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Winter Socks for Tires

Wheel Bearings
Wheel Bearings
Winter Socks for Tires
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Nicole is back and she has the new Honda Accord Hybrid Sport! Robbie is back and he’s got thoughts on the Volvo C40 and Electrify America! Sam gets a bunch of electric miles out of the Alfa Romeo Tonale Ti eAWD. In the news, the Chevy Blazer EV we discussed last week is having some major software issues and GM has issued a stop sale order. Tesla’s big recall hasn’t actually address the problems with Autopilot as expected and they are also having trouble making batteries for the Cybertruck. Scooter sharing pioneer Bird goes bankrupt and Hyperloop One shuts down for good. Porsche and Aston Martin may be debut brands for next-generation Apple CarPlay and the first Cadillac Celestiq is spotted on Woodward Avenue. Our friends at TFL test winter tires vs all-seasons vs chains vs snow socks and you might be surprised at the… Read More »Winter Socks for Tires

Strategic Crown Vic Reserve

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Wheel Bearings
Strategic Crown Vic Reserve
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This week Robbie and his wife are visiting New York for the holidays and Nicole and her hubbie are hitting the Christmas markets along their European river cruise route. Fortunately, Stephanie Brinley is back to join Sam. Steph has been driving the Nissan Leaf SV+ while Sam spent time in the Chevrolet Colorado Trail Boss and the Kia EV9. Stephanie and Sam both got to drive the new Chevrolet Blazer EV and share their thoughts good and otherwise on the vehicle and the new Carplay-free infotainment system. Cadillac also dropped the first images of its fourth electric SUV, the three-row Vistiq coming as a 2026 model. The Los Angeles County Sherrif’s department was such a fan of the Ford Crown Victoria that when production ended 11 years ago, they ordered a stockpile and they still have hundreds in service. Tesla had a big recall this… Read More »Strategic Crown Vic Reserve

Are We Ready To Swap?

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Wheel Bearings
Are We Ready To Swap?
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Tanya joins us again this week as Nicole’s European Christmas vacation continues. She spent time with the Toyota Sequoia and the Honda Civic sedan. Meanwhile Sam spent a week with the updated BMW X5 eDrive50 that went 45 miles on a charge of the new larger battery pack. In the news, friend of the show Jamie Kitman shared his first driving impressions of the Fisker Ocean and concluded, that it’s not yet fully baked. Stellantis is winding down production of the Chrysler 300 and partnering with Ample to test battery module swapping for a fleet of 500es in a car sharing service in Madrid. Once batteries reach the end of their life, they need to be recycled and Toyota is partnering with Cirba to develop a collection and distribution system for hybrid and electric vehicle batteries to go to recycling centers. Honda has teased the… Read More »Are We Ready To Swap?

Better Late Than Never?

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Wheel Bearings
Better Late Than Never?
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This week Sam drove the 2024 GMC Canyon AT4 and guest host Tanya Gazdik tells us about her experience with a rental Jeep Renegade in Utah and the new Honda Civic. Tanya also got a first drive in the new Toyota Tacoma. Almost 4 years to the day after smashing the windows on the Cybertruck concept, Tesla finally delivered the first 10 production examples to customers. It’s both less and more than the original concept although it looks pretty much the same (apart from the triangular side mirrors and the ludicrously large windshield wiper). Another EV startup Fisker is facing some major challenges and is cutting production for 2023 to conserve cash. The IRS says no tax credits for EVs with Chinese parts or minerals in the batteries (unless you lease) and Connecticut is pausing efforts to ban sales of new ICE vehicles by 2035.… Read More »Better Late Than Never?

Not A Daily Driver

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Wheel Bearings
Not A Daily Driver
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It’s just Robbie and Sam today as Nicole starts a European vacation with her hubbie. Next week we should have a third participant. Sam drove the 2024 Ford F-250 King Ranch which is a really impressive truck for doing work, but trucks this size have no business being used as daily drivers. Robbie had another stint in the Kia EV6, this time a RWD GT-Line variant. Motorsports has become increasingly important to Hyundai, but its new performance standard bearer, the Ioniq 5 N has nowhere to compete, so Hyundai might just create a one-make series for it. Next year, you’ll be able to buy Hyundai vehicles on Amazon. Porsche has a new Panamera with more electric driving range, Magna will be engineering the new Scout electric off-roaders from VW, and New Jersey will ban new internal combustion cars, but will it let people charge their… Read More »Not A Daily Driver

