For the love of cars
For the love of cars
The supercharged halo Mustang is back, and it answers to a new name. The 2026 Ford Mustang Dark Horse SC sets aside old naming habits but keeps the recipe, pairing a blown V8 with a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic. Early road and track impressions suggest it may be the friendliest version of that formula yet.
Mitsubishi just pulled the covers off the 2027 Pajero, the fifth generation of a nameplate that fans in the States remember fondly as the Montero. It’s boxy, it seats seven, and it rides on a fresh ladder frame built for rough terrain. The catch? Mitsubishi still won’t say whether it’s coming here.
Cadillac spends most weekends chasing checkered flags with a howling V-8, and now it wants to know what that same machine feels like with the sharp edges filed down. The answer showed up at Monterey Car Week as the V-One, a concept that keeps the shape and soul of a race winner while making room for an owner who actually wants to sit in it.
Cadillac’s name has become tied to noise. The V-Series.R, the current LMDh-spec prototype that factory teams campaign in IMSA GTP and the FIA World Endurance Championship, draws crowds partly because of the sound it makes when its naturally aspirated V-8 takes over from the electric side of the powertrain. That car has run up front at Le Mans, Daytona, and plenty of other circuits, earning a fan following along the way.
The V-One takes that hardware and asks a different question. What if the roar came in a friendlier package? Cadillac Executive Design Director Dominic Nafaji framed the concept as a clear signal of where the V-Series brand wants to go. Whether that turns into a car people can buy is still up in the air, but the intent points toward more naturally aspirated track machines in Cadillac’s future.
Anyone who has watched the V-Series.R turn laps will recognize the V-One right away. The big difference is the paint, a two-tone finish of silver and dark blue that gives the concept a more formal look. Beyond that, the bodywork carries straight over from the race car.
That includes the low-mounted rear wing, a feature the race car only picked up when its aero package was updated for the 2026 IMSA season. The tall fin on the engine cover stays, and so do the flying buttress winglets tucked against the inner edge of all four fenders. Nothing here has been softened for the show floor, which is part of the appeal. It looks fast standing still because it genuinely is fast.
The real change happens once you open the door. A race car cockpit is a spartan place, built to save weight and keep a driver strapped in for hours. Cadillac took a page from Porsche’s one-off 963 RSP and dressed things up. Softer materials, some of them recycled fabrics, now cover surfaces that would normally be hard, exposed carbon fiber.
At the center sits a steering wheel made just for the V-One, running what Cadillac describes as an intuitive, race-inspired interface with its own data visualization approach. In plain terms, the screens and controls have been reworked so a private owner isn’t staring at a display built purely for a race engineer. It’s still purposeful, just less intimidating.
Under all that carbon sits the same 5.5-liter V-8 working as part of a hybrid system, and in this form it makes a combined 830 horsepower. The suspension pieces come straight from the race car too, so the V-One should drive like the prototype it’s based on rather than a softened tribute act.
Cadillac is careful to say this isn’t a road-going V-Series.R, even as a concept. A better comparison is the Ferrari 499P Modificata or the Aston Martin Valkyrie LM, both of which take a Le Mans machine and rework it with a customer in mind. The V-One slots into that same idea with a slightly plusher attitude.
For now, the V-One is a concept and nothing more. It made its first appearance at The Quail during Monterey Car Week, and Cadillac hasn’t committed to building it. Still, the message is hard to miss. A brand that keeps winning with a loud, naturally aspirated V-8 clearly likes the idea of putting that engine somewhere a fan could own it. If even a handful of these ever get keys handed over, Cadillac’s motorsport work will have paid off in a way trophies can’t quite match.
The updated Mercedes-Benz V-Class Marco Polo brings European campers a bigger pop-top, practical cabin improvements, and one change buyers won’t see from the outside: Mercedes now handles the camper conversion itself.
A finish change along the roofline gives the 2027 Ford Expedition Platinum a noticeably different standard look. Ford now fits black roof rails in place of the bright chrome rails that came standard for 2026. Buyers who still want the traditional polished treatment can get it, but only by stepping into the $17,285 Platinum Ultimate Package.
