Honda's premium brand will unveil a near-production version of the 2019 Acura RDX during media days at the 2018 North American International Auto Show.

The finalists include two vehicles each from Honda and Ford, while Kia, Toyota, FCA, Volvo and General Motors each have one vehicle on the list of finalists for this year's North American Car, Utility and Truck of the Year awards that will be announced next month at the 2018 North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

Ford and GM each take home two of the five awards, while FCA nabs the remaining one at the 2017 SEMA Show in Las Vegas.

Honda has announced that its Urban EV Concept, unveiled earlier this week at the 2017 Frankfurt Motor Show, will be available in Europe as a production model in 2019.

Longer, lower, wider. That was the 1950's mantra of the domestic automakers - one taken up by Kia in the new millennium. That's precisely what the Korean manufacturer has done to its entry-level model, the Rio. All-new for 2018 with a new suspension geometry, length is up by 0.6 inches in both the sedan and hatchback (172.6 and 160.0 inches, respectively). Wheelbase is also up, from 101.2 inches to 101.6 inches.

April is shaping up to be a busy month for Toyota, as it prepares to introduce a pair of vehicles at two auto shows, taking place on opposite sides of the planet.

The new paint trim color is called RV Match Brown. It's a slightly odd moniker, but FCA explains it this way: the new RV Match Brown was chosen to closely match or complement a shade of brown that is frequently used in the exterior design of RV travel trailers, including premium fifth-wheel models.

According to Ford, Edge sales figures point to the fact that many buyers in the Dallas Metroplex choose a cloth interior over technology because cloth seating materials tend to be more comfortable in the heat. In fact, Ford sells nearly 5 percent more Edge models with non-leather seats in Dallas than the national average. So maybe Texans aren't that tough after all.

Dodge has just announced an additional spiff for Demon owners: their very own customized crate of tools. Dodge calls it the Demon Crate and, according to the manufacturer, it contains a unique selection of Demon logo'd, professional quality track tools brought to you through Snap-on Business Solutions. So it's all really top-drawer (pun intended) stuff.

2017 will mark the World Car of the Year Awards thirteenth year. It also heralds the last of the award programs that operate in conjunction, but not in affiliation, with the major (and at least one minor) auto shows held here in the United States.