2010’s Top SUVs/CUVs under $50k

By John LeBlanc Every year, the Toronto Star’s Wheels section asks its contributors to scratch together a shortlist of what they think are the top new cars—as in what’s available in showrooms, not just “new” for 2011—in various segments. Here are my picks for the Top SUVs/CUVs under $50k:

The Crank: Is Infiniti der neu BMW?

[svgallery name=”2011_Infiniti_M37_Sport”] By John LeBlanc For Crank readers with any kind of automotive historical context, you probably already know that when Nissan’s Infiniti premium brand launched in the late 1980s, it’s original Q45 sports luxury sedan was seen as a direct shot at Germany’s Ultimate Driving Machine brand, while Toyota’s also-then-new Lexus was left to […]

Road Trip: 2011 Infiniti QX56

By John LeBlanc PICTON, ONT.—There’s little doubt. Infiniti’s latest large SUV is more luxury hotel suite than family transportation. Having to extricate our daughter and two of her camping buddies out of the QX56 to stop them from watching Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back on the trio of DVD screens scattered throughout […]

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 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 […]

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