Carsquare.com: the easiest, best way to buy or lease a car

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Carsquare.com is a new website that provides something previously absent from the online car-buying experience. Whether a consumer is looking to purchase a new car in a specific price range or interested in reading used car reviews, Carsquare.com features a diverse offering — from the best used car tools to educating yourself about buying a new car to generating a specific vehicle’s used car history check. The Carsquare.com platform aggregates information from the best automotive industry companies available on the Internet and has developed relationships with Carfax, eBay Motors, CarsDirect, Usedcars.com, MyCarMatch, LotLinx, Swapalease.com, and others. The new portal provides

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2015 Honda CR-V: Best crossover SUV gets better

In its 21st year, the Honda CR-V is mature, a standard bearer in the sport utility market. The 2015 edition further defines the top-selling people mover. The 2015 edition isn’t a new generation, but there’s plenty new. For starters, the 2.4-liter, 185-horsepower engine is now the same as the Accord’s direct-injection, four-cylinder with a continuously variable transmission. The exterior styling has been refreshed. And, so, too has the interior. New are a front console armrest, rear climate vents, a 7-inch touchscreen linked to the LaneWatch blind spot monitoring system on the higher-level trim. The Touring trim also has upgraded safety

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Model-T still reigns among best Ford cars ever made

The Ford Motor Company has celebrated numerous milestones. Its current achievement is the 2015 Mustang, now 50 years old. The iconic sports car’s success at its half-century mark brings to mind many other Fords. More specifically, since Ford’s debut in 1903, the manufacturer has made so many automotive industry revered vehicles, it’s hard to pick the carmakers’ best. It’s a subjective choice, certainly. The Best Car Ever Made in History Choosing the best car ever made in history is a complex and subjective endeavor, as it involves weighing a myriad of factors that span technological innovation, design, impact on the

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Tesla Model S sets record as best-testing car in history

Consumer Reports has announced what other automotive publications have also determined in other models of the high-end Tesla. The electric vehicle has tested better than any car in history of the magazine’s respected ratings systems. Specifically, the all-wheel drive the 2015 Model S P85D sedan tallied 103 points in the magazine’s system that by definition doesn’t surpass 100 points. Consumer Reports’ staff reported: “The P85D is brutally quick, with instant acceleration. The car’s thrust is forceful and immediate. Its near-instant g-forces can otherwise be achieved only by leaping off a building—literally.” “That this electric car accelerates from 0 to 60

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2015 Nissan Murano: Driving the USA Pro Challenge #2

The USA Pro Challenge, the fifth-year professional cycling event in Colorado, takes the riders throughout cities large and small. In the past few days, I’ve driven the 2015 Nissan Murano from Frisco to Copper Mountain to Aspen to Breckenridge. The route has primarily been along winding and hilly Interstate 70 that advance through wondrous rock formations. I also drove on a several state routes along flowing rivers and on a few frontage roads and on city streets in Frisco and to the top of Snowmass. My guide was the touchscreen navigation system. I liked the clarity of the seven-inch screen

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NEW CAR PREVIEW: 2016 Toyota Tacoma stronger, more trims

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The redesigned 2016 Toyota Tacoma will feature a new powertrain, enhanced suspension timing and an expanded range of trim possibilities adding to the appeal of the enduring mid-size pickup. Fortified with additional steel, the 2016 Toyota Tacoma will have enhanced rigidity and more overall strength. The steel was integrated into the body shell using a new hot stamping process that reduces weight. Two engines will be offered: * A 2.7-liter DOHC four-cylinder with VVT-i that will produce 159 horsepower and EPA estimated city/highway/combined mpg for the 4×2 with an automatic transmission is19/23/21. Estimated fuel efficiency for the 4×4 with a

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2015 Nissan Murano: Driving the USA Pro Challenge #1

Newly designed for 2015, the Nissan Murano is a midsize, versatile crossover SUV. It’s available in four trim levels and all with either front-wheel or all-wheel drive. My weekly driver of the USA Pro Challenge, a seven-day pro professional bike race in Colorado, is the SL trim with all-wheel drive. Standard equipment on the base S model includes: 18-inch alloy wheels, a tilt-and-telescoping steering wheel, 60/40 split-folding rear seat, dual-zone automatic climate control and cruise control. Electronics and entertainment features include Bluetooth phone and audio connectivity, a 7-inch touchscreen, a rearview camera, smartphone app integration and a six-speaker sound system

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2015 Lexus ES 350: Perfect sedan for a 2,000-mile desert trek

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What car enthusiast wouldn’t welcome the opportunity to drive across three sates, including long stretches in the desert, on wide, high-speed roads? And considering super cars to classics, what would be an ideal car to drive just under 700 miles from Sacramento, California to Logan, Utah? And after eight days in Utah, how satisfying would it be to make the return trip on the ninth day and in one day instead of the two-day departure journey? Performance freaks might select any number of rarities. Perhaps others would prefer a sports car or a gas-guzzling exotic. But what about a vehicle

