If you’re reading this site, you probably already know I’m a bit odd. For example, I’ve posted several long reviews of cars I’ve never even driven. And I once owned a Range Rover Classic. This is not normal behavior. However, the strangest thing about me, undoubtedly, is that I love the Chevy Tahoe Hybrid. The Tahoe Hybrid came out for the 2008 model year using a 332-horsepower 6.0-liter V8. If that sounds like a lot of power, it was: the Tahoe Hybrid did 0-60 in the mid-8 second range, which makes it a veritable monster truck of performance. (OK, maybe not, but it’s no i-MiEV,...

For years, automakers have tried to pawn off three-spoke wheels on American car buyers, nearly all of whom have roundly rejected the wheels provided they have any taste. Let’s take a trip down memory lane to remind ourselves of some of the bad – and really bad – three spoke wheels of old. Original Dodge Viper The early Viper used this three-spoke wheel design, which may have been intended to take peoples’ attention off the fact that the rest of the car was so awful. Indeed, the three-spoke wheel was the least concerning thing on the Viper, considering its heavy truck transmission,...

I’ve come to learn that the mark of a good neighborhood is as follows: 1. Good schools. 2. Friendly neighbors with fluffy dogs named, in almost all cases, Molly. 3. Lemonade stands run by ten-year-old girls who believe that water with a lemon is, in fact, lemonade. 4. Only a small number of homeless people that root through your trash cans at night. 5. A high density of luxury SUVs. As you can see in the photo, my neighborhood has no problem with number 5, and I promise the number of homeless people that root through my trash cans is reasonably low. This photo was taken at my neighborhood...

Have you ever looked at Buick’s current lineup and said: “I wish there was a two-seater?” Neither have I. Neither has anyone. Except, of course, for someone at General Motors, who, in the late 1980s, dreamed up the Reatta. Yes, the Buick Reatta exists, despite the best efforts of car buyers everywhere. The Reatta went on sale in 1988 using GM’s 3.8-liter V6, probably because it wasn’t possible not to use GM’s 3.8-liter V6 in the 1980s. Or the 1990s, for that matter. It had two seats, two doors, and an absolutely bizarre “Electronic Control Center,” which was a touchscreen system...

The Volkswagen Passat is, by all accounts, rather dull. That didn’t stop Motor Trend from calling it Car of the Year in 2012, but then again, this is a magazine that also bestowed that title on the 2001 Chrysler PT Cruiser, a travesty they followed up the next year with the 2002 Ford Thunderbird. Clearly, they can’t be trusted. But while today’s Passat is rather dull, it wasn’t always that way. There was a time not so long ago when the most powerful midsize sedan was an eight-cylinder Passat with all-wheel drive. And, yes: it came in stick shift. The Volkswagen Passat W8 came out for the...

I know, I know. This one’s obvious. But you can’t have a section entitled “GM Bad Idea” and not mention the Chevrolet SSR. To start, let’s go over the particulars. The Chevrolet SSR was a convertible pickup truck, apparently in the image of the Dodge Dakota convertible, because no other convertible pickup exists for comparison. This was strike one, since I imagine most convertible owners don’t often think: “I wish I could also use this to transport mulch.” Not that they would’ve in the SSR. To accommodate the flared wheel arches, the bed was incredibly narrow, meaning nothing of...

One of life’s unadulterated truisms is the simple reality that you can’t have a wealthy, upper-class, old money neighborhood without having Land Rover Defenders. Typically, these must be driven by wealthy high schoolers who rejected the mere concept of the Jeep Wrangler on the grounds that it’s too plebian. (Actually, a really wealthy neighborhood would have high-schoolers driving droptop G-wagens, but I’m not Rockefeller.) In The Hood, we have the odd Defender 90 or two. But most importantly, we have two real gems: the North American Spec Defender 110. While the US Defender lineup...

