Car Reviews

The 2023 Subaru Solterra doesn’t have 500 horsepower or 300 miles of range. It can’t recharge in 15 minutes or power your house as a backup generator. There’s no frunk, and it won’t bowl you over with outrageous specs or design. We’d consider it a homework assignment turned in late were it not for its off-road acumen, which makes it rather unique among mainstream EVs. Sure, you can ice your shrimp in the frunk of a Ford Mustang Mach-E, and you can power your fridge with a Kia EV6. But you wouldn’t want to take either of those crossovers too far off the beaten path. The Solterra, on the other hand, is like most Subarus: game for some trail work. It’s only a matter of time before we start seeing them treated to the official Crosstrek Starter Kit, donning a two-inch suspension lift and a set of BFGoodrich KO2s.

As with its BRZ coupe, Subaru jointly developed the Solterra with Toyota, which has a counterpart catchily named bZ4x. But the Solterra and bZ4x diverge more than the BRZ and its Toyota GR86 twin, most notably in the fact that the Solterra is only offered with all-wheel drive, which is consistent with the Subaru ethos; the bZ4x offers a lesser front-wheel-drive variant. With 8.3 inches of ground clearance, decent approach and departure angles, and 19.7 inches of water-fording ability, the Solterra should be happy enough to haul your mountain bikes to the trailhead. Or get your kayak to the put-in, or schlep your big goofy mutt to that dog park that’s accessible only via a rutted forest road. You won’t want to get too carried away, but we took it on some Arizona ORV trails and it acquitted itself surprisingly well, scrambling up inclines steep enough that you had to use the forward-looking camera to see over blind crests.
Like Subaru’s rugged Wilderness models, the Solterra gets a dual-function X-Mode system to tailor its power delivery to the situation—allowing some wheelspin in sand, for instance. It also offers brake-based torque vectoring to send power across its axles, mimicking the action of locking differentials, so you can put two corners of the car in the air and still maintain forward progress. Subaru demonstrated that talent on a set of artfully arranged ramps, claiming that they’d wanted to bring some competitive vehicles to illustrate the Solterra’s advantage, but—humblebrag alert!—none of them had sufficient front-end clearance to climb onto the ramps. The Solterra’s two motors generate a total of 218 horsepower and 249 pound-feet of torque, good for a claimed 60-mph time of 6.5 seconds. That’s believable, since acceleration feels similar to that of an Outback XT, which hits 60 mph in 6.3 seconds. This car clearly belongs to the Outback/Crosstrek branches of the Subaru family tree rather than the WRX sect, although it would be easy enough to mount bigger motors and push it in a sportier direction. Despite the lack of outright muscle, the Solterra can route 60 percent of its torque to the rear end, making it feel playful at times. You can also turn the stability control system all the way off, opening possibilities for tail-out rally car antics on gravel or snow. We confirmed that the Solterra is happy to rip a doughnut.
With a 72.8-kWh (gross-capacity) battery, the Solterra earns an EPA-rated 228 miles of range in Premium trim and 222 miles for the Limited and Touring models, which are heavier and wear 20-inch wheels instead of 18s. Charging isn’t particularly quick, with an onboard 6.6-kW charger replenishing the battery in nine hours on a Level 2 charger and a 100-kW DC fast-charging setup delivering an 80 percent charge in a claimed 56 minutes. Subaru envisions owners charging overnight at home rather than taking interstate road trips. If your campsite is more than 100 miles away, maybe take the Forester. As you can tell by looking at it, Subaru and Toyota didn’t prioritize cargo-hauling practicality. The Solterra’s trim front end precludes a frunk, and the raked roofline means that the rear cargo area is better suited to groceries than, say, bikes. In the name of an airy interior there isn’t even a glovebox. But the roof rack—static capacity is 700 pounds—is designed for all manner of accessories, including tents, and an “activity mount” under the rear bumper can accept hitch-mounted racks and cargo carriers. Its tow rating, however, is “don’t.”
We imagine Subaru has market research identifying the Solterra customer as a retired North Face executive who lives in Boulder, Colorado, and owns 1.7 kayaks. A decade from now, that 2023 Solterra will be bought by its fifth owner, a snowboard instructor named Xander. It’s a very specific audience, which is why they’re building only 6500 Solterras for 2023. Subaru shouldn’t have any problem selling this year’s production, but whether they can subsequently ramp up the volume will depend a lot on the pricing, which has yet to be announced. At an estimated 40 grand or so, and eligible for a $7500 tax credit, the Solterra makes a strong case for itself. At higher price points, it runs into competitors that have considerably more power and range, attributes that for most people are probably more important than nominal off-road ability. But the goal here isn’t to dominate the EV market. This is Subaru testing the waters to see whether its crossover audience is ready to trade flat-fours for flat floors. It’s about selling electrification to that particular crowd. And maybe, just as much, to itself.

