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Lego has announced a slew of new automotive-themed sets. As is typical fashion for brand of building toys, the subject matter leans toward ultra-exotic, ultra-expensive vehicles, ranging from a $139,000 Mercedes SL63 on the low end to a $3 million Koenigsegg Jesko Absolut on the high end. If you can't afford those cars in real life, soon you'll be able to build your own plastic models of them.
BMW has orbited around the pickup segment several times over the past few years without landing in it. In 2016, right after Mercedes-Benz badge-engineered a Nissan Navara into the short-lived X-Class, one of the Munich-based company's executives confirmed his team was «watching the [pickup] space closely.» In 2019, an X7-based pickup concept made its debut to haul motorcycles. The final call is no, however.
Jeep is expanding the Gladiator's palette with a color that makes the truck pretty much impossible to lose in a parking lot: Tuscadero Pink.
DOUGLASVILLE, Ga. — The 2024 Chevrolet Traverse marks the start of the three-row crossover’s third generation. While it still serves the same general purpose as before, it does so with actual style this time. It gets new looks, which align more with the body-on-frame side of the Chevy family tree, giving this family hauler a beefier and sportier character. The interior gets a makeover, too, with dual screens on the dash providing a tech-inspired focal point. Chevy also introduces the rugged-looking Z71 and street-savvy RS trims at the top of the lineup, providing a bit of spice on top of the Traverse’s fresh flavor. It was those two trims that we got to experience on our brief drives outside of Atlanta.
Recently installed Jeep CEO Antonio Filosa has a lot of hard yards ahead, his agenda for the brand including a return to one million annual sales globally, figuring out a marketing angle that entices hardcore Jeepers and casuals sniffing around the show floor, improving reliability, improving dealer relations, and navigating an even more stormy transition to electric vehicles. On the latter note, Jeep will launch two battery-electric models soon, the Wagoneer S this year, then the Recon late this year or in early 2025, the first products to reach the market here that sit on the STLA Large platform developed by parent company Stellantis.
It's been awhile since Lamborghini-owned Italdesign showed a proper 4x4 concept car, that being the 2013 Parcour concept. Before that, the last four-wheel-drive experiment the Italians take credit for was the Panda 4x4 from 1980, which morphed into the Lancia Delta. The Italians figured this year's Beijing Motor Show was the right time to do it again, flying into China with the Quintessenza concept that's part high-riding fastback GT, part pickup, and all-electric. Aimed at that most popular segment, youthful types who live in the city but love nature, with the money to enjoy both, Italdesign says the Quintessenza is «inspired by the concepts of flexibility, freedom, sportiness, and duality in concept and architecture.»
As part of the marketing campaign for the Ram RHO pickup, the automaker created a three-minute video called "The Convoy" that lined up a number of Ram products including Warlock and Rebel X trims. Because it would take someone in-the-know to identify all the Easter eggs and behind-the-scenes secrets, Jeff Summers, head of advertising at Ram Trucks, has done just that. In a LinkedIn post, he picks out 20 features of the three-minute clip, such as the custom Baja truck «with Ram DNA» belonging to Baja race winner Rhys Millen, and the two KTM motorcycles chosen to represent one of Ram's European partnerships. Regarding the latter, Summers is talking about Ram signing on for a third year of sponsorship of the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing team, specifically in the the FIM Motocross World Championship.
Every report about the Tesla Cybertruck makes it more understandable why Tesla had so little to say about its long awaited pickup at the launch event. The automaker says it's not far away from shipping out another big software update to add features to the electric off-roader, following an OTA package in February. The new code mainly enhances off-road features, but there are some on-road goodies as well. There's now an Off-Road driving mode with two settings, Overland and Baja. These are the activation and expansion of menus already in the infotainment menu that we found out about in December but that didn't work and didn't come with any explanation.