Wheel Bearings

This week Nicole is taking some time off and flying out to meet her daughter for a long drive back home for the holidays so it's just the boys without supervision so we start off with a tangent about pies. Roberto has only had a brief time with the BMW X5 plug-in hybrid so the garage is mostly the 2022 Hyundai Kona electric that Sam has been driving. In the news, Ford will be moving production of the electric Explorer and Lincoln Aviator somewhere other the Mexican plant where the Mustang Mach-E is built so they can more than triple production of the Mach-E.

If congress manages to pass the Build Back Better act, it should include some expanded EV tax incentives but because Elon Musk hates unions and competitors, he thinks the incentives should be abolished all together. VW confirmed that it will build a pop up camper version of the new electric ID Buzz and a new Tesla Cybertruck prototype has been spotted with a single giant windshield wiper. We also have Sam's interview with Rob Filipovic, director of product planning for Jaguar Land Rover North America

Links

Ford to Triple Mustang Mach-E production

Elon opposes EV incentives

How the propsed new EV incentive structure works

Transitioning connected cars from 3G to 4G

VW ID.Buzz California camper is coming

Jason Torchinsky's review of the VW T6 California

Giant Cybertruck windshield wiper

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This week Nicole has been having fun blasting around in the 2022 Honda Civic Si with a six-speed manual gearbox. Roberto has been hauling cement turtles in the 2022 Nissan Pathfinder and Sam has been avoiding making eye contact with the Toyota Prius Prime. In the news, BMW released a concept version of a new… Read More »Hauling Anything But Ass

This week Nicole has been having fun blasting around in the 2022 Honda Civic Si with a six-speed manual gearbox. Roberto has been hauling cement turtles in the 2022 Nissan Pathfinder and Sam has been avoiding making eye contact with the Toyota Prius Prime.

In the news, BMW released a concept version of a new M-only model codenamed "RockStar" and badged as XM. Anyone that wants a Toyota GR86 in Europe will have to hurry before new emissions regulations kill it there and Polestar gives a preview of what's coming next.

Links

Polestar 3,4 and 5

Short EU Run for Toyota GR86

BMW XM Concept

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Lots of stuff in the garage in this week as Nicole gets to spend more time with the 2022 Subaru Forester Wilderness. On the opposite coast, Robbie has one of his two ideal cars, the Audi RS6 Avant and also shares some thoughts on the BMW 330e plug-in hybrid. Sticking with the PHEV theme, Sam had a first drive in the new Lincoln Corsair Grand Touring and also got to try out GM's new Android Automotive based infotainment system in the 2022 Chevrolet Tahoe.

In the news, GM and Ford are both doing deals with chip makers to try to avoid future shortages, Genesis shows the exterior of the next generation G90 luxury sedan and Nissan announces some of its electrification plans between now and 2030. We also have an interview that Sam recorded in LA with Aditya Jairaj, director of EV marketing and sales strategy at Nissan

Links

New Genesis G90

Ford and GlobalFoundries

GM and its chip plans

Nissan Ambition 2030

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The whole team has bugged out of southern California after several days of checking out what is new. Sam returned to chilly Michigan to drive the BMW M3 Competition xDrive on summer tires. Nicole landed back in New Hampshire to pick up the Lexus UX250h which has now been reclassified as an SUV-over. Robbie was… Read More »Driving a whole bunch of stuff

The whole team has bugged out of southern California after several days of checking out what is new. Sam returned to chilly Michigan to drive the BMW M3 Competition xDrive on summer tires. Nicole landed back in New Hampshire to pick up the Lexus UX250h which has now been reclassified as an SUV-over. Robbie was in between rides at home, but sampled a whole bunch of stuff during the annual World Car of the Year drive off including the new BMW 2 series coupe. Both Robbie and Nicole have sampled Hyundai's new sport models, the Elantra N and Kona N

While in SoCal, the whole team went to the truncated LA auto show which was all about EVs this year including the debut of the production intent Fisker Ocean (make sure to listen to ep 221 for an interview with Henrik Fisker) and the latest collaboration between Subaru and Toyota, the Solterra and bZ4X electric SUV-over twins. We also discuss the Tesla server outage that left some owners locked out of their cars and answer a bunch of listener questions.

Links

Tesla server outage

Why cars need a local mechanism for access

Fisker Ocean debut

Toyota bZ4X debut

Subaru Solterra

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This week, the whole gang has been in Southern California for the LA Auto Show and related events. In the garage, Nicole drove the 2022 Jeep Grand Cherokee in Moab and Sam had the 2022 Nissan Frontier Pro-X at home in Michigan.

We discuss the new Acura Integra Prototype and answer a question about how we review cars. Finally, we have some of the interviews that Sam did with various people while in California with more to come over the next couple of weeks. This time we have Mike Tripp and Cooper Erickson from Toyota about the bZ4X and Henrik Fisker on the new Ocean EV.

Links

Fisker Ocean first look

2023 Toyota bZ4X reveal

2023 Acura Integra Prototype

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In the garage this week we have first extended take of the Ford Maverick XLT hybrid from Sam. Roberto samples the Rivian R1T and spends more time with the Mercedes-Benz EQS. Nicole gives a first impression of the new Nissan Pathfinder that just arrived as she got home from a trip. In the news Ford… Read More »You’ll Make Your Money Back in a Week

In the garage this week we have first extended take of the Ford Maverick XLT hybrid from Sam. Roberto samples the Rivian R1T and spends more time with the Mercedes-Benz EQS. Nicole gives a first impression of the new Nissan Pathfinder that just arrived as she got home from a trip.

In the news Ford Performance launched the Eluminator crate motor SEMA and almost immediately sold out. Rivian raked in $11.9B from its IPO, the rest of the auto industry has committed $515B to EV development and production and 1/3 of Cadillac stores are calling it quits before they have to spend money to support EVs. In listener Q&A we mostly decline to give investment advice.

Links

Ford Eluminator crate motor

Rivian IPO

Auto industry invests $515B in EVs

1/3 of Cadillac stores to close before EVs arrive

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This week, Sam is still driving a white three-row Jeep SUV, but it’s a more manageable size in the form of the new Grand Cherokee L. Nicole has been getting around in a very Halloween colored Ford F-150 Raptor and Robbie shares some thoughts on a couple of new BMWs, the Alpina B8 and M5.… Read More »Don’t Get A Bad Car Loan