2022 Chevy Bolt EUV Electric SUV Teases Range Number, Rear Badge

Update 1/19/21: GM has released the below new teaser video for the 2022 Chevy Bolt EUV electric SUV, and announced both it and the refreshed 2021 Bolt hatchback will be unveiled on February 14—Happy Valentine's Day!—at Walt Disney World.

Original story 1/12/21: GM provided another sneak peek of the 2022 Chevrolet Bolt EUV, an electric crossover that will finally be shown in February alongside the refreshed original Chevrolet Bolt electric vehicle. Previous looks were released in August and December.

The 2022 Chevrolet Bolt EUV (an acronym for "Electric Utility Vehicle") is taller and larger than the 2021 Bolt, with a wheelbase stretched by three inches and an overall length increase of five to six inches. It has been designed, of course, to look more like an SUV than that tall hatchback. The EUV was teased again during a keynote speech by GM chairman and CEO Mary Barra at the virtual CES 2021 event with a quick look at its steering wheel and some instrument panel graphics.

Interestingly, the driver display's crisp, green-themed readout clearly shows a remaining range of 235 miles with the battery pack at 80 percent capacity. The regular Bolt offers a maximum EPA-rated range of 259 miles. While our mathematic abilities are admittedly limited (hey, we're writers), we've loosely calculated the bow-tie-badged electric SUV could be capable of topping 290 miles on a full charge.

Also notable is that the display also shows GM's Super Cruise hands-free highway automated driving system is active; it's a technology that has until now only been available on Cadillacs. The Bolt EUV will be the first Chevrolet to get Super Cruise, but not the last. The latest version of Super Cruise can make hands-free lane changes on compatible highways by tapping the turn signal.

The interior of the Bolt EUV will benefit from the improvements made to the refreshed Bolt, which will feature nicer materials and new seats that should be more comfortable. Additional equipment includes a sunroof, an improved infotainment system, and a push-button gear selector. Both Bolts will go into production and reach dealerships this summer.

The Bolt family rides on the BEV2 architecture. (Our artist's illustration of what the EUV might look like is shown below.) This is distinct from the newer BEV3 platform/Ultium battery system that is underpinning a raft of new EVs GM has on the way, and which the company says will offer up to 450 miles on a single charge. GM is investing $27 billion to develop electric and autonomous vehicles with plans to offer 30 all-electric vehicles globally by the end of 2025.

Among those to come are the 2022 GMC Hummer EV SUT fullsize electric pickup truck and the subsequent 2023 GMC Hummer EV SUV, as well as electric pickups and SUVs for Chevrolet. Cadillac will be the lead brand for electric vehicles, starting with the 2023 Cadillac Lyriq electric midsize crossover. Plans also call for a flagship EV sedan: the Cadillac Celestiq. Buick also gets electric crossovers.

Finally, GM is continuing its efforts to redefine its corporate image with a new ad campaign called "Everybody In" that emphasizes a commitment to mass production of attainable electric vehicles. "We're updating our corporate identity," Deborah Wahl, global chief marketing officer, said in a speech for CES this week. Under Wahl's guidance, GM launched a rebranded website on Monday and last week GM showed a new, more modern logo with GM in lowercase letters and an underscore below the 'm' to create the shape of an electrical plug in the negative space.

The 2021 Nissan Armada Starts at Nearly $50,000

Despite its bold new look, the 2021 Nissan Armada isn't exactly all new. The big body-on-frame off-roader was recently given a deep refresh with a new face and big updates to the interior that bring it in lockstep with the Nissan Patrol, the Armada's more global sibling. And though the updates are sizable, they don't come with as steep a price hike as you might expect.

The Armada S serves as the base trim for the 2021 model year, and starts at $49,895, just $1,000 more than last year's base SV trim. In addition to the new looks and that freshened-up interior, your extra cash also nets a few other goodies like adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, lane-keeping assist, and blind-spot monitoring. There's also a standard trailer brake on all 2021 Armadas.

Step up to the SV or SL models and you'll be looking at a base MSRP of $53,895 or $57,295, respectively. Nissan is also offering a Midnight Edition package that, as you might have guessed, blacks out the grille, mirror caps, front and rear skid plates, and adds some special 20-inch black wheels among a few other bits and bobs. The Midnight Edition is a $1,990 option on top of the SL, bringing the total to $59,285.

Top of the line Platinum models start at $66,295 and come with many of the optional extras from the other models as standard with the option for other luxury-oriented features like automatic rear braking and a surround-view monitor. All of the aforementioned Armadas come with rear-wheel-drive, so if a 4x4 system better suits your needs your needs, you'll need to shell out an extra $3,000 for the option.

