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The End of an Era

Wheel Bearings
Wheel Bearings
The End of an Era
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This week in the garage, Nicole has the first of a pair of very different three-row crossovers. First up is the Toyota Highlander. Next week she will have something just a bit louder. Sam shares his thoughts on the turbocharged Mazda3 hatchback and despite still being on winter tires, it impresses. Dan wraps up his time with the new Acura MDX and discovers it is quite different from most of its direct competition and he also gets a taste of the new Lincoln Nautilus Black Label with its 13-inch touchscreen In the news, we discuss the US launch of the Mazda MX-30 and the return of the Wankel rotary as a range extender. GM launches a new cloud-based navigation app for recent OnStar users that don’t have built-in navigation and aren’t using the maps from their smartphones. Dan interviews Chrysler Pacifica chief engineer Brian Swanson.… Read More »The End of an Era

It’s Infrastructure Week!

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Wheel Bearings
It's Infrastructure Week!
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Nicole is recording on a new mic this week while Dan struggled with ancient computer. Sam drove the 2021 Hyundai Elantra and has thoughts about the base powertrain. Dan finished his time in the Mustang Mach-E and moved on to the new 2022 Acura MDX while Nicole drove one of the last of the big sedans, the Toyota Avalon. In the news, the White House released its infrastructure plan and we discuss some of the transportation related aspects. Kia also revealed its first new electric model off the Hyundai Motor Group E-GMP architecture, the EV6 and we wrap with listener questions about excessive badging, road use taxes and climbing prices of old sports cars. Links White House infrastructure fact sheet Kia EV6 Wheel Bearings has launched a Patreon. If you like the show and would like to chip in toward the cost of producing and… Read More »It’s Infrastructure Week!

Nested Nostalgia

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Wheel Bearings
Nested Nostalgia
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This week Nicole Wakelin officially joins the team as one of our hosts. To kick things off she reviews a boring non-descript hybrid, the 2021 Acura NSX in Indy Yellow Pearl. Sam spent the week with a Volkswagen Atlas Sport Cross and warns to not even bother trying to use the built-in voice recognition, just use wireless Android Auto or Apple Carplay. Dan finally had his chance to drive the Ford Mustang Mach-E. In the news, Tesla is now allowing customers to buy cars with bitcoin, but you might want to think twice before you do that or at least consult your accountant. Jeep and Electrify America are setting up solar powered chargers at popular trailheads like the Rubicon and Rivian is also building its own charging network. Links Buying a Tesla with bitcoin will get you a big tax bill Jeep and Electrify America… Read More »Nested Nostalgia

Reporting From The Middle Of America

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Wheel Bearings
Reporting From The Middle Of America
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This week it’s mostly just Dan and Sam. Dan continues his run of big Ford trucks with the F-350 Super Duty with the off-road Tremor package. Sam spent the week with the Honda Odyssey Elite still equipped with a built-in Shop-Vac. The conversation diverted into a lesson on in-car audio systems. In the news, the incredible Sabine Schmitz died this week. Schmitz was one of the world’s most experienced racers at the Nurburgring as well as driving ‘Ring taxis. While none of us had met her, Sam shares some of his own experiences riding shotgun with racers including Joachim Winkelhock at the Ring and Juan Pablo Montoya around the GM Milford Road Course in a Corvette ZR1. We also discussed some of the announcements from Volkswagen’s Power Day and a couple of the concepts Jeep is unveiling for the 2021 Jeep Easter Safari including the… Read More »Reporting From The Middle Of America

Ch-Ch-Changes

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Wheel Bearings
Ch-Ch-Changes
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This week in the garage, Rebecca raves (mostly) about the 2021 Toyota Camry TRD V6 sedan and Dan has decidedly mixed feelings about the Lincoln Aviator Black Label before jumping back into the Chevy Bolt to demonstrate that it has plenty of range capability. Sam catches up on a backlog with the 2021 Nissan Titan which is improved, but is it enough? Sam also had his first experience in the Cadillac Escalade since he reviewed a hybrid back in 2009. This time around he’s genuinely impressed although he’s not sure the augmented reality instrument cluster display is a great idea. In the news, there were big EV battery announcements from GM and LG Chem with a lot more production capacity on the way as well as the potential for cells with double the energy density. Finally, Jeep introduced its new full-size body-on-frame SUVs, the Wagoneer… Read More »Ch-Ch-Changes

More Questions, Answers and Names

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Wheel Bearings
More Questions, Answers and Names
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We tackle a backlog of listener questions along with our usual garage segment. Rebecca and Sam got an early drive in the 2022 Chevrolet Bolt EUV, Rebecca also had the Kia Telluride and Hyundai Palisade, so we compared.

