Posted by Doug DeMuro in It Exists
on | 9 comments
Here’s an interesting car. Let’s say you like diesels. And let’s say you also like performance. In general, these things are mutually exclusive. Most diesels are built for gas mileage, while most performance cars are built with the furthest engine possible from a diesel. Except for those Audis that race in LeMans. Those are an anomaly.
But wouldn’t it be cool to combine diesel and performance? That’s precisely what VW did with the TDI Cup race series, an SCCA series that lasted from 2008 to 2011. The cars that ran were all diesel-powered Jettas, just like the ones you could buy at the...
Posted by Doug DeMuro in Feature
on | 15 comments
Well, ladies and gentlemen (Ladies! Hah!), the time has come: I’ve decided to debunk another myth. You may remember the last time I debunked a myth. It was when I asserted that the Tail of the Dragon isn’t everything it’s cracked up to be, which led to an angry, drawn-out fight between serious drivers and the kind of people who think of a pickup bed as transportation to church.
Fortunately, today’s myth is less controversial and far more informational. That’s because it involves serious automotive insider knowledge that comes from me, a serious automotive insider who once passed an entire...
Posted by Doug DeMuro in Feature
on | 7 comments
Before I get into this, I believe an apology is in order. You come to Jalopnik every day for the same things: cool stories about cool vehicles. Reviews of exotic sports cars. Russian dash cams. Videos of Chris Harris drifting. The incoherent ramblings of Travis Okulski. And here I am, writing my third article in a row about sport-utility vehicles.
For this, I apologize. I apologize to anyone who wants to buy an old SUV and actually take it off-road, since you’ll now be competing with leagues of wealthy men who take investment advice from Jalopnik. I apologize to all the Hummer H2 owners I...
Posted by Doug DeMuro in Minutiae of the Minute
on | 13 comments
I think it’s time that we (and by we, of course I mean “I”) devote a second to Mazda’s swing vents, because it’s a topic that the mainstream automotive media, of which I am a part, are continually ignoring. This is almost certainly because no one cares.
But I care, and so does an alert reader who contacted me to tell me about the swing vents. But I already knew, as did four or five others out there, none of whom have a life either.
Here’s how it worked: you got in your early 1990s Mazda 626, put on the air conditioning or heat, and voila! The air pushed out of the vents as they moved...
Posted by Doug DeMuro in Used Car Reminder
on | 7 comments
Some of my “used car reminder” posts are little more than a thinly veiled attempt at talking about a car I find interesting. This one, on the other hand, is different. In this case, I’m reminding you about a used car that you a) may have forgotten, and b) shouldn’t have forgotten.
The car in question is the Lexus LX450, which was sold for only two model years: 1996 and 1997. The reason I’m reminding you about the LX450 is that the Lexus is completely identical to the Toyota Land Cruiser in virtually every way. In other words: when you go searching for a used 80-series Land Cruiser,...
Posted by Doug DeMuro in Feature
on | 4 comments
I think it’s safe to say that we, as car enthusiasts, often pass judgment on people we see in other cars. See a Honda Odyssey, for example, and your first thought is: “That person is transporting several children!” Or, if it’s a Dodge Grand Caravan, you think: “That person is transporting several children in a rental car!”
Of course, these judgments go beyond minivans. Every time I see a lowered E46 BMW M3 at Cars and Coffee, for instance, I’m always thinking the same thing: Now there’s a guy who uses text messaging to break up with women.
(AUTHOR’S NOTE: For God’s sake, E46 M3...
Posted by Doug DeMuro in It Exists
on | 5 comments
Manual transmission and a hybrid drivetrain. These things seem like they’d go hand-in-hand. Manuals are fuel efficient. Hybrids are fuel efficient. This is the perfect combination!
The only problem is most hybrid people don’t want to bother with driving a stick. And, love ‘em or hate ‘em, CVT automatics tend to be just as good at gas mileage as manuals – if not better. The result is there are a precious few manual hybrids in existence today.
We all know one of them: the original Honda Insight. That was initially offered only with a stick, though a CVT came online later, ensuring the...
Posted by Doug DeMuro in Feature
on | 0 comments
It happened about a week ago. I was sitting in traffic and looking around, as I sometimes do when I’m not texting, and there it was: one of the rarest modern production cars in existence.
