The hybrid Malibu gets us both revved up. I have a confession. Though I love the idea of saving the environment, one of my chief reasons for choosing gas-sipping cars is that I’m cheap. No matter how low gas prices sink, every dollar spent at the pump is one that I can use on a…
Which car? Which college? Choosing the 2016 Mitsubishi Outlander
The under the radar 2016 Mitsubishi Outlander. At the same time my middle child was college shopping, my husband and I were car shopping. We test drove a number of mid-size SUVs in our search, which was similar to the test runs my daughter took at each school she visited. We spent lots of time researching…
What Happens When Grandma Hits the Road in a 2016 Toyota Corolla
Meet Grandma and a compact car. In my case, Grandma means blonde ambition. My mom is a very young 70, loves to travel and meet new people and just has a good time everywhere she goes. She and her husband like to hit the road for day trips, week long trips, month long trips –…
Flexing Its Status As A Top Crossover: The 2015 Ford Flex
Top crossover for cruising alone, or bringing the family. As a transplanted southerner, I have spent most of the holidays in the northeast. This year, my husband and I decided to take our three kids to my childhood Kentucky home for Thanksgiving, but flying was cost prohibitive. So we compromised: he and the kids flew…
2016 Cadillac SRX Premium Collection: Fancy Enough?
Is the 2016 Cadillac SRX premium enough? When my father drove a Cadillac, it was the best of the best. Before fancy imports hit the US, a Cadillac was what you drove to impress. So I had a lot of expectations when I slid behind the wheel of the 2016 Cadillac SRX Premium Collection. The…
Keep On Trucking: Roadtrip With Kids and a 2015 GMC Canyon
This Kentucky Girl is at home in a GMC Canyon. On a recent trip to Florida, I needed a big vehicle to outfit my son’s first apartment, and a comfortable ride so I could take my daughter to visit my mother. I needed a GMC Canyon. The midsize truck not only provided the necessary utility, but…
2015 GMC Acadia: Made for Road Trips with Teens
Keeping everyone happy in a huge SUV. I make my teenagers take roadtrips with me. There is lots of moaning and groaning during the days preceding but we always have great stories to tell at the end. For our spring break, we spent a week in a GMC Acadia Denali on the Florida freeways, and…
Fiat 500L: Cool Car For A Warm Weather College Trip
Mother and daughter bonding in the Fiat 500L. Seven schools, two states, four days. Once again, we started our college tours in Southern California – it’s a winter break rite of passage in our family. Spending time in 80 degree weather when it’s 10 degrees at home makes sense to me. Spending it in a…
2015 Nissan Pathfinder: Space, Agility & Rear Sonar
Three rows for three teens in the Nissan Pathfinder PLT 4 X 4. Although I think of my children as kids, they are in their teens and fully grown. A five passenger car tests the outer limits of our sociability, so for our recent 14 hour road trip from Connecticut to Kentucky, we retained family…
Impressing the kids: driving my teens in a manual Mazda 5
The Mazda 5, a basic minivan, gets my teens excited about stick shifts Parents can feel like aliens around their kids; we never know what will click with them. The latest iPhone – or a huge plug-in hand set to make actually talking on the phone easier. And driving a stick shift – sometimes annoying…