Jeep Renegade Urban Mopar-Equipped 2015

Jeep had a handful of vehicles at the North American International Auto Show this year, including a couple modified Renegades. 

Those who favor the rugged side of Jeep vehicles took an appreciation with the Renegade Off-Road equipped by Mopar. Its lifted suspension, Trailhawk-spec 4WD system, and exterior upgrades made it ready for the trail. 

However, Jeep didn’t forget about the folks living in more urban areas where the streets aren’t always strewn with rocks and mud. This Renegade Urban Jeep shows the more city-friendly side of Jeep.

The Renegade Urban still gets similar exterior upgrades as the Renegade Off-Road. A bespoke orange accent color graces the wheel inserts, roof rack, side mirrors, grille rings, and taillight accent trim. The vehicle also comes with a Mopar-sourced trailer hitch and bike rack.

The Jeep’s mechanicals are all untouched – left just like every Limited trim level that rolls off the factory line. The 4WD system still offers plenty of capabilities to hit weekend trails and muddy passes, yet still gives a tamer ride for weekday drives around town.

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Toyota Prius c 2015

The Prius c started its life in 2012 as a smaller and more affordable version of the hotly successful Prius liftback. 

Through 2014, the model remained relatively unchanged and failed to really shake up the hybrid segment. Now as we approach 2015, the Prius c has undergone a nice refresh that makes it stand out from its larger brothers with its sportier and more youthful appearance. Oh, and it gets 50 mpg combined, which sweetens the deal a little.

Though it’s just a refresh the 2015 Prius c looks like a whole new car; that’s just how farToyota took this upgrade. Sure, from the side it looks like the 2014 model, but the wide-open front grille and the “light pipe” taillights inject a little youth into the lineup.

So, is this redesign enough to help push the Prius c to the next level?

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Chevrolet Silverado Midnight Edition 2015

General Motors is diving deep into the trendy “murdered-out” market these days, especially in the truck segment. Well, Chevrolet has just announced its new Midnight Edition – an all-black sport version of the Silverado. 

Thankfully this special edition actually adds more than just some swanky paint, unlike the GMC Sierra Elevation Edition. 

This Silverado comes packed with all the fixin’s from the Z71 off-road package, plus some meaty Goodyear Wrangler Duratrac tires not otherwise found on GM trucks.

As the name suggests, the Midnight Edition comes with a blacked-out grille, bumpers, wheels, mirror caps, door handles, and even bowties. 

The underlying Z71 package adds some desirable mechanicals like the upgraded suspension, Hill Decent Control, locking rear differential, skid plates, tow hooks, and the trailering package.

The Silverado Midnight Edition joins the ranks of theChevy Impala Midnight Edition, along with the GMC Canyon Nightfall Edition and the aforementioned Sierra Elevation Edition.

Chevrolet is offering the Midnight Edition on Double-Cab and Crew-Cab Silverado 1500s. Only 5,000 examples are set for production for the 2015 model year. 

Chevy is charging between $1,595 and $1,995 for the Midnight Edition, depending on the truck model.

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Jaguar F-Pace 2016

Among the many premieres hitting the spotlights at the2015 edition of the Detroit Auto Show, most of them having wheels and some type of propulsion, the biggest news coming from the Jaguar booth was not in the shape of a current model, but a future one: the carmaker’s first-ever SUV. Set to sport the somewhat odd and not necessarily appropriate "F-Pace" moniker, the new model should complement the Jaguar lineup starting with 2016, despite the fact that some pre-production mules have been caught testing as far as early 2014.

For those unsure about the "Pace" part of the model’s name, they should be reminded that one of William Lyons’ maxims about the car brand he co-founded said that all Jaguar model had to have "grace, pace and space," something which the upcoming SUV should also adhere to.

 As expected, the SUV’s styling will be inspired by the C-X17 line of concept cars which were presented back in 2013.

 "We received such an overwhelmingly positive response to the 2014 C-X17 concept car last year that we just had to make it a reality.

 The Jaguar F-PACE, inspired by the F-TYPE, represents a perfectly judged balance of style, performance and practicality.

 It offers a unique combination of Jaguar sports car inspired exterior design, fused beautifully with a thoroughly practical and spacious luxury interior. The F-PACE is our family sports car." said Ian Callum, Jaguar’s Director of Design.

As far as the F-Pace’s architecture is concerned, it seems that the aluminum-intensive platform found in the recently unveiled Jaguar XE will be thoroughly reworked to accommodate an SUV body. In other words, the new Ingenium family of engines will largely be responsible of moving the F-Pace as well, with the car also expected to receive an R version to battle the upcoming BMW X3 M and Mercedes-AMG GLC 63, two yet-to-be-revealed variants of the car’s biggest rivals.

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Mercedes Plans Maybach-Branded SUV

Even though the Maybach- Manufaktur brand was axed by Daimler back at the end of 2012, the double-M emblem is far from being forgotten, instead it’s been transformed into a sub-brand for Mercedes-Benz, just like Mercedes- AMG. With the first model under the new Mercedes-Maybach moniker having been launched as the 2016 Mercedes-Maybach S-Class, an entire range of Maybach-branded Mercedes models will start appearing in the following years. The second one to do so will most likely be an ultra-luxurious variant of the GLS full-size SUV, which is what the faceliftedGL-Class will be called.

The news comes via Autocar, which quoted Martin Hulder, the project manager for the S-Class. "The theory is that we will do more Maybach models," Hulder told the British car magazine. "But it will not be for all vehicles; any Maybach must make sense, because it is not just about putting an emblem on a car. Buyers rightly have high expectations of a Maybach, and we must be sure to always deliver on them." he continued.

The Mercedes-Benz GL-Class is heading toward its mid-cycle facelift, set to be unveiled at the end of 2015, which is also when its name will change to GLS. A Mercedes -Maybach GLS would therefore come in mid-2016 at the earliest, sporting a slightly longer wheelbase and exclusive interior appointments, while the third row of seats will be deleted. The top-of-the-range engine will likely remain the twin-turbocharged, 4.7-liter V-8, despite its future competitor from Bentley offering a twelve-cylinder power plant.

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