Volkswagen Automotive Legend Ferdinand Piëch Passes Away

Austrian engineer and automotive executive Ferdinand Karl Piëch, grandson of Ferdinand Porsche, former head of Audi, chairman of the executive board (1993-2002) and chairman of the supervisory board (2002-2015) of Volkswagen Group, passed away August 25th at the age of 82 (pictured left in 2009). Piëch gained notoriety for the development of many vehicles including the Porsche 911, Audi Quattro and Bugatti Veyron. Piëch was named the Car Executive of the Century in 1999, was inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame in 2014, and in his personal life fathered 12 children with four different women. It was an honor meeting such a car legend at the 2009 Frankfurt Auto Show.

2020 Chevrolet Bolt EV Goes Further On A Charge

The 2020 Chevrolet Bolt EV will now offer an EPA-estimated 259 miles of range on a full charge, a 21-mile increase over previous model years. Actual range will vary based on several factors, including temperature, terrain, battery age and vehicle use and maintenance. The 2020 Bolt EV will arrive in dealerships later this year with a starting MSRP of $37,495 (including destination and freight charges, excludes tax, title, license, dealer fees).

2020 Honda Civic Si Arrives Next Month

The 2020 Honda Civic Si Sedan and Si Coupe (above), powered by a 205-horsepower 1.5-liter, direct injected and turbocharged in-line 4-cylinder engine mated to a 6-speed manual transmission, get front and rear styling updates, new more refined LED headlight designs, and a revised final-drive ratio for more responsive acceleration. Honda Sensing®, now standard equipment on Civic Si Sedan and Coupe, includes Adaptive Cruise Control, Collision Mitigation Braking System™ incorporating Forward Collision Warning, Lane Keeping Assist System and Road Departure Mitigation incorporating Lane Departure Warning.  The 2020 Honda Civic Si Sedan and Si Coupe arrive to dealers September 6th with a starting $25,930 MSRP (including $930 destination charge).

Audi RS 6 Avant Arrives Next Year

The Audi RS 6 Avant, powered by a 591 horsepower 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 engine mated to a standard eight-speed Tiptronic® transmission with optimized shift times and new launch control function, is coming to the U.S. market. The standard Audi drive select system offers comfort, auto, dynamic, efficiency and the individually configurable RS-specific RS1 and RS2 drive modes, which can be activated directly using the “RS MODE” steering wheel button. The Audi drive select setting influences the engine and transmission management, the power steering, the suspension, the dynamic all-wheel steering, the quattro® sport differential and the engine sound. The Audi RS 6 Avant will arrive in the U.S. in 2020.

Bugatti Centodieci

The new special-edition Bugatti Centodieci (Italian for 110) features a 1,600 horsepower 8.0-liter W16 engine which takes it from 0 to 62 mph in 2.4 seconds, to 124 mph in 6.1 seconds and to 186 mph in 13.1 seconds to an electronically cut off top speed of 236 mph.

2020 Ram 1500 EcoDiesel Arrives in 4th Quarter

The 2020 Ram 1500 EcoDiesel, powered by the new third generation 260 horsepower 3.0-liter V-6 EcoDiesel engine, starts at $38,585 (including $1,695 destination charge) with a towing capability of 12,560 pounds and goes on sale early in the fourth quarter of this year. The 2020 Ram 1500 EcoDiesel is available across all models and configurations, including a first-time offering in the Ram Rebel. The 2020 Ram 1500 is backed with a five-year /100,000-mile Powertrain Limited Warranty.

Audi R8 LMS GT2 For $375,000 By Year End

The Audi R8 LMS GT2, now available for customer orders, powered by a 640 horsepower naturally aspirated 5.2-liter V10 engine mated to a seven-speed S-tronic® dual-clutch transmission, accelerates from a standstill to 60 mph in 3.3 seconds and reaches a top track speed of 204 mph. The new race car is priced between Audi Sport’s GT4 and GT3 models at $375,000 (338,000 euros) and can now be ordered. Audi Sport will deliver the first race cars before the end of 2019.

