First Drives

For the first time, I get it; I finally understand why the Ford Escape has been so popular over the years. I actually came to the conclusion at Sunset Speedway while shooting a Two-Minute Test Drive for the Motoring 2016 season. It's the name—or more so what it implies. Okay, …

Mount Fuji, Japan – If the new Toyota Prius that has rolled into dealerships has a fault, it's that it bucks current esthetic trends. It's very nice though—even elegant—with a style that differs considerably from the old Prius, which was distinctive, but a tad cartoonish. This newbie is 6 centimetres …

MALAGA, Spain – Could a car that boasts 500 horsepower be considered a rational purchase? It shouldn’t, but it could. It all depends on how you analyze the situation. You see, the mighty Mercedes-AMG GT S and its magnificent, hand-built, 503-hp, twin-turbo V8 costs $150,000 before taxes. On the other …

Kia is feeling the pressure from ever-mounting fuel efficiency regulations as much as any other automaker, and like many of its peers it has decided that the path to appeasing those wielding the measuring stick at the EPA is to produce hybrid versions of its popular models. The 2016 Kia …

Taking risks is an important step in the growth of any automaker. The next roll of the dice for style-conscious Korean automaker Kia? The Niro, a compact utility vehicle that gambles on Canadian customers transferring their loyalties to the brand's very first dedicated hybrid. In a move designed specifically to …

MALAGA, Spain – Nowadays, buying a two-door car when a perfectly good four-door equivalent is available is more a fashion statement or an emotional decision than a rational one. However, in certain cases, it’s a little more than that. For example, the Mercedes-Benz C-Class Sedan and the redesigned C-Class Coupe …

The year 2016 marks the arrival of a new-generation Porsche 911, that iconic sports car created by the brand from Stuttgart. It gets some cosmetic revisions, but more importantly, a turbocharged engine in the Carrera, which had been equipped with a naturally aspirated engine since the very beginning. This philosophical …

To introduce members of the press to the 2016 Camaro, Chevrolet had an interesting idea. Through the "Find New Roads" program, the brand invited journalists to explore America at the wheel of their new sport coupe. Not the whole continent in one shot, of course; they created several itineraries across …

Mercedes-Benz just gave the GLK a makeover, and because you’ve been paying attention, you know it’s now called the GLC. But the makeover went much further than just a new name, for the GLC is all-new, and drastically different than its predecessor in appearance. Although the GLC is better than …

When Chevrolet launched the first Volt, its styling was not only very different from the other cars on the market, but also from the brand’s own product line-up. In 2010, the compact EV shared the showroom floor with the Cobalt, the Aveo and the HHR, all models that didn’t exactly …