2016 Lexus RX 450h

Lexus restyles, upgrades its RX 450h The Lexus RX series has been ruling the luxury mid-size crossover roost for nearly two decades and there’s no reason to think the new RX will sully that record run. Lexus and its mainstream counterpart Toyota wised up and started restyling its vehicles and giving them some personality the... Continue Reading →

August 12, 2016 0

2017 Hyundai Santa Fe Limited Ultimate AWD

New Santa Fe seats 7, looks better, roomier Hyundai developed its Santa Fe into two vehicles a couple of years ago, the Sport which has a midsize 106-inch wheelbase and the straight-up Santa Fe that’ll seat seven with its longer 110.2-inch wheelbase and more interior room. The 2017 Santa Fe looks even better than its... Continue Reading →

August 5, 2016 0

2016 Mazda CX-9 Signature AWD

2016 Mazda CX-9 Signature AWD The luxury crossovers, the Mercedes, Lexus, BMWs may have a hard time convincing some of their buyers that Mazda’s new CX-9 isn’t a better value. At $45,215 the Signature AWD model I tested is within an eyelash of offering the same goodies those luxury brands tout, while also offering more... Continue Reading →

August 3, 2016 0

2017 Kia Sportage SX AWD

Larger Sportage maintains styling edge ... Kia has upgraded and enlarged its Sportage small sport-ute to keep it competitive with the likes of Subaru’s Forester, Honda’s CR-V, Ford’s Escape and Toyota’s RAV4. This is an extremely competitive market with many good products, but Kia maintains its strong styling edge and then lengthens Sportage’s wheelbase from 103.9... Continue Reading →

July 22, 2016 0

2016 Volkswagen Jetta 2.0T GLI SE

New Jetta reminds us of driving's pure joy ... Reminders are needed, from time to time, of the pure joy of driving, and Volkswagen’s Jetta is just the thing to pleasantly jog one’s memory. The conservatively styled Jetta’s exterior has been slightly smoothed and refined for 2016, but its mechanical workings needed no tweaks. The Jetta... Continue Reading →

July 1, 2016 2

2016 Volkswagen CC 2.0T R-Line

VW's CC a fine handling sedan with a stick! ... Why Volkswagen doesn’t advertise its CC sedan is beyond me. This sporty family sedan has been on the market seven years and is nearly invisible in the marketplace. I’ve never seen a magazine or TV ad for it. That’s particularly weird at this time when VW... Continue Reading →

June 24, 2016 0

2016 Acura RLX Sport Hybrid SH-AWD Advance

New Acura RLX sport sedan does it all ... I quickly feel in love with driving the new Acura RLX Hybrid, a sport sedan that does everything right from a performance standpoint. One could argue that its looks are pedestrian, and they are mid-pack at best. But driving the RLX is like flying under the radar of... Continue Reading →

June 17, 2016 0

2016 MINI Cooper Clubman

Bigger MINI makes Clubman more useful ... When does a MINI become so big that it’s not, well, mini? There’s a fine line to be sure, but the new MINI Cooper Clubman seems to straddle it pretty well. Visually the Clubman is still cute with the round headlights and profile of a MINI, but there’s no... Continue Reading →

June 10, 2016 0

2016 Audi TT 2.0T Quattro

Audi's latest TT is slick, squatty, luxurious, sporty Sports cars seem an endangered species and nearly as hard to find as polite political discourse. So my recent landing of a new Audi TT coupe seemed quite a coup. I hadn’t driven a TT for nine years. That’s how rare they are in the automotive test fleets. But... Continue Reading →

May 27, 2016 0

2016 Jaguar XF 35t R-Sport RWD

Jaguar XF R-Sport has the looks and the handling ... Jaguars look better than most other luxury cars, and that matters in a world and a time when all luxury cars offer similar features and performance. The Jaguar tradition is one of lean looks and mighty power, plus excellent handling. This new XF sedan fits that... Continue Reading →