Specifications

Specifications
2023 Subaru SolterraVehicle Type: front- and rear-motor, all-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door wagon
PRICE (C/D EST)
Base: $40,000
POWERTRAIN
Front Motor: permanent-magnet synchronous AC, 107 hp, 125 lb-ftRear Motor: permanent-magnet synchronous AC, 107 hp, 125 lb-ftCombined Power: 218 hpCombined Torque: 249 lb-ftBattery Pack: liquid-cooled lithium-ion, 72.8 kWh (gross)Onboard Charger: 6.6 kWTransmissions: direct-drive

DIMENSIONS
Wheelbase: 112.2 inLength: 184.6 inWidth: 73.2 inHeight: 65.1 inCargo Volume: 30 ft3Curb Weight (C/D est): 4400–4500 lb
PERFORMANCE (C/D EST)
60 mph: 6.5 sec1/4-Mile: 15.2 secTop Speed: 110 mph
EPA FUEL ECONOMY 
Combined/City/Highway: 102–104/111–114/93–94 MPGeRange: 222–228 mi

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It’s about time for a new Lexus RX. The compact luxury SUV is the company’s bestseller, but it has received only minimal changes since the fourth generation arrived in 2015. It nearly doubles the sales of the smaller NX, which is new for 2022 and boasts an improved infotainment system and a peppier turbocharged engine. Meanwhile, the RX is one of the only vehicles without a turbo engine among its closest luxury competitors, all of which offer a better driving experience than the RX350 F Sport AWD model tested here.[editoriallinks id=’45efeaa2-96db-495f-9a31-80dbd27209ed’ align=’left’][/editoriallinks]Lexus uses a naturally aspirated 3.5-liter V-6 in the RX350, which makes 295 horsepower and 267 pound-feet of torque and is paired with an eight-speed automatic. Front- and all-wheel-drive models are available, as is an RX450h hybrid that pairs the V-6 with three electric motors for 308 horsepower. While the hybrid is EPA rated at 30 mpg combined, the all-wheel-drive RX350 like the one tested here is estimated at 22 mpg. The RX350’s free-breathing six lacks the urgency found in competitors with more powerful turbocharged engines. And there’s no additional grunt to be had in the F Sport model. In our testing it reached 60 mph in 6.7 seconds, considerably slower than its German—and Korean—rivals. The RX also needed a languid 5.0 seconds to accelerate from 50 to 70 mph. [image id=’08186b35-dc7e-496e-a857-82e418c3638e’ mediaId=’2f57a2ca-5e98-4ebe-bdf5-d78595fda2eb’ align=’center’ size=’medium’ share=’false’ caption=” expand=” crop=’6×4′][/image] [pullquote align=’center’]HIGHS: Comfortable seats, great visibility, it sells.[/pullquote]Our test car came equipped with the F Sport handling package, which adds 20-inch wheels and adaptive dampers, but it rides on the standard all-season rubber. Lexus adjusted the RX’s suspension for the 2020 model year, stiffening the anti-roll bars and retuning the damping and spring rates, which resulted in 0.82 g of grip at the test track. On lumpy two-lane roads, though, we found the ride to be a bit jarring and also noticed some unpleasant body roll. On the highway, however, we had no complaints with the ride, which was calm and composed, just as we expect from a luxury crossover. The RX also needed a fairly long 178 feet to stop from 70 mph. [image id=’2880efa6-33f8-48a0-9a96-d25ca0f51904′ mediaId=’bf511352-b0b7-4859-bcce-77483a6a0976′ align=’center’ size=’medium’ share=’false’ caption=” expand=” crop=’original’][/image]The RX350’s middling performance does not live up to its extroverted looks. That’s especially true of the F Sport, which adds unique bumper and grille designs, black mirrors, and F Sport badging, but still looks awkward and somewhat minivan-like. And our test car had optional running boards that were obtrusive. The car’s subdued Nebula Grey Pearl paint didn’t attract too much attention (a vibrant Grecian Water blue is newly available), in contrast to the bright red interior that greets you when opening door. We feel like a broken record when we implore Lexus to get rid of the touchpad that controls the 12.3-inch infotainment screen. It’s been removed on the 2022 NX, which introduced Lexus’s new Interface Multimedia system, so we expect it will be gone when the new RX rolls around. For now, though, using the touchpad to navigate the menus and buttons of the Lexus system and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto is still far from intuitive. Lexus is aware, though, because the screen now has touch capability, but the way it protrudes out the top of the dashboard makes it inconvenient to select icons on the lower part of the display.[image id=’f2b022a9-059e-4e91-a96f-0b3833773ae5′ mediaId=’0e1f214f-6f99-4941-8a52-30d337fca862′ align=’center’ size=’medium’ share=’false’ caption=” expand=” crop=’original’][/image][pullquote align=’center’]LOWS: Underwhelming powertrain, wonky touchpad remains, awkwardly extroverted looks.[/pullquote]The Lexus has ample rear seat space and a large cargo area compared to some others in this segment. With the rear seats up the RX swallows nine carry-on sized boxes, two more than BMW’s X2 and one more than the Genesis GV70. If you’re looking for additional luggage space, Lexus offers a longer RX350L. Its third row of seats isn’t particularly roomy, since Lexus doesn’t stretch the wheelbase, but the additional length aft of the C-pillar adds a few more cubic feet of cargo space over the standard model. Lexus continues to dominate the compact luxury SUV segment with the RX, moving a whopping 115,320 units last year, but the competition is heating up. The latest addition to the fold is from Genesis with its new GV70. Those who appreciate performance can even get into a base Porsche Macan for less our RX350 F Sport’s as-tested price of $63,155. That doesn’t mean we’re not looking forward to the next-generation RX, though. We are, and we hope that a more modern RX will offer a more compelling driving experience. [vehicle type=’specpanel’ vehicle-body-style=” vehicle-make=” vehicle-model=” vehicle-model-category=” vehicle-submodel=” vehicle-year=”][/vehicle][image id=’bf222a99-967e-406f-a4d3-886f2d33b440′ mediaId=’878bca59-5492-43fa-9541-12a0f8ddb195′ align=’center’ size=’medium’ share=’false’ caption=’A car-lover’s community for ultimate access & unrivaled experiences. JOIN NOW’ expand=” crop=’original’][/image]

