2022 Hyundai Tucson PHEV First Test: Promising Plug-In

This is it. The end of an era. The 2024 Bugatti Mistral will be the last car the storied hypercar maker will ever build with the mighty quad-turbo, 8.0-liter, W-16 engine. Just 99 will be built, and despite a $5.1-million price tag, all are sold.The Mistral is powered by the same 1600-hp version of the W-16 that propels the record-breaking Chiron Super Sport 300+, making it the most potent open-top internal combustion engine production car ever built. Bugatti's previous roadster, the 1,200-hp Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse, set an open-top production car speed record of 254.04 mph in 2013. Bugatti design director Achim Anscheidt says the company is planning to top 260 mph in the Mistral.It's More Than What's UnderneathThe Mistral is basically a Chiron Super Sport under the skin. But it's more than just a Chiron Super Sport with the roof removed. "You can't just cut open a Chiron," says Anscheidt, not the least, he points out, because that would compromise the sweeping arc that starts at the A-pillar and loops around the side of the car. "It would look terrible."The Mistral's tauter surfaces and crisper lines are more than just a solution to an existing design challenge. They hint at the styling direction for the next-generation plug-in hybrid Bugatti currently under development in a new design and engineering hub in Berlin, Germany, and in Zagreb, Croatia, site of the global headquarters of the Bugatti Rimac Group headed by Mate Rimac. There are elements of the Bugatti Divo in the Mistral's overall form, though it's nowhere near as extreme in terms of its detailing. "Divo was quite aggressive," concedes Anscheidt. "This car simplifies that quite a bit. Bugatti has a strong graphic DNA, and the stronger the graphic DNA, the calmer the rest of the car can be."The famous horseshoe grille is the widest yet seen on a modern Bugatti and is framed by large cooling vents, vertically stacked headlights, and ducts that create air curtains along either side of the car to improve aerodynamic efficiency. The dramatic rear taillight graphic is derived from that of the track-only Bugatti Bolide. "That car had such a strong identity," Anschedt said. "We wanted to transfer that to a production car."Whereas the Chiron's looping body-side signature hides engine air and oil cooler intakes, in the Mistral these have been visually separated. The side vents are for the oil coolers only, while hot air exits at the rear of the car between the diagonal elements of the rear lights.Lots of Engine, No RoofThe Mistral's mighty W-16 gulps almost 2,500 cubic feet of air per minute at full throttle through two giant scoops mounted behind the seats. The intake openings are slightly larger than those of the Chiron Super Sport, but they have been engineered so the airflow is the same. The scoops funnel to a new airbox with a new filter setup and are strong enough to take the 4,400-plus-pound weight of the car in the event of a roll over.A bridge between the two scoops hides a small glass panel designed to prevent hot air from the engine compartment from washing into the open cockpit. There is no roof, and none is planned other than a small emergency cover. Bugatti roadster owners don't drive in the rain.The Mistral's steeply raked A-pillars and side windows echo those of the one-of-a-kind, $18.9-million Bugatti La Voiture Noire. The updated A-pillars, which can also support the weight of the car in a rollover, required a major rework of the top part of the Chiron tub. Strengthening elements have also been laid into the sills and the central tunnel of the tub to compensate for the lack of a roof. As a result, the Mistral weighs about the same as a Chiron Super Sport and has very similar suspension settings."The target was for the car to drive like a Super Sport," Bugatti deputy design director Frank Heyl said. The Mistral doesn't have the extended tail and larger rear wing of the Super Sport, however; instead, additional downforce is provided by a redesigned rear diffuser, which—as in all Chirons—is blown over by two of the six exhaust outlets. The Mistral's other four exhausts exit through a single central outlet.Opulence, It Has ItThe Mistral's opulently trimmed cabin features leather on the doors and seats hand-woven by workers in the Bugatti design department. The shifter on the center console is machined from a solid block of aluminum but includes a wood insert and, set in amber, a bronze miniature of Rembrandt Bugatti's famous dancing elephant sculpture, originally used as the hood ornament on the extravagant Type 41 built between 1927 and 1933.The amber, as well as the yellow-and-black color combination, recall colors and materials favored by the Bugatti family. If they choose, instead of a dancing elephant miniature, Mistral owners can opt to have their own special keepsakes encased in the shifter.The Mistral is also the first Volkswagen Group Bugatti not to carry a name from the marque's past—Veyron and Chiron were the names of Bugatti racing drivers from the 1930s. When asked what Mistral means, Aschim Anscheidt jokes: "It means that Maserati [which built a car called the Mistral between 1963 and 1970] didn't renew the trademark."More seriously, the name, which comes from a strong wind that blows down the Rhône Valley and through southern France, is meant to reinforce Bugatti's credentials as a French brand, despite its Croatian and German owners. That's also the reason for the red-white-and-blue tricolor band near the front wheels.The Bugatti Mistral has been designed to send off the W-16 in grand style, to celebrate the unique sound and titanic thrust of one of the most extraordinary engines ever put in a production car. And if the Grand Sport Vitesse roadster, a car we said offered the Bugatti Veyron experience in shattering 7.1 surround sound, is any guide, driving the Mistral will indeed be a spectacular experience.

