Published at ActonToyota.com
Fast Facts on the 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid:
- Operates up to 14 miles in pure EV mode
- Can go as fast as 60 mph in pure EV mode
- Fuel economy readings as high as 100 mpg
- Fully-recharges in 3 hours on 110-volt power and 1.5 hours on 220-volt power
- Shares the same Hybrid Synergy Drive platform as the traditional Prius
- Uses higher performance lithium-ion batteries instead of nickel-metal hydride
- Typical city driving can net over 60% of driving time in pure electric mode
- Has the same 134 hp output as traditional Prius, but extra weight slows 0-60 time to 11 seconds
Read on…
Published at CarReview.com
By Kurt Gensheimer
Blings
- New boxed frame design virtually eliminates flex
- Exceptional interior fit and finish for a work truck
- 10,000+ pound towing capacity even for the gasser V-8
Dings
- Kidney-jarring buckboard ride from the rear end
- Massive dimensions require a formal ‘plan of action’ every time you park
- 8,000+ lb GVWR exempts GMC from posting the atrocious MPG numbers on the window
Ruling: Unless you tow a trailer or haul thousands of pounds in concrete every day, you have no business owning a truck this big and manly. Read on…
Published at CarReview.com
By Kurt Gensheimer
Blings:
- Outstanding value
- Head-turning exterior design
- Performance on par with Civic Si
- Class-leading rear seat legroom
Dings:
- Rage-inducing drive-by-wire throttle
- Vague clutch takeup
- Cheeseball speaker LEDs
- Rear seat headroom fit for the Headless Horseman
Ruling: Behold, the very first Kia that you’d actually want to be seen in. Read on…
  
Published at CarReview.com
By Kurt Gensheimer
Back in the early 1990s when I was a few years away from my first driver’s license, one of the hottest cars you could own was the tiny little 1991 Honda CRX Si in yellow. It was small, quick and had an obnoxiously loud paint job that called attention to itself wherever it was. I’d sit in the back seat of my parents’ car as they chauffeured me to and from school, fogging up the window as I gawked at that yellow CRX which was always parked in some lucky guy’s driveway. I saved every waking cent until the day I was old enough to drive and flush enough to buy my own yellow CRX. It never happened. By the time I had enough money, my tastes had changed, and the CRX had morphed into the less desirable Del Sol. Read on…
Published at CarReview.com
By Kurt Gensheimer
Blings:
- Interior silent as a monastery
- Incredible amount of rear legroom
- Beautifully crafted inside and out
Dings:
- Visibility so bad it should come with a Surgeon General warning
- Torque steer (yes, it’s front-wheel drive)
- Low rear door clearance devours heads
Ruling: It might be riddled with blind spots, but the new LaCrosse is also riddled with style, performance, luxury and value.
Never before has an automotive brand represented two completely polar opposite demographics as Buick does in the United States and China. In the U.S., the cache of Buick has grown as old and decrepit as it owners, whereas in China, Buick has emerged as the automotive brand representing a thirtysomething’s arrival into the material world. In China, the average Buick owner is a youthful 32. In the U.S.? More than twice as old. Read on…
2010 DeRosa Corum – Steel in the Peloton
Published at RoadBikeReview.com
From the pro peloton to local USCF races, carbon fiber is the material du jour these days. Forks, wheels, components, water bottle cages, headset spacers; they’re all made of carbon. And of course, the frame, the nucleus of every bicycle, is where most of the carbon fiber craze is focused.
But what about good old steel? Is there a place in the modern peloton for the tried and true material which has been manipulated by man since 1300 years before the birth of Christ? Read on…
By Kurt Gensheimer
James Sikes is getting death threat letters. Why? Because he claims his 2008 Prius went completely out of control on a San Diego freeway, hit 95 miles an hour (thankfully the section of freeway was nearly 10 miles of uphill) and could only be slowed down by the aid of a CHP officer.
Many people are now calling Sikes a liar, a prankster, and stunt publicist. Even Toyota has said in euphemistic fashion that Sikes’ story is “inconsistent” with Toyota engineer findings, who tested Sikes’ car repeatedly and could not duplicate the unintended acceleration issue.
So just because Toyota can’t repeat the problem, does this mean Sikes is lying? Read on…
As is stated on our homepage, we are late adopters. We always wait a few years for the hype to wear off before adopting a new technology. If after this period of hype, the technology in question has become more ubiquitous, and truly addresses a need which makes cyber communication better, we then decide to give it a try. But there are some technologies – no matter how meteoric the rise in popularity – which are destined for failure.
Take Twitter for instance. From the word go, we have never understood the reason for its existence. Besides having one of the most irritating names in the history of the interweb, spawning rage-inducing verbs like ‘tweet’, the mere existence of Twitter begs the ultimate question that we always ask before undertaking any project; “So What?” Read on…
A mud bog + a Land Cruiser + an oversupply of hubris = stuck. But not just any stuck; stuck overnight with my father-in-law.
By Kurt Gensheimer
I should have known better. I should have just turned around. The blocked off entrance to Pine Mountain’s lookout tower was Providence’s way of saying, Not today kid, just pack it up and head home.
But I didn’t take much stock in Providence. Providence didn’t understand the capabilities of a Land Cruiser. Providence couldn’t grasp my driving skill. Providence was nothing more than a city overrun by sailboats, striped polo shirts, Topsiders and tea parties. I didn’t take stock in my father-in-law’s comments either, who was sitting shotgun and sided with Providence. Read on…
After relaunching the BPP site in WordPress, I’ve been getting comments on my first few Musings. But of course, most are ridiculous spam comments which beg only a one word response – Really?
Really? Is my work ‘wonderfully lucid’ and ‘gratifying’? Are you really ‘thirstily’ awaiting my next post? Or did you just cut and paste an entire generic, adverb-riddled comment for the less than microscopic chance of plugging your make-more-money-at-home dot com spam site? Is English even your first language?
Although annoying, some of these comments are entertaining. I’ve posted a few below. And if you are truly reading this for actual comprehension purposes(doubtful) and intend to post your cyber refuse, I ‘thirstily’ recommend you not waste your time with the CTRL C and V buttons. Instead, take that time and off yourself. ‘Substantially’, your life has become nugatory.
Read on…
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