Tag Archives: Luxury Cars

Cars We've Driven, Luxury Cars, Uncategorized

Cadillac ATS-V Review: Still GM, for better and worse

June 22, 2016 ndubs77 1 Comment

This is the Cadillac ATS-V. The master form of the highly acclaimed, yet highly criticized ATS sedan. It was born to go toe-to-toe with the likes of the BMW M3 and Mercedes C63 AMG, and it looks like a pretty damn good bet in that fight.

You know what’s weird, though? After driving it, I feel the exact same way about the ATS-V that I did about each other Cadillac ATS I’ve driven. Sure, the ATS-V exists at a much higher level, but it’s relative strengths and shortcomings all fall in the same areas.

I’m amazed at how consistent the ATS lineup is, with some areas near perfection and others, well, not.

Continue reading Cadillac ATS-V Review: Still GM, for better and worse →

Car Shows, Uncategorized

Rolls Royce Dawn at Amelia Island

June 1, 2016 ndubs77 1 Comment

It’s amazing how much a touch of turquoise can enrich the fine details of a car. This Rolls Royce Dawn would’ve been elegant, if even a little bland, were it not for its turquoise details in its finely crafted interior. It really makes the car “pop.”

It’s so swanky!

-Nick

Auto Idolatry, SHOWCASE

Motor Trend SUV Shootout: Bentley Bentayga vs. Tesla Model X P90D

May 27, 2016 ndubs77 Leave a comment

These two SUVs are insanely fast by road car standards. But which one is best?

Car Shows, Uncategorized

Bentley Bentayga at NYIAS 2016

May 18, 2016 ndubs77 Leave a comment

We got our first look at the new Bentley Bentayga SUV at the New York International Auto Show. Part of me doesn’t think it quite fits as a Bentley, the other part of me sees how it was a no-brainer for the Luxury SUV segment.

I think there’s little doubt the Bentayga will sell well. I mean, pretty soon you’ll be seeing them sprinkled around the Apple Store side of your local mall, right next to the Teslas. The question is does it help Bentley or hurt their brand identity?

-Nick

Car Shows

Cadillac Sixteen Concept at Amelia Island

May 6, 2016 ndubs77 Leave a comment

Remember that time Cadillac made the most epic luxury car in the world, and then left us all hot and bothered with our hopes crushed? This is the Cadillac Sixteen Concept, and it would have crushed the Rolls Royce Phantom back in 2003… if it had been real, but it wasn’t.

A nod to top-of-the-line Cadillacs of old, the Sixteen Concept was a functional prototype complete with a bespoke V-16 engine. That’s sixteen cylinders, displacing a massive 13.2L (830ci), that produce 1,000hp and and 1,000 ft/lbs of torque, all without the aid of any forced induction. There hasn’t been another modern production engine like it, and the probably won’t ever be.

Sure, this thing definitely looks a bit GM 2000’s-tastic when you look at it now, especially the interior, but it would’ve been a true Cadillac’s Cadillac at a time when the brand really needed such a flagship. Now, 13 years later, Cadillac is still in need of such a flagship for the brand to rally behind.

The Sixteen Concept is a wonderful embodiment of both the best and the worst of General Motors. They can make a wonderful, cutting edge car, but then their management all too often winds up getting in the way, and ruining all the fun.

Enjoy the photos of what could’ve been the most proper of Cadillacs.

Continue reading Cadillac Sixteen Concept at Amelia Island →

Auto Idolatry, SHOWCASE

Motor Trend drives the swanky Lagonda Taraf by Aston Martin

April 27, 2016 ndubs77 Leave a comment

The Logonda Taraf is a million dollar cherry on top of the Aston Martin pie. It’s a Rapide underneath, but they’ve done a lot to make it more “special.”

I think it’s pretty sharp, definitely a head turner for the handful of owners to show off to their friends.

-Nick

Opinions

Why I Hate Concept Cars: A Rant

April 4, 2016 ndubs77 2 Comments

Lincoln showed off their fancy new Navigator Concept at the 2016 New York International Auto Show to much acclaim. It was all over the news, and people were going mental over it. I mean, what’s not to love about a sparkly blue SUV with massive gullwing doors and fine wooden steps up to its luxurious cabin?

Yes, if it were real, the Navigator Concept would be a game-changer in the SUV market, but it isn’t real. People often miss the word “Concept,” and I must’ve had around ten people ask me if I had seen the incredible new Lincoln Navigator, as if it were actually the new production car. Sadly, I then had to break all of their hearts by telling them it was just a pipe dream that would never come true. An automotive strip-tease with no happy ending.

