New Honda Civic adds style, remains no-nonsense sedan ... Need good basic wheels? Make that better than basic, but at a no-nonsense price, a practical car that’s fun to drive with good ride and that will fit a family of four comfortably. Honda’s new 2016 Civic sedan has you covered, and then some. Civics, when first... Continue Reading →
Die-cast: Autoart’s 1958 Chevy Corvette
1958 Corvette another beauty in 1/18 scale ... While the early Corvettes were cute little underpowered sports cars, for my money they got serious and more aggressive looking for 1958 when Harley Earl and his design crew gave them quad headlights. To be honest, the Corvette had gotten off to a rather slow sales start... Continue Reading →
2016 Toyota Avalon Touring
Stylish Toyota Avalon long on comfort at good price Toyota’s Avalon is a breath of fresh air, a full-size sedan with stylish lines and oodles of comfort and features at a reasonable price. In days of yore, that would be enough to make it one of the top sellers in the marketplace, but alas, modern... Continue Reading →
Die-cast: Top Marque’s Audi Pikes Peak Winner
Audi Pikes Peak Winner driven by Bobby Unser a winner On a twisting dirt and gravel road 100 years ago intrepid racers staged the first Race to the Clouds, otherwise known as the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. It was one of the rare times an Unser didn’t win. For many of the past 50 years... Continue Reading →
2016 Kia Sorento SX Ltd. Turbo AWD
Handsome turbo-packing Sorento near faultless ... Several drives in Kia’s handsome Sorento crossover during the past couple years still has me searching hard for its faults. There aren’t many. Most test drives leave me wanting a little more, or less, of something, but Sorento just keeps impressing. First, it has the ability to carry seven... Continue Reading →
2016 Lexus RX350 F Sport
Snazzy Lexus RX350 leaves me wanting more ... The Lexus RX350 has set the tone for mid-size luxury SUVs, now mostly crossovers, for about 20 years and with the 2016 model being totally restyled inside and out, I was expecting more of the same. That is, I expected to be wowed by the segment leader’s... Continue Reading →
2016 Toyota Tacoma TRD Sport 4×4 Double Cab
Dominant Toyota Tacoma a stylish, muscular pickup Trucks are macho, always have been. But as our society becomes more confrontational and in-your-face attitudes more commonplace it’s only natural truck styling sheet metal follows suit. Today’s Toyota Tacoma will go toe-to-toe with any pickup in the attitudinal Olympics. Its fenders bulge like a body builder’s abs... Continue Reading →
2016 Nissan Maxima Platinum
Stylish Nissan Maxima breaks cookie-cutter sedan mold Back in the automotive heydays, car stylists were intent on giving their cars distinctive grilles, fins, headlights, taillights, profiles, you name it. Today we must satisfy ourselves with whatever styling cues designers can muster in a cookie-cutter marketplace. Happily, Nissan designers have fashioned a swanky looking 2016 Maxima... Continue Reading →
Die-cast: Autoart Willys Jeep
Detailed Willys Jeep drives Autoart into new market Jeep became an automotive icon as the soldier’s best friend during World War II. Now that the brand is owned by Fiat Chrysler, some may have forgotten it was originally primarily built by Willys-Overland. Autoart’s 1/18 scale version is of that early Jeep along with a U.S. Army... Continue Reading →
2016 Subaru Forester Limited
Subaru Forester remains spunky, sure-footed Subaru’s Forester remains one of my favorite small SUVs because of its handling, spunky power, smooth CVT, quiet interior and sure-footed AWD capability. That doesn’t even get at its other attributes, like reasonable starting price, good gas mileage, comfortable interior, top-notch safety rating and its overall usefulness. The Forester was... Continue Reading →