Monday 31 October 2016
Ram Macho Power Wagon: Macho, Macho Ram—You Want to Be a Macho Ram!
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November 1, 2016 at 12:01 am by Alexander Stoklosa | Photography by Alexander Stoklosa and the Manufacturer
In the 1970s, Dodge came out with the Macho appearance package for the W150 Power Wagon pickup. It was oh, so 1970s and very, uh, macho. Dodges so equipped were so manly that they practically sprouted chest hair. Now the 1970s are back! At least they are at Fiat Chrysler, which for the 2016 SEMA show in Las Vegas has given its already muscular-looking Ram 2500 Power Wagon a makeover that’s Macho.
The Macho Power Wagon, as Ram is calling it, is a concept, but there’s little that couldn’t easily be ported over to a production model. To keep the vertically oriented Macho package’s Power Wagon black stripe going, Ram added a sail panel behind the cab (which is nearly entirely covered by the stripe); the panel doubles as a housing for the conceptual sliding cargo rack, seen here supporting a kayak. Oh, and if that matte-black stripe package looks familiar, that’s because it’s a faithful remake of the original Dodge Macho package’s kit.
More to the Macho point, the Ram sits on a four-inch suspension lift and wears 37-inch Nitto Trail Grappler tires wrapped around beadlock wheels. A front bumper with an integrated winch and tow hooks looks the business, while the black plastic fender flares pump out the Ram’s shoulders even more. We think it would have been really Macho to put Dodge’s Hellcat supercharged Hemi V-8 engine in the concept, but instead it uses a more demure 6.4-liter V-8, albeit with a cold-air intake.
It also took extreme restraint on our part to wait until this point to discuss the Macho truck’s paint, but here goes: It’s an amazingly bright orange, and it is named Macho Mango (as in: Macho Man, Go!). Chrysler’s pre-eminence in awesome paint colors (and awesome names for them) continues, people. Should Ram man up and build it? Our staffers who lived through the 1970s say yes, while the younger ones like the idea of anything auto related named Macho. One female among us, assistant buyer’s guide editor Annie White, simply rolled her eyes.
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Shake ‘n Make? SEMA Show’s Dodge Durango Shaker Concept
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November 1, 2016 at 12:01 am by Greg Fink | Photography by Alexander Stoklosa
Dodge’s Durango Shaker concept, on display at the 2016 SEMA show, adds more fuel to the speculation that a Durango SRT is in the works within the walls of FCA’s headquarters. Fitted with a 6.4-liter V-8 engine and an eight-speed automatic transmission, the Durango Shaker is a B5 Blue bombshell of a performance SUV with the potential to be the Mercedes-AMG GLS63 for the everyman.
As its name implies, the Shaker’s true pièce de résistance is its shaker hood scoop works with a custom cold air intake system to help feed fresh air to the 392-cubic-inch engine. A cat-back exhaust with center-located tailpipes pushes out what’s left of the combustion process. Although Dodge didn’t supply power or torque figures for the Shaker, we’d venture to guess that the V-8 at least matches the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT‘s 6.4-liter V-8 engine, with its 475 horsepower and 470 lb-ft of torque.
Perched on a set of meaty 22-inch wheels and tires, the Durango Shaker sits three inches lower than its stock counterpart. A redesigned front end sports a crosshair-less grille and a big front splitter, while a pair of hollowed-out headlights from the Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat sit where fog lights would normally take residence. Tinted headlights and taillights, distinct lower-body cladding, a custom rear spoiler, and Satin Black detailing throughout the car, including on the hood, roof, and rear liftgate, give the Shaker a properly menacing appearance. Meanwhile, a pair of sill-mounted American flags and a fuel cap lifted from the Dodge Challenger provide additional kitsch.
Inside, Dodge shakes things up with the addition of a flat-bottomed steering wheel from the Charger SRT, a console-mounted shift lever in place of the stock Durango’s rotary dial, and three rows’ worth of leather-trimmed seats swiped from the Viper sports coupe. (That’s one way to get rid of excess Viper seat supplies—Ed.) B5 Blue trim pieces and a handful of Mopar accessories round out the Durango Shaker’s remaining interior enhancements.
