The final decision on whether the Hyundai Santa Cruz will see the light of production will be reached by late summer.

After a positive reception at the Detroit Auto Show, Hyundai Motor of America is lobbying its parent company in South Korea to put the unibody pickup into production, according to Edmunds. They’ve even determined a way to fast-track development by putting the truck on the existing Hyundai Tucson platform.

Basing the Santa Cruz on the Tucson’s chassis would save approximately two years of development time, estimates Scott Margason, yundai Motor America’s director of product planning.

The result would be a compact ute smaller than the Toyota Tacoma, Nissan Frontier and the Chevy Colorado/GMC Canyon, filling an abandonded niche once rife with compact Nissan Hardbody, Toyota Hilux and Ford Ranger pickups. However, with a monocoque body the ride and handling would be more like that of a car-based crossover. Hyundai believes most Santa Cruz buyers would not need a traditional pickup’s body-on-frame construction, seeing it as more of a lifestyle vehicle for outdoorsy types.

The Tucson is available in either front- or all-wheel-drive with a choice of either a naturally aspirated 164hp 2.0L four or a 182hp 2.4L four. Sadly, the 5-speed manual option was recently discontinued as it would be a good fit for a compact pickup. However, a diesel is under consideration for the Santa Cruz, as the concept was powered by a 190hp 2.0L turbocharged inline-four diesel.

Images by Brian Williams.

The Chevy Bolt is facing branding issues and may be forced to change its name before the car goes on sale.

It’s not even the fact that “Bolt” sounds too much like “Volt,” the bowtie brand’s plug-in hybrid. That issue was resolved in April when GM decided to double-down on olt-suffixed names. Instead, the EV compact unveiled in Detroit earlier year is getting the smack-down from the US Patent and Trademark Office itself.

The USPTO has suspended the Bolt name because it’s already in use by Yamaha for an entry-level cruiser under its Star brand. According to patent and trademark law, if two companies providing similar or related goods or services apply for the same trademark the earlier applicant wins. Yamaha’s application was filed back in 2012, while Chevy filed in 2014.

As clever as the Bolt-Volt naming scheme would have been, Chevy did acknowledge that it may cause some confusion. At the time, president of GM North America Alan Batey said they had until February 2016 to finalize the name,

The Bolt, or whatever it is ultimately renamed, is expected to hit showrooms in 2017 for about $37,500. The 200-mile range EV is set to compete with the Tesla Model 3, which will be priced at $35,000.

Live images by Brian Williams.

Earlier this month, widespread industry rumors claimed BMW was planning on launching the first-ever M3 Touring this September at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Speaking to a Dutch media outlet, one of the Munich-based automaker’s top executives has flatly rejected the rumors.
“It’s important to keep in mind that a M-tuned station wagon certainly won’t be a global model. I think the wagon would sell well in Central Europe but sales would be relatively low elsewhere, and we need to make sure every M model we build appeals to buyers around the globe,” explained Carsten Pries, the development chief of BMW’s M division.

Pries also pointed out he’s worried that building family-friendly versions of the M3 and the M5 would be straying too far from the formula that made both models icons in the hotly-contested sports sedan segment. Some buyers would bite, no doubt, but the market would be far too small to justify the cost of developing either wagon.

European buyers searching for a hot-rodded station wagon will need to look at the competition. On the Old Continent, Mercedes-AMG offers the C63 Estate with a twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V8 engine that makes either 469 or 503 horsepower, while Audi builds a 450-horsepower version of the A4 Avant dubbed RS4 powered by a 4.2-liter V8 mill.

Audi’s Japanese division has introduced a limited-edition version of the A8 L flagship christened Chauffeur Edition.
Outside, it takes a well-trained eye to tell the Chauffeur Edition apart from a regular A8 L. The story is different in the cabin, however, where the rear passengers are treated to a pair of adjustable LED reading lights and individual power-adjustable seats upholstered in Marble Gray upholstery.

A cooled compartment designed to hold drinks is discreetly integrated into the panel between the rear seat backs. Two Audi Exclusive-branded glasses are stored in a small purpose-designed cabinet built into the center console, allowing the rear passengers to have a drink on the go.

The updates stop under the hood, and the Chauffeur Edition is powered by a stock A8 L-sourced 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged TFSI engine that makes 435 horsepower and 444 lb-ft. of torque. Bolted to an eight-speed automatic transmission that spins all four wheels, the eight-cylinder can send the big sedan from zero to 60 mph in under four seconds.

Audi will build just five examples of the A8 L Chauffeur Edition. On sale now, the limited-edition limousine carries a base price of ¥16,280,000, a price tag that converts to a little over $131,000. In comparison, the standard A8 L stickers for ¥15,640,000 (nearly $126,000) in Japan.