Come Join Us at MikeHagertyCars.com!

Twelve years ago this August, I sat down at a reconditioned used laptop, stared at the blinking cursor on Blogger and wondered how in the world I was ever going to fill that page.  I managed.  In fact, I've managed to fill 1,269 of them. 

A lot has changed since 2008, and we need to keep up with the times.  So, TireKicker is moving and morphing into MikeHagertyCars.com.  You can expect more insight, better photography, more interactivity and soon---our own YouTube channel with original video reviews.

TireKicker will remain online as an archive of the cars we've reviewed since the beginning.  But, starting now, all new reviews will be on MikeHagertyCars.com.  Come take a look and let us know what you think.

Best,

Mike Hagerty
MikeHagertyCars.com

Rough Rider: The 2020 Ford Ranger Supercrew 4X4 Lariat

The 2020 Ford Ranger Supercrew 4X4 Lariat.

Ford, which has owned the full-size pickup world with its F-150 for decades,  returned to the midsize pickup segment last year with the first new Ranger truck in seven years.  And while it's already caught up to Chevy's Colorado, which had a re-boot five years ago, it's still selling roughly half as well as the leading midsize, the Toyota Tacoma, which got its last major re-do in 2016.

A Little Less For A Lot Less: The 2020 Volkswagen Tiguan 2.0T SEL with 4MOTION

The 2020 Volkswagen Tiguan 2.0T SEL with 4MOTION.

If it seems like not that long ago you were reading a review of the Volkswagen Tiguan here, it wasn't.

Just six months ago, we reviewed the 2019 Volkswagen Tiguan 2.0T SEL Premium with 4MOTION. Not much has changed about the Tiguan.  2020 models now have a standard wi-fi hotspot, forward collision warning and a blind spot warning system.  There's also a shortened warranty, dropping from 6 years or 72,000 miles to 4 years or 50,000 miles---a blow VW softens by adding two years of free scheduled maintenance.

But while the Tiguan is largely the same, the world has changed unimaginably in the six months since our evaluation of the '19 Tiguan.  And this 2020 model may be better suited to the times.

That Special Feeling: The 2020 Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 4MATIC

2020 Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 4MATIC.

Five-passenger SUVs are ubiquitous. Everywhere.  Everyone makes one, everyone sells one.  A good one, well-equipped, is going to be ten grand either side of $50,000.  So how do you choose?

Mercedes-Benz is on a roll right now---making vehicles that, as befits the marque and its heritage, look and feel special---and make the driver feel special, too.

The Answer Is Always Miata: The 2020 Mazda MX-5 Miata Club

2020 Mazda MX-5 Miata Club.

"I want a convertible."
"I want a sports car."
"I want a car that gets great mileage."
"I want a car for track day."
"I want a reliable car."
"I want an affordable car."
"I want a car I'll love driving every day."

I'm by no means the first to say it, but the answer is always Miata.  For 30 years, Mazda has been making the old-fashioned sports car for the modern world.  In its fourth generation now, the Mazda MX-5 Miata is in a class by itself.

Clearing A High Bar: The 2020 Toyota Highlander Hybrid Platinum AWD

2020 Toyota Highlander Hybrid Platinum AWD.

All-new cars are exciting and also fraught with peril.  If the old one was beloved, there's the risk the new one will somehow screw it up.

The stakes were especially high here at TireKicker World Headquarters for the all-new 2020 Toyota Highlander Hybrid Platinum AWD---the replacement for the exact 2019 model that Mrs. TireKicker and I took on our epic nine-day, 3,000-mile road trip last September and loved.

One In A Field Of Two: The 2020 BMW 228i xDrive Gran Coupe

2020 BMW 228i xDrive Gran Coupe.

Perspective varies by person and experience, but to me, BMW is a maker of performance vehicles that have their roots in well-built, exciting-to-drive four-door sport sedans.  That's a huge part of why I find the 2020 BMW 228i xDrive Gran Coupe so satisfying.

There's also a pioneering aspect here.  At this writing BMW is one of two cars carving out a new niche of four-door coupes in this size class.  The Mercedes-Benz CLA250, which we reviewed in March, is its only direct competitor.

Ten Years After: The 2020 Toyota 4Runner 4X4 TRD PRO

2020 Toyota 4Runner 4X4 TRD PRO.

Ten years.  A decade.  A tenth of a century.  That's how long ago I wrote my first review of this generation of the Toyota 4Runner. We were in a recession then.  People, short on money, houses being repossessed at record rates, seemed unlikely to buy a bigger, beefier version of what started out as an SUV based on a compact pickup.

By 2014, it was clear that I had called it wrong, underestimating the American driving public's love for bigger, better and beefier.  And looking over my notes, I see that I also reviewed the 4Runner in 2015 and 2016---by which point, I was saying things like "if it ain't broke, don't fix it."

Niche Within A Niche: The 2020 Fiat 500X Trekking Plus AWD

2020 Fiat 500X Trekking Plus AWD.

It worked (sorta) for Mini.  So you really can't blame Fiat for trying to expand its 500 minicar into a family of vehicles. Unfortunately, Fiat hasn't had a particularly aggressive or effective marketing presence here in the USA, so a lot of people misunderstand exactly what the 500X is.

