Volkswagen has debuted the T-Prime Concept GTE in a world premiere at Auto China 2016 in Beijingy. The concept car previews the future Volkswagen SUV. The T-Prime Concept GTE is a full-size sport utility vehicle with a plug-in hybrid powertrain and all-wheel drive. Volkswagen’s new Curved Interaction Area is a completely new digital display and control concept.

The innovative curved infotainment display merges with the interactive displays and controls, resulting in a new human-machine interface (HMI) that is intuitive, precise, and fun-to-use. This SUV show car combines the best of many automotive worlds: the comfort and spaciousness of a saloon, the superior traction of an off-road vehicle, the agility of a sport sedan and—thanks to innovative drive technologies—the efficiency of a compact car.

FCA Fleet customers across the nation will have the opportunity to drive a variety of Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, Ram Truck and Fiat vehicles during the 2017 model year FCA Product Preview.

This 15-city annual road tour for commercial, government and daily rental fleet customers kicks off on April 26 at sites in Boston and Phoenix and concludes June 1 in Orlando.

The star of this year’s preview is the all-new 2017 Chrysler Pacifica. Each tour stop includes a Pacifica Experiential Drive to showcase the new minivan’s capabilities, including ParkSense Parallel/Perpendicular Park Assist.

“This is an excellent opportunity for our fleet and small-business customers to test drive our all-new Chrysler Pacifica minivan, re-engineered from the ground up on an all-new platform, delivering class-leading ride and handling,” said Jeff Kommor, Vice President - U.S. Sales Operations, Fleet and Small Business, FCA US LLC. “We look forward to showcasing our new products, introducing 2017 model year vehicle specs and demonstrating why FCA vehicles are above the competition.

Grand Prix Association of Long Beach and Toyota announced actors Stephen Baldwin, Frankie Muniz, Brian Austin Green and last year’s overall winner, Alfonso Ribeiro, are among the 21 participants from film, television and sports, who will return to compete in the 40th Anniversary of the Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race. 

This announcement heralds the 40th and final edition of the longest-running corporate-sponsored charity race in the U.S.A., which will take place April 16 on the 1.97-mile street course in downtown Long Beach, Calif., as part of the 42nd Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach weekend.

Advanced automatic safety technology that was once available on only the most expensive new vehicles is about to be included as standard equipment on almost every Lexus and Toyota model and trim level in the United States. Announced today at the New York Auto Show, Toyota will begin to include the and Lexus Safety System+™ and Toyota Safety Sense™ packages, anchored by automatic emergency braking (AEB), on almost every new vehicle by the end of 2017.

The announcement marks a major commitment by Toyota to help save lives and reduce highway injuries. Making Lexus Safety System+ and Toyota Safety Sense standard equipment on almost every model by the end of 2017 will make AEB technology widely available four years ahead of the 2022 industry target announced last week by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

NASCAR race fans and music festival fans both will have reasons to celebrate this summer at Michigan International Speedway. Keloorah, a music festival experience, will take place on Friday and Saturday of each NASCAR weekend at MIS this summer.

Keloorah kicks off in June when GROUPLOVE, Third Eye Blind, Fitz and the Tantrums, Andy Grammer, The Neighbourhood, Elle King, as well as Joe Hertler and the Rainbow Seekers take the stage.

A joint meeting of the Michigan House Committee on Commerce and Trade and House Committee on Transportation to learn more about self-driving vehicles.

State Rep. Joseph Graves, R-Argentine Township, who serves as chair of the Commerce and Trade panel, said the focus of the hearing was to begin a dialogue that will allow Michigan to maintain its status as the leader in automotive development and production.

“Michigan has, from the very beginning of the automotive age, been at the forefront of the automobile industry, and with automated vehicles close to being deployed commercially, we want to make sure we remain the nation’s leader in the technology,” Rep. Graves said. “We opened a dialogue so we can have ideas about specific requirements in place when the technology enters the public marketplace.”

Bentley Motorsport will contest more than 90 top-level GT races around the world in 2016, as both its works and customer team programmes expand. The Bentley Team M-Sport works outfit will now enter the full Blancpain GT Series and welcomes Wolfgang Reip to the Blancpain Endurance Series line-up.

Following success in the 2014 and 2015 Blancpain Endurance Series, the Crewe-based operation will now enter the Blancpain Sprint Series aiming to retain the Continental GT3’s championship title and enabling it to contest the full Blancpain GT Series.
In addition, it will contest the inaugural SRO Intercontinental GT Challenge, which comprises Bathurst 12 Hours, Spa 24 Hours and Sepang 12 Hours.

Building on the successful unveiling at January’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, the Volkswagen BUDD-e madeits U.S. auto show debut at the New York International Auto Show. This is the first vehicle based on the all-new Modular Electric Platform (MEB) that is designed specifically for plug-in vehicles. With a range of up to 373 (estimate based on the New European Drive Cycle (NEDC), 233 miles estimate when based on EPA drive cycle) miles coupled with a charismatic, iconic design, this vehicle successfully incorporates Volkswagen’s heritage while providing a glimpse into the brand’s future.