We Finance 04 Se 4wd Rockford Fosgate Low Miles Side Steps Roof Rack Cd Changer on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Weekly Recap: New bosses try to jump-start Cadillac and Lincoln

Both of America's domestic luxury brands seem to be stuck in neutral.
It's ironic that Cadillac and Lincoln got new bosses within days of each other this month. It's also a commentary on the fact both of America's domestic luxury brands seem to be stuck in neutral.

Nissan's crowdsourced Project Titan is ready to tackle Alaska [w/videos]

Alaska still offers Americans the chance to really experience the wilderness, and Nissan is challenging its Titan pickup to its offroad extremes with a little help from its fans. After crowdsourcing a heap of mods, the company is handing it over to two Wounded Warrior Project Alumni to do their worst in the backcountry to see what the truck can do.
Nissan last experimented with the crowdsourcing idea on its Project 370Z in 2012 but might have taken things even further this time. For Project Titan, the automaker let fans vote on 10 different areas to customize on a 2014 Titan Crew Cab PRO-4X. To fit the rugged look, the company covered it up with a custom digital-camouflage wrap with a Wounded Warrior Project emblem and even outfitted its all-terrain camping trailer in a similar scheme. An LED lighting rig was also added to the new bull bar and roof rack to brighten the night. For a just little more grunt, the 5.6-liter V8 was outfitted with a Nismo cold-air intake and Borla cat-back exhaust, and to keep from getting stuck, the pickup got an upgraded suspension with more travel and 18-inch wheels with 35-inch Nitto offroad tires. The interior was also slightly revised with big GPS system and custom embroidered seats.
Now, it's time to see if the truck's mods can handle what the Alaskan wilderness can throw at it. The two Wounded Warrior Project Alumni are just starting their expedition and are expecting snow on the way. Scroll down to watch three build videos for the Titan and read Nissan's official announcement. You can also follow their journey on Nissan Trucks' Facebook page.

Nissan Juke to get higher-performance Nismo RC model

It's hard to find more giggles for your crossover dollar than the Juke - regardless of how you feel about the way it looks, the singularly styled nichemobile from Nissan is very entertaining to drive. Yet we've always felt that the platform had more in it, and evidently its Japanese parent agrees, having recently bracketed the googly-eyed turbocharged CUV with a new Nismo model and the barking mad built-to-order Juke R. At present, neither the Juke Nismo or the GT-R-powered Juke R are sold in North America, but the former has already been confirmed for sale here.
Even when it does reach our shores, there will still be a heck of a lot of whitespace between the mild performance upgrades of the standard Nismo and the half-mill R model, and to hear the UK's Car tell it, Nissan has plans to plug that gap, too. According to its report, the automaker will shortly offer a Juke Nismo RC that will have roughly 20 horsepower more than the basic Nismo (which itself has 197 hp, nine more than the base Juke). The RC will apparently feature a lower, stiffer suspension, upgraded brakes and a unique exhaust and intake for a snarlier soundtrack. Both front-and all-wheel drive models are planned, as are manual and CVT transmission choices.
No word yet on the RC's pricing or even North American availability, but the regular-strength Juke Nismo is expected to arrive shortly, and Nissan is also said to have big plans for its performance nameplate, so we wouldn't rule it out.