Honda CR-V

#250, The Weekly Driver’s 2022 Cars of the Year

Selecting the cars of the year helps celebrate another year reviewing new cars and trucks, visiting auto shows and talking with vintage car owners, book authors and industry experts about their cars of the year. There are always great and not-so-great moments driving vehicles. The industry is always abuzz. There are always changes, oddball statistics, recalls and new models and makes. What has Elon Musk done now? Will autonomous driving and EVs ever make a significant difference? Will low-profile tires stop blowing while negotiating small divots in the road? Will Audi ever change its front-grille design? As much as the automotive industry changes, sometimes not much happens. In 2007, the year the iPhone debuted, the starting price of the Toyota

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#246, New Ferrari, LA Auto Show, Dumb Car Names

As we do periodically throughout the year, on this week’s episode of The Weekly Driver Podcast co-host Bruce Aldrich and I get caught up on the automotive industry news. There’s always a lot happening, and our topics cover a wide range. First, car names can mean a lot toward the success or failure of an automobile. We found a recent list on a prominent auto site that lists the top-25 worst car names in history. The list comes to mind with the not-too-long-ago naming of the pending new Ferrari sport utility vehicle. It will be called the Purosangue. Ferrari, of course, has long been associated with horses and its “Prancing Pony” logo. The new Ferrari is named after the word

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2022 Los Angeles Auto Show promises electricity, tradition

The Los Angeles Auto Show has lots of bright lights and bling, concept cars and customized cruisers from yesteryear. It’s the annual first major industry showcase uniquely held at the end of the calendar year. Global debuts of the newest Aston Martin, Hummer and Porsche are fine. Concept cars are great, although many may never be made for consumers. The latest electric vehicle innovation are the industry’s future. But much was made of the Bollinger, Byton, Canoo and Elio and none have been manufactured. The 115th The Los Angeles Auto Show will be held Nov. 18-26 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. Alfa Romeo, Aston Martin, Charge Cars, Chevrolet, Chrysler, Dodge, ElectraMeccanica, Fiat, Genesis, GMC, Hummer, Hyundai, INDI EV, Jaguar,

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#241, Subaru, Maserati, cheapest, priciest insurance rates

Buying car insurance may be the least enjoyable component of automobile ownership. It’s a huge industry ripe with misinformation, high-profit margins and small print. CarInsurance.com, self-defined as “a one-stop online destination for car insurance information,” does its part to give consumers the basics and the details. Owned and operated by QuinStreet, Inc., a “pioneer in delivering online marketplace solutions to match searchers with brands in digital media” the website offers a good launching point for those seeking car insurance. It recently published a list of the cheapest and most expensive 2022 vehicles to insure. The site’s editors looked at the insurance rates for more than 3,000 vehicles to determine how much policyholders pay. Laura Longero, executive editor for CarInsurance.com, is

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2022 Hyundai Tucson: new, bold, worthy

The 2022 Hyundai Tucson, the debut of the small sport utility’s fourth generation, is the South Korean manufacturer’s finest effort to compete against the Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4. It’s a worthy challenger. Unheralded and 13th in small SUV sales in 2021, this year’s Tucson has been redesigned with a sculptor’s bold ideas. It has squared wheel arches, sharp bodywork creases, a radical headlight design and a snarky-looking front grille. More important, the Tucson for the first time is available in three powertrains, a gasoline engine, a standard hybrid and a plug-in hybrid. The latter has a maximum 28-mile electric-only range; the standard hybrid is rated at 37 miles per gallon in city driving, 36 mpg on the highway. Seven

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Best Compact SUV? CarsForSale.com lists top-10

A compact SUV is about as ubiquitous as it gets on American roads. As tastes have shifted away from minivans and sedans, those seeking a blend of practicality and drivability have flocked to the smaller, more car-like version of the hulking SUV. Choices in the segment are diverse, from decent off-roaders to stylish canyon cravers to people-moving champions, there’s something here for every buyer. Compact SUVs excel at being the ultimate all-rounders, capable of serving as your weekend adventure vehicle and daily commuter, shipping kids to soccer or taking on the trails with equal aplomb. CarsForSale.com rates the 2022 Mazda CX-5 as its top compact SUV. “It should come as no surprise that the company that brought you the Miata

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Pickup truck owners beware: theft on the rise

Pickup truck owners get the best of all automotive versatility. But there’s also a dubious consideration — theft. According to newly released statistics from the National Insurance Crime Bureau, four of the top-10 most stolen vehicles in the United States are pickup trucks. At the top of the stolen list for the second straight year is Ford F series pickup truck. Theft of the country’s most popular vehicle increased 13 percent from 2019 to 2020, with 44,014 reports of stolen. The most “popular” year for the full-size pickup truck’s theft is 2006. Pickup Truck Theft: Ford Tops List Trucks on the most stolen vehicle list also include the 10. Dodge Ram 1500 (11,991); No. 7, GMC Sierra 1500 Denali (13,016)

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#212, 2021 Rolls-Royce Ghost named Car of the Year

Early in 2021, a teenage boy witnessed a colleague and me exit a 2021 Rolls-Royce Ghost at a local sandwich shop. He approached us, looked at my friend and said: “Excuse me, sir. What kind of job do I need to get to afford a car like that?” A few hours later while waiting in the Ghost at a stoplight two men in a vehicle to my right that may not have made it to its destination, caught my attention. Before the light changed, they uncorked a jubilant dance of synchronized hand signs and body gestures. I didn’t know what the display meant, but I’m certain it was a good thing. Far more expensive vehicles exist. But the Ghost, with

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2022 Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross: Better but not good enough

