Automotive Trends

2005 Audi S4, a sports car in business atire.

2005 Mazda3 playing in the park!

2005 GMC Envoy Denali strikes a pose.

Truck Driver Wanna-bes Rejoice: No CDL Required

    Above all else, Ford consistently does one thing well, and that’s build pickups. We’re not talking just any pickups, but giant, imposing trucks with a commanding presence that the other guys just can’t match. In fact, it’s darn near semi-like in one of these things. You sit about eye level with fellow truckers, you occupy almost as much highway, and you burn fuel at a rate that would make even a Saudi cry. No doubt about it, one glance at the features and you’ll know the latest generation of Super Duty pickups is made for one thing: hard work. But there’s more to the story than an impressive spec sheet. What did we learn after a week in the cab? Well, we had a newfound appreciation for good coffee and for Ford’s latest heavy-hauler. Read more…

Sedan of Elderly Leisure

    Just two years ago this sedan would have been revolutionary in the family sedan market. Its extra-large proportions, elevated ride height, spacious interior and availability of all-wheel drive put this sedan into an SUV-like category when you consider all of these features’ marketability. Perhaps this is why the Five Hundred just doesn’t get the heart racing; we expect these niceties in all too many vehicular categories in this day and age. Read more…

Soft-Roading

    About mid-April, DaimlerChrysler dropped off a new Grand Cherokee for us to run around in. So, unlike any good soccer mom (more like dad), we loaded up and hit the trails with our V6-powered runabout. Nope, no HEMI in this dude. Someone back at DCX PR headquarters missed the page on the order sheet titled: Options. Read more…

A Case Of Mistaken Identity

    This is an interesting SUV for sure. In my professional opinion I think the engineers built an SUV with a case of mistaken identity. Regardless, the Endeavor does live up to its nameplate, endeavoring to be more than merely the sum of its parts. Confused yet? No more than the editor writing this review, trust me. Read more…

Hey, This Thing Only Seats Five!

    A few years ago, when the “XL-7” descriptor first showed up attached to Suzuki vehicles, it represented a special stretched version of the Grand Vitara small SUV. The longer wheelbase made room for a third row of seats that brought the seating capacity to, you guessed it, seven. The ability to seat seven passengers in a vehicle roughly the size of a Grand Cherokee and sell it in the low $20,000 range was a unique strategy that put Suzuki on the forefront of the race to stuff a third row of seats into every SUV larger then a RAV4. Read more…

A Small Car With A Good Warranty Is Still A Small Car

    We’ve been seeing a lot of red lately, and I’m not just talking about the AT tax forms. Of the last six vehicles that have circulated through the office five have been red, or a variation of the sort. So receiving our Cobalt Blue Suzuki Reno was like a breath of fresh air, mostly. The powertrain is something like that of a smoker’s cough and the compact dimensions act like a resistor in the circuit powering our smile muscles. But hey, I did say I liked the color. Read more…

     If you’re the shy type, don’t ever ride in this Chevy.
     From the moment you step inside this wild truck — a power-top convertible, no less — you become the center of attention wherever you drive.
     People roll down their windows at stoplights to ask what it is; you can’t fill the gas tank without being interrupted at least twice; little kids stare at it with open-mouthed amazement; and cops pull you over for no apparent reason. Read more…