2dr Roadster Manual Enthusiast Convertible Manual Gasoline 3.5l Dohc V6 Daytona on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Is your new-car warranty good at the race track?

We've all heard the horror stories. Your buddy knows a girl that was dating a guy whose best friend's brother once broke his brand-new, recently purchased performance car while making runs at a drag strip or laps at a track day, and the manufacturer wouldn't cover the repair under warranty. True story? Urban legend? Complete crap? Yes, no, maybe. One thing's for sure: Automotive warranties have always come with caveats. In 1908, an ad in the Trenton Evening Times clearly stated: "All Ford Cars Guaranteed for One Year." Although it changed over time, by 1925 the Ford New Car Guarantee only covered 90 days on material and 30 days on labor, and it clearly stated that that there was "No guarantee whatever on Fan Belts, Glass, Bulbs, Wiring, Transmission, Bands, Hose Connections, Commutator Shells, Rollers, Spark Plugs or Gaskets." Whether or not Ol' Henry would pay to fix your Model T if you broke it shaving a tenth off your lap time at the local board track seems to be lost to history. We're guessing no. But what about today? Do new-car warranties in 2017 cover cars when they are driven on race tracks? We researched the warranties of 14 auto brands to find out, and the answer is yes, no, maybe, depending on the brand, in some cases the model, and whether or not your car is modified from stock. Acura has been out of the high-performance car game for a number of years, but jumps back into the party in 2017 with its hybrid-powered $173,000 NSX supercar. And Acura's warranty, as well as Honda's, clearly states that it does not cover "the use of the vehicle in competition or racing events." View 33 Photos So we asked Sage Marie, Senior Manager of Public Relations for Honda and Acura. "If the car is stock, the warranty covers it on a track just as it does on the street. No question," he told us. "However, if the car is modified, say with slick tires or other components that would put higher stresses on the vehicle's parts and systems, then we would have to investigate the circumstances further." Marie went on to say the same would be true for any Acura model or Honda vehicle, including the new 2017 Honda Civic Si. This became a common theme. Chevrolet actually started this practice with the fifth-generation Camaro on the high-performance ZL1 and Z/28 models.

2016 Nissan Maxima launches production in Tennessee

The 2016 Nissan Maxima saw its big debut at the end of the brand's 90-second Super Bowl commercial this year. However, we didn't get the full details about the latest generation of the model marketed as the four-door sports car until the recent New York Auto Show. Now just a few weeks later, the sedans are rolling down the assembly line in Smyrna, TN, and they should hit the road this summer. "Today's launch of the all-new Maxima is the beginning of an exciting year for Nissan's US lineup, with new versions of the Altima, Sentra and Titan due later this year," John Martin, Nissan's senior vice president for manufacturing, supply chain management and purchasing, said in the production announcement. The sedan's revised 3.5-liter V6 is also made in Tennessee at Nissan's Decherd Powertrain Plant. The 2016 Maxima certainly looks different than other mainstream sedans with its prominent V-shaped grille, slashing headlights and floating roof. Prices start at $32,410, plus $825 for destination. For that, customers get a 300-horsepower V6 that's connected to what Nissan claims is a "performance-oriented" CVT. The latest model is also estimated to get 30 miles per gallon on the highway. NISSAN BEGINS PRODUCTION OF EIGHTH-GENERATION MAXIMA "4-DOOR SPORTS CAR" IN TENNESSEE NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Nissan's Smyrna Vehicle Assembly Plant continues its reign as the top-producing automotive plant in North America, as Gov. Bill Haslam, U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander and Tennessee Economic and Community Development Commissioner Randy Boyd joined plant employees to celebrate the start of production for the all-new 2016 Nissan Maxima. "When Nissan came to Tennessee more than 30 years ago, there were almost no auto jobs in the state," said Alexander. "Three decades later, about one-third of our manufacturing jobs are auto related, auto suppliers have located in 80 counties, and our family incomes are higher. I want to thank Nissan for providing opportunities for thousands of talented Tennesseans." The first U.S.-assembled Maxima rolled off the assembly line in Smyrna in January 2003. Since then, Nissan has produced nearly 800,000 Maxima sedans at the plant, with more than 60,000 shipped to markets worldwide. Maxima is one of six models currently built at the Smyrna plant and is assembled on the same line as the Altima midsize sedan and all-electric Nissan LEAF. Maxima's new 3.5-liter, VQ-series V6 engine is also assembled in Tennessee at Nissan's Decherd Powertrain Plant.

Recharge Wrap-up: Nissan "religious" about zero-emissions, Tesla crashes at dealership, Formula E on-board video

Nissan is pretty darn serious about being king of the EV industry. Just see what Chief Planning Officer Andy Palmer has to say at the launch of the e-NV200: "When it comes to zero emissions, we're absolutely religious. We'll be the absolute, No. 1 leader in zero emissions. No doubt. That's our positioning." Bold words, to be sure. Toyota, on the other hand, ended its collaboration with Tesla (whom Nissan mustn't forget about in its quest to reign supreme in the EV world) to build the RAV4 EV, and will focus instead on hybrids and testing the waters with hydrogen cars. Says Jim Lentz, CEO of Toyota North America, "I would rather invest my dollars in fuel cell development than in another 2,500 EVs." Read more at Automotive News or Autoweek. To celebrate 25 years of TDI technology, Audi is releasing the A7 Sportback 3.0 TDI Competition special edition in Europe. The Competition uses Audi's biturbocharged, 3.0-liter diesel engine boosted to 326 horsepower, giving the car a 0-62 time of 5.1 seconds. It comes with the S line sport package and is offered in four exterior colors: Daytona Gray, Misano Red, Nardo Gray and Sepang Blue. The interior is black leather, with the option of Misano Red or Agate Gray contrast stitching. The Competition edition will go on sale in August starting at ˆ72,000 (about $97,700). Audi's first Turbocharged Direct Injection engine debuted at the 1989 Frankfurt Motor Show in the Audi 100 2.5 TDI. See the press release down below for more details. There was another Tesla Model S crash recently, this one at the Tesla Store. The driver apparently crashed the freshly purchased car into the Tesla sign before even making it off the lot. According to Reddit user s1lentway, who was at the Tesla Store in Fremont, California when it happened, "We believe this is someone who just got their car. They must have been driving it for less than a minute and lost control, crashing right into the sign missing the showroom glass windows only by a few inches." Wrecked Exotics suggests the driver hit the accelerator instead of the brake pedal. Probably the best comment in the Reddit post: "Edison strikes again." See the original post at Reddit for more corny jokes, speculation and similar stories from other users. Take a lap in a Formula E racecar. The video below offers up the sights and sounds of a hot, wet lap in the open-cockpit, all-electric Spark-Renault SRT_01E.