Kirk Bell, Senior Editor
Articles
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In about six weeks time we will know the winners of the annual North American Car & Truck/Utility of the Year (NACTOY) awards. Thanks to an announcement today at the Los Angeles auto show, we...
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2018 Lexus RX L adds third row to fast-selling luxury crossoverLuxury automakers have chased after the winning formula offered by the Lexus RX for years, and now they will have one more element to compete with, the third-row seat of the 2018 Lexus RX L. A new longer RX L crossover will come with three rows of seats offering six- or seven-passenger capacity...
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Aston Martin Vantage GTE race car revealed on heels of 2019 Vantage road carJust hours after revealing the 2019 Vantage production car, Aston Martin took the wraps off the racing version, the Vantage GTE. The race car replaces the most successful Aston Martin racer of all time, the V8 Vantage GTE, and will be the brand's entry in the FIA World Endurance Championship...
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2018 Porsche Panamera video road testTo Porsche enthusiasts, the Panamera may be heresy. The engine is up front instead of mounted in the middle or the rear. The Panamera debuted in 2010 and immediately became the brand's second-best selling car. Heresy be damned. Now in its second generation, the 2018 Panamera atones for some of the...
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Frankencar 2018: best of our Best Car To Buy nomineesSwap the keys of four luxury and performance cars among seven editors for a few days, and opinions get formed. Each guy learns the things he likes about each car and the things he doesn't. We start picking nits and picking favorites. The result of this back and forth was naming the Honda Civic Type...
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Motor Authority Best Car To Buy 2018: how we arrived at the winnerThe Motor Authority Best Car To Buy 2018 is the Honda Civic Type R. We said as much Monday. With its combination of exhilarating performance and downright value, you would think it would be a shoo-in for the award. Think again. The competition was fast and fierce this year and covered wide ground...
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The 2018 Dodge SRT Demon begins shipping to dealers in the U.S. and Canada today, and it is being offered with some accessories and options that we didn't know about previously.
We reached out to...
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Motor Authority Best Car To Buy 2018 nominee: Lexus LCThe Lexus LC is a concept car come to life. It started life as the LF-LC concept at the 2012 Detroit auto auto show, and the public's response was so overwhelming that Lexus put it into production. We're glad it did because this grand tourer drives as good as it looks. From the arrowhead LEDs that...
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Motor Authority Best Car To Buy 2018 nominee: Kia Stinger GTKia is taking on giants with the Stinger. Priced below a BMW 3-Series and sized like a Lexus GS, the Stinger is aimed squarely at European sport sedans, and it has the European roots to back it up. Penned by former Audi design boss Peter Schreyer and developed by the former head of BMW M...
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2018 Aston Martin DB11 V8 first drive review: with a little help from friendsAston Martins are known for two signature traits: drop-dead gorgeous looks and bad-ass soundtracks. But how do you maintain the band’s identity when you have to play a cover tune? If he were still alive, I’d tell you to ask Joe Cocker. Sometimes you get by with a little help from your...
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Best Car To Buy 2018: cars that didn't make the cutAs a staff we drive hundreds of new cars, trucks, and SUVs every year. We do the hard work of sorting through the best and worst of them so you don't have to. Many of the vehicles we drive are true achievements in performance and luxury. Others not so much. And then there are those that are quite...
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Motor Authority Best Car To Buy 2018 nominee: Porsche PanameraThe Porsche Panamera isn't the crazy bit of heresy that the Cayenne was. After all, a sedan/hatchback isn't as far a leap for a sports car maker as an SUV. But like the Cayenne, it's a Porsche, and that means it has to be sporty, even if it doesn't have two doors and an engine located anywhere but...
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Achievements in design: the 2018 Lexus LC 500 with Wisconsin's Frank Lloyd Wright buildings Kirk BellHe was arguably the greatest architect of the 20th century, but he wasn't always respected in his home state. Frank Lloyd Wright was born in Richland Center, Wisconsin, briefly attended college in...
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Motor Authority Best Car To Buy 2018 nominee: Honda Civic Type RHonda fans in America have wanted patiently. As other countries got four generations of Civic Type Rs, we looked on longingly. Now it's our turn. The 2017 Honda Civic Type R shoves 306 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque through its front wheels and handles it expertly. A front suspension...
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One of these cars will be Motor Authority's Best Car To Buy 2018History may record these as the best days for drivers. It is the era before emissions standards eliminate the internal combustion engine and before the autonomous car. It's an era of horsepower enabled by new engine technologies rising out of the same regulations that intend to make our planet...
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2018 Mercedes-Benz S-Class first drive review: driving the most- and least-expensive modelsThe Mercedes-Benz S-Class is widely recognized as one of the most luxurious full-size cars on the market, and with that luxury comes an exclusive price. But there is luxury and then there is luxury and there is exclusive and then there is exclusive. We already reviewed the 2018 Mercedes-Benz...
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2018 Kia Stinger first drive review: an upscale, sporty bargainAlong its journey from builder of cheap but reliable transportation to budding luxury market player, Hyundai-Kia’s strategy has been “if you can’t beat them, join ‘em.” Or more appropriately, have them join you. When its cars looked like poor imitations of melting...
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2017 Lamborghini Aventador S: the right car for a racetrackA little evolution now and then is a good thing. That distorted maxim holds true for the Lamborghini Aventador. Originally released as a 2012 model, Lambo’s most-expensive supercar boasted loads of technology derived from Formula One, but it had some issues. It was heavy, it understeered on a...
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Turns out if you prevent half your population from driving you also restrict your car market. Yesterday we reported that as of next June, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will lift its ban on female...
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First shots emerge of McLaren BP23 development muleThe first photos of the McLaren BP23 development mule have been released by McLaren and they reveal quite a bit about the car. The spiritual successor to the McLaren F1 of the 1990s, the BP23 promises to be the fastest McLaren ever, but it will be a grand tourer and will not be track focused. That...
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2019 Porsche Cayenne deep diveIt’s the very antithesis of Porsche. Or is it? The Cayenne, an SUV, is the sports car company's second best seller, behind another SUV, the Macan. It may be an SUV, but it’s still a Porsche and that means it has to be sporty. Porsche is introducing the third generation of the Cayenne...
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Mercedes investing $1B in Tuscaloosa plant to build electric SUVsMercedes-Benz will spend $1 billion in its Tuscaloosa, Alabama assembly plant to build batteries and electric SUVs, the German automaker confirmed Thursday as part of the 20th anniversary celebration for its U.S. plant. The electric SUV is scheduled for early next decade. The plans call for a new...
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Semi-finalists announced for 2018 North American Car, Utility, and Truck of the YearThe North American Car and Truck of the Year jury today announced the semi-finalists for its 2018 awards. This year marks the second year since the jury decided to break up the Truck category into separate Truck and Utility classes. The prestigious awards are determined by a committee of 60...
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BMW Z4 concept noses the roadster in a sporty new directionFollowing a debut in mid-August during Monterey Car Week, BMW took the wraps off its Z4 concept this week at the 2017 Frankfurt Motor Show. The car is hinting at the next generation of BMW's two-seater sports car. Specifically, it previews the new Z4 that BMW says is coming in the next 12 months...
Kirk Bell