As anyone who owns a toddler knows, it is easier to solve Fermat’s Last Theorem than it is to get a small child to eat their vegetables. How many of us were told as tykes not to eat cookies before supper lest we ruin our appetite? Fortunately, as your author rapidly enters his fortieth year,…
To call the Escape the most important car Ford launches all year is an understatement.
Auto reviewers are a weird lot. We pay attention to details that very few car shoppers ever notice, and we are so jaded by the tsunami of high-tech features appearing each week in our driveways that we often forget that a buyer new to the market after a few years will be amazed (or confused)…
The Honda HR-V is one of your many choices in a small crossover. Like all of those, it has some strengths, weaknesses, features, and functions that could make it the right choice for you. But it depends on what you’re after. Your writer found the HR-V to be a very willing and eager driving partner…
It’s about time. Just over 20 years since the first Honda Insight arrived on US shores—beating the Toyota Prius to US market by a year—the company has launched a hybrid version of its popular CR-V crossover. And it couldn’t have come a moment sooner.
While success is never guaranteed in the car industry, launching an SUV in North America these days comes pretty darn close. At the risk of oversimplification, a carmaker needs only roll the thing out and then sit back and watch buyers flock to dealerships to hand over their money. I realize it’s not quite that…
Sometimes I feel like GM’s truck and SUVs merely exist in the background. Just like ordinary scenery that you zoom past. Sure, you see a lot of GMCs on the road, but most seem like workhorses consigned to schlep tools and equipment around for landscapers and plumbers. There’s nothing wrong with making and selling commercial…
There’s no getting around it: the 2020 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport is a calculated business move. And there’s nothing wrong with that.
I well remember being in a massive throng of car journalists on media preview day at the Detroit Auto Show in January 2013 for the reveal of the seventh generation (C7) Chevrolet Corvette Stingray. A next-generation reveal for an icon like the ‘Vette is a big deal, and it was the talk of the show….
There’s a bit-part character in Mad Men whose portfolio is filled with “the cure for the common X” taglines. If Danny Siegel got any amount of seat time with the 2020 Volvo XC90 he’d almost surely call it the cure for the common SUV. And he wouldn’t be wrong.
The latest A-Class is proof that following the crowd has its advantages.
The Volkswagen Passat is one of those cars that make a critic feel spoiled. There is nothing loudly, annoyingly, nor dangerously wrong with it. And yet, it doesn’t really do enough to earn a really glowingly positive review. And I think I’ve identified exactly what I want from it: I want it to be a…
There was a time when nobody could out-weird Subaru. It was long the go-to brand for granola types seeking a rig with power always going to all four wheels. In fact, if you wanted an all-wheel-drive coupe with bizarre windows or a station wagon with most of its roof lopped off, Subaru was the only…
How do you increase the reach of America’s best-selling non-pickup? If you’re Toyota, you add a whiff of off-roading ability, embodied here in the RAV4 TRD Off-Road, new for 2020.
In the wide world of pickup trucks, buyers often croon over sayings like “best payload”, “most torque”, and “highest towing in its class”. All the Big 3 truck automakers are equally guilty of increasing these numbers on a seemingly year-over-year basis just to one-up each other, but how much is really too much in this…
No other model in the Lexus lineup best exemplifies the luxury brand’s founding principles than the current ES sedan.
For decades, the BMW 3 Series remained the sole luxury sedan that always placed driving dynamics and adrenaline rushes over plush rides and complacent drivers. BMW sticking to its guns gave enthusiasts hope that all was not lost and that you didn’t have to choose between performance and family. That was, until the F30 came along….
I’ve never been a Jeep Wrangler fanatic. While I’ve long appreciated the legendary off-road capabilities of the OG sports ute, I’ve never had the need to exploit those capabilities. To me, the compromises in on-road handling have turned me away.
I live in the countryside, way up north. We’ve got plenty of outdoor space, plenty of lakes and cottages and trails, and plenty of roads that are in spectacularly bad shape.
I’m not ashamed to admit this review started for purely selfish reasons. Being honest is important in this field, after all. For my better half and I, the holiday season is an especially busy one, with half a dozen families to visit. We needed something to haul people and things in comfort. The market has…
Following a thorough refresh last year, the Acura ILX enters the new decade largely the same as the 2019 model. It squares off in a smaller market now than it did when it launched in 2013. Volvo killed off the S40 just the year prior, with the closest modern equivalent being its XC40 crossover. Buick…
When an opportunity like driving a 2020 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro comes your way, you don’t say no. Especially when a certain bow-hunting trip in the wilderness of northern Ontario is a part of the equation. Is the TRD Pro package necessary for a hunting trip? No, but it sure didn’t hurt and the new…
The Infiniti QX60 is the best-selling vehicle in the entire Infiniti portfolio. As folks gravitate towards SUVs and crossovers to purchase, the mid-size offerings from Infiniti and others become more and more appealing. Infiniti is celebrating its 30th anniversary and we thought it’d be worth taking some time to revisit its top seller. Nearly every…
Despite its quietly handsome new looks, the 2020 Toyota Highlander lives up to its namesake as a fierce fighter. The battleground: the three-row crossover market. It’s a bloody battle royale, with two dozen competitors all vying for customer dollars. The current Highlander has been fighting with essentially the same tools since 2014, and yet it still…
