James Raia

Articles by James Raia

Italy’s Driving Craze: Odd Names, High Speeds

Occasionally, a Ferrari or another elite supercar that made the country’s automotive industry famous, maneuver along small roads in Naples, Italy. But they’re outliers, open-road machines glorified in movies and showcased by snooty auction houses. Little cars, some familiar but with unfamiliar names reign in the nation’s maze of constant congestion and ego-driven driving. Narrow, often cobblestoned streets are the canvas for the pedestrian-versus-driver turf conflicts. Who goes first and why is hard to determine. It’s a skill honed more by instantaneous visual assertiveness rather than emotional outbursts. For automotive enthusiasts, observing the vast array of scooters, new and old petite vehicles from Fiat and the small transport vehicles, the Ape Calessino made by Piaggio, can supersede the frustration of

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2024 Lexus RX 450h+: versatile, luxurious SUV debuts in stellar lineup

The Lexus RX, the first and enduring luxury sport utility vehicle, has reached its mid-20s. It debuted as a compact crossover but is now considered midsized. It’s as versatile as any vehicle in the carmaker’s expanding SUV lineup. Lexus has three distinct SUVs, with the RX flanked by the smaller NX and the larger three-row LX and new TX models. The RX series has several options, including gasoline and hybrid systems. The 2024 Lexus RX 450h+, a plug-in hybrid, is new this year. It’s the upgraded version of the 350h and has 304 horsepower and a larger battery. Lexus estimates the 450h+ has a 37-mile electric-only range that can be recharged in 2 1/2 hours at 240 volts with the

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2024 Honda Odyssey: most versatile vehicle on the road?

The Honda Odyssey defies the stigma of minivan collections of automotive boredom on wheels. It may still be driven often by overprotective youth parents late for youth soccer practice or a swim meet. But the enduring Odyssey should be more fairly recognized. It’s among the industry’s most versatile vehicles. Largely unchanged since the current generation debuted in 2018, the Odyssey is ideal for a family of one seeking a high-sitting, confident vehicle with plenty of space for friends, work equipment or leisure stuff. The three-row van also drives like a car and has a cavernous interior for a large family or even a sizable youth team. Unveiled 30 years ago, the Odyssey is now in its fifth generation and is

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2024 Hyundai Ioniq 6: worthy EV underdog

The Hyundai Ioniq debuted in 2016 as a newcomer sedan with an odd name. The all-electric variant, the Ioniq 6, arrived last year. It joined an impressive lineup answering to the fusion of the words ion and unique. It’s also given the floundering sedan segment hope. Offered in SE Standard Range, SE, SEL and Limited trims, the 2024 Ioniq 6 throughout its lineup is the same as the vehicles’ debut models. The SE Standard Range is the value leader, with a 53-kWh battery pack and a single motor (149 horsepower, 258 lb-ft of torque) driving the rear wheels. At its top end, the reviewed Limited edition is far less known, but the strongest challenger for a Tesla Model 3. It

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2024 Subaru Ascent SUV plays it safe

Subaru buyers rely on value, versatility and dependability. Its wagons and sport utility vehicles are geared toward active families with recreation equipment (and perhaps a dog) to tow. The Subaru Ascent expands the ability to haul stuff or animals. Unveiled in late 2018, the mid-sized crossover SUV is the carmaker’s only three-row vehicle. It continues with the brand’s reputation, including its standard all-wheel drive. Available in base, Premium, Onyx Edition, Onyx Edition Limited, Limited and Touring, all Ascents are equipped with a turbocharged 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine. All variants also feature 260 horsepower matched with a continuously variable transmission. Gas mileage averages are 21 mpg in city driving, 25 mpg on the highway. The low tallies are the vehicle’s primary downfall

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#285, Hagerty’s 40-year celebration

Tarra Warnes and her husband once owned two Yugos. The sub-compact three-door hatchback and two-door convertible are often cited as the worst vehicles in history. The Yugo enthusiast family’s idea was to use one vehicle to provide parts for its counterpart’s restoration as a race car. The outcome isn’t as relevant as the irony of Warnes telling the tale. She’s vice president of creative strategy at Hagerty. It’s the insurance company, marketplace, magazine, website publisher and automotive event organizer focusing on classic cars and their owners. Tarra is our guest this week on The Weekly Driver Podcast. Co-host Bruce Aldrich and I interview Warnes about Hagerty’s advancement from a small company to its current status with more than 1,700 employees.

