Midsize Cars

The Volkswagen Passat is officially dead in the United States. Well, not quite yet, but it’s definitely taking its last breaths as Volkswagen prepares the Chattanooga plant in Tennessee for production of the Atlas, Atlas Cross, and all-electric ID.4. As the U.S. market bids farewell to the Passat, it’s going to honor it in the only way it knows how – a special edition. The car you see here is just one of four configurations, with a total of 1,973 examples being built. Why 1,973? Because 1973 was the first year the Passat was offered.

Volkswagen will produce 411 examples of the Passat special edition in a combination of Aurora Red Metallic with a Titan Black interior. This model represents the original production code of the Passat – 411. Next, there will be 423 examples of the passat finished in Racing Green Metallic with a Mauro Brown interior. 423 represents the Chattanooga, TN area code. Another version finished in Pure White with Mauro Brown interior will be produced in just 524 examples, representing the opening date of the Chattanooga plant: May 24, 2011. Finally, the fourth iteration of the Passat special edition will be offered in Grey Metallic with a Titan Black interior. 615 represents six generations of imported Passats (6), one generation assembled in Chattanooga (1), and 5 decades of U.S. sales (5).

Outside of the exclusive exterior paint and interior theme, there’s not a whole lot to set the Passat special edition apart from the pack. The seats inside will feature a “x of 1973” tag on one side and “Chattanooga 2011” on the other. Comfort sports seats will come standard with Vienna leather while the exterior will ride on distinctive 18-inch, fifteen-spoke wheels. Pricing for the Passat special edition comes in at $30,295 but the Aurora Red Metallic will add an extra $395 to the ticket.

Nissan unveiled the all-new fifth-generation (R53) Pathfinder back in February. It was scheduled to go on sale in the summer. Well, the wait is finally over. The Pathfinder went on sale earlier this month.

This model has been overhauled from the ground up. It receives a far more rugged exterior and a modern yet functional interior. There are four trims to choose from. S, SL, SV, and top-spec Platinum.

The Sportage is one of the longest-running nameplates in Kia’s history. It has been around since 1993 and is entering its fifth generation as it nears its three-decade anniversary. The new Sportage comes with a plethora of changes. It looks a lot smarter than the current model, is underpinned on a new architecture, and will be offered with hybrid and plug-in hybrid options. Kia will also add a new trim on the fifth-gen Sportage. At this point, not a lot of detail is revealed, but we should hear more of it when it arrives in late 2021 or early 2022.

A drag race between two stock midsize pickup trucks is about as scientific as a drift competition with shopping carts. Pickup truck buyers are rarely interested in the performance aspect of these vehicles, but Carwow still gives us the answer to a question we never thought of asking – which is the quicker pickup truck. This time it’s the Toyota Hilux and Volkswagen Amarok that line up for a quarter-mile drag and despite the two vehicles being very similar on paper, the outcome is quite decisive.

YouTuber Jeff Teague took us around a Tacoma that has gobbled up over 1.5 million miles. You heard that right. That is a phenomenal number. This very truck has been featured before on his channel when it was hovering around the 1.2 million mile mark. After racking up another 300,000 miles, Jeff has made a follow-up to that video.

Car enthusiasts all over the world have been enthralled by the Fast & Furious franchise and have wished to own at least one of the iconic vehicles driven by its main protagonists, like Paul Walker’s (Brian O’Conner) Toyota Supra.

Here is yet another drag race by CarWow: an Audi RS6 vs a Tesla Model X. Can the American-made EV hold it’s own against the Audi RS6? Let’s take a look and see what happens.

Ford’s revival of old monikers continues. After bringing back the Bronco last year and resurrecting the ‘Lightning’ nameplate for the recently-unveiled electric F-150, Ford has now filed the ‘Splash’ name with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The trademark covers ‘Electric vehicles’, so we know this will be an EV. If history suggests anything, it might be the electric version of the Ranger. But, the automaker has a third pickup truck in its arsenal now – the Maverick.

Lexus has come up with the next-gen 2022 NX crossover. The NX has been in the market for over three decades now and is still one of the most important products for the automaker. In fact, it is the second-best-selling Lexus model after the RX. For the 2022 model, the NX comes with an updated exterior and interior, and also a plug-in hybrid engine in a new top-of-the-line trim. The NX will arrive by the end of the year and could start at around $40,000.

After 14 years of the 200 Series, Toyota debuted the Land Cruiser 300, which happens to be the iconic SUV’s 13th generation. The automaker will most likely not bring it to the U.S. Instead we might get the LX instead, the Lexus equivalent of this model. The 13th generation Land Cruiser 300 Series rides on a new platform and comes with two V-6 engine options. It looks different on the inside and outside, too. Should Toyota have tried this new-gen Land Cruiser in the U.S. for a year before pulling out?

