Jeep Grand Cherokee

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JEEP Craves the fresh Grand Cherokee to become a successes. The tension is palpable, because this mostly all-new mid-size SUV is critical around the way ahead for Chrysler’s best brand. And yes, new Grand is great to look at. It’s bold, fresh and athletic, with short overhangs and chamfered curves, and so it must be being based on Mercedes’ ML platform.

Jeep Grand Cherokee

Jeep Grand Cherokee Interior

Gone are the clunky and awkward washboard side panels of the previous effort, gone is the complicated sub-frame mess that ran riot using the bodyshell. Here’s a solidly engineered effort, though with the loss of a good rear axle in favour of an all-independent multi-link rear axle set-up, and radical Europeanising of the interior, I can’t help but feel it’s made up of the world’s new cookie cutter: shades of Fortuner in the rear, a new Touareg with the side profile, a dash of, dare I say it ML and X5 to the profile. One can’t help but feel that the McDonalds world franchise philosophy has hit a home run with Jeep too. That away, the prominent wheelarches perfect, the seven-bar grille as distinctive as it can be, while liberal using of brightwork in the sills, side panels, window liners, rear bootlid and grille offers an avowedly American bling statement.

Post Title → Jeep Grand Cherokee

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2010 Toyota 4Runner SR5 4X4 Review

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Massive. The exact first word that struck me as I walked up to the 2010 Toyota 4Runner the day it was dropped off.

What was once the prototype for compact SUVs has packed on the pounds and the new styling is like putting shoulder pads on top of all that bulk.

No, it's not just me. Turns out Sajeev Mehta over at The Truth About Cars thought the same thing...he writes "It's sort of like Fat Elvis, on four wheels."

                            

All that bulk goes straight to the driving experience. As Casey Kasem said in his most famous outtake, "Ponderous, man...ponderous". 270 horsepower feels no more than adequate in overcoming the inertia of this 4400 pound machine...and the EPA estimate of 17 city/22 highway?  Let me know when you see that, okay? Here at TireKicker, we get surprisingly close to, and on occasion exceed EPA estimates...but the best this one would do for us was 16 in a mix of urban streets and freeways. Without the freeways, 13-point-something or 14 would have been about it.

                          

Even the interior is set up to convey size, heft, bulk...almost as though the idea were to transform the 4Runner into a junior version of the Land Cruiser. But we like the Land Cruiser....mainly because it is what it's supposed to be. Oh, and its EPA is 13 city/18 highway...which is about all the 4Runner will do, based on our week's test.

Ours was the SR5 4X4...base price a reasonable $30,915...optioned with an audio system upgrade ($585), backup camera (a necessity in this vehicle at $525), a convenience package including moonroof plus front and rear AC power outlets ($1050), leather and power sliding rear seats with extra airbags ($3570) and floor mats and cargo mats ($204). With $800 for destination charges, the bottom line was $37,649.

Not outrageous for this level of equipment. If it had been on the '09 4Runner, I wouldn't have batted an eye. But this strikes me as a chunk of change for a vehicle that appears to be going the wrong direction at the wrong time.

Post Title → 2010 Toyota 4Runner SR5 4X4 Review

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Beach Patrol Runs Over Sunbather On Way To Help Swimmer

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A bad, bad start to the holiday weekend. From WNBC-TV, New York.

Post Title → Beach Patrol Runs Over Sunbather On Way To Help Swimmer

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Nice Work, Einstein. University Sues GM Over Use Of Dead Genius' Likeness

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The above image is page one of a four-page ad that ran in People magazine last fall to promote the GMC Terrain SUV.

Well, as Rolling Stone once famously said about Jim Morrison of The Doors,

But in Einstein's case "dead" doesn't mean "he can't sue us from beyond the grave". For while Einstein didn't will his body to science (there's dispute whether his brain was preserved against his wishes) and was cremated, Einstein did leave his publicity rights to The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, which is suing GM for the unauthorized use of Einstein's image.

General Motors...even the new, smaller, GM, should have a legal staff that knows (or at least can learn) this stuff. The only upside for them? The university is going easy on them. The suit is for $75,000...a little less than two loaded GMC Terrains.

