The Chevrolet Bolt is a small electric car made by Chevrolet. It's known for being one of the cheaper electric cars you can buy, with a good driving range on a single charge.
The Lincoln Aviator Black Label is a fancy SUV that offers lots of comfort and special features. It's one of the most luxurious versions Lincoln makes.
An embargo is a rule that says you can't share certain news or information until a certain time. Car companies use this to control when people can talk about new cars.
The Chevrolet Equinox is a small SUV that many people use for everyday driving. The new electric version has a big screen inside and looks more modern, like some other new electric cars from Chevrolet.
The Chevrolet Blazer EV is an electric SUV that looks sporty and has a modern inside with big screens. It’s part of Chevrolet’s new electric car family.
The Chevrolet Volt is a car that can run on electricity but also has a gas engine to go farther. The newer models can charge faster, so you spend less time waiting to drive again.
The Chevrolet Bolt EV is a type of car that runs on electricity instead of gas. It's known for being affordable and having enough battery power to drive a good distance before needing to recharge.
The Subaru Uncharted is a new electric car that is smaller and cheaper than some other electric cars. It’s Subaru’s way of making electric cars for more people.
The Chevy Blazer SS is a faster, sportier version of the Blazer SUV made by Chevrolet. It has more power and looks cooler than the regular Blazer, and there's even an electric version that goes fast.
The Porsche 911 is a popular sports car that people love to drive because it handles well and looks cool. It's been made for a long time and is known for having its engine in the back.
The Chevrolet Corvette is a fast and powerful American sports car that many people recognize. It's been around for a long time and is known for being fun to drive.
Winter tires are special tires that help your car drive safely on snow and ice. They have special patterns and rubber that stay soft in cold weather so your car doesn't slip.
The Nissan Pathfinder is a medium-sized SUV that families like because it can carry people and stuff comfortably. It can also drive on rough roads if needed.
The Lincoln Navigator is a big, fancy SUV that has lots of space and strong engines. It's good if you want a luxury vehicle that can carry many people and lots of stuff.
The Ford F-150 is a big truck that many people use for work or fun. It's strong and has gotten better over time, with newer versions being faster and having more features.
The Dodge Charger is a big car that can go really fast and has strong engines. Some versions have special engines called 'six pack' that make them even more powerful.
The Ford Mustang is a popular fast car that many people love because it looks cool and can go really fast. It's often talked about when people discuss sporty cars.
The Ford Lobo is a big truck sold in Mexico that is just like the Ford F-150 trucks sold in other countries. It’s strong and used for work or driving around.
The Dodge Ram is a big truck that many people use for work or fun. It has strong engines and a nice inside, making it popular with people who want a tough but comfortable truck.
The Hyundai Ioniq 5 is a new electric car that looks different and has lots of space inside. It's part of Hyundai's plan to make more cars that run on electricity instead of gas.
The Hyundai Ioniq 6 is a new electric car that looks nice and has lots of tech inside. People are talking about it because it might stop being made soon.
The Volkswagen Golf is a small car that's easy to drive and useful for everyday trips. Even though the regular version isn't made everywhere anymore, the sportier versions are still around and loved by many.
LIVE
Welcome back to the AutoGuide show presented by eBay Motors.
I'm Greg Migliore and today we're diving into the curious case of the Chevy Bolt.
Once hailed as a game changer, GM killed it off, brought it back, and now it's the most
affordable EV you could buy, but will it have staying power this time around?
Mike Schley is back from the launch and we break it all down.
Then Mike tells me about his latest gear test, the Salen Ice Blazers for some fun.
At the AutoGuide garage, Mike puts the Dodge Charger to the test in the snow,
while I review the Lincoln Aviator black label and close things out with the mail bag.
First, a word from eBay.
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OK, Mike joins me now to talk all things Chevy Bolt.
If you are listening to this on Monday morning, you are among the first to hear
drive impressions of this new generation of Bolt.
The embargo just lifted.
That's sort of a journalism term, but we can now we're free to tell you all about it.
Mike is back and give me a little overview here of the new Bolt.
It was gone for a while, but hey, now it's back.
Yeah, it left about four years ago and it's back and it's only back for probably a year.
So the whole situation seems a little odd and it's easy to think they just
brought the Bolt back and that's that.
But they haven't.
There's over 50 percent new parts, at least new to the Bolt.
Some of them came from other vehicles, but the headlights and tail lights are different.
And you can tell that when you see regular, not regular, but first gen bolts
and there were a lot where we were filming and driving.
So they got a look that's more like the current GM Chevy EV.
So it looks a little more like the Blazer EV does and the Equinox EV does.
