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GM's Buckle to Drive teen safety feature comes to more models for 2021

In 2014, GM announced a feature called "Belt Assurance," which would prevent a vehicle from being shifted out of park until the driver and front passenger had buckled their seatbelts. Initially launched on certain fleet vehicles in 2014, the feature rolled out as a free option on the 2015 GMC Sierra, Chevrolet Colorado, Cruze and Silverado. At the time, GM said it would push Belt Assurance to more models if customers took to it. That appears to have happened; come 2019, GM repackaged Belt Assurance as Buckle to Drive, part of the automaker's Teen Driver System that bundled tech such as geofencing and speed limit warnings to help parents keep track of their children's driving habits. In that implementation, the system only works when Teen Driver Mode is activated, locking out the shifter and muting the radio for 20 seconds or until the seatbelts are buckled, whichever comes first. The system shows a visual warning in the gauge cluster, too.  For this model year, the Teen Driver System came standard on 10 Chevy models, but Buckle to Drive was only allotted to the Colorado, Malibu and Traverse. Later this year, the 2021 Camaro will join the Chevys outfitted with the Teen Driver System and will get Buckle to Drive in addition. GM Authority reports that for the 2021 model year, Buckle to Drive will also be picked up by the Cadillac CT4 and CT5. Previously, the Cadillac ATS, CTS, Escalade and XTS came with the Teen Driver System, but three out of those four vehicles are no more, and the 2021 Escalade makes no mention of the Teen Driver System nor Buckle to Drive among its safety features. Elsewhere around the GM empire, the Buick Envision and Encore GX include the Teen Driver System, as do six GMC vehicles, but it's not clear when any will be upgraded with Buckle to Drive. The tech could help save numerous teenagers' lives. On its page of teen crash facts, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention writes that roughly 300,000 teens between the ages of 16 and 19 ended up in emergency rooms to treat crash injuries in 2017. Furthermore, "only 58.8% of high school students always wore seat belts when riding as passengers," and, "Among young drivers aged 15-20 who died in car crashes in 2017, almost half were unrestrained at the time of the crash (when restraint use was known)." Related Video:    

5 classic trucks and their polarizing modern revivals

EVs are helping eliminate Detroit's gas-guzzling problem. Some revivals of gas-powered classics are getting the EV treatment.  But not every revived model looks exactly like its original counterpart. We're in a new era of hulking Detroit metal, and you can thank EVs. Americans can't get enough of their big, beefy trucks and SUVs. But for many years, some of the biggest gas guzzlers fell out of fashion as gas prices rose and emissions regulations tightened. But in the past few years, some of the most iconic American truck nameplates have been brought back to life with electric motors, like the GMC Hummer. In other cases, as with the Ford Bronco, improvements in engine technology and more interest in rugged adventure vehicles made a gas-powered revival possible. Even some revivals that started as gas-powered, like the Chevy Blazer and the Jeep Wagoneer, are now getting electrified spinoffs. (Even if they don't always look quite as sleek as their original inspiration.) Here are side-by-sides of five classic American trucks and their modern counterparts. The Jeep Wagoneer 1975 Jeep Wagoneer and 2024 Electric Jeep Wagoneer SStellantis After a long wait, Jeep released its revival of the classic Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer in 2020. Starting later this year, an electric version of the luxury Jeep SUV will join the Wagoneer lineup. The Chevrolet Blazer A 1973 Chevrolet Blazer and a 2024 Chevrolet Blazer EVGetty Images, General Motors The Chevrolet Blazer was first rebooted in 2019 as a sporty family SUV. The modern Blazer shares zero resemblance to its boxy, off-roading older sibling, but it has still managed to become one of Chevy's more popular SUVs in recent years. The Blazer EV came later, and was one of the first models GM built on its new Ultium battery platform. The Hummer A Hummer H2 and the 2023 Hummer EV pickup truckGetty Images, General Motors Once the poster child for Detroit's big, bad gas guzzlers, the Hummer got new life as an electric pickup truck in 2021. The Ford Bronco A 1971 Ford Bronco and a 2022 Ford BroncoFord Motor Co. After a rouge group of engineers and designers inside Ford spent years trying to breathe life back into the Blue Oval's boxy off-roader, the Ford Bronco was finally resurrected in 2020 amid a rise in popularity for rugged adventure vehicles. The Ford Ranger 1985 Ford Ranger and a 2024 Ford RangerFord Motor Co.

2021 BMW M3 and M4 vs all the high-powered sport sedans and coupes

Should you have a found a way to get past that schnoz, you've probably digested some of the basic specs for the all-new 2021 BMW M3 sedan and M4 coupe specs. They're plenty impressive. There's also, basically, two sets of them thanks to the regular and Competition versions that differ in engine output and transmission type.  But how do they compare to other ultra sport sedans and coupes? Well, we were wondering that too, so we fired up the Autoblog Comparison Spreadsheet Generator 5000 (aka me chained to my computer in a dark basement).  Sadly, there are surprisingly few competitors for the 2021 BMW M3. Rival sedans include the Mercedes-AMG C 63 and the Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio, along with the Audi RS 5 Sportback sedan/coupe/hatchback thing. There's no more Lexus IS F, the Cadillac CT4 Blackwing has yet to arrive and Jaguar doesn't offer a spicy XE R.  Happily, there are more coupe rivals for the 2021 BMW M4, including the two-door versions of the AMG and Audi as well as the Lexus RC F. I also included the Ford Shelby GT350 and Chevrolet Camaro SS 1LE. On paper, they align incredibly well. On the street and on a track, I can personally attest that these Americans are fully capable of keeping up and/or bettering the fancy-pants luxury brands (and let's not forget there are even more powerful, hardcore versions available). If they don't align in terms of price or prestige, whatever. OK, let's get to the spreadsheet. Let's start with the coupes and note that I didn't bother listing the dimensions for the M4 Competition and C 63 S as they are identical to their "lesser" siblings.  I won't bother burning words explaining what you can see on the chart. Instead, I'll point out a few things that stood out to me. First, BMW M comes awfully close to matching the output of AMG's twin-turbo V8 despite having two fewer cylinders. Similarly, Audi manages to better the 0-60 time of the M4 Competition and tie the C 63 S despite being WAY down on power. It's not like it weighs less. Magic? Second, and speaking of 0-60 times, remember the importance that transmission and drivetrain make with them. It's not just horsepower and torque. An automatic will be quicker and easier to launch than a manual, while all-wheel drive provides more instantaneous and beneficial grip.