The Malibu LTZ's interior looks much better than the Aura XR. I'll take two tone over faux wood trim anyday. Even the 4-cyl Malibu 2LT's interior looks nicer than the Aura's. I'd rather have the suede seats from the Malibu 2LT than the extra cost leather that you can get w/ the Aura XR. [...]
Driving home in the Smart Fortwo last night, I noticed there are three distinct kinds of Smart spectators on the road.
1. Over Interested - This crowd was way too happy to see the Smart and kept either driving next to me smiling and waving as if they [...]
I took my chances the other night and rolled out in our long term Smart. My overall reaction borrows from my favorite movie reviewers, Blaine Edwards and Antoine Marryweather, from In Living Color: Hated it! What exactly did I hate? Well almost everything. Ill save you from [...]
There's a lot to like about the Saturn Aura - I think it's a decent looking sedan for one. Also, there are a few details that make it feel like more than just another sedan.
The side marker lights and detailed logo up front are just two [...]
The Tundra's gauge cluster completely overstyled and thoroughly ridiculous. The picture above is a true representation of what they look like in a partly cloudy sky at around 4:30 pm. Can you tell how much gas I have? No, well that's because [...]
The interior quality of our long term 2008 Dodge Grand Caravan is so disappointing, it's difficult for me to put it into words. But I'm going to give it a shot.
This van feels like it was designed and assembled by apes. Apes that were pounded mercilesly by bean counters to [...]
As I comfortably drove into work this morning listening to a Podcast of our own Karl Brauer on the Adam Carolla Show, the phone started ringing.
"What the hell is going on?" I asked to [...]
Sorry, I don't think this is ugly. Is it a 3.0 CS or 507? No. Certainly not ugly though.
Let's define our terms - this is ugly.
Brian Moody, Road Test Editor @ 3,446 miles.
[...]Eureka! The *accessory iPod cord we ordered for our 2008 Cadillac CTS came in. Boy does it transform the iPod experience.
Load times take about as long as it takes me to reach up to the touch screen after I snap my iPod onto the cord--in other words, negligible. [...]
In the classic 1976 film comedy "Silver Streak," there is a scene in which the hero, George Caldwell (Gene Wilder) attempts to explain a crime to a dim-witted redneck sheriff, hoping to spur him to action. The sheriff gets confused and attempts to arrest him, [...]
I'm sure everybody has experienced the unpleasantness of getting into a parked car that's been sitting out on a hot summer day. For the X5, BMW offers an iDrive-based feature to help alleviate the unpleasantness.
You can program the X5 to turn on [...]
When the BMW 135 first arrived, I had zero interest in the car. Maybe it's BMW owners, then again maybe that's just a stereotype. I'm sure they're not ALL posturing with leased 325s they can barely afford while living in a small rented apartment on the very edge of the trendy [...]
In our last episode, I'd loaded seven bulky items in the back of our 2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STI for a trip to WIllow Springs Raceway for a test. The seven items fit with ease with the seats flopped down in the Subie, and it took about a minute [...]
I've been eyeing the 2008 Dodge Grand Caravan from afar for quite some time. The styling hasn't really grabbed me, but a lot of the features I've heard about sound pretty good.
I finally had my first turn at the wheel. My impressions haven't fully gelled, but here is where [...]
I couldn't wait for us to get our Cadillac CTS. I eagerly pestered Phil Reed about what color we were getting and what items we would be adding to the options list. After my initial drive of a short-term car, I walked [...]
The above photo is supposed to illustrate a suspension, but I wasn't prepared to remove the wheel. Because the suspension on our long-term 2008 Pontiac G8 GT is a bit confounding to me. I drove it last night in Los Angeles' hateful, seething, evil, boiling cauldron [...]
Trying out biodiesel to build up our alt-fuels fleet was one of our reasons for purchasing the long-term 2005 Jetta TDI. You can read more about biodiesel in this story, but basically it's a blend regular diesel and oil derived from renewable sources, such [...]