2020 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Starts At $59,995

The 2020 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray a starting price of $59,995 (including $1,095 Destination Freight Charge), the 2LT trim package will start at $67,295 and the top-level 3LT trim package on the 2020 Corvette Stingray will start at $71,945. The 2020 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray goes into production at GM’s Bowling Green Assembly in late this year.

Dodge Charger Daytona 50th Anniversary Edition Coming in 2020

The new Dodge Charger Daytona 50th Anniversary Edition, 3.5 inches wider due to wider wheels and tires, is powered by a 717 horsepower supercharged 6.2-liter HEMI® Hellcat V-8 engine with production limited to 501 units, mirroring the 1969 production total, Vehicles will start to arrive in early 2020.

Acura Type S Concept

The Acura Type S Concept sets the stage for re-introducing Type S performance variants to the Acura line-up after a decade hiatus, and will heavily influence the character of the upcoming, second-generation TLX Type S.

2020 Porsche Cayenne Turbo S E-Hybrid Starts At $163,250

The new 2020 Porsche Cayenne Turbo S E-Hybrid and Cayenne Turbo S E-Hybrid Coupe are powered by a 541 horsepower 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 engine combined with a 134-horsepower electric motor to generate a total system output of 670 horsepower with the electric motor sitting between the gasoline engine and the eight-speed Tiptronic S automatic transmission, and delivering 0-60 mph acceleration in 3.6 seconds, to a top track speed of 183 mph. A 7.2 kW onboard charger is standard equipment and Sport Exhaust and Rear Axle Steering are both available as options. The upgraded charger enables a complete recharge of the 14.1 kWh battery in as little as 2.4 hours when using a 240-volt connection with a 50-amp circuit.

The (non-S model) 2020 Porsche Cayenne E-Hybrid Coupe combines the same 3.0-liter single-turbo V6 and electric motor as the standard Cayenne E-Hybrid, producing total system output is 455 horsepower. The standard Sport Chrono Package, delivers 0-60 mph in 4.7 seconds to a top track speed of 157 mph.

The Porsche Cayenne Turbo S E-Hybrid will start at $163,250 (including $1,350 for processing, delivery and handling), the Cayenne Turbo S E-Hybrid Coupe at $165,750 and Cayenne E-Hybrid Coupe at $87,750 when they reach U.S. Porsche dealerships in the first quarter of 2020. 

2020 Nissan Maxima Starts At $35,145 Now

The 2020 Nissan Maxima, now on sale in S, SV, SL, SR and Platinum models, is powered by a 300-horsepower 3.5-liter VQ-series V6 engine mated to an Xtronic transmission and starts at $35,145 (including $895 destination and handling charge). Nissan Safety Shield 360 includes Automatic Emergency Braking with Pedestrian Detection, Blind Spot Warning, Rear Cross Traffic Alert, Lane Departure Warning, High Beam Assist and Rear Automatic Braking. Maxima also offers available Intelligent Cruise Control, and Traffic Sign Recognition. Maxima’s Intelligent Driver Alertness technology is standard on all grade levels.

Karma SC1 Vision Concept

The Karma SC1 Vision Concept integrates a new infotainment architecture with 5G connectivity and a humanized communication system with touch, voice, eye and graphical interfaces. With eight radars, six Lidar sensors, and half dozen external cameras, the SC1 Vision Concept is ready for autonomous driving.

2020 Nissan Versa Starts At $15,625 Now

The all-new 2020 Nissan Versa compact sedan, in its third generation and now on sale, powered by the next-generation 122 horsepower 1.6-liter 4-cylinder engine starts at $15,625 (including $895 destination and handling charge). The 2020 Versa, lower, wider and longer, is offered in S (5-speed manual or Xtronic transmissions), SV (Xtronic) and sporty SR (Xtronic) models. Fuel economy is rated at 32 mpg city, 40 mpg highway, 35 mpg combined (Xtronic models).

