Time flies when you are driving cars so it is hard to believe that we've now been in the car news, views, and reviews business for just over a year.
In that time we've driven, reviewed, and tested cars from around the world. It would be pretty straightforward to compose a top ten list of the star cars, or the most improved cars, or the most technically advanced cars, but that's sooooo boring.
Fun to Drive cars engage you in a way that goes well beyond just being a form of reliable transportation.
Sometimes they meet unknown needs and wants, and sometimes they just surprise with the way they grow on you over time.
Our straightforward criteria for selecting these Top Ten Most Fun to Drive cars is that:
a) We drove the car
b) You can buy the car
c) And the car is fun to drive and will put a huge smile on your face when you drive it.
These cars may or may not be the fastest, the most powerful, or the most expensive, but they are certainly the most interesting cars that we've driven in the past year and that's why we're proud to announce they made our first annual Ten Most Fun to Drive Car Awards:
The Land Rover LR4
The 2010 Land Rover LR4 may be the perfect compromise between on-road
comfort and off-road prowess.
With 375 hp and
375 lb-ft of torque, instead of the old LR3's, 300 and 315, the new
Rover bristles with go anywhere power. Of course the down side to all of
the new found ponies is an unchanged yet still not wallet friendly 12/17
mpg.
But you'd be hard pressed to find a better and more fun car you can take to work during the week and into the deep woods over the weekend.
Check out the video review HERE.
Lamborghini Gallardo
You might just have to agree that there are very few moods that
spending money frivolously won't improve.
In the same way there are very few moods that driving a 500 plus
horsepower all-wheel-drive convertible Lamborghini Gallardo in Italy
won't make much much better.
Check
out the video drive HERE.
Ford F-150 Raptor
The 2010 Ford F-150 SVT Raptor is an
F-150 pickup adapted and factory-built to actually perform what
standard pickups are shown doing in TV commercials, the leaping, the
rock flinging, the barreling through water like the Titanic in search
of an iceberg, the stuff that if done by actual owners would have the
truck suffering a fate equivalent to that of the big ship, and not
covered by the warranty either.
Read the full review HERE.
Cadillac CTS-V
“Oh-my-god, OH-My-god – OH-MY-GOD!!!”
Once we got used to the massive thrust, the aforementioned statement came
out of more than a few passengers. Speed and pressure pull you into the
Recaro seats progressively. You know when a ship hits light-speed in “Star
Wars?”
Yup, it’s a lot like that.
Read the full review HERE.
2011 Volkswagen Touareg Hybrid
Volkswagen has just completely redesigned their premium SUV the 2011
Touareg.
The next generation of the VW goes on sale in the U.S. in the fall
and unlike the current version it will feature Volkswagen's first ever
Hybrid powertrain.
We had the chance to test the new chance to test drive the new 2011
Touareg on the cobblestone streets of Florence, Italy and in the surrounding Tuscany
hills.
Check
out the video review HERE.
Jaguar XF
Jaguar bet the farm on the newest XF.
After a 10-years-of building cars like the S and X types that were
the equivalent of a bad copy of a copy of a copy, the well regarded car
manufacturer had to do something special to put the growl back in the
cat.
Check
out the video review HERE.
Tesla Roadster
If you ever want the sensation of flying a
jet fighter without leaving the earth, the Tesla Roadster may be the car
for you… if you have well over 100K. Like any sports car, the Tesla has
its limitations, notably a tight cockpit, harsh ride and an amazingly
thick pillar that require a driver over 6-feet to remove their lower
torso and re-attach after egress/ingress.
Okay, so it’s expensive and has a somewhat limited range too.
We took a round-trip from Boulder, Colorado to Estes
Park and back. We did what few have the guts or stupidity to do: we took
a $158,000 sports car (wearing performance tires) through the
mountains, snow, ice and elk during a proper performance shake-down.
We
had a blast!
Check out that road trip video HERE.
Chrysler 300c SRT8
In California the Chrysler 300C SRT8 is considered the poor man's
Bentley because like the Bentley it has the size, speed, and serious
power to very quickly transport four adults from point A to point B in
comfort and style.
In Europe the 300C has earned the reputation
as the quintessence large American sedan with broad shoulders and the
larger than life swagger and attitude of the early classic American big
boy sedans.
In America this car is underrated and sure future classic muscle car.
Check out that road trip video HERE.
Volkswagen GTI
A very few chromosomes make the difference between two very
different species of animals. Likewise, there are very few parts that
change an ordinary 2010 Volkswagen Golf into a 2010 Volkswagen GTI,
enough so that although the Golf and the GTI share body, suspension
layout and other major elements–and from a far enough distance the two
look the same–Volkswagen doesn't refer to the GTI a high performance
version of the Golf. It's just "GTI".
Read the full review HERE.
Check out the video as we compare it to the Mazda Speed3 HERE.
Dodge Power Wagon
There are just some places that a full sized pick up should never go.
Here's one that comes to mind almost immediately…Wipe Out Hill in
Moab, Utah.
As part of the 44th annual Jeep Moab Safari we had the chance to rock
crawl a brand new Ram Power Wagon up Wipe Out Hill and experience first
hand what it must be like to take off in the space shuttle as we pointed
the pick-up skyward to climb up the hill.
Check out the Ram Power Wagon in Moab, Utah as it climbs up a hill like a mountain goat on steroids HERE.
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