Although just a SEMA show concept, we’re crossing our fingers that the Dodge Durango Shaker is a peek at what’s to come from the 2018 Dodge Durango—specifically, an SRT model fitted with the brand’s 6.4-liter V-8 engine.
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Chevrolet Camaro AutoX Concept Takes 2.0L Base Model 1LEvel Up
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When Chevy brought back its 1LE track package for the latest Chevrolet Camaro this year, it did something we’d been waiting for: It added the package as an option to the V-6–powered coupe, in addition to the V-8. We’re all for democratized performance packages, so we immediately started pressing Chevy on whether or not a 1LE kit could be added to the base turbo-four-powered Camaro. Chevrolet’s official response was sly, and it looks even slyer with the debut of this Camaro AutoX concept at the 2016 SEMA show.
Car enthusiasts will recognize AutoX as shorthand for autocross, the popular motorsport in which drivers are pitted against the clock while wiggling through a twisty course marked by orange cones. Fans of Chevrolet’s 1LE package, too, will recognize something else: that the Camaro AutoX concept has a lot of Camaro 1LE suspension parts bolted to it. There’s also a strut-tower brace in front, six-piston front brake calipers, and a heavy-duty cooling package. The daytime running lights have been replaced by vertical scoops that route air, ostensibly, to the front brakes. Grip is aided by a hot set of 20-inch wheels wrapped in 285/35 tires at all four corners, and for a little extra zip, Chevrolet also threw on a performance exhaust and a cold air intake. There’s even a GoPro mount on the front tow hook for recording trips through the cones.
The modifications don’t immediately jump out because, well, they’re largely overshadowed by the searing Shock Yellow paint. Your opinion may differ, but we sort of like it. Chevrolet gave the paint job a nifty stripe on the driver’s side for more autocross-y style. Or something. Inside, useful items such as Recaro seats with five-point harnesses and a roll bar race things up.
Will this concept’s goods—roll bar notwithstanding—morph into a 1LE kit for the 2.0L Camaro? Chevrolet isn’t saying, but a rep did point out that the Camaro 2.0T model is the lightest in the Camaro family, meaning that one with the right suspension modifications could be quite the performer. He added that, as with the previous-generation Camaro, all of the 1LE parts will be available in the brand’s performance catalog for anyone to buy.
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Carhartt Chevy Silverado Is a Match Made in Detroit
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How has this partnership never happened before? Started and headquartered in Detroit, Carhartt has been making clothing since 1889, and Chevrolet has been making trucks since 1918. Both are mainstays of the American working class and both focus on durability as main selling points. So it only makes sense for the two to link up for this turbo-diesel-powered special edition 2017 Silverado 2500HD.
Considering it’s showing at SEMA, the concept is actually pretty caged. Then again, Carhartt has never been a flashy company, so it makes sense. Chevy characterizes the paint treatment of the heavy-duty Silverado as “two-tone Carbon Flash.” Split by a gold pinstripe at the beltline, the top is matte black while the bottom is gloss. The badges mimic the Carhartt logo, down to the font, but replaces the clothing’s brand name with the Silverado name.
With work needs in mind, this 2500HD has trailering mirrors, a 20-inch LED light bar, a lifted suspension, bed lighting, bed outlets, a swing-out toolbox, 20-inch nickel-plated aluminum wheels, and a bed cover in Carhartt’s distinctive fabric. That canvas is carried into the cabin with patches on the seats, center console, and the door panels. The Carhartt logo is lasered into the headrests, because what’s a special edition without 800 logos?
Now, if you excuse us, we’re going to go listen to some Smokey Robinson or maybe some Eminem, while drinking a Faygo and watching a Detroit Pistons game. Something’s got us in a Michigan mood.
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Hyundai Gets in the SEMA Spirit with Spiced-Up Elantra, Veloster, Santa Fe Concepts
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What is SEMA if not an excuse to see absurd amounts of power and over-the-top body kits applied to pedestrian passenger cars? Hyundai is getting into the spirit with a fun load of modified cars for the Las Vegas show that starts this week. In addition to the 1040-hp Santa Fe Sport crossover, it also will bring slightly less insane versions of the Elantra, the Veloster, and the three-row Santa Fe. Still to be revealed is a new “skunkworks race concept” that sounds rather enticing.
