The Truth About Cars » Other

Review: Tesla Roadster

Martin Schwoerer — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 14:19:21 +0000

I’m anything but a Trekkie, but a recent drive in the Tesla Roadster made me think of the Starship Enterprise. To be more precise, the Enterprise a second after warp speed has been deployed. Imagine for a moment that your brain is Captain Kirk and the “gas” pedal is Scotty. When Scotty receives the warp [...]

Review: 2009 Caterham 7

Lyn Vogel — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 12:21:35 +0000

There's a big difference between myself and Lotus founder Colin Chapman. When I change a flat tire, I find that I have two lug nuts left over. Chapman could create fully functioning sports/racing cars out of the detritus found in the average kitchen junk drawer. One-handed. While sipping tea. The Lotus Seven---later Super 7---is perhaps the best-known and longest-lasting example of his Frankensteinian genius. Debuting in 1957 and running on to 1973 (when Caterham Cars grabbed the baton), the 7 has undergone decades of continuous development. Yet is essentially the same vehicle that Chapman created. And none the worse for it.

Capsule Review: 2010 Mindset EV

Martin Schwoerer — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 01:29:42 +0000

After a few seconds in the Mindset, I was thinking: Whoa, this thing is fast. And Goddamn, it feels good. And then I remembered a movie I hadn't thought of in a decade, and it struck me: this doesn't seem like 2009, this is more like Gattaca. You know: the sci-fi movie starring the Studebaker Avanti, Rover P6 and Citroen DS Décapotable---all running with electric motors. They are breathtakingly, inimitably beautiful cars. In the movie, they only make a whirring noise. It's all very 2030, and somehow, it works. Of course, if you had an electric droptop DS at your disposal, then why would you drive a Swiss-made, electric Mindset? But I'm getting ahead of myself. So, what is this car about?

Review: 2010 Opel Insignia 2.0 Diesel

Martin Schwoerer — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 21:02:20 +0000

My first car was a 1970s–era Opel Rekord. It was one of the most beautiful cars GM ever made. It was also roomy, reliable, as well as cheap to own and service. Those typical brand values made Opel a star player in Europe, and demoted Ford and many others to the status of also-rans. Later, Opel lost the reliability and beauty part of the plot. Is today's Rekord – the Opel Insignia – good enough to lead an almost-dead company to the future?

Review: Fiat 500 1.3 Multijet

Adrian Clarke — Thu, 14 May 2009 15:32:31 +0000

Dante Giacosa's original 500 was an industrial design master class for mobilising Italy's poor after the war. Fiat's nuova 500 springs from no such noble sentiment; it is meant to convince the foccacia buying classes there is an alternative in the baby premium market to the ubiquitous neue Mini.

Review: 2006 Maybach 57S

Robert Farago — Thu, 07 May 2009 13:01:43 +0000

Why did Maybach put a speedometer in the rear of the cabin? The salesman's line: "so you can tell the driver to slow down." I don't think so. Plutocrats don't get to be plutocrats by ambling about, caring about the hired help's driving record or hiring chauffeurs who can't drive safely. [NB: Mohammed Al Fayed wasn't a plutocrat.] My explanation: velocity equals distance over time. Maybach figured its patrons would want to note their speed, check the flanking clock and calculate when they'd get to where they're going. In other other words, Maybach owners would want to know when they're going to leave their Maybach. The roof-mounted speedo embodies the luxury limo's underlying philosophy. Maybach. The ideal conveyance for people who'd rather be somewhere else.

Review: 2009 Carlsson Smart ForTwo

Sajeev Mehta — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 13:25:37 +0000

Per Wikipedia, the Marxist theory of False Consciousness claims, “material processes in capitalist society are misleading to the proletariat.” Trabants aside, it's pretty clear that the founders of Communism would love today’s Smart ForTwo. It’s the one-dimensional vehicle that denies its occupants the luxury of time, space and value. But it’ll pop eyeballs like Gisele Bündchen in a Target. It didn’t hurt that my tester had the blessings of noted Mercedes tuner, Carlsson Autotechnik. Too bad it didn’t help.

