The original - and still our favorite - Autoextremist logo. 

The AE Quote of the Century: Everybody loves The High-Octane Truth. Until they don't. -WG 

Toyota’s off-road icon and longest-running nameplate is making a comeback to North America for the 2024 model year, returning to its rugged roots. Since its introduction in the U.S. market in 1958, the Land Cruiser evolved over the years from the legendary two-door models like the 40 Series with its fold-down front windshield, white roof, and rear jump seats to the capable yet fully loaded 200 Series, which was the last generation to be sold in the States and combined Land Cruiser’s unbreakable strength with premium luxury features. Now, Land Cruiser returns "as a high-quality off-roader at a more accessible price point that will take a wider range of customers on numerous backcountry adventures across the globe," according to Toyota PR minions. Built on the TNGA-F global truck platform, the new Land Cruiser is designed, engineered and tested to survive in the harshest of environments. For this new generation, Land Cruiser is exclusively available with the range-topping i-FORCE MAX hybrid powertrain producing 326HP and 465 lb.-ft. of torque. It’s slightly smaller and narrower than the outgoing 200 Series model, making it nimbler on the trails, and Land Cruiser features off-road tech that has debuted on the newest generation of Toyota trucks. Limited to 5,000 units for the first two months of production, Land Cruiser will be offered in a First Edition grade that includes two new two-tone paint colors and additional off-road equipment. Land Cruiser will be available in three grades: Land Cruiser 1958, Land Cruiser, and the limited-run Land Cruiser First Edition. An available premium package adds power heated and ventilated leather-trimmed seats with lumbar support, a 14-speaker JBL audio system, head-up display, digital rearview mirror, moonroof, and more. The 2024 Land Cruiser will be offered in seven exterior color choices: Ice Cap, Wind Chill Pearl, Underground, Black, Meteor Shower, Trail Dust and Heritage Blue. The two-tone Trail Dust and Heritage Blue exterior colors feature a Grayscape roof. The 2024 Land Cruiser will be built in Toyota Motor Corporation’s Tahara and Hino plants in Japan, and arrive in the U.S. in the spring of 2024. Manufacturer’s suggested retail pricing will start in the mid-$50,000 range and be announced closer to its on-sale date. Editor-in-Chief's Note: Sales prospects for the new Land Cruiser? Like frickin' hot cakes. -PMD Watch the Toyota video here. 

(Nichols Engineering images)

This is the Nichols N1A: a contemporary Can-Am-inspired supercar that embodies the classic McLaren M1A design aesthetic with a radical update. Boasting an aggressive demeanor from its low-lying nose to its definitive tail, but with increased dimensions and space, the N1A mirrors the striking design simplicity of the MP4/4, all thanks to the same master designer, Steve Nichols. As a teenager, Steve wanted to be an F1 designer. The path wasn't obvious as a young man growing up in Utah. This meant a degree in aeronautical engineering and a first job at Hercules designing rocket motors and familiarizing himself with a new material, carbon fiber, years before its introduction in motorsport. Steve then spent two stints at McLaren. The first bringing his experience of carbon fiber to the McLaren MP4/1, working alongside John Barnard in a design department initially consisting of just three people. When John left to go to Ferrari, Steve became Chief Designer and saw firsthand the triumphs and tensions of the Senna/Prost pairing, while also acting as Ayrton's race engineer. Nichols was the Chief Designer of the McLaren MP4/4, the most successful car of all time, which won 15 out of 16 races during the 1988 season in the hands of the legendary Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost. Steve followed Prost to Ferrari, but returned to McLaren several years later at the request of CEO Martin Whitmarsh in a broad and hugely satisfying role covering all aspects of the F1 team. “When I was looking for a project to keep me amused in my old age, the idea of taking a fresh look at the very first McLaren, the 'M1A', had great appeal," Steve commented. "Initially intended as a prototype but time and registered interest has meant pursuing it with the aim to turn it into a beautifully finished vehicle worthy of its, and my, McLaren roots.” According to Goodwood Road & Racing, an initial run of seventeen launch-spec cars will feature a dry-sump 7.0-liter development of the GM LS3. These new blocks have been bored out to their new 427-cubic inch capacity with steel liners and upgraded pistons, producing around 660PS (485kW). Each of these engines will be built by Langford Performance Engineering, a company that has produced F1 engines in the past, most notably that of the Jordan 191, the car in which Michael Schumacher made his debut at the Belgian Grand Prix. All models will come with a six-speed manual gearbox. We don’t have any performance figures yet, but a power-to-weight ratio of around 710PS (522kW) per ton suggests that these will pack a Can-Am punch. No more than 100 Nichols N1As will be built in total, with production commencing before the end of 2023. Prices are said to be in the region of £450,000 after taxes in the UK. Editor's Note: Peter had to be revived after reading about this machine - it definitely put him over the edge. As far back as I can remember, he's talked about having a Can-Am-like sports car for the street. Well, here it is. -WG

Steve's on the left.

