Category Archives: Cars We’ve Driven

This is our road test section. We use whatever means we can to get whatever cars we can.

Cars We've Driven, Everyday Normal Cars, Exotic Supercars

Tesla Model S P85D Review

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Tesla Model S P85D Front

Tesla has taken the industry by storm, shattering all expectations and continuing to surprise everyone. I remember about a year ago when Tesla shares were around $120 and many analysts were saying that was far too high. Well guess what, today shares are selling for $218.

Elon Musk’s can-do spirit permeates through the Tesla brand. That charisma associated with the brand seems to appeal to many customers as much the car itself does. Lately, I’ve grown accustomed to seeing Teslas everywhere in my area. For a high-end luxury car, they are selling like hotcakes.

The Model S P85D is surely the most multi-functional vehicle that I’ve ever experienced, and that is what surprised and impressed me the most about it. In fact, I’d say it’s like having four distinct cars in one…

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Cars We've Driven

2015 Porsche Panamera Turbo S Executive Reviewed (8/10)

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Porsche Panamera Turbo S Executive Front

The Turbo S Executive is the big mac-daddy of the Porsche Panamera lineup. It seems to take all of the best aspects of other Panamera models and put them together with an extra helping of horsepower. The Turbo S Executive is an immaculate vehicle in every way possible. But it had better be, considering the price… $240,000 for the one I drove.

The Panamera Turbo S is an awesome and complex automobile, full of gadgets and cutting edge technology. I could go on for days about all that, but it’d get us nowhere with the one truly relevant question… is this Panamera worth spending nearly a quarter of a million dollars for?

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Cars We've Driven, Exotic Supercars, Luxury Cars

2015 Kia K900 Reviewed (7/10)

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Kia K900 Front

This is Kia’s new K900, and it costs $60,000… that’s right, $60,000… for a Kia. That sounds outrageous, I know, and it may even be enough to render any of the K900’s good attributes irrelevant. But I’ve always been a fan of giving the benefit of the doubt to anyone willing to try their best, so it was with that mindset that I took the wheel of this white Kia K900.

So what do you get for your $60 grand?

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Cars We've Driven, Luxury Cars

2014 Infiniti Q60 IPL Convertible Reviewed (Grade: C)

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Infiniti Q60 IPL Convertible Review

When it comes to making a car more than the sum of its parts, luxury brands like Infiniti and Audi do a very strong job. The Q60, formerly known as the G37 Convertible, is one such example. Despite having been on the market since I got my driver’s license (which feels and is a long time ago at this point), they’re still selling it and people are still enjoying new ones as if they have had them for eons. The IPL model is supposed to be a hot version aimed at the older M3, which was the benchmark at the time. Nick and I both drove it, and I wrung it out around the streets of the Seventeen-Mile-Drive to find out what this svelte convertible was capable of. I got quite a few answers, some of which were expected, some of which were desired, and a few of which were not at all what I saw coming.

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Cars We've Driven, Everyday Normal Cars, Exotic Supercars

Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid Reviewed (10/10)

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Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid Review

Everyone, meet Porsche’s Prius! The new Panamera S E-Hybrid, like the Prius, is a 4-door hatchback, and it uses an electric motor to help out its gas engine in a similar way. Furthermore, the Panamera S E-Hybrid has shown in real world tests that it can top 50 mpg, also just like the Prius! Yes, the similarities between the two cars go surprisingly far, much further than most might expect, but they couldn’t be more different in their fundamental purpose.

The Toyota Prius is an economy car for people who want to spend as little money as possible on a car. The Panamera, on the other hand, is a high-end luxury machine for people who are comfortable writing a six figure check for a single car. You can buy four Toyota Priuses for the starting price of this Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid, and that’s before adding any expensive options. However, playing Devil’s advocate, the Panamera does have nearly the horsepower of all four of those Priuses combined. The Panamera may cost as much as four Priuses, but you could also argue that it’s also four times the car.

I remember being amazed when Al Gore’s son got caught going 100mph in his Prius, not because of his behavior, but because he actually got a Prius to top 100mph. If he buys one of these Porsches, then maybe next time he can be pushing 170mph.

