Comparison: F1 2013 vs. F1 2014

One of the biggest complaints that I have heard regarding the 2014 Formula One season is that the cars seem a lot slower than the cars from the 2013 season. This could be due to a lot of things, ranging from the aero changes to the new 1.6 liter turbocharged V6 engines that were adopted for the season. After hearing all the negative feedback regarding the new cars, I wanted to see just how much slower the 2014 cars were compared to the 2013 cars. Without access to actual Formula One cars and drivers, I had to resort to the next best thing: racing simulators. With access to both F1 2013 and F1 2014 by Codemasters, I can at least get a fairly good idea of how much slower the 2014 cars are compared to the 2013 cars.

*All game play captured on the PC versions of the games with an Xbox 360 controller

Test Drive: 2015 Kia K900

I do not think I could ever see myself driving anything larger than a BMW 5-series or Acura RLX. Giant luxury barges really are not my thing. These are cars that are expected to be more comfortable in the back than in the driver's seat; a car you would own if you had a driver to shuttle you around in. While the Kia K900 was never on my radar, the opportunity to have a Kia employee drive one to my front door to test drive one came up. Hey, if they are willing to bring the car to me and allow me to test it around my neighborhood, why not?

During our visit to the Los Angeles Auto Show in November, East Brother and I spent some time at the Kia test drive event driving the new Soul EV. Also at the event was a K900 "product specialist" who was signing people up for personal test drives of the Hyundai Equus based K900 luxury sedan. While our original intention was to test the K900 at the auto show, both East Brother and I figured an extended test drive around familiar roads would give us a much better insight to how the K900 performs.

Test Drive: 2014 Mercedes Benz C63 AMG

What do you think when you hear the phrase "mid-sized super sedan?" Most people would think of cars like the BMW M3, the Audi RS4, and the Mercedez Benz C63 AMG. Why only those three cars? If there is one thing the big three German car manufacturers do right, it is mid-sized super sedans. Personally, I have always wanted to drive and possibly own one of these three super sedans. Lucky for me, the opportunity to drive one for a full day on my birthday gave me the chance to tick one more item off my bucket list.

East Brother showed up to my apartment the morning of my birthday with a very loud surprise. As I approached my own car, I saw a silver, 2014 Mercedes Benz C63 AMG was parked behind my S2000. Naturally, this was a huge surprise, as the German "hot rod" (as I like to call it) has been a car I have been wanting to drive for a long time. As I approached, East Brother began revving the engine of this beast, confirming my nickname for the car to be completely accurate. The C63's 6.2 liter V8 sounds a lot like the big V8s you find packed into American muscle cars. Listening to that car's engine and exhaust note sent a chill up my spine.

Test Drive: 2014 BMW 650i xDrive Gran Coupe

Sometimes a coupe just does not cut it for one's lifestyle. I like the idea of a coupe, but I also like taking weekend road trips with friends or family and cramming everyone into a two-door with limited back seat leg room and compromised rear-seat headroom should only be reserved for those people you do not like. Still, what is an enthusiast to do if I like the long and low style of a coupe, but really only have space for a single car in my garage? We can thank the folks at Mercedes Benz for introducing a solution to this conundrum with the introduction of the first CLS-class sedan. It attempted to provide a coupe profile in a car with four doors that offers plenty of style with room for four adults. Observing the success of this car, BMW has gotten into the game as well and has introduced its own series of Gran Coupe models based on their 4-series and 6-series coupes. I recently had the good fortune to spend some time with the larger of the two models and experience just how much this segment has evolved since it was first introduced.

2013 Porsche Panamera S

Let's get it out of the way: I am a total Porsche-phile. It was not always the case as growing up I often dismissed the 911 for its odd looks and physics defying positioning of the engine in the rear. However, after the first time I drove one, I was hooked. Despite having had the opportunity to drive an awful lot of different kinds of cars, including a number of exotics, Porsches still strike me as some of the best driving cars for the money. You can read me gush all kinds of praise on the Porsche Boxster's driving dynamics after spending some time with it last year. Therefore, when the opportunity comes up to go and give a new Porsche a flogging, I was not about to say no, even if it is one of the least attractive cars that Porsche currently makes.

Road Trip: National Harbor to Richmond, VA

The day was already off to a less than auspicious start. My flight into National Airport, just outside of DC, had gone smoothly enough despite being a bit late. The shuttle to National Harbor was uneventful enough, despite requiring a much longer wait than originally expected. Things started to come apart at the seams, however, when I stopped at the Hertz rental car counter in the hotel to pick up the car I had reserved. Apparently, they had a few cars that were delayed in coming back and despite the fact that I had a reservation to pick up the car at 3:30PM, the earliest a car would be available would be 6PM. Since I was expected to be in Richmond, about 2 hours away, for dinner, that just wasn't going to cut it. Throw in some surly service from an overwhelmed counter rep and my patience was wearing thin. Figuring that the airport location would have more cars, I called for a shuttle and headed back to the airport.

