This is how some trucks are built: the main strength is a separate frame, and the body sits on top of it. It usually helps the vehicle handle rough roads and heavy work better.
The Chevrolet Corvette is a sports car made in the U.S. A “62 Corvette” means a model from 1962. People talk about older Corvettes because keeping them in good shape can be tricky and parts may be harder to find.
Genesis is a luxury car brand made by Hyundai. The podcast is saying Genesis is making some models that focus more on performance. That usually means the cars are designed to feel quicker and more fun to drive.
They’re talking about Genesis upgrading the GV60 with a higher-performance version. It’s an electric crossover, and the performance version is meant to feel quicker and more exciting.
Some trucks are built with the body sitting on a separate metal frame underneath. That design is common on work trucks because it’s strong for towing and rough use.
A collector car is usually kept more for enjoyment and value than for daily driving. The point here is that some people feel you should still actually use the car instead of just storing it.
X-Mode is a Subaru setting that helps the car handle slippery or rough terrain better. It adjusts how the car applies power and braking so you have more control.
This is a Toyota Tundra truck in a top “Platinum” trim. “iForce Max” means it uses a hybrid-style system to help the engine, so it can feel stronger and be a bit more efficient than a non-hybrid version.
Outward visibility means how well you can see out of the truck while driving. Better visibility makes parking, lane changes, and spotting hazards easier.
Climate controls are the settings for heating and cooling the cabin. They’re saying the truck uses easier-to-reach controls instead of mostly touchscreen controls.
Ergonomics is about comfort and ease of use. They’re saying the truck’s controls and layout make it easier to operate the cabin without fighting the design.
A heated steering wheel warms the steering wheel so your hands feel comfortable faster in cold weather. It’s a nice comfort feature on higher-end trims.
A moonroof is a glass panel in the roof that lets in light and can sometimes open. They’re saying they don’t think it’s worth it because it could cause problems later.
Rising fuel prices can shift consumer preferences toward more fuel-efficient vehicles and alternatives like hybrids. It also affects overall affordability and can influence financing decisions.
This phrase describes a common buyer profile for midsize/midsize-plus family SUVs: people who want comfort, space, and the ability to travel long distances with minimal hassle. The speakers argue that an EV may not match this use case due to charging logistics.
Market share is just a way to measure how popular hybrids are compared to all cars sold. If hybrids are taking a bigger slice of sales, it usually means more people are choosing them.
Year-over-year (YoY) sales volume compares how many vehicles were sold this period versus the same period last year. It’s a common way to track whether demand is growing or shrinking for hybrids.
They mean plugging the EV in at night so it’s ready in the morning. It works best when you can charge at home every day.
Concept
EVs and hybrids and plug-in hybrids
They’re talking about three kinds of “cleaner” cars. EVs run only on electricity, hybrids use both gas and electricity, and plug-in hybrids can be charged like an EV but also use gas. Even if gas is expensive, people may still stick with regular gas cars if electricity or charging isn’t appealing.
What you pay for electricity matters a lot for EVs. If your local electricity is expensive, charging can cost more, so the “save money” story may not be as strong.
Leasing means you pay to drive a car for a few years. When the lease ends, you usually give the car back, so you don’t own it and you don’t build “equity” like you would if you bought it.
A manual transmission is the kind where you choose the gear yourself using a clutch pedal and a shifter. It can feel more connected to the car, but it’s more work than an automatic.
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This is America on the Road named best radio show by the International Automotive Media
Conference and now in our 34th year on the air. Thanks for being with us as we bring
you the latest automotive information from around the world. I'm Jack Neerad with me
as co-host Chris Teague back with us this week and Chris I know you're doing some home
remodeling how's that going? Well we're redoing our kitchen and everything from the kitchen
is now in our dining room so it's quite a bit stressful but I'll be very happy to see
you in result. How are things on your side of the world? Things are good here quiet but
we're going to have some fun next weekend as we visit one of my daughters. Plenty of automotive
news to talk about this week. There's a bold new concept from Hyundai that could signal a major
shift toward truck capability, yes truck capability, body on frame construction, off-road capability
as well. We'll tell you what that could mean for Hyundai. Class of car owners in Minnesota
are pushing them back against a proposed law that could sharply limit when and where vintage
vehicles can be driven. Well I'm concerned about that, I've got a 62 Corvette, we'll explain why
enthusiasts are concerned. Subaru is rolling out its most powerful vehicle ever, an all-electric
three-row SUV with 420 horsepower, standard all-wheel drive and off-road capability. Details
on that coming up. And Genesis is also turning up the heat with a high performance version of its
GV60 that packs more than 600 horsepower. New tech designed to mimic the feel of gas power
performance car, we love that. And financing a new vehicle is getting more expensive, record
loan amounts, longer terms, buyers taking on $1,000 a month payments. Chris are you looking to buy
a new car? Oh no Jack, I'm on a car buying hiatus for the foreseeable future. Ah okay with that
kitchen remodel I guess I understand that. America on the Road is brought to you by drivingtoday.com,
emlancy.com, the publisher of my latest book. Only one thing stays the same and mercury insurance.
If you're looking to save some money you should switch to mercury for your auto and home insurance.
