If you are approaching the 335i fresh from preconceptions, we think the first question you’ll want to ask goes something like, “Is the 335i a very good car?”
First things first: the main reason we were excited to drive the 2012 Chrysler 300s was because we were dying to try out its new automatic transmission. We weren’t disappointed.
“X-cylinder power, Y-cylinder efficiency.” It’s a mantra we’ve been hearing for decades now, as manufacturers struggle to squeeze as many miles out of a gallon of gas, without impacting outright performance. More often than not though, power is sacrificed for economy, or vice versa. Like a set...
So what, if anything, should/will make this new Malibu stand out to you? How can a reasonably resurgent Chevy hope to compete with the numbers game so stacked against its gas/electric warrior? Chevy’s answer, one that should interest the typical Winding Road reader, we’d guess, is that the...
We’ve just finished two thousand miles in the 2011 Porsche GT3 RS 4.0. They were two thousand mind-searingly memorable miles, in part because they were on some of our great western roads, including Rt. 4 in New Mexico, Rt. 145 in Colorado, and Rts. 95 and 24 in Utah, to name a few. And...
There’s no getting around it; it’s awfully hard to build the next generation of an iconic car. For drivers of sporting sedans, few models hold as much allure, on a fundamental level, as BMW’s 3-Series—the car that pretty much invented the sports sedan genre. Conversely, with a reputation so...
eAssist is what’s called a mild hybrid system. In a traditional hybrid, like the Toyota Prius, both the electric motor and gas engine drive the wheels, drawing power/fuel from an onboard battery pack and a tank of gas, respectively. In a mild hybrid like the LaCrosse or Regal eAssist, the...
In the world of mid-size luxury sedans, the big players have been the BMW 5-Series, Audi A6 and Mercedes-Benz E-Class. The Lexus GS, meanwhile, skated under the proverbial radar, lacking the performance cred of the 5-Series, the luxury cachet of the E-Class, or the sumptuous interior of the A6...
A new 911 is here. These are the moments that wreak such havoc among the armies of purists, and are, therefore, always the most fun times to be a car addict. Because of the adulation, devotion, and unrelenting attention due this new model, the 911 from Zuffenhausen starts life immediately...
Throw it into a bend, and it just seems to go. It’s not the most graceful cornering experience you’ll ever have, tending to roll a bit too much, but this thing’s ability to carry speed around corners will put at least a small smile on your face. Where it’s different from the previous model is...
If you asked us what the main difference between the 2011 Chevrolet Aveo and the 2012 Chevrolet Sonic was, we wouldn’t tell you about the new 1.8-liter four-pot or the new 1.4-liter turbo. We also wouldn’t mention the optional six-speed automatic transmission. Likewise, we wouldn’t be talking...
You can still buy a Mazda3 i with the same old “MZR” 2.0-liter inline-four available in last year’s model, at the low price of $15,200. That motor will net you 148 horsepower, 135 pound-feet of torque, and 33 miles per gallon on the highway. You’ll also have to settle for an older transmission...
Mercedes-Benz has done an interesting balancing act with the CLS63 AMG. On the one hand, it’s a lavishly equipped, tech-laden luxmobile for four people, that looks like very few other cars on the road. On the other, it’s essentially a street-legal rocket, capable of sending your eyeballs towards...
The Rio five-door is one of the new B-segment cars that now seem to be proliferating on our shores. If you haven’t been following this closely, we’ll jog your memory by mentioning the Honda Fit, the Ford Fiesta, the Nissan Versa, the Chevrolet Sonic, the Toyota Yaris, and the Mazda2. With EPA...
The Range Rover Evoque arrives on the scene just as beholden to the less-than-ideal real world as its premium CUV competitors, then, but also with much more of a mandate to (self-imposed, to a large extent) to have go-anywhere ability. This is, after all, a Land Rover. The British company may...
The night before we were to drive it, Subaru gave us a presentation on the new Impreza, detailing what made this vehicle a better machine than the generation before it, as well as giving us a chance to finally meet the vehicle in person. The 2012 model ditches the 2.5-liter engine for a new...
Hyundai can do popular styling—this we know. If we’re judging by word on the street, the response of our readership, and our own personal tastes, we can say with some level of confidence that recent Hyundai newbies like the Sonata and Elantra are widely viewed as attractive cars. Even the...