Toyota Avalon TRD reviewed in latest Cruisin' News

Check out my review of the 2021 Toyota Avalon TRD sedan in the latest, May 2021, edition of the Northern & Central California Cruisin’ News, published out of Folsom, California, by John Sweeney and Evonne Sotelo.

The “Hot Laps” reviews, along with my "Oil Drips" observations on anything with wheels, appear monthly in the publication.

To subscribe to the Cruisin’ News, visit www.cruisinnews.com, call (916) 933-0949 or send an e-mail request to cruisinnews@mac.com. Mailed requests for information should be sent to Cruisin’ News, P.O. Box 1096, Folsom, CA 95763-1096.

Reliable Hyundai Sonata adds style, performance

 Mark Glover’s AutoGlo car reviews also can be seen in the Northern & Central California Cruisin’ News magazine published monthly out of Folsom, California.

Sacramento, California -- For years, I've recommended the Hyundai Sonata to folks looking for a midsize sedan, arguing that it's a dependable, capable car loaded with standard features that typically cost more in the formidable lineup of vehicles competing in Sonata's class.

I've been thanked for that recommendation multiple times.

For the 2021 model year, there's much more to like in the Sonata. That's especially true in my tester, the 2021 Hyundai Sonata N Line. It's the version getting the most buzz.  And rightly so.

Hyundai's "N Line" designation translates to major doses of sportiness and performance, and the South Korean automaker was generous on both counts.

Power comes from turbocharged 2.5-liter turbo-4 with 290 horsepower, making this the most powerful Sonata ever. The tester responded enthusiastically from standing starts, and its freeway characteristics were satisfyingly robust.

The Sonata effortlessly blasted into tight spots or out of harm's way with very little urging from my right foot.  It hugged the line on sharp corners and responded with firm agility and no sway in slalom runs.

A fun sedan to drive in every way.

And it looked good with twin dual exhausts and sweet angular cuts on the hood.  For some reason, fellow auto reviewers were not pleased with the looks of the cascading grille.  I have no idea why, given its relatively understated appearance compared with over-the-top grilles fronting other sedan models.

Hyundai calls the look "Sensuous Sportiness." Not sure that's how I would describe it, but OK, there's a definite sexiness to the machine.

Inside, the tester was loaded with state-of-the-art safety technology, comfort and convenience features -- much more than one would expect in a sporty sedan starting at $33,300.

Interior room is admirable in this class, especially in the back seats.

Even with the peppy power plant, fuel mileage is very nice at 23 miles per gallon in the city and 33 mpg on the highway.

In sum, this is everything a proper midsize sedan should be ... definitely worth considering amid a sea of crossover sport-utility vehicles being produced by the thousands.

And for those who say they prefer to buy American, consider these numbers on the Sonata N Line: 45 percent of the parts are of U.S. or Canadian origin, and the final assembly point for my ride was in Montgomery, Alabama.

Have Camry or Accord on your test-drive list?  The 2021 Sonata should be on it too.

 

A sentimental drive down the Nostalgia Highway

Mark Glover’s AutoGlo car reviews also can be seen in the Northern & Central California Cruisin’ News magazine published monthly out of Folsom, California.

Sacramento, California -- Perhaps it's a result of being mostly cooped up in my home for more than a year -- like millions of others amid the COVID crisis -- but I'm feeling nostalgic these days.

I've been particularly focused on things I miss from my early days of car travel.  Here are six memories.  They might be yours as well:

-- I miss road signs and billboards.  Sure, you still see them today, but their numbers are way down from the 1960s.  Critics justly claimed that many billboards were unsightly, and decaying signs and billboards added to the visual disruption on the open road.  Alas, I remember and miss the red and white Burma Shave road signs that were often clever, and almost always prompted a chuckle.  I remember seeing the over-the-top billboards touting the charms of the Wall Drug Store along Interstate 90 in South Dakota. The famous roadside stop prompted people to make their own signs when traveling abroad, including a homemade mileage posting at the Taj Mahal in India. Ugly or not, road signs and billboards offered the promise of hot food, needed rest and welcome relief in the miles ahead.

-- Along a similar line, I miss the instantly recognizable orange roofs of Howard Johnson's motels and restaurants (28 flavors of ice cream!) and the iconic Holiday Inn motel signs -- green and yellow, with arrow and star decorations.  Howard Johnson's reputation for slow restaurant service once made fodder for a brutal "Mad" magazine parody, but the restaurant food was always good, the ice cream refreshing.  And for me, the Holiday Inn sign offered the bliss of a quick trip to the lobby and then falling face-first onto a comfy double bed at the end of a 500-mile drive.