California would save an average of $670 with mercury, so imagine how much you could save. Get a
quote today at drivingtoday.com slash auto insurance. That's drivingtoday.com slash auto hyphen
insurance. We love those hyphens. Well those are your longtime listeners of the show know,
Chris lives at one end of the country. I live at the other. Each week we get together to talk
about cars, the car industry, and how you can save some money on your car. Chris what is your
test vehicle for this week? I spent the week in the 2026 Toyota Tundra i-Force Max Platinum.
That's a mouthful and I can't wait to tell you all about it. Wow it's a long vehicle with a long
name. My test vehicle this week is the 2026 Honda Civic Hatchback. It's a hybrid version so we'll
tell you all about that. Stay with us and we'll have tons of show for you. We're so glad you're
with us and uh stay with us. We'll be right back. Welcome back everybody to America on the road with
Chris T. Jackie Redback with you. We're so glad you're with us. We do appreciate it. If you like
the show please pass along to somebody else who might like it. We're available as a podcast in
addition to being on the radio so please do that. That would be terrific. Let's talk about news here.
I mean this is big news from Hyundai I think and it signals even bigger news maybe than it
might seem. We're talking about a concept they showed at the New York Auto Show. The bolder
concept. Bolder as in bolder Colorado I guess. It's a rugged SUV design and what's really big
about it is this is body on frame architecture so it's likely that there's also going to be a
mid-sized pickup truck based on the same architecture coming from Hyundai. What do you
think about that? I'm very excited about it. I can see some challenges in Hyundai's future with
these vehicles but man the bolder concept looks fantastic. It really is cool looking absolutely
and I had the fact that it's got a ladder frame underneath it. I mean this is what truck buyers
like. I mean something like the Toyota 4Runner has a similar kind of construction right. I mean it
is built on a ladder frame or body on frame kind of construction. That's typical SUV from way way
back. We've seen a bunch of crossover SUVs now but this is a lot more rugged right. Yeah it is.
You know I think this being Hyundai's first type of vehicle of this type in the United States
I hope it goes smoothly for them but you know there there probably will be some growing pains
with it. Yeah it'll be interesting you know Toyota has gotten into this business of pickup trucks
and Nissan has weighted in as well even with full-size pickup trucks. They're still behind the
curve of the domestics when it comes to pickup trucks but I think this is you know kind of a
shot across the bow of the big three here who make a lot of their money from these body on frame
pickups. Yeah even if Hyundai picks up just a small piece of that market it'll be a big a big step
for them. Yeah and I think Hyundai dealers would love to have this within within their showrooms.
This is designed in America going to be built in America so all of that is cool and you know Hyundai
has a very large American footprint so the the fact that they're spending more money on this and
we're going to see various powertrains and there could be a lot of different powertrains in this
we'll see what happens there. Yeah you know concept vehicles don't always make it to production
untouched but the vehicle inside and out looks you know pretty rugged pretty great the interiors
got a good mix of futuristic and you know old-school touches so I'm excited to see it if it if it
comes for sure. Yeah well I think we're going to see something like that we're probably going to see
that Hyundai pickup truck as well. This Minnesota law that could severely limit classic car use
has me concerned it's raising alarms over the whole automotive community. This is a proposed
piece of legislation that could restrict how vintage vehicles are used on public roads
which I think is a big deal. I mean it's it's being promoted as well this is just a clarification
we have this we have collector car rules already but I think a lot of us with older cars would
love to have the ability to go out on a Saturday morning and just drive around without going to
a meet or going to a cars and coffee just just driving our cars. What do you think about this
Chris? Yeah you know I think a lot of these rules are driven by concerns for the environment and
things like that but the reality is keeping old cars on the road keeping them working is is not
only more financially responsible for the owners but it also keeps the older cars going which is
better for the environment because they're not building a ton of new cars to replace them but
I'm pretty much categorically against things like this. Yeah I mean I love these collector vehicles
I think this is really our audience right I mean probably a lot of people listening have
collector cars like this they just a car that they maybe use a couple hours a week or something
like that or maybe a couple hours a month when it's sunny and I sure hate to see that restricted
and people getting tickets for doing something like that or worse. Yeah I mean these cars are
they're meant to be driven they're great to look at they're great to drive and you know from an
enthusiast standpoint it would be really disappointing not to have the opportunity to do that.