Inside new dashboard, 11 inch screens.
All the rage now, you know, digital driver information center, digital regular.
And it's really cool.
They have cubbies built into the dashboard, sort of like cars used to.
And they kind of brought that back in front of the passenger.
There's all these different little shelves and cubbies.
And even where the wireless phone charger is, there's one beside it and one under it.
So you could put wallet and keys and in my review, I said the materials are hard
plastic and they're not the prettiest to look at.
But that's not what this car is about.
It's about value and it's about practicality.
I say it's the IKEA of EVs.
It may not be the most luxurious thing, but it's going to last.
And it's going to be useful.
And that's what you want.
And then the biggest news by far for this car is it's got a new electrical architecture.
It's a 400 volt now, so which means it can charge at speeds of 150 kilowatt,
which is two and a half times faster.
Chevy said that probably 10 times in the presentation, but it's a big deal.
It's got an export and you can go to the Tesla Superchargers network, plug it in.
And we got to do that when we were there.
We didn't hit 150, but as anyone with an EV knows, you never hit the numbers.
The cars say they can at public chargers if other people are also charging
because you're sharing those chargers more or less.
But it did great and it was charging so fast.
And then I think it'll be a big plus and there's an adapter
if you have a home charger that's not Nax, so that's covered.
The things that I always liked about the bolt backseat that fits adults
cargo area that's pretty decent because it's a hatch.
They're all still there negatives.
It's bouncy. A lot of us found that it's got a choppy ride.
I don't remember it being like that in the old one.
And there is new suspension tuning.
So I don't know if it's just something to make it handle better
because we did get to rip it around the Holland Highway.
And it actually handles pretty well.
The electric motor has a little more horsepower, but less torque in this whole revision.
But they've given a different final drive ratio.
And Chevy says it'll do zero to 60 in under seven seconds.
And it's fractionally faster than the old one.
Personally, I didn't feel that I felt in the low end.
It was kind of missing power.
But the mid range, if you're going about 15, 20 miles an hour
and you hit that accelerator, it goes like it pulls hard.
I was spinning my tires out of every corner going up the Holland.
So yeah, it's it's not 500 e levels of fun, but it's not far off.
And it's a way more practical EV.
And oh, it just happens to be less money.
It's the cheapest priced EV in America.
So good on Chevy.
There's a couple of drawbacks, but it's basically what the bolt offered before.
Great value with a more useful interior and faster charging.
So. Yeah, I mean, I think that sums it up pretty well.
I always really like the bolt.
I think it's exactly like what Chevy should have in its portfolio,
not just for like electric cars, but just for like cars and general vehicles.
A lot of value.
It does a few things very well.
It's somewhat ubiquitous.
Like I think it works for a lot of different different lifestyles,
different walks of life.
And I think this is a microcosm of what they can do.
And obviously, in the case of the bolt, it does a few things very well.
It's affordable, it's ranges compelling.
It's almost hilarious.
You took the bolt on Mulholland.
That's amazing.
I've done other cars that were far more capable than that on that stretcher road.
And it's it's obviously it's very iconic, but it's it's pretty cool.
Off the top, we kind of talked about like, will this thing have staying power?
When they brought the bolt back, so to speak, in October of last year,
they were like, it's going to be kind of, I think the phrase was like a limited
run or something.
Do they offer any insight as to how long they're actually going to stick around
with this thing?
They didn't are because it's a twenty seven.
And I think it's going to be a long model year twenty seven.
Like I think it'll go probably what would be like a year and a half regular.
And I assume either a new bolt or something else is in the works.
This thing has so many new parts, though, they had to recrash test it
because a lot of the mounting points for the hood and the suspension
and bumpers and whatnot had to be replaced.
So it's pretty extensive.
Like there's a lot of so-called new cars that don't get that much revision.
But when asked why they were bringing it back, as you said, about their portfolio,
that was the reason they said seventy five percent of bolt owners are
conquests to GM and something like seventy two percent are staying in GM
on their next car.
So without having something down there to compliment the equinox,
they could be losing buyers because you're right, the the bolts, the city car
in size and price, but I had it 80 miles an hour on the highway and it was fine.
And with 262 miles of range, it's pushing into the distance of the next class up.
Like it's it's sort of this weird thing where it can compete
against the 500 E on price, but it can compete against the leaf
and even the new Subaru uncharted in size, but give you a huge price advantage,
especially the front wheel drive version.
So yeah, it's it's sort of it's a good all around thing.
And I mean, Chevy has the tracks, the trailblazer and the equinox on the gas side.
So why not have this?
