Motor News

Fisker has announced that its second model, the Pear, will go on sale in 2024.The Pear will start at $29,900, slotting in below the Ocean in Fisker’s lineup.Taiwanese electronics maker Foxconn will build the Pear in Ohio, presumably in the same plant set to produce the electric Lordstown Endurance pickup truck. Fisker Inc., which rose from the ashes of the Karma-producing Fisker Automotive, has revealed one vehicle to date: the Fisker Ocean. Production of the Ocean is set to commence in November 2022. While there are still nine months until Fisker delivers its first electric crossover, Fisker has already announced that a second model, the Pear, will go on sale in 2024, and has made the ambitious claim that it will start at $29,900.

The Fisker Ocean
Fisker

The Pear—the name stands for Personal Electric Automotive Revolution—will be a compact, five-passenger crossover slotting below the Ocean in Fisker’s lineup. Fisker is promising “intuitive controls, sporty driving, clever storage, and a focus on industry firsts.”

While the Ocean will be built by Magna Steyr in Austria, Fisker is partnering with Taiwanese electronics manufacturer Foxconn for production of the Pear. Fisker says that Foxconn will build the Pear in Ohio, so it seems likely that Pear production will occur at the Lordstown Assembly plant which Foxconn purchased last fall. Foxconn is also set to built the electric Lordstown Endurance pickup truck at the Ohio factory, although Fisker would not confirm that the Pear will be constructed in the same facility. Fisker says deliveries of the Pear will begin in 2024, with a minimum initial production of 250,000 units per year. Fisker is now accepting reservations for the Pear, and interested customers need to plunk down $250 for the first reservation and $100 for a second reservation at a later date.
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The Maserati Grecale SUV will be officially revealed on March 22.Along with the reveal date, Maserati also released new teaser images of its upcoming luxury ute.These pics are our best look yet at the Grecale, and its camouflage contains hints about its features and specs.Those who have been eagerly awaiting the reveal of the new Maserati Grecale SUV will finally be rewarded on March 22, according to an announcement today by the company. News of the official reveal date coincides with the release of more teaser photos, except this time the Grecale’s camouflage is more revealing than the prototype we saw testing last month.

The Grecale in the latest images is covered in light camouflage that gives us a virtually undisguised look at its front end. While its headlights are more upright than those on the larger Maserati Levante SUV, the grille design with its vertical slats and large trident logo are hallmarks of the brand. The shape of the Grecale’s rear quarter panel and C-pillar are also reminiscent of the Levante, and the quad-tip exhaust, as well as the sizable front brake rotors and calipers, hint at this being a performance-oriented model.
We know that the Grecale is going to be built at the same factory in Italy as the Alfa Romeo Stelvio SUV, but what we don’t know is which components they will share or any of the Maserati’s exact specifications. However, a close inspection of messages on the Grecale’s camo may offer some clues. The fill-in-the-blank sections are like something you’d see on Wheel of Fortune.One message reads, “My cockpit flaunts more than **” in display surfaces.” Another one says, “I see your eyes on my **L interior storage.” It’s worth noting that the specs Maserati is referencing are in metric units, with the “L” standing for liters. The same goes for the line about legroom that’s described as “more than ****mm.”
We can make some educated guesses just based on the number of digits. The new Grecale’s stereo, for instance, should offer at least 10 speakers and more than 999 watts. It’ll have more than one drive mode, too, and its cargo area will measure at least 100 liters, or 3.5 cubic feet. Maserati’s “Intelligent Assistant” will be controlled by voice commands, but we probably could’ve prophesied that without the hint. It’s up to you if you want to scour these photos to play the guessing game, or if you’re willing to wait for the full reveal next month.
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This Alfa Romeo GT Veloce 1750, on sale now on Bring a Trailer, underwent a full restoration that was completed in March 2020. The Alfa GTV 1750 weighs about 2300 pounds, has 120 horsepower, and is known for its rich character, playful handling, willing four-cylinder, and raspy exhaust note. The current high bid is $60,000, but expect it to go higher still; prices for the best examples have crested $100,000. The auction closes on Thursday, February 17.It would be a wonderful world indeed if every car enthusiast could rack up some miles behind the wheel of an Alfa Romeo GT Veloce 1750. I say that as someone who once had the good fortune to put miles on a well-maintained GTV similar to the one pictured here. And this one, luckily for you, is currently for sale on the auction site Bring a Trailer—which, like Car and Driver, is part of Hearst Autos.The diminutive Alfa sports coupe, better known as the GTV 1750, represents everything that was right about Italian cars of the late 1960s. It’s one of those rare automobiles in which the ride, handling, engine, gearbox, and major controls are in perfect balance, imbuing it with a special sort of harmony that makes every drive memorable. The exhaust note is alone is reason enough to want it. This is a car with personality. Early in my career, I got to drive a friend’s GTV during a trip to Palo Alto, California. We cruised the San Francisco area for several days, and I would have happily driven it all the way back home to New York City.

