May 2018

Last 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon rolls off assembly line

(June 1, 2018) BRAMPTON, Ontario — The last 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon, assembled at the FCA US Brampton Assembly Plant, rolled off the line this week in the first step toward making horsepower history at the June 20-23 Barrett-Jackson Northeast Auction. The limited-production, world record-setting 2018 Demon and the last 2017 Dodge Viper hand-built American supercar will be auctioned as a pair in “The Ultimate Last Chance” end-of-an-era offer with 100 percent of the hammer proceeds from the sale going to the United Way.

Land Rover making all-terrain autonomy a reality

(May 31, 2018) COVENTRY, UK — Jaguar Land Rover is developing autonomous cars capable of all-terrain, off-road driving in any weather condition. The world-first "CORTEX" project will take self-driving cars off-road, ensuring they are fully capable in any weather condition: dirt, rain, ice, snow or fog. As part of the project, a 5D technique combining acoustic, video, radar, light detection and distance sensing (LiDAR) data live in real-time is being engineered.

Buick's global momentum builds throughout first quarter

(May 31, 2018) DETROIT — Coming off a strong 2017, Buick momentum continued into 2018’s first quarter with global sales up 9 percent year over year. This growth comes as new products such as the LaCrosse Avenir and updated Envision have begun arriving to customers globally, and amid the launch of an all-new family of Regals.

Demand for the Regal has grown rapidly in China since the new model launched last summer, with sales up 35 percent year over year, while Regal Sportback, GS and TourX (U.S. only) availability continues to ramp up in North America.

Old Ford serves as a planter



This 1951 Ford F-1 pickup was photographed near Atlanta, Texas, now serving as an outdoor planter. The first generation of the Ford F-Series pickup truck was built from 1948 through 1952. The standard pickup came in three formats including the F-1 (1/2 ton), the F-2 (3/4 ton) and F-3 Heavy Duty. The front end was redesigned for 1951 with a single-bar-type grille with a headlight at each end of the grille bar.
(Photo by Peter Hubbard)

Porsche pioneers augmented reality in U.S. auto repairs

(May 30, 2018) ATLANTA — Augmented reality is coming to U.S. car repairs for the first time at scale, exclusively at Porsche dealerships across the country. Porsche Cars North America (PCNA) this week starts rolling out "Tech Live Look" to its 189 dealers in the United States. The system connects dealership technicians to remote experts via smartglasses for a live interaction that can shorten service resolution times by up to 40 percent.

Hyundai Alabama preparing for next-generation engines with new plant

(May 30, 2018) MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Governor Kay Ivey joined Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama president and CEO Dong Ryeol Choi to announce that Hyundai is investing $388 million to construct a plant dedicated to manufacturing engine heads and enhance existing operations to support production of new models of Sonata and Elantra sedans. The investment will create 50 new jobs.

The other side of Stephen in Infiniti QX50 commercial

(May 30, 2018) NASHVILLE, Tenn. — As part of the launch campaign for the all-new midsize luxury crossover, the 2019 QX50, Infiniti debuts a new commercial starring its global brand ambassador, basketball star Stephen Curry.

The all-new QX50 featured in the spot is a luxury midsize crossover that combines standout design with exceptional interior space and the world's first production ready variable compression ratio engine, the VC-Turbo.

A most unusual Honda Civic Type R

By Christoper A Sawyer
The Virtual Driver

(May 30, 2018) This is a pickup. It was built by a team from Product Engineering at Honda’s U.K. assembly plant in Swindon using a pre-production model Honda Civic Type R. It is likely to be one of the fastest pickup trucks in use on British roads.
Known as “Project P,” it is identical to a production Civic Type R from the B-pillars forward, and retains its engine, gearbox and suspension.

Nissan supports two Japanese car culture exhibits at Petersen museum

(May 29, 2018) LOS ANGELES — Nissan has announced its support of two new exhibits at the Petersen Automotive Museum that celebrate and explore the intersection of American and Japanese car culture. Both opened to the public on May 26.

The first part of the exhibit, titled "The Roots of Monozukuri: Creative Spirit in Japanese Automaking" illuminates key elements of Japanese design philosophy in the years preceding its climb to market dominance in the 1970s. In concert, "Fine Tuning: Japanese-American Customs" examines the rise of Japanese car customization in Japan and the United States, and how each market influenced the other to redefine car culture.

For tops in fun and driving experience, you can't beat AMG S63 Cabriolet

By Paul Borden
MotorwayAmerica.com

(May 29, 2018) If you’re looking for a vehicle that tells the world “I’ve got it made” yet exudes a more carefree air and fun driving experience than you might ordinarily find in the Super Luxury Class, the Mercedes-AMG S63 Cabriolet may be a perfect fit. After bringing the coupe back to the S-Class portfolio from under the CL banner for 2015, Mercedes unveiled its first S-Class convertible since 1971 with the the S-Class Cabriolet a year later as a 2017 model.