Come next year, things may get interesting for the Lexus IS, a car that currently is not the first to jump to mind when one thinks of compact, rear-wheel-drive sports sedans. The IS is rumored to be getting a major makeover for 2021, the most notable element of which is said to be the arrival of a V8-powered version. Don't call it an IS F, however; the model instead will be known as the IS 500.

None of the above is official — the source of the V8 rumor is an Instagram post from allcarsnews, as surfaced by thedrive.com. As has been previously reported, the IS is going in for a major makeover for 2021, one that this outlet characterizes as being less than a complete redesign. It will, however, bring revised sheetmetal mirroring the look of the Lexus LS as well as a new interior. While the current engine lineup is said to carry over, this report says it will be joined by the brand's naturally aspirated 5.0-liter V8. That engine powered the IS F, which was dropped after the 2014 model year, but in the 2021 car it, strangely, will be sold as the IS 500. That's the rumor, anyway.

We just drove the 2020 Nissan Frontier with its new 3.8-liter V6 and nine-speed automatic transmission, and today Nissan reveals the truck's price. In 2019, the base price on a new Frontier was $20,385. That was for a King Cab rear-wheel-drive four-cylinder with a five-speed manual transmission. For 2020, a King Cab with rear-wheel drive (base truck) starts at $27,885 with the $1,095 destination charge included. The price of progress.

The comparison is hardly a fair one, though. A 2019 King Cab SV with the old V6, rear-wheel drive and five-speed automatic was $27,105. The 2020 in the same configuration costs $28,765. That amounts to a $1,660 increase in price for the new V6, new transmission and a few extra standard features — not a terrible price to pay for the modern powertrain.

To date, the Volkswagen Atlas has managed to swallow more pieces of my luggage behind its raised third row than any other three-row crossover. The Hyundai Palisade came close as it was able to fit the four biggest bags in my travel arsenal. In this segment, I have also tested the Mazda CX-9 and Toyota Highlander, both of which are at the bottom of the segment in this one area. 

On paper, the Honda Pilot should be among that smallest group, providing 16.5 cubic-feet of space when the third row is raised. The Highlander is 16 cubic-feet, while the Palisade has 18 and the Atlas 20.6. In practice, however, the Pilot turns out to be far closer to those class leaders. Let's see why.

Of all the sporty compact cars out there, the 2020 Honda Civic Type R would seem to be the one that would have the most obnoxious exhaust note. It has oodles of scoops and vents, a towering rear wing and fat fender flares. And yet, as we discovered in the above video, it's actually soft-spoken.

The video showcases start up, moderate acceleration, downshifting during deceleration, full-throttle acceleration, and free revving, in that order. The overall volume in all situations is low, which is a bit of a shame, because the tone itself is pleasant. It's a smooth, slightly bass-y note shared with many factory performance Hondas. Perhaps that's not so surprising since the Type R still uses a variant of the venerable K-series four-cylinder to make its 306 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque. Stay tuned for more details on the new Type R in our upcoming first drive review.

TOKYO — Mitsubishi will focus on cutting fixed costs by 20% or more in the next two years after reporting an 89% drop in annual profit, its weakest performance in three years, and skipping its year-end dividend.

The coronavirus crisis has exacerbated Mitsubishi's struggles in a year where Japan's sixth biggest carmaker was already battling falling sales in China and also southeast Asia, its largest market which accounts for one-quarter of sales.

While the 2.2-liter F22C naturally-aspirated four-cylinder of the Honda S2000 is a high-revving jewel, the owner of a red S2000 in Albuquerque, New Mexico decided it didn't have quite enough power.

Mazda has updated the CX-3 subcompact crossover in Japan by introducing a new engine and a new available body color.

In June last year, two Toyota Supras ended up on dynos courtesy of a Motor Trend run in Southern California and a Car and Driver tilt in Michigan. Both Supras put down more power at the wheels than Toyota rated them at the crank. This took no one by surprise since BMW's 3.0-liter B58 inline-six cylinder powers the Toyota, and BMW is known to suffer excessive modesty when quoting power figures for its engines. Car and Driver recently took possession of 2021 Supra, so naturally the proper course of action was to put it on the dyno in Michigan, along with another 2020 Supra in the mag's long-term fleet as a control unit. The runs would not only be a test of a regular production 2020 Supra, but also a measure of the 47 additional horsepower promised for the current model year. Supra buyers will be happy to know BMW still plays coy with outputs, both cars registering more horsepower and torque at the wheels than they're rated for at the crank.