Roof rails may look like a minor specification, yet they trace nearly the full length of a large three-row SUV. Bright rails catch sunlight and reinforce the traditional luxury character associated with the Platinum name. Black rails recede into the roof, especially on darker paint, and give the Expedition a more subdued profile.
For 2026, the Expedition Platinum included bright stainless roof-rack side rails with black caps as standard equipment. The 2027 ordering structure reverses that expectation. Black rails are now the default, while the chrome-and-black combination requires the Platinum Ultimate Package. The rails remain functional in either finish, so the change is primarily about appearance and how Ford groups premium equipment.
The package price should not be read as the cost of roof rails alone. Chrome rails are one visual element inside a much larger bundle. Ford’s official 2027 Expedition overview identifies the Platinum Ultimate Package as one of the paths to the available 440-horsepower 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 High-Output engine, and it pairs that performance upgrade with distinctive wheels and other premium equipment.
That bundling matters for shoppers who like chrome but do not necessarily want every performance and luxury option included in the package. There is no simple standalone bright-rail selection in the published trim structure. A buyer must either accept the standard black finish, choose the full Ultimate bundle, or consider whether a 2026 model better matches the desired appearance and budget.
The outgoing model’s bright rails form a long reflective line above the side glass. The 2027 standard rails blend into the upper body instead. The difference should be particularly obvious on white, silver, and other light exterior colors, where black rails create a sharper contrast and chrome looks more integrated with the Platinum’s bright trim.
Anyone comparing model years can use Automotivize’s earlier look at the Ford Expedition trim lineup as a reminder that feature placement has shifted over time. The current change is another reason to compare the actual window sticker with an older feature list rather than assuming a familiar trim name guarantees identical equipment.
Ford still offers chrome roof rails as standard equipment on the 2027 Expedition King Ranch, while other Expedition variants lean on black rails. That gives the King Ranch and an Ultimate-equipped Platinum a brighter roofline, leaving the standard Platinum closer to the darker appearance now common across many SUV lineups.
A shopper ordering a Platinum should decide whether the rail finish is an important part of the vehicle’s luxury look. If it is, the package choice deserves attention before the order is submitted. The exact equipment list and window sticker are more dependable than memories of what last year’s Platinum included.
The latest Expedition generation can be seen in the walkaround below. Although the video covers the 2025 redesign, its close exterior views make the long roofline and trim proportions easy to understand when comparing the later 2027 finish change.
The 2027 update does not remove the rails or alter their basic purpose. It changes which finish comes with the Platinum badge and makes the chrome treatment part of a costly option bundle. For buyers who notice exterior details, that is a meaningful distinction between two otherwise closely related model years.
For as long as most drivers can remember, the Ford F-150 sat comfortably at the top of America’s sales charts. That story changed in the first half of 2026, when the Honda CR-V quietly passed both the F-150 and the Toyota RAV4 to become the country’s best-selling vehicle. And the gap wasn’t a squeaker.
The F-Series has been America’s sales leader for decades, but there’s a wrinkle in how that title gets counted. Ford lumps F-150 and Super Duty numbers together, so it doesn’t break out F-150 sales on their own. When outside trackers separate the two, the standalone F-150 has long been the benchmark. Through June of 2026, that benchmark fell. Honda’s compact SUV outsold it, and it outsold the RAV4 too.
That’s a big deal for a vehicle that has never been the flashiest thing on the road. The CR-V has always been the sensible pick, the one people buy because it fits car seats, groceries, dogs, and a weekend of camping gear without complaint. Now it’s the one everyone else is chasing.
Honda earned part of this with real momentum. CR-V sales surged around 30 percent in June, and the gas and hybrid versions combined to give the model serious volume. Buyers clearly wanted it.
