Cars

The first time you get on your bike is an exciting moment. You were so proud of your newly acquired machine, and so excited to start riding. If you’re like most riders, chances are that not long after that momentous purchase, someone tried to burst your bubble by telling you how terribly unsafe motorcycles are. Maybe they even offered up anecdotal evidence about a friend of a friend of a cousin’s next-door neighbor’s son who died in a tragic motorcycle accident. Let's take a look at some of those common motorcycle myths.

While I obviously love my trucks and brutish SUVs, I have a soft spot in my heart for EVs. Not only are they pushing the limits of design, manufacturing, and technology, they are often a good insight into technologies that will soon make their way to other categories as well. We're starting to see this with hybrid powertrains appearing in trucks and soon we're going to see other features that were pioneered by EV designers. I first experienced the Nissan LEAF at the Chicago Auto Show back in 2011 and it's captivated me ever since. Today though, the LEAF sits in a unique position of combining all the elements needed to be a perfect vehicle for urban commuters.

Bondurant School of High Performance Driving announced today the addition of a new drag racing program, breaking new ground as the first of its kind to offer professional drag racing instruction to the public behind the wheel of the most powerful street legal cars in the world on July 27 and August 17, 2019, with additional courses being announced in the coming weeks.  Courses are limited to only 16 students per class and cost is $1,999 per driver.

Ford is doing something special for drivers looking for something different than the typical SUV. With the launch last year of the Ford Edge ST they introduced a new segment, the "Performance SUV" and along with that they created an entire driving experience designed specifically for those owners. To give us a taste of what it was like, they invited us to experience exactly what Ford Edge ST owners will on a one-day school in Park City, Utah. With a combination of driving some of America's most beautiful roads combined with instruction by awesome instructors and a chance to safely test features of the Edge ST, this was a pretty awesome experience.

The Ford Explorer is one of my absolute favorite SUVs since it first debuted in 1991. It has represented a sense of American style and freedom as the ultimate road trip vehicle able to adeptly transverse paved and unpaved roads. Now in it's sixth generation the Ford Explorer has added a new version to the line - the Ford Explorer ST. A performance version that we had the opportunity to spend a few hours with last week in Park City, Utah. 

When it comes to taking care of your family family, things like good looks and raw speed tend to fall aside and safety features become a primary concern. This is your family care after all and while how fast you can take that corner might be important with your weekend car, there are other more important things when it comes to taking care of your kids and making sure that they can get back and forth to school, errands, and of course the all important summer family road trip.

The BMW Performance Center in Thermal, California (Palm Springs) is one of my favorite places to visit. It's an interesting experience that sits in a great middle ground between a "racing school" and an "exotic driving experience". While those two ends of the spectrum tend to dominate this space, on both of my visits to the Performance Center I've found that their staff and facilities scales well to what the client wants and needs to learn. What I like about this approach is that your takeaways will be far more valuable than simply a a big smile on your face. These are skills that will ultimately make you a better driver and a better man.

Driven by Cadillac’s latest turbocharging technology and building on more than 15 years of performance credentials, the first-ever 2020 CT4-V and CT5-V were unveiled today, expanding choices for the brand’s V-Series performance sub-brand.

Nothing lasts forever. There will always come a time when we need to say goodbye to our beloved vehicles, no matter how heavy our hearts feel. Whatever your reasons are for selling, you have a responsibility to both the buyer and your car. However, your car has to be in tip-top shape so that it is in a good position to fetch those dollars you need to part with it.

Since its debut nearly two years ago, the Kia Stinger has quickly become a crowd favorite, and at the New York International Auto Show, Kia Motors America gave driving purists yet another compelling reason to check out Kia’s highest performing sport sedan. Limited to just 800 units, the special edition Stinger GTS punches up its on-road prowess with a newly developed dynamic all-wheel drive system (D-AWD) that inspires more spirited driving. With sport-inspired styling elements including genuine carbon fiber parts and a splashy new color that demands even more attention, the limited edition GTS is the one automotive enthusiasts will be lining up to drive.

