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After increasing pricing for the Ford F-150 Lightning in August and again in October, Ford has raised the bar for entry yet again, this time to $58,514.The price increases struck the more budget-oriented Pro and XLT trim levels, with the more expensive Lariat and Platinum trims being spared the increase. Destination charges were raised by $100 across the board.Ford issued a statement to Car and Driver saying customers waiting for delivery on current orders are not affected by the increase. The adjusted prices began with the new retail order bank on December 15 and will go into effect for the Q2 commercial order bank when that opens.Looking back now, the original 2022 F-150 Lightning was a bargain at the starting price of $41,669. When it reopened order banks for its electrified pickup, Ford quietly increased the price of the 2023 model for the third time since August, raising the base price to $58,514. The new price reflects an inflation of nearly $5000 since only the last round of adjustments, and it pushes the needle further out of reach for customers in search of a base electric truck. Unlike the price increases from August and October, which raised the price on each trim level, this most recent hike only seriously affects the cheaper trim levels. Apart from a $100 increase in destination charges (which happened across the board), the top two trim levels are unaffected by the recent changes. Earlier Price IncreasesC/D’s preferred model, the XLT, now starts at $66,014 when equipped with the standard range battery, while the XLT Extended Range moves up to $82,869. The more expensive Lariat and Platinum trims only move up with the $100 destination charge increase, to $76,369, and $97,819 respectively. FordAccording to a statement from a Ford representative to Car and Driver, the price increase is a standard business practice due to rising material costs, market factors, and ongoing supply-chain constraints. The updated pricing went into effect December 15, when order banks reopened for retail customers. Commercial pricing will increase when the Q2 order banks next open. Customers who ordered in a previous order bank and are still awaiting delivery will be unaffected by this increase. 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.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. More

German tuner Mansory has whipped up another bizarre automotive creation, this time modifying a Bentley Continental GTC with an outlandish two-tone paint job.The black-and-yellow paint isn’t symmetrical, with the yellow taking over more of the exterior bodywork before spreading to the quilted leather cabin.The engine has been tuned to extract 740 horsepower and 752 pound-feet of torque.With its daring two-tone paint job, this one-off concoction from German tuner Mansory, called the Vitesse, looks like it should be the official car of Pittsburgh’s pro sports teams. The unique style, which nearly divides the Bentley Continental GTC donor car in half but sees the yellow paint take up slightly more real estate, is a first for Mansory. The color scheme makes the one-of-a-kind Bentley look like a rolling mascot for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Pirates, or Steelers. MansoryStatement-Making Style and PowerWhile the 2010 Wiz Khalifa banger “Black and Yellow” is a certified classic, we’re not sure the color scheme works quite as well on the Vitesse, but the Continental GT convertible’s motor should still produce a sonorous noise. Mansory doesn’t specify whether it uses the twin-turbo V-8 or the twin-turbo W-12, but the hexagonal exhaust tips match the look seen by Mansory’s previous 12-cylinder Continental monstrosities. MansoryEither way, the engine has been fiddled with by Mansory, now producing a whopping 740 horsepower and 752 pound-feet of torque. This is a substantial increase over any factory Continental, even blowing the 650-hp Speed model out of the water. The Vitesse sprints to 62 mph in a claimed 3.3 seconds, a slight improvement over the 3.6-second 60-mph sprint that Bentley quotes for the GTC Speed. Meanwhile, Mansory’s 206-mph top-speed claim is actually 2 mph down on what Bentley estimates for the standard car.More Wild Mansory CreationsWild Outside and Wild InsideDetails are otherwise sparse, but the main draw of the Vitesse is the wild color combo. Along with the exterior bodywork, the interior has received the same polarizing asymmetric treatment, with the left-side seats upholstered in yellow leather and the right colored in black. The quilted leather extends to nearly every surface inside the car, including the dashboard, the floor mats, and the transmission tunnel. A plaque on the center console declares the Vitesse’s unique nature. There’s currently no word on how much it’ll cost, but we’re sure Mansory will be able to find a buyer who has more money than taste to add the Vitesse to their collection.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.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. More