 

   

(Stellantis)

The bad-assery continues out in Auburn Hills. For the first time, Mopar is producing two matching performance vehicles for its annual factory-vehicle customization program. The Mopar Custom Shop adds exclusive exterior and interior details to 2023 Dodge Challenger and Charger R/T Scat Pack Widebody models with a limited production run of 440 units – 220 of each model in the U.S., with20 of each for Canada. The Mopar ’23 owner kit includes a custom-made, personalized metal certificate of authenticity with serialized vehicle-build number and a special rendering of the vehicle by the Mopar design team. Both Mopar ‘23 models are available only in Pitch Black Clear Coat with unique matte-black graphics and Mopar Blue tracer stripes along the hood, roof and decklid. More custom touches include a bespoke Mopar Blue grille badge, Brembo six-piston front brake calipers (four-piston rear) painted in exclusive Mopar Blue, forged carbon-black wheels and Mopar valve stem caps. An exclusive all-new carbon-fiber decklid spoiler is being used for the first time and is available only on Mopar ‘23 models. Power comes from the 392 HEMI® V-8 with 485 naturally aspirated horsepower. Standard transmission on the Mopar ‘23 Challenger is a Tremec 6-speed manual. The proven TorqueFlite 8-speed automatic transmission is available on the Mopar ‘23 Challenger and standard on the Mopar ‘23 Charger. Both Mopar ‘23 models feature Widebody competition suspension with Bilstein three-mode adaptive damping that is specially tuned by SRT engineers for maximum grip and speed out of corners. The U.S. manufacturer’s suggested retail price for the exclusive Mopar ’23 Special Edition Package is $3,995 (over and above the price of the car, of course), with production starting in September and deliveries expected to begin in October.

 

 

The AE Song of the Week:

Kiss me out of the bearded barley
Nightly, beside the green, green grass
Swing, swing, swing the spinning step
You'll wear those shoes and I will wear that dress

Oh, kiss me beneath the milky twilight
Lead me out on the moonlit floor
Lift your open hand
Strike up the band and make the fireflies dance
Silver moon's sparkling
So kiss me

Kiss me down by the broken tree house
Swing me, upon its hanging tire
Bring, bring, bring your flowered hat
We'll take the trail marked on your father's map

Oh, kiss me beneath the milky twilight
Lead me out on the moonlit floor
Lift your open hand
Strike up the band, and make the fireflies dance
Silver moon's sparkling
So kiss me

Kiss me beneath the milky twilight

Lead me out on the moonlit floor

Lift your open hand
Strike up the band, and make the fireflies dance
Silver moon's sparkling
So kiss me

So kiss me
So kiss me

So kiss me

"Kiss Me" by Sixpence None the Richer from the album "Sixpence None the Richer" (1997).* Written by Matthew Preston Slocum. Publisher: BMG Rights Management. Royalty Network. Sentric Music. Songtrust Ave. Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC. Warner Chappell Music, Inc. Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind. Watch the Offical Music Video here.

*Written by the group's guitarist Matt Slocum, this dreamy truffle of a pop song had humble beginnings. Released on their third album, which came out November 22, 1997, it was issued as a single on August 11, 1998. This being the late '90s, TV producers were on the lookout for fresh songs to provide dramatic underscore for big scenes, like maybe a pivotal kiss in a popular teen drama. "Kiss Me" got some attention when it was used on the second season of the WB TV show Dawson's Creek, first on November 11, 1998 and then on another episode that aired April 28, 1999. In between, it was used in the movie She's All That, which premiered January 29, 1999. With just about every teenage girl in America hearing the song on the TV show, the movie, or the many radio stations that put the song in rotation, it cracked the Top-40 on February 27, 1999 and made it all the way to #2. The late '90s were the big years for TV show soundtracks, and shows like Ally McBeal, Party of Five, Mad About You and Friendswould often integrate music into episodes to enhance not only the scenes but also the soundtrack albums, which sold very well. "Kiss Me" was the first track on Songs From Dawson's Creek, which made it to #7 on the US albums chart. Even before the show hit air, it had a powerful musical impact: promos for the first season of the show in 1997 featured Paula Cole's song "I Don't Want To Wait," which gave the song a big sales boost. Dawson's Creek was also notable for putting some songs on the soundtrack album that hadn't yet appeared on the show. Sixpence None the Richer is a Contemporary Christian trio from Austin, Texas. Their name comes from a passage in C.S. Lewis' book Mere Christianity. This was the most-played radio song in 1999 in 11 different countries, including Canada, UK, Australia, Japan and Israel.Vocalist Leigh Nash recalled to Baeble Music the song's origins: "It's pretty crazy," she said, "Matt wrote that song overseas. At the time he was reading some Dylan Thomas poetry, and I think he just started writing that song, and the words were a little different, the song was a little bit darker, but it was basically the same song, and we performed it the very night he wrote it." (Knowledge courtesy of Songfacts.com)

 

Editor's Note: You can access previous issues of AE by clicking on "Next 1 Entries" below. - WG