2015 Volkswagen Golf R Review

    In the August 2014 issue of the British car Magazine Car, author Chris Chilton gathered up a bunch of "hot-hatches" around a track to see which was best. Out of the nine competitors (including many reputable names, such as the Renault Megane RS 265, the Ford Focus and Fiesta ST, the Mini Cooper S, and several others), he decided that the best hot hatchback of the moment was the V-W Golf R. Initially, he thought the GTI would be the best car, but after a while, fell in love with the Golf R's all-around appeal. It does make a lot of sense, with a 296-hp four-cylinder, a large trunk, good looks, and an Audi-spec interior, so you can't blame him for liking it more than the others. I think the thing that impressed me the most was the interior. I have never seen such a luxurious, upscale, and modern interior on a V-W besides the Phaeton. before. The navigation system looks like an iPad, the leather looks like it belongs on an E-Class, and the simplistic and modern look of it remind me of the new Range Rover. They've basically done the same thing: think to themselves how to remove more buttons and make the layout more appealing. Another impressive stat: 296 hp. Now you might say that the Subaru WRX STI has more power, but do you really think the Subaru is any better? 0-60 takes a sports-car fast 5.1 seconds, which is good for a car that can fit a bicycle in the back.

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Looks like an Audi to say the least

2014 Ferrari 458 Spider Review

    The Ferrari 458 is considered to be one of the best-looking cars on the market, so how could Ferrari possibly make it better? Two words: open-top. All they've done to the base 458 Italia is remove the regular roof and replace it with a first for Ferrari: a power-retractable metal folding roof, which is similar to what you'd see on a Mercedes SL-Class or even a Mazda MX-5 Miata. It isn't a very new idea, but in Ferrari's case, they've never done a convertible like this, which is surprising, because that's what most supercar convertibles have now, such as the Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4 Roadster and the McLaren 650S Spider. Other than that' little has changed on the 458; the 4.5 liter V8 still makes 562 hp and 398 hp, and does 0-60 faster than a SRT Viper. One thing that's a little sad to have taken away is the glass engine cover, so instead of seeing the pure-bred Italian 4.5 liter V8, you get a metal folding roof. Even though I really, REALLY want a 458, I still would rather spend my $257,412 on something with a better combination of luxury and sport, like a Bentley Continental GTC Speed, which is far more comfortable and luxurious inside, has more power, and in my opinion, looks a little better*. 

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The center of the dashboard looks like it melted in to the instrument cluster (a.k.a it looks terrible)

*And please don't hate because of that comment, I just think it looks better, and it's just an opinion, not a fact.

2014 Morgan Aero Supersports Review

    Morgan is mainly known for one car: the Three-Wheeler. It's a little strange, but isn't at all bad at all. It's also a good track car, and it has a busy little engine, as well as good (but a little strange) looks. But what a lot of 3-Wheeler fans don't know is that Morgan also makes not exactly normal, but definitely less-weird cars, such as this one: the Aero Supersports. It looks like a modernized 60's coupe, but that's essentially the point. The point is to be different, and not be like every other sports car on the market, and to not have a $150,000 price tag and a 600+ hp V12. The Aero Supersports is simpler, but at the same time more complicated. It doesn't have as much tech or as good performance numbers, but it does have a 4.8 liter BMW-sourced V8, which produces 367 hp and 370 lb-feet of torque, which results in a 170-mph top speed. But it does get a moderately good 23 combined mpg, which isn't ground-breaking, but is still better than a Lotus Exige or a Porsche Cayman GTS. And that's what I love about Morgan; they don't just copy what every other car company is doing, they keep to themselves and come up with great ideas that they put in to equally great cars.

