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Sunday Drive: A tale of old favorites and upcoming challengers

Sedans and crossovers dominated the attention of our readers last week, led by the completely redesigned 2018 Honda Accord. It's the Japanese automaker's flagship, and people are seriously interested in finding out how good the latest Accord is. So interested, in fact, that no other single story came close to the brand-new Accord in Autoblog reader interest. Moving down the list we find the equally new 2018 Buick Enclave. The three-row crossover has a lot to offer a family, especially one looking for a nice, quiet ride. If you're looking for the exact opposite of nice and quiet, but still want enough room for you and your significant others, the Subaru WRX that we tested last week may be the perfect ride for you. Or, if you just want to drive fast and aren't at all worried about space, there's the Camaro SS. See? We offer something for everybody. From there, we look to the future. Who isn't interested in seeing the first fully electric vehicle from Porsche? And who isn't intrigued to see the Mission E testing alongside a gaggle of Teslas? A brand-new Jeep is always a big deal, especially when it's the revival of a classic nameplate like the Grand Wagoneer. And finally, we have something completely different: the Rezvani Tank. As always, tune in to Autoblog next week for a front-row seat to all the happenings worth following in the automotive industry. 2018 Honda Accord First Drive | Feels like home again 2018 Buick Enclave First Drive Review | Fortress of quietude 2018 Subaru WRX Drivers' Notes | Turbo traditionalist 2018 Chevy Camaro SS Drivers' Notes | Demonstrative power, middling interior Porsche Mission E caught testing against Teslas Jeep three-row SUV caught on public roads — Grand Wagoneer, perhaps? Rezvani Tank: It's like a Hot Wheels car brought to life Green Buick Chevrolet Honda Jeep Porsche Subaru Crossover SUV Electric Future Vehicles Luxury Off-Road Vehicles Special and Limited Editions Performance Sedan porsche mission e sunday drive

Meet the mother-daughter team that's worked on almost every Chevy Volt

It's Mother's Day, and we're soft enough we love our mothers enough to share a new video from General Motors with you. In it, we meet Monique Watson (left) and Evetta Osbourne, a mother-daughter team that works at the Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly where GM makes the Chevy Volt (along with all of GM's other plug-in hybrids: the Opel Ampera, Holden Volt and Cadillac ELR). The two work side-by-side and have installed the lithium-ion battery pack on almost all of those vehicles - nearly 80,000 of them - since GM started making the pre-production Volts in 2009. In a prepared statement, Watson said that she likes working next to her mom, day in and day out, and they the two are totally in sync when it comes to putting the 400-pound, 16.5-kWh packs into the vehicle undersides. They two can also share stories throughout the day, and Watson said, "The arrangement has absolutely improved our relationship." Osborne started working at Detroit-Hamtramck in 1999, Watson since 2006. If you're driving a Volt today, you probably have them to thank for doing a bit of the work putting your car together. See a short video of them in action below. It's Always Mother's Day for Detroit-Hamtramck Duo Mother, daughter install lithium-ion battery pack in nearly all GM electric vehicles 2014-05-08 DETROIT – For Detroit resident Evetta Osborne, every day is Mother's Day. That's because she literally works side by side with her daughter, Monique Watson, at General Motors' Detroit-Hamtramck assembly plant. They have installed the lithium-ion battery pack on nearly every Chevrolet Volt, Opel Ampera, Holden Volt, and Cadillac ELR since production began. In fact, apart from vacation days and an occasional sick day, the mother-daughter duo has installed almost every battery pack since the Volt was in pre-production in 2009. The ELR launched earlier this year. All told – including Ampera – that's more than 80,000 electric vehicles. "We're a good team and our relationship is secondary when it comes to performing our jobs – but it's great to work alongside my daughter, said Osborne, a mother of five. Because the battery packs weigh more than 400 pounds each, automatic guided vehicles – robotic carts that use sensors to follow a path through the plant – deliver them just as the vehicle body structures glide into position overhead. The carts then lift the T-shaped packs, and Osborne and Watson guide them into the chassis and secure each one with 24 fasteners.

Battery Show 2015: Genovation GXE Corvette EV designed for the 'Ring

The Genovation GXE all-electric Corvette has broken cover. At the Battery Show 2015 in Novi, MI, this week, the converted C6 Z06 Corvette that we first heard about back in August was tucked into a booth along the back wall. Don't let the demure location fool you. This is a muscle-y electric vehicle, ready to roar into the limited-run, expensive EV game. The Genovation GXE Corvette can go from 0-60 miles per hour in three seconds and has a top speed of 200 mph. The powertrain was designed and built in the US, and offers over 700 horsepower and over 600 pound-feet or torque. With a near 50/50 weight distribution, this is "a real driver's car," Genovation CEO Andrew Saul told AutoblogGreen. Saul said that the GXE was designed to do two hard laps at Nurburgring thanks to a 44-kWh battery pack uses the same sort of cylindrical 18650 cells that you can find in a Tesla. That translates to about 40-50 miles of fast, on-road driving, Saul said, or 150 miles on the New York City test cycle. That particular test, "simulates low speed urban driving with frequent stops," according to DieselNet. The car also has a 6-kW charger and a six-speed manual transmission and the adjustable regenerative braking levels can be controlled by paddles on the steering wheel. Of course, none of those performance figures have been proven yet because the GXE hasn't had a chance to hit the road. Saul said that it will take another three-to-four weeks to finish the build and then, finally, there will be a few weeks of road testing. This will include a quarter-mile run on a track as well as a trip to Nevada to do a several-mile top speed test. If all of that sounds like something you're interested in, then get ready to open your wallet wide and wait. Saul said that buying one will set you back $330,000 (just $290,000 if you bring your own C6 Z06). Genovation also won't be making all that many. Saul said he expects to put the GXE into limited production of under 200 units, starting off at maybe five or 10 a year. Featured Gallery Battery Show 2015: Genovation GXE All-Electric Corvette View 14 Photos Green Chevrolet AutoblogGreen Exclusive Electric exclusive corvette genovation