Car Nation

Vehicle: 2004 Chevrolet Malibu LS Driving style: Average Mileage breakdown: 60 percent city and 40 percent highway. 20,000 miles on tires.

Two years ago, I had just finished my third year of college. And my first set of tires. Fifty thousand miles is not an extraordinary life span for a set of rubber, but they were not extraordinary tires. And, as we know, the car was not extraordinary either,...

We've seen a good number of micro-pickups in our day, but this version from Subaru, off the Sambar Kei van platform, seems to stretch the limits to the breaking point.

The Kei pickup will hold four small or medium-sized passengers and is motivated by a water-cooled 660-cc gas engine mated either to a four-speed automatic or five-speed manual.

This version of the Kei van is the newest...

A new Kia Forte sedan will be unveiled later this year in South Korea, Kia says. Expect it to show up in the United States not long after.

The model adopts many of the styling cues seen on the Optima and Sportage, although on the Forte is showing a more rounded and simplified look. The teardrop-shaped headlights are a styling cue first seen on the carmaker's upcoming Quoris luxury performance...

Mercedes-Benz says it will start putting inflatable rear seat belts in some of its vehicles.

According to a company statement, the multilayered belt straps with Velcro seams can expand to nearly three times their normal width during an accident. The expanded width helps distribute force in an accident, which can reduce head, neck and chest trauma.

Although Mercedes-Benz is typically...

We're starting to hear some rumblings about the next-generation Cummins turbo-diesel engine -- which makes up about 85 percent of all Ram HD sales -- being slated for installation in 2014 models.

Another hurdle in emissions regulations is due for the 2014 model year, and we hear that Cummins may move away from its relatively expensive precious-metal catalyst strategy in favor of the proven...

I have taken many a road trip before, mostly in my college days: San Diego to Bakersfield to see graduate schools, NYC to Hershey Park for a day vacation, NY to Maine through a nor’easter to visit a friend departing for Turkey.

Hell, I dated a girl who lived in Gettysburg for half a year -- that was nearly a 500-mile round-trip. All of those trips were special in their own ways, but there...

Mazda first showed its Takeri concept at the Tokyo Motor Show this past December. The  platform will be the basis of Mazda's next generation of its midsize sedan, the Mazda6.

Mazda hopes that the new styling direction, a departure from the outgoing Nagare line, will breathe new life and interest into the brand. The second-tier Japanese automaker has struggled since its split from Ford....

The thought process was always pretty simple: Younger buyers could purchase smaller, more affordable pickups, and then when they get older and earn more money, they could step up to larger full-size trucks. And that was the template and strategy for decades.

Then full-size trucks prices dropped with strong competition and huge incentives on the hood, with the result being a compact/midsize...

Q. Which hybrid has high ground clearance? I'm looking for a hybrid (for better gas mileage) with high enough clearance to go on rough and rutted roads (like logging roads, etc.) but not real off-road stuff. What do you recommend?

A. It sounds like you need an all-wheel-drive SUV if your plans include driving on logging roads, and your best bets among hybrid SUVs might be the Ford Escape or...

THE CAR AND ITS OWNERS 1960 Cadillac Superior hearse owned by Alan Stewart WHAT MAKES IT INTERESTING A small, but growing number of collectors devote themselves to “professional cars,” the official name for hearses, ambulances and other, similar custom-bodied work vehicles. This past January, the 1964 Cadillac hearse that transported President John F. Kennedy’s body to Air Force One in Dallas crossed...