The 2020 Supra's spec sheet notes 335 horsepower and 356 pound-feet of torque. On the Dynojet dyno at Livernois Motorsports and Engineering in Dearborn, Michigan, the coupe notched 346 horsepower and 409 pound-feet of torque at the wheels. Last year, C/D's tester Supra clocked 339 hp and 427 lb-ft. The mag notes that last year it ran the Supra on an all-wheel-drive dyno because the car's programming didn't like high revs while the front wheels weren't moving. This year, C/D learned how to say 'open sesame' to put the Supra into dyno mode, so testing occurred on the proper equipment. The tests were run in sixth gear, which has a 1.00:1 ratio assuming full torque converter lockup, peak rpm coming about 500 revs short of redline, within the Supra's peak power band. 

The 2021 Toyota Venza marks the return of a crossover nameplate that dates back to 2009. That original model shared underpinnings with the Toyota Camry, and it was designed specifically for, and built in, North America, though it was later exported to Russia and Ukraine. This new Venza, however, is actually the descendant of a different crossover, one from the Japanese market called the Toyota Harrier, which has a history going back to 1997.

As it so happens, we got those early Harriers here in the United States, but they were rebranded as the RX 300 and offered here until 2003. The second-generation RX and Harrier were also same vehicle, and launched for 2004. In 2009, The Lexus RX became its own unique vehicle, leaving the Harrier to continue with the old design until it got a new model in 2013. That crossover had unique engines and interior and exterior styling distinguishing it from the Lexus. With the models diverging, the U.S. didn't get the Harrier either as a Toyota or a Lexus for a full generation. You can see the previous generations of Harrier in the gallery below.

Nissan is launching an all-new version of the Kicks crossover in Thailand that features the brand's e-Power series hybrid setup. And while that powertrain setup is unlikely to make it to the states, the subcompact utility's new styling cues probably herald what's in store for the model that first debuted here in 2018 as a replacement for the polarizing Juke.

Let's focus on e-Power first anyway, because it's interesting technology, even if it's been around for a while. In the Kicks, it's comprised of a 1.2-liter, 12-valve three-cylinder engine that sends power to the electric-drive system; essentially, it's an EV you can't plug in that generates power for the battery from gasoline. There's also a 1.57 kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery, and electric motor, generator and inverter, which offer up a maximum 95 kW (127 horsepower) of power and 191 pound-feet of torque. The system allows the ability to route power to the electric motor from both the battery and the engine when it's needed, like climbing a hill or passing on the freeway.

Consumer passenger cars aren't the only vehicles undergoing electric transformations. We've seen the introduction of early electric fire trucks, and now Japan is getting its first electric ambulance. It's a Nissan NV400, and it will be used by the Tokyo Fire Department at the Ikebukuro station.

Though badged as a Nissan, the NV400 is at its heart a Renault Master Z.E. electric van. The powertrain is the same as the French van with a 33-kilowatt-hour battery (7 kWhs less than the base Nissan Leaf) and a 55-kW motor driving the front wheels. That translates to 74 horsepower and 162 pound-feet of torque. That doesn't sound like much, but in as dense a city as Tokyo, it's not likely the NV400 will be able to reach high speeds at all, even if it had a Hellcat engine.

Toyota just revealed the 2021 Toyota Sienna and 2021 Toyota Venza, both of which are hybrids. At a virtual press conference for the media, several Toyota designers went into greater detail about the new Sienna's design. As it stands, minivans don't sell that well compared to their crossover and SUV rivals. Toyota thinks it has an answer to this problem with the redesigned Sienna.

"It's combining the best aspects of a minivan with an SUV," says Bob Carter, Executive VP of Sales for Toyota.

The revived 2021 Toyota Venza is merely the latest in a steady flow of newcomers to the growing midsize crossover segment. Toyota's entry into this crowded — but somewhat narrowly defined — midsize two-row class comes out of left field, for better or worse.

It may seem like we're slicing this segment a bit thin, but identifying size classes in the crossover space can be nigh impossible, as manufacturers don't seem to agree at all on how large (or small) these things really ought to be.

The Toyota Venza is back, but it's not the same Venture Monza vehicle it was when Toyota discontinued the car-like crossover after the 2015 model year. Instead, the 2021 Toyota Venza is much more SUV-like, and it's only going to be sold in hybrid form. Measuring in at 186.6 inches in total length, the new Venza aligns itself with mid-size two-row crossovers like the Ford Edge, Honda Passport and Chevy Blazer. Though, it is on the shorter side (by about half of a foot) when compared to all of its future competitors.

Toyota has chosen to go with a highly stylized and sharp design for the Venza, mirroring the approach of others in this segment. There's some Highlander in there, but the aggression has been turned up a few notches. The Venza shares plenty with other Toyotas, as it rides on the TNGA-K platform that underpins vehicles like the new Highlander and RAV4. We've had excellent experiences with new TNGA vehicles from a driving dynamics perspective, so we're similarly hopeful about the Venza.