First Drive & Video: 2013 Mercedes-Benz GLK-Class

By John LeBlanc GENEVA – There are plenty of advantages when you arrive late to a party. Looking back now, Mercedes-Benz seems to have benefited from not being one of the first to crash the luxury compact crossover festivities started almost a decade ago. Share:

First Drive: 2013 Lexus ES

By John LeBlanc NEWBERG, Oregon – Stop me if you’ve heard this story before: A once dominant Japanese luxury brand falls on hard times. Primarily due to decidedly conservative product development and a loyal-but-aging customer base. Said brand retrenches. Then comes back with a new, more aggressive design language (illustrated via a halo concept car), […]

The Crank: Toyota’s Prius no longer niche

By John LeBlanc Remember when the original Prius went on sale in the late 1990s? As one of the first, mass-produced gasoline-electric hybrid cars, the quirky Toyota was considered a cult car at best. Today, 15 years later, the Prius family—consisting now of four models, the original Prius hatchback, the Prius plug-in hybrid, the larger […]

First Drive & Video: 2013 Acura ILX

By John LeBlanc SCOTTSDALE, Arizona – Honda’s premium Acura brand is in the midst of one of its largest product makeovers ever. And one of Acura’s most important new vehicles for the Canadian market is the new 2013 Acura ILX compact sedan, the brand’s latest entry in a segment it virtually created almost two decades […]

Comparo: 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee vs. Volkswagen Tiguan

By John LeBlanc Few vehicle types can offer the do-it-all capabilities of luxury sports-utilities-vehicles. Spawned from the groundbreaking 1970s Land Rover Range Rover, almost every automaker now has a utility vehicle that can take the family to the cottage and your boss and his wife out for dinner. Here is what I consider two of […]

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