MULTIPLE PERSONALITY: ‘21 BMW M5 COMPETITION

Posted on May 3, 2021May 3, 2021 by MartynL

The twin-turbocharged, MULTIPLE PERSONALITY: ‘21 BMW M5 COMPETITION can be a comfortable family sedan. Or it can be a very fast four-seat sedan with all-wheel-drive to safely play, or go out Supercar hunting, blogs Dan Scanlan. I had to double check the numbers. First, our 4,345-pound M5 Competition boasted 617 horsepower and 553 pound-feet of torque, with all-wheel-drive and launch control. The 4,600-mile-old sedan hit 60 mph in a hair over 3 seconds, and 100 mph in 7 – check out the v...

‘20 JEEP GLADIATOR MOJAVE SAHARA

Posted on November 21, 2020November 21, 2020 by MartynL

There’s nothing stealth about this head-turning, go-everywhere, do-everything Punk’n Metallic ‘20 Jeep Gladiator Mojave Sahara, blogs Dan Scanlan. We’ve had Jeep pickups for years, from a post-World War II model to an earlier (1963 to 1972) Gladiator pickup, 1980’s CJ Scrambler and 1986-1992 Comanche. But this one’s four portals opens with room for friends, and a real functional cargo box. Hitting the sand of a local Florida beachfront park, we used its 3.6-liter V-6 with 285 horsepo...

HELL BENT HEMI: DODGE CHARGER SRT HELLCAT WIDEBODY

Posted on September 19, 2020September 19, 2020 by MartynL

Multiple variations of the HELL-BENT HEMI: DODGE CHARGER SRT HELLCAT WIDEBODY has been around for 16 years.But the almost-ultimate Dodge Charger may be this one – a Hellcat Widebody that chews up the asphalt while carrying four adults in comfort, blogs Dan Scanlan. Dodge took the standard 75-inch-wide Charger Hellcat with its 707-horsepower HEMI V-8, and added 3.5-inches so there’s room for 20-inch by 11-inch wheels wearing fatter P305/35 ZR20-inch Pirelli P-ZERO tires. That supercharged 6.2-li...

‘20 ALFA ROMEO STELVIO: Q4 QUADRIFOGLIO

Posted on July 25, 2020July 25, 2020 by MartynL

The ‘20 ALFA ROMEO STELVIO: Q4 QUADRIFOGLIO is a crossover I could drive every day, anywhere, with wonderful power, great handling and distinctive sound and looks. Looks great next to my Alfa Milano too, blogs Dan Scanlan. Alfa Romeo makes a crossover. That’s right – a tall mom and pop station wagon. Except, this one has a bit of Ferrari under the bonnet, as you might expect from the folks who employed Enzo himself way back when they began winning Grands Prix and other races. Andiamo – ...

‘19 M-B E63 AMG S WAGON: IT’S HAMMER TIME!

Posted on June 29, 2019 by MartynL

Yes, it is a station wagon. But it’s also a proper muscle car, just aching to hammer down the road. It’s scary fast, blogs Dan Scanlan. ‘19 M-B E63 AMG S WAGON: IT’S HAMMER TIME! This fifth-generation E-Class continues the tradition set down in 1986 when a station wagon with a 5.6-liter V-8 tuned by AMG to a then-prodigious 360 horsepower was introduced. Nicknamed the Hammer, it could do 190 mph. Now we have this ‘19 M-B E63 AMG S WAGON: IT’S HAMMER TIME! in red, with almost 150 more horsepowe...

POWERFUL PLUG-IN PACESETTER!

Posted on June 18, 2019 by MartynL

Grace with pace has always been Jaguar’s take. Its award-winning electric I-PACE EV400 is quick and able to prowl pretty far on a charge, blogs Dan Scanlan. But as the world electrifies its transportation more and more, the big cat has to keep pace. Thus, the ‘19 Jaguar I-PACE, the first battery electric vehicle offered by the company bar its I‑TYPE 3 Formula E racecar. This 5-seat crossover’s 90kWh battery delivering an EPA-estimated range of 234 miles, although 290 has been witnessed by IMSA ...

‘19 BMW X5 XDRIVE50I: DRIVING MACHINE!

Posted on March 31, 2019March 31, 2019 by MartynL

BMW proves again that a big SUV can move, handle and comfort like a luxury sports car, and sound great doing it – at a price, blogs Dan Scanlan. Yes, even a 5,617-pound BMW X5 xDrive40i sports activity vehicle is a driving machine. BMW installs a 3-liter twin-turbocharged inline 6-cylinder with 335 horsepower for its base X5, but gave our 50i a twin-turbo 4.4-liter V-8 with 456 horsepower, with 8-speed Steptronic transmission and xDrive all-wheel drive. Yes, you can go econo with ECO PRO to ...

‘19 VW Golf R: R IS FOR RAPID!

Posted on December 17, 2018 by MartynL

‘Reserved in appearance, practical in shape, and so much fun to drive – for a price’, blogs Dan Scanlan. The term “hot hatch” was born when Volkswagen put a hotter engine and more aggressive rubber and suspension in its front-wheel-drive Rabbit econobox hatchback back in 1974. Since then, many have done hot hatches – three- or five-door compacts with turbocharged Fours, a few wings and things and stickier rubber. And in a few cases, even more powerful versions have been done. Which brings us to...

‘19 CADILLAC CTS-V: SUPERCAR SEDAN!

Posted on September 8, 2018September 8, 2018 by MartynL

It’s really a four-door Z06 Corvette blogs intrepid road tester, Dan Scanlan. True the ‘19 Cadillac CTS-V has the heart of a Corvette Z06 under that carbon-fiber-vented hood – a supercharged aluminum 6.2-liter V-8 with 640 horsepower and 630 pound-feet of torque, with alas, only a paddle-shift eight-speed automatic. There’s no manual transmission option unfortunately. But when a car that holds four adults also holds the road like glue en route to 60 mph in 3.7 seconds, with a digital speedomete...

‘18 INFINITI Q60 RED SPORT 400: BOOSTED BEAUTY!

Posted on August 3, 2018August 3, 2018 by MartynL

It’s a very sensuous coupe with twin-turbo muscle and good handling. But it needs to be lighter, with newer tech, blogs Dan Scanlan. Sure, there’s a glossy carbon fiber spoiler, and that stunning “Dynamic Sunstone Red” paint, all atop aggressive rubber. But it’s what’s under the bonnet of almost two tons of Infiniti’s Q60 3.0t Red Sport 400 that stirs the soul as much as the curvaceous coupe’s body - a potent 3-liter twin-turbo V-6 with 300-horsepower, or our Red Sport 400’s 400-horsepower. ...