Archive for December, 2014
Test Drive: 2014 Land Rover LR4
Consumer Guide’s test 2014 Land Rover LR4 HSE Lux arrived with a number of options. Including destination charge, our test car came to $68,375.
2014 Land Rover LR4 HSE Lux
Class: Premium Midsize Crossover/SUV
Miles Driven: 159
Fuel Used: 8.0 gallons
Driving mix: 40% city, 60% highway
The 1978 Chrysler LeBaron’s T-top roof was a $562 option.
The T-top was patented back in 1951 by famed designer Gordon Buehrig, but wouldn’t see duty on a regular-production car until it appeared as standard equipment on the 1968 Chevrolet Corvette. A pretty long stretch between conception and implementation, we’d argue.
Oldsmobiles were completely restyled for 1937, helping drive sales to a record high.
Note: This article is reprinted from the October 2014 issue of Collectible Automobile
Oldsmobile sold a lot of cars in 1937. In fact, with 206,086 produced for the model year, Olds had the best year in its 40-year history. Thanks to robust annual growth, that marked an amazing turnaround from the 20,144 cars that had dribbled out from its assembly lines in Depression-wracked 1932.
Cargo versions of the ProMaster City start at $24,125 including destination. Ram says they have best-in-class payload and cargo capacity.
For a class that didn’t even exist six years ago, compact cargo vans have witnessed an explosion in growth of late. And that applies not only to sales, but also to the number of entries.
1980 Chrysler Cordoba
In a post titled “Our Apologies: The Personal Luxury Cars of 1975,” we took note of Chrysler’s seeming apology for the then-new Cordoba’s size. Though about the size of any contemporary midsize car, Cordoba was, indeed, small for the brand.
We tested a base 300 Limited, which starts at $32,390 with destination. The main appearance update for 2015 is a larger, bolder grille.
It was 60 years ago now that Chrysler unleashed a performance legend. Introduced for 1955, the big 300 2-door hardtop combined Fifties flash with its namesake 300-horsepower Hemi V8 – by far the most powerful engine offered that year – to become one of the most iconic cars of the decade. Its descendants only served to advance the aura, carrying on the “300” moniker even as horsepower climbed well beyond that figure, signifying their steady advance with letter suffixes. Today, the original 300 and its “letter series” successors (which ran through 1965) are certainly among the most coveted of collectibles.
2009 Pontiac Solstice Coupe
If you were one of the dozen or so people who found themselves inexplicably drawn to Steven Bochco’s HBO series “John From Cincinnati,” you understand what happened to the Pontiac Solstice Coupe.
Test Drive: 2015 Toyota Camry XSE
Consumer Guide’s test 2015 Toyota Camry XSE arrived loaded with options and is about as well equipped as a Camry can be. Including destination charge, our test car came to $35,668.
2015 Toyota Camry XSE V6
Class: Midsize Car
Miles Driven: 389
Fuel Used: 18.5 gallons
Driving mix: 60% city, 40% highway
Can you tell which of these vehicles is longer?
Based on reader comments, we made our first “Which Cars are Longer?” quiz a little too easy. This one is tougher. Tougher, because the pairs of cars presented below are a little more closely matched in length than those in the first quiz. If you haven’t taken the first quiz yet, go ahead and do so now. As always, let us know how you do.
Consumer Guide’s test Dodge Charger R/T Road & Track arrive fully loaded. Including destination charge, the big Dodge came to $43,465.
2015 Dodge Charger R/T Road & Track
Class: Large Car
Miles Driven: 297
Fuel Used: 18.2 gallons
Driving mix: 65% city, 35% highway
