James Charles Needs a New Car. We Have Thoughts—and Ideas

Why? This is probably the most un-James Charles vehicle in the test drive lineup, but as a Tesla owner he felt like this was a natural. Surprisingly, this was a love/hate review—he liked it much more than we thought he would. He said the Cybertruck looks like it was drawn by a first grader and noted that sadly, the ‘stainless steel exterior’ is in fact not stainless at all; fingerprints won’t come off.

James liked the spacious interior but not the “hideous” black color palette, green ambient lighting or antiquated map/navigation system and lack of Apple CarPlay. He did, however, like the drive experience with a yoke-style steering wheel and steer by wire and the the incredible acceleration that elicited an emphatic “Whoaaaa” from him and giggles from his companions.

Even though James deemed the Cybertruck ugly, he gave it a rating of 8/10; the video garnered 15.7MM views and 1.9MM ❤️s.

If you do truly need a truck bed— for a sound board, large speakers and mic stands—you’ll have the space. Or maybe you want to haul a portable kitchen so *someone* can whip up lunch at the beach. And you can power that kitchen and an outdoor concert all from the F-150 Lightning. And yes, it’s fancy. The interior space, Sync multimedia system and Blue Cruise hands-free driving add to the fanciness. The fanciest version starts at $85K.

Video: We tested the Ford F-150 Lighting and this is what we thought

This one surprised us: it was a no-go for James. We love, love love the exterior of the Porsche Taycan, but it sits to low and the interior was too cramped for him. And, we to concede, the rear seats are tight; it’s not a car for a crew.

However, he loved the swipe to open frunk, the head up display and the “Gorgeous” sound system. James gave the Taycan a 4/10 rating, calling it boring. The video earned 6.3MM views, and 490K❤️.

The interior of the EQS SUV, priced from $104K and loaded from $125K, might be the sexiest in any EV or any car, ever. First, it has all the Mercedes-Benz goodies, like quilted leather, a panoramic sunroof and a fragrance diffuser. Yes, James, a fragrance diffuser! Opt for the hyper screen; it has amazing graphics, including augmented reality, a video image with navigation graphics superimposed on top to ensure that you never make a wrong turn.

You can just say “Hey Mercedes” and the voice assistant is at your service. She’ll even tell you a joke—just ask. And if you really want to up the luxury game, go for the Mercedes-Maybach EQS 680. This has massaging seats all around, rear reclining seats with a foot rest and screens for rear seat passengers; there are even tray tables that pull out of the center console. Price tag on this one, about $200K.

We were disappointed that James didn’t love this SUV as much as e do, but it’s a little minimalist for him and we had to admit, it’s true. But the crystal seat controls on the door panels? Love. The crystal gear shifter? Oh yeah! The crystal topped media dial. Yes, please! The floating center console? Of course! It leaves space to stow a handbag underneath.

James liked the BMW iX’s drive experience, the suspension and the washers for all the camera. He discovered BMW’s gesture control for the multimedia system, which he called “Harry Potter wizardry,” just swirl your hand in front of the screen to turn up or down the volume. And he loved the wide, Apple CarPlay app-filled screen with, get this, a Dominos Pizza app. He even ordered a pizza right from the car. And it looked pretty good. James gave the BMW iX a rating of 8/10. The video got 4.3MM views and 513K ❤️s.

Yes, the Rolls-Royce Spectre electric coupe is a much larger investment than the BMW, clocking in at $420,000 before you’ve even added your umbrellas to the doors. But James, starlight becomes you, and you need this. The drive experience is definitely Rolls-worthy, elegant, not jarring and completely silent. Tap the “B” on the gear shifter for regen braking; the electric system is very similar to that in t he BMW because they are basically the same—BMW is the parent company of Rolls-Royce.

Plus, the rear seat is designed for you to ride or drive, the doors open as if a butler is there to assist you and you can customize the interior and paint to your exact personality.

The cute, unique exterior of the Rivian R1S, the 350 mile range and the huge frunk are just the start of what James liked about this SUV. He also liked the removable Bluetooth speaker, wireless phone charger, rear seat climate and media control screen and clever details like carabiner clips on the seat backs and other places.

He was less enthusiastic with the suspension and regenerative (regen for short) braking, and found the overall sound system to be lacking until he reset it and then, approved. This was one of his highest rated test drives, getting a 9.5/10. The TikTok video review earned 6.9MM views and 862K ❤️s.   

The Volvo EX90 will start rolling off the production line late this summer or early fall and will have a starting price of $77K. It’ll be fast, with nearly 500 HP, go far, with a range of up 300 miles depending on the number of motors—1 or 2. We love the inventive, sustainable interiors Volvo is adding to its EVs, and always, Volvo’s design is on point. Elegant, elevated and beautiful.

A fan of the Cadillac Escalade and in general, the Cadillac brand of luxury, James gave the Lyriq top props for the large cargo area and the 33″ screen but faulted the actual display for being on the small side. He loved the white interior, the storage drawer on the dashbaord and Google assistant, but showed annoyance more than once at the never-ending reminder chimes when the door was open and his seatbelt was unbuckled, among other things. James gave the Lyriq a score of 8/10. His video got 4.2MM views and 489K ❤️s.

