News By Topic: Carey Russ

2003 Mercedes-Benz E320 Sedan Review

Jan 30, 2003

DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD WITH CAREY RUSS 2003 Mercedes-Benz E320 Sedan The 1996 Mercedes-Benz E-Class was a radical step for the once-conservative German automaker. It brought sleek, youthful styling to the company's core line, and introduced new technologies in both manufacturing and the cars themselves. The results poss ... Continue reading

Car Review: 2003 BMW 325i and 540i Sport Wagons

Jan 16, 2003

DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD WITH CAREY RUSS If BMW didn't actually invent the serious sports sedan, it has certainly made the concept its own. The 3-Series and 5-Series sedans are benchmarks in their respective classes - just check how often they are mentioned in competitor's advertising and promotional literature. And then, ... Continue reading

2003 Car Review: Honda Civic 4-Door Hybrid

Jan 2, 2003

DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD WITH CAREY RUSS At this point in the evolution of the automobile, gasoline-electric hybrids are the cutting edge of mass-production high-mileage, low- emissions technology. Power from both an internal-combustion engine and an electric motor is combined to give better fuel efficiency and lower emis ... Continue reading

2003 New Car Review: Volvo V40 Wagon

Dec 27, 2002

DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD WITH CAREY RUSS It's hard to believe, but Volvo's 40-series cars, the S40 sedan and V40 wagon, are now the Swedish automaker's oldest vehicles. Although they were introduced here in mid 1999, they debuted in Europe back in 1995. But Volvo has done a masterful job of keeping its smallest sedan and ... Continue reading

New Car Review: 2003 Honda Pilot EX-L

Nov 29, 2002

DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD WITH CAREY RUSS A master's degree thesis in sociology could probably be written on the American sport-utility vehicle phenomenon. Urban and suburban people who may never meet a more difficult off-road challenge than a less-than-optimally paved stadium parking lot buy huge truck-based vehicles capa ... Continue reading

New Car Review: 2003 Mazda MPV ES

Nov 24, 2002

DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD WITH CAREY RUSS Remember minivans? Wait, let me rephrase that question slightly. Remember when minivans really were mini? Some seem to want to be full-size vans these days, which is fine if you need a large vehicle, but then they can be as awkwardly unmaneuverable as any other outsized vehicle. Fo ... Continue reading

New Car Review: 2003 Subaru Legacy 2.5 GT Sedan

Nov 24, 2002

DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD WITH CAREY RUSS There is more to Subaru than the Outback and WRX. Although those extremes of the company's offerings get most of the media attention, there is also a solid middle ground between the pioneering car-meets-SUV crossover Outback and the rally-car-tamed-for-the- street WRX. It's called ... Continue reading

2003 New Truck Review: Chevrolet Silverado LT 2500HD 4WD Extended-Cab Pickup

Nov 3, 2002

DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD WITH CAREY RUSS Although the latest versions of Chevrolet's Silverado pickups are only a few years old, both the regular and HD lines have significant changes for 2003. Most apparently, all have new styling. No longer do the regular- and heavy-duty lines look different; both now have a common look ... Continue reading

Review 2003 Ford SVT Focus: Pocket Rocket and would be Honda Killer

Oct 21, 2002

DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD WITH CAREY RUSS A performance sedan, to most American automakers, is medium to large in size, and, ideally, has a large V8 in front, driving the rear wheels. That was the classic muscle car formula back in the 1960s, anyway. In a newer idiom, a tuned V6 drives the front wheels, but the car is stil ... Continue reading

Review: 2003 GMC Yukon Denali AWD

Oct 11, 2002

DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD WITH CAREY RUSS Need a luxury car that can hold seven or eight people, tow 8,200 lbs, and has all-weather, all-wheel drive capability? That sounds like a tough order to fill. Think you're out of luck? Think again. Think GMC Denali. The Denali is the premium version of the GMC Yukon, which is alrea ... Continue reading

New Car Review: 2003 Chevrolet Tahoe LT 2WD

Oct 2, 2002

SYNDICATED AUTOMOTIVE NEWS SERVICES DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD WITH CAREY RUSS The few full-sized sedans available today no larger than some of the ``compacts'' of the late 1950s and early 1960s. Yet people are larger, and Americans like space. So, as cars have gotten smaller, trucks have entered more lives. Large sport-uti ... Continue reading

New Car Review: Mini Cooper and Mini Cooper S (2002)

Sep 26, 2002

DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD WITH CAREY RUSS The specifications sound familiar, today: transverse engine driving the front wheels, and a unit-construction chassis with four- wheel independent suspension, with the wheels pushed out toward the corners of the car for maximum space efficiency. But when the Austin Seven and Morris ... Continue reading

A Maxi History Of The Original Mini

Sep 26, 2002

Mini History By Carey Russ British Motor Corporation (BMC) Project ADO-15 was a revolutionary automobile, and, perhaps, the most historically important after the Ford Model T. European journalists voted it ``Car of the Century'' (20th), for good reason. For maximum space utilization, designer Alec Issigonis chose a fro ... Continue reading

Review: 2002 BMW M3 SMG Coupe,Plus High Performance BMW Driving School

Sep 19, 2002

DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD WITH CAREY RUSS Williams-BMW Formula One drivers Ralf Schumacher and Juan Pablo Montoya don't have to use a shift lever and a clutch pedal when they shift gears. Why should you? You don't, if you opt for the sequential manual gearbox (SMG) available for the 2002 BMW M3. It adds state-of-the-art ra ... Continue reading

New Car Review: 2003 Hyundai Tiburon GT V6

Sep 12, 2002

DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD WITH CAREY RUSS If you haven't paid much attention to Hyundai recently, you're in for a surprise. The Korean manufacturer, once known for making cars people bought on low price alone, has gone considerably upscale in its offerings - but not at the expense of price. Today's Hyundais can go head-to- ... Continue reading