Motor News

The signs have been there since the COVID-19 pandemic started, but with more people driving badly and driving habits changing, the number of fatalities in the first quarter of 2021 was the highest since at least 2009.The number of fatalities that happened in the first three months of this year was 1.26 per 100 million miles traveled, up from 1.12 in 2020, says the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in its latest report.The solutions are things we already know—less distracted and impaired driving, for example—but these messages aren’t breaking through the way they need to to bring the numbers down.The COVID-19 pandemic seems to have changed the automotive habits of U.S. drivers. First we drove less, then we drove faster while apparently paying less attention, and then the number of fatal crashes started to climb. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has now released its numbers from the first quarter of 2021, and it turns out American roads got even more dangerous as the pandemic has continued. During the first three months of this year, NHTSA said an estimated 8730 people died in motor vehicle traffic crashes. Since there were 7900 fatalities in the same time period in 2020, that represents an increase of about 10.5 percent.

In late 2020, NHTSA released fatal crash statistic estimates that predicted a 2 percent decline in the actual number of people who have died in motor vehicle traffic crashes between 2019 and 2020. That made sense, since the nation’s driving habits completely changed last year. But when the NHTSA factored in the reduction in vehicle miles traveled (VMT), the fatality rate actually increased. For every 100 million VMT, there were 1.06 fatalities in 2019 and 1.25 in all of 2020.When NHTSA ran the same VMT calculations, the number of fatalities in 2021 rose to 1.26 fatalities per 100 million VMT, compared to 1.12 for the first quarter of 2020. In both pure numbers and rate per 100 VMT, these are the highest first-quarter fatality rates since at least 2009, according to a NHTSA fact sheet.NHTSA doesn’t just want to report on how much more dangerous the roads are these days; it wants to make them safer. This is why the agency released a new edition of its Countermeasures That Work report alongside the new fatality estimates. This reports identifies the what kinds of actions can reduce road fatalities, and the suggestions should be familiar to most drivers: stopping impaired, distracted, and drowsy driving; keeping bicyclists and motorcyclists safer; and making sure people wear their seatbelts, among other options. This all sounds repetitive, sure, but imagine having to be the agency representative who has to keep telling Americans how to drive safer.

“We must address the tragic loss of life we saw on the roads in 2020 by taking a transformational and collaborative approach to safety,” NHTSA acting administrator Steven Cliff said in a statement. “Everyone—including those who design, operate, build, and use the road system—shares responsibility for road safety. We are working closely with our safety partners to address risky driving behaviors.” It’s important to note that these numbers are just early estimates, which NHTSA puts out regularly. They will be updated with more accurate figures when various agencies submit their numbers to the safety agency later this year, but the trends don’t look good.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io More

Connected cars are great, until they’re not. A recent Detroit Free Press article shows that vehicle hacks are more common and more dangerous that most people realize.There were at least 150 automotive cybersecurity incidents in 2019, part of a 94 percent year-over-year increase since 2016, according to a report from Upstream Security.Oh, and here’s a phrase we’re loath to see, even though we’re likely to come across it plenty more in the future: ransomware for cars.It is impossible to remotely hack into an unconnected car. But if you’re not driving the latest vehicle from Tautology Motors, your vehicle is likely at risk from some sort of digital intrusion. In fact, almost every car on the road today, if it can connect, can be hacked to some degree.That’s the opinion of Moshe Shlisel, the CEO and cofounder of GuardKnox Cyber Technologies, a company that focuses on protecting vehicles from just these kinds of attacks.”The more sophisticated the system is, the more connected your vehicle is, the more exposed you are,” Shlisel told the Detroit Free Press. “We have taken whatever model [car] you think of and we hack them through various places. I can control your steering, I can shut down and [start] your engine, control your brakes, your doors, your wipers, open and close your trunk.”