Okay, it’s time to acknowledge the elephant in the room here: The Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid will not be competing for buyers with the Toyota Prius (sorry to disappoint). No, it will be going head-to-head against the almighty Tesla Model S, and Elon Musk’s trendy “King Innovator” brand image. It is a massive challenge, one that basically killed Fisker, but I think this Porsche is up to it, and I will explain why.

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Cars We've Driven, Luxury Cars

2014 Mercedes-Benz CLA250 4MATIC, Reviewed (Grade: B)

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Mercedes-Benz CLA250 Front

Mercedes-Benz has made a jump into the entry-level luxury market that exists below the C-Class, in order to grab younger, affluent buyers who want to move up in the world from Camrys and Accords that scatter the landscape. As this is the cheapest Benz money can buy new, I felt compelled to drive one, and on Memorial Day Weekend this year, I finally had some time on my hands to go take one for a drive. Luckily for me, my local dealership had a very clean looking AWD example with almost every option available for a spin around the block. As I strapped in, I asked myself one big question: “Can Mercedes-Benz draw as much appeal in this market as they normally do at the top of the market?” I got my answer–and a bit more than that. Continue reading 2014 Mercedes-Benz CLA250 4MATIC, Reviewed (Grade: B) →

Cars We've Driven, Luxury Cars

2015 BMW M235i Reviewed (10/10)

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2015 BMW M235i

Back in the 1980s, the BMW 3 Series really put BMW on the map. It drove like a sports car, but was a practical and economical for everyday use. Generation after generation, the 3 Series built up its reputation, but now it has grown in proportion so much that it isn’t really the same sort of car that it originally was. This is where the 2 Series comes into the equation, as a car that is much more the flavor of the first few generations of the 3 Series. If you want a new BMW that is more like the E30, E36, or E46 generation 3 Series, then the 2 Series may be the answer for you. Let’s have a look at the M235i, the top dog of the current 2 Series lineup.

The 2 Series is not the first BMW to undercut the 3 Series. The 2 Series comes to us as the direct replacement for the previous-gen 1 Series. BMW re-branded it as a 2 Series because a smaller, front-wheel drive model will be taking the 1 Series nameplate in the near future. I know this is all very confusing, and very trivial, but welcome to the auto industry where the bean counters have to find a way to make their superfluous jobs matter.

The BMW M235i is a fantastic sports car of the modern variety. What I mean by that is that it utilizes the best aspects of modern automotive technology, but that it also may leave some old-school driving purists wanting for more.

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Cars We've Driven, Luxury Cars

2014 BMW 428i Reviewed (Grade: B)

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BMW 428i Right Front

When it comes to sports sedans, BMW has always been the brand on top since the 1980s. Sure, there have been some companies to equal them on a few different fronts, but the 3-Series has been the king in terms of sales and profitability for its manufacturer for as long as I can remember. When the F30 series launched in early 2012, I was very skeptical and didn’t like the sedan I took out for a drive. In fact, I found the 328i wagon I drove a few months before that to be more fun to drive. Worse, when I was at Pebble Beach last summer, I got stuck behind a new 435i which couldn’t be bothered to go the speed limit, and thus ruined my test drive of the Rolls-Royce Wraith. At Greenwich this year, I was presented with the opportunity to allow this new model to redeem itself. I found myself standing in front of this 428i coupe with keys in hand and a jonesing to go for a drive and see if I could find something to like about the new model. Here’s what I found. Continue reading 2014 BMW 428i Reviewed (Grade: B) →

Cars We've Driven, Cheap Fun Cars, Luxury Cars

2015 Subaru WRX CVT Automatic Reviewed (9.5/10)

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2015 Subaru WRX Review by Mind Over Motor

This is the new Subaru WRX, and it is the one without a clutch pedal. As if that doesn’t seem bad enough, it doesn’t have a dual clutch gearbox or even a traditional automatic, no, this WRX has a continuously variable transmission (CVT), like the one you might find in a Toyota Prius or a Nissan Versa. And, you know what, it’s pretty damn good.

