2020

A front-engined pony car since its inception in 1964, the Ford Mustang has occasionally been imagined as a mid-engined sports car. In fact, Ford used the Mustang name on a mid-engined concept car it built in 1962. It’s called the Mustang I and it sparked rumors that Ford might build a competitor for the Corvette.

The idea was revisited in 1967 with the Mach 2 concept, but the production Mustang remained a front-engined vehicle to this day. But it seems that Ford built another mid-engined Mustang in 1966 and forgot about it. Photos of the vehicle were found recently in Ford’s archives and the automaker wants your help to identify it.

Flying in to Newark International Airport last month, I arrived at the Budget Rent a Car counter and received the keys to a familiar staple of rental fleets: a 2019 Nissan Sentra wearing scratched-up Ignore Me Silver paint. Plenty of travelers would likely ask if, pretty please, anything else was available. This previous-generation Sentra (the car was fully redesigned for 2020) is generally reviled by anyone who appreciates a fine automobile. It’s underpowered, it lacks handling poise, and it’s drab-looking inside and out. And yet, it was just what my family of three needed for a three-hour drive home to Maryland. The Sentra’s plus-sized rear backseat was perfect for our rear-facing child seat, and its big trunk swallowed our suitcases and stroller with ease. Its generously sized windows offered excellent outward visibility, and it could go 41.3 miles before burning a gallon of gasoline. And, keeping our rental rate in check, the Sentra provided plenty of features at low prices.

This brings us to the subject of today’s review: the 2020 Mazda3. Like the Sentra, it belongs to the compact economy car market segment. But that’s pretty much where the similarities stop. For two cars in the same segment, it’s hard to get more dissimilar than our tested Mazda3 and our rental Sentra — for better and for worse.

The Mazda3 is basically a luxury sports sedan (or, like in our test car, a five-door hatchback). It’s beautifully styled, elegantly finished, laden with features, and — although it’s not as energetically zippy as it once was — a pleasure to drive. It even offers all-wheel-drive, just like an Audi or BMW. Yet like a luxury car, it’s also more expensive, has a cramped rear seat and tight cargo hold, has slits for windows, isn’t cheap for its class, and gets lousy gas mileage. It would have been absolutely the wrong choice for a family road trip, even for our small family. But if you appreciate something finer than a Sentra and won’t often carry more than one extra passenger, the Mazda3 brings a high-end experience at relatively affordable prices — starting from $21,500.

As we’re all aware, Mazda didn’t build the Miata with off-roading in mind. Then again, neither did Porsche with the 911 and we’ve seen our fair share of off-road-ready Safari-badged Neunelfers out there.

Even though it’s a sports car at its very core, the Miata, just like any other vehicle that roams the earth’s surface, can be tweaked and customized to tackle everything that’s beyond the beaten path. And the best example is this YouTube project we stumbled upon.

The Cougar was a model concocted by the now-dead Mercury brand back in 1967. The Cougar was also Mercury’s first pony car, a vehicle that slotted between Ford’s Mustang and Thunderbird.

Unluckily, the the Cougar was discontinued in 2002, and Mercury would follow suit in 2010, when Ford signed, sealed, and delivered the brand’s closure. Luckily, someone thought of bringing back Mercury, specifically the Cougar coupe, albeit in the digital world.

McLaren just announced U.S. pricing information for the 765LT, and it costs quite a pretty penny at $358,000. That’s a notable premium over the base 720S, which retails from around $300,000 before options. Needless to say, for the price of 765LT, you can buy a 720S, which is still awesome, and still have enough money for a second sports car, like the Porsche 718.

Musk had announced last year that the Cybertruck will be Tesla’s last new product in the near future. This year, the automaker will look to work on technologies and other such stuff. Planning for the production of the Cybertruck could’ve also been one of the reasons. That said, Tesla has been proactive in rolling out new features and tech on its cars lately. It recently revealed a new exciting Track Package and Track Mode V2 for the Model 3 Performance. Now, Tesla is working on something called the “Cheetah Stance” that will help the driver get the perfect launch. Will this be rolled out to the existing cars as an update, too?

Launched on the big screen in 1977, Smokey and the Bandit revolves around two bootleggers as they attempt to illegally transport 400 cases of Coors beer from Texarkana to Atlanta. The film was a sleeper hit, and following a poor initial performance, it went on to gross $126.7 million in North America, versus a budget of only $4.3 million. It was the second-highest-grossing movie of 1977 after Star Wars. On top of Burt Reynold’s top-notch acting, Smokey and the Bandit is also famous for the Pontiac Trans Am that the actor drove throughout the film. Here’s everything you should know about one of the most iconic movie cars ever.

