Auto Industry News: NASCAR Happenings, Chicago Auto Show Debuts, and Exciting New Bronco Products
Love is certainly in the air as the auto industry delivers plenty to celebrate this week. On the enthusiast front, Hagerty renewed its vow to save car culture by adding yet another fun auto event to its rapidly-growing portfolio. Meanwhile, automakers descended on the Chicago Auto Show where they dazzled car buyers with beautiful new vehicle debuts – including a bevy of rugged trucks and SUVs. While they struggle to actually get those vehicles through production, the aftermarket continues its devotion to the Ford Bronco by showering the resurrected off-roader with innovative parts and accessories.
But first … NASCAR made some bold moves in the racing world. After years of fan grumblings that preseason events had grown stale, the organization proved it can still bring a little spice to this relationship.
NASCAR Gamble Pays Off
For decades, NASCAR’s season-opening non-points event, the Clash, took place at the renowned Daytona International Speedway. This year, the organization decided to shake things up and pump over $1 million into building a temporary short track inside the L.A. Memorial Coliseum.
The boldly-envisioned new event – now held two weeks before the Feb. 20 Daytona 500 – was complete with a Pitbull pre-race concert and a half-time show featuring Ice Cube, both musical acts not traditionally associated with American stock car racing fanatics. The Clash also served as the first time NASCAR’s new Next Gen car hit the track in extended racing conditions.
Many spectators, racers, and NASCAR top brass acknowledged the pure patchwork spectacle of the entire event. They also suggested that is precisely why the event worked so well.
Big Numbers
Indeed, the unusual Busch Light Clash drew a crowd of roughly 50,000 fans – two-thirds of which had never been to a NASCAR race before. For an organization that has publicly struggled to hold fan attention for years, that is an impressive feat. Additionally, Fox reports the event pulled in more than 4.28 million TV viewers. Overall, that’s up an incredible 168% from last year’s Clash, which aired on FS1 on a Tuesday. The 2020 running in Daytona was the last in-person Clash, due to COVID, which attracted only 25,000 fans.
“If it does work, shoot, pick up the walls and set them down somewhere else and keep going. Go from one stadium to the next,” Joey Logano told The Athletic’s Jordan Bianchi. “I think it’s awesome that if this does work, it gives us the ability to race downtown. It gives us the ability to race in the middle of cities where the stadiums are placed. And if we can do that, I think that brings our sport to a whole different level.”
Some Mixed Reviews
Many old-school NASCAR fans – perhaps unsurprisingly – seem unenthused with the changes. (Enter those sports comment sections at your own risk, folks.)
Racing is a sport that lends itself to traditions, and yet more changes from an organization that already constantly changes racing rules and introduces gimmicky (and often confusing) “enhancements” can be understandably frustrating to those who long for the glory days of “true” stock car racing.
Regardless, the event’s high numbers translate to big dollars – so don’t expect this new format to go away anytime soon.
Overall, NASCAR seems open to finding new ways to grow the sport. The racing organization recently agreed to work with a new Drivers Advisory Council formed by current and former NASCAR Cup Series drivers. The group’s goal is to give drivers a strong, unified voice that will better communicate with NASCAR officials. The drivers’ immediate goals include addressing safety, improved on-track competition, and the overall fan experience.
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Hagerty Adds Fun Concours d’Lemons Event
Give me your tired, your poor – your oddball, mundane and unexceptional.
Classic insurance titan, Hagerty, adds another festival to its growing collection of recently-acquired automotive events: the Concours d’Lemons. Initially created in 2009, “the event features vehicles that would never find their way onto the manicured lawns of Amelia Island or Pebble Beach,” noted Hagerty. Car classes bear witty names like “Rust Belt American Junk”, “Needlessly Complex Italian” and “Most Dangerous,” and winners receive thrift-store trophies while they compete for the irreverent title of “Worst in Show.”
“It’s almost impossible not to smile when you see a once-forgotten misfit of the automotive world celebrated in the way that only Lemons can do,” said McKeel Hagerty, CEO of Hagerty. “Concours d’Lemons ties the car community together while creating on-ramps for new enthusiasts.”
Hagerty’s first Concours d’Lemons is penciled in for Saturday, March 5, 2022 8:30 AM – 1:30 PM. It will take place during an all-new Cars & Community, as part of The Amelia at The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island.
“The Concours d’Lemons gets bigger and dumber every year and putting the show on the golf course is really ridiculous,” said Alan Galbraith, self-proclaimed “Head Gasket” of the Concours d’Lemons. “You’ll have Pintos and Pacers rusting away next to Ferraris and Lamborghinis — I can’t wait.”
