– Barely trailing its General Motors platform-mate, the Chevrolet Silverado, the GMC Sierra also receives a midcycle refresh for 2016. Compared with the 2016 Silverado, which was more or less given an all-new face, the GMC’s changes are more subtle, although because GMC is so far releasing only photos, we don’t know the full extent of the Sierra’s updates. – – We do know that GMC went a little LED-crazy on
-Overview: The 2015 VW Passat is Volkswagen’s premier North American passenger car, designed for the U.S. market and assembled in Chattanooga, Tennessee. It differs from the European version of the same name in size (Volkswagen calls it “the largest Passat ever”), styling, suspension tuning, and, most important, in price, making it more competitive in the American mid-size sedan market. There are three engines, all of which drive the front wheels
–––––––––––––––––––––––––—
– When Mercedes-Benz threw its new CLA to the loons in Affalterbach and they returned it with 355 horsepower harrumphing from its turbocharged 2.0-liter, folks were pretty agog. Time, however, does not stand still, and Volkswagen is working on 400-ish-pony versions of its own 2.0T engine. What’s more, the Blue Oval recently announced that its Focus RS will churn out 345 horsepower. And it wouldn’t do for proud Stuttgart to
-A 10Best Cars and comparison-test winner, the Mazda 6 is our pick of the current mid-size sedan litter. It’s a solidly built, well-executed, and fun-to-drive vehicle that delivers a level of satisfaction well beyond what’s expected in a family sedan. The car recently was refreshed for 2016, and while Mazda wisely kept the updates to a minimum, the 6 is nonetheless even more enjoyable. Plus, thankfully, Mazda didn’t axe the
–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––—
– The federal government is investigating an airbag supplier whose inflators ruptured and injured two drivers within the past seven months, according to documents posted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration this week. – The inflators, produced by ARC Automotive of Knoxville, Tennessee, are not related to the rupturing Takata inflators that affect 32 million cars and have killed eight people. NHTSA said it first received a complaint in
-The 2016 Hyundai Tucson is expected to hit dealerships in the next couple of weeks, and we now know the price of entry for the brand’s redesigned SUV. Hyundai has announced that the base, front-wheel-drive Tucson SE will start at $23,595. – Stepping up to the Tucson Eco, with its more powerful and fuel-efficient 1.6-liter turbo four, adds another $1450 to the price, bringing it to $25,045. Next up is
–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––—
Volvo announced today that it has acquired 100 percent of the tuning firm Polestar, maker of the divine and incredibly rare hot-rod Volvo S60 and V60 Polestar. This means more Polestars for everyone, which is excellent news for the tiny, fiercely loyal tribe of high-performance-Volvo fans worldwide. – We’re not joking about the rarity factor: Volvo built only 750 Polestar-tuned S60s and V60s for 2015, a mere 120 of which were brought to U.S. shores—80