Detroit Auto Show
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The all-new 2015 Honda Fit was unveiled this afternoon at the Detroit Auto Show--one of very few cars that could conceivably be deemed "green" at an event dominated by the huge new 2015 Ford F-150 full-size pickup truck. The new Fit is a complete redesign of the five-door subcompact that won raves for its interior space and versatility in its previous two generations, the last of which was launched in 2009. The 2015 model has more interior space in the same footprint, more refined interior features, a more powerful engine, better acceleration, and higher gas-mileage ratings than its...
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2014 Detroit Auto Show: Audi Allroad Shooting Brake Full Details
Audi has a plug-in hybrid concept vehicle for most months of the year, and January's, on show at the Detroit Auto Show, is the Audi Allroad Shooting Brake concept. From the car's moniker alone you can deduce most of it's key attributes. "Allroad" means it has pseudo-off road crossover styling cues...
Antony Ingram -
2015 Ford F-150 Aluminum Body, Smaller Engines: Details Emerge
The 2015 Ford F-150 full-size pickup truck won't be unveiled at the Detroit Auto Show until tomorrow morning, but some details of its innovations to boost gas mileage have emerged already. Ford apparently gave exclusive details to The New York Times, which reports that the new truck will use an...
John Voelcker -
UPDATE: Green Car Preview: 2014 Detroit Auto Show Concepts & Production Models
The important global auto shows tend to go in waves, and this year's Detroit Auto Show isn't looking particularly notable for its green cars. Barring surprises, there will be no global debuts of new plug-in electric cars, hybrids, or even new diesel vehicles. Instead, the most popular introductions...
Antony Ingram -
Volkswagen Passat BlueMotion Concept: High-MPG Model At Detroit Auto Show
At next week's Detroit Auto Show, VW will take the wraps off a concept car that previews a new and more fuel-efficient version of its mainstream Passat mid-size sedan. The Volkswagen Passat BlueMotion Concept features a direct-injected and turbocharged 150-horsepower, 1.4-liter four-cylinder engine...
John Voelcker -
Volvo Concept XC Coupe To Make Detroit Debut
This year's Detroit Auto Show is a little light on truly green car content, so most attention will instead turn to downsized engines and vehicles offering subtle improvements in fuel economy. As part of Volvo's future plans, all its five and six-cylinder engines will be phased out in favor of...
Antony Ingram -
The Honda Fit has always been a little different from other small cars. A little more zing, a dash more space inside and a much smarter interior layout than most. The new 2015 model looks set to continue those trends, but we'll know for sure from January as that's when the car will make its U.S. debut, at the 2014 Detroit Auto Show. Honda says the new Fit will "showcase significant advancements designed to further extend Fit's status as the benchmark vehicle in the subcompact-car class", which means further refinements to its clever interior and a new powertrain. Touted under Honda's 'Earth...
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Audi To Show Electric Crossover Concept At 2014 Detroit Auto Show
Audi will show a new crossover concept at the 2014 Detroit Auto Show in January. Nothing surprising there you might think--Audi has a crossover concept for just about every month of the year. But this one is a little different, as it wears a badge on its flank we've seen before: e-tron. That means...
Antony Ingram -
2014 Cadillac ELR Video Preview
Based on the Volt, but dressed in a very sharp new suit, the 2014 Cadillac ELR promises to bring the joys of greener driving to the executive sector. Not that the luxury segment hasn't already been a hotbed of hybrid development in recent years, though initially slow on the uptake. That makes...
Nelson Ireson -
Bob Lutz: Volt's Electric Tech Should've Gone Into Escalade First
Ex-GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz played an instrumental part in getting Chevrolet's range-extended electric car, the Volt, to market. So important was his role that he's often considered the "father of the Volt"--but at the Detroit Auto Show, Lutz has said that he'd not have launched the car's...
Antony Ingram -
Lincoln MKC Concept Crossover: Detroit Auto Show Live Photos
Luxury brands have been expanding into smaller vehicles for a while now, and the Lincoln MKC Concept unveiled at the Detroit Auto Show continues that trend. The smallest member so far of Ford's struggling lxuury brand has been the MKZ mid-size sedan, but the compact crossover concept shows the...
John Voelcker -
VIA Motors XTRUX Electric Truck: 2013 Detroit Auto Show Live Photos
What does an 800 horsepower electric truck look like? Just that little bit meaner than any other production truck, as it turns out--if Via Motors' XTRUX electric truck is anything to go by. The wildly powerful range-extended truck was unveiled at this week's Detroit Auto Show. Loosely based on the...
