I have 24 hours with a Mercedes GLC 300 4Matic. This should be prime one-on-one time for me to explore Mercedes’ best-selling model of 2020, but I have a problem. I’m preoccupied with its little brother, the GLB 250 4Matic. When I drove it last year, I concluded that the GLB was sufficiently luxurious yet… Continue reading Review: 2021 Mercedes GLC 300 4Matic isn’t the Family Benz
Dark wood and silver metal shine purple, red, pink, then blue. Let me direct your attention to the Mercedes E-Class. You should know it as a stalwart of the Mercedes range. For generations, the E-Class was the quintessential luxury sedan, the best in its segment if you wanted impeccable quality and comfort conveyance for four… Continue reading 2019 Mercedes E300 is a Black Jacket with Fuchsia Lining
My inlaws are on their fourth Dodge Durango. They started with a first-generation 2001 Durango and ran it for nearly 200k miles. Their second, third and fourth Durangos were back-to-back leases from the SUV’s third-generation. What started as the truck for a family-of-five and a toy puller is now their empty-nester runabout. I’ve borrowed their… Continue reading Review: 2021 Dodge Durango GT The Big Stick Steps Lightly
After a short and troubled stint with a 2016 Mercedes C450 AMG, my brother has punted on his silver-star sedan and picked up a 2018 Audi S4 Premium Plus. The move from Stuttgart's stormy skies to Ingolstadt's greener grass trades one luxury ride for another, and I'm curious to see Audi's take on the sports… Continue reading Review: 2018 Audi S4 is a Quiet Stunner
The Camaro SS 1LE may be the car I should’ve bought. In fact, after failed attempts to buy used AMG GT Ss, 911 GT3s or Evora 400s, I nearly purchased an SS 1LE. It wasn’t really a compromise pick: the SS was the best blend of a kid-friendly, comfortable daily and track-ready sports car. But… Continue reading Review: 2019 Chevrolet Camaro SS 1LE 2SS Drive It Like You Stole It
V6 up front, rear wheels driven and seating for two. Sounds like the makings of a driver's car, right? Well, the curious thing is that even though the Ford Transit 250 cargo van is nearly 20 feet long and over 8 feet tall, it did satisfy my love for driving! The van was a means to an… Continue reading Review: 2020 Ford Transit 250 Delivers the Goods
I'm attending the BMW Performance Driving School at Thermal for a private driving lesson. This isn't my first visit; I took lessons here in 2019 as a contestant for BMW's Ultimate Driver Competition. The experience was a blast, so I'm back for more! During the competition, my weak spot was finding speed out of the… Continue reading The BMW Performance Driving School Deserves More than a Quick Visit
When I splurged and paid an extra $1 per day for the Enterprise "Manager's Special" instead of the cheapest sub-compact rental, I hoped I'd get a Toyota Corolla or a Chevy Malibu for the price of a Chevy Spark. Nope! A 2020 Chevy Spark LT was exactly what the manager pulled out for my rental.… Continue reading Review: 2020 Chevrolet Spark LT is the Essence of Automobile
What do you expect out of a Mercedes? Cutting-edge technology wrapped in big badge bling-bling? A rip-snorting V8 pushing a luxury-boat chassis? How about incredible practicality in an unassuming package? Because the latter is what I was surprised—and intrigued—to find in the 2020 Mercedes GLB 250 4Matic. The reason for my surprise is that GLB… Continue reading Review: 2020 Mercedes GLB 250 4Matic is Practically Luxurious
The 2021 XT4 FWD Premium Luxury is not your grandfather's old Cadillac. But since he's retiring his full-sized luxury sedans and adopting CUVs, it could be his new Cadillac. Cadillac has made strides in its build quality, and it shows the 2021 XT4: This SUV feels solid. Its doors close with a Mercedes-like thunk. The cabin… Continue reading Review: The 2021 Cadillac XT4 is Gramps’ New Caddy
Mike's Steering Column 