And I would assume this is, like I said, there's something new in the works
that'll replace this down the road.
But there isn't many playing in the segment or doing something
that could still be a one car solution at that price.
That's all electric.
So I'm curious in General Motors and Chevy in particular,
has been actually a little more bullish on EVs than obviously Stellantis.
And to a certain extent, Ford Ford was sort of their first with the Mach E
and the lightning.
And then that's kind of what they did.
And, you know, we have a piece up on AutoGuide where Jim Farley is even expressing
sort of regret for it, but GM has sort of stayed the course here.
And I really like the equinox a lot.
I think the blazer is good, very good.
It's just it's a little more expensive.
And I'm not even sure you necessarily need all of like the things you get on that.
It's a very compelling product.
But now there here's a third electric car from Chevy.
I mean, this is an interesting strategy, but you're not seeing as much in 2026.
Did they say any like offer any insight as to why they really are staying
the course with EVs at this point?
Yeah, I mean, technically, it's their fourth.
If you count their monster truck, it sucks a lot of electricity.
But no, it was sort of what I said is they saw good conquest into the brand.
And we know it's not a top seller, but I'm actually glad to write the fourth thing
because it's something I was discussing with some other fellow auto writers.
The three American companies when they got in the EVs, they kind of
I don't know if they got dragged in unwilling, but they all took different approaches.
Ford tried to make these cool with the lightning and the Maki
and they were premium and pricey and fast and this and that.
And it didn't really work.
And then Dodge went fast, like our EVs are going to be performance vehicles.
They're going to be muscle cars.
And we all know that was like about that later, but that didn't really work either.
Chevy's just always kind of been like, we're going to make an electric Chevy.
We're going to make them cheap like to buy and they're going to do what they need to do.
And they don't need to have much flash.
I mean, they have the Blazer SS if you want to get into a high performance EV.
But that's always been a sort of thing where you should go.
Like people, not people, manufacturers, I think went out of their way
to make them too funky or too different.
And the ones that seem to be doing OK are the ones that
are kind of regular vehicles that just happen to be electric.
And that's very much what the bolt feels like.
It's like an electric tracks that costs more, obviously.
But it's still highly affordable.
And then if there's any discounts that come back one day and I think they will
make it even better. All right.
We're going to take a break.
We'll be right back with more on the new Chevy bolt with Mike.
We'll be right back after this.
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OK, so we're talking all things Chevy Bolt with Mike,
who just got back from California for where I imagine the weather was quite
a bit better for a drive of the bolt.
I'm curious, like you mentioned before, we've kind of done this like existential,
you know, what is the bolt?
Talk a little more about how it drove.
You know, how's the steering? How's the braking?
I always thought the bolt was actually quite fun to drive.
But what do you think of this new one?
Yeah, so the tires on the bolt made by Michelin were specifically made
for this new bolt, reborn bolt, whatever you want to call it.
And their goal was to improve braking and rolling resistance.
So sort of a double and at 17 inch wheels, two 15s, no matter what trim you get,
there's the LTE or the RS, I said in my review, it takes a little bit
getting used to driving the bolt and it's not necessarily a bolt thing.
It's that sort of upright city car thing.
You you sit very upright and kind of high.
The steering ratios pretty big, takes a lot of turns,
but it's also very direct and accurate.
And then you've got the short wheelbase.
So as you said, it's kind of fun because it responds immediately
and it has no problem changing directions when you want to change it.
And once you get used to the slight nuances of driving it,
it felt like it's driving just a subcompact car.
Like you forget almost it's electric.
Because it's so smooth if you keep off the the one pedal driving and whatnot.
And yeah, like I said, it's not quite as fun as the electric 500D,
but it's also bigger and more practical and it's designed to do more things.
The the braking was good, not that I had to overly test it,
except for a couple corners on Mahalan, where you had youngsters in 9-11s
and Corvettes not staying in their lane.
But yeah, I felt at the end of the day, I was in it for hours.
I wasn't fatigued and it just felt like, hey, here's like a small car you could live in.
Whereas that's not always the case.
And even some small gas cars after a while, like, OK,
I got from point A to point B. I need out of this thing.
I'm kind of intrigued, too, as far as just like the range that this thing offers.
I mean, just for like, when you look at that as well as just like the pure price.
I mean, again, it's a very good, you know,
compelling, you know, like consumer oriented price proposition.
It's as of this recording, it's even cheaper than the Nissan Leaf,
which I think is, you know, you're going to get some new people into the brand
for this, which I think is really good for Chevy.
I think also like they have things like the infotainment system looks actually solid.
