Toyota kicked off the 2013 Chicago Auto show by announcing substantial updates to its Tundra truck. Together with new styling inside and outside plus updated ergonomics and electronics, the 2014 Tundra receives a brand new premium trim level above the previous top step Platnium grade. This new trim attempts to ascertain a link to America’s farming roots (paging Paul Harvey) and take market share currently dominated by Ford and its fancy F-150 King Ranch editions. Toyota calls its top-step truck package 1794, that’s the founding year of the ranch upon which Toyota Motor Manufacturing Company Texas sits. How do they stack up 2013 Ford F-150 King Ranch Name: King Ranch Founded: 1853 Founder: Captain Richard King, Steamboat pilot Location: South Texas Size: 825,000 acres/1,300 square miles (bigger than the state...

The 2013 Chicago Auto Show is probably not choked with fast and unsafe new cars just like the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette, but loads of interesting and critical new concept and production-ready vehicles have debuted including the updated 2014 Toyota Tundra, the 2014 Ram Promaster, and the diesel-powered 2014 Chevrolet Cruze 2.0TD. After reading concerning the Chicago auto show cars below – and visiting our 2013 Chicago Auto Show page – let us know which debut was your favorite. 2014 Chevrolet Cruze 2.0TD: The long-promised diesel-powered Chevy Cruze is finally here, offering 42 mpg highway, 259 lb-ft of torque (as much as 280 lb-ft with overboost), and a $25,695 price ticket. 2013 Chrysler 300 SRT8 Core: The Chrysler 300 SRT8 Core is designed to give a lower price-of-entry into the SRT...

Show floor update: “We’re taking a holistic approach with the Nismo Juke, ” said Simon Sproule, Nissan’s Corporate Vp, Global Marketing Communications on the 2013 Chicago Auto Show. That implies the Nismo-fied Juke’s 100 revised components account for 37 percent more downforce than the garden-variety Juke. On sale in March, enthusiasts also can wait for a stronger-spec Nismo Juke RS within the near future, though Nissan execs were mum on more details. Meanwhile, the 370Z Nismo also looked sharp, and should go on sale this summer.  Nissan’s performance wing Nismo (Nissan Motorsports) is expanding its lineup, launching a performance-oriented version of the Juke crossover at this year’s Chicago Auto Show inclusive of the 2014 Nissan 370Z Nismo. Offering more power or even more radical styling, the Juke Nismo is meant to...

Ford’s hoping buyers searching for an eco-friendly, safe vehicle will look no further than its new 2013 Ford Focus Electric. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has just given the focal point Electric a five-star overall vehicle score in its New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) safety testing. The five-star NCAP rating for the 2013 Focus Electric is calculated by combining the Focus’ performance in front and side-impact crash tests, in addition to measuring its resistance to rollover. The electrical Focus earned five stars in all three of these tests, thus the five-star NCAP rating. Though the conventionally powered Focus is an Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) Top Safety Pick, the focal point Electric actually outperforms it in NHTSA NCAP testing. While the main focus matches the EV version...

Mercedes-Benz E-Class engine choices shall be shaken up in model year 2015. Associate editor Scott Evans is driving the updated 2014 Mercedes-Benz E-Class lineup and got a glimpse into the E-Class’ likely future powertrain plans that may likely upset fans of larger displacement but please those that favor forced induction. As we’ve mentioned before, a brand new E400 biturbo model is predicted to reach inside the U.S. by fall next year (model year 2015), powered by a twin-turbo 3.0-liter V-6. The engine will produce just below 330 hp and about 350 lb-ft of torque, and may be available in rear- and all-wheel-drive. The E400 shall be priced above the E350, which continues on with the naturally aspirated 302-hp 3.5-liter V-6 with 273 lb-ft. In sedan form, there’s no 2015 E550,...