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Rare Bugatti Veyrons at auction, rare pedal car an option

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The first and last hardtop Bugatti Veyron supercars made, numbers #001 and #300, went up for aution in RM Sotheby’s auction Thursday night, Aug. 13 during Monterey Auto Week. It will be nteresting to note what prices the two rare cars attract as well as the difference between the selling points the two iconic vehicles. The three-day auction, which began with a preview Aug. 12, is being held at the Portola Hotel and Spa in Monterey. The original Bugatti, a 2006, Bugatti Veyron 16.4, is predicted to sell for $1.8-$2.4 million. The second Bugatti, a 2012 Veyron 16.4 Super Sports,

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Sandra Button: Queen of the Concours d’Elegance

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The Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance was doing fine 30 years ago. It had honored the 100th anniversary of Mercedes-Benz and celebrated milestones of many others carmakers along the way — Bugatti to Ferrari to Maserati. Sandra Pruin (now Button) had also been hired as special events coordinator for Pebble Beach Company to help organize dog shows and golf tournaments — and the Concours d’Elegance part-time. The Conours was already internationally prominent and it remains the apex of Monterey Auto Week. But Button has now orchestrated the event for three decades. And she’s been a keen observer as the peninsula’s importance

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Car art thriving at Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance

The artistry of automobiles is among the focal points of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. Books to movies to songs, the style, history and craftsmanship of cars is celebrated in different ways. The Automotive Fine Arts Society (AFAS) will observe the 30th anniversary of its members’ preferred method — automotive-themed fine art — during the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. An estimated 250 works of art by about two-dozen artists will be showcased with the more than 200 cars on display. The work of three guest artists and two visiting artists from Japan will also be exhibited. An invitational-only preview is

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Hyundai among 14 concept cars at Concours d’Elegance

Concept cars, sometimes called prototypes or dream cars, are made for many reasons. At car shows, they can attract vast attention as one-of-a-kind, far-fetched machines never to be driven by the public or even seen again. But concept vehicles can also allows manufacturers’ to gain public reaction to vehicles just before they’re launched. The vehicles offered, like some of the current 14 concepts scheduled to be showcased at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, could only a few minor differences from the vehicles that will soon be public.Either way, car enthusiasts thrive on concepts, often the more outrageous the better. According

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Concours d’Elegance: Derek Hill is the new voice of iconic show

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As a spectator, participant, judge and son of the most distinguished individual in the event’s history, Derek Hill has attended the Concours d’Elegance for as long as he can remember. This year, seven years after his father’s death, Hill will have a new role — master of ceremonies. Hill, 40, a prominent professional driver in numerous disciplines, will assume the responsibilities of Edward Herrmann, the former actor, director and automotive enthusiast who died last December. Hill’s father Phil, the 1961 Formula One world champion and three-time 24 Hours of LeMans titlist, died in 2008 in Salinas at age 81. He

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2015 Porsche Panamera Hybrid: The perfect cycling car?

The fledging Airgas-Safeway cycling team is still seeking competitive clout. But the squad has attracted major attention at the Tour of Utah — if only in the caravan of race vehicles. The first-year team and its exuberant owner, Chris Johnson, secured the use of two 2015 Porsche Panamera S Hybrids as team cars for the biggest race of the team’s short tenure. Subaru is a race sponsor and there’s the usual assortment of manufacturers represented among team vehicles, Kia to Volvo. But it’s a safe bet to assume $110,000 high-performance, four-door hybrid sports cars with 380 horsepower are a first

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Driving the Tour of Utah in a 2015 Lexus ES 350, #1

Driving from Sacramento, California to Logan, Utah is doable in one day. It’s about a 685-mile trek and takes 12 hours with stops. I opted for the two-day version, and one reason was because of my ride, a 2015 Lexus ES 350. A logical approach to attend the Tour of Utah bike race was a first night’s stop in Elko, Nevada, a 415-mile effort east on Interstate 80 to Reno, Nev. It was then into the desert for several-hour effort into open range, past small towns, plenty of sage brush and where the 75-mph speed limit is barely a deterrent.

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Ferrari has nine of top-10 most expensive auctioned cars

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With Monterey Auto Week and its collection of high-end car auctions on the horizon in mid-August, it’s always interesting to see how much car enthusiasts will pay for rare automobiles. They’re often Ferrari models. What’s surprising is that some vintage cars attract little attention and sell for reasonable amounts. And, of course, there are cars that attract international investors willing to pay whatever amount it takes. The current highest amount paid at auction is for a 1962-63 Ferrari 250 GTO Berlinetta. It sold for $38.1 million in August 2014 to an investment group at Bonham’s Quail Lodge Auction in Carmel,

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