We've added a BMW 135i to our long-term fleet.
It's has a 300-horsepower twin-turbo 3.0-liter inline-6 and a six-speed manual transmission.
The 1 Series is the least expensive new BMW you can buy in the U.S.
Like it?
Read the Introduction on Inside Line.
Donna DeRosa, Managing Editor
[...]
Lately, it seems like I'm meeting a lot of people who appear to be car enthusiasts but once I start talking to them, it quickly becomes obvious they're only interested in automobiles as bling or status symbols - sad. Sure, they know some numbers and have been to a few races [...]
Since we are all sharing shots from yesterday's Willow Springs run here's a look at the long-term Ford GT between Turn 2 and Turn 3. I drove the car 100 miles up to Willow with no plans to track it (we rented the facility for another purpose), but at [...]
I drove our 2008 Subaru WRX STI up to Willow Springs International Raceway and back with a load of equipment for our second-ever consumer comparison test. It handled the following test props and equipment without breaking a sweat:
One 85-pound, 3.5-ton floor jack
Two carry-on roller suitcases
One large international-sized roller suitcase
One [...]
Our Cadillac CTS's interior is noisy. It's fine when you're driving in a straight line. (Well, except for the wind noise.) But when you're making a turn the leather creaks loudly. You hear "Creak, creak, squeak creak." Read that part out loud, it's my best onomatopoeia.
When [...]
Strawberry fields forever. The Hyundai Veracruz was great for taking in the sights, but not the sounds.
There's a lot to love about the 2008 Hyundai Veracruz. On my recent trip from L.A. to Carmel, Calif., and back, I experienced hour after hour of comfortable seating, intuitive controls, and DVD [...]
Having the Mazda CX-9 and Buick Enclave as long-term cars at the same time has provided plenty of opportunity for head-to-head comparisons. Both crossovers have proven to be mile-gobbling staff favorites, but for me, I'd buy [...]
Not sure what you're looking at? I recently discovered the trick to unlocking all of the navigation system menus while our 2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STI is moving.
I find it extremely frustrating that some navigation systems, like the one found in our Subaru, will lock out 90% of the [...]
Remember when Donna reported that the Mini literally stinks? One of our readers guessed it was mold and after a waff of Mini stank a few weeks ago, that's certainly my guess as well. It's pretty disgusting and I'd much rather sit [...]
We haven't had a minivan in our Santa Monica-based test fleet since the 2006 Kia Sedona left nearly a year ago, and I had almost forgetten just how handy they can be.
Last week Detroit Editor Dan Pund drove our new long-term 2008 Dodge Grand Caravan [...]
Car salesmen swear that, "The feel of the wheel will seal the deal." With that in mind, I'd say they are going to sell a lot of these 2008 Pontiac G8 Gts. Let me repeat: The feel of the wheel -- not the look of the wheel. I [...]
Some pundits have expressed disappointment with the 2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STI, singling-out its softer suspension as evidence of weakness. But the WRX STI model exists partly for FIA-homologation for rally competition, so performance on dirt matters, too. A more compliant suspension [...]
If this 2,400-mile slog from Detroit to LA has taught me anything, it is the power of willful ignorance and blind faith. When the Dodge Carvavan balked at starting the end of yesterday's drive, I chose to put my fate into the spectral hands of the Dodge Brothers in [...]
So let's be honest. If you were going to drive a 38-year-old, 607-horsepower muscle car across the American west would you really do it without some kind of contingency plan?
Neither would we.
Which is exactly why we brought along our long-term Toyota Tundra for support on the Ultimate Challenger [...]
The 10-year-old boy in me lived a life-long dream this past weekend when I attended a taping of "American Gladiators." Now, Hulk Hogan is no Larry Czonka and there was a disappointing lack of teal and pink No Fear wife beaters decorating [...]
Yesterday our 2007 Mini Cooper S zipped past the 15,000 mile mark. Considering there are still three months to go before it must be returned to Mini, I'd say it'll pass the 20,000 miles mark during it's 12 months in our fleet. And that means we like this little [...]