At times, I've been frustrated with some of the the various GM brands
with their infotainment system. How did that work for you?
Were you able to like pair your phone if you wanted?
Was it fairly simple?
I know they're they have their ways.
Let's put it that way.
Yeah, so there's no Apple CarPlay because it's a GM EV,
which I still think is to this day is a massive miss.
And they're just saying now Apple Music, as well as data,
they're giving you eight years free in the US plans.
So they're doing everything by giving you CarPlay, which to me,
I'm starting to think like, how much are you spending on the data
and the Apple Music compared to just paying to put it in?
But as I've speculated for well over a year, someone somewhere made a deal
with Google that forbid them to put it in and they can't go back.
So it's not even that money I think at this point.
I think it's a a licensing thing, which is crazy.
And I'm sure whenever this expires, they'll suddenly be like,
hey, we listen to consumers, they brought CarPlay back.
It's like, no, your exclusivity contract expired and you brought it back.
But the system is basically the one out of the Equinox EV.
And it's easy enough to use otherwise.
They had pre-programmed routes for us.
So you just turned on the nav and off you went.
So that was great.
I mean, we're going to talk about Dodge later with the UConnect,
which is arguably the best system on the market.
So it's not as good as that one, but nothing really is.
But it's easy enough.
How you said you're curious about driving.
And I'm actually really curious for you to drive it around your roads,
because I want to see the suspension thing that I noticed,
what it's going to be like on some of Michigan's finest out there.
Yeah, it's pothole season right now, the time of year,
when you almost need to have off-road tires just to try to even navigate things.
So little cars like this can kind of get jostled around.
So yeah, I mean, that'll be an interesting thing.
That's a very fair point to raise.
I kind of like how it looks too.
Just we didn't really touch too much on the design,
but I think it looks pretty good, pretty sharp car.
Maybe not as sharp as the Equinox,
which I think is just a classic design.
And I think the Blazer, which is obviously more expensive,
but I like them both.
And this is, it's a little planer, but I don't know.
I think it looks pretty good.
What do you think?
Yeah, the new lights, I like better than the old lights
when I see them side by side, but the body hasn't changed.
But I mean, it's the nature of the class, right?
Like if you're trying to maximize space in a small footprint,
you're always going to have these tall green houses
that you can't get too stylish with.
I mean, you look historically Toyota Echo, Nissan Versa Note.
Like it's just, that's how they're going to be.
So I think with what Chevy has to work with,
to have six foot tall adults fit comfortably in the back seat,
they've done a good job.
They've made it, it reminds me more sort of
how Honda did with the fit where they made it look like,
yeah, it's a tall little hatch wagon-y thing,
but it's kind of cool looking and sleek
as opposed to too bubbly or too awkwardly proportioned.
So kudos to them on that.
All right, sounds good.
Anything else about the bolt that we should know?
No, I think we've covered every aspect, which is good.
Like I said, if someone's looking to get entry into an EV
that is more than just something to get to and from work,
this should be able to handle that.
So it's worth a look.
There's obviously, it's not perfect
and there's compromises you've got to live with,
but at that price point, you should expect them.
All right, you're listening to the AutoGuide show
presented by eBay Motors.
eBay has reinvented vehicle buying
from click to curb, everything's covered.
With their new secure purchase,
eBay isn't just where you find your car,
it's where you buy it, start to finish.
Title, financing, registration, delivery, it's all built in.
And eligible vehicle purchases are backed up
by up to $100,000 in protection.
This is what modern car buying looks like.
Get your next ride on eBay.
eBay, things people love.
Secure purchase is powered by Carmel Dealer Services LLC
and eBay subsidiary.
All right, staying with me this week.
Mike is going to talk about some Ice Blazer winter tires.
What a spectacular name for winter tires.
Let's talk about these things.
It's been quite the winter, that's for sure.
What have you been doing with them?
So this was, well, yeah, it is another line in the Salem
family of winter tires, the Ice Blazer.
So these are the WS, let me just get this right.
WST2 LT.
So as the LT says, these are for SUVs or maybe small trucks.
I had these on a Subaru Ascent a couple of years ago
because we wanted to obviously put winters on.
We needed a tire that could handle the weight and the size.
They were 18 inch and they were sort of what we've come to expect
with the Ice Blazer.
In the snow, the slush, the ice, they performed very well.
They performed as well as tires costing much more,
almost double the price.
Trade-offs, a little noisy, a little vibrati compared to, say,
the higher end tires.
But again, it's one of those.
What's more important, having the ultimate premium tire
and paying the most to have the absolute best experience
or saving a lot of money and living with some compromises.
