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October 24th, 2011 — first drive, hot hatch, hyundai
PORTLAND, ORE — Quirky is apparently the new cool. First Nissan with its Juke, now Hyundai with its Veloster. Two very different vehicles to be sure, but with one common characteristic: There’s nothing currently on the market quite like them.
Thank goodness, and it’s about damn time.
February 1st, 2011 — first drive, ford
Los Angeles, CA – The 2012 Focus is a very important car for Ford. If fuel prices once again return to north of $4 per gallon as many predict, having a front-runner in the competitive compact segment is critical to the company’s continued success.
The new design has a very bold look with what Ford describes as its “kinetic design language” in both hatchback and sedan form. The five door is the most visually striking, with a high level of design detail all the way to the rear of the car. The new Focus is not a car that will be mistaken for anything else on the market today. While it’s not in your face aggressive, you won’t blend into the background like you might in a Corolla or Civic. The part of the design that seems to draw the most love-it-or-hate-it reaction is the trapezoidal front grille. Although the grille does give the car a catfish snout of sorts, it allows the aggressive lines to flow through the design.
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December 13th, 2010 — first drive, hybrid, Lexus
DELRAY BEACH, Fla.—I have to admit, I felt the need to redeem myself. I am a notorious lead foot, and I habitually get low mileage numbers in every car I drive. Even when I try to do well. Hybrid. TDI. Gasoline. It’s all the same. And it’s all bad.
So, when the folks at Lexus announced during the press preview for the all-new 2011 CT 200h that the worst gas mileage they’d seen thus far was around 37 mpg, I considered the gauntlet thrown. I absolutely could not get below that number.
December 1st, 2010 — awd, crossover, first drive, hybrid, suv, vw
Toyota Motor Sales better get in the game. Quick.
Yet another manufacturer has launched yet another hybrid that is infinitely better than anything the previous hybrid king has put out in recent years.
Exit Lexus RX 450h. Enter the 2011 Volkswagen Touareg Hybrid.
As far as first drives go, I didn’t have nearly enough drive time in this all-new SUV. Only about 30 minutes behind the wheel and another 30 minutes as a passenger.
Surely not enough time to get a realistic gauge of fuel economy over a period of time. My partner and I averaged just more than 20 mpg in combined driving, which is just under the VW estimated ratings of 21 mpg in the city and 25 mpg on the highway. (At the time of publication, the EPA had not yet completed their official fuel economy values.)
November 23rd, 2010 — awd, crossover, first drive, nissan
CHICAGO—When you come across a vehicle like the all-new 2011 Nissan Juke, it doesn’t quite fit in a particular segmented slot.
It’s too small to be a crossover. Too big to be a sports car. Too quirky to be called sedan. It has 5 doors, but I wouldn’t call it a hatchback. It’s utilitarian but not large enough to be an SUV. The number of doors negates coupe status, and while it’s inexpensive, I wouldn’t call it entry-level.
