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Motown in Texas: Penske, Mustang, Corvette headline WEC race on Pink Cadillac Day
Posted by Talbot Payne on August 31, 2024
The Woodward Dream Cruise is in the books for 2024, but pink Cadillacs continue to roll across America. General Motors Co. celebrates “Pink Cadillac Day” this Sunday with an international show of American pop culture at the Lone Star Le Mans at the Circuit of The Americas in Austin, Texas. There may even be an Elvis sighting.
The six-hour sportscar race is the only U.S. stop on the World Endurance Championship’s calendar. The event is a showcase for Detroit racing brands — Cadillac, Team Penske, Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Corvette — that have been taking on the world’s best across the globe including at the storied 24 Hours of Le Lans in France in June.
While Team Penske and its partner Porsche come into the event as the favorite in the top Hypercar class, Cadillac will headline the circus with its Pink Cadillac display that includes a wrapped, pink V-Series.R prototype race car, and the launch of a special, pink V-Series.R-liveried race car for the popular Forza Motorsport game series.
Earl Bamber and Alex Lynn will take turns behind the wheel of the pink livery, No. 2 Cadillac V-Series.R at the Lone Star Le Mans at the Circuit of the Americas on Sunday. Eric Klauser, GM
“I love the fact that we have such passionate fans in America, and I think they’ll enjoy seeing the WEC there again,” said Cadillac racer Earl Bamber, a New Zealand native who lives in Atlanta. “I think there is going to be a lot of America at the event. It’s some of the best racing in the world right now, especially in Hypercar and I think for fans going to COTA, seeing this field will be a great spectacle.”
While the Pink Caddy gets eyeballs in the paddock, Bamber and Alex Lynn will pilot the No. 2 Cadillac V-Series.R, which is the only Hypercar entry to qualify in the top four in each of the past three races. Eighteen Hypercars are entered.
A lot has changed since the WEC last raced at COTA in February 2020.
Sportscar racing was struggling for relevance on a crowded world racing stage. But the sport has been transformed in the last two years as manufacturers have embraced the WEC series — and sister IMSA in North America — with its competitive class rules for hybrid-powered Hypercars and production-based GT cars. At the center of this transformation are Detroit automakers who have embraced sportscar racing as an opportunity to show off their thundering, V8-powered brands’ performance chops on the global stage.
The #2 Pink Cadillac prototype driven by Bamber and co-driver Alex Lynn will compete against Ferrari, Lamborghini, Alpine, Toyota, BMW, Peugeot and Porsche for the overall win.
Two of the five Porsche 963 Hypercar entries are fielded by Bloomfield Hills-based Team Penske, which has taken the lead in the WEC championship since its 4th, 6th, and 52nd place showing at Le Mans in June. With consistent podium finishes, Porsche Penske leads the series with 126 points — four ahead of Toyota (which won the last race in Brazil) with 122 points and Le Mans-winning Ferrari with 109 points.
In the GT class, Mustang and Corvette hope to put on a good display in their home race. Corvette will have two private entries from team TF Sport. Since its breakout performance at Le Mans, where it finished third and fourth in its first appearance, the Mustangs have been a factor. Texas auto racer Ben Keating will pilot the No. 88 entry alongside Dennis Olsen and Mikkel Pedersen.
Team Penske is fielding two of the five Porsche 963 Hypercar entries in Sunday’s competition. Chris DuMond, Special To The Detroit News
“I can’t wait for my first race with the Mustang GT3, especially given that it’s in the USA,” said Keating, an owner of 30 auto dealer franchises.
While American V-8s thunder around the track, loud pink-colored cars will be the focus of the paddock and Pink Cadillac Day. Like the Dream Cruise, the Sept. 1 date is an enduring ode to the influence of the 1950s American automobile culture.
Eight decades ago, Presley led the pink cultural revolution by painting his black 1955 Caddy sedan pink. Jersey rocker Bruce Springsteen brought the theme back to prominence in 1984 with his hit “Pink Cadillac,” and Aretha Franklin followed with her 1985 classic, “Freeway of Love” with its immortal refrain: “We’re goin’ ridin’ on the freeway of love in my pink Cadillac.”
A pink Cadillac drives by the Michigan Science Center on the second day of viewing for iconic singer Aretha Franklin on Aug. 29, 2018. GM celebrates Pink Cadillac Day this Sunday, Sept. 1. Charles E. Ramirez/The Detroit News
As Austin celebrates Pink Cadillac Day 40 years later with race cars, organizers encourage attendees to pull out their pink wardrobes and raise a toast to the King of Rock and Roll.
Race action kicks off with qualifying and Hyperpole on Saturday. The six-hour race will start at 1:30 p.m. EDT Sunday.
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Payne: Bold Chevy Equinox ICE is born again
Posted by Talbot Payne on August 29, 2024
Minneapolis — Hell has frozen over. The Chevrolet Equinox is cool.
The brand’s compact-class SUV was a reliable flavor of vanilla its first three generations. For 2025, it’s added Chunky Monkey Peanut Butter Rocky Road Chocolate Crunch to the recipe. I suppose this was predictable. After all, the entry-level Chevy Trax was my 2024 Detroit News Vehicle of the Year, transforming the brand’s entry-level meh-mobile into an affordable, gotta-have-it entry-level ute.
And Equinox’s big brother Traverse has suddenly become one of the hottest SUVs on the planet after years as a three-row wallflower.
Credit Chevrolet’s brainstorm to inject its SUV lineup with truck DNA. The coolest thing about Chevrolets after all are the pickups (well, after the Corvette, but modeling Equinox after a mid-engine, two-door supercar didn’t make sense) — the big, bad Colorado and Silverado.
So Equinox rummaged around the pickups’ western, cowboy wardrobe, and — voila! — cool, dude.
Chiseled bod. Wider, high-noon stance. Bold face. Squared-off wheel arches. Activ trim with off-road rubber. Dress it in Cacti Green. All that’s missing is a scarf and cowboy hat.
“Chevy couldn’t mail it in anymore,” said Paul Waatti, an auto analyst with Auto Pacifica. “The segment is just too strong.”
True enough. The Toyota RAV4, the best-selling SUV in the USA, modeled its most recent generation after Toyota’s best-selling Tacoma midsize pickup. Cue the Equinox’s transformation.
Jump into the saddle of my favorite Equinox Activ model and it keeps getting better.
As a truck wannabe, Activ trim gets a fierce, Silverado-inspired front end, optional all-wheel drive for Michigan winters, shark-fin C-pillar and all-terrain tires wrapped around 17-inch rims. If you prefer the LT or RS trims, they loom over you with Colorado-inspired fascias. Dude, I told you this beast was cool.
With Activ’s rims protected by beefy, tall, all-terrain sidewalls, I galloped around Metro Minneapolis without fear of destroying them in random potholes. Minneapolis was littered with short-summer-season road construction but it’s nothing compared to Metro Detroit, where roads are so bad we’re basically off-roading through potholes, expansion joint cracks and asphalt washboards.
With its white roof and staple wheels, the Activ preened. But enough about options. The standard stuff is where Equinox really shines.
If the tires protected me — WHUMP! — from the odd pothole on Minneapolis’s still-recovering-from-2020-riots south side, then standard, state-of-the-art electronics protected me from other four-wheeled creatures.
Merging onto the Twin Cities’ I-94 race track, blind-spot assist helped me do so safely. Once at speed, I punched adaptive cruise control on the steering wheel and settled into a highway gallop. Chevy has always been a class leader in ergonomics and Equinox is no exception.
I controlled ACC — without distracting my eyes from the road — with raised buttons on the steering spoke. Toggle to advance speed 1 MPH, loooong hold to advance 5 MPH. Want Google Maps navigation screen in front of you? Cycle through different screen views. Want to switch radio stations? Toggle the UP and DOWN buttons on the back left of the steering wheel. Adjust volume? Toggle the twin buttons on the right side. Want to store your bag of McDonald’s fries for later? Slip it into the cargo bay under the cubby-loaded console, thanks to the electronic shifter located — Mercedes-style — on the steering column.
But wait, there’s more: Automatic emergency braking, pedestrian/bicyclist braking, lane-keep assist, rear cross-traffic braking and auto front ejection seats (kidding about that last one).
This treasure chest of standard equipment costs just $29,995 in the base LT model, which lagged my Activ tester only in AWD, panoramic roof and convenience package with goodies like a wireless phone charger.
Useful appliance — wrapped in state-of-the-art design.
I already mentioned the Mercedes shifter, and Equinox has bracketed the cockpit with Merc-like aviator-style, oval vents (also inspired by the now deceased Camaro). Turn the oval left-and-right to adjust air flow. Rotate the orb up or down for air direction. Give that designer an A+.
Between the awesome orbs is a continuous pane of glass occupied by an 11-inch digital instrument display, and 11.3-inch infotainment screen for the center console. The Google Built-in operating system is as intuitive as your phone, and you can even move your favorite icons around the “home page.” The screen sits above a keyboard of climate buttons.
In a class choked with talent like the Honda CR-V, Mazda CX-50 and Dodge Hornet, Equinox obsesses on detail. Check out the soft-wrapped door rests for my sharp elbows. Or adjacent storage cubby. Or the storage space for wet shoes between cargo floor and the spare tire. And, of course, Chevy’s stellar JD Power quality rating helps when you’re shopping versus bone-reliable Toyotas.
Detail attention extends to the drivetrain.
LT, Activ and RS are all powered by a competent, 175-horse 1.5-liter turbo-4. AWD optioned on all. A continuously variable transmission flogs FWD, an eight-speed lashes AWD. Both are smooth and unobtrusive thanks to a cabin insulated from road noise. Even those knobby all-terrains didn’t interrupt the cabin’s solace.
Curiously, Chevy’s trucklet doesn’t come with a SPORT mode and accompanying exhaust growl. You know how we cowboys love a bull ride. Instead, AWD models offer paddle shifters behind the steering wheel (don’t confuse them with the radio controls) that are activated by an L (for LOW) button on the steering wheel. Chevy thinks it will come in handy when, say, hauling a 1,500-pound small boat ‘n’ trailer out of the water.
Oh well, Chevy prefers peace — perhaps as a peek at the silent electric future promised by the Equinox EV on the other side of the showroom.
But Equinox ICE won’t make the EV transition any easier. Both cars share the superb Google Built-in operating system and digital screens (the bigger EV has a wider center screen), and my AWD Activ tester dusts the comparable AWD EV in range — 406 miles to 285, not to mention quicker fill-up times.
Equinox get an assist from its Trax sibling — a screaming bargain at $21K — which sports its own Cacti Green Activ model, and is pulling new customers into the brand like a giant ACME magnet. Equinox ICE (or the three-row Traverse) awaits when those buyers need more room.
It’s a handsome stable.
Dismounting after a days’ drive in the Equinox ICE, I looked over my equine’s comfortable saddle and thick, leather-wrapped reins. Were they heated for when the weather turns cold in Minnesota and Michigan?
Seems both features are standard. Of course.
Next week: 2025 VW Jetta
2025 Chevrolet Equinox ICE
Vehicle type: Front-engine, rear- and all-wheel-drive, five-passenger SUV
Price: $29,995, including $1,395 destination charge ($29,995 LT FWD, $36,395 RS and Activ as tested)
Powerplant: 1.5-liter four-cylinder
Power: 175 horsepower, 184 pound-feet of torque (FWD), 203 pound-feet of torque (AWD)
Transmission: CVT (FWD); eight-speed automatic (AWD)
Performance: 0-60 mph, 8.0 sec. (Car and Driver est.); towing capacity, 1,500 pounds
Weight: 3,428 pounds (FWD LT)
Fuel economy: EPA 26 city/28 highway/27 combined (FWD); EPA 24 city/29 highway/26 combined (AWD); 452-mile range (AWD)
REPORT CARD
Highs: Bold styling inside and out; bucket-full of standard features
Lows: Steering paddles can be confusing; throatier engine growl on the Activ, please
Overall: 4 stars
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Payne: Cruisin’ future classics, Mach-E ‘n’ Miata
Posted by Talbot Payne on August 22, 2024
Pontiac — The Woodward Dream Cruise is one of the world’s biggest auto events, bringing an estimated 40,000 cars and 1 million spectators to a 16-mile stretch of Metro Detroit’s main street. I love the variety. Unlike other cars shows, the Cruise is free and open to every type of automobile, from vintage milk trucks and Motown muscle cars from the 1960s to current-generation pickups and European exotics.
Odd couple: The 2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E (left) and 2024 Mazda MX-5 Miata Club.. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
This year, I took an odd couple to the Dream Cruise: the 2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E GT and Mazda MX-5 Miata Club, both future classics.
The Mach-E and Miata are automotive bookends representing the diversity of models in the industry today. The Mach-E is an automatic, all-wheel-drive electric vehicle with twin electric motors, four seats, a frunk and more thrust than the Space Shuttle. The Miata, by contrast, is a manual, petrol-powered rear-wheel-drive roadster that seats (barely) two, and is more fun than an inflatable tube on a snow hill.
For all their differences, the two vehicles have their roots in 1960s sports cars. Mach-E is Ford’s first SUV inspired by the Mustang muscle car, and the Miata was inspired by the iconic English Lotus Elan. The pair also offer a chilling glimpse into a dystopian future auto landscape where governments force manufacturers to make only EVs. In 25 years, will internal combustion roller skates like the Miata be banned? A relic of a golden age? Let’s hope not.
For now, these models are a celebration of individual transportation.
Friday fun day
On Friday afternoon, the rains cleared and Mrs. Payne and I rolled toward Woodward for some cruising in the Miata. At a stoplight, we went topless. The car, that is.
The Mazda’s soft top is one of the industry’s engineering marvels. No, it’s not electronic. It doesn’t have a screen, or a dial. But in three seconds, I unhooked it from the windshield and stowed it behind me without getting out of the driver’s seat.
I popped the front latch, pulled the soft top back over my head, and stuffed it into the cubby behind my head. It’s as simple as taking a blanket off your bed in the morning.
I turned off traction control, shifted into first gear and slid the rear end out with controlled throttle as I accelerated onto Woodard’s damp pavement. The short wheelbase Mazda is playful, easily controlled whether on the track or on the road. Like the analog soft top, the old school shifter is crisp and easy to throw.
The Mustang Mach-E is a different kind of giggle.
While the Mustang’s heritage also includes drop-top coupes, the Mach-E doesn’t offer a convertible option. Drop-top EVs like the GMC Hummer have been few. My $64K GT tester, however, let the sun shine in with a panoramic glass roof and was further enhanced with a stylin’ Bronze Appearance package. Incredibly, the GT performance model puts more torque (634 pound-feet vs. 625) to the ground than the King of Mustangs — the $80K supercharged V-8 Mustang Shelby GT500.
