In the automotive schoolyard, Kia is the kid who has the lowliest reputation, the one who is the butt of jokes, isn’t too popular, wears worn-out clothes, and occasionally gets roughed up by bullies simply because it hasn’t been aggressive enough to scare the competition. Read more…
A Time Machine On Wheels
These days people will try anything to turn back Father Time’s clock. Most every city in the country houses a doctor or twelve that will inject you with Botox, suck your fat out through a tube or prescribe pills that promise to firm up sagging skin. These remedies might do the trick for a while, but they are still only temporary. Ford, however, would love to sell you a more permanent solution. They call it the Thunderbird, and it’ll take you back through the years faster than you can say, “I need a facelift”. Read more…
How’s this for a novel idea: an SUV that acts like an SUV. Read more…
Imagine, if you will, stepping back to 1982 — the year when headbands became high fashion, “E.T.” was a box-office hit and “Bette Davis Eyes” won a Grammy — when someone proclaims, “Cadillac will build a pickup truck in 20 years, and people will love it!” Read more…
Mix two quarts of chrome with a cup of luxury and a pinch of performance, and what do you get? The Buick Park Avenue Ultra. Read more…
Sunny Side Up
“Lets take the Bonneville to Florida,” somebody says. “OK” came the unanimous response. Who wouldn’t take the opportunity to get out of the office for a few days? Of course, the rest of us didn’t know what Executive Editor Dye had up his sleeve. “We’ll make it a working holiday!” he exclaimed. Some low mumbling followed. So we packed up Assistant Editor Vloet, which in itself is no small task, and readied for the journey. Then, at the last moment, there was a problem with availability. The Bonneville had decided it needed to be at the other side of the state. Being the flexible people we are, we readied the next best of our armada of vehicles, a 2003 Ford Expedition XLT. Read more…
Every car company has a reputation — like Volkswagen’s for building economy cars and Mercedes-Benz’s for making expensive luxury sedans — but they sometimes stray from the expected. Read more…
As companies around the world scramble to create so-called crossover vehicles, it’s refreshing to see a truck that doesn’t pretend to be something else. Read more…
Driving down Highway 259 in rural East Texas, it’s hard not to giggle at the juxtaposition of a tiny, cute-looking Mini Cooper on a road chock full of giant SUVs and pickup trucks. Read more…
Hybrid vehicles — those that combine gasoline and electric power to get great fuel economy — are nothing new, thanks to the Toyota Prius and Honda Insight that were introduced a couple of years ago. Read more…
