Author Archives: shinymetalboxes

2024 Lexus RX 450h+

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A plug-in hybrid version of the CUV that just keeps getting better

By Gary S. Vasilash

Lexus has been putting the RX on the road since 1998. Arguably, this was the first-available luxury crossover. Inarguably it has been a stalwart in the Lexus lineup.

Through the third quarter of 2024 the RX has been sold 83,341 times in the U.S. And to put that number in context, know that during the same period Lincoln—which now is an all-crossover brand (though the Navigator has a body-on-frame architecture, so it is a bona-fide SUV)—had sales of 74,530.

One model outsold four.

The RX is now in its fifth generation.

I am more than passingly familiar with all of them.

And I make that observation for one reason:

It could be thought at Lexus HQ “We’ve been building the RX for more than 25 years, the consumers keep buying them, so let’s not spend too much time worrying about it because it is in a solid place that it is not likely to lose.”

Consequently, while the RX would be good, it would be good with an accompanying shrug.

Lexus RX 450h+ plug-in hybrid. (Image Lexus)

Yet this RX simply exceeds expectations in its attention to detail and execution.

While this might seem to be a trivial example (trivial unless you drive one of these vehicles regularly, at which point the trivial can make a major difference), note how the bottom of the doors are curved and robustly sealed over the rockers. This not only helps provide a stout structure but it attenuates noise intrusion, especially road noise (as that is the closest thing down there).

It helps provide vault-like silence. Which is what one wants in a luxury vehicle, right?

The interior—from semi-aniline leather and materials including open-pore wood, to the audiophile Mark Levinson system—combines function with comfort with useability (e.g., if you want to adjust the temperature there is a knob at hand and if you want to activate the heated and cooled front seats, then buttons are available).

The powertrain consists of a 2.5-liter inline four-cylinder engine that is supplemented by permanent magnet motors front and rear (which provides the vehicle with all-wheel drive capability). The total system horsepower is 304, which does the job for a vehicle that has a curb weight of 4,810 pounds and measures 192.52 inches long, 75.59 inches wide, 67.32 inches high, and has a wheelbase of 112.2 inches.

Of course, the reason one buys a plug-in hybrid (there are RX versions that are straight ICE as well as two non-plug-in hybrid variants) is for the fuel efficiency that is provided.

In the case of the RX 450h+ there is the ability to drive up to 35 miles on electric power only. (The vehicle can be charged on a typical 120-V outlet in about 11.5 hours or, when a 240-V system is used with the standard 6.6 kW onboard charger it is done in about 2.5 hours.)

Then when operating as a hybrid alone, it has an estimated combined miles per gallon rating of 35 mpg, so with its 14.53-gallon fuel tank it provides a range of over 500 miles.

(Note: the vehicle has an 83 MPGe rating. I will not try to explain it and I think it is something that the EPA needs to do away with on the sticker because it simply doesn’t make a whole lot of difference to the consumer who isn’t an electrical engineer.)

Here’s something interesting about Lexus: in the J.D. Power 2025 U.S. ALG Residual Value Awards—which determine the value that a vehicle holds following a three-year period of ownership—Lexus took the top spot in the premium brand segment for the fourth year in a row.

And among the vehicles on the most-recent list: the RX.

Enjoy it today. Appreciate it tomorrow.

The Lucid Gravity: Defying ICE?

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Stats for the all-new SUV are remarkable

By Gary S. Vasilash

The Lucid Gravity Grand Touring is a gorgeous three-row SUV. Seating for up to seven. Up to 120 cubic feet of cargo capacity. All-wheel-drive. Possible towing capacity of up to 6,000 pounds. A peak power of up to 828 hp. A range of 440 miles.

A starting MSRP of $94,900. (In late 2025 the Touring trim will be available with a trimmed MSRP to $79,900.)

Lucid Gravity: lux meets efficiency. (Image: Lucid Motors)

While the price may seem to be a large number and the range good but not amazing, Lucid actually has something here that subverts both of those notions.

That is, the 2025 Lincoln Navigator, which is a large, lux three-row SUV packed full of technology, has a starting price of $99,995. Just over five grand on top of the Gravity.

It has a twin-turbo 3.5-liter V6 that produces 440 hp, just better than half of what the Gravity produces.

The Navigator has an estimated fuel economy of 19 mpg combined, so with a 23.6-gallon fuel tank, this means it has a range of 448 miles—about what the Gravity will deliver.