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Even though that GTV was by then a dozen years old—ancient in car years—it felt totally contemporary. The GTV 1750 was built at a time when small cars were light; at about 2300 pounds, the car is roughly 500 pounds lighter than the current Toyota GR86/Subaru BRZ twins. Thanks in part to that featherweight mass, there was a magical delicacy to the way it drove. It felt lithe and lively and agile, with light-to-the touch unassisted steering, an easy-shifting five-speed manual gearbox, and solid four-wheel disc brakes.

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Its ride was a sweet compromise between taut and supple. Best of all, the spunky double overhead-cam four-cylinder engine, which would feel merely peppy by today’s standards, nonetheless snarled like an angry German shepherd with each prod of the accelerator. The GTV seemed made for brisk drives on the kind of two-lane roads you find in Napa Valley, California, or in the hills near Modena, Italy.

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The dark blue GTV on Bring a Trailer looks to be a spectacular example of the breed. It’s described as a Europe-market model, which is why its 1779-cc four-cylinder is fitted with dual Weber DCOE carbs rather than the Spica fuel injection found on U.S. GTVs. (The fuel-injection system was needed to meet early U.S. emissions requirements.) This means that the buyer will need to find a local Weber carb expert in order to keep their new-old GTV running smoothly—or learn the tuning intricacies of the finicky Italian air-fuel mixers so they can do it themselves.

The BaT GTV underwent a full restoration, which was completed to seeming perfection in March 2020, and there are ample photos documenting the build. This car’s original color was Gialo Ocra, which is a shade darker than school-bus yellow, but it was refinished in an Alfa-correct dark blue named Blu Olandese. The interior was reupholstered in black vinyl. It rolls on silver-painted 14-inch wheels topped with Alfa hubcaps and shod with narrow 165/HR-14 Pirelli Cinturato tires, which sport the tall sidewalls of high-performance radials that were available 53 years ago. This car also was treated to a complete mechanical restoration, according to the seller. Its engine was given a full rebuild, so we’d expect it to deliver its all of its advertised 120 horses. The brakes, rear axle, and five-speed manual gearbox were also overhauled. A shot of the car’s underside looks factory fresh. The seller says that the car has been driven about 7500 miles since it was reassembled. Bring a Trailer recommends that shoppers conduct an in-person inspection of the vehicles that they’re interested in before they start bidding, which will take some doing with this GTV; it’s located in Mallorca, Spain. Obviously, the winning bidder will also have to plan on higher-than-usual shipping costs, but BaT has an app for that. And there may be one other complication: though the car is located in Mallorca, it is registered in Sweden in the name of the seller’s business. We hope the transaction will not be bogged down by this Alfa’s multinational status.Bidding for the beautiful blue GTV 1750 closes on Thursday, February 17, and we envy the lucky winner who scoops it up. We expect that the driving experience will be as full of brio now as it was more than a half-century ago.

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General Motors submitted a preliminary test document to the EPA revealing a few interesting specs on the 2022 GMC Hummer EV Edition 1 pickup. The new electric truck will go 329 miles on a single charge with 212.7 kWh of usable energy and achieve 47 MPGe combined, according to GM’s test data.The Hummer is as heavy as 9063 pounds, and the big battery alone weighs 2923 pounds. CORRECTION 2/15/22: This story has been updated to correct the Hummer EV Edition 1’s price, which is $110,295.When the GMC Hummer EV pickup debuted more than a year ago, General Motors claimed that the electric pickup would travel 350 miles on a single charge of its 200.0-kWh Ultium battery, putting it above the EPA’s estimates for the first electric truck to arrive in the marketplace, the Rivian R1T. Test data that GM filed recently with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) now brings those claims into focus and provides a number of other interesting details regarding the 1000-hp, $110,295 Edition 1 electric pickup.

