MotorTrend July 2021

Welcome, tiny percentage of MotorTrend readers who actually read the editor’s monthly musings in these first pages of every edition! Man, are you in for a treat. You’ve probably already noticed something’s different, not quite right. Or … is it so wrong that it couldn’t be more right? What tipped you off? My warm, gentlemanly greeting? Or was it my devil-may-care style of prose, tumbling gracefully like a figure skater who just broke a shin bone or two. Was that it? Most likely, you looked at the cover, saw my face, then screamed victoriously, like a bald eagle after gobbling up a delicious puppy. Then, in a high-pitched register, you called out to anyone within earshot: “The sportscaster dude from Anchorman is the guest editor of MotorTrend this month?! F yeah!” Yes and…

One of the more unexpected resurrections of a seemingly dead nameplate continues. Meet the 2024 GMC Hummer EV SUV, a sibling to GMC’s 2022 Hummer EV pickup. As you might remember, the Hummer brand burned out before it could fade away, shifting from macho fashion accessory to environmental pariah before being killed off in 2010 in the wake of GM’s bankruptcy. But it’s back in a big way and hoping to put a real—ahem—charge into the EV market, of all things. The pickup arrives this fall and is on trend; EV pickups are imminent from Ford, Rivian, and others. But the SUV, the body style Hummer is famous for, will be the sales leader once it goes on sale in the first quarter of 2023. As with the truck, the initial…

Let’s get it out of the way: The second-gen Honda Ridgeline looked like a Pilot SUV that had been Sawzalled into a truck—a conversion surprisingly common among L.A.’s pool cleaners. That’s not shocking given the Pilot and Ridgeline share a platform, even if the Ridgeline’s structure diverges under the bed. But when the pickup launched for 2017, the softer, rounder styling was a retrograde move from the blocky, tough-looking first-gen Ridgeline, and it has remained its biggest drawback. Enter the refreshed 2021 model. Honda listened to the critics and toughened the Ridgeline right up. The grille and headlights are squarer and more upright, and a power bulge in the hood gives a hint of the baby big-rig look full-size trucks have had since the ’94 Dodge Ram. To steal a visual…

Drifting a Volkswagen Golf is weird. Like, really weird. The Golf has long been a beacon of front-wheel-drive—and FWD-based all-wheel-drive—excellence, but getting its rear to swing wide typically meant yanking a handbrake or getting hit by a dump truck. The new 2022 VW Golf R, however, will happily do power-on tank slappers, drift in a circle, and sashay through a slalom. And it’s still a front-driver at its core. Huh? Credit the new AWD setup, which cans its predecessor’s Haldex center differential for an electromechanical rear axle with clutch packs on the shafts to send up to 100 percent of rear-axle torque to the outside rear wheel. Also key is software activated by a fun button marked “Drift,” which commands the ESC and rear diff to allow lurid sideways action. The trick differential…

Six years after first emerging as a concept, the 2022 Santa Cruz is here to serve urbanites who need a city companion but also regularly drive out of town to hike, surf, or bike. Hyundai is betting it’s as much truck as they need. The trucklet is essentially the new Tucson SUV with its cargo area open to the sky. The bed is 4 feet by 4 feet, meaning you can fit mountain bikes with the front tires hanging over the tailgate or, with the tailgate in a half-open position, sheets of plywood on ledges molded above the wheelwells. Drop the gate, which supports 500 pounds, and you should be able to strap down a dirt bike. Bed payload capacity is a bit more than 600 pounds, at least 800 pounds…

50 JULY 1971 PRICE: $0.75 History was made in our July 1971 issue when Petersen Publishing, our publisher at the time, folded Sports Car Graphic into MotorTrend. Sports Car Graphic aimed primarily at enthusiasts who saw beyond an automobile’s nation of origin and instead focused on cars that just make you feel good. Sports Car Graphic published 122 issues during its May 1961–June 1971 run. 30 JULY 1991 PRICE: $2.95 Cheap thrills were the name of the game. Our 10-car pocket-rocket showdown featured the Chevrolet Beretta GTZ, Ford Escort GT, Honda CRX Si, Hyundai Scoupe, Mazda Miata, Nissan 240SX XE Coupe, Nissan NX 2000, Plymouth Laser RS, Saturn Coupe, and Toyota Paseo. The CRX Si earned the win, though if price were no object, we preferred the 240SX. 10 JULY 2011 PRICE: $4.99 Our old-versus-new Camaro, Challenger, and Mustang comparison got…