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Calmness and quietness permeate the crisp air surrounding Vermont’s Smugglers’ Notch ski resort in the winter. Situated at the base of three interconnected mountains, the scenic resort village is where Taiga, a Canadian company specializing in all-electric recreational vehicles, recently brought us to sample one of its new snowmobiles. At first blush, the black and white machine looks like any other gas-fed sled built by the usual players such as Polaris and Ski-Doo. But when you turn on Taiga’s fully electric snowmobile, there’s absolute silence instead of the pitter-patter that traditional two-stroke engines produce. Our initial impression was that the lack of drama will appeal to first-time riders and people who prefer nature’s tranquillity over the traditional ruckus. However, for avid riders and anyone who’s grown up around snowmobiles—like this author—the missing smells and sounds might detract from the riding experience. It’s the same disconnect we feel when we hear a Porsche Taycan’s whirring electric motors, as opposed to a 911 GT3’s soulful naturally aspirated flat-six.
Dubbed the Nomad, the utility workhorse model we rode features a 90-hp permanent-magnet electric motor fed by the standard lithium-ion battery pack with a gross rating of 23.0 kilowatt-hours (Taiga would not tell us the usable capacity) under the seat. Taiga claims this setup provides 62 miles of range per charge. A 120-hp electric motor and a larger battery good for 83 miles of range are part of a $2000 performance package. Taiga says these range figures are based on efficient battery temperatures, which are maintained between 68 and 104 degrees Fahrenheit with a liquid-cooled thermal management system. However, expect actual range to vary based on individual riding style and conditions. While Taiga asserts that most snowmobilers ride less than 100 miles a day, our experience is that many do that before lunch. Either way, we think it’ll be tough to convince the masses that 62 or 83 miles of range are enough, especially considering you have a better chance of seeing a sasquatch than a trailside charging station.Taiga plans to change that by building a network with thousands of charging stations in off-road locations across Canada and the U.S. as early as 2025. However, the map on its website currently shows only targeted locations, not specific addresses, so we’ll have to wait to see how that plays out.
Before taking the Nomad out for a rip, we were introduced to the basic controls. The brake lever on the left side of the handlebars and the throttle (read: accelerator) lever and the bright-red kill switch on the right look typical. Less familiar are toggle switches on the left side for the regenerative-braking system, which blends with a conventional disc brake, and a switch for Range and Sport drive modes. Between the windshield and handlebars is a 7.0-inch digital display showing speed, kilowatt usage, and range. All that’s missing is locations of the nearest charging stations.Connect the magnetized tether that doubles as a key and push the green start button—the electric snowmobile is activated without a sound. While the silence is peaceful, some sort of buzz or hum might improve safety, in the way that electric cars make subtle noise to alert pedestrians. We’re told that’s being considered.
We started in Range mode with the lowest regen setting. Squeezing the accelerator prompted immediate thrust, eliciting the same sensation of instantaneous torque that defines electric vehicles. In Sport mode, the Nomad becomes exhilaratingly quick yet remains easy to control. Taiga claims that the Nomad’s motor can deliver a top speed of 60 mph. The result is a quietly quick machine that eventually hits a wall of speed, which curbed our enthusiasm. We did enjoy the regenerative braking, especially when descending steep terrain in the highest regen setting and barely using the hand brake. Eventually, it comes time to recharge. Every Taiga snowmobile features a 6.6-kW onboard charger with a J1772 port compatible with any charger that works with regular electric vehicles such as, say, a Ford Mustang Mach-E. Sorry, Tesla fans, it doesn’t work with Superchargers. Taiga says fully replenishing the standard battery with Level 2 charging takes about four hours. With the Level 3 onboard charger and rates between 30 and 40 kilowatts, charging the battery from zero to 80 percent is said to take about 30 minutes. Still, good luck finding a DC fast-charger out on a frozen lake, on the mountainside, or even at a bar off the trailhead. In a pinch, the Nomad can be plugged into a standard 120-volt outlet, but a full recharge there requires 13 to 14 hours—which means an overnight charge back at the cabin is possible, though just barely.
In the meantime, we think Taiga’s electric snowmobiles can find success in rental fleets, where use (and thus charging) occurs on more of a fixed cycle, and in national parks, where emissions and noise are tightly regulated. The company says it has at least 130 multiunit orders from commercial operators around the globe. For now, that audience could be Taiga’s main market, representing a solid opportunity for regular people to be exposed to electric snowmobiles without the financial commitment.The Nomad we rode featured a two-seat configuration and was equipped with 154.0-inch track. It also had the optional Level 3 onboard charger, which is currently included in its $17,490 starting price, and was fitted with the $2000 performance suspension, which includes upgraded Elka dampers, bringing the total to $19,490. Online reservations are currently $500, and the company says it’s prioritizing orders on a first-come basis, with deliveries expected to start around the end of this year. Taiga will also offer models geared toward on-trail performance and mountain-riding segments. Whether the snowmobiling community is ready to accept Taiga’s first fully electric snowmobiles remains to be seen, but they’re a start toward the inevitable electrification of recreational vehicles.