Arriving at the airport location, I headed for the Hertz counter. The large number of people sitting around waiting should have been a clue, but I was hoping for the best. I approached the counter and as the guy pulled up my reservation on the computer, it was looking like things would finally be going my way. We went through nearly the entire process before the rep at the counter informed me, with an air of "sucks to be you," that there was a 90-minute wait for a car. Running out of time, I gave the rep a piece of my mind, in no uncertain terms, before canceling my reservation. Taking a step back, head full of steam, I looked down the row of rental car counters and picked out Budget, mostly because there was absolutely no one in line. Before I even began the process, I asked the counter rep if they had cars available immediately and he assured me that he did, although they only had coupes left: one Mustang and one Camaro. Before deciding, I inquired as to whether the cars were V6 or V8 versions - the Mustang was six-cylinder, but the Camaro was an SS with the V8. Jackpot!

Editorial: We should all shed a tear for the impending demise of Holden as we know it

Image courtesy of Wikipedia

Recently, we found out that Holden, that quirky car maker from Down Under, would be ceasing its manufacturing operations in 2017 and have its vehicle lines replaced with re-badged Buicks that will likely be manufactured in China. This is sad news for the motoring world as Holden, even throughout its ownership by the folks at GM, has always been a bastion for rear wheel drive and big push-rod V8 motors. The Holden brand has been synonymous with fast cars even for American car enthusiasts since the final generation of the Pontiac GTO, the ill-fated Pontiac G8, and the current Chevrolet SS are all vehicles derived from vehicles that were a part of the Holden line-up. Of particular interest were the cars of the Holden Special Vehicles group, an in-house tuning arm that took the already relatively powerful cars and cranked up the engines, suspensions, and appearance to 11.

For our friends down in Australia, this is a particularly deep blow as Ford has already announced earlier this year that it would be eliminating the Ford Falcon from its line-up and would no longer be replacing that car with another rear wheel drive sedan. The fabled Falcon vs. Commodore rivalry seems doomed to an early demise as the V8 Supercars racing series will be losing these two major competitors, even as it gains the likes of Mercedes Benz and Nissan.

So as this means another blow struck for V8-powered RWD 4-door sport sedans, we slowly see the segment shrink to a very few competitors. In fact, once Holden passes into the annals of history, only BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Cadillac are left producing cars in this category and even the long-term existence of those cars may be called into question as a result of ever increasingly strict emissions standards, a greater emphasis on fuel economy from consumers, and the steadily advancing march of AWD technology.

As enthusiasts, we should take a moment to salute the demise of a storied brand's true identity and hope that we can all be forgiven for allowing such a travesty to pass. That said, it is a damn good thing that forced induction has made for some increasingly fun and dynamically intriguing performance cars in the last few years.

Test Drive: 2013 Hyundai Equus Signature

Hyundai has had a brand resurgence like no other in recent years, with the tremendous magazine comparison successes against the segment stalwarts, the Honda Accord and Toyota Camry. Other big successes in the form of the Genesis Coupe and Sedan, the Elantra, and the cool looking Veloster. Each of these vehicles made a splash when they were introduced and continue to be treated as darlings of the automotive magazine editors, but Hyundai was not satisfied and wanted to set the bar even higher. With the success of the Genesis Sedan, Hyundai set its sights on BMW, Mercedes, and Lexus with its homegrown full-size luxury sedan, the Equus. Targeted squarely at LS, S-Class, and 7-series, the Equus was out to try to repeat the same splash that the Sonata had made. Unfortunately, things did not go so well this time...

Update: We heard back from Hyundai on Twitter about our review. See their response after the break!

Test Drive: 2011 Chevy Camaro SS 6MT

The modern retro revival theme, originally started with the introduction of the Ford Mustang, was continued when GM brought out the new Chevrolet Camaro. Billled as a true pony car successor to the F-body version that had been so popular during the late 90's before its demise, the new Camaro borrows themes from the classics and gives them a modern interpretation, creating an exciting looking car, powered by the ubiquitous LSX motors shared with the Corvette and several other GM products. The car was an exciting entry when it came out, promising a cool look and great performance to rival the latest Mustang and Challenger. But does the Camaro deliver as a performance car or is it an anachronism dressed up in modern mechanics?