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If you are a true car enthusiast, you need to own an Alfa Romeo at least once in your lifetime. Driving the Stelvio Quadrifoglio really proves that the Alfa Romeo experience is still there. But, most importantly, the Stelvio feels special, and that really sets it apart from everything else. We spent a few days with the Stelvio and could not get enough, and that was just driving around town. If there was a race track around, we probably would not stop until there was no fuel or tires left. The Stelvio, at least in the Quadrifloglio configuration, is just a beautifully crafted machine that begs to be driven.

When seen from a bird’s eye view, Nissan is actually managing its crossover portfolio quite well. At the entry-level, the Japanese automaker has the Kicks and, at the top, it has the Nissan Rogue. Nissan had the Juke to fill the gap in between, but the model was discontinued a couple of years back. Although it looked like the Kicks will have to manage two duties, Nissan quickly came up with a much better replacement for the Juke in the form of the Nissan Rogue Sport. The Rogue Sport was specially designed for the U.S. market and is not being sold anywhere else.

Volkswagen is approaching the end of the development phase of the new Volkswagen Golf 8 – the most connected Golf of all time. But before I proceed with bombarding you with all the incredible things I’ve learned about it, let me just give you a glimpse of its importance through my experience.

It was 2004, my finishing year of elementary school when Volkswagen revealed the Golf MkV GTI. I remember that day vividly because that was the day I was directly exposed to the culture of the Volkswagen Golf aficionados that I subconsciously wanted to avoid. That day, during recess, one kid came running in the schoolyard carrying a ProAuto car magazine in his hands and basically yelling, “New GTI, New GTI.” He did not buy lunch out of his pocket money, but a car magazine with a GTI on its cover. Every single kid that had heard him charged at him to see what kind of a Golf the new GTIwill be. I ran too. I was struggling to see what the new Golf looks like and we all jostled each other to get a glimpse of the car.

That moment alone changed my perception of Golf for a lifetime. And, believe it or not, that car magazine I was telling you about – I started working there some years later.

Now, exactly 15 years after I saw the Golf MkV GTI for the first time, I have the opportunity to witness the reveal of the Golf 8 (and I believe the GTI). 15 years ago, Volkswagen proudly chanted in its press release “It is [Golf GTI] stronger, better and more sought after than ever.” The Golf MkVIII will be exactly that – stronger, better and more sought after than ever. But also, more connected than ever.

Audi has offered a system called Traffic Light Information (TLI) on some of its models since 2015 (i…

The 2019 Geneva Motor Show is only two weeks away, and automakers are already rolling out teasers of vehicles they will showcase in Switzerland. Among them, there’s the Aston Martin Project 003, a new hypercar that the British firm is looking to launch in 2021. We only have a teaser shot and little info right now, but Project 003 looks and sounds exciting, to say the least.

Ferrari, McLaren, and Porsche are three automakers renowned for making many superb track-honed models over the years, and the latest names to keep that flame going are 488 Pista, 600LT and 911 GT3 RS. All these cars are roughly in the same price bracket and are comparable in terms of performance. Yet, the way they achieve (and deliver) said performance is quite different from car to car.

The Mercedes-Benz SL Grand Edition is a special-edition version of the company’s familiar and fairly old SL roadster. Based on the sixth-generation SL, upgraded most recently for the 2017 model year, the Grand Edition is probably the last hurrah for the dated roadster, which should be replaced by 2021. Described as an “especially exclusive” Mercedes-Benz, the Grand Edition is indeed a more bespoke version of the SL, but upgrades are limited to special color and trim on the outside and a new leather upholstery inside the cabin. The Grand Edition also rides on a sportier suspension, but it features the same engines as the standard model. Let’s find out more about it in the review below.

GMC has unveiled the facelifted Acadia. Although we all expected just a few tweaks to the body and the cabin, GMC actually packed the Acadia with more than that. The 2020 GMC Acadia is now available with a new turbocharged engine, new technology, and a host of other features. Hell, the company has even launched a new trim level for the 2020 model year. Is GMC giving the Acadia a major push to capture a bigger market share from one of the fiercest segments?

Is it possible that Toyota’s existing partnership with BMW could extend into a Lexus? That’s what a report from Japan’s Best Car magazine is saying. According to the report, the next-generation Lexus IS sports sedan will be powered by the same 335-horsepower, 3.0-liter, turbocharged, straight-six that you can find under the hood of a recently released Toyota sports car that’s been dominating the news lately. If the reports are true, the next-generation IS could share the same engine with the Toyota Supra and, by extension, the BMW Z4. Whether using that engine is enough to elevate the IS’ standing in the premium compact luxury market remains to be seen. It would definitely be interesting to see it compete against BMW and the almighty 3 Series with an engine that comes from, well, BMW.

The Royal Automobile Club of the United Kingdom recently published a massive and very comprehensive infographic, detailing the changing motoring trends in Britain over the past thirty years. It makes for an amazing read, and sheds a lot of light on where we might be headed in the future, what predictions about the future of motoring may turn out to be true, and how we might all be mistaken about some of the changes we’re sure will take place. 

