First Drive: 2012 Volkswagen Up!

By John LeBlanc BERLIN, GERMANY—Alexandra liked my little red Up!. First, for its chunky, iPod-like looks, then for its tidy dimensions. “It looks good; and it looks like it would be easy to park,” she gushed, as I took photos of Volkswagen’s latest city car on the busy streets of Germany’s capital city. As an […]

2011 in Review: The best driving experience

By John LeBlanc Over the course of any year’s worth of an auto writer’s work, you’ll find many reports of us driving new, fast cars on closed circuits and race courses. But many of these so-called “track” events are either hampered by a limited number of laps, limited number of cars, or a slower-than-hoped for […]

2011 in Review: The best car I drove for >$40k

By John LeBlanc While I drove much faster cars, and more expensive cars, a fossil-fueled luxury car, Audi’s audacious A7 Sportback 3.0T, was the “best” car I drove in the past 12 months.

From the Fleet: 2012 Mini Cooper S Coupe

FROM THE FLEET are brief synopses of manufacturer-supplied rides that happen to end up in my laneway – John LeBlanc Like in the fashion industry, if the seasons have changed, it must be time for a new Mini model to hit the runway. Last spring saw the new arrival of the VW Golf-sized Countryman—the largest […]

First Drive: 2012 Toyota Yaris

Old School Toyota goes the tried-n-true route with its new Yaris By John LeBlanc QUEBEC CITY, Que. — If you’ve been shopping for a new subcompact, chances are, you’ve likely discovered small cars aren’t so small anymore. What use to be considered bottom-feeder econoboxes are now available with “big car” features with luxuries like heated […]

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