Post Title → Nice Work, Einstein. University Sues GM Over Use Of Dead Genius' Likeness

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Ford Firm On Flex Future

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Okay, that headline is either an audition for a gig at Daily Variety or a desperate cry for help.

But that's not important now.

The Ford Flex was supposed to be The Answer. The way forward from minivans. In fact, Ford stopped making its Freestar minivan and the Taurus X crossover in the belief that the Flex would deliver those (few) customers and a bunch more.

Hasn't happened.

Days go by...sometimes weeks...before I see a Flex on the streets of the car-crazy metropolis of four million souls in which I live and drive, a place where you'd die of internal bleeding if there were a "punch dub" game for minivans, Tahoes and even Suburbans.

Only 12,598 Flexes left dealerships for driveways and garages in the first four months of this year...which puts it on track to do less than 40,000 units sold in 2010. Not the stuff of which hits are made.

Still, Ford says it's happy. Why? They told the Detroit Free Press.

Post Title → Ford Firm On Flex Future

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Feds Probe October '09 Toyota Crash That Killed Four

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Six months after a 2-car crash that killed four (including a Harvard professor), the NHTSA says it's launching an investigation.

The reason? The car that caused the crash by swerving into oncoming traffic was a Toyota Highlander. And while local authorities say they were unable to pinpoint the cause, the Feds say they want to see if a sticking gas pedal might be involved.

Full story from WBZ-TV, Boston.

Post Title → Feds Probe October '09 Toyota Crash That Killed Four

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Cell Phone Charger Hazard

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I got this e-mail from a friend this week...forwarding the story of a 2007 Suburban owner who left his iPhone charger plugged into the power outlet (cigarette lighter for those of you over 40):

As some of you may know, we had a pretty scary incident recently. Attached are pictures of what remains of our 2007 Suburban. We are all okay but I wanted to warn everyone not to make the same mistake I did.

This fire resulted from leaving an Iphone charger/docking station plugged into the car outlet. It overheated and started a fire, while parked in our garage. PLEASE unplug anything you have in your car outlets once you turn off your car!


We were VERY fortunate that we accidentally found the fire, at 11pm, before going to bed and before it spread to the house. Feel free to pass this along to anyone you want. Better safe than sorry.

Good rule of thumb...if you're not using it, unplug it.

                                 

Post Title → Cell Phone Charger Hazard

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Car and Driver Lends Perspective To Consumer Reports Lexus GX 460 Warning

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When Consumer Reports announced Tuesday it considered the Lexus GX 460 a safety risk because it can get sideways in an emergency maneuver before the electronic stability control steps in to right things,  Toyota quickly and calmly announced they are suspending sales of the GX 460 until they can determine if CR is right and what to do about it.

But calm is elusive in media...especially online, where bloggers, including this one who calls herself a "big ball of paranoia", can spread fear (and occasionally misunderstanding and misinformation) fast.

Enter Car and Driver's John Yanca, who picked up the phone, called CR, found out what the tests were all about...and says there's a simple solution. It starts with not driving a tall SUV into a curve at 15 miles per hour over the posted speed. Well worth the read and some thought.

Post Title → Car and Driver Lends Perspective To Consumer Reports Lexus GX 460 Warning

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Toyota Stops Sales Of Lexus GX 460

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Lexus GX 460s will stay on dealer lots while Toyota figures out if there's merit to Consumer Reports'  assessment of the SUV as a safety risk and what to do about it. In a news release, Toyota said:

"For more than 20 years, Lexus has made customer safety and satisfaction our highest priorities. We are taking the situation with the GX 460 very seriously and are determined to identify and correct the issue Consumer Reports identified. At this time we have asked our dealers to temporarily suspend sales of the 2010 GX 460.

Lexus’ extensive vehicle testing provides a good indication of how our vehicles perform and we are confident that the GX meets our high safety standards. Our engineering teams are vigorously testing the GX using Consumer Reports’ specific parameters to identify how we can make the GX’s performance even better.

For any customer who has purchased a 2010 GX 460 and is concerned about driving their vehicle, we will provide a loaner car until a remedy is available.

As always, Lexus is committed to providing our customers with outstanding products and service.


Customers who have any questions or concerns should contact Lexus Customer Satisfaction at 1-800-25 LEXUS or 1-800-255-3987."

