News

Following the Evija hypercar and Eletre SUV, we’ve spotted the third EV from Lotus testing in the Arctic Circle.The sedan—internally called Type 133 but expected to wear the Envya nameplate—features smooth, aerodynamic bodywork similar to the Eletre.The Envya will likely be revealed sometime this year, but it probably won’t arrive in the U.S. until the 2025 model year.Lotus, known for lightweight track toys, is going all-electric. Four new models—including the 2024 Eletre SUV revealed last year—are due by 2028, and new spy photos give us our first look at the brand’s upcoming sedan, codenamed Type 133. Likely to be revealed later this year, the slinky four-door will continue Lotus’ convention of names starting with “E,” with trademark filings suggesting it will be dubbed Envya or Etude. We expect it to wear the former moniker.Brian Williams|Car and DriverSpotted testing in the Arctic Circle, the Envya shows off slippery bodywork and curvy details. A split headlight design echoes the look of the Eletre, with a full-width element beneath two fierce “eyebrows” that will serve as daytime running lights. The Envya also features a sloping coupe-like roofline and appears to have a full-width taillights, although the chunky design seen in the photos probably isn’t the final look. The spy shots show headrests bearing the Recaro logo, and we expect the Envya to share its sports seats, steering wheel, and much of its dashboard design with the Eletre. Brian Williams|Car and DriverMore Lotus NewsThe Envya will mostly likely rival the Porsche Taycan, the Tesla Model S, and the Lucid Air. While it will be built on the same Lambda platform as the Eletre, Lotus might also capitalize on knowledge from Polestar, which is also under the Geely umbrella. The Swedish EV brand is currently developing its own high-performance sedan, the 884-hp Polestar 5, which is due in 2024. The Envya was originally supposed to launch for 2024, but we expect it will actually arrive in the United States for the 2025 model year. Stay tuned.This content is imported from poll. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.Associate News EditorCaleb Miller began blogging about cars at 13 years old, and he realized his dream of writing for a car magazine after graduating from Carnegie Mellon University and joining the Car and Driver team. He loves quirky and obscure autos, aiming to one day own something bizarre like a Nissan S-Cargo, and is an avid motorsports fan. More

Alfa Romeo’s CEO has confirmed the Giulia lineup will switch to an electric powertrain for 2025.Alfa expects the base version to produce 350 horsepower, the Veloce to produce 800 horsepower, and for the Quadrifoglio to make upward of 1000 horsepower.The new Giulia will be produced on the Stellantis Group’s STLA Large platform, with 800V, ultra-rapid charging, and a range of up to 500 miles. The achingly beautiful Alfa Romeo Giulia and its sinister Quadrifoglio variant will both make the switch to the electric era. Alfa’s CEO Jean-Philippe Imparato made the rounds through European newsrooms last week and confirmed the future of the Giulia sedan. Most important is that the Giulia nameplate will survive the electrification switch and will move to the Stellantis Group’s upcoming EV STLA Large platform. The STLA Large platform is based on the Giorgio platform that the Giulia is currently built on. According to an interview Imperato gave to the U.K.’s Top Gear, the electric Giulia will have up to 500 miles of range and will utilize 800-volt architecture, allowing for fast-charging. More Alfa RomeoUnfortunately, it appears the switch to electrification will signal the death of the steaming hot twin-turbo 2.9-liter V-6 from the current Giulia Quadrifoglio. The upside of the switch is a massive increase in power. Imparato told Top Gear that the base version will produce 350 horsepower, and the Veloce will make 800 horsepower. He also said the electrified Quadrifoglio will essentially double in power to 1000 horsepower. Alfa RomeoConsidering we’re two years out from the new car, we expect those figures to change a bit by launch time, but we’re excited by the estimates either way. Imparato went on to explain the importance of maintaining character through the electrification, “I don’t want you to suffer inconvenience from switching to EV. The question for me is not whether to switch to EV, it’s to get the right handling and agility.” The Veloce and Quadrifoglio could take on a similar setup to the upcoming Maserati GranTurismo Folgore, which has three electric motors—one at the front and two at the rear—but we expect the Alfa will use a skateboard battery configuration, while the Maserati battery uses some of the “engine” bay. This content is imported from poll. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.Associate News EditorJack Fitzgerald’s love for cars stems from his as yet unshakable addiction to Formula 1. After a brief stint as a detailer for a local dealership group in college, he knew he needed a more permanent way to drive all the new cars he couldn’t afford and decided to pursue a career in auto writing. By hounding his college professors at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, he was able to travel Wisconsin seeking out stories in the auto world before landing his dream job at Car and Driver. His new goal is to delay the inevitable demise of his 2010 Volkswagen Golf. More