Yeah and the opportunity to share automotive history you know exactly it's a lot of fun a
lot of fun. Well Subaru has is expanding its electric vehicle lineup maybe just in time or
not just in time depending on how you look at it that 2027 Subaru getaway was shown at New York
it's a three-row SUV family focused sport utility with kind of unbelievable performance actually
420 horsepower dual electric motors symmetrical all-wheel drive quote unquote this basically is
very similar vehicle to the Toyota Highlander coming in 2027 that's going to be all electric
all the time as well I mean that's kind of caused some consternation in our family because
my in-laws are looking at a trying to get a three-row vehicle a Highlander was a
logical choice for them but they certainly don't want to go electric given their circumstances so
what do you think about the getaway? Yeah you know I like it I was going to mention that it's
just the Subaru version not just but it's the Subaru version of the the new Toyota Highlander
and we talked a few weeks ago about the risks and Toyota going all electric with the Highlander I
think the risk for Subaru here is pricing right you know these things are not going to be cheap
when they arrive I think you know people kind of struggle with $70,000 Subaru's but I like the look
and the performance you can't argue with that. Yeah I mean all the numbers are kind of there
except maybe the price number might be difficult but you know 300 plus miles of range or something
like 300 miles of range fast charging so about 30 minute charging with the fast charger not super
fast but I guess maybe fast enough maybe with the $7,500 tax credit that has gone away this would be
a lot more palatable vehicle than it's going to be going forward I really wonder where these are
going to go but as anybody who listens to the show know I'm kind of a skeptic on electric vehicles
overall. Yeah you know the thing I like about it and this was true with the Subaru Saltera as well
is that even though they're kind of borrowing a lot of elements from Toyota or maybe all the
elements from Toyota they're still retaining the Subaru-ness of it so you still get X-Mode all-wheel
drive you still get kind of a rugged look and I think that's great there there's enough differentiation
there that it doesn't just feel like a badge slapped onto a different vehicle. Right and I think
all electric really works for the Subaru brand I think you know that's kind of the mindset I bet
of a lot of Subaru buyers so that that works I think that's good we'll just have to see where
this goes and it will be interesting if we're at a 20 horsepower I don't know that we want a
performance three-row SUV but maybe we do. Speaking of performance how about the GV60 Magna
magma from Genesis I've got to ask the question is this the right car at the wrong time or the
wrong car at the right time or something like that I mean this is a super high performance
version of the GV60 small SUV that we've liked a lot I don't know that we love the price but we
pretty much love everything else about it. Dual motor all-wheel drive producing 641 horsepower
in boost mode 0 to 60 acceleration in 3.4 seconds this is a very serious performance vehicle
and yet I'm not sure that there's much enthusiasm for these electric performance vehicles
at least in the United States what's your take on that Chris? Yeah you know just in my small
podunk area here I see several 2024 new 2024 Hyundai Ioniq 5N still sitting on
dealers lots I mean that's not probably representative of the whole of the whole
country but both from a price and sort of obscurity standpoint it's a difficult
sell I think for a lot of people and second the GV60 was already pretty darn quick right it had a
boost mode it really wasn't lacking any performance but I do enjoy seeing Genesis leaning into the
sports car side I think they're they're looking at maybe a V8 or some other super car type vehicle
so I guess great for them but again to your point I'm not sure that it's the right time
or even the right car yeah I mean Magma will be their kind of version of BMW AM or Mercedes
Benz AMG stuff like that I think that's what they're looking to do here again launching with
an electric small SUV that has high performance I mean it's a vehicle you could hop up pretty quickly
but I just kind of don't don't get it for this market at this time but of course this
wasn't developed at this time for this market at this time I think people didn't anticipate that
the market would be like it is at this time right yeah the market is I guess up and down is probably
the simplest way to put it maybe more down than than ever right now but I will see yeah I mean
certainly on the electric side remind us of your road test vehicle this week I had the 2026
Toyota Tundra Platinum iForce Max wow a mouthful and a very cool vehicle I was driving the 2026
Honda Civic hatchback and hybrid trim so I think you'll enjoy that stay with us and we'll be right
back with those road tests we're glad you're with us stay with us
I'd like to tell you about my newest crime novel only one thing stays the same as the story unfolds
an unemployed aeronautics worker named Bill McCurdy becomes disillusioned with his wife
and slips into an illicit affair with a teenager from down the street before long he begins to think
of doing the unthinkable and before the roller coaster ride stops he learns quite personally
and very finally that only one thing stays the same only one thing stays the same is available
in Kindle e-book and paperback form exclusively at amazon.com I'd appreciate it if you'd look for it
today welcome back to america road with Chris E. Jack Nira and back with you we're so glad Chris
is with us this week he was off last week but back with us this week and has a very interesting
road test vehicle with a super long name it's a super long vehicle with a super long name and I
I'm wondering how that fit into your main lifestyle Chris well I didn't even mention the package name
which adds to the the length of this this vehicle's title but the 2026 Toyota Tundra Platinum iForce
max uh Toyota redesigned the Tundra a couple of years ago Jack have you driven the most recent
version of the truck I have in fact I think I was on the launch uh and uh so many interesting things
about it you know Toyota has never quite um I guess cracked the code for full size s or full
size pickup truck but I think it's getting closer and closer and maybe this time around they've done
yeah you know I tend to read a lot about uh ownership and and things on the internet and
the people who like tundras tend to keep buying tundras so uh they do have a reasonably dedicated