Aircraft fabricator Hawley Bowlus completed construction of the first Bowlus travel trailer in 1934 for the purpose of transporting flight crews to isolated takeoff locations. It's touted as the first aluminum riveted travel trailer in the world, even pre-dating Wally Byam's Airstream. Now the trailer is back with a tasteful modern update.Bowlus reports that "over half of the original Bowlus' built in the 1930s are still around today, often held in private collections." The lightweight 1,100-pound Bowlus was revolutionary for its time, attracting celebrity and media attention. In 2011, a 1935 Bowlus Road Chief sold at an auction in Scottsdale for $187,000. Fast-forward 90 years, and the Bowlus brand continues.The company currently sells three models: Terra Firma, Endless Highways Performance Edition, and Endless Highways Edition. They start—repeat, start—at $265,000, $240,000, and $215,000, respectively. Let's just say, if you're strapped for cash—or anything short of ridiculously, lavishly, richly well-off with a suitcase full of bands—the bespoke Bowlus may not be for you. But we can still dream, right?The trailers have avoided a fundamental technological overhaul for decades, but Bowlus has announced a few interior, exterior, and technology updates for its 2022-model-year luxury travel trailers. The kitchen has been redesigned with soft-close drawers, an improved air conditioning system, a "60-Second Hitch" towing connection assistance system, an integrated Bluetooth Smart Brake, and updated 13-diode LED taillights to clean up the look.In all of our travels around the United States, we've encountered a smorgasbord of travel trailers, massive toy haulers, million-dollar RVs, high-end off-grid teardrop trailers, and overland camper vans at campgrounds, on the road, and off-grid. But we've never, ever encountered a Bowlus. But when we do someday come upon one, at least now we know how to differentiate a 2022 model. Now that's a morsel of knowledge that'll surely impress new campfire friends.

ford f-150 Full OverviewIn announcing our MotorTrend 2022 Truck of the Year, we observed that today's trucks are far more than workhorses. They're also commuter cars, family haulers, weekend toys, and luxury vehicles. It's a trend at least 20 years in the making, but one that doesn't make everyone happy. Indeed, some of you wrote to us and expressed your displeasure with this mission drift and argued for trucks to be treated like trucks again. That's easier said than done, as it turns out. Take, for example, this 2021 Ford F-150 XLT Supercrew 4X4 we just tested.This isn't a blinged-out luxury truck; it's an XLT with cloth seats, a column shifter, basic four-wheel drive, a bedliner, and a max-towing package. One step above the base model, this should be a work truck, yet it's priced at $59,520 as tested. How the heck did that happen?What's an XLT, Anyway?A 2022 Ford F-150 XLT trim starts at a more reasonable $39,825 (banish the thought of a full-size truck starting for less than $30,000; those days are gone), but that only gets you a single cab, the base engine, and rear-wheel drive. Single cabs are old school, and every truck maker in the industry will tell you full four-door cabs like this F-150 Supercrew are bestsellers. That's an extra $5,260 right there.Four-wheel drive is a $3,425 upgrade, and getting a stouter engine adds at least $1,195. If you want to tow and haul heavy things on the job site or at the farm, you need power. This 3.5-liter twin-turbo EcoBoost V-6 has plenty of both, but it costs $2,595. After destination and acquisition fees, you're already nearing $50,000 without any other options.The rest of the asking price is made up of both the necessary and the nice to have. The max-trailer-towing package is $1,995, and the spray-in bedliner is another $595. Pro Power Onboard 2.0 kW, handy on the jobsite and in the field, is $995. Now we're at $54,000 for a work truck. The other $8,000 covers stuff you don't need for work but is nice to have, like the big infotainment