Ford’s trucks are the top-selling vehicles in the entire world. Period. There are no other cars that come close to their yearly volume figures. So big volume means big recalls. Today, Ford is calling back over a million trucks from the 2015-2017 model years to fix a potentially dangerous defect in the door latches.
We’ll dig a little more into that story first, but in this Daily Drive-Thru, we’ve got news about the implications of ending NAFTA as it is right now, Infiniti adding Alexa skill integration into its cars, and we have a first-hand look at Land Rover’s brand new model: the 2018 Range Rover Velar.
Those stories, plus a couple of extra goodies are on tap in this Wednesday edition of the Daily Drive-Thru.
NEWS
Ford issued a safety recall for more than 1.3 million trucks in North America over faulty door latches.
(Ford)
Ford is recalling over a million trucks in the U.S. to fix faulty door latches that may freeze, causing them to not open or close properly. These doors can fly open at any given time while driving, so dealerships will install a water shield and actuation cables in the doors to prevent this. The fix will be done for free on 2015-2017 Ford F-150 trucks and 2017 Super Duty trucks.
With Amazon’s Alexa skill, owners will be able to lock and unlock, set climate control settings, start and stop the engine, honl the horn and flash the lights inside select Infiniti models.
(Infiniti)
After Nissan announced its integration of Amazon’s Alexa skill to its vehicles, it was only a matter of time before its luxury subsidiary followed suit. On select models, including those going back to the 2013 model year, you’ll be able to start, stop, lock, unlock, honk the horn, and flash the lights of your Infiniti from the comfort of your couch.
The Trump Administration’s proposal for NAFTA renegotiations could cause the price of SUVs and trucks to skyrocket.
(Ulrich Baumgarten/U. Baumgarten via Getty Images)
After walking away from a fourth round of NAFTA negotiations Tuesday, the pressure is on trade representatives from Canada, Mexico and the U.S. to reach an agreement on tariffs. The results could mean thousands of lost jobs, higher car prices, and lower car volumes.
We break down the impacts ending the NAFTA regulations currently in place.
REVIEW
Sharing a platform and powertrains with the Jaguar F-Pace, the 2018 Land Rover Range Rover Velar blends style and all-road adeptness in a compellingly priced package.
(Land Rover)
Based on the same platform as the jaw-droppingly gorgeous Jaguar F-Pace crossover, the brand new 2018 Land Rover Range Rover Velar bears an asking price as long as its name.
While this opulent crossover will most likely find itself traversing many a Whole Foods parking lot before it touches a speck of gravel, this Range Rover is designed to go where not many Range Rovers go anymore – despite being their intended purpose.
Daily News Autos contributing writer Steve Siler got to take the new Range Rover Velar on an off-roading expedition near southern California’s Joshua Tree State Park. Navigating tricky angles on steep, mountainous slopes, he found out just how impressive an off-roading machine Land Rovers truly are.
GALLERY
Volvo calls the 2020 Polestar 1 “an electric car supported by an internal combustion engine.” That “support” helps this luxury hybrid coupe from Volvo’s new performance sub-brand launch 600 horsepower and 735 lb.-ft. of torque for as far as 90 miles solely on electricity. Not too shabby.
Porsche’s 718 Boxster coupe gets the GTS treatment for 2018, with black matte 20-inch wheels, a 2.5-liter 4-cylinder and a choice of either a 6-speed gearbox or 7-speed PDK. The GTS variant 718 will arrive in dealerships by March next year, but it’s available to order now if you just so happen to have $80,000 lying around.
EXTRAS
That had to have been one spectacular drive up until this part.
At an annual Bugatti Grand Tour event in South America, a convoy of Bugatti Veyrons and Chirons take a leisurely drive through the Andes Mountains. Why taking several $3 million hypercars to such dangerous heights is a thing we still don’t know. But one driver unfortunately found out the dangers of such an ill-conceived excursion when his Veyron careened off the road and down an embankment.