All-New 2020 Audi S7

The all-new 2020 Audi S7 with seating for up to five passengers features a new 444 horsepower 2.9-liter twin-turbocharged TFSI® V6 engine mated to a eight-speed Tiptronic® automatic transmission with quattro® all-wheel drive works in tandem with the electric compressor to help eliminate turbo lag and enable immediate throttle response. The all-new 2020 Audi S7 starts at $84,895 (including $995 destination charge). The S7 offers Audi virtual cockpit, four-zone automatic climate control, top-view camera system with Virtual 360 view and Bang & Olufsen® 3D Premium Sound System.

2020 Honda Pilot Black Edition On Sale Now

The 2020 Honda Pilot, now on sale, offers new top-of-line Black Edition trim for $50,715  (including $1,095 destination and handling) which comes in Crystal Black Pearl paint and includes Black Edition badges on the grille and tailgate. Pilot Black Edition also includes black-painted 20-inch alloy wheels, and blackout treatments for the grille, headlight trim, side trim, door handles, window trim and fog light accents. Inside, there is red accent lighting for the dash, doors and center console, with red accent stitching on the front and second row captain’s chairs, door panels and steering wheel. The Black Edition logo is embossed on front seats and floor mats, and the front and second-row seats also get a red accent to the perforated leather seating surface. The 2020 Pilot LX with standard 2-wheel drive starts $32,645 with the Honda Sensing® suite of safety and driver-assistive systems as standard equipment. The all-wheel drive Pilot LX at $34,645 and adds Honda’s exclusive i-VTM4® torque-vectoring all-wheel drive system.

2020 Cadillac XT5 Coming Late Summer

The 2020 Cadillac XT5 is powered by a new 237 horsepower 2.0L Turbo engine, standard for the Luxury and Premium Luxury trims and complementing the existing 310 horsepower 3.6L V6, which remains standard on Sport and available on Premium Luxury. Both engines are mated to a nine-speed automatic transmission controlled via the next generation of Electronic Precision Shift. Updates for 2020 include two new high-definition instrument cluster display options, higher-resolution display for HD Rear Vision Camera and HD Surround Vision, enhanced Automatic Parking Assist with Braking, new Rear Pedestrian Alert and available Night Vision. The 2020 Cadillac XT5 is available late Summer.

All-New 2020 Audi S6

The all-new 2020 Audi S6 is powered by a new 444 horsepower twin-turbocharged 2.9-liter V6 engine mated to an eight-speed Tiptronic® automatic transmission with a 0-60 mph time of 4.4 seconds, starts at $74,895 (including $995 destination charge). The first-ever electric power compressor offered by Audi in the U.S. pre-empts turbo lag, enabling immediate responsiveness and powerful acceleration in any driving situation.

2020 Hyundai Accent With Improved Fuel Economy

The 2020 Hyundai Accent is powered by a new Smartstream 120 horsepower G1.6 Dual Port Injection engine mated to a Smartstream Intelligent Variable Transmission producing a much-improved EPA estimated fuel economy of 33 mpg city, 41 highway, 36 combined. The 2020 Accent features include standard rearview camera with dynamic guidelines and Forward Collision-avoidance Assist (Limited trim only). Pricing of 2020 Accent SE starts at $15,195 and all of the upgraded models will arrive in dealer showrooms this Summer.

2020 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Coming Late This Year

The 2020 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, the first-ever production mid-engine Corvette, is powered by the next generation 495 horsepower 6.2L Small Block V-8 LT2 engine, a naturally aspirated V-8 paired with Chevrolet’s first eight speed dual-clutch transmission producing 470 lb-ft of torque when equipped with performance exhaust. The fastest 0-60 time of any entry Corvette ever at under three seconds when equipped with Z51 Performance Package. The 2020 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray goes into production in late 2019 and the entry 2020 Stingray will start under $60,000. Additional pricing and packaging information will be shared closer to launch.