2017
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What a shame. Diesel engines were just getting a foothold in the United States and Volkswagen had to go ruin it. At this point, it looks like diesel is dead for cars in the U.S., though it may hang on for SUVs and will certainly continue in heavy duty pickups. Yet in these uncertain times for oil burners, Jaguar has decided to stick with its plans to offer its new Ingenium 2.0-liter turbodiesel in the XE and XF sedans, as well as the F-Pace crossover. I recently had the opportunity to drive the 2017 Jaguar XE 20d AWD R-Sport and test its real-world gas mileage performance. The XE 20d AWD...
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Does the Chevy Bolt EV make the Chevrolet Volt irrelevant? Is that a problem?
Sometime during the last three months of this year, the first 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV will be delivered to its buyer in a blaze of flash photography and publicity. The 200-mile electric car, base-priced at $37,500 before incentives, will be the first car in the world with those specifications. And...
John Voelcker -
2017 Ford Fusion Hybrid and Energi: how engineers increased fuel efficiency
Carmakers regularly tweak their powertrains to boost fuel efficiency or improve performance and drivability. Changes to EPA test cycles for 2017 mean that the agency's fuel-economy ratings for many new cars have fallen slightly. Knowing that, and having learned more about how its various hybrid...
John Voelcker -
What it took to buy an electric car in Texas: the good, the bad, and the ugly
Your mission, should you decide to accept it, is to locate and purchase or lease a Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid somewhere in the heart of Texas oil country. Hoping to make Tom Cruise proud, I accepted the mission. But first, a bit of perspective: in 2005 I had set out to purchase a Mercury Mariner...
John Voelcker -
2017 Ford F-150 with 10-speed automatic to arrive at dealers next month
The 2017 Ford F-150 gets a new 10-speed automatic transmission and upgraded 3.5-liter twin-turbocharged EcoBoost V6.
Stephen Edelstein -
Why I leased a 2017 Chevy Volt (in Texas) to replace a Volvo
Texas is the land of pickups and SUVs, of oil wells and full-day drives from your Texas home to Grandma’s Texas home. Your everyday driver had better be your highway car, because every drive involves a highway. I’ve owned every size of SUV, from Chevy Suburban to Toyota Land Cruiser to...
John Voelcker -
The 2017 Chevrolet Spark is both the smallest and the least expensive car sold by Chevy in North America. The Korean-made hatchback minicar isn't among the brand's top sellers—those would be its full-size pickup trucks and the Equinox compact crossover—but the previous generation found more than 30,000 buyers last year. A new, second-generation 2016 Spark was launched midway through that model year, and Chevy now has information on the 2017 version on its website. DON'T MISS: 2017 Chevrolet Spark - full review The new Spark has led to a modest uptick in sales, with 18,300 sold in...
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2017 Honda Fit priced, unchanged
The 2017 Honda Fit enters the new model year virtually unchanged.
Stephen Edelstein -
2017 BMW 740e large plug-in hybrid luxury sedan with 14-mile range announced for U.S.
The 2017 BMW 740e xDrive i Performance goes on sale this month.
Stephen Edelstein -
Chevy Bolt EV electric car for 'urban' sales: what does that mean?
Almost no U.S. car buyers sit down at their kitchen table and kick off a chat by saying, "Honey, we need to buy a city car." The only exceptions are those in a handful of crowded cities like New York and San Francisco, for whom a very short car that is easy to park may take priority. But as sales...
John Voelcker -
You'll never know the EPA ratings of heavy-duty pickup trucks: here's why
The EPA doesn't require carmakers to report fuel economy for heavy-duty trucks.
Stephen Edelstein -
2017 Audi A3 e-tron plug-in hybrid to get updates to styling, tech
The 2017 Audi A3 Sportback e-tron will get the same updates as the rest of the 2017 A3 lineup.
Stephen Edelstein -
Volkswagen will add particulate filters to certain gasoline powertrains beginning in June 2017.
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2017 Porsche Panamera shows just how complex saving fuel has gotten
The 2017 Porsche Panamera adopts many fuel-saving measures, but what are the results?
Stephen Edelstein -
2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV to ship to dealers before end of year
General Motors has always had an aggressive schedule for launching its 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV, the industry's first mass-priced electric car with 200 miles or more of range. It was revealed as a concept just 18 months ago at the 2015 Detroit Auto Show, with a production version unveiled at this...
John Voelcker -
Just how 'green' is a Ford Super Duty truck?
Most buyers won't consider a truck's environmental impact when considering a heavy duty hauler. That's a given. Yet, while most buyers may not consider the idea, that doesn't mean the lumbering haulers aren't changing. The idea a decade ago that truck buyers would swap their thirsty V-8s for...
Aaron Cole -
2017 Kia Niro preview
The 2017 Kia Niro hybrid crossover goes on sale later this year.
Stephen Edelstein -
2017 Mitsubishi Mirage preview
The 2017 Mitsubishi Mirage boasts a number of notable updates.
Stephen Edelstein -
The first 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV electric cars will go to Lyft drivers.
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2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV preview
The 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV will be the world's first mass-priced electric car with a range of 200 miles or more. That alone makes it a hugely important new market entry. Going on sale in late 2016 or early 2017, just six years after modern electric cars arrived, the Bolt EV represents a second...
John Voelcker -
2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV electric car to enter production in October
The 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV will start full-scale production in October, a new report says.
Stephen Edelstein -
2017 Honda Accord Hybrid first drive
The Honda Accord Hybrid was an impressive car when it launched as a 2014 model, but supply constraints frustrated buyers, and the hybrid mid-size sedan actually skipped the 2016 model year. For 2017, it's back in the lineup, with a slightly improved hybrid system and a host of updates made to the...
John Voelcker -
2017 Honda Clarity preview
The 2017 Honda Clarity is a mid-size four-door sedan that will ultimately be offered with three different powertrains. The Clarity Fuel Cell, the first version to launch, will be powered by electricity generated by an onboard fuel cell fed by compressed hydrogen. Then, next year, two more versions...
John Voelcker -
2017 Honda Clarity spy shots from testing show debut is close
If you're a nascent spy photographer for cars, Detroit is the place to be for the domestic companies. Southern California is the site for many Asian brands, even though Toyota and Nissan have largely decamped for other regions. Which is how one alert reader came to snap these photos of a 2017 Honda...
John Voelcker