Auto_Evolution Online News – Page 2 – I wish I had more to offer

2021 Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat Sells Out, It’s Rarer Than the Dodge Demon

22 Jan 2021, 10:58 UTC ·
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Mircea Panait

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Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, now known as Stellantis thanks to the merger with Groupe PSA, has a habit of shoehorning the Hellcat under the hood of otherwise boring vehicles. The Durango SRT Hellcat is anything but dull thanks to the 6.2-liter unit of an engine, partly because it runs the quarter-mile in a simply staggering 11.5 seconds.
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The most powerful three-row SUV ever offered with a license plate bracket also happens to be rare. Dodge will build a total of 2,000 units according to the press release at the end of this story, which means that a family-sized utility vehicle is rarer than Mopar’s muscliest muscle car ever, the Demon.
“It’s a single model-year run,” said Dodge head Tim Kuniskis, “ensuring that it will be a very special, sought-after performance SUV for years to come. Based on anticipated demand, all dealer allocations have already been reserved, but there is still some time to secure an unsold dealer order.”
Read that quote again, then remember that you’ll have to place an order at an authorized Dodge dealership nevertheless. The unsold orders, therefore, are likely to be marked up into the stratosphere by dealers who care more about quick money instead of continued patronage from a happy customer.
Excluding $1,495 for the destination charge, the most exciting Durango ever produced can be had from $80,995 before optional extras. There aren’t too many of those, frankly, because the Hellcat is pretty much loaded as standard. There is only one special color for the exterior that costs extra, the stripes will set you back $1,195 or $1,295, three-season Pirelli P-Zero tires add $595 to the tally, and Laguna leather seats are available at $1,595.
Scheduled to end production this June, the Durango’s future is a bit uncertain because Stellantis doesn’t wish to comment on future products. The safest scenario would be for Dodge to continue making it on the same platform, which is underwhelming if you consider the all-new underpinnings of the Jeep Grand Cherokee. The Giorgio Global architecture would be an interesting upgrade, but that doesn’t seem too likely either.
According to hearsay, the next generation of the Durango – codenamed SD – would join the Ram 1500-based Jeep Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer for the 2023 model year at the Warren Truck Assembly Plant in Michigan. In this case, Dodge would switch back to body-on-frame construction.

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Bentley Continental GT Marks 80,000th Production Milestone

27 Jan 2021, 21:53 UTC ·
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Mircea Panait

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After years of crippling losses under the control of the Vickers conglomerate, Volkswagen saved Bentley in 1998. The financial troubles didn’t go away immediately, but with the Continental GT introduction, the British automaker’s fortunes have changed for the better.
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2003 is when the first example of the breed rolled off the assembly line in Crewe, and since then, Bentley produced more than 80,000 units of the ultra-luxurious grand tourer with 2+2 seating and up to 12 cylinders. Over the course of 18 long years, the Continental GT's power ratings have improved by 27 percent while emissions have been reduced by 48 percent.
“I had the pleasure of launching the original,” said chief exec Adrian Hallmark. “Being here for the launch of the latest generation – and the iterations that have followed – has been a source of great pride for me.”
Redesigned from the ground up in 2018 on the MSB vehicle architecture, the Porsche Panamera’s cooler brother is available as a two-door coupe and convertible. The only transmission available is an eight-speed DCT borrowed from the German automaker, and engine options kick off with the twin-turbo V8 that you’ll also find under the hood of the Panamera Turbo.
542 horsepower and 569 pound-feet (770 Nm) of torque isn't too shabby, but the motor the Continental GT deserves is the twin-turbo W12 with 6.0 liters of displacement. The range-topping model belts out 626 horsepower and 664 pound-feet (900 Nm) of torque from 1,350 to 4,500 rpm. In other words, Bentley promises blistering performance despite the generous curb weight of 5,322 pounds (2,414 kilograms) for the convertible body style.
At the time of reporting, the GT V8 Coupe is listed in the United States with a $202,500 starting price. Opt for the GT W12 Convertible, and you’re looking at $240,800 excluding destination charge and optional extras.
As for the competition, only three candidates come to mind. The achingly beautiful and tech-crazy Ferrari Roma is the most obvious, along with the V8-engined Aston Martin DB11 and V12-engined DBS Superleggera.