Certainly it is quicker to fill the tank on a Navigator than it is to recharge a Gravity, the Gravity can get some 200 miles of range from a 15-minute charge, so that, and the fact that there is an available Lucid Connected Home Charging Station (so there is the ability to get a full charge overnight, every night, which is not something that can be analogously accomplished with liquid fuel), pretty much makes that a wash, too.

Seems like Lucid just may have hit the place where an electric vehicle is competitive with a traditional ICE vehicle.

Or maybe that’s more than competitive.

Detroit Has 0 Michelin Starred Restaurants

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Munich has one in a facility where people take delivery of their cars. . .

By Gary S. Vasilash

While it is not uncommon for an automotive company to send out a news release regarding the retirement of an executive, BMW has sent one headlined:

BMW Welt bids farewell and thank you to star chef Bobby Bräuer

Which is, well, uncommon.

Bräuer is an executive, the executive chef of EssZimmer restaurant.

EssZimmer has achieved two Michelin stars since he took over the restaurant in 2012.

BMW Welt and BMW Group headquarters: notable architecture in Munich. (Image: BMW)

EssZimmer is one of the restaurants at BMW Welt in Munich, a facility that is not only a place where people can receive deliveries of their vehicles, but a public display of BMW Group products (BMW, BMW M, BMW i, MINI, Rolls-Royce, and BMW Motorrad)—since BMW Welt opened in 2007 more than 250,000 people have taken delivery there. There are three other restaurants and a bistro.

There are over three million people who visit BMW Welt each year.

There are displays, conferences, events and other activities that are both put on by BMW Welt (more than 400 people work there) or by organizations that rent space within the facility.

There is car culture and there is car culture.

Seems that BMW checks both boxes with its vehicle and with BMW Welt.

2025 Mazda CX-50 Hybrid Premium Plus

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A Mazda built in a somewhat unexpected place. . .

By Gary S. Vasilash

Madison, Alabama, is a city southwest of Huntsville, about 12 miles away, a quick trip on the I-565. It has a population of some 60,854, a nice bump up from the 56,933 in 2020.

The median household income in Madison is $118,132, compared with the national average of $75,149. Sixty-four percent of the population has a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared with the national average of 34%.

Madison, Alabama, is a place you’ve not heard of, as there are about 200 cities in the U.S. with a population of about 60,000.

But there’s something else about Madison that you may not be aware of:

It is the home of Mazda Toyota Manufacturing, a $2.3-billion factory where some 4,000 people work at producing 300,000 vehicle per year.

The first vehicle produced in the plant was the 2022 Toyota Corolla Cross. Assembly commenced in September 2021. A few months later, the Mazda CX-50 build began.

(Fun fact: Huntsville is the home of the legendary Marshall Space Flight Center. There are two assembly lines in the MTM plant: Apollo and Discovery.)

Timing is everything, so it seems rather propitious for Mazda that it decided to put a hybrid under the hood of the CX-50.

Mazda CX-50 compact crossover with a hybrid powertrain. (Image: Mazda)

And it would hard to believe that it is just a coincidence that the hybrid system—which includes a 176-hp 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine supplemented by three AC motors, so that there is a total system output of 219 hp—is one that is spec-wise just like the hybrid in the Toyota RAV-4.

(Curiously, the Corolla Cross is available as a hybrid, too, yet its system is different than the one that is used in the CX-50. The RAV-4 is built in the Toyota plant in Georgetown, Kentucky. Although one might think that it would be closer to go from Apollo to Discovery (or vice versa), turns out the hybrid system isn’t sourced from Kentucky but is sourced from Japan.)

It has a continuously variable transmission. It is all-wheel drive.

The vehicle is stickered at 39 mpg city, 37 mpg highway and 38 mpg combined.

Style

From the standpoint of the exterior, the compact crossover has the Mazda sheet metal styling that shows skill in creasing sheet metal, but perhaps because Mazda has been using this approach for a while on its range of vehicles, it isn’t as visually striking as it once was. Or maybe it has something to do with the fact that the Hyundai Tucson and Kia Sportage have become more visually striking and so the Mazda doesn’t have the standout looks it once had.

On the inside, especially as this is the top-of-the-line Premium Plus trim, there are things like leather for the seats and steering wheel. The instrumentation is laid out in a stylish and useful manner. There is a 10.25-inch display that is controlled by a large horizontally oriented knob in the center console. I would strongly recommend that if you’re interested in this vehicle and take it out for a test drive that you test drive that setup because some find it to be somewhat unwieldy.