Nilay Patel On Mustangs, Raptors, Apple Cars and Touchscreens

Wheel Bearings
Wheel Bearings
Nilay Patel On Mustangs, Raptors, Apple Cars and Touchscreens
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This week Rebecca is off dealing with house stuff so Dan and Sam are handling the garage. Dan got to drive a brand new old truck, the 2021 Toyota Tundra SR5. Sam had the 2021 Ford Bronco Sport Badlands with the 2.0-liter turbo four cylinder and found the limits of traction with 4WD, all-terrain tires and deep snow. We also discussed an email from a listener that had an Alfa Romeo Giulia and now drives a Genesis G70. Nilay Patel, editor in chief of The Verge then joins us for a chat about technology and cars including touchscreens and human-machine-interface, apple cars, moving out of the city in a pandemic and driving Mustangs and Raptors. Links Nilay Patel Decoder Podcast with Nilay Patel The Vergecast Apple car thoughts from Sam Ford Bronco Sport first drive Alfa Romeo Giulia Wheel Bearings has launched a Patreon. If… Read More »Nilay Patel On Mustangs, Raptors, Apple Cars and Touchscreens

Who Will Win The Electric Truck Battle?

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Wheel Bearings
Who Will Win The Electric Truck Battle?
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This week, the Volkswagen Passat leaves Rebecca a little bored, while the Ford F-150 King Ranch Hybrid powered smiles from Sam, and Dan made an Ikea run with the ideal vehicle: the 2021 Honda Odyssey Elite.

We talk about interest in electrified pickups, Jaguar and Ford commiting to EVs in Europe, and the mailbag updates us on listener Mach-E buying experiences and we got some feedback about our bad attitudes, too. Speaking of bad attitudes, Rebecca is trying to buy a car and getting the run-around, instead.

chevrolet bolt euv, ford mustang mach-e charging in the snow, 2021 chevrolet tahoe,

Extremely Underwhelming Vehicle

Wheel Bearings
Wheel Bearings
Extremely Underwhelming Vehicle
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This week on the show, the wonderful Nicole Wakelin joins our usual gang to share her thoughts on cars, SUVs, shopping for cars and more. Nicole has been driving the 2021 Chevrolet Tahoe Premier, while Rebecca had the new Ford Bronco Sport. Sam had the Mustang Mach-E in some frigid weather and shares thoughts on range and charging in the winter. Continuing with the Mach-E we dive into listener mail earlier in the show and talk about the challenges posed by traditional dealers to EV adoption. We also address questions about small engine durability and renting SUVs when needed. Finally, we talk about the refreshed 2022 Chevrolet Bolt EV and the new Bolt EUV. Links 2022 Chevrolet Bolt and Bolt EUV 2021 Ford Bronco Sport first driver Wheel Bearings has launched a Patreon. If you like the show and would like to chip in toward… Read More »Extremely Underwhelming Vehicle

Electric Vehicles for Teenagers

Wheel Bearings
Wheel Bearings
Electric Vehicles for Teenagers
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This week on the show you’ll be shocked to learn that we have more utility vehicles in the garage. Sam kicks off the discussion with the 2021 Kia Telluride SX. While it shares its architecture with the Hyundai Pallisade, it looks and feels distinctly different and will appeal to a different customer. Meanwhile in Connecticut, Rebecca gets her turn in Ford’s new EV, the 2021 Mustang Mach-E. Up the road in Boston, Dan has been putting in time in the brand-new Cadillac Escalade and shockingly he doesn’t hate the 37-inches worth of display. We mostly skipped the news this week to focus on answering a backlog of listener questions (please keep those coming, we love to hear from you). One bit of news did creep in, the big Ford-Google cloud/android deal. We also address questions about built-in dash-cam functionality, used EVs for teenagers, a listener’s… Read More »Electric Vehicles for Teenagers