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Ford Mustang Mach-E Goes for “Made in China” Signature Just for the Local Market

28 Jan 2021, 10:26 UTC ·
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Aurel Niculescu

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The Blue Oval company’s recent move is entirely logical since China continues to reign supreme as the world’s largest car market even under the stressful conditions of 2020. It really should come as no surprise that Ford decided so quickly to localize production of its battery-electric SUV.
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New energy vehicles (NEV – a.k.a. plug-in electrified vehicles) continue to represent a major draw for all automakers involved with the Chinese local market, so the Mustang Mach-E strikes all the right cords. The U.S. automaker recently announced its global SUV (built on a heavily reworked version of the C2 architecture) will be manufactured in China by the Changan Ford joint venture.
It’s set to arrive at Chinese dealerships later this year, and Ford promises the Mustang Mach-E will set new standards in style and performance in China's high-end EV market. There are no hints about pricing, but we can imagine the company will have its work cut out for it as the competition is quite strong in the premium EV field. Yes, we’re of course talking about the Tesla Model Y.
The Mustang Mach-E produced locally for the Chinese market will have an estimated range of more than 600 km (373 miles, based on the “CLTC-estimated range calculation methodology”) and slightly adjusted dimensions of 4,739/1,881/1,623 mm in terms of length, width, and height (187/74/ 64 inches), along with a wheelbase of 2,984 mm (117 in). Yes, the latter is longer, but only by 12 mm (0.5 in).
Ford touts all the latest technologies to be available with the Chinese-spec Mustang Mach-E as well, including the latest version of the Ford Co-Pilot360 suite of driver-assistance technologies, SYNC+ infotainment system, along with L2+ “automatic driving assistance functions, enabling Mach-E drivers to operate their vehicles hands-free on prequalified sections of divided highways.”
It’s also heralded as the first series-production vehicle that brings cellular vehicle-to-everything (C-V2X) technology on China’s roads, while OTA (over-the-air) software updates will “freshen the driving experience with improvements and new features.”
Interestingly, Ford has revealed it will produce in China not just the standard Mustang Mach-E but also the Mustang Mach-E GT high-performance version. The latter is said to join the “3-second club” when sprinting to 62 mph (100 kph) thanks to its front and rear dual-motor setup.

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2021 Chevrolet Corvette Production Halted One Week Over Parts Shortage

29 Jan 2021, 16:19 UTC ·
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Mircea Panait

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The mid-engine Corvette may be selling like hotcakes, but the bean counters and execs at General Motors aren’t exactly on top of production. In addition to health crisis-related shutdowns of the Bowling Green assembly plant, the supply chain leaves much to be desired.
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An undisclosed shortage is why the Kentucky-based factory will stop production for the week of February 1st, which is pretty unfortunate for expecting customers. Putting down more than $60,000 of your hard-earned money and waiting a year for the delivery of a Chevy is one thing, but GM still doesn’t appear to have any backups lined up in case of a parts shortage.
The truth of the matter is General Motors isn’t the only automaker in a pinch. The entire industry is slowing down production over a shortage of semiconductors, which range from the chip that governs the engine control unit in the ‘Vette to the 5G capability in your latest-generation smartphone.
According to Corvette Blogger, the plant currently produces 92 to 94 cars per shift over two shifts per day. That works out to approximately 940 vehicles per week, and it’s very far behind demand. Right-hand-drive markets are also looking forward to the mid-engined American sports car. Japanese customers, for example, bought well over 300 units in 60 hours.
If you’re not scared of dealers marking up the suggested retail price or waiting a helluva lot for delivery, then prepare to pony up $59,995 for the lowest specification available. The hard-topped convertible is $7,500 more than the coupe, and the Z51 Performance Package adds $5,995 to the tally.
The sweet spot of the range is the 2LT Coupe Z51, which can be had from $73,290, including the destination charge. As much criticism as General Motors deserves, I cannot think of a better sports car in terms of bang for the buck.
On a related note, word has it the Z06 with its screamin’ flat-plane crankshaft V8 will be revealed in July for the 2022 model year.