Shlisel isn’t the only one trying to predict and prevent hacking threats. Upstream Security put out its annual Global Automotive Cybersecurity Report that lists the top cyber incidents of 2020. These included a hacker gaining control over “Tesla’s entire connected vehicle fleet by exploiting a vulnerability in the OEM’s server-side mechanism” and hackers taking “full control of an OEM’s corporate network by reverse-engineering a vehicle’s [telematics control unit] and using the telematics connection to infiltrate the network.”The Free Press cited Upstream’s report, which said there was a 99 percent increase in cybersecurity incidents (to 150) in 2019 and a 94 percent year-over-year increase since 2016. With more communication methods being built into new vehicles, including massive over-the-air update technologies, this trend is unlikely to reverse any time soon.Ransomware for Cars Is ComingAll of these attacks mean automakers have to take a proactive stance in this fight. Part of the automakers’ defense strategy is to ask “white hat” ethical hackers to show them where the cars are vulnerable in exchange for monetary rewards or, in some cases, jobs. The famous hacker duo who took control of a Jeep Cherokee back in 2015 now work for Cruise, the autonomous-vehicle subsidiary of General Motors. Michael Dick, CEO of C2A Security, an Israel-based automotive cybersecurity company, told the Free Press he expects the current trend of hackers holding digital data on computers for ransom to move to cars at some point. When this happens, driver will not be able to start their vehicle until they pay off the hacker or suffer the consequences. “There’s no way around it,” he said. “You’ll have to get it towed and get all new software to start it.”For some transportation companies, ransomware attacks have already happened. Upstream Security’s report mentions a ransomware attack on the Australian transportation company Toll Group, which affected 1000 servers and 40,000 employees. And Honda was forced to stop production in June 2020 due to ransomware attacks on plants in Europe and Japan.Upstream Security recommends three ways automakers can build secure vehicles, and they’re all complicated. First, security has to be part of the design of every component. Second, there needs to be a multi-layered cybersecurity solution that involves in-vehicle, IT network, and cloud security defenses. Third, automakers need to develop vehicle security operations centers “to monitor, detect, and quickly respond to cyber incidents to protect vehicles, services, fleets, and road users.” How well the auto industry builds up these defenses will define how much drivers love their connected cars as the risks are better understood.
This content is imported from {embed-name}. 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.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io More

