In a move to spice up this absurd Bizarro World timeline, new spy shots of a mysterious long-roof prototype hints that Ford is readying a lifted five-door midsize wagon/SUV to clash with the Subaru Outback. Remember, this is the same Ford that canceled all traditional sedans and hatches in favor of a lineup populated only by trucks, crossovers, and full-size SUVs (and the Mustang).
While there is no explicit Ford badging to be found on the exterior of the mule, the front fascia is very similar to the one found on the current Ford Edge, and that blacked-out oval badge in the center is a dead giveaway. Plus, we’d heard rumors of a CUV-style wagon on the horizon since soon after the demise of the original Fusion.
We’re unsure of the original source of these images, but we do know they first appeared on Chinese websites and have since filtered out through various Instagram accounts, where we get an eyeful of the wagon’s front, rear corner, hard rear, and dashboard. According to rumors and reports, the new five-door will make its debut abroad as the Mondeo before arriving as the outright replacement for the dearly departed (well, departed at least) Fusion, the U.S.’s version of the Mondeo.
If you’re scratching your head as to why Ford thinks a station wagon would be the sales ticket while the still-lucrative sedan segment isn’t worth a shot, don’t think of this as a traditional wagon à la Mercedes-Benz E-Class state or Volvo V60. Really, this is closer in profile and ethos to a low-slung crossover SUV like the aforementioned Subaru Outback. Expect this to be larger, longer, taller, and a segment up on the Volkswagen Golf Alltrack, which was recently discontinued.
Outside of general proportions, we don’t glean much of what the finalized design might look like, but the single shot of the interior reveals a stunning infotainment display that runs almost the entire width of the dash. We can’t tell if this is one unbroken screen or multiple screens cleverly integrated into one frame, but it looks to be among the largest total display spaces we’ve seen in a production vehicle thus far.
Again, details are scarce, but buyers should expect a mix of turbocharged four-cylinder, turbocharged V-6, hybrid, and potentially even electric drivetrains. All-wheel drive is likely standard, and we should get a better look at the production version of the Fusion Active or whatever it may be called when it debuts sometime in 2021.
Just ahead of the end of the dirty-diaper dumpster fire that was 2020, we asked our Twitter friends:“If 2020 was a car, what would it be?” The responses ranged from blindingly obvious to the subtlest shade of, well, shade. Some of you kept it topical to current events in the automotive industry, while others dug deep into the smelly annals of automotive history. To those who mined Google image search, Giphy, or Photoshopped their own memes, we salute you. Everyone else, enjoy scrolling through these selections from the replies—which include a surprising number of three-wheelers…
From the “obvious yet 100 percent correct” department were suggestions of the Pontiac Aztek, the Ford Pinto, the AMC Gremlin, Ford’s Edsel, and the Yugo.
But if you use stock market performance as a measure of success, there’s no debating Tesla had an amazing 2020. Not so much for supposed competitor Nikola, whose wild rise, fall, and possible/probable demise we documented throughout the last few months. You guys were clearly paying attention.
Some of the eye-catching imagery scraped from the internet brought out a chuckle and nod, like this “Forester,” “Camry,” and “BMW,” plus a number of GIFs.
MotorTrend senior editor Christian Seabaugh even got in on the fun, and his selection wasn’t a car at all, but a new category of Amazonian vehicles you’ve probably become deeply familiar with. He elaborated: “Ford Transit/Mercedes Sprinter/Ram ProMaster: The only good thing about 2020 is that these things keep showing up at my house and dropping stuff off so I don’t have to go outside. Plus they’re usually working for someone who has gotten richer since the pandemic began.”
…we do agree with the suggestion of the Reliant Robin, a vehicle famously maligned (and rolled) on the BBC’s Top Gear. (Shameless plug alert: If you’re a MotorTrend OnDemand subscriber, you can watch the episode right here.)
Of course, no such listing of disastrous cars would be complete without screen icons. The blood thirsty, unrelenting 1958 Plymouth Fury made famous in Stephen King’s Christine, is an apt comparison to this annus horribilis.