fan base but taking a step back you can get into this vehicle for around $41,300 that's for the base
model uh the gas powertrain my Platinum iForce max with the TRD package which adds to the length of
the name came out to just over $81,000 which uh isn't completely out of line with high powered
full size american pickup trucks but it's still a lot of money for a Toyota
the base powertrain is a twin turbocharged 3.4 liter v6 it makes around it doesn't make a round
it makes 389 horsepower and 479 pound feet of torque the iForce max adds a hybrid system to
that same engine for a total of 437 horsepower and 583 pound feet of torque so very healthy numbers
for this vehicle uh both powertrains come with a 10-speed automatic transmission uh rear wheel
drive is standard my truck had the optional four-wheel drive system jack i will tell you with
that those numbers this truck is more than quick enough i think that you can feel the torque from
the hybrid system off the line uh it's got great acceleration it's a lot louder than i expected
it to be for a v6 engine uh what do you remember about the driving experience i love the torque uh
i you know i love that electric torque and i think that adds so much uh and people probably
would don't grasp that until they get behind the wheel and feel what that feels like because
you don't have to weight into to it so much you get kind of instant acceleration yeah i agree and
as i said you know you get a pretty beefy sound from this v6 it doesn't have the v8 that the last
tundra had uh the other thing i want to point out is that and i've said this many times that
toyota does hybrid systems just about as good as if not better than most automakers in this vehicle
however it feels a little bit less refined there is a little bit of clunkiness in the handoff
period between the electric and the gas system and some of that might be down to the 10-speed
automatic transmission and it's always it's searching for gears a little bit but again it's
more than powerful enough and you get up to 12 000 pounds of towing in this vehicle in some
configurations as tested i think the towing was just under 11 200 pounds the other thing i want
to say here is that the ride is a little rougher than expected for a full-size truck we've talked
about uh the ram 1500 it has probably the best ride quality in the class the fort f150 is not bad
this vehicle is a little bit more jostling there's a lot a little bit more noise when you're going
over potholes and things in the road and it feels bigger than a lot of other full-size trucks
it looks big and it's harder to maneuver uh although that's not super surprising i guess for
such a long vehicle inside though this vehicle is much nicer than the last tundra
the front seat position for this vehicle is a little bit awkward for me jack what did you
remember about the the front seats and the comfort of this of the interior i think they're getting
there i i still don't think that um they're a hundred percent where the the domestics are and
particularly for ride quality where the ram 1500 is um i just they again they haven't really
cracked that code it's it strikes me that they're kind of chasing numbers they're chasing uh the
towing capacity they're chasing the payload capacity uh they're chasing interior refinement that
they see in other trucks and while they're chasing it i don't think they've caught it yet
yeah i agree with that and while the outward visibility is good from the driver's seat in
almost all positions you know you can see great front back into the sides i found issues with
the seating adjustment as i said earlier i can never it always felt like it was pointing down
towards the front of the vehicle it never felt like i could get a good position there but that
said toyota stuck with the big chunky buttons and the knobs and there are plenty of those and
there's not a lot of touch interaction with the things like climate controls so you have great
ergonomics if you're wearing gloves you're hopping it out of this vehicle you know on the
on the work site um you know you have you have a good ability to kind of tap and and find things
there's a lot of good there's a lot of space across both roads and the crew max cab you can
seat five and i can tell you from having done that that the three people on the back seat have more
than enough room the platinum trim also adds a panoramic sunroof leather seats heated and ventilated
front seats and a heated steering wheel so you have plenty of luxury here you get a large touch screen
with wireless apple carplane android auto and then you get a full safe a full suite of safety gear
with the toyota safety synth system so you get a lot for 81 grand jack i think i would probably opt
for a lower trim level in this vehicle especially with some of the other trims being able to tow
more but uh i'm still a toyota fan i don't know if i'm the biggest tundra fan just given the price
and some of the some of the clunkiness that i experienced yeah i mean that's a lot of money
for a tundra as far as i am concerned you know it's just uh it's a it's a nice vehicle but
i think the domestics really do a maybe a nicer job there and uh i certainly want to look at and
i think toyota fans will love it and it will continue to love it i agree does that stuff very
very well well i was driving the 2026 honda civic hatchback this is in hybrid trim so
it builds on the civics reputation for practicality and efficiency it introduces an electrified
powertrain to the compact hatchback so all of that is good enhanced fuel economy and everyday
usability or you know this is something that the civic had in spades to begin with and then you add
the hybrid factor and that's even better split folding rear seats with great cargo flexibility
i mean i like hatchbacks you like i think you like hatchbacks too chris i mean
this is kind of the epitome of a hatchback and the epitome of a practical car right
yeah i think honda did a great job making it look more like a normal car i mean for people who
aren't into the hatchbacks like i am and maybe you and a lot of others are it doesn't necessarily
look like a hatchback but you still get a lot of the functionality yeah i had a vehicle that was
in sport touring trim so it had a lot of zootier stuff than the standard vehicle would have and
maybe that's window dressing that you don't need if you're looking to save some money but
as automatic climate control push button start uh fairly big touchscreen um leather trim seating
i'm not sure you need that the bows premium auto uh audio system is nice but uh again not
certain you need that i'm not a big fan of moon roofs i i think maybe you like them more than i