Here's what I learned in my 825.8 miles of driving today: People in Iowa still wave at perfect strangers.
I was cranking along I-80 somewhere near Des Moines, the Caravan's 4.0-liter V6 mooing lightly. I'd locked in behind a hard-driving lady driving a ruby-red GMC Envoy. We'd swing left around [...]
This weekend our new 2008 Subaru WRX STI did little more than daddy duty. Hate to say it, but our black STI spent its 72 hours with the Oldham's without once laying rubber on a curving mountain road, a dedicated racetrack, or gravel covered fire road. Instead we used [...]
Eureka! In our last episode, our 2008 Mercedes-Benz C300's lack of an operator's manual entry on the subject of iPod use or clearly labelled buttonage had left many confounded. There just had to be more functionality from this dedicated iPod connection than we were seeing.
And indeed there is. The [...]
After replacing the worn ContisportContact rubber on our long-term M3 with four new Yokohama Advan AD07 tires (225/45R18 front and 255/40R18 rear) from the Tire Rack we headed back to the track for a retest.
Straight-line acceleration was slightly quicker.
Old tires:
0-60: 5.3
Quarter mile: 13.9 @ 102.1*
*Note: Trap speed was incorrectly [...]
So the long-term BMW M3 scared the hell out of me this morning. But it's supposed to be a "thrilling" car, so maybe I'm just an old stick in the mud. Regardless, when I looked down and saw the oil light on next to the speedo my blood pressure [...]
Our 2008 Buick Enclave has just busted through the 15,000 mile mark. That's 15,000 miles in just six months, which means we like this truck.
But here's the best part, the Enclave has been as reliable and problem free as a car can get. It's only been to the [...]
For our last day of our spring break trip to Arizona in the 2008 Scion xB, I thought we'd cruise back in search the elusive 30 mpg mark. That would be an accomplishment, as the EPA rating for the 2008 xB with an automatic transmission is 22 city / 28 highway. [...]
The Ford Edge goes into the dealership today to get its "check engine" light looked after. As some of you may know, the "check engine" light usually signifies "check gas cap" or "check some part of the emissions" system. After the light came on, we discovered [...]
You can only find the soul of the 2007 Jeep Wrangler Sahara in the wilderness. The farther you drive off the beaten path the more clearly this car asserts itself. Around town, it seems gimmicky and impractical. But tackle a washed out mountain road, or piles of snow, and [...]
Day 4 of our Arizona tour in the 2008 Scion xB was another short one, as the Arizona towns of Prescott and Wickenburg are only a scant 59 miles apart. The regular way, the way any navigation system will route you, is a sinuous, low-speed affair, especially [...]
Day three of our Arizona tour in the 2008 Scion xB was a short one, as we spent the entire day covering just 64 miles. But they were a spectacular 64 miles, in more ways than one.
First: The red rocks of Sedona are simply spectacular. Had the [...]
The more time I spend in our long-term 2007 Infiniti G35 Sport, the more I like it. I'm a huge fan of its power, pure and simple, and the fact that it's held to the ground by such a capable suspension so you only want to go faster.
But it's [...]
We've added a 2008 Cadillac CTS to our long-term fleet.
Our shiny red beauty has GM's direct-injection V6, which is capable of 304 horsepower, and a six-speed automatic transmission.
We also went for the Premium Luxury package which includes 10-way adjustable and programmable heated/cooled front seats, rain-sensing wipers, heated [...]
As my colleague Chris pointed out in a previous post, the Veracruz's A/C makes an annoying buzz / groan that's most noticeable at low road speeds. Usually, an A/C unit making noise is not a good thing, and can be an indication that something, like say, a compressor, is getting [...]
With plans for a ski day looming, I requested one of our SUVs and was given the Veracruz. Although the forecast for Big Bear (about 115 miles northeast of L.A.) was for clear and sunny skies with temps in the mid-50s and hence theoretically no slippery roads, I wanted to [...]
