Automotive Reviews

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Lexus 450h AWD hybrid, 2010: Roman Mica's Rambling Review (Video)

In Mica’s assessment, the vehicle’s interior is stunning and comfortable. And he’s impressed by the car’s quiet, powerful hybrid engine and its gas mileage as a luxury vehicle. He’s not as keen on the car’s exterior design. 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

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Toyota plans to increase Prius production to 1 million in 2011

Toyota hopes to sell one million models annually worldwide early into this year. The manufacturer’s second hybrid, the Sai sedan, was recently introduced in Japan. The Prius became Japan’s best-selling car in 2009. “For the foreseeable future, the focus of Toyota‘s (low-emission car) strategy will be on hybrids, not electric or fuel-cell cars,” said Yoshihiko Tabei, chief analyst at Kazaka Securities. “Except for Honda, Toyota is facing little competition in hybrids and is set to put distance between itself and other automakers.” The Honda Insight in the primary rival to the Prius, but its sales greatly trail Prius sales. According to a report in Japanese business newspapers, Toyota will add about 10 hybrid models to its existing lineup in the

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Nissan Versa (2009), Ford Escape (2005) Among Cars.com Best Used Cars For About $10,000

In the writers’ words: “Whether it’s a weekday commuter or a Saturday grocery-getter, drivers need their set of wheels, but the average price of a new car — $28,929 including financing, according to Comerica Bank’s latest Auto Affordability Index — is awfully high for many people. “Not to worry; we’ve singled out some good buys for you. With reliability, safety and bottom-dollar value in mind, we looked at new and late-model used cars whose retail values hover around $10,000. We crunched reliability and crash-test scores. We considered standard and optional safety features and looked at how easy it is to find cars with those options. Finally, we considered gas mileage along with our own qualitative impressions — things such as

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GM boss says Hybrids, Electric vehicles not that important

Lutz downplayed the importance of electric and hybrid cars for the future of General Motors at the recent North American International Auto Show in Detroit. The longtime auto industry insider suggested hybrid cars are not as important as the press would lead the public to believe. He also had some strong words for those who don’t like the recent GM bailout. “If you don’t like your tax dollars going to bailout GM,” buy a Chevy, now,” Lutz said. Roman Mica, contributing editor of TheWeeklyDriver.com, produced this video at the Detroit Auto Show. It features Lutz addressing the topic of electric and hybrid cars. James RaiaA sports, travel and business journalist for more than 45 years, James has written the new

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Ferrari, Corvette and Tata Nano share in demand premium price status — really?

That’s a far higher percentage than premiums for Ferrari, Corvette and likely any other car. Several top-of-the-industry publications’ web sites, including Motor Trend and Drive are reporting the alarming statistics. The demand for the Nano, which costs an estimated $2,500 (depending upon the exchange of the rupee) is due to simple supply and demand — and greed. India had a lottery system for the first 100,000 Tata Nanos distributed to dealers, not all of which will be delivered to customers until the end of 2010. Estimates vary, but there were at least 100,000 willing potential buyers for the first allotment of the car. But Arif Fazulbhoy, a car salesman in Mumbai, India, said in an article in Drive that wealthy

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BMW diesel tops list of most efficient luxury cars

The No. 1 car on the list is the 2009 BMW 335d. Lots of reviewers like the new diesel not only because its gets great gas mileage with averages of 23 mpg in the city and 36 mpg on the highway but it’s a performance diesel. Cars.com says of the 335d: “There are other luxury cars with higher fuel economy estimates, but the 335d represents the best combination of efficiency and driving enjoyment.” Here are the 2010 models and one 2009 model on Cars.com’s list of the top-10 luxury cars that average at least 25 mpg on the highway, plus a comment from the reviewers: AUTOMOTIVE RESOURCES Auto Shipping Quote, Car Financing, Car Insurance Quotes, Car Loans, Online Car Insurance,

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General Motors to Tiger Woods: No more free Buicks

Woods’ endorsement contract with GM’s Buick brand ended in 2008. But the manufacturer extended its relationship with golfer via several free loaner vehicles. Woods specifically touted the Buick Enclave, a sport utility vehicle, during his contract with GM.  Buick was also a long-time sponsor of the Buick Invitational, a PGA Tour event at held in San Diego, California. The sponsorship ended following the 2009 event Buick assumed title sponsorship of the event in 1991 and its contract ended at the end of 2009. Now called the San Diego Open, the tournament will held beginning January 25 at Torrey Pines. Woods won the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines in 2008. Woods has lost a host of endorsement contracts since his car

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Women of the North American International Auto Show

The women normally aren’t experts, and they may actually know little about the companies they’re representing. But they do well when cameras click and video cameras roll. Of course, that’s their jobs. The North American International Auto Show in Detroit was no different. Roman Mica, owner and editor of the automotive site TFL.com, attended the show and he took a healthy supply of  images, including of pictures of pretty healthy-looking women. To read more about the North American International Auto Show as well as a vast offering of other automotive content, visit: 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

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MINI debuts concept car Beachcomber at North American International Auto Show

Here’s Mica’s dispatch and video on the new MINI: “Fun in the sun was the theme of the new MINI Beachcomber concept car which debuted rat the 2010 North American International Detroit Auto Show (NAIAS). “There’s nothing like a bunch of beach-going, dancing, half-naked surfer guys and gals to introduce a new car concept to the world, right? “Will the MINI Beachcomber be coming to a beach near your house? It depends how much you like it. So here’s how the gang at the beach in Detroit helped debut the MINI Beachcomber.” To read and view more of Roman Mica’s perspective on the automotive scene, visit: www.TFLcar.com. James RaiaA sports, travel and business journalist for more than 45 years, James

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Edmunds.com unveils recommended cars, trucks for 2010

The guide contains Edmunds.com’s Top Recommended Vehicles — shopping lists for consumers interested in any market segment. Another section of the guide, What You Should Know before Buying, provides valuable segment-specific guidance no car shopper should miss. “You’re ready to buy a new vehicle, but how do you go about narrowing down the choices?” Karl Brauer, Editor in Chief of Edmunds.com asked. “Consumers can really use a friend in this overwhelming process; our buying guides give them the benefit of our extensive experience testing and researching every car on the market.” Here are Edmunds.com top recommended vehicles for 2010: Sedans Under $15,000 —- Honda Fit, Hyundai Elantra Under $20,000 —- Mazda MAZDA3, Suzuki Kizashi, Ford Fusion Under $25,000 —- Honda

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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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