do i they just don't add anything to me except maybe the leaking somewhere down the road something
like that but uh well what's your take on this overall trim level or what trim level would you go for
given the value price i mean the civic is more expensive than it's ever been but it's still not
super pricey i think i would probably go for the sport touring and you know i think with
the darker interior colors that we're seeing the moon roof for me lightens things up and makes it
not look so much like a cave inside yeah well you have that that's true we've got plenty of sun
out here you've got a little less of that maybe where you live uh this has a two motor hybrid
system a two two liter four cylinder engine uh so the efficiency is right there i mean pretty good
transition as you mentioned toyota is the essentially the leader in uh smooth transitions
between you know hybrid and non-hybrid or electric and non-electric driving in these hybrids
but this does a very good job fuel economy a big highlight 48 miles per gallon combined
45 miles per gallon on the highway 50 miles per gallon in the city driving dynamics are good because
basically the civic driving dynamics are good i mean this is one of the most fun to drive of the
compact cars out there to begin with there's a multi-link rear set up uh and macpherson struts
up front uh steering is good i mean again fun to drive is kind of um in the dna of a civic isn't it
chris yeah you know we mentioned toyota doing hybrids well but honda does well with hybrids is it
they add fun and add speed and make the vehicles more engaging to drive and i think that's true for
the civic as it is with the crv and others right has drive modes eco normal and sport drive mode
so you can tailor that if you want to sometimes people want to uh as i mentioned the sport touring
trim has leather trim seats eight-way power adjustable driver seat and importantly for the
nirad family a four-way power adjustable front passenger seat my wife hates it when the front
passenger seat is not power adjustable and i have all these power adjustments on my side
heated front seats in dual zone automatic climate control i think i mentioned the 6040 split folding
design in the rear so that increases cargo versatility that's certainly not uh unique to
the civic but it's good uh you know this is straightforward kind of vehicle i don't think
that um it is the most attractive interior of all time but i think it's very functional and uh
looks pretty good and uh you know i like the adjustability of those seats yeah honda does
function over form very well but this the vehicle looks nice enough inside so i am in agreement
with you there yeah this does have a pretty good technology in this trim and this is something that
honda does that maybe others don't uh it uses a google type system only in upper trim levels
i got it in this vehicle but in lower trims not that won't necessarily be there so i would
watch out for that it has a nine inch uh touchscreen which is fairly reasonable again
very easy to use i wouldn't say this is either the best or the worst of the infotainment systems
it does also have a very comprehensive safety and in the honda sensing safety suite just
you know a ton of stuff there including traffic jam assist some stuff you wouldn't necessarily
expect in a uh in a lower price vehicle like this and let's let's talk about price because
it's reasonable actually the total of thirty five thousand one hundred and forty five dollars as
tested uh for a high trim like this with uh a bunch of stuff i i think with that kind of fuel
economy and just the overall practicality this is one heck of a value yeah i think hybrids are
a lot better for people than for many people than evs and even plug-in hybrids and as you
said the price is pretty decent for what you get so yeah yeah i like a lot i think they do a good
job so uh that's one to look at and i think uh if you're a toyota fan the tundra is the full-size
pickup for you and when we come back uh we're gonna talk about 2026 because we're deep into it now
and uh i want uh chris's opinion on that so stay with us for that and we'll be right back
i received a letter from a reader this week and i thought i'd share it with you here's what he wrote
i just got around to reading dance in the dark and wanted to say how much i enjoyed it i'm a
compulsive reader and this one was right up my alley an unlikely hero a lot of twists and turns
some adult content and humor that rose naturally from the action keep on writing and i'll keep on
reading of course that's just the kind of letter any author would love to get i hope that others
get the same enjoyment from reading dance in the dark and my newest crime novel only one thing stays
the same both are available exclusively at amazon.com that's dance in the dark and only one thing stays
the same both written by me jack arnie red thanks for looking for them today
welcome back to america on the road with chris teague jack you read back with you and uh typically
this would be our interview segment in the show but this week uh and especially because i i didn't
get a chance to talk with chris last week because he was off i thought we'd kind of do a summation
of what happened in the first quarter of 2026 and review that and see where we think 2026 is
going to go i mean certainly a lot of it is going on this year and a lot is up in the air but uh i
think it's it's certainly something to talk about chris we've seen auto sales cool a little bit in
march but last year we had a very strong march so when you look month against month uh one year
later maybe that exaggerates the fact that we're a little down here we're also uh for most of this
time we're at war that doesn't usually bode well for car sales and yet car sales actually continue
to go fairly strongly given that what's your overall take right now yeah you know i'm i guess
pleasantly surprised to see that sales haven't fallen off as hard as i had thought they would be
or thought they would especially given as you mentioned the war the instability
and rising gas prices although that might start to kind of cool a little bit after some some recent
developments uh you know it has been interesting looking at some of the data from not only auto
trader and cox automotive where i work but also edmunds and some others saying you know as gas
prices have risen and prices have risen people are looking at more used EVs and hybrids and things
like that but i haven't seen that translate into sales uh and they don't always translate into sales
but that's been something i've been watching and it's been very interesting uh to see how it's it's
played out yeah and we'll have to see how this plays plays out going forward i mean we're hopeful
