GM eyes a unique off-road utility vehicle
The Stealthy One is of the opinion that GMC, General Motors’ truck and utility vehicle division, is contemplating the addition of an off-road tracks option for its full-size pickups, at least for one specific model. Right now, there’s a GMC Sierra 2500HD Denali All Mountain Concept model fitted with a set of triangularshaped Mattracks-brand treads (in place of off-road tires) traversing the hills around Vail, Colorado, west of Denver. The big 4x4 crew cab is also equipped with GM’s brawny 6.6-litre turbodiesel V-8 that spits out 445 horsepower and 910 pound-feet of torque. Clearly the All Mountain Sierra could be a popular option where winter snowfalls are plentiful and where free-range activities such as snowmobiles are currently allowed. Would you drive an electric off-road vehicle? The Sleuth thinks you might be tempted after a close-up look at the Bollinger B1. This two-door off-roader looks like a 1950s-era Land Rover, only much plainer. But the beauty of the Bollinger B1 is that it doesn’t burn fossil fuel. Instead, the utility vehicle uses twin electric motors (one for each axle) that are claimed to generate a combined 360 horsepower and 472 pound-feet of torque through a two-speed (high- and low-range) controller. The battery pack is located beneath the body. A maximum range of up to 320 kilometres is claimed, with a towing capacity of 2,730 kilograms. And for tackling the rough stuff, there’s 40 centimetres of ground clearance. The New York-state-built B1 is expected to enter production in early 2019 at an estimated base price in mid-$40,000 US range. The era of the super sports car: The Sleuth sees 2018 as the beginning of a bumper crop of exotic and expensive sporting machinery for the rich and famous to park in their garages. In no particular order, they include the 2019 midengine Corvette, 2019 Saleen S1, 2019 Aston Martin Vantage, 2019 Ferrari 488 GTO, 2019 McLaren P15, 2019 BMW i8 Roadster, 2018 Hennessey Venom F5 and the 2020 Tesla Roadster. Added to this list are a few improbables such as the Apollo Intensa Emozione, Dallara Stradale and a car called the Devel Sixteen from Dubai that the manufacturer says its quad-turbocharged V-16 engine produces 5,000 horsepower in full race trim. Street-legal Devels will be rated at a relatively tame 2,000 horsepower. There are many others supposedly coming to market, but time will tell if they actually see the light of day. The Lincoln MKC loses its wings: The Spy Guy was never a huge fan of the winged grilles that Ford’s premium division was attaching to nearly all its vehicles. Fortunately, common sense and good taste now prevails in the Lincoln design studio as the Continental and MKZ sedans and the Navigator luxury utility wagon are the recipients of more attractive mesh-style fresh-air intakes. The next model to change noses is the MKC. This otherwise fetching compact utility model has sold relatively well since its 2016 model-year introduction and will likely do better for the 2019 model year with subtle sheetmetal changes. Left untouched are the base and optional turbocharged fourcylinder engines rated at 245 and 285 horsepower. The Porsche 718 Boxster and Cayman will add six-cylinder powerplants: Not two years ago, the German automaker replaced the six-cylinder engines used in the Boxster roadster and Cayman coupe sports cars with turbocharged fourcylinder engines. The Spy Guy’s sources are now reporting that a revived higher performance Box st er/ Cayman GT 4 offshoot will include anon-turbo six-cylinder engine that comes from the rear-engine 911 model. Although no official output numbers are available, there are whispers that the GT4 will be rated at a minimum of 400 horsepower (that’s 50 ponies more than and Cayman S and Boxster S, which are the current top models) and as much as 430 horses. Also apparently in the cards is a standard six-speed manual gearbox, which is something that would certainly bring a huge smile to the faces of Porsche fans. Uber in hot water: After being hacked, ride-hailing service Uber then paid those digital attackers $100,000 US to destroy the personal information of about 57 million U.S. customers and drivers that was stolen, and also to cover it up. What’s potentially worse, the data breach occurred in 2016, but was only recently disclosed by Uber. In almost all U.S. states, failure to promptly notify authorities of such extortion attempts is against the law.