hobby pairs well with his professional career.
“I’m not sitting down with a sheet of paper creating the next interior specifically for myself, right? That’s what I do with my team,” he said. The costume is “a chance to step away and be creative in another way.”
On Tuesday, Stellantis unveiled its SEMA concepts, including the electric, retro, 335-horse Frostbite Blue Plymouth with three-spoke, bronze steering wheel and IndiGo Blue leather interior. The 540-horse Ram RHO (aka Rhino) is dressed in satin metallic Diamond Black exterior with fender flares, 37-inch tires, and blue interior highlights. And the 2500 Power Wagon Concept puts on a bed rack system and leather/suede interior.
On Wednesday, Nagode will reveal his latest costume creation.
“The anticipation factor is good,” he said of the annual rite (disrupted only by the COVID years). “It’s nice to have everyone guessing.”
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Payne: Amid weak demand, my Hertz EV rental was the bargain special
Posted by Talbot Payne on October 29, 2024
Washington — The subcompact Mitsubishi Mirage is the cheapest car offered in the U.S. market — unless you’re renting an electric car.
On a trip to the nation’s capital this month, an electric Tesla Model 3 or a Chevrolet Bolt could be rented for just $70 a day at Reagan National Airport. The next cheapest car? The Mirage at $85 a day.
The disparity (which repeated in some other markets with EV rentals I surveyed, including New York LaGuardia, Phoenix, and Seattle) is reflected in plunging used EV prices as well as the $7,500 incentives new EVs demand in order to sell beyond their core luxury and green customer base. Rates are a disappointment for Hertz after pioneering the rental of “clean” transportation in 2021.
Hertz’s fire sale speaks to the inconvenience of rental EVs compared to gas cars. And it exposes larger issues with mass adoption of electrics even as governments punish the production of internal-combustion cars over the next few years. Hertz had initially planned on stocking 25% of its fleet with EVs by the end of 2024 but threw that plan in reverse as demand and EV residual values plummeted. Hertz is on its way to selling off half of its 60,000-unit EV fleet by the end of this year.
I am the owner of a Tesla Model 3 and thoroughly enjoy the user experience from its performance dynamics to its ergonomics. But my rental difficulties began at the pickup counter.
Hertz didn’t have a vehicle for me. “Your reserved car isn’t ready, but we will assign you one as soon as possible,” said the desk agent.
The problem became apparent when I went to the parking garage. As a Gold Member, the counter allowed me to choose any car from the lot — but there was my Tesla front and center. Still charging.
If it were an ICE rental, my car would be filled by Hertz in two minutes and ready go. But my Tesla rental was at 64% of charge on a 240-volt charger. That meant it would take at least another two hours to charge to 100%.
I looked down the aisle that had been full of unwanted EVs last spring when I last visited D.C. A lone Chevy Bolt sat, fully charged.
Trouble is, the charging network for non-Tesla EVs in rural areas beyond major metros like D.C. is sparse and unreliable. My destination? Meeting my wife for the weekend at the Stratford Hall historic home in Virginia’s Northern Neck (between the Potomac and Rappahannock Rivers) 75 miles away.
A quick scan of chargers in the Northern Neck found a couple locations with single, 75 kWh stalls — one in a dealership, the other at a toll booth. Would they be available? Would the dealership be open?
Tesla, on the other hand, had two Supercharger locations at Sheetz service stations with eight stalls in each. And at 250 kWh charging speeds, they were three times as fast as the non-Tesla locations. I took the Tesla, a rear-wheel-drive model with 19-inch wheels and standard, 248-mile range — or 164 miles at 64%.
Teslas receive constant over-the-air updates, and my rental was state-of-the-art — except for Full Self-Driving software which Hertz does not make available for customers.
“Navigate to Stratford Hall, Virginia,” I barked, and the system navigated me to Stratford, predicting 25% (62 miles) of charge left for weekend adventures.
Not good enough.
I knew that Stratford had a single, 240-volt charger that I could use to charge on arrival. But other visitors might use the charger and there was no guarantee that I would have access to it on a timely basis. I added an intermediate stop for the first Tesla Supercharger in the Northern Neck town of King George — located in a Sheetz service station — where I planned to quickly charge to 80% of battery capacity in 10 minutes so that I’d have enough charge to last me the weekend.
Needless to say, all this mental planning is a lot harder than just renting the Mitsubishi. But the Mirage was more expensive and the Tesla more fun to drive.
And chains like Sheetz are making it easier to fuel EVs.
I arrived at the Sheetz with 39% of charge remaining. All eight Supercharger stalls were open. In 10 minutes, I gained 100 miles of charge to 80% of battery capacity (206 miles).
While I waited, I picked up a chicken nuggets meal at the Sheetz café. Food ‘n’ charging, the perfect combo (though Sheetz can’t hold a candle to Chick-Fil-A nuggets). Two of the five Sheetz locations in the Northern Neck have Tesla chargers as well as gas pumps.
The extra charge would come in handy as I ate up all but 57 miles over the weekend. On Saturday night, I anticipated my 75-mile trip back to Reagan National the following afternoon and located Stratford’s lone 240-volt charger. The charger was available — but was blocked by oblivious gas cars.
I managed to squeeze my Tesla onto a sidewalk between cars to charge, the cord just reaching. After 4.5 hours, the Tesla was back at 80% charge.
In one major change since I last rented a Tesla, Hertz has relaxed its requirement that EVs be returned with 75% state of charge. That was frustrating for customers to reach given tight travel times and poor charging infrastructure.
“Just return it with at least 10% of charge,” waved the Hertz attendant when I left.
That’s convenient. But it also means it may take longer for Hertz to turn the EV around for the next customer.
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or Twitter @HenryEPayne.