Reviews
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Records: 10 | Sources: 1
Dodge Charger SRT8 Super Bee
If you time-traveled back to 1964 and told a muscle car buyer that his ride would be a respected classic 40 years hence, he’d call you crazier than Kruschev. Muscle cars were fun on the cheap. You got what you didn’t pay for: nonexistent handling, pathetic drum brakes, two and three speed automatic transmissions and efficiency measured in gallons per mile (which was no biggie at the time). Thirty years later, Chrysler and Dodge are leading the charge down muscle car memory lane. Until the Chevrolet Camaro appears, the Dodge Charger SRT8 Super Bee could well be the post-modern muscle car mascot. Which is what, exactly?..
The Truth About Cars
Publication date 2007-09-12 22:44:31 ·
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Cadillac CTS Review
Life, Liberty and the Pursuit… of Acura? Infiniti? BMW? The Cadillac brand’s been sliding downmarket for so long it’s hard to know whose tailpipes they’re chasing. Back in ’02, the CTS offered genuine hope that Caddy could recapture some long lost ground. Although the Sigma-platformed mid-sizer was too small for the brand’s aging aficionados, it was a credible throw down to Japanese and German sports sedans. In a few short years, Caddy’s competition caught up-- and left CTS sales in the dust. Now, a refreshed CTS returns to the fray. Is it good enough to put the deeply damaged Cadillac brand back in the running?..
The Truth About Cars
Publication date 2007-09-10 15:49:29 ·
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Volkswagen Polo Review
At the tail end of the last century, the European built, Eurozone-only Volkswagen Polo was the "Mercedes of small cars.” While the Golf/Rabbits MKIII and MKIV suffered from iffy quality, the smaller, staid Polo was known for being reliably unbreakable. Then, something happened. Just as Mercedes quality nosedived, the VW Polo lost its rep for bullet-proof build. Since 2005 quality has (reportedly) markedly improved, which has put the car back on the list of frugal consumers looking to buy something “classically VW." But is it ready for a U.S. debut?..
The Truth About Cars
Publication date 2007-09-08 02:11:10 ·
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Kia Optima LX Review
As I drove to my neighborhood Kia dealer, the window signage caught my eye. Actually, make that grabbed both eyeballs and ripped them out, Oedipus-style. DRIVE TODAY! NO CREDIT! BAD CREDIT! I wondered how long before the words “What price are you looking to pay?” would affect the same injury to my ears. While dealerships like this make Kia’s 100,000 mile warranty look like a mixed blessing, let’s face it: they know their market. As does the Kia Optima...
The Truth About Cars
Publication date 2007-09-05 22:21:05 ·
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Scion xD Review
The Scion brand has turned to face some strange ch-ch-changes over the last model year. The bento-box-on-wheels xB was re-fashioned for American tastes, exchanging hip Nipponese style for porky gangsta chic. And now the xA, the mini-minivan-shaped thingie that somehow (unfortunately) captured the spirit of the orthopedic Toyota Echo, has been axed. In a break with ToMoCo’s tradition of maintaining model names, Scion has decided to replace the xA with the xD, a mini-CUV-shaped thingie with bad ‘tude. Go figure...
The Truth About Cars
Publication date 2007-08-31 21:14:14 ·
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Mercedes CLK 63 AMG Black Series Review
My co-pilot sat motionless, stupefied from the previous nights revelry. Strangely, my fellow journo thought I could be trusted not to challenge Alka-Seltzers restorative powers. I allowed him the luxury of this delusion all the way from the hotel to the highway. And then I floored it. The CLK Black Series engine roared WAKE UP FOOL! The uber-bad Benz back end quivered from side to side as the traction control light sent a steady stream of Morse code through first, second and third gear. The ten second wake-up call placed us well north of 100 mph. The jobbing journo groaned his disapproval. God I love this job!..
The Truth About Cars
Publication date 2007-08-27 19:58:12 ·
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Volvo C30 Review
The last time a Volvo was sexy, so was (Sir) Roger Moore. Just as The Saint titillated the fairer sex, Simon Templar’s Volvo P1800 had heel-and-toe types salivating. Shortly thereafter Moore was persuaded to abandon his Swedish whip for an Aston. By the time the English actor got into Bond-age, Volvo had turned deeply dull. Sexy was scrapped, safety celebrated. Stylistically, Gothenburg’s designs adhered to a Ty Webbian template: “Be the box. Be the box.” While Volvo’s slowly evolved away from the rectangular gestalt, they never quite shucked middle-aged mindfulness. The new C30 aims to change all that. ..
The Truth About Cars
Publication date 2007-08-24 17:16:08 ·
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Pontiac Vibe Review
Late last century, GM decided to fight the rising tide of uninteresting front wheel-drive cars Japanese cars by building their own uninteresting front wheel-drive cars. Three decades of trying to out-Japan the Japanese yielded the pinnacle of American wrong-wheel technology: The Monte Carlo SS. Now that GM’s hulking trucks have had their day, the automaker is busy hawking its lackluster though miserly Cobavion. This despite the fact that one of the best small cars GM has ever produced sits unloved in Pontiac lots across America. Go figure...
The Truth About Cars
Publication date 2007-08-22 23:47:45 ·
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Kia Sedona Review
Chrysler has just unleashed its new minivan, hoping to jump-start sales in a sector thats been shrinking for a decade. During this slide, the Honda Odyssey and Toyota Sienna have moved their people movers upmarket, banking healthy margins on the back of tremendous customer loyalty. Meanwhile, Kia entered the fray with a more budget-minded alternative, the Sedona. Although Kia missed the obvious marketing opportunity (My my my, Sedona), the not-so-fancy shmancy minivan has proven itself a sales winner. Why?..
The Truth About Cars
Publication date 2007-08-17 20:05:47 ·
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Mercedes-Benz B 200 Review
I sat anxiously in a showroom Mercedes CLS while the salesman processed my paperwork for a test drive. Even in repose, the CLS is a magnificent machine. Soaking in that heady blend of pomp, luxury and circumstance, I wondered if my spin in the B200 (available in Canada and Europe) would capture any of that Mercedes quintessence. Perched at the opposite end of the luxury ladder, the B200 cost one-sixth of a CLS. Sometimes, brand extension works (Bentley Continental GT) and sometimes, it doesnt (VW Phaeton). So where does the B 200 fit in Herr Doktor Benz pantheon of pomp and circumstance?..
The Truth About Cars
Publication date 1970-01-01 03:33:27 ·
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