The Acura ILX Special Edition Is Further Proof This Car Is Slowly Dying

Why pay more for a previous generation Honda Civic with an Acura badge?

The Acura ILX, built on the same platform as the previous generation Honda Civic, keeps trucking along, rolling into the 2018 model year with a new special edition trim. Featuring 18-inch wheels, unique badges, and aero upgrades such as aggressive side sills and a rear spoiler from the A-spec models, this new ILX trim offers decent features for the money. Speaking of which, Acura wants you to pony up at least $29,850 for the special edition, which is $800 more than the base model.

If you feel like spending more on a more luxurious but still outdated Civic, then that Premium A-Spec is there for you, beginning at $33,050. The fully-loaded top trim Tech Plus A-Spec runs for $36,050. Regardless of trim, all ILXs are powered by a 2.4-liter four-cylinder with 201 hp and 180 lb-ft of torque. And yes, there’s also just a single transmission available, an eight-speed dual-clutch. The ILX was last updated for 2016, so other than the special edition there aren’t any other changes. Or, in other words, the ILX may be on borrowed time. Let’s face it, the sedan market isn’t what it once was. Considering the latest Honda Civic is larger than its predecessor, better equipped, and more powerful, the need for the ILX’s existence is dwindling.

A fully-loaded 2018 Civic sedan begins at $26,700, and won’t even hit the $30k mark with added options. See the ILX’s problem? Why pay more for something that’s outdated when the only thing you’ll get in return is an Acura badge? Makes no sense. Acura hasn’t commented on whether there’ll even be a second generation ILX, but if there were to be we’d imagine it’ll ride on the new Civic’s architecture. However, given the crossover hype and lower industry-wide sedan sales, chances are Acura will let the ILX fade away with no successor. Acura also happens to do quite well, sales wise, with its crossovers, so it’d make sense for it to focus on crossovers. Unless we hear otherwise, the ILX likely won’t be around for much longer.

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Here's Proof That Not All 911 Fanboys Are Created Equal

Porsche always manages to make pure enthusiasts smile with its limited edition models like the 997 Speedster and the 911 50th Anniversary Edition. Earlier this year Porsche did it again with the 911 Carrera GTS Club Coupe. Limited to just 60 units, it was made to celebrate 60 years of the Porsche Club of America. Only 60 were made and the "limited edition" tag ran an extra $20,000. That money bought a ducktail spoiler, Sport Classic wheels and a beautiful Club Blau paint job.

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LED Road Surfaces Could Be The Key To Death Proof Streets

The race is on against smart roads and the self-driving cars that will make them obsolete.

Ever since the advent of the automobile, the way we travel hasn’t changed much. Futuristic transportation devices like Segways, Hoverboards, or Elon Musk's Hyperloop have yet to become practical (or cool in the former two cases) and has left the car as the modern world’s preferred method of travel. However, while transportation has been inching forward at a sluggish pace, the landscape of the city has been changing, favoring public transit, pedestrians, and bicyclists.

To discover how the roads are evolving to better accommodate the change, Auto Express visited an experimental LED road built by London-based urban design firm Umbrellium. The interactive smart road is designed to cut the number of accidents on the road by sensing cars, pedestrians, and cyclists using a pair of high definition cameras fixated on the 22 meter-long intersection and, using machine learning, predict scenarios after sifting through hundreds of variables. Then, using LED lights embedded in the road surface that are shielded by high-impact plastic that’s resistant to weather and heavy vehicles, the road can alert drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists to dangers ahead.

It’s not just capable of flashing warnings telling a driver to slow down either, it can create crossings just before a pedestrian steps into the road. Umbrellium gave examples of the crosswalk in use to jog our imaginations. One scenario depicted two pedestrians crossing the street while a van approached and slowed down for them. In doing that, the van blocked a cyclist’s view of the pedestrians while they were approaching the crosswalk. Sensing potential for a collision, the smart intersection displayed a warning to the cyclist using its LED lights to warn them about the pedestrians. This level of adaptability makes it so that the modern road has the capacity to account for a constantly changing environment.

With cities fighting to diversify their streets and strip them of spacially inefficient cars, this may be one of the smarter ways to respond so that all parties are happy. "This is about bringing pedestrian crossings up-to-speed with the rest of a modern-day city. Pedestrian crossings as we know them were made for a different age when the human relationship with the city was completely different", says Usman Haque, founding partner of Umbrellium. Will this technology beat the self-driving car to prominence? That’s anyone’s guess for now, but it’s at least nice to know that change is on the horizon.

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Is This Proof A Hotter Aston Martin Vantage S Is Now Testing

A CarBuzz reader snapped these spy shots that indicate Aston Martin is working on something.

Now that Aston Martin has launched its absolutely stunning all-new Vantage, there’s naturally talk regarding upcoming variants, such as a convertible and track versions. While we don’t have a timetable just yet for those debuts, both are sure bets. Aston Martin’s chief road test engineer also told us back in March at Geneva that there’s plenty of more Vantage to come. Perhaps we’ll see a debut at the next Geneva show. But in the meantime, a CarBuzz reader has sent us these photos that clearly show a prototype of a future Vantage variant. What could it be? Chances are it’s the Vantage S.

From the outside, it’s not heavily disguised, although the vehicle in question very much does look like a test mule. It’s void of the brand’s logo and nameplate, for example. Instead, it’s written “Prototype Vehicle” out back. The single interior shot does not tell us anything new, so that leaves us to dissect the exterior. What’s new compared to the currently on sale Vantage? It’s hard to tell, honestly.

Both the front and rear don’t appear to be equipped with a different diffuser and lip spoiler, respectively. So it’s entirely possible the changes, again assuming this is the Vantage S, are mainly all under the hood. Speaking of which, the hood does not appear to be any different from what’s found on the standard Vantage, meaning no vents similar to those on the previous generation V12 Vantage.

By now you may be wondering why even publish images of a car that, at least on the surface, doesn’t appear to be any different from what’s already been revealed? Here’s the simple answer: why would Aston Martin continue testing a vehicle that’s already on sale? It wouldn’t, hence the likelihood the vehicle before us is something different.

Assuming Aston Martin retains the new Vantage’s AMG-sourced 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 for the Vantage S (or whatever it’ll be called), output is sure to increase. It’s currently rated at 503 hp and 505 lb-ft of torque, but we’ve heard rumors 550 to 600 hp is totally possible. We’ll see, hopefully by March. Hat tip to 'kurun'!

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