ICON 4x4 Debuts First EV Bronco, Blending Classic Design with Modern Electric Muscle
⚡️ Read the full article on Motorious
Famed restomod builder ICON 4x4 has unveiled its first-ever fully electric vehicle—a bespoke EV Bronco that blends classic Ford styling with cutting-edge electric performance.
Dubbed the 'Blue Star,' the project marks ICON's entrance into the electric future of automotive customization. Known for breathing new life into vintage Land Cruisers, Cherokees, and Defenders, the California-based shop took on one of its most ambitious builds to date—converting a first-generation Ford Bronco into a high-performance EV without losing the soul of the original design.
Built in collaboration with Moment Motor Company of Austin, Texas, the project took 18 months and more than 5,000 hours of engineering and testing. The result is a Bronco unlike any other. Packing a 105-kWh battery and a 400-volt architecture, the EV produces 500 horsepower, launches from 0 to 60 mph in just 4.5 seconds, and offers up to 200 miles of range.
'This was a dream project,' said ICON founder Jonathan Ward. 'Our client gave us the freedom to push boundaries, and we've delivered an EV that honors the heritage of the Bronco while redefining what it can be.'
The EV Bronco features full-time four-wheel drive, massive off-road tires, upgraded suspension, and modern amenities like air conditioning and audio—all housed in a classically styled interior with bespoke blue-and-white leather and custom gauges designed to display EV information with a vintage flair.
Charging is handled via an onboard 6.6kW system or fast-charged with CCS, and the waterproof battery is IP67 rated for rugged adventures.
ICON says the Blue Star is only the beginning, with more electric restomods planned as EV technology continues to evolve.
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Miami Herald
13 hours ago
- Miami Herald
IIHS Crash Tests: The Toyota Prius Is Officially Safer Than The Ford Bronco
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has released the results of its latest crash tests, and while most models achieved the organization's 2025 Top Safety Pick+ award - indicating the highest possible safety standards - Ford won't be pleased with the outcomes for two of its best SUVs. The Bronco and Bronco Sport SUVs both missed out on a Top Safety Pick+ award following new ratings, while at least three much smaller cars achieved better safety scores. While this does not mean that the SUVs are unsafe, they each failed to protect occupants according to the agency's highest standards. Here, we'll look at exactly where the Bronco and Bronco Sport fell short. To qualify for the Top Safety Pick award, a vehicle has to achieve the following in IIHS crash tests: Good ratings for the small overlap front and update side testsAcceptable or Good ratings in the pedestrian front crash prevention testAcceptable or Good ratings for headlights, applicable to all trimsAcceptable rating for the updated moderate overlap front test Furthermore, the Top Safety Pick+ award is only achievable if a Good rating for the updated moderate overlap front test is received. The IIHS regularly updates its testing procedures with tougher tests, so a vehicle that qualified for a Top Safety Pick+ award a few years ago may not get one now. The Bronco may look like a safe place to be in a crash, given its tall stance and beefy bodywork, but it didn't do enough to ace its crash tests. Marginal ratings for the moderate overlap, pedestrian front crash prevention, and headlight tests held the SUV back. For the moderate overlap test, the IIHS noted a higher risk of chest injuries when the rear crash dummy was assessed. Then again, even minivans were found to do an inadequate job of protecting second-row passengers, and those are dedicated family movers. The Bronco still received Good ratings for the small overlap front, updated side, and seat belt reminder tests, though. Its vehicle-to-vehicle crash prevention system got an Acceptable score, as did the ease of using the LATCH system. It must be noted that the LATCH system, seat belt reminder, and vehicle-to-vehicle crash prevention scores are not factored into the award criteria. Overall, the Bronco could be improved, but previous tests show it's still safer than its Jeep Wrangler rival. Thanks to LED projector headlights instead of the Bronco's LED reflector headlights, the Bronco Sport gets off to a better start than its bigger sibling, with a Good rating for its headlights. The Bronco Sport's pedestrian crash prevention system also performed better, with a Good rating. In the updated moderate overlap front test, the Bronco Sport got the same Marginal score as the Bronco. The post-crash analysis showed that the rear dummy's lap belt slid up onto its abdomen, which poses a higher