I floored the Mach-E and it buried my spinal column in the seatback. Sixty mph blew by in just 3.7 seconds out of the South Boulevard and Woodward stoplight — nearly two seconds quicker than the Miata. Mach-E GT manages this despite tipping the scales at 5,000 pounds — double that of the Mazda. Some of that is due to the Mach-E’s SUV proportions, so that you can take the whole family on a thrill ride.
Let’s blow away this Porsche Boxster, kids!
But much of the girth is in the 91-kWh battery pack. The battery is also a big reason the Mach-E costs $20K north of the Mazda. Fans of small sportscars like the Miata shiver when they think of future, battery-powered sportscars due to the massive weight/cost gain that might entail.
Minimalist dashboard
The Mach-E’s cabin is one of my favorite examples of the digital revolution pioneered by Tesla.
Discussion inside the Ford design team was spirited, but ultimately designers went clean sheet — crafting a modern, minimalist dashboard rather than echoing the classic Mustang coupe’s aviation-style cockpit (even the ICE coupe would go big screen when its seventh-generation car debuted in 2023).
Where Tesla showcased a 15-inch horizontal screen in the Model Y, the Mach-E went vertical with its 15.5-inch display. Unlike Tesla, Ford complements the center stack with a small hoodless display behind the steering wheel that gives you essentials like mileage and speed. The operating system synced effortlessly to my phone and I barked directions to the wireless Android Auto system to help me navigate around Woodward’s worst choke points.
The screen is anchored by a huge volume button — the exception to the streamlined touch-screen environment. The icing on the cake? My GT boasted Blue Cruise, Ford’s interstate-only hands-free driving assistance system for when I exited Woodward onto I-696.
In keeping with its analog, driver-focused experience, the Mazda is spare on electronic wizardry — even eschewing adaptive cruise control that is standard on its sedan and SUV brethren. Still, the Miata’s infotainment system has made big strides.
To the frustration of touch-screen millennials, Mazda has relied on a rotary dial-controlled center screen. But new models like my MX-5 now have a new 8.8-inch touch screen that supports wireless Android Auto/Apple CarPlay. Or you can still use the rotary controller — just like premium brands BMW and Genesis.
Niche vehicle
When it comes to daily driving, the Mach-E sport ute should be the obvious choice. Roomy hatchback, four seats, useful frunk. But Mach-E’s electric powertrain makes it a niche vehicle like the Miata.
Given Mach-E’s charging limitations, most will buy it as a second car for their garage. Install a charger in your garage for around two grand and the ‘Stang is an excellent daily commuter — or Woodward cruiser. Road trips? Not so easy, though Ford’s recent access to Tesla’s reliable charging network is a big help.
The Mazda’s old-school appeal extends to its old-school gas engine. It’ll make effortless round trips to, say, an autocross in Columbia — and that clever soft top allows you to store a suitcase in the boot.
Twenty-five years from now, we’ll know a lot more about the longevity of EV batteries. Will they hopelessly degrade? If so, will it crater residuals? We already know the Miata’s reliability — as evidenced by the 1998 second-generation MX-5s that turned 25 years young on Woodward this year.
Long live the ‘24 Miata and Mustang Mach-E. Long live Dream Cruise variety.
2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E GT
Vehicle type: Battery-powered, all-wheel-drive four-door SUV
Price: $55,890, including $1,895 destination charge ($64,025 as tested)
Powerplant: 91-kWh lithium-ion battery driving twin electric motors
Power: 480 horsepower, 634 pound-feet of torque
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Performance: 0-60 mph, 3.7 seconds (Car and Driver)
Weight: 4,952 pounds
Fuel economy: EPA est. range, 280 miles
Report card
Highs: Exhilarating acceleration; state-of the-art tech
Lows: Porky; road-trip charging requires planning
Overall: 3 stars
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, manual model as tested)
Powerplant: 2.0-liter four-cylinder
Power: 181 horsepower, 151 pound-feet of torque
Transmission: 6-speed manual; 6-speed automatic
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 (manual)
Report card
Highs: The purist’s sportscar; easy drop-top
Lows: Sporty Club suspension can be stiff on Michigan roads; limited storage space
Overall: 4 stars
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
2025 GMC Yukon mega-ute: New face, screens, models
Posted by Talbot Payne on August 22, 2024
Warren – The GMC Yukon’s namesake is Canada’s rugged, western-most, mountainous territory about 3,000 miles from Detroit. The 2025 mega-ute is designed to get you there in style.
GMC unveiled its latest model Monday with an updated face, bigger wheels, and a truck-load of new technology inside. And for those long interstate trips to the wilderness, Yukon options hands-free Super Cruise on all trims. Based on General Motor’s light-duty truck frame, the Yukon follows its Texas-built, mega-ute siblings, the Chevy Tahoe/Silverado and Cadillac Escalade in receiving a mid-cycle update after a full remake in 2021 that introduced an independent rear suspension to all three brands.
GMC’s 2025 Yukon AT4 and Denali, left. GMC
The GMC separates itself from its peers with its signature design, posh Denali trim, and a huge, waterfall center screen. Like its stablemates, the Yukon now comes stuffed with standard safety features and offers an extended version called the Yukon XL.
“The ‘21 model made significant architecture changes, (including) introducing independent front and rear suspensions, adaptive air ride, and magnetic ride control,” said Martin Hayes, General Motors’ chief engineer for full-size trucks and SUVs. The Detroit News got a sneak peak ahead of the Yukon’s reveal in GM’s Warren studio. “For 2025, we’ve added fantastic interior details. We have a large, 16.8-inch diagonal screen, 11-inch digital cluster in front of the driver, and head-up display technology. And we’ve taken our 16-way, heated, cooled, and massaging front seats and put them in the second row – including the head rest. “
While stuffing the Yukon with more tech, GMC has streamlined the model trim lineup. SLE and SLT have been replaced by a base Elevation trim, off-road AT4 model, and posh Denali. The latter pair offer upgraded AT4 Ultimate and Denali Ultimate trims.
Once spare with standard features, GMC’s starter Elevation trim now comes loaded with standard safety goodies like blind-spot assist, adaptive cruise control, pedestrian-and-bicyclist braking, rear automatic cross traffic braking, side bicyclist alert, and more. Night Vision is optional – offering thermal object detection to better detect, say, a herd of moose on your trip through the Great White North.
Interior view of the 2025 GMC Yukon AT4 Ultimate featuring the 16.8-inch-diagonal, portrait-orientation infotainment touch screen. GM, GM
You’ll know the new GMC Yukon by its refreshed face and hind quarters. Revered for its handsome design language, Yukon tweaks its look with a revised c-clap headlamp design − moving the lights more to the middle of the fascia. Each trim gets its own grille design and features.
Under the available panoramic roof, Yukon’s acres of front, digital screens are complimented by an available, 8-inch rear climate control touchscreen. Notably, the Yukon’s push-button shifter has been replaced by a column-mounted shifter, and the console gets clever touches like a hidden storage compartment above the center stack. Google Built-in software – a phone-like operating system fast becoming an industry go-to – runs the displays.
Hayes says hard buttons compliment the touchscreens for better ergonomics. “We haven’t lost the controls you want to have in a vehicle. For example the climate, driveline, and headlamp controls are still operated by buttons,” he said.
“But the thing I like most is the accessible, vertical screen layout,” Hayes continued. “You can personalize the screen and use tile view where the map is in one part of the screen – with radio controls and trailering info are nearby. All that is configurable.”
For the full, blingtastic experience, get the Denali Ultimate with its exclusive, 24-inch, laser-etched wheels, front and second-row captain’s chairs, open-pore laser etched wood trim, and 22-speaker Bose stereo. It’s a rolling living room.
For a more rugged look, get the AT4 Ultimate with a higher front approach angle, front skid plate, and 20-inch wheels with all-terrain tires. Adaptive air suspension can add 2 inches of ground clearance.
Front 3/4 view of the 2025 GMC Yukon AT4 Ultimate. GM
At the heart of the gentle giant are three familiar engine choices driven by a 10-speed transmission.
The tried-and-true, standard, 5.3-liter V-8 engine makes 355 horsepower and 383 pound-feet of torque; the 6.2-liter V-8 produces 420 horsepower and 460 pound-feet of torque; and a sippier, 3.0-liter, Duramax Turbo-Diesel inine-6-cylinder puts out 305 horsepower and 495 pound-feet of torque – and increase from the last gen’s 277 horsepower and 460 torque. It is available across all trims.
Towing is high on the list of mega-ute customers and Yukon offers max towing capability of up to 8,400 pounds. With the trailer hooked up, additional safety systems come into play like: automatic, blind-zone steering; Transparent Trailer View with cameras that help the driver “see through” the trailer to detect vehicles behind; and a back-up, jack-knife alert.
Expect the 2025 Yukon at dealerships later this year at which time pricing will be announced. Expect a starting price above the 2024 model’s $60,195 due to increased standard features.
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Jay Leno talks about his restored Chrysler Turbine at the Woodward Dream Cruise
Posted by Talbot Payne on August 18, 2024
Pontiac — The Woodward Dream Cruise is where people from all over North America bring their unique automobiles: classic milk trucks, 1,500-horspower dragsters, Batmobiles.
This year, Jay Leno brought his rare Chrysler Turbine car.
The comedian was at the corner of Woodward Avenue and Saginaw Street on Saturday afternoon doing what all Cruisers do: meeting fellow gearheads, taking pictures and talking about his latest find. Dressed in his signature jeans, the Hollywood celebrity feels more at home at the Cruise than at the ritzy Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in California this weekend.
Jay Leno and his Chrysler Turbine automobile at the Woodward Dream Cruise in Pontiac, Michigan on Aug. 17, 2024. Daniel Mears, The Detroit News
“If you to California, you meet one guy with a hundred cars. Here you meet 100 guys who each own one car,” Leno said in an interview. “And, for a lot of them, it’s a car they bought before they got married and it’s been sitting in the garage and they are waiting for the kids to graduate from college so they can finish the project they started in high school. I love that part of it.”
Leno’s latest project is the root beer-colored 1963 Turbine, a car that he first saw as a kid at the 1964 World’s Fair in New York.
“I grew up at a time when people said: ‘By the time you’re adults, cars will fly and you won’t have to eat a meal and take a pill and we’ll all wear silver suits that never get dirty,” Leno said, getting animated. “Kennedy was saying we could have a man on the moon — GET OUTTA HERE! — and have jet cars — GET OUTTA HERE! — and both of those things came true. It was an era when there was nothing America couldn’t do.”
Interior of Jay Leno’s Chrysler Turbine automobile at the Woodward Dream Cruise in Pontiac, Michigan on Aug. 17, 2024. Daniel Mears, The Detroit News
Chrysler built 55 of the Turbines — all painted Turbine Bronze — in 1963-64, the pinnacle of a turbine engine program that had begun after World War II. Eventually destroying all but nine, Chrysler held on to two. Six of them are in museums, and Leno owns one.
“I managed to get one that ran,” said the comedian. “I was driving one day and — XXXXHT! — the engine just melted down. I called Chrysler, but the (turbine program) guys there were all retired.”
Well, sort of.
Jay Leno’s Chrysler Turbine automobile, with the turbine under the hood, at the Woodward Dream Cruise in Pontiac, Michigan on Aug. 17, 2024. Daniel Mears, The Detroit News
Leno knew that one of the original Chrysler turbine engineers was Sam Williams (1921-2009), a genius engineer who went on to found Pontiac-based Williams International, a world-renowned jet engine manufacturer. Williams’ son Gregg is the current CEO.
“I knew the Williams connection, so I contacted Gregg because I knew his dad’s connection to the car,” said Leno. “They gave us a clean room and found 60 guys from the original Chrysler team — all over the age of 80. It looked like the movie “Cocoon” — one guy was 94, sharp as a tack, knew every statistic. We couldn’t have done it without him.”
Williams International got the band back together, and, using modern manufacturing technology like 3D printing, they restored the historic A-831 Turbine engine to life.
“My father, Sam, started his career working for Chrysler in Highland Park — working on a turboprop engine for World War II airplanes,” said Gregg Williams, sitting next to Leno at the Dream Cruise. “And when the war came to an end, they took those engineers and put them to work with this revolutionary thought that they could built a gas-turbine powered car. It was a thought way ahead of its time.”
More like the Batmobile, Jay Leno’s Chrysler Turbine automobile is a sight to see at the Woodward Dream Cruise in Pontiac on Saturday, Aug. 17, 2024. Daniel Mears, The Detroit News
After Chrysler pulled the plug in the 1960s (and the Indianapolis 500 regulated turbine race engines out of existence), jet turbine cars were shelved. Until Leno came along.
“Instead of throwing out the blueprints, they kept all this stuff,” smiled Leno. “And I come around 50 years later, and (imitating an old codger’s husky voice) — here’s the chance to do it again!
Continued America’s most famous car buff: “Now, to hear it start up — mmmMMMMHHH! — at 22,000 RPM, it’s smooth, quiet. It’s a real testament to what we could do. You realize how much knowledge is there — and it’s lost technology.”
Williams isn’t so sure it’s lost — and that there still may be a future for the turbine-powered car.
In the 1960s, he explained, “The tech just wasn’t there to make it efficient enough to be competitive. With today’s technology and the new super-alloys, we could actually make a hybrid turbine vehicle very efficiently with very low emissions. The beauty of a turbine is you can feed it with just about any fuel — natural gas, hydrogen, renewables, any fuel that burns in oxygen.”
Any fuel?
“I’ll run mine on Jet A,” laughed Leno, referring to the fuel that commercial airliners use. “But back in the day when (Chrysler) took it to France, they ran it on Chanel No. 5. When they took it Mexico, they ran it on tequila. So any fuel works. You could put liquor in there.”
An experimental project, the Italian-designed Chrysler Turbine, Leno recounted, was given to 203 drivers in 133 cities for three months apiece to keep a diary. “To this day, I contact people whose dad or mom were on the original program and want to ride in it again.”
Maybe he’ll give them all rides at next year’s Dream Cruise.
“I like Detroit … it’s not all Ferraris and Lamborghinis,” said Leno. “It’s guys with Chevy Novas and Plymouth Furys — stuff you don’t see every day and that’s what’s fun. I like talking with some guy about his Slant-6 Valiant. It’s not worth a lot — but it is to him. And its free! I like Pebble Beach, but it’s $1,500 a ticket.”