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The new Type S version of the Acura MDX appears to be a high-performance model in the same vein as the myriad luxury SUVs wearing Mercedes-AMG, BMW M, and Audi S and RS badges. But now that we’ve experienced this turbocharged, 355-hp version of Acura’s three-row SUV for ourselves, we think the company’s real play here is simpler than that. Acura wants to move the MDX away from the pseudo-luxury space where slightly upscale family crossovers such as the Infiniti QX60 and Cadillac XT6 reside and toward the upper echelons of the luxury-SUV segment where more prestigious models such as the Audi Q7, BMW X5, and Genesis GV80 compete.The company is quick to point out that the MDX’s traditional positioning has worked well so far, as it has sold over 1 million units over four generations. So, the current MDX’s standard powertrain—a naturally aspirated 3.5-liter V-6—will continue to comprise the bulk of sales thanks to its attractive base price of $49,045. But the introduction of the Type S model allows Acura to play in the higher price realm where the fatter profit margins and more discerning customers are. The MDX Type S thus comes armed with a more powerful engine, a sophisticated suspension setup, lots of fancy optional features, and—naturally—a significantly higher starting price.

For $67,745, you get the same turbocharged 3.0-liter V-6 as the TLX Type S sports sedan, which makes 355 horsepower and 354 pound-feet of torque. That’s more grunt than the Q7 55 and the X5 40i—both have 335 horsepower—but a bit behind the 375-hp GV80 3.5T. Acura’s familiar torque-vectoring SH-AWD system is standard. Acura also saw fit to add adaptive dampers and an air suspension that can raise and lower the MDX: In Sport and Sport+ modes it drops down 0.6 inch, while selecting Lift mode hikes the body a full 2.1 inches above its nominal height. The loaded MDX Type S with the Advance package is the first Acura (other than the NSX) to crest the $70,000 barrier, starting at $73,095. It’s mechanically identical to the base Type S but comes with goodies such as massaging front seats, nicer upholstery, and a bumpin’ 25-speaker ELS audio system. This is the kind of stuff that Audi and BMW customers expect to find in a luxury SUV. Open-pore wood, quilted leather, and an available blue color scheme help cultivate a convincingly upscale cabin vibe. The only sore spot inside is Acura’s touchpad-controlled infotainment system, which we still haven’t warmed up to.
On the other hand, enthusiasts like us might have expected a bit more of a performance focus from something with a Type S badge. The turbo V-6 is strong enough to move the MDX confidently but is neither as characterful nor as responsive as we’d like. Acura expects it to be around a second quicker to 60 mph than the standard model, which did the deed in 6.4 seconds in our testing. The MDX has long been one of the nimblest three-row SUVs on the market, and the Type S’s adaptive dampers further tighten body control—especially in Sport mode. But the all-season tires limit grip, and the steering feels overboosted and artificial for something that claims to share DNA with cars we remember as fondly as the RSX Type S.Maybe we’re placing too much importance on the name. Because the MDX is one of the few Acura models that has remained sporty relative to its competition over the years, it has less ground to make up than the TLX Type S does within the sports-sedan segment. The MDX Type S has an appropriate mix of refinement and driving verve when measured against the BMW, Audi, and Genesis SUVs it’s aiming for. And if luxury-SUV customers can be persuaded to shell out more than $70,000 for an Acura, they’ll find that the MDX Type S has the features, the power, and the luxury quotient to live up to that price.

Specifications

Specifications
2022 Acura MDX Type SVehicle Type: front-engine, all-wheel-drive, 7-passenger, 4-door SUV
PRICE
Base: $67,745; w/Advance package, $73,095
ENGINE
turbocharged DOHC 24-valve V-6, aluminum block and heads, direct fuel injectionDisplacement: 183 in3, 2997 cm3Power: 355 hp @ 5500 rpmTorque: 354 lb-ft @ 1400-5000 rpm
TRANSMISSION
10-speed automatic
DIMENSIONS
Wheelbase: 113.8 inLength: 198.4 inWidth: 78.7 inHeight: 67.1 inPassenger Volume: 139 ft3Cargo Volume: 16.3 ft3Curb Weight (C/D est): 4770 lb
PERFORMANCE (C/D EST)
60 mph: 5.4 sec1/4-Mile: 14.4 secTop Speed: 112 mph
EPA FUEL ECONOMY
Combined/City/Highway: 19/17/21 mpg

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Lotus was born from innovation but has spent most of its recent history in stagnation. Founder Colin Chapman transformed Formula 1 and other top-flight motorsport series and sold clever, lightweight road cars. With the launch of the Esprit in 1976—the second most famous automotive wedge after the Lamborghini Countach—the British company also became an early pioneer of the mid-engine sports car. But after Chapman’s death in 1982, Lotus’s fortunes declined. The company passed between frequently cash-strapped owners, development funds were in short supply, and its history over the last quarter-century can be dispatched in a couple of sentences. The novel bonded-aluminum-frame Elise was launched in 1996, the larger and supposedly more practical Evora came out in 2010, and grandiose plans to subsequently launch five new models collapsed with the acrimonious departure of CEO Dany Bahar in 2012, leaving the existing model range to soldier on. The Evora continued to sell in ever-smaller numbers until it retired last year.

