Volvo again? It certainly seems I am on Volvo’s preferred reviewers list or something as the brand populates this test driveway quite often. In the past year or so I reviewed all the new models of the automaker’s middle class in the form of S60, V60 and XC60 and now I add to that 2015.5 versions of S60 and XC60.
Dan and I both absolutely love our Escort Passport Max radar detectors; he originally reviewed it, and then I wrote a follow-up post about the way I use mine in conjunction with the Smart Cord Live. Now Escort has released the upgraded Passport Max2.
After a three-year hiatus from the marketplace, GM is back in the midsize pickup business in North America. The Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon nameplates return as all-new 2015 GMC Canyon models on new global, frame-based architecture, and these bigger small trucks offer more capability, more comfort, more efficiency and more convenience than ever before.
Subaru may be the king of all-wheel drive in its product line, but the automaker knows a thing or two about making vehicles that are fun to drive along with being really safe. The BRZ sports coupe is just such a car (sans AWD), and for 2015 Subaru adds more sport the model line with the Series.Blue limited edition.
I recently upgraded to an iPhone 6+ and a 2015 Lexus IS 250 F-Sport. A new phone and a new car meant I needed to rethink how I used technology on the go. The car has Apple’s EyesFree, but I still need a safe, secure place for my phone to charge. That’s where ProClip came in quite handy. I’ve used ProClips’s products on and off for many years and am consistently impressed with the quality and selection. The products can become pricey rather quickly, but you get what you pay for in many cases, and that certainly is true here. In addition, the system tends…
Infiniti brings luxury back to the middle class – the mid-size crossover utility class that is. The QX that shares its architecture with the Nissan Pathfinder has returned to the Infiniti lineup after a 10-year hiatus and it arrived as a three-row, seven-passenger unibody crossover surviving a couple rounds of renaming strategy sessions and offering a choice of power trains.
What happens when you bring forty (or so) auto writers to Lake Tahoe to cover the launch of the 2016 Kia Sorento the day before a huge winter storm is predicted to roll in? It turns out that not only have you guaranteed that the SUV will have a chance to shine, you’ve also guaranteed a great time for all.
Volkswagen’s best-selling car in North America just got better. The Jetta, which received a major redux in 2011, has been updated for MY2015, and the car receives some styling updates along with new technologies, making it both smarter and safer. And when mated with the new clean diesel TDI powertrain the new Jetta is a vehicle shoppers need not overlook.
Grand Cherokee owners, have you ever sat around wishing you could have paid more for your SUV? Now you can, thanks to the new Summit California package offered on the 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee model line. Still not as pricey as luxury badged SUVs, the Grand Cherokee Summit adds a new level of refinement to the most awarded SUV ever.
Four years ago I reviewed the then all-new fourth-generation Subaru Outback and I called it a Swiss Army knife on wheels and even went so far as to say it would most likely be my one choice for a vehicle not knowing what lies ahead. All that was true then and still rings true with this fifth-generation 2015 Subaru Outback.
This year marked the 50th anniversary of a motoring icon while at the same time saw it go from American driveway to international runway. The Ford Mustang is totally new for 2015 and is now being offered in multiple markets around the globe. While it is still America’s sweetheart, for Big Blue Oval it is much, much more.
For the 2015 model year, General Motors has completely made over its fullsize sport utility vehicles. And now for MY2015, the General has updated its big SUVs. Wait, isn’t that the same model year? Apparently yes and no. The paperwork that arrived with this 2015 GMC Yukon XL Denali tester showed a couple of things the vehicle did not have.
This review is on the new 2015 Mitsubishi Outlander crossover utility. Yes, Mitsubishi still makes vehicles for the U.S. market, it was Suzuki that left a couple years back. And while pickings are few in a Mitsubishi showroom, the seven-passenger Outlander CUV is a model not to be overlooked when shopping this segment (looking at you, soccer moms).
BMW and Polyphony Digital, Inc. will make their rare BMW M Performance M4 Safety Car into a playable reality in the Gran Turismo 6 game on PlayStation 3, which is at a newly reduced price for the holidays. This free content will appear in an update later this month. The actual car was produced by BMW of North America.
I hadn’t driven the Lexus CT 200h hybrid Cross Tourer since its launch four years ago, despite my efforts to the contrary. I enjoyed testing the new hybrid-only wagon-like vehicle from Toyota’s luxury division and looked forward to spending a full week behind the wheel, but it did not come to fruition until only recently. And I still liked it.
Dodge, the performance brand at Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, is celebrating its 100th birthday this year. As part of the festivities they threw themselves (and 2,000 of their closest friends and fans) a little party in Dallas that featured a huge Dodge and Mopar car show, Viper drifting, Challenger drag racing and a concert by a little band called Mötley Crüe.
Last week I spend a day with Chevy at their Milford Proving Grounds. I saw first-hand demonstrations of Chevy’s latest vehicle safety features, and I left feeling like it might be time to finally upgrade my GM vehicle to the latest version: GM’s newest technology may not be completely automated, but the technology removes a lot of guesswork and anxiety.
When I reviewed the Mazda CX-5 crossover utility vehicle two years ago I gave it high praises for replacing two outgoing CUVs in the Mazda lineup while giving consumers what I felt was one of the best new cute utes on the market. I had one wish for the model, feeling it a bit underpowered. Ask and ye shall receive.
Some vehicle models just seem to come around often here in the GearDiary test driveway, and the Nissan Titan pickup seems to be one of them. I drove it when it first launched more than a decade ago, punished it on a wet off-road track in North Texas and most recently saw my third Titan in the past five years.
What do you get when you cross a Lexus GS, IS and IS convertible? The all-new 2015 Lexus RC 350. Toss in a generous helping of IS F and you get the RC F performance coupe from the luxury division of Toyota. Lexus launches its RC line this fall, its first new coupe model in 15 years…and it’s a winner.
Some vehicles go for more than a decade without changing much (Nissan Titan, I am looking at you) but others seem to get makeovers as often as the seasons change. The Honda Fit falls into this latter category as although it was introduced to the U.S. in 2006 as a 2007 model, MY2015 is the third-generation of the tiny Honda.