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Dream Cruise Saturday: Families, ‘Vettes, EVs flock to Woodward
Posted by Talbot Payne on August 18, 2024
Royal Oak — Saturday afternoon brought out everything on Woodward including first-time Cruisers, veterans, lowriders, even milk trucks. A rainstorm hit at about 3 p.m. during the 2024 Dream Cruise but didn’t deter the diehards.
Son of a Milk Man
Pontiac – The milk truck is back. A staple of American neighborhoods in post-World War II America, milk trucks delivered the precious liquid to homes everywhere. Dave Kerby grew up as the son of a milk man when his father returned to Detroit a decorated war hero and drove a truck for Twin Pines Dairy.
Years later, Dave made a barn find in California – purchasing and restoring a 1965 milk truck made by the Detroit Industrial Vehicles Company (Divco for short) – and restoring it in Twin Pines livery.
Dave Kerby and 1965 Twin Pines Dairy milk truck. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
“It’s the last of a dying breed,” said Kerby at M1 Concourse in Pontiac where it was mobbed by fans. “I drove it my dad’s house on his 100th birthday and surprised him.”Located in Detroit, Divco made trucks for dairies, breadmakers and other delivery companies from 1926 to 1986. Few remain.
“Twin Pines had a lot of milk trucks in Detroit – about 1,200 running around – because they had a Saturday TV show with Milky the Clown that made them super popular,” said Kerby. “I’ve been cruising Woodward this week and people come up and tell their milk man stories.”
The advent of the supermarket put an end to milk deliveries beginning in the 1970s. “ Kroger and WalMart came along and it was cheaper to pick it up at the grocery. But people still loved the milk man because milk tastes better in a bottle,” laughed Kerby.
Kerby is wring a book titled “Son of a Milkman.” He plans to donate his truck to the Henry Ford Museum when he joins his father in the great dairy in the sky.
Queen of the Lowriders
Pontiac – All hail the Queen.
Debbie Sanchez, the subject of a coming film, “Queen of the Lowriders,” led an army of modified vehicles to the Dream Cruise this year. The hydraulically-operated cars are non-stop entertainment with the ability to move side-to-side, three-wheel, and hop – sometimes over six feet into the air.
“We have between 16 and 18 cars this year,” said Sanchez, sporting a colorful purple mane at M1 Concourse. “They get out there and hitting switches and moving around. It’s very complicated. The heart of the lowrider is in the trunk where the pumps and the batteries are that power the hydraulic systems.”
Olivia Cancel and her 1955 Chevy Bel Air lowrider. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
To withstand the vehicles’ dance moves and added hardware, lowriders frames are reinforced, increasing a sedan’s weight by as much as 40%. Among this year’s attendees are a pair of classic Chevrolet Monte Carlos, a Cadillac, and a 1955 Chevy Bel Air piloted by Sanchez’s daughter, Olivia Cancel.
Lowriders have their roots in Mexican car culture.
“They originated in California,” said Sanchez who started building cars in 1995. “The story goes that a guy was working at the airport and stole some hydraulics – then he put them in his car.” Crowds gathered at M1 to watch the vehicles perform, and some lowriders took the show to Woodward.
A Chevy Monta Carlo lowrider goes three-wheelin’. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
First Cruise
First-timers James and Kim Graf, both 43, of Baltimore, Ohio, found out about Detroit’s Dream Cruise last year before making the roughly four-hour trek north this year to show off their blue 1923 T-Bucket hot rod, a modified version of a Ford Model T. The Grafs have other vehicles, including a 1967 Chevrolet Camaro and a 1978 Malibu, but wanted to bring the show-stopping hot rod with a gleaming, can’t-miss-it blower that connects to the engine to give it more power.
Dream Cruise traffic crawls along Woodward in Royal Oak during an overcast afternoon Saturday, Aug. 17, 2024. Kalea Hall, The Detroit News
“We stand out a little more with this,” James Graf said. “Everybody loves the Camaros and the Malibus and the Mustangs, but when you have this, it just hits different.”
Veteran Cruisers Shelby Westergaard, 30, and Chris Palmer, 44, of Algonac, also enjoyed standing out in the crowd with their boat-sized, pale yellow 1965 Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser filling a large piece of parking lot at the corner of Catalpa Drive and Woodward.
First-time Cruisers James and Kim Graf, both 43, of Baltimore, Ohio, show off their blue 1923 T-Bucket hot rod, a modified version of a Ford Model T. Kalea Hall, The Detroit News
“I love having all of the looks,” Westergaard said. “Everyone has a memory associated with this car or something similar.”
This was the first time the recently engaged couple brought the classic station wagon out to cruise after buying it three weeks ago. They like showing off the Vista’s curved skylight windows, which are unique to the car.
“She said she wanted an old wagon, and her favorite color is yellow,” said Palmer, who hasn’t missed a Dream Cruise since 1996.
khall@detroitnews.com
hpayne@detroitnews.com
Dream Cruise Saturday: Families, ‘Vettes, EVs flock to Woodward
Posted by Talbot Payne on August 17, 2024
Pontiac — The Thomas family was out at the crack of dawn for Saturday’s Woodward Dream Cruise.
“You have to be here early so you can get your spot on Woodard,” said Bob Thomas, 43, of Waterford Township, standing next to his 1966 Dodge Dart at the corner of Pike and Woodward in downtown Pontiac. Bob is the son of Mike, 64, the first of three generations of Thomases who religiously attend the Dream Cruise each year. The third gen is Mike’s grandson Hunter, 19, who just bought a Mazda Miata to restore.
Restoration is in the blood. Mike, who has been coming to the Cruise since its inception in 1995, arrived this year in a 1968 Chevy Camaro that he restored six years ago.
“I’m a first and second-generation Camaro fan,” said Papa Thomas. “I’ve restored more Camaros than I can count.”
One of his first was a 1970 model that he used to drag race on Woodward as a 16-year-old. The car was briefly impounded when he was caught racing twice on the same night. “I didn’t see the cop was behind me at Woodward and 13,” Mike said, laughing. “But I’m not into that anymore.”
The Thomas family (l to r): Mike, Hunter, Bob got an early start at Saturday’s Woodward Dream Cruise on Aug. 17, 2024. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Woodward’s legendary drag days are a bygone era, and Bob and Hunter (who brought his 2002 Chevy Silverado to this year’s Cruise) had no similar stories to share. Instead, they look forward to legal drag racing at Roadkill Nights in Pontiac the weekend before the Cruise each year.
ICE ‘n’ EV
Royal Oak — Lounging next to his red, mid-engine, V-8-powered Chevy Corvette C8 on Woodward, Kevin Kicinski sported . . . a Rivian shirt.
“I have the best of both worlds,” said Kicinski, a service manager for the electric brand. A fan of both internal combustion engines and electric vehicles, Kicinski keeps a Ford Mustang Mach-E next to his Corvette at home in South Lyon.
But he prefers his ICEs loud and his EVs silent. “I’m not a fan of that sound,” he said of the recently introduced, electric Dodge Charger Daytona Banshee’s artificially-generated V-8 exhaust note. “If you’re going to go electric, then be electric. If you’re going to be a muscle car, be a muscle car.”
Kevin Kicinski of South Lyon brought his Corvette C8 to Woodward for the Cruise on Saturday, Aug. 17, 2024, but the Rivian service manager also loves electric vehicles like his Mustang Mach-E. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Kicinski knows his muscle. He’s owned a Dodge Charger as well as two fifth-generation Corvette C5s.
“This is my third Corvette. This one is really special to me, because it’s the first time I flew out to purchase a vehicle,” he said of the sleek, 495-horsepower beast next to him. “I bought it online, flew out to New Hampshire and drove it back. That was a fun-filled day just bringing it home.”
Kicinscki loves the variety of cars on Woodward, from his favorite custom cars to V-8s to EVs. “The EV market is still trying to find its legs,” he said. “Rivian’s doing well and there is opportunity for us.”
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Heavy metal: The Dream Cruise is thundering down Woodward once again
Posted by Talbot Payne on August 17, 2024
Ferndale — The rolling feast of nostalgia known as the Woodward Dream Cruise returns Saturday to the birthplace of the American automobile.
Tens of thousands of classic cars will be parked or meandering along a 16-mile stretch of Woodward Avenue.
The bevy of customs, classics, exotics, muscle cars and hot rods will do their yearly roll call in all their twin-turbo, gold-rimmed, chrome-plated, four-on-the-floor glory.
More:Dream Cruise Saturday: Families, ‘Vettes, EVs flock to Woodward
Sharon Vanover, Dennis Vanover, Beth Parsons and Johnny Parsons stay under the tent and umbrellas, watching the classics go by, as rain falls on cruisers on ‘the loop’ of Woodward Avenue in Pontiac, Michigan on August 16, 2024. Daniel Mears, The Detroit News
The Cruise, billed as the world’s largest single-day auto event, pays noisy tribute to good ol’ American auto power.
“I love it. How can you not?” asked Stephanie Raymond of Southfield. “You can see every model and year all in one spot.”
The Cruise isn’t a single-day event for Raymond. It’s a weeklong love affair. She and her red 1955 Corvette showed up Monday and returned every single day.
Her fiery passion for all things Corvette matched the fire-engine red of her vehicle. She’s a walking Wikipedia of the car and its history.
Did you know the 1968 Corvette was patterned after the Mako Shark II concept car? You do now.
“I scare my friends, that’s for sure,” she said about her vast knowledge. “They say I need a hobby. I say I got one.”
Greg Csernai covers up the engine on his supercharged 1967 Ford Mustang as the rain comes down Friday along Woodward in Pontiac. Daniel Mears, The Detroit News
Besides American muscle, the flotilla of chrome and steel along Woodward on Saturday will feature Mustangs, Chevys, Camaros, Dodges and Firebirds.
Cindy McGraw of Royal Oak spent most of Friday driving up and down Woodward and will do so even longer on Saturday. She loves to show off her blue 1965 Chevrolet.
Like Raymond and her Corvette, McGraw described a bond with Chevrolet that rivals the one she has with her husband.
Then again, he’s a big fan of Chevrolet, too, so the marriage is a happy one.
“We’re big fans, but I might be a little bit more,” she said about the car. “We love to meet other people who share the same love, and just talk about it.”
Raymond and McGraw won’t be the only roosters of the roadway showing off their stuff on Saturday. There will be plenty more tail fins, exposed engines, oversized grills, suicide doors, scoops and spoilers
It’s only natural that Shay Stephenson of Marlette has a thing about cars. After all, he’s a mechanic.
Stephenson was showing off a sky-blue 1966 Dodge Charger but he knows about a lot more than that. Watching the procession of cars in Ferndale, he called out the make and years of cars as they passed by.
It’s an annual sport for him. Once in a while, he’s stymied by a passing vehicle but, usually, he knows them all.
“I’ve worked on a lot of them over the years,” he said. “It’s pretty hard to trick me up but it happens once in a while.”
Michael and Leanne Babbage came all the way from Australia to attend the Dream Cruise with the Woodward Tri Five Cruisers — for the fifth time since 2012. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Since its debut in 1995, the Cruise has attracted classic car owners and fans from around Michigan, the Midwest, the country and even other continents.
Take Leanne and Michael Babbage. This weekend’s M1 extravaganza is the sixth time they’ve journeyed from their home in Surfer’s Paradise, Australia, to be part of the festivities on Woodward.
“There is nothing else in the world like the Dream Cruise,” said Leanne Babbage.
Back home in Queensland state, the couple are minor celebrities in the hot rod world with a gorgeous 1957 Chevy Bel Air Sport Coupe that has graced magazine covers and won awards. Leanne even competes with it on the drag strip. The biggest classic car show in Queensland?
“The Cooly Rocks On Festival on the Gold Coast is the biggest event we have with 1,400 cars,” said Michael. “The first year we came to the Woodward Dream Cruise in 2012 there were 40,000 cars and 1.2 million people.”
They were addicted and have come back five times since, including this year. Naturally, they’ve hooked up with the Woodward Tri Five Cruisers — a local club founded by Roger Posey that celebrates Chevrolets from 1955-57, an era in which the GM brand made big strides in engine engineering. Some 46 Tri Fives from all over the country are gathering this weekend in Memorial Park at 13 Mile and Woodward.
“Our countries share a passion for big horsepower V-8s,” said Michael, noting that GM produced muscle cars under the Holden brand name in Australia for years. “We have a lot of space in Australia like the U.S., and you can really put your foot down.”
Back home, the Babbages have a garage full of classics, including a 1959 Cadillac, 1973 Chevy Camaro, and 1973 Pontiac Firebird. But the cost of shipping one of them to Michigan’s Cruise (about $8,000 roundtrip) is prohibitive, so they ride Woodward in other Tri-Five members’ Chevys.
“One year, we rented a Mustang, but it was hard to get all our luggage into it,” Leanne said with a laugh. This being wintertime Down Under, the Babbages take an extended vacation in Detroit, Las Vegas and anywhere else they can ogle V-8s.
In Birmingham, as a parade of Ford GT supercars rumbled past Friday morning, Doug Newhouse, 63, looked up from the T-shirt stand at Maple and Woodward that was already doing brisk business.
Newhouse and his wife, Laurie, came all the way from Holland in their beautiful Meyer Manx Dune Buggy. The Buggy’s flat-4 Volkswagen engine can’t compete with the Ford GT’s for visceral thrills — but the GTs can’t climb sand dunes.
“Oh, yeah, we’ve had our Buggy in their natural habitat on the Silver Lake Dunes,” said Doug, referring to the famed sand park that overlooks Lake Michigan. “We’ve driven this thing everywhere.”
Cruise veterans, they come here every year in their original Manx that they bought years ago on a whim from California. The Buggy shares their classic car attention with a 1941 street rod.
fdonnelly@detroitnews.com
hpayne@detroitnews.com
Ford GTs, DMAN charity rides kick off rainy Dream Cruise
Posted by Talbot Payne on August 17, 2024
Bloomfield Hills — Friday morning on Woodward, the Hills were alive with the sound of music.
Ford supercar music, that is.
Twenty gorgeous Ford GTs — their thundering V-8s and screaming, twin-turbo V-6s in full song — rolled out of the Kingsley Inn at Long Lake and Woodward at 8:15 a.m. for a cruise south down Woodward. Destination? The mother ship in Dearborn.
Rich Brooks, 50, of Monroe with his Ford GT, which joined a parade of the supercars starting on Woodward in Birmingham on Friday, Aug. 16, 2024, ahead of Saturday’s Dream Cruise. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
“This is our second year getting together. We’ve got GT owners from Florida, Seattle, Texas — from all over the country,” said Rich Brooks, 50, of Monroe. The group are staying together in a block of rooms at the Kingsley, a traditional hive of Cruise activity.
