2015 Mazda 5 – Quick-Take Review
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AUTOS
Citroën’s Hydropneumatic Suspension Is Being Depressurized—Forever
– Since 1954, top-spec Citroën models have famously ridden on what felt like a cushy wave of fluid—because, well, they actually rode on a cushy fluid. The French automaker’s innovative hydropneumatic suspension system used pump-driven hydraulic fluid and small nitrogen-filled bladders at each wheel to absorb road impacts like no metal spring and gas-charged damper setup could, while also offering load-leveling and, eventually, mitigating body roll. That the hydropneumatic system has survived
Better 10Bester! 2016 Mazda 3 Drops Price, Adds Stuff
-We get a lot of pricing-related press releases around here, but not many of them announce a price lowering, and even fewer of those involve a current Car and Driver 10Best winner. But this is one of those times, so we’re happy to announce a lower price on one of our favorite current automobiles, the winsome Mazda 3. – The base 2016 Mazda 3 i Sport model, which is powered
Better 10Bester! 2016 Mazda 3 Drops Price, Adds Stuff
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Dorks and Mall Cops Take Heed: Volkswagen to Sell Foldable Segway-Type Thing
– When former Volkswagen CEO Ferdinand Piëch left the company’s supervisory board in a huff, it was the culmination of a power battle between himself and parts of the family on the one side, and the Porsche branch of the family, the workers council, and current CEO Martin Winterkorn on the other. One of the criticisms voiced by Piëch was the lack of creativity and vision at VW. – Winterkorn seems
The Spirit of ’76: A Rare Redcoat With Yankee Heritage
– Baader-Meinhof. Space 1999. The Dawson’s Field hijackings. The Yes Album. They’re all things from the 1970s, but all people seem to remember are bell bottoms, Nixon’s resignation, and, of course, the ’73 and ’79 oil crises. The first of these hit British manufacturer Jensen rather hard, given that its bread-and-butter model, the Interceptor, carried a thirsty Chrysler-sourced V-8 lump behind its quad headlights. Thankfully, the plucky Brits had a solution.
These Are the “America” Cars
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The Spirit of ’76: This Van Is Boss, Man
– In Japan, there exists a subculture known as Dajiban, offering a unique spin on custom Ram vans that involves a soupçon of stance, a dash of bosozoku, and a twisted sense of humor. The machines are alternately known as “H-vans,” with the “H” code for “hentai”—Japanese for “pervert.” But were it not for the golden age of vanning, Dajiban would have no roots. And although the heavily customized American
2015 VW Golf SportWagen Automatic Tested: Practical Domination
– All we really want from any vehicle is for it to do its job well. It’s a deceptively simple criterion that guides our reviews of everything from burly off-roaders to thrifty subcompacts to ludicrously capable exotics. We’re hard-pressed to think of a vehicle that fulfills its mission better than VW’s Golf SportWagen—maybe the lunar rover. READ MORE ›› –
The Spirit of ’76: Stuzify My Love
– For some reason, when we think of coachbuilt glamour, thoughts automatically drift to chassis that were handed off to British and Italian men armed with sandbags, snips, shears, shrinkers, stretchers, English wheels, and a variety of hammers. Pretty much every machine that takes home the big prize at Pebble Beach is “famed European marque bodied by famous/obscure coachbuilder.” But of course, we Americans had coachbuilding houses, as well. Budd,