For those of you who don’t know which one I’m referring to, a few hints. Think turbocharged power. Think all-wheel drive. Think of a production facility in an exotic, foreign country known for beautiful beaches, expensive resorts, and the occasional tourist beheading.
That’s right, ladies and gentlemen: I’m talking about the Saab 9-4X.
Now, if you’re not sure exactly what a Saab 9-4X is, you aren’t...
Posted by Doug DeMuro in It Exists
on | 13 comments
I think it’s time that we discuss one of the rarest modern cars in existence. Turbocharged power. All-wheel drive. European heritage. Rarity that exceeds a Carrera GT.
That’s right, folks: I’m talking about the Saab 9-4X.
Most people aren’t aware of the 9-4X’s actual existence. A lot of folks think Saab developed it, but didn’t quite get it into production before the bankruptcy, meaning there’s a lot of center-mounted ignition switches left over at GM’s Cadillac SRX factory in Ramos Arizpe, Mexico.
But that’s not the case. The 9-4X did go into production, if only for a few...
Posted by Doug DeMuro in Feature
on | 1 comment
I often get e-mails from readers, people just like you except with more time on their hands, that ask me questions. “Doug,” they might ask, “Should I buy this ’68 Cougar that’s been sitting in a field since the Hartford Whalers were still a hockey team?” That one comes from a muscle car guy. Or “Doug,” another might say, “When are you going to quit this crap and get a real job?” That one comes from my parents.
Well, today I’ve decided to answer a question that I get asked all the time, namely: What’s it like to drive a Lotus Elise? As you may recall, I drove mine across the...
Posted by Doug DeMuro in Used Car Reminder
on | 8 comments
I think we’d all agree that Plays With Cars doesn’t devote enough attention to staid, quiet Japanese luxury sedans. So I’ve decided at this moment to change that fact with a piece about everyone’s favorite full-size Japanese luxury car: the LS 600h L.
For those of you who don’t know the LS 600h L, allow me to explain. Take a normal LS 460, then stretch it (now you have an “LS 460 L”), then add a hybrid motor, and it becomes the LS 600h L. I’m not sure how they arrive at “600” considering it’s a 5.0-liter motor, but I do know it involves a lot of spaces in the model name.
So...
Posted by Doug DeMuro in Feature
on | 1 comment
There’s one distinct advantage of my job compared to, say, your job. And that advantage is: I don’t have to commute. That’s right, ladies and gentlemen. Give up your salaried, safe office job with benefits and room for growth in order to become a writer, and you, too, could spend mornings concerned primarily with why the wireless Internet won’t reach the porch swing.
Of course, I’m not entirely immune to commuting. I spent the last three-and-a-half years of my life working in an office located in the suburbs, which excels in education and lifestyle, whereas I live in the city, which...
Posted by Doug DeMuro in Feature
on | 0 comments
I recently spent some time driving on an airport runway. No, I didn’t do this because I’m an old person who ran through a barricade, which is how a Cadillac usually ends up on a runway. Instead, this took place at a highly organized event, with cones, and timing devices, and those little triangular flags on rope they always seem to have at automotive gatherings.
Before we get into the details, a little background. Last September, I learned that a private airstrip in rural Georgia would be shut down for a weekend of drag racing. This was courtesy of a company called “wannaGOFAST,” which...
Posted by Doug DeMuro in Used Car Reminder
on | 11 comments
I know, I know: this one isn’t exactly off-the radar. But I realized something about the Focus SVT the other day: it’s really cool.
For starters, some background. We all know the first-generation Ford Focus, because it came out in 2000 and lasted for like a decade, as if it was a Mercedes SL-Class. Well it wasn’t an SL-Class, and anyone who drove one knew that. But the SVT was kind of cool.
Here’s the deal on the SVT Focus: it came out for the 2002 model, initially as a 3-door hatchback. In 2003, a 5-door SVT model was added. And 2004 was the final year, which means these things aren’t...
Posted by Doug DeMuro in Feature Fail
on | 19 comments
It recently came to my attention that the Honda Ridgeline is still on sale. I found this out quite by accident, when I discovered an article that talked in detail about how Honda plans to keep selling it for another year or two, then cancel it for a while, then maybe replace it, or maybe not. This is the Honda way.
So I had the Ridgeline on my mind, which is why I’ve decided to devote today’s “Feature Fail” column to one of the most unusual features currently available: the Honda Ridgeline camper top.
What is the Honda Ridgeline camper top, you ask? Why, it’s a camper top for a Honda...