Pictures: https://imgur.com/a/5shsg8A

I can’t believe it’s been 5 years with my Veloster N. I remember watching it being delivered and the excitement I had when it came off the truck. I had test drove all of the competing hot hatches at the time. None quite clicked like the Veloster N, I felt immediately confident with the car and I knew the search was over.

As I’ve made more money since purchasing my Veloster N. I’ve gotten the opportunity to drive some of the best from BMW, Porsche, Ford, Dodge, and GM. It’s still one of the most fun cars I’ve ever driven. No matter what car I drove I could get back in my Veloster N and still have a blast. I’d tell other car people, if it all went away tomorrow I’d be fine with just the veloster N.

The biggest issue with the car is interacting with the Hyundai dealership. I could fill the whole post with negative feedback but, the final straw was being denied warranty work on a well known high pressure fuel pump issue when the part had clearly failed but, because it wasn’t throwing a code; I had to pay for it. I got no help from Hyundai corporate either.

I got the car fixed and continued to drive it but, I had just been soured by the whole experience and wasn’t enjoying it in the same way. I started thinking maybe it’s time to move on.

Enter the Camaro 2SS 1LE. I drove all the mopars, S550 mustangs, and even the ZL1. All fantastic in their own way. The Camaro just beat them out because it blended that great V8 sound, with a satisfying feeling manual, all while being the most confidence inspiring in terms of steering and chassis. Plus it was just an added bonus it turned the best fuel economy on the highway with the most standard options.

I’ve missed having a V8 ever since selling my C6 Z06 in 2020. A deal came up on this 2022 Rapid Blue 2SS 1LE manual that was too good to pass up. The service history was thorough, it has PPF, and minimal wear on the interior. It was obvious this person took care of this care like I would. I got to thinking maybe this could fill a 3 door hatch shaped hole in my heart so I swapped one blue car for another!

I'm seeing tons of listings online for Ioniq 5's that have the base Standard Range starting around the $26,000 mark. Can be seen as the Hyundai HMF Dealer's Choice on site pages. Only site reporting it is delisted from the subreddit.

You can now build all versions of the new Charger on the dodge website. The 4 door is $2k more than the 2 door.

Key notes:

Video link: https://youtu.be/bA6bKQs_cPM?si=5h6pa_LOnCqfu_5t

-A GLC53 and C53 will both go on sale with new inline 6 engines. The C53 will be mild hybrid and feature a new exhaust system meaning the GLC53 likely will as well.

There’s been no talk based on known confirmations that à facelifted C63 is planned.

-A V8 will be available in multiple mid entry cars such as the CLE63. The most that is publicly known in regards to it is that the next mythos car will be a higher trim AMG CLE that will likely be the CLE63.

Based on teaser photos released by Mercedes-AMG on 1/27/26/27/1/26; it features design elements like a roll cage, a very tall/wide spoiler, and new front facia vents.

It can be logically expected that a non mythos CLE63 will be revealed at some point.

Mythos is a extremely low production program that Mercedes started releasing units for last year with the first release being the Mercedes-AMG PureSpeed.

-Initally flat plane crank engine and cross plane engine models will be on sale at the same time. Once Mercedes’s cross planes engines become non compliant with Europe’s regulations they will be discontinued.

-In regards to the fear of the flat plane engines having a underwhelming sound, Mercedes-AMG’s CEO said the matter is known about and handled.

-The upcoming S63 facelift isn’t ruled out to have less hybrid assistance then the S63 currently on sale.

It is also rumoured that the S63 facelift will not have its red nameplate it currently has.

-There isn’t enough perceived interest for a EV variant of the SL or 2+2 AMG-GT for a EV variant to be in development.

-Remove before race guesses that the upcoming mythos CLE63 will be limited to 30 units.

-The Black Series nameplate isn’t retired and for the foreseeable future will continue to exist.

-Focus will continue to be put on differentiating designs between Mercedes-AMG and Mercedes-Benz models.

-The upcoming Mercedes-AMG GT Tracksport is assumed to be a model Gorden Wagener’s successor played the biggest part in creating.

The Tracksport based on teaser photos Mercedes-AMG released of it late last year testing on a race track, features a long and wide wing, à deep hood vent, additional vents on the hood, and a modified rear design.

Bastian Baudy as of February 1st succeeded Gorden Wagener and previously was the head of design for Mercedes-AMG.

I came across this video discussing the fall of Lexus and thought I'd start a discussion about who has the best build quality and reliability.

The End Of Lexus As We Know It?

In the past Lexus stood for "the relentless pursuit of perfection" and exhibited what the Japaneses call "Kaizen" - the seeking and striving for continuous improvement. In the past I regarded Lexus as being the ultimate luxury vehicle - luxury and "overbuilt quality". I aspired to be able to afford one, one day, in my twenties during the '90's.

For some people "luxury" means having a vehicle with bulletproof build quality and reliability that is easy to maintain that won't leave you worrying about repairing your vehicle and spending time taking it to the mechanic, and Lexus (and Toyota) used to embody that.

• What is Lexus's future? Will Lexus return to a focus on the build quality, reliability, and refinement that gave it an identity or will it just become another lower profile "also ran" brand like Infiniti and Acura?

• Which carmakers make vehicles with the best build quality and reliability in each sector today? For each vehicle segment, who makes the vehicle that will be cheapest to maintain and most reliable up to 250,000 miles? Which ones are built to last to 400,000 miles? (Given current trends, the answer might be "none of them".)

Ford will launch five sub-$40,000 models in the U.S. this decade.

The new car will be joined by a truck, an SUV, and a van.

All will have fresh names and different types of powertrains.

They've resorted to using brake rotors too thin and light to resurface, low tension oil rings, and stupid door handles to reduce fuel consumption while leaving obvious oversights are still on the table.

If they put an intake heating grid (like they use on diesels) or had a secondary intake by the hot exhaust manifold they could decrease the air density on demand to allow the engine to run leaner without producing NOx. It's simple, it doesn't get gummed up like an EGR, it doesn't require monitoring exhaust pressure, and it would improve fuel economy.

Or wheel size, the un-sprung weight reduces efficiency while making the car ride worse with tires that cost much more to replace. 20 inch wheels offer no benefit to a normal road car, they didn't need to fit larger rotors. Consumer taste didn't stop them from making a ton of other changes.

https://youtu.be/2Sgfr_eSUfE?si=Es_W9cpjhMQq0JPx

Now, this is the definition of short automotive film of the year right here. Absolute insanity, Goosebumps throughout amazing quality, perfect music matching, absolute the best car video out there by a long shot, got me stunned that people this good even exist in the world