The federal government can, at times, be rather annoying. Tax time, for example, can be a bit stressful. Not for me, since my taxes are prepared by a middle-aged accountant who, like all middle-aged accountants, drives an Acura RL, like all middle-aged accountants. But maybe for you. Of course, regardless of your views on taxes, or Congress, or the president, I think we can all agree the single most annoying thing about government is its ban on importing cars. At the moment, the government does not allow any vehicles 24 years old or newer to be imported unless you plan to use it for “show and...

Welcome to a new feature, In The Hood, where I chronicle some of the eclectic cars seen on the streets of the old money neighborhood where I happen to rent a one-bedroom apartment. This car is the inspiration for In The Hood. Behold, the Mercedes 500E, one of the greatest subtle sedans in the history of time, painted in a color only a German could love. Interestingly, this isn’t the worst color for the 500E. There was also a purple, which occasionally showed up in Mercedes advertisements that convinced people to buy BMWs. The story on the 500E is this: Porsche was going down. Their product line...

Unless you live in Dearborn, it’s easy to forget about the current Ford Taurus SHO. After all, it’s based on the current Taurus, which – despite Ford’s finest efforts to the contrary – is still only sold to old people who want a big car for trips to the pharmacy to pick up their prescriptions. The SHO’s biggest problem isn’t image. Instead, it’s price: the SHO starts around $40,000. Add a package and a couple of options, and you’re living in the $45k world. That’s quite pricey for a Ford, even if it does have a 365-horsepower “EcoBoost” V6 under the hood. (By the...

The “E65” BMW 7-Series was, by all accounts, a wonderful car. That is, unless you consider its styling, which came about when BMW’s design team inexplicably ceded control to a man from Ohio with a beard, possibly at gunpoint. These cars also suffered from issues with iDrive, which was an electronic control system that everyone bitterly complained about. The complaints were so bad, in fact, that nearly every other manufacturer implemented similar systems within ten years. Fortunately, iDrive improved. And BMW facelifted the E65 7-Series in 2006, which largely ended any complaints about its...

So you’re looking for a cheap used car. You want something with a little excitement; a little performance. Perhaps you want one of the most sought-after high-performance brand names in the used car world: AMG. Behold, the Mercedes ML55 AMG which, to the surprise of probably everyone who assembled it, does still exist. The ML55 AMG came out in 2000 and brought the AMG features we knew and loved from the C- and E-Class to the M-Class. That meant large, flat-faced wheels; a bigger engine; and styling modifications that were undetectable to the naked eye but proudly detailed in a 24-page German press...

Ah, the world of minivans. A world that General Motors has tried, unsuccessfully, to enter since the dawn of time: first, with a van shaped like a dustbuster, then with one that could tow stuff. Both vans found a following, though in each case it was comprised of around 900 people that qualified for the GM Friends and Family discount. Admittedly, GM did make a decent van – the Venture and companions – for a few years in the late 1990s. Of course, it was laughably outclassed by Honda and Toyota immediately after its release, which allowed GM to do what they do best: let it remain on the...

It Exists: Ford Transit Connect Passenger Van Most people know that Ford imports the Transit Connect from Turkey as a passenger van, rips out the seats and windows at the port, and throws them away. Most people also know that this is due to a bit of legal minutiae called the “Chicken Tax.” This has been well-covered elsewhere, but the gist is as follows. In the 1960s, we made a lot of chickens. And VW made a lot of flatbed pickup truck versions of its flower power-style Bus. The Germans got mad that we were exporting so many chickens, so they started taxing them. Because we all know “an eye...

The Japanese were busy on December 7, 1941. In addition to the attack on Pearl Harbor, they also chose that day to invade Malaysia in a city called Kota Bharu. While Japan never made it past Hawaii in the States, they were far more successful in Malaysia, occupying much of the country through the end of the war. If you’re not asleep yet, you might be questioning what this all has to do with cars. Well, you see, one might think the Japanese invasion of Malaysia would stop a Japanese car company from selling a car called the “Invader” in Malaysia. But that isn’t the case. In fact, Isuzu not...