You might think I’ve lost my mind here, but let me set things straight with a little context. I am not going to say that the CVT WRX is better than the manual WRX, because it surely isn’t for hardcore driving enthusiasts. So let’s get that out of the way right from the start. Subaru still makes a manual WRX for their existing customers, and now it finally comes as a 6-speed (Hooray!). That, however is a fairly boring story to write — the manual WRX is a lot of fun, and the Pope is still Catholic.

I wanted to drive the CVT automatic because the 2015 WRX is the first WRX to be offered without a clutch pedal since 2008, and most of us know the 2008 WRX was a total embarassment. In fact, throughout the entire history of the Subaru WRX, there hasn’t been a decent automatic version… ever. So I had a fundamental question that needed to be answered: Is the new CVT automatic WRX any good at all?

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Cars We've Driven, Cheap Fun Cars, Everyday Normal Cars

2014 FIAT 500L Trekking Review (Grade: C+)

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Fiat 500L Front Left

Fiat has been doing a pretty good job of marketing whatever new product they have.  They have come a long way from the cringe-inducing “Jenny From the Block” ads that were running a few years ago, to running ads with P.Diddy and a little kid to advertise their newest creation.  The 500 was a hit for them worldwide and in America, they’re certainly selling pretty well.  In fact, there’s been a new kid on the block for them in the past year or so now, the 500L, a four-door model designed with the small family in mind.  Fiat needs all the sales it can get right about now, as the 500L is in a tough marketplace and has not been getting a good amount of positive press.  I decided to take myself to the local Fiat showroom a few miles away and see what the fuss was all about. Continue reading 2014 FIAT 500L Trekking Review (Grade: C+) →

Cars We've Driven, Everyday Normal Cars, Exotic Supercars, Luxury Cars

Cadillac ELR Reviewed (6.5/10)

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Cadillac ELR Review

The Chevrolet Volt hasn’t sold well, despite its fantastic technological design. The reason Volt hasn’t sold is because it costs around $40,000 when a Toyota Prius costs around $25,000; who would’ve guessed, but most cost-conscious consumers would rather save their extra fifteen grand.

GM knows the Volt is in trouble, so they’ve decided to attack the problem from a different angle — if the Volt is too expensive, then why not make it into a Cadillac, called the ELR, which can command a higher price. On the surface that seems like a good idea: take an over-priced economy car, turn it into a luxury car, and add a couple grand to the price tag.

Here’s the problem, though. GM didn’t just add a couple grand to the Volt’s price tag, they went and doubled it. So now, a way over-priced economy car has become a way over-priced luxury coupe.

Knowing all of this, when given the opportunity to take an ELR for a spin, I decided to put my predispositions aside, and see what the car had to offer. Maybe, just maybe, GM could’ve sprinkled it with some sort of magical pixy dust that would make it worth the $80,000…

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Cars We've Driven, Exotic Supercars, Luxury Cars

Porsche 911 Carrera S Review, Al’s Take (Grade: B)

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2014 Porsche 911 Carrera S Front Left

Porsche is one of those brands that hasn’t changed much, despite their appearances. The company may have a lot of great fans, but there are a lot of traditionalists too. This mix of fans is pretty eclectic, ranging from autocross nuts (who love their 944s), Sunday drivers (who could be driving anything from a 914 to a fire-breathing Turbo S), executives (to some, a 911 Carrera is a real symbol of success), to wealthy soccer moms (Cayennes). The traditionalists fume when you bring up the Cayenne or the Panamera and I know what they are all about–Porsche should be about sports cars, not everyday “boring” vehicles. Well, it doesn’t matter what Porsche makes, because they are a company that wants all of their product to have the same message. That message hasn’t changed since the birth of the company, which is that Porsches aren’t ever supposed to feel like a normal car. They should touch the soul, and reward the owner with dynamics and driving feel that excite the senses. I took out this 911 Carrera S around Amelia Island to find out how the flavor tastes in Porsche’s most familiar formula: RWD, a flat-six engine, and a rear axle with that engine hanging out behind it. I wasn’t disappointed.

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