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- 🚘 1,490-HP Fighter vs Mustang, $249K Maybach, Ram Recall
🚘 1,490-HP Fighter vs Mustang, $249K Maybach, Ram Recall
PLUS: Audi's V8 SQ9, Genesis coach doors, R34 GT-R
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2026-08-03
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Releases & Reviews
The R2 Performance's dual motors make a combined 656 horsepower (489 kW) and hit 60 mph in 3.5 seconds, yet the real story is packaging: it swallowed 10 carry-ons to the Model Y's seven. Testing returned 260 miles (418 km) of highway range at $61,485 as tested.
A twin-turbo V8 makes 577 horsepower (430 kW) and 590 lb-ft (800 Nm), but at 4,409 pounds (1,997 kg) the $249,150 roadster feels boat-like rather than sharp. The intrusive "Hey Mercedes" assistant once fired up the defroster after misreading a passenger's offhand remark.
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Technology, Market Data & Analysis
Sales boss Mathias Geisen says customer clinics were blunt: buyers love the big screens but want hard controls for everyday functions, so future models will get them back. Volkswagen, Hyundai, and Subaru are reversing course too, helped by Euro NCAP rewarding physical controls in future crash ratings.
Ford charges $49.99 a month for BlueCruise hands-free driving, or $2,495 up front, while Tesla rents Full Self-Driving at $99 a month — all on hardware already bolted into the car. The piece argues free trials, not dealers, will normalize the monthly-fee car.
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Car Culture
Car and Driver's 1999 archive test pits Jack Roush's $1.4 million P-51D against his 335 horsepower (250 kW) Stage 3 Mustang. The supercharged coupe actually out-accelerates the fighter to 130 mph (209 km/h) before the Merlin V-12 pulls away toward 437 mph (703 km/h).
GM hired Bill Besler — the only person to fly a steam-powered airplane — to convert a 1969 Chevelle. The result made 50 horsepower (37 kW), took 30 seconds to build steam, ran to 65 mph (105 km/h) on kerosene, and logged over 5,000 miles (8,045 km) of testing.
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Miscellaneous
Stellantis says second-row center and driver-side seat belt buckle anchors on 2019–2026 Ram 1500 pickups may never have been properly attached to the body structure. Another 245,000 trucks are affected outside the US; dealers will inspect and secure the anchors free of charge.
The tee labels three GMT800 Silverados as regular, extended, and crew cab — but draws all three with two doors and a progressively longer bed. GM confirmed the product never went through its licensing approval process and says it will take action to pull it from stores.
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The US-only SQ9 makes 583 horsepower (435 kW) and 590 lb-ft (800 Nm) from its twin-turbo V8, hits 60 mph in 3.8 seconds, and starts at $118,000 when deliveries begin later this year.
The probe covers 2018–2020 Model 3 and 2021–2023 Model Y vehicles after 156 complaints of the front lower lateral link detaching, usually with no advance warning, though no crashes or injuries have been recorded.
Jim Farley told employees at a closed town hall that Chinese automakers will reach American shores within five to 10 years, a threat aimed squarely at Ford's forthcoming $30,000 electric pickup.
A Genesis executive confirmed the Neolun concept's rear-hinged doors survived to production, giving the flagship electric SUV, due to be revealed this month, a feature Genesis says only Rolls-Royce otherwise offers.
Due in 2030, the ninth-generation car will lean on the Corvette CX concept for softer, Coke-bottle styling atop an updated version of the C8's architecture, with hybrids expected later in its life.
Three affordable classics, starting with the Bertone-penned Fiat X1/9, carry the design language of Italy's most storied studios without demanding a second mortgage.
DRIVETRIBE drives a bone-stock V-Spec to test whether the RB26DETT, officially capped at 279 horsepower (208 kW) by Japan's gentlemen's agreement, earns its reputation beyond Gran Turismo and Fast and Furious.
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