This week Robbie and Sam both spent time driving the Volkswagen ID Buzz and came away surprisingly delighted. Sam also spent a week with the Toyota Land Cruiser while Nicole got to drive the 2025 Camry. In the news, VW is adding enhanced hazard alerts to its latest models and Polestar and Volvo finally have… Read More »We’ve Got The Buzz…

Hey everyone, we’re back with a standard episode this week. Unfortunately a family emergency came up at the last moment and Robbie couldn’t join us. Fortunately, our friend Perry Stern was able to step in and join Nicole and Sam. Perry was driving around in the new Subaru Forester while Nicole had the Hyundai Sonata… Read More »Scouting Mission…

Hey everyone, this week’s show is a bit different. Sam is on his way to South Korea for the week, Nicole is visiting her daughter in Wisconsin and Robbie is Lake Tahoe for a gig with one of his bands. But rather than leave you with no content, we’ve got some material from the Nissan… Read More »Where’s The Plug?…

Nicole is back and she drove the Honda Prologue while Robbie spent more time with the GMC Hummer EV SUV and Sam had the VW GTi. Links 2025 Jeep Compass2025 Bronco Free Wheeling2025 Chevy Silverado EV UpdatesVolkswagen TayronMCity 2.0CyberCab2-seat robotaxisCarlos Tavares to retire in early 2026Stellantis EV price parityMore cheap EU EVsFisker reach…

Nicole’s Saturday morning flight home from Venice was cancelled so she’ll be back next week. In the meantime, Chad Kirchner joins us to talk about what’s going on. Robbie has been driving the GMC Hummer EV SUV and Sam had the Mazda CX-70 and a weekend with the Lamborghini Huracan Sterrato. In the news, Mazda… Read More »What Is All-New?…

Nicole is still riding the rails in Europe so Stephanie Brinley joins Robbie and Sam again. Stephanie has been driving the 2025 Lincoln Aviator and the Toyota Crown Signia. Robbie got to try out the new electric motorcycles from Can Am and Sam got some quality time with the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N. Sam also… Read More »Simulated Engagement…

As Nicole and her spouse are riding the rails in Europe, Tanya Gazdik is back with the Land Rover Defender 130 and the Mercedes-AMG SL63. Sam has thoughts about Ineos Grenadier and Robbie has something he can’t discuss until next week. Tanya and Sam drove the Polestar 3 this week and share their first impressions.… Read More »ADAS Distractions…

This week, Nicole has been driving the 2024 Lincoln Nautilus hybrid and Sam has the Toyota Highlander XSE 2.4T. Lucid held a technology day this week where they announced that the Gravity SUV will go into production in the 4th quarter complete with a J3400 charging port and a $50,000 midsize model is coming by… Read More »Touchscreen Vents Are Stup…

This week we drive the 2024 Hyundai Santa Fe and Volvo C40 Recharge. Sam also shares thoughts on the refreshed 2025 Hyundai Tucson and the Santa Fe hybrid. We also have an interview with Michael Fischer, Project lead for the Honda EV Hub in Ohio Links 2025 Nissan ArmadaVW ID.4 Gets ChatGPTTop 10 Cars for… Read More »Get Your Recalls Fixed…

Robbie is sick this week and his voice is shot, so it’s just Sam and Nicole. Nicole has been driving the Subaru Ascent while Sam had the Lexus RX450h+ plug-in hybrid. Hyundai made lots of news this week at its investor day as well as during a drive program in California. Its new 3-row electric… Read More »Hyundai Is Busy…

Here’s a conversation that Sam had with Volvo senior technical leader Mikael Ljung Aust on the driver understanding system in the new EX90. The interview was originally published in the Patreon feed back in 2022 and then we forgot to publish here until now. With the first reviews of the EX90 coming in shortly, we… Read More »Volvo’s Mikael Ljung Au…

Robbie is back from Germany where he got to drive the updated Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo and he wants one. Nicole got to drive a pair of new Hyundai Santa Fes at home and at a family wedding. Meanwhile, Sam got surprisingly good efficiency from the latest edition of the VW ID4 but those window… Read More »Losing the Buzz…

