The exhausts were the immediate tell for me. The regular E320 doesn’t even have visible exhausts. Heck, even the E500 of this generation hides the exhausts.

With regard to rear-seat space I said “usually”. Typically, a dedicated sedan design can have lots of rear-seat space (last-gen Corolla, for example) because the packaging for it is easier.

It’s a lot less than 2,000 lbs. The base March from that period was about 1,400 lbs. The turbo was probably 1,500-1,600. I’m guessing it could get to 60 in the 9-10 sec range and top out at 110 mph. The Super Turbo did 0-60 in less than 8 secs.

Ah, that makes more sense, even though the Kona has different dimensions than the Seltos it is closer. I didn’t realize the Venue was that much smaller.

Yeah, the 997 and 996 had the retractable glass panel, which was first introduced in the 993.

I think it’s already lighter than the Cabriolet (by maybe 150 lbs). But I do like the idea of a stripped-down version (RWD of course) with a removable rear window along with the roof section.

It’s the Ferdinand Piech effect. He was more or less directly responsible for the the B5 Passat/Audi A4 launch which helped put both brands back on the map, as well as starting the turbocharging program that finally gave VW the performance it needed to keep up with the other Piech influence: luxury.

Wagons are usually heavier than the equivalent sedan because they are the same length with more bodywork. Hatchbacks often have *less* cargo room behind the second row and below the beltline than a sedan because of that extra body length. Oh, and rear-seat legroom in hatchbacks is usually poor compared to a sedan.

They sell well because they undercut most of the other luxury brands on price. They can do this because the qx60 is hopelessly outdated, the qx80 is a beefy dressed-up Patrol/Armada, and the qx50... well I don’t even know why the qx50 sells.

I don’t think the Mk3 Golf ever got the 16V ABA four. The ‘93 GTI was powered by a 2.0-slow. I don’t think we even got a ‘94 GTI in the U.S.

I don’t see any 2021 Elantras on lots yet; it’s 3-4 years old based on what’s available (and the car pictured in the article).

And the Sonic. too. 2020 model and production hasn’t even ended on that model yet.

It would be very unlikely for him to forget the Fit. He excluded it based on its imminent departure. But as of “right now” there are still lots of 2020 Fits available under $20K so it should absolutely be on this list.

That’s a really great question. The political and regulatory environment in the U.S. is so friendly toward gas-powered trucks that why not sink a huge amount of money into a new Bronco lineup? This situation will probably not change much in the next 20-30 years without a major upheaval. Ford will likely be fine as a…

Ford’s average profit per car as of 2017 was $1,100. I haven’t really researched more recent numbers but I think it’s a conservative conjecture to say a vehicle like the F-150 or Escape is higher than that. A Fusion? Oh, probably much lower than that. Maybe even $500, which is economy-car territory. Because it all has…

True, but this is not a traditional ICE marketplace. There are so few EV options that I’ve talked to people who can easily afford a Tesla but don’t like Elon. So the options are a little bizarre: Niro/Kona EV, Bolt, I-Pace, e-tron. Still waiting for EQC and Polestar 2 I believe. If you absolutely must have rear window…

Ford is likely making a profit on them. Not a great profit, probably well under $1,000 per car.

On the plus side, torque on the turbo version is up around 40% and the power band doesn’t resemble the Matterhorn.

The Hornet had a killer hood ornament, too, which was a stylized silver-and-paint Hornet under glass (well, plastic).

I used to think it was just marketing but you have a good point. I remember a salesman trying to find which Jeep Cherokee had the 5-speed when my father was shopping for one. The SJ at the time had both 4 and 5-speed manual options.