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2014 Mercedes-Benz SLK55 AMG Review

    As you all know, the Jaguar F-Type V8 S is one of the most exciting sports cars on the market, with incredible looks, a wonderful-sounding 5.0 liter supercharged V8, and Corvette-beating performance. But the question arises: what do I buy? The F-Type V8 S; or the Mercedes-Benz SLK55 AMG. Both are great performance cars, but one is loud and brash; and the other is not exactly quiet, but isn't nearly as maniacal, and is a little more subdued. But it all comes down to opinion: do you prefer a crazy burnout-spec road rager; or do you like a more quiet and understated sports car. The M-B SLK55 AMG is definitely fast, but has much less hp (almost 100 hp less than the F-Type V8) and isn't nearly as good-looking. Even if the hand-built 5.5 liter twin-turbo AMG V8 makes 415 hp, it's still not enough to keep up with the F-Type, which is more powerful, and has a much better overall engine feel. 0-60 takes 4.5 seconds, which is quite fast for a car this size, but still could be faster. The interior follows suit with the rest of the car; not very exciting, and pretty subdued styling.

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2016 Land Rover Discovery Sport Review

    If you haven't realized by now, I'll just tell you: Land Rover's "non-Range Rover" SUVs and crossovers have become, well, boring, pointless, and almost defunct. But recently, Land Rover revealed its all-new replacement for the small, inefficient, and definitely stupid LR2. It's called the Discovery Sport, and it looks like a more bulbous version of the smaller Evoque 3 or 5-door hatchback/crossover. It will have a 2.0 liter 4-cylinder engine with 240 hp and 250 pound-feet of torque, which isn't even close to the Jaguar-shared 5.0 liter supercharged V8 in the "Supercharged" Range Rovers, but that's not really necessary in the Discovery Sport (it isn't necessary in the Range Rover, but soccer moms in Greenwich won't care about averaging under 18 mpg). The interior looks like a less posh version of the interior in the Evoque, except with less bling and more space. The base price will be a surprisingly affordable $37,995, which is only $1,395 more than the old LR2, even though it will get much more expensive when you put options on it, which you will inevitably do. 

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2018 Toyota FT-1 Review

    Toyota is a very well known brand, and not just by car enthusiasts, but by most people, mainly because a lot of people drive Toyotas. But they aren't known for making high-performance cars, but for making practical, reliable, and relatively inexpensive family vehicles, like the Sienna minivan and the Highlander three-row SUV. Well, that's not entirely true. One of their latest concepts is this: the FT-1 sports car. It will probably have a BMW-sourced 4 or 6-cylinder engine, since Toyota's V6 and V8s would be too sluggish (no offense to all those proud Sienna owners) and wouldn't really fit in the BMW-shared platform, which will be used in the next Z4. The price will be almost $60,000, which is way too much for a Toyota, even if it shares a lot of F1 components and is pretty quick. It's the same problem with the Land Cruiser; it is pretty good off-road, but why offer it for $70,000 when you can buy a much more luxurious Lexus LX570 for only $10K more? It seems a little (actually, a lot) stupid of Toyota to price the Land Cruiser not much less than the LX, which is way nicer and is more comfortable, as well as a better engine, better looks, and a better badge on the front (if you're the kind of person who cares about that kind of thing). 

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2016 Mercedes-Benz G65 AMG Review

    In 2012, Mercedes-Benz released the facelifted version of the decades-old G-Wagon, or as it's called now, the G-Class. Along with it, the AMG versions, which are some of the best off-roaders in the world, and also some of the craziest cars that Mercedes makes. The G65 AMG, which is the full-out 6.0 liter biturbo V12 G-Class, was only available for a couple of years, thanks to such a large engine, terrible mpg, and the fact that basically no-one bought them. But Mercedes has released that they will be bringing the G65 back for 2016. I don't find this particularly exciting or even that great news, mainly because the G63 is already powerful and expensive enough for your average Beverly Hills housewife, so I don't think a $250,000 base price and a 612 hp V12 is really necessary. But anyway, the G65 is still bought by tuning companies like Brabus, which turn them into crazy 800+ monsters with Apple TVs and even crazier prices. But even though those are quite impressive, the regular G65 is still quite a performer, inside and out. The interior has many amenities, like swathed Designo leather, a relatively intuitive COMAND navigation system, and several buttons for locking the three differentials, which are a huge help for off-roading on rocks and mud. 

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