Hearkening back to the legendary Ford GT40 that won Le Mans in 1966 — a feat immortalized in the hit movie “Ford v Ferrari” — Ford Motor Co. built two production versions of the GT from 2005-06 (powered by a V-8) and from 2017-2022 (twin-turbo V-6). Both versions are included in the Brooks’ Ford GT parade, including his own 2005 car.
“We get a lot of waves from people up and down Woodward,” said Brooks, who visited M1 Concourse in Pontiac for some track laps Thursday. “I’ve been coming to the Cruise for years in everything from a ’55 Chevy to a Mustang, but the GT is Ford’s iconic supercar.”
Charity rides
Birmingham — The intermittent raindrops didn’t deter the DMAN Foundation Friday afternoon.
The charity gives rides to people with disabilities every year at Long Lake and Woodward on the day before Dream Cruise Saturday. Owners of convertible muscle cars — Camaro, Firebirds, Corvettes, and more — volunteer their time and line up to give DMAN members a thrill ride down Woodward.
Joseph “Big Country” Cadwallader, 36, of Pontiac uses a wheelchair, having lost use of both legs. It’s the seventh year he’s participated in the event and he was looking forward to a ride in a convertible Camaro or Mustang.
Ziad Kassab, 41, of Rochester Hills (left) founded the DMAN Foundation after his brother, Danny, a quadriplegic, passed away in 2009.Henry Payne, The Detroit News
“The volunteers here are incredible,” said the Pontiac native, his tight arm tattooed from shoulder to wrist with a rippled American flag. “Paraplegics are usually transported while strapped into the back of a van. This experience helps us feel something normal.”
DMAN — short for Danny’s Miracle Angel Network — is the brainchild of Ziad Kassab, 41, of Rochester hills. His brother Danny was paralyzed from the neck down at age 7 and ultimately passed away in 2009. Shortly thereafter, Ziad — who had entertained Danny by taking him for drives — created D-Man in his brother’s memory to bring that thrill to others. In the ensuing years, D-Man has expanded to include vacation trips, helicopter trips and regular music therapy for those with physical disabilities, brain injuries, cerebral palsy and more.
Joseph “Big Country” Cadwallader, 36, is paralyzed from the waist down but enjoyed a ride down Woodward courtesy of the DMAN Foundation. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Members like Big Country are loaded into convertibles with a crane. As a sinister, black, fifth-gen Camaro peeled out of the loading tent and onto Woodward, Big Country smiled.
“I like the classics,” he said. “The metal, the roar, the horsepower!”
Waitin’ out the wet
Birmingham – Big slicks mean big trouble in the wet, so Jim Pranis and his Pittsburgh pals waited out the rain Friday afternoon.
“Vinnie has 18-inch slicks on his Chevy Bel Air, and I have 16-inch,” said Pranis, 62, standing in the doorway of a Birmingham store front with Vinnie Deluca, 68, while the rain came down. Pranis brought his wicked-looking, black 1968 Dodge Charger over from the Steel City for the Dream Cruise.
Jim Pranis, 62 (left), and his friend Vinnie Deluca, 68, of Pittsburgh waited out the rain Friday afternoon. Their Dodge Charger and Chevy Bel Air hot rods have been heavily modified with fat, slick rear tires. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Heavily modified with a 600-cubic-inch (9.8 liters!), 1,500-horsepower, supercharged Hemi V-8, the Charger won the Roadkill Nights Big Tire Dodge drag race competition in Pontiac three years running from 2018-2021 (skipping the COVID 2020 year) with Pranis at the wheel.
But the big, sticky, slick tires are useless in the rain. As are those of friend Deluca, whose ’55 Chevy boasts huge trunk modifications to accommodate the wide, rear rubber.
“There is nothing like this in the world,” said Deluca.
The Pittsburgh-based pair are Cruise and Roadkill regulars, though they skipped this year’s Roadkill at M1 Concourse in Pontiac. They have also attended the popular Beaver Falls Car Cruise north of Pittsburgh, which attracts about 3,000 classic cars a year — a fraction of the estimated 40,000-60,000 that descend on Woodward.
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Class of 1998: The new Dream Cruise classics
Posted by Talbot Payne on August 15, 2024
Thousands of Dream Cruisers are descending on Woodward this week for America’s annual auto reunion, and this year we celebrate the great class of 1998.
In honor of surviving 26 years, ‘98 model cars are now eligible for Michigan antique plates (You thought 25 made your ride antique? The Secretary of State disagrees). The honor means you just have to pay $30 every 10 years for vehicle registration — not to mention the insurance savings. In return for the special plate, your antique can’t be used as a daily driver — only for special occasions like, well, the Dream Cruise.
As the world rushed to the 2000 millennium, 1998 was a memorable year. Google was founded, “Titanic” dominated the Oscars, the hit TV series “Seinfeld” wrapped up, President Bill Clinton denied having an affair with intern Monica Lewinsky, Israel celebrated 50 years of statehood, John Glenn became the oldest person to travel to space at 77, 15-year-old American skater Tara Lipinski became the youngest Olympic gold medalist in history, the Red Wings annihilated the Washington Capitals to win the Stanley Cup, Shania Twain crooned “Still the One,” Pamela Anderson divorced Tommy Lee, Daimler bought Chrysler, and a gallon of gas cost $1.06. Whew!
Here are the 1998 models that left a mark.
Chevy Camaro
The 1998 Chevrolet Camaro SS. Chevrolet
By 1998, the fourth-generation Camaro had already been on the road for five years. For the ’98 model year, the Camaro fascia was refashioned with bigger peepers to replace the brooding, scalloped headlights of the previous model. Engineers also went rummaging in big brother Corvette’s toy box, which was all-new the year before.
The result? Chevy stuffed the same, 5.7-liter LS1, V-8 engine in Camaro as Corvette. That made the Chevy the first aluminum-block Camaro since the 1969 ZL-1. Operated by both manual and auto transmissions, the ‘Maro produced an impressive 305 horsepower.
Pontiac Firebird
Oh, how we miss Pontiac. The Firebird was Camaro’s twin and received similar upgrades for its 1998 model year including a new fascia and that sweet LS1 mill. The dramatic new wardrobe would carry the Firebird to the end of its life in 2002. The anteater nose got twin, menacing nostrils sandwiched by retractable headlights. Dressed in black and it made you jump if you saw one looming in the rearview mirror. The new model returned the ‘Bird to its ground-pounding roots (after the regulatory detours of the 1970s and ’80s) but with sophisticated features including standard dual airbags and anti-lock, four-wheel disc brakes.
Jaguar XJ
A 1998 Jaguar XJ8 sits atop a display stand in the Jaguar exhibit at the North American International Auto Show 06 January in Detroit, MI. The auto show is scheduled to run through 19 January. MATT CAMPBELL, AFP Via Getty Images
Jump in the time machine and Jaguar was part of the Ford stable in the late ‘90s. The XJ was the Brit brand’s four-door icon. You knew it by its signature, four headlights. For 1998, it received a major update with leaner, more rounded lines while ditching the 12-cylinder powerplant for a 4.0-liter V-8 engine. The V-8 was further enhanced with a supercharger for the earth-pawing, 370-horse XJR performance model. Modern electronics came into play as well with a computer-controlled active suspension. Media raved about the new sedan, including a Top Gear talent named Jeremy Clarkson who remarked that XJ was “faster, in the real world, than a Ferrari F355 (and the) fastest saloon I’ve ever seen.”
Porsche 911 (996 generation)
The new 1998 Porsche 911 Carrera on display at the North American International Auto Show on Jan. 6, 1998, in Detroit.MATT CAMPBELL, AFP Via Getty Images
Heresy! The 996 was the first generation of the iconic sportscar to ditch its air-cooled, flat-6 engine. Purists grumbled … at first. Armed with its modern circulatory system, the 3.4-liter flat-6 engine pumped out nearly 300 horsepower, launching a new era of power culminating in today’s Herculean, all-wheel-drive, 640-horse Turbo S. Not so enduring, however, was the 996’s controversial headlight design. The new chariot ditched the traditional, simple, oval headlights and integrated them with amber indicator lights. Really? Derisively called “fried egg” headlights, the design didn’t last long.
BMW Z3 M Roadster
BMW added to its iconic lineup of performance sedans and coupes with the wee Z3 Roadster in 1996. The car was a joy to drive topless with its smooth, inline-6 engine and short wheelbase. Like night follows day, an M performance model was introduced in 1998. The drop-top boasted a steroid-fed, 240-horse, inline-6 ripped from the M3. The lighter M Roadster was more nimble than the M3 and could pin you back in your seat reaching 60 mph in just 5.4 seconds. You’ll know it by its quad exhaust under the rear bumper.
Oldsmobile Intrigue
Lincoln Navigator
The Dream Cruise is not just a celebration of muscle cars, it also pays homage to land yachts that have plied the highways going back to 1960s Lincoln Continentals and finned Cadillac Eldorado Broughams. Mega-utes like the Navigator are the new, 21st-century land yacht and Navigator pioneered the segment in 1998. It stood tall on the Ford F-150 truck chassis shared with the Expedition. Navigator added luxury goodies like rear-seat entertainment and air suspension, and customers gobbled ‘em up.
Dodge Durango
The Dodge Durango three-row SUV debuted for the 1998 model year with a choice of two V-8 powerplants. Dodge, Dodge
Dodge introduced its own three-row land yacht in 1998, built — like the Navigator and Expedition — on a truck chassis, this one shared with the Dodge Dakota. To accommodate eight passengers, the Durango fitted the third-row seat backwards so that passengers were looking out the back window. V-8 engines are in Durango’s blood (see the outrageous, 710-horse Hellcat engine that powered the ‘23 Durango SRT) and the OG was powered by a pair of eight-holers.
Check out all the classics at the cruise this Saturday.
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Payne: What’s a brand worth? BMW X5 xDrive50e vs. Hyundai Santa Fe
Posted by Talbot Payne on August 12, 2024
Brighton — BMW makes a state-of-the-art, all-wheel-drive X5 SUV for $87k with a curved 37-inch dash screen, color head-up display, 21-inch wheels, twin wireless phone chargers, leather seats, Level 2 driving assist, WiFi onboard, wireless Apple CarPlay/Android Auto navigation and panoramic roof.
So does Hyundai. For $51k.
The gap between luxury and mainstream has been shrinking in the electronic age, and Hyundai’s latest Santa Fe SUV is a luxury car hiding behind a mainstream badge. Badges still matter and BMW’s X-ceptional midsize model will continue to justify its rich sticker price with smooth power and that signature twin-kidney grille. But buyers of the Santa Fe can take comfort that they get the same value — in all the areas that matter — for a little over half the price.
The Alabama-made Hyundai even matches the South Carolina-built BMW’s value in offering three-row seats, clever console amenities and bold styling. Yes, styling.
The Santa Fe turned heads around town. The brand has crafted daring wardrobes since the 2009 Sonata sedan (followed by the Elantra compact, three-door Veloster and Ioniq 5 and 7 electric vehicles), and Santa Fe continues the trend. With its upright, blocky stance and horizontal accents, the ute looks like a LEGO married an Ioniq 5.
Look past the Goldfinger-like flat-bronze paint scheme and an H-theme emerges. It’s echoed in the headlights, lower grille and rear taillights that bracket “SANTA FE” stamped across the hatch.
Like Hyundai, BMW has taken the opportunity of a new EV model line to introduce radical new styling — but it’s limited to “I” models like the iX. My BMW xDrive50e (alphabet soup translation: “xDrive” for all-wheel drive, “50” for model, “e” for plug-in hybrid) brings a familiar, muscular Bimmer look with swollen fenders and blacked-out fascia to convey power.
That power is where the price difference lies.
As I merged onto I-96 West, the 3.0-liter, turbocharged inline-6 engine cleared its throat and the Bimmer blew by traffic on the way to cruising speed. The 50e is a battery-assisted, plug-in hybrid system, but the eight-speed transmission still must find its cogs, so don’t mistake it for the instant acceleration of the sister all-electric iX (yours for a further 12 grand premium).
Dropping into a highway cloverleaf, I unleashed SPORT mode, the seat bolsters gripping my torso for the anticipated kick of 483 horses from the combined gas engine and 194-horse AC motor. Complicated? You bet. Pricey? Of course. And heavy.
All that plumbing means X5 tips the scales at 5,573 pounds — just 150 shy of the iX, which carries around 106 kWh of battery. X5 goes XL.
Charge the X5’s onboard, 19.2-kWh battery overnight on a 220-volt home charger (which adds a couple grand more to your $87K bill) and my Bimmer had an indicated 38 miles of pure battery range on tap for a morning appointment in Sterling Heights.
In ELECTRIC mode, I cruised quietly down Telegraph Road, but don’t expect drag-racer acceleration like iX from the small battery. The X5 eased out of stoplights before hitting I-696 west. My 16-mile journey sucked 30 miles of range off the battery as I pushed the big brick through the air at 75 mph. Better to use HYBRID (gas plus electric) mode on highways and leave ELECTRIC mode for neighborhood chores where aerodynamics are less taxing. As governments force the industry to go all-electric, expect the difference between brands to shrink even more dramatically.
The Hyundai gets you around with a simple turbo-4 cylinder powerplant.
No electric motor, no modes, no charger box on the wall. Just the occasional quick stop at the pump to fill to 513 miles of range (the X5 gets 418 miles on gas alone). For further value, the Hyundai’s powertrain warranty covers 10 years/or 100,000 miles compared to the BMW’s four years/50,000 miles.
Hyundai is so proud of its turbo-4s that its electric Ioniq 5 N attack rat can replicate its sound on demand. Santa Fe’s 277 ponies are plenty of giddyap and I merged quickly onto the I-696 race track.
That’s all the performance most midsize SUV drivers require. I flogged a BMW X5 M around Autobahn Raceway a decade ago and it was a hoot, but I’m weird like that. If you want to do track days, buy a sportscar.
Indeed, without the BMW’s extensive powertrain weaponry, the Hyundai is a remarkable 1,000 pounds lighter and I felt it immediately. Some of that added Bimmer heft also goes to sound-deadening. The BMW is one quiet ride even when I put the cane to the inline-6.
Otherwise, the Santa Fe interior is the BMW’s peer in all the ways passengers appreciate.
The twin digital screens in both cars are crisp, quick to the touch. BMW offers a rotary controller so you can manipulate the infotainment screen remotely if you like, but it has the drawback of cluttering the center console — sharing space with Bimmer’s compact, cool Chiclet shifter.
