JANUARY 24, 2024

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 

According to a report by Bloomberg, Toyota Motor Corp. Chairman Akio Toyoda believes battery electric vehicles will reach at most 30 percent market share, with the rest taken up by hybrids, hydrogen fuel cell and fuel-burning cars. With a billion people in the world living without electricity, limiting their choices and ability to travel by making expensive cars isn’t the answer, the grandson of the company’s founder said during a business event this month, according to remarks published on the company’s media platform Tuesday. “Customers — not regulations or politics — should make that decision,” he said. The world’s No. 1 carmaker has pushed back against criticism of falling behind in the transition to EVs, saying that its pioneering hybrid drivetrains, hydrogen technology and holistic approach will ultimately prove to be the right approach for the business, customers and the environment. Earlier this month, Toyoda announced an initiative to develop new combustion engines. Editor-in-Chief's Note: I concur with Chairman Toyoda. BEVs will be only part of the solution going forward. -PMD

(Cadillac images)

Cadillac has introduced a refreshed and more advanced 2025 CT5-V and CT5-V Blackwing. Celebrating its 20^th anniversary, the "V-Series is the ultimate expression of Cadillac design, performance and technology, and the purest expression of the passion that exists at the core of the Cadillac brand," according to Cadillac PR minions. The 2025 CT5-V and CT5-V Blackwing sedans have a fresh exterior appearance with a revised front fascia, offering stronger visual cues that further differentiate the CT5-V and the CT5-V Blackwing. The interiors feature aggressive surface lines with a focus on quality, attention to detail, authenticity of materials and impeccable craftsmanship. The 2025 CT5-V is distinguished by a new front-end performance design with a wider, lower appearance, which complements its dramatic fastback profile. Additional features include:

• Redesigned grille and front fascia with black moldings, rocker extensions and spoiler
• Redesigned Cadillac stacked signature vertical lighting with LED headlamps with Mondrian pattern etching
• Walk up and walk away lighting choreography
• Three new colors: Drift Metallic, Deep Space Metallic, Typhoon Metallic
• Lit Cadillac Crest on the back of the 33-inch-diagonal LED display, which welcomes the driver upon approach
• Quad trapezoid exhaust tips

The 2025 CT5-V Blackwing features a redesigned grille and front fascia with aero ground effects and front fenders. Additional features include:

• Redesigned performance front-end
• Redesigned Cadillac stacked signature vertical lighting with LED headlamps with Mondrian pattern etching
• Walk up and walk away lighting choreography
• Three new colors: Drift Metallic, Deep Space Metallic, Typhoon Metallic
• Lit Cadillac Crest on the back of the 33-inch-diagonal LED display, which welcomes the driver upon approach
• Carbon Fiber Packages, including an updated Carbon Fiber Package with splitter
• Quad trapezoid exhaust tips
  

New to the 2025 CT5-V and CT5-V Blackwing is the 33-inch-diagonal LED color touchscreen display – bringing a tech-forward ambience to the interior with a customizable user interface designed to offer a personalized experience. Additional technology features include: An available enhanced in-vehicle Performance Data Recorder; New Performance in-vehicle app including real-time display of power, torque and boost; live dyno graph-style trace of power and torque with interactive analysis; array of performance gauges like g-force, tire temperature, and engine vitals, with full configurability enabling drivers to prioritize their favorite data; Super Cruise driver assistance technology with new Driver Attention Assist (Super Cruise package standard on CT5-V and standard on CT5-V Blackwing with automatic transmission for three years); Google built-in, including Google Assistant®, Google Maps, and Google Play; Refined HVAC controls feature animations for an elevated, interactive experience.

Performance:

• 3.0TT 360HP, 405 lb-ft torque with 10-speed automatic transmission (CT5-V)
• 6.2L Supercharged V-8 668HP, 659 lb-ft torque with 6-speed manual or 10-speed auto (CT5-V Blackwing)
• Available All-Wheel Drive (CT5-V)
• Standard Brembo front and rear brakes with V-Series graphic (CT5-V Blackwing)
• Standard Performance Traction Management (CT5-V and CT5-V Blackwing)
• Standard Launch Control (CT5-V)
• Standard Custom Launch Control with Line Lock (CT5-V Blackwing)
• Standard Magnetic Ride Control/Electronic Limited Slip (CT5-V and CT5-V Blackwing)
• Driver Mode Selector

The 2025 CT5-V and CT5-V Blackwing will make their public debut at the Rolex 24 At Daytona this weekend (January 27-28). The 2025 CT5-V Blackwing will serve as the Official Safety Car in the Rolex 24 At Daytona. Additionally, the 2025 CT5-V and CT5-V Blackwing will be available for public viewing in the Cadillac midway display at Daytona International Speedway on Jan. 27–28, 2024. The 2025 Cadillac CT5-V and CT5-V Blackwing will be produced at GM’s Lansing Grand River Assembly facility in Michigan, with production to begin in summer 2024. Additional details and pricing will be announced in the future. Visit www.cadillac.com for more information.

(Honda images)

Honda's 2024 SCL500 "with a modern engine, chassis and braking performance, making it an ideal option for commuting, casual weekend outings or café cruises," according to Honda PR minions. Utilizing the same 500cc parallel-twin engine found in the Rebel 500, this machine offers stylish, approachable performance in an affordable package. Colors: Candy Orange, Matte Laurel Green Metallic, Matte Black Metallic. It has an MSRP of $6,799 and will be available in April.