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Ford Prepares to Cope With Increased Demand for Global Version of 2023 Ranger

2 Feb 2021, 12:18 UTC ·
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Aurel Niculescu

Home > News > Industry

The F-Series may be the undisputed king of the Blue Oval's pickup truck family, but that doesn’t mean the Ranger sibling isn’t getting an equal amount of business love. After all, with the fourteenth generation 2021 F-150 finally out and about across U.S. dealerships, the company now diligently prepares for the arrival of the equally all-new, seventh generation Ranger.
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We have seen the F-Series keep its top place in U.S. sales charts and we have also discussed about the European commercial success of the Ranger brethren. And even though we’re probably going to dissect the latter’s official introduction sooner rather than later, Ford continues to improve upon its midsize truck recipe with just about every possible occasion.
At home in the United States, we have already seen the 2021 Ranger XL turn into a more elegant workhorse with the STX Package. Across the Atlantic, European fans have been graced with Beauty and the Beast appearances last year – with the Ranger showcased as either the racy MS-RT version or in bare-bones Chassis Cab attire.
Now it’s time to focus on the upcoming new generation, the 2023 Ranger, without even so much as seeing a little teaser for the upcoming model in the latest press release from the company. Instead, the Blue Oval is all business and no fun as it revealed a major (“the largest ever,” actually) investment into the company’s South African manufacturing operations.
Ford has announced it will pour no less than $1.05 billion into new and advanced technologies and systems designed to “modernize and grow the Ford Silverton Assembly Plant to support expanded production of the all-new Ranger pickup truck, starting in 2022.” And they do mean business, because the company also wants to hire some 1,200 people to join the existing team to support the expanded production schedule.
According to the company, about $686 million of the investment will go into technologies, upgrades, and new facilities at the Ford Silverton Assembly Plant, directly enhancing the upcoming high efficiency and high-quality manufacturing of the all-new Ranger generation.
Interestingly, while annual production capacity will surge from the current 168k of vehicles per year to about 200,000k vehicles, the Silverton location is also tasked to become one of Ford’s first global manufacturing locations upgraded to the so-called “Island Mode.” That’s Blue Oval talk for a plant that’s completely “energy self-sufficient and carbon neutral,” with the status designed to be achieved by 2024.
Currently, the Silverton plant builds the Ranger for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and will continue to do so with the next-generation model. In addition, the 2023 Ranger will be made at the General Pacheco plant in Argentina for Latin American markets, while the U.S. model, which is likely to remain distinct to the global model, will carry on being made in the United States.

Editor's note:

Gallery includes spy shots of the 2023 Ford Ranger.

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2022 Cadillac Blackwing Reservations Are Full, Order Books Will Open This Summer

3 Feb 2021, 11:28 UTC ·
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Mircea Panait

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Less than 24 hours after Cadillac took the veils off them, the CT4-V Blackwing and CT5-V Blackwing “First Edition” have sold out. 500 units have been reserved by means of $1,000 deposits, which are working out to $500,000 in the bank for the crown jewel of General Motors.
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Although sedans are a dying breed and sporty cars are on a downward spiral, the Blackwings' commercial success shouldn’t come as a surprise to you. GM has laid the groundwork to complete electrification, and Cadillac has recently alienated U.S. dealerships over this switch to electric vehicles.
Approximately 150 out of 880 dealers said no to selling EVs such as the Lyriq and Celestiq, and I can’t blame them for that because legacy automakers are living in the shadow of Tesla. Looking at the bigger picture, not even Tesla has proven its business model because Palo Alto made a bigger profit last year from selling regulatory carbon credits instead of all-electric vehicles.
At least in the United States of America, the automotive industry will have to adapt once again after every player embraces the all-electric trend to its full potential. Given these circumstances, the more skeptical among us aren’t impressed by the electrification strategies of the Big Three in Detroit.
There is, however, a second reason as to why Cadillac sold 500 sporty sedans in less than a day. The Blackwing twins are probably the last hurrah of internal combustion for the luxury-oriented brand, and both models are seriously impressive on paper thanks to force-fed V6 and V8 mills.
472 horsepower and 445 pound-feet (603 Nm) of torque put the CT4-V Blackwing above the standard version of the BMW M3, which cranks out 473 horsepower and 406 pound-feet (550 Nm). As for the CT5-V Blackwing, make that 668 horsepower and 659 pound-feet (893 Nm) as opposed to 627 horsepower and 553 pound-feet (750 Nm) for the M5 CS.
On an ending note, First Edition models differ in only one way from the bone-stock specification. The only dissimilarity boils down to a steering wheel that features a serialized plaque with a five-digit portion of the VIN sequence.

