2012 Volkswagen Gti (modified!) Unitronic Stage 2! Only 7,000 Miles on 2040-cars

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Rivian R1T, Mini Cooper Electric owners happiest with their EVs

The J.D. Power 2023 U.S. Electric Vehicle Experience (EVX) Ownership Study is out, and there's change at the top. With the swelling adoption of electric vehicles in the U.S. over in the past two years especially, the third year of the EVX study changes focus to first-time EV buyers. Those two factors encouraged change at the top of both premium and mass-market segments. Among premium EVs, the Rivian R1T pickup scored overall victory in its first year of eligibility with a satisfaction score of 794 out of 1,000. The Tesla Model 3 takes second place with 759 points. Tesla had won the top two premium spots in the study in 2021 and in 2022. The average score in the premium segment was 756. The Tesla Model Y (754), Audi E-Tron (735), and Polestar 2 (724) filled out the list of the five eligible models this year. Among the ten eligible mass-market vehicles, the Mini Cooper Electric nabbed the overall win by scoring 782. The Kia EV6 came second with 762 points, keeping Kia in the top two; the Kia Niro EV won the mass-market segment the previous two years. The Ford Mustang Mach-E (742), Hyundai Ioniq 5 (738), and Volkswagen ID.4 (735) completed the top five, the Niro EV (733) in sixth. All were above the segment average of 730. The four models fell below the segment average were the Ford F-150 Lightning (723), Chevrolet Bolt EUV (716), Chevrolet Bolt (711), and Nissan Leaf (698). How are the scores derived? J.D. Power worked with EV app maker and research firm PlugShare to get owner responses in ten areas: accuracy of stated battery range; availability of public charging stations; battery range; cost of ownership; driving enjoyment; ease of charging at home; interior and exterior styling; safety and technology features; service experience; and vehicle quality and reliability. Brent Gruber, executive director of the EV practice at J.D. Power, said, "Recent vehicle launches from both new brands and traditional automakers have had a profound effect on what factors are most important in the ownership experience. Today’s EV owners are looking for quality, reliability, driving enjoyment, safety and technology features." The Mini, in fact, scored highest of any premium and mass-market EV in the studyÂ’s highest-weighted index factor, quality and reliability.

Last VW bus ever made arrives at final destination

A Brazilian politician tried to save it, unsuccessfully, so the final Last Edition Volkswagen Type 2 Kombi was produced on December 20, 2013 and now resides in a vintage museum at Volkswagen's Commercial Vehicles HQ in Hanover, Germany.
The Volkswagen Microbus was built for 56 years, starting in September 1957. Brazil was the last country still assembling it, but new safety regulations in the country requiring airbags and ABS on all cars spelled the end. When that politician introduced a bill that would pardon only the 'Bus from a death sentence, it couldn't garner the required number of votes for passage. The South American country takes the Kombi production title, though, with 1.5 million of the 3.5 million total made in the home of Copacabana beach and the girl from Ipanema.
The VW Bus is dead. Now perhaps we can turn our attentions to the still-not-totally-settled matter of the Bulli...

Caddy XT4, Subaru STI Type RA, and blazin' Elon | Autoblog Podcast #553

On this week's Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Senior Editor Alex Kierstein and Green Editor John Snyder. We talk about time spent with the Cadillac XT4 and Subaru WRX STI Type RA. Then we get into other topics, including the death of the VW Beetle, our thoughts on the state of the Nissan 370Z, cameras replacing mirrors, the trouble with the Ford Focus Active, and Elon Musk blazing a fat blunt. We indulge in a little conversation about the process of writing about cars. Finally we help a listener choose their next EV in the "Spend My Money" segment.Autoblog Podcast #553 Get The Podcast iTunes – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown Cars we've driven: Cadillac XT4 and Subaru WRX STI Type RA RIP, VW Bug What's up with the Nissan 370Z? Lexus to replace side mirrors with cameras RIP, Ford Focus Active You do you, Elon On writing about cars Spend My Money: electric edition Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on iTunes Related Video: Green Podcasts Cadillac Ford Lexus Nissan Subaru Tesla Volkswagen Car Buying Technology Coupe Crossover Electric Police/Emergency Sedan cadillac xt4 subaru wrx sti type ra