Author: Tabitha

If you tow a medium to large trailer, you know what a hassle it can be when you have to use cinder blocks or wood under the tongue jack to get the right height. Attaching the sturdy Flip Jack Foot from Fastway solves that problem. When secured to the trailer’s tongue jack, it adds up to six extra inches in length. It also automatically tucks up out of the way when the trailer jack is retracted. The Flip Jack Foot is available for 2.0- and 2.25-inch tongue jacks, starting at less than $50. Head to www.fastwaytrailer.com for more info and…

BMW-owned Mini debuted its Electric Concept at the Frankfurt Motor Show in Germany (Sept. 16-24), promising to unveil a full production version in 2019. The plug-in electric concept “moves the brand’s urban tradition into the electric age, and in doing so spices up the conventional notion of electric mobility.” The debut follows the launch of the Mini brand’s first-ever electrified production model, the Mini Countryman Plug-in Hybrid earlier this year. The car combines a drive system ‘that is always quick off the mark’ with a precision-tuned suspension, said BMW AG board chairman Harald KrŸger. The design provides ‘an optimal balance’…

When you’re stranded at night by the roadside, it’s important for everyone’s safety to warn other traffic of the situation. The EzyFlare is a simple-to-use electronic device that, when activated, gives bright rotating and flashing LED (Light Emitting Diode) signals for up to 12 hours that can be seen up to 8,000 feet away. The eight-inch-tall light is waterproof and is considered safer than traditional flares since there is zero risk of the unit causing a fire or anyone receiving burns from an exposed flame. A two-flare-pack retails for $35 (you supply the four AA batteries) and can be purchased…

On many cars, the armrest or the storage-compartment lid that’s part of the vehicle’s floor console isn’t the most comfortable place to perch your elbow. Basically what you need is a booster for the armrest and that’s exactly what Auto Chic can supply. The company’s specially fitted products attached securely onto the existing console lid using Velcro straps, which allows it to be easily removed for cleaning or storage. The standard 12-by-6.5-inch boosters are available in either 2.5- or 3.5-inch heights and in a wide variety of colors. Vinyl armrests cos $60, while those finished in leather sell for $100.…

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) believes that sales of electric vehicles will be five times stronger by 2040 than anyone previously predicted, says a report from Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF). According to alternative-vehicle website Green Car Reports, in 2016 BNEF’s analysts said that 35 per cent of new cars would run on electricity by 2040. “Now, they think it’ll be closer to 54 percent.” Oil companies such as BP and Exxon project that EVs in use will number more than 100 million by 2040. “As with BNEF’s own analysts, those revised numbers stem largely from the rapidly…

The Germany-based company is offering test rides in an A7 Piloted Driving Concept sedan to demonstrate its autonomous technologies on a 28-mile stretch of the country’s autobahn highway system. The drive begins and ends at Munich airport and includes an Audi expert on board as the vehicle negotiates the route itself at speeds up to 130 km/h (81 mph). “It accelerates, brakes and changes lanes predictably and smoothly while cooperating with other road users,” a press release stated. The automaker’s new A8 flagship sedan was developed for highly automated driving; its Audi AI Traffic Jam Pilot allows the driver to…

The Zoom-Zoom automaker recently introduced the five-passenger CX-4 in China and has announced that a new seven-passenger model, dubbed the CX-8, will also launch in Japan and possibly elsewhere. The CX-8 is reportedly about seven inches shorter and five inches narrower than the seven-passenger CX-9 that’s sold here. If The Sleuth had to guess (which he does regularly), the sportier-looking CX-4 is the likeliest model to eventually wind up in Mazda showrooms here. However with the high demand for utility vehicles, there’s an outside chance that the CX-8 will make it here, too. The sleek-looking China-spec Mazda CX-4 seems like…

The Spy Guy is receiving all kinds of reports from his sources concerning General Motors’ crested division. It appears that the days (or more accurately, the years) are numbered for much of the sedan fleet, including the compact ATS, midsize CTS and large-size XTS sedan. That would leave only the full-size CT6 and an all-new mid-size CT5 as the sole models with trunk lids. The departing vehicles will reportedly be replaced by three new tall wagons, labeled, from smallest to largest, the XT2, XT3 and XT4. There are also reports that Cadillac is close to rolling out a new XT6…

That’s the scuttlebutt The Sleuth’s sources are picking up. Word on the street is that the models most at risk are the full-size Buick LaCrosse, Cadillac XTS and Chevrolet Impala sedans, all of which are built using the same platform. At the smaller end of the size scale, the sub-compact Chevrolet Sonic could receive a pink slip. If the decision is made to cancel, the axe would not likely fall until the end of 2019. In addition, the next-generation Chevrolet Volt that’s not due out until the 2022 model year could resemble a tall wagon, not unlike the smaller all-electric…

It has been only one model year since the Porsche Boxster roadster and the Cayman coupe were given the ‘718’ numerical addition to their names. Both were also updated with potent turbocharged four-cylinder engines that replaced the previous non-turbo six-cylinder engines. Word has reached The Sleuth that more adjustments are in store for 2018, including revised front and rear designs, along with minor changes to the dashboards and control panels. For more performance, Porsche will introduce GTS models that push output past the existing Boxster/Cayman S’s 350 horsepower, by about 20-25 horses. You can also expect the optional Sport Chrono…