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Stellantis Kicks Off 2021 Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat Output, It’s Still Sold Out

Stellantis Kicks Off 2021 Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat Output, It's Still Sold Out

5 Feb 2021, 11:05 UTC ·
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Aurel Niculescu

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We have great news for anyone who managed to catch an order slot for the 2021 Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat, as Stellantis North America announced that manufacturing has kicked off at the Jefferson North Assembly Plant (JNAP) in Detroit, Michigan.
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We already know a lot about the most powerful ever to walk the face of the Earth, but here’s a quick recap. Last year, in the heat of summer, Dodge announced its anything but boring family ute had each of its 710 ponies valued at precisely $114 based on the starting MSRP of just $80,995.
People had a bit of time to ponder if a three-row SUV should ever be allowed to hide a supercharged 6.2-liter HEMI Hellcat V8 engine under the hood as order banks weren’t opened until early November. Then, just this January, the automaker brought us the sad news that the entire production run had been allocated, with the Durango SRT Hellcat ready for a collectible life since only 2,000 examples will go out the factory gates.
See where we’re going with this? Judging by that schedule, it would have been another couple of months before production actually kicked off. But the company decided to surprise us and announced that manufacturing is now underway at the JNAP facility in Detroit.
That’s great news for the reservation holders since there’s just one final step before social media gets taken by storm with a Durango SRT Hellcat galore. And that would be for Dodge to announce the first deliveries schedule.
We’re, of course, eagerly awaiting that moment, as we’re entirely curious what kind of new torture tests vloggers might come up with for the top-dog Durango. Remember, we're talking about an SUV that will haul family and pets to 60 mph (96 kph) in 3.5 seconds, cover the quarter-mile in a National Hot Rod Association (NHRA)-certified 11.5 seconds, and thunder on to a maximum speed of 180 mph (290 kph).
By the way, as far as Dodge is concerned, that wonderful first delivery moment is coming this very spring. Still, we’d love it if the company advanced a precise date, just as it did with values such as the 645 lb-ft (875 Nm) of torque or the towing capability of 8,700 lbs (3,946 kg).

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VW Ends North American Golf Production, Torch Carried Forward by Mk8 GTI and R

21 Jan 2021, 12:32 UTC ·
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Aurel Niculescu

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Like many other automakers, Volkswagen is trying to follow the trends by moving further away from passenger cars in favor of crossovers and SUVs. A move that has been expected for a while, the dismissal of the standard Golf from localized North American production has now become official.
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The Golf nameplate has been a part of Volkswagen’s U.S. market lineup since the very beginning, with the original Golf first sold in America back in December 1974. Just a month after turning 46 years old, the nameplate’s fans will sadly have to witness its dismissal from local North American production.
Volkswagen has officially announced it just ended local Golf manufacturing at the Puebla, Mexico, facility this very month. The company expects the 2021 Golf – still based on the seventh-generation architecture – to soldier on until the end of the year in the sales charts thanks to the Golf units already produced at the plant.
The U.S. saga for the Golf includes almost 2.5 million units delivered throughout the years. It will open a new chapter going forward with the arrival of the 2022 Golf 8 GTI and Golf R, which are scheduled to hit dealerships this coming fall.
“Over four decades, the Golf has delivered a great value to American drivers,” said Hein Schafer, Senior Vice President, Volkswagen of America. “It exemplified what Volkswagen does best—melding dynamic driving characteristics with purposeful packaging and unmatched quality. While the seventh-generation Golf will be the last of the base hatches sold here, the GTI and Golf R will carry its legacy forward.”
Although it’s of little consequence at this point, Volkswagen wanted to brag a little with the past achievements of the Golf even when bringing the unwelcome news of its dismissal. As such, the automaker remembered how the current-generation Golf became North American Car of the Year upon its debut as a 2015MY.
In case anyone is wondering, for the 2021 model year, the Golf is available in a single configuration on the U.S. market, the Golf TSI. With the well-known 1.4-liter turbo engine under the hood, the model has 147 horsepower and 184 pound-feet (249 Nm) of torque to show for itself.
It can be had with a six-speed manual box or an eight-speed auto, and pricing kicks off at $23,195 and $23,995, respectively, before adding the additional $995 destination charge.

