First Drive: 2012 Kia Rio5

Luxury lite Kia’s new Rio brings upscale experience to the bottom-feeder class By John LeBlanc FALL CITY, WA.—Small cars aren’t so “small” anymore. Witness the third-generation 2012 Kia Rio5, where along with being longer and wider than its predecessor, you’ll find a heated steering wheel on its options list — a feature usually reserved for […]

First Drive: 2012 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Roadster

Clipped wings Does removing its doors take any of the magic away from AMG’s supercar? By John LeBlanc MONTE CARLO —When is a Gullwing not a Gullwing? When it’s the new SLS AMG Roadster, the convertible version of the SLS AMG Gullwing hardtop coupe that replaced the Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren as the German automaker’s top-line […]

From the Fleet: 2012 Porsche Cayman R

FROM THE FLEET are brief synopses of manufacturer-supplied rides that happen to end up in my laneway – Jon LeBlanc One look at its sales figures and you’d be forgiven if you thought Porsche was trying to get out of the sports car business. Of the German automaker’s sales of 1,771 units to the end […]

2011 Frankfurt: Worst in Show

By John LeBlanc It’s one thing to put up with the lack of air conditioning, long lineups for the food, seas of bleach blonde dealer wives, and obnoxious videographers pushing and elbowing to get the best angles (you know who you are, Mr. Tripod!). These are all expected at the bi-annual Frankfurt motor show, one […]

Road Test: 2012 Mazda5

Maxivan The only true “mini” van gets a major redo By John LeBlanc Since its introduction in 2005, the front-wheel-drive Mazda3-based Mazda5 has been popular with young families who need more room than a compact car offers, but don’t want to pay the higher price or deal with the bigger size of a standard minivan.

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