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Car Club USA: Louisiana Mudfest

There's nothing quite like mudding. Big tires, huge power, and crazy-wild gearheads that like to throw down on a mud pit almost as much as a thirty rack of Coors. In the latest, and some might argue greatest yet episode of Car Club USA, we head to Louisiana to throw some dirt at Mudfest. As Louisiana's one and only Mouth of the South puts it, "If you don't mud ride... go to Texas I guess." Joining The Mouth and friendly rivals The Most Hated Mud Sluts, we dive in. Beyond the obvious V8 blasting and tractor-tire spinning, those who know best describe Mudfest as, "Good cooking, good friends, good fun, and a lot of partying." It's a motorsport spectacle unlike any you're likely to find up North or out West, though no less impressive to behold. Follow along with the fun, the impromptu drag racing, the trash talking, and the mechanical madness. And find out why, at Mudfest, "if we don't tear it up, we ain't done it right." Each Car Club USA episode features a different car club or event from across the US, where passionate owner communities gather to share automotive experiences and embark on incredible adventures. From Main Street cruises to off-road trails, catch all the latest car club activity on Autoblog. Chevrolet Ford Jeep RAM Truck Off-Road Vehicles Car Club USA Videos autoblog black

PickupTrucks.com's latest test results in a familiar winner [w/video]

PickupTrucks.com has gone and thrown the latest batch of half-ton pickups into a cage match to see who would come out on top. The site put the 2014 Chevrolet Silverado 1500, GMC Sierra 1500, 2013 Ford F-150, Ram 1500, Toyota Tundra and Nissan Titan through a battery of tests. Those included 0-60 miles per hour acceleration, 60-0 mph deceleration, fuel economy, a hill climb, and payload and towing. They even threw the rigs on an autocross course to evaluate overall handling. Each truck was given points based on how it scored in each evaluation.
Who came out on top? Somewhat surprisingly, the 2013 Ford F-150 walked away with the gold, though fewer than 50 points separated first and fourth place. Head over to PickupTrucks.com to read the full evaluation and the final results. You may be shocked to see exactly where some of the segment's newest additions placed. You can also watch a video on the test below.

Chevy teases next-gen Volt at fan event in LA

Barely two months before its planned debut at the 2015 North American International Auto Show, Chevrolet has released yet another batch of teaser images of its second-generation Volt. Unlike the first image, though, which just showed the car's rear badge, there's a lot more to this quartet of shots. The first three images show off the nose of the next-gen model and come from a fan event in Los Angeles. What we can see is a sleeker front end, with an evolution of the silver grille inserts previously seen on the original Volt and Spark EV. Gone is the current car's split upper grille, in favor of a more conventional arrangement. The sharper, more angular headlights are also an evolution of the lamps seen on the current Volt. Chevrolet also took the opportunity to announce a new location-based charging system that uses GPS to adjust the vehicle's charge settings, including the charge level, while also announcing that the next-gen car will feature more intuitive charge indicators that will be better able to inform owners of their car's charging level. The tech will mean that the Volt 'knows' when it is parked at home, and can thus automatically optimize charging for off-peak times, and so on. Take a look at the teaser images at the top of the page, and then head below for Chevy's press release announcing the new features. Next-Gen Chevy Volt Offers More User-Friendly Charging 2014-11-20 GPS makes charging more convenient Portable charger is easier to access Intuitive visual cues show charge status DETROIT – If there's one thing Chevrolet Volt owners love about their cars, it's being able to recharge the battery easily. Evidence of that is a U.S. Department of Energy study that shows more than 80 percent of all trips by Volt owners did not use the range extender. Chevrolet has made the charging system in the next-generation Volt even easier for customers to recharge the battery – and to check the charge status. The next-generation Volt debuts in January at the North American International Auto Show. "Chevrolet used the real-world experiences of today's Volt owners to make the charging process simpler and more convenient in the next-generation Volt," said Andrew Farah, chief engineer for the Volt.