Consumer Reports says the recently redesigned SUV gets sideways in emergency handling maneuvers, with the electronic stability control kicking in too late, creating a rollover risk. Here's video of their test:

Post Title → Toyota Stops Sales Of Lexus GX 460

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Consumer Reports: Lexus GX 460 A Safety Risk

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Enthusiasts snicker at Consumer Reports, but millions of Americans buy based on their recommendations and won't buy if CR doesn't rate a vehicle highly. So CR making the first two words of their headline on the 2010 Lexus GX 460 "Don't Buy"  is bad, bad, bad stuff.

CR says its emergency-handling test managed to put the GX 460 into a skid that brought the SUV almost sideways before the the electronic stability control kicked in. CR says that could result in a rollover.

Read their report here.

Post Title → Consumer Reports: Lexus GX 460 A Safety Risk

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Subaru Recalls 2010 Tribeca: Doors Could Come Open When Raising Or Lowering Window

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The NHTSA says Subaru is recalling a six-month run of 2010 Tribecas, built between September 4, 2009 and March 8, 2010, because of an improperly placed cable. It can catch in the door glass regulator and when you go to roll up or roll down the window, the driver or front passenger door could unlatch and come open "creating a risk that an occupant could be ejected as well as a risk that the driver may become distracted, leading to a crash."

Full recall notice here.

Post Title → Subaru Recalls 2010 Tribeca: Doors Could Come Open When Raising Or Lowering Window

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8 Vehicles You Probably Didn't Know You Could Still Buy New

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Looking for a real bargain? Here are 8 cars dealers can't wait to get off their lots...because they aren't even being made anymore. One of them hasn't been in production since Fall 2007, but you can still find it, likely at a big discount.

From Automobile.

Post Title → 8 Vehicles You Probably Didn't Know You Could Still Buy New

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Dodge Nitro SLT 4X4 Review

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The top one is the Dodge Nitro. The bottom one is a storm trooper from the Star Wars movies.

I mention it because the resemblance is about the only entertainment involved here.

The Nitro is that rare vehicle that feels about a full class size bigger (and more ponderous) than it looks.

Basically, what we have here is a Jeep Liberty that's been restyled more than your typical badge-engineering job.

Somehow, though, the Liberty, which is a compact-to-midsize SUV, ends up feeling more like a Hummer as the Nitro. Maybe it's because it's tall and narrow...maybe it's the slab-sides...maybe...well, who knows...it just does.

The Nitro's likely to be axed sooner or later in the restructuring of Chrysler (even before the implosion, Mopar was saying that only one, the Liberty or the Nitro, would survive come 2012 and the smart money is always on Jeep).

Base Price: $25,920.

Price as tested (with leather, heated front seats, parking assist, remote start, sunroof, uconnect, navigation and delivery charge): $31,380.

Upside: Five-star crash ratings front and side.

Downside: Only three stars for rollover.

Bigger downside: EPA estimate 15 city/21 highway. Good luck with that. I didn't get close.

UPDATE: Had another one (a 2010 model). Base price is down to $24,895. Total as tested: $29,305. The rest of the above applies. Fiat can't kill it quick enough.

Post Title → Dodge Nitro SLT 4X4 Review

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Kegger At The Sierra Club: GM Kills Hummer

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Automotive News (you can register for free) broke the story late Wednesday that Hummer is history. After two years on the block and a thisclose deal with a Chinese manufacturer, the deal just couldn't be done. GM says Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machines Co. Ltd. was "unable to complete the acquisition", and so they'll wind down the brand.

It's hard to remember now, but Hummer was white-hot when it first hit showrooms in the early '00s. Its peak sales year was 2006, when 71,524 of them found homes, largely in suburbia.  The economy in general and gas prices in particular slammed the brakes on...with only 9,046 sold last year.

Post Title → Kegger At The Sierra Club: GM Kills Hummer

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Nissan Investigating Driveshaft Problems In Its Nissan and Infiniti Trucks And SUVs

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Just days after Toyota announced a recall of its Tacoma pickups for a driveshaft component flaw, Nissan is investigating a similar flaw and what to do about it.

TheDetroitBureau.com reports that both automakers use the same supplier, Dana...and that appears to be the source of the problem, which Toyota said could cause the driveshaft to crack, separate and fall...resulting in a loss of control of the truck....but Nissan says won't.

