The Crank: Can Germany’s VW become an American automaker—again?

By John LeBlanc CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – You have to admire Volkswagen’s “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again!” attitude when it comes to building cars South of the Border.

First Drive: 2012 Volkswagen Passat

Coming to America Is the new German-American Passat a hot dog or a wiener? By John LeBlanc CHATANOOGA, TENN. — Don’t let its German badge fool you. The new Volkswagen Passat is as American as baseball, hot dogs, apple pie and the right to bear arms. Specifically designed for corn-fed American buyers, the 2012 Passat […]

First Drive: 2011 Chrysler 300/C

Rehabilitated Chrysler sends its gangsta’ sedan off to finishing school By John LeBlanc SAN DIEGO, California – Between the rap star videos and all-too-frequent appearances on television custom car programs, no other recent vehicle in Chrysler’s long history has struck a cord as an icon of American cool as the last 300 and sportier 300C: […]

First Drive: 2012 Mercedes-Benz SLK Roadster

[svgallery name=”2012_MB_SLK_350_hirez”] Pleasure for a pair Mercedes sticks with SLK’s longstanding mini-GT formula By John LeBlanc CANARY ISLANDS, SPAIN — Self-indulgence is at the root of any car with only two seats. You might as well hang a NO KIDS ALLOWED sign on the door handles. And the pleasure principal only multiplies when discussing a […]

Comparo: 2011 Audi Q5 3.2 Quattro vs. Volvo XC60 T6 AWD

By John LeBlanc For such a short time as an automotive genre, the compact luxury crossover segment has become awfully crowded, awfully fast. It’s been only a little over a decade since the first-to-market Lexus RX 300 arrived. Yet in that time, rivals from BMW (X3), Acura (RDX), Cadillac (SRX), Infiniti (EX35), Mercedes-Benz (GLK) and […]

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