Toyota started this year’s Tokyo Olympics on the wrong foot, when anger from Japanese citizens that the games were going forward amid the pandemic led the carmaker and Olympic partner to suspend its planned Olympics-related advertising in Japan. And now there’s a bookend stumble for the end of Toyota’s games: an autonomous shuttle operating in the Olympic Village during the Paralympic games collided with and injured a visually impaired athlete last week. Toyota briefly paused the shuttle rides, but then restarted them with extra safety workers on hand to prevent repeat incidents. This Week in SheetmetalAudi showed an elongated, nearly teardrop-shaped electric sedan concept, also designed to showcase the possibilities of future autonomous driving technologies. The car, called the Grandsphere, would have 711 horsepower from two electric motors, a retractable steering wheel, and a potted plant sprouting out of the back of the center console.[image id=’c5567094-68b7-478f-a3ad-446c92ad5292′ mediaId=’0b3332cd-abd8-4a15-8b2b-a2587f6d8e1f’ align=’right’ size=’medium’ share=’false’ caption=” expand=” crop=’original’][/image]Winnebago has designed a wheelchair-accessible RV based on a Ram ProMaster van. The RV, called Roam, is smaller than previous accessible RVs the company has built and can have a power-operated sofa bed, wheelchair tie-downs, grab handles in the shower, and an under-vehicle wheelchair lift. Mercedes has provided more information on the next AMG GT63, scheduled to be the first plug-in hybrid from Mercedes’ performance sub-brand. The 2023 GT63 will have a combined 831 hp from a 4.0-liter V-8 and an electric motor on the rear axle. 2023 will mark the return of the Mercedes V-8 to the U.S. market. The company dropped eight-cylinder engines from almost all of its U.S. lineup for 2022 due to supply chain constraints. Subaru shared some new (miniature, upside-down) teaser photos of its forthcoming inaugural EV, the Solterra. The car will come with standard all-wheel drive, as is appropriate for a Subaru, and will share its platform with the Toyota bZ4X. We expect it to go on sale next year.[image id=’8d371da3-d246-4dfb-b51d-e45cf1c9c94a’ mediaId=’0c645f4c-49c8-4f42-862e-005232614c4f’ align=’center’ size=’medium’ share=’false’ caption=” expand=” crop=’original’][/image]Microchip Shortage, StillSeveral automakers adjusted their third-quarter sales projections downward this week, as the ongoing microchip shortage limits production below demand. Ford said its August sales were down 33 percent due to the chip shortage. Mercedes said its third-quarter results would be “noticeably below” second-quarter sales. Volvo said its sales were down 10.6 percent compared to last August, and said it expecte slow sales through the second half of the year. General Motors announced more plant shutdowns, and a Bloomberg report said Tesla had to idle its plants in China for several days last month because of the chip shortage. Meanwhile, Hyundai is looking for its own way through the storm. The company says it has developed its own microchip for use in a vehicle that will launch in the second quarter of next year, perhaps the Ioniq 6 EV. Hyundai will use local (to Korea) suppliers to manufacture the chip and hopes this strategy will reduce competition and uncertainty related to microchip sourcing. Wear Your Seatbelt[editoriallinks id=’0e020265-3007-4f1b-8278-18b39d041711′ align=’left’][/editoriallinks]The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports a 10.5 percent increase in traffic deaths in the first three months of 2021 compared to the first three months of 2020, despite a 2.1 percent decrease in the number of vehicle miles travelled compared to last year. NHTSA attributes the increase in fatalities to a rise in risky behaviors such as speeding, impaired driving, and not wearing seatbelts. Traffic-related deaths were up 7.2 percent to 38,680 in the U.S. overall in 2020, even though Americans drove 13 percent fewer miles than in 2019. NHTSA blamed that increase on risky behavior by drivers enjoying empty roads during lockdowns, or drivers who thought police would not stop and ticket them during the height of the pandemic. A representative for the self-driving coalition said the NHTSA report was evidence of the urgent need for self-driving cars, which “do not speed, become impaired, or get distracted,” but since truly autonomous driving technology doesn’t exist yet, we’ll stick with more old-fashioned advice: wear your seatbelt, and always remember that cars can kill you.Further ReadingRemember when North Carolinians raised a stink about an increasingly popular car modification dubbed the Carolina Squat? Well, now the Squat is illegal (more or less). Read in the New York Times about the various, sometimes destructive, strategies companies are taking to extract lithium, a crucial element in electric-vehicle manufacturing, from the earth.Or read about the unlikely second life of a 1970 AMC AMX in the Wall Street Journal.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io More

Associate news editor Caleb Miller is new to the Car and Driver family, so when his 2000 Mercedes-Benz S430’s Airmatic suspension unceremoniously collapsed, he thought it’d be a good idea to ask the Window Shop crew to help him find a replacement. Miller set a $7000 budget and asked that we consider something fun and reliable. In the interest of saving the manuals, something with a clutch pedal would be nice, too. After the team stopped trying to convince Miller to just drive the S-class and tell people it’s stanced, we showed him what we found on Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace in his price range. It turns out many of us have perverted definitions of fun and reliable.Senior editor Elana Scherr selects a very long and low-mileage Lincoln Town Car with Ford’s 4.6-liter SOHC V-8. We remark on the Modular V-8 and get pulled into the opera window on the C-pillar, and we argue about whether or not the Town Car got BBS wheels. Miller doesn’t seem impressed, so we let contributor Jonathon Ramsey take over. Ramsey finds a 2006 Jaguar XJ8 L that has enough leather and wood to comfort anyone coming off an S-class. The reliability of the retro-styled all-aluminum Jaguar comes into question, but then we get distracted by deputy testing director K.C. Colwell’s lesson on the leaper and the growler. Colwell takes over the screen after Ramsey and shows us that he took the challenge seriously when he shares his 1999 BMW 528i manual with the sport package. The turbine-style 32 wheels are from a 540i with the sport package, the car looks clean, and the E39 5-series brings up a lot of fond memories like Road & Track editor John Pearley Huffman’s story of a close friend whose E39 caught fire in a driveway.Pearley’s choice won’t surprise any regular viewers. The 2002 Toyota Tundra promises years of trouble-free service. The group can’t deny its reputation for reliability or the appeal of the five-speed manual, but the bare-bones regular-cab truck lacks S-class luxuries, like carpet. Finally, deputy editor Tony Quiroga takes over and shows off a cream-colored 1978 Lincoln Continental that no one appreciates, especially Miller. As usual, the episode jumps the rails and the discussion goes off subject. Watch until the end to watch some ’70s classics diving their way through panic stops.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io More

