Tag Archives: mustang

GM And Cruise Want Ford To Stop Calling Its Hands-Free Driving Technology “BlueCruise”

Image for article titled GM And Cruise Want Ford To Stop Calling Its Hands-Free Driving Technology "BlueCruise"

Photo: JEFF KOWALSKY / AFP (Getty Images)

General Motors is not happy with Ford’s driver-assistance technology name, Reuters reports. Why? Because BlueCruise, Ford’s tech, sounds too much like GM’s Super Cruise and Hyper Cruise, its own driver-assistance technologies, and Cruise, its robo-taxi service subsidiary.

Advertisement

Both Ford’s BlueCruise and GM’s Super and Hyper Cruise systems are base-level autonomous driving technologies that would allow drivers to lift their hands from the steering wheel while still being alert. These technologies aren’t fully self-driving, but they’re what the SAE would term a level-2 tech, which allows the car to do a little bit of heavy lifting while the driver can relax — while still being alert, of course.

“While GM had hoped to resolve the trademark infringement matter with Ford amicably, we were left with no choice but to vigorously defend our brands and protect the equity our products and technology have earned over several years in the market,” GM said in its statement.

Ford has argued that GM and Cruise’s claim is “meritless and frivolous” because “drivers for decades have understood what cruise control is, every automaker offers it, and ‘cruise’ is common shorthand for the capability.”

Basically, Ford is calling BlueCruise a kind of advanced cruise control, which isn’t totally accurate but also not totally wrong.

GM, on the other hand, has argued that automated driving is definitely not cruise control, so Ford can’t use the word “cruise” to describe it. Because GM got there first. GM is arguing that Ford intentionally named its technology BlueCruise to create a sense of confusion between the brands and to capitalize on all the hard marketing work GM has done.

Ford is still arguing that other automakers have used the word “cruise” for decades to refer to a variety of other technologies and simple acts people engage in behind the wheel.

Advertisement

Ford announced BlueCruise in April of 2021, which will be available in the Mustang Mach-E and F-150 later this year through over-the-air updates at a cost of $600 for three years of service.

For GREAT deals on a new or used Nissan check out Nissan of Van Nuys TODAY!

Subaru’s First Electric SUV Has A Real Name And A Design You’re Certain To Confuse

Illustration for article titled Subaru's First Electric SUV Has A Real Name And A Design You're Certain To Confuse

Image: Subaru

If you haven’t heard, Toyota and Subaru are making an electric SUV together mainly for North America, though it’ll be sold in other places, too. We’ve already seen Toyota’s effort — it’s called the bZ4X — and today we’ve gotten a glimpse at Subaru’s take, though it’s clad in shadows. We also have a name: Solterra.

Advertisement

Subaru says the moniker is inspired by the Latin words for “sun” and “earth,” and that it represents the company’s commitment to “deliver traditional SUV capabilities in an environmentally responsible package.” It also sounds like an excellent name for a Coachella-like music festival. Subaru’s got some real branding opportunity here.

Comparing the Solterra teaser above — which I’ve brightened and cropped in on to make a little easier to see — against the bZ4X, it seems Subaru’s design won’t stray very far from Toyota’s. Much like the BRZ/GR86 duo, these cars look to have the same basic shape, down to details like the way the side windows terminate, how the taillights arc around the rear quarter, and how the front bumper curves around the car. The headlight cluster appears a little different, mimicking the daytime LED pattern Subaru has used in its latest models.

undefined

Image: Subaru

Just as my colleague José said of the bZ4X when it first appeared, the Solterra looks to carry a very normal shape for a battery-electric crossover — from what we can see of it anyway. There’s no low-slung profile and sloping roofline like the Mustang Mach-E, or egg-shaped properties of the Tesla Model X and Y here. These Toyobaru twins could easily be confused for a RAV4, Highlander or Forester if you’re not paying close attention, and I suppose that’s the point.

