Small, affordable cars are like mushrooms. They quietly go about their business in the soggy bottom of the market, tolerated more than celebrated. Occasionally, the fungi mutates into a truffle, and so it is with this less-respected branch of autodom.
The Nissan Versa is no market newcomer. Introduced in 2007, it’s trudged along unloved in […]

the starting ceremony complete, the V12 settles into a pleasant rumble. The transmission buttons reside on each side of the arty key. Release the electronic parking brake, press the “D” button, and the Rapide is ready to roll.
Acceleration is strong, but not neck-snapping. Holding the Rapide’s accelerator to the floor rewards passengers with 60 […]

It’s a guy thing. Tim Allen understands. If you’ve got a job to do, you need the right tool. As guy logic goes, the bigger and more powerful the tool, the better.
If what you do requires a tool shaped like a truck, then you’re currently experiencing a nirvana-like period in history. In just the last […]

There was no sign of Sol on the Costa as I nosed the quartz-gray Audi A8 past the guard house and onto the rain-slicked traffic roundabout before heading out on the road.
The long, smooth roadway that connected the estate to the autoroute was the perfect place to get better acquainted with the A8’s 372-horsepower, 4.2-liter […]

The outgoing BMW 5 Series may have ushered in a dramatic leap forward in terms of dynamics, technology, safety and creature comforts, but it’s the previous generation – the E39 – that Bimmerphiles still speak of in hushed tones. The departing E60 may have been a more capable package, but it was also the source […]

Front-wheel drive is a funny thing. When originally introduced during the Thirties in the Cord 810 (then later in the awesome supercharged 812) and the Citroën Traction Avant, FWD was hailed as a major breakthrough, a wondrous technological innovation that allowed for lower ride height and greatly increased passenger space. Postwar consumers got a taste […]

Little more than ten years ago, the meat and potatoes of the automotive universe were C and D segment sedans. Think Toyota Corolla and Toyota  Camry; Focus, Ford Fusion and (old) Ford Taurus; Honda Civic and Honda Accord. But then, for better or for worse, something significant shifted in that old sales paradigm. Specifically, crossovers. […]