Sometime in the next few months, someone will buy a Volvo S60 sedan with a panoramic sunroof that I installed. Good news: The experienced operators on the assembly line at Volvo’s spanking new plant near Charleston, South Carolina, didn’t let me mess it up.
The Swedish automaker is so proud of its first U.S. assembly plant and its rookie workforce that it invited a handful of journalists to an expedited assembly training session—and then try our hand on the factory floor. I paid attention. I didn’t want to subject the car-shopping public to a Russian roulette of potentially buying a sub-par vehicle that I helped build.
Most of the 1,500 workers employed here had never built a car before joining the Volvo team. The upbeat training sessions mix with the buzz of a new facility to create a positive vibe. Employees are quick to pull the “Andon cord” [...]
Curious to know whether this front-wheel-drive (sDrive) X2 has any sort of performance advantage over its all-wheel-drive (xDrive) counterpart, I asked our test team to run it through our test track routine and analyze the differences against previously tested X2s. Sure enough, our data shows that the X2 sDrive28i can get to 60 mph in 6.4 seconds, a tenth quicker than the all-wheel-drive version; however, per test driver Chris Walton, getting that extra tenth is challenging. First, turn off ESC and toggle into Sport mode. Then, proceed by a just-right whack of the throttle so that the X2 activates its quick-shift mode. The quick-shift mode acts as a sort of lite launch program; it corresponds to how quickly the throttle is pushed and how quickly the revs spin above 2,000 rpm. Lastly, Walton says it’s essential to find the sweet spot in which wheelspin is minimized. Done right, the sDrive will win the hole shot [...]
“I was born in Bosnia, the poorest country in Europe. The roads were dirt. Cars were very rare. Nobody in my family had anything to do with cars, but my parents tell me that before I could walk or talk, I was already then crazy about them. Nobody knows why. I was just, somehow, for some reason, born with it.”
I’m chatting with Mate Rimac (pronounced “mah-TAY re-MATS”) at the Geneva Motor Show. Nearby is the Rimac Automobili C_Two, a production-ready, all-electric hypercar boasting 1,887 hp, 1,696 lb-ft of torque, and performance to scare a Bugatti Chiron. Rimac claims the C_Two will hit 60 mph in 1.85 seconds, 100 mph in 4.3 seconds, and 186 mph in 11.8 seconds. The quarter mile takes just 9.1 seconds, en route to a top speed of 256 mph.
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During my time with the 2019 Lexus UX, I lost count of the number of times people called it a hatchback masquerading as a crossover. They’re right: The UX’s tidy proportions and low seating position scream hatchback, muddling the definition of a crossover. Whatever you call it, the 2019 Lexus UX aims to lure millennials searching for something city-friendly, tech forward, and bold. It’s got the looks covered—but what about the rest of the experience?
In public, the 2019 Lexus UX stands out, especially in F Sport guise with its blacked-out grille and large faux air intakes in the lower front fascia. Taillights with integrated fins create a distinctive look, especially with the full-width LED light strip. The available triple-beam LED headlights provide the full predator effect. Unfortunately, though, eccentric style comes at the cost of visibility; the thick pillars and small rear window [...]
During Car of the Year testing back in 2015, lead photographer William Walker and I thought it would be fun to count how many M badges adorned the 340i M Sport we had in the competition. I can’t recall the exact number, but I think we got to 30 and decided we’d better get back to the bazillion other cars we had left to shoot. Point is, you can get the fabled M badge on any BMW nowadays, some more deserving than others. Our X3 isn’t a full-blown M-car, so does it deserve the 15 M badges it sports? We took it to our test track to find out.
The X3 M40i takes 4.8 seconds to hit 60 mph and 13.4 seconds to cover the quarter mile at 103 mph. According to road test editor Chris Walton, “The numbers say it’s quick, but it’s so undramatic that it [...]
