Vehicles & Gear

2012 Kia Rio Review

For the last several days, I have had the opportunity to tool around in a 2012 Kia Rio. It’s a cute, sporty, very compact car, and it has been quite a difference from my usual car, a Toyota Prius, and Sarah’s car, a Volkswagen Jetta. It has a lot of impressive features, and a few things I found to be annoying. Read on to learn more! So, let’s start with the basics. This is what Kia calls an “entry-level” car, and it retails for around $18,000, making it very affordable. Now, to get the price that low, there are certain…

Vehicles & Gear

Ford Adds EcoBoost to the 2012 Edge Lineup

The Edge crossover utility vehicle paved the way to a new segment for Ford to compete in and since its introduction several years ago the model line has proved very popular. Last model year, Ford raised the bar a bit higher by updating styling and technology while also adding the Edge Sport model aimed at customers wanting a fresher, hipper crossover. This year, Ford gives consumers a broader choice for powering their Edge by adding EcoBoost technology to the model lineup. For 2012, Ford drops a 240hp turbocharged 2.0-liter GTDI four-cylinder engine under the hood bringing near V-6 performance with…

Reviews, Vehicles & Gear

2012 Grand Cherokee SRT8 Most Powerful Jeep Yet

With gas prices continuing to drop across the U.S., perhaps it is time to start thinking about that “impulse” purchase you put off when a gallon of the precious fuel rose to near 4-bucks-per. I recommend Jeep’s new “MUV” or Musclecar Utility Vehicle. Recently we spent a week in the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8, the most powerful production Jeep on the road, period. SRT has released an SRT8 Grand Cherokee previously but for 2012 the hot rod gets the beefier 470hp 6.4-liter V-8 HEMI that also delivers 465 lb. ft. of torque. And get this – the new Jeep still…

Vehicles & Gear

Plugging Into the 2012 Mitsubishi i-MiEV

My knowledge of and experience in electric vehicles has grown exponentially this past weekend as I spent time with the new all-electric entry from Mitsubishi – the 2012 i-MiEV. Mitsubishi would like the world to simply call the little EV “i” but since even its own paperwork and fender badging utilizes the “MiEV” (Mitsubishi Electric Vehicle) nomenclature I am sticking with it as well. The automaker has been testing the MiEV for a few years with this 2012 model being its first full production unit. Availability is still a bit limited but consumers nationwide should be able to get one…

Reviews, Vehicles & Gear

Is the 2012 Scion iQ the ‘Smart’ Choice?

Move over smart car, Scion is taking over the micro-subcompact car segment with its iQ. The new Scion iQ is being touted as the world’s smallest four-seater and adds yet another model to the funky spinoff division of Toyota. I had been looking forward to testing this new little urban go-kart. I find its design much more appealing than Daimler’s smartfortwo U.S. model and its onroad experience is light years ahead of the smart car. But I do have two requests for Scion in the iQ: First, please stop calling this a four-seater – it ain’t. A third occupant maybe…

Reviews, Vehicles & Gear

The 2012 Buick Regal GS Is a ‘Hot Wheels’

Growing up it seemed as though it was all about my “Hot Wheels,” riding backwards in the rear-most seat of the family truckster, and watching the Indy 500 on Memorial Day weekend. Since then, not too much has changed really. Substitute the Daytona 500 for the Indy race, and I hardly ever ride anymore as I am always driving news cars to review, but it is still all about the “hot wheels” and I don’t just mean the kids’ toy. Sure I have a sizable collection of the little metal cars (including many I owned as a child) but being…

Reviews, Vehicles & Gear

2013 Scion FR-S Is One Friggin’ Really Sweet Ride

No sooner than we took our seats in the movie theater-turned presentation room at the Red Rock Resort in Las Vegas that we knew this was unmistakably a Scion program. Thumping music, flashy images and video – and everything product-centric. Scion is the new, trendy little division of Toyota and we were here to experience the all-new rear drive sport coupe co-developed with Subaru and marketed as the Scion FR-S here in the States. With the exception of its Lexus luxury division, Toyota has been out of the rear wheel-drive car segment in the U.S. for quite some time. Well,…

