Charge! The 2019 Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid

The 2019 Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid.

A little over a year ago we drove---and loved---the all-new Subaru Crosstrek.

Now it turns out there's one we like even better.  The 2019 Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid.

A New Leaf: The 2019 Nissan Leaf SL

The 2019 Nissan Leaf.

It's a twice-in-a-decade thing---at least for us.  Incredibly, the last time we were in a Nissan Leaf was the summer of 2011.

Was it something we said?

Might have been, because if you read the review linked above, it was a primer on range anxiety.  The Leaf of eight years ago had an EPA-estimated range of 73 miles on a charge, and a series of mishaps meant lost opportunities to charge.  And when we could charge, it was on household current.  High-voltage vehicle charging stations were very rare at the time.

So let's just say right up front:  The new Leaf is a whole lot better than the old one.

A Different Standard: The 2019 Cadillac XT4 AWD Sport

The 2019 Cadillac XT4 AWD Sport.

Those of us of a certain age remember when Cadillac's slogan was "Standard of the World".  It was a time when Cadillacs were what everything else was judged by.  It meant the best.

Like most advertising, it was true sometimes,  not true other times.  Cadillac made some cars that could be considered, with a straight face, to be the best you could buy during that time.  And they made some that weren't.

For the better part of the last 40 years, Cadillac's been trying to regain its prestige. Its current slogan is "Rise Above".  Its one clear winner has been the Escalade.  So now, there's an emphasis on SUVs and crossovers.