Numbers Matching: The 2020 Hyundai Ioniq HEV Limited

2020 Hyundai Ioniq HEV Limited.

The 2020 Hyundai Ioniq HEV Limited and an abandoned gas station.  Some things just work visually.  If we were all driving Ioniqs, there'd probably be a lot more abandoned gas stations.  Because the Hyundai Ioniq HEV is EPA-estimated at 55 miles per gallon city, 54 highway.

Dressed To Impress: The 2020 Mercedes-Benz GLB 250 4MATIC

2020 Mercedes-Benz GLB 250 4MATIC.

Mercedes has taken the alphabetical approach to naming its SUVs.  They all begin with GL. The smallest is GLA, next is GLB, then GLC. There is no GLD, so GLE comes next and the largest are the GLS and the G-Class.

We had 30 minutes with the GLA three years ago at Western Automotive Journalists' Media Days in Monterey, California and liked it a lot.  Still, the GLB is a major step forward from the entry-level Benz SUV.

Like An Iron Fist In A Velvet Glove: The 2020 Lexus RC-F

The 2020 Lexus RC-F.

If you haven't been paying close attention to Lexus in the past decade, it may surprise you to know that the brand has expanded from its original mission of immaculately made isolation chambers and now also offers immaculately made lust objects. 

Two of those, the Lexus LC 500h, and the identically bodied LC 500 (no "h" means it's powered by a 471-horsepower V8 instead of a hybrid), sit atop the TireKicker's Best Cars list at the top of this page.

The Lexus RC 350 is also a stunner, though milder, at 311 horsepower.  But the RC-F we're here to talk about today....that's a different kind of RC.

Suddenly It's 2021: The 2021 Kia Seltos SX Turbo AWD

The 2021 Kia Seltos.

No, no....you haven't been in isolation that long.  But while you were, and while very few people were frequenting car dealerships, Kia has brought us the 2021 Seltos.

This Is Honda: The 2020 Honda CR-V Touring

The 2020 Honda CR-V Touring.

About the headline.  Yes, Honda makes several cars.  All of them very, very good cars.  But the CR-V is Honda in the sense that it is the best-selling vehicle Honda makes and it embodies pretty much every virtue that has made Honda what it is for the past 40-plus years.

Atlas Shrunk: The 2020 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport 2.0T SEL

The 2020 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport.

Regular readers know we have a lot of respect for the Volkswagen Atlas and for its smaller sibling, the Volkswagen Tiguan.  Now there's an in-between option---the 2020 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport.

A Car For All Seasons: The 2020 Hyundai Venue SEL

The 2020 Hyundai Venue SEL.

When the 2020 Hyundai Venue came to market, it was a can't-miss proposition.  Hyundai was putting a new vehicle, competitively priced, into the red-hot small crossover market in a roaring economy.

As I write this, California and much of the country is in the 37th day of a stay-at-home order.  Car dealers are considered essential businesses, but, as you'd imagine, not a lot of people are showing up and spending money.

The good news is that the 2020 Hyundai Venue has the potential to be a strong seller when the stay-at-home orders are lifted, even---or maybe especially---if the economy is in bad shape.

Taking In The Desert Air: The 2020 Toyota Tacoma TRD PRO 4X4 Double Cab

The 2020 Toyota Tacoma TRD PRO.

Okay, let's address the elephant in the room.  Or the elephant trunk on the pickup truck in the driveway.

That is the Toyota TRD PRO Desert Air Intake.

The idea is to get cooler, cleaner air into the engine when you're off-roading.

Versa Versus Versa: The 2020 Nissan Versa SR

The 2020 Nissan Versa SR.

It is hard to think of a more maligned car (apart from the Mitsubishi Mirage) than the Nissan Versa.  Mention its name among automotive journalists and you'll get a lot of derisive laughter.  As I wrote eight years ago this very month, in my review of the 2012 Versa, they're wrong.  It's a good, if basic, car.

More Show, More Go: The 2020 Honda Civic Si

The 2020 Honda Civic Si.

Let's just state a basic fact here:  The Honda Civic is a fine compact car, and except for a lost period in the early aughts through the middle of the last decade, would usually be my choice if I were playing with my own money.

But what if you want just a little more---pizazz?  Just a bit more flash and a bit more go power?  If you buy the base LX or the one-step-up Sport, you get 158 horsepower.  EX, EXL and Touring models get you 174.

Sure, there's the fire-breathing Civic Type R with 306 horsepower, but that's crazy and $36,995.

The One To Have If You're Only Having One: The 2020 Volkswagen Golf TSI

The 2020 Volkswagen Golf TSI.

If you could only buy one new car to do everything you do in your life, what would it be?

A lot of people---Americans, especially, would default to the biggest, most capable all-weather machine they could afford and figure if it can handle that, it can handle the rest.  Something like that, in my mid-30s, possessed me to buy a Suburban with four-wheel drive.  I owned it seven years.  It never left two-wheel drive mode.  I never had eight people in it at once and never filled the cargo area.

The truth is, the one car for most Americans is a German car that has simply been evolving over 45 years.