Mazda has mastered the art of building innocuous, practical family transport, and CX-30 is right on target
Car manufacturers sometimes market their products in a confusing way. In the old days, it was called “badge engineering,” where one model would be gussied up or slightly altered and sold as something else – even though it was virtually identical to the vehicle it was based on. The Oldsmobile Cutlass, for example, was sold…
Available with either a four-cylinder or V6 engine, this generation was offered in a variety of trim levels
There wasn’t much to separate the Toyota Camry between 2010 and 2012, aside from minor styling cues and options packages. These were all pretty good years for Toyota’s mid-size sedan, and it maintained its reputation as one of the more reliable cars on the road. Available with either a four-cylinder or V6 engine, with a…
First introduced to the market in 1982, it’s now in its eighth generation and has never been better
Things have slowed down a little in the compact sedan market over the past few years. It used to be that when people went shopping for affordable transportation, they’d be thinking about the Honda Civic, Chevrolet Cruze, Volkswagen Jetta, Nissan Sentra and so on. But these days, it’s compact SUVs that are catching people’s eyes:…
Standard equipment includes telescoping steering, split folding rear seat, anti-lock brakes and more
In 2012, the Toyota Corolla sedan accounted for 40 per cent of the company’s total Canadian sales. It had been at or near the top of the sales heap in the compact car category for the previous two decades. This generation of the Corolla received a re-do in 2009, apparently styled in part in Turin,…
A well-thought-out compact sedan/hatchback
The adage “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” applies in spades to the Mazda3. Since it was introduced in 2003, it has been an unqualified success, collecting numerous awards around the world. Those awards include the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC) car of the year for 2022 and 2021, plus a handful of…
“Best vehicle I ever had,” claimed one owner
In 2012, Subaru’s Forester was going into its 15th year. Based on the Impreza platform, and manufactured in Japan, it also received a bit of a redesign the year before, getting increased back seat elbow room and all-new rear suspension. Where the previous version featured strut suspension in back, this, the third-generation model, came with…
But if you really want one, be prepared to shell out the cash
The writing is on the wall. Electric cars are here to stay, becoming more and more abundant. There are at least 16 models available in Canada, and most of the major car manufacturers have something on offer. Hyundai has two fully electric models: the Kona and Ioniq 5. Kia – owned by Hyundai – has…
The intangible driveability of so many Honda products is intact with the new Civic Hatchback
A few weeks back, I drove the new Honda Civic equipped with a continuously variable transmission (CVT). To put it mildly, I was disappointed. I found the CVT to be inconsistent, power-robbing, unrefined and almost unusable. It ruined, in my opinion, an other wise decent little car. Potential buyers, I cautioned, should be aware of…
Consumer Reports gave it pretty much a thumbs-down
Built alongside the Ford Escape in Kansas City, Mo., Mazda’s Tribute shares many components with Ford’s best-selling SUV. Its final year of production was 2011. You can find two-wheel and four-wheel-drive models with two engine choices: a 2.5-litre inline four-cylinder or a 3.0-litre V6. Standard equipment level is representative of vehicles in this category. The…
Made for Canada's winters? Let's find out
Talk is cheap. Toyota tells consumers the AWD Sienna is up for adventure. But does that mean a truly Canadian adventure? Normally, automotive journalists are often forced to assess vehicles based on just a few days’ experience – the equivalent of that honeymoon period. There isn’t much time to discover a new vehicle’s warts. No…
Focused less on luxury and more on practicality – and excellent fuel economy
Ford may be out of the passenger sedan business but they’ve jumped into the hybrid/electric car market with both feet. The company has at least seven electrified models – mostly pickups and SUVs, but including the all-electric Mustang Mach-E, which doesn’t look like a Mustang at all. Right in the thick of it is the…
The Crosstour has the attractive drivability that's been built into Accords since the beginning
Introduced in 2010 and based on the Accord platform, the Honda Crosstour wagon shares almost no body parts with its sedan counterpart, although it has the same V6 drivetrain. There’s no four-cylinder version. Displacing 3.5 litres, the V6 engine develops 271 horsepower and 254 foot-pounds of torque, which gives it lively performance. Comparatively, the Toyota…
The base model offers AC, power windows, tilt steering, cruise control and power door locks
In 2012, Honda’s popular Fit subcompact was well into its second generation and it was pretty much business as usual. Two trim levels are available: Base and Sport. Although they’re pretty much the same vehicle, the Sport features tuned suspension that gives it a stiffer ride. It handles the corners better but it’s at the…
The K5 does everything this type of vehicle is supposed to do
The passenger sedan market definitely ain’t what it used to be. Not long ago, the conventional four-door sedan defined the new car marketplace. If you went shopping for a new car, that’s what you bought nine times out of 10. Yes, SUVs were around. But they were more of a novelty than a legitimate choice…
Originally priced at under $22,000, the 2012 Insight now ranges between $8-15K
The 2012 Honda Insight was aimed squarely at first-timers and buyers under 35, since when new it was priced below the Civic Hybrid and popular Toyota Prius. In 2012, it was two years into a refit. With technology fundamentally similar to that found in the current Civic Hybrid, the 2012 Insight yields fuel consumption of…