Editorials, Vehicles & Gear

How I Fell for a Muscle Car

This is the story of how a sensible, middle-aged guy fell from sensible car grace. Have mercy on me. Let me be honest right up front here: I am most assuredly not a “muscle car” fan. I was a nerd/geek/dork in high school (in spite of doing two sports–do you think being in Drama and the Computer Club had something to do with it?), and the guys who had, or wanted to have, muscle cars were the kind of guys would give guys like me wedgies, stuff us in lockers, turn us upside in trash cans, and all that kind…

Testing Nissan's 2012 Armada Platinum 4x4 Brought on Some 'Vuja De'

Vehicles & Gear

Testing Nissan’s 2012 Armada Platinum 4×4 Brought on Some ‘Vuja De’

As soon as I slid behind the wheel of Nissan Armada full-size SUV in Platinum 4×4 trim I was overcome with a weird sense of deja vu, as in, “Didn’t I just review one of these?” Yes – and no. I have had the Nissan Titan pickup and a 2011 and 2012 Infiniti QX56 luxury SUV (which, by the way, received a makeover) in the past year so technically one could surmise I had reviewed the Nissan Armada already. The Armada utilizes the same F-Alpha platform underpinning the Titan pickup and the QX models but to be fair (and as…

Vehicles & Gear

2012 Honda Ridgeline puts ‘Sport’ in Sport Utility Truck

I seem to be taking delivery of a lot of trucks here lately but I don’t mind one bit as I reside in the No. 1 truck market in the world (AKA Texas). Texans use pickups for much more than just work vehicles. For many families these are the only vehicle as they have become that utilitarian. And manufacturers have broadened the choices across the pickup lines to meet individual needs of as many buyers as they possibly can. Down here you would think it is the Texas version of the “New Deal” paraphrased to “a pickup in every garage.”…

Outdoors, Reviews, Vehicles & Gear

Case Logic and LoveCases Can Outfit You for your Next Adventure, Urban or Remote

I love it when a great plan comes together, even if totally by accident. Recently Gear Diary received a request from LoveCases online camera bag and gear case retailer to pick a bag or two we would like to review. As many of the bags they offer are for photographic gear I was asked if I would like to participate. I jumped at the chance despite my being smack-dab in the middle of recuperation from right shoulder surgery and at the time could not even pick up a camera let alone shoot with it. As my shoulder progressed so did…

Vehicles & Gear

Jaguar XKR-S Convertible: The Big Cat Daddy in the Texas Hill Country

It’s been no secret that the convertible hot rod coupes from Jaguar have been some of my favorite cars to drive. Most recently I spent a week behind the wheel of the newest, baddest cat on the block, the XKR-S Convertible. Jaguar released the R-S series to stand above the already improved “R”-designate cars and I would volunteer that the “S” implies spectacular as that is what I found my driving experience in the big kitty to be. While the supercharged 550hp XKR-S in coupe form begs for track time, our tester convertible screamed “Road Trip” – and that is…

Vehicles & Gear

Spring is (Always) in the Air in 2012 Mercedes-Benz SLK350

Ah, spring is in the air and for many our thoughts are turned towards taking short (or long) weekend getaways as we welcome back warmer weather, higher pollen counts (and fuel prices) – and top-down driving. Here in the sunbelt states we are already enjoying our first sunburn of the season but for those of you not fortunate enough to be shedding woolen attire yet I invite you to “cheat” convertible season a bit in the new Mercedes-Benz SLK roadster. The 2012 model year is the third-generation of the cute little hard-top convertible that I affectionately refer to as a…

Vehicles & Gear

2012 Buick LaCrosse with eAssist

Poor Rip Van Winkle, if he were to awake today he would not recognize so many things that have exist today that were not here when he laid down to take his nap. Things like smartphones, American Idol, children not being spanked – and Buick. Sure, Buick was a division of General Motors 20 years ago but it looked nothing like it does today. Perhaps no other automotive division has undergone such a radical product transformation as Buick has in the past two decades. As one of the surviving members in the GM family, Buick dealerships no longer resemble the…