Post Title → Nissan Investigating Driveshaft Problems In Its Nissan and Infiniti Trucks And SUVs

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Chevrolet Equinox Review

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And the award for "most improved" goes to.....

No, I'm not kidding. The past four years of the Chevy Equinox couldn't have been blander (quick..can you really picture one?). It was dead on arrival and buried by every new small SUV or crossover that came along since.

But this....if they'd had 535 of these to put in the Capitol parking lot a year ago, Congress would have passed a GM bailout bill so fast it would have made your head swim. There would have been no bankruptcy.


Yes...it's that good. So good, in fact, that I'd cross-shop it against the Mazda CX-7. And if you've read that review, you know that's saying something.

Pick the Chevy over the Mazda and you give up the sporting feel, but you gain room and a more commanding view of the road, thanks to the more traditional architecture of the Equinox.

Base price? $23,360...with most of the same standard equipment as the Mazda. The rest (apart from a sunroof) is made up for in options that, on our tester, only ran the bottom line up to $24,600. And here's what you get to sit in:



Not two years ago, I would have bet you that GM couldn't pull off an interior like that in this class and price of vehicle. Then, I'd have won.

And speaking of winning, the Equinox actually takes the CX-7 on fuel economy...thanks to a six-speed automatic paired with a just-right four....the EPA says 22 city/30 highway.

This is a vehicle that deserves your attention and consideration. And the new GM needs to make everything they do from here on out as good as this.

UPDATE: Just finished a week in the top-of-the-line LTZ model. Base price jumps to $28,045, but with so much standard equipment (power liftgate, 17" aluminum wheels, rearview camera embedded in the mirror, leather, automatic climate control, a Pioneer premium audio system) that GM was able to ship this one to us option-free. So with destination charges, the tab ends up at $28,790....$4,190 more than the lightly equipped base model above.

And the EPA has revised its estimates upward...it's now 22 city/32 highway. In my mix of city street and freeway driving, I saw 25.

Post Title → Chevrolet Equinox Review

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Lexus LX 570 Review

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Return with us now to the good old days.

Mid-2007, say.

That's when the current-generation Lexus LX 570 hit the showroom floors as a 2008 model. When bigger was better, when more was more. When an SUV dripping in all the luxury and tech the Toyota gang could muster, with a base price of more than $70,000 and an EPA mileage estimate that wouldn't challenge your ability to count too far into double-digits was no big deal...at least not for the intended clientele.

It was the days of "go big or go home"...and Lexus went big.

For those whose investment accounts can still justify it, the LX 570 is very impressive. Even approaching it with the new realities firmly in mind, it takes about 10 minutes of driving to begin marvelling at just how right they got this one...how nice it is to drive...how capable....how much you want one.



For 2010, the changes are minimal...a USB connection for your portable music player, and the next-gen hard-drive, voice-activated nav system are the big items. And they both work very nicely.

Base price this year is $76,405...and that comes with a list of standard features that, if I were to transcribe it, would probably have Blogger instituting a charge-by-the word policy in an hour or so. Go here to read it on Lexus' dime.

With that kind of standard content, options should be at a minimum...and I guess they are...but that doesn't mean that they're cheap. Six options (climate control seats, the Luxury Package with upgraded wood, leather and the Pre-Crash system, a Mark Levinson Audio System, Lexus Link, front and side monitoring system with Intuitive Park Assist and a Rear Seat Entertainment System) added another $12,000 and change to the bottom line...pushing it to within a few hundred dollars of 90 large.

And then there's the EPA estimate...12 city/18 highway.

The pool of potential buyers for this vehicle isn't what it was...but there's definitely still a market...and Lexus' moves of optimism pre-recession have actually positioned the LX570 as a real contender, not a wanna-be, in competition with Range Rover. Over time, and as the economy improves, they may end up looking very wise.

Post Title → Lexus LX 570 Review

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BMW X5 xDrive35d Review

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Diesel rules. Just not here in the USA. But BMW's working to change that.

A great way to make the case for diesel's economy and lower emissions is to put it in an SUV.

The X5 xDrive35d (that's the name, folks) is one of the new generation of clean diesels...odorless, largely noiseless, with good performance from a V6 making 265 horsepower and tons of torque.