risk of internal injuries. This is in addition to elevated chest, neck, and head injuries for rear-seat passengers. The Acceptable rating in the side test was due to a risk of injury to the driver's pelvis. Interestingly, smaller cars like the Toyota Prius, Hyundai Elantra, and Kia K4 achieved better ratings than the Ford SUVs, proving that vehicle size has nothing to do with occupant protection. Take the Prius, for example. Besides an Acceptable rating for its headlights, it received a Good score in every crash test. However, since no two accidents are exactly the same, the Bronco and Bronco Sport still have every chance of adequately protecting occupants in a crash. Both come with a decent roster of passive and active safety features. These IIHS tests do, however, show that there is some room for improvement in this area for the Ford twins. Copyright 2025 The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Ford Bronco, Bronco Sport missed top safety ratings for this reason
The Ford Bronco and Ford Bronco Sport SUVs failed to meet the marginal ratings to qualify for a top safety pick in the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's latest safety ratings, with the institute noting there is a heightened risk for head and neck injuries in the rear seat of the Bronco Sport. On June 10, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety — a nonprofit group owned by auto insurers with the purpose of reducing injuries from car crashes — said it tested nine vehicles and awarded six models from four different brands a 2025 Top Safety Pick+ award. Three of the vehicles tested — the Volkswagen Taos, Ford Bronco and Bronco Sport — did not earn a top safety ranking, rather came as "adequate," due to subpar performance in one or more of the required tests, the institute said in its findings. The crash tests showed both Broncos put rear seat passengers at an elevated risk of chest injuries. The Taos got inadequate results in the front crash test and for its headlights and pedestrian crash avoidance system. A spokesperson from Volkswagen did not immediately respond to inquiries for comment on the results. Ford Motor Co. spokesman Mike Levine emailed the following statement to the Detroit Free Press: "The 2025 Bronco and Bronco Sport meet or exceed the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) regulatory requirements. Both Bronco and Bronco Sport have earned overall 5-star NHTSA New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) ratings, and Bronco is currently the only vehicle in its segment to achieve a five-star overall vehicle score in NHTSA's testing." The insurance institute said to qualify for either Top Safety Pick+ or the lower-tier Top Safety Pick award this year, vehicles need good ratings in the small overlap front crash test. That test simulates a crash where a small portion of the front of the vehicle impacts another vehicle or barrier. Also, vehicles must get a good rating in updated side tests, an acceptable or good rating in the pedestrian front crash prevention evaluation and acceptable or good-rated headlights across all trim levels. The institute said getting an acceptable rating in its updated moderate overlap front test is enough to qualify for Top Safety Pick, but a good rating is required to earn Top Safety Pick+. The moderate overlap test simulates a head-on collision where the vehicle's front overlaps 40% of a stationary vehicle's width at 40 mph. Its purpose is to measure rear-seat occupant protection. The 2025 models that did receive the Top Safety Pick+ ranking were: Hyundai Elantra, Kia K4 and Toyota Prius, all small cars; the Hyundai Sonata midsize car, the Toyota bZ4X electric small SUV, and the Nissan Murano midsize SUV. The institute said for some vehicles the Top Safety Pick+ award applies only to models built after the date when the manufacturer made improvements to rear occupant protection. For example, the award applies to Elantras built after October 2024, Sonatas built after November 2024 and K4s built after January 2025. The bZ4X award is for vehicles built after December 2024, when the headlights on its XLE trim were changed to the current good-rated ones. The insurance institute report said new ratings also are available for the Ford Bronco, Ford Bronco Sport and Volkswagen Taos, but "these models did not earn awards due to inadequate performance in one or more of the required tests." "The Bronco was disqualified from contention because of marginal ratings for its headlights, pedestrian front crash prevention system and moderate overlap crash performance," the institute wrote. "In the moderate overlap test, measurements taken from the rear dummy indicated an elevated risk of chest injuries, though the Bronco performed well by most other metrics." Ford's Bronco Sport also failed the same