The Fisker Ocean SUV was unveiled at the 2020 Consumer Electronics. The company has had beautiful vehicles in the past, but none of them really hit the market. Henrik Fisker, the CEO of Fisker Inc., has the propensity to overcommit and under-deliver, so no one took him seriously when he announced in 2019 that Fisker is planning to build an affordable electric four-wheel-drive SUV with a range of 300 miles.

However, Fisker not only revealed the SUV, but also announced a sub-$30,000 starting price tag – after discounting for the credits – that took everyone by surprise. Now, the company has teased a new off-road trim for the SUV that looks tough and could invoke a lot of interest.

The Audi RS6 Avant is arguably one of the hottest wagons on sale today. This powerful family hauler seems to be every tuner’s wet dream these days. One such aftermarket company is the Kempten-based ABT. ABT is known to give a twist to almost all the Volkswagen Group cars.

Recently, it revealed its version of the RS6 Avant itself, but it looks like that wasn’t enough. ABT decided to work on this wagon again by equipping it with the Power R performance upgrade and calling it the ABT RS6-R. Amongst all the other cosmetic upgrades and carbon fiber treatments, the wagon also benefits from 50 extra horses over the ABT RS6. Do we like it all the more now? Hell yeah!

In late 2019, McLaren introduced the Elva, a unique, open-cockpit road car based on a race car design from the 1960s. The company’s lightest road-legal vehicle, it’s also McLaren’s most powerful non-hybrid car. Priced from almost $1.8 million, the Elva was scheduled to be built in 399 units, but McLaren recently dropped that figure to 249. The decrease is the result of feedback from customers who think that the Elva isn’t exclusive enough.

Used cars come in all shapes and sizes and believe it or not, there are a lot of such vehicles out there that were blessed with the cool factor. All you need is know where to look and a tad of patience, because even if you’re operating on a budget, cool used car alternatives can be found and take advantage of.

Ever since the C8 Corvette got out of the bag, people have been wondering whether the Camaro is next in line for a layout revamp and whether GM and Chevrolet are going to give it the mid-engine treatment as well.

While we do not believe that is going to happen anytime soon, if ever, there are some concept artists out there that have had a go at picturing a mid-engine Camaro. One of the first renders we’ve seen looked a lot like a Lamborghini Huracan. This one, however, takes a lot more after the C8 Corvette.

Ford F-150 is the hot favorite pickup truck for tuners and here’s another proof. Michigan-based Mil-Spec Automotive has laid its hands on this truck and transformed into a complete beast. Although a lot of tuners and aftermarket companies are customizing the F-150 in their own ways, this example actually stands out. Mil-Spec has made cosmetic upgrades on the outside, some plush changes on the inside, and a whole lot of changes to the mechanicals and drivetrain of the truck. From our initial impressions, this is one of the better modded-F-150s we’ve seen in recent times.

With a 4.4-liter turbocharged V-8 engine producing 591 horsepower and 553 pound-feet of torque, the BMW F90 M5 packs a mean punch. The performance sedan is capable of sprinting from 0 to 60 mph in just 3.4 seconds. It’s also capable of maxing out at 155 mph, though if you take the limiter off, the M5 can blitz its way to a top speed of 186 mph. All these numbers paint a clear picture of the M5’s performance capabilities, and, at least on the surface, the numbers are impressive. Then again, the F90 M5 is still teeming with untapped potential, and when there’s room for improvement, a tuner like G-Power is there to answer the bell. This, ladies and gentlemen, is the orange metallic body wrap-wearing BMW F90 M5 Hurricane RS by G-Power, and it is a monster in every sense of the word.

Cars may serve the primary purpose of transporting people from point A to point B, but that’s not all there is to it regarding these four-wheeled rides. Just as important are the optics that come with owning a specific type of car. One such optic is the appeal these cars have towards the opposite sex.

Yes, it’s vanity manifested on four wheels, but that’s the world we live in now. The vehicle you drive says as much about your appearance as the clothes you wear or the hairstyle you’re sporting. Gone are the days when cars were thought of as just modes of transportation; today, they’re an extension of your image. That’s especially true when we’re talking about how your car affects the other gender’s perception of you.

If you’re a man, the kind of car you drive is a big barometer to your appeal to women. Drive a clunky lemon and your appeal rating drops faster than an anchor in the ocean. Drive a truck or a sports car and your appeal shoots up to heights unseen. It is what it is, and in that light, these are the cars you might want to drive if you want the fairer gender to see you in a new — and more positive — light.