Volvo and Land Rover have recently offered high-end wool upholstery, but they’re the only two I can think of

I believe Tesla was the first automaker to call it “vegan leather.”

To be fair, the JL/JLU/JT platform isn’t all that dated. It came out in 2018.

Not necessarily.

I think the 4Runner is going to turn into an actual Wrangler/Bronco competitor. Perhaps with removable top and doors.

Nice X5! That’s what I have now. A G05 X5, the PHEV. I ended up having to order it, because none of the ones on the lot had the adaptive cruise. It’s Phytonic Blue.

He didn’t. I just...ugh, I would have loaned him something of mine if he’d have just waited some months. But his Murano was on its last leg and he was panicking. I get it.

Yeesh! I distinctly recall paying $24,000 and change for an off-lease 2016 535i xDrive with options (M Sport, Comfort Access, Navigation, Multi-Contour Seats, LED Lights, BLIS) in March 2020...at the BMW dealership

We’ve had this argument before, but financing on a new or nearly new car isn’t always a waste.

Definitely. Where I’ve seen the biggest price increases (and some of these intersect):

If I had seen this, I would have nominated the X350-series Jaguar XJ. It probably wasn’t what Jaguar needed at the time and its classic shape belied the high-tech bonded-and-riveted aluminum architecture beneath it...but taken as an effort, I would say it was successful. It managed to translate the classic Jaguar…

It is, although I think people overestimate how much Mitsubishi’s cars matter, when the rest of the company is much larger and hugely more profitable.

That doesn’t make Nissan irrelevant. It makes Nissan essentially 1980s GM, a company which never managed to not be extremely relevant in any era of its existence.

Yes, and no. Nissan may be seriously neglecting its performance offerings, but

Really? I’ve driven the current version with the 1.5T, and I actually don’t think it’s that bad. It’s commodious, reasonably well-assembled, and has good torque where you need it. Also, the 2019+ ones with the Gen. 3 MyLink are a treat.

Look at you, quoting reasonable pre-pandemic prices. Try $40 a day for a Chevy Spark with 90,000 miles on it.

More crucial than that, hub motor systems would also really change the packaging that’s possible with modern cars.

The Ford Transit is offered (in various markets) as FWD, AWD and RWD. Crucially, it has a longitude/engine-forward layout (much like an Audi or Subaru), and a transaxle that has half-shafts coming out of the sides (for FWD), a prop shaft coming out of the rear (for RWD), or both, plus a transfer case (for AWD).

While not technically a V12, the Volkswagen Group W12 that’s in the Bentleys (Continental GT/GTC, Flying Spur, Bentayga) is slated to be sunset after 2024, and deserves mention. What an incredible motor. Especially because it’s likely the only way a 12-cylinder anything would fit in the engine-forward “Audi/MLB”…

Honestly, I’d get a big kick out of a valet worker chilling in my car and listening to music.