April 13, 2021

Commentary: A Drive For My Thoughts (Exactly)

With a new contest under way, I needed something to free up the mind. Yes, a drive was involved. I got around to head along the Mississippi River to Winona. I always liked that drive with great vistas and curvy roads through the bluffs.

April 12, 2021

My Thoughts Exactly: 2021 Nissan Sentra

That is the beauty of a car like this. No one expected it to be good. Not when Nissan had its share of bad publicity in recent years. While we sift through the news, Nissan has been making strides on their latest offerings.

April 11, 2021

Come "Sit With Us" at Back To The 80s

That is why Victory & Reseda is a sponsor of this year’s Back to The 80s, to be held on Saturday, June 12 in Burnsville, Minneosta at the Buck Hill Ski area. It will be part of our 10th Anniversary Celebration!

April 8, 2021

Historiography: The Original Franco-American Affair

If divine foreign intervention did not come in time for an American automaker, the company in question would have probably ceased to exist by 1982.

It is an audacious statement to make where history was thwarted to save a company from extinction. We’ve seen this many times over the past 30 years where Detroit-based automakers sought alliances and acquisitions with other automakers around the globe. To recall each one would be a massive effort to digest and analyze. Yet, most of the readers of this site have probably forgotten the scenario that put American Motors on the brink before Renault came in to assist them through most of the 1980s.

April 6, 2021

Rental Car Review: Northbound In A Corolla

Let’s be real – it is a Corolla. It is also the most popular trim level for both retail and commercial customers. It is basic without being too basic. It had what I needed. Plus, I had projections on performance and efficiency that would fit this trip and my requirements.

April 5, 2021

Travelogue: An Easter Weekend "Up Nort"

Granted, I do not have a religious reason to travel on Easter weekend. Nor do I have family to see, especially when there’s some personal issues with air travel at this time. However, I found a reason to get away from the routine of home and find a new place to visit. Plus, to enjoy the nicer weather that the month of April is supposed to bring.

March 31, 2021

My Thoughts Exactly: 2021 Hyundai Elantra

The chance to write about four generations of Elantras – dating back to when I was renting the fourth-generation model and writing about it – is what this work is all about. To see the progress of a single model through multiple generations and watching the evolution – or, in some cases, revolution – of a vehicle.

March 29, 2021

Quickies: How To Electrify The Masses Again

The choices are also getting broader. New vehicles are coming from both established manufacturers and start-ups alike. It is a dizzying array of new products, enticed by tax breaks and incentives to get a home charger installed in your garage.

March 28, 2021

Travelogue: Spring's Arrival Upon A Dubious Milestone

Actually, one is more celebratory than the other. No one celebrates an anniversary of an event that took hundreds of thousands of lives in this country, caused a further deepening of the national ideological divide, and made us step up the cause of taking care of one’s self.

March 24, 2021

My Thoughts Exactly: 2021 Volkswagen Arteon

Two years ago, I worked with the then-new Volkswagen Arteon. It made such an impression upon me that it landed on the My Favorites list for that year. I even said that "[w]hile a Volkswagen fan may just get a GTI, Golf R, and Jetta GLI and call it a day, I’d spend the extra money on an Arteon."