evaluation, but for different reasons. The institute said during the test, "the rear dummy's lap belt slid up onto the abdomen from the ideal position on the pelvis, which increases the chances of internal injuries. Measurements taken from the rear dummy also indicated an elevated risk of injuries to the chest and head or neck." The Bronco Sport earned the group's "acceptable rating" in the updated side test, primarily because of high injury metrics for the driver's pelvis. The institute said the 2025 Volkswagen Taos earned "only" an acceptable rating in the small overlap front test because the safety cage, which is designed to protect occupants, did not hold up well. It also fell short in the updated moderate overlap front test and earned subpar ratings for its headlights and pedestrian crash avoidance system. "Although Volkswagen added pretensioners and load limiters to the rear seat belts in the Taos in January 2025, chest injury metrics for the rear passenger remained high in the moderate overlap test," the report stated. More: From sourcing rare earth minerals to internal changes, 5 takeaways from chat with Ford CFO More: Cupholders bedevil auto engineers. How one Nissan designer is trying to get them right Jamie L. LaReau is the senior autos writer who covers Ford Motor Co. for the Detroit Free Press. Contact Jamie at jlareau@ Follow her on Twitter @jlareauan. To sign up for our autos newsletter. Become a subscriber. This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Ford Bronco, Bronco Sport missed top safety ratings Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Blue Star Acquires Another High-Potential Gold Target Area: Avalliq Property with Abundant High-Grade Gold Prospects
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 10, 2025) - Blue Star Gold Corp. (TSXV: BAU) (OTCQB: BAUFF) (FSE: 5WP0) ("Blue Star" or the "Company"), a leading explorer in Canada's North, is excited to announce the expansion of the Roma Project through the staking of a significant new property, the Avalliq property, located in the West Kitikmeot Region of Nunavut. This property is particularly compelling due to its quality gold prospects and strategic location, being less than two kilometres east of the proposed Grays Bay Road, which could significantly enhance future access and infrastructure development for the property (Figure 2). Highlights MOV prospect is very similar to the Roma Main target with historical trenching outlining a 2-metre-wide vein over 100 metres of strike; vein width samples average 8.4 grams per tonne gold (g/t Au) Silver Bullet prospect - visible gold; grab samples to 186.1 g/t Au; historical drill intercept 1.0 metre @ 13.4 g/t Au Black Ice prospect - channel samples up to 11.4 g/t Au (11,370 ppb) Cygnet Northern prospect - +10 g/t Au grab samples at surface The last known work in the area occurred more than 20 years ago (2005), when the average gold price was ~USD$450/oz. versus the current gold price of +USD$3,300/oz. Near drill-ready targets identified for follow-up exploration program "The expansion of our Roma Project with the staking of the Avalliq property adds a new, highly prospective and target-rich area to our exploration pipeline," said Grant Ewing, CEO of Blue Star, "The high-grade gold grabs at surface, historically trenched high-grade MOV target, and numerous untested geophysical anomalies, suggest that we have added substantial discovery potential to our land position in the High Lake Belt. Furthermore, the proximity to the proposed road, less than two kilometres to the west, improves the accessibility of this property and positions us well for future development. We are looking forward to advancing this property to evaluate its full potential." Discussion of the Avalliq Property The newly staked Avalliq property encompasses four significant gold prospects, including MOV, Silver Bullet, Cygnet Northern and Black Ice as discussed below. Rock units on the property include mafic to intermediate and intermediate to felsic volcanic units intruded by synvolcanic gabbro on the west and turbidites on the east. Both units are truncated in the north by a large granitoid body. Known gold showings are hosted in a dacitic to felsic volcanic rock package in a general northeast trend and in shallow dipping quartz veins hosted in diorite-granodiorite intrusive units. The latter style of mineralisation is very similar to Blue Star's Roma Main target. Blue Stars Avalliq property covers 1,111.9 hectares of prospective ground. (Figure 1). Historical Work The Avalliq property encompasses the northern portion of the historical BHP Cygnet Claims and the Echo Bay Mining Grumpy Claims. In 1984 Echo Bay discovered an auriferous quartz vein (the MOV vein, Plate 1) which led to detailed mapping, and a geochemical and geophysical work program, culminating in a trench-based resource estimation and a recommendation to drill that was never implemented (AR083662). BHP Minerals Canada carried out reconnaissance traverses in the area in 1986, 1987, and 1989. This initial work was documented by BHP in 1991 (AR083662) and consisted initially of reconnaissance traverses followed by grid establishment for mapping, mag-VLF and prospecting. Plate 1: Field Photographs of Silver Bullet (left) and MOV Prospect (right); Hammer is 40 cm in Length. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: Work by BHP in 1993 and 1994 (AR083412) successfully identified two additional auriferous zones - Silver Bullet and Black Ice which are ~750 metres apart and lie along a northeast-trending shear structure that has been traced for ~3 kilometres. The MOV vein lies along a sub-parallel structure ~2.5 kilometres northeast of Silver Bullet (Figure 1). The Silver Bullet zone is characterized by shear-hosted quartz vein in dacite/intermediate volcanics, traced over an 80-metre strike (Plate 1). Visible gold was noted in the vein which ranges from 0.5 - 1.5 metres in width. Chip samples returned grades from 1.43 g/t to 123 g/t Au over widths of 0.15 - 1.0 metre. One drill hole was completed into the Silver Bullet vein in 1995, resulting in 13.4 g/t Au over 1.04 metres. This result was never followed up with a subsequent program. The Black Ice zone consists of several parallel to subparallel shear-hosted quartz veins with a strike length of 180 metres. Channel sampling completed by BHP returned grades ranging from 79 ppb to 11.4 g/t Au over widths of less than 0.5 metres. Four drill holes in 1995 tested the Black Ice structure with the best intercept of 13.7 g/t Au over 0.76 metres. The Cygnet Northern prospect is defined by BHP sampling from 1989-1991 (AR083662) which returned 52% of the samples >1 g/t Au and 10% of the samples >10 g/t Au in an apparent northeast trend; inferred to be the northern extension of the Cygnet trend to the southwest. Samples were collected as grabs and chip samples across altered dacite and quartz carbonate veins associated with arsenopyrite and galena. In 2004 Pure Gold Minerals reported on a Fugro 'Resolve' airborne electromagnetic survey, ground geophysical surveys (UTEM), sampling and detailed mapping of select prospects (AR084667, AR084864). In total 170 rock samples including 114 chip and channel samples were collected. Approximately 25% of the samples contained highly anomalous concentrations of gold from 1 g/t to a high of 186.1 g/t. The highest grades were returned from the Silver Bullet vein. Recent Work Blue Star's work consisted of data compilation in 2022 and 2023; ground truthing of known showings and magnetic survey interpretation on the Cygnet claims to the south in 2023; and prospecting the magnetics interpretation and a field visit to the MOV, Black Ice and Silver Bullet prospects in 2024; no field follow-up has yet been undertaken on the Cygnet Northern zone. The 2024 samples confirmed historical grades at the MOV, Silver Bullet, and Black Ice showings. Historical showings were as described by previous operators with some sample markers still in place at the MOV trench area, and at the Black Ice and Silver Bullet prospects. Next Steps Blue Star is committed to advancing this exciting target-rich property. Initial work programs would include SkyTEM airborne electromagnetics and magnetics surveys, detailed stratigraphic and alteration mapping, and sampling select areas to advance the prospects to drill-ready targets for subsequent work programs. Historical sampling is documented within the references and appears to follow industry standards as accepted at the time of the work; no review of the historical sampling was completed by the Blue Star Qualified Person. Blue Star samples are grab samples, which are selective by definition, and were delivered under chain of custody to ALS Geochemistry in Yellowknife, NT for sample preparation which are then forwarded to ALS Canada Inc. in North Vancouver, BC for final analysis. Samples are prepared using code PREP-31 (crushing and pulverising) and analysed using codes Au-AA26 (50-gram fire assay with atomic absorption finish) and ME-MS61 (48 element four acid digestion with ICP-MS finish). Over limits for non-gold elements are ore grade four acid digestion with ICP-AES finish. The QAQC program for prospecting consists of regular insertion of certified reference materials (CRMs) resulting in a one in 20 sample insertion rate. Darren Lindsay, P. Geo. and Vice President Exploration for Blue Star, is a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101") and has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this news release. Figure 1: Known Target Areas on Avalliq Property; Surface Grabs and Mineralisation Trends. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: Figure 2: Location Map of Avalliq Property on Blue Star's Roma Project. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: References: Anonby, L., Jopson, W. and H. Muntanion 1991. Cygnet 1-3 Report on Geology, Geochemistry and Geophysics. BHP Minerals Canada Ltd. Assessment Report 083662. Anonby, L. 1994. Cygnet and Cygnet 2 Claims. Report on Geology, Mineralization and Geochemical Results. BHP Minerals Canada Ltd. Assessment Report 083412. Miller-Tait, J., Smith P.A. 2004. Airborne Geophysical Survey Report on the North James River Property. Pure Gold Minerals Inc. Assessment Report 084667. Goodall, G. 2005. Geological Mapping and Sampling Report and UTEM Geophysical Survey on the North James River Project. Pure Gold Minerals Inc. Assessment Report 084864. About Blue Star Gold Corp. Blue Star is a mineral exploration and development company focused in Nunavut, Canada. Blue Star's landholdings total 300 square kilometres of highly prospective and underexplored mineral properties in the High Lake Greenstone Belt. The Company owns the Ulu Gold Project, comprised of the Ulu Mining Lease and Hood River Property, and the Roma Project. A significant high-grade gold resource exists at the Flood Zone deposit (Ulu Mining Lease), and numerous high-potential exploration targets (gold and critical minerals) occur throughout the Company's extensive landholdings, providing Blue Star with excellent resource growth potential. The site of the future deep-water port at Grays Bay is 40 - 100 km to the north of the properties, and the proposed route corridor for the all-weather Grays Bay Road passes close by the Roma and Ulu Gold Projects. Blue Star is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol: BAU, the U.S. OTCQB Venture Market under the symbol: BAUFF, and on the Frankfurt Exchange under the symbol: 5WP0. For information on the Company and its projects, please visit our website: For further information, please contact: Grant Ewing, P. Geo., CEOTelephone: +1 778-379-1433Email: info@ Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the Policies of the TSX-Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this Release. CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS AND INFORMATION This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as: "anticipate," "intend," "plan," "goal," "seek," "believe," "project," "estimate," "expect," "strategy," "future," "likely," "may," "should," "will" and similar references to future periods. Examples of forward-looking statements include, among others, statements we make regarding prospective income and revenues, anticipated levels of capital expenditures for the fiscal year, expectations of the effect on our financial condition of claims, litigation, environmental costs, contingent liabilities, and governmental and regulatory investigations and proceedings, and estimates of mineral resources and reserves on our properties. Forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor assurances of future performance. Instead, they are based only on our current beliefs, expectations, and assumptions regarding the future of our business, plans and strategies, projections, anticipated events and trends, the economy, and other future conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks, and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of which are outside of our control. Our actual results and financial condition may differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Therefore, you should not rely on any of these forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause our actual results and financial condition to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements include, among others, the following: economic and financial conditions, including volatility in interest and exchange rates, commodity and equity prices and the value of financial assets, strategic actions, including acquisitions and dispositions and our success in integrating acquired businesses into our operations, developments and changes in laws and regulations, including increased regulation of the mining industry through legislative action and revised rules and standards applied by the regulatory bodies in Nunavut, changes in the price of fuel and other key materials and disruptions in supply chains for these materials, closures or slowdowns and changes in labour costs and labour difficulties, including stoppages affecting either our operations or our suppliers' abilities to deliver goods and services to us, as well as natural events such as severe weather, fires, floods and earthquakes or man-made or other disruptions of our equipment, and inaccuracies in estimates of mineral resources and/or reserves on our mineral properties. 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