Author Archive: George Peterson

The Luxury Crossover SUV category is a very diverse segment with several very competitive entries. Owners of the 2012 Cadillac SRX give the vehicle sufficient scores in importance and satisfaction to win the segment with only six top ratings among forty-eight characteristics measured in AutoPacific’s 2012 Vehicle Satisfaction Award research.

Over the years, General Motors has often tried to be a trailblazer (no pun intended) in new vehicle design and development. Many of these vehicles failed, but we believe GM deserves a tremendous amount of credit for trying where other companies did not have the creative thought or resources to make a "segment breaking" product.

Traditionally, the mid-size car class has had relatively bland styling. That changed with the launch of the 2011 Sonata in early 2010 where over half of the buyers indicated that exterior styling was extremely important in their selection of the car. Sonata's swoopy styling broke the mid-size car mold. The 2011 Kia Optima that followed the Sonata is strikingly handsome in its own EuroKorean way. Toyota stayed very conservative with its new 2012 entry and Honda is rumored to have continued its very conservative streak with the next generation Accord coming this fall. The 2013 Ford Fusion is another game changer in the mold of Sonata and Optima, but even with Fusion's advanced styling, Altima may have pushed the envelope the farthest.

I probably was the last person to ride with Patrick Paternie on a new vehicle evaluation. Patrick passed away on March 10 following a race in his classic Porsche.

Adding the Hybrid model to the Optima lineup gives Kia a price-efficient, fuel-efficient combatant in the growing fuel economy battleground among mid-size cars. The all new Kia Rio entry level car has a front seat package that rivals a mid-size car. Folks are no longer "sentenced" to drive a small car when they choose the Rio.

Drivers today are shelling out nearly $4/gallon, on average, to fill up their vehicles, about 25 cents more than this time last year. But this added expense is not persuading consumers to ditch their SUVs for more fuel efficient small cars. Results from AutoPacific’s latest Fuel Price Impact Survey (FPIS) actually show SUVs being the top vehicle replacement choice, with small cars coming in third. In addition, 76% surveyed would replace their current vehicle with a similarly sized one, whereas only 18% say they would go smaller.

Only Minor Vehicle Segment Shifts: In general, US drivers would not shift to a different vehicle segment when time to replace their current vehicle. Differences from replacement vehicle segment choice and what respondents currently own range between 0-2 percentage points, according to survey results. For example, 28% of respondents [...]

Volvo means safety, right? Absolutely. But Volvo is no longer alone atop the safety universe. Other vehicles have achieved similar safety ratings and prospective buyers need additional reasons to consider a Volvo than its safety reputation. To solve this conundrum, Volvo turned to Polestar.

For the 2013 mild freshening, Chevrolet has abandoned its bold and distinctive front end appearance for a milquetoast "car" front end look for its crossover. This fits into the VehicleVoice category of "WHAT WERE THEY THINKING?"

The previous generation Acura RDX was a moderately successful contender in the small crossover SUV (XSUV) wars. The RDX was a bit pricey - almost $33,000 - coming from a premium Japanese brand. It was heavy. It was powered by a very thirsty turbocharged 2.3L 4-cylinder engine. Competition had left the RDX behind and with its source vehicle - the Honda CR-V - being updated for 2012, 2013 is the obvious time to re-do the RDX.

After driving the Fiat 500 and 500 Cabriolet, I was ready to relegate it to the ranks of "chick car". Its high-style accents and accoutrements scream "feminine". But, now there is a Fiat a guy can be proud to drive - the Abarth model. Abarth Fiats have been high performance versions of Fiat car lines for decades since Austrian Karl Abarth began modifying them in the late '50s. This is America's chance to have the most up-to-date Abarth available.