Car news

The Geneva Motor Show is a still a month away, but we’re already getting the low-down on some of the ultra-hot debuts slated to show. One of the first out the gates is the 2019 Puritalia Berlinetta, a bespoke two-door from the Naples-based Puritalia Automobili, which promises nearly four-figures of output thanks to a high-tech V-8 hybrid powerplant. It this a sign of the times?

We usually feature high-end models from brands like BMW, Audi, Ferrari, or Lamborghini as our wallpapers of the day because, well, everyone loves a good sports car or supercar. There’s no denying that. But, at the end of the day, the world is in love with SUVs and Crossovers too and, for some reason, everyone seems to be in love with the 2020 Kia Telluride as well. Maybe it’s because it’s the first Kia developed specifically for the U.S. market. Or, maybe it’s because it’s Kia’s largest SUV to date. It even resembles the Telluride concept to at least some extent, so it has that kind of juice going for it as well. Either way, the Kia has seen a lot of interest lately, so we figured we might as well make it our wallpaper of the day today. We’ve picked out our favorite and plastered it here, but you can select any number you like from the gallery at the bottom of the page. Enjoy!

Hyundai is slowly but surely shifting its image from what it used to be a decade ago to one of a manufacturer that is on par with more established rivals. This is being achieved not only by making better everyday cars but making sportier cars too. The next one in line is the 2020 Hyundai i20 N - a model that’s slated to take on the Ford Fiesta ST and Renault Clio RS.

Ferrari has long prided itself on offering the finest driving machines around, and for years, the formula was quite simple - engine in the middle, power at the back, sharp suspension in the corners, and lots of wing at both ends. Now, however, as new technology finds its way into the performance sector, the Prancing Horse has been forced to adapt, which means the adoption of stuff like hybrid powerplants. And as it turns out, electrified assistance will become a major part of Ferrari’s offerings in just a few short years, starting with an upcoming V-8 supercar.

The first-ever BMW X4 made its debut in “standard” and Competition trim, and we’re so intrigued by it that we’ve decided to make it our wallpaper of the day in the same week of its debut. I know, that’s a little fast, but just look at this thing. It’s BMW’s first competitor for the Mercedes-AMG GLC63, and it has tons of technological goodies and DNA from the X3 M. More importantly, however, is the new S58, twin-turbo, inline-six that’s good for as much as 503 horsepower in competition trim (473 ponies in base M spec). This engine will eventually work its way down into the M2, M3, and M4 and could, with the right technological appropriation, replace BMW’s aging V-8. To do so, it’ll need to provide better fuel economy and equal power but the hybridized world we live in today should make that easy enough to do. Be that as it may, the X4 M is more than the heart that powers it because its aesthetic package is downright eye please (or boner inducing, if you prefer.) We’ve highlighted our favorite wallpaper down below, but if you want something else (or even more,) you can check out the full gallery at the bottom of the page. Enjoy!

I don’t know about you guys, but where I’m at up here in the mountains of northern California, Mother Nature has decided to dump a winter’s worth of snow in just a few weeks’ time. It’s great for the skiing and snowboarding, but if you don’t have the right equipment at your disposal, you’re gonna have to improvise - as the folks in this video quickly found out.

Bugatti is no stranger to shaking up the industry when there’s an opportunity to do so. That “opportunity” could come sooner than we think because of rumors that the super luxury performance brand is developing a one-off creation for the 2019 Geneva Motor Show. The whispered price of this one-off? $18 million. Details are still scarce at the point, but it is rumored that this one-off Bugatti has already been built. More importantly, it was built for Dr. Ferdinand Piëch, the former chairman of the Volkswagen Group, and is being launched as part of the automaker’s 110th-anniversary celebration.

Last week Mazda released a teaser picture showing the shadowy rear end of a new crossover that will break cover at the 2019 Geneva Motor Show in March. The silhouette looks a lot like the new-generation Mazda3, but it’s not yet clear what model we’re dealing with. Now, a pre-production vehicle spotted in China confirms that Mazda is indeed preparing to launch a small crossover based on the Mazda3. But what is it?