-- I even miss the old television commercials for motor vehicles, the ads that stayed in our brains because of the catchy music and jingles associated with them.  Yes, I'm old enough to remember Dinah Shore singing, "See the USA in Your Chevrolet."  Who could forget Pontiac's "wide tracking" campaign?  Firestone was equally adept on the music front.  I can still hear "Where the Rubber Meets the Road."  For people of a certain age -- mine, for example -- these jingles are as memorable as anything produced now by Coca-Cola, McDonald's or State Farm insurance.

-- Remember when gas stations provided real service? Remember gas pump jockeys. They would not only fill up your gas tank but wipe down your windshield and check your oil.  The really top-notch jockeys would clean all the windows and bring the oil dipstick over to the driver so he/she could verify the oil level.  Back in the day, if things were slow, multiple gas pump jockeys would work on your stopped vehicle, the team moving in a blur to get the job done in minutes. Then, they would run your credit card over that hand-held manual device, tear off your receipt and send you on your way. Sure, self-serve is convenient. But I miss that old-timey customer service.

-- I also miss car hops.  Yes, I experienced them near the tail end of their popularity, but what a treat it was back in the day to place that food/drink order and have the goods hooked onto the driver's side window by a smiling, hustling hop.  Some car hop joints still exist, and when I see them, I'm ready to drive in ... and enjoy some memories.  My best car hop memory is from 1966, traveling through southern Montana on a bone-dry summer day in a 1964 Ford Fairline with no air conditioning.  I remember my throat being so dry that I could barely swallow.  Parched lips felt like sandpaper.  And then there was a sign for an A&W Root Beer, which loomed like an oasis in the Sahara.  Ice-cold root beer in frosted mugs -- served by a car hop -- went down so well that, to this day, when I drink an A&W root beer I am transported to that long-ago summer afternoon and the glorious relief I felt in that sweltering Ford.

-- With so many crossover sport-utility vehicles on the market now, it's easy to forget the art of packing the trunk of a wide, flat passenger car rolling out for a lengthy road trip. You had to figure the angles for the suitcases, and which ones would stack ... and those that wouldn't.  Small bags could be wedged in the sides, perhaps joined by a portable ice water jug.  Garment bags would be put in last, tenderly laid on top of the suitcase pile in hopes that wrinkles would be defeated.

 

Toyota hatches an appealing version of it Corolla

 Mark Glover’s AutoGlo car reviews also can be seen in the Northern & Central California Cruisin’ News magazine published monthly out of Folsom, California.

Sacramento, California -- Quick, I say Toyota Corolla and you think of ...

My guess is that the overwhelming majority of folks think of the venerable compact sedan -- the basic four-door of rental lots, or maybe even a warm memory of said sedan parked in their driveway.

Not many think of the Corolla Hatchback.  I learned this lesson from neighbors who walked up to my recent tester and exclaimed, "What is that?"  Told it was a Toyota Corolla, they reacted with disbelief.

Believe it, Toyota does make a Corolla hatch.  The full, formal name of my tester was the 2021 Toyota Corolla Hatchback SE Nightshade Edition.  Yeah, you need two pages in the owner's manual just to get that name in, but for my money, this ride is the embodiment of entry-level motor vehicle simplicity.

Mine checked in at an entirely reasonable $23,480, which included an eight-inch touchscreen, a leather-wrapped steering wheel and paddle shifters among the standard features.  Safety tech also was well-represented on the sticker.

The back hatch opens to a nicely spacious cargo area for a compact four-door vehicle. I could picture a college student happily loading up this Corolla for a move into the freshman dorm.  Or maybe a urban/suburban resident using the car for double duty -- work daily driver and weekend chore doer.

Even the busiest of motorists will be pleased with the gas mileage they're going to get: 32 miles per gallon in the city and an impressive 41 mpg on the highway.

The Nightshade Edition translates to some sharp, black cosmetic additions that add spice to the hatchback's look.  The wheels, exterior mirror caps and rear spoiler are among the components getting the Nightshade treatment.

While I found the tester exceptionally agile in traffic and on high-speed corners, I really had to plant my right foot hard on the accelerator to keep pace on freeway runs. The 2-liter, four-cylinder engine needed every bit of its 168 horses to maintain speed at the top of sharp inclines in the Sierra Nevada.  And a surprising amount of engine noise invaded the interior cabin, even in highway cruise mode.

OK, so it's not a road-burner.  Check on that.

But if you're looking for an affordable first car for your young offspring, or an all-purpose compact to reduce past costs amassed owning a larger automobile, the Corolla Hatchback should be on your test-drive list.

One other bonus: Owning a Corolla hatch will make you feel relatively unique among Corolla owners.

 

CX-9 has perks, pep to satisfy midsize SUV shoppers

 Mark Glover’s AutoGlo car reviews also can be seen in the Northern & Central California Cruisin’ News magazine published monthly out of Folsom, California.

