High Performance, High Style: The 2015 Volkswagen Golf R

The 2015 Volkswagen Golf R.

Bags packed, car loaded, Navigator and I were only a few minutes into our latest adventure when she said "This (car) is nice.  How much?"

"Thirty-nine thousand dollars", I replied, inadvertently leaving 90 bucks off the 2015 Volkswagen Golf R's base price.

"Why would a VW Golf cost $39,000?"  she asked.

With a smile, I pressed my right foot to the floor.

Still The One: 2015 Chevrolet Suburban LTZ

The 2015 Chevrolet Suburban LTZ.

So many people (yours truly included) had full-size American SUVs in the 1990s that it became something of a fad.  Like all fads, it ended and the people who really didn't need such huge machines (yours truly included) moved on to more practical conveyances, and the segment contracted.  20 years on, the survivors are few, and the fittest of the survivors is the big wagon that started it all 80 years ago...the Chevrolet Suburban.

Another Step: 2015 Lexus RC350

The 2015 Lexus RC350.

As both our Executive Editor and Publisher and I have been telling you for some time now, Lexus is on a march. The destination: To be taken seriously as a competitor to German sport-luxury cars.  25 years ago, the original Lexus LS sedan knocked the Mercedes-Benz S Class off its perch---a $20,000 lower base price helped---but winning the hearts and minds of Audi and especially BMW intenders has not been such an easy task.

X, As In Multiplied: The 2016 Fiat 500X

The 2016 Fiat 500X.

If you love the little Fiat 500, and we do, you may be hoping for one a bit larger and more practical.  Fiat actually makes one of those, the 500L, but very few people are buying them.  The problem appears to be aesthetic.  They got the proportions wrong and the L looks rather ungainly, a cardinal sin for a vehicle that, in its two-door form, sells largely on style.  So Fiat is giving it another try with the 500X.

Less Is More: The 2016 Kia Sorento SXL AWD 2.0 T

The 2016 Kia Sorento.

Regular TireKicker readers know of our deep appreciation for the Kia Sorento.  It more than earned it a year ago when it was our mode of transport for an eight-day, 1800 mile camping trip from Folsom (suburban Sacramento, California) to Utah and back. More recently, a week in the redesigned 2016 Sorento with the V6 engine ended with a spot on the TireKicker's Best Cars list on the right side of this page. So what more is there to say? Plenty, as it turns out.

A Tale Of Two SUVs: The 2015 Nissan Rogue SV FWD and SL AWD

The 2015 Nissan Rogue. 

It doesn't happen often.  In fact, we here at TireKicker World Headquarters in Folsom, California work hard to avoid it.  But every once in a while, the Phoenix, Arizona bureau and we get the same car. The good news is that they are rarely identical and in the case of the 2015 Nissan Rogue, it worked out beautifully because the two models are different in trim level, the number of driving wheels and the price spread is such that each likely appeals to a different buyer.

Pioneer Wagon: The 2016 Acura MDX

The 2016 Acura MDX.

There was a time, fifteen years ago, when there was no such thing as a luxury crossover SUV with three rows of seating.  One vehicle changed that and created a market all by itself.  It was the 2001 Acura MDX.

The Comeback Kid: 2015 Kia Sedona SXL

The 2015 Kia Sedona SXL.

Ford and General Motors got out of the minivan game a few years back, never to return...conceding defeat to the Chrysler Town and Country, the Dodge Grand Caravan, the Toyota Sienna and Honda Odyssey.

Kia's Sedona sat out the 2013 and 2014 model years, but it's back for 2015.

Unlikely Sex Symbol: The 2015 Chrysler 200S

The 2015 Chrysler 200S.

The more I see the 2015 Chrysler 200 on the streets, the more it grows on me.  The car looks very good in the sheetmetal, with balanced proportions, a purposeful stance and an upscale look.  About eleven months ago, I reviewed the top-of-the-line 200C AWD and liked it a lot, finding the price to be the only real drawback.

Beauty Is As Beauty Does: The 2015 Ram Promaster City Tradesman

The 2015 Ram Promaster City Tradesman.

European designs have never ruled American streets.  Not to say there aren't a healthy number of vehicles from the Eurozone sold in the USA every year, but they've never been dominant here. However, they are taking over one segment of the market...vans.