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New Vehicle Reviews (Page 46)

New Vehicle Reviews

This section will review cars, trucks, products and books related to the auto industry.

By Parks McCants on March 9, 2017 - 1:12PM
2017 Chevy Bolt is a wake up call for U.S. automakers, as the maker of Corvette, Silverado Pickup, and Malibu SS, presents an affordable BEV (battery electric vehicle) that gives Tesla an extended drive-range run for the money.
By Patrick Rall on March 9, 2017 - 9:06AM
The 2017 Jeep Grand Cherokee Trailhawk offers the greatest off-roading capabilities in the model lineup, a cabin loaded with premium features and room for five for under $50,000 – making it one of the best options on the market for someone shopping for a luxury SUV that can be taken off-road with confidence.
By Patrick Rall on March 7, 2017 - 5:44PM
The all-new 2017 Land Rover Discovery has a much sleeker, softer look than the boxy Discovery from the previous five generations, but this sportier look is achieved without diminishing any of the offroading capabilities which you would expect from a proper Land Rover.
By Parks McCants on March 5, 2017 - 8:22PM
It’s not unusual for a sub-premium compact sedan to run a bit noisy in the cabin. Such is the case with Mazda’s top-trim 3 series touring sedan. In the case of 2017 Mazda3, running Bridgestone Blizzak Winter Tires exponentially increased cabin noise.
By Patrick Rall on February 27, 2017 - 7:25PM
Like many large SUVs, the GMC Yukon Denali is often accused of being a mall crawler – the kind of vehicle that never does any real work while in the hands of “soccer moms” – so with the help of my wife and her champion horses, I spent a weekend putting the plush GMC SUV through the paces of a grueling horse show weekend.
By Parks McCants on February 27, 2017 - 12:41AM
Like an old friends that shows up for a long weekend, “with just a little work done,” the notable changes for 2017 Acura MDX Advance are subtle, but welcomed. “Good looking and capable” pretty much sums it up for me.
By Parks McCants on February 23, 2017 - 3:16PM
We spend a week in the seat of Honda’s reinvented compact SUV, and walk away with a lesson in segment refinement, and how to produce measurable engine performance through turbocharging, while preserving exceptional fuel efficiency.
By Parks McCants on February 19, 2017 - 9:03PM
It’s that crazy thing that happens in the blink of an eye while driving through a torrential downpour. The jackass in the right lane just a made a lane change without signalling at 70 MPH. Deadly! 2017 Mitsubishi Outlander S-AWC just saved my life!
By Patrick Rall on February 17, 2017 - 11:48AM
I recently had a chance to submit the Toyota Tundra Limited to one of the most tougher tests I have in my new truck testing repertoire - the horse show - and today I look at how well the Double Cab Toyota pickup served as our mission control for a weekend at the show grounds.
By Parks McCants on February 14, 2017 - 1:30AM
Positioned slightly above the entry level Civic Hatchback LX, the not so bare-bones Civic Hatchback Sport returns us to the age of the manually shifted Honda performance hatchback of yesteryear, with a twist, it’s civilized, full efficient, comfortable, and you can have it all for under $22K.
By Patrick Rall on February 13, 2017 - 5:11PM
I recently spent a week driving the 2017 Ford Fusion Sport and while this car doesn’t have any affiliation with Ford’s high performance SVT group, this roomy mid-sized sedan is like a modern day interpretation of the Ford SVT Contour from the late 1990s – except with far more power and standard all-wheel drive.
By Parks McCants on February 9, 2017 - 9:27PM
That headline took me several attempts to land on. Archimoto’s founder Mark Frohnmayer’s unique take on electrified personal transportation, may look simple enough. But once behind the handlebars, my imagination took over as to the “what if” of this equation. Arcimoto SRK Trike brings motorcycle inspired adventure to the EV segment.