When it comes right down to it, not many cars actually crack the 30 mpg barrier. That's why I was surprised to glance down and see our 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer registering 31.8 mpg this morning. And that was after some spirited accelerations in early morning wide-open traffic conditions. [...]
You've probably seen or heard Ford's "Where MPGs meet MP3s" ad campaign for the Ford Focus. The MP3 part would refer to Ford's new Sync system, and MPG boasts about the Focus' respectable fuel economy.
It's not all hype, either. With an EPA-estimated rating [...]
The Civic GX works fine, but there are some frustrations when you're driving a car that requires specially trained repair people and special fueling equipment that comes from a sole source.
Mostly it boils down to time time spent waiting.
Two cases in point are the ongoing saga of our [...]
So, I have to admit, I've never driven our long-term Ferrari 308. And I haven't really had much of an inclination to do so. 1) I live 250 miles away from the office; 2) I keep long-term cars for two weeks; 3) If [...]
We'd all like to think automakers are looking out for our best interests. Maybe they ensure that our car's doors unlock in the case of a rollover. Maybe they have a telematics system to automatically call emergency services if an airbag deploys. Maybe they provide a warning light if [...]
I've been coveting a red wool rug at Pier 1 for the past six weeks, patiently waiting for the floral beauty to go on sale.
On Sunday, after a month of watching me stalk the store, my husband had enough.
"Just buy the thing already, wouldja?" he begged. "Buy it now, [...]
Our Long Term G35 is sort of like a really cute girl you might meet at the supermarket, a really cute girl that would be great for someone else. The G35 S is good looking, comfortable, quick, fun and stylish - all great qualities. It's just that the car doesn't [...]
This weekend, I had our long-term Kia Rondo and the pleasure of taking my husband, two of his cousins and our child out to dinner. Given that the Rondo is marketed as a family-pleasing shuttle, I seized it as an opportunity to assess the seating comfort of the Rondo [...]
Our parking garage at night can be pretty dark. And when I get home my driveway is also very dark. Because we switch cars so often, I appreciate courtesy lights when I turn off the engine.
Above is a picture of the lights on the Aura's inside [...]
I've spent the better part of two days writing Edmunds.com vehicle reviews for the various iterations of Bentley Continental GT. It offers no less than 17 different leather colors, with customers able to select any two to apply to [...]
Wheres the Tundra, you ask? Not in my customary parking space it didnt fit. I had to leave it in the uncovered guest-parking area instead, and it still took about a seventeen-point turn, and a lot of panicked beeping from the proximity sensors, in order to squeeze it in [...]
Time to check in with our long-term Kia Rondos fuel log. If youve been following the adventures of our mostly city-driven Rondo-mobile, youll already know that our real-world numbers have been falling short of the official EPA estimates for the 2007 6-cylinder Rondo of 20 city/27 highway. You may [...]
Quick recap: A rock put a big hole in our Ferrari's right front turn signal lens. It worked but looked a bit trailer trashy. This was right after the Ferrari cost us a wad of cash for an ignition system rebuild so we were feeling cheap and said [...]
Wind noise is well-tamed in our 2008 Buick Enclave. The sleek shape of the body, of course, has a lot to do with it.
But our Enclave has something a lot of others cars don't: Dual-pane laminated front side glass. This is more expensive than the usual single pane stuff -- [...]
Here's the bill for our recent M3 repairs. Look closely and you'll find a grand total of $1,173 for a four wheel alignment and replacement of rear control arm busings. Several of you have suggested that those bushings crack prematurely and our Long Beach BMW tech confirmed this adding [...]
Our 2008 Buick Enclave is one of five, three-row vehicles we have in the fleet right now. In general, we've been very impressed with the comfort and roominess of the Enclave. But having not sat in the back myself, I was curious to find out how well it all [...]
You asked for it and I delivered. After I threw up a video blog regarding the Aura's perceived quality featuring the age-old "tap test," quite a few people demanded I do the same for the Accord. Well, I [...]
