Long Term Reviews

Ram 2500 Full Overview I recently got a chance to spend a week each in two Rams, which gave me a chance to try some options unavailable or opted against when we configured Guffman. One was a Ram 2500 Power Wagon that let me try out the front bench seat, the whopper 12.0-inch vertical infotainment screen, the RamBox bed, and the gas V-8 (our Cummins diesel I-6 is too long to package in the PW’s steeper approach-angle nose)—not to mention the winch and diff-locks. Then I spent a week in a Ram 1500 EcoDiesel to compare the junior oil-burner’s drivability with our truck’s. The Power Wagon’s 40/20/40 front bench features a backrest that folds down to form an armrest with three cupholders. Opening its lid reveals a change dispenser, a USB port, and a 10x8x3-inch stowage b...

Mazda CX-30 Full Overview Mazda no longer uses “Driving Matters” as its tagline (now it’s “Feel Alive”—already do, thanks), but that ethos is still imbued in every one of its vehicles. We agree with that mantra—mostly. Sometimes we’d trade involvement for relaxation, particularly when enduring long highway stretches as we’ve now done for several thousand road trip miles in our long-term 2020 Mazda CX-30. Turns out that when driving doesn’t matter, this subcompact crossover is less than ideal. Driver “Assist” Systems Nice as the CX-30’s accurate, reactive steering is on a twisty road, managing it becomes a chore when coursing dead ahead. Lane-keep assist can be an awesome help in these scenarios, and the CX-30’s spec sh...

Ram 2500 Full Overview Guffman’s been stretching his legs as staffers reluctant to fly take to the highways. Chicagoan Greg Fink made a run to visit his family in Florida, and I made a brother-in-law run to Greenville, South Carolina. It’s fun to watch the predicted range soar early in a road trip that follows several weeks of around-town driving. On that Greenville jaunt, an initial prediction of 425 miles grew to 437 over the first 60 miles before finally beginning to count down what ended up being well over 500 total tank miles. Repeatedly accelerating four tons of mass means those in-town tankfuls average less than 15 mpg. But simply maintaining momentum at 80 mph brings the average up to the mid-19s. It’s safe to assume this 32-gallon tank can outlast most bladders. ...

If you recall from the last update, Thomas Rosquin, manager of search and business intelligence for MotorTrend, drove our 2020 Toyota Supra on a 500-mile road trip. Upon return, he sent me a list of 10 things he loves and this list of 15 things he does not. I’m inclined to agree. You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating should be. It begins with giving you back power. Get to meet Beautiful people, chat and make money in the process. Earn rewards by chatting, sharing photos, blogging and help give users back their fair share of Internet revenue.

Kia Soul Full Overview Kia offers no less than six trims in the Soul lineup, most with their own unique exterior styling themes, and some are bolder than others. After a recent browsing of all the variations on Kia’s build site—spanning the entry-level LX, S, GT-Line, X-Line, EX, and GT Turbo—I started daydreaming about swiping bits and pieces from the other five trims in an attempt to achieve a custom look for the mid-range, straight-shooter Soul EX. Even though I rather like the styling of the Soul EX—and have even suggested it sort of looks like a mini Range Rover—it’s still fun to imagine the Soul I could mold by combining parts from other trims. This is where the mind wanders when there are so few complaints about the Soul, which remains one of our top-ranked subcompact SU...

Subaru Outback Full Overview Aside from the WRX and WRX STI, Subarus simply aren’t known for speed—but that changes with the turbocharged Outback XT models. The XT badge means a 260-hp turbo-four propels the lifted wagon to the top of the midsize SUV class in MotorTrend-tested acceleration. We’re talking WRX speed here. And in the 2020 Subaru Outback Onyx XT we’re driving for a year, we’ve come to appreciate the Outback’s class-leading quickness, even if it does come with a couple asterisks. How Quick Is the Subaru Outback? Most 2020 and 2021 Subaru Outbacks are powered by a 2.5-liter flat-four making 182 hp that delivers adequate responses, though you do need to plan highway passes a little farther in advance. Acceleration to 60 mph takes a MotorTrend-tested ...