Continue reading Why I Hate Concept Cars: A Rant →

Opinions, Uncategorized

The Tesla Model 3 looks promising if promises are kept

April 1, 2016 ndubs77 1 Comment

I was sold on the electric car the second I experienced 0-84mph in a Tesla Model S P85D. It’s not just brutal acceleration, it’s brutal acceleration you can actually use from any speed, available immediately. Even just squirting from 0-30mph off a city stop light is a total riot. It is the kind of enjoyment you can only have in an electric car. There is no engine, no gears, and no delay. Thrills come simply at a push of the button, or pedal, in this case.

I thought Elon Musk summed up Tesla’s path brilliantly. Prove electric can be fun with the Tesla Roadster, then prove them practical and desirable with the Model S and Model X. But now comes the make or break moment for Tesla Motors, a truly affordable, mass-production car, the Tesla Model 3. It must be practical, it must be dependable, and it must be quite desirable to out-compete fierce competition.

Only time will tell for dependability, an issue that Tesla has been working on. Any new car company should expect some bumps in the road, it’s how they deal with them that counts. This factor gets greatly amplified as you move into the mass-market realm.

What we did find out last night in the short part one of the Tesla Model 3 reveal is that the car will be quite desirable and quite practical… so long as Musk’s promises are kept.

Continue reading The Tesla Model 3 looks promising if promises are kept →

Car Shows, Obscure Autos, SHOWCASE

1990 Toyota Century at the 2016 Festivals of Speed, Amelia Island

Gallery March 29, 2016 Albert S. Davis 2 Comments

At Amelia, there’s quite a lot going on and if you blink, you will miss a lot. The show over at one of the other large hotels, the Festivals of Speed, was in full swing on Saturday afternoon in the ultra-strong Florida sun, and I discovered a few cars at the show which I’m unlikely to ever see again. One of them was a 6×6 Mercedes-Benz, which I will cover at a later date. This car, however, is one that almost no one has ever heard of, unless they’ve lived in Japan and had some obscenely wealthy friends (or friends in the Yakuza). Meet the Toyota Century–or the Japanese equivalent of a Maybach, from the Eighties. Continue reading 1990 Toyota Century at the 2016 Festivals of Speed, Amelia Island →

Car Shows, Uncategorized

Aston Martin DB AR1 Zagato at Amelia Island

March 28, 2016 ndubs77 Leave a comment

This beautiful Aston Martin DB AR1 by Zagato is definitely the modern Aston I’d most like to have in my own garage. It’s not the fastest Aston money can buy, nor the best built, and it’s definitely not the newest, either. But it is one of just 99 in existence, it’s beyond gorgeous, it’s a drop-top, and it has a sweet V12 engine that’s hooked up to a manual gearbox. In short, the DB AR1 Zagato is everything I want in my Aston Martin experience.

Even though there are only 99 of these things, we actually manage to see them fairly often. I guess DB AR1 owners just tend to enjoy going to concours events. This silver DB AR1 stood out to me on the show field at the Amelia Island Cars and Coffee. It’s an interesting color combo of bright pearlescent silver over a deep green leather interior.

I saw this same DB AR1 Zagato go by on the road the day before, and I went nuts. I just never get tired of looking at them for some reason.

Enjoy the photos!

Continue reading Aston Martin DB AR1 Zagato at Amelia Island →

Car Shows, SHOWCASE

1930 Rolls-Royce Phantom II, 2016 Amelia Island Best of Show, Concours d’Elegance

Gallery March 22, 2016 Albert S. Davis 1 Comment

Yesterday, Nick posted the Best of Show, Concours d’Sport, at Amelia last week. Today, we have the other Best of Show winner from the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance. This is the Concours d’Elegance Best Of Show winner–a stunning Rolls-Royce Phantom II. I’ve been across a very large amount of prewar Rolls since I started covering Concours events in September 2010, but nothing quite like this monster. Continue reading 1930 Rolls-Royce Phantom II, 2016 Amelia Island Best of Show, Concours d’Elegance →

Cars We've Driven, Luxury Cars, Uncategorized

Infiniti Q50 Red Sport 400 Review: Turbocharged For Your Pleasure!

March 16, 2016 ndubs77 8 Comments

I’ve been waiting for the Japanese luxury brands to go turbo for a long time now. They’ve been keeping their cars pretty simple for years, and that’s great for reliability, but in the end, the turbo European cars were faster, a lot faster. Well now it seems the tables have turned. Infiniti has finally joined the turbo game, and they’ve brought a ringer.

Their new 3.0L twin turbo V6 comes in two flavors, one with 300hp and one with 400hp. The first will compete directly with the existing sport sedan pack, and the second will blow them away. Even with the German’s conservative horsepower claims, none of their offerings reach the 400hp mark. That means the high-output Infiniti Q50 Red Sport 400 I drove here is some very serious business.

Continue reading Infiniti Q50 Red Sport 400 Review: Turbocharged For Your Pleasure! →