View Photos of the 1979 Toyota Corona LE Liftback

From the June 1979 issue of Car and Driver. The Toyota Corona has been around long enough that we all know it isn’t an Asian cigar. Coronas have tradition­ally embodied the Japanese idea of how Japan ought to interpret the standard American sedan, albeit smaller and a few years out of styling phase. Toyota, however, never allowed those small dis­crepancies to interfere with league-lead­ing sales in the United States. What happens in that league within the next two or three years will bear close watch­ing, because Toyota has chosen to increase the interior capacity of the Coro­na through the time-honored American method of an overall stretch job, con­sciously rejecting more modern, more efficient ways of creating greater carry­ing capacity. Moreover, while the Corona retains the old-fashioned front-en­gine-rear-drive layout, even the Ameri­cans are switching to front-wheel drive. The new Corona is nothing if not a shriveled-up Mercury Marquis. It has all the qualifications: quiet cruising, super-­plush interior, doodads here, thingama­jigs there. On this score, the Corona is another direct hit for Toyota—if it de­termined the correct grid coordinates before calling in the strike.

Maserati / Adobe Stock (edited by the author) Guess what happens when you commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft? North Texas businessman Clayton Lloyd Iley can tell you. You get sentenced to more than 13 years in federal prison, and they won’t even let you keep your car collection. No Lambos waiting to welcome you home—no nothin’.

Subaru is phasing out combustion-engine vehicles in Europe by the end of 2027 and will sell only EVs. Subaru drops gas engine for EVs in Europe

The Formula 1 circus is descending on Texas as I type this, then heading to Mexico next week for one of the calendar’s most cherished races. With Sergio Perez back on the grid this year, Cadillac (the automaker and the F1 team) is throwing a big party on both sides of the border to celebrate not just the Mexican racer, but also its second race ever on American soil. It’s just revealed an awesome cowboy-inspired livery, as well as a “Checo Perez Edition” Escalade V. This special-edition, three-row SUV doesn’t get any performance upgrades, but that’s probably fine, since its 6.2-liter, supercharged V8 already produces 682 horsepower, enough to hit 60 mph in just 4.4 seconds. It does get some neat visual enhancements that may be enough to persuade the biggest F1 fans to spring for one of the only 11 units that will be produced. Why 11? That’s Perez’s racing number.

Evan Williams is an automotive journalist and mechanical engineering technologist with more than a decade of experience in the industry. He has written for the Toronto Star and AutoTrader Canada and previously served as editor of Wheelscene.ca. A four-time Canadian Automotive Journalism Award winner, he is the current President of the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada, where he oversees the Canadian Car of the Year Awards program. At CarBuzz for the last year, Evan uses his engineering background to analyze vehicle tech and patents, with a focus on the details that defines great cars. Imagine driving nearly 20,000 miles in just a week. Think it's impossible? Not according to rental car company Avis. The company charged one unsuspecting customer for exactly that road trip, insisting that its math is right and that approximately $4,200 in over-mileage charges should stand. Even stranger, his credit card company sided with the rental company despite the math proving it's all but impossible.