TopSpeed Renderings

Ford started ST-ing its high rider range with the Edge ST it revealed last year and this year at the Detroit auto show it showed an ST version of its new Explorer. The manufacturer’s intention couldn’t be clearer - it intends to inject some youthfulness and fun into vehicles not usually known for their sporty credentials.

Skoda has shown it is willing and able to make hot RS-badged versions of its high-riding models, so after the Kodiaq RS, a report now suggests the Czech automaker is also considering applying a similar treatment to the smaller Karoq crossover. It is also believed that it will not be motivated by a diesel engine, like the larger Kodiaq RS, running a 2.0-liter turbo found in other high-performance VW group products.

The Cadillac XLR was a high-performance, luxury roadster built from 2004 to 2009 on the same platform as the Chevrolet Corvette C6. The nameplate could return when GM introduces the mid-engined, C8-generation Corvette.

Although there’s no official confirmation from Cadillac, leaked photos of a key fob suggest that the luxury brand will soon unveil a mid-engined sports car with a retractable roof. More specifically, the drawings on the fob look like the upcoming mid-engined Corvette, but also show a convertible roof. The C8-generation Corvette will break cover in 2019, so the Cadillac might follow sometime in 2020, for the 2021 model year. That’s a long wait, so here’s a rendering of the luxury roadster and everything we already know about it.

It’s been more than two decades since Subaru stopped offering a subcompact hatchback developed in-house, but this could change in a couple of years. What’s more, it could hit the market in a higher performance version too. In order for this to happen, recent rumors about Subaru planning to return to the World Rally Championship need to become reality.

According to a couple of Japanese websites, Subaru is tempted to return to WRC, the competition that made both the brand and the Impreza nameplate famous in the 1990s and 2000s. But to do so, the Japanese firm needs to build a brand-new car, as the Impreza and WRX are no longer suitable for the series. Instead, word has it Subaru is working on a brand-new subcompact car the size of the Ford Fiesta,] Hyundai i20, and Toyota Yaris.

Ford is reportedly working on a replacement model for the Courier pickup sold in Brazil, and there’s a good chance this new model could make it to North America. Unlike the Courier, which is positively tiny by American pickup standards because it is based on the Fiesta city car (and also it went out of production in 2013 and never got a direct replacement), this new Ranchero would use the slightly largerFocus platform.

This means it’d grow in length quite considerably and also move from a single cab design to a crew cab. If it makes it to the States, it would probably get a name change as well, so instead of Courier, it will probably be called Ranchero, recalling an older model name. The old Ranchero was built between 1957 and 1979 as a unibody, car-based pickup. It was Ford’s answer to the Chevy El Camino.

So, it would be quite natural for Ford to use the Ranchero name for this newly proposed pickup, although nothing has been officially confirmed yet (or denied, for that matter). What’s clear is that this new Ranchero could be here by 2022, when it will share the showroom floor with the likes of the new Ranger, Bronco, and maybe a boxy-looking Focus platform-based crossover (aka “baby Bronco”).

The BMW 8 Series returned in 2018 after almost 20 years. Developed to replace the 6 Series, the 8 Series is sportier, more modern, and enables BMW to compete against the Mercedes-Benz S-Class Coupe. For the first time ever, the 8 Series will be upgraded to M8 specifications by the company’s high-performance division. The M8 will brake cover sometime in 2019.

When BMW introduced the 8 Series back in 1989, it reshaped the full-size luxury segment with a car that was gorgeous, unique, and loaded with innovative features. Discontinued in 1999, the 8 Series returned almost two decades later in 2018. The M8’s arrival will mark a premiere for the nameplate, which didn’t receive the M treatment in the 1990s. Although BMW did make a prototype, it eventually decided that there’s no market for the M8 and the project was scrapped. Times have obviously changed now, and with Mercedes already offering AMG versions of the S-Class Coupe and with Bentley producing the Continental GT Speed for quite a few years now, BMW needs the M8 to keep up with the competition. Find out what we already know about this grand tourer in my speculative review below.

Update 12-7-2018: We’ve updated this speculative review with new leaked images and new information. Check out the Exterior section below for all the new M8 goodness!

Speculation that the next BMW M3 and M4 would not come with a manual transmission has been dispelled. Both upcoming Motorsport versions of the 3- and 4-Series models will indeed have a six-speed stick shift, and they will even offer the option of all-wheel drive.

There are plenty of manufacturers these days that milk all their models as much as possible by offering them in different flavors and variations. Mercedes is a great example here, as the Three-Pointed Star created the G-Class 4x4², a low volume exclusive model that caused a huge stir when it was first unveiled (initially as a 6x6 pickup). So, what would it be like if Suzuki did the same thing with the Jimny? Well, I took to Photoshop to find out....

Range Rover is the only manufacturer to offer a drop top high riding vehicle that comes with a posh electric retractable hardtop and, while you may not immediately feel like you want one, the formula isn’t without appeal. That’s why it’s surprising to me that there is just one model that you can buy if you are in the market for such a vehicle. At least until the smaller Volkswagen T-Roc Cabrio hits the market, anyway.

