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April Fools' Day brings Jeep Sedan, Hyundai N Roadster, Toyota Yaris pickup and more

There is one day out of the year when public relations professionals have permission to lie to journalists and to the public: April Fools' Day. Manufacturers release details about wild, weird and wacky new technology, concept vehicles and services. Some take it to obvious outlandish extremes (Jeep Sedan anybody?), while others plot to mislead with products that are just outside the realm of possibility. Check out all the "jokes" below. BMW Motorrad BMW doesn't want to exclude anybody from experiencing the thrill of high-level racing, so it is introducing 'iRace" autonomous programming on its S 1000 RR sport bike. It includes beginner, sportsman, advanced and unlimited driving modes, and stores GPS information for all Superbike world championship tracks. Hyundai Hyundai is wrong for this. The Hyundai N Roadster is the work of South Korean designer Yeonjoon Park and features a 2.0-liter turbocharged engine, rear-wheel drive and a hard convertible top. Hyundai says this is a "concept (for now)," but we think it'd make a seriously great Mazda Miata competitor. Honda Honda wins the award for the best interactive gimmick, as its press release for the '90s-inspired special-edition Pastport includes a live hotline number with a message from Fred Savage. Call 1-833-PASTPORT for more information. Jeep Put the Jeep Cherokee face on the Chrysler 300's body, and voila! The 2019 Jeep Sedan is born. We can't decide if the name or the rendering is better. Land Rover Accessibility to charging ports is of major concern to anybody with a plug-in vehicle. So, with the recent launch of the Range Rover P400e and Range Rover Sport P400e, Land Rover is putting forth an effort to install more stations around the globe. First up is Scotland's Isle of Skye. Adventurers need juice too! Lexus Australia Lexus expands its Encore service to include doggos. The new service, called Enpaw, will take pups to luxury boarding kennels in style. Toyota U.S. Toyota created the Yaris Adventure pickup for "those who want to tell their friends they own a truck but never veer off pavement." It's part Mazda 2, part RAV4, 100 percent ute and it looks ... great? Creating a new segment might be all fun and games to Toyota, but Ford is reportedly considering a Focus-based ute in a similar, albeit larger, style. Toyota Australia Toyota is launching a new HiAce van, and it's already getting a limited-edition variant called the PieAce.

Land Rover will downsize with a pair of hybridized turbodiesel sixes

Europe's automotive industry has ground to a halt, but the strict emissions regulations that went into effect in early 2020 are still looming on the horizon. Land Rover is preparing to launch a pair of hybridized turbodiesel six-cylinder engines in a bid to comply with the regulations and avoid paying huge fines, according to a recent report. British magazine Autocar learned Land Rover has applied the mild hybrid technology already offered on the Evoque and the Discovery Sport, its two smallest models, to a 3.0-liter straight-six to obtain 300 horsepower. The company will also release a more powerful version of the six rated at about 350 horses. The former will be available on HSE, HSE Dynamic and Autobiography Dynamic variants of the Range Rover Sport, while the latter will be added to upmarket models like the HST. The full-size Range Rover (pictured) will get them, too. The sixes represent a two-pronged approach to replacing the 4.4-liter turbodiesel V8 available in Europe, among other markets. It delivers 335 horsepower and 546 pound-feet of torque, and it sends the Range Rover from zero to 60 mph in 6.5 seconds while giving it a 7,700-pound towing capacity. These figures are hard to argue against, but it's an older engine that's increasing the company's fleet-wide average emissions output, so it has to go. The mild hybrid system won't power either Range Rover on electricity alone, but it will make them cleaner and more efficient; losing a pair of cylinders will help in both areas, too. Although Land Rover hasn't confirmed plans to ax the V8 or launch a hybridized six, suppliers have started publishing information about the powertrain, so its launch is believed to be around the corner. Time will tell whether it will appear on the current-generation models or their replacements, which are undergoing shakedown testing globally and due out in the coming months. Sister company Jaguar will use the mild hybrid technology, too. The six-cylinder will find its way into the XF and the F-Pace, which are both expected to receive comprehensive updates before the end of 2020. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Talking Land Rover Defender, Ford Bronco and GMC Jimmy | Autoblog Podcast #586

Autoblog Podcast #372

Episode #372 of the Autoblog podcast is here, and this week, Dan Roth and Chris Paukert are joined by Peter Leung of RichlandF1 to talk Formula One, the impending demise of Bertone, and Honda spinning Acura off into its own division. We start with what's in the garage and finish up with some of your questions, and for those of you who hung with us live on our UStream channel, thanks for taking the time. Check out the new rundown below with times for topics, and you can follow along down below with our Q&A. Thanks for listening! Autoblog Podcast #372: The video meant to be presented here is no longer available. Sorry for the inconvenience. Topics: Bertone goes bust Mercedes F1 Power Unit Honda spinning off Acura In the Autoblog Garage: 2014 Jeep Cherokee Limited 2015 Subaru WRX STI 2014 Land Rover Range Rover Autobiography Hosts: Dan Roth, Chris Paukert Guest: Peter Leung Runtime: 01:37:41 Rundown: Intro and Garage - 00:00 Formula 1 - 26:39 Bertone - 50:42 Acura - 01:02:19 Q&A - 01:14:38 Get the podcast: [UStream] Listen live on Mondays at 10 PM Eastern at UStream [iTunes] Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes [RSS] Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator [MP3] Download the MP3 directly Feedback: Email: Podcast at Autoblog dot com Review the show in iTunes Design/Style Marketing/Advertising Motorsports Podcasts Acura Honda Jeep Land Rover Subaru