The two-seater 2024 Talon is offered in two basic configurations—the nimble-handling 1000X, which shines in tight technical terrain, and the 1000R, favoring high speeds and open terrain. Both the Talon 1000R and Talon 1000X are available with intelligent FOX Live Valve technology, featuring adaptive suspension capabilities. New for 2024, the non-Live Valve Talons are equipped with premium Showa suspension, the result of a close collaboration between Honda and Showa engineers, who focused on enhancing ride comfort and rebound control, while maintaining the shocks’ bottoming resistance for bigger impacts. How much? Talon 1000R: $21,399; Talon 1000X: $20,399; Talon 1000R FOX Live Valve: $23,599; Talon 1000X FOX Live Valve: $22,599. They're available in February.

(©2023 Courtesy of RM Sotheby's)

This Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa - chassis no. 0738 TR - is one of only nineteen special examples bodied by the renowned Italian coachbuilder Sergio Scaglietti. With nearly 20 period races and four overall victories, 0738 TR was active in competition for over a decade. In recent years, it has benefited from a full restoration at Ferrari Classiche, where it was granted full Red Book Certification, and is one of the few TRs retaining its matching engine and gearbox. With a valuation between $34,000,000 and $38,000,000, the auction will be handled through Sotheby's Sealed, allowing clients to bid competitively in a private setting. The auction will take place 21-23 February via Sotheby's Sealed. Editor-in-Chief's Note: The auction game leaves us cold, but there's no question that this machine is one of the most desirable Ferrari racing machines ever built. -PMD

(Jeep)

Jeep is preparing to launch its first global battery-electric vehicle (BEV), the all-new, all-electric premium Jeep Wagoneer S, which will be sold in the U.S. in the fall of 2024 and then in key markets around the world. Offered exclusively as a BEV, the Jeep Wagoneer S "offers standard 4xe capability with all-terrain management, advanced Jeep brand-focused technology and impressive performance credentials, including 600HP and a lightning fast 0-60 mph time of around 3.5 seconds," according to Jeep PR minions. Driven by aerodynamic efficiency (that's a laugh - WG), "its sleek exterior design is uniquely marked by a reimagined LED-lit class-exclusive seven-slot Jeep brand grille," Jeep PR minions continued. Editor-in-Chief's Note: Suffice to say, the Wagoneer S will be overweight and grossly overpriced. Jeep continues to go in the wrong direction at every turn. -PMD

The AE Song of the Week 

How many times do I have to try to tell you

That I'm sorry for the things I've done
But when I start to try to tell you
That's when you have to tell me
Hey, this kind of trouble's only just begun
I tell myself too many times
Why don't you ever learn to keep your big mouth shut
That's why it hurts so bad to hear the words
That keep on falling from your mouth
Falling from your mouth
Falling from your mouth
Tell me

Why
Why
I may be mad
I may be blind
I may be viciously unkind
But I can still read what you're thinking
And I've heard it said too many times
That you'd be better off
Besides

Why can't you see this boat is sinking
Let's go down to the water's edge
And we can cast away those doubts
Some things are better left unsaid

But they still turn me inside out
Turning inside out turning inside out
Tell me
Why
Tell me
Why
This is the book I never read
These are the words I never said
This is the path I'll never tread
These are the dreams I'll dream instead
This is the joy that's seldom spread
These are the tears

The tears we shed
This is the fear
This is the dread
These are the contents of my head
And these are the years that we have spent
And this is what they represent
And this is how I feel
Do you know how I feel?
'Cause I don't think you know how I feel
I don't think you know what I feel
I don't think you know what I feel
You don't know what I feel

"Why" by Annie Lennox from the album "Diva" (1992).* Written by Annie Lennox and Marius De Vries. Publisher: Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., O/B/O DistroKid, Songtrust Ave. Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind. Watch the Official Music Video here. 

*This was the first single Annie Lennox released after the 1990 breakup of Eurythmics, her duo with Dave Stewart. Unlike Stewart, Lennox is rather introverted and often questioned herself. And while Stewart was always very encouraging, she wasn't sure she could make music without him. In November 2007, Lennox was interviewed extensively by Malcolm Bragg on The South Bank Show. In this program she said that "Why" was a personal song related to her going solo; she wasn't sure that she could write songs by herself, or where she was going in music or in life. It took her about 10 minutes to write. "It's weird," she added, "Some songs are like that, while others are not." "Why" showed that Lennox had the goods to go solo, something her fans already knew. It charted in a number of territories and impelled the Diva album to #1 in the UK. The album sold particularly well in America, moving over 2 million copies. Lennox had plenty to write about when she started work on the Diva album: She had recently become a mother, her father had died, and she was just getting going as a solo artist. All these tribulations bonded together into this song, where she asks a simple question: Why? When asked about this song in Daniel Rachel's book The Art of Noise: Conversations with Great Songwriters, Lennox replied: "It's basically about the point we humans inevitably come to when we realize that the knots and twists in relationships simply can't be untangled, and we're left dangling with a massive question mark with no apparent resolution. Why? Why? Why? Haven't we all asked that question of ourselves and the universe?" Annie Lennox blogged regarding this song, when promoting her 2009 greatest hits album: "I think this song expresses something of a sense of 'I need to take a stand, and say this.' It's almost testifying, like 'My Way,' or something. The world can be so baffling at times, so you find yourself constantly trying to figure it out... It's also about looking at the aftermath of things. After all this darkness and disappointment with the personal battles you've gone through... Contemplating the ashes of experience, and questioning what it was ever all about. It's like the remains of a building that's crashed and burned to the ground." The track was produced by Stephen Lipson, who had worked on the Frankie Goes To Hollywood album Welcome To The Pleasuredome. (Knowledge courtesy of Songfacts.com)

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