Well, we have three scenarios to consider.

If you’ve spent any time at all trolling the wild, rugged landscape that is an online performance enthusiast forum, you’ll know that bench racing is pretty much par for the course. Quoted performance numbers and test session lap times are ammunition for these sorts of debates, but all that ends the second you step into the real world. This is where it really matters, as documented in the following 11-minute, 10-second video from our friends at DragTimes. Hit play, and you’ll bear witness to the second-generation Ford GT running head-to-head with the Ferrari 488 Spider in an all-out acceleration test down a half-mile strip of blacktop.

Volkswagen has launched a new 2020 Jetta GLI that borrows a lot of Golf GTI visual cues, as well as its powertrain and more advanced suspension. But the new GLI is only so extreme and, in fact, in China and other markets, you can actually get an even more powerful version of it that isn’t branded as anything special. The GLI is only the most powerful Jetta you can buy in North America.

Acura revamped theRDX last year and gave it a more aggressive face coupled with a sporty profile. All that is great, but the new car is lacking when it comes to mid-range torque. That’s where Hondata jumps in with its Flashpro system that gives you the ability to extract 45 more pound-feet of torque at the peak of the curve over the 280 you get from Acura.

Mid-range torque is a very important aspect, especially when we’re talking about SUVs. The RDX is Acura’s compact crossover offering and, while it does offer 28 pound-feet of torque more than the previous RDX with its 3.5-liter V-6, there’s still room for improvement. Hondata has already released ECU kits for the Civic and Accord, and now it’s the RDX’s time to shine with extra torque and, also, more power across the band.

The 1992 Dodge Viper was Chrysler’s way of saying ’we’ve now sold enough Minivans to be able to fund an exciting halo car,’ which the Viper truly was. Devoided of modern creature comforts or safety features, the RT/10 was a Corvette eater. This red example from the first year of production somehow managed to gather just 34 miles on the odometer and could be yours for just under $100,000.

You barely ever see cars like the Viper come out of the doors of a major manufacturer nowadays. The Viper itself was axed in 2017 because Chrysler couldn’t put curtain airbags on it nor was the V-10 monster in demand anymore. With it went the Conner Assembly Plant, and all that’s left now are the hopes that somehow, in the future, the Viper will be revived, although that’s hard to imagine.

The Ford GT that once belonged to John Cena is back in the news again for the same reason it’s appeared in the news so many times before. As improbable — maybe even impossible — as it sounds, the Liquid Blue Metallic Ford GT is back up for auction for the third time in the last two years. This time, the GT will once again go through Mecum Auctions, which, coincidentally, handled the supercar the last time it went up for auction at its Dallas event…four months ago. Say what you will about the Ford GT’s appeal, but it’s hard to imagine what kind of jinx this GT is carrying that’s turned it into the supercar equivalent of a hot potato.

It’s been more than three years since Bentley introduced the Bentayga, its first-ever SUV, and the highly anticipated Speed model is here to boost the nameplate’s performance pedigree even further. The first Bentley SUV to carry the badge taken from the Continental, the Bentayga Speed is the quickest, fastest, and more capable British hauler yet.

Audi has released a handful of teaser renderings of the Q4 e-Tron Concept, an electric compact crossover study. The concept, which will make its début at the 2019 Geneva Motor Show, finally unlocks the mystery on when Audi plans to use the Q4 name, the last holdout to the automaker’s Q-family of crossovers and SUVs. Teasers notwithstanding, details about the Q4 e-Tron Concept are scarce at this point, but since it’s carrying the “e-Tron” name, we can at least confirm that this concept will be of the electric persuasion. The Q4 e-Tron Concept’s information mother lode drops in Geneva, which starts on Thursday, March 7, 2019.

Land Rover has been very secretive about its ground-up new 2020 Defender (in the works for over five years now) that will probably make its debut at the 2019 Frankfurt Motor Show in September. Now, for the first time, we’ve found a photo of the 2020 Defender’s interior, and we’re pretty sure Land Rover is not too keen on it having been shared.

