Mitsubishi has arrived at the 2022 Tokyo Auto Salon with a bevy of vehicles, but none more interesting than the Vision Ralliart Concept. We have fond memories of the Ralliart name on Mitsubishi models sold years ago, which gives us a glimmer of hope that a return to the sub brand could once again give us a Mitsubishi to get excited about as enthusiasts. That initial Ralliart return is in concept form and in the shape of the new Outlander.

Mitsubishi is using the Outlander PHEV as the basis of this concept, but it appears as though nothing has been done to the powertrain to make it any more potent than the standard car. However, Mitsu has attended to it elsewhere. The Ralliart Concept gets large brake rotors and six-piston brake calipers to increase stopping power. It also features suspension changes. Mitsubishi doesn't say exactly what it's changed beyond specifying that the comfortable ride "is further refined," though. Lastly, Mitsubishi fitted 22-inch wheels with bigger tires to enhance cornering.

Last year, Ford dominated the North American Car, Truck and Utility Vehicle of the Year (NACTOY) awards, with the F-150 winning best truck, Mustang-Mach-E winning best ute, and the Hyundai Elantra rounding out the podium as the best car. Ford is two for three again in 2022, with the new Maverick compact pickup winning the truck category, and Bronco winning for utility, with the newly updated Honda Civic winning the car segment.

The 2022 Honda Civic, which is again available as a sedan or hatchback, beat out the new Volkswagen GTI and Golf R, as well as the all-electric Lucid Air luxury sedan as finalists for this year's car category. The Civic didn't change much during the generational changeover, which we thought was fine when we drove it. The updates made were practical and useful, without diminishing the car's personable character that makes it so popular. The fact that there's already a sportier Civic Si available only makes it that much more exciting to mainstream enthusiasts.

The 2022 Toyota Tundra lineup is expanding, even though it has only been around briefly. The latest trim is the Capstone, and as one would expect from a trim of such a name, it caps off the line as the most luxurious model.

Naturally, the Capstone features all kinds of interior and exterior additions to make it both more flashy and more plush. Chrome is a big part of the package, with it appearing on more trim, on the new grille mesh with body-color surround, and in giant letters on the tailgate. The Capstone picks up large 22-inch wheels as well, which are the largest Toyota has offered on a Tundra.

American Motors began selling cars that could be driven in four-wheel-drive all the time (even on dry pavement) in the 1980 model year, and Audi followed up with the Quattro system during the following year. Those cars had true all-wheel-drive powertrains (the AWD term didn't come into widespread use until much later), but Toyota didn't begin offering such a system here until the American debut of All-Trac for the 1988 model year. You could get All-Trac all-wheel-drive on the '88 Camry, Corolla, and Celica, followed by the Previa in 1990; of these, the most popular All-Trac car proved to be the Corolla wagon. Here's one of those cars, a '90 model with plenty of miles and even more personality, found in a self-service yard just south of Denver.

TOKYO — From personal music players to games consoles, Sony Group has often gambled in order to be a pioneer, but a leap into electric cars could take the risks to a new level for the Japanese consumer tech giant.

While investors were wowed when Chief Executive Kenichiro Yoshida this week told a Las Vegas tech fair the company was setting up Sony Mobility, its stock fell 7% on Thursday as they contemplated the challenge of actually delivering EVs packed with sensors, consumer electronics and entertainment offerings.

Toyota was the most searched brand on earth in 2021, according to Google Trends data assembled by Compare the Market. The automaker has topped the charts in 2018, 2020, and 2021.

Toyota will inaugurate a service called Kinto Factory that will add modern features like electronic driving aids to select late-model cars. The program will launch in Japan in January 2022, and it aims to let motorists benefit from new technology without having to buy a new car.

Kinto Factory will initially offer customers two basic services: upgrading and remodeling. Upgrading is defined as retrofitting safety and convenience functions, like emergency braking assist, a blind spot monitoring system with rear cross-traffic alert, and a hands-free tailgate or trunk lid. Remodeling involves replacing worn or damaged parts inside and out, such as the upholstery, the seat cushions, and the steering wheel. Personalization will join the list of services at a later date, partly because it involves gathering data on how drivers use their car.

It's rare for a compact SUV to have a third row, and there's a good reason for that: Few humans can actually fit in such a tiny space. And sure, there are obviously kids, but they usually require some sort of child seat that's not fitting back there, either. 

In other words, the use case is as tiny as the seats themselves. No wonder, then, that there are only two three-row compact SUVs: the 2022 Volkswagen Tiguan and the 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander. While I have yet to witness the Tiguan, the above photo is the result of fitting a 6-foot-3 automotive editor into the Outlander's third row. It ain't pretty. And that's with the middle row pushed all the way forward. Also note that it's just not a matter of legroom — headroom is terrible, too. 

Performance will be the theme of Toyota's display at the 2022 Tokyo Auto Salon. It will travel to the annual event to unveil an enigmatic race car concept called GR GT3 and to introduce an upgraded version of the rally-bred GR Yaris hot hatch sold in a number of global markets.

Both cars are shrouded in darkness, but we like what little we can see. It doesn't look like the GR GT3 concept is an evolution of the Supra, as you might reasonably expect. It's characterized by a long front end with angular lights and vented fenders, a huge rear wing with swan neck-like mounts, and rear lights that stretch into the quarter panels. The proportions are almost reminiscent of Mercedes-AMG's GT, or even the electric Lexus concept shown in December. However, the rear fender has a different shape than that Lexus.

We are only days away from the Tokyo Auto Salon 2022 and Toyota couldn’t be missing from the teaser party. The Japanese automaker teased not one but two very cool premieres – the highly rumored hotter variant of the GR Yaris plus a new racing-dedicated concept car that is called the GR GT3 Concept.

I used to get wound up about the terrible state of my local roads, but having just returned from a vacation to Costa Rica I never will again. I can't speak for the whole of the country, but while the pavement in the central area around San Jose is fine, the streets on the southern tip of the Nicoya peninsula on the Pacific side are Third World-grade.

For a company that stressed it had no interest in building a car, Sony sure seems to be on the brink of becoming an automaker. It traveled to CES 2022 to unveil its second model, a seven-seater electric crossover called Vision-S 02 built to showcase a long list of technologies.

Sony's design language is already set in stone: the Vision-S 02 is visibly related to the original Vision-S (which is now called Vision-S 01) that made its debut at CES 2020. It's taller and it wears a more rounded roof line, but styling cues like oval headlights connected by a light bar and air intakes on either side of the front bumper link it to its sedan counterpart. This relatively minimalist design suits Sony well.

Typically, a country’s best-selling automaker tends to be one from that country itself. In the case of the United States, that manufacturer was General Motors, however for the first time in 90 years, they have been passed in year-end sales. By whom, you may ask? None other than Japanese automaker Toyota.

An incredible Toyota Celica powered by the high-revving engine of a Honda S2000 has hit eBay and is looking for a new home.