The Nissan Ariya was a huge surprise to us; this might be the most beautiful Nissan ever. Plus, we like it’s elegant design and demure exterior with a ton of wow factor inside, from the wood-paneled dash and command center with flush buttons embedded in them to the center console which slides forward and back giving you a flexible, open interior if you’d like. And, there’s a resting spot for your phone with a cord keeper so you can wind your cord around it and keep it out of site. Our test model was just over $50K, and though it was a middle of the pack “Empower” model, very nicely outfitted.

Here’s one thing James is going to have to get used to after owning a Tesla: The dealership experience. The Audi Q8 e-tron rented for this test drive was misrepresented as coming with every available option, though it had very few of the details he was looking for. Then, he found the exterior to be boring, didn’t like the multimedia screen and was disappointed that regen braking wasn’t what he’s used to. He did like the welcome sound and graphics when the car started, the ride experience and found the gear selector, which is novel, to be a fun surprise. James gave the Audi Q8 e-tron a 2/10; viewers were clearly curious: the video garnered 8.1MM views and 1MM ❤️s.   

This version of the Audi Q8 e-tron S Line is WAY more you, James. And, buying this car demands getting it with all the bells and whistles. Opt for Audi’s Virtual Cockpit and you will LOVE those screens; you can even select a satellite map view on the driver display screen. We agree, the headlight signature, a light show with an animated light sequence, is a must-have. The side mirror screens, seen in videos from overseas markets, however, are not available in the US; those mirrors don’t meet US safety standards.

But the big story here is that sexy sportback shape. We’ll forgive some of the other short comings on this car, and maybe even its crazy $87K price tag for the sportback shape, we love it that much.

This one was a surprise, even to James, who didn’t think Ford would build a car that would fit his luxury SUV criteria. But the Mustang Mach-E GT surprised him; he loved the exterior, the sporty Mustang tail lights and the frunk. The button-style door handles were a winning point, as was the entry code in lieu of a key, the center tablet-style screen and the volume dial on the screen. Ultimately, he found it was missing a few things he’d like, including an optional panoramic sunroof, and gave it a 7.5/10; the video earned 6.2MM views and 750K ❤️s.   

The Hyundai Ioniq 5 N, priced at about $66K, is an outlier but might be the most fun electric car on the road. It gurgles and growls, it makes rev-matching sounds when you downshift using the paddle shifters and it has a boost mode that gives you 20 seconds of full 641 HP, which will elicit a screaming “Whoooooaaaa” from driver and passengers, almost as often as you like (and can be done safely). That’s because it’s designed to drive like a gas-powered manual car, but it’s all electric. Based on the very popular Hyundai Ioniq 5, the interior is open and roomy with sporty touches like bolstered performance seats and an open cargo console to hold your things.

What girl doesn’t like a car (or jeans, or handbag, or boyfriend) that makes her look tiny? That was the appeal of the GMC Hummer EV, but its large size outweighed the benefits when James got behind the wheel. He titled the video “Horrifying to Drive,” noting that while he liked the military tank vibes, it was hard to park and terrifying to pass other vehicles on narrow streets or in highway traffic. James did like the removable roof panels, huge frunk where they can be stored and rear wheel steering that allows for tight u-turns. James awarded the Hummer a 7/10; the video got 4.4MM views 480K ❤️s.

James, this may be your destiny. The Cadillac Escalade IQ is all things Escalade, from the 3rd row to the ‘executive’ rear seat that is more like a limo than a car with seat back screens and tray tables.

The front “pillar to pillar” screen spans the entire dashboard, has a dedicated screen for the front seat passenger that allows streaming Netflix, YouTube or your phone (and no, the driver can’t see it while driving, sorry) and there are speakers in the headrests so you’ll have surround sound. The Escalade IQ will have a longer driving range, about 460 miles and a huge frunk that you can literally sit in.

The Kia EV9 was a surprise to James, who didn’t expect to find so many likable features and details in this car. But viewers said to test it, so he did. He noted all the awards this car has earned, including World Car of the Year for 2024. Once in his driveway he noted its “Bentley vibes,” the shortcut buttons on the steering wheel and the relaxation driver’s seat that has an extending footrest. His tester didn’t have these seats in the center row, which are found on the GT-Line edition of the EV9; this model starts at $74K. He liked the wide multimedia screen but thought the map looked cheap.

Also impressive was the cargo area, the blind spot video camera and the drive experience, but thought the range estimate is a bit low. James gave the EV9 a 9/10; the video earned 6.2MM views 696K ❤️s.   

This is one that a lot of buyers are waiting for: the first SUV from Lucid, the Gravity, due out any day now, certainly before the end of the year (you can put down a deposit and get updates via Lucid’s website; pricing starts at about $80K). The design of this car is a departure, inside and out, from the “Squircle” steering wheel and low-set multimedia screen designed to give you a better view of the road, to the bento-box center console with boxes that can be moved around or taken out so you can customize your storage.

There’s lots of leg room for everyone, the rear seats that flip and stow in the floor for more cargo space, and the frunk is designed for seating; there are even cupholders and a stadium seat insert for comfort.

There’s a lot more to all these cars—more than James could share in a short video and quick test drive, so if you’re testing one of these out, take your time and discover all the details. And James, if we can help with your search, just give a holler. We’re happy to help. Everyone deserves to love their car.