General Motors chief executive Mary Barra has risen to the top of Fortune‘s “Most Powerful Women” list.

The magazine credits Barra with skillfully navigating the company out from “under the shadow” of the 2014 ignition-switch crisis, which exploded just months after she took the helm. She is also said to be willing to encourage other girls and young women to get involved in the tech industry, participating in the #ilooklikeanengineer Twitter campaign.

“Barra spent $2.9 billion on recalls, which dropped 2014 profits 26%,” the report notes. “Yet in recent months she has beaten back headwinds from weak international markets, as sales of expensive trucks and SUVs have soared.”

Analysts are closely watching Barra’s ongoing leadership as she continues to push for a new corporate culture at GM, which emerged from bankruptcy just a few years ago. It could take years to determine if the changes have made a long-term impact.

This year’s Fortune list includes 27 CEOs that control companies with a collective stock-market value of more than one trillion dollars.

We’re less than a week away from the 2016 Honda Civic’s unveiling on September 16, but the all-new compact has been fully revealed ahead of schedule thanks to some careless parking.

Most automakers keep future vehicles under tight wraps until their scheduled unveiling, but somehow an example of the 2016 Civic made it out into the wild where it was casually parked on the streets of Ann Arbor, Michigan. Luckily for us an in-the-know member of the Civic X forum spotted the yet-to-be-unveiled Civic and snapped a few pictures.

The 2016 Civic is pretty much the exact same car that was laid out earlier this year in a set of leaked patent drawings. Up front the new Civic gets a more aggressive styling treatment that better reflects the car’s youthful side. Although not a full-on four-door coupe, the Civic’s sharply raked roofline gives the car a sense of perpetual motion. The rear of the Civic features pronounced hips and taillights that adopt a new boomerang shape.

Overall this new Civic is a far more attractive vehicle than the model currently on sale. We’d say the new Civic is nearly the styling equal of the segment beauty queen, the Mazda3.

Following its formal unveiling next week, the 2016 Honda Civic should begin rolling into dealer showrooms by either late October or early November.

A group of 10 major automakers has agreed to make automatic emergency braking (AEB) a standard feature on future vehicles.

Several government agencies have recommended the technology for new vehicles, but so far none have moved to include the systems in new regulations. The National Transportation Safety Board recently issued a public call for a mandate, criticizing the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for not already initiating such laws.

In an interesting twist, the automakers have voluntarily come to the table and agreed to work with the NHTSA and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety to establish a strategy that will ultimately make collision-avoidance technologies standard on new cars. Notably, the language in statements from automakers and the IIHS suggests it will be a voluntary program.

“General Motors supports the call for a voluntary industry safety agreement that would lead to making forward collision warning and automatic emergency braking standard on light vehicles,” GM said in a statement.

Aside from GM, the list of supporting automakers includes Audi, BMW, Ford, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Tesla, Toyota, Volkswagen and Volvo. Notable exclusions currently include brands associated with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Nissan, Jaguar Land Rover, Mitsubishi and Subaru, among others.

“We are entering a new era of vehicle safety, focused on preventing crashes from ever occurring, rather than just protecting occupants when crashes happen,” said US Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. “But if technologies such as automatic emergency braking are only available as options or on the most expensive models, too few Americans will see the benefits of this new era.”

The IIHS suggests AEB tech can reduce insurance injury claims by up to 35 percent, echoing the NTSB’s estimate that rear-end collisions cause 1.7 million accidents and 1,700 fatalities in the US each year.

Lamborghini has announced that it will travel to next week’s Frankfurt Motor Show to show off its latest Huracan Spyder.

It was originally thought that Lambo would save the open air version of its Huracan sports car until the Geneva Motor Show in March, but the Italian automaker confirmed via Twitter that it will unveil the Huracan Spyder in Frankfurt.

Lamborghi’s Tweet was short on details, but the company did include a teaser shot. Although the car is obscured in the photo, it appears as though the car will retain the Huracan coupe’s C-pillar line, indicating the Huracan Spyder will be more along the lines of a targa top like the Aventador Roadster instead of a true convertible like the old Gallardo Spyder.

Whatever the roof configuration, the Huracan Spyder should come packing the same 5.2L V10 found in the middle of the Huracan Coupe. With 601 horsepower and 413 lb-ft of torque on tap, the Huracan Spyder should be able to run from 0-60 in just over 3 seconds.

No pricing information has been reveal, but the Lamborghini Huracan Spyder will likely carry a price tag north of $240,000.

Be sure to check back for Leftlane’s live coverage of the Frankfurt Motor Show next week.

American tuner Shelby has introduced a hot-rodded version of the EcoBoost-powered Ford Mustang.

Designed for the United States as well as for overseas markets, the GT benefits from mechanical upgrades that bump the turbocharged 2.3-liter four-banger’s output up to 335 horsepower, a figure that represents a 25-pony increase over the stock model. Shelby hasn’t detailed precisely what modifications its engineers made to the EcoBoost mill, and performance specifications haven’t been published.

The car also gains a handling package designed by Ford Performance, which includes shorter springs and bigger sway bars, a short-throw shifter, as well as a Ford Performance exhaust system with custom-designed Shelby tips.

Visually, the GT is fitted with a full body kit whose design is inspired by Shelby’s V8-powered Mustangs. It brings a front splitter, a new hood, side skirts and a rear spoiler all crafted out of carbon fiber, as well as 20-inch alloy wheels wrapped by Michelin Pilot Sport tires.

