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- Porsche woes, VW renames icons, Infiniti QX80 drops
Porsche woes, VW renames icons, Infiniti QX80 drops
PLUS: Bezos’ $20k pickup, Ram TRX $18k off, BMW shooting brake
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2025-05-20
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Releases & Reviews
The revamped Vantage’s AMG-sourced 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 now delivers 656 horsepower (489 kW) and 590 lb-ft (800 Nm), hustling the coupe to 60 mph in 3.4 seconds and 202 mph (325 km/h). MotorTrend praises its composure and soundtrack, but notes carbon-ceramic brakes need heat and the 8-speed auto can hesitate.
Infiniti’s redesigned body-on-frame flagship shares the Armada’s platform but adds air suspension, a quieter cabin and 450 horsepower (336 kW) from its twin-turbo V6. Savagegeese like the cushy ride and captain’s-chair second row, yet question the $110,000 sticker and long-term value given 8,500 lb (3,856 kg) towing rivals.
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Technology, Market Data & Analysis
Subaru will raise U.S. MSRPs by $750–$2,055 to offset higher costs, joining Ford in passing 25 percent import tariffs to consumers. Dealer notices show Forester hikes of $1,075–$1,600, and increases hit inventory arriving in June; Subaru imports 45 percent of its U.S. lineup.
Motor1 notes Porsche’s global deliveries fell 8 percent, with U.S. volume propped up by the Macan and Cayenne that form 68 percent of sales and risk tariff pain. EV momentum lags: Taycan demand plunged 49 percent and the battery-supplier failure pushes the next electric 718 beyond 2027, pressuring margins as 911 prices climb.
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Car Culture
An Arizona father-son restoration team rescued a neglected Lamborghini LM002, swapping its missing V12 for a junkyard 5.9-liter Cummins diesel tuned to 600 horsepower (447 kW) and 1,200 lb-ft (1,627 Nm). King shocks, 16-inch brakes and a 48RE automatic let the 6,800 lb (3,084 kg) super-truck moonlight as their tow rig.
Ian Callum’s studio has reimagined the Jaguar E-Type with flush handles, LED lighting, black-trimmed bodywork and 19-inch three-spoke alloys that echo classic knock-offs. Few details are public, but the roadster will be built in very small numbers with custom powertrain options and near-limitless personalization.
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Miscellaneous
VW sales boss Martin Sander told Auto Und Wirtschaft future models will ditch clunky alphanumerics like ID.2all for “proper names,” reviving the brand’s Beetle-and-Golf tradition. Whether the ID prefix survives remains undecided, but the production EV based on the ID.2 prototype will wear a new badge.
A one-of-19 1996 Carroll Shelby Limited Edition Viper—one of just two finished in blue with white stripes—fetched $197,950 on Hagerty Marketplace, just shy of the $198,000 record for a 1998 GT2. The sale underscores soaring values for well-preserved first-generation V10 icons.
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Quick Links
Teaser photos hint the Villa d'Este concept is a hard-roof M8 Skytop shooting brake packing the donor coupe’s 617 horsepower (460 kW) twin-turbo 4.4-liter V-8, xDrive all-wheel drive and razor-thin LED tail lamps for its May 23 debut.
Toyota’s triple-image teaser shows high-mounted segmented LED taillights, a beefier Woodland-style trim with chunky all-terrain tires, and a GR-Corolla-inspired grille, foreshadowing hybrid-heavy powertrains when the sixth-generation RAV4 breaks cover tomorrow night.
The Ultimate Edition adds Wind metallic paint, matte-black 19-inch BBS wheels, red Brembo six-piston calipers and a numbered dash badge, yet keeps the 472 horsepower (352 kW), 395 lb-ft (536 Nm) 5.0-liter V-8; only 500 will be built.
A barely-driven 2024 Ram 1500 TRX Final Edition—with the 702 horsepower (524 kW) supercharged 6.2-liter Hemi—hammered at $107,000, an $18,215 slide below its $125,215 MSRP, signaling cooling demand for once-markup-proof super-trucks.
Honda’s first CR-V TrailSport arrives at $40,195, adding only unique 18-inch wheels and Continental ATR tires to the hybrid AWD drivetrain, while the entry LX climbs to $32,315, continuing year-over-year price creep across the lineup.
Quiet sales stars for 2025 include Kia’s revamped Sportage up 12.7 percent, Hyundai’s refreshed Elantra jumping 26.1 percent and Ford’s new-gen Ranger rocketing 251 percent, proving value-oriented workhorses still outsell flashier EV headlines.
Top Gear’s walkthrough shows Slate Auto’s $19,990 single-cab EV pickup backed by Jeff Bezos: rear-drive, 200 horsepower (149 kW), 53 kWh for 150 miles (241 km) or 84 kWh for 240 miles (386 km), plus hot-swap plastic body panels for DIY customization.
On Jay Leno’s Garage, Cameron Richards joins Jay to flog a 1913 Mercedes 3795 Double Phaeton: a 9.6-liter four-cylinder making 95 horsepower (71 kW) that once hit 100 mph (161 km/h), still storming Los Angeles roads 112 years later.
Ring-running prototypes confirm the GV90’s Neolun-inspired slab-sided body, 22-inch chrome wheels, air suspension and rear-wheel steering; the 800-volt eM platform targets 50 percent more range than today’s E-GMP EVs and a roughly $100,000 sticker.
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