Around the Industry 17.6 – Part 1

Around the Industry 17.6 – Part 1

RETURN OF THE MOG?

In our wonderful lifestyle as off-roaders, there is one name plate that is held in particularly high regard. No matter if you pilot a Jeep, Ford, Toyota or Land Rover; the name “Unimog” will capture the attention of any self proclaimed wheeler. Their abilities are so legendary that at one point, the big Mercedes-built all-terrainers were being imported into the country as often as Defenders, Pajero’s, Prado’s and many other 4WD’s we are not privy to in the Great White North.

That might be about to change however as driving.ca is reporting that the Unimog might be imported into Canada as a new vehicle in the very near future. Speaking to Hans Mross of Mross Import Service, it seems that the importer has been granted permission by Environment Canada and Transport Canada, to bring brand-new Unimog's into Canada. Before you start tapping into the kids college fund, there are some pretty important restrictions in place. Canadian Mogs will be classified as off-road vehicles much like tractors, meaning they will be limited to a top speed of 40 kmh. Therefore the vehicles likely to be imported will be of the infrastructure services flavour, destined for rail yards, municipalities, mining and agricultural duties.

TOYOTA EXPEDITIONIZES SIENNA?

What you see before you is quite likely the coolest soccer mom mobile we here at 4WD have ever seen, but trust us, there is a point. The Toyota Ultimate Utility Vehicle (UUV) is a custom-made Sienna body retrofitted on top of a Tacoma truck built to take part in the North American Expedition and will also be on display at this year's SEMA Show. The North America Expedition is the second leg of Toyota's Five Continents Driving Project. The goal of the expedition is to allow Toyota team members to get out from behind their desks and experience in the real world the vehicles they design, engineer, manufacture and sell - taking what they learn from the road to inform the development of future generations of vehicles and deliver an ever-better driving experience to customers.

During the expedition, the UUV will be joined by a Land Cruiser 200. This Land Cruiser will travel the entire length of the North American Expedition and will be the only vehicle that will complete all of the continents included on the larger Five Continents Driving Project.

MID-CYCLE REFRESH ON ITS WAY FOR 2016 SILVERADO

Well, we are a couple year in from the launch of the current generation Chevrolet Silverado 1500. That usually means it’s time to spice things up with a mid-cycle refresh. The changes – due out this fall – will feature a more muscular appearance and offer new customer-focused technologies. These will come in the form of some slight tweaks to the front fascia, hood and lighting. Other changes for 2016 will include expanded use of 8-speed automatic transmissions, updated Chevy MyLink with support for Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, and additional safety technologies.