Size

The CX-50 has a 110.8-inch wheelbase. It is 186.1 inches long, 75.6 inches wide and 65.8 inches wide.

So far as cargo: fold the second row and get 56 cubic feet. Behind the second row there are 29 cubic feet. As that is probably hard to visualize, simply know that there is plenty of room back there without folding the seats.

Assessment

The people in Mazda marketing probably cringe when people bring up the old “Zoom-Zoom” line.

If you’re interested in that, this isn’t the place to find it.

But if you want to get an efficient compact crossover, this is something that should be considered.

ZF & Remanufacturing

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Everything old isn’t precisely new again—but an increasing number of products are being remanufactured for the good of the environment. . .

By Gary S. Vasilash

One of the ways that the environment can benefit without much in the way of sacrifice for consumers is through the use of remanufactured products rather than new.

While some might thinks that “remanufactured” is simply a euphemism for “used,” and that “used” is typically substandard compared with “new,” a “remanufactured” product doesn’t mean “second-hand,” with all of the questions that go along with that, but reprocessed in a factory so that it is like-“new,” even though it isn’t.

In other words, this isn’t the classic case of “buying someone else’s problem.”

Drivetrain modules being remanufactured at the Bielefeld plant. (Image: ZF)

Auto supplier ZF, which is best known for making new things, like transmissions and chassis systems, is also an evident leader in performing remanufacturing.

It recently received the German Sustainability Award from the Germany Sustainability Award Foundation (obviously a case of the award name being a reuse of the words in the title of the organization).

The award was given in the context of its activities in the “transformation field of resources.”

Or remanufacturing.

ZF operates 25 remanufacturing sites worldwide.

One, in Bielefeld, Germany, has been in operation since 1963.

There products come in and are disassembled, cleaned, tested, refurbished and reassembled.

According to ZF, compared to a new part, the remanufactured part means

  • On average a reduction in material use of up to 95%
  • Energy and CO2 savings up to 90%

At the plant there are some 180,000 clutch pressure plates and disks, 10,000 torque converters, and 55,000 clutch release systems that come in used and go out remanufactured.

Presently, up to 35% of the products that were originally manufactured at Bielefeld return to the plant for remanufacturing. An objective is to increase that to 90% over the next five years.

Something About Bulgaria

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Looking east for potential in-country investment. . . .

By Stephen Macaulay

According to the CIA World Fact Book, the industries in Bulgaria are:

“electricity, gas, water; food, beverages, tobacco; machinery and equipment, automotive parts, base metals, chemical products, coke, refined petroleum, nuclear fuel; outsourcing centers”

Apparently, the automotive parts manufacturing operations in Bulgaria are extensive, with the company having a particular expertise in the production of things like airbag sensors.

But there are no OEM operations in Bulgaria.

So last week H.E. Rumen Radev, president of the Republic of Bulgaria, and his colleagues took a trip of nearly 5,000 east to the VinFast Hai Phong Manufacturing Complex in Vietnam.

Radev met with Vice Chairman and CEO of Vingroup, Mr. Nguyễn Việt Quang, who noted that the company is looking to expand its electric vehicle production operations around the world.

So Radev emphasized that Bulgaria might be a good place for the Vietnamese company to not only sell its EVs and produce components for them, but to even manufacture in the country.

The point: While the European auto industry is undergoing some severe pressures that will result in massive changes, people like Radev recognize that auto still represents a net positive for one’s GDP.

2024 Toyota Tacoma Trailhunter

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This Tacoma variant is one bad-ass machine. . .

By Gary S. Vasilash

With the 2024 Tacoma, the reengineering of what has long been the most popular—by a lot—truck in its midsize segment* Toyota product planners decided to make the market for the pickup as broad as possible by providing versions of the truck that cover the terrain in terms of price point and in terms of the way the truck is fitted out, be it someone who is looking for something they can drive to the supermarket or someone whose drive to the supermarket takes them over the valley and through the woods.

There are 11 variants, six with a 2.4-liter, four-cylinder turbocharged engine and five with the 2.4-liter supplemented with a hybrid system. The non-hybrid versions have either up to 228 hp and 243 lb-ft of torque or 278 hp and 317 lb-ft of torque. The hybrid version adds a 48-hp electric motor so that the combined horsepower in 326 and 465 lb-ft of torque. There are models with an eight-speed automatic transmission and models with a six-speed manual.