UPDATE 2/27/23: Details related to supply-chain issues, as well as specific 2023 and 2024 model-year information, were added to this story.You don’t need to travel at the speed of light to witness time travel. In fact, all you need is a subscription to Car and Driver to see the theory at work. How else can you explain the way we always send you a magazine dated at least one month ahead of the month of receipt?It’s not just magazines that appear to bend the space-time continuum. Vehicle model years frequently differ from the official calendar year. Your calendar may display the year 2023, but somehow new-car dealerships across the country are starting to stock 2024-model cars and trucks. What gives?Blame Franklin D. Roosevelt. Originally, automobile model years tracked calendar years. However, that practice changed in the mid-1930s, after FDR signed an executive order that dictated automakers release their new vehicles in the fall of the preceding calendar year “as a means of facilitating regularization of employment in the [automotive] industry.” Auto assembly-line workers are typically idled during a new-model changeover, and the president reasoned that if their idle period were to happen earlier in the fall, autoworkers would be able to maintain employment through the holiday season and would thus be able to spend more money.Some 90 years later, the tradition of releasing new vehicles in the final months of the preceding calendar year remains common. This custom, however, is by no means set in stone. Under Environmental Protection Agency rules, manufacturers can introduce a next-model-year vehicle for public sale as early as January 2 of the preceding calendar year—for example, a 2024-model-year vehicle can be sold starting on January 2, 2023. Conversely, manufacturers can introduce and release a new vehicle for sale as late as December 31 of the corresponding calendar year, so a 2024-model-year vehicle can be introduced up to and including December 31, 2024. Due to this wide latitude, manufacturers often bring out vehicles well before—and after—the traditional pre-holiday period.Two examples from the recent past are the 2016 Kia Sorento and the 2016 Mazda CX-9. While both vehicles wore the same model-year designation, the two mid-size crossover SUVs were released at very different times. In Kia’s case, the Korean company began selling its new 2016 Sorento in January 2015. At the time, a Kia spokesperson explained: “Model-year designations may be assigned because of the vehicle’s larger life-cycle plan.” The spokesperson added that “marketing, fuel economy, and homologation reasons” are also at play in this decision, and regulatory requirements may change from model year to model year.Meanwhile, Mazda chose to release its then-new 2016 CX-9 in the middle of the 2016 calendar year—nearly a year and a half after its Kia competitor. At the time, a Mazda spokesperson noted to us that several factors went into the company’s decision to label the late-release CX-9 a 2016 model and not a 2017, including Mazda’s desire to avoid potential consumer confusion that can come from selling a next-model-year vehicle in the current calendar year.Like Kia’s spokesperson, though, Mazda’s acknowledged that marketing also played a role in the CX-9’s model-year designation: “Based on [model year] 2016 numbers, the CX-9 [had] the best fuel economy of any non-hybrid mid-size three-row [SUV] in its class.” Had Mazda marketed the CX-9 as a 2017 model-year vehicle, it potentially would have lost that brag-worthy claim. Though the Mazda CX-9 retained its fuel-economy crown among its non-hybrid peers for the 2017 model year, the brand had no way of knowing this at the time of the SUV’s debut.More recently, supply-chain issues—largely related to the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as other factors—have forced automakers to launch new model-year vehicles at earlier and later dates. For instance, Honda started selling the 2022 model-year Odyssey minivan early in the 2021 calendar year as a result of a supplier-related issue.As a spokesperson for the company shared with us at the time: “The timing of model year introductions varies from model to model for a number of reasons, some of which are out of our control. We pulled forward the introduction [of] the model year 2022 Odyssey primarily due to the discontinuation of the HondaVac feature in the Odyssey Elite at the conclusion of the 2021 model year based on a supplier issue.”More on the Sorento and CX-9Denoting a vehicle’s model year is its Vehicle Identification Number or VIN. In the early years, VINs—which were introduced in 1954—lacked any standardization. It wasn’t until 1981 that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration required all vehicles sold in the United States to adopt today’s 17-character VIN, the tenth of which designates the model year. The letter P indicates the 2023 model year—or the 1993 model year—and R means 2024.Before the ascension of the VIN, manufacturers relied on their own internal serial numbers for marking specific vehicle information. This convention allowed automakers the freedom to determine a vehicle’s model year at will. Case in point: Faced with a backlog of unsold cars in 1951, Kaiser simply added a handful of new trim pieces and changed the serial numbers of leftover 1951 models in order to sell the cars as new ’52s. The company did the same thing two years later, renumbering unsold 1953 cars as 1954 models.Ultimately, the reasons a vehicle’s model year often fails to sync with today’s calendar year are fourfold: historical precedent, regulatory rules, marketing considerations, and, as of late, supply-chain issues. Time travel, however, has nothing to do with it—unless you happened upon a DeLorean in the mid-1950s.This story was originally published on November 11, 2016.Senior EditorDespite their shared last name, Greg Fink is not related to Ed “Big Daddy” Roth’s infamous Rat Fink. Both Finks, however, are known for their love of cars, car culture, and—strangely—monogrammed one-piece bathing suits. Greg’s career in the media industry goes back more than a decade. His previous experience includes stints as an editor at publications such as U.S. News & World Report, The Huffington Post, Motor1.com, and MotorTrend. More