Ford unveiled the 2021 F-150 back in June 2020. The 2021 F-150 Raptor should’ve made its debut then, but the company pushed it for a later date. Eight months later, the automaker finally took the wraps off it, but again withheld information regarding its power specs. Fast forward to the present day, the power outputs quietly go live on the site. As it turns out, the 2021 Ford F-150 Raptor will continue to make 450 horses and 510 pound-feet of torque! So much wait and drama for what?

Restomods are fun and can be called the car’s second innings. While some are resurrecting it in its same avatar, some cars go through a tremendous transformation. This 1956 Pontiac Star Chief belongs to the elite club. Autotopia LA covered this insane restomod by Fusion Motor Company of a ’56 Star Chief that comes with gorgeous looks, a plush interior, and a 900-horsepower engine under the hood. Such builds don’t come cheap and neither is this one. It costs almost a million bucks!

Launched under a new-generation design, the new Grand Cherokee features an all-new architecture, the option of three different 4WD systems, an entire suite of safety and security features, and — in the case of the Jeep Grand Cherokee L – three rows of seating. Now, Jeep has released pricing for the biggest of the bunch, the Grand Cherokee L, and it starts from $36,995, not a bad price for a full-size SUV. If you want 4WD, you’ll have to add $2,000 onto the MSRP for a total of $38,995, but these are just entry level prices. Start moving up the trim line, and you’ll see prices start to increase substantially, with the L Laredo Altitude – one step above the entry level Laredo – starting at $40,195 or $42,195 with 4WD. Prices continue to increase incrementally up to the range-topping Cherokee L Summit Reserve that commands a whopping $61,995 with RWD and a V-6 or $65,290 for the V-8 model with 4WD.

The world can never have enough lowrider trucks, especially if they’re vintage and are customized tastefully. Autotopia recently covered a customized 1968 F-100 that looks great and features a Mustang V-8 crate engine. The truck was originally a magazine project for Classic Trucks, but went on sale last year and was purchased at an auction by the current owner. Looks neat, doesn’t it?

The Santa Cruz was one of the most anticipated vehicles from Hyundai for the better part of the last decade. The company unveiled it as a concept back in 2015 at the Detroit Motor Show and there were a lot of eyes on it since it was the automaker’s first pickup truck. Fast forward to 2021, the Santa Cruz is finally unveiled and the automaker has taken a different approach to it. Hyundai is referring to the Santa Cruz as a Sport Adventure Vehicle and not a pickup truck. We don’t know what the reason for this is, but the Korean automaker is coming across as a little defensive here and not as a niche-maker.

That said, the truck, err., SAV, does look pretty fancy and seems to be quite rugged and tough. The truck will be available from the summer of 2021. Also, doesn’t BMW also call the X7 an SAV? The ‘A’ there stands for ‘Activity’, I believe.

We finally get to see what the new 2022 Honda Civic sedan will look like as Honda was kind enough to publish a picture of the road-going model, an evolution of the Civic Prototype unveiled in November 2020.

Jeep has refreshed the Euro-spec Compass but it gives us a good preview of what to expect from the U.S.-spec model that will arrive later this year. The 2022 Jeep Compass comes with exterior and interior cosmetic upgrades, and some tech features inside the cabin. This compass also comes with a new plug-in hybrid powertrain called the 4xe. Trivia: This is the first Jeep launch in Europe after incorporating it into the Stellantis umbrella.

Outside of the likes of BMW, Mercedes, and a few others, the concept of sporty and quick sedans is slowly dying off as people look to either bigger, similarly quick, vehicles or smaller two-door sports cars. Then you’ve got brands like Hyundai that seems to either not care or wants to keep the thrill of driving alive, and this is where the Hyundai Sonata N-Line comes in. It’s based on your typical midsized family sedan but is injected with enough sporty DNA that it stands out both visually and in terms of performance. Of course, we’re not talking Porsche Panamera or Dodge Challenger levels of performance, but affordable performance – something that, arguably, gives you a bigger bang for your buck. Here’s what you need to know about the Sonata N-Line and why you should consider it for your next daily driver.

This is the all-new Hyundai Santa Cruz, a pickup we’ve been waiting for for six years now. So get ready, Ford Maverick, because the Koreans are out to get you and your fancy unibody construction.

Illinois-based Maxlider Motors is famous for creating custom Broncos. This includes proper conversions as well as restorations. The company rolls out almost 100 Bronco every year out of the factory and seems to be on the verge of expanding its horizon now. Maxlider Motors has developed a Midnite Edition for the 2021 Ford F-150. It includes new shoes, suspension upgrades, and the likes. But, surprisingly, the aftermarket company left the engine untouched. From the looks of it, the package looks swell. Care to buy it?