An example of a Concours d’Lemons Worst in Show. This perfectly-restored 1978 Pinto bears a 2.3L Thunderbird Turbo engine swap under the hood. Owner Connie Rainey of Glastonbury, CT bought the car for parts, but determined it was “too good” to strip. | Concours d’Lemons
Chicago Auto Show Debuts
From rugged off-roaders and burly pickups to sleek EVs and wacky future concepts, the 2022 Chicago Auto Show delivers a dazzling return to McCormick Place after last year’s scaled-down event.
Test tracks are the name-of-the-game this year, with a record six proving grounds laid out in the venue. Ford brought two to the show, one to demonstrate its Bronco’s off-road prowess and another to show off its EV lineup. The immensely popular Camp Jeep returned as well, this time steeper and bigger with a 28-foot mountain delivering 45-degree approach and departure angles.
The track styles reflect the trend of debuts: 4×4 capability and electric power.
Trucks Ahoy!
In general, Chicago is known for delivering more truck debuts than other auto shows, and the 2022 running is holding true to that reputation. Detroit’s Big 3 all brought a 4×4 presence – as did Nissan, who served up a trio of Frontier concepts in its quest to get out of the financial doghouse and back on the international automaking stage.
Ford Bronco Everglades
Riding the high of the Bronco Raptor reveal, Ford took the covers off another amped-up Bronco at the Chicago Auto Show. The special-edition Bronco Everglades is made for customers who want to venture “deep into the wild,” says the automaker. As the name suggests, it is specially engineered to tackle mud, swamps, and similarly treacherous off-road conditions.
Available as a four-door model, the Bronco Everglades features some impressive factory equipment, including a class-exclusive signature snorkel that runs up the passenger-side A-pillar and a front-bumper integrated 10,000-pound ZEON 10-S WARN winch. Everglades also comes standard with a protective safari bar, rock rails, and the same steel bash plates found on Black Diamond and Badlands Bronco models – not to mention all the off-road equipment in the Bronco Sasquatch Package. Sasquatch upgrades include 35-inch Goodyear mud-terrain tires wrapped around 17-inch Carbonized Gray-painted alloy wheels, front- and rear-locking differentials, BILSTEIN position sensitive monotube shocks, 4.7 final drive ratio and high-clearance fender flares.
Bronco Everglades also features a class-exclusive 12-inch SYNC 4 system with Ford Power-Up over-the-air software updates – a unique combination based on customer feedback. Its 2.3-liter EcoBoost engine delivers 300 horsepower and 325 lb.-ft. of torque, the most torque from a four-cylinder gas engine in its class. The small-but-mighty powerplant comes paired to a class-exclusive SelectShift 10-speed automatic transmission with advanced 4×4 system and a maximum 67.8:1 crawl ratio.
The Bronco Everglades starts at $54,495, including a destination fee.
2022 Chevy Silverado/GMC Sierra
While, mechanically, not much has changed for the GMC Sierra and Chevy Silverado, both models showed off refreshed styling at Chicago’s show. Body styles, bed configurations, and engines remain the same, but both half-tons see new headlights, grille, bumpers and interior tech. Also new is the addition of GM’s Super Cruise “handsfree” driving-assist tech which allows for handsfree driving on certain approved roads.
Chevy also brought the new 2023 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 to Chicago, marking the next chapter in the mid-engine Corvette journey. Engineered as “a precision tool for the track,” Chevy says the new Z06 raises the bar. It features some new exterior tweaks, but more importantly sports an all-new 5.5L LT6, which Chevy says is the highest horsepower, naturally-aspirated V-8 to hit the market in any production car — ever. It churns out 670 hp at 8,400 rpm. Check it out HERE.
RAM “Built to Serve”
RAM brought the second iteration of its specially-designed “Built to Serve” truck portfolio to the Chicago Auto Show. The previous running honored the five branches of the U.S. military with five different RAM 1500 truck versions. This time around, the automaker is tipping its cap to first responders.
The first model to drop is the RAM 1500 Firefighter Edition. RAM says each model will receive two specially selected, unique low-volume exterior paint colors that “evoke the spirit, mission and history of that service.” For the Firefighter Edition, those colors are Redline and Diamond Black exterior colors, with a black interior with orange accent stitching.
Other unique styling cues include a United States flag and a “Built to Serve” decal on each of the rear quarter panels, as well as an all-black grille and surround, black bumpers, black-bezel premium lighting and 20-inch aluminum wheels with a unique-to-the-edition Technical Gray finish. Body-color wheel flares also accent the exterior. Complementing the look are black badges, black wheel-to-wheel side steps and dual four-inch black exhaust tips. RAM’s 4×4 Off-Road Group of rugged off-road equipment is also included in the package.