Review: 2009 HUMMER H3T Alpha

Sajeev Mehta — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 11:02:51 +0000

Walked into a HUMMER dealership lately? The poster child for everything wrong with the automotive industry went from a vibrant, stylish lounge for conspicuous consumption to a somber, museum-like tribute to modern architecture and failed business models. It’s a sad combination of soaring heights and eerie, uncomfortable silence. This also describes the Hummer H3T Alpha to the proverbial T: the brand’s failed promises of functionality and fashion for a premium price culminate into the worst product rollout of the 2009 model year.

Review: 2008 Maserati GranTurismo

Robert Farago — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 16:01:47 +0000

As the salesman retrieved the key for the demo GranTurismo, I approached the trunk of the sleek silver siren sitting on the showroom floor. Even though I was opening the Maserati's boot rather than its bonnet, I felt like a pre-teen rifling through a copy a Playboy while the drug store owner helped Mrs. Myers with her prescription. The fact that the Maserati's electric rear lid opened at all was heartening. And then I saw it: a blue box. Genuine Maserati parts. Fumble, fumble. Uh-oh. A trickle charger. A classy, digital battery booster, but a direct link to the most troublesome car I'd ever owned (a British two-seater named after a man called Trevor). It seems that Maserati's latest product for the American market is still a bit... problematic. But not for the reasons you might think.

Review: 2009 Spyker C8

Jack Baruth — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 14:44:23 +0000

"Consultant" is the new way to say "unemployed." But, from time to time, it can be quite lucrative to consult on various vague enterprises. Such was the case a few years ago when I found myself with the urge and the ability (temporary, alas) to add something truly outrageous to my personal Island of Misfit Cars. A racing buddy of mine mentioned to me that Spyker was bringing their "demo car" through Detroit. There might be a deal or two to be had. And that's how I found myself opposite-locking a $296k car across two lanes of Troy, Michigan's "Big Beaver Road" at the top of second gear, idly contemplating my personal liability in any potential collision while my corporate babysitter clawed feebly at his door like a kitten kneading its mother's stomach.

Capsule Review: Bugatti Type 40

Stewart Dean — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 15:20:14 +0000

I had come into the turn way too fast. The tires broke free. "Oh God, no, I am going to crash this lovely little bus." And then I found myself in a perfectly controllable four-wheel slide, drifting through the turn at 45mph, glee in my heart. It was probably 1964, and I was driving my father's pride and joy, a type 40 Bugatti. But not one of the stogy little sedans. This was one of two subscale body prototypes for the ultimate Bugatti, the Type 57S Atalante. The recent fuss over a barn find in England brought our Bugatti fresh to mind...

Review: 2008 Fiat Panda 4X4

Martin Schwoerer — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 17:12:16 +0000

Guys are funny: we lust for beautiful, fast cars with which we hope to impress the neighbors, the guys, and the other sex. But memories are not made of pistonheads' wet dreams. Looking back, the memorable machines I had were more mutt than thoroughbred: the go-anywhere, never-let-you-down, unpretty, everyday companion. Like the pickup trucks you Americans love, or the iconic 2CV, Renault R4, and VW Beetles we Europeans have in our collective memories. The Fiat Panda has always been on my short list of potential cars-as-buddies: cheap, reliable, fun to drive, unpretentious. So, I was curious: is the 4x4 version of the Panda a faithful mutt, or just another automotive dog?

2007 Miles ZX40S EV

Edward Niedermeyer — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 15:22:09 +0000

“So you want to drive the speed demon, huh?” The local eco-dealership was empty save for a salesman spinning laps around electric cars and trucks in a Zap Zappy, a sort of poor man's Segway. “You know the ZX40 won't do more than 25 miles per hour, right?” asks the sales manager. She looks as if this revelation typically scares off twenty-somethings like myself. “Sure,” I say. How bad could it be?