And I had it for multiple winters.
One winter, we had 20 inches of snow fall in two hours.
It was like a record and it was up over the front bumper
and sills of the Ascent and didn't matter.
It just plowed right through it, no problem.
So yeah, it's another one of those tires where I didn't have it
long enough to test the entire life.
But through two seasons, it looked like it was going to go
probably at least three, four more.
And at that point, you're probably ready to replace tires anyway.
So it's not like it was low quality and disintegrating
fast or anything.
So yeah, if you're looking for a value of tire for your larger SUV,
I recommend these were pretty good.
So it's pretty good.
I think as you look at just the vast catalog of winter tires
out there, I mean, really price, capability,
there's all sorts of different options for you.
Who would you think would be a good potential customer
for this particular flavor of snow tires?
So I think the class I had it on, the Ascent,
so I think the sort of historically called midsize
three or SUVs, they're pretty big now.
Probably someone who's bought one used and it probably came with
hopefully good tires to begin with, but doesn't have winters.
And you're looking for a high quality new set,
but you're probably not wanting to spend a ton
because you didn't buy the vehicle new either.
Like there's probably a budget aspect to your vehicle ownership.
So yeah, that's what I would say.
Like this is a value orientated but still good winter tire.
Someone who's buying like a Lexus TX or a QX60,
probably not going to get this kind of tire,
but someone who, like I said, is getting an off lease pathfinder.
Yeah, this would be perfect for that sort of situation.
All right, sounds good.
It's always interesting to hear with the latest gear
you've been testing.
We'll be right back with more when we go inside the AutoGuide Garage.
All right, so welcome inside the AutoGuide Garage.
I don't know if it's an actual place or not,
if it's figurative or literal, but I have,
I recently tested the Lincoln Aviator Black Label,
which I think is just an absolutely beautiful crossover.
And Mike, you were on the first drive of the Dodge Charger RT.
Might seem like we've already driven versions of the Charger.
We have driven some of them,
but Mike got to go to Stowe Vermont to drive the Charger.
I'll kick things off with the Aviator.
We'll take flight, if you will, with the Aviator.
This was the Black Label, which is just an absolutely beautiful vehicle.
It gets close to 90,000 quite quickly with Black Label trim,
but you get a lot, so that's something to consider.
Mine was actually Whisper Blue Metallic Clear Coat,
which is just a very attractive understated shade of blue.
Mine also had the 3.0-liter twin-turbo V6 10-speed automatic.
Inside was what they call Tan Savannah Leather,
so just that kind of understated, but also just like buttery tan leather.
Really nice place to spend time.
The weather was still pretty good when I was testing this,
kind of right before the teeth of winter set in,
and it's quiet, as you would expect for a Lincoln.
The 3.0-liter V6 is, I think, actually pretty potent for a vehicle that size,
so it has some giddy up.
I like the chassis setup of the Aviator.
I wouldn't call this thing sporty,
but it shares some sort of athletic parts with other
Fords that are a little sportier, so pretty solid vehicle in that sense.
Again, it's a pretty, I'd say, also comfortable on the road as well,
all-wheel drive, and it had a bunch of the different packages too,
things that give it that extra panache,
which I'm not even sure it necessarily needs,
but I generally enjoyed my time in the Aviator.
I think it's a very compelling vehicle in that segment.
I think it's something that has been part of the rebirth,
I'd say, of Lincoln in the last decade or so,
where it's become something that's a bit of an objective desire.
I tend to put it pretty high in the segment.
I think many of our colleagues in the automotive media
also give it favorable reviews,
and I know you and I were talking offline about,
what's the best Lincoln right now,
and I think you kind of landed on the Nautilus, which that's fair.
I think the Navigator is pretty good.
I'm going to actually get into one of those in about six weeks here,
give or take, first week of May, so that'll be fun,
but I'd say don't sleep on the Aviator.
I think it's a really strong vehicle that offers a lot of value,
and it's attractive.
It's just a very nice crossover.
Yeah, I haven't driven an Aviator in quite a while,
and I got a laugh at the Aviator Black Label.
I mean, it sounds like we're talking about alcohol,
or is the Aviator Black Label whisper blue,
like some sort of new sunglasses or a travel bag?
It just doesn't sound like a car, but that three liter,
so that's basically the Raptor engine just slightly detuned,
so that's got to be pretty good in a vehicle that size,
because that's way later than an F-150, I imagine.
It definitely has some get up and go.
You're talking about 400 horsepower in this thing,
which is, again, to your point,
kind of shocking to have that much horsepower,
although in this day and age, 300 horsepower is the new 200,
so it is still a fairly good sized SUV.