The EPA says 26 miles per gallon on the highway...which is five mpg better than the X5 3.0 6-cylinder gasoline engine...rated at 260 horsepower. And the price premium to step up to the diesel is less than $4,000. But that does put the base price a shade above $50,000...which seems to be a major psychological price point in the new reality.

I had the tester for a week and a half and it was flawless...a great drive...and the diesel engine is a great match for the x5's size and weight...that strong, linear power delivery imparting an extra sense of solidity to the vehicle. And there's the knowledge that diesel engines are routinely capable of 250,000, 500,000 and more miles in a lifetime.

Apart from large, mainly 3/4 ton and 1 ton American trucks, it's the Germans who are carrying the flag on diesel. They're not wrong.

Post Title → BMW X5 xDrive35d Review

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Ford Flex with EcoBoost Review

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Looking for a Ford Flex? Here's a tip: Make sure this badge is on the tailgate.

EcoBoost transforms the Flex from adequate power to impressive power...replacing the standard 262 horses with 355...at a penalty of only one city mile per gallon and two highway (dropping from 17 to 16 and 24 to 22). Torque is way up too...from 248 pounds per foot to 350.

How'd they do it? Well, EcoBoost is a twin-turbo...taking the 80s favorite means of boosting power without sucking down prodigious amounts of fuel and doubling it. Hopefully, they've addressed the issues that caused turbos to fall out of favor, but I'd change the oil more than the owner's manual recommends just in case.

I liked the Flex the first time I drove it, but having some power makes it all that much better.

This time around, the tester was a top of the line SEL All Wheel Drive...and that means it wasn't cheap: Base price $36,115...$7,600 more than the entry-level model. Fortunately, Ford kept the options down to...well, one. Rapid Spec 208-A AWD adds 20 inch bright painted aluminum wheels, a convenience package and a 12-speaker Sony sound system for $3895.

That put the price, before destination and delivery at $40,010...but there's a "Rapid Spec Savings" discount of $845...so the ultimate bottom line is $39,940.

That's a chunk of change for a Ford...but a lot of people spent that and more for Expeditions when they were in fashion...and this drives a lot better than the Expedition ever did.

By the way...five-star crash ratings all around...four star rollover.

Post Title → Ford Flex with EcoBoost Review

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Mercedes-Benz GLK350 Review

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What a difference a decade makes.

About 10 years ago, Mercedes-Benz seriously cheapened their image with the introduction of what was then a small SUV..the ML320. It cost somewhere in the mid-30s, got them into a new market segment, but was a serious step down in terms of what people expected from Mercedes in materials and workmanship.

An even smaller SUV should be more reason for despair, right? No, not now.

You see, Mercedes as a whole followed the ML320 right down the garden path...resulting in a decade of less-than-special Benzes of all model designations...even some with astonishingly high price tags.

The good news is that M-B appears to be pulling out of the nosedive with some products that seem to put standards ahead of market share...and it is in this environment that they introduce the GLK350.

Size? Think somewhere between a Ford Escape and a Ford Explorer.

Price? Base is a reasonable $35,900. For that you get a 268 horsepower V6 engine with a 7-speed automatic transmission, translating to an EPA estimated 16 city/21 highway miles per gallon.

Best of all, it feels more solid than the ML ever has...and even loaded up with 10 grand worth of options (Premium Package, Lighting Package, Multimedia Package, Sport Appearance Package), it doesn't seem especially silly or excessive because, well, it's a Mercedes. It should be a cut above the other stuff.

For a long time, people paid a premium for Mercedes-Benz because of the quality and the engineering, not for the badge itself. If those days are back, we're all better off.

UPDATE:

The above applies to the all-wheel drive GLK. Choose the 2-wheel drive model, and the base price drops to $34,600...making it one of the least expensive Benzes you can buy. And given that the 1998 ML 320 was $33,900, it's amazing. Fuel economy stays the same in the city, but improves to 22 on the highway.


A recent drive in the 2-wheel drive model reinforces the earlier all-wheel drive review. And, this time, Mercedes only went for about 8 thousand in options (Premium Package, Multimedia Package and an iPod interface)...so the bottom line with $875 destination and delivery charges was $42.925.


Again, it's a Benz. And again, that's starting to mean the right things once more

Post Title → Mercedes-Benz GLK350 Review

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