that uh war is over and uh we're going to see some normalization of a lot of things including
fuel prices one thing that might be normalized already are electric vehicle sales i think we
kind of got a read now about where electric vehicles are going to be i think the the share
dropped to 6.3 percent in the first quarter this i'm talking about battery electric vehicles share
of total light vehicle market you think that's going to hold you think it might go lower you
think it might recover what's what you take on that i'm you know i don't have a crystal ball
and i'm by far not the the foremost expert in this space but i think we're looking at something
that's probably going to hold for a little while i don't know that we're going to see a huge drop
off but i don't think we're going to see a big increase uh and if anything we might see automakers
kind of right sizing their lineups you know we talked about honda a couple of weeks ago cutting
its electric some new electric models kind of backing out of its deal with sony and and not
going down that road anymore which was surprising giving how far they they've gone down the road
but we just got done talking about Subaru introducing a new EV they have a couple of new models coming
out toyota is still going going forward with it but uh you know i think it will be interesting to
see how many automakers kind of shift back from EVs to hybrid we've talked about Ford and GM
i would expect to see a few more doing the same yeah i mean that's the thing you identify with
Toyota the Toyota Highlander and and then the uh Subaru getaway is fascinating to me because that's
a high volume segment uh replaced and certainly the Highlander was a high volume vehicle this is
an additional vehicle for Subaru but replacing the conventional uh Highlander with an all electric
Highlander to me is a big risk i mean they do have the grand Highlander that they expected
to take a lot of that sales from people who want a more conventional vehicle but i think they have
to put some effort against that Highlander right i mean Toyota does and that should build some
electric vehicle sales i would think yeah i mean i hope they're successful with it but we talked
about this one we we talked about the announcement the Highlander's target market is you know the
road trip family hauler and the EV at least for people in a lot of the country doesn't fit that
mold right i mean if you you know the road tripping you're not stopping an hour to charge 45 whatever
it is minutes to charge uh as you said it's a big risk and i hope they're successful with it but it
didn't feel like speaking of a right vehicle at the right time it didn't feel like the right vehicle
the right time for me at least as a standalone EV right they're not gonna offer a gas or a hybrid
anymore yeah on the other hand i think uh hybrid is the the new darling of the market right i mean
we we just talked about two of them in the previous segment i mean i think one of the reasons uh hybrids
are going so strong is you can't avoid them i mean they're in a lot of things and uh you know the
higher versions models or higher version trims of many models are hybrids uh whether you want one
or not and i think a lot of people are just fine with having a hybrid i don't even think about it
very much uh the hybrid market share rose to 13.9 percent in the first quarter uh sales volume up
nearly eight percent year over year i think that's kind of a natural result of uh what's available
out there right yeah they are they are more available and as you say even like the Honda Civic
some of their best features like the bigger touchscreen the google integration things like
that are held back for the hybrids and as i said earlier in the show the hybrids just make sense
for a lot more people if you look at some of these vehicles like the Prius and they're getting
45 50 miles per gallon in some situations and they're 20 30 000 cheaper than the equivalent EV
would be um and you know you don't have to charge so i think it does they're a right they're a good
fit for a lot of people yeah i mean you don't have to change your life right to deal with that i think
most people who have an electric car i mean certainly you do i mean it it probably has changed
the way you live at least a bit right and you're using it i think mostly for very local kind of
transportation and then charging overnight uh that probably the best case scenario for that kind of
vehicle yeah you know we had to make changes to our home and changes to our lifestyle we didn't
change our driving style that much but if we didn't have the opportunity like if we lived in a condo
or someplace where you couldn't install a charger uh that's a pretty significant change
to your lifestyle it takes a lot more thought and for a lot of people a car is an appliance right
you don't want to think about having to charge your refrigerator every two days or or you know
those sorts of things and and having to alter your lifestyle like that uh even before we talk
about price is just a no go for a lot of people yeah absolutely true well certainly gasoline
prices have climbed or spiked really i mean you could use absolutely use the term spiked here
because it was very very quick run up to four dollars per gallon nationwide and it's in the six
dollar range here uh in southern california depending on the gas station you go to i think
that's going to come down very quickly as well interestingly enough we had prices like this in
2022 huh there wasn't a war going on or anything what was going on then a whole kind of different
situation i guess but we had similar high fuel prices i didn't hear as much gnashing of teeth
over that in the media at the time but things were different then i'm wondering about the sales
outlook for the rest of the year i think we're looking at probably a fairly strong sales year
in the absence of some major disaster what's your thought yeah it's uh i hope there's not a
major disaster but it's always hard to predict what's what's going to come next you know i looked
at the prices this morning on crude oil barrels and it's already down 20 a barrel just after the
the announcement of the ceasefire for the war but you know as they say up like a rocket down
like a feather gas prices tend to go up very quickly but they tend to lag coming back down
and again people started searching for EVs and hybrids and plug-in hybrids and record numbers
but the sales didn't follow i think people are still pretty tied to their gas vehicles
and as long as they can still get fuel they're still going to drive them yeah i think so and i
think um just the convenience of being able to buy gas and i i don't know that um the electric
