News

Ford has given the Escape SUV a handsome makeover for 2023 which includes a new hood, grille, headlamps, and wheel designs.Gone are the familiar S, SE, SEL, and Titanium trims as the Escape’s lineup has been adjusted to include base, Active, Platinum, and PHEV trims as well as a sporty-looking ST-Line model.Sync 4 is now standard and the Escape can be had with larger display screens for the gauges and the infotainment system.After just three model years on the market, the Ford Escape is getting an attractive front-end redesign that removes its smiley fascia in favor of a more upscale-looking one. The compact SUV’s front fascia has been reworked with new lighting elements, a revised hood, and an updated front bumper design. The 2023 Escape’s grille stretches wider across the front end than the one on the 2022 model and now wears the Ford oval emblem that used to be placed on the SUV’s hood. Higher-end models come with a light bar that connects the headlamps by running across the top of the grille.Latest News from the Blue OvalTo accompany its handsome new look, the Escape lineup has been tweaked to include base, Active, Platinum, PHEV, and new ST-Line trim levels. The ST-Line is a sporty-looking offering that swaps the Escape’s black plastic lower-body cladding for body-colored alternatives, giving it a more hunkered-down appearance. The ST-Line also wears unique 18- or 19-inch wheels and can be had with black faux-leather upholstery with red contrast stitching. Same PowertrainsThe Escape’s four powertrain options carry over from before, starting with the 180-hp turbocharged 1.5-liter three-cylinder. An optional turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder brings the heat with 250 ponies and two different hybrids are available if you’re looking to preserve fuel. The first hybrid is a traditional setup that uses a 2.5-liter Atkinson-cycle four-cylinder and an electric motor; a plug-in-hybrid option adds an 11.2-kWh battery pack that is said to hold enough juice to power the Escape for up to 37 miles on electric power. Both hybrids make 210 horsepower, an 11-hp drop from last year’s PHEV model.Ford’s Sync 4 infotainment system makes its way to the Escape this year too. The system, which is capable of over-the-air updates, features wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto capability, displayed on a large 13.2-inch infotainment display on all but the base model. The screen is 8.0 inches on the base trim, which also comes with an 8.0-inch digital gauge display; a larger 12.3-inch gauge display is optional starting on the Active trim. A host of new features are now available on the Escape, including more advanced driver-assistance tech such as an evasive-steering assist system, a wireless smartphone charging pad, and a 360-degree exterior camera. Modest Price IncreasePricing for the Escape is up over the 2022 model as a result, but not by much. The base Escape will retail for $28,995, an increase of just $335 over last year, while the Active starts at $30,340, the ST-Line at $31,335, the Platinum at $37,460, and the PHEV at $39,995. Order books have opened for the 2023 Escape already, and Ford says the updated SUV should arrive in dealers in early 2023.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 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

Electric vehicles are not new at SEMA, but for the show this year, organizers are expanding Electrified Hall to allow for more EVs and related technologies.Given SEMA’s classic-car focus, multiple vendors offering EV conversion kits will be at the show, including APP EV Systems and Electric GT.The aftermarket is adapting to electric propulsion technology, and SEMA said electric conversions allow classic-car lovers to keep their vehicles on the road even as original parts become harder to get.Electric vehicles are back at SEMA in a bigger, better way. For 2022, the show has increased its focus on EVs and expanded its Electrified Hall to feature more plug-in vehicles and EV technologies. From a 2500-square-foot display in 2019, SEMA’s EV section has now grown to 21,000 square feet.Go with the CurrentShow organizers are embracing the shift to plug-ins, including by showcasing multiple EV conversion solutions this year. SEMA vice president of events, Tom Gattuso, said this year’s Electrified Hall will teach visitors how today’s EV scene for older cars is different. “The EV aftermarket is evolving quickly and continues to change,” he said. “We’re curating a unique collection of the latest products related to electric vehicles and the aftermarket.”Educating EV Builders, Modifying Great ICE ClassicsSome of the EV-centered exhibitors at SEMA this year include the Switch Lab EV Program, which uses a reusable EV Ki to teach students how to build their own electric vehicle, and App EV Systems, which will launch an EV conversion system and EV battery packs at the show. App EV has an unusual take on classic cars compared to traditional SEMA exhibitors. Instead of bemoaning the lack or expense of old car parts, App EV wants to help car enthusiasts “evolve” their classic cars with an electric powertrain that “extends their useful lives, improves their environmental credibility, and reduces operating and maintenance cost and hassle.” APP EV SystemsFor instance, the company is hard at work on the 1973 Porsche 911SC EV conversion shown here, which will be revealed on the SEMA show stand. The car will retain its five-speed transmission and have “comparable performance” to the internal-combustion-engined original, App EV president Jeremy Barras told Car and Driver. He called the 911SC “the most difficult to package, as the smallest! All other applications will be easier.”1973 Porsche 911SC in process of conversion to EV.Car and DriverA similar view is presented by Electric GT, which will be at the show with its own line of EV conversion kits. This content is imported from Tiktok. 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.Those last two exhibitors fit well with SEMA’s reasons for its growing focus on EV technology. New SEMA market research data found that EV technology could be where the money is. Or, as SEMA said in a press release, it offers “several areas of opportunity for the aftermarket.” Everything from a race car to a barn find classic can be converted from an internal-combustion-engine vehicle to a zero-emission electric car, and SEMA said it is “dedicated to helping its member companies identify [electric powertrain] opportunities and adapt to the growing segment of the industry.”The 2022 SEMA show will take place at the Las Vegas Convention Center from November 1–4. The Electrified Hall portion of the show will be located in the center’s North Hall. 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 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

