Has Dodge created the best musclecar ever built in the form of its new Challenger SRT Hellcat? Yes. And no. Purists will argue the supercharged 707hp beast must have a manual transmission to be the ultimate street car, but those folks dwell in the past. The world has evolved and so, too, must we. Welcome to 2015.
This is a big year for Dodge passenger cars. New sheet metal, new engines, new excitement. As we build up to the arrival of the baddest of the bad, we spend time behind the wheel of the totally redesigned 2015 Dodge Charger sedan. Redesigned from nose to tail, the big car still carries the vision of the Dodge brothers.
While not an homage to Meghan Trainor, this review is all about that bass–specifically, the Infinity by HARMAN Reference 1200S Subwoofer. An award for unique style and design should go out to the Infinity car audio engineers that came up with this unique, space-saving, low-profile subwoofer that brings excellent bass reproduction, selectable impedance, and small enclosure requirement.
Sometimes when the weekly review vehicle arrives in my driveway I just sit and scratch my head and wonder why it is in the press fleet. Case in point, the new 2015 Chevrolet City Express. Similar to the Ram Promaster City Wagon we reviewed recently, automakers are addressing the urban utility van segment, which apparently was underserved.
Midsize sedans dominate the list of best-selling vehicles each year right after pickup trucks. Names like Accord and Camry are household institutions. But did you know Subaru has been selling a vehicle in this segment too? It’s called Legacy, and it is completely redesigned for 2015. It features the largest interior in its segment and all-wheel drive is standard.
JBL has been a leading name in audio for years, and the name that became famous at rock arenas and concert halls also brings spectacular sound reproduction to your automobile. JBL offers a host of car audio products and recently sent along the GX600C component system for us to test and what a treat for our ears it was.
What do Thor’s hammer, Orrefors Crystal, a large touchscreen display, sumptuous leather, diamond cut controls, integrated child booster seats, and access to the great outdoors have in common? They can all be found in a new luxury midsize SUV, the 2016 Volvo XC90.
Today I rode to work behind a fascinating looking vehicle. At first glance, I was worried I had accidentally taken Percoset from my recent surgery, and thought I was hallucinating. But no, the new 2015 Nissan Murano was real, and I found myself wondering how it was that Nissan designed such a…unique vehicle.
When the 2015 Honda CR-V compact crossover utility vehicle arrived a while back I realized it has been quite some time since I had tested this model. The vehicle itself has been around for 17 years and has become the best-selling model in its class. For 2015 the CR-V receives some significant mid-cycle upgrades, most notably under the hood.
As I mentioned previously in this series on Car Audio, I test a lot of premium factory car stereo systems, and while I am impressed with the quality they achieve I have found they still cannot stand up to the sound quality of aftermarket components installed properly. If you are ready to upgrade that factory stereo system, read on.
If I had to choose just one word to describe the all-new 2015 Volkswagen Golf R – the fastest and most powerful Golf from VW yet – I’d use stunning. This new hot hatch, based on the new seventh-generation Golf, is stunning to look at, stunning to drive (especially in “race” mode) and stunning to learn the window sticker price.
In the first part of this series on Car Audio I discussed basic terminology and history of radios in the automobile. This part takes a look at the types of music sources, and the music itself, that we play in our vehicles. Regardless of what type of car stereo equipment you employ in your vehicle, it all begins with music.
Music in the mobile environment is more than just an accessory or option to drivers, and for many it is a necessity. Every new vehicle I test usually arrives with a premium audio system, and I love putting the stereo systems through their paces almost as much as the vehicles themselves. But car audio can be more, much more.
If you have seen any of the Chevrolet Silverado pickup commercials on television lately you might have noticed mention of a certain metal element in the brand’s marketing piece – steel. Chevy is making no excuses in its efforts to get the point across that its trucks are still made of steel, and not a certain other element like aluminum.
There is just something about Pony cars that is so…American. Camaro, Challenger, Mustang. Iconic symbols of Detroit musclecar greatness, both then and now. We love to look at them and we all want to drive them. As the horsepower wars continue to wage, Dodge looks once again to its heritage for inspiration on the 2015 Challenger.
I have reviewed several cars for Gear Diary, and they’re usually my favorite reviews to do. Cars are probably the biggest purchase most people make, besides a house, and they are technological tools as much as they are transportation methods. The Mitsubishi Outlander Sport excels in one of these areas and fails miserably in the other!
The diesel engine is once again back under the hood of Chevrolet cars, and this time it is a good thing. The Cruze compact sedan boasts a wide range of trim packages and since last year offers a turbocharged 2.0-liter clean diesel engine for clean, powerful motoring with fuel economy of up to 46 mpg on the highway.
Now that’s Italian! I am speaking of the new 2015 Ram ProMaster City, the newest member of the commercial vehicle lineup at Fiat Chrysler Automobiles. The Ram ProMaster City is a Class 1 commercial van perfect for the small business owner and the urban driving/delivery environment. The new little van offers flexible cargo and passenger configurations while delivering excellent mileage.
Chevrolet says they are no longer going to compete in the midsize sedan segment. Instead, as they debuted the all-new 2016 Chevrolet Malibu and Malibu Hybrid at the New York International Auto Show this week, they said they are going to win the segment with this car that is longer and lighter, has more interior space and improved efficiency.
The sight was the historic Naval Shipyards in Brooklyn, New York, and the event was the launch of the all-new 2016 Cadillac CT6 flagship luxury sedan. The CT6 sees the return of rear-wheel drive to General Motor’s luxury division and the car will showcase a host of technology when it arrives late this year.
Nissan introduced the Juke compact vehicle several years ago that, for all intents and purposes, is one difficult vehicle to define. I call it a CrossHatch as it is part crossover utility vehicle and part hatchback. Throw some performance mods from Nissan Motorsports into the mix and we have the fun and funky 2015 Juke NISMO.