Our regular lineup is back together, after a delayed arrival from Robbie. Robbie got to spend some time with the new Toyota Prius Prime while spending a couple of days in Detroit. Sam drove the Hyundai Kona Electric and Nicole has been in the latest Subaru Impreza RS and Mazda CX-90 since she last appeared.… Read More »Should Have Saved The Name…

While Nicole is off enjoying a fancy brunch with friends visiting from out of town, Robbie and Sam are again joined by Stephanie Brinley. Robbie has been driving the Ford Ranger Raptor while Steph spent time with the latest Honda Civic Hybrid and Genesis G70. Sam spent the week with the Kia EV6 GT-Line. In… Read More »No Fancy Brunch…

Nicole is on the road this week so we have Perry Stern joining us a guest. Over the past couple of weeks Perry has been driving the Porsche 718 Boxster and the new 2025 Toyota Camry which now comes exclusively with hybrid power. Robbie took a road trip in the Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Sam… Read More »Declining Value Proposition…

This week, Sam is enjoying a much-deserved vacation, so we have Jill Ciminillo, managing editor for Pickup Truck + SUV Talk as a special guest. Jill drove the Acura TLX while Robbie had some time with the Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio, which he can drive but can’t pronounce. Nicole was in the Toyota bZ4X which… Read More »Manila Vanilla, It’s Yel…

This week, Nicole is driving the refreshed Genesis GV80, Robbie had the Mercedes-Benz EQS sedan and BMW XM and Sam got to play with the Ford Mustang Mach-E Rally. In the news, Sam spotted Hyundai and Kia testing NACS/J3400 charging ports on an Ioniq 5 and EV6 at a Supercharger. Cadillac is putting a 55-inch… Read More »Basically A Fast Economy Car…

This week Sam has been driving the 2024 Ford F-150 Tremor. Nicole had the Mazda CX-70 and Robbie has just started on the Mercedes-Benz EQS For 2024, Toyota has improved the abysmal charging performance of the AWD bZ4X and Electrify America is piloting an 85% charge limit. Nissan has launched an off-roady-ish Rogue that now… Read More »No Real Safet…

This week Robbie takes a road trip to southern California in the BMW i7, Nicole gets an unexpectedly eye-catching Ford Bronco Sport and Sam belatedly comes to the realization that the awesome Kia EV9 is basically an electric Ford Flex. Sam provides a follow-up on the 2025 Ram 1500 and its batteries. GM got a… Read More »It’s An Electric Flex…

This week Nicole is driving the Ford Maverick and Sam has the new Fiat 500e Nicole went to the Busan Motor Show in Korea last week to deliver an award to Kia. While there she got to see the new Kia EV3 and the little Hyundai Casper EV. GM Design has been posting images from… Read More »It’s About The Style…

This week in the garage, Nicole has been driving two cars that are basically the same but oh so different, the Buick Envista Avenir and the Porsche Cayenne GTS while Sam tries out some hands-off highway driving in the new 2025 Ram 1500 Limited. In th news, Lexus should soon be launching a successor to… Read More »1.6 Miles Of Copper…

This week, Nicole has been driving the Genesis GV60 Performance, Robbie spent time with the Ineos Grenadier and Quartermaster and Sam drove the Ford Mustang Dark Horse. Nicole also went on an electric off-road adventure with the Polaris Ranger EXP in Michigan’s Upper Penninsula and drove the new GMC Acadia. Sam went to the Stellantis… Read More »Do…

Robbie has the updated the Ford Mustang Mach-E with a lithium iron phosphate battery, Nicole has the Hyundai Sonata and Elantra N-Line and Sam has the 2024 Ford Ranger XLT. Ford is attacking the Pikes Peak Hillclimb with another EV, this time the Lightning Supertruck. Rivian has done its first major update the R1 series… Read More »Plug-in Hybrids …

This week Robbie was carless but Nicole has to vehicles to tell us about, the Lexus TX 550h+ plug-in hybrid and the Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 Bison. Meanwhile Sam describes his disappointment with the Nissan Z Nismo, at least as a sports car for the street. We also have a first drive review of the new… Read More »The Best EV Value…

Nicole is traveling again this week so it’s just the boys. Robbie had nothing to drive, but Sam hit the road to the MAMA Spring Rally at Road America #MAMA24SR in the Nissan Rogue AWD Platinum. We have a first drive review of the 2024 Chevrolet Silverado EV RST First Edition and Sam shares some… Read More »Too Heavy…