Volkswagen is replacing its touch-sensitive (haptic) steering-wheel control panel in favor of more user-friendly physical buttons. The news comes via LinkedIn post from CEO Thomas Schäfer who said the switch is happening following customer feedback and requests to revert to the old format. We reached out to Volkswagen and are waiting to find out which car is getting the new steering-wheel controls first, and when customers can expect the change.Volkswagen is listening to its customers’ complaints and, more important (we’re kidding), to ours, about haptic controls. Thomas Schäfer, the CEO of Volkswagen Passenger Cars, took to Linked In to make the announcement last week. “We are sharpening our portfolio and our design, plus creating a new simplicity in operating our vehicles,” said Schäfer. “For example, we are bringing back the push-button steering wheel! That’s what customers want from VW.” Finally. Something as small as steering-wheel controls may seem mundane, but the return to physical wheel controls is very welcome. We’ve long complained about ease-of-use issues with the haptic system. Case in point, editor-in-chief Tony Quiroga wrote in his review of the 2022 GTI about accidentally activating the heated steering wheel: “Start hustling the car and you’ll find your hands sweating, not because of the work, but because your palm accidentally switched on the heated steering wheel.” Ideally, reverting to physical buttons will allow spirited driving sans petri dish hands. Related StoriesAs of now, the $25,000 Taos is the only vehicle in Volkswagen’s North American lineup with physical buttons on the steering wheel. We have asked VW when customers should expect to start seeing physical buttons on the steering wheel again, and on which cars. We’ll let you know when we find out.Now if only Volkswagen will do something about the lack of volume knob and real climate controls . . . 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 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

ACV, an auto-auction specialist, has been selling its Virtual Lift tools for three years, but a new update fits well with our pandemic times.Machine learning updates in the Virtual Lift software make it possible to automatically spot missing catalytic converters, which have been a popular target for thieves for the past few years.Compared to 2019, catalytic converter thefts were up fourfold in 2020 and 13 times higher in 2021.Anyone worried about buying a used car that’s had its catalytic converter stolen might have started checking out listings with pictures taken from under the car. One provider of simplified undercarriage images is the Virtual Lift hardware and software package from ACV, which just updated the machine learning software so that it can confirm if catalytic converters are where they’re supposed to be.To use Virtual Lift, someone drives a vehicle over a small piece of proprietary hardware, which then generates a high-resolution, full-length image of the underside of the car. New detection algorithms in the software now check the image for the converters, and ACV claims the system has “extremely high accuracy.” The idea for car dealers is they can quickly drive a car they’re thinking of buying over the Virtual Lift and confirm they’ll be getting a complete car, not one that needs an expensive component replaced. The More You KnowWhen Virtual Lift was introduced three years ago, before the pandemic, catalytic converters were not even mentioned in the announcement. At the time, the benefits of Virtual Lift were more general, offering “high-resolution undercarriage reconstructions” that took less than a minute to capture. ACV said dealers and car sellers who used Virtual Lift would benefit from this kind of transparency, offering the digital reconstruction to be uploaded using the ACV app and then provided to potential buyers.ACV’s Virtual Lift technology is not new. ACV first introduced the undercarriage photography tool in 2019 but has been promoting Virtual Lift during the pandemic as a way for car shoppers to make sure they’re buying a car with a catalytic converter. It’s been a real worry these past few years. Converter thefts per month were four times higher in 2020 compared to 2019, according to a March 2021 study by the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB). And the trend continued into 2021, according to the latest data, when catalytic converter thefts were 13 times higher than in 2019. The State Farm insurance company said it saw a 293 percent increase in catalytic converter theft in the year that ended June 30, 2021, compared to the 12-month period that ended a year earlier. 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

Cannabis company Green Thumb Industries has partnered with Circle K to test out marijuana pop-up shops in a small number of gas stations in Florida next year.Only medical marijuana users will be able to purchase the weed, given the state’s current rules. More than 700,000 people in Florida have a medical marijuana license.The benefit of buying your medicine at the gas station is the same as why you might buy snacks there: convenience, said Green Thumb’s CEO.Legalization things are afoot at the Circle K. Starting sometime in 2023, a small number of Circle K gas stations in Florida—around 10 of them, to be precise—will partner with legal cannabis retailer Green Thumb Industries on in-store weed products. No need to meet a guy around back after the store is closed.Florida ManIn states where cannabis sales are legal, sales often have to be conducted in standalone, regulated shops. The new Rise Express stores that Green Thumb will open in some gas stations will be like a smaller version of these storefronts, offering flower, pre-rolls, edibles, and vapes. Only customers with a medical card will be able to buy marijuana at these Circle Ks because Florida currently only allows medical marijuana, not recreational. that some local jurisdictions in Florida have decriminalized weed and reduced the penalties for people found to have small amounts of the drug, under 20 grams. More than 700,000 people in Florida are active medical marijuana cardholders.”The new Rise Express model [makes] it easier and more efficient for patients to purchase high-quality cannabis as part of their everyday routine when stopping by their local convenience store,” he said. High Times notesGreen Thumb currently operates a small number of retail stores and said that it could expand the number of its Rise Express dispensaries since Circle K runs around 600 stores in Florida. The weed will be grown at Green Thumb’s cultivation facility in Ocala, which will be operational by the end of this year. Green Thumb has been selling weed in Florida since 2018 and has an existing cultivation and processing facility in Homestead. Green Thumb CEO Ben Kovler said in a statement that the main benefit of selling weed at Circle K gas stations is simply convenience. Circle K has more than 7000 stores in 47 states in the U.S., including many in places where marijuana is legal.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 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