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Volkswagen Bids Farewell to e-Golf, Will Refocus Dresden Facility to ID.3

23 Dec 2020, 12:10 UTC ·
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Aurel Niculescu

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After a little more than half a decade on the sustainable mobility front, the Volkswagen e-Golf is heading into retirement. Production of the fully electric compact just ended, with the final vehicle rolling out from the assembly line of the Transparent Factory in Dresden, Germany.
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The location had been taking care of the e-Golf manufacturing process since March of 2017 – and has managed to build a total of 50,401 examples in the meantime. The group-wide “E-offensive” is not slowing down, though; starting early next year, the plant will be retooled and after just three weeks of downtime, it will start producing the ID.3 series from late January.
According to Volkswagen, the final e-Golf to roll off the production line was a “Uranogrey” unit. The company is quickly switching its focus to the future production of the ID.3, with the Dresden plant following the Zwickau facility in adapting to MEB requirements.
“The end of the e-Golf is also the start of the final preparations for the ID.3. In just a few weeks, we will be opening the next chapter for the Transparent Factory. After Zwickau, we are the second location in Europe to manufacture vehicles based on the new modular e-drive system,” explains Danny Auerswald, head of plant of the Transparent Factory.
In total, 145,561 VW e-Golf units were produced between the Wolfsburg and Dresden plants, with the electric compact being popular especially in Norway and Germany. The Transparent Factory Dresden, on the other hand, has also covered the build for some interesting ICE models since it started operations back in 2001 – such as the flagship Phaeton or Bentley’s Flying Spur.
Now it’s fully embracing the EV future with the introduction of the ID.3, Volkswagen’s first vehicle based on the dedicated Modular Electric Drive Kit (MEB) platform.
The company says it has already delivered more than 28k units of the ID.3 since its market launch back in September. VW is now preparing for the arrival of the model's entry-level version, set to go on sale below the €30,000 (less than $37k) mark from early next year.

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Tesla Delivers Almost 500,000 Vehicles in 2020

2 Jan 2021, 17:41 UTC ·
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Mircea Panait

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As much as Elon Musk would have liked to hit the magical figure of 500,000 deliveries, Tesla Inc. got 99.91 percent of the way there with a tally of 499,550 vehicles. Considering how bad a year 2020 has been for the automotive industry, this result is more than simply impressive.
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For reference, Tesla delivered 367,500 vehicles in 2019 and 245,240 vehicles in 2018. Production output is on the rise as well, currently standing at 509,737 vehicles split between the Model S, 3, X, and Y (pun intended).
As you would expect, the Model 3 and Y took the lion’s share at 442,511 units compared to 57,039 for the Model S and X, which will be updated this year.
Elon Musk was expecting to ship 500,000 vehicles worldwide at the beginning of 2020 when the health crisis was looming on the horizon. But as you’re well aware, the big guns and bean counters in Palo Alto didn’t take into consideration temporary production halts for the Fremont and Shanghai facilities. Another reason the target figure hasn’t been hit is, of course, the financial stress of a health crisis that has affected pretty much everybody.
“So proud of the Tesla team for achieving this major milestone,” said the chief executive officer on social media. “At the start of Tesla, I thought we had (optimistically) a 10% chance of surviving at all.” As a brief refresher, the first investment that Musk made in the EV startup tallied $6.5 million when co-founders Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning were running the show.
“Tesla is responsible for two-thirds of all the personal and professional pain in my life combined. But it was worth it,” confessed the big kahuna.
At the time of writing, the Model 3 is the most affordable ticket to Tesla ownership thanks to an MSRP of $37,990 for the Standard Range Plus with rear-wheel drive. Not bad for 263 miles (423 kilometers) of driving range and an acceleration of 5.3 seconds to 60 mph (96 kph), don't you think?
The Model Y kicks off at $49,990 with the Long Range battery and Dual Motor all-wheel drive, the Model S is available from $69,420, and the Model X is the most expensive of the lot at $79,990 excluding potential savings.
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