Autos

The old-school body-on-frame SUV remains mostly unchanged, too. The only significant difference for 2021 is that the Heritage Edition now gets the option of a third row of seats and two new exterior colors: Classic Silver Metallic and Magnetic Gray Metallic join Midnight Black Metallic and Blizzard Pearl. All Heritage Edition cars come with a model-specific set of sweet-looking BBS-sourced 18-inch wheels. See all 37 photos The power plant for this mammoth SUV is the same 5.7-liter V-8 as before and it once again churns out 381 hp and 401 lb-ft of torque. Likewise, the Land Cruiser’s hydraulically controlled sway bars (known as Kinetic Dynamic Suspension System in Toyota-speak), hill-descent control, multi-terrain select, and the lockable Torsen center differential are still all ...

If Rod Hall ever had the opportunity to race a new, 2021 Ford Bronco, we think it just might resemble this rendering. And odds are he would have left the competition in the dust. Rod Hall dedicated his life to racing four-wheel-drive vehicles, accomplishing one of the most impressive racing resumes ever seen in the professional off-road racing world by winning over 160 major events and a variety of SCORE, HDRA, and BiTD championship titles. One of his coolest accomplishments was racing in every single one of the first fifty SCORE Baja 1000, one of the most prestigious off-road races in the world. From its inception in 1967 (then called the NORRA Mexican 1000 Rally) to his last start racing a Hummer in 2017 when he was nearly 80, Hall collected 25 class wins and thousands of memories. One o...

Like a cockroach in a nuclear wasteland, the Toyota 4Runner simply refuses to die. No surprise, then, that the 4Runner enters the 2021 model year as fundamentally the same SUV it was more than a decade ago. Despite this, Toyota continues to improve upon its aging mid-size model, and all 2021 4Runners benefit from the addition of LED low-beam headlights and fog lights. Step up to the more luxurious Limited, dark-hued Nightshade, or off-road-ready TRD Pro trims and the Japanese automaker tosses in LED high-beam headlights, too. Exterior lighting is far from the only change to the body-on-frame 4Runner, and the boxy Toyota looks to capitalize on its off-tarmac capabilities by way of a new (and previously unveiled) Trail special edition model that adds TRD wheels, a Yakima rooftop ca...

Despite occupying the top slot in General Motors’ brand hierarchy, Cadillac won’t get the first electric vehicle from GM’s dedicated new electric vehicle architecture. That honor goes to GMC, which is getting the 2022 Hummer EV SUT, an electric pickup that goes into production in the fall of 2021, and which will be followed later by an SUV. (GM just released more details on the pair, in fact.) Instead, Cadillac will run a close second behind GMC—its Lyriq electric crossover will go on sale for the 2023 model year. Prior to that, the full unveil of a production-previewing concept will happen on August 6, and we know plenty about both the concept and the eventual streetgoing model. Indeed, the Lyriq concept is an unusually direct precursor to the production model, and GM sa...

Tubular Rear Airbags See all 18 photos The new S-Class will offer rear passenger airbags that deploy from the back of the front seats. The airbag’s unique tubular structure allows it to wrap around the occupant’s head, while the material between the tubes inflates just the right amount to catch and cushion said noggin. Mercedes says its design allows for quick deployment of a relatively high-volume airbag with less risk of injury to the passenger. Pre-Safe Side Collision Mitigation See all 18 photos If the new S-Class’s sensors determine a side impact is imminent, the E-Active Body Control adaptive suspension system automatically raises the entire body up to three inches to redirect energy from the crash into the more robust lower structure of the car. This all happens &#...

Lamborghini is seeking the attention of the world’s wealthy gentlemen and gentlewomen racers with its new Essenza SCV12 track car. Limited to 40 units, the Essenza SCV12 allows customers to enter what Lamborghini deems an “exclusive club. “ Of course, any owner of a rare car is arguably part of an exclusive club, but the Essenza SCV12 packs perks not often associated with automobile ownership. After all, this is a tried-and-true track car, and Lamborghini won’t have Essenza SCV12 owners use it in any other way. That’s because purchasing an Essenza SCV12 also nets entry to regular drive events at various FIA Grade 1 circuits. Alas, Lamborghini didn’t share the individual tracks it plans to host events at, the first of which occurs in 2021. See all 11 phot...

It’s official. The 2021 Hyundai Veloster N welcomes a self-shifting transmission to the hot hatch’s options menu. Don’t worry manual fans, the car’s standard-issue six-speed gearbox sticks around.  See all 26 photos Performance Package, Shmerformance Package The 2021 Veloster N, however, does away with the outgoing model’s optional Performance package. Or rather, it no longer charges extra for the contents of the package’s kit. As such, every 2021 Veloster N boasts 275 hp from the turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four that rests underhood (the prior, standard 250-hp tune no longer exists), a limited-slip differential, 19-inch wheels shod on sticky summer tires, a variable exhaust system, and large 13.6-inch front and 12.4-inch rear vented rotors (0.6-i...

The latest drop in Lucid’s drip-drip prelude to its September 9th reveal of the slippery looking Air, its first model, is its driver assistance sensor suite. The moniker they’ve chosen for the comprehensive setup -which includes a monstrous 32-sensor count!—is “DreamDrive,” and it’s akin to Cadillac’s Super Cruise in that it promises a lot (Super! Dream!) while astutely steering clear of the suggestion of autonomy that apparently has caused some of Tesla’s Autopilot users to recklessly play smartphone games or take 70-mph naps. But it’s that 32-sensor suite that’ll make DreamDrive either a fantasy or a nightmare, and the sheer number of sensors, at least, is certainly promising. There are 14 cameras: Three forward-facing,...

We’re starting to get a fuller picture of what the new GMC Hummer line of electric trucks and SUVs will look like, as well as what features the two vehicles will pack—although the latest teaser video raises more questions than it answers. What’s “Crab mode?” We can make some educated guesses, but we’re assuming it doesn’t involve a bib, warm butter, and some cut lemons. Let’s start with the truck’s profile, which clearly resembles its chunky ancestors—particularly the Hummer H2 SUT, although there are some significant styling differences. For one, the still-small bed looks longer. The C-pillars rake more toward the vehicle’s front, too. And instead of a “cowl” surrounding the rear window, as on the H2 SUT, there’s more...

After undergoing a thorough refresh for the 2020 model year, the Lexus RX L crossover SUV enters the 2021 model year with minimal changes. Still, it’s not completely devoid of differences. The most noteworthy update Lexus makes to the RX L—the “L” refers to its extra length compared to the non-L RX models—is to its standard features list. Blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert and power-folding auto-dimming exterior mirrors are now included across the board. The former item adds $1,865 to the bills of base 2020 RX 350L and RX 450hL gasoline-electric hybrid models as part of a package that also includes a surround-view monitor and parking sensors. Meanwhile, the latter item was grouped into the 2020 RX L’s $1,580 Premium package. See all 22 photos Additi...