The race-ready Elantra is a collaboration with Ark Performance, which lowered, turbocharged, and widened the unassuming compact sedan to create a so-called “Road Racer” concept. It also has an ARK brake kit, Nitto summer tires, a vinyl wrap for the body, and a diamond-stitched interior to ensure it won’t be confused for the milder Hyundai Elantra Sport.
The Hyundai Veloster outfitted by Gurnade has a similar aggressive stance with its wide body kit and huge rear spoiler. It’s also meant for the track, with its turbocharger, ECU tune, and Neo coil-over suspension. It’s finished in a paint color called Magic Magenta and the interior boasts racing seats, a roll cage, and a carbon-fiber steering wheel.
On the opposite end of the performance spectrum is the Rockstar Santa Fe, which has a majorly lifted suspension and beefy tires to give this crossover a big boost in all-terrain capability. Bead-lock wheels, 35-inch off-road tires, a winch, and a custom roof rack round out the package. Oh, and there’s also a nitrous-oxide injection system for good measure, because why not?
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2018 Toyota Camry TRD Spied: The Automotive Appliance Cops an Attitude
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What It Is: A prototype of Toyota’s redesigned Camry mid-size sedan with a few surprising elements suggesting that a high-performance version of the top seller is in the cards. Unlike the current Camry SE and XSE trims, which consist of little more than mild appearance upgrades, this beefed-up Camry appears a bit more serious with […]from Car and Driver BlogCar and Driver Blog http://ift.tt/2fy5F0A
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Tires Beware! 2017 Chevrolet COPO Camaro Debuts at SEMA
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The COPO seen here, serial number 1 of 69 for 2017, is clad in Chevy’s Hyper Blue Metallic paint rendered in a new “anodized” finish. It sports a supercharged 5.7-liter V-8 backed up by an ATI TH400 three-speed automatic transmission and a set of Weld racing wheels. More than just a pretty (menacing) face, the COPO on the stand, as was the case with the COPOs displayed at SEMA in 2014 and 2015, will be auctioned for charity. It’s scheduled to go under the hammer at the Barrett-Jackson auction in Phoenix in January 2017, with proceeds to the United Way.
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In what has become an annual tradition of sorts, Chevrolet will debut the latest COPO Camaro at the 2016 SEMA show. Production of the limited-edition 2017 COPO Camaro will once again be limited to 69 units in honor of the original 69 ZL-1–code 1969 COPO Camaros that tore up the drag strip back in the day. It will be available with a variety of engine options and will feature drag-strip-specific chassis components.
Although the folklore of GM’s COPO (Central Office Production Order) is pretty much common knowledge these days, we’ll remind those of you living under two rocks that, back in the day, COPO was basically a way of skirting the front office and getting a big, powerful engine in a smallish car. Chevrolet resurrected the acronym in 2012.
Philanthropy aside, all COPO Camaros are track rats at heart, and the 2017 COPO features a laundry list of specific parts and modifications designed for competing in the NHRA’s Stock Eliminator classes. In addition to the supercharged 5.7-liter engine of the SEMA car, buyers can also specify a naturally aspirated 7.0-liter (427 cubic inch) V-8 or an LT-based, direct-injected 6.2-liter V-8. The three-speed automatic is the sole transmission option.
As you would expect with a car of such low production volume, each COPO Camaro is built by hand starting with production hardware, including the same body in white used for production models. At that point, things take a decidedly high-performance turn with the addition of numerous strength-enhancing and weight-saving components. A beefy solid rear axle employing an aluminum center section, a lightweight steel spool, and 40-spline, gun-drilled axle shafts replaces the factory car’s independent setup, and suspension duties fall to an adjustable coil-over strut setup in front and a four-link rear suspension with double-adjustable coil-over shocks and a stabilizer bar. Lightweight, drag-race manual (that means unassisted by a pinch enhancing vacuum booster or other power means) four-wheel disc brakes handle the deceleration duties. A custom-built manual steering rack helps keep the front wheels pointed straight down the strip, and for the sake of safety a fuel cell replaces the factory car’s fuel tank. Finally, the wire harness has been specifically tailored for the demands of racing.
Buyers interested in getting their hands on a 2017 COPO Camaro must register at Chevrolet.com/COPO by December 15. An independent third party will randomly choose among the entries, Chevrolet said, and those selected will be contacted in the first quarter of 2017, at which point they will want to start budgeting for tires.