In the past several years, a lot of exciting tech has found its way onto new cars of all price points. Even base models today are packed with technology that makes driving more enjoyable. Whether it's meant to improve driving safety or just make vehicles more fun to drive, the new technology is now much more available to the average driver than it once was. In the past, many of these features were only found in six-figure automobiles. Today though, you can find versions of these in most new cars, but they come together nicely in the Cadillac CT6 Platinum.

I had an interesting experience recently when Toyota invited me to drive the all-new Toyota Corolla during their launch event in Savannah, GA. For some reason they were excited to make sure we experienced it while driving stick. While other manufacturers are promoting how they have 9 and 10 speed automatic transmissions and ever faster and more efficient technology, Toyota seemingly wanted to drag me back in time. What's even more shocking is that the model that featured a manual transmission wasn't even the cheapest base model. It was actually pretty well equipped with style and comfort. So why should you care about a manual transmission car in 2019? Let's take a look.

How to you make the Cadillac Escalade is already an SUV with attitude and is one of my favorite luxury rides. Now it's gotten a bad-ass upgrade from the folks at AddArmor who turned it into an absolutely stunning executive protection vehicle. I dream of one day rolling through the streets in one these but for now I'll just have to be satisfied by the photos...

The Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk is what would happen if a Dodge Charger Hellcat and a Grand Cherokee had a baby. This is an absolutely ridiculous concept but this is one of my favorite vehicles that I've driven in the past few years. Imagine all of the comfort and style that the Grand Cherokee is known for... but with a 6.4L V8 707hp Hellcat engine up front propelling the vehicle to a blistering 0-60 of 3.5 second. Oh and since it's still the Grand Cherokee is has 7,200 lb towing capacity, super comfortable rear leg room, and plenty of trunk space for all the gear you need for a weekend getaway.

Generally the SUV space is pretty boring today and this is especially true among midsize crossovers. This space has been dominated by generally bland vehicles that are designed to eek out that extra MGP and be as inoffensive to the most potential buyers. Chevrolet already has a fantastic stable of vehicles in this space including the Trax, Equinox, and Traverse. While these each fit their niche well, what was missing is something that buyers can have an emotional reaction to. I want to feel emotionally drawn to a car and be able to have fun driving it - while still satisfying my needs for space and capability. That's exactly what the 2019 Chevy Blazer does and why they invited me to join them as one of the first people to drive it.

The current generation Dodge Challenger “borrows” more than a few bodylines and exterior cues from the classic, and highly collectible, first generation 1971 Dodge Challenger. FCA knows well enough to leave the new/old bodylines alone as Challenger has steadily been increasing sales and has reached a milestone; it has surpassed the once mighty Camaro to become the no. 2 best-selling retro pony. In 2018 Mustang sales were 75,842 (7.4 % drop), Challenger with its 10-year old platform, had a sales increase (3%) to reach 66,716 units.  As for Camaro, the bottom dropped out as sales slid to 50,963 units (25% drop) in 2018.

The Chevrolet Corvette is one of the most iconic cars in the world. Since 1953 it has captured the minds of men (and women) around the world for it's style and performance but also for being a fabulous example of American automotive design ability. While there are other American-made sports and muscle cars - none come close to the way Corvette combines performance and style into a lifestyle that is larger than just another fast car. However, few people actually get to experience how amazing this car really is since at highway speeds and on regular roads it's just a great looking car that turns head and goes fast. That all changed for me when I got invited to spend a day with Chevrolet driving a few different versions of this American icon around the track at the Ron Fellows Performance Driving School in Pahrump, Nevada - just outside Las Vegas.

Do you dream of driving the General Lee? How about the Batmobile or the Back to the Future Delorean? So do we! Here's our roundup of our favorite movie cars...

Toyota is the undisputed leader of the compact crossover SUV space and now they've made it even better. With the launch of the 2019 RAV4, Toyota has made it bigger, more aggressive, more fun, more stylish and generally more everything that buyers would want to see. Ultimately though it's not perfect but Toyota's new design theory seems to be on the right path to create great vehicles that are more than just "reliable". To celebrate the launch of this new vehicle, we tested it out on a road trip along the California coast including the twists and turns of Big Sur and the mountains of Carmel Valley.