Frunk-Gating

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Wheel Bearings
Frunk-Gating
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This week Sam drove the 2024 Hyundai Kona and also got a bit of wheel time in the new Volvo EX30. Nicole got another stint in the Subaru Crosstrek, this time in Sport trim. In the news, there’s lots of stuff from the LA Auto Show including the 2025 Toyota Camry and Crown Signia, Kia’s EV3 and EV4 concepts, the Genesis GV80 Coupe with an updated interior and the debut of the Lucid Gravity. EVs are getting a new on-board diagnostics standard and the Honda Prelude is headed for production as a hybrid sport coupe. Sam had an interview with Lucid software/electronics chief Mike Bell, chief engineer Eric Bach and CEO Peter Rawlinson. Links Cadillac Optiq2025 Toyota Camry2025 Toyota Crown SigniaEVs get standard OBDLucid GravityKia EV3 and EV4Honda Prelude headed to productionNew GV80 interior Lucid Gravity design walk around with Derek Jenkins Lucid Gravity HMI… Read More »Frunk-Gating

Appropriately Named

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Wheel Bearings
Appropriately Named
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This week it’s just Nicole and Sam. Since she last joined us, Nicole has been driving a fabulous wagon, the Volvo V60 Cross-Country and the Mercedes-AMG GLS 63 high-performance SUV. Sam has had the Chevrolet Tahoe RST with a big, classic American V8. Sam got to drive a bunch of newer models from the BMW group including the i5 eDrive40, i5 M60, 530i, XM and the fabulous and quiet Rolls-Royce Spectre. Nicole ran the Mille Miglia Warmup again, scoring better than last year, but unfortunately falling one slot in the standings. At Polestar Day, Sam saw all the new stuff coming from the Volvo spin-off brand including getting rides in the P3 and P4. Nicole got to try out the new Volvo EX30 in Spain and NHTSA warns drivers not to bedazzle their air-bag equipped steering wheels. We also answer a listener question about liability… Read More »Appropriately Named

Don’t Call It A Hybrid

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Wheel Bearings
Don't Call It A Hybrid
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Nicole is on the road this week so it’s just Sam and Robbie. But Robbie was flying back and forth to Singapore so he didn’t drive anything. Sam had the new Subaru Impreza and a short stint with the Kia EV9. In the news, details of the Stellantis tentative agreement with the UAW are out and confirm plans for a new midsize pickup as well as several EVs and where they will be built. Ram is refreshing the 1500 pickup with new engines and grilles and adding the “range extended paradigm changer” aka the Ramcharger. Just don’t call it a hybrid. Hyundai has cut prices on the Ioniq 6 sedan for 2024 and Porsche is adopting Android Automotive for its infotainment from 2025. Or friends at TFL check out the Nissan Safari Z concept at SEMA and Sam saw the original in Japan. We finish… Read More »Don’t Call It A Hybrid

The Tardis of EVs

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Wheel Bearings
The Tardis of EVs
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Sam is back from Korea and Japan and has driven the 2024 Chevrolet Trax. Nicole has the Ford Maverick Tremor and spends time riding on a GoCycle e-Bike. Robbie spent the week with the Subaru Crosstrek. In the news, Sam has highlights from the Japan Mobility Show in Tokyo including the Mazda Iconic SP concept, the Infiniti Vision Qe concept which previews a new electric sedan coming for 2026, and the Nissan Hyper Force concept. Honda showed off a new hybrid sports coupe that brings back the Prelude name. Lexus also had some concepts including the LF-ZC sedan (also coming in 2026) and an off-road equipped RZ. Subaru also dropped a coupe concept called Sport Mobility with no details. Finall Sam got to try out a couple of Japanese market Nissans, the Sakura electric Kei car and the series hybrid X-Trail (sold in America as… Read More »The Tardis of EVs

Falling Short and Expensive

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Wheel Bearings
Falling Short and Expensive
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Sam is in the middle of a 2 week jaunt in Korea and Japan so it’s just Nicole and Robbie today. Robbie has the Ford F-150 Lightning again and Nicole is driving the refreshed Kia Seltos. In the news, Toyota dropped a bunch of images of new EV concepts it will highlighting at the Japan Mobility Show. Mercedes dealers are apparently having a hard time moving EVs. We’ll see if Tesla has an equally hard time selling Cybertrucks soon because they apparently will be a lot more expensive than the announced prices back in 2019. For those that were hoping for a big range boost on the refreshed Model 3, think again. Stellantis is saving some cash by withdrawing from SEMA, LA auto show and CES. GM’s new Brightdrop Zevo 6 delivery van is being transformed into an electric camper and more workers are being… Read More »Falling Short and Expensive