Cars

Battery Taxonomy: The Differences between Hybrid and EV Batteries

Battery Taxonomy: The Differences between Hybrid and EV Batteries

BY CSABA CSERE | CarAndDriver.Com Troy Warren for CNT #Cars While electric vehicles require both range and power from the battery pack, hybrids require similar power with far less energy. You might think that the battery pack of any electrified vehicle—hybrid, plug-in hybrid (PHEV), or pure electric (BEV)—is pretty much the same, other than its size. But that overlooks two key differences in the way batteries are used in different types of electrified vehicles. First is the flow of electrical power in and out of the battery relative to its size. For example, during modest acceleration all three types of electrified vehicles use a…
Read More
2022 Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing Ends on a High Note

2022 Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing Ends on a High Note

BY K.C. COLWELL | CarAndDriver.Com Troy Warren for CNT #Cars Caddy's last V-8-powered V car is so good, fans will demand a follow-up before the performance subbrand goes electric. It's a bittersweet symphony. Hearing the supercharged small-block's raunchy and bellowing soundtrack reverberate against pit wall is as thrilling as it is sad. Every pass reminds us that the Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing will be the 18-year-old subbrand's last go at a gas-powered performance sedan. At least Cadillac saved the best for last—the new CT4-V Blackwing is just as wonderful—as the CT5-V Blackwing will be remembered as one of best sports sedans ever made, period. Before…
Read More
Scottsdale: Now on sale at malls: A growing array of electric vehicles — Lucid Motors is the latest

Scottsdale: Now on sale at malls: A growing array of electric vehicles — Lucid Motors is the latest

Russ Wiles | Arizona Republic Troy Warren for ScottsdaleNewsAndTalk.Com   Malls are no longer just places to shop for clothes, have lunch or maybe take in a movie. You also might wind up buying a new car. As automakers turn to nontraditional ways to market their vehicles, more are giving malls a try, attracted by the heavy foot traffic and a non-pressure atmosphere. New entrants, especially makers of electric vehicles, are at the vanguard. At least five makers of electric vehicles — from luxury sedans selling for more than $160,000 to scooters priced at $1,500 — have opened showrooms or displays at Arizona malls over the last…
Read More
2022 Volkswagen Golf R: The Mature Pocket Rocket

2022 Volkswagen Golf R: The Mature Pocket Rocket

BY DAVID BEARD | CarAndDriver.Com Troy Warren for CNT #Cars More power, precision, and refinement come to VW's redesigned 315-hp hot hatchback. From the September 2021 issue of Car and Driver. The hot-hatch genre has, at times, made us feel very old. Our younger selves would have happily tolerated a bouncy ride, a laggy engine, or a raucous cabin if it kept the price low and the fun-to-drive quotient high, but our backs, our patience, and our eardrums aren't as forgiving as they once were. Volkswagenseems to understand. Ahead of the VW Golf R's arrival here this fall, we recently drove a Europe-spec model…
Read More
America Still Loves Its Gas-Guzzling V-8s. But for How Long?

America Still Loves Its Gas-Guzzling V-8s. But for How Long?

BY ELANA SCHERR | CarAndDriver.Com Troy Warren for CNT #Cars We hear from the folks in charge at Dodge, Land Rover, and Lexus, on the state of the high-horsepower V-8 amid a fully electric frontier. The International Union for Conservation of Nature says more than 37,400 species are threatened with extinction. Big V-8s in small cars and un­expected off-roaders are not on the ledger, but if they were, we'd expect to see them listed as "near threatened," defined by the conservation union as "­species close to the threatened thresholds or that would be threatened without ongoing conservation measures." Since high-horse V-8s can still be spotted…
Read More
Ford BlueCruise Removes the Hands from Highway Driving

Ford BlueCruise Removes the Hands from Highway Driving

BY K.C. COLWELL | CarAndDriver.Com Troy Warren for CNT #cars We try out Ford's new hands-free system, a competitor to GM's Super Cruise and Tesla's Autopilot. It's available on some 2022 F-150 and Mustang Mach-E models. Do not confuse it with Blue’s Clues, the children’s education show, or a booze cruise, the young adult adventure that’s happens when you combine a boat with tons of alcohol. No, this is BlueCriuse, Ford’s hands-free driving feature and answer to GM’s Super Cruise and Tesla’s Autopilot. It is available on some 2022 F-150s and Mustang Mach-Es. Long story short: it works as advertised. Ford isn’t promising commuters…
Read More
The End of the Show: 2022 Cadillac CT4-V Blackwing Is a Spectacular Send-Off

The End of the Show: 2022 Cadillac CT4-V Blackwing Is a Spectacular Send-Off

BY K.C. COLWELL | CarAndDriver.Com Troy Warren for CNT #cars This is the first of two Blackwing models that are the last gasoline-powered V models the luxury maker will ever produce. Farewell concerts too often aren't the last of anything. Cream, The Who, Kiss, and even Ol' Blue Eyes himself—Frank Sinatra—all returned to the stage after a so-called final tour. Cadillac, however, does not appear to be bluffing when it says that the CT4-V Blackwing and its larger, V-8-powered CT5-V Blackwing brother will be the last of the gas-powered V cars. Even if plans change and somehow more gas-powered Cadillac Vs come after these, like…
Read More
2022 Audi e-tron GT and RS GT Make Us Forget They’re EVs

2022 Audi e-tron GT and RS GT Make Us Forget They’re EVs

BY TONY QUIROGA | CarAndDriver.Com Troy Warren for CNT #cars Audi's new e-tron GT Quattro and RS e-tron GT are great sports sedans first and electric cars second. Somewhere between Los Angeles and the desert-like canyon country north of the city, the Audi e-tron GT Quattro ceased to be an electric car. Not literally, of course. Its 83.7-kWh battery pack kept sending electrons to the motors on each axle, which combine to produce 496 horsepower (522 in overboost mode) and 464 pound-feet of torque (472 during overboost). But while cruising at extra-legal speeds, we were struck by how this Audi's goodness as a car overshadowed its…
Read More
2022 Genesis GV70 Shows Up Fashionably Late

2022 Genesis GV70 Shows Up Fashionably Late

BY DEREK POWELL | CarAndDriver.Com Troy Warren for CNT In a segment filled with off-the-rack items, Genesis looks like couture. A memorable entrance can forgive a multitude of sins, including lateness. Consider the Genesis GV70, which is the latest mid-size SUV to arrive in the crowded and competitive mid-size luxury SUV segment. With measurements, performance, and pricing that are within a decimal point or two of the competition, the GV70 stands out with a dazzling sense of style and a fastidious attention to the details that define luxury. Mechanically, the GV70 borrows liberally from its G70 platform-mate. All four corners enjoy the same multilink setup, albeit with…
Read More
Tested: 2021 Ford Bronco Manual Brings the Fun

Tested: 2021 Ford Bronco Manual Brings the Fun

BY ELANA SCHERR | CarAndDriver.Com Troy Warren for CNT You'll give up some features for the manual transmission, but it's well worth it. The pony liked it. Well, she licked it, which is a sign of affection, right? Perhaps she recognized the 2021 Ford Bronco's badge and presumed it was a new member of the herd. Getting equine approval seemed important for a truck named for a horse, which is why we swung by a stable during our week of testing. Several riders brought their mounts over to scope out the two-door Bronco, although they demonstrated their interest in a less mouthy manner, peering…
Read More