vehicle advocates have made a real case for it being cheaper to to own and operate an electric
vehicle maybe that is the case or maybe it's not but i you know i certainly haven't seen
any real proof or that the average american consumer is going oh yeah well i'll save money
if i have an electric yeah it's also hard to sell it to a national audience right it depends on
where you live here in main our electricity rates are higher than the national average by
a pretty decent margin our fuel prices are lower than the national average in some places
so the trade-off to electric is not as strong as it would be in a place maybe in california i
don't know what your electric rates are but your fuel prices are certainly pretty stratospheric
compared to ours that might be a better sell for you guys yeah i think electric electricity is also
quite expensive here uh as so many we pay a lot of weather tax in in california there's no doubt
about that we have great weather but man we pay for it uh affordability of course is a major issue
in terms of car sales just in terms of being out there as a consumer and going hey i've got to buy
a car my in-laws uh were involved in a car accident now have to buy a car uh you know it's one of those
things where it's not they can postpone the purchase they got a total car and they need to replace it
and um it's hard to find vehicles that are affordable and the amount financed uh now this
isn't the price of a car this is the amount financed so let's say you put 10 or 20 down or
whatever you put down is now something like 44 000 that's what one company is saying that it was in
first quarter i mean the average monthly payment is 773 a month holy smokes you know it's it's hard
to know how people can afford that 20 of new vehicle customers have monthly payments of a
thousand dollars or more comment on all of that chris yeah you know that's more than my first
mortgage was i think we were paying like 750 or 775 for that but you know a lot of people love to
point to interest rates as making the interest making the monthly payments higher and that's
certainly true in a lot of cases but you know the realities of vehicles are just too darn expensive
the average transaction price is around 50 000 and uh you know i think a lot of that is down to
regulation you know vehicles have to be packed with all the safety equipment now and automakers
aren't going to give that away for free um you know i think there's a lot of changes that need to
be made but the reality is that you know cars are just too darn expensive ford i think ford and gm
both raised their their destination prices by like a thousand dollars recently so uh they're gonna
they're gonna keep going until something changes and i don't know what that's gonna be but i hope
something comes i think it's pushing a lot of people into used vehicles and this isn't a great
time to be pushed into used vehicles because we didn't build quote unquote a lot of used vehicles
in in the covid times we're just coming out of that uh and we're seeing a little more supply of
vehicles that were built in uh 2022 2023 2024 happily uh but um i think a lot of people just
can't afford any kind of new vehicle just are not even considering it so the people who are
buying new vehicles are essentially well to do people you know people with a lot of money and
people who go and can go okay i can afford a thousand dollar a month pay what's really interesting
to me is these thousand dollar a month lease payments i mean not even a payment uh where
you're building equity in a vehicle and you're gonna own that vehicle over time you're just
that's just money out of pocket but at the same time i see people renting houses in the in the
neighborhood in which i live and they're spending thousands upon thousands of dollars in monthly rent
that just goes out the door never to return never to build equity in anything and uh they seem quite
willing to do it yeah leasing a vehicle you're essentially paying a grand a month to rent that
vehicle for three or four years or however long the lease is but as you said you know the used
market probably won't be that affordable for that much longer if it even is now because lower supply
higher demand basic economics those are going to become more expensive uh as time goes on and they
already are pretty pricey right you're seeing loan terms extend there's a now a lot of 84 months
and even longer loan terms i mean you're looking at a vehicle that is many many years old and you're
still making a new new car kind of payment on them i just wonder how palatable that is to people and
what's interesting too is people still turn over the vehicle uh just as fast about every four to
five years whether they have an 84 month loan or they have a four-year loan um and what they're
doing is they're rolling some that debt into the next loan this can't go on forever it's kind of rough
yeah you know you make fun of me for buying cars all the time and even though i'm on hiatus i still
want to buy a new car but one thing i've avoided in that process is rolling that equity negative
equity into the next car purchase uh you're essentially ended up paying for two or three cars
at once um and if you're trading out of it you're going to end up losing money because again you're
just rolling that that money over uh to the next lease or next loan and it piles up and you're paying
for a vehicle that's out of warranty at that point in time if you do keep it for the term of the loan
yeah very very good point interest rates still high almost seven percent so we'll have to see
what happens a lot of people are still buying new cars it's still a fairly strong market but
we'll see what happens for the rest of 2026 we're hopeful that the war is over and we will not see
any more strife like that going forward and uh stay with us we'll have a listener question when
we come back we'll welcome back to the final segment of this week's america on the road with
those christy because jack you read with you it is listener question time we love to answer
questions for you based on our long experience in providing car advice please send those questions
to editor at drivingtoday.com that's editor at drivingtoday.com here's a great question from
pete in springfield Missouri he asks i've always liked driving cars with manual gearboxes but
now they seem almost impossible to find why are manual transmissions disappearing so fast well
i think the first reason is that people weren't buying them right i mean more and more people
switched over to automatics and and vehicles like that and automakers uh the fewer of a vehicle you
make the more expensive each vehicle is to make and then subsequently to buy but i think the other