Vehicles & Gear

New Prius c Cute, Compact City Slicker

The newest member if the Toyota Prius hybrid family has arrived – the Prius c. The “c” refers to city, where the new compact hybrid’s use is primarily intended. Aimed towards urbanite millennials, Prius c offers Toyota’s Synergy Hybrid gas/electric drive technology in a more compact package. Prius c is a “two-thirds” scale model of the original Prius hatchback styled in a small sportwagon design. Joining fellow Prii (the chosen plural form for the moniker) Prius, Prius v, and Prius Plug-In, Prius c allows drivers to operate the vehicle in EV-only or combined gasoline and electric power. The combustion engine…

Music Diary, News & Features, Vehicles & Gear

Newly Discovered Wes Montgomery Tracks Hit Retail Next Week!

One of the most important figures in jazz and greatest guitarists in any genre was Wes Montgomery. He died in 1968 at age 45 of a heart attack and cut short an amazing career. Despite getting started in the late 1940’s with th eLionel Hampton orchestra, he left the band and returned home to Indianapolis to start a family, and recorded only once between 1950 and 1957, making his first recordings as a leader in 1959 … or so it was thought! Next week we get a look at never before released recordings that Montgomery made in 1957 and 1958…

News & Features, Vehicles & Gear

Disney Unveils The Lion King & Tangled Interactive Apps for iOS!

If you or your kids are fans of the classic Disney movie The Lion King or the recent retelling of Rapunzel called Tangled, you will definitely be interested in checking out these new apps. These interactive apps include original scenes from Walt Disney Animation Studios’ The Lion King (1994) and Tangled (2010), as well as new animation and interactive surprises, and allow kids and adults to experience these stories on their mobile devices, in a whole new way. Here are some details: Disney Publishing Worldwide today unveils two new storybook apps featuring original scenes from Walt Disney Animation Studios’ feature…

Editorials, Vehicles & Gear

Cadillac Celebrates 100th Anniversary of Making Cars Less ‘Cranky’

Talk about taking technology for granted, how about the electric starter? Cadillac is celebrating the 100th anniversary of its debut of electric start technology that first appeared in its 1912 Cadillac Touring Edition. Before this ground breaking innovation, cars were a bit “cranky.” Literally. Back then it took a hand crank and some muscle power to turn over the motor to be able to drive your vehicle.

Vehicles & Gear

Mazda Makes Minivans Cool(ish) With Mazda5

How does one go about making a minivan cool? Mazda makes it a Mazda5. While more of a “mini” minivan, the 2012 Mazda5 offers what they term “seductive smartness” design elements, unique not only for this segment but any segment close to it. The Mazda5 was developed in the middle of last decade as the automaker’s answer to dwindling minivan sales and as a replacement for its own MPV model. Dubbed a multi-activity vehicle (MAV) the Mazda5 is compromise between wagon and van and after spending a week behind the wheel of one I find it offers the perfect blend…

Reviews, Vehicles & Gear

‘Godzilla’ Terrorizes City Streets: Mothra and Rodan Flee in Fear

Quick, what’s the first thing that comes to your mind when I say “Godzilla?” For most it is the star of childhood monster movies that feature horrible voice-dubbing. For the true auto enthusiast it means one thing – Nissan GT-R. I took delivery of a 2012 GT-R for Super Bowl weekend and despite a few little things, this is one SUPER car. GT-R is the North American version of the Skyline GT-R, Nissan’s answer to the likes of Porsche 911 and Chevrolet Corvette Z06 and ZR-1. The 2012 model GT-R generates a modest 530 horsepower and 448 lb. ft. of…

Events, Vehicles & Gear

At the Las Vegas Speedway with a 2013 Lexus GS 350 F Sport and an LFA

This is not the car I was driving when I won my title 😉 How did you spend your Saturday? I spent it behind the wheel of a 2013 Lexus GS 350 F, ultimately winning the title of “Fastest Woman in Vegas” while driving on a closed course at Las Vegas Speedway. The GS350 really impressed me because it was the best of both words — fast and sleek like a sports car, but large enough for a family and totally decked out.

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