I rented a third-generation (2005—2012) Renault Clio RS 200 from Ringfreaks.de for my first ever Nürburgring track day. The car was a fully prepared race car that seemed like an excellent introduction to the Nürburgring for several reasons. First, I intended to share the car with my brother and do as many laps as possible… Continue reading Review: Ringfreaks Renault Clio RS 200
Our rental car for our trip from the Frankfurt airport to the Nürburgring is a 2019 Audi A5 Sportback 40 with the S package. Decoded, this means our Audi is a four-door hatchback with a gasoline 2.0L turbo engine, FWD and Audi’s sports suspension. It is a good-looking car, and reasonably spacious too. The S… Continue reading Review: 2019 Audi A5 Sportback 40
I’m going to admit that I’ve been a Tesla Model 3 skeptic. My skepticism wasn’t based on driving experience with Tesla, but rather umbrage over the grandiose and over-promising proclamations from Elon Musk. I try to under promise and over deliver in my life, while Elon has a tendency to do the opposite. What I… Continue reading Review: 2018 Tesla Model 3 Mid Range
Curiosity, disappointment, acceptance. These are the emotional stages I went through when receiving a 2019 BMW X3 xDrive30i as a dealership loaner. You see, I’d hoped to draw the X3 M40i, a giggle-inducing SUV I briefly sampled last year and an SUV which seems honestly ready to romp on a mountain road. The xDrive30i? It’s… Continue reading Review: 2019 BMW X3 xDrive30i
It has been four years since I last took my 2011 BMW M3 to the track. I remembered that my M3 was good on the track, but I forgot exactly how good it is. The track is truly the M3’s spiritual home. Today’s track day was at Thunderhill on the 3-mile track (CCW with the… Continue reading Long Term Update: 2011 BMW M3 at Thunderhill
After years of making dynamically excellent sedans and a financially excellent (for GM) large SUV—the Escalade—Cadillac is following the money and rolling out new small and midsize SUVs. The smallest of this new litter is the XT4, a compact SUV that fits between BMW’s X1 and X3 for size and price. The XT4 is sharply… Continue reading Review: 2019 Cadillac XT4 AWD Luxury
From the get-go of the Model 3, Tesla put a target on the back of the BMW 3-series and aimed to make a better compact luxury sedan. The Model 3’s price range of $35k to $71k mirrors the BMW 3-series, and the two cars have similar passenger space, performance and handling capabilities. Did Tesla really… Continue reading Comparison: 2019 Tesla Model 3 vs. 2019 BMW 330i
The king is dead! Long live the king! After seven years of the F30 BMW 3-series, BMW has delivered the next generation 3-series, code-named the G20 chassis. The reboot is very welcome. The F30 was decidedly “meh” upon its release and only improved incrementally in its mid-cycle update. My chief complaint about the F30 was… Continue reading Review: 2019 BMW 330i
I am the antepenultimate driver. I qualified for BMW’s 2018 Ultimate Driver Competition by turning the fastest autocross lap at the San Francisco stop of BMW’s 2018 Ultimate Driver Tour. Me and 14 other drivers from the other cities on the 2018 tour and from BMW’s 2018 M Schools were flown to Palm Springs in… Continue reading BMW Ultimate Driver Competition 2018
The M3 is BMW’s star sports car and the workhorse of BMW’s Performance Center West driving school. Paying patrons flock to the school to learn how to drive these icons as they deserve to be driven: Through twists, around tracks, and in smokey skids. Robust, agile, and comfortable for four, the M3 is the perfect… Continue reading Review: 2018 BMW M3 Competition and M2
Mike's Steering Column 