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#284, Volvo software chief talks new EV SUV, relationship with Nvidia

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 18:38 — 42.6MB)Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | MoreIt was just before the opening evening session of the recent2024 Nvidia GTC conference at the San Jose Convention Center and it got quiet quickly. Alwin Bakkenes, Russell Datz, the carmaker’s national media relations manager, Bruce Aldrich, the co-host of The Weekly Driver Podcast, and I all stepped in and closed our respective doors of the 2024 EX90 electric SUV perched in the corner of the expo hall. Volvo and Nvidia, the multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Santa Clara, California, have had a business partnership since 2016. And with the conference an in-person gathering for the conference for the first time in

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#283, Veteran WSJ reporters debut insiders’ look at Formula 1 failures, successes

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 37:13 — 85.2MB)Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | MoreJonathan Clegg and Joshua Robinson are colleagues in The Wall Street Journal’s virtual sports department. Clegg, the sports editor, is an Englishman who lives with his family in New York. Robinson is an American based in London. They share global sporting interests, particularly soccer and motorsports. The duo’s reporting expertise has led to a long collaboration away from daily journalism. They’re now book co-authors for the third time. The most recent effort, published on March 12, is titled “The Formula: How Rogues, Geniuses, and Speed Freaks Reengineered F1 into the World’s Fastest-Growing Sport.” (Mariner Books, 304 pages, ISBN: 9780063318625; $29.99). With co-host Bruce Aldrich

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#282, 2024 Nvidia Conference With Danny Shapiro

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 27:58 — 64.0MB)Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | MoreThe autonomous vehicle industry has reduced its speed. Its future is here, but it’s not quite as in focus as the next signpost. Even the most fervent believers have re-evaluated their enthusiasm for the human-free driving mode. What’s ahead for autonomous driving and an array of other pending driving technology is among the many topics in many industries set for explanation, examination and speculation beginning March 18 during the four-day Nvidia GPU Technology Conference (GTC). Danny Shapiro, Nvidia’s vice president of automotive, is our guest on this episode of The Weekly Driver Podcast. With Co-host Bruce Aldrich on vacation, James Raia interviews Shapiro about

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2023 Mercedes-Benz EV SUV: new but not iconic carmaker’s best

The 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQB 250+ is the new and least expensive electric sport utility vehicle in the German manufacturer’s lineup. It joins the EQB 300 4Matic EQB and 350 4Matic as the brand expands its EV focus. All of the models have Premium, Exclusive and Pinnacle trim levels, opening the configurations to a wider audience, particularly with EQB 250 debut. It’s a financially attractive way to enter the EV market with the enduring carmaker. The EQB 250+ features 188 horsepower and is powered by a single, front-mounted electric motor. With its more powerful relatives, the EQB 250 uses a 70-kWh battery pack. The manufacturer promotes the battery charges from 10 to 80 percent in 32 minutes while using a DC

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Top-line 2024 BMW X5 SUV: too much of a good thing

Bavarian Motor Works (BMW) is a few years away from its centenary as an automaker. It introduced its first sports utility vehicle 25 years ago as the industry continued its dominating switch from family sedans to sport utility vehicles. The 2024 BMW X5 M Competition and its rivals take the SUV saturation to another level. It’s a luxury family hauler with track-level performance. It’s needed for the high speeds necessary when visiting the local nursery, hauling lumber and groceries or transporting youth soccer players. In other words, it’s a vehicle that defines automotive excess. Yes, the X5 M Competition is a descendant of the original. But it’s as far removed as feasible from Merriam-Webster’s original definition of an SUV: “a

