Automotive Reviews

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Chevrolet, GM showcase Spark, Cruze, Volt at Detroit Auto Show (Video)

Lutz describes each car in the video below produced by The Weekly Driver’s contributing editor Roman Mica. He’ll be reporting throughout the show, one of the car industry’s most important yearly auto industry gatherings. To read more of Mica’s car reviews and to view his videos from the Detroit Auto Show, visit his web site: www.TFLcar.com James RaiaA sports, travel and business journalist for more than 45 years, James has written the new car review column The Weekly Driver since 2004. In addition to founding this site in 2004, James writes a Sunday automotive column for The San Jose Mercury and East Bay Times in Walnut Creek, Calif., and monthly auto review and wellness columns for Gulfshore Business, a magazine

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Ford sweeps Detroit Auto Show honors with Ford Fusion Hybrid and Transit Connect

The double victory for Ford on Monday marked only the third time in the history of the award an automaker swept the competition. The honors are voted on by a panel of about 50 U.S. and Canadian automotive journalists. The Ford Fusion Hybrid, the gasoline-electric hybrid that debuted in the U.S. market in March 2009, has gas mileage ratings of 41 mpg in the city and 36 mpg highway. It was honored over the Buick LaCrosse and the Volkswagen Golf/GTI. A utilitarian truck shorter than the Fusion, the Transit Connect defeated the Chevrolet Equinox and Subaru Outback for the truck title. Introduced in 2002, the Transit Connect is a leisure activity vehicle that replaced the Ford Escort van line. “A

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Land Rover HSE Sport, 2010: Roman Mica's Rambling Review (Video)

Here are the specs for the 2010 Land Rover Sport HSE and  a three-minute video of the vehicle in Colorado snow conditions: Price as Tested: 70,845.00; Engine: 5.0L Aluminum Alloy V-8; Transmission: 6-speed automatic transmission with CommandShift; Horsepower: 375; G-Tac Test Data test: 5430 feet above sea level; 15.55 seconds at 96 mph; 0-60 mph: 7.35 seconds; 60-0: 101 ft; 061 g’s; EPA Fuel Economy Estimates: City, 17 mpg; Highway, 17 mpg; Combined: 14 mpg; As tested: 13.9 mpg; CO2 per year: 15,651 lbs. James RaiaA sports, travel and business journalist for more than 45 years, James has written the new car review column The Weekly Driver since 2004. In addition to founding this site in 2004, James writes a

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Mercedes-Benz E550, 2010: The Weekly Driver Car Review

It isn’t often (OK, maybe never) the price of a luxury car gets reduced by several thousand dollars. But that’s what Mercedes-Benz did with 2010 models, including the E550. But Mercedes-Benz not only lowered it prices, it did so with a re-designed vehicle, not the staid offerings of yesteryear. The E550 five-passenger sedan is the prime example of how the German manufacturer is attempting to retrieve former Mercedes owners who may have opted for more trendy and less expensive luxury sedans in recent years. The Weekly Driver Test Drive In a perfect world, my weekly test drive would have been, let’s say, to drive across Germany on the Autoban. But a week of everyday driving was just fine, too. There’s

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Range Rover Sport HSE, 2010: Roman Mica's Rambling Review

With the Range Rover’s drive-train in snow mode the Brit seemed almost unstoppable even with fat non-winter tires. And you got to love any car that has not 1, not 2, not 3, not 4, but 5 on board cameras giving you a 360 degree view of the surrounding road and traffic as you head down the road. We’re sure that this is a pretty useful off-road feature perhaps used to provide up close and personal views of potentially deadly drop-offs, but it’s also a lot of fun just driving to the grocery store. As of yet we have not been able to figure out how to get to the combined MPG readout to get an “as tested” mileage number

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Mazda MX-5, 2010: The Weekly Driver Car Review

Since its debut in 1989, more than 850,000 Miatas have sold, and a lot more will likely sell considering the upgrades — some substantial, some subtle — for the 2010 model. The new edition is available with a manual-folding soft top with a heated-glass rear window or a power-folding hardtop, and there are 10 trims. It all ups up to a sure-thing to continue the sports car‘s legacy. The Weekly Driver’s Ratings First Impression: My weekly driver, the grand touring soft top model, arrived a few days before Halloween. Its exterior color, Competition Yellow, was ideal for the week. The tone is more orange than yellow and it’s striking, for good or bad. Lots of onlookers commented on my pumpkin

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Tata Nano, world's cheapest car, soon on its way to the United States?

Speaking at the New Delhi Auto Show, Ratan Tata said his company is considering distribution of the Nano in the United States after its pending debut in Europe at the end of 2011. “We also recognize there is a market (for the Nano) not only in developing countries, but possibly in the developed countries,” said Tata and as reported on Reuters.com. “For the United States we need a car which has a larger engine and we need additional crash test modifications and we are in the process of doing it.” The Nano first gathered its signature as “the world’s cheapest car” two years when Tata showcased the Nano for first time as the last New Delhi Auto Show. Tata said

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Honda, Toyota dominate Kelley Blue Book car searches in 2009

Honda has the top two searches with the Accord and Civic and also the fourth position with the Honda CR-V. Toyota has four spots in the top 10 and Nissan has one position. American manufacturers combined for only five spots among the top-20 most search cars on KBB.com. Ford and Chevrolet each had two vehicles represent, but Chrysler wasn’t represented. The Honda Civic, Honda Accord and Toyota Camry (in varying orders each year) have been the top three most-researched new vehicles on kbb.com each year since 2004. The top-20 cars researched in 2009 in KBB.com: 1. Honda Accord; 2. Honda Civic; 3. Toyota Camry; 4. Honda CR-V; 5. Toyota Corolla; 6. Toyota RAV4; 7. Toyota Highlander; 8. Toyota Prius; 9.

