Jim Prueter

2019 Lexus RC F — F is like M, V, RS and AMG

By Jim Prueter
MotorwayAmerica.com

(February 19, 2019) First introduced back in 2015 the Lexus RC F was developed to compete against the best high-performance coupes out there — Audi RS, BMW M, Mercedes-Benz AMG and Cadillac V — that deliver rocket-sled acceleration, tenacious handling and inexorable braking. These coupes come wrapped in specialty sport-designed, aerodynamic, athletic bodies, with indulgent interiors and some of the best heavily bolstered chairs you’ll ever sit in.

GMC Sierra Denali — No need for a German sedan to drive luxuriously

By Jim Prueter
MotorwayAmerica.com

(February 18, 2019) Pickup trucks are better than ever and the hottest selling vehicle segment on the market thanks to America’s growing love affair, an insatiable appetite for them and a strong economy. It also helps that most automakers have dramatically upped their game with new entrants like the return of the Ford Ranger and Honda Ridgeline mid-sized trucks. Still others like Ram, Chevrolet and GMC are all new for 2019.

You pick: Iconic Toyota Land Cruiser or luxurious Lexus LX

By Jim Prueter
MotorwayAmerica.com

(February 14, 2019) The iconic Land Cruiser SUV is not only Toyota’s most expensive vehicle — starting at just over $86,000 — it’s also their longest running model, dating back to 1954. The current generation driven here has been in production since 2007, with only minor changes during that time.

Perfect for everyday duty and getaways on the Apache Trail

By Jim Prueter
MotorwayAmerica.com

(February 11, 2019) When winter does arrive in Arizona, it’s never the news making polar vortex that sweeps into the Midwest, characterized by high winds and chill factor temperatures customarily 50° below zero with blowing snow. Rather, it comes with gray skies a bit of drizzle, and a 40° cold (for Arizona), wind that rattles through the mesquite trees and ocotillo cactus that chased away my plans to drive the 2019 Toyota Highlander up Arizona’s Apache Trail for the day.

You’ll fall in love with the 2019 Volkswagen GTI Rabbit Edition

By Jim Prueter
MotorwayAmerica.com

(February 7, 2019) To begin, let’s try to clear this part up: The Volkswagen tested here is named the Volkswagen Golf GTI 2.0T Rabbit Edition. Yes, the Rabbit name is back as a heritage-inspired edition, new for the 2019 model year. The original Volkswagen GTI made its first American appearance back in 1983 and is now in its seventh-generation.

2019 Acura MDX A-SPEC — An age defying product for the MDX

By Jim Prueter
MotorwayAmerica.com

(January 28, 2019) I’m inclined to think that when it comes to the automobile business, the slight difference between considerable success and downright failure is not altogether an imaginary phenomenon. Acura, the upscale premium brand of vehicles from Honda, has experienced both phenomena in its history. Take, for example, the effluvium, if you will, of the ZDX, Vigor, EL or RL.

2019 Mercedes AMG E53 Coupe — E is for Eros

By Jim Prueter
MotorwayAmerica.com

(January 26, 2019) PHOENIX — Please excuse my being didactic, but to fully appreciate the 2019 Mercedes E53 coupe, it will help the reader to have a modicum of high-performance automotive knowledge, and an interest that goes beyond getting from point A to point B with a reasonable amount of gas and least amount of trouble-free driving.

AMG GLS63 4Matic — Too much of a good thing is sensational

By Jim Prueter
MotorwayAmerica.com

(January 21, 2019) As it is, midwinters are pretty easy in Arizona, with balmy temperatures and roads free of snow, ice and salt. Making it even sweeter is spending a week test driving the Mercedes-AMG GLS63 flagship SUV, with a massive masterpiece of a handcrafted 5.5-liter bi-turbo direct-injection engine producing 577 horsepower and 561 lb-ft torque of V-8 performance under the hood.

2019 Lexus LC 500 — Sensuous good looks, grand touring performance

By Jim Prueter
MotorwayAmerica.com

(January 19, 2019) First introduced last year, the LC 500 sports coupe is a new product for Lexus and, in some ways, a new line of business. One could dispute that by citing the now defunct, high-performance 553-horsepower V-10 powered Lexus LFA coupe that debuted back in 2012 with a price starting at $375,875. But since only 500 LFAs were produced, all as a 2012 model, I’m betting most have never heard of the growling, pulsating, tire-ripping LFA and it would be unfair to compare it to the new LC 500.

We spend a week with the 2019 2.0-liter Jeep Wrangler Rubicon

By Jim Prueter
MotorwayAmerica.com

(January 13, 2019) It was just over a year ago that we first drove the significantly updated and refined Jeep Wrangler at its media introduction in Tucson, Arizona. Rumors of this “new” Wrangler had been the subject of speculation for years, with loyalists cautiously optimistic that the iconic off-roader would at the very least maintain its heritage.