thing and and you can probably add to this jack is that automatic transmissions got better back
when i was learning to drive manual transmissions offered better fuel economy and you're more
engaged with the vehicle and now automatic transmissions are faster in most cases quicker
acceleration they offer better fuel economy and they work better with hybrid technologies and
things like that and you know evs can't really don't really have the same sort of transmission so
that's part of it but you know i think the big thing is that there wasn't just a the demand wasn't
there yeah well i think you identify the fact that the fuel economy is better with automatic
transmissions these days that used to be quite the opposite so i think that was a major major
reason that we saw that and as you say they generally work better so what are you gonna do
that essentially wraps up our show for this week i'd like to mention that my crime novel only one
thing stays the same is available in ebook and paperback form at amazon so look for that if you
like our show please pass it on listen on this radio station each week let your friends know where
you hear america on the road and we'd love to double our listenership this year we need your help
don't we chris we do and you can do that with a quick google search for the america on the road
podcast which will bring us to you on all the major platforms apple spotify and many others
uh the biggest thing you can do for us is to subscribe to the show so you get our show every
week as soon as it drops on those platforms but like the show leave us a review download us and
you can take us with you wherever you go right we have a youtube channel so check that out look
at our america on the road road tests and other videos it's kind of fun our thanks to mercury
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terrestrial radio which we love most of all thanks to you for listening we do appreciate it we know
you have a lot of choices so the fact that you're listening to america on the road means a lot to
us we appreciate it and we hope you join us again next time for another edition of america on the road
hi i'm jack arnie redd and i'd like to tell you about my newest crime novel
only one thing stays the same in a style reminiscent of james m cayne and jim thompson
two of my writing idols the book chronicles of blue collar workers up and down love affairs with
two modern southern california women who continue to surprise shock and ultimately confound him as
the story unfolds an unemployed aeronautics worker named bill McCurdy becomes disillusioned with his
wife and slips into an illicit affair with a teenager from down the street before long he
begins to think of doing the unthinkable but despite his desperate attempts to make things work
almost nothing goes as planned his misguided quest for simple love doesn't turn out to be
simple at all and before the roller coaster ride stops he learns quite personally and very
finally that only one thing stays the same only one thing stays the same is available
in kindle ebook and paperback form exclusively at amazon.com i'd appreciate it if you'd look for it today
About this episode
Hyundai’s Bolder concept sparks talk of a future body-on-frame, off-road-capable SUV—and possibly a Hyundai pickup—while Minnesota’s proposed limits on vintage-car driving draws strong pushback from enthusiasts. Subaru’s 420-hp, three-row all-electric Getaway and Genesis’ 641-hp GV60 Magma raise questions about EV pricing and whether electric performance fits the U.S. market. Road tests cover the 2026 Honda Civic Hybrid hatchback (48 mpg combined, practical and fun) and the 2026 Toyota Tundra i-Force Max Platinum (quick torque, but clunky hybrid handoff and rougher ride). The hosts also debate 2026 sales trends, rising payments, and why manuals are disappearing.
This week on America on the Road, Jack Nerad and Chris Teague review two strong performers: the powerful 2027 Toyota Tundra Hybrid and the efficient 2026 Honda Civic Hatchback Hybrid. They also discuss Hyundai’s rugged Boulder Concept signaling the Korean brand’s body-on-frame truck future, Subaru’s 420-hp Getaway electric SUV, and the scalding-hot Genesis GV60 Magma. They also consider worsening new-car affordability and what the balance of 2026 will look like.
🚙 Jack Nerad’s Road Test: 2026 Honda Civic Hatchback Hybrid
Jack reviews the 2026 Honda Civic Hatchback Hybrid Sport Touring, praising its excellent 48 mpg combined efficiency, smooth hybrid powertrain, fun-to-drive handling, premium interior with leather seats and Bose audio, 9-inch touchscreen, and strong value at $35,145 as tested.
🚗 Chris Teague’s Road Test: 2027 Toyota Tundra Hybrid
Chris tests the 2027 Toyota Tundra Hybrid with the i-FORCE MAX powertrain delivering 437 hp and 583 lb-ft of torque. The innovative powertrain enables up to 12,000 pounds of towing, but is it as refined as other Toyota hybrids? Chris offers his opinion, and he also covers its performance, familiar highway manners, advanced Toyota Safety Sense 2.5 driver assistance features, and upscale interior options.
📰 This Week’s Headlines
Hyundai Boulder Concept Previews Body-on-Frame Truck
Hyundai debuts a rugged concept with ladder-frame construction, 37-inch mud-terrain tires, and serious off-road design, signaling its first American-built midsize pickup by 2030.
Minnesota Bill Threatens Classic Car Driving
Enthusiasts are fighting a proposed law that could severely restrict when and where vintage vehicles can be driven.
Subaru Unveils 420-hp 2027 Getaway Electric SUV
Subaru’s most powerful vehicle offers 300+ miles of range, standard AWD, strong off-road capability, and family-friendly three-row seating.
Genesis GV60 Magma Launches Performance Sub-Brand
This high-output EV delivers up to 641 hp, 0-60 in 3.4 seconds, virtual gear shifting, and simulated engine sound.
New Car Affordability Worsens
Average monthly payments hit $773 with 20% of buyers now paying $1,000+, as loan terms stretch longer.
❓ Listener Question
Pete from Springfield, Missouri, asks: “Why are manual transmissions disappearing so fast?”
📚 Jack Nerad’s New Book
Jack’s crime novel, Only One Thing Stays the Same, is available now in paperback and eBook on Amazon — currently at a sale price.
🎧 Where to Listen
Catch America on the Road on this station each week, or subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and more. Follow for newcar reviews, guest interviews, auto news, and road tests.
Sponsored by Mercury Insurance and DrivingToday.com
📺 Watch & Subscribe
Find America on the Road on YouTube and Rumble. Subscribe for road test videos, shorts, and extended reviews.