Even if you’re not a Porsche aficionado and can’t tell a Macan from a 911—if that’s you, why are you even reading this?—stuff like the 991-generation Porsche 911 Turbo S tend to separate themselves based on their aero modifications and performance. (In that model’s case, credit is twin-turbo 3.8-liter flat-six that belts out a cool 580 horsepower that’s routed to all four wheels.) So the tough part then, at least for the high-tax-bracket types that can afford to buy these rockets, is figuring out how make those wild sleds stand out even more.
Germany’s Finest
Some people might go a simple route with, say, a funky vinyl wrap and fresh wheels, while others, like Eric Wong, choose to go way beyond over-the-counter bolt-ons and eye-searing color schemes. This 991 has been given the very exclusive Gemballa GTR 8XX Evo R treatment and is but one of 50 in existence across the globe. We’d say that’s a pretty good way to make a statement. Not familiar with Gemballa? The firm has been in the tuning business officially since 1981 and have earned a much-deserved reputation for churning out some of the most extreme (and expensive) conversions on various models from the likes of McLaren, Mercedes, BMW, and Ferrari, in addition to Porsche. Its unique take on these high-end vehicles maintains a healthy demand—at least among those who can afford them.
DTM Autobody
To perform the Porsche’s surgery, Wong reached out to DTM Autobody of Gardena, California, a group some of our sister publications like Super Street have worked with on several occasions—if you read SS, you’ve seen their handiwork. Essentially a do-it-all outfit, DTM can not only handle your basic insurance-claim fender bender, it can also source various OEM and performance parts, perform resprays and complete color changes, and has established itself as a force in the custom bodywork arena as well. How Wong found DTM is pretty simple: The shop has taken care of his Rolls Royce, McLaren, and other vehicles in the past.
Widebody conversions and fender flare add-ons have been all the rage for ages, but in the last five years specifically, both the Japanese and European markets have been flooded with new options almost monthly. Some are pretty good, and others are atrocious in their blatant ignorance of factory lines and design, whereby the same fender shapes and girth are applied to any vehicle whatsoever in a “one-size-fits-all” approach. In the case of Gemballa, though, the bulking up of the 991 is custom tailored, and strongly suggests factory special edition rather than universal mail-order bits and pieces. Of course, to get there, you can expect to pay for it, and for the exclusivity of a one-in-50 complete conversion.
What’s in the Box?
The full GTR 8XX package includes the frunk cover and front bumper; the fender flares and side skirts; and the rear bumper, diffuser, wing, and engine cover. The aero pieces are produced in carbon fiber, though the owner opted to paint much of the visible portions. From a few feet back, the rich black paintwork seems to cover every inch of the body, but step closer and the inner faces of the wing uprights and interior of the engine inlet expose their zig-zag secret.
That new wing towers over the car’s curvaceous rear and extends beyond the intakes on the factory decklid, while dive planes on the front fascia also speak to the car’s aerodynamic capabilities. The third brake light is just as it was, but it’s now joined by a glowing red “Gemballa” logo that sits between the taillights. Those lights sit just above the updated rear bumper with outlets poked through for the rounded finishers of Gemballa’s Sport exhaust system.
It’s Bulking—and Power—Season
The rear fender additions are two inches wider than Porsche originally made them, while the fronts each add 1.2 inches of girth. That creates enough room for GRS-F2 forged wheels in size 20×9.5 up front and 20×11.5 out back, all wrapped in sticky Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires (265/35s in the front and 325/30s out back). And don’t forget the side skirts; they’re an easily overlooked but key component that allows the front and rear fender extensions to flow together seamlessly.
The additional downforce afforded by the menacing rear wing and the additional grip provided by the wider tire setup is as much a necessity as it is a styling cue. That’s because the already potent 991 Turbo S has been extensively upgraded via Gemballa’s performance package. The updates start inside the block with beefier rods; the flat-six also gets a compression decrease and ported heads with larger valves. The exhaust manifold is upgraded to accommodate upgraded turbos, and the car also exhales through high-flow catalytic converters and the aforementioned exhaust system. All of this makes the sort of difference you’d expect, with power figures jumping from the stock 580 horsepower to 818 at 7,050 rpm. Gemballa also remaps both the engine and the transmission to make sure it all works together harmoniously. All of that goodness is neatly packed away; other than the exhaust tips, there isn’t much to see under the factory plastic covers.
