Welcome to the Hooniverse News! As always, this is a weekly recap of some of the biggest stories in the automotive industry without the fluff or bull. There’s also just a little opinion of mine because I can. This week:
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McLaren channels 570S GT4 for new limited-run MSO project
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Ram rolls out with upscale 1500 Laramie Longhorn
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Jaguar I-Pace inches closer to its production debut
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Honda is reportedly bringing back the Passport
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What’s your automotive news?
McLaren MSO X
This useless but cool McLaren broke cover last Friday after the news had run, but it was just cool and useless enough to still warrant a bit of coverage in my book. McLaren’s special operations team unveiled yet another limited run version of the 570S that only ten of the world’s elite can buy, but this one is a little different. The McLaren MSO X is described as an emulator which brings the look and feel of their 570S GT4 race car to a fully road-legal package.
Its exterior design mimics that of the 570S GT4 as closely as possible with a pylon-mounted rear wing, a fully functional ‘goose neck’ carbon fiber roof snorkel (inspired by the F1 GTR Longtail), front dive planes, an MSO Titanium Super Sports Exhaust, and a 570S GT4-style bonnet with unique air intakes. As a display of confidence in buyers’ driving abilities, they also include fabric tow straps at each end.
The interior gets its fair share of track-inspired goodness as well. The carbon monocoque chassis is fully exposed because racecar. It also has carbon shell bucket seats, carbon sill panels, and a carbon bulkhead with enough storage space for a racing helmet. For weight reduction, the center tunnel storage bin has been removed and is replaced by a raised carbon fiber center console as you’d get in the race car. Buyers also get a color matched harness bar to hold the six-point racing harnesses for track driving (in addition to regular three point belts) and McLaren Track Telemetry with a full suite of cameras to capture the reason why tow straps were required.
Despite the car’s enhanced track day capabilities, it still retains some of its user amenities such as its parking sensors, rear view cameras, vehicle lift, and “race” air conditioning.
All ten cars were commissioned by McLaren Newport Beach and are probably sold already. So yeah, this is meaningless news. But it’s cool meaningless news.
[Source: McLaren]
2019 Ram 1500 Laramie Longhorn
Remember the all-new Ram 1500 that was revealed last month? It’s like that, but with nicer leather, branded barn wood interior trim, a billet grille, and a more rustic feel.
[Source: Ram]
Production Jaguar I-Pace will be revealed soon
Jaguar will reveal the production-ready I-Pace electric SUV at the Geneva Motor Show about a month from now and they’ve dropped a few new images and some promises for what to expect from their first production EV.
They claim rapid charging from 0 to 80% in less than 45 minutes when using a DC 100kW charger and rapid performance that can rival some sports cars. Its performance claims are backed up by the one-make racing series they’re launching with this car. Also, it can also operate in temperatures as low as -40°C. And um, it’ll be an SUV. We’ll know more about it, including its price tag, on March 6th.
[Source: Jaguar]
Honda bringing back the Passport?
Remember the Honda Passport? It’s like that, but a brand new two-row crossover beneath the CR-V that will compete with the Ford Edge which could debut as early as this year’s LA Auto Show. The report came from Automotive News whose source cited conversations with dealers.
[Source: Automotive News via Autoweek]
What’s your automotive news?
That’s all I’ve got for you this week, so now it’s your turn. If you saw anything, fixed something, broke everything, or otherwise did anything even remotely car related that you want to share with your fellow hoon, sound off in the comments.
Have a good weekend.
[Image © 2018 Hooniverse/Greg Kachadurian]
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