The document shows that the Edition 1 model, the only version available at launch, has an Ultium battery with a usable capacity of 212.7 kWh, which is significantly larger than the Ford F-150 Lightning’s available 131.0-kWh Extended Range battery pack and the Rivian R1T’s 128.9-kWh lithium-ion battery. According to the EPA filings, the Hummer will achieve a 329-mile EPA combined range, consuming electricity at 47 MPGe EPA combined, some 33 percent less than the Rivian’s 70-MPGe rating. It’s important to add that the range figure does better the Rivian’s 314-mile rating—and also Ford’s 300-mile estimate for the Lightning. Also interesting is that the Hummer’s front and rear reduction ratios are nearly 30 percent different (13.3:1 in front, and 10.5:1 in back), so it likely shifts the primary propulsion source to whichever axle will be more efficient during different driving circumstances. A GMC spokesperson told Car and Driver that it will not be displaying the Hummer’s MPGe figures on its window sticker, as vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) above 8500 pounds are not required to. So, here they are: 51 MPGe city, 43 MPGe highway, and the aforementioned 47 MPGe combined. Automakers can always choose to display those figures, as Rivian does with the R1T, which has a GVWR just over 8500 pounds. In real-world usage during our recent test of the Rivian R1T, however, we achieved 35 MPGe, or half of its combined figure, so the Hummer might also do worse in the real world. Obviously weight is a huge factor, and we now know a few more details about that, too. The big battery pack alone weighs 2923 pounds, almost as much as an entire Honda Civic. GMC reports in the EPA document a curb weight of 9063 pounds, which is nearly 2000 pounds heavier than the Rivian R1T Launch Edition we just tested.The data also shows a battery capacity of 617 amp-hours. Multiplied by its 400-volt operating voltage, that yields 246.8 kWh, which should equate with the double-stacked pack’s gross capacity. That would mean its usable capacity is 86 percent of the total, which is a little lower than what we’re seeing in other EVs today, where the ratio is often closer to 90 percent. Perhaps that’s why the Hummer EV’s losses when charging from empty to full on a 240-volt Level 2 outlet, which these documents show at 10 percent, are slightly better than the roughly 12 percent average by other EVs in EPA tests. GMC says that this test is the final certification for the Hummer’s 2022 model year. Cheaper models will arrive in the next few years, including the dual-motor base model in 2024.
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Audi has released U.S. details on the updated 2022 A8 lineup.The S8 is now the only model with a V-8, and the plug-in-hybrid has been dropped.The A8 starts at $87,595 and the S8 starts at $118,995.Audi is slimming down the A8 lineup along with the luxury sedan’s updates for the 2022 model year. The V-6–powered A8 55 and the V-8–powered S8 will now be the only versions available in the U.S., meaning that the previous V-8 and plug-in-hybrid versions of the A8 have been dropped. Fortunately for eight-cylinder diehards, the S8’s base price is significantly lower than before to bring it closer to the previous A8 60’s cost.

The 2022 A8, with its 335-hp turbocharged 3.0-liter V-6 engine, now starts at $87,595. That’s a $50 increase from last year and significantly less than the equivalent Mercedes S-class, the $112,150 S500. The S8 comes with the same 563-hp twin-turbo 4.0-liter V-8 as before and starts at $118,995, a whopping $14,250 decrease from last year.The U.S.-market A8 and S8 receive the same visual updates that we saw on the Europe-market car a few months back. The interior is largely carryover, but the S8 does receive a few new options including a $5900 package that converts the rear seat to a two-seat layout with a center console and fold-out tables.

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Stellantis is recalling 16,741 of its Pacifica Hybrid plug-in-hybrid minivans from the 2017 and 2018 model years over a risk of fire.In a Safety Recall Report filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the automaker says it does not know what the source of the problem is.Owners are being told not to park near a home or in a garage, to keep them away from other vehicles, and not to charge the vehicles.Stellantis will recall 16,741 of its Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid plug-in-hybrid minivans over a problem with potential fires. It’s possible for a fire to happen even when the ignition is off, according to documents filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The documents did not give details about where the fire might be located but did say Stellantis repurchased two vehicles last fall to investigate fires and that the company is aware of 10 additional fires in the minivans. The recall only affects hybrid versions of the minivan.

FCA US

The automaker said the “root cause is unknown” and the “remedy is under development.” The Safety Recall Report also says the issue can arise without any warning. However, there have been no reports of accidents or injuries, the report said.Owners will be notified starting April 2 of arrangements for the recall. In the meantime, NHTSA advises that owners should not charge the vehicles or park them in a garage, near a home, or near other vehicles. Owners of potentially affected Pacifica minivans can check the NHTSA recalls site for more details.

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The Polestar 5, a production version of the gorgeous Precept concept, will feature a newly created platform.The platform will be made from bonded aluminum to maximize lightness and rigidity.The automaker bills the Polestar 5 as a “performance four-door GT.” It will arrive in 2024.Last fall, Swedish electric-car maker Polestar revealed that the stunning Precept concept, first unveiled in early 2020, would reach production in 2024 and carry the name Polestar 5. Now Polestar has announced that the 5, which will serve as the brand’s flagship model, will ride on a brand-new bespoke platform.

The original 2020 Precept concept.
Polestar

This platform will be made from bonded aluminum, which should make it lightweight and, Polestar says, provide “torsional rigidity superior to that of a traditional two-seat sports- or supercar.” Polestar says that building bonded aluminum chassis has proven labor-intensive and difficult for mass production in the past, but the company says it has created a new manufacturing process that is faster and “develops both body and platform in unison.”