There are the SR, SR5, TRD PreRunner, TRD Sport, TRD Off-Road, Limited, TRD Sport i-FORCE MAX, TRD Off-Road i-FORCE MAX, Limited i-FORCE MAX, Trailhunter, and TRD Pro.

Sheldon Brown, Tacoma chief engineer, on these variants: “Each one has a distinct focus on the core purpose of the grade and uses hardware-, spec- and performance-based turning to deliver that unique experience more so than in the past.”

Common Elements

Having visited the Toyota Technical Center in Michigan during the development of the vehicle I can testify to the extent to which the development team did benchmarking and performed careful consideration of making each of the variants more than some trim modifications here and there.

What is consistent across the board is that the truck uses a boxed, steel-ladder frame. The Tacoma is based on the Toyota TNGA-F global truck platform, which means that it has the same underpinnings as the Land Cruiser, Sequoia, and Tundra, and forthcoming 4Runner.

Styled at the Toyota CALTY Design Research studio in California, Kevin Hunter, who heads that facility, said the design theme for the truck is “badass adventure machine.”

Again, yes, you can use it to pick up some cereal, yes, you can use it to traverse some rocks and logs, and either way, regardless of what model you pick, this is still something that looks like a truck, not something styled to be soft and silky.

The Trailhunter

2024 Toyota Tacoma Trailhunter: Engineered to get dirty. (Image: Toyota)

Of the lineup, the Trailhunter is certainly one that not only has the style but the stuff for, well, trail hunting, assuming that that activity requires driving places that are otherwise places were people don’t usually find themselves.

This model is a double cab configuration with a five-foot, aluminum reinforced composite bed.

ARB & Toyota

The vehicle comes with ARB high-performance Old Man Emu 2.5-inch forged monotube shocks. (Evidently the shocks are named after the large, flightless, Australian bird that can traverse difficult terrain at considerable speed. No, I don’t get it.)

Those shocks aren’t the only thing that ARB and Toyota collaborated on for the Trailhunter. The rear bumper is another, constructed with 2.5-mm thick steel that’s powder coated for durability. There are two red recovery points, two jack points for an off-road jack, and non-slip step pads.

Also, there are MOLLE sail panels that are attached to the truck so that there can be a variety of overlanding gear can be attached to them.

There are 33-inch Goodyear Territory Rugged Terrain tires wrapped around 18-inch bronze-finished alloy wheels. The bronze theme is also picked up on the heritage-style grille, although the integrated LED light bar is certainly not vintage, nor are the RIGID Industries LED fog lamps.

Also on the exterior are rock rails and, should you look under the truck, high-strength steel skid plates.

Selectable Settings

The Trailhunter has a push-button Stabilizer Disconnect Mechanism that increases the suspension articulation front and back.

There is also Multi-Terrain Selection which operates in 4WD High and 4WD Low. Depending on terrain selection (mud, dirt, sand) the system helps control wheel spin. There is an electronically activated locking read differential.

The Trailhunter also offers CRAWL Control: set a (slow) speed and it works as a cruise control system so you can concentrate of maneuvering the vehicle. And on the subject of maneuvering, there is the Multi-Terrain Monitor that shows what’s ahead of the truck on a 14-inch touchscreen.

One of the most-striking things about the interior design of the Trailhunter is found on the dashboard and center console. Yes, this is a completely technologically up-to-date vehicle.

But rather than having the driver needing to select things on the screen or via what seem to be rather paltry buttons, the knobs, switches and buttons in the Trailhunter are rugged and robust: You know that you are in a highly capable machine.

Which, presumably, is the point.

One More Thing

The Trailhunter is a hybrid. And only a hybrid. Toyota knows it can get the job done.

==

*In 2023 in the U.S. Ford sold 39,364 Rangers, Chevy 45,562 Colorados, GMC 14,831 Canyons, and Toyota 234,768 Tacomas.

Another Auto Brand Coming to America

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Well, Spain is the second-largest auto manufacturing country in Europe. . .

By Gary S. Vasilash

From Audi to Volkswagen—and a whole lot in between—automotive brands are not something in short supply in the U.S. market.

So it should come as no surprise that still another European brand wants to make its way to the U.S. by the end of the decade (yes, tongue is firmly planted in cheek).

CUPRA, established in 2018, is a subset of Barcelona-based SEAT. SEAT is a subset of Volkswagen Group.

CUPRA CEO Wayne Griffiths:

“CUPRA’s ambition is to be a truly global brand and expanding into the United States represents one of the greatest milestones on our journey.”

