I had a ‘91 Explorer in red that looked very similar. And it was basically the same spec, manual everything but with the fancy auto-locking hubs and pushbutton 4WD and A/C. It was actually even more basic than this... red vinyl seats, not cloth. Those must be all but extinct by now.

Uninspired. Yes, that’s the perfect word for what Toyota did with this model.

My biggest problem with the Z12 Cube is the previous Z11 that the U.S. didn’t get. Nissan really nailed the design on that one; I didn’t like the big-bumper car as much. Also, the Z12 suffered from the post-recession decontenting--the Cube somehow felt even cheaper than it was and didn’t even drive as well as the…

Having seen a couple of these in the wild they are definitely more attractive than pictures suggest. They are quite low and wide compared with most other cars and immediately stand out as something exotic.

The 50:50 claim I’ve read is an “estimate” from Ferrari. I suspect it’s more like 2-to-1 in favor of auto. The 365GT4 2+2 was manual, sure, but the automatic 400/400i outsold the manual at least 2:1 and the 412 was probably a 75% take-rate for automatic.

The supercharged 3800 is more of a performance option (premium fuel only), but the 3800 Series II/III naturally-aspirated is probably the best V6 GM used until the High Feature V6 came into its own.

Saturn did not design that V6. The L81 is one of Opel’s 54-degree designs.

The MDX is a completely different platform than the Theta-based Vue so the suspension is likely very different. The 2005 Saturn Vue Redline sported drum brakes out back for example...

I once hit a deer with my Saab, sending an open coffee cup flying. The resulting coffee explosion fried the ignition switch, which of course was on the floor between the seats. Fortunately, Saab designed the system so that the ignition control board was in the steering column rather than down between the seats. What…

Holy cow somebody recommended a Patriot!

We’d probably have to look at the MY brochures. Subaru does call the 2021 Outback an SUV. The fifth-gen was available as a Legacy Touring Wagon in its home market so you could argue it was a lifted wagon in the U.S. market. The sixth-gen intro in 2015 was probably when Subaru shifted.

He’ll want the XC70 for the ground clearance. Low-mileage non-XC V70s, which were last made in 2013, are getting thin on the ground. The kicker, though, is fuel mileage, which will never be much better than 25 mpg highway and most of the time more like 17-22 mpg.

It’s not that Subaru doesn’t bother to call the Outback a station wagon. It’s that they are more than happy to have the EPA classify it as an SUV. It wouldn’t make sense to argue against the EPA making it easier for your vehicle to meet fuel economy and emissions requirements.

I think all the big supercar players are going PHEV. It’s part of the ongoing effort to meet Europe’s very stringent carbon emissions standards. It started a number of years back with the move to turbos and now we’re on to hybrids. The battery does really help the carbon emissions (rating).

It’s quite literally half the price of mid-mileage 2005 Carrera S models with similar options. In fact, the biggest issue I have with the listing is that it’s almost too cheap. This car needs a thorough, independent PPI.

Are you sure about that? This car is most definitely equipped with the 3.8L M97, which has a non-serviceable bearing.

The 997 Carrera S with the M97 engine did have a potential for IMS issues. It just wasn’t nearly as bad.

Yeah, the MkI Golf was a wet noodle and the Scirocco wasn’t much better. Suspension, braking, and wheel mods? Need all the braces. Big power? Think about adding an internal cage.

It is corporate spin, but we can hardly expect them to be honest. Infiniti’s practice since the beginning was to pick a Nissan model line that wasn’t already sold in the U.S.—Leopard, Primera, Skyline, Fuga, Cima, Patrol, etc.—and dress it up for the American market. Acura and Lexus did this to a lesser extent.

There’s another factor to consider with Acura... its cost of repair rate is a LOT lower than the German brands. So even if it doesn’t have a reliability advantage it would be still be a value luxury buy. In addition, Acura is pretty deliberate with tech advances and most of its drivetrain configurations are less…