By Parks McCants on February 6, 2017 - 7:07PM
Volvo’s Hybrid SUV flagship comes standard with a steep learning curve, and it’s pricey. Granted while not for everyone, even the well heeled of Volvo’s discriminating loyal, may find that this hybrid fails to meet individual "superior hybrid" expectations.
By Patrick Rall on February 6, 2017 - 11:07AM
I recently had the fortune of spending a week behind the wheel of the Cadillac CT6 Platinum and having loved everything about it, I believe that this big Caddy sedan is the next great American luxury sedan – rivaling the best that the European and Japanese luxury brands have to offer.
By Denis Flierl on February 4, 2017 - 12:19PM
The Nissan Armada is large and is aptly named after the massive Spanish Armada ship that sailed in 1588.
By Patrick Rall on February 2, 2017 - 6:07PM
The Lexus RX lineup has long been the bestselling luxury SUV in America, but with the newest generation of the RX350 arriving for the 2016 model year, the RX is better appointed and roomier than ever – and it offers all of this for a relatively low price in the luxury world.
By Patrick Rall on February 1, 2017 - 4:17PM
I recently had a chance to spend a day driving the 2017 Dodge Challenger GT – America’s first 2-door muscle car with all-wheel drive – around snowy New England to see if FCA could really build an AWD muscle car that maintains the properties which has made the brawny Mopar muscle car so popular.
By Patrick Rall on January 26, 2017 - 5:07PM
I recently spent a week driving the Ram 1500 Rebel with the Mopar 16 package on the roughest roads in my area, in hard snow, and after this, I believe that the Rebel package makes this Ram 1500 the best full size pickup the Ram brand has offered in the modern era – combining a premium cabin, Hemi power and impressive off-road capabilities into one fantastic package.
By Patrick Rall on January 17, 2017 - 2:51PM
I recently spent a week driving the 2016 GMC Sierra 1500 All Terrain X and in addition to having a list of functional features which make this Sierra among the most capable off-road trucks in the half ton market – the exterior features of the All-Terrain X package makes this the coolest half ton truck GM has offered in the modern era.
By Patrick Rall on January 6, 2017 - 11:55AM
Having grown up in a “Volvo household" while having a passion for American muscle cars, I really wasn’t all that excited to spend a week driving the 2017 Volvo XC90 T6 Inscription, but after that week in the T6 – I have to admit that I have become smitten with the high tech Swedish SUV.
By Denis Flierl on January 6, 2017 - 8:32AM
The 2017 Toyota 86 sports coupe gets a few tweaks to retain it’s status as the best sports cars for the money. What upgrades make it an even better value?
By Patrick Rall on December 26, 2016 - 11:29AM
I recently spent a week driving the 2016 Toyota Corolla S Plus, which paired a premium interior spread with a manual transmissions – leading to a small sedan that is fun to drive and heavily appointed for a vehicle that costs just over $22,000.
By Patrick Rall on December 14, 2016 - 3:55PM
I recently had the pleasure of spending a week driving the 2016 Dodge Challenger 392 Hemi Scat Pack Shaker, which has the longest name of any modern Mopar muscle car and the best collection of features for the price – making this the coolest late model Dodge Challenger shy of the supercharged Hellcat.
By Patrick Rall on December 7, 2016 - 2:25PM
I recently spent a week driving the all-new 2016 Chevrolet Cruze Premium and while I really liked the previous generation of GM’s hot-selling compact sedan – this new Cruze is at least a little better in every way.
By Parks McCants on November 30, 2016 - 12:45AM
I drove Honda’s next best seller from Monterey, California to San Francisco, and frankly, although the 2-row crossover was branded CR-V, my brain told me that I was driving a midsize luxury SUV.
By Parks McCants on November 27, 2016 - 11:57AM
Picking up our 2017 Volvo XC90 loaner at Los Angeles International Airport was a challenge; so I thought, until I transitioned into the busiest traffic patterns in North America. 2017 Volvo XC90 T6 Inscription effectively conquered the streets of Los Angeles.
By Patrick Rall on November 21, 2016 - 4:50PM
While the 2016 Lexus GX460 Luxury would classify as being “very expensive” to the average driver, anyone shopping for a large SUV that will seat six in a plush cabin chock full of premium amenities should find this big Japanese people-mover to be one of the best bargains in the segment.
By Patrick Rall on November 14, 2016 - 4:31PM
I recently used a 2016 Cadillac Escalade Platinum in place of my half ton pickup to get my wife and her horses to a horse show, and after three days of being worked like a farm truck including pulling the trailer to and from the show – the Escalade proved to be every bit as capable as a pickup.
By Denis Flierl on November 12, 2016 - 8:25AM
The new 2017 Subaru Outback goes upscale. It gets a new Touring trim that will impress your valet.
By Parks McCants on November 1, 2016 - 1:43PM
Undoubtedly, 2017 Honda Civic Hatchback is Honda’s greatest compact car manifested to date. It’s surprisingly refined and comfortable. I just took one out for romp and am just a bit blown away by how good this Civic truly is.