So hey, I think with Lincoln's,
it's not that you're trying to have all this raw power,
you just want to have it like when you need it.
Going back to almost like, they're always throwing back
like the ethos of those 1950s cotton nettles,
which of course had V8s.
They weren't rocket ships, but back then,
if you put your foot to the floor, it would really get up and go,
and I think that's kind of the vibe they're going for here.
I'd perhaps flattering them with this,
but like, almost like Bentley's are not necessarily rocket ships
or Rolls Royces, but they're more than,
they're not underpowered, put it that way, so.
Yeah, the old Cadillacs and Lincoln's of the 60s
that had like eight liter V8s that made like 300 horsepower,
but like 9,000 pound feet of torque,
and you could just, if it was you driving by yourself,
or with 75 people in the car, it would go the same speed.
Yeah, yeah, those, the American sort of luxury barges
of the 60s and 70s, and then you got into the 80s,
where the engines were still barely big,
but they had like no power, it seemed like.
And it's modern Lincoln, so you get screen for days, pillar to pillar.
Screen for days, and I tend to think that's,
thanks for bringing that up.
I actually generally like the Lincoln screen set up right now.
I think it's fairly easy to use.
Some of their fellow luxury and premium competitors,
I think are actually a good deal denser.
Like you just really have to dive deep to do basic functions.
I think this is actually pretty solid.
I liked it.
And everybody in the vehicle takes note.
And like especially, I was driving this,
like the days are getting longer now, it's spring,
but back then it's dark at like, you know, six o'clock, you know, tops.
So it's like, you really get that almost like cinematic,
colorful feel of what this thing could do.
So that's, that's kind of cool.
So for all I like it, I think it's, you know, top five or six in class.
I know Lincoln hates when I bring this up and I've said it before,
but that dash to dash screen thing, the three sort of distinct segments,
and it's so easy to customize and straightforward.
And I really think it's, you know, for the certain demographic
that might be a little technologically behind the curve can easily set this up.
That just might happen to also be a Lincoln demographic.
So good on them for making it easy enough to use.
Yeah, a couple notes here is I dig more deeply into my phone here about
some of the details inside.
I think with a Lincoln, you are looking at like the details of the interior.
And I was writing here just how much I like the details, like the trim pieces,
the speakers are kind of integrated into the doors.
They just, they got a lot of, a lot of things right here.
If there are ways that it reminds me a little bit of almost like what Mazda does
with the way it's like, their insides are a little bit not like totally over the top,
but they're just, they feel premium.
And Lincoln's approach is a little bit different.
So that's maybe kind of a weird example, but yeah, I liked it.
Solid vehicle, somebody asked, I would recommend it.
I think the navigator obviously is more, you know, that's more is more,
with things like that, it's a bigger vehicle, it's even more over the top.
But solid vehicle drives very well, sporty kind of suspension setup.
And I liked it a lot.
So I guess the key to sporty vehicles, let's segue over to the charger,
which you drove that in snowy Vermont of all places.
Why, why were you doing that?
So I went for the officials, the charger six pack RT, not to be confused with the six pack
scat pack or the Daytona scat pack, or I don't know if the Daytona RT is out yet,
or if it's ever coming, but the RT is the entry point in the six pack.
So it has the three liter inline six turbo hurricane engine, makes 120 horsepower dodge,
pointed out multiple times during the press intro, the most powerful standard horsepower
on a muscle car, which yeah, but it's like what against the Mustang, because what else is left?
And yeah, it's more power than the turbo four for sure.
And we drove it to the O'Neill rally school, which is pretty cool.
And the point of it was to drive the new car on the road, but then also to drive the all wheel drive
scat pack RT. And if you felt like it just for the heck of it, the Hellcat Durango was also there
on the skid pads and slalom in the snow on winter tires, and it was a ton of fun. It was just,
it's fun getting in a, you know, 40 hundred pound car and just drifting around in circles.
And in sport mode, it does it so well stability control on actually helps in the skid pad situation
where it was like ice snow, slush snow, ice snow, slush back and forth, turning it off,
you could sustain a drift better. But as soon as the condition stopped, it was harder to correct.
The problem was driving to the track. The whole point was the on road dry section,
but it snowed the night before. And then the morning we drove, it was all ice and slush,
and we were on all season tires. So we actually got to kind of feel the dynamic of the vehicle more
and the all wheel drive system. And it's really flawless, the all wheel drive system,
if you keep it in the snow 50 50 mode or even in the auto, which is like 60 40 unless there's slip.