Nissan says 2021 Armadas are already hitting showrooms, so if this is the right body-on-frame SUV for you, there's no need to wait.

2021 Ram 1500 TRX, Now With More Supercharger and More Hennessey Delivers 1,012 HP!

We're stoked to see that Hennessey—creator of various Goliath, VelociRaptor, Mammoth, and Maximus mega-powerful truck builds—has gotten around to fiddling with the Ram 1500 TRX. You see, MotorTrend's 2021 Truck of the Year is the hottest hot-rod off-road pickup truck to hit the market since the Ford F-150 Raptor hit the scene over a decade ago. Hennessey calls its TRX-based creation the Mammoth 1000, and you can probably guess what that number in the name is a reference to.

Huge Power on Top of Huge Power

What could Hennessey possibly do to the TRX, whose factory-supercharged 6.2-liter V-8 makes 702 hp and 650 lb-ft of torque in stock form? More. There are many ways to squeeze out more ponies, and luckily that's what Hennessey's all about. The modded Hennessey Mammoth 1000 TRX therefore cranks out 1,012 hp and 969 lb-ft of torque, topping the insane factory numbers by a staggering 310 hp and 319 lb-ft of torque. The gain alone is what relatively moderns V-8s make. Take my money, please—oh wait, that's $135,350, to be exact.

The highlights of the Hennessey Mammoth 1000 Ram TRX are, of course, the underhood mods. Don't believe the internet—gaining 300 hp and attaining quadruple-digit horsepower numbers takes more than a tune and a new intake and exhaust. Hennessey makes extensive upgrades to the TRX's 6.2-liter to help it get more air and gulp more fuel: a 2.65-liter supercharger system (factory is 2.4L), upper and lower pulleys, stainless-steel long tube headers, high-flow catalytic converters, bigger fuel injectors, high-flow mid pipes, high-flow air intake, crankcase ventilation system, and Hennessey tuning, to name a few. The resultant 1,012 hp helps the TRX scoot from zero to 60 mph in a claimed 3.2 seconds (the factory claim is 4.5 seconds, and the pickup turned in a 4.1-second rip in our testing), making this the most powerful and quickest Ram truck built by Hennessey. We're excited. And scared.
 

With Great Power Comes ... The Appearance of Great Power

The Mammoth 1000 Ram TRX also sports a so-called Mammoth Off-Road Stage 1 package that includes LED-light-equipped front and rear bumpers, a 2.5-inch front leveling kit, 20-inch Hennessey 10-spoke wheels, and 35-inch tires (the Hennessey rendering indicates Goodyear Wranglers, which is what the factory TRX has). So Hennessey offers a 20-inch wheel in place of the factory 18s but sticks with a 35-inch tire rather than at least a 37? We're crying a little inside. Moving on, an electronically retractable bed cover and upgraded electronic fold-out steps add convenience, and Hennessey and "MAMMOTH1000" badges mark the already-special TRX as even more special-er.

The turnkey Hennessey Mammoth 1000 TRX price tag of $135,350 includes professional installation, chassis dyno testing, up to 200 miles of road testing, and a 2-year/24,000-mile warranty. That's a pile of hard-earned dough for sure, but the TRX is already pricey, and c'mon man—1,000 hp!

Hennessy is going to limit production of its 2021 Ram 1500 TRX Mammoth 1000 to 200 vehicles, and each build will include serial numbered plaques. The hot-rodded TRX can be ordered through authorized FCA/Ram retailers or Hennessey directly, with delivered beginning around April 2021.

2022 Mercedes-Benz EQA First Look: The GLA-Class of EVs

Mercedes-Benz expands its EQ line of electric vehicles with the new EQA subcompact SUV. Due to hit European dealerships in spring 2021, the EQA follows the formula of its larger EQC stablemate: Take one standard Mercedes SUV and modify it for EV duty, giving it slightly unique styling in the process.

Much as the EQC shares much of its mechanical bits (minus its powertrain, of course) with the Mercedes GLC-Class compact SUV, the EQA stems off the same branch as the smaller, subcompact GLA-Class. No surprise, the two subcompact Mercedes models—EQA and GLA—share many of the same body panels.