We won’t go through every year of that thirty years one by one. For that you can refer to report itself. Here we will give you an overview of the piece and mention some of the more startling points. It is astonishing what people used to think about the future of cars and motoring in 1998. Evidently, they have been wrong on many counts. For instance, when asked about what advanced feature they were looking to see on the cars of the future, most mentioned rear seatbelts! They didn’t have a clue how advanced the safety technologies would get, and they certainly didn’t know about the extent that computers will come to dominate that aspect of driving. That is fair enough, since computers still ran on leaded petrol in 1998 and nobody could even begin to comprehend how powerful they might get, and how quickly.

Another striking aspect of the report is the fact that most of the important advances in terms of car technology took place within a short period of time. Surveys revealed that people in the 90s thought it would take 20 or more years for all cars to be fitted with airbags as standard. What’s more, as late as 2010, ABS was considered a fancy safety feature reserved for high-end models. A few years after that we had ABS and airbags as ‘given’ equipment even on the cheapest of cars. The shift towards electronic safety gear took place in an even tighter window, and its growth has been exponential ever since. Clearly, this shows that the industry might go on for decades without any major innovation. But once a new infrastructural technology is introduced, a bunch of new features get introduced and change the trends in one massive sweep.

The RAC report also presents interesting information on how motoring laws have evolved in the UK. A lot of it, of course, has to do with speeding and speed cameras, and it shows a direct correlation between the rules getting harsher and the roads becoming busier and more congested. The rather peculiar fact is that, according to the report, more people are using public transportation now than 30 years ago. But simultaneously, more people are becoming dependent on their personal cars. Add to the equation the rise in population due to migration and what not, and it is not hard to see that the problem is going to get worse. So cut Her Majesty’s government some slack next time they introduce an even lower speed limit, or put more cameras up in your neck of the woods. They are wrestling with an eight-legged monster here!

The post A Look Back at the Past 30 Years of Motoring – What’s Changed? appeared first on Motorward.

Mini is a company that should be taken seriously when it sets about building a performance car. That’s why we stood up and listened when, late last year, we heard that the Mini Cooper JCW GP was coming back in 2020 after what will be a seven-year hiatus. Now, we’re seeing the first spy shots and, as you’d expect, it’s the Cooper JCW dialed up to 11 with some cues ported straight from the devilishly cool 2017 Cooper Works GP Concept. We want it now, together with its +300 horsepower!

Traditionally, the GP version of the Cooper Works is the ultimate performance model. In the past, John Cooper Works, which is long for JCW, built two GP models based on the previous two generations of the Mini. Of the last GP, which bowed out in 2014, only 2,000 examples exist, and just 500 were sold in the U.S., so expect the new model to also be a rare bird. Talking about birds, the GP will once again mark the swansong of the third-generation Mini Hatch with a new one coming soon.

The Volkswagen Type 2 is one of the German automaker’s most enduring designs and was even kept in production in Brazil until 2013. Volkswagen sold countless numbers around the world and, while the T2 generation isn’t as cute as the original T1, it has its place in history. At the F.re.e Leisure and Travel Fair in Munich, Germany, the T2 made an unexpected appearance in Lego form, proving that making full-scale recreations of cars out of thousands of Lego bricks is now a thing.

The second generation of Volkswagen’s world-renown compact multi-purpose van debuted in the Summer of 1967 and was kept in production until 1979 for the American and European markets. The Argentinian market enjoyed the T2 as late as 1986 while over in Mexico you could buy a new T2 up until 1994. However, the T2 was most popular in Brazil where Volkswagen built it at the São Bernardo do Campo plant until 2013 when the production officially ended with a run of 600 Last Edition vehicles.

Just as Mercedes is adept at rolling out First Edition models, it can do the same with Final Edition models. It just so happens that the latter is more fitting for the times, particularly with the SLC-Class, Merc’s largely forgotten retractable hardtop convertible. In case you didn’t know, Mercedes is closing the book on the SLC’s three-generation life, and to commemorate the occasion, the Germans are rolling out the 2020 Mercedes SLC Final Edition. Mercedes is offering the special edition SLC on the SLC300 and AMG SLC43 trims of the roadster. There’s no specific number on how many models Mercedes plans to build, only that the special edition will be available in the U.S. in 2020.

Lexus needs to infuse its image with some extra sportiness because even though it does make good, credible sporty cars, it is still perceived as a brand addressed toward SUV loving soccer moms and your elderly aunt who decides to spend most of her life savings on a new luxury car to treat herself. One such vehicle could be a spiced up version of the UX crossover, the newest and smallest crossover to join the Lexus range.