It drove really well for the tires. The only time you remember it at all seasons was when you
were breaking or turning, which is sort of why you want winters. But when it came to trying to
get grip to get motivated, the system did really well. I never driven the six pack. I know you
did before you drove the scrap pack, but I've driven the EV a couple of times and I've always
liked the new charger. It's interior is funky, but not. Dodge has a good job of making it like
a dodge where it's like anywhere else to be over the top. But in the charger, it works.
And it still feels kind of premium. And the vehicle itself feels so solid and drives well.
And now on the six pack, you've scrubbed, you know, hundreds of pounds, which is funny to say
in something that still weighs 4,800 pounds, but you can feel it and it's so much more responsive.
And it's the one I always thought I'd want. And after driving it, it's like, yeah, give me the
$50,000 RT and I'd be happy. The sky packs even cooler and more powerful, but the extra 130 horsepower
I didn't overly feel. The pricing though is minimal. So, you know, probably I would get the
sky pack and the two door just because it's super cool. But a four door 420 horsepower car that's
priced at that point, pretty nice. And standard all wheel drive. And if you want, you can hit
a button on the screen and it's rear drive and you can do burnouts all day long or drifts or
whatever you feel like. And the engine sounds pretty nice for an inline six that they've done a good
job tuning it to sound deeper than it is. I mean, you're kind of preaching to the choir here. I'm
actually as far as press cars this specific week, I'm actually not in one. I have a Ford F-150 Lobo
coming up teaser, but when I'm not in press cars, I drive a V6 2006 Dodge Charger. It has just over
50,000 miles on it because frankly, most of the time I'm fortunate to get to test some things.
So this is sort of a car I just pull out of the bullpen. Pentastar V6, there's literally a button
where if you want to just turn off traction control and spin the tires, you can do that except
it's a real button, not a screen. So I mean, to me, that's like the spiritual successor to like
the Pentastar V6 rear wheel drive charger. It looks like a car. It looks like the charger.
It's got adequate power. It sounds okay. And it's got everything you need as an enthusiast who's
interested in buying the car, but maybe you don't either have the need or the means. I got this car
when I was like 22 to go all the way up to what was then the V8, but in this case, it's like the
hurricane or electric or things like that, the higher up put hurricane. So I mean, I think in
that sense, Dodge has done a good job with this one to kind of play to, well, its base and keep
people engaged, keep having that more like entry point into the charger, which is what you want to
so then they come back and they're like, Oh, you're doing a Hellcat or something. This is great.
I'll drop 80 grand on that. Sounds good. You already got me before. It's actually interesting
to bring that up because I would say inflation in the car world, not a real inflation. It's
probably not priced much different than the Pentastar chargers were back in the day. Yet
you get a hundred and like 30 more horsepower and pretty much double the torque, which is crazy
in a vehicle that only weighs a little bit more. And yeah, it's a great, I don't think we'll see
them at rental lots like we used to, but I could see myself looking at one and a couple years used
if someone gets out of a lease and there's a good deal on one. It's, yeah, it's well done. Now,
will they put a regular Hemi back in the car? We know the Hellcat's coming. And I would be surprised
now if the 392 comes since they're putting out another vehicles too. But I mean, there's no
reason to need the Hemi. It'd be pointless. But as we saw with the Ram, people will pay more money
for a less powerful, heavier, worse fuel efficient engine for the sound. So who knows.
I really like the Hurricane. I've driven it in many Stalantis products at this point. And I think
it's really solid. I think it sounds good. The performance is tremendous. I happen to really
enjoy straight six engines. I think it's just a, it's almost like an old school thing going back
to the 20s and 30s that I'm really pleased to see Stalantis and like the Germans kind of bring
back. Yeah, I mean, I think we'll see. I really enjoyed, you know, the charger. I drove it
Nactoid testing last fall. I thought I drove the Scat Pack, as you mentioned. I liked it.
