1988 E350 F350 Ford Dually Centurian Dreamer Conversion 1 Ton Truck Sleeper Cab on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Lincoln Nautilus, Ford Edge latest prediction: Production ends in July 2024

In June, Auto Forecast Solutions put out a report compiled by its vice president of global forecasting, Sam Fiorani. One item in the report covered how Fiorani had heard from "multiple sources" that Ford shut down the program to replace the Edge crossover in 2023. Assuming this came to pass, with the Lincoln Nautilus based on the Edge, the inference is that the Nautilus would retire at or around the same time. Ford's response to media queries about the report was either "No comment" or PR-speak deflection. Lincoln's statement on the matter to Motor1, a crafty non-answer, was, "The Nautilus plays and will continue to play an important role in Lincoln’s growing SUV portfolio which includes the Corsair, Aviator and Navigator. Lincoln is investing in growth segments like SUVs and we have no plans to exit the segment." It's possible Lincoln has no plans to leave the segment, but the Nautilus might, according to a fresh, unsourced report in Ford Authority. The site claims the Nautilus will end production at the Oakville Assembly Plant in Ontario, Canada, in July 2024.  Again, we can't know how much, if any of this, is true. But we're zeroing in on a timeline for the potential end of the Edge and Nautilus in the U.S. Those are the only two products Oakville currently builds, and when the Canadian union Unifor asked Ford about the reports in June, Ford couldn't offer union reps anything concrete or reassuring. The Detroit News quoted Unifor chief Jerry Dias as saying of the automaker, "There is no question, they are going through a major evaluation of their portfolio, based on a whole host of things."   We could be seeing one of the earlier theories for Edge's potential demise coming true. Some analysts suspect Ford could be pruning its crossover lineup because it has too many similarly-sized offerings at the moment, the Edge hasn't met its sales targets in Europe, and more compact crossovers are on the way that could bring better street cred if they're associated with the Bronco or Bronco Sport. Unifor and Ford are now in negotiations over a new contract, so it's possible we'll get more clarity in the next month or so about Ford's plans and what will come of Oakville and its roughly 4,000 workers. If Ford walks away from the assembly plant, it will only have two engine plants left in Canada, and no vehicle assembly north of the border for the first time in about a century.

Best 3rd Row SUVs of 2024

If you plan on using a vehicle's third row a lot, let us at least make the suggestion that a minivan would be a smarter bet than anything you're going to see on this list of best three-row SUVs. Their third rows are bigger, more comfortable and easier to get to. The kids will definitely be happier. Here are our two top choices.  OK, now that that's out of the way, we totally get why minivans are totally depressing and that if the kids want to be happier, they can buy their own darn vehicle. You're buying, you're driving, you're being seen in it and you'd rather have a three-row SUV. Fair enough. Luckily, there are more choices than ever and they're really good. The best do a particularly good job of being family friendly without looking like a drab transportation appliance, although really, you can't go wrong with any of the mainstream three-row SUVs. Now, some of the luxury choices are a bit suspect, including those that are otherwise very appealing but have cramped third-row seats (the Genesis GV80 comes to mind). We're focusing on three-row SUVs here, so having a usable third row is a must.   In this list, we have broken things down into four sub-categories: Best Three-Row Crossover |  Best Full-size Three-Row SUV Best Luxury Three-Row SUV |  Best Flagship Luxury Three-Row SUV Note that we define crossovers as SUVs since most buyers use the terms interchangeably, but acknowledge that "crossover" is literally a vehicle with a car-like unibody structure as opposed to the truck-like, body-on-frame construction that traditionally has defined "SUV." In other words, we consider all crossovers SUVs, but not all SUVs are crossovers (specifically those in the full-size segment and some in the flagship luxury segment). Best Three-Row Crossover SUVs of 2024 2024 Honda Pilot Why it stands out: Exceptional storage and cargo space; unique second-row functionality; refined ride; versatile and capable TrailSport; advanced AWDCould be better: Subpar acceleration with lackadaisical transmission and engine response; so-so driver assistance tech Read our full 2024 Honda Pilot Review The Honda Pilot was completely redesigned for 2023. It maintains its predecessor's family friendly packaging and overall focus, but it has injected a welcome sense of style (especially in the TrailSport pictured above) that makes it stand out much better from the big crossover crowd.

2021 Ford F-150 Raptor vs. 2021 Ram 1500 TRX | How they compare on paper

Yep, the F-150 Raptor is back, though you'd be forgiven for not noticing that it ever left. Ford's off-road model is taking a few months off to accommodate the broader 2021 F-150 redesign from which it benefits. And the fine folks over at Ram took full advantage of that lull to launch the new 702-horsepower TRX, which in one big way (hint: it's the engine) stands at the top of the performance pickup heap. Ford says that's all going to change in 2022, but for now, the Raptor returns with a familiar 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 (albeit with an unspecified power figure) along with several other revisions to Ford's tried-and-true formula. The 2020 Raptor was already a worthy adversary to the beefy Ram despite the latter's definitive power advantage, so how has that picture evolved for 2021? Let's take a look.    Powertrain This is a big question mark for the Ford right now, but it seems reasonable to expect a bit more than the outgoing model's 450 horsepower and 510 pound-feet of torque. The TRX's Hellcat-sourced powerplant needs no introduction. Its 702 horsepower will easily eclipse whatever Ford has planned for its 3.5-liter twin-turbo V6, even if the V6 has more grunt than it did before, but that's OK. It's not the base-model Raptor's job to dethrone the TRX in straight-line speed; that honor will go to the 2022 Raptor R. We also don't know what the Raptor's fuel economy will be like, but we suspect it will be better than the TRX's, if only slightly.  Both these trucks come with four-wheel-drive standard, and they both have a number of drive modes that alter the powertrain’s characteristics depending on the terrain. Baja mode transforms the trucks into the desert runners that they both are at heart, but theyÂ’re plenty capable of crawling around rocks, too. We wonÂ’t know for certain which is best at specific tasks until we can get them both on (or off) equal ground. Suspension / off-roading capability And the ground is where things narrow significantly, both on- and off-paper. The specs are freakishly similar when we compare ground clearance, approach/departure angles and water fording, but the Raptor's leapfrog here is clearly evident. Both trucks utilize a coil-sprung rear suspension now, with Ford having abandoned the Raptor's previous leaf-spring setup with the redesign.  The two use different shocks to handle 100-mph-plus desert running.