While the Precept concept had a 122.4-inch wheelbase (slightly shorter than that of an Audi A8), Polestar claims that the platform and body combined will “weigh less than that of cars in smaller segments.” If Polestar’s lightweight projections come true, the 5 could end up with exceptional efficiency, range, and handling for a large EV. The Polestar 5 is being developed by the firm’s U.K-based engineering team, which will add more than 200 employees this year to reach 500 engineers total. Very little is known about the powertrain of the 5, which Polestar calls a “performance 4-door GT,” but expect more information to trickle out as Polestar continues its prolonged tease of the production Precept on YouTube.
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This 2010 Honda Element EX, always a practical (and pet-friendly) choice, includes washable floorboards, moisture-resistant seating fabric, and a low and flat load floor that provides vanlike utility.The Honda Element was sold from 2003 to 2011 and shared its basic underpinnings with the second-generation CR-V.Bidding on this low-mileage, one-owner Element with no reserve ends on February 17.We love an underdog, which is why we continue to have a soft spot for Honda’s slow-selling Element. Sharing its basic underpinnings with the second-generation Honda CR-V, the Element’s bold and boxy, though not particularly pretty, design helped it stand in stark contrast to its more mundane compact-SUV kin. If you missed the chance to get one, the Bring a Trailer auction site—which, like Car and Driver, is part of Hearst Autos—has a 45,000-mile Element from late in the SUV’s run, in an online auction that ends Thursday, February 17.

The Element’s brash looks failed to translate to any sort of sales success, with Honda moving a peak of 67,478 Elements in 2003—less than half the number of CR-Vs it sold in the same year. It’s not as though Honda left the Element out to dry, either. Sure, the brand could have done more to correct the SUV’s course, but it nonetheless continued to tweak the Element throughout the vehicle’s nine model years.

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Due to this, the 2010 Element is arguably among the model’s best vintages, as it marks the final year the vehicle was available in racy-looking SC trim or with an optional in-dash navigation system (2010 also saw the debut of the quirky $995 Dog Friendly package that included items such as a ramp, a cargo-area-mounted kennel and bed, a water bowl, and a small electric fan to keep Fido cool in warmer weather), all while benefiting from the powertrain and styling improvements introduced for the 2007 and 2009 model years, respectively. In the case of the former, this meant the car’s 2.4-liter inline-four produced 166 horsepower—up from the engine’s prior 160-hp rating—and the automatic transmission included five gears, as opposed to the 2003–2006 Element’s four. Although we still prefer the five-speed manual transmission offered in 2003–2009 Elements, we think this Element’s automatic transmission is far from a deal breaker. After all, with a curb weight of 3648 pounds, this navigation-equipped all-wheel-drive Element lacks the tossable dynamics to truly take advantage of the visceral thrill of manually swapping cogs.

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When we tested an all-wheel-drive 2010 Element EX more than a decade ago, we noted that the square-shaped SUV failed to accelerate with much gusto, suffered from a high center of gravity, and its slab sides made it susceptible to crosswinds. In other words, the Element’s dynamic competence is far from its biggest selling point. Arguably this SUV’s draw is its funky looks and versatile cabin. With its split tailgate, lack of B-pillars due to its rear-hinged back doors, and aforementioned flat load floor, the Element’s insides are essentially a blank slate. Need a reliable and reasonably fuel-efficient cargo hauler, or a camping vehicle with the chops to handle the occasional gravel or snow-covered trail? Look no further than the Element.

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The fact that this silver Element is a well-maintained one-owner vehicle with less than 45,000 miles on its odometer practically ensures this little SUV is truly in its element when partaking in such tasks. Even better, this Element’s an EX model, which means it packs the likes of trim-specific 16-inch wheels, a center console replete with a removable cooler, and the previously noted in-dash navigation system, which also brought along kit such as a backup camera and a dedicated USB port. Admittedly, you probably won’t want to rely exclusively on the navigation system’s outdated maps for directions. That said, it’s still nice to have the setup on-board in the off chance your smartphone gives up the ghost in a foreign locale.

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Yet, the real feather in the Element’s proverbial cap may be its relatively strong aftermarket support—particularly in the camping community. Want to really take advantage of the Element’s flexible and easy-to-clean interior? Then save up a few grand to fit the SUV with a pop-up camper, in the manner of classic Volkswagen vans of yore.

Although it went largely unappreciated when new, Honda’s Element is no longer the underdog it once was; many of today’s consumers seem to treasure the funky compact SUV. The last one up for BaT auction was a 55,000-mile 2010 Element EX with all-wheel drive and two prior owners. Based on the $21,300 final bid that one fetched, this one-owner model with fewer miles, offered with no reserve, is sure to break the $20,000 mark by the time this auction ends later this week.
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