I doubt anyone at Mercedes intended the E63S wagon and GLC 43 SUV to be cross-shopped, but here I am hopping back-to-back between this pair of oddballs. It is because of the wonder of depreciation that there is a reason to compare these cars. An E63S wagon has an MSRP of $100k, which is a… Continue reading Test Drive: 2018 Mercedes-AMG GLC 43
In the last five years, there have been just two gonzo wagons sold in the USA. As a used wagon shopper that limits my searches to the Mercedes Benz E63S and the Cadillac CTS-V. Today on deck is the E63. The salesman swears that this E63 was literally driven by a little old lady from… Continue reading Test Drive: 2014 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG S-Model 4Matic Wagon
A wave of new and refreshed consumer electric vehicles is arriving on American shores in 2017. Among others, fresh off the boat is Hyundai’s new Ioniq Electric. As Hyundai’s first pure electric vehicle for the United States, it competes at the $30,000 price point with other 125-mile-range EVs like the updated Nissan Leaf and refreshed… Continue reading Test Drive: 2017 Hyundai Ioniq Electric
The Cadillac CTS-V Sport Wagon was the first car I ever reviewed and I still remember it fondly to this day. Brutally fast, surprisingly agile, and comfortable too, the V wagon was a have-your-cake-and-eat-it-too proposition, so long as your cake was perpetually dosed by a waterfall of premium fuel. The CTS-V wagon made such an… Continue reading Test Drive: 2011 Cadillac CTS-V Sport Wagon
What do you expect of a Dodge Challenger? A loutish muscle car in the mold of muscle cars of yor? A machine for mulleted, knuckle draggers? These are some of the things I expected of the Dodge Challenger. Frankly, the Challenger is a car I overlook. My admiration goes to the Mustang and Camaro, muscle… Continue reading Review: 2017 Dodge Challenger R/T
Up until recently, if you wanted a performance wagon in America, you had two choices: the Cadillac CTS-V and the Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG. I love the CTS-V wagon; it was the first review I ever wrote, and it has been turning my head ever since. The E63 wagon has always been cool in my eyes,… Continue reading Test Drive: 2014 Mercedes-Benz E63 S AMG 4MATIC
An errant test drive of a Cayenne GTS piqued my interest in Porsche’s full-size SUV. Its V8 sang like one of the great tenors. Its chassis discussed the intricate details of handling and steering feel like a Roads Scholar. (You see what I did there?) Suddenly there seemed to be a have-your-cake-and-eat-it-too solution to the… Continue reading Review: 2014 Porsche Cayenne
SUVs are the plan B—plan C?—in my garage filling schemes; I gravitate first towards cars from manufacturer skunkworks like BMW’s M and Mercedes’ AMG. And if the cars are too small, I start scheming about station wagons and Thule cargo pods. But SUVs have something even the larger wagons can’t provide: width. If comfortable rear… Continue reading Test Drive: 2014 Porsche Cayenne GTS (and Diesel, Base, S)
America may or may not have invented the practice of speed trials on dry lakebeds, but we certainly popularized it and made it part of our identity. In the early 20th century, Southern California’s dry lakebeds were the epicenter of America’s land-speed record attempts until speeds increased so high that more real estate was needed.… Continue reading Review: 2017 Chevrolet Camaro SS
I recently fell in love with a 2005 Porsche 911 Carrera S. The car was flawed in many ways, but it was much, much, much more right than wrong, and I haven’t been able to get it out of my head since. More than anything else, I’ve been yearning to learn how the 911 changed after its… Continue reading Test Drive: 2011 Porsche 911 Carrera
Mike's Steering Column 