But timing helped too. The Ford F-150 got hit by an aluminum shortage after a fire at a supplier mill, which choked the flow of parts that trucks need to roll off the line. Toyota, meanwhile, was in the middle of switching over to an all-new RAV4, and those changeover periods tend to slow production while factories retool. Two of the CR-V’s biggest rivals stumbled on supply at the same moment. Honda kept building and selling, and the sales chart reflected it.
So this is a mix of a genuinely popular vehicle and a lucky break in the calendar. Both things can be true. The CR-V was strong enough to capitalize when the door opened, which is exactly what a sales leader is supposed to do.
A best-selling badge pays off for regular buyers in concrete ways, not only for the marketing team. High volume usually means more choice on dealer lots, a bigger used-car pool down the road, and a healthy supply of components when something needs fixing. Popular vehicles are cheaper to own over time partly because service is easy to find and parts are plentiful. If you keep your CR-V for the long haul and want it to hold up, sticking with genuine Honda OEM parts during repairs and maintenance helps preserve fit, reliability, and resale value in a way that bargain-bin substitutes rarely match.
There’s also a practical angle for hybrid shoppers. The CR-V Hybrid pulled real weight in these figures, which tells you buyers are comfortable with the setup and dealers are keeping them stocked. A vehicle selling in these numbers isn’t going anywhere, and that stability is worth something when you’re spending tens of thousands of dollars.
The honest answer is that the second half of 2026 could look different. Ford will sort out its aluminum supply, and Toyota’s fresh RAV4 will hit full production and come out swinging. Both of those rivals are perfectly capable of clawing the title back once their factories are humming again.
Still, the CR-V proved something this year. It doesn’t need a launch event or a headline-grabbing redesign to sell in enormous numbers. It just needs to keep being the dependable, right-sized SUV that families reach for first. Whether it stays on top or not, the message is clear. The compact crossover has become the default American vehicle, and Honda’s version is leading that pack.
If you’ve been eyeing one, the current spotlight is a good reason to take a closer look. The CR-V got here by being easy to live with, and that’s the same reason it’ll likely still be on your shortlist long after the sales charts settle down.
A loose moonroof is not the kind of surprise any driver wants at highway speed, and that is exactly the problem behind Subaru’s latest recall of nearly 70,000 Forester SUVs.
The heart of this recall is simple to describe, even if the fix is more involved. On the affected Foresters, the moonroof can start popping loose over time. A glass panel that is meant to stay firmly anchored to the roof is instead working its way free, and that is enough for Subaru to pull the vehicles back in for attention. Readers interested in the broader context can also explore real-world SUV durability.
Roughly 70,000 Foresters fall under the action. That is a big number for a single model, and it reflects how popular the Forester has become as a compact family hauler. When a part shared across that many vehicles shows the same weakness, a formal recall is the responsible way to get ahead of it.
A moonroof that shifts in its frame might sound like a minor annoyance, the sort of thing you would expect to cause a rattle or a whistle. The bigger worry is what happens if the glass separates entirely while the car is moving. A panel that lifts or detaches on the road can become a hazard for the people inside and for anyone driving behind. For authoritative background, the NHTSA recall lookup offers useful context.
That is the reasoning behind treating this as a safety recall rather than a routine service bulletin. Even if only a small share of vehicles ever showed the problem, the potential outcome is serious enough that Subaru is choosing to inspect and repair across the whole group. It is a cautious approach, and for something sitting directly over your head, caution is welcome.
If you own a Forester, the first step is to watch for an official recall notice. Automakers are required to mail letters to registered owners once a recall is underway, and those letters spell out whether your specific vehicle is included and what the dealer will do to correct it. Recall work of this kind is free, so there is no reason to put it off.
In the meantime, you can check your own vehicle’s status. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration keeps a public lookup tool at nhtsa.gov, where you can enter your VIN and see any open recalls tied to your car. That is the most reliable way to confirm whether your Forester needs to come in, rather than guessing based on the model or year.
It also helps to pay attention to how your moonroof behaves. New wind noise, a faint rattle, or any sign of movement around the glass is worth mentioning when you schedule service. You do not need to diagnose the fix yourself. The dealer’s technicians are the ones equipped to inspect the panel and secure it properly.
