#NewsBlog

Last week’s match-up between the Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4 was fairly close. However, readers seemed to gravitate toward the Toyota due to several factors. It boasted a traditional 8-speed automatic transmission, rather than a CVT, and made power from a larger motor that sidestepped forced induction. This led to many assuming the Toyota would handle long-term abuse better than the Honda — which was further supported by the vehicle having been on the market longer and proven itself as reliable.

As the point of this segment is to create the automotive equivalent of Sophie’s Choice, we’re bringing back the RAV4 and pitting it against the 2024 Mazda CX-5.

Time flies, doesn’t it? Seems just a year or two ago your author took a troubled and stressful trip to Austin to pick up a lightly used GS 350. But that was a full five years ago now, prior to pandemic times! We last spoke about the GS in April of 2021 at the two-year mark. Three years on, this is the longest I’ve ever kept a single automobile.

Ford has announced its new dealership training platform for the United States, noting that it will utilize artificial intelligence to better familiarize sales teams with product knowledge, corporate history, while likewise making them better at engaging with customers.

Tesla is undergoing layoffs, with Elon Musk confirming the loss of two senior executives and plans to reduce overhead by cutting staff. This has been relatively common within the automotive sector, with legacy manufacturers having engaged in rolling layoffs for years as a way to offset development costs and maximize profits. But Tesla has long been viewed as the vanguard of electrification and the brand most other EV manufacturers hope to embody due to its meteoric rise.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) announced it has updated its vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention test to account for higher speeds. Originally, the group was only running tests for things like automatic emergency braking below 25 mph. Now, it’s targeting higher speeds and obstacles of varying sizes. But the results aren’t any better. Out of the 10 small crossovers tested, only a single model garnered a good rating.

Last week we reviewed the dramatic and super finned exterior design of the 1959 Eldorado, in its two-door Seville hardtop coupe format. While its less popular convertible sibling Biarritz received matching styling in all ways except its roof, there was exclusive and different styling reserved for the third type of Eldorado: the four-door Brougham. Assembled by hand in Italy at Pininfarina, the large sedan was very rare, a last-of-type, and was a sneak peek of future Cadillacs.

With the Mini Aceman going from cutesy concept to real car, some are wondering whether the model will be migrating from China to North America. Sized between the Cooper Electric Hardtop and Countryman, the Aceman could be a nice fit for urbanites interested in an all-electric runabout.

The 2025 Ram 1500 I drove earlier this year no longer offers a TRX model. We knew, however, that Ram wouldn't go long without offering a high-performance trim. Enter the 2025 Ram RHO

We’re introducing a new segment where we intentionally pit two vehicles against each other that are exceedingly difficult to choose between. The idea is to create a would-you-rather situation where we compare the strengths and weaknesses of both models and take input from our readers.

Our first match-up is an incredibly tough one, because these are some of the best-selling vehicles in all of North America that aren’t pickup trucks — the Honda CR-V vs the Toyota RAV4.

Toyota has released details on the Tacoma Hybrid, showing it will start at $47,795 as part of the TRD Sport trim. While that’s nearly $7,000 more than the gasoline variant of the TRD Sport, it does come equipped with the more powerful i-Force Max powertrain.

With the average vehicle now older than ever before and fewer people capable of spending the kind of money required to purchase a brand-new automobile, maintenance has become even more relevant. To that end, Consumer Reports has furnished an analysis on just how much each nameplate is likely to set you back in terms of upkeep over its lifespan.

Connected vehicles now appear to be on the table as a new vector for government surveillance. On Saturday, President Joe Biden signed a bill that reauthorizes Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act after the Senate passed it late on Friday (60-34).  

With the United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America International Union (UAW) seeking to expand in the Southern United States, Republican governors have started to condemn the action on the grounds that it would be detrimental to the economy. Governors in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas released a joint statement against the UAW shortly before Volkswagen workers in Chattanooga, Tennessee, were supposed to begin voting on whether or not to unionize.

The Ford Motor Company is offering a limited appearance package for the 2025 model year of the Mustang, stating that there will be just 1,965 examples to commemorate the car’s introductory year. As previously teased by the automaker, the model will receive special badging, decals, and wheels that hearken back to the original.