Mazda CX-30 Full Overview It’s a pretty poorly kept secret that one of the most frequent uses for long-term vehicles in the MotorTrend Garage is in support of the comparison tests and reviews of other cars, trucks, and SUVs. Sometimes that means our long-termer is the star of a comparison; other times it means our long-termer is serving as a test or photo support vehicle—something our long-term 2020 Mazda CX-30 Premium AWD has been doing a lot of recently. I know what you’re wondering—how is this relevant to you? Well, if you’re a car enthusiast, I think you might want to perk up for a bit. The duty cycle our photographers put our vehicles through is often very similar to what enthusiasts might do with their car, if for one reason or another they have just one car at home...

Honda Civic Full Overview Buying a performance car often costs more than money; it costs comfort and convenience. If you’re buying a 2020 Honda Civic Si, though, it doesn’t have to. The Civic Si is essentially a mono-spec vehicle. As such, it rings in at just $26,155, making it one of the cheapest sports cars on the market in the best way possible. For that price, you get 31 more horses than a standard Civic, two-mode electronically controlled dampers, and a limited-slip differential. We spec’d ours with the $200 High-Performance Tire (HPT) option, but aside from that, all you could add to this car are some dress-up parts, a wireless phone charger, and an auto-dimming rearview mirror. The last two would’ve been nice, but we easily lived without them. 2020 Honda Civi...

Ram 2500 Full Overview Guffman, our 2020 Ram 2500 Laramie long-termer, has been making up for lost time by remaining in almost perpetual motion since his midsummer arrival, including a golf outing to northern Michigan and numerous trips to cabins. We therefore struggled to find a moment to schedule replacement of the sliding rear window we knocked out while hauling a grill north. After copious confusion and finger pointing between our dealer (who doesn’t “do windows”) and a local glass shop, FCA ended up installing the $416.56 part for us at HQ. That fixed, we put those auto-leveling rear air springs to a serious test. Record water levels have caused Lake Huron to breach a stretch of seawall at my summer place. Doubling its size to rectify the problem required us to mix 1...

Mazda CX-30 Full Overview The pandemic makes it hard to get to know a new car. I’m sure in some parallel universe our new long-term Mazda CX-30 Premium AWD was handed over by a smiling car porter, smelling of new car, and driven each and every day to work and on errands. Instead, reality is that our CX-30 was delivered by a masked man, smelled of rubbing alcohol, and, since the Mazda CX-30 is too large for most of our bedroom-to-the-kitchen morning commutes, it’s spent most workdays sitting idle in the driveway. To right that wrong, our CX-30 test vehicle hit the road a few weeks back bound for the test track, so we could become better acquainted. You wouldn’t expect a small subcompact SUV to be a barnstormer, and, well, our 2020 CX-30 isn’t. Powered by a 2.5-liter ...

Toyota Venza Full Overview The Venza competes against a growing group of crossovers like the Chevrolet Blazer and Honda Passport, but instead of offering something sporty or outdoorsy (like Chevy and Honda do), Toyota went the other way and delivered an upscale design with a well-equipped package. How Is Our Long-Term 2021 Toyota Venza Specified? Although all Venzas come well equipped from the start, we opted for the XLE, which is sandwiched between the LE and Limited grades. Toyota only offers two packages on the XLE—a premium audio system and the SofTex package. The former replaces the standard 8.0-inch touchscreen with a 12.3-inch touch display with navigation and adds a nine-speaker JBL sound system in place of the base six-speaker stereo. This package is available for $2,050 and gives...

Genesis G70 Full Overview When folks buy a car, most hope that’s the last they’ll see of the dealership. But in the luxury-car arena, many brands have created Taj Majal showrooms that, before the global health crisis, served as well-heeled hangouts—complete with espresso bars, putting greens, and other glitzy touches. If you needed an oil change, it was a far more plush place to chill than at Jiffy Lube with a stack of old magazines and the hoi polloi. But Genesis is going a slightly different route—partly as a futuristic endeavor, and partly out of necessity. You see, Genesis is an offshoot of Hyundai Motor, and Hyundai dealers wanted to get Genesis franchises, as well, just like Toyota dealers did with Lexus. Problem is, Hyundai dealers rank below the industry average among m...