Not Too Much, Just Enough
Now back to that exterior makeover; reimagining the front end entirely might have pulled the design too far away from its iconic 911 roots. As such, the Gemballa adjustments include smoothing the inner edges of the left and right grille openings and angling the pillars that separate the top and bottom portions, while an integrated splitter aids in providing downforce and fills in a visual gap on the outboard sections of the original version. Of course, the scoops on the Gemballa frunk panel are a massive departure from the factory piece, but they provide visual balance against the aggressive rear wing.
As you likely know, black paint is difficult to apply perfectly and to care for afterward, and the owner put his trust in DTM to deliver paint and bodywork at a level that would justify the car’s expense. To put it mildly, the shop nailed it. Each factory panel and new carbon-fiber piece match perfectly, and there aren’t any flaws to be found. DTM describes the process as such:“We took the car apart to mockup all of the widebody pieces and then actually [soft] installed the parts to check for any misalignments or imperfections before drilling holes. You can only drill those holes once—there’s no room for error.”
Given they’re not a simple bolt-on affair, the new arches required cutting away some of the factory body in order to fit the more aggressive wheel and tire setup. DTM worked with Wong on deciding which parts would be painted and which would be have the exposed carbon look, then everything was then disassembled, properly painted, and reinstalled yet again to finish up the conversion. There were no shortcuts, even down to the hardware, which was specifically chosen for its black finish to blend in with the updates. How the owner maintains it from here is up to him, but we imagine a client with the sort of money needed to buy a 991 Turbo S and have it modified and fitted with an extremely limited body and powertrain conversion has people for that.
With all of the aggressive bits added to the exterior, you might expect the cabin to house a set of nonadjustable, rigid bucket racing seats, an aggressive cage, and stripped-down surfaces. In contrast, Gemballa kept things sporty and comfortable. From the red stitched, Alcantara dash cover that flows to the upper doors to the bright red leather touches, the cabin is livable but no less impressive than the outside.
The look and feel of Gemballa’s GTR 8XX Evo-R isn’t for everyone, and that’s exactly the point. The lengthy process of designing something so extreme isn’t easy, nor is the painstaking R&D required to ensure the quality lives up to an investment not every well-off enthusiast is inclined to make. Yet for those lucky few, the value in owning something exclusive and so well executed is worth every penny. In this case, we’d have to agree.
2019 Porsche 991 Turbo S Build Details
Engine: Gemballa-spec rods, reduced compression ratio, larger valves, ported head, turbo, turbo manifolds, pressure pipe, high-flow catalysts, sport exhaust, ECU and trans remapping
Power: 818 hp, 807 lb-ft of torque
Wheel & Tire: 20×11.5 rear, 20 x 9.5 front GRS-F2 forged wheels; 325/30 rear, 265/30 front Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2
Exterior: Gemballa front bumper, hood, fender extensions, side skirts, rear bumper, wing, engine cover
Interior: Gemballa leather and Alcantara door cards, seats; red stitched Alcantara dash and armrest
Gone was any option for using those velvet-smooth, 3.0-mile military runways. Thus, our three-year stint at Vandenberg Air Force Base came to a close. But where to go instead?
Our original site for WGDR—the decommissioned Marine Corps Air Station El Toro—has become so degraded over time that we didn’t dare to take a field of supercars on it for high-speed runs. And most private airfields within reach of Los Angeles weren’t long enough to handle what has gone from a crazy idea to the expected: a half mile run to determine the ultimate winner. (Note for the uninitiated: It takes a lot of real estate to slow down a two-ton supercar doing 170-plus mph.)
Enter an undisclosed test track in the California desert. The generous entity that donated its track has asked to remain anonymous, even though Redditors will probably figure it out in about five minutes.
All we can say is that the track is sufficiently long and perfectly immaculate for world-class cars accelerating from a stop to the quarter mile in about the time it takes you to read this sentence aloud.
However, a test track is still not a runway. There is a certain matter of width. We couldn’t fit 12 cars abreast. Heck, we couldn’t fit eight. So we figured, we’ve followed this same formula for a decade—let’s change it up. And although we originally tweaked the idea of a drag race by running all the cars at once, this year we’re reverting to drag racing’s mano a mano roots: two cars and 1,320 feet; then, for the final, 2,640 feet. Loser leaves town.
