HOTTEST

Volkswagen has revealed the 2024 Jetta GLI 40th Anniversary Edition.It comes with special anniversary badging, and each model gets unique graphics on the cloth seats.The special-edition GLI starts at $29,235, and VW is limiting production to 1984 examples in the U.S. as a nod to the original model year. The Volkswagen Jetta GLI isn’t quite old enough to earn a pension, but it’s not that far off either. Originally debuting in 1984, VW is celebrating the 40th anniversary of the GLI with a special edition for the 2024 model year. The anniversary model comes with three paint options: Pure Gray, Pure White, and Rising Blue—each of which have blackout detailing to contrast the classic GLI red. Black, ten-spoke, 18-inch wheels, along with black mirror caps, door handles, and a black grille round out the exterior styling.Unique Details The inside of the special Jetta puts a bigger emphasis on the anniversary aspect of the car. One cupholder features the GLI logo, while the other reads 1984. The seat tags and door sills proudly display GLI 40, and the base of the steering wheel features a 40 in lieu of the normal GLI badge. Our favorite special touch for the anniversary car comes in the form of the molecular cloth seats, which VW says are unique for each of the 1984 vehicles being produced—like a snowflake or fingerprint. The 40th Anniversary Edition will be powered by the same turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder as the current GLI Autobahn, which makes 228 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque. Volkswagen is limiting production to 1984 examples of the anniversary car as an homage to the original model year. The special Jetta will be exclusive to the North American market and starts at $29,235. Volkswagen expects models will begin arriving at dealerships later this summer. Required Reading on the GLIThis content is imported from poll. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.Associate News EditorJack Fitzgerald’s love for cars stems from his as yet unshakable addiction to Formula 1. After a brief stint as a detailer for a local dealership group in college, he knew he needed a more permanent way to drive all the new cars he couldn’t afford and decided to pursue a career in auto writing. By hounding his college professors at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, he was able to travel Wisconsin seeking out stories in the auto world before landing his dream job at Car and Driver. His new goal is to delay the inevitable demise of his 2010 Volkswagen Golf. More

Ford expects to lose roughly $3 billion from the electric-vehicle arm of the company this year. The increased losses are expected due to money being spent on manufacturing facilities in Tennessee and Kentucky, as well as the addition of alternate battery chemistries. Ford issued the bleak forecast in a Thursday morning call with reporters. Ford is projecting an increase in losses from its EV unit, labeled Model e, up from $2.1 billion last year to total nearly $3 billion in 2023. The increase in losses is expected to come even as sales of the Mustang Mach-E electric crossover and F-150 Lightning full-size electric pickup truck grow and the company invests further in increased production. The forecast came in a Thursday morning call with reporters where Ford outlined a new financial-reporting structure. The company announced a new reporting structure broken into Ford Blue (gas/hybrid vehicles), Ford Model e (breakout EVs), and Ford Pro (commercial vehicles). Ford”We’ve essentially ‘refounded’ Ford, with business segments that provide new degrees of strategic clarity, insight and accountability to the Ford+ plan for growth and value,” CFO John Lawler said. “It’s not only about changing how we report financial results; we’re transforming how we think, make decisions and run the company, and allocate capital for highest returns.”Losses from the EV division will be covered by an expected increase in profits for the other two Ford divisions, with Lawler projecting $7 billion in earnings before interest and taxes this year for Ford Blue, and roughly $6 billion for Ford Pro. Speaking to reporters, Lawler explained the reasoning behind the expected losses for the Model e arm of the business.More Ford Stories”Ford Model e is an EV startup within Ford,” he said. “As everyone knows, EV startups lose money while they invest in capabilities, develop knowledge, build volume, and gain share.”Those mounting losses will come as Ford continues to invest in ramping up EV production numbers. The company is planning the construction of two new battery-cell factories in Kentucky and a third in Tennessee, along with the $3.5 billion lithium-iron-phosphate battery plant it will build in Marshall, Michigan. This content is imported from poll. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.Associate News EditorJack Fitzgerald’s love for cars stems from his as yet unshakable addiction to Formula 1. After a brief stint as a detailer for a local dealership group in college, he knew he needed a more permanent way to drive all the new cars he couldn’t afford and decided to pursue a career in auto writing. By hounding his college professors at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, he was able to travel Wisconsin seeking out stories in the auto world before landing his dream job at Car and Driver. His new goal is to delay the inevitable demise of his 2010 Volkswagen Golf. More

GoodLifeStudioGetty Images An iOS shortcut called “I’m Getting Pulled Over” can automatically record your interactions with police on the spot. The app turns off any music playing and uses your camera to make a recording. It can send the recording, plus your location, to an emergency contact. While the shortcut has been around since 2018, […] More

