It wasn’t that long ago that small cars like Nissan’s restyled 2020 Versa were mainstream offerings. One of America’s least expensive new models for many years, with a sticker price under $10,000 for a very long time, the Versa was almost as big as the compact Sentra sedan while satisfying the need for a thrifty …
The best-selling Honda is now a crossover, surprise, and is now available with a hybrid-power option that will surely increase sales even more. Last year, full-size pickup trucks were the three top-selling vehicles in America. In second place were the numerous models of compact-class crossovers, the vehicles that are swiftly replacing the car in today’s …
If you were an upstart luxury brand, you would probably find it necessary to emulate other products to some degree, while establishing a unique edge that would increase consumer appeal. There is a vast catalog of success stories in the American automobile market, as numerous brands have inserted themselves into one of the more lucrative …
Life entails many choices. Chocolate over vanilla ice cream, thick-dough pizza instead of thin-crust and certainly football over baseball are but some of the most important decisions. Later in your years, you might select oceanfront over lakeside camp (if lucky, both), heated cloth instead of sticky leather or just any dessert versus none. Furthermore, I …
Entering the third month of public restrictions due to COVID-19, and the warmer months of early summer when everyone longs to be out and about, my travels reveal a multitude of vehicles wearing registration tags other than the state of Maine’s. This is actually normal — we are, after all, touting that we are Vacationland …
When compact car fans set out to buy a new model now, they will find that there are eight remaining mainstream nameplates to pick from — all but one of them produced by Asian-based automakers. Leading off the segment price-wise are the Kia Forte and Nissan Sentra, both starting around $18,000. Up next is the …
Unlike the giants of the auto-industry, Japan’s Mazda has often chosen distinctive product paths quite divergent from customary norms. Think revolutionary rotary engines — when no one else used this innovative powertrain. Think investing in several small sports cars, like the RX-7, RX-8 and the MX5 Miata, while others pursued more mainstream models. Look back …
Remember when small cars were cheap, and built to stay that way? Today, there are very few small, inexpensive cars on the market, reflecting consumers’ preferences for more upscale, better equipped transportation devices. More safety gear, lengthy lists of features and amenities, plus expected convenience pieces have pushed small vehicle pricing far beyond the entry-level …
During two and a half decades of driving a new vehicle each week, there have been a lot of Jeeps that have come to rural Hancock County and the surrounding regions. There have been two-door Wranglers, four-door Unlimited Wranglers, soft-tops, hardtops, manuals, automatics, even some with diesel engines. There have been numerous Grand Cherokees, one …
When Toyota debuted its Lexus luxury division to America in 1989, it had a different vision of what the proper premium sedan should be. The Asian image was not only of a car worthy of some status, but to earn the extra money over other more plebian vehicles. A luxury car should also exude value, …