Additional “Built to Serve” models will follow, set to honor police and emergency medical workers.
Frontier Trio
The much-awaited new generation of the Nissan Frontier finally landed for the 2022 model year. To celebrate, the automaker served up three exciting concepts at the Chicago Auto Show to demonstrate for customers just what they can do with the redesigned mid-sizer.
The first – called Project 72X – is a modern take on Nissan’s legendary little hauler, the Datsun 720. The concept builds upon the 2022 Frontier Crew Cab S 4×4 grade and features a cool, gray exterior with white-painted steel wheels sporting PRO-4X tires. Other mods include a 2.5-inch lift kit with adjustable front upper suspension arms and a sport bar behind the cab.
Left to right: Project 72X, Project Adventure, and Project Hardbody.
Project Hardbody uses a 2022 Frontier Crew Cab SV 4×4 trim to pay homage to the iconic Nissan D21 “Hardbody.” It features a 3-inch lift kit with adjustable upper control arms, overfenders from the current PRO-4X model, and classic Hardbody block-style wheels with 33-inch tires. A bed-mounted spare tire carrier and sport bar with modern 10-inch rectangular LED lights dress up the bed, while a blacked-out front end and door graphics with ‘80s-style shadow outlining carry on the ‘modern nostalgia’ vibes.
Last is Project Adventure, which gives a nod to the current overlanding trend. Based on a 2022 Frontier Crew Cab PRO-4X, Project Adventure features a 5-inch lift kit, 34-inch mud terrain tires, a special carbon fiber snorkel, and custom body wrap depicting an atlas of the U.S. The concept also wears plenty of Yakima gear, including the brand’s bed rack system, LoadWarrior roof basket, and sky tent.
All-in on All EV
Several brands with buzzy EVs chose to sit out this year’s Chicago Auto Show, including Audi, Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, and newcomer Rivian. Still, a fair number of electric vehicles managed to charge into McCormick Place. Attendees had a chance to see the new Ford Lightning up close and personal, as well as its upcoming competitor, the new Chevy Silverado EV. Hot off its CES 2022 debut, the Silverado EV is generating buzz as a solid electric contender in what looks to soon be a crowded segment.
Chevy also tugged along its behemoth Hummer EV, but noticeably left its Chevrolet Bolt and Bolt EUV at home. However, after a very startling recall of the entire Bolt EV lineup back in September, we can’t really blame them.
Other new EVs on display include the Toyota bZ4X compact crossover and its platform-mate the Subaru Solterra, the Nissan Ariya (also a compact crossover), the BMW iX M60 luxury crossover, and the Hyundai Ioniq 5, yet another compact crossover. We’re sensing a theme here…
Automakers face another harmful upset to the supply chain, layering more complications to new vehicle accessibility. Read more here.
NEW Westin Bronco Products
Looking for some rugged off-road parts and accessories for that new Ford Bronco? While nearly every aftermarket manufacturer and their mother is churning out kit for the old-but-new off-roader, check out some of these exciting fresh designs from Westin Automotive.
First up: the HDX Gen2 Bumper.
Debuted at SEMA 2021, the heavy duty HDX Gen2 Front Bumper is designed to provide better ground clearance and approach angle. It sports a rugged 10-gauge steel construction and features a low-profile winch mount, offering improved air flow. There are also plenty of spots to add off-road auxiliary lighting, both in the bumper’s center and on the wings.
HDX Gen2 has a matching rear bumper, as well. It also offers multiple lighting customization options, while also offering better departure angles.
Westin unveiled prototype accessory doors at SEMA too.
Pictured below on the Toyota 4Runner, these optional add-ons swing out and lock into place for easy use and accessibility. The driver side door features a ladder and fold-up table, while the passenger side includes a spare tire holder.
Other exciting Bronco off-road gear includes a new heavy-duty HDX Gen2 skid plate that looks great with its matching bumper, and new rugged tubular rock sliders. Westin says these sliders were designed specifically for the Bronco and have been engineered to “take a hit” — not just look good. (Although they do that too.) Westin will also offer new Outlaw Drop Step Nerf Bars for the Bronco, featuring a wide and textured step that perfectly lines up with the door for easier entrance and exiting of the vehicle.
Check back Wednesday for a full breakdown of Westin’s Bronco gear, as well as a vehicle spotlight on the new Bronco Raptor.
The Engine Block is your one-stop source for any and all auto industry news. Keep an eye on our weekly round-up of enthusiast coverage, product reviews, vehicle spotlights, auto show/expo features, and more. Be sure to check back Friday for the next installment in our coverage on the legendary Coyote engine.
