2012 Lexus Hs250h Hybrid Heated Leather Sunroof 17k Mi Texas Direct Auto on 2040-cars

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Volvo, Kia and BYD duke it out in the finals for World Car of 2024

Three electric vehicles — none produced by an American manufacturer — will compete next month for the title of 2024 World Car of the Year, it was announced Monday. The finalists are the Kia EV9, the Volvo EX30 and the BYD Seal (shown above). The latter two are built in China. The three top finalists in five other categories were also named at the Geneva Motor Show in Switzerland. The winners in all six categories will be revealed live during an awards ceremony at the New York International Auto Show on March 27. This year marks the 20th year of the World Car Awards and the partnership with the New York show. Besides car of the year, the other finalists are: Electric vehicle: BMW i5, Kia EV9, Volvo EX30; Luxury car: BMW 5 Series/i5, Mercedes Benz E-Class, Mercedes Benz EQE SUV; Performance car: BMW M2, BMW XM, Hyundai Ionia 5 N; Urban car: BYD Dolphin, Lexus LBX, Volvo EX30; World Car Design: Ford Bronco, Ferrari Purosangue, Toyota Prius. Only Ford among U.S. companies has an entry in the final selections, and only in one category, design, for the Bronco. BMW has four vehicles in the finals, Volvo has three, Kia and Mercedes have two each. BYD from China has two entries as well. The Seal went on sale in in its home market in 2022 and is now available in most of the rest of the world. The BYD Co. (which stands for Build Your Dreams) has surpassed Tesla to become the worldÂ’s biggest maker of electric vehicles, and has its sights set on the U.S. The selection process for World Cars involves 100-plus automotive journalists from 29 countries who vote, as they review and test-drive the eligible vehicles for the 2024 awards. Their journey is captured virtually on World Car TV. Design/Style Geneva Motor Show BMW Ferrari Ford Hyundai Kia Lexus Mercedes-Benz Toyota Volvo Best Cars World Car of the Year

Lexus recalls 4,200 NX crossovers due to missing welds

Lexus is recalling about 4,200 units of the 2022 NX due to missing spot-welds. Announced in April 2022, the campaign includes the NX250, the NX350, the NX350h, and the NX450h+, and the Japanese company has asked its dealers to stop selling the vehicles in their inventory. Documents published by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) explain that some spot-welds might have been missed during the production process. They're located around the mounting areas for the front shock absorbers. Leaving out these welds can cause some of the other welds and the surrounding panels to weaken or crack over time, which could in turn make it possible for the front shock absorbers to separate from their mounting area. This would increase the risk of a crash by causing the driver to lose control of the vehicle. The recall includes 4,215 examples of the NX, though Lexus estimates that fewer than 1% of those are missing welds. It will begin notifying owners of potentially affected vehicles by mail on June 6, 2022. They'll be asked to take their NX to an authorized dealer so that a mechanic can check for missing welds. Lexus is still developing a solution to the problem. In the meantime, it has asked its dealers to stop selling the NXs potentially affected by the recall that are still in inventories across the nation, though as of writing only 12 units have been identified. Weld-related recalls are mercifully rare but not unheard of. In 2019, Subaru recalled 2,107 new Outback and Legacy models due to faulty welds below the cowl panel, and 293 units of the Ascent were recalled in 2018 because they were missing a series of spot welds on the B-pillar. At the time, the company explained that the 293 crossovers without the proper welds would be destroyed and replaced. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

MT digs deep, learns more about hot Lexus RC coupe

As we patiently wait for the all-new Lexus RC to be unveiled at the Tokyo Motor Show in November, Motor Trend has dug up some tasty info on the Japanese automaker's new coupe for us to discuss. While we already knew some speculative, but credible, details on the upcoming two-door Lexus, MT reportedly has the dish on some details of the hotter RC F coupe (shown in the spy shots above).
The article says that the F will carry a six-figure MSRP and use a 455-horsepower, 5.0-liter V8 with cylinder deactivation, mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission. Carbon fiber body components will help reduce curb weight, and the scooped hood is said to optimize aerodynamics as the car will reach a top speed of around 186 miles per hour. Specific high-speed handling improvements include specially developed Brembo brakes, a beefed-up suspension, Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 tires and an automatic decklid spoiler.
As for other RC models, MT mentions the hybrid and V6 variants we already heard about, but it also says that the car could get a 2.0-liter turbo engine. This will probably be the engine used in the base model, which is expected to start at around $40,000. Head on over to Motor Trend for the full article, including a rendered image of the RC F.