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Golf R Thrills, Porsche Quits China, GM V8 Recall

PLUS: Blackwing Hero, 2025 Luxury List, Waymo for Sale?

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2025-04-29

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Releases & Reviews

VW’s refreshed Mk8.5 Golf R retains its raucous AWD 2.0-liter turbo four yet manages to undercut the previous Mk7’s inflation-adjusted price at $47,100. Ars’s first drive says the hatch combines everyday civility with rally-bred grip, making next year’s GTI 50th-anniversary celebrations feel suitably rowdy.

MotorTrend’s full test shows the upsized three-row Acadia Denali now stretches Tahoe-long, yet its 328 hp (245 kW), 326 lb-ft (442 Nm) 2.5-liter turbo-four hustles the 4,900-lb (2,220 kg) SUV to 60 mph in 7.8 s. A plush cabin and standard Super Cruise offset fiddly stalk-mounted shifters.

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Technology, Market Data & Analysis

Facing a 42 % Q1 sales plunge in China, CEO Oliver Blume warns Porsche could stop selling EVs there within three years rather than slash prices. Xiaomi’s 1,548 hp (1,155 kW) SU7 Ultra, priced „529,900 (~$73,000), brutally undercuts the 402 hp Taycan’s „918,000 sticker, challenging the brand’s margin-first stance.

Musk’s latest earnings call doubled down on autonomy: millions of existing Teslas will allegedly operate robotaxi-style by mid-2026, with Austin and San Francisco employee pilots starting June. He also claims Optimus humanoid robots will staff assembly lines this year, an audacious bet as Q1 profit fell 71 %.

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Car Culture

Hagerty’s 12 minute Redline Rebuild time-lap compresses weeks of wrenching on a dune-scarred 300 cid (4.9 L) Ford straight-six from a 1966 F-100. Viewers watch crusty bearings replaced, timing dialled-in and the freshly painted mill bark to life before it reunites with the rust-mended truck.

A driver leaving a car meet lit up a 518 hp (386 kW) Porsche 911 GT3 RS, only to spear a tree at roughly 30 mph (48 km/h). Instagram footage shows throttle bravado, absent braking and surprisingly moderate damage—an expensively humiliating reminder that downforce needs speed and skill to function.

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Miscellaneous

GM issued an immediate stop-sale and forthcoming recall for all 2021-24 pickups and SUVs with the 6.2 L L87 V8 after connecting-rod defects caused widespread catastrophic failures. Dealers must inspect, switch to 0W-40 oil or replace engines, while NHTSA’s probe tracks nearly 350 complaints.

Chevy teased 2026 Corvette paint updates on Instagram: vivid Roswell Green Metallic joins subtle Blade Silver Metallic, expanding choices beyond the current 10-color palette. Pricing hasn’t been set, but recent metallic hues cost up to $995, hinting these eye-catchers won’t be free.

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A nostalgic video ends with a shadow that closely matches the 963 LMDh racer’s silhouette, hinting at a road-legal 900 hp (671 kW)-plus hybrid hypercar to be unveiled during Porsche’s Le Mans festivities this June.

Chery’s Himla brand will launch the four-seat Kepel pickup in 2026 with petrol, diesel and full-electric options, global five-star safety, hardy ladder-frame underpinnings and Hilux-echoing styling, targeting South America before rolling into other export markets.

Top Gear’s simulator run of Adrian Newey’s 1,200 hp (895 kW) RB17 hypercar lapped virtual Silverstone in 1:26.2—quick enough for fifth on last year’s British-GP grid—showcasing ferocious downforce and single-seat reflexes.

Instrumented testing reveals the 323 hp hybrid 4Runner and Tacoma sprint to 60 mph in 6.7 s in rear-drive, half a second quicker than 4WD, because Toyota limits the electric-assisted 465 lb-ft (630 Nm) torque to protect the front differential.

First-quarter U.S. sales data show luxury buyers flocking to crossovers, with Lexus’s TX and BMW’s X5 leading a top-10 list otherwise dominated by roomy, high-margin SUVs, while sedans and EVs are conspicuously absent.

Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai told investors Waymo’s roadmap now includes “future optionality around personal ownership,” hinting that lidar-equipped Jaguars could eventually be sold alongside ride-hailing robotaxis as the company scales partnerships with Uber and Moove.

Final wet-track tests show Alpine’s A390 crossover using tri-motor torque vectoring, Michelin Pilot Sport EV tyres and adjustable Track mode to chase an estimated 600 hp (447 kW) output when the Ford-Escape-sized EV debuts on 27 May.

In savagegeese’s 21-minute deep-dive, the 668 hp (498 kW) CT5-V Blackwing Precision Package gains 70 percent stiffer front springs, wider 285/305 tyres and carbon-ceramic Brembos, turning Cadillac’s manual-ready super-sedan into a $130,000 record-hunting track weapon.

Jay Leno’s Garage previews the pint-sized Telo MT1, a Mini-Cooper-length EV pickup packing 500 hp (373 kW), a 106 kWh pack for 350 miles (563 km) of range and a Tacoma-sized 5 ft bed, all weighing just 4,100 lb (1,860 kg).

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