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Mitsubishi’s EV Plans Last year, Mitsubishi said its electric comeback would lean on Nissan, so most people expected future EVs to share Alliance hardware. That still looks likely for North America, but things are playing out differently in Australia. Mitsubishi’s first new EV for the Land Down Under in 15 years reportedly won’t use Nissan tech. Instead, it’s based on a model from Foxtron, the car division of Foxconn. Foxconn, the company that assembles iPhones, just launched the Bria EV in Taiw

A Much-Needed Product From Nissan The last Nissan Xterra rolled off the production line in 2015. Since then, the company has been left without a midsize truck-based SUV to rival the Toyota 4Runner. In the end, two generations were made spanning 15 model years. Curiously, there was an overlap between the second-generation Xterra and third-generation Pathfinder. Both rode on the same platform and even shared the same 4.0-liter V6, but the Pathfinder was about nine inches longer than the Xterra. Th

Make Nissan Great Again It's been a tough couple of years for Nissan; the once strong and mighty Japanese automaker has been in dire straits. It started as a rumour that went wild, which eventually led to the brand reorganizing, with a failed attempt to merge with Mitsubishi and Honda, and the closure of some manufacturing plants, along with the sale of its own brand HQ in Yokohama, Japan. However, the automaker came out swinging in 2026 with a decent showing at the recently concluded Tokyo Auto

BMW's M Badge stands for 'Motorsport.' If you reel in the years, BMW’s M-series cars, including the M2, M3, M4, M5, and other miscellaneous M-badged cars in its lineup, can trace back their roots to the M1, a special supercar built all the way back in 1978. During its production run, just 456 road-going M1s were ever built, as they were sold to customers to meet homologation rules. At the time, BMW had motorsport dreams, and the mid-engined M1 was initially developed to be its vehicle to compete

In the United States, we often refer to them as the Pace Car, but in most of the rest of the world they are referred to as the Safety Car. Same thing, different name, as they are the car that goes out during cautions to slow the field down and control the speed, or pace, that the cars are traveling at under caution laps. Teams strategize how to manage cautions so that they can try to stay ahead of the Safety Car in certain conditions and circumstances. At races like this month’s Indy 500, the P

A genuine Petty Blue 1972 Plymouth Road Runner has surfaced for sale in Texas, and it is the kind of honest, documented survivor you can drive while you slowly bring it back. Offered by American Steel Classics in Celeste, this RM23-coded car still wears its factory TB3 Basin Street Blue paint, better known in Mopar circles as Petty Blue, and keeps its numbers-matching 340 small-block and 727 automatic intact.

Even Tesla Has Adapted in China Despite serious competition from homegrown brands, Tesla is doing well for itself in China. In terms of specs, the Chinese-built models are identical to the ones for the rest of the world, but the company made its first big step into adapting to local tastes. It's not by adding more tech or giving it a larger battery pack. Instead, it's the Model Y receiving more space between the wheels to make it nearly as long as a Model X. Dubbed the Tesla Model Y L, it was la

Under normal circumstances, civilians can’t buy military vehicles, especially not recent models that are still in service. But if you’re willing to bid generously, you’ll be able to get a 2026 Infantry Squad Vehicle-Utility (ISV-U) built by GM Defense later this month. Going under the hammer at Barrett-Jackson’s The World’s Greatest Collector Car Auctions in Palm Beach, Florida on April 18, the one-of-a-kind ISV-U will raise money for charity, with 100% of the price to benefit the Medal of Honor

More and more new cars are being assembled with high performance adhesives these days. While seem sealer was being used as early as the 1950’s, it was sparingly applied back then. As cars have become more and more civilized, the use of seam sealer has become more and more prevalent. But new cars don’t just use seam sealer to cover welded joints, as they also use it to provide resonance control and more. And if you thought there was a lot of seam sealer in brand new cars, you might be confusing s

Midsize Raptor That Somehow Reached the West Despite the global nature of the automotive industry, certain models are still sold only in a specific region. This is done to spread production costs more efficiently. A slight downside to this is that if the region-specific model is so good, jealousy arises from those who don't have it. That is the case with the Ford Ranger Raptor, primarily built for the Asian regions to satisfy the performance pickup segment without the need to import the big-dog

Proving Range the Hard Way With range being a crucial selling point for electric vehicles, some automakers have pursued 24-hour endurance test records. These tests demonstrate not only how far an EV can travel continuously, but also how effectively it manages heat – an important factor influencing sustained performance. Recently, Xiaomi – known globally for its Apple-rivaling smartphones – completed a 24-hour endurance run covering 4,264 km (2,649 miles) with its updated SU7. That figure surpass

The Nürburgring Nordschleife has a new SUV king, and it comes from Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi. The Xiaomi YU7 GT has beaten the Audi RS Q8 by a significant margin to take the title of the world’s quickest production SUV round the Nürburgring with a lap time of 7 minutes 34.931 seconds. That’s nearly two seconds quicker than the Audi RS Q8’s previous record of 7:36:69 set in 2024. Interestingly, there’s still room for improvement, as Xiaomi Auto noted that the YU7 GT previously set a lap tim

