Automotive News

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Chevrolet Colorado gets cheapest truck honor

There’s a new leader among cheap trucks. Goodbye, Nissan Frontier. Hello, Chevrolet Colorado. After years of holding the honor of being the least expensive pickup, the Frontier has been rebooted with more standard equipment. The result: The Colorado extended-cab for 2020 costs $22,495 (including its destination fee) as assumed the cheapest truck honors The Frontier for 2020 costs about $7,500 this year than it did in 2019. The new Chevrolet Colorado has a lot to offer for its rock-bottom price. Its base trim features a 2.5-liter, four-cylinder engine with 200 horsepower and six-speed automatic transmission. Chevrolet Colorado gets mixed reviews Pickups rely on versatility. And while many pickups have higher maximums, the Colorado isn’t bad. Its payload capacity is 1,455

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#134, Vermont artist Chris Miller’s stone truck

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 33:07 — 45.5MB)Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | MoreChris Miller, a sculptor who lives Maples Corner, a hamlet outside Calais, Vermont, began carving about 45 years ago. He works in granite, wood and marble, and his work is featured in private collections and sculpture galleries. It all gets its share of acclaim, including one of his most unique creations — a stone truck. Miller’s truck sculpture was inspired by a stone creation of a Volkswagen Beetle built in Ithaca, New York in 1976. It’s also an homage to an automotive phenomenon. As our guest on this episode of The Weekly Driver Podcast, Miller discusses driving in the rural Northeast where abandon vehicles

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Chevy Spark tops 2020 cheapest car list

Six years ago, a small number of buyers in the United States could still purchase the cheapest car with a sticker price of less than $10,000. It was a 2014 Chevrolet Spark and considering all available rebates, including a military personnel discount and several other incentives, the base model Spark was available for a high four-figure tally. With the average price of a new vehicle now steadily advancing toward $40,000, only about a dozen new cars in the country are now available for less than $20,000. Despite the price increase, the top-10 cheap car list includes a substantially improved standard features list. Top-10 Cheapest Car List All Less Than 19K Nearly every car on the list includes air conditioning, stability

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Need a new truck? Here are 10 for less than 35K

With the average price of a new passenger vehicle at the beginning of 2020 approaching $38,000, it’s no wonder why the base price of the most expensive truck in the United States is nearly $90,000. With the coronavirus continuing, the end-of-the-year sales for cars and trucks will be skewed compared to recent years. Regardless, prices will remain high. But truck exceptions are aplenty. Regardless, prices will remain high. But truck exceptions are aplenty. And if you have a good credit score, financing a new truck might be more reasonable than you might think. Here, in alphabetical order, are 10 trucks, all 2020 models, available for less than $35,000. RV towing capacities vary greatly as do the prices, from an estimated

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PRESS RELEASE: 2020 Nissan Pathfinder

The 2020 Nissan Pathfinder continues as an exceptional way for families to turn up the adventure, around town or off-road. It has a unique combination of rugged design, powerful performance and seven-passenger comfort and utility. Adding to Pathfinder’s long list of standard and available innovative features and advanced technologies is the special Pathfinder Rock Creek Edition, available on SV and SL grades, in 2WD and 4WD configurations. The special value option package offers unique exterior and interior treatments that emphasize the rugged Nissan Pathfinder heritage. Two additional Rock Creek equipment packages and a choice of seven available exterior colors allow buyers to customize their Pathfinder to their precise tastes. The Rock Creek Edition name was chosen to connect the vehicle

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Rare Dodge Dakota ragtop at auction

Mini pickup trucks were the rage during the 1970s, 1980s and into the early 1990s. But as sport utility vehicles became increasingly popular, interest in popular mini-trucks from Chevrolet, Datsun, Ford, Mazda and Toyota waned. To be different, Chrysler introduced the Dodge Dakota Convertible pickup truck in 1989. It featured a fixed roll bar and a simple manual top. About 2,500 units of the odd trucks sold in the debut year, only 909 were made in 1990 and eight in 1991. Dodge Dakota convertible at Mecum With all options available included, the Dodge Dakota convertible in 1990 costs about $18,000 new. The current equivalent is about $35,625. Only a few of the convertibles remain in good shape. One example will

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Pickup trucks not perfect, but 5 make safety priority