Recalls can feel like a hassle, but they are one of the better parts of how the car industry polices itself. A problem gets identified, owners get told, and the repair gets done for free. If your Forester is among the roughly 70,000 covered here, the smart play is to confirm your status through NHTSA or your dealer and book the appointment as soon as your notice arrives. A short visit now is a fair trade for knowing the roof over your head is going to stay put.
Long road trips have a way of exposing a vehicle’s true character. A short test drive flatters almost any SUV, but hours of desert highway, stiff crosswinds, and a night spent sleeping in the cargo area tell you what you really bought. The 2026 Honda Passport TrailSport Elite recently logged a 1,500-mile haul from Los Angeles to Moab, Utah, and that journey says plenty about whether this midsize SUV earns its rugged badge.
The Volvo XC60 just got a tune-up for the 2026 model year, but the Swedish brand isn’t done yet. A new report says its top-selling SUV is due for a more meaningful overhaul, with the plug-in hybrid version finally getting the electric range buyers have been asking for.
The XC60 is Volvo’s bread and butter, and it just got a round of updates for 2026 that brought a new grille, darker taillights, and a larger infotainment touchscreen. Those tweaks helped the aging SUV look more modern, but according to a report from Automotive News, Volvo thinks the compact luxury SUV needs more to stay competitive in a hotly contested segment, especially on the hybrid side.
News of the upcoming Volvo XC60 refresh suggests Volvo is taking that competitive pressure seriously, particularly on the plug-in hybrid front, where rivals have already pulled ahead in electric driving range.
The headline change is on the plug-in hybrid model. Today’s XC60 PHEV carries an EPA-estimated 35 miles of electric-only range, which falls short of rivals like the hybrid Mercedes-Benz GLC-class and its 54-mile range.
According to Automotive News, sources expect the refreshed XC60 PHEV to get a bigger battery that could double or even triple that figure, possibly netting an estimate near 100 miles of pure-electric range. If Volvo lands anywhere close to that number, the XC60 would jump from the back of the pack to one of the longest-range plug-in hybrids in the luxury segment.
For a lot of drivers, 100 miles is enough to cover daily commutes and errands without ever firing up the gas engine. That kind of range starts to blur the line between PHEV and full EV.
The report also points to a styling refresh that may bring slimmer headlights and a different grille. Inside, Volvo reportedly plans to align the XC60’s interior layout and technology with the all-electric Volvo EX60. Pulling the XC60’s cabin closer to the EX60 keeps Volvo’s lineup looking consistent as the brand continues its shift toward electrification.
There’s a manufacturing wrinkle too. Beginning in January, the XC60 will be built in the United States for the first time, at Volvo’s factory in South Carolina. It joins the electric EX90 and the Polestar 3 on that line, and the next-generation mid-size three-row XC90 is expected to follow.
Volvo CEO Håkan Samuelsson has also told Car and Driver that an extended-range PHEV powertrain similar to the one in the Chinese-market XC70 is being considered for U.S. audiences. That setup is a candidate for the future XC60, whether through this refresh or its eventual successor.
Volvo hasn’t put a firm date on the updated XC60, but the report suggests these changes are meant to keep the SUV popular until its full replacement arrives by the end of the decade. That timing gives Volvo room to slot in the bigger battery, new tech, and styling tweaks without rushing the job.
For shoppers eyeing an XC60 PHEV right now, the math is simple. The current model is still a solid pick, but if a 100-mile electric range matters to you, it might be worth waiting to see what Volvo officially announces. The bestseller is about to get more interesting.
The new 911 Turbo S is the most muscular factory 911 Porsche has ever built, and that kind of firepower demands rubber that can actually deal with it. Pirelli answered the call with a bespoke version of its P Zero R, co-developed alongside Porsche engineers to handle the extra horsepower, the extra torque, and the extra heft that comes with the model’s new hybrid hardware.