The Solterra will be the first application of the e-Subaru global EV platform in a production car, as the press release states. It’s a little funny in and of itself because Toyota’s calling the very same architecture e-TNGA. At least Toyota gave Subaru its due when it unveiled the bZ4X, attributing the concept’s “comfortable and engaging driving experience” to Subaru’s all-wheel drive knowhow.

Subaru says the Solterra will hit showrooms next year. There’s no word on the timetable for a full reveal, but if we’re already getting a name and teaser shots, that shouldn’t be too far off in the distant future.

For GREAT deals on a new or used Chevrolet check out George Chevrolet TODAY!

The Audi A6 E-Tron Concept Is A Long-Range EV With A Confusing Name

undefined

Image: Audi

Audi’s electric range is finally taking shape, now that the E-Tron GT and Q4 E-Tron have joined the existing E-Tron crossover. And in case you thought the E-Tron branding couldn’t possibly get more puzzling, Audi just revealed a concept of the A6 E-Tron it expects to hit showrooms sometime in the next two years.

Advertisement

It’s bothering my obsessive-compulsive tendencies that E-Tron now exists as a standalone nameplate and a version of existing Audi models, but I’ll try my best to keep that down to focus on the concept itself, which looks pretty good. The A6 E-Tron debuted at the Shanghai Auto Show today, and marks the first Audi we’ve seen based on the company’s Premium Platform Electric architecture.

Audi calls the A6 E-Tron a sportback, which followers of the brand may argue actually make it more of an A7 by nature. According to Audi, the A6 name was chosen to link this car to one of the brand’s most historically significant models, and dimensionally it’s equivalent to the existing A6. Here I am again talking about the car’s name — you just can’t get away from it with these new electric Audis.

undefined

Image: Audi

The design you see here is reportedly 95 percent representative of the final model, which isn’t bad news considering that the A6 E-Tron cleans up for the most part. Sure, it’s derivative in places — the high beltline of the profile evokes the departed Ford Fusion in my mind’s eye, and the way the headlights meet the grille — I’m sorry, the inverted face, as Audi calls it — strikes me as remarkably similar to the Mustang Mach-E’s furrowed brow. Neither of these familiarities are necessarily bad though. Don’t hold your breath for images of the interior yet — Audi is saving those for later.

undefined

Image: Audi

Audi designers say the tautness of the roofline and width of the track on this concept will be scaled back slightly ahead of production, though the black trim near the floor that looks like a cutaway panel will be retained. It’s a neat visual trick that slims the car down somewhat, and I like the way it trails toward the rear bumper. There are projectors at the corners that beam light at the ground to greet passengers and signal turns that may or may not make it to the final iteration. There’s a precedent for similar tech in road cars already, though, so it wouldn’t be inconceivable if it did come to pass.

Advertisement

In terms of performance figures, Audi is mostly keeping those close to the chest for now. This concept packs a pair of electric motors combining for 469 horsepower and 590 lb-ft of torque. That’s projected to get the A6 E-Tron to 62 mph from a standstill in under four seconds.

Illustration for article titled The Audi A6 E-Tron Concept Is A Long-Range EV With A Confusing Name

Image: Audi

Advertisement

Turning to range, Audi claims the A6 E-Tron will return more than 700 km on a full charge (434 miles), though under the generous WLTP cycle. The E-Tron GT is rated for 298 miles by that same measure, so the A6 E-Tron is sure to bring a huge range improvement to the brand even if the actual, real-world distance falls short of the WLTP-based projection. For reference, the latest Tesla Model S starts at an EPA-estimated 412 miles of range.

The A6 E-Tron’s efficiency is helped by an ultralow drag coefficient of 0.22 — one of the lowest out there, matching Mercedes-Benz’s A-Class — though there’s no confirmation on whether those slight exterior changes to the production car will dent that somewhat. Like other new electric Audis, it supports 800-volt peak charging that aims to replenish 300 km of range in just 10 minutes.

Advertisement

As far as timing of the sedan’s arrival, for now Audi is saying only that its first PPE-based cars will emerge in the second half of next year. That will likely begin with the Q6 E-Tron, before this A6. In the meantime, I’m going to try and work out a flowchart to make sense of all these E-Trons.