I’m glad that I’m not the only one in this boat. I had a B7 S4 Avant (with a stick), and as that got older I ended up buying a new Golf R. The S4 just didn’t appeal in the same way, especially as the Avant was no longer offered in the US market.

Having had quite a few as rentals, they just chew up highway miles like it’s nothing. The most relaxed yet connected I’ve felt in a while. It also felt like it wanted to do 90 without any effort and seemed annoyed if I was doing anything less.

Yep. It’s an S4 but more useful.

I always had a sweet spot for S4 Avants (but I don’t think they brought any in B8 chassis). When I lost my A4, I had a choice of S4 and Golf R and ended up with VW because of utility.
I do miss Quattro (article doesn’t mention is it True Torsen we loved or fuel efficient Haldex (or something else).
Did we ever got RS4…

Morons are gonna moron. I think the EV craze has come one battery generation too early (over-reliance on lithium, a single resource needed in massive quantities that is not easy or Earth-friendly to mine), but the thing already has inertia and there isn’t shit they can do to stop it. They need to just accept it like I…

There’s a tax loophole for 6000+ pound vehicles. Close that loop for a starter.

It would make more sense to tax the electricity that’s charging the EV. Electric meters are already read remotely, simply put a separate meter on every car charger, and assess a fee based on kWh. This taxes energy consumption, not miles driven (which is maybe unfair, if the taxes are being used for road construction…

A per mile by weight would be the most accurate method to charge for the wear and tear on the infrastructure, which was the entire point of the gas tax. It had nothing to do with efficiency. A hybrid full size SUV damages the road just as much as the less efficient traditional ice version. Infrastructure upkeep is…

The irony here is that the EVs are heavier than their ice counterparts, so they would actually pay more per mile than ice. And I like that.

Backpack two-stroke leaf blowers are the worst. Not only are they fucking obnoxious to listen to, they are extremely dirty. How about just picking up a damn rake, broom or electric blower?

The US Road Trip was pretty great. And the destroyed tire and then tire shop segment in particular (I can’t find the full segment in one piece, so here you go).

The cheap old supercars segment was a fine thing. Dear Spouse still likes to joke about “all its horses have run away!”

I believe it was the “Cheap Porsche” episode that started the whole genre of “3 car presenters competing against each other with cars that match their personalities” shows that we still see today. It’s also one of my favorites

Any episode where they had X budget to buy a car (or scooter) for a specific challenge

Any truck where the hood is higher than an average person’s shoulder shouldn’t be allowed in cities or suburbs. The design height of these things is completely absurd.

I couldn’t disagree more. I barely need to look at the interface with a Mazda wheel. Meanwhile a minor bump in the road has me pressing some random button on a touch screen and I’m lost... but to each their own...

May work well but those tesla 3 single screens looks SO cheap. (This article is on “design” after all.) Telsa 3 is THE definition of lazily slapping a big screen in front of you. (Except its not even actually in front of you since it’s a cost saving measure that’s actually the infotainment screen.)

Good comment and the lead picture was a Camry with about 4 different items on the list. Fake exhaust outlet? Check. Fake vents? Check. Absurd wing that offers no aero benefit especially in a grocery getter auto 4 cylinder sedan? Check. Floating roof? Check. Millions of aggro cuts lines and design elements that have…

Love this list.  I agree with basically all of them.  One item missing, which could be thrown in with the “overly complicated exterior designs”, is fake vents, grilles, diffusers, etc.  Examples, Toyota Supra & Toyota Camry with their fake black plastic fillers that look like vents.  Very tacky.  Mercedes & BMW have…

Truck “design” has gotten world-class stupid lately. It is the reason used and classic truck values keep climbing.