Having made a name for itself building beautifully imagined Broncos, Florida-based Velocity Restorations is moving into the pickup truck business.Like the company’s Broncos, this 1970 F-250 is powered by a Ford Performance Coyote V-8, matched with a four-speed automatic transmission.The top-of-the-line Heritage package is no farm truck, fitted out with a full leather interior and high-end stereo.In Miami, nobody raises an eyebrow at a Lamborghini. You might as well be driving a Golf for all the attention a Huracán will get you, and unless you’re one of the lucky few to have nailed down a preorder for Lamborghini’s safari-inspired Sterrato, you’re going to spend a lot more time worrying about scraping the nose than enjoying that V-10 screaming to redline. Besides, for the same money you could have a truck.That’s a capital-T Truck, specifically a 1970 F-250 hand-built from the ground up to provide the kind of experience you don’t get from a factory. The Velocity Restorations F-250 is eye-wateringly expensive—$285,000 to start, $325,000 for this blue-and-white commission-built Heritage package—but it’s a no-detail-spared masterpiece.We drove a 1969 Ford Bronco reworked by Velocity Restorations back in 2019, and came away both bewildered and beguiled. The Bronco was the easily coolest thing on the streets of Florida, but also seemed like a “more money than brains” option. We desperately wanted one anyway.More RestomodsThe company’s take on the F-250 is possibly even cooler. Any child who ever picked up a Tonka truck can’t help but be charmed by the stance of this pickup’s chunky 33-inch Toyo off-road tires and exposed suspension and axles. Trucks were simpler in 1970, less about the ornamentation than the purpose. Velocity’s trick here is taking that early simplicity and adorning it with flawless two-tone paint and billet accessories—subtle details you don’t notice at first.The powertrain, on the other hand, is not so subtle. Building on the lessons learned in crafting its Broncos and Harvesters, Velocity here pairs a Ford Performance crate Coyote 5.0L V8 with a stout 4R70 four-speed automatic transmission. Brakes are Baer discs at all four corners, the underpinning chassis is from the well-respected Roadstershop in Illinois, and the F-250 now rides on custom-valved Fox dampers. Velocity’s in-house custom exhaust and Dana axles complete the package. This blue-and-white two-tone model is a built to order special called “High Roller.” It marks the start of a new line for Velocity, which will start taking orders in 2023. Turnaround time is estimated to be 14 weeks, but it should be noted that wait times for the company’s Broncos stretched out to over a year. The order books for this thing will likely fill up fast. There’s also a plan to release a similar build based on the classic F-100 series pickup next year, though no concrete details are yet available.Throw in a full leather interior, air conditioning (not an available luxury for a Kansas corn farmer in 1970, totally necessary for a Miami beach cruiser), and a powerful Morel sound system to belt out your latest hit, “Only my dog’s been true to me.” You can keep your high-strung Italian exotica. Everybody loves a pickup truck, and Velocity Restorations is currently taking orders for one of the best.This content is imported from OpenWeb. 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. More

The ARX-05 competed in the 2022 IMSA championship, powered by a 600-hp twin-turbo V-6 mounted to a carbon-fiber monocoque and sending the power exclusively to the rear wheels. Finding a recent race winner up for sale so soon after its competitive career has ended is a rare occurrence, especially since the car is offered directly by Honda Performance Development.The ARX-05 is up for sale on Bring a Trailer, with the online auction ending on December 23.The 2023 IMSA SportsCar Championship will kick off an exciting new chapter in American endurance racing. A new set of rules for the top class, now called GTP, has brought increased interest from major manufacturers, with Cadillac, Porsche, Acura, and BMW all set to compete in iconic events including the 24 Hours of Daytona. Only a few dozen of the world’s top drivers will have the chance to pilot one of the new GTP race cars, but now there is the opportunity to get the next best thing: a 2022 Acura ARX-05. This prototype ran in the predecessor to the GTP class, called DPi, and is now up for auction on Bring a Trailer, which—like Car and Driver—is part of Hearst Autos.Bring a TrailerThe Acura ARX-05 DPi was introduced for the 2018 season and is based around an Oreca 07 LMP2-class carbon-fiber monocoque. Power comes courtesy of a twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V-6 that is based on the J35 production-car engine, variations of which appear in vehicles including the Acura MDX and the Honda Odyssey. Unlike those family haulers, however, the ARX-05’s V-6 churns out 600 horsepower at 6500 rpm and sends that shove to the rear wheels through an Xtrac six-speed sequential transaxle. Bring a TrailerBring a TrailerThe black 18-inch Rotiform forged aluminum wheels, shod in Michelin Pilot Sport P2L tires, are mounted onto an unequal-length control arm pushrod suspension. Brembo six-piston calipers combine with carbon brake rotors haul the ARX-05 down from a top speed of around 200 mph. The car also has a built-in air-jack system for rapid pitstops. Open the butterfly doors and you’ll find a stripped-out, focused cockpit with an abundance of buttons, a yoke-style steering wheel, a fire suppression system, and a six-point harness. Meet the 2023 GTP Race CarsThis particular ARX-05, chassis number seven, was built by Wayne Taylor Racing in December 2021 and competed in the 2022 season, securing pole positions at Daytona, Laguna Seca, and Road America and notching victories at Laguna Seca, Mid-Ohio, Watkins Glen, and Road America. Filipe Albuquerque and Ricky Taylor, who have each won the 24 Hours of Daytona twice, were the car’s full-time drivers, while Indy 500 winner Alex Rossi, three-time Le Mans winner Brendon Hartley, and former F1 driver Will Stevens also spent time behind the wheel. The car still wears the blue, black, and silver #10 Konica Minolta livery. It’s being offered for sale by Honda Performance Development, which works closely with privateer teams such as Wayne Taylor Racing to run top-class endurance racers. While old race cars occasionally come up for auction, it’s unusual to see one available for sale so soon after its final race, and even rarer to find one that collected so many trophies. This unique piece of history would make for a head-turning track day. With a week remaining until the auction ends on December 23, bidding is currently at $320,000.This content is imported from OpenWeb. 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. More