Two of our favorite trucks are the Chevrolet Silverado and the Colorado ZR2... well now they've come together to create a truck we can't wait to get our hands on next spring. The 2022 Silverado ZR2 takes the existing Silverado to the next level, bringing it closer... and in many ways superior to the current generation Tundra TRD Pro and F-150 Raptor.

We loved what Chevrolet did to the Colorado ZR2 with the Bison package and it looks like GMC is headed down that same path with this one. While they seem to be positioning this OVRLANDX truck as purely a concept to stoke the imagination, we would love to see something like this available for purchase at GMC dealers. Even if it was simply a set of dealer-installed options this would be exactly what Canyon needs to fully differentiate itself.

In the automotive industry it seems like there are two different core types of trim level packages. The first is purely cosmetic and the second is actually functional. A few weeks ago, we were driving the K5 GT-Line and it left us shaking our head wonder why that trim was even created. It looked great but when it came to delivering on the performance it's good looks promised, quite simply it fell short. Now that we've had a chance to play with the 2021 Kia K5 GT we are even more shocked that the GT-Line exists at all.

Car shopping is one of the most stressful things that anyone can ever do. It's a long process and you have to ask questions, test out different models, and go through all sorts of hoops just to find the perfect car for you. In this blog post, we will discuss seven strategies that will help make your car shopping experience less stressful!

Generally speaking, my preference in automobiles leans strongly towards vehicles with big powerful engines (or motors), technology, and off-road chops. The Buick Encore GX offers the technology but neither of the other two... but that's ok. It is possibly one of the best balanced, perfectly designed vehicles for young professionals who live in urban areas.

The 2021 Kia Telluride SX is a mid-sized SUV that offers an edge. It provides all the power of a traditional SUV at an attractive price point with plenty of technology and amenities like heated seats, connectivity, safety features, and even a 5,000 pound towing capacity that makes this a great option for budget conscious shoppers.

The all-new 2021 Kia Sorento X-Line is the brand's latest iteration of their popular mid-sized SUV. With the addition of the X-Line package, Sorento promises off-road adventure options that normally you might not consider with a vehicle like this. Like all Kia SUVs, it is packed with plenty of tech and safety features and plenty of interior space for your passengers in the third row too. Is X-Line purely cosmetic for the aspirational off roader or is this something that you can use to go places you wouldn't normally take other unibody SUVs? Let's take a look!

This is a different sort of review about a different sort of car. One of the challenges that we face right now is brand confusion and terminology that doesn't always align as neatly as you might want. Some of this is due to terms like "GT" once meaning something but now just simply slapped on anything to make it sound sportier. Others are self inflicted by creating too many trim levels of a model and that's what I see with Kia's K5 GT-Line. It isn't that simple since the GT-Line and GT actually offer different options, making one a much better option for some buyers than the other.

What is obd2? The term OBD2 - also written as OBDII - stands for on-board diagnostics, second generation. obd2 code readers are used to diagnose an automobile's systems and components as well as the emissions system. obd2 scanners come in a variety of makes and models, but they all have one thing in common: they do not require a computer or any other additional equipment to read codes from your vehicle's engine control unit (ecu) that can be stored in its memory.

Quite honestly I've been pretty happy with the current state of the industry when it comes to driving assistance technology and "lane keep assist" type features that are available from most manufacturers today. They all have different names but fundamentally those technologies depend on a camera and some other sensors that help keep your car between the lanes. This is a huge benefit when it comes to long road trips. However, it wasn't until last week at a General Motors test track outside of Detroit that I started to realize just how awesome Super Cruise can be.

The Lexus RC 350 F-sport is a driving enthusiast’s dream come true. Boasting Lexus’ trademark luxury and performance, the Lexus RC 350 F-sport will be available in two versions: an RWD version for those who love to drive and an AWD version for those who need some extra traction on wet roads or simply more stability when accelerating around corners. Lexus has been making waves with its beautiful sportscars lately, and this new model is no exception.

Mazda has made its name in motorsports but more recently their focus on vehicles has been a more affordable luxury product that sits somewhere between mass-consumer brands like Chevy or Toyota and Cadillac or Lexus. Instead of splitting the brand they have developed a fantastic line of cars that drive well and are designed around maximizing the experience of driving.

