New Honda Odyssey Touring combines comfort, style

July 18, 2008

Four years into the current generation, the Honda Odyssey is holding its own, relatively speaking, in a new vehicle market savaged by $4 a gallon gas and a slumping economy.

Recent columns

• ROAD TEST: Chevy’s HHR SS spells good performance

  July 11, 2008

  Affordable, reasonably gas-thrifty, unmistakable for anything else and fun to drive. That's a winning combination, so even in a widening field of small cars, Chevrolet's HHR SS sport utility vehicle stands out.

• Ford Flex: retro styled, family sized

  July 4, 2008

  From the people who brought you the Escape, the Edge and the Freestyle/Taurus X comes the Ford Flex, which either will prove that there's always room for one more sport utility vehicle in a Ford showroom - or not.

• Road testing the '08 Dodge Challenger

  June 27, 2008

  It's obvious why Chrysler would want to go back to the '60s and early '70s - an era when Honda was just a motorcycle maker to most Americans and almost everyone bought American cars. But - automotively, at least - you don't want to go back. Trust me, I was there.

• ROAD TEST: Hybrid Lexus: luxurious, roomy, and powerful

  June 20, 2008

  A car that gets 25 miles to the gallon isn't likely to impress anyone nowadays - not when a Toyota Prius is good for up to 48 mpg by government estimate.

• Taking the fun of TSX along with the boring

  June 13, 2008

  Lots of cars make a good first impression in the showroom and on a brief test drive. But a car you still love after a grueling day behind the wheel is a special friend and, for me the new Acura TSX that arrived in showrooms in April fell into that category.

• Kia Sorento offers traditional SUV utility

  June 6, 2008

  For those who seek the road less traveled -- or the off road less traveled, Kia offers two of the few remaining small SUVs that aren't "crossovers" -- that is, carlike and often car-based.

• Review: Jaguar XF's attractive package

  May 23, 2008

  For Jaguar, it's ta-ta to Ford and hello to Tata.

• ROAD TEST: '08 Mustang Bullitt: McQueen-cool power and speed

  May 16, 2008

  The newest "Bullitt" version of the Ford Mustang is testament, in highland green clearcoat, to what a good job Ford has done over the years in maintaining the goodwill of its pony car.

• ROAD TEST: Finally, a Pontiac with personality: the G-8

  May 9, 2008

  What typifies a Pontiac in 2008? A GTO? Nope, it's gone. Bonneville? Gone. Firebird and Fiero? Long gone. Aztek? Also, mercifully, gone.

• Speedy Audi S5 not for the faint of heart, or wallet

  May 2, 2008

  The latest in toys from Germany for the price-is-no-object and global-warming-is-not-my-business crowd arrived in dealerships in November: the Audi S5 coupe - a continental version of an American muscle coupe.

• ROAD TEST: Quicker payback with the Altima hybrid

  April 25, 2008

  Is a hybrid car right for you? The question is easier to answer in the affirmative if the hybrid in question is the Nissan Altima.

• Toyota’s retro-styled FJ Cruiser takes aim at the youth market

  April 7, 2006

  You might think the last thing Toyota needed in its lineup was another sport utility vehicle, what with eight already - 11 if you include Lexus models.

• Slick new Honda Si will raise the heartbeat of gearheads

  March 31, 2006

  Although car buyers by the millions drove one home, the previous-generation Honda Civic reputedly was a disappointment to enthusiast types. Most disappointing of all was the Civic that was supposed to be built for them - the Si, whose styling was uninspired and horsepower output unexciting at 160.

• New Tahoe makes driving a big truck easier, more pleasant

  March 24, 2006

  General Motors didn't make the Chevrolet Tahoe the most powerful in its class when it redesigned it for 2007: The Dodge Durango's available Hemi holds that distinction, with 335 hp. GM's own Hummer H2 has 325 hp. under its hood.

• Jeep commands a bigger SUV, but with little wiggle room

  March 17, 2006

  Among the Jeep Grand Cherokee's most likable features is how it handles: It's light on its feet, almost car-like. Another has always been its svelte shape.

• For $100G+, a yacht with radar and inflatable ‘seat bladders’

  March 10, 2006

  A new Mercedes S-Class is more than just another luxury car that most people can't afford. It usually offers a hint of what we'll find one day in cars and trucks for the rest of us.