The Santa Fe, by contrast, assumes the smartphone generation will be satisfied with the touchscreen — then offers you two huge charging pads for phones. The BMW, too, offers twin charging pads, but they are harder to access in the forward compartment of the cluttered console. Hyundai further improves console ergonomics by using a steering wheel-mounted shifter stalk and superior, tactile buttons on the elegant, art deco steering wheel that you can operate without diverting your eyes from the road.
The icing on the cake — er, console — is a double-hinged door that is accessible to the rear as well as the front seats. The Bimmer goes with a fashionable (if less useful) butterfly door. Both second rows are comfortable for six-footers and both have individual, seatback USB-C ports so passengers can charge their phones. Both second-row seats will recline, and both offer third-row seat options (of my testers, only Hyundai had the third row).
In these high-tech cocoons, both brands offer a blizzard of goodies in the infotainment screen to entertain you on your drive, including Level 2 driver assist. My favorites? The Hyundai offers special first-to-third-row communication and programmable FAVORITES buttons on the steering wheel (for, say, a shortcut to the phone screen). The Bimmer options automatic lane change while in driver-assist mode and its head-up display can scroll your favorite music stations.
The pair even boast clever storage items. The BMW sports a lower tailgate to help keep backstop items in the boot. The Hyundai offers a second, secret, dashboard glove box for extra storage — maybe where you can stash the 35 grand you saved by buying this fashionable family SUV.
Next week: The new Dream Cruise antiques
2024 BMW X5 xDrive 50e
Vehicle type: Front engine, all-wheel-drive, six-passenger SUV
Price: $74,275, including $995 destination fee ($87,745 as tested)
Powerplant: Turbocharged 3.0-liter, inline-6 cylinder mated with 19.2-kWh lithium-ion battery pack and electric motor
Power: 483 horsepower, 516 pound-feet of torque
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Performance: 0-60 mph, 4.6 seconds (mfr.); towing, NA
Weight: 5,573 pounds
Fuel economy: EPA 22 mpg city/23 highway/22 combined (as tested); 38 miles on battery alone (mfr.)
Report card
Highs: Multitalented drivetrain; lovely interior
Lows: Crowded console; gets pricey
Overall: 3 stars
2024 Hyundai Santa Fe
Vehicle type: Front engine, front- or all-wheel-drive, six-passenger SUV
Price: $35,365, including $1,415 destination fee ($51,715 Calligraphy model as tested)
Powerplant: Turbocharged 2.5-liter, inline-4 cylinder
Power: 277 horsepower, 311 pound-feet of torque
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Performance: 0-60 mph, 6.2 seconds (mfr.); towing, 4,500 pounds
Weight: 4,487 pounds (as tested)
Fuel economy: EPA 19 mpg city/26 highway/22 combined (XLT as tested)
Report card
Highs: Distinctive style; clever interior touches
Lows: Ummm …
Overall: 4 stars
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
How EV depreciation is clouding the electric future
Posted by Talbot Payne on August 12, 2024
As Ferrari pumps out its first electrified automobiles, it is offering customers a full battery replacement. The battery warranty is intended to maintain not just the car’s performance, but its resale value.
The Italian automaker’s guarantee is the latest sign that electric vehicles have a growing challenge — and it’s not just cost and range anxiety relative to their gas-powered peers. EV residual values are cratering compared to their gas-powered peers, harming resale value for owners who have otherwise enjoyed lower ownership costs due to EVs’ low maintenance and refueling expenses.
Experts say the reasons for EV depreciation vary from the flood of new models in the market to battery degradation after years of charging. A recent study from iSeeCars.com found EV residuals fell 31.8% over a year ago (a value loss of $14,418) compared to 3.6% for gas engine vehicles. Yet, while EV deprecation is sour news for owners, lower EV values — combined with higher government incentives — could open the opportunity to a wider demographic of buyers to try EVs as manufacturers try to meet government sales mandates.
“Vehicle deprecation over the initial years of ownership is the most expensive part of owning a new car,” said Karl Brauer, executive analyst at iSeeCars.com. “As more EV buyers become aware of that fact, the fewer will be interested in ownership.”
Concerned over owner backlash, some luxury automakers are taking action. To protect residual values critical to its brand’s reputation, Ferrari — which has been making hybrid-electric supercars like the SF90 Stradale and 296 GTB/GTS since 2019 with its first, fully-electric vehicle coming at the end of 2025 — has launched an extended, $7,530 battery replacement warranty so owners can replace the batteries on plug-in hybrid models without facing a high repair bill.
The so-called Warranty Extension Hybrid and Power Hybrid programs cover battery replacements in the eighth and 16th year of a vehicle’s life (a five-year warranty is already offered) and is intended to “preserve the performance and excellence” of hybrid cars, according to Ferrari.
The Ferrari SF90 Stradale, the brand’s first plug-in hybrid, is covered by a battery replacement warranty the automaker introduced to preserve the value of used models. Ferrari
“In case of future developments in battery technology, the replacement (battery) will be a new, state-of-the-art component that will ensure the same performance as the original one,” Ferrari said.
Brauer says value retention is particularly important to the Ferrari brand, whose owners expect their $350,000-to-$500,000 purchase to appreciate over time. But the iSeeCars analyst says the depreciation factor is a problem at the mainstream end of the market as well.
“There are a lot of factors causing the devaluation of EVs,” he continued. “There are too many new EVs coming into the market and not enough buyers; a lot of EVs are coming off three-year leases into the used market; and Hertz has dumped thousands of EVs into the used market because customers weren’t renting them.”
According to the iSeeCars study, used EV values in June 2023 were 25% (over $8,000) more than the average used gas car price. Fast forward to June 2024, and they were over 8% ($2,657) lower than the average used gas car.
Mainstream EVs like these Hyundai Ioniq 5s face steep depreciation. Henry Payne, The Detroit NewsEVs are relatively new to the U.S. market (the best-selling Tesla Model Y, for example, has only been on sale for five years) compared to internal combustion engine peers. But, as they age, battery degradation will threaten to cause further depreciation.
As owners of laptops and smartphones know, battery performance degrades over time. But where laptop users can replace their batteries for $50-$200, car owners are facing a much bigger bill — estimated at between $15,000 and $22,000, depending on the model.
That depreciation was famously illustrated by Finland’s Tuomas Katainen, who owned a 2013 Tesla Model S with a battery that expired. The $22,500 estimate to replace the battery was prohibitive, reported CNN — so Katainen strapped 66 pounds of dynamite to his car in 2021 and blew it up on a YouTube video that went viral.
Katainen’s dramatic display underscores the U.S. government’s regulatory requirement that manufacturers provide at least an 8-year/or 100,000-mile battery warranty. Tesla claims its batteries will retain at least 70% of charge over eight years, but a report from battery-data firm Recurrent studying real-world driving range found that Tesla batteries degraded on average to 64% of their EPA-rated capacity over three years.
Seeking Alpha auto analyst Anton Wahlman notes that the average age of U.S. vehicles is 12.6 years in 2024. Most are powered by gas engines that cost $4,000 to upwards of $10,000 to replace.
“There are a lot of cars that are on the road longer than eight years. What happens as soon as your EV is past the eight-year warranty?” Wahlman said. “A replacement battery could be a $15,000 or greater part. It’s a ticking time bomb, and a fundamental problem for all buyer demographics.”
In a three-year cost-of-ownership analysis studying comparable Ford and Hyundai EV/ICE vehicles in the market today, Car and Driver looked at maintenance, refueling and deprecation costs while driving 15,000 miles a year. The study found that the Hyundai Kona and Ford F-150 EVs out-performed their ICE peers in the cost of fuel and maintenance, but that depreciation was the EVs’ Achilles heel.
“It’s clear that EVs depreciate quicker than their gas counterparts,” the study’s authors conclude, reporting the Kona ICE depreciated by $9,795 compared to $15,305 for the Kona Electric. And the Ford F-150 depreciated by $13,981 while the F-150 Lightning EV lost $15,738.
A three-year cost to own analysis by Car and Driver found the Ford F-150 Lightning lost more value than its gas-powered sibling. Photo Courtesy Of James Sweeney
Given the price and deprecation challenges of EVs, Wahlman says that “there is no end in sight” to $7,500 government subsidies to level the playing field for EV buyers.
If EV residuals continue to drop, iSeeCars analyst Brauer says that a wider demographic of buyers is likely to look at EVs — especially in the used market. A search of Edmunds.com, for example, finds numerous 2021 model year Model Y Long Range models ($50K when new) with 70,000-80,000 miles for the same $25K price as a new 2024 Chevy Trailblazer.
“Prices are dropping because the market is getting saturated for the luxury, first-adopter car buyers that have been attracted to EVs,” said Brauer. “The price delta to capture a mainstream buyer is much lower, which is why prices are dropping. But the driving lifestyle is also very different because the mainstream buyer needs the EV for local and long-distance travel.”
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Payne: Mercedes GLC Coupe is easy on the eyes — and my back
Posted by Talbot Payne on August 1, 2024
Charlevoix — I love the lines of the Mercedes CLE coupe. Low-slung body, long snout, fast back. But my back liked the Mercedes GLC Coupe SUV better.
Argh. I managed to torque a disc in my lower back on the tennis court this summer and, all of a sudden, the idea of folding my 6’5” frame into low-slung, long-snout, fast-back coupe seemed less appealing.
This, of course, is the fundamental appeal of SUVs — with five-inch higher hip points than their car stablemates, they are easier to slip into. Add their command position seating position for better road visibility, and SUVs have come to dominate the auto market over the last two decades.
But (groan), Payne, they all look so boxy!
Enter SUV Coupe models like the BMW X4, Audi Q5 Sportback and Mercedes GLC. Like its German peers, the 2024 GLC Coupe takes the boxier GLC to the plastic surgeon and gives it the ol’ nip/tuck — flattening out the roof to look more like the CLE. Except, um, the GLC Coupe is jacked up off the ground.
No bother, it’s still more attractive to the naked eyeball — while still accommodating my (creeeeak) back. Rather than bending uncomfortably low into the seat, I simply slid sideways into the GLC Coupe cockpit and … BONK!
Well, not so simply. That raked roofline means I still had to duck my fat noggin under the tight cockpit opening. Happily, seat memory controls are on the door, so I could adjust the seat rearward if, say, wee Mrs. Payne had been driving the Merc before me.
The GLC Coupe is one of a blizzard of Mercedes SUVs and sedans that make the German brand so hard to compete against in the marketplace. While U.S. brands like Cadillac and Lincoln have reduced their model choices to accommodate all-SUV lineups, Merc and BMW still produce gorgeous sedans and coupes as their portfolio halos — even if their sales have declined compared to the more utilitarian utes.
That translates, not into just more customer choice overall, but into more choice for SUV models as designers adopt coupe styling cues. Seen a Cadillac XT4 Coupe? Nope. My GLC Coupe tester featured the expected attractive grille and headlight/taillight display found on other Mercs. The brand’s signature star may anchor the front end, but the ducktail and rear horizontal taillights are this model’s best angle. Toggle the rear logo (just like a VW GTI), and the hatchback rises to offer more utility than you’ll ever find in a CLE.
Slip inside (watch your head) and the style gets turned up to 11.
Mercedes has embraced the big screen era — not with Silicon Valley, Tesla-like simplification — but with Hollywood excess. The lush, graphically-rich hoodless instrument and infotainment displays are complemented with high style. My $67,450 AMG line model wrapped the center console in a tunnel of carbon fiber from which the 12-inch screen rises like an ocean wave — before its topped with rose-shaped air vents. Oooh, it’s a lovely landscape.
But the form requires certain, um, compromise of function.
Maintaining the carbon-fiber tube means that cupholders and a recessed wireless charger are accessed via a sliding door that pinches center console storage room. Buttons to access the 11.9-inch center display? Fugettaboutit.
Back in 2013, Cadillac rolled out the third generation CTS sedan and it was a similar work of art. Putting style on a pedestal, Caddy eschewed knobs for haptic swipe controls. It was lovely, and drove customers like my pal Dicran mad. The current generation GLC (and siblings) are Son of CTS.
Ten years on, electronics are sharper and quicker, no doubt, but swipe controls remain a hit-and-miss distraction. Merc has added a redundant strip of touch controls below the screen, but there are no rotary dials for volume and temperature lest they interfere with the artistic form. Heck, even the panoramic roof was controlled by swiping.
There are redundant steering wheel controls for volume — but Merc has made these swipe controls as well to maintain the smooth, sculpted surface of its twin-spoked wheel. I turned on the radio with a punch of the right steering spoke, then used a slider to adjust the volume. Same for adaptive cruise control.
At speed on I-75 North, I engaged ACC with a pinch of the left steering spoke, then used a slider to adjust the speed in 1-mph increments. It was a hit-or-miss exercise, and will drive some customers screaming from the cockpit.
At this point, I didn’t bother to adjust the temperature. Instead, I tried voice commands:
Hey, Mercedes, adjust the temperature to 70 degrees.
Done. I tried it for radio volume as well.
Hey, Mercedes, turn down the volume.
Success. Alas, ACC is not supported by voice commands.
Owners will figure out the shortcuts that work best for them over time, of course. Then they can enjoy the comfort, style and high tech of the interior, including rear seats that have ample legroom for us tall people. This is what separates luxury today: fine materials, fine details and a fine ACC system that would automatically change lanes when I toggled the turn signal.
Sliding into the Merc on July 4, I punched the starter button, then immediately turned off the annoying STOP-START button next to it. The infotainment screen burst into a fireworks display, wishing me a Happy Independence Day. Ah, luxury.
Though you wouldn’t know it from the drivetrain. In this age of Big Nanny, emissions regulations are forcing brands to the same small-displacement turbo-4 cylinder drivetrains (just wait until nanny requires the same, quiet electric drivetrains).
The Merc’s 2.0-liter four-banger is plenty punchy — aided by a 48-volt battery (which also helps power all those big displays). But its 255 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque are no more remarkable than a similarly-sized Mazda CX-5 costing $30K less.
Exiting I-75 for the M-32 two-lane headed to Lake Michigan, I selected SPORT Drive Mode for a little fun through the twisties.
Not too much fun, though. Though the GLC Coupe sports a lovely sportscar roof, it still has a healthy 52.6 cubic feet of cargo room with the seats down (and a spare tire beneath should you get a puncture in the wilds of northern Michigan). I had packed the rear cargo area with luggage, sports equipment and electronics for the July 4 weekend —and I didn’t want to break anything.
Including my back.