Hyundai has unveiled a facelifted version of the Elantra sedan for the Korean market.We expect to see these visual changes come to the U.S. for the 2024 Elantra, though we don’t have details yet.In Korea, the Elantra is called the Avante.The current-generation Hyundai Elantra’s angular design garnered attention when it first arrived for 2021, but it’s apparently time for a visual freshening already. Hyundai unveiled an updated version of the Korea-market Avante sedan, and we think this closely previews the 2024 Elantra that should reach the U.S. market later this year.With revised headlights, a slimmer front grille, and new wheel designs, the facelifted Elantra looks more attractive to our eye. Around back, the taillights look slightly different as well, and the rear bumper design is more aggressive. We can’t spot any obvious changes inside, but the Elantra may get infotainment upgrades and new standard features.HyundaiHyundaiWe don’t expect Hyundai to change the Elantra’s powertrains much for 2024, as the current 2.0-liter inline-four, hybrid, and turbocharged 1.6-liter inline-four engine options should stick around. The high-performance Elantra N, with its powerful 286-hp 2.0-liter turbo-four, is likely to get similar styling changes for 2024 but it may arrive a few months after the standard car. The Elantra N is also the only version that offers a manual transmission, as the lesser N Line version with its 1.6T engine dropped its six-speed manual option after the 2022 model year.More on the ElantraLook for more information to come on the 2024 Elantra as Hyundai prepares to reveal the U.S. version of the car within the coming months. We expect it to go on sale on our shores later this year.This content is imported from poll. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.Senior EditorDespite being raised on a steady diet of base-model Hondas and Toyotas—or perhaps because of it—Joey Capparella nonetheless cultivated an obsession for the automotive industry throughout his childhood in Nashville, Tennessee. He found a way to write about cars for the school newspaper during his college years at Rice University, which eventually led him to move to Ann Arbor, Michigan, for his first professional auto-writing gig at Automobile Magazine. He has been part of the Car and Driver team since 2016 and now lives in New York City.   More

It’s not official yet, but news that Mitsubishi is readying a Ralliart version of the Outlander PHEV for next year aligns with the company’s announcements these last few years.Mitsubishi said in 2021 it would bring the Ralliart name back and showed off the Vision Ralliart concept in 2022.If a report from Best Car is accurate, we can expect to see a 286-hp Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV Ralliart sometime in 2024.For the past decade or so, Mitsubishi has kept quiet about its Ralliart performance sub-brand. In the U.S., we last saw vehicles with the name in 2014, when Mitsubishi used them on the Galant and Lancer sedans. But the rally and off-road racing brand was never going to disappear forever, and Mitsubishi said as much in 2021. Then, at the 2022 Tokyo auto show, Mitsubishi introduced the Mitsubishi Vision Ralliart concept, based on the Outlander SUV, to put some fresh metal on this storied name.According to the Japanese outlet Best Car, Mitsubishi is now getting ready to take the next step. The site reports that a production version of the Vision Ralliart concept will arrive sometime in 2024 with a modified suspension, increased body rigidity, and more output from the same 2.4-liter engine and plug-in hybrid powertrain used in the current Outlander. This model will reportedly produce 286 horsepower, up from the standard hybrid’s 248 horsepower, and will cost around $40,000–$45,000. Visually, it’s likely to resemble the concept, pictured here.MitsubishiMore on the OutlanderThe Outlander and other future Ralliart vehicles might be seen racing worldwide. Mitsu fans know that Ralliart made a name for itself in the 1980s and 1990s, participating in races like the World Rally Championship and the Paris-Dakar Rally. Officially, all Mitsubishi is staying today about where Ralliart goes from here is that the brand will evolve to showcase the “‘Mitsubishi Motors-ness’ and ‘manufacturing [spirit]’ with the highest technology of Mitsubishi Motors, while valuing its heritage.” As we said two years ago, when Mitsubishi announced the return of Ralliart, we’re not 100 percent sure what it will look like when this ‘Mitsubishi Motors-ness’ is realized. Still, we’re getting more excited about going along for the ride.This content is imported from poll. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.Contributing Editor Sebastian Blanco has been writing about electric vehicles, hybrids, and hydrogen cars since 2006. His articles and car reviews have appeared in the New York Times, Automotive News, Reuters, SAE, Autoblog, InsideEVs, Trucks.com, Car Talk, and other outlets. His first green-car media event was the launch of the Tesla Roadster, and since then he has been tracking the shift away from gasoline-powered vehicles and discovering the new technology’s importance not just for the auto industry, but for the world as a whole. Throw in the recent shift to autonomous vehicles, and there are more interesting changes happening now than most people can wrap their heads around. You can find him on Twitter or, on good days, behind the wheel of a new EV.  More