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Why Ford, Lincoln, and Lexus Testers Rule the Self-Driving Roost
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Dozens of established carmakers, technology companies, and startups are working furiously on autonomous vehicles. But if you look at the cars that are actually driving themselves on roads today, just two models are miles ahead: the Lexus RX450 and the Ford Fusion, with its sibling, the Lincoln MKZ.
Public records sourced from the California Department of Motor Vehicles show the Ford Fusion and the Lexus RX450h make up 80 percent of self-driving cars that are not vehicles being tested by their own manufacturers. Nationwide, the figures are harder to come by. Going by publicly available information, the Fusion and the RX450h roughly account for more than a third of all autonomous test cars in the United States.
Leading the Lexus camp is Google, with the largest total of self-driving cars: 24 RX450hs and 34 of its own prototypes. Zoox, a Silicon Valley startup aiming to make a fully autonomous vehicle for ride sharing, also uses a Lexus crossover for testing.
“
“There are no other OEMs that are currently so open to work through third parties.”
– Bobby Hambrick, CEO, AutonomouStuff
”
It comes as no surprise that Ford itself uses a pair of Fusions for experimenting with autonomous driving in the Golden State, but so does Udacity, an online educational organization that has just launched a nine-month “nanodegree” program to train engineers in self-driving technology. Two other Silicon Valley startups, Faraday Future and Drive.ai, rely on the Lincoln MKZ for their autonomous road tests, as does the Chinese tech company Baidu.
Outside California, self-driving Lincoln MKZs also can be found in New Jersey through Nvidia, the graphics and computing company, and Ford Fusions in Illinois, where AutonomouStuff, a provider of components for self-driving cars, tests them mostly away from public roads. In Pittsburgh, Uber is using at least 14 more Fusions as part of its pilot self-driving-taxi program.
But why are these models so popular when there are so many other vehicles available? The Tesla Model S, for example, has a modern electric drivetrain and plenty of space and power for the sensors and computers that all experimental vehicles need. It also comes with radar and cameras built in. But apart from Tesla itself, only Bosch is using a single Model S to develop next-generation driving technologies.
The answer, for the Lexus at least, was almost accidental. When Anthony Levandowski was building Google’s first self-driving cars, he chose a Toyota Prius because it had an easily accessible drive-by-wire system.
Levandowski, now VP of self-driving technology at Uber, explained why Google moved to the Lexus in 2012: “The Prius fleet was aging. We wanted vehicles that you could take to more places, including four-wheel drive because we wanted to test in the snow,” he said. “The RX450h is a great Tahoe vehicle, and electrically, it’s exactly the same as a Prius. A Prius and a Lexus are the basically the same car from a hackability standpoint.”
The popularity of the Fusion is also all about hackability, said Bobby Hambrick, CEO of AutonomouStuff. He noted that Ford is almost unique in exploring collaborations with outside companies. “Ford worked with a small engineering firm we hired, to put together hardware [and] software to interface with the native system in the car. There are no other OEMs that are currently so open to work through third parties,” Hambrick said, “and we’ve talked to many of them.”
The Fusion also allows electronic drive-by-wire control of all the key driving functions without extra hardware. “A lot of cars [do this] nowadays, but most of them aren’t rated to be driven on the road—they’re only meant for self-parking or lane keeping,” Hambrick said. “Just hacking into a car doesn’t mean you’re doing it safely. The MKZ/Fusion is one of the rare ones that is continuously rated for full self-driving, so it won’t fail when you’re driving down the highway.”
Oliver Cameron, who leads the self-driving-car team at Udacity, agreed. “We chose the Lincoln MKZ because of our ability to control the vehicle programmatically,” he said. “We can fit a drive-by-wire kit to send commands like steering, acceleration, braking, and more. Only certain vehicles can be hooked into like this.”
The Fusion’s hackability may have been a convenient coincidence, but Ford’s welcoming attitude is no accident. At a conference in September, Ford CEO Mark Fields said: “We are rethinking our entire business model. It’s no longer about how many vehicles we can sell; it’s about what services we can provide. We believe that the next decade is going to be defined by the automation of the automobile.”