2024 Mercedes GLC Coupe
Vehicle type: Front engine, all-wheel-drive five-passenger SUV
Price: $58,150, including $1,150 destination fee ($67,430 4Matic AMG Line as tested)
Powerplant: Turbocharged 2.0-liter, inline-4 cylinder
Power: 255 horsepower, 295 pound-feet of torque
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Performance: 0-60 mph, 6.2 seconds (mfr.); top speed, 130 mph
Weight: 4,450 pounds (est.)
Fuel economy: EPA 22 mpg city/30 highway/26 combined (as tested)
Report card
Highs: Big, family-size proportions; loaded with value, standard goodies
Lows: Quirky shifter, rotary controller
Overall: 4 stars
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Corvette ZR1 drops mic with 1,000+ horsepower
Posted by Talbot Payne on July 26, 2024
Sterling Heights — Corvette has blown past the 1,000-horsepower marker.
Chevy introduced its fastest, track-focused, 2025 ZR1 model Thursday with a twin-turbocharged, 5.5-liter V-8 engine that makes a stratospheric 1,064 horsepower — the first ‘Vette to hit quadruple digits. The number puts the mid-engine sportscar in elite, million-dollar-plus hypercar territory along with European rocket ships like the 1,063-horsepower Mercedes-AMG One and 1,160-horse Aston Martin Valkyrie. Yet the Corvette will cost a tenth of these exotics at an estimated $150,000 when it goes on sale this fall.
The staggering power number is the highest-rated V-8 made by any automaker. It raises expectations that the hybrid-electric, all-wheel-drive version of the eighth-generation (C8), mid-engine car — reportedly called the Corvette Zora, may approach 1,500 horsepower — eye-watering territory occupied by exotics like the Bugatti Chiron Sport.
“We are looking to connect with Ferrari and Lamborghini customers with these performance numbers,” said Harlan Charles, Corvette marketing manager. The ZR1 was introduced at an event in Miami, but The Detroit News got a preview of the car with its product team in Sterling Heights earlier this summer.
Impressively, the ZR1 puts its 828 pound-feet of torque to the ground with same 8-speed transmission and 13.6-inch, rear-wheel-driven tire setup as the 670-horspower Z06, the fastest, normally-aspirated Corvette ever made. Strap twin turbos on the race-developed, screaming, 5.5-liter, overhead cam V-8 (internally referred to as the LT6) in the Z06, and Chevy engineers achieved hypercar power numbers with a redline of 8,000 RPM.
While performance numbers have not been finalized, Chevy says the ZR1 has a top speed of in excess of 215 mph and will blow through the quarter mile in less than 10 seconds.
You’ll know the ZR1 by the deep air extractor in the front hood — similar to that found on the C8.R race car that competes in the global GT3 series. Like the C8.R — which won IMSA’s stop at Virginia International Raceway last weekend — the hood scoop helps keep the nose on the ground when the ZR1 summons its stampede of horsepower.
Out back, the ZR1 features a split window — both an homage to the iconic 1963 Corvette and also to help feed more air to the beast amidships. Air inlets have been added to the top of the rear fenders as well. In keeping with ZR1 tradition, the badge’s signature blue trim can be found on the LT7 engine intake.
In keeping with ZR1 tradition, the badge’s signature blue trim can be found on the LT7 engine intake. Inside, a Blue Stitch option is available along with blue brake caliper colors and other accessories.
The ZR1’s cockpit gets unique ZR1 badging on the sill plates and steering wheel, and a boost gauge in keeping with the first turbocharged Corvette in the nameplate’s storied history.
In order to bring the ZR1 to a stop, the ZR1 will come standard with 15.7-inch carbon ceramic brakes in front, 15.4-inch out back. The ZR1 goes from 80-200 mph and back to 80 mph in just 24.5 seconds — 22% quicker than the previous-gen, C7 Corvette ZR1 — and 53% quicker than the C6 ZR1. Options include a high-downforce, winged ZTK package with sticky, Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 R tires, carbon-fiber wheels (reducing rolling weight by 40 pounds), and a convertible model. At full chat, the ZTK aero-package will produce 1,200 pounds of downforce.
As The Detroit News first reported in April 2020, the ZR1 will be the ultimate, track-focused version of the eighth-generation, mid-engine Corvette C8. What The News underreported was that the so-called LT7 engine would propel the “track monster to over 800 horsepower.”
The 1,064-horse figure eclipses supercars like the Lamborghini Revuelto (1,001 hp), Tesla Model S Plaid (1,020 hp) and Dodge Demon 170 (1,025 hp).
The ZR1 is the third of four performance variants of the C8, with the Zora still in the wings. The C8 supercar debuted as a 2020 model, followed by the 2023, 670-horsepower Z06 packing a dual-overhead cam V-8 inspired by the C8.R race car that competes in international sportscar racing. Chevrolet also introduced a grand touring-focused version of the C8: the 2024, all-wheel-drive hybrid E-Ray, which is the first Corvette to be electrified.
The mid-engine ‘Vette has been a hi,t with sales on course for over 32,000 units this year at an average transaction price of over $101,600.
Historically, the ZR1 badge — fondly referred to by fans as the “King of the Hill” — has represented advancements in engine technology, including a dual-overhead-cam V-8 in 1990, supercharged V-8 in 2009 and now the twin-turbo monster for 2025.
The ZR1 is the swan song of Corvette Executive Chief Engineer Tadge Juechter, who is stepping down this year and will be remembered for realizing the first mid-engine — and 1,000-horsepower — Corvette. The ZR1’s introduction was pushed back to a 2025 model from a 2024 due to COVID delays.
“We went into the ZR1 program with lofty goals, but even our first development tests on-track showed the teams were already exceeding them,” Juechter said.
The Detroit News expects a fourth, mega-performance version called the Zora — likely pushing $200,000 — which will incorporate the LT7 engine and the electric motor in the front axle of the E-Ray for a mega-horsepower, all-wheel-drive hypercar.
The last ZR1 had front-engine architecture and ended production after the 2019 model year. It was the last model of the seventh-generation Corvette. Despite making a staggering 755 horsepower, the last ZR1’s LT5 mill was literally bursting at the seams — its supercharger poking through the hood like Hulk’s muscles through a too-small shirt. By going mid-engine, the eighth-generation Corvette gave the development team better rear-wheel traction and the flexibility to put an electric motor up front to complement the gas engine.
The standard, 495-horsepower C8 has an old-school, normally-aspirated LT2, 6.2-liter push-rod V-8. The last-generation, front-engine ZR1 started at $122,000 — expect the new model to push $150k when it rolls out of Kentucky’s Bowling Green Assembly in 2025.
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Payne: Ford Explorer ups game with interior remake, BlueCruise
Posted by Talbot Payne on July 26, 2024
Dexter — Like America’s No. 1 movie, Ford has gone “Inside Out” to sell tickets.
The handsome Explorer exterior now has interior toys to match. On course to load up on cider ‘n’ doughnuts at Jenny’s Farm Stand and Cider Mill in Dexter, I poked the BlueCruise button on my $50K 2025 tester’s steering wheel and the midsize ute drove itself down I-94. Look kids, no hands! No one does driver assistance better than Ford’s BlueCruise and GM’s Super Cruise — not even luxury leaders like Tesla, Mercedes and BMW.
Jenny’s has lots to see, but if one of your tots gets tired, the Explorer’s tablet screen interface is as familiar as a smartphone. Tap the left margin’s square icon and the touchscreen reveals familiar avatars for Spotify, Google Maps and so on. Want a game to play? Search in the Google Play Store.
So ferocious is the midsize SUV piranha tank that segment pioneer Ford is throwing all its weapons into the fight. Ford has surrounded the luxury-class Blue Cruise with a premium interior incorporating elements of the Lincoln Navigator. Gone is the uninspired, plastic, did-this-come-out-of-a-2010-Fusion? interior. Gorgeous, hoodless 12.3-inch digital instrument and 13.2-inch infotainment displays complement a nicely trimmed dash. The displays pop with Unreal Engine-based computer graphics from gaming developer Epic Games.
That should impress gamers who have grown out of their wee Fiesta ST hatchbacks, tied the knot and now need room for kiddies. But they don’t have to leave ST behind.
Like BMW bringing its famed M performance badge into its midsize $68K X5 SUV with X5 M performance and M Sport style trims, the Explorer offers sporty ST and ST Line badges. ST fondly recalls the playful Focus ST and Fiesta ST hatchbacks that Michigan motorheads still bring to weekend autocross courses.
So coveted is the ST experience that 20% of sixth-generation Explorer sales since 2020 have gone to the ferocious 400-horespower, V6-powered ST model despite its pricey sticker. For thousands less, let me recommend the new ST Line for 2025.
Starting at $46K — the next step up from a base $41K ACTIV model — ST Line brings all the style of the ST, but substitutes the big, longitudinal V-6 with a sippier, still potent, 2.3-liter turbo-4 cylinder. So potent that you might not notice you don’t have a six under the hood.
The 2.3-liter, after all, is the same 300 horsepower/310 torque beast that powers the saucy Mustang coupe. I buried my size 15 foot through Hell’s twisties and the engine growled like a cornered badger. The Explorer’s handling is no match for a Mazda CX-90, but most buyers will be content with the three-row family SUV’s authoritative voice and strong interstate merge.
More significantly for a family mule, Ford has taken a page from Asian rivals and loaded ST Line (and all models) with standard connectivity and safety features, including wireless Apple Car Play/Android Auto, adaptive cruise control, lane centering, blind-spot assist, heated seats and USB ports in all three rows.
One of the things I love about mainstream vehicles versus their luxury betters is their ergonomics. While luxe brands (looking at you, Merc) try to wow with clean, button-free displays, Explorer gives you nice, raised steering wheel buttons so that you can easily adjust speed and volume without taking your eyes of the road. That said, the Explorer’s rotary shifter is clunky — with PARK just another point on the dial, rather then making it an easy push button in the middle. Sigh, beware situations where you have to do quick REVERSE/FORWARD maneuvers.
The Chevy Traverse also has good ergonomics (and a better steering wheel-mounted shifter) and standard features. The Motown rivals are two of the most compelling affordable vehicles in the segment.
GM pioneered Super Cruise on the Cadillac CT6 six years ago and now offers it on a mainstream ute. GM has been at this game longer and Traverse will go hands-free (like Tesla) on designated secondary roads as well as divided highways. But it’ll set you back an extra $3,280.
Ford practically gives BlueCruise away on the ST Line trim (and above) for $700 and a one-year trial. I’m betting most SUV owners will find non-highway hands-free driving as useful as a bicycle for a fish, and will only use BlueCruise on, say, interstate drives up north. Rather than plunk down $3,280, they’ll prefer Ford’s one-month $80 subscription plans, like my Tesla-owning friend Chris, who pays the monthly fee whenever he plans a long trip.
I dialed up SPORT mode and the hoodless instrument display lit up with rich, red graphics. To my right, I downloaded Webex on the infotainment screen. The video conferencing application can be played with full video when the car is stationary — or you can hold an audio-only conference call when driving. Ford uses Webex internally and says similar Zoom and Microsoft Teams should follow as well as a variety of games and other apps.
That’s because Explorer’s tablet is run by the same Android operating system you’ll find on a smartphone. Tap the left margin’s square icon and the touchscreen reveals familiar avatars for Spotify, Google Maps and so on. Want more? Search in the Play Store like your phone.
Attention to detail is everywhere in the cabin, from the double-pull hood release (so you don’t have to fish for the release under the hood) to dash graphics for the skylines of Detroit and Chicago (where Explorer is assembled) to the two-shelf storage console (so you don’t need cupholders for storage).
SUV pioneers Ford and Jeep have a natural customer base given their segment longevity, but they can no longer afford to be unaffordable. Standard features and premium interiors are the norm. Explorer has evolved from a truck based-ute to one of the sportiest high-tech utes in segment.
It’s a segment with enormous variety. Toyota complements its two-row Highlander with a three-row Grand Highlander. Chevy hit a home run with Traverse. Kia Telluride, Hyundai Palisade, Nissan Pathfinder and VW Atlas have jumped into the three-row ring with notable models. Even sporty Mazda has gone big with a three-row CX-90 that can give a BMW X-5 a run through the twisties.
If you’ve read this far, you might ask if I’ve left something out.
Payne, is there a hybrid or off-road Explorer on offer?
Yes and no. Hybrids are trendy, but Explorer found little demand. Its hybrid version is now made exclusively for police forces who value its long range. As for the off-road Timberline model, it was axed (along with Limited, King Ranch and XLT) as Explorer simplified its lineup for ‘25 — a curious choice given the popularity of rugged badges from competitors like Traverse Z71, Pilot Trailsport, Telluride X-Pro and so on. Expect Timberline to make a comeback.
Loaded with all-wheel drive and other goodies to $50,350, my ST Line tester is one of the most competitive SUVs in segment. And with 483 miles of gas range, three rows, BlueCruise and an exhaust note like a Mustang, it’s an engaging trip companion.
2025 Ford Explorer
Vehicle type: Front-engine, rear- and all-wheel-drive, six- or seven-passenger SUVPrice: $41,350 base, including $1,595 destination fee ($50,350 ST Line as tested)
Powerplant: 2.3-liter, turbocharged inline-4 cylinder; 3.0-liter twin-turbocharged V-6
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Power: 300 horsepower, 310 pound-feet torque (turbo-4); 400 horsepower, 415 pound-feet torque (V-6)
Performance: 0-60 mph, 6.0 seconds (Car and Driver, turbo-4); towing capacity: 5,000 pounds
Weight: 4,565 pounds (as tested)
Fuel economy: EPA est. 20 city/27 highway/23 combined (turbo-4 AWD); 18 city/25 highway/21 combined (V-6 AWD)
Report card
Highs: Pleasing interior upgrades; stout turbo-4
Lows: Clunky rotary shifter; no head-up display
Overall: 4 stars
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Dream Cruise week: Roadkill Nights, Dream Show, more coming Aug. 10-17
Posted by Talbot Payne on July 19, 2024
Pontiac — Here comes the Cruise.
A month out from Metro Detroit’s renowned automobile celebration, the Woodward Dream Cruise, the week’s festivities have firmed up for Aug. 10-17. Motor Trend’s ninth annual Roadkill Nights Powered by Dodge will open the carpalooza Saturday, Aug. 10 with drag racing — returning to M1 Concourse after its 2023 diversion to downtown Pontiac. The week culminates with the Saturday, Aug. 17 Woodward Dream Cruise — the world’s largest one-day car show.
