#FutureModels

A joint Toyota-Mazda assembly plant in Huntsville, Alabama could see its opening delayed, all thanks to the economic turmoil and construction delays borne of the coronavirus pandemic.

Akira Koga, Mazda’s senior managing executive officer, said in an earnings briefing Thursday that construction on the $1.6 billion joint facility, first announced in early 2018, is being hampered by virus fallout. That throws into doubt the timing of two new crossover vehicles — one of which is crucial to Mazda’s future.

While Ford plans to start limited production at its North American assembly plants on May 18th, returning workers won’t see a next-generation F-150 slide pass their stations for a number of months.

The redesigned full-sizer was to be one of the Blue Oval’s big 2020 reveals, joining the still-unseen Bronco in the spotlight, but the coronavirus pandemic made short work of product timelines. Already delayed once, the 2021 F-150 has reportedly moved further into the future.

A Spanish Instagram account seemingly leaked photos of an uncovered next-generation Mercedes-Benz S-Class late Tuesday, showing off the flagship’s new face and caboose and revealing something far more noteworthy: a screen-heavy cockpit that throws tradition to the wind.

Toyota appears to be ready to answer a call, hinting at — but stopping short of confirming — the future arrival of a small car with outsized performance on American shores.

The automaker’s U.S. arm greeted Thursday by gathering up consumers who’d like to hear more about a GR-badged hot hatch from the company. GR meaning Gazoo Racing, an abbreviation already slapped on a two-door Yaris screamer not available on this continent. Boasting a very blown three-cylinder and all-wheel drive, this Yaris is not your coworker’s wife’s commuter. Nor will its one-size-up sibling be anything to scoff at.

Toyota clearly sees opportunity in the compact hot hatch space, and rumors and trademarks have spoken to this for some time. Today, Toyota’s speaking about it.

Interesting, segment-shunning product isn’t as commonplace as it once was, but some automakers are still willing to think outside the box. The two-box shape, that is. Hyundai’s one of them, as the automaker’s long-awaited Santa Cruz pickup is now greenlit and headed for production in Alabama in 2021.

More consumer-friendly than the concept vehicle released in 2015, the production Santa Cruz has already been spied undergoing testing while wearing frumpy camouflage. Now, it’s been seen in the buff.

The Nissan Rogue compact crossover might not be everyone’s idea of a fun ride, to say the least, but it’s a crucial product for the automaker that builds it. By far Nissan’s best selling vehicle in North America, the Rogue is key to the automaker’s comeback hopes.

Maybe comeback is too strong a word…

Fiscal stabilization. Yeah, that’s the ticket.

As production schedules and launch dates suffer from the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, Nissan is readying a new generation of Rogue. Apparently we can’t expect something exciting, powertrain-wise, right out of the gate, but that doesn’t mean things won’t change under the 2021 Rogue’s hood.

Coupes may be a dying breed, but there’s still life left in BMW’s 4 Series Coupe, scheduled to hit the market next year bearing updated dimensions and a new CLAR platform.

The new 4 Series family stands to look mighty different then previous, with some variants banished to the dustbin of history and new arrivals on the way. However, the coupe model will thankfully remain true to the original idea.

Ford bought its way into Rivian’s good graces — and its proprietary “skateboard” electric vehicle platform — with a $500 million pledge back in April of 2019. In January we learned that the “all-new, next-generation battery electric vehicle” promised a year earlier would wear a Lincoln badge, with most observers expecting that model to appear as a midsize, three-row SUV (mirroring Rivian’s own R1S).

Scratch all that, Ford Motor Company said on Tuesday. The joint vehicle is off the table, but the relationship is still on. So what now?

Ever been to a party where the most interesting person wasn’t the life of the room, but the quiet person in the corner, calmly — perhaps a little shyly — sipping their drink and taking in all the things occurring before them?

Vehicle designers seem like that person. The braggadocious CEOs and upper-level execs can have their carefully scripted buzzwords and future-minded visions of a soulless future filled with robot cars and never not working, but a designer will want to talk about emotion. A feeling. A simple pleasure. A small feature with outsized importance.

Jaguar’s design boss likes to talk about those things, but he’s not afraid to raise the errors of the past.

It was one of the more interesting debuts of this year’s pandemic-constrained spring auto show season: The 2020 Nissan Frontier, which heralds the fully revamped 2021 Frontier by donning that yet unseen midsize pickup’s new powertrain. Old truck, new engine and transmission.

Details of the first all-new Frontier in the better part of two decades remain scarce, but a report out Thursday suggests a big price increase is in the works.

Being relatively small for a mainstream automaker and with limited resources to keep up with evolving industry trends, Subaru latched onto auto giant Toyota for help in the electric vehicle realm. The only electrified model in Subaru’s lineup, the Crosstrek Hybrid, is a marriage of Subaru body to Toyota technology.

Far bigger things loom on the horizon for the two; namely, a pair of jointly developed electric crossovers — one of which, apparently, has a name.

Overseas trademark applications are nice, but the significant differences between those markets and our own often make such appearances a harbinger of not much. Europe is far more likely to go green, while American buyers, depending on state, don’t see nearly as much punishment for choosing the least efficient models.

Less taxation and far cheaper fuel conspire with geographical and cultural realities to make green cars a tough sell stateside, even a decade after things really kicked off in earnest.

Which is why the recent appearance of a plug-in hybrid in trademark filings an ocean away were worthy of interest, but no guarantee of U.S. availability. Until now.

Recent trademark filings in Australia offered up tantalizing rumor fare for the hot hatch crowd, but the documents didn’t necessarily spell added future fun for Toyota-loving Americans. That, apparently, is now something they should expect.

The GR Corolla name will reportedly find a home on a three-cylinder version of the Corolla Hatchback — a vehicle whose piston count shouldn’t be scoffed at.

With a new Lexus NX compact crossover expected to arrive next year, trademark applications on both sides of the Atlantic point to increased powertrain diversity — and more available power for U.S. customers.

Overseas, at least, the little Lexus (but not the littlest Lexus) CUV stands to go even greener.

Cadillac has pulled the curtain back on its expanded CT4-V and CT5-V sedan lineup, confirming that the brawnier versions of those performance variants will carry a Blackwing designation.

Designed with track days in mind and available with manual transmissions, the CT4-V and CT5-V Blackwings will offer potent power, just not of the Blackwing variety.