Ever since BMW entered the SUV market with the X5 back in 1999, enthusiasts have been clamoring for the Germans to produce a pickup truck. Now that Mercedes-Benz is offering the X-Class, a BMW-badged truck seems to make more sense. With the flagship X7 unveiled a few weeks ago, we can’t help but wonder whether BMW should consider a truck version at last.

BMW recently lifted the veil off its all-new 2019 Z4 roadster, the sixth-generation Z model (or third-gen Z4) and the most visually striking one yet. However, unlike with the first-gen Z4, this one will get neither a hardtop coupe version nor a hot Z4 M variant.

The Corvette Zora ZR1 is one of the rumored names for Chevrolet’s upcoming mid-engined sports car. Set to be unveiled in 2019, it will be part of the eighth-generation Corvette, also known as the C8. For the time being it’s not yet certrain whether Chevy will keep making a front-engined Vette, but the midship sports car has already been spotted on public roads as a prototype.

Whether Chevrolet will keep offering a front-engined Corvette or not, the company’s goals with the C8-generation car are more than obvious. Chevy is not only aiming to offer a competitor for the Ford GT, but also wants to enter the entry-level supercar market dominated by the Porsche 911 Turbo, Ferrari 488 GTB, Lamborghini Huracan, and the McLaren 720S. Keep reading to find out what we already know about the upcoming Corvette Zora.

Continue reading to learn more about the Chevrolet Corvette Zora.

Ever since it was brought back to life in the late 1980s, Bugatti has offered only one vehicle at the time. And between the EB110 and the Veyron, there was a 10-year hiatus when the French built only concept cars. This strategy will end soon, as Bugatti finally seems ready to add a second vehicle to its current portfolio, in the form of a luxury, performance-oriented SUV.

Rumors about Bugatti planning to add a second vehicle to the lineup have been flying around ever since the company unveiled the 16C Galibier concept in 2009. For many years, it was believed the Bugatti would finally build a sedan, mostly because the French have developed no fewer than three four-door concept cars since the early 1990s. However, while Bugatti CEO Stephan Winkelmann thinks that a modern version of the Royale limousine would be popular, an SUV makes more sense financially. With that in mind, we rendered what the upcoming Bugatti SUV might look like and gathered all the information we know so far into a speculative review.

Arctic Trucks is a world-renowned off-road specialist based out of Reykjavik, Iceland whose trucks are specially designed to cross vast frozen wastelands. Their creations have a unique look, with bulging fender flares and big, oversized tires, but that look doesn’t only work on pickup trucks from Toyota, Isuzu or Nissan - it works on any high-riding vehicle, so why not the brand new BMW X7?

Mercedes is already testing prototypes of next year’s all-new AMG GLE 63 high-performance SUV, but there’s no need to wait as we’ve taken the time to make a rendering of the beast based on the latest spy shots.

Confirmed in 2014, the BMW X7 arrived in 2018 to take its place as the company’s flagship SUV. Now that the full-size rig is finally here, we can’t help but wonder whether an M version is underway. Does it make sense? Should BMW build one?

The large SUV market is pretty big in the U.S., where BMW is building the X7, but neither the Cadillac Escalade nor the Lincoln Navigator are powerful enough to create demand for an M version. However, Mercedes-Benz is making an AMG version of the GLS, which is taking all market share in the performance department. The AMG-prepped GLS alone is a reason enough for BMW to roll out an X7 M, but it should also be part of the company’s plans to expand the nameplate now that all crossovers are set to be offered in M form. Let’s find out what it may bring to the table in the speculative review below.

Continue reading to learn more about the upcoming BMW X7 M.

BMW may have created the X7 large SUV as a means to haul up to seven people in comfort, luxury, and opulence, but you don’t want to see the measly 40i model - you want to see what an X7M could look like if BMW actually made it. So, we made a rendering.

Porsche is set to launch a crossover-styled version of the Taycan. It will be based on the Mission E Cross Turismo, will be more off-road-worthy, and will be the third official model in the Taycan range.

It won’t differ too much from the concept, featuring mainly detail changes, but the same overall body and design. Some details, like the mirrors, the roof, and the rear light cluster will be different, as we’ve seen on Taycan sedan prototypes that are currently undergoing testing.

The Taycan sedan will be revealed sometime in 2019 and hit the market in 2020, so the Taycan crossover should debut sometime after the turn of the decade.

In a surprising turn of events, Porsche greenlighted the production of their Mission E Cross Turismo Concept. It is a strange, almost rugged, crossover-ish Porsche that grew from the architecture of the magnificently beautiful Taycan. Or the Mission E as it was known before acquiring the new name. Preparing for the production and the final development of the all-new electric cross, Porsche plans to create 300 new jobs at its home base in Zuffenhausen. This comes in addition to 1,200 jobs the company has already created for the production of the Taycan sedan.

The production version of the Mission E Cross Turismo will be a something like a Taycan wagon with a higher ride position. Don’t expect it before 2021 or 2022, though. After all, Porsche will increase investments into developing the electromobility solutions to $6 billion by 2022. The Mission E Cross Turismo Concept is only a part of this story.

BMW is reportedly going to kill off the 3-Series Gran Turismo, the more practical, slightly taller, longer, and roomier hatchback version of BMW’s bread and butter sedan. Apparently, there is no longer a justification to make a new one as its slot in the range will be filled by new SUV models.