New rumors suggest that the Clubman will end production in 2024, and our automotive Magic 8 Ball says that all signs point to yes.Clubman sales have plummeted from 12,204 units in 2016 to just 2469 last year, becoming the worst-selling model in Mini’s lineup.The electric Aceman concept is expected to go into production to fill the void left by the Clubman, with the Countryman growing for its next generation.A new generation of the Mini Cooper is just around the corner, scheduled to make its debut this year with both electric and gas powertrains, but the iconic hatchback likely won’t spawn a fresh version of the Clubman wagon. A Mini enthusiast website called MotoringFile claims that the production of the Clubman will end in the first quarter of 2024, and while there is no official confirmation of this rumor, there is a lot of evidence pointing to its veracity.Car and Driver contacted a Mini spokesperson, who would not comment on what they called “highly speculative” reports in other media but also stopped short of a denial, saying that “the company has not confirmed anything at this point.”MiniWe know for certain the the Cooper hatchback will receive a major update for 2025—in late 2021, Mini teased a camouflaged two-door Cooper and a two-door prototype was spied completely undisguised in China. But there has been no indication of a revised Clubman model in the way of spy shots, and while Mini made a splash by bringing the manual transmission back to the Cooper lineup, the Clubman was left out of the fun.Clubman sales have been on the decline since the model’s peak in 2016, when the second generation was introduced and 12,204 units found homes, making it the second most popular Mini that year behind only the Countryman. Mini sales have decreased across the board since, but the Clubman has suffered worse than the four-door hatch. Last year, 2469 Clubmans were sold versus 4115 four-door Cooper hatches. The Clubman was the brand’s worst-selling vehicle, behind even the Cooper Convertible. While no four-door prototypes of the next-generation Cooper have been spied yet, that model will probably live on and partially succeed the Clubman. The Mini Aceman concept.MiniMini is also expected to put its Aceman concept into production, which would serve as a more direct Clubman replacement. The electric crossover will slot in below the Countryman, which is rumored to grow in size for its next generation. While the Aceman is rumored to be shorter than the Clubman, the taller body and the benefits of an EV skateboard platform could provide similar amounts of interior room. The Clubman’s wagon shape will also be abandoned for more rugged and SUV-like styling, and, given current market trends, that appears to be a well-advised move by Mini.More Mini NewsEven if production of the Clubman extends beyond the first quarter of 2024, that will likely be the last model year for the Mini wagon. The first-generation Clubman was truly quirky, with suicide rear doors and barn doors instead of a traditional hatch. But the second generation became more conventional, and the rise of the crossover saw the Clubman superseded by the Countryman as the practical model in the lineup, spelling the end for one of the few wagons left in the United States.This content is imported from poll. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.Associate News EditorCaleb Miller began blogging about cars at 13 years old, and he realized his dream of writing for a car magazine after graduating from Carnegie Mellon University and joining the Car and Driver team. He loves quirky and obscure autos, aiming to one day own something bizarre like a Nissan S-Cargo, and is an avid motorsports fan. More

Honda is adding an LX trim to the 2023 Pilot lineup, dropping the base price significantly.The LX starts at $37,295, while the one-level up Sport costs just over $40,000.We expect to see the 2023 Pilot LX start to reach Honda dealerships soon.The new 2023 Honda Pilot is joining the CR-V and Civic in reintroducing the base LX trim. The addition of this trim level, which is now listed on Honda’s media site but has not yet begun reaching dealerships, drops the starting price by $3200, bringing the three-row SUV in under $40,000.For $37,295, the 2023 Pilot LX features the same mechanical package as the rest of the lineup, with standard front-wheel drive, a 10-speed automatic transmission, and a 285-hp 3.5-liter V-6 engine that now features a DOHC setup. All-wheel drive is a $2100 option for the LX.The base Pilot does do without many features from the higher trims, as it comes standard with a smaller 7.0-inch touchscreen and does not have as many driver-assist features as the one-step-up $40,495 Pilot Sport. It also has dual-zone automatic climate control rather than tri-zone, cloth upholstery, manually adjustable front seats, and only comes in silver, black or white. Honda has yet to release any official photos of the Pilot LX, but we expect it to look similar to the EX-L, pictured at top.More on Honda and the PilotHonda previously told C/D that the addition of the LX trim level for Civic and CR-V was meant to boost production of these models, so we’ll see if the same applies for the new 2023 Pilot, which will presumably be in high demand for its first few months on sale. In 2022, before the new model went on sale, Pilot sales fell 30 percent compared with the year before.This content is imported from poll. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.Senior EditorDespite being raised on a steady diet of base-model Hondas and Toyotas—or perhaps because of it—Joey Capparella nonetheless cultivated an obsession for the automotive industry throughout his childhood in Nashville, Tennessee. He found a way to write about cars for the school newspaper during his college years at Rice University, which eventually led him to move to Ann Arbor, Michigan, for his first professional auto-writing gig at Automobile Magazine. He has been part of the Car and Driver team since 2016 and now lives in New York City. More