Antony Ingram -
Hinting at the look of the next Murano, Nissan debuted the Resonance Concept at the North American International Auto Show this week. Much like the original Murano, the Resonance features striking styling that previews the look of future Nissan vehicles, while taking the crossover concept to new levels of aerodynamics and efficiency. Under the hood is a 2.5-liter gasoline engine, paired to "one motor, two clutch" proprietary hybrid system. Power is put to the road through all four wheels using an Xtronic CVT continuously-variable transmission. Behind the concept's five-spoke, 22-inch wheels...
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2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee EcoDiesel: Live Photos From Detroit Auto Show
The Jeep Grand Cherokee isn't usually what people think of when you say "green car," but the new diesel version that's coming for 2014 moves it somewhat closer to that category. Unveiled first thing Monday morning, the 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee EcoDiesel is part of an updated 2014 lineup for the...
John Voelcker -
2014 Mercedes-Benz CLA: 2013 Detroit Auto Show Live Photos
You'd struggle to tell at a glance, but the car you see here has the most aerodynamically-efficient shape of any car on sale. The 2014 Mercedes-Benz CLA is the firm's smallest sedan, based on the front-wheel drive A-Class sold in Europe. Already an efficient shape, the elongated tail of the CLA, a...
Antony Ingram -
Fisker Karma-Based Destino: 2013 Detroit Auto Show Live Photos
One of the late surprises announced before the Detroit Auto Show was from VL Automotive, and its Fisker Karma-based Destino V-8 sedan. Stripping the 2.0-liter GM engine and electric drivetrain from the Karma might remove its unique selling point, but with the help of Bob Lutz the Karma's appeal has...
Antony Ingram -
Ford Atlas Truck Concept Demos Fuel-Saving Active Wheel Shutters
In order to improve the aerodynamics of new vehicles—and boost their highway gas mileage—automotive engineers have looked to a new series of seemingly minor features that add up to meaningful gains in EPA ratings. One of them is the active grille shutters that have become increasingly...
Bengt Halvorson -
2014 Cadillac ELR Live Images: 2013 Detroit Auto Show
Looking considerably more futuristic than the Chevrolet Volt on which its based, Cadillac unveiled its 2014 ELR plug-in hybrid at this week’s Detroit Auto Show. Borrowing heavily from Cadillac’s “French curve be damned” school of design. the ELR manages to progress angular...
Kurt Ernst -
Infiniti’s new Q50, the replacement for the G37 Sedan, has made its debut at the 2013 Detroit Auto Show in both gasoline and hybrid trims. The gasoline Q50 packs a 3.7-liter V-6 just like the old G37, while the hybrid Q50 features the same hybrid system found in the bigger M35h. In addition to these two powertrains, customers will also have the choice of rear- or all-wheel drive. Considering the hybrid system can accelerate the M sedan to 60 mph from rest in just 5.5 seconds, it’s possible that the smaller--and presumably lighter--Q50 will be even quicker. Not only that but it...
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Updated Acura NSX Hybrid Supercar Concept Debuts In Detroit
It’s not quite the production version of the new NSX that we were hoping for, but the updated concept car presented at the 2013 Detroit Auto Show today does give us a much better idea as to what the production version, due sometime in the next couple of years, will be like. We can clearly see...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Toyota Furia Concept Live Images: 2013 Detroit Auto Show
The Toyota Corolla remains one of the best selling cars in America, despite its dated design and a powertrain that is, frankly, approaching obsolescence. Its 1.8-liter four cylinder engine still delivers acceptable fuel economy (up to 30 mpg combined), but its transmission choices (five-speed...
Kurt Ernst -
2014 Cadillac ELR Preview: 2013 Detroit Auto Show
Based on the Converj concept first shown in 2009, the Cadillac ELR is set to become the very first Extended Range Electric Vehicle launched by a full-line luxury automaker when it hits Cadillac dealers in early 2014. Like the Chevrolet Volt, the Cadillac ELR will be primarily powered by a 16.5 kWh...
Kurt Ernst -
Toyota Furia Concept Previews 2014 Toyota Corolla: Detroit Auto Show
If the 2013 Detroit Auto Show has been rather light on truly green vehicles, concepts previewing the replacement of bread and butter models have been much more exciting. One of those is the Toyota Furia Concept, paving the way for the 2014 Toyota Corolla compact car. Corollas aren't often vehicles...
Antony Ingram -
Honda Urban SUV Concept: 2013 Detroit Auto Show Preview
If you wanted a Nissan Juke before, you probably won't want one now. Honda promised last month that its Urban SUV Concept would debut at Detroit, and the sporty, Fit-based crossover you see here is the result. Hinting at a production model due in 2014, the Urban SUV is a whole nine inches shorter...
Antony Ingram