2016 Jeep Cherokee: winning looks, troubling quality

Hamish Macaulay is ready to say good-bye to his nine-year-old Jeep Cherokee. He and his wife will soon be proud parents of a baby girl, which means the family’s 1999 Cherokee is “getting a little old and it’s time to upgrade.” The aged Cherokee has been a good rig, so good Macaulay is “looking at …

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Honda’s HR-V the best of a red-hot tiny SUV lot

If you’re looking for a cut-rate price on a pint-sized SUV (sport-utility vehicle), forget it. Eye-popping offers are not to be had. These little wagons are flying off dealer lots with almost nothing to sweeten the deal at the negotiating table. The likes of Honda’s HR-V and Mazda’s CX-3 are all selling on merit alone. …

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2016 RAV4 Hybrid tops among compact SUVs

Ford’s Escape used to be Canada’s most popular compact SUV (sport-utility vehicle). But now the Escape has been pushed aside by Toyota’s RAV4 – and for good reasons. First among them, Canada’s most fuel-efficient all-wheel drive SUV (sport-utility vehicle) is the Toyota RAV4 Hybrid. This version of the RAV has been a surprise hit for …

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GM begins to right the Malibu wrongs with 2016 model

VICTORIA, B.C. — The best four-door sedan that almost no one loves is the Chevrolet Malibu. How bad has it gotten for the Malibu? Last year Toyota sold almost twice the number of Camrys, ditto for Ford with the Fusion. Honda’s Accord, the Hyundai Sonata, and even Chrysler’s sad-sack 200 all outsell the Malibu in …

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2016 Hyundai Sonata Plug-in Hybrid: a bridge to full electrification

WHISTLER, B.C. — In the underground parkade beside the Whistler Convention Centre you’ll find five 50 kW DC (direct current) charging stations, each delivering a free fill-up for full-on battery electric vehicles (EV). If you can afford a $100,000 Tesla Model S, for instance, taxpayers pay for your electric fuel – delivered through networked Greenlots …

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