system, optional wheels, etc.TowingYep, modern work trucks are expensive. The good news is you still get a lot of work for your money. We hitched this Ford F-150 XLT up to a high-profile two-horse trailer and found it to be the comfortable, stable towing platform we've come to expect from Ford. After returning the livestock, we filled the bed with a yard of hot, fresh mulch for the garden. Here again, the torquey twin-turbo V-6 made light work of the added weight, and the sizable payload and tongue-weight ratings meant the truck barely squatted.A Pleasant RideMore impressive, though, is how well the Ford F-150 XLT rides, either empty or loaded. With leaf springs capable of holding up 2,100 pounds of payload, you'd reasonably expect a stiff ride, but Ford's engineers worked wonders. The F-150 is as pleasant and comfortable to drive while doing work as it is cruising into town for groceries.Track TestingIt'll get you down to the market quick, too. Unburdened, the 3.5-liter twin-turbo V-6 hustled this 5,345-pound truck up to 60 mph in just 5.3 seconds and past the quarter-mile mark in 13.9 seconds at 99.9 mph.Power is not a problem, and neither is stopping. The Ford F-150 XLT was consistent in our braking tests from 60 mph, achieving a best result of 126 feet, about average for a full-size pickup. Even better, the stops were drama-free, with little nosedive or wiggling around.Handling tests were similarly uneventful. We discovered excellent composure for a pickup truck, with well-controlled body motions, good brakes, and strong traction. The 0.76-average lateral g it pulled on the skidpad and its 28.0-second figure-eight lap at 0.62-average g are on the right end of the full-size-truck class—and undersell how well the 2021 Ford F-150 XLT takes a corner without any weight loaded into it.SafetyOpt for Ford's $750 Co-Pilot360 Assist 2.0 suite of driver aids and included among all the safety stuff are adaptive cruise control and lane-keep assistance, which helps steer the vehicle and keep it in the center of the lane. Ford's system, which takes some load off your mind on long highway slogs, is one of the better hands-on systems on the market.Wrapping UpThe rest of the driving experience isn't bad, either. The cloth seats are plenty comfortable and feature a pleasing contrasting color scheme. The column shifter frees up a ton of center-console bin space and allows you to use the flip-out tray table while the truck is moving. The rear seat could use a bit more thigh support and recline, if we're being picky, but we like how much space it frees up when you fold it out of the way.As mentioned earlier, our truck was fitted with the big infotainment screen, and it's good to see how far Ford's Sync system has come. This latest incarnation is more user friendly and intuitive, sports modern graphics, and has a handy split-screen mode that lets you use Apple CarPlay or Android Auto simultaneously with other built-in programs like the radio without having to change screens.Simple fact is, unless you're a fleet manager buying dozens of trucks from a commercial dealer, even work trucks are pricey these days. Yes, the convenience and dress-up options can run up the bill, but even the stuff you need to get the job done will dent your budget hard. The good news is, these trucks drive, tow, and haul better than any time in history.Looks good! More details? 2021 Ford F-150 XLT 4x4 Specifications BASE PRICE $45,850 PRICE AS TESTED $59,520 VEHICLE LAYOUT Front-engine, 4WD, 5-pass, 4-door truck ENGINE 3.5L Twin-turbo port- and direct-injected DOHC 24-valve 60-degree V-6 POWER (SAE NET) 400 hp @ 6,000 rpm TORQUE (SAE NET) 500 lb-ft @ 3,100 rpm TRANSMISSION 10-speed automatic CURB WEIGHT (F/R DIST) 5,345 lb (58/42%) WHEELBASE 145.1 in LENGTH x WIDTH x HEIGHT 231.7 x 79.9 x 77.2 in 0-60 MPH 5.3 sec QUARTER MILE 13.9 sec @ 99.9 mph BRAKING, 60-0 MPH 126 ft LATERAL ACCELERATION 0.76 g (avg) MT FIGURE EIGHT 28.0 sec @ 0.62 g (avg) EPA CITY/HWY/COMB FUEL ECON 18/23/20 mpg EPA RANGE, COMB 720 mi ON SALE Now Show All