Review: 2009 Vauxhall Zafira

Justin Berkowitz — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 12:27:34 +0000

In a few years, we might not have much of a domestic car industry anymore. And I’ll be grumpy, because despite all the stupid General Motors made out over the years, from crappy products (Equinox) to crappily built products (everything from 1972 to 2002), they really had some cars that were fascinating to car lovers. And that’s part of why they’re going out of business: they made interesting cars with mediocrity. They should have stuck to Toyota’s business plan and made extremely boring cars very well. In Europe, though, that’s what GM did. I’ve just driven the Vauxhall Zafira, and I can tell you that if GM had it in America they’d be trillionaires. Because it’s the most boring car I’ve ever driven.

Review: 2009 HUMMER H3

Samir Syed — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 12:49:51 +0000

On June 23, 2008, GM announced it was hiring Citigroup to help it in a strategic review of the HUMMER brand. After being inflicted with a base H3 for a week, I’d suggest the venerable the General skip to the denouement and sell off the brand to anyone who wants it. By offering vehicles like the base H3, GM demonstrates it is/was unwilling and/or unable to nurture what is/was the most focused brand in its bloated portfolio.

TTAC’s Ten Best for 2008: Nominations are Now Open

Frank Williams — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 12:48:25 +0000

Ten Best Nominations Are Now Closed

The truth hurts. But not always. Sometimes the truth about cars is the key to genuine insight and automotive ecstasy. This is one of those times, when TTAC's Best and Brightest select their annual Ten Best automobiles. In other words, this is your chance to help the wider world discover genuine automotive excellence, and reward those who produce it with a much-deserved hat tip. The name of this collective endeavor changes, but the rules remain the same: you nominate the cars, our writers narrow your selection to 20, then you get the final say on the Ten Best [more details below]. But before we get stuck in, here's a recap of last year's winners...

2008 HUMMER H3 Alpha Review

P.J. McCombs — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 12:40:15 +0000

There I was, minding my own business on the Internet, when HUMMER sauntered up and threw me against a locker. “Alpha stole your virtual girlfriend. And your real one,” grumbled the ever-subtle brand’s banner ad. Okay, HUMMER, I’ll bite (so to speak). Who’s Alpha, what’s he got that I haven’t? And— most importantly— how is this going to delay the inevitable fizzling of your fifteen minutes?

1986 Alfa Romeo Spider Graduate Review

Anthony Erickson — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 14:12:57 +0000

Before Black Tuesday, the autoblogosphere was abuzz with news of Fiat's return to the U.S. market. Details have been sparse and shifty, but the message is clear: American Alfisti will finally get their hands on the automotive brand renowned for Italian passion and style. Maybe. Eventually. Of course, when Alfa retreated from the eastern seaboard to the Amalfi Coast some 14 years ago, their cars were also known for Communist Bloc reliability. Assuming Alfa's got that sorted (deep breath), I've tracked down an Alfa Romeo Spider Graduate to see what the fuss was-- and perhaps will be-- all about.

2008 Dacia Logan MCV 1.5 dCi Review

Martin Schwoerer — Fri, 30 May 2008 13:15:37 +0000

I love European "people's" cars. The Renault R4, the Fiat Uno and Punto, Peugeots 205 to 207, the early Golfs-- they were all affordable and fun to drive with more character than Marcello Mastroianni. By the same token, I hate what Lee Iacocca called PODS. Lido was referring to Chryslers, but plenty of manufacturers have built cars for Poor Old Dumb Shits. PODS-mobiles are often Russian; Lada leading the pack. More recently, they hail from Korea or Malaysia. They're cheap to buy, miserable to operate and not at all economical to own (as CityRover owners found out). When considering Europe's cheapest car-- the Romanian-built Dacia Logan-- you have to wonder if the penalty box tradition continues.