Did you ever look at the existing pickup bed caps and bemoan the fact that they don’t make trucks more aerodynamic? Michigan Vehicle Solutions thought it’s time for something new on the market of bed caps, so they’ve looked at the louvered rear windows of ’60s and ’70s Mustangs and came up with the Aero X fiberglass cap that makes the Ford F-150 attract more eyes than ever before.

Your first reaction may be, ’Why?’, followed by a typical, ’Who are these people?’ Well, this company, based in Southgate, Michigan, "works and performs testing & services in conjunction with the OEMs in the testing & custom vehicle build arena," according to its own website. You’ll get why they thought sticking a sloping 260-pound cap in the back of Ford’s F-150 is a good idea when you’ll see the crazy renders of a Dodge Charger Daytona-esque body kit for the Dodge Challenger on the About Us page. This, then, looks mundane in comparison.

The first-ever M versions of the X3 and X4 broke cover somewhat unexpectedly in February 2019, joining the larger X5 M and X6 Mto complete BMW’s four-vehicle lineup of beefed-up SUVs. And, while the X3 M, the first of its kind in 16 years, is big news, there’s even bigger news under its hood, where BMW dropped a brand-new high-performance engine. It’s called the S58 and replaces the already iconic S55.

BMW “haA” officially unveiled the hottest versions of its X3 an X4 SUVs, the X3 M and X4 M, both of which will be offered in even hotter Competition trim for those who want the ultimate level of factory performance from these models. Now I don’t have a problem with the creation of a limited edition model to sit above the regular M-badged X3 and X4, but why on Earth would you call them “Competition”?

The Stratos of the 21st century is almost ready. We’ll get to see the first production models built by Manifattura Automobili Torino (MAT) at the 2019 Geneva Auto Show that kicks off on March 7th. Now we know that MAT will also bring a manual version of the car to Switzerland. That model uses the engine and the rest of the running gear from the Ferrari 430 Scuderia. Only 25 examples of it will be made.

The Lancia Stratos is a legend. As arguably the first purpose-built rally car, it cast a shade on all the other cars competing in top-line rallies in the early ’70s and went on to be competitive for almost a decade. The modern reinterpretation built by MAT is a slightly updated version of the 2010 New Stratos concept founded by German collector Michael Stoschek who gave his permission for the Stratos name to be used on these 25 new cars. Lancia, however, isn’t on board.

It’s no secret that consumers are flocking to the high-performance SUV segment, gobbling up any and all tall-riding, corner-carving, hard-accelerating ‘ute along the way. BMW is well-versed in this space, and now the Bavarians are taking advantage with the new 2020 X3 M and X4 M. Sporting turbocharged six-cylinders, tons of rubber, and just about every physics-defying tech-trick in the book, these machines looks poised to bring some serious heat to the segment.

Ok, every time I see a Chevy of this stature from the Fifties, I imagine a massive engine under the bonnet with some insane supercharger, an exhaust sticking out of the fenders or under the side skirts, and a lot of fiery decals. Yup, I am thinking about gassers which are basically a natural opposite to the car we have here - the 1957 Chevrolet Model 150 Squad car from the Chicago Police department. It was proudly exhibited at the 2019 Chicago Auto Show, and it is not its first time to sit under the Chicago Auto Show lights. I found out that it was there in 2017 too. Probably before as well, but I cannot claim perfect knowledge. What I can tell you instead, is the fact that this particular 1957 Chevy Squad car is privately owned by Patrick Tode. He tried to maintain it to the best of his ability for 25 years. Considering it’s a part of an auto show nowadays, it is obviously in great condition.

With the big sheet pulls now done and the McCormick Place convention center inundated with auto-hungry members of the general public, it’s time to recap our favorite debuts from the 2019 Chicago Auto Show. We made sure to include a little bit of everything here, from big ’n bad pickups, to quick, compact sports cars, to refined four-doors. Let us know your favorites by posting in the comments section at the end of the article!