Still, passersby are sure to notice the EQA's many exterior differences relative to that of its internal combustion-powered kin. Notably, the EQA wears specific fascias and lights. A faux grille that merges with a distinct set of LED headlights (replete with decorative blue strips within the lamp housings) gives the EQA a familial resemblance to the larger EQC. At the rear, Mercedes fits a tailgate with a full-width light strip and a new rear bumper cover that incorporates the license plate housing. Other changes to the EQA relative to the GLA-Class include the likes of model-specific fender-mounted badges and standard aero-enhanced wheels that range in size from as little as 18 inches and as big as 20.

Inside, much of the GLA-Class's cabin carries over to the EQA. Still, available rose gold interior trim pieces and EV-specific digital gauges add some distinction to the EQA's innards. As in the GLA-Class, the EQA relies on Mercedes-Benz's MBUX infotainment system. Standard fare includes a 7.0-inch center touchscreen display with an in-dash navigation system and a 7.0-inch digital gauge cluster; however, a pair of 10.3-inch displays are optionally available.
 

2022 Mercedes-Benz EQA: EQ Power

While Mercedes plans to offer the EQA with all-wheel-drive by way of an electric motor at each axle, the German brand will initially sell the electric SUV strictly in front-wheel-drive form with a single motor. With that approximately 188-hp front-mounted motor, the EQA250 (as it will be known) scoots to 62 mph in 8.9 seconds and on to a top speed of 99 mph, per Mercedes. (The all-wheel-drive EQA ought to perform even better thanks to an estimated peak of 268 hp from its two motors. )

Supplying electricity to the drive motor is a 67-kWh lithium-ion battery pack that Mercedes mounts to the EQA's underbody, and—along with various aerodynamic tweaks—helps the SUV achieve a driving range of more than 300 miles on the New European Driving Cycle. Mercedes remains mum on the EQA's U.S. prospects, though a company spokesperson wrote the model "is still being considered the U.S. market at this time." Nevertheless, we predict a sub-300-mile EPA-rated range from the EQA250 if it ultimately reaches our shores.
2022 Mercedes-Benz EQA: The Greenbacks

The EQA will sticker for €47,540.50, including 19 percent VAT, in Germany—or close to $58,000. That's not exactly cheap, although we imagine the lack of a VAT in the U.S. may knock some money from the bill of a possible American-spec EQA. We figure Mercedes will attempt to undercut the $55,085 starting sum of the all-wheel-drive Volvo XC40 Recharge (the EQA's head-on size and price competitor) if it brings the front-drive EQA250 to the U.S. Then again, this is simply wishful thinking on our part.

Our 2020 Hyundai Sonata Limited Performs Surprisingly Well at the Track

The 2020 Hyundai Sonata Limited has proved a pleasant companion around town and on interstate adventures thanks to its balanced driving dynamics. To find out how it performs when pushed to the limit, we took it to the track, where we learned it can outgun a similarly powered Honda Accord.

Our Sonata packs the upgraded engine: a 1.6-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine with 180 hp. It took 7.4 seconds for the sedan to go from 0 to 60 mph, making it a pinch quicker than a 2018 Honda Accord EX we tested with the 192-hp engine that's standard on most trims of the Japanese sedan. That Accord, as well as a four-cylinder 2018 Camry XLE we tested with 203 hp, reached 60 mph in 7.6 seconds. Both the Accord and Camry offer significantly more powerful variants. With its potent 252-hp four-cylinder, the Accord makes it in as little as 5.7 seconds, while a V-6 Camry XLE does the deed in 6.0 seconds. The more powerful 290-hp Sonata N Line crossed the finish line in 5.3 seconds, though.

Although our Sonata is no speed demon, it has just the right amount of juice to merge and pass other cars on the freeway. If you're a lead foot, you'll quickly learn one of the Sonata's annoying quirks. "There's some lag from when you mash the pedal to when the engine really wakes up," associate road test editor Erick Ayapana noted during acceleration testing.

Nimble handling is one of the Sonata's best traits. Put it in Sport mode, and the Sonata feels agile on canyon roads, and it's easy to maneuver into a parking spot despite its size. Given its agility, it's not surprising this sedan performed well in the figure eight. Achieving a time of 26.6 seconds at an average 0.66 g, the Sonata once again bests the base Accord and Camry, and it even out-handles the more powerful versions of both these sedans. (We have not tested the base 2.5-liter naturally aspirated Sonata, though). Road test editor Chris Walton noted the steering is crisp and accurate. "There's some body roll and eventual understeer," he said, "but otherwise it's quite well-behaved/balanced." Our test team also praised the Sonata's good body control under hard braking. The brakes brought the car from 60 to 0 mph in 115 feet, which compares favorably with rivals.