This week Nicole had a Chevy Blazer EV that had to go home early and a Hyundai Kona. Robbie drove the Fiat 500e and Sam drove the BMW 530i xDrive. Despite some recent skepticism because of the Supercharger layoffs at Tesla, EVgo is moving forward with installing J3400 connectors on its DC fast chargers. Rivians… Read More »Two Transmissions in One…

Robbie is back from Japan and driving the BMW i5 M60. Nicole jumps from last week’s Suburban into the Nissan Altima and Sam had the Cadillac Lyriq with new better door handles and fully functional software. In the news, will Rivian partner with Apple on something? Infotainment, ADAS? Will the US impose 100% tarrifs on… Read More »A Little Digital K…

As Robbie and his wife celebrate 18 years of marriage with a vacation in Japan, we’re joined this week by our friend Jill Ciminillo. Jill shares her thoughts on one of the most affordable new cars still offered for sale in the US, the Nissan Versa SR. Nicole hwas been driving something nearly large enough… Read More »The Girl In The Trunk…

Nicole is back and she shares her impressions of driving a Lynk&Co 01 that she and her husband rented in France during their vacation. Robbie will have more to share next week about the BMW i5 and Sam has driven the Land Rover Defender 110 and Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray. In the news, the Ram TRX… Read More »Finding The Hidden Charge Port…

Nicole is still cruising European rivers so it’s just the boys this week. Robbie drove the Range Rover Sport and used a Ford Transit to get his bands to Salt Lake City for a couple of shows (hence why there was no episode last week). Sam has been driving the Subaru CrossTrek Wilderness. In the… Read More »No Soap Please…

This week Nicole and her husband compare the 2024 Jeep Wrangler 4XE to their 2022 model that they own. Robbie takes the Kia EV9 on a snowboarding trip and is unimpressed by the new Lincoln Nautilus. Sam drives the 2024 Polestar 2 dual motor performance model. Nicole shares her impressions of driving the updated Jeep… Read More »Still Too Much…

This week, friend of the show Perry Stern is filling in for Robbie and he’s been driving the Mercedes-AMG GLB. Nicole tries out the latest variant of Honda’s pickup truck the off-road-ish Ridgeline Trailsport and Sam has the Acura TLX Type-S. Perry went to the New York for the Auto Show this week and gives… Read More »Faster Than Magma…

While Robbie is off doing some late winter snow boarding, Nicole and Sam are holding down the fort. Nicole has been driving Buick’s new entry level model, the Envista and the Hyundai Palisade. Meanwhile Sam had the new Toyota Prius Limited AWD and the very pricey Mercedes-AMG EQE SUV. Nicole gives a preview of the… Read More »Jumping Raptors…

This week Sam has been driving the Honda Passport Trailsport while Robbie has the Ford Escape plug-in hybrid. Unfortunately, Nicole is under the weather so she couldn’t join us. Sam assesses the new Lincoln Nautilus and likes the big screen, but there are other issues. Don’t forget to check out the video Sam and Nicole… Read More »Touch The Vent No…

This week Sam has been driving the Genesis Electrified G80. Robbie was picking speakers for his band in the Land Rover Defender 130 and Nicole has the Infiniti QX60. The core of Henrik Fisker’s original design for the Karma continues to live on, now as part of the Karma Automotive and the Chinese-owned company has… Read More »Return of the Gremlin…

This week Nicole is driving the Ford Maverick Tremor, Robbie has the Range Rover plug-in hybrid and Sam has new Toyota Tacoma TRD Off-Road. We’ve got lots of news this week. After a decade of work and billions of dollars spent, Apple has apparantely finally abandoned the idea of building a car. Ford took its… Read More »Who Cares About Efficiency?…

This week Robbie got to spend some time with something really fast, the new McLaren 750s. Meanwhile, Nicole and Sam had some more pedestrian rides. Nicole got a few days with the Volkswagen ID.7 as well as the Jeep Hornet PHEV. Sam had the Toyota Crown Platinum. In the news, we’ve got first drive reports… Read More »What’s Happening at Jeep…