Current CUPRA lineup. (Image: CUPRA)

The company intends to sell ICE, PHEV and EVs in “key states that are aligned with the brand” (whatever that means: the company describes itself as a “disruptor” and an “unconventional challenger brand,” and when a company says that about itself rather than having it said of it, there is the distinct whiff of a marketing team coming up with buzzy descriptors).

Because it recognizes the importance of having good distribution, it is in talks with the Penske Automotive Group, one of the largest automotive dealership groups in the country, with more than 200 stores in the U.S.

Questionably a smart move.

And speaking of smart moves, in 2008 Penske Automotive Group started exclusive distribution of the smart auto brand in the U.S.

That ran until 2011, when Mercedes took in the brand.

Smart ceased to be available in the U.S. after model year 2019.

U.K. Facts About EVs

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They’re concerned that people don’t know what they should about EVs. . .

By Gary S. Vasilash

In order to keep U.K. customers interested in the possibility of buying an electric vehicle, Auto Trader (a vehicle purchase platform), ChargeUK (an organization consisting of EV charging companies), and the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (a trade association representing OEMs and suppliers) have gotten together to combat misinformation about EVs.

This past February the House of Lords’ Environment and Climate Change Committee came out with a report that indicated there was a need for “clear and balanced information” regarding EVs for consumers.

And Auto Trader discovered that the number of retailers offering EVs on its site was at 35% for both 2023 and 2024. It had been 57% in 2022.

So this is what the three groups have come up with:

One of the interesting points is the 71,459 available chargers.

In the U.S., as of late August, there were over 192,000 publicly available chargers, according to the U.S. Federal Highway Administration.

To put that into context, the U.S. is 40 times larger than the U.K.; it has five times as many people, and nine times as many automobiles. Yet it has just 120,500 more public chargers.

According to the U.K. group there is one charger per four miles of road in the U.K.

The U.S. federal infrastructure plan is building out one charging station on the Interstate Highway System—per every 50 miles.

If there is concern about the lack of a significant uptake of EVs it should be in the U.S. far more than in the U.K.

NACTOY 2025 Finalists Announced

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When you consider what they were up against, these nine vehicles all deserve respect

By Gary S. Vasilash

Earlier this fall, the North American Car, Truck and Utility of the Year (NACTOY) Awards announced what it called the “Best of 2025.”

Or said another way: the semi-finalists for the awards that will be presented January 10, 2025 at the Detroit Auto Show.

The vehicles are:

Car

• BMW 3 Series
• BMW M5
• Cadillac Celestiq
• Dodge Charger EV
• Fiat 500e
• Honda Civic Hybrid
• Kia K4
• Mercedes-AMG E-Class
• Porsche Panamera
• Toyota Camry

Truck

• Ford Ranger
• GMC Sierra EV
• Ram 1500
• Rivian R1T
• Toyota Tacoma

Utility

• Chevrolet Equinox EV
• Honda Prologue
• Volvo EX90
• Hyundai Ioniq 5 N
• Hyundai Santa Fe
• Jeep Wagoneer S
• Lincoln Nautilus
• Porsche Macan EV
• Toyota Land Cruiser
• Volkswagen ID. Buzz

So with that as prologue, this morning the finalists—three in each category–were announced at the LA Auto Show.

They are:

Car

• Honda Civic Hybrid
• Kia K4
• Toyota Camry

Truck

• Ford Ranger
• Ram 1500
• Toyota Tacoma

Utility

• Chevrolet Equinox EV
• Hyundai Santa Fe
• Volkswagen ID. Buzz

The 50 automotive journalists who serve as jurors (including me) now have the challenge of trying to sort out which of the vehicles represents best in class for consumers.

For those who might be wondering how things have gone recently, here are the winners for the past five years:

2020

• Car: Chevrolet Corvette
• Truck: Jeep Gladiator
• Utility: Kia Telluride


2021

• Car: Hyundai Elantra
• Truck: Ford F-150
• Utility: Ford Mustang Mach-E

2022

• Car: Honda Civic
• Truck: Ford Maverick
• Utility: Ford Bronco

2023

• Car: Acura Integra
• Truck: Ford F-150 Lightning
• Utility: Kia EV6

2024

• Car: Toyota Prius
• Truck: Ford Super Duty
• Utility: Kia EV9

Based on that, it is clear that Ford is solid in trucks.

The Civic has gotten a trophy.

Kia is strong in utilities—but the K4 is a car.

All of which is to say that at this point it is anyone’s guess.