2010 L.A. Show: Nissan returns to west coast in waves

[svgallery name=”2010_LA_NIssan”]

By John LeBlanc

LOS ANGELES – Twelve months ago, right here in the bowels of L.A.’s massive Convention Centre, Nissan didn’t even bother to have a press conference. This year, it arguably stole the show (so far) with a herd of new metal, including a refreshed GT-R supercar, new Quest minivan, a hybrid sedan concept that hints at the next Altima sedan, and a quirky, convertible SUV. Read more

2010 L.A. Show: Cadillac gets (really) small

[svgallery name=”2010_LA_Cadillac”]

By John LeBlanc

LOS ANGELES – Even smaller than the just signed-off BMW 3 Series-fighting ATS sedan, Cadillac unveiled its new Urban Luxury Concept, a car with about the same footprint as a Honda Fit. As you may very well know, this is not the first time Caddy has gotten small recently (and no Cimarron jokes—please!) Read more

Comparo: 2010 Mazdaspeed3 vs. Volkswagen GTI

[svgallery name=”2010 VW GTI vs Mazspeed3″]

FTD 4s

The future of high-performance squares-off

By John LeBlanc

Whenever the economy tanks or governments want people to drive more fuel efficient or environmentally friendly automobiles, expect the auto industry to adopt a “let’s-get-small” attitude. Take the recession of the late ’50s and early ’60s, which spawned the first American “compacts,” like the Ford Falcon and Chevrolet Corvair. Or the sudden closing of the Middle Eastern oil taps in 1973, which got the ball rolling for downsized cars again after an era of heavy-duty muscle cars. Read more

First Drive: 2011 Mitsubishi RVR GT AWD

A cuter ute

Mitsubishi jumps into the mini-crossover ring

By John LeBlanc

LUNENBURG, Nova Scotia – My late father was a two-door kind of guy. So despite needing to jam my younger brother, myself, our hockey gear, and maybe even an occasional friend three or four times a week to a local rink or the requisite monthly road trip to some out-of-town tournament, Dad drove a steady stream of Ford Fairlane, Pontiac Ventura and Oldsmobile Cutlass two-door coupes, eschewing the more practical but not as cool image of a four-door sedan or – gawd forbid! – a station wagon. Read more

The Crank: Can you say “Kia” and “sports car” in the same sentence?

By John LeBlanc

To say Kia’s on a bit of a roll is like saying we’ll probably get some snow and ice this winter. As the sportier of the two Korean brands from Korea’s Hyundai-Kia Motors (combined, now selling more cars in Canada than Toyota or Honda), on its own, Kia is outgunning more established brands like Volkswagen and Subaru so far this year in this country. Read more

« go back — keep looking »