By Barbara & Bill Schaffer For the umpteenth time (actually 42 years) the Ford F- Series was the bestselling vehicle in the U.S. While that’s almost become a ho-hum statement it’s an impressive accomplishment that shows Ford’s obsession with making their trucks better and better to maintain their appeal competitors are working hard to knock…
By Barbara & Bill Schaffer We were disappointed to see so many automakers dropping diesel engine cars and light trucks over the last few years. We?ve advocated diesel engines because of their better fuel economy numbers and good performance. Plus, scientific studies have shown that properly configured diesel engines are cleaner than gasoline engines….
By Barbara & Bill Schaffer Since the GMC Terrain went on sale in 2010, more than 700,000 of the first-generation models have been sold. It has also been ranked as one of the top models in the compact segment by buff magazines. This year the Terrain received a complete makeover from styling to drivetrains, so…
By Barbara & Bill Schaffer From hamburgers to clothing to SUVs — size matters. Clothing is obvious, and McDonald?s now sells Big Macs in three sizes (Baby Mac, Big Mac and Grand Mac) so why not a major purchase like an SUV. Sure, most of the SUV makers have two or three sizes, but the…
By Barbara & Bill Schaffer When Jaguar decided to expand their offerings from sport sedans and sports cars to include a crossover, the designers and engineers didn?t waver from the formula that has put Jaguars in the forefront of the luxury and performance market. The 2017 Jaguar F-Pace has all the elements to make it…
By Barbara and Bill Schaffer When you?ve been around the automotive business as long as we have (25+ years) you develop some distinct likes and dislikes. For example, one of our favorite luxury SUVs has been the Range Rover. What?s not to like — it?s plush, comfortable, fast and it goes over rugged off road…
By Barbara & Bill Schaffer We can?t think of an automotive category more difficult to successfully dominate than the group of smaller luxury performance sedans made up of cars like the: BMW 3 Series, Mercedes-Benz C-Class and Audi A4. Cars in this group are some of the most benchmarked cars in the industry — the…
By Bill Schaffer Carmel Valley, Calif. and Washougal, Wash. ? Nissan has worked hard for years planning to break into the U.S. truck market in a big way, and if the latest Titan offerings are any indication, the other truck manufacturers should be on full alert. I don?t think Nissan is going to surpass Ford,…
By Bill & Barbara Schaffer Shelton, Wash. ? In NWAPA Mudfest 2016 — Part 1 we reviewed the Outdoor Activity Vehicles from the Compact Utility, Premium Compact Utility and Family categories. In Part 2 we feature the Premium, Extreme Capability and Pickup categories. This year?s program was held at the Ridge Motorsports Park in…
By Barbara & Bill Schaffer No automotive company lives up to its advertising tag line better than BMW?s ?Ultimate Driving Machine.? We don?t always agree with the way BMW engineers design some controls, but that?s more a matter of personal taste than right or wrong, or good or bad. However, there?s no debate that the…