Now there is an all-new Lotus sports car, the last model the company will launch before it switches to all-electric powertrains. The Emira has been developed using a substantial cash injection from Chinese automaker Geely, which took control of Lotus in 2017. It will be going on sale later this year with buyers able to choose between a Toyota-sourced supercharged 3.5-liter V-6 and—shortly afterward—a turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four from AMG. Before then, we got the chance to drive a V-6-powered prototype on the track at Lotus’s Hethel factory in Norfolk, England.Though the car we drove looked far tidier than the sort of scruffy, disguise-clad test mules used in early development, it was still in pre-production spec. According to Gavan Kershaw, Lotus’s director of attributes, it was a VP2-level prototype that had been borrowed from the pool of cars being used to test driver-assistance systems ahead of the Emira’s official launch. The supercharged V-6, familiar from the Evora, makes 400 horsepower and 310 pound-feet of torque (Emiras equipped with the six-speed automatic are treated to 317 pound-feet); our car had the standard six-speed manual gearbox and mechanical limited-slip differential. It was also riding on what will be the softer Tour suspension and Goodyear Eagle F1 tires rather than the track-biased Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2s that will be offered as an option.
The Emira looks great in the flesh, its sleek styling and the sizable air intake apertures behind its doors making it appear more like a junior supercar than a sports car. Beyond the stickers proclaiming it a prototype, there were few clues the car we drove was short of production spec. Some of the interior plastics didn’t have an embossed-grain finish, there were a couple of well-hidden emergency shutdown buttons, and the Track Dynamic mode didn’t work. But the sense of quality was still impressive, especially compared to the crudely finished cabin of the Evora. The Emira is built using an adhesive-bonded aluminum structure—the same technique Lotus has used since the Elise—but ingress and egress have been greatly improved thanks to narrower sills and deeper door apertures. Despite its pre-build plastics, the Emira’s interior also impressed, with soft facings on the doors and dashboard and good ergonomics. Many parts have come from elsewhere in the group—the turn-signal and wiper stalks are obviously Volvo sourced—but the digital dashboard and central touchscreen are crisply rendered with bespoke graphics. The driving position is good, with plentiful adjustment and decent headroom, and looking out through the windshield, the tops of the fenders are visible to help position the car. Whereas the Evora was designed to be a 2+2, the Emira is strictly a two-seater, although there is room to squeeze soft-sided luggage between the seatbacks and the rear firewall.
Our drive at Hethel took place in the appropriately English medium of gale-force winds and driving rain, but the Emira was happy to show its talents on the wet surface of the 2.2-mile test track. The supercharged V-6 is quieter at low revs than it was in the Evora, as a switchable exhaust valve keeps it muted in the default Tour driving mode, but either selecting Sport mode or taking the engine past 4000 rpm switches to the louder setting and helps the car find its voice. As before, the V-6 isn’t a particularly high-revver with its redline set at just 6800 rpm, but it feels muscular throughout the range and delivers lag-free responses. We live in a crazy world where the combination of 400 horsepower and a claimed 3152-pound curb weight makes for a power-to-weight ratio well short of the most muscular supercars (the new Ferrari 296GTB has one nearly twice as potent). But the greasy circuit quickly proves the Emira has more than enough power to make for a compelling driving experience, especially given the car’s near-total lack of adaptive or active systems.
Lotus’s commitment to dynamic purity has it using hydraulically assisted power steering for the Emira. The V-6 uses an engine-driven power-steering pump, but the inability of the AMG engine to accommodate such an anachronism means it will use electrohydraulic assistance with an electric pump. It only takes a few corners to vindicate Lotus’s decision to stick with the analog technology. The Emira’s steering features the same combination of precision and feedback we remember being one of the Evora’s highlights, with slower off-center responses than are normal in this generally darty segment but with seemingly perfect proportionality behind it. The Lotus’s all-passive suspension is similarly gentle, with discernible roll under harder cornering loads but well-damped compliance over the Hethel track’s curbing and through aggressive directional changes. Grip levels are impressive too—the prototype’s dashboard display reporting peak lateral-acceleration figures of over 1.0 g in wet conditions.Despite the lack of active systems, the Dynamic mode did noticeably alter the character of the car. In Tour mode, throttle response is mellower, and the prototype’s stability-control system could be felt working to quell both understeer and oversteer. Sport is more liberal, allowing a modest dose of rear-end slip under power. But, in the absence of the nonfunctional Track mode, turning the ESC fully off delivered the revelation that the Emira feels far friendlier when pushed beyond its natural limits than many performance cars do behind a battery of driver-flattering active modes. It proved to be easily driftable in the wet conditions too.
But you don’t need to be on the ragged edge for the Emira to feel special. On first acquaintance, it has all the virtues of a mid-engine layout but seemingly none of the vices. It’s keen to change direction, and with the mass of the V-6 giving an impressive throttle adjustability, it does so without any sense of snappiness upon sudden throttle lift and with a high tolerance for combined braking and turning inputs.Don’t worry, it wasn’t perfect. The Emira’s gearshift had a better weight and feel than the loose shifter of the Evora, but the linkage often seemed to snag on changes across the planes of the box, especially the shift from second to third. It also doesn’t have any kind of automated rev matching in any of its modes, an omission that indicates how seriously Lotus wants owners to take the business of driving it. That, or opt for the automatic version.
The Emira is very much a Lotus, but a different one. The driving experience remains exemplary, something common to pretty much all its predecessors. But it also looks set to deliver the usability that the company’s earlier cars rarely gave much concern to. Given that Lotus is hoping to build up to 4500 a year—more than twice the combined annual totals of Evora, Exige, and Elise during the last decade—a broader appeal is both necessary and understandable. We need to wait to see how the Emira copes with the real world, but our first impression is overwhelmingly positive.Lotus has confirmed pricing for the fully loaded First Edition Emira V-6: $96,100, with U.S. deliveries beginning later this year. It has also said the base AMG-powered car will be available in 2023 at a $77,100 starting price.