Audi has unveiled the dramatically-styled Grandsphere concept, which showcases the brand’s future design direction.The Grandsphere concept is an electric sedan that also features a vision for future autonomous driving technology.A lounge-like interior features a retractable steering column and a massive infotainment setup that is projected onto a flat dashboard.The future of Audi’s design and engineering is previewed by this elegant Grandsphere concept sedan. The second in a trio of concepts to debut in short order, the Grandsphere shares styling elements with the sportier Skysphere coupe, but integrates a more spacious, four-door layout and a host of interesting tech. A third concept called Urbansphere will debut next year.
Two electric motors generate 711 horsepower combined and up to 686 pound-feet of torque, allowing the Grandsphere to reach 62 mph in a claimed 4.0 seconds, according to Audi. The company also claims a driving range as long as 466 miles on the WLTP cycle and fast-charging via a 270-kW onboard charger, borrowed from the e-tron GT that’s on sale today.

While the exterior design is certainly dramatic and attractive, the interior is where the concept showcases its most futuristic elements. Facing the driver and front passenger is a large, flat dashboard that’s devoid of buttons and lacks the traditional touchscreen display. Instead, the car’s infotainment is projected onto the dashboard, and a camera tracks the driver’s eyes and flicks through menus and selections based on eye movement. Each of the car’s four doors features physical buttons for the climate-control system, but those can also be adjusted based on hand gestures.
Autonomous driving is the Grandsphere concept’s biggest flex, though, and in autonomous mode, there’s no steering wheel in sight. For instances when autonomous driving is not available—such as when exiting a highway into city traffic—a steering wheel and gauge cluster deploy from behind the flat dashboard so the driver can take control.The luxury quotient is high as well, with several high-end touches painting the Grandsphere concept as an upscale executive cruiser. The center console between the two front seats can be electrically deployed forward toward the dashboard to provide more storage space ,and it also includes a cold water dispenser. Other posh touches include an air filtration and aroma diffuser system, wool upholstery, and hornbeam wood trim. To make it feel even more like a rolling living room, Audi even made room for a little potted plant between the two front seats.
At this point in time, the Grandsphere is merely a concept, but Audi claims to be working on a production version and is targeting a launch sometime in the middle of this decade. That seems like a short time frame to bring Level 4 autonomy to the motoring public but some form of self-driving tech is sure to be included when the production version of the Grandsphere launches.
This content is imported from {embed-name}. 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.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io More

Subaru’s new upmarket Forester Wilderness joins the 2022 Forester lineup, with drivetrain and suspension mods to improve off-road capability and bringing the total to six Forester models.The Forester Wilderness doubles the crossover’s tow load limit to 3000 pounds, while the roof rack’s static load limit is upped to better accommodate rooftop tents.The Wilderness is distinctive because of its raised height, exclusive Geyser Blue paint option, anodized copper trim, optional skid plates, raised-white-letter tires, and copious model logos.There’s only one way to go in the car business if things are going well, and that’s up. So enter the 2022 Subaru Forester Wilderness, which follows the successful Outback variant of the same name. The special edition features useful revisions that make the strong-selling Forester an even more potent tool for dedicated back-to-nature types, with an upgraded drivetrain, a raised suspension, and a higher price, starting at $33,945 versus the base model’s $26,320 sticker. But there are still two models above the Wilderness in price, with the top-end trim, the Touring, priced at $36,420 for the 2022 model year.
Viewed from the outside, the Forester Wilderness stands 1.4 inches taller, with an additional half-inch of ground clearance added to the standard Forester’s already excellent figure, for a total of 9.2 inches. In turn, this increases angle of approach (from 20.0 degrees to 23.5 degrees) and departure (from 24.6 to 25.4 degrees), while improving ramp breakover angle (19.6 to 21.0 degrees), helping to make the Wilderness the most capable Forester off-road. Longer travel and dampening compression strokes for its bespoke shock absorbers improve ride quality on the rugged stuff.

