First Drive: 2011 Ford Explorer

Exploring new worlds In the search for fuel economy, Ford’s iconic Explorer evolves from SUV to crossover By John LeBlanc SAN DIEGO, Calif. – You would be forgiven if you thought Ford’s decision to move its Explorer to a car-like unibody chassis after riding for a quarter-century on a body-on-frame truck-style chassis is late. After […]

The Crank: Despite the awards, Chevy’s Volt hasn’t won anything yet

By John LeBlanc Without much effort, General Motors media materials will tell you that its new Chevrolet Volt gasoline-electric plug-in-hybrid is a “winner”. In fact, at this year’s Detroit auto show, the Volt was named 2011 North American Car of the Year, and before that, various American pubs (Automobile Magazine’s 2011 Automobile of the Year; […]

Preview: 2011 Chevrolet Volt

It’s alive! After an over four year wait, General Motors’ electrification of the car is finally driveable By John LeBlanc DETROIT—At the 2006 Los Angeles auto show, in a windowless and locked conference room, General Motors gathered a few select journalists. They had some big news for the upcoming Detroit auto show in January. And […]

The Crank: Changing Aveo to Sonic could cost GM up to $100 M

By John LeBlanc Two thousand and eleven is shaping up to be a big year for little cars. New car buyers will not only get a fresh Ford Fiesta, Mazda2, and Fiat 500 , Nissan Versa, and Hyundai Accent to choose from, debuting next week at the Detroit auto show, General Motors’ Chevrolet will be […]

Comparo: 2011 Ford Fiesta SES vs. Mazda2 GS

[svgallery name=”2011_Ford-Fiesta_vs_Mazda2_hirez”] Family feud Which new supermini hatch warms the hearts of drivers the most? By John LeBlanc Small cars are like cod liver oil and sit-ups: Everyone appreciates their virtues, but few of us actually partake. So despite the rhetoric that Canadians love small cars — especially hatchbacks — the sales figures say otherwise. […]

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