If Lexus made a UX F, it would be the closest thing it could ever make to a hot hatch. The UX is already a low-to-the-ground vehicle with excellent cornering capability, so making it lower, harder, and more powerful in order to make it faster sounds like a good plan. Plus, it could also benefit from a sporty exterior makeover to go with its unusual, swooping shapes (which are not bad, just different and take a bit of getting used to).

If Lexus challenged some hot crossovers and hot hatchbacks with its spruced up UX F, then it could dramatically shift the perception of the brand and genuinely attract new types of buyers that, before this vehicle, may not ever have considered buying a Lexus.

The 2020 Ford F-150 Harley-Davidson Edition is the second pickup truck from the Blue Oval company inspired by the iconic motorcycle brand. The Harley-Davidson Edition returns after eight years as an appearance package, but it also comes with a few chassis updates. The big difference now, except the fact that it’s based on the latest F-250, is that it’s no longer built by Ford. Instead, the truck is assembled and sold by Tuscany Motor Company.

Marketed as an “Official Harley-Davidson truck,” this F-250 features an impressive amount of exclusive features, including a monochromatic paint scheme, loads of “Harley-Davidson” badges and logos, unique wheels, and a bespoke interior. Unlike its predecessor, this Harley-Davidson Edition rides on a special suspension designed by BDS for the motorcycle company. Let’s see what it offers.

Honda established its Swindon, UK plant back in 1985 and it functioned pretty well until the late 2000s credit crunch when the manufacturer closed about half of it. Before the financial crisis that really made its presence felt in 2008, Honda was making the Civic, CR-V, and Jazz in Swindon, but after the restructuring job, it only kept Civic production going at the site – now it looks like it plans on closing the facility for good, in 2021 or 2022.

The ’50s were a strange decade: on the one hand, the danger of nuclear annihilation grew bigger and bigger as tensions between East and West reached new peaks and, on the other hand, automotive design also reached new peaks – peaks touched by the ultra-high fins of cars like the 1959 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz Convertible, a true symbol of its time.

When you think of American cars from the ’50s, depending on who you are, you’re bound to first picture in your head one of three cars: the 1957 Chevy Bel Air, the 1955 Ford Thunderbird or the 1959 Eldorado Biarritz Convertible. The latter is most definitely the showboat, figuratively and literally, of a whole design trend; a trend that climaxed with this very car that, in a way, managed to kill off the trend altogether. The trend I’m talking about is of aeronautical inspiration, and it took off (pun intended) in the late ’40s and early ’50s thanks to concept cars like the Buick Le Sabre and a host of other GM Motorama creations.

No, those chrome-bathed fins didn’t help the cars corner better nor did they aid the back end in sticking to the ground better – they were just for style, and 1959 was the year of all-out chrome and all-out fins. Some think those cars are everything that’s wrong with American cars, others simply think they’re flamboyant while others still adore them. I guess it’s a matter of personal preference but, undoubtedly, the ’59 Eldorado continues to turn heads 60 years later.

Bugatti’s bonkers track weapon, the Divo, is the Chiron’s mad brother that’s been conceived to break lap records. Sadly, Bugatti won’t chop the roof off the Divo but, if it did, you’d end up with something close to Rain Prisk’s render, a machine that’s bent on ruining your hair.

We know Bugatti builds some of the most amazing cars the world has ever seen. Since it was brought back to life under Volkswagen ownership, the company founded by Ettore Bugatti managed to put out two awe-inspiring cars: the Veyron and the Chiron. In 2018, Bugatti launched the Divo, a hypercar “built for corners” based on the Chiron but with a very different look to it. It will probably not be the last special edition spawned by the Chiron but, thus far, it’s the most ludicrous the French manufacturer put out.

An SUV is not part of McLaren’s plans, now or in future. McLaren’s design chief, Mark Roberts, made that clear at an event preceding the 2019 Canadian International Auto Show. According to Roberts, McLaren isn’t going to stray away from its core identity as an automaker that delivers the “ultimate driving experience.” Since McLaren believes that developing an SUV strays from that identity, it’s not a question of “if” the company ends up building one, as it is “when” we’re going to stop thinking it will. It’s not happening. Not now. Not in the future. So stop wishing for a McLaren SUV to one day enter our lives. Unless the automaker undergoes a dramatic shift in philosophy, you have a better chance of seeing a 150-horsepower Ferrari city car than a McLaren SUV.

The wait for Lamborghini’s first hybrid supercar will come to an end at the 2019 Frankfurt Motor Show. The yet-to-be-named hybrid monster is a touchpoint for the Italian automaker as it lays the foundation for its own hybrid plans for the future. For now, the hybrid supercar goes by the name “LB48H.” Details are still scarce at this point, but Lamborghini is expected to take styling cues from the Terzo Millenio EV Concept it unveiled last year and graft them onto the hybrid supercar. This model also holds the distinction for being the rarest among all hybrid exotics that have been released in recent years. Lamborghini’s building only 63 units — the 63-car volume is a nod to 1963, the year Lamborghini was born — and, unfortunately for all of us, all 63 units are already accounted for.