In the engine room, the Wilderness edition forges ahead with revised final-drive (4.11:1 in place of the Forester’s standard 3.70:1) and modified gearbox ratios for the continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT) to effectively increase low-end torque. Its 182-hp 2.5-liter direct injection boxer-four pumps out 176 pound-feet, allowing it to better dispatch hills and muddy trails. The model’s standard Lineartronic CVT, here with eight-speed manual mode function, paddle shifters,and the aforementioned ratio revision, ups the Wilderness model’s game when climbing and descending. Subaru’s driver-selectable X-Mode offers snow/dirt and deep snow/mud modes, trimming torque and adjusting CVT ratios as needed. X-Mode will detect steep inclines and automatically enable the Wilderness’s low-speed/low-ratio gradient control. It will shift the CVT to its lowest ratio, creating a sort of low range for climbing. Standard Hill Descent Control automatically engages braking when the Forester heads down steep hills.
An air-cooled oil cooler for the engine and a rear differential temperature sensor further indicate the new model’s serious off-road intent. And speaking of tents, a revised fixed-ladder-type roof rack increases dynamic load capacity to 220 pounds from 176 pounds, while static load limit rises by 100 pounds to 800 pounds, making the use of larger rooftop tents more viable, while also rolling out the welcome mat for heftier campers. The fourth generaiton of Subaru’s EyeSight driver-assist technology, an on-road safety boon, comes standard and features pre-collision braking and automatic emergency steering.
Visually, the Forester Wilderness will stand out not just for its high-riding ways but also for its black pillars and copper-colored roof rack posts, matte black 17-inch alloy wheels, and Yokohama Geolandar tires with raised white lettering. Geyser Blue paint is a striking new Wilderness-specific color option, while water-repellent seating is embossed with the Wilderness logo, as are floor mats and even the side of the car, a vaguely garish touch that recalls the increasingly huge badges seen on many Ferraris these days. Aluminum or steel skid plates to protect the engine and differential are separately available as options, the former also making the car stand out along with the overly large badges, so you can truly see this Forester through the trees.
This content is imported from {embed-name}. 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.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io More

Subaru has revealed the 2022 Forester, with refreshed looks and several new safety and performance features.There’s a new off-roading-oriented Wilderness model, and the entire six-model lineup gets a new face, upgraded brakes for the Premium trim, and more advanced driver-assist technology.The Forester continues to be powered by a 2.5-liter flat-four producing 182 horsepower and 176 pound-feet of torque.Earlier this summer, we got a peek at the 2022 Subaru Forester when images of the Japan-market Forester facelift were revealed. Now Subaru has shown the updated Forester destined for our shores, revealing all of the design and technological updates that the refreshed crossover will bring.

The most obvious changes are up front, where the Forester gains a redesigned, chunkier front bumper and sharper, squintier LED headlights. The grille also has new graphical elements while the rear bumper receives minor tweaks. Under the hood resides the same 182-hp 2.5-liter flat-four mated to a continuously variable automatic transmission, and the Forester continues to come with all-wheel drive as standard. The Premium trim now has the 12.4-inch front brake rotors which were previously only available on the higher trims, while the base makes do with the 11.6-inch units. The other biggest news for the 2022 Forester is the addition of the off-road-focused Wilderness model, which gains extra ground clearance and a tougher suspension, among other all-terrain add-ons.

