I just read in the Detroit News that several states and Canada are offering cash to trade in older, 'less clean' vehicles for new, 'cleaner' vehicles. Now, these vehicles have to fail an emissions test, be ten years old or older and must be owned by lower income families. Additionally, they can only be traded towards those environmental travesties called hybrids or vehicles under $25,000. The aim of ...

No, this was something colloquially referred to as 'rockcrawling'. Rock ledges and narrow, steep paths many people would scoff at were easily conquered by the vehicles ahead of us on the trail. I was amazed. But I wasn't so sure about our little Samurai. The other vehicles on the trail, Jeeps and Toyotas with big lifts and large tires sure, but our little Suzuki? To say I ...

It was January of 1993 and my Dad made his intentions clear, he and I were going to this 'Jeep Safari' in April. As the date approached my Dad put some larger (215 vs. 205) all season tires on the Samurai and made sure the little SUV was in tip top shape. When the departure date arrived, my Dad and I loaded up the Samurai with our coolers and ...

My Dad's green Renault blew its engine. It was shocking. The car that had sadly taken my father away to work in the mornings and that I had eagerly awaited for his return in the evenings was gone. I was quite literally in tears. To me the Renault somehow represented my father, and with its passing how could I ever recognize my fathers comings and goings? My little ...

Robert Lloyd Nielson isn't a name that instantly rings a bell to most people. Great tales and stories of him don't exist in the mass conciseness. His likeness will not be captured on canvas or in stone. He has a nondescript job that will never make him famous. But he did do one thing of note, he taught me how to drive. I know, I know. Who cares? This ...

My wife drives a 1992 Toyota Camry 2.2L LE automatic. I know, I know boring as all hell. I didn’t chose it so please don’t offer me up to the automotive gods as a sacrifice. But being as it is a 15-year-old regularly used vehicle in the corrosion friendly state of Utah, many parts have started to rust. The most recent was the muffler. The exhaust pipe pulled ...

Six months ago I sold my Audi A3 2.0T in preparation for an extended stay in Europe. I loved the little Audi, but wasn’t too fond of the payment that hit my account every month. After my stint in beautiful Paris I returned stateside with a the desire to find myself a new vehicle. I really wanted to get a car that I would enjoy driving (not just steering) ...

In my youth (a year or so ago) I rather fancied the BMW 2002’s. They were small, quick and cheap. The styling certainly made people turn their heads and look. Driving them was a blast. And if you could pick up a tii model, well lets just say you would be considered hot stuff in BMW circles. When the 2002 line was discontinued in 1976 BMW ended a fine ...

We all see them. Every day we drive to and from work, school or the restaurant and we see people doing things in their cars that just make us cringe. So today, on the scariest of holidays I thought that I would compile a list of the five most terrifying things that people do in their cars. 5. Not using a turn signal. We’ve all done it, and it’s not ...

The evolution of the automobile is truly incredible. In the brief time cars have been with us, they have evolved from horseless carriages to technological masterpieces. We’ve seen huge increases in horsepower complimented by enhanced suspensions and superior handling, particularly in the last decade. I can think of several 2008 cars and SUVs with 400+ horsepower right off the showroom floor. Outside of improvements in dynamic performance, there ...