A Rare Second Chance at a Sold-Out Hypercar Most of us will probably never spot a Bugatti Mistral W16 anywhere but an auto show, much less think about owning one. With just 99 built for the world, every single car was claimed before production started. Even if you had the budget, buying straight from Bugatti isn’t on the table anymore. Then again, the used exotic car market never fails to surprise. A 2025 Mistral is now up for grabs via TBTFW, giving anyone who missed the first round a second sh

Different NCAPs, Very Different Outcomes Most people see New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) safety ratings as a universal standard, but the truth is, they’re anything but. Each region has its own tests, priorities, and scoring standards. The Suzuki Fronx, a subcompact SUV sold in most Asian countries and Australia, is a perfect example of how those differences play out. Of note, the Fronx is also sold in some parts of the world with a Toyota badge. In October, the Fronx received a five-star ratin

A Tesla Model Y taxi crashed heavily in Bergen, Norway, in 2023, plowing through one of the city’s busiest public squares. Somehow, despite the car reaching 56 mph and launching into a kiosk, nobody died. The driver, a sober 12-year veteran taxi driver, had insisted from the start that the car malfunctioned. When the vehicle was sent to an independent analyst, he found the dashboard partially dismantled and electrical connections severed. Motor reports a critical piece of hardware, the network c

A Costly Battery Replacement Electric vehicles are slowly becoming an accepted part of the world. While demand may have slowed over the past few years, people are now generally willing to consider them as their primary form of transportation. However, one major hesitation has always been the longevity and maintenance costs of the battery systems EVs use; most are afraid that replacing a battery might cost them an arm and a leg. Someone recently went online to prove that while EVs offer immediate

While we were on Rocky Mountain Race Week a couple of weeks ago, we passed a train derailment that had happened in the not too distant past. The tracks were repaired, and some of the train wreckage was cleaned up and moved out of the way of other train traffic, but seeing these train cars on their sides in the dirt made you really wonder how the heck they would get these things out of there. We realized that the train cars that were on site still were laying on their sides and had no “trucks” ak

If there's one thing the Mazda MX-5 Miata has lacked over its four-decade career, it's power. With the exception of some limited edition models that peaked at around 200 hp, the small roadster has never offered high-power engines. To be fair, the current Mazda MX-5's 181-hp 2.0-liter naturally aspirated gas engine is more than enough for a car that weighs 2,366 pounds, but some Miata fans wouldn't mind having over 200 horsepower in their cars. Well, what do you know, Mazda has been perfectly awa

(Words and Photos by Joe Grippo) Arguably the biggest bombshell news story that came out of last year’s PRI show was the legendary Pennsylvania drag strip Maple Grove Raceway being acquired by the newly reinvigorated IHRA sanctioning body. The seismic ripples were felt throughout the drag racing world, but none more than in my neck of the woods. Maple Grove Raceway is my home track, I have been going there since I was child, watching my dad Joe Sr. racing his Mach 1. I was finally able to race a

A quiet success When New York City flipped the switch on congestion pricing in early 2025, the backlash was immediate and loud. Critics warned it would punish drivers, hurt businesses, and simply push traffic into surrounding neighborhoods. One year later, the data tells a very different story. By most measurable standards, New York City’s congestion toll is working — and working better than many expected. Fewer cars in the heart of Manhattan The congestion pricing program officially launched on

The electric vehicle revolution was supposed to conquer the elements; instead, the elements conquered it. The industry has spent billions optimizing aerodynamics and fast-charging curves, but the latest data from the AAA exposes a significant problem: electric and hybrid vehicles are still fundamentally failing the temperature test. General Motors AAA Temperature Study In an expan

While the national average for a gallon of gasoline has remained relatively steady in recent days, drivers across the West Coast and Alaska are experiencing a very different reality at the pump. According to recent data released by AAA, pump prices are initiating their seasonal climb, and a cluster of five western states is leading the charge with significant week-over-week price hikes. If you live in Oregon, Washington, California, Nevada, or Alaska, your wallet is already feeling the pinch. Or

Derek is back at it, and if you thought that his last couple of will it run videos didn’t pose enough of a challenge, then how does a Chevelle that has been sitting for 40 years sound? If he doesn’t get it running, then it is going to be the sound of silence, but hopefully he can make something happen with this one. Is it worth saving? Is every muscle car worth saving? Video Description: After sitting forgotten in the trees for 40 years, this 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle is finally getting a second

When I was a kid in the mid-80’s, my dad worked at a Chevrolet dealership and had a demo car. His was an IROC-Z with the 305 and a 5-speed. The stick wasn’t offered behind the 350, but the 305 still put smiles on faces, so that’s good. I remember lots of speed shifts, clutch dumps, and fun. So when Dylan recently found this abandoned IROC-Z in a score that included some other fun projects, I knew I’d want to follow along on the rescue. Video Description: This Camaro IROC-Z was left abandoned i

Mortske is back at it, this time with a 1969 Mustang that has been sitting for 32 years. 32! So will it run and drive and live again? Will it be a cool car or just another failed project? I think this one could be pretty cool, and hope that someone else ends up driving it cross country and loving it like it should be. If you like Mustangs, will it run stories, and budget transformations then this is the video for you. Enjoy. Video Description: Join along as we recover a 1969 Mustang that was a