Subaru

Subaru has also given the 2022 Forester lineup some technological upgrades, with all Forester trim levels receiving the fourth-generation of Subaru’s EyeSight driver-assist technology, which includes pre-collision braking, as standard. For 2022, EyeSight adds advanced adaptive cruise control with lane centering and an improved stereo camera, which should enhance EyeSight’s operation. Inside, the Forester Wilderness offers optional gesture control for the climate control, allowing drivers to raise or lower the temperature with a wave of their hand. There are also minor trim changes throughout. The 2022 Subaru Forester will start at $26,320, an increase of $475 over the 2021 base model. Upgrading to the Premium will cost $29,320, also up $475, while the price of the Sport model increases by $445 to $30,890. The Limited now sells for an even $33,000, a $555 hike, while the top-of-the-line Touring costs $36,420, a $475 increase versus 2021. The new Wilderness model slots in between the Limited and Touring at $33,945.
This content is imported from {embed-name}. 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.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io More

Winnebago has built wheelchair-accessible RVs before, but they’ve always been the Class A behemoths that cost $270,000 or more. The new Roam is a smaller Class B RV based on the Ram ProMaster van that still has room for someone in a wheelchair to move around inside.Winnebago designed the interior with help from accessibility advocates, and the RV maker used universal design as the guiding force when deciding what to include.Options include a pop top for more sleeping space, a TV, and your color choice. Steering hand controls, if needed, can be installed by a third party.Sometimes, when the #VanLife calls, what you’re really looking for is a #VanLift. Wheelchair users who enjoy spending time on the road will likely be interested in the new Winnebago Roam RV, the company’s first Class B RV that was designed specifically with accessibility in mind.

While some wheelchair-using adventurers have taken to building their own accessible home on wheels, like quadriplegic photographer Kirk Williams and his rugged conversion van, not everyone has that kind of desire. The Roam, which Winnebago announced today, fills the bill in a smaller package than what the company’s larger wheelchair-ready RVs, the Adventurer AE and the Inspire, already offer. Those are both bus-sized Class A RVs with sleeping room for five and price tags starting at $269,000.Class B RVs are usually around 21 to 24 feet and often feature more off-grid conveniences like toilets and refrigerators than smaller conversion vans but sleep one or two people just as easily. Winnebago told Car and Driver it will announce pricing for the Roam within the next two months.
Built using a 2021 Ram ProMaster as the base and with a BraunAbility wheelchair lift under the sliding side door, the Roam is less than 20 feet long, but Winnebago said it was “designed with enough floor space to support a wheelchair and critical accessible features.” That means an under-vehicle wheelchair lift, standard wheelchair tie-downs, a shower and toilet with grab handles, accessible light and system controls, and a powered sofa bed. It can seat up to five people and sleep up to four, if you order it with the optional pop top that sleeps two.The only other options Winnebago will offer is a built-in TV and a choice of three colors (red, silver or white). Winnebago will not be installing any hand controls for driving the Roam, leaving that to third-party companies if the buyer is interested. Everything else you can see in the pictures of the vehicle, like the refrigerator and microwave, are standard. Winnebago will also switch the Roam over to 2022 ProMasters once those become available.
The accessible features in the Roam were selected from user feedback based on decades of building the larger Class A motorhomes, the company said. Winnebago also got ideas from several hosted RV trips with travelers in wheelchairs, who made suggestions about what to change and keep. Winnebago also spoke to people in the accessibility community, including caregivers, as it was developing the Roam.”While there are some features, like the wheelchair lift and tie-downs, that are focused on the traveler in a wheelchair, many of the features stem from a desire for a universal design,” a Winnebago spokesperson said. “This includes easily reachable controls, gauges, and displays. More open spaces to move around, an easy-to-access bathroom, and added privacy features.”When the Roam goes on sale this fall, it will be available at only three authorized dealerships: La Mesa, Campers Inn, and Pleasureland. These were chosen because they have shown a commitment to Winnebago’s accessible product line in the past and they have multiple locations, Winnebago said, and more dealers may be added when demand and production capacity increase.
This content is imported from {embed-name}. 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.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io More