Carmakers


2015 Dodge Charger R/T – Modern Muscle Without the Hellcat

2015 Dodge Charger R-T - 1 of 33For those like that are enthusiastic about automobiles and driving, we are truly in a golden age right now. From hot hatches like the VW GTI and Ford Fiesta ST although up to the current crop of supercars, there is something for everyone including the classic muscle car. But unlike the original muscle cars of the 1960s that could barely traverse a frost heave without getting all sideways, today’s breed like the 2015 Dodge Charger R/T have better performance while being absolutely liveable as daily drivers.

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From Mustang I to 2015 – Evolution of the Ford GT over 50 Years

By July 1963, the upper intake had been added

By July 1963, the upper intake had been added, courtesy Ford Motor Company Archives

It’s not often anymore that automakers actually get to keep anything completely secret heading into auto show season. Aside, from the Buick Avenir concept which no one really saw coming, the closest thing to a true secret at this year’s North American International Auto Show was the all-new third-generation Ford GT. While rumors had been swirling about this car ever since someone associated with long-time Ford Racing partner MultiMatic mentioned something in passing last summer, there were none of the usual teasers from Ford, no spy photos, nothing at all in fact to indicate what the new Dearborn supercar would look like.

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2015 Fiat 500 Abarth Automatic – The Scorpion is Missing Some Sting

2015 Fiat 500 Abarth Auto 02

In general, I like small cars with surprisingly powerful engines and bigger than normal tires and brakes. Mini Coopers, Fiesta STs and GTIs all tend to be a hoot to drive even at less than insane speeds. Chrysler has some good and not so good history in the segment with the old Neon SRT4 and the Caliber SRT4. Now that the team at Auburn Hills are part of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, they are offering up the Fiat 500 Abarth. Where will it fall on the spectrum?

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2015 Dodge Dart Limited – It Just Needs Better Seats

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At the 2012 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, we got the first concrete results of the commitment that Sergio Marchionne made back in 2009 in exchange for getting a controlling interest in Chrysler. Dodge rolled out the Dart compact sedan, the first new product based on a Fiat platform. Unlike the ungainly, outgoing Caliber hatchback, the Dart was a four-door sedan that looked vaguely like a blend of the late lamented Neon and the recently refreshed Charger.

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The 2016 Chevrolet Malibu Should be a Serious Midsize Player, up to 48 mpg

cq5dam.web.1280.1280There was a period in my lifetime when General Motors absolutely dominated both car sales overall and midsize cars in particular. The Oldsmobile Cutlass was the Toyota Camry of its era and the Chevrolet Malibu wasn’t far behind. While it’s unlikely that the Malibu is going to unseat Toyota’s perennial sales leader any time soon, the all-new 2016 edition is Chevrolet’s best shot at breaking back into the top five in many years.

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2015 Ford F-150 XLT, 2.7 EcoBoost

2015 Ford F-150 XLT 01

The constant push to one-up the competition while at the same time meet ever tightening fuel economy standards is driving a transformation in America’s most traditional vehicle segment, the full-size pickup truck. This year, perennial market leader Ford has tried to leap-frog the competition with a dramatic shift from the traditional steel body and bed construction to aluminum intensive construction along with an all-new mainstream twin-turbocharged V6 engine. Is it enough to keep the F-150 out in front of the pack? I spent a week driving one in search of some clues.

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2016 Chevrolet Malibu Finally Gets a Proper Hybrid Drivetrain

2016_MALIBU_DRIVE UNIT_CUTAWAY_TITLED

It goes without saying that the current-generation Chevrolet Malibu has been something of a disappointment. Almost as soon as the Malibu hit the streets in late 2011, Chevrolet engineers began work on an all-new next-generation model that goes on sale this fall.  While full details of the Chevy’s new midsize sedan will have to wait until next week’s New York Auto Show, I can now tell you about the all-new hybrid powertrain that will be available.

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2015 Ford Mustang GT – The Best Pony Yet

15Mustanggtstatic 12_lzn

Let me make this perfectly clear right up front. I am now and have been for as long as I can remember a Mustang fan. When I was a kid, a family friend had a blue 1970 Mach 1 and I’ve been hooked ever since. Of course, after 50 years in continuous production, there have certainly been plenty of Mustangs which were far short of lust-worthy, but at least they kept the brand alive. In 2014, as pony car fans from around the world celebrated those first 50 years, Ford debuted an all-new sixth-generation (or ninth depending on how you count) Mustang and I finally got to spend some quality time with one as winter melted into spring.

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2015 Ford Fusion 1.5 EcoBoost

2015 ford fusion se 01Americans love their trucks, SUVs and crossovers with combined sales of all light duty trucks accounting for 52% of sales in 2014. Despite that seeming preference for high-riding vehicles, nearly eight million new cars hit the road last year and among those midsize sedans continue to the biggest share of sales. For more than a quarter of a century, the top-selling car in America has been either the Ford Taurus, Honda Accord and of course the Toyota Camry which has led the way since 1997. Ford launched the second-generation Fusion Into that fray in late 2012 in the hopes of grabbing a larger piece of this lucrative pie. Now approaching the mid-way point of its lifecycle I recently spent a week with Fusion to see if it’s still a strong contender in the segment.

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2015 Ford Expedition EL King Ranch – It’s Kind of Huge!

2015 Expedition ELKR 01At 18.4-feet long and well over three tons of mass, the 2015 Ford Expedition EL King Ranch is not a vehicle that says downsizing. In fact, as Ford’s largest SUV, the only aspect of the substantially updated Expedition that has shrunk is the powerplant, the twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6. Everything else about this beast is as huge as the home state of the eponymous ranch it is named for.

The EL is the longer of two Expedition variants that have been available since the heavy-duty Excursion was discontinued in 2005 after a six-year run. While the current Expedition is related to the mid-2000s era F-150 pickup, it’s actually pretty substantially different and can really considered a distinct platform. Unlike Ford’s pickup trucks that continue to support solid rear axles on leaf springs, the Expedition utilizes a multi-link independent rear suspension which gives it an important advantage over the segment leading Chevrolet Suburban in third-row room, but I’ll come back to that later.

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