Archive for May, 2016
Truck Mods, Durango Style
This Ford F-150 is an excellent example of what I call the “Cool-Fade Lowrider” brand of Durango Style truck customization. Trucks sporting similar modifications are common sights in the Palatine, IL area.
I live in the unremarkable Chicago suburb of Palatine, IL. Best known nationally for a heinous mass murder committed in a Brown’s Chicken restaurant almost 25 years ago, Palatine is otherwise a rather likable place to raise a family–or to simply live commuter-close to the city.
1987 Plymouth Sundance
Where have these cars gone? There’s no hard science to this–it’s purely anecdotal–but I well remember seeing these vehicles, and I don’t anymore. They’ve seemingly vanished.
2014 Chevrolet SS
By Don Sikora II
Note: The following story was excerpted from the April 2016 issue of Collectible Automobile magazine.
When considering the 2014-16 Chevrolet SS as a future collectible, it’s impossible to ignore the one-year-and-out 2009 Pontiac G8 GXP that we looked at back in the October 2010 issue of Collectible Automobile. Killed off like all Pontiacs in the wake of General Motors’s 2009 bankruptcy filing, the 415-horsepower GXP was the highest-performance variant of Pontiac’s new-for-2008 G8 based on GM’s Holden Commodore VE from Australia.
1999 Chrysler 300M
by Don Sikora II
Note: The following story was excerpted from the April 2016 issue of Collectible Automobile magazine.
Not surprisingly, the Chrysler 300M was named to invoke the legendary 1955-65 Chrysler 300 “letter” cars. Like the originals, the 300M was intended to be a more powerful driver-oriented car than other Chrysler sedans. This reborn 300 even used the “M” suffix in an attempt to resume the series where the 300-L left off 34 years earlier.
What Is Hydraulic Hybrid?
Online grocer Peapod recently took possession of its first two delivery trucks augmented with a hydraulic hybrid system.
In simplest terms, an automotive hybrid drivetrain is one that employs two or more power sources to propel a given vehicle.
First Spin: 2016 Mazda CX-9
Mazda’s redesigned CX-9 goes on sale in June as — oddly — a 2016 model. It remains a midsize 3-row SUV, with prices starting at $32,420 in front-drive form, $34,220 with all-wheel drive.
By our count, there are 18 midsize sport utilities on the market, plus a couple of larger compacts that could rightfully fill the bill. So why should anyone bother to consider such a peripheral player as the Mazda CX-9?
Here’s why.
Test Drive: 2017 Kia Sportage SX
2017 Kia Sportage SX
2017 Kia Sportage SX AWD 
Class: Compact Crossover
Miles Driven: 534
Fuel Used: 25.6 gallons
Driving mix: 65% city, 35% highway
Are You Changing Your Oil Too Often?
Do you know your vehicle’s oil-change interval? It many be longer than you think.
For years, American car owners have had the 3000-mile oil-change interval rule drilled into their psyches. Two powerful forces are at work keeping the 3000-mile edict so prominent in the public’s mind: inertia and marketing.
2016 Toyota Prius Touring
2016 Toyota Prius Four Touring 
Class: Compact Car
Miles Driven: 505
Fuel Used: 9.6 gallons
Test Drive: 2016 BMW X1
2016 BMW X1
2016 BMW X1 xDrive28i
Class: Premium Compact Crossover
Miles Driven: 240
Fuel Used: 10.8 gallons
