According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, one 1984 U.S. dollar is worth $2.26 in 2015 money. Such is the impact of inflation on currency, and why we shouldn’t keep our money in the freezer wrapped in foil. Note that a first-class U.S. postage stamp went for just 20 cents back in ’84,...

I maintain that one of the last great—and highly successful—efforts to build a car that looked both clean and simple, as well as bold and purposeful, was the Toyota Soarer, known stateside as the Lexus SC.

Jill and Tom welcome TJ Campbell of Tirerack.com to the podcast. The returning guest discusses the best tire options for folks in the Snowbelt with which to face a potentially rough winter, and what t...

The podcast of Saturday’s WGN Radio show with Chris & Monica Matsakis, two of the new owners of The Skokie Theater, Josh Solomon, from The Empty Pockets band, Chad Karol, owner of the Hal…

This is an installment in a series of posts looking back on show cars that we feel deserved a little more attention than they got. If you have a suggestion for a Forgotten Concept topic, please shoot us a line or leave a comment below. Plymouth XP-VIP First Seen: 1965 Chicago Auto Show Description: Full-size convertible...

Few vehicles have proven more versatile than the humble Volkswagen Beetle. Offered by the factory as a coupe and convertible, after-market converters have molded the Beetle into an almost countess number of dune buggies, mini pickups, and plastic-bodied sports cars. More Forgotten Concepts Most of these conversions were of the do-it-yourself variety, and the ultimate...

Jill and Tom welcome Nissan Senior Manager for Vehicle Performance Development, Chris Fischer. Chris shares the surprising backstory of the modern cupholder, specifically those found in the Infiniti Q...

Long before there was Airbnb, and well before we expected holiday lodgings to include WiFi, a strange, short-lived, and ultimately charming vacation option presented itself to folks with at least a little wanderlust…and a full-size pickup truck.

The “Mongoose” is General Motors’ new heavy-duty pickup-truck diesel engine. Scheduled to debut in the 2027 Chevrolet Silverado HD and GMC Sierra HD, the Mongoose is offered as an option to the standard 6.6-liter gasoline V8 powerplant. What is the Duramax “Mongoose” Diesel? Mongoose Internally designated LP6, the big  8.3-liter turbocharged V8 replaces the Duramax...

There are two things that the Editors of Consumer Guide respond to faster than all other things. It’s not fire, threat of personal harm, or even the promise of paid time off that elicits prompt action. No, the two things that the guys here at CG Global HQ respond to are: The statement, “There are...

When most Chevrolet fans think “big block,” they probably think of the legendary 396- and 454-cubic-inch V8s. These stout mills made their names pushing Chevelles through the quarter mile and helping vacationers in Estate Wagons tow pontoon boats. Chevrolet 8.1-Liter V8 For most Chevistas, the big-block era died before the Seventies came to end, a...

The hosts welcome Larry Vellequette of Automotive News to the show. Larry share news regarding the induction of long-time Toyota steward Akio Toyoda into the Automotive Hall of Fame. Listen in to hear...

I have long believed that a part of America’s innocence died when automakers began using photography in advertising instead of drawings. Not only did old-school renderings allow for the wonderful (and deceptive?) exaggeration of a given vehicle’s proportions, they also allowed ad folks to create environments and situations that could never be realized with cold,...