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2025-05-02

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Releases & Reviews

FIRST DRIVE: Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale – As Good As It Looks? (20 minute watch)

Top Gear’s Jack Rix hot-laps Alfa’s modern 33 Stradale, a carbon-tub coupe limited to 33 units. Its 621 hp (463 kW) twin-turbo 3.0-liter V6, 8-speed DCT and active rear-steer push to 207 mph (333 km/h) yet remain road-friendly; at £1.7 million (~$2.1 million) every example is already spoken for.

I Test Drove the 2025 Ford Raptor R: Here’s the Real Verdict (7 minute read)

Autoblog’s first drive finds the 2025 Raptor R’s 700 hp (522 kW) supercharged 5.2-liter V8 and 640 lb-ft (868 Nm) transforming Ford’s desert icon into a 114 mph (183 km/h) missile on 37-inch tires. Fox Live Valve dampers, 15-inch suspension travel and a ~$113,500 sticker round out the hilariously capable 6,100 lb (2,767 kg) truck.

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Technology, Market Data & Analysis

GM cuts 2025 profit forecast, expects up to $5 billion tariff impact (4 minute read)

Responding to the new 25 % U.S. auto tariffs, GM trimmed its 2025 EBIT outlook to $10–$12.5 billion and warned of a $4–$5 billion cost hit, vowing to offset 30 % through supplier localization, cost cuts and expanded U.S. battery-module production.

Toyota and Waymo Will Co-Develop a New Autonomous Vehicle Platform (3 minute read)

The surprise tie-up pivots Waymo beyond robotaxis, marrying its self-driving software with Toyota hardware to create an autonomy-ready platform for privately owned vehicles later this decade. Engineers will share safety data and SAE Level-4 sensor suites, setting up a direct technology showdown with Tesla’s “Full Self-Driving.”

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Car Culture

The LAST 289 Shelby Cobra To be Discovered Was Missing For 43 Years, Until NOW! | Barn Find Hunter (23 minute watch)

Hagerty’s Tom Cotter unearths CSX2429, the final unrestored 289 Cobra, entombed in a Georgia storage unit since 1982. Original 271 hp (202 kW) Hi-Po 289, matching-number chassis tags and crates of Weber carburetors confirm authenticity; restoration will return the featherweight 2,000 lb (907 kg) legend to the road.

Speed Racer: The Story of Steve McQueen's First New Car (8 minute read)

MotorTrend revisits McQueen’s black 1958 Porsche 356 Speedster 1600 Super, his first new purchase and first SCCA race winner. The 75 hp (56 kW) flat-four roadster was sold, rediscovered, then repurchased by the star in 1974; son Chad now preserves it exactly as his father preferred.

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Miscellaneous

Montana Has Been a Haven to Register Your Expensive Car. Not Anymore? (3 minute read)

Forming a low-cost Montana LLC let owners dodge sales tax on Ferraris and Bugattis, but Utah’s new SB52 targets residents with out-of-state plates, and California plate-reader crackdowns signal other states may soon end the high-dollar registration loophole.

Semi-Truck Spills $800K in Dimes Causing Unfathomably Annoying Cleanup (2 minute read)

When a tractor-trailer rolled on Texas’ Highway 287 it scattered eight million new dimes—worth $800,000—across the roadway. Vacuum trucks, rakes and hand-pickers wrangled the 18,100 kg (39,900 lb) spill during an all-day closure; the driver and passenger escaped with minor injuries.

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Quick Links

Everything you've ever googled about self-driving cars, answered by Top Gear (3 minute read)

Top Gear’s wry explainer notes that fully autonomous consumer cars still don’t exist, tackles ethical quandaries and traffic myths, and highlights loopholes like San Francisco’s no-ticket rule for empty robo-taxis.

The Feds Want A $250 Annual EV Tax. Here's Why It's A Sham (10 minute read)

Critics argue the proposed $250 EV registration fee equates to the federal tax on 1,389 gallons of gasoline, doubles what average drivers pay, exempts commercial fleets, and threatens highway funding for states that refuse to collect.

VW Forced To Recall ID.Buzz Because The Seats Are Too Roomy (4 minute read)

U.S. regulators say the ID.Buzz’s extra-wide third-row bench effectively creates an unbelted middle seat, so VW must retrofit 5,637 vans with filler trim after misreading the allowable width for two designated seating positions.

The Ford Mustang GTD Just Broke Its Own Nürburgring Record (2 minute read)

With an uprated 815 hp (608 kW) V8, stiffer chassis and sharpened aero, Ford’s Mustang GTD lapped the Nürburgring in 6 minutes 52.072 seconds, eclipsing its own mark and even beating the Porsche 918 Spyder.

Cupra Lays Out Its Bold Plan to Make and Sell Vehicles in the US (6 minute read)

VW’s Spanish spin-off Cupra plans a Chattanooga-built midsize SUV for 2030, targeting $45,000 premium territory, hybrid and EV powertrains, and expansion from coastal city “City Garages” after 248,100 global sales in 2024.

The Mazda CX-50 Hybrid Is for Fuel-Sipping Enthusiasts: Review (5 minute read)

Toyota-sourced hybrid hardware gives Mazda’s CX-50 219 hp (163 kW), 163 lb-ft (221 Nm) and 38 mpg (6.2 L/100 km) combined, but reviewers say its coarse engine transitions and dated infotainment dilute the crossover’s otherwise sharp handling.

Spied! Is Ford Testing New GT500 Mules in Dearborn? (3 minute read)

Camouflaged S650 Mustang mules wearing 305-/315-section rubber, carbon wheels and cage equipment hint at a 2026 GT500 revival likely packing the 760 hp (567 kW), 623 lb-ft (845 Nm) 5.2-liter supercharged V8.

Propane Truck Ignores Wooden Bridge’s Weight Limit and Falls Into a Creek (2 minute read)

Ignoring a clearly posted 5-ton limit, a 10-15-ton propane tanker shattered a wooden Emmaus bridge and plunged into Little Lehigh Creek, fortunately spilling no fuel but severing a key access route for the conservancy.

This $8.7 Million Mansion For Sale Comes With Its Own Drive-Thru Car Wash (2 minute read)

Listed at $8.75 million, the 30-acre Ann Arbor estate pairs a Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired 10,000 sq ft home with a 10-car garage and full private drive-through wash bay—practically a personal concours venue.