After seven straight years of increased annual sales, Mitsubishi followed the industry trend in 2020 and stumbled nearly 28 percent, 12 percent more than the industry average. It was a mighty fall for the underdog manufacturer. It annually has the county’s lowest sales among major carmakers. But just when Mitsubishi‘s misfortunes in 2020 (about 88,000 yearly sales nationwide) seemed likely to further dim the brand’s reputation, good fortune arrived. The vehicle didn’t have a 2021 edition, but the 2022 Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross has provided hope. A modernized exterior design, including a streamlined one-window liftgate and bold new lettering (Range Rover-like) have eliminated the staid look of yesteryear. The revamped exterior look includes an increased length by 5.5 inches (including 4

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2021 Toyota RAV4 expands SUV lead with EV boost

For several years, the Toyota RAV4 and the Honda CR-V have paced the keen competition at the front of the small, versatile sport utility vehicle pack. Toyota has further expanded its current lead with the 2021 Toyota RAV4 Prime XSE. A plug-in hybrid option of the standard five-passenger, the Toyota RAV4 Prime is a small SUV offered in SE and XSE trims. Its 4-cylinder engine combines with a more powerful lithium-ion battery pack and three motors to produce 302 horsepower. Key Takeaways 302-hp plug-in hybrid is the quickest RAV4 ever: The Prime pairs a 2.5-liter four with three motors and a larger lithium-ion battery to accelerate from 0-60 mph in 5.7 seconds. 42-mile all-electric range is genuinely usable: Too many

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2021 Mazda CX-5: new, gains on small SUV leaders

The 2021 Mazda CX-5 is the 10th year of the small sport utility vehicle. Except for the business-curtailed 2020 pandemic year, the versatile family hauler’s popularity has increased annually. With seven trim levels and the brand’s top-rated reliability designation from Consumer Reports, the CX-5 and several of its stablemates have catapulted Mazda far way from its doldrum years. It joined Alfa Romeo and Volvo as the only manufacturers with increased sales in 2020 from 2019. The CX-5 was the country’s 21st best-selling vehicle in 2020 with 146,420 units sold. The Signature trim covers all modernized areas of the Japanese carmaker once maligned for its rotary engines. There’s nothing fancy or unique about the unassuming SUV, unless value, comfort and consistency

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2021 Nissan Rogue (Platinum): Much ado about the new

A new vehicle edition is sometimes difficult to differentiate from the previous model. Likewise, a current offering’s upgrade may be so extensive, a new generation designation seems warranted. The 2021 Nissan Rogue is a new edition of the sport utility vehicle and much is new. Nissan calls the new Rogue “completely reimagined” and all about “the modern family.” They’re marketing phrases. Translated, the debuting third generation has a healthy list of new stuff in varied areas: technology, connectivity, powertrain, rear multi-link suspension, steering, exterior and interior designs and a Platinum trim level. The manufacturer also reports the Rogue has a new attitude, a quality hopefully cited figuratively and not a reference to the vehicle being able to verbalize its feelings

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#163, The Weekly Driver Podcast’s Cars of the Year

Welcome to the 14th annual Cars of the Year list, selected by TheWeeklyDriver.com. This year, co-host Bruce Aldrich and I announce the top-10 list on this week’s episode of The Weekly Driver Podcast. Bruce and I individually picked 10 vehicles from the nearly 40 cars and trucks in 2020 models I reviewed and Bruce drove. Neither of us was surprised. Our choices for cars of the year were nearly identical, including our No. 1 choice, the 2020 Corvette Stingray. Unlike many publications, we wait until the end of the year to announce our selections. A year’s perspective is important. Cars of the Year Here are The Weekly Driver Podcast’s choices for 2020 (with prices), followed by cars of the year

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2020 Honda CR-V Hybrid: bright future now

No one ever calls the 2020 Honda CR-V Hybrid a Comfortable Runabout Vehicle or a Compact Recreational Vehicle. But like other vehicles known by acronyms, the CR-V is Honda‘s mid-range and most popular sport utility vehicle. It’s quickly likely to become further favored. The SUV segment, according to industry analysts, is expected to approach half of all new vehicles in the United States this year. Which makes it surprising one option hadn’t been previously offered. The Honda CR-V Hybrid, with documented histories to two original given names, debuts this year in a hybrid trim. The Honda CR-V Hybrid has increased in popularity for 11 straight years beginning in 2009 when slightly more than 191,000 sold. Yearly sales more than doubled

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2020 Mitsubishi Outlander improved SUV still lags leaders

Mitsubishi for years has been among the lowest-selling mainstream manufacturers. It doesn’t offer flash, much innovation and its marketing campaigns are restrained. Still, the 2020 Mitsubishi Outlander, the carmaker’s stalwart SUV, combines a few worthy attractions. The Outlander, which debuted in North America in 2003, is among the least expensive compact crossovers. It has three rows of seating and with Kia and Hyundai offers the industry’s best powertrain warranty, 10 years/100,000 miles. For buyers interested in value over brand prestige and who are not particularly concerned about performance or a luxury ride, the redone Outlander Sport GT is intriguing. The idea appears to have caught on. Mitsubishi sales have increased for seven straight years, including about 2.5 percent in 2019.

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Rats keep warm, eat well and ruin lots of car engines

Several years ago, a service mechanic at a local Honda dealership in Sacramento looked across the service garage and said: “See all those Hondas up on the racks? They’re all just like your wife’s CR-V. Rats have eaten the engine wires.” I’d taken my wife’s then five-year-old Honda CR-V to the dealership across town for a yet-undiagnosed problem. Turns out, rats like to keep warm and feast on engine wires, hoses and nearly anything else, particularly if it’s made with Polypropylene. If you live near a river or a tree-lined area (like Sacramento), the problem is often prevalent. Rats aren’t against eating the wiring other manufacturers’ vehicles, but Honda’s lineup has Polypropylene in some engine parts and it’s a rodents’

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