Toyota Avalon on 2040-cars

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Autoblog's Editors' Picks: Our complete list of the best new vehicles

It's not easy to earn an “EditorsÂ’ Picks” at Autoblog as part of the rating and review process that every new vehicle goes through. Our editors have been at it a long time, which means weÂ’ve driven and reviewed virtually every new car you can go buy on the dealer lot. There are disagreements, of course, and all vehicles have their strengths and weaknesses, but this list features what we think are the best new vehicles chosen by Autoblog editors. We started this formal review process back in 2018, so there's quite of few of them now. So what does it mean to be an EditorsÂ’ Pick? In short, it means itÂ’s a car that we can highly recommend purchasing. There may be one, multiple, or even zero vehicles in any given segment that we give the green light to. What really matters is that itÂ’s a vehicle that weÂ’d tell a friend or family member to go buy if theyÂ’re considering it, because itÂ’s a very good car. The best way to use this list is is with the navigation links below. Click on a segment, and you'll quickly arrive at the top rated pickup truck or SUV, for example. Use the back button to return to these links and search in another segment, like sedans. If youÂ’ve been keeping up with our monthly series of the latest vehicles to earn EditorsÂ’ Pick status, youÂ’re likely going to be familiar with this list already. If not, welcome to the complete list that weÂ’ll be keeping updated as vehicles enter (and others perhaps exit) the good graces of our editorial team. We rate a new car — giving it a numerical score out of 10 — every time thereÂ’s a significant refresh or if it happens to be an all-new model. Any given vehicle may be impressive on a first drive, but we wait until itÂ’s in the hands of our editors to put it through the same type of testing as every other vehicle that rolls through our test fleet before giving it the EditorsÂ’ Pick badge. This ensures consistency and allows more voices to be heard on each individual model. And just so you donÂ’t think weÂ’ve skipped trims or variants of a model, we hand out the EditorsÂ’ Pick based on the overarching model to keep things consistent. So, when you read that the 3 Series is an EditorsÂ’ Pick, yes, that includes the 330i to the M3 and all the variants in between. If thereÂ’s a particular version of that car we vehemently disagree with, we make sure to call that out.

Recharge Wrap-up: Couple wins Toyota Mirai; Tesla Gigafactory wages reported

A couple who won a Toyota Mirai at the Los Angeles Auto Show are among the first people to own the new fuel-cell sedan. Marianne Ellis bought the winning ticket - auctioned off by the Environmental Media Association to fund environmental programs - as a possible 30th anniversary gift for her husband, David. The excited couple picked up their ceremonial keys at the LA Auto Show on Wednesday. "For us, it's about being at the cutting edge of change," says Marianne Ellis. "It's a chance to support environmental causes and clean energy, while showing it's possible to make a car like this part of your lifestyle." The Mirai will go on sale in California in the fall of 2015. Read more in the press release below. The salaries for 6,500 full-time employees at Tesla's Gigafactory battery production facility have been reported. According to the Reno Gazette-Journal, the 4,550 production associates and 200 material handlers will be paid $22.79 an hour. 460 equipment technicians and 360 quality technicians will get $27.88 an hour. 930 engineers and senior staff will earn $41.83, or $87,000 a year. Tesla plans to staff 6,500 people at the Reno, Nevada-based Gigafactory by 2020. Read more at the Reno Gazette-Journal or at Teslarati. The National Biodiesel Board (NBB) has elected its governing board members. The board leaders include Sprague Operating Resources Chairman Steven J. Levy, Minnesota Soybean Processors Vice Chair Ron Marr, American Soybean Association Treasurer Mike Cunningham and Nebraska Soybean Board Secretary Greg Anderson. NBB also filled four more spots on the board, discussed federal policies, began program planning and recognized outstanding member involvement in the biodiesel industry. Read more at Biodiesel Magazine. The US Department of Energy (DOE) has reported progress on renewable and low-carbon hydrogen production. The DOE calls electrolysis, photoelectrochemical, biological and solar-thermochemical key areas of hydrogen production and has made advances in each. The DOE is looking into technological advancements in making the clean fuel and ways to reduce production costs. The DOE has also outlined various plans for the 2015 fiscal year with regard to advancing hydrogen technology, with the goal of getting hydrogen prices in line with other fuels. Read more at Green Car Congress. Toyota Mirai Winners Celebrate The Future November 19, 2014 TORRANCE, Calif. (Nov.

Toyota FT-1 hints at Supra, more aggressive hybrids

Toyota showed off the new FT-1 performance concept at the 2014 Detroit Auto Show today, and the obvious story angle is that this is the new Supra. That's enough weight for most concept cars to carry, but then we thought about it a bit more - FT-1 stands for "Future Toyota 1," after all - and re-read the hints Toyota is dropping about how the FT-1 fits into the company's future. Put all the pieces together, and we think there's a chance Toyota's hybrid models are about to get a whole lot cooler. Technically, the FT-1 is an EV, but that's just because all it has for a powetrain is a small battery and motor to move it around on stage. This concept doesn't even have a proposed powertrain, but a production Supra could have any number of powerplants under the hood (V6, V8, hybrid and inline-six are all mentioned by Automotive News). We also like the big red start button on the steering wheel, which owes at least a little to the blue start button in the Prius. What we're more interested here is what this sleek red beast could do for the look of Toyota's hybrids. The FT-1 could change how Toyota designs cars in the future. To make the FT-1, Akio Toyoda, the president and CEO of Toyota Motor Corporation, apparently challenged Toyota's Calty Design Research team to create a car with passion and "a palpable heart-pounding sense of excitement." Instead of making design decisions "by consensus among a large group of stakeholders," the company says "the [design] approval process has been streamlined. This new approach aims to produce cars that connect more deeply with customers." There was a sense in Detroit today that the FT-1 heralds a change in how the company designs cars in the future. The FT-1 is apparently not the result of Toyota's hybrid supercar partnership with BMW, but we know that Toyota isn't a total stranger to a high-performance hybrid category, having built the TS030 hybrid Le Mans race car. For an on-road gas-electric from the company, though, we're much more used to the egg-shaped Prius. While Toyota has backed off a 2003 pledge to make every model a hybrid, it has said that it wants gas-electrics powertrains to proliferate throughout the line-up. And, if the FT-1 previews a new Toyota look, then at least some of those hybrids will benefit from some of the good looks on display in Detroit.