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By now it’s pretty obvious the machines have won, so bow down before our new robot masters. Technology, however, has been seen as a diluter and polluter of the involvement and interaction that exemplifies sports cars, a notion that dates as far back as the advent of power steering. In recent years the list of high-tech aids has turned into a heap: stability control, yaw control, torque-biasing differentials, electric power steering, brake-by-wire, active aerodynamics, and hybrid assistance. The Ferrari 296GTB has them all and more and yet still delivers a driving experience that feels as pure and uncorrupted as its most analog predecessor. And its hidden cleverness makes piloting this 819-hp part-electric supercar and accessing a high percentage of its towering talents feel almost ridiculously easy. The biggest news is the arrival of Ferrari’s first road-going V-6 since the 246 GT Dino retired in 1974. And as the Dino never officially got to wear the Cavallino Rampante shield (at least not officially), that makes this the first V-6-powered Ferrari street car. The new engine displaces 3.0 liters and uses two turbochargers set within the V of its widely spaced cylinder banks, which are 120 degrees apart. Each turbo boosts three cylinders, their potency evinced by the engine’s 654-hp output, which Ferrari claims is the highest per-liter figure of any production car currently on sale.

Electric assistance comes from an advanced 164-hp axial-flux motor that sits between the V-6 and the eight-speed dual-clutch transmission. A third clutch can separate the combustion engine from the driveline, allowing the 296GTB to operate solely under electric power, though it can only do this for relatively brief periods at speeds of up to 84 mph. The 6.0-kWh battery pack behind the seats provides an estimated 10 miles of range. Unless locked into its electric drive mode via the steering-wheel-mounted selection switch, officially known as the eManettino, the GTB will fire the V-6 to life if anything more than the top inch or so of the accelerator travel is used.Ferrari’s engineers dubbed the new engine the piccolo V-12 while developing it, and it does a convincing aural impression of a 12-cylinder under the sort of hard use we couldn’t resist giving it, revving to an 8500-rpm limiter with unbridled enthusiasm. At lower engine speeds, there’s no mistaking the turbocharging, with an induction sound like a rushing stream, until the exhaust note and mechanical symphony grow loud enough to mask it. But the instant response of the electric motor means there is no discernible turbo lag—the electric motor actually dials back its contribution slightly as boost pressures build to keep the power delivery as linear as possible.
With the powertrain giving its all, the 296GTB feels every bit as fast as 819 horsepower suggests. The new car is less quick than the more powerful, all-wheel-drive SF90 Stradale that sits above it in the company’s hybrid hierarchy, but only slightly. Acceleration is wicked, and we estimate launch control will deliver a 2.9-second 60-mph time and a quarter-mile in the nines. And the 296GTB’s 1:21 lap time at Ferrari’s Fiorano Circuit is only two seconds slower than the Stradale (and 1.5 seconds quicker than the V-8-powered F8 Tributo.)Despite its outlandish output and rear-wheel drive, this Ferrari, shod with street-friendly Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tires, exhibited colossal grip on Spanish mountain roads—the traction control using varying regen from the electric motor to prevent slip without the need to wind back the engine. On the tight, dusty Monteblanco circuit near Seville, another GTB equipped with the track-oriented Assetto Fiorano package and riding on Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 R tires had even better adhesion but stayed benign as its elevated limits were deliberately breached. Raffaele de Simone, Ferrari’s chief development driver, was insistent we experience the 296GTB with its traction control switched off, and the resulting yaw angles were expertly managed by the Side Slip Control system. This car is no harder to drift on a track than a Mazda Miata.
Even among the many other technical highlights, the GTB’s steering and brakes stood out. The rack uses electric power assistance, yet it manages to deliver feedback that feels entirely natural and unfiltered, reporting accurately on everything from surface texture changes to slip angles under the hardest track use. The electrically boosted brakes have removed the direct hydraulic link between the pedal and the calipers that grip carbon-ceramic discs, but the weighting and responses seem just as true. An active feature adds both the ability to pre-charge the system ahead of hard stops and to subtly clamp individual brakes to help shepherd the front end into corners. The presence of so much technology should probably make the 296GTB feel lacking in emotional engagement, but the reality is anything but. The assistance is invisible—helping the car to slow, turn, and deploy its enormous power, without diminishing the visceral excitement that comes from unleashing so much sound and fury. It isn’t as raw as the V-8-powered F8 Tributo that will sit closest to it in the Ferrari hierarchy, but the 296GTB honestly doesn’t feel like any less of an experience.
The more obvious comparison is with Ferrari’s other plug-in hybrid. The 296GTB’s V-6 and rear-wheel-drive position it below the 986-hp, all-wheel-drive SF90 Stradale; the new car is also a claimed 220 pounds lighter, smaller, and—to our eyes—more elegantly proportioned, especially when viewed from the side. The lack of all-wheel drive also means the GTB never suffers from the slight steering corruption the Stradale sometimes gets from its powered front axle. The 296GTB’s $322,986 price also makes it nearly $200,000 cheaper. It’s definitely not $200,000 worse.The 296GTB’s cabin feels plenty spacious for a two-seater Ferrari, and there is even a respectable amount of luggage space in the front trunk. At the back, the glass engine cover shows off both the V-6 and, in a very 2022 twist, the orange high-voltage cables that take current to the electrical motor. Complaints are limited to small annoyances: a clumsy infotainment system and Ferrari’s continued enthusiasm for putting all switches onto the steering wheel. The result is ergonomic confusion, especially with audio controls, the headlight flasher, and the windshield washer fighting for space on the back of the wheel. Usability would be improved by a couple of old-fashioned column stalks. The 296GTB stands as proof that hybridization and increasing technology in ultra-performance machinery doesn’t need to be feared. At least, not when Ferrari does it. It has taken huge effort to make something so complex appear so simple, a digital supercar that manages to feel almost entirely analog. It is both a technical masterpiece and as thrilling as any Ferrari should be.