M1 Concourse, a private car club that hosts public auto enthusiast events throughout the year, has become a focus of the Cruise, anchoring the northern, Pontiac end of the 16-mile route at South Boulevard and Woodward. Ferndale anchors the south at Nine Mile. Additional participating communities include Berkley, Birmingham, Bloomfield Hills, Bloomfield Township, Huntington Woods, Royal Oak and Pleasant Ridge.
Brands and charities have embraced the Cruise, which is estimated to attract 1 million people. In addition to Dodge’s presence at M1, corporate sponsors include Ford with Mustang Alley at Nine Mile and Chevrolet at the Old Woodward/Woodward Avenue triangle between Webster and Haynes streets.
“For nearly a decade, Roadkill Nights has brought horsepower enthusiasts together for a celebration of performance like none other,” Dodge brand CEO Matt McAlear said this week. “In addition to drag racing, we have surprises in store this year that are sure to send a charge through all Roadkill Nights attendees.”
Roadkill Nights brings street legal racing to Woodward, but the addition of a Michigan turn lane outside of M1 scrambled the event in 2023 — forcing organizers to move the event to downtown Pontiac. Without M1’s adjacent, 87-acre property — which complemented the street racing with a sprawling car show, Dodge thrill rides, and food vendors — the event fizzled.
While details are still forthcoming on the dragstrip’s configuration, the event will be back at its traditional M1 location this year with the signature Direct Connection Influencer Grudge Race where hot rodders compete for a $10,000 prize. This year, six influencers — including Sick Media’s Tom Bailey, “Torque N Tungsten” YouTube channel’s Morgan Evans, and Herman “Demonology” Young — will move on from Dodge’s V-8 era and build dragsters around Dodge’s new, twin-turbo, inline-6 cylinder Hurricane engine.
Opposities: Roadkill Nights Grudge Match finalists from the 2022 showdown at M1. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
The Dream Cruise feeds on nostalgia for youthful drag racing — complemented by blaring music and Motor City steel roaming the Woodward highway.
M1 Concourse keeps the motors running by extending its Woodward Dream Show event to Wednesday, Aug. 14 — rebranding the Pontiac event the Woodward Dream Show & Festival.
Corvettes on Woodward moves to M1 Concourse on Aug. 14 during this year’s Dream Cruise week. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
“The Woodward Dream Show’s traditional third weekend in August was from Friday to Saturday. This year, we’ve introduced an all-Corvette event on Wednesday — the traditional Corvettes on Woodward event (formerly held at the Kingsley Inn at Long Lake and Woodward) — is now coming to M1 because the facility lends itself to automotive events,” said M1 CEO Tim McGrane in an interview. “We also have an activity Thursday (morning) with 30-40 Ford GTs on track. Then Friday, we’re celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Pontiac GTO, and Saturday we have a tribute to the year 1964. Art, music, history fashion — we’re making it a big, fun-filled festival.”
The 1964 cultural celebration will include a NASA exhibit with Gemini space suit, three live bands playing ‘60s music, and a history of the miniskirt.
In addition to hot rodding, the Dream Cruise draws its energy from the heritage of road-side drive-ins captured in films like “American Graffiti.” Woodward hangouts like Ted’s, Suzie Q’s and Big Boy were the places to be seen back in the ‘50s and ‘60s. Today, enthusiast groups — with monikers like The Flaming Pistons, North Oakland Bowties, DeLorean Motor City Club and American Road Thunderbird Club — and spectators fill every inch of the route from the Donut Cutter parking lot in Berkley to curbside spots in front of the Roseland Park Cemetery to Hunter House Burgers in Birmingham.
A Dodge Charger smokes out its tires during a burnout contest Friday at the fifth annual Roadkill Nights in 2019. This year, the event returns to M1 Concourse after a one-year detour to downtown Pontiac. Daniel Mears, The Detroit News
When they aren’t catching up with friends, fans are ogling street rods, big block V-8s, classic Caddys, European exotics, and Batmobiles cruising just feet away on Woodward.
Ford Motor Co. will celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Mustang at its traditional Mustang Alley venue at Nine Mile in Ferndale. The Blue Oval will showcase other models at Kruse & Muer restaurant on Woodward.
Chevrolet will also present numerous vehicles between Webster and Haynes streets on Woodward. Look for V-8 beasts like the mid-engine Corvette, the electric Silverado and Colorado ZR2.
TThe Cruise has its roots in charity, beginning with a 1995 fundraiser by Nelson House that attracted 250,000 people to raise money for a Ferndale soccer field.
That tradition continues. Corvettes on Woodward on Aug. 14, for example, will raise funds for Open Hands Food Pantry. Just below Long Lake and Woodward on Aug. 16, Danny’s Miracle Angel Network (D-MAN) offers free, convertible muscle car rides to the physically impaired.
Mustang Alley on Nine Mile in Ferndale on Saturday was the place to see under the hoods. David Guralnick, The Detroit News
The official Dream Cruise kicks off at 5 p.m. Friday, Aug. 16 in Ferndale with the Dream Cruise Ribbon Cutting Ceremony — followed at 5:30 p.m. by the Lights & Sirens Cruise Parade.
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Payne: Stylish Hyundai Sonata punches above its class
Posted by Talbot Payne on July 19, 2024
Pontiac — I’m old enough to remember the tin cans with roll-up windows that Hyundai displayed at the Detroit Auto Show in 2000. You’ve come a long way, baby.
The Hyundai Sonata has been one of the most stylish mainstream sedans in the U.S. market since its breakout, sixth-generation 2010 model — alongside the most stylish mainstream compact in the market, the Elantra. For the 2024 model year, Sonata has turned up the volume again. The 2019 model strutted down the runway with big front headlights and accompanying LED extensions that ran dramatically up the side of the hood. For 2024, Sonata changes spectacles for a more sci-fi look — think Cyclops from the X-Men superhero movies.
The LEDs run horizontally across a big black grille anchored by twin flying buttresses. Almost lost in the design are the small, mid-mounted headlights that recede into the dark corners of the fascia. It’s quite a piece of work and a real departure, not only from the last-gen Sonata but from sedans in general with their anthropomorphic front ends. It’s the first time I’ve seen a car mimic the mid-fascia headlights of bigger, more upright vehicles like GM SUVs and pickups.
The visual drama continues rearward across deeply scalloped side sheet metal that sweeps to a lovely rear deck wrapped in horizontal, red LED taillamps. The rear facia, too, has been updated with hip light graphics that made a nice light show as I walked up to my upper-trim N-line tester after dark.
My N-line adds to that drama with a 100-horsepower steroid shot — a boost from the base SEL’s 190-horsepower turbo-4.
On slick roads leading south of Pontiac, I floored the throttle and the front wheels spun like tops trying to channel the extra grunt. Strange, the Sonata offers all-wheel drive on the base 190-horse model — but not the 290 horsepower N-line, where it’s really needed. Product planning ain’t easy.
Into the twisties I toggled SPORT mode on the console and the Sonata labored through S-turns — a B student compared to class leader Honda Accord and its tight chassis. Here, all-wheel drive would also help the Sonata, especially since the Accord has ditched its high-horsepower model — optioning only a turbo-4 and hybrid in order to meet onerous fuel economy rules.
The Sonata, on the other hand, gives you more choice with turbo-4, hybrid and my N-line on ‘roids. But without AWD, the N-line falls shy of its potential.
That’s not the case for the interior, which gets major upgrades to match that of some luxury vehicles. How premium? The dash looks like BMW 3-series with its twin 12-inch gauge and infotainment displays housed under one piece of curved glass that arches across the dashboard. It’s a Hyundai signature and is repeated on models from Elantra up to the luxurious Genesis GV60 electric model that I recently had in my driveway.
To step above the Sonata, the GV60 adds fancy bits like a floating console and shifter that rotates from a glass glob to a rotary shifter when you enter the vehicles. OK, these are pretty cool features. But my point is the Sonata does a nice imitation of a premium interior.
That premium feel is aided by a gear shifter that has been relocated to the steering column, opening up more console space for goodies like a wireless charger for your phone.
The wireless charging complements wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto — which will drain your phone battery over a long road trip. Hyundai offers its own navigation system, of course, but it is inferior to Google’s. For all of its physical panache, the Hyundai system is a little slow, lagging industry-best systems from Ford and Stellantis (speaking of which, looking forward to the next-gen Dodge sedans!).
Better is the Hyundai’s multiple gadgets that make the car more fun, taking advantage of the digital wizardry that we all love about our phones.
Two of my favorites:
—A configurable instrument display so that I could, for example, use a digital tachometer. Shifting at 6.5 (x 1,000 RPM) with the paddle shifters is kinda’ cool compared to a familiar round analog display.
—Customizable steering wheel button that can be programmed to, say, turn media on/off, or go into Quiet mode, or (in my case) use as a shortcut to driver assistance settings, which I like to play around with.
Digitization has also made column shifters much easier to use (I remember me mum’s wrestling match with her ‘60s Pontiac’s column shifter!). The Hyundai is as simple as turning a tab for DRIVE, NEUTRAL, REVERSE. Park? Just push the end of the stalk. Mercedes and Tesla made column shifters cool again, and the Hyundai is better for it.
Better than the average sedan is the Hyundai’s palatial front legroom at 46 inches, which will make tall drivers happy. That comes at a sacrifice of legroom behind the driver though — 34.8 inches — which is less than class competitors (the Accord is truck-like 40.8 inches). Nonetheless, I could still sit my 6’5” frame behind myself with no problem.
Cargo space is a generous 10 cubic feet and Hyundai adds helpful levers in the rear boot so you flatten the rear bench and pass long items through the cabin. In an SUV world, clever features like that make the sedan utilitarian — to go with its knockout looks.
Auto segments are funny these days with SUVs and EVs ascendant. EVs are considered a luxury item yet my gas-fired $37K Sonata N-line blows away a $60K, 248-mile-range Genesis GV60 with 509 miles of range. What’s more, the Hyundai won’t keep you waiting, filing up in one minute compared to one hour for the Genesis. What’s luxurious about being made to wait?
At $37k, the Sonata offers not only range, but practicality compared to the small, similarly priced two-door electric Fiat 500e. The Fiat may be a fashion statement, but the stylish Sonata will dart from 0-60 mph while carrying six-footers in the back seat.
Hyundai has come a long way with its tech-tastic Sonata, but it’s also kept its eye on the fundamentals.
2024 Hyundai Sonata
Vehicle type: Front-engine, front- and all-wheel-drive, five-passenger sedan
Price: $28,650 base, including $1,150 destination fee ($36,100 N Line as tested)
Powerplant: 2.5-liter inline-4 cylinder; 2.5-liter turbocharged, inline-4 cylinder; hybrid 2.0-liter inline 4-cylinder combined with electric motor
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic (SEL, N Line); 6-speed automatic (hybrid)
Power: 191 horsepower, 181 pound-feet torque (standard SEL); 290 horsepower, 311 pound-feet torque (N Line); 192 horsepower (hybrid)
Performance: 0-60 mph, 5.0 seconds (Car and Driver est.); top speed: 155 mph (est.)
Weight: 3,534 pounds (N Line as tested)
Fuel economy: EPA est. 25 city/36 highway/29 combined (SEL); 23 city/32 highway/27 combined (N Line); 44 city/51 highway/47 combined (hybrid)
Report card
Highs: Upscale style inside and out; drivetrain choices
Lows: Laggy screen; AWD with performance N Line model, please
Overall: 4 stars
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or Twitter @HenryEPayne
2025 Cadillac Escalade unveiled: More tech, more screens, more bling
Posted by Talbot Payne on July 19, 2024
The blingtastic Cadillac Escalade is an American icon, the perennially best-selling mega-ute in a segment it defined. For the 2025 model year, it’s not sitting on its laurels.
The Escalade gets a major mid-cycle refresh with a upgrades like a 55-inch curved dash screen, auto-opening doors, and updated exterior lighting. The new features come as the Escalade competes, not just against Motown rivals from Jeep and Lincoln, but also against European SUVs at a similar, six-figure price point.
Where the Detroit Three have separated themselves from their European competition is in size — putting luxurious top hats on ladder-frame truck chassis with towing and cargo numbers that foreign models can only dream about. To complement its inherent advantage, recent models of the Escalade, Jeep Grand Wagoneer and Lincoln Navigator have also reached into the same toolkit as German luxury brands with gorgeous materials and digital goo-gaws.
The internal-combustion-engine Escalade is the second of two major reveals this year as Cadillac has also introduced an electric Escalade IQ into the portfolio. The SUV’ share interior features — but the IQ adds a big frunk for storage where the engine would be in ICE models. Cadillac has said the brand will eventually go all-electric, but for now the EV replaces a diesel-powered Escalade as an alternative drivetrain for the lineup.
“The Escalade franchise has defined Cadillac for five generations,” said John Roth, vice president of Global Cadillac. “As the best-selling luxury full-size SUV in North America since 2014, the expansion of the portfolio to include a refreshed Escalade and the all-new all-electric IQ positions the brand well to offer an Escalade that meets the needs of all customers.”
Like those big Mercedes screens? The Escalade ups the ante with its pillar-to-pillar 55-inch jumbotron that wouldn’t be out of place in a movie theater. The jumbotron contains the 35-inch instrument/infotainment driver displays and 20-inch passenger screen. It is complemented by two more screens — a head-up display that projects information over the hood in the driver’s line of sight, and an 11-inch console screen within easy reach for climate controls.
Second-row customers fly first class with a central tablet controller as well as 12.6-inch personal entertainment screens when the Executive Second Row package is optioned. That package includes stowable tray tables, dual wireless phone charging pads, massaging seats, headrest speakers and a stewardess (kidding about that last one). With all three rows deployed, the mega-ute can seat up to eight passengers.
Enjoy rolling out the red carpet? Like the BMW 7 series and other exotic sedans, the Escalade’s four doors will open automatically with a touch of a screen button. The driver’s door goes one better — it senses an approaching operator’s key and swings open automatically. Once seated, the driver may touch the brake pedal and the door will automatically close behind them.
If that isn’t enough, the Escalade’s air suspension will kneel like a trained elephant to make ingress easier.
Like European power? The Escalade brings V-8 grunt from GM’s toolkit — the reliable, 6.2-liter beast that also motivates the Chevy Corvette supercar. If you need more horsepower, a 683-horse supercharged V-8 is on offer in the V-Series trim.
Like your luxury over the top? The Escalade will drive itself with standard, hands-free Super Cruise on divided highways, at which time you can pop open a cold soda from the console’s (optional) fridge and turn up the volume on the 40-speaker AKG Studio sound system.
Manhattan penthouses never had it so good.