2008 Zap Xebra Review

Paul Niedermeyer — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 11:08:32 +0000

According to GM Car Czar Bob Lutz, “The electrification of the automobile is inevitable.” Inevitability also applies to the sun going cold. But with rising gas prices, some of us old timers are getting impatient (having had our youthful appetite whetted by GM’s Electrovair way back in 1966). The Li-ion-powered Tesla Roadster is simultaneously sold out and yet not in production. Dozens of other miraculous EV’s are just a $5k deposit and an infinitely adjustable (and not so inevitable) delivery date away. Meanwhile, down at your local Zap dealer, the banner proclaims: “saving the planet, one vehicle at a time.” And their Xebra is all charged-up and ready to roll.

Alfa Romeo 147 1.6-liter Twin Spark Review

Martin Schwoerer — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 11:18:47 +0000

I’m sitting in an Alfa 147, about to fire her up. I cast my mind back to the Alfasud: a beautiful, mellifluous, affordable vehicle that introduced a generation of drivers to the joys of performance motoring. I remember summer evenings in an open Spider, a peerless pre-Miata combination of boulevardier and Lotus-like lane pilot; a car whose zingy note merged happily with the sound of estival insects. I also conjure-up a trip to France in a sonorous, serious, quick-steering Giulia, where I felt like a character in a Truffaut movie. So, will the 147 be another driver’s Alfa that rasps, bites and feels alive?

2008 Fiat Grande Punto Review

Justin Berkowitz — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 11:31:59 +0000

GM Global Product Maven Maximum Bob Lutz claims that satisfying new U.S. federal fuel economy regulations will cost the consumer an additional $6k per car, on average. That seems a bit of a strange statement, as there are already plenty of cars capable of besting the freshly-minted mandate. From Japan to Jerusalem, from Mumbai to Milan, the world is filled, and filling, with suitably fuel efficient passenger cars. The real question is whether or not America is ready-- make that “willing”-- to buy the same sort of frugal machines that the rest of the world has been driving for years. Take the Fiat Grande Punto. Please.

Scorpio Review

Agent K — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 10:55:41 +0000

Test driving a vehicle on India’s rugged roads requires a different set of priorities. Put it this way: after two weeks and over 4000kms in the ‘all-new' Mahindra & Mahindra Scorpio, no part of my body was crying out for chiropractic manipulation. This proves two things. First, the Scorpio is an extremely comfortable long-distance cruiser over tortured tarmac. And second, I'm not getting signs of early arthritis; I’ve just been driving the wrong car.

Saleen S331 Supercharged Sport Truck Review

William C Montgomery — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 11:46:00 +0000

Before I write another word, let’s get one thing straight: the Saleen S331 Supercharged Sport Truck is a RIDICULOUS MACHINE. Climbing into its cab is like boarding the Space Shuttle. The S331’s engine fires-up with all the subtlety of the shuttle’s SRB’s. After the small voice in your head counts down to zero, the truck launches with all the fury of… Well, I’m getting a bit ahead of myself here. Suffice it to say, you don’t have to be a Three Stooges Fan to know that something completely ridiculous can also make you laugh with delight.

TTAC’s Ten Best Automobiles 2007

Frank Williams — Tue, 22 May 2007 10:48:20 +0000

You heeded our call. You nominated the cars you considered the best of the best. Without fear or favor, TTAC’s tenacious tribe of telic keyboard tappers selected twenty vehicles from your list of over a hundred superlative automobiles. You voted for 10 of them, creating our first annual Ten Best Automobiles. The voting was often extremely close, but the end result was never in doubt: a selection of ten automobiles that any self-respecting motorist would be proud to own, and delighted to drive. Ladies and gentlemen, raise your tea mugs as I present to you: TTAC’s Ten Best for 2007.