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Lexus GS 350, 2010: Roman Mica's Rambling Review (Video)

Facts & Figures: 2010 Lexus GS 350 Specification Details Engine 6-cylinder, 3.5L Transmission Automatic (S6) Drivetrain Rear-Wheel Drive Fuel Economy 19 city / 26 hwy / 22 combined mpg Fuel Type Premium Gasoline James RaiaA sports, travel and business journalist for more than 45 years, James has written the new car review column The Weekly Driver since 2004. In addition to founding this site in 2004, James writes a Sunday automotive column for The San Jose Mercury and East Bay Times in Walnut Creek, Calif., and monthly auto review and wellness columns for Gulfshore Business, a magazine in Southwest Florida. An author and contributor to many newspapers, magazines and online publications, co-hosted The Weekly Driver Podcast from 2017 to 2024.

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Volkswagen Jetta Sportwagen TDI, 2010: The Weekly Driver Car Review

The 2010 Jetta Sportwagen is not as well known as the Toyota Prius. But the two vehicles have been compared. The Prius is the much talked about, industry-leading hybrid. The Jetta TDI is the increasingly popular and peppy diesel. The Prius made many of 2010 Best-of-the-Year lists and even topped some of the compilations. But the Jetta and its surprising value and impressive gas mileage ratings weren’t too far behind. In short, the Prius revolutionized the hybrid industry in the United States and the Jetta may well do the same for cleaning-burning diesel engines. The Weekly Driver Test Drive There’s no easy Northern California or San Francisco Bay Area connection to Mendocino. In either of the two major options to

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Honda Insight, 2010: The Weekly Driver Car Review

The original Honda Insight, sold from 2000 to 2006, was odd-looking. But as the first mass-produced hybrid available in the United States, its unique status and strange looks made it cool. When the Insight departed, the Toyota Prius took over hybrid dominance, and Honda hasn’t been happy since. The Insight returned in 2009 as a 2010 model and Honda is ready to go head-to-head with the Prius by offering its new base model Insight for less than $20,000 — the country’s least expense hybrid. Toyota has responded with new Prius. It’s more expensive and in its recent tenure, several times more Toyota hybrids have sold than any other hybrid. So Let the competition begin. The Weekly Driver’s Ratings Acceleration (5)

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Yaris, Touareg, Probe among Cars.com worst named cars

The author writes: “Below are 10 vehicles from the past 30 years with names so awful and awkward that we’re sometimes surprised consumers gave them a shot.” No. 8 on the list, for example, is the Toyota Yaris. The author details: “There was a girl in my dorm freshman year who organized her shoes alphabetically by mood. She majored in dead languages and responded to every single question with ‘no worries.’ She once set the dorm microwave on fire by overcooking a ham-and-cheese Hot Pocket. Yes, that story is ridiculous and nonsensical … sort of like naming a car Yaris.” AUTOMOTIVE RESOURCES Auto Shipping Quote, Car Financing, Car Insurance Quotes, Car Loans, Online Car Insurance, Rental Cars, Used Cars Here’s

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Bugatti in spotlight for 2010 Monterey Historic Automobile Races

“The Bugatti Grand Prix that will be held at the prestigious historic races in Monterey allows our owners to share the remarkable Bugatti heritage and to show the lineage that defines who Bugatti is today,” said Alasdair Stewart, director of sales and marketing at Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S. “Bugatti has stood for uncompromising performance, luxury and exclusivity, and these attributes are as true today in the Veyron as they were in what was one of the most successful race cars of all time, the Bugatti Type 35.” Bugatti was founded in Molsheim, France, as a manufacturer of high performance automobiles by Ettore Bugatti. The company is legendary for producing some of the world’s most exclusive cars — and some of the

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Toyota planning new challenge to 'cheap car' Tata Nano

Since the announcement of the first production plans for the Tata Nano, the auto industry has remained abuzz about the minimalist vehicle known as the world’s cheapest car. After months of controversy and delivery delays, the Nano is now being sold in India and Tata has plans to export the $2,000 car to other countries. Several other manufacturers make cars that cost less than $10,000. And Toyota now says it will join the “cheap” car market. It plans to release a concept car  it will target to the world’s emerging markets. The concept model’s name is EFC. It stands for Entry Family Car. Toyota has not announced pricing for the car, nor many of its details. But the expected price

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Ford Escape Hybrid, 2010: The Weekly Driver Car Review

A hybrid sport utility vehicle? About six years ago, the idea still seemed outrageous. But then the Ford Escape hybrid debuted. Skeptics sneered. But now SUV hybrids are plentiful from several manufacturers. In other words, there’s competition for the Ford Escape, even if some of the competition remains from Ford via the very similar Mercury Mariner and Mazda Tribute. The Escape hybrid is a “full” hybrid electric system, meaning the system can switch automatically between pure electric power, pure gasoline engine power or a combination of electric battery and gasoline engine operating together. That means  maximum performance and efficiency. The Weekly Driver Test Drive Inclement weather or off-road treks are always good ways to test an SUV. I didn’t do

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Kia Soul, 2010: The Weekly Driver car review

The Soul debuted at the Paris Motor Show in 2008, it was first available in February 2009 in Europe and a month later debuted in North American dealerships. With its varied trims, engines, colors and accessory options, Kia proudly declares the 2010 Soul is available in more than 10,000 combinations. The Weekly Driver Test Drive By coincidence, I drove in consecutive weekly test drives, the Nissan Cube followed by the Kia Soul. Both vehicles are innovative and in some ways, they’re a lot of alike — versatile, Utilitarian Hatchback Vehicles or UHVs (I made up the term.) I primarily drove the Soul in city jaunts, the grocery store and other routine life tasks. Like the Nissan Cube and Scion xB,

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