I think it's really solid. It's a lot of fun. So I mean, I think what we're seeing now is the
charger lineup kind of, you know, really be laid out here at this point. I don't, you know,
Tim Kaniscus has said this and I somewhat agree with him. I don't think it's just a naturally
aspirated Hemi fits like from either a business or a performance standpoint, when you're getting
all this power from the straight six and of course the electric. So you're going to, what are you
going to do? You got to make the Hemi the entry level. That doesn't make sense. So his point is
that it's got to be like supercharged, which means you're in Hellcat territory or, yeah,
suppose demon. But I also feel like you could be missing something there too. Like I would love a
naturally aspirated. It was like the 392, right? Like that was just to me such a guttural awesome
engine. But, you know, talking out of both sides of my mouth here, you do got to find a way to get
that number to measure up. And there's only so much like horsepower you could get when you're
going on motor, right? You know, without doing some crazy things. So at least it would fit between
the two hurricanes. So if you could send my package of price down, I'll get to pull up some old name
from the past. But yeah, with the RAM, it made sense because people wanted the naturally aspirated
V8 that maybe tow a lot of beat on their truck more. They're worried about the turbo, but in a car,
other than the noise. But like you said, it sounds good. I actually have a video coming out
hopefully later this week that will show the sound of the engine from the cockpit view to
give people an idea what it sounds like. Alright, sounds good. Well, Mike's story should be up by
the time you're listening to this sort of be up this week. Definitely check that out if you're
interested in more charger stuff. I interviewed Dodge CEO Matt McLear a few weeks back, scroll back
on your phone. You should be able to find that episode of the AutoGuide show. And also I drove
the charger as well. So if you're curious on my take, maybe you agree, maybe you don't, please get
in the comments and let both of us know. We'd like to hear what you think of the new charger.
Alright, we will be right back after this with the mailbag.
Alright, so this week's question is a timely one. The Hyundai Ioniq 6 is going away. The question
is actually again pretty straightforward. What do you think of the demise of the Hyundai Ioniq 6?
If you missed it, the regular, so to speak, 6 is going away and just the Ioniq 6N will carry on,
which I think is kind of weird in many ways. But I guess it makes some sense,
because it seems like the body style of the Ioniq 6 never quite resonated with consumers.
I personally liked it. I mean, referencing like straight 6 and things like that that go back
to a bygone era. You know, I was here for the teardrop styling. I thought it was beautiful. I
had a couple different press loans with it. I gave it high marks. I thought the interior was good.
Perhaps there wasn't enough to differentiate it in a good way from the Ioniq 5, which it seems
like people of our sort of generation just, they love it for that kind of like Tron, 1980s,
Gen X vibe that they're going for. I think you almost have to kind of want to see that a little
bit like it's a little bit overplayed. But I really like the Ioniq 6. I'm sad to see it go in its
conventional form, but it does give that end variant something that is truly special. You
can get this almost like really powered up sports sedan. So I don't know. I don't know if you have
that strong a take or not. But what do you think of this news? I like the end as well. But I think
it proved, I mean, Tesla's same situation with the rest. The electric cars aren't doing as well.
People are really going into SUVs. And I think the cars that are going to be successful or are
being successful are at the lower end because that's sort of where cars are, right? Like we have a
lot of compact cars left, but we don't have many midsize cars left. So the pricing of it, I think
to your point, was too close to the 5. The reason the end lives on, I personally think it's just
this year. They probably already built a bunch of ends and they just want to sell them. And there's
a better profit center around that. And then probably when they go away, it goes away. It allows
them to have another halo performance car. I mean, sort of like the Golf, right? Golf's long
dead, but the GTI and Golf R live on. So hopefully I'm wrong and it does stay for a couple of years,
but it's sad to see it go because I didn't mind the styling and I really liked how it drove.
But at that point, people are getting close to luxury EVs or they're just going to an SUV. So
clearly it wasn't succeeding and I'm sure tariffs weren't helping it much. So that's the end of that,
I guess. All right. I think we can leave it there. That's the end of that. That'll be for this week's
show. That's all the time we have. Thank you for listening. If you enjoy the AutoGuide show,
please like, share, and subscribe. We're, of course, available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify,
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About this episode
The discussion centers on the return of the Chevy Bolt, highlighting its extensive updates including over 50% new parts, a refreshed interior with practical storage, and a new 400-volt electrical architecture enabling faster charging. Despite some ride quality criticisms, the Bolt remains an affordable, practical EV with a solid range and improved performance. The hosts explore GM's EV strategy, contrasting it with competitors and emphasizing Chevy's focus on value and broad appeal rather than flashiness. The episode also touches on the Bolt's market positioning and potential longevity amid GM's evolving electric lineup.
This week we’re diving into the curious case of the Chevy Bolt. Once hailed as a game-changer, GM killed it off, brought it back and now it’s the most affordable EV you can buy. How long will it last this time around? Host Greg Migliore catches up with Mike Schlee, who is just back from the Bolt’s launch, and we break it all down.
Then Mike explains his latest gear test, a set of Sailun IceBlazer winter tires.
In the AutoGuide Garage, Mike puts the Dodge Charger to the test in the snow, while Greg reviews the Lincoln Aviator Black Label.
We close things out with the mailbag, where we discuss the demise of the Hyundai Ioniq 6.
