Author: Tabitha

The Los Angeles Police Department has committed to an order of 100 BMW i3 city cars that it will use for non-emergency functions, including routine patrolling, transporting officers and community-outreach initiatives. The police department last year took on an i3 and a Tesla Model S for testing and after just a few months, says alternate vehicle Web site Green Car Reports, the BMW won over the officers’ affections. BMW will also develop software that interfaces with the department’s fleet management system, allowing officials to monitor vehicle data and track the entire electric car fleet in near real time. Officials say…

Honda hit this year’s Pikes Peak International Hill Climb June 26 in Colorado with three versions of its new NSX supercar, one of which was exclusively powered by batteries. The all-electric NSX, with an individual motor at each wheel, uses a torque-vectoring system to apply optimum torque at each wheel individually through each of the race’s 156 turns. The all-electric NSX, with instant torque and no chance of oxygen starvation at higher altitudes, finished second in class, while one of the two hybrid NSX entries won the Time Attack 2 class. The latter was essentially a stock NSX with added…

That’s what The Sleuth has been told and it will arrive wearing a Regal badge. It seems that, with the demise of the Verano following the 2016 model year, this General Motors’ division will add a wagon as a companion to the next-generation 2018 Regal sedan. Both models will be based on the Opel and Vauxhall Insignia Sports Tourer wagons that are currently available in Europe. The next-generation Regal is expected to be a bit larger than the current version and will come with a turbocharged four-cylinder engine expected to make close to 300 horsepower. The fact that the wagon…

BMW’s plug-in hybrid sports car will soon receive a few upgrades. The changes include a new rear glass panel with slotted air vents that will help hot air escape from the mid-mounted turbocharged 1.5-liter three-cylinder gasoline engine. In addition, a more robust battery pack is designed to provide added electric-only distance that currently tops out at just 15 miles. This will also result in an increase in net output to an estimated 400-plus horsepower from the current 362. Suspension modifications are also planned, but the big news is the availability of an i8 convertible, complete with a power-retractable roof. Expected…

On May 30, 1911, a 29-year-old race driver/engineer nicknamed ‘The Little Professor’ came out of retirement for one last event, which happened to be the very first running of the Indianapolis 500. Harroun won the race in a time of six hours, 42 minutes and eight seconds at an average speed of about 75 mph. Harroun’s winning car, a black and yellow pointy-tailed Marmon Wasp, is currently on display at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame. The original Wasp is priceless, but anyone can order an exact 1:18-scale-model replica (about eight inches long) for $230 from Replicarz of Rutland,…

So you think one toolbox is pretty much the same as the next, right? You won’t think that after you’ve checked out the Coolbox. This crowd-funded product will compartmentalize your gear, yes, but the standard-size 22-inch by 12.5-inch-tall by nine-inch-deep Coolbox comes with a built-in battery for powering Bluetooth speakers, USB ports (for charging your phones, tablets and laptops) and a built-in clock and LED floodlights. There’s also a retractable power cord plus multiple outlets for power tools and accessories. And for old-school note-taking and diagramming, the Coolbox has a whiteboard attached to the inside of the lid. There’s even…

The trend-spotting Sleuth sees a shift in building full-size wagons with three rows of seats (so-called crossovers) and that’s to significantly lighter construction methods. Off the top of his head, he notes three prominent examples: the 2017 Audi Q7; GMC Acadia; and Mazda CX-9. Collectively, this trio has dropped 1,700 pounds compared to their 2016 counterparts, with the Q7 and Acadia leading the way with a 700-pound reduction, each. Much credit goes to the use of lighter platforms and body panels, but installing smaller and lighter engines also plays a role. And it’s not just the bigger rigs that are…

Not to be outdone or left behind by a horde of big-power compacts hitting the market, Nissan has given its in-house tuner division, Nismo, the green light to create a performance version of the Sentra sedan. Previously a prototype Sentra was shown at the 2013 Los Angeles Auto Show, saddled with a turbocharged 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine. It was rated at 240 horsepower, which is 110 horses more than the Sentra’s non-turbo 1.8. However, given the competition’s 300-plus-horsepower turbos, Nismo will have to up the ante to keep up with the pack. The Sentra Nismo looks great, but The Sleuth thinks…

Hyundai says it will set a new standard for the lower end of the electric-vehicle market with its line of Ioniq EVs. The automaker says it will also launch an all-electric EV with a 200-mile range by 2018 and within two years of that will sell an EV with a range of 250 miles. The 2016 Hyundai Sonata PHEV plug-in hybrid is the brand’s first model to run on battery power alone, but the company promises much more to come. Hyundai has already said its Ioniq hybrid model would top the current industry leader, the Toyota Prius, in terms of…

General Motors says production of the compact Verano sedan will end this year, likely in October, a victim of low global oil prices as consumers flock to bigger, thirstier sport-utility, truck and tall-wagon models, which Buick and other GM brands intend to exploit. The Verano will live on in China, reports AutoWeek magazine, ‘where compact luxury sedans still enjoy impressive demand.’ Production wind-down at the Lake Orion, Mich., plant where they’re produced means the Verano will be built as a 2017 model-year vehicle for a brief time. The departure of the Verano was not unexpected, with the compact Encore tall…