Specifications

Specifications
2022 Ferrari 296GTBVehicle Type: mid-engine, mid-motor, rear-wheel-drive, 2-passenger, 2-door coupe
PRICE
Base: $322,986
POWERTRAIN
twin-turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 24-valve 3.0-liter V-6, 654 hp, 546 lb-ft + AC motor, 164 hp, 232 lb-ft (combined output: 819 hp, 546 lb-ft; 6.0-kWh lithium-ion battery pack)
TRANSMISSION
8-speed dual-clutch automatic
DIMENSIONS
Wheelbase: 102.4 inLength: 179.7 inWidth: 77.1 inHeight: 46.7 inCargo Volume: 7 ft3Curb Weight: 3700 lb
PERFORMANCE (C/D EST)
60 mph: 2.9 sec100 mph: 5.7 sec1/4-Mile: 9.7 secTop Speed: 205 mph
EPA FUEL ECONOMY (C/D EST)
Combined/City/Highway: 20/18/22 mpgCombined Gas + Electric: 60 MPGeEV Range: 10 mi

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The 2022 Honda Civic Si is heavier, less powerful, and slower than the car it replaces. It’s also more expensive and missing features that used to come standard. And yet, as explained in this video, we think it’s remarkable that this sub-$30,000, turbocharged, stick-shift sedan still exists at all. With the number of vehicles that offer a manual transmission dwindling, you must appreciate that the Si comes only with a stick shift. And what becomes immediately clear after a few miles is that someone on the development team cared about its weighting and shift action. It’s a great gearbox.

As we reported in our instrumented road test, the Civic Si remains an inexpensive sedan that’s easy to live with and pleasurable to drive. The interior is attractive and decently sized, which producer/editor Alexander Malburg demonstrates in this video from the back seat. Even the fuel economy is strong, at 31 mpg combined. What about the slower performance? As our test data shows, the differences are minor. For example, the 2022 Civic Si’s rolling start, 5–60 mph acceleration test result matched that from the last generation, so you don’t notice a change in real-world driving. On the other hand, you will notice the absence of heated seats come winter. Our only real complaint is one that also was true of the previous-generation Si: During a high-rpm, wide-open-throttle upshift, the engine speed flares and hangs while you’re changing gears. You either have to wait for the engine speed to fall to shift smoothly or accept a clunky gear change when you reengage the clutch. This trait becomes especially apparent in contrast with how nice the shifter feels. Overall, the Civic Si makes for an excellent and affordable family commuter. It’s why we named it a 2022 Editors’ Choice in the sport compact car category. And we remain eager to see what Honda has in store for the next-generation Type R.

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The buzz around enormous body-on-frame luxury SUVs has reached a fever pitch. As lavish and accommodating as ever, these massive driving implements continue to advance in high-tech usefulness, with new and updated entries from Jeep and Lexus bolstering the segment’s ranks. Someone at General Motors even had the idea to give the V treatment to the Cadillac Escalade, supercharged V-8 and all. To that lot we’ll add the 2022 Lincoln Navigator, which has been polished with thoughtful touches and new hands-free driving capability as part of a mid-cycle refresh. The ability to transport people and stuff with glitzy curb appeal makes full-size luxury utes outsize status symbols unto themselves. Jeep doesn’t even badge its Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer as Jeeps, lest they be tainted by the mud-plugging reputation of its lesser models. Not so with the latest Navigator, which has LINCOLN plastered across its stern and the brand’s crosshair emblem set as a nearly foot-tall protrusion within its gently redrawn grille. Flanking that grille are thinner LED headlights, while the rear dons a slimmer full-width LED taillight bar that now emits horizontal animation sequences when you approach and exit the vehicle. Michael Knight’s K.I.T.T. would approve.

