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Manual Bronco Review, Lambo Roadster, MB 144K Recall
PLUS: Last BMW Z4, Lyriq Hearse, Leno on ZR1X vs GTD vs GT3
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2026-05-11
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Releases & Reviews
Capped at just 15 units, this open-top Fenomeno keeps the coupe's plug-in hybrid V12 making 1,065 horsepower (794 kW) and tops out at 211 mph (340 km/h). The blue-and-red livery nods to the 1968 Miura Roadster, while a redesigned carbon-spoilered windscreen claims aero nearly matching the fixed-roof version.
Pairing the base two-door Bronco with the $8,500 Sasquatch kit—lockers, 35-inch tires, Bilstein dampers—and a seven-speed manual with crawler gear gives you a 300-horsepower (224 kW) overlander for $50,145. Reviewer Andrew Collins calls it the ultimate old-school adventure setup with modern refinement, picking it over Wrangler and 4Runner.
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Technology, Market Data & Analysis
The 2026 Model Y became the first vehicle to clear NHTSA's revamped 5-star rating, which now scores driver-assist tech like pedestrian automatic emergency braking, lane keeping, and blind-spot intervention. It's the first NCAP update in a decade, even as Tesla's Full Self-Driving remains under federal investigation.
Chief commercial officer Eric Severinson argued that a customer spending $80,000 on a premium car shouldn't pay an extra $5 per month for heated seats. He drew the line ahead of the EX60 launch—Volvo's first Swedish-built EV—saying subscriptions only make sense for connectivity or driver-assist bundles, never basic features.
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Car Culture
The 1978 F1 world champion's 2015 Corvette Z06 is up at Hagerty Marketplace—a 650-horsepower (485 kW) supercharged LT4 V8 with 650 lb-ft (881 Nm) and a 200-mph (322 km/h) ceiling. Andretti's signed dash plaque and the 8,300-mile (13,355 km) odometer document the provenance; bidding sits at $50,000 with two weeks left.
From the December 1997 C/D archive: this AWD wagon comparison pits the Audi A4 Avant Quattro's 190-horsepower (142 kW) V6 and five-speed manual against the Volvo V70 AWD's 190-horsepower (142 kW) turbo five and four-speed automatic. The Audi takes first place on style, grip, and a roughly $7,000 lower as-tested price.
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Miscellaneous
An infotainment software flaw can briefly blank the digital instrument cluster across 144,049 Mercedes-Benz models from 2024–2026—AMG GT, C-, E-, SL-, CLE-, and GLC-class. Drivers get no warning before the reset, though a dealer software update fixes it. Owner notification letters mail June 26.
Torchinsky catalogs carless car ads—from DDB's iconic 1960s Volkswagen work (a near-blank page, snow tire tracks, the 1969 lunar lander tribute) to the pretentious side: Jaguar's Copy Nothing, Cadillac's Teddy Roosevelt speech. His point: car ads sell a concept of a car, not always the car itself.
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Quick Links
BMW confirmed G29 Z4 production wrapped at Magna Steyr in Austria, leaving only the 4 Series as the brand's last convertible and ending a roadster line that ran nearly 30 years from Z3 to Final Edition.
MotorTrend's InEVitable visits Leno's Big Dog Garage for his impressions of all three super-coupes, his Ken Block Mustang ownership, and his push for SB1392 to exempt classic cars from California smog checks.
Florida coachbuilder Wolf Coach is converting GM's rear-drive Lyriq into two professional grades—the closed-roof Flagship Legacy and a glass-walled Panorama—reviving the brand's mid-century commercial-chassis tradition in EV form.
Ford's 1.6L Compound Valve-angle Hemispherical four powered Escorts, Sierras, Caterhams, and even Chery's first car, and Car and Driver once compared its sound to a weed eater chewing through saplings.
Stellantis is recalling 20,271 Jeep Wagoneer S and Dodge Charger Daytona EVs from 2024-2025 because the instrument panel can fail and violate two FMVSS rules; a free software update lands May 21.
Experian data shows 28 different nameplates topping the charts across the 50 states plus D.C. and Puerto Rico, with the Tesla Model Y leading at least one solidly red state and the Toyota Corolla Cross sneaking in too.
Rezvani's Fortress pickup debuts next month with reservations open for a $500 refundable deposit, optional lightweight composite armor, smoke screens, and electrified door handles, with pricing likely topping $100,000.
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