Robbie is back from Colorado where he attended the Bridgestone winter driving school and spent time with the Toyota Rav4 and 4Runner in the snow. He also rented a Ford Transit van to move ping-pong tables and drove a Kia Carnival. Nicole has been spending time in the psuedo off-road Honda Passport Trailsport and Sam… Read More »Testing Tires…

Robbie is off visiting some family this week, but even with just Nicole and Sam it’s a long episode. Sam has been burning up the gas in a Ford F-250 XL 4×4 while Nicole has a much more reasonably sized Subaru Outback. Nicole and Sam were both in Chicago this week and talk about the… Read More »Killing Unused Features…

This week Sam is driving a very luxurious and pricey version of the J300 Land Cruiser in the form of the Lexus LX600. Robbie has been trying out the 2024 Ford Mustang Premium Ecoboost and Nicole had Toyota Prius. Nicole has first thoughts on driving the new Lexus GX. Ford and Lincoln have finally gotten… Read More »Bringing Back Hybrids…

Nicole has been having some fun with the Mazda 3 Turbo while Robbie has the Subaru Impreza RS. Sam is driving the most affordable Buick in a long time in the form of the new Envista. In the news, Chevrolet has revealed a second completely different and not at all electric Equinox and expanded its… Read More »Lucy With the Football…

This week, Nicole has the Mazda CX-50 in a disappointing color, Robbie has the Range Rover Velar in one of the 8 available non-colors and Sam is driving the Chevrolet Trailblazer in Cacti Green. In the news, Jeep teases the upcoming Wagoneer S EV with too much power. Stellantis also launches the Ram Promaster EV… Read More »Dealers be Dealering…

Sam and Robbie survived another year of CES and have lots to discuss. Sam has been driving the Chrysler Pacifica plug-in hybrid since returning. Nicole has had the Hyundai Tucson and Robbie got to ride the Honda Motocompacto at CES. At CES, large language models have been integrated into cars with VW using ChatGPT, BMW… Read More »Tell Me A Dinosau…

This week Sam and Robbie both have large, luxury, three-row SUVs with turbocharged inline-six cylinder engines. Robbie has the BMW X7 and Sam has the Cadillac Escalade Platinum diesel. In the news we have the winners of the 2024 North American Car, Truck and Utility Vehicle of the Year awards. Ford also bumps up pricing… Read More »And The Winners …

This week, Sam has been driving the Alfa Romeo Stelvio Veloce and Nicole shares her experience renting a Volvo XC60 diesel in Switzerland. Daihatsu which only briefly sold its small cars in the US in late 1980s and early 1990s reveals that for more than 30 years it has been faking safety certification documents for… Read More »We Can’t Have Nice Th…

Nicole is back and she has the new Honda Accord Hybrid Sport! Robbie is back and he’s got thoughts on the Volvo C40 and Electrify America! Sam gets a bunch of electric miles out of the Alfa Romeo Tonale Ti eAWD. In the news, the Chevy Blazer EV we discussed last week is having some… Read More »Winter Socks for Tires…

This week Robbie and his wife are visiting New York for the holidays and Nicole and her hubbie are hitting the Christmas markets along their European river cruise route. Fortunately, Stephanie Brinley is back to join Sam. Steph has been driving the Nissan Leaf SV+ while Sam spent time in the Chevrolet Colorado Trail Boss… Read More »Strategic Crown…

Tanya joins us again this week as Nicole’s European Christmas vacation continues. She spent time with the Toyota Sequoia and the Honda Civic sedan. Meanwhile Sam spent a week with the updated BMW X5 eDrive50 that went 45 miles on a charge of the new larger battery pack. In the news, friend of the show… Read More »Are We Ready To Swap?…

This week Sam drove the 2024 GMC Canyon AT4 and guest host Tanya Gazdik tells us about her experience with a rental Jeep Renegade in Utah and the new Honda Civic. Tanya also got a first drive in the new Toyota Tacoma. Almost 4 years to the day after smashing the windows on the Cybertruck… Read More »Better Late Than Never?…

It’s just Robbie and Sam today as Nicole starts a European vacation with her hubbie. Next week we should have a third participant. Sam drove the 2024 Ford F-250 King Ranch which is a really impressive truck for doing work, but trucks this size have no business being used as daily drivers. Robbie had another… Read More »Not A Daily Driver…