It takes a careful eye to spot the new Gator on the road, but glance inside and its 13.2-inch center touchscreen is an easy giveaway. Compared to the 10.1-inch display that it replaces, the updated setup is a better fit in this seven- or eight-passenger Lincoln’s cavernous interior, which remains one of the more fetching environments in automobiledom. As a gateway to the new Sync 4 infotainment system’s bounty of features—including an optional 28-speaker Revel audio system that does its best to shake the windows out of the truck—the touchscreen also is crisply rendered and smartly laid out. Additional animations, such as swaths of faint twinkling stars that follow the needles around the digital speedometer and tachometer, grace a more data-focused 12.0-inch instrument cluster display. The Navigator’s plethora of pixels extends to its rear quarters, with second-row passengers gaining both an optional 5.8-inch infotainment touchscreen and a pair of 10.1-inch, Amazon Fire TV–equipped monitors affixed to the front seatbacks. While a three-across second-row bench remains available, stick with the standard captain’s chairs and you’ll unlock the newly added massage function for those heated and ventilated middle seats. Put a butt in every seat of the 131.6-inch-wheelbase L model, and there’s still plenty of luggage space for all occupants—34 cubic feet behind the third row versus 19 cubes in the regular 122.5-inch-wheelbase version.
From the optional 30-way power-adjustable front seats to the lovely open-pore wood trim laser-etched with a map of the pathways in New York’s Central Park—the latter included in one of two new design packages for Black Label models—the Navigator is a warm and inviting place to be. Classic luxury vibes aside, this Lincoln’s greatest draw probably will be the new ActiveGlide driver assistant, which debuts as standard equipment on the upper Reserve and Black Label trims as the brand’s version of Ford’s BlueCruise. Much like GM’s Super Cruise, ActiveGlide employs lane centering, adaptive cruise control, and driver monitoring to provide hands-free motoring on roughly 130,000 miles of divided highways. Virtual steering-wheel icons and overviews of the vehicle on the road combine in the gauge cluster to indicate when the system is active. An available head-up display (standard on the Black Label), plus a phalanx of standard active-safety gear, provides additional convenience and security.
Though our exposure was brief, ActiveGlide works as advertised, and the steering column-mounted camera and infrared light emitters saw through our attempts to trick their vision by wearing a mask, sunglasses, and hat. If it does detect your attention has strayed from the road, the system beeps with increasing intensity, the steering wheel vibrates, and the vehicle will eventually tap the brakes before the system shuts off. It will not stop the vehicle if you fail to heed its warnings, as some other systems do. Ford is upfront that this initial version of BlueCruise/ActiveGlide has been programmed rather conservatively and that improved capability, among other features, will come via over-the-air updates. This is a good thing, as ActiveGlide currently is not as capable as it probably can be and, from our experience, not as stoic in operation as GM’s Super Cruise. We observed some wandering between lane lines, the system is quick to disengage around tighter bends, and occasionally it refused to recognize that we were paying attention, even after we wiggled the steering wheel. But as a tool for reducing some of the strain from gridlock and boring highway treks, it is a welcome addition. Fortunately, the Navigator is now better to drive when a human is in full control, thanks in part to a retuned suspension that includes a stiffer rear anti-roll bar and a new camera-based system that scans the road ahead and primes the adaptive dampers for upcoming bumps. This is still a large and heavy vehicle imbued with minimal athleticism—despite what its Excite drive mode suggests—but its slow, numb steering is well suited to its preferred casual pace, and body motions feel calmer and more collected than we remember. The newly added electronic brake booster is tuned to provide a reassuringly firm and progressive brake pedal, making smooth stops a cinch. And all versions can now be had with new 22-inch wheel designs (20s remain standard on base models), which returned good ride quality on the smooth pavement around Phoenix. But we’ll hold off on a final verdict until we drive one on our familiar Midwestern goat paths, as the big rollers did clomp uncomfortably over the few sharper impacts we encountered.
Little has changed under the Navigator’s hood since this generation debuted for 2018. The twin-turbo 3.5-liter V-6 still develops 510 pound-feet of torque and is backed by an unhurried 10-speed automatic transmission. Also familiar are an 8700-pound maximum towing capacity and standard rear-wheel drive; all-wheel drive is a $2695 to $3000 option, except on the Black Label, where it’s included. However, minor tuning changes have dropped the engine’s horsepower count from 450 to 440, which apparently the EPA notices more than we did. The Navigator’s combined fuel-economy estimate has increased by 1 mpg to 18 or 19 mpg, depending on the model. But we don’t expect much deviation from the 5.2-second run to 60 mph that we recorded in our test of a 2021 model. That’s satisfyingly quick for a big SUV that costs $78,405 to start and can top $120K in loaded L form. Just as noteworthy is the V-6’s revised exhaust note, which thrums more deeply than before and lends this big Lincoln an appropriately throaty voice that could (almost) be mistaken for a burbling V-8’s. A comparison test ultimately will determine how the new Navigator fares against its also-fresh peers, including its archrival, the Escalade. We could argue that Lincoln fumbled the finishing touch by not commandeering the blown V-8 from the GT500 Mustang as a riposte to the Escalade V. But as a mainstay of the segment that it pioneered back in 1998, the Gator’s latest revisions help keep it in step with the times.

Specifications

Specifications
2022 Lincoln NavigatorVehicle Type: front-engine, rear- or 4-wheel-drive, 7- or 8-passenger, 4-door SUV
PRICE
Base Navigator, $78,405; Navigator L, $91,770
ENGINE
twin-turbocharged DOHC 24-valve V-6, aluminum block and heads, direct fuel injectionDisplacement: 213 in3, 3489 cm3Power: 440 hp @ 5850 rpmTorque: 510 lb-ft @ 3000 rpm
TRANSMISSION
10-speed automatic
DIMENSIONS
Wheelbase: 122.5-131.6 inLength: 210.0-221.9 inWidth: 79.9 inHeight: 76.4-76.1 inPassenger Volume: 172 ft3Cargo Volume: 19-34 ft3Curb Weight (C/D est): 5700-6100 lb
PERFORMANCE (C/D EST)
60 mph: 5.2 sec100 mph: 13.8 sec1/4-Mile: 13.8 secTop Speed: 100 mph
EPA FUEL ECONOMY
Combined/City/Highway: 18-19/16-17/22-23 mpg

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