Our choice of select California auto museums. No visit to California is complete without taking in the various automotive museums that dot the state. The Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles and the San Diego Automotive Museum are two of the well-known collections of classic and exotic cars in California, … Read more
Mazda 6 makes a case for the midsize sedan segment. Manufacturers typically adhere to model years except when they don’t. A case in point is the 2017.5 Mazda 6, a midsize sedan benefiting from light changes put in place too late for the 2017 model year, but months before the … Read more
Dissecting the most dynamic Ford Raptor ever. Think “raptor” and the Velociraptor dinosaurs of the Cretaceous Period may come to mind. Just as easily, raptor also describes certain types of contemporary birds of prey, including eagles, hawks, and vultures. No matter, the “Raptor” appellation appended to the most powerful of … Read more
The 1990s brought numerous transitions to the auto industry. Carburetors gave way to fuel injectors, airbags became standard equipment, and three Japanese luxury brands began to make inroads into the American marketplace. It was also a decade when manufacturers tested the waters with new or updated models, including five that … Read more
Flat-plane crank V8 engine and all that. When is a Ford Mustang not a Mustang? Answer: when it is a Shelby GT350 (or GT350R). Well, the Shelby is a Mustang, a special version bearing the name of the late Carroll Shelby, a racing driver and automotive designer of renown. Shelby’s … Read more
A Kent Island glimpse at a compact luxury PHEV sedan. The Mercedes-Benz brand has remained elusive among my press fleet vehicles, a situation I plan to amend by next year. You simply can’t properly evaluate the market without a steady dose of M-B models to compare with Audi, BMW, and … Read more
Many miles and smiles with Kia’s Optima Hybrid sedan. Hybrid sales peaked in 2013 and have fallen steadily since. Low fuel prices are a significant contributor, falling below $2 per gallon at times with those low prices covering large swathes of America. Another reason is the advent of modern electric … Read more
Hyundai’s largest SUV in Ultimate form. Hyundai is just a few months away from welcoming a fourth SUV to its product line, the subcompact Kona. And it can’t come soon enough. Indeed, with sales of its compact Tucson up 26.8 percent year-to-date through September, strongly suggesting another small model would … Read more
Odometer fraud can cost you dearly. Consumers looking to buy a used car understand the importance of checking it thoroughly, including the finish for rust and the key components such as the engine and transmission for damage. Brakes, lights, seats, air conditioning, steering and electronics should also be inspected, but … Read more
Hyundai’s Ioniq line of electrified vehicles is here. The Prius has long been synonymous with “hybrid” ever since Toyota launched this model two decades ago. Since then, various manufacturers have attempted to replicate Toyota’s success, but nearly every new model has failed to make a dent in Toyota’s dominance. But … Read more