As today’s startups mature into businesses making their own self-driving vehicles, Ford and Toyota should be well placed to turn today’s experiments into tomorrow’s strategic partnerships. But they should not expect to have the field to themselves for long.
“While we’re talking about cars that are easy to hack, the Nissan Leaf has one analog wire you can splice into and send commands over,” said Uber’s Anthony Levandowski. “That’s an awesome thing to have.”
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Apparently, This Brash Custom Mustang Is a Ford GT Homage
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It’s fitting that the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) show and Halloween take place within days of each other. At SEMA, cars dress up in all sorts of wild ensembles and stuff their guts with performance parts (and marketing B.S.). For Halloween, humans put on silly costumes and stuff their guts with sugar. And during both, you see all sorts of things you never thought you’d lay your eyes on. One example is the GTT, a custom Ford Mustang by Zero to 60 Designs that is claimed to be a tribute to the Ford GT supercar.
First, let’s start with the things that aren’t a matter of opinion: the performance bits. Zero to 60 added a ProCharger supercharger, an exhaust from Magnaflow, an ECU tune from SCT Performance, a Pro-Street-S suspension from Eibach, Brembo brakes, and Pirelli tires. The builder claims that the overall package boasts more than 800 horsepower and comes equipped with all the necessary parts to handle it.
The styling is where things start to get subjective. The exterior modifications include, but are not limited to, a new front fascia, a custom hood with air vents, wider fenders, side skirts, a new spoiler, rear-wheel cooling ducts, dual round taillights, a rear diffuser, and a centered dual exhaust.
At first glance, the link to a GT might not be immediate. In fact, the rear is actually pretty reminiscent of a different supercar, the Ferrari 599XX, with a more bulbous booty. But, if you put this car and a GT next to each other, there are some fairly obvious tie-ins. The frowning lower front fascia, a few of the shapes and placements of the scoops, the hood, the rear fin, and the diffuser offer callbacks of sorts. Obviously, the overall shapes of the cars are highly different, but you can’t say there are no similarities. Sure, this thing doesn’t look that much like a Ford GT, but then again, a trick-or-treater in a Batman costume isn’t going to be mistaken for a real superhero.
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Ford Is Running a Basically Stock 2017 F-150 Raptor in the Baja 1000
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Apparently keen on juicing more mileage from its “Built Ford Tough” tagline—and also keen on flexing marketing muscle—Ford is entering an almost completely stock 2017 F-150 Raptor pickup in this year’s Baja 1000 desert race. The grueling contest is as fitting a litmus test for the off-road-ready Raptor as anything we can think of.
But first, what does Ford mean when it says the Baja-running Raptor is “stock”? Per SCORE’s rules (Baja’s sanctioning body), even to run in the stock full class, Ford needed to fit the Raptor with a safety cage, racing seats and harnesses, a fuel cell, and extra LED lighting. Of course, some sweet graphics were slapped onto the truck’s body, along with a nifty spare tire mount in the pickup bed, for that proper stadium-truck look. Ford says it slightly retuned the F-150 Raptor’s Fox Racing shocks and springs to account for the extra weight of the safety gear, but otherwise, the truck is as you can buy it in the coming months. It even rides on the factory Bridgestone K02 all-terrain tires. Sweet. The truck will make a stop at the SEMA show in Las Vegas this week, then hit Baja November 16–20.
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The Original Volkswagen GTI Finally Earns the Lego Treatment
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October 31, 2016 at 11:39 am by Brian Silvestro | Photography by Lego Ideas
Lego cars are all the rage right now. Creators have been building all sorts of vehicles with the little plastic blocks, from a Lancia Stratos to a Porsche 911 GT3 RS. And now, the Volkswagen Mark 1 Golf GTI has finally received the Lego treatment.
This set, posted by user Athabaska on Lego’s “Ideas” creator site, is an impressively accurate and well-thought-out build of the famous Mark 1 GTI hot hatch. Featuring a red-trimmed fascia and even a neat titled license plate, it looks like the ultimate holiday gift for the gearhead in your family.
Perhaps the most impressive part of this design isn’t the exterior, but rather the nicely laid out, extremely detailed interior. It comes complete with a correct-style dashboard, steering wheel, and even two rows of seating. The car also has a working hood, which flips up to reveal a makeshift Lego engine. Sadly, we don’t think it’s functional.