Sacramento, California -- I've enjoyed past test drives in the Mazda CX-9, and my most recent outing in the 2021 Mazda CX-9 Signature AWD sport-ute was no different.

Mazda calls the three-row midsize SUV a vehicle designed "to meet the practical needs of a family while still appealing to (an) owner's sense of style and driving enjoyment."

Yeah, I think that pretty much says it.

Attractively styled, generously equipped and quietly comfortable from the driver's seat, the CX-9 pleases on the short runs and the long hauls.

And there's more ... including an extensive list of high-tech safety features, a max five-star federal crash test overall rating and fair gas mileage at 20 miles per gallon in the city and 26 mpg on the highway.

A top-center-dash display is a generous 10.25 inches across, but I still had trouble negotiating the infotainment package. It felt like there were a couple of extra steps in each process, and I often found myself back at square one to start over.

While it's a three-row SUV, getting into the back row and stretching out is going to be a challenge for some adults, particularly husky ones.

The 2.5-liter turbocharged-4 engine comes off as a more-than-capable power plant, with 227 horesepower at your command ... or 250 horses on primo octane gas, according to Mazda. Numbers aside, I was impressed with the turbo-4's enthusiastic performance.  Several times the CX-9 quickly powered me out of harm's way on the highway, and I found myself surprised that it was delivering this level of pop.  Surprised, and grateful, as I hate to be swallowed up by an 18-wheeler at the end of a freeway entrance ramp.

The tester had a somewhat hefty sticker price of $48,100, but the Signature model is a top-tier offering among the trim levels.

Looking for a practical-size SUV for the long-term?  This CX-9 deserves your attention.

And I'm betting that Mazda sales personnel will warmly welcome you to the lot, and perhaps be willing to make a buyer-beneficiary deal.

Why?

The CX-9 competes in a SUV segment that includes such heavies as the Kia Telluride, Subaru Ascent, Hyundai Palisade, Toyota Highlander, Honda Pilot and Ford Explorer.

Tough crowd.  But the current-generation CX-9 measures up nicely in the segment.

 

Sporty Kia K5 GT-Line reviewed in latest Cruisin' News

Check out my review of the 2021 Kia K5 GT-Line sedan in the latest, April 2021, edition of the Northern & Central California Cruisin’ News, published out of Folsom, California, by John Sweeney and Evonne Sotelo.

The “Hot Laps” reviews, along with my "Oil Drips" observations on anything with wheels, appear monthly in the publication.

To subscribe to the Cruisin’ News, visit www.cruisinnews.com, call (916) 933-0949 or send an e-mail request to cruisinnews@mac.com. Mailed requests for information should be sent to Cruisin’ News, P.O. Box 1096, Folsom, CA 95763-1096.

Turbocharged Mazda3 is a pleasing pocket rocket

This review first appeared in the March 2021 edition of the Northern & Central California Cruisin News published out of Folsom, California – mg

Sacramento, California ­– What to make of the 2021 Mazda3?

It gets well-deserved raves from various automotive journalists for its saucy exterior styling and elegant interior layout.

It's called a compact sedan in most circles.  It gets the oft-dreaded "hatch" label elsewhere, but Mazda seems to have no problem with that.  The automaker proudly calls the Mazda3 a hatchback in its marketing materials.

I did not struggle with any of these descriptions.  For me, the tested 2021 Mazda3 2.5 Turbo with all-wheel drive came off as a classic pocket rocket.

Yup, a lightweight machine with a 2.5-liter turbo-4 and 227 horsepower (a reported 250 with primo octane fuel) will do that, and I had a fabulous time jetting around in this Mazda machine.

The tested model was rubber-squealing quick off the line and darted precisely through freeway stragglers with just a nudge on the accelerator.  Performance was strong in high and low revs.

The whole pocket rocket thing was sealed with the presence of that itty-bitty wing on the back of the roofline.  I'm not sure how fast you'd have to go to generate significant downforce with the mini-wing, but I think image is everything in this case.

The fun driving experience was bolstered by the long list of standard features and a "Premium Plus" package of goodies. I was ridiculously spoiled with  customer-pleasing comfort/convenience features and advanced safety technology one expects from a Mercedes-Benz product.

On the safety front, the tested Mazda3 scored a maximum five stars across the board on all federal government crash tests.

More good news: solid fuel mileage ratings of 23 miles per gallon in the city and 31 mpg on the highway.

Please note, the back seat area would be quite a squeeze for even small adults, so I wouldn't plan a daylong road trip with impatient relatives.

Given the whole lights-out package, the bottom line on the tester's sticker came to a reasonable $35,415.

Overall, I'd rate this Mazda3 an ideal daily driver/commuter or a perfect second car for a small family looking for a chore doer or enjoyable weekend runabout.