First Drive: 2012 Mercedes-Benz SLK Roadster

[svgallery name=”2012_MB_SLK_350_hirez”]

Pleasure for a pair

Mercedes sticks with SLK’s longstanding mini-GT formula

By John LeBlanc

CANARY ISLANDS, SPAIN — Self-indulgence is at the root of any car with only two seats. You might as well hang a NO KIDS ALLOWED sign on the door handles. And the pleasure principal only multiplies when discussing a stylish number like the Mercedes-Benz SLK Roadster. First seen in 1997, the rear-wheel-drive SLK — with its revolutionary-for-its-time and much copied retractable hardtop roof that allows owners the pleasure of open-air motoring and the comfort of a hardtop at the flick of a button — has become a fixture in Mercedes’ ever-growing lineup. Read more

The Crank: Saab becomes a little less Swedish

By John LeBlanc

With the recent resignation of now former CEO Jan Ake Jonsson—Saab’s so-called “last Swede”—the automaker becomes just a little less Swedish—jah, fer shoor. But what does Jonsson’s exit say of the potential survival (or lack thereof) of the Swedish brand? Read more

Comparo: 2011 BMW 750Li xDrive vs. Audi A8L Quattro

By John LeBlanc

With prices starting at more than the annual household income of the average Canadian, it’s no surprise sales of full-size luxury sedans are relatively miniscule here. However, that doesn’t mean these flagship sedans should be ignored.

Representing the best of their brands, these cars justify the lofty pricetags by being rolling showcases of state-of-the-art technology and styling trends — features that will eventually trickle down to more accessibly priced cars. Because of this, this segment has become one of the most hotly contested in the industry. To find out which one is the better range-topper to drive, we’ve pitched a 2011 BMW 750Li xDrive against the new-for-2011 Audi A8L 4.2 Quattro: Read more

The Crank: Would Spain’s Seat fly in Canada?

By John LeBlanc

FRANKFURT, Germany – Station wagons, manual transmissions, rear-wheel-drive and diesels—it’s the burden of many an automotive scribe—including yours truly—to bemoan of the lack of availability of all or any of the above in the Canadian new car market. And now after a day spent on Germany’s autobahn, west of Frankfurt and zipping around the Eiffel mountain back roads near the Nurburgring race track in a not-for-sale-in-Canada Seat hot hatch, let me add the Volkswagen Group’s Spanish brand to my Why Can’t We Get That Here? wish list. Read more

Comparo: 2011 Audi Q5 3.2 Quattro vs. Volvo XC60 T6 AWD

By John LeBlanc

For such a short time as an automotive genre, the compact luxury crossover segment has become awfully crowded, awfully fast. It’s been only a little over a decade since the first-to-market Lexus RX 300 arrived. Yet in that time, rivals from BMW (X3), Acura (RDX), Cadillac (SRX), Infiniti (EX35), Mercedes-Benz (GLK) and Land Rover (LR2) have all jumped into the luxo cute-ute fray. And now two latecomers to the class, Audi and Volvo, have their respective ideas of what a compact luxury crossover should be, in the shape of the Q5 and XC60. Read more

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