This isn’t the first VW to get a miniature Lego version of itself. That title went to the iconic Beetle, which gained enough support to make it to Lego’s Creator marketplace. Seeing as how popular the original GTI is among enthusiasts, we don’t think the set will have a problem making it to production.
This story originally appeared on Road & Track.
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Red Rocks and Duroplast: It’s Bryce Canyon’s Trabant!
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When one considers the automobile’s role in the German state of Saxony today, thoughts turn to Porsche’s modern facility in Leipzig—the one churning out Panameras, Cayennes, and Macans—or to BMW’s Leipzig plant, where the Bavarian concern’s i cars and 1- and 2-series vehicles are constructed. Thirty years ago, Saxony buzzed with the gutless two-stroke rap of locally built Trabants, the German Democratic Republic’s main contribution to 20th-century motoring and a deleterious reminder of what sad havoc totalitarianism’s ugly thumb can wreak on the glorious art of German automotive engineering.
Trabis are not, however, a common sight stateside, so imagine our surprise when we happened on one. It was parked up on some rocks on a parking barrier outside a Sinclair station on Utah’s State Route 63, the road into Bryce Canyon National Park. Judging by its patina, the Honecker-era runabout seemed to have been resting there for some time. Naturally, we pulled over and grabbed a couple of snaps, because, hey, fish-out-of-water Duroplast-bodied East German semi-reasonable motorcar facsimile! When we arrived at our hotel for the night, we couldn’t stop thinking about the little Trabi with its die-cut Bitburger stickers gradually evaporating in the sun. Naturally, we consulted the World Wide Web for more information.
Turns out, the car was used by a man named Rolf Becker to drive to the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. He began the journey in Los Angeles, was advised by a friend to avoid Las Vegas and hit Reno instead, then drove on to Salt Lake. The car eventually wound up at Ruby’s Inn, the hotel across the street from the aforementioned service station. This isn’t the only car Becker has driven to the Olympic Games; the man has made something of a habit of the practice, although the last trip we could find any information on was his Magdeburg-to-Sochi drive of 2014.
Becker grew up in Halle, Saxony, where he became known as an expert barrel organist. He even once played the thing for 48 hours in pursuit of a record. And at some point after the fall of the Berlin Wall, he began driving Trabants all over the world, a smoky ambassador of East German culture. We’re not entirely sure how many Trabis Rolf has left behind along the way (he claims to have left cars on “all continents,” but we’re not sure about Antarctica), but running across this fabulously craptastic, sun-bleached, crusty piece of a bona-fide odd duck’s history was definitely a highlight of a fine day out.
And perhaps, on the eve of a U.S. presidential election featuring candidates with very different attitudes toward the Kremlin’s bare-chested brawler, in a contest rife with allegations of Russian meddling, it’s good to be reminded of the sort of thing that Russian meddling results in. A little bit of Duroplast is a fine and interesting thing to find out on the road, but by and large, we’d prefer to leave such things in the past.
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The New Hyundai Azera—Look, But Don’t Touch
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We hate to lead off the week with this disheartening news, but Hyundai will not sell the next-generation Azera you see above in the United States. Hyundai’s Korean headquarters has just released three photos of the latest Azera, and it’s possible Hyundai may have injected some excitement into this large sedan, but we’ll never know.
The news hits us as if Hershey’s had announced it was discontinuing its Symphony lineup of chocolate bars—a semi-premium offshoot from a non-premium brand that hardly anyone takes off the shelf. Back in the early 2000s, U.S. Azera sales did amount to something—cresting above 26,000 in 2006. But this generic Toyota Avalon competitor only racked up 5500 sales last year.
Weirdly enough, the rear of the new Azera looks like a Dodge Charger and the front like a slightly underdressed Genesis G80. Perhaps that’s why, with the Genesis brand now making a go as a separate, Lexus-aping entity, there’s no room anymore for the Azera.
But all may not be lost, Azera lovers. Hyundai’s U.S. division says this: “Considering the importance of Hyundai Motor’s flagship model in overseas markets, we are currently reviewing the possibility of introducing a U.S.-specific model that reflects the needs of customers in North America. Further information will be announced in due course.”
We’d take ours with almonds and toffee. Doesn’t everyone?
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