Pickup trucks always seem safe. Sitting high off the road and in a vehicle with all-wheel drive or 4WD capacity provides a sense of security. But trucks don’t always have top safety ratings. No 2020 pickup trucks so far have received a Top Safety Pick or a Top Safety Pick+ — the highest ratings — according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). Not all 2020 models have IIHS ratings yet, but at least three reasons contribute to trucks’ surprising ratings. Do pickup trucks seem too safe? Truck drivers, feeling safe, sometimes drive too aggressively in inclement weather. Pickup trucks often have body-on-frame construction and accident impact results are often severe. Some automakers may also focus on their cars

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BREAKING NEWS: Mercedes-Benz live celebrity Zoom show

With so many automotive events, the Geneva International Motor Show to the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance to the Paris Motor Show, all canceled, Zoom had a good idea. In a hastily announced press release, Mercedes-Benz will have an online automotive show on Zoom called the Concours de Zoom. It will feature the Mercedes-Benz vehicles of celebrities and car collectors ranging from Jay Leno to Martha Stewart. The just-announced event will be broadcast on Zoom at 2 p.m. Pacific Time, 5 p.m., Eastern Time. Zoom in to Mercedes-Benz online car show Mercedes-Benz will make a financial donation to the American Red Cross after the event. Musician Ludacris, PGA Tour golfer Rickie Fowler, Riverdale star Madelaine Petsch and music video director Cole

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Rivian EV debut delayed by Covid-19 crisis

The debut of the Rivian Automotive pickup truck, the much-anticipated and hugely financed potential competitor of Tesla, has been delayed because of the coronavirus pandemic. Amazon, Ford and Cox Automotive have combined for nearly $3 billion in investments for the innovative truck and sport utility vehicle. And the unveiling was scheduled for later this year, perhaps at the Los Angeles International Auto Show. The vehicle received global attention when prototypes were unveiled at the 2018 Los Angeles Auto Show. With its investment, Amazon ordered 100,000 custom-designed electric delivery vehicles. Rivian has best EV range Industry analysts predict the R1T and R1S trucks, marketed with a range of 400 miles per charge, can challenge Tesla. The efficiency estimates would be the

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Wacky Aussie trailer a bunker on wheels

It’s part tank, part trailer, part Mad Max movie star on wheels. It’s the latest from Australian Off Road (AOR), and it’s as innovative as a buyer wants to be creative. A small version of the AOR Sierra square drop trailer, the new Sierra ZR is a simple, make-to-your preferred spec cargo hauler. It works and feels like an entry-level, off-road camper. Its base cost is about $19,000, about $8,000 less than its bigger sibling. “We know that many campers start off small and have their own gear loaded up and ready to go,” said an AOR spokesperson. “With the ZR, almost everything is optional – you can option up or bring your own roof-top tent, awning, fridge, BBQ and

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Pickup trucks, SUVs rule global market

Grande Prairie, Alberta is a petroleum and agriculture-dominant city about 300 miles northwest of Edmonton. Winter driving is brutal. Citizens and seasonal oil field workers mostly rely on pickup trucks or sport utility vehicles. A few years ago, when visiting the city for several days during the late summer Tour of Alberta, the now-defunct professional cycling event, I re-enacted a version of the old family vacation game. But instead of counting license plates from different states, I counted vehicles. On two early morning runs with temperature in the mid-30s, I categorized the first 25 vehicles viewed. Combined, 43 of the 50 were pick-ups or SUVs. The roads were icy and muddy, potholes plentiful. Driving a heavy, all-wheel-drive vehicle made sense.

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PRESS RELEASE: 2020 Range Rover big, pricey, plush

PRESS RELEASE Range Rover is renowned for combining peerless luxury and refinement with traditional all-terrain capability. The 2020 Range Rover now offers higher levels of performance, refinement and responsiveness with the latest 3.0-liter inline six-cylinder Ingenium gasoline engine. The 2o20 Range Rover 3.0L inline six-cylinder engine is available in 355hp and 395hp outputs, badged P360 and P400 respectively and delivers up to 406 lb-ft of torque that powers the new Range Rover from 0-60mph in as little as 5.9 seconds (0-100km/h in 6.3 seconds) and to a top speed of 130mph (209km/h)4. In the U.S., the new P360 engine will be available on the 2020 Range Rover and the P400 engine will be exclusive to the HSE trim level. The

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