I expected a lumbering truck with the handling of a bulldozer. What I got for my test was a surprisingly responsive, mud-and-rut capable, $100,850 (base) Land Rover Defender First Edition in gorgeous Sedona Red. The Defender is a hulking beast, yet it boasts the refined dynamics of an SUV (sport-utility vehicle) half its size. Credit …
Tesla’s Lessons Showed Up Quite Early in the Volvo S90 Recharge
Volvo’s S90 Recharge is a long-wheelbase limousine-wannabe from a Swedish brand owned by Chinese company which, as-equipped in my test vehicle, lists for about $83,000. Now there is a mouthful. And there’s more. The “Recharge” label means this is one of Volvo’s plug-in hybrids, which are bridging the brand’s long-term goal of completely phasing out …
Caught in a Time Warp: 2023Acura Integra Elite A-Spec MT
I am immensely taken by the 2023 Acura Integra, in particular the $45,050 Elite A-Spec version with its slick six-speed manual gearbox. Here’s the problem: I am not the kind of buyer Acura needs to grow the brand. I am a baby boomer who grew up embracing street rods the way today’s pudgy millennials love …
Mach-E is Very Good, But Not Yet Great
The first question before any test drive is always this: how much? That comes before I ask: Is this car fast, well-mannered and agile, versatile, convenient, reliable and safe? It’s also important to ask: Is it pretty enough to make me cry? And is it something of a ground-breaker, an historic triumph for the history …
April 11, 2023 | Commentary, First on the Grid 1 Comments (0) |
Electric vehicles: this cheerleader’s cautionary tale
Today, a few cautionary words about the proposed shift to electric vehicles (EVs). Let’s not kid ourselves: without massive government (taxpayer) intervention and market manipulation, EVs will never become mainstream. As for the auto industry charged with providing EVs on a mass scale, well, in its nearly 130-year history, it has never attempted anything quite …
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