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2024 Land Rover Defender: rugged, expensive

The Land Rover Defender, a preferred vehicle for safari participants and military operations, debuted in 1948 as a series of British off-road cars and trucks. The brand and its lineup have endured several iterations, with the manufacturer’s offering now viewed as luxury haulers for adventurous families. Visits to the African outback aren’t required. Rugged, utilitarian and fueled in part by testosterone, the 2024 Defender 130 Outbound is equipped with a 3-liter, six-cylinder gas engine with 395 horsepower and an eight-speed automatic transmission. It has 20-inch wheels and all-wheel drive. Electric power-assisted steering, hill descent control and air suspension add to the Land Rover‘s dual personality. Beyond its off-road learnings, the Outbound is also a luxury vehicle. It has top-line leather

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2024 Mercedes-AMG EQE SUV: luxury, utility, performance, pricey

With many unknowns still looming, electric vehicles are the future and the future is now. Mercedes-Benz is all in. Its expanding lineup of EVs is the same as the new status quo for many domestic and global manufacturers. Last year, the German manufacturer debuted the EQE SUV. It’s a midsize five-passenger sport utility vehicle counterpart to the EQE sedan and was available in EQE 350, EQE 350 4Matic and EQE 500 4Matic trims. The 2024 Mercedes-AMG EQE SUV, the performance-tuned option, joins the lineup. It’s the performance division’s first EV SUV and it shares a lot with the AMG EQE sedan, including its AMG-specific dual electric motors and 90.6-kWh battery pack. It’s the closest thing to a supercar that doubles

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#281, Automotive legend: Ralph Teetor

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 32:00 — 73.2MB)Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | MoreA strong argument could be made that Ralph Teetor is responsible for what is now called autonomous driving. Blind since he was a young boy, Teetor invented cruise control in the 1940s. It was one of more than 40 patents granted to a native of Indiana who died in 1982. Teetor will be inducted posthumously into the National Inventors Hall of Fame on May 9 in Washington, D.C. Jack Teetor, the inventor’s great-nephew, is our guest this week on The Weekly Driver Podcast. Co-hosts Bruce Aldrich and James Raia discuss with Teetor the family legacy and the fascinating life of his great-uncle. Teetor has

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2024 Mercedes-AMG GLS63 defines luxury SUV with a hefty price

Big and bold and wearing a front-grille badge the size of a serving platter, the 2024 Mercedes-AMG GLS63 sport utility vehicle is all about luxury, power and excess all in no uncertain terms. The biggest SUV from the manufacturer’s high-performance subsidiary, the three-row family hauler does nothing subtle. It features a 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8 with hybrid assistance and delivers 603 horsepower. It generates another 21 horsepower from the Integrated Starter Generator (ISG). It’s a 48-volt auxiliary on-board motor that operates an electrical system giving a boost power to several systems. Operated via a nine nine-speed automatic transmission, the SUV advances from 0-to-60 miles per hour in 4.1 seconds. The top speed is pegged at 174 miles per hour and the

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Honda Pilot once ruled but no more

The Honda Pilot debuted 21 years ago as the Japanese carmaker’s largest sport utility vehicle. It succeeded quickly as an alternative to its seven-year older and smaller sibling, the Honda CR-V. The Honda HR-V, the smallest of an SUV foursome, arrived in North America in 2015. The Honda Passport, positioned between the HR-V and the Pilot debuted in 1993. Without exceptions, the vehicles provide customers Honda at its best: value, dependability and strong resale marks. But other manufacturers have infiltrated the marketplace which makes the 2023 Honda Pilot not quite the front-runner it once was. Kia, Hyundai and Mazda, among other manufacturers, offer formidable competition. Still, the Honda Pilot, newly designed for 2023, is far from a slacker. It’s a

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