Archive for June, 2009

First Test: 2010 Ford Taurus SEL

Franklin Delano Roosevelt drove a Ford. You’ve seen the photograph of him behind the “banjo” steering wheel of his 1936 Ford Phaeton V-8, wearing a hat, teeth clenched around a cigarette holder, the car’s added hand controls out of sight. Our patrician 32nd president could’ve bought anything — say, a V-16 Cadillac from the […]

Tuesday, June 23rd, 2009

Review: Yamaha FZ6R arrives as a rational sportbike

Before even throwing a leg over the new 2009 Yamaha FZ6R, we couldn’t help but think that this bike fits neatly into the burgeoning entry-level sportbike category and is just the kind of motorcycle that most Americans would be better off purchasing than a bike from the more popular supersport category. Generally speaking, though […]

Tuesday, June 23rd, 2009

First Drive: 2010 Kia Forte a compelling new compact sedan option

If there’s one thing we can say about Kia, it’s that it keeps making progress. In the 15 years the brand has been selling cars in the United States, South Korea’s second largest auto manufacturer has increased its market share every single year. The future looks bright as well, with new vehicles like the Soul […]

Tuesday, June 23rd, 2009

Aston Martin Rapide caught undisguised in parking lot

Finally, we can now show you pictures of a completely uncovered Aston Martin Rapide, thanks to photographer Simon Gregg. Gregg submitted the photos to the good folks at CAR Online, who quickly posted the pics online.
Aston Martin Design Director Marek Reichman once said, “We wanted to make the most beautiful four-door sports car in […]

Tuesday, June 23rd, 2009

Verdict: 2008 Scion xB

When the Scion xB subcompact made its debut in 2004 (along with Toyota’s Scion brand itself), America got its first real taste of undiluted Japanese eccentricity. A barely altered version of the domestic-market Toyota bB, sold in Japan since 1999, the xB stood out on American roads like a Bento box in a Texas steakhouse. […]

Tuesday, June 23rd, 2009

First Drive: Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport

It’s the noise. I got into the new Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport feeling pretty cynical, wondering how Bugatti could possibly justify charging $280,000 on top of the Veyron coupe’s eye-watering $1.7 million — plus local taxes and delivery — for a convertible with less than half the stiffness of the closed-cockpit car, weighing 224 pounds […]

Wednesday, June 17th, 2009

Russian Attack: Status Design reimagines the Porsche Cayenne

Throughout its life, Porsche’s Cayenne hasn’t exactly come in for critical praise for its aesthetics, so thankfully it has always been just about peerless dynamically. Perhaps as a result of that observed deficiency, countless aftermarket companies have taken up the their pens and styling knives to try to improve upon Stuttgart’s controversial jack-of-all-trades. Suffice it […]

Wednesday, June 17th, 2009