On our shores, Shelby charges $23,995 to tune an EcoBoost-powered Mustang. Buyers looking to turn the dial up to 11 can choose from a long list of options that includes bigger brakes on all four corners, brake ducts, beefier half-shafts, a roll cage and an upgraded cooling system.

A Taiwan-based startup automaker dubbed Thunder Power has published a dark sketch that previews its very first car.

The yet-unnamed model is billed as a competitor for the Tesla Model S, a claim that’s becoming increasingly popular for startup and established automakers alike. The sketch suggests the EV will take the form of a coupe with fluid lines, boomerang-shaped headlights and an oval grille with three oval slats.

Technical details are vague at best, but a second teaser claims the car is powered by a 430-hp electric drivetrain that allows it to reach 62 mph from a stop in five seconds flat and go on to a top speed of 155 mph. Range checks in at 373 miles, though what kind of battery pack the car is equipped with is anyone’s guess.

The project is led by Dr. Peter Tutzer, a former Bugatti engineer, and the development work is largely being carried out in Europe. A fully functional prototype has allegedly been built and it is being tested in Milan, Italy.

More details about Thunder Power’s ambitious project will emerge in the next few days. If everything goes according to plan, the Taiwan-based firm’s first car will go on sale across Europe in 2017 with a base price of approximately 400,000 yuan, a sum that converts to roughly $63,000 (and about €55,500 for local buyers).

The new Lexus IS 200t brings a significant increase in fuel efficiency compared to its outgoing V6-powered counterpart.

Finally making its way to the US market after availability abroad, the 2016 IS 200t package features a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine in place of the 2.5-liter V6 from the 2015 IS 250.

The downsized engine has received an official EPA city/highway/combined rating of 22/33/26 mpg, representing a marked improvement over the IS 250′s 21/30/24 mpg. The range-topping IS 350, outfitted with a 3.5-liter V6, carries over with a 19/28/22 mpg rating for the rear-wheel-drive package. Another newcomer to the family, the IS 300 AWD, boasts a 19/26/21 mpg rating.

Aside from the improved fuel efficiency, and perhaps more important for many buyers, the 200t also brings more power than its predecessor. Output has been bumped from 204 horsepower and 185 lb-ft of torque to 241 ponies and 258 lb-ft of torque. Power is delivered to the rear wheels via an eight-speed automatic transmission, and all-wheel drive is only available on the V6 packages.

The new models are expected to arrive in showrooms within the next few months, however Lexus has not yet announced specific launch dates or pricing details.

Cadillac is currently working on an Escalade with some derivation of the company’s V performance-badging, Motor Trend‘s Johnny Lieberman has claimed.

Lieberman made the proclamation on Twitter without citing any sources. ” Cadillac Escalade V? Believe it,” Lieberman Tweeted.

It’s hard to nail down just what Lieberman meant by his Escalade V Tweet, but other outlets are speculating Cadillac is working on a high-performance version of its flagship SUV with the same 6.2L supercharged V8 found beneath the hood of the Cadillac CTS-V. That engine would crank up the Escalade’s horsepower rating from 420 to at least 600.

Although we’d love to see a high-performance version of the Escalade capable of taking on the Mercedes-Benz GL63 AMG, we’re taking Lieberman’s Tweet with a grain of salt. All of the Cadillac insiders we’ve talked to have flatly shot down the idea of a V-badged SUV. However, those same sources have also indicated that a Vsport-badged utility vehicle could make some sense for Cadillac.

With the ATS-V and CTS-V now firmly entrenched as legitimate high-performance vehicles, Cadillac has no intentions of watering down its V brand. Instead, Cadillac could offer more models like the CTS Vsport, which offers a boost in performance but maintains Cadillac’s more sensible ideals.

An Escalade Vsport certainly could fit that mold. It remains to be seen which engine Cadillac might settle on for the Escalade Vsport, but a higher-output version of the Cadillac’s twin-turbocharged 3.6L V6 could fit the bill. A de-tuned version of the LT4 V8 in the CTS-V with around 500-550 horsepower, which would match the Range Rover Supercharged, could also be a consideration.

Some suspension and braking tweaks could be in the works for the Escalade Vsport, but we’re not expecting anything major. After all, the mission of Vsport is to add a dash more performance while still maintaining Cadillac’s signature comfort.

No timeframe has been attached to the Escalade Vsport, but its possible that we could see the peppier SUV sometime next year.

Photos by Mark Elias.

Mercedes-Benz has successfully inched ahead of Audi to take the number-two position in the global luxury sales race this year.

Audi reported its best August ever, with sales up by 2.7 percent compared to the same period last year, however the overall growth rate was hampered by a 4.1-percent slide in China. The company has managed to sell 1.77 million units collectively for the first eight months of the year.

Mercedes-Benz was among the few companies to buck the downward trend in China, achieving 53-percent unit growth as the country’s overall auto market slid by 3.4 percent. With global growth reaching nearly 18 percent for the month, the German automaker sold 1.87 million units in total this year — a 10,000-vehicle lead over Audi.

BMW has managed to maintain its position as the global luxury king, keeping a comfortable margin ahead of Mercedes-Benz with brand sales totaling 1.22 million units through August. Deliveries of the Blue Roundel were up by 7.6 percent for the month and 5.5 percent so far this year.

With four months left in the year, BMW appears to have a solid lead. It is unclear if Audi will be able to retake the number-two spot from Mercedes-Benz.

Image by Ronan Glon.