This opulence is wrapped in an upgraded exterior with new front and rear fascias. You can tell the new Escalade from the 2024 model by its mid-mounted headlights — a design trend established by its Chevy Tahoe, Suburban and GMC Yukon stablemates. The vertical mid-lights are complemented by LED “eyebrow” running lights. Though based on a truck frame, the Escalade rides like a magic carpet on its magnetic shocks and independent rear suspension.
Other blingtastic details include a standard illuminated front crest and — on the V-Series and Premium Luxury Platinum trims — an illuminated grille surround. There are six trims on offer, and, for the first time, Escalade will offer outrageous 24-inch wheels.
“Escalade is about being bold, arriving with style, and making a statement. The 2025 Escalade continues the design story introduced in the 2021 Escalade, but with thoughtful and dramatic updates,” said lead designer Vicente Beire.
The Escalade has been a favorite of celebrities over the years and Cadillac leans into its Hollywood tradition. “Entourage” actor Jerry Ferrara drove an Escalade in the 2015 movie. He will post content this week paying homage to the movie and his character, Turtle.
The 2025 Escalade starts production later this year at GM’s Arlington Assembly plant in Texas.
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Auto sales ’24: The market’s biggest winners, losers and movers (so far)
Posted by Talbot Payne on July 12, 2024
Like a game of Twister, the auto industry is stretched in all different directions these days.
Manufacturers must pump out popular, internal-combustion vehicles to meet customer needs even as they satisfy government demands for electric vehicle sales. American consumers love big SUVs, but high gas prices and interest rates demand smaller cars. And automakers are keen to sniff out the latest enthusiast trends even as they commoditize vehicles on common platforms to save dollars.
Six months into the 2024 model year, we have sales data. Here are the latest winners, losers and trendsetters.
The best sellers. The Top Ten models have remained largely the same since 2023 with one exception. America’s perennial best-seller, the Ford F-150 pickup, leads the way, followed by: 2) Chevy Silverado 3) Toyota RAV4 4) Tesla Model Y 5) Honda CR-V 6) Ram 1500 7) Toyota Camry 8) Nissan Rogue 9) Honda Civic and 10) GMC Sierra.
Left out? The Jeep Grand Cherokee dropped from the Top Ten to #12 after a 15% sales decline — representative of a tough six months for the brands of Stellantis NV.
The Ford F-150, here in Raptor form, remains the nation’s best-selling light vehicle. James Lipman, Ford
The bottom dwellers. Big luxury sedans, hydrogen cars, electric vehicles and sports cars are the market’s basement furniture. Manufacturers have predicted for three decades that hydrogen power is the fuel of the future, but model intros have been few and focused on California, where they generate big regulatory credits. The Hyundai Nexo was the lowest-selling vehicle in the United States through June with 77 units sold, while the Toyota Mirai was the fourth=worst at 245 units.
The wee Fiat 500 has been reborn as a fashionable, big city electric commuter (plug it in, go to work) — so its 203 unit sales (second to last) are no surprise. Sleek sedans have fallen from favor, even among luxury buyers. The Audi A7, Audi A8, Volvo S90/V90 wagon and Genesis G90 all struggled for sales in the Bottom Ten.
Most mainstream brands have kicked big sedans to the curb and the VW Arteon (the 12th-worst seller at 923 units) is being discontinued after the 2024 model year. Sports cars are brand halos but sales laggards and the BMW Z4 (13th worst) and Nissan GT-R (2nd worst) anchor the segment.
The biggest movers. With average vehicle transaction prices hovering near $50k and interest rates over 7%, consumers seem to be downsizing to entry-level segments. Chevy’s stylish, remade, $21.5k Trax subcompact received rave reviews in the media — and in the showroom. Trax sales are up 230%, rocketing it to the best-selling vehicle in its class at 90,462 units so far this year. It’s not alone.
Other affordable subcompacts SUVs have also gained strength, including the Honda HR-V (up 41%), Toyota Corolla Cross (up 59%) and Mazda CX-30 (+33%). Even in the luxury subcompact class, the class-leading, $41k BMW X1/X2 gained a whopping 500% in sales.
The 2024 Chevy Trax has been a huge sales hit as shoppers migrate to more affordable vehicles. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
The trend continued in compact sedans, a segment that the Detroit Three automakers have abandoned. The class-leading, $25k Honda Civic gained 38% to 129,788 units sold while runner-up Toyota Corolla gained 25%. VW’s compact Jetta and Golf siblings were up 107% and 62%, respectively.
Compact pickups are a class of one, but the $25.5k Ford Maverick maintained the affordability trend with a 113% gain to 90,375 units.
Ford Maverick sales were up more than 100% in the first half of the year. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
The biggest losers. It’s been a tough year for some market icons. While the Civic and CR-V SUV (up 20%) have excelled, the Honda Accord has lost nearly 20% in sales even after the introduction of an all-new model. Despite price cuts, Tesla Model 3 sales slowed 40% — in part due to the continued success of its Model Y SUV stablemate, but also because other EVs have come to market (more on that later). It’s also suffering in an SUV-made market where the Tesla Model S (off 50%) and Kia K5 (-59%) also took big hits.
The Tesla Model 3 suffered a big sales drop in the first half of the year. Patrick T. Fallon, Bloomberg
Jeep’s iconic Wrangler lost 9% of sales, leading a Stellantis rout. All Jeep models lost sales over a year ago with the exception of the all-new Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer mega-utes, which roared out of the gate and appeared to steal sales from their GM and Ford competition. Dodge suffered as its Challenger and Charger icons rode into the sunset, and even the mighty Ram pickup saw sales decline 20%.
EV sales. Tesla’s cooling numbers are consistent with the EV segment as a whole, which has stalled at 8.4% of the market, according to JD Power. Tesla still accounts for just over 50% of sales, but the feds’ $7,500 cash on the hood for new EV transactions has helped close the gap between EVs and their legacy-brand, gas-powered peers.
Mustang Mach-E sales accelerated by 58% through June to 22,234 units, while the Cadillac Lyriq got its act together and pumped out 13,094 units — a whopping 465% increase over a year ago. Volkswagen has touted the ID.4 EV as its most important vehicle since the Bug, but its sales were squashed by 28% to just 11,857 units.
GMC’s Hummer EV saw sales surge in the first six months of 2024, along with some other battery-powered models. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Other mainstream brands were more successful, with the Toyota bZ4X hitting 9,468 sales (a 159% bump) and the Nissan Ariya up 80% (9,346 units). The biggest gainer? The $100k GMC Hummer Pickup/SUV sold 4,598 units for a 6,974% jump.
Pickup wars. Even as the redesigned, hybrid Toyota Tundra gained a healthy 31% in sales, its six-month 78,454 unit tally is about what Ford F-Series sells in a month. The tables are turned in the midsize segment, where the Toyota Tacoma has long dominated.
The Chevy Colorado and its midsize pickup sibling, the GMC Canyon, saw healthy sales gains as Toyota Tacoma production was being changed over. AP
But with the switch-over to the new-generation Tacoma at its Mexican assembly plants, Toyota has opened the door for competitors. Tacoma sales plummeted from 116,845 to 69,437 (a 41% drop), which has benefited the Chevy Colorado/GMC Canyon dynamic duo which saw sales rise 30% (to 58,658 units). The Nissan Frontier also sold 39,964 units — a 17% gain. American muscle. The Ford Mustang is the last pony car standing as the Chevrolet Camaro and Dodge Challenger coupes have been sent out to pasture. Still, leftover ‘23 Challenger sales showed the badge’s resiliency — moving 21,216 units, just shy of the Mustang’s 27.4k sales.
The Chevy Camaro and Dodge Challenger are history but the Corvette keeps rolling along, with sales up in the first half of this year. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
And despite a $68k sticker price more than double the ‘Stang, the Chevy Corvette boasted 17,914 in sales, a 5% increase.
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Payne: Towing across the Canadian wilderness in the Jeep Grand Wagoneer
Posted by Talbot Payne on July 12, 2024
Waubaushene, Ontario — When I arrived at Quiet Waters Sailboats on Georgian Bay from Detroit, owner Rick and I met each other with exclamations.
“Man, you poor guys are paying $6 a gallon for premium gas!” I blurted.
“Man, that Jeep Grand Wagoneer is the biggest thing I’ve ever seen!” Rick said.
I had just filled up the Grand’s 30.5-gallon fuel tank (91 octane recommended) at a cost of $2.05 Canadian per liter — a total of $183 American. Ouch. But Jeep’s mega-ute was the perfect mule to deliver a Precision sailboat from Quiet Waters to a friend’s boat club in Charlevoix, Michigan.
The Jeep’s massive tanks and corresponding 610-mile range could complete the 447-mile trip across the top of remote Georgian Bay’s wilderness without stopping for gas. Its 9,450-pound towing capacity could easily shoulder the boat-and-trailer’s 1,350 pounds and high aerodynamic drag. And the Jeep’s palatial interior could easily swallow the boat’s accessories while comfortably hosting me (and passengers, if necessary) for 7.5 hours.
I opened the Grand Wagoneer’s automatic hatchback and dropped the third-row bench seat. Then Rick fed the 9.5-foot-long boom into the interior. And fed, and fed.
“Wow, we can get the entire boom through this thing with room to spare,” said Rick as the boom slithered between the second-row captain’s chairs, coming to rest on the back of the front center console. “I think we can get everything in the Jeep and nothing will be rattling around in the boat for your trip.”
Can’t say that about a pickup.
Pickups move the world, but even the longest-available eight-foot box on Rick’s Chevy Silverado pickup couldn’t fit the Precision’s boom without dropping the gate and sticking a red flag on it. Detroit automakers figured out years ago that they could take the rugged ladder-frame chassis of their trucks, bolt on a SUV top hat and offer customers pickup-like capabilities with the convenience of a sheltered cargo bay and three-row family comfort.
The Jeep Wagoneer and my (more luxurious) Grand Wagoneer tester were late arrivals to this universe, following hugely successful fleets of Chevy Tahoe/Suburbans, GMC Yukons, Ford Expeditions and Lincoln Navigators. Like its luxury peers from Lincoln and GMC Denali, Grand Wagoneer is posh, available in a long version, and can quickly eclipse 100 grand.
My $120K Jeep was loaded to the gunwales with the latest tech and features. That’s a lot of coin, but if the bank repossesses your house, you can just move into The Grand. Standard features include trip essentials like tow hook, adaptive cruise control, blind-spot assist and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Google and I talked a lot.
Hey, Google, navigate to Waubaushene, Ontario.
Without missing a beat, or stumbling over my West Virginia accent, she mapped the way. If you’re a frequent road-tripper (guilty), I recommend the L for its added cargo room behind the roomy third row. The base all-wheel-drive Wagoneer L starts at $75K.
We loaded the boat’s outboard motor, sails and rudder into the back of the Grand — plus my suitcase, tennis bag and computer case with room to spare. So ginormous is the Jeep that I could have added my family of four and their luggage.
I was on my way — land yacht trailering sailboat.
As government regulations force the elimination of new gas vehicle sales in the next few years, I am mindful of electric vehicle limitations on tow journeys. Halfway up Georgian Bay I tried an experiment.
Hey, Google. Find a gas station.
In the middle of Canada’s remote, pine ‘n’ rock wilderness, Google found four nearby.
Hey, Google. Find an electric charging station.
The closest result? Petoskey, Michigan, 356 miles away. Oh. If I were driving my Tesla Model 3 (or a Cybertruck), I could have accessed three Tesla Superchargers on my route. But towing’s weight and aerodynamic challenges also favor gas vehicles.
The Grand was a tow champ.
Though I could have made the trip on one tank of fuel, I navigated to one of the nearby service stations in the harbor town of Pointe au Baril off Route 400 North. Like Michigan with Marathon stations, Ontario’s lake-side highways are peppered with big Esso drive-thru service stations to accommodate truck and boat trailers. Just my luck, I chose a Shell station that seemed to date from the 1950s.
My loooong boat and trailer took up all three pumps — an inconvenience that would have caused a riot at an EV station, where vehicles need to charge for long periods. My mule quickly topped up on 5 gallons of gas (another $30 drained from my wallet). I popped into the station for a washroom (Canadians call restrooms “washrooms”) and was on my way in minutes.
Remarkably, that five gallons would take me 75 miles — and the full tank 455 miles — at 15 mpg. That’s just a 21% degradation off the Grand’s EPA-advertised 19 mpg. When I towed a similar Precision boat to Charlevoix from Detroit with a Ford Explorer Wilderness, mileage degraded by 65% (to 9.5 mpg of its advertised 21 mpg range. The Ford Lightning EV, meanwhile, suffers 70% range degradation when towing (as tested by my friends at TFL Truck).
I was hardly soft-pedaling the Jeep’s 510-horsepower, twin-turbo inline-6 cylinder Hurricane engine while pulling the tall boat up Georgian Bay’s tall grades at 75 mph — keeping pace with Canadians who (like Americans back in the bad ol’ days of the 55-mph speed limit decree) ignore their 60 mph speed limit.
Indeed, with its 500 pound-feet of torque and independent rear air suspension, the Jeep didn’t feel like a truck-based vehicle at all. More like a luxury Merc cruising the Autobahn.
Which is what the Grand is meant to be. Forget the rugged Wrangler brand halo, this Jeep is on par with the world’s finest luxe-mobiles. With four screens of digital information up front (including a head-up display and a passenger screen), three more in the second row and a camera monitoring the cabin, I might have been living in a New York penthouse.
The center console even had a fridge — keeping my favorite Snapples cool for the journey. I crossed the majestic Mackinac Bridge and arrived in Charlevoix at 8 p.m. feeling refreshed. I unhitched the boat, unloaded the accessories and had a late dinner. Piece of cake.
Next time, maybe I’ll deliver a boat across Saskatchewan.
Next week: 2024 Hyundai Sonata
2023 Jeep Grand Wagoneer
Vehicle type: Front-engine, rear- and-four-wheel-drive, six- or seven-passenger SUV
Powerplant: 3.0-liter twin-turbocharged, inline-6 cylinder
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Price: $93,945 base, including $2,000 destination fee ($121,350 as tested)
Power: 510 horsepower, 500 pound-feet torque
Performance: 0-60 mph, 4.7 seconds (Car and Driver); towing capacity: 9,450 pounds
Weight: 6,704 pounds (as tested)
Fuel economy: EPA est. 14 city/19 highway/16 combined (14.7 mpg observed on towing trip)
Report card
Highs: Luxe ride, luxe interior; impressive towing range
Lows: May not fit in your garage; few can afford
Overall: 4 stars
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.