Genesis is the new hot thing in the world of affordable luxury vehicles and so there are undoubtedly a lot of compromises when it comes to this space. It's one of those situations where you could compare it to something else out there but that inevitably means adding 10s of thousands of dollars to the sticker price. At the lowest trim levels, the Genesis G80 initially feels like a sexed up Hyundai but as you begin to drive it, you realize that this is indeed something special. As you proceed to higher trim levels though, Genesis as a brand truly takes off into a category of it's own that defies simply being considered "budget luxury". 

Last week, the folks from INEOS Automotive brought me to a mountain top on the Appalachian Trail near Fairfax, Virginia to check out the INEOS Grenadier. Now when I first got the invite, like most of you, I had never heard of INEOS or the Grenadier before. But a quick Google search turned up some photos of a pretty rugged looking truck, so I was excited to learn more about the Grenadier and see what it was all about. Since the vehicle we were previewing was an early pre-production prototype, we didn't get a chance to drive it. Hopefully I'll get the chance to take one off-roading in the future.

Sometimes there's a vehicle that should be a home-run but just leaves you wondering who it was designed for. That's the feeling I got following our week with the all-new 2021 Toyota Venza. On the surface, Venza looks chic and sporty, somewhat of a cross between an Avalon and a Rav4. It wants to have the handling of a sports sedan, with the space and comfort of an SUV. Sadly, despite looking sharp, it doesn't fulfil the sporty promise that we were hoping it would.

Volvo used to stand for one thing only - safety. I remember a story from when I was a kid growing up where a truck carrying cinderblocks overturned on a family driving a Volvo and they all survived. This was the car if you didn't care about looks but wanted a well designed safe car for your family. Flash forward a few decades and Volvo got sold to Chinese automaker Geely and I had my doubts on if the brand could survive. Thankfully, it has and the Volvo XC90 T8 that we drove last month still maintains that safety reputation but it is now fun to drive and has a uniquely Scandinavian luxury design, especially in the cabin.

When Ford, in 2017, formally announced that they were bringing Bronco back, the off road enthusiast world lost their shit. This was one of the biggest brands in off road history and now it was coming back in exactly the right time where we have the most advanced suspension technology in history and a wide variety of engines that are designed to be robust enough to handle virtually anything we can throw at it on the trail. Then... a year later a new "Bronco" emerged and that quickly got derided as simply the "Baby Bronco", a vehicle simply riding on the big brother's coat tails. In many ways, that is accurate since I'm not sure the Bronco Sport would survive on it's own if it were called something else - for instance if it were simply called the Escape Sport.

Volkswagen's offerings in the United States have changed significantly over the past several years. While the brand was once defined by the classic VW Bug and similarly small sedans, today the company has two of the best SUVs on the market and we can hope that one day the Amarok mid-sized pickup will make it here as well. Sadly though, that's much more of a challenge due to tariffs and an increasingly competitive mid-sized truck space. In my previous experience with VW the cars were "nice" but skewed feminine and honestly something that just didn't appeal to my tastes. Then at the 2020 Chicago Auto Show I had a chance to check out the Atlas, but it took me a year to actually secure one for a road trip review.

You guys all know that I'm gulping the EV Cool-Aid like a guy who's been wandering around in the desert for the past few years. Electric Vehicle technology has finally reached the point where it's not just practical... but is also able to provide some real world benefits to design and engineering that transcend simple sustainability as the reason you should considering buying it. This is why I'm so excited about what Ford unveiled this week for the F-150 Lightening, due out in 2022.

For the past decade, truck launches and truck comparisons have been as much about stats as they are actual functionality. This transition began with the introduction of the next-generation Ram a few years ago but Ford completes the transition with the new F-150. Where previously we were talking about incrementally boasting of more towing, more hauling, more power... Ford has that, but what makes it special is everything else. I feel like we've gotten to the point where EVERYTHING tows more than most of us will ever need, so let's start focusing on a truck that delivers in other areas that can make our lives and livelihoods better.