Test Listing on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Toyota tops Consumer Reports best, worst used car values

We often mock Toyota for building boring, soulless cars, but a new study by Consumer Reports suggests that regardless of whether that's true, the company has some of the best used cars on the market. In its report on used cars from 2004-2013, the Japanese automaker had 11 vehicles among its brands on the list - more than any other automaker.
CR breaks the list down by cost and vehicle size, and Toyota has at least one entry at every price point and in nearly every segment. To score a recommendation, a vehicle had to perform well in the magazine's initial tests and score above-average reliability results. It also tried to only suggest cars with electronic stability control. Of the 28 recommended vehicles, Honda/Acura had the second most mentions at six, and Ford, Hyundai and Subaru managed two each.
The Detroit brands also made it to the list, but not in a positive way. Consumer Reports compiled a list of 22 vehicles it wouldn't recommend because "they have multiple years of much-worse-than-average overall reliability." General Motors had the most unrecommended models on the list at six, but Chrysler and Ford weren't far behind, with five cars each from their brands not making the grade. The full list of recommendations is available on CR's website.

2020 Acura TLX PMC Edition Driveway Test | Shine bright like a ... ruby

Valencia Red Pearl. That’s the story with the 2020 Acura TLX PMC Edition. We got to see this limited edition TLX sedan at the New York Auto Show last year, but now itÂ’s in my driveway. The show lights donÂ’t do this paint justice. The setting sun reflecting off the deep and vibrant red ... now that's how this car is meant to be gazed upon. Like I mentioned in the video walkaround above, the TLX PMC Edition is hand-assembled at the Performance Manufacturing Center in Ohio. The body-in-white is trundled across town to the NSX supercar factory where those technicians do the rest to make it road-worthy. All 360 of them are being wrapped in their own special car covers and delivered to dealers on an enclosed truck to make sure it arrives without a single exterior flaw. About that paint Valencia Red Pearl is a $6,000 paint option on the Acura NSX. On the TLX PMC, itÂ’s $0. The paint process itself is time consuming and intensive. Acura says the vibrancy and high-color saturation is thanks to nano pigment technology.  “Engineered using mica, metal flake and super-high transparency nano pigments, the paint is applied using PMC's advanced robotic paint system in multiple base coats to enhance color intensity. This is followed by two clear coats to increase the paint's luster,” AcuraÂ’s description reads. 2020 Acura TLX PMC Edition View 43 Photos The five-day process is well worth it. IÂ’ve tried my best to illustrate it through photos and video, but itÂ’s still not representative enough of this red paint. It has a depth and shimmer to it, as if the body panels were a swimming pool, awaiting a cannonball dive into the deep end. This car being an exclusive, special edition vehicle hasnÂ’t destroyed the value proposition either. In actuality, the TLX PMC is the one to buy if you want a fully-loaded TLX. Acura doesnÂ’t allow you to option the A-Spec and Advance packages together with the standard TLX, but both of those are included with the PMC Edition. If you were able to combine all those packages, the final price would ring up to $50,650. The final price on our test car is $50,945, including the $1,995 destination charge on the sticker. Basically, youÂ’re getting every option in the book at around list price, plus all of the special PMC Edition extras for next to nothing. Why yes, of course weÂ’ll have the PMC Edition. It drives just like the TLX A-Spec — check out our full review of that car here.

2019 Infiniti QX50 vs. compact luxury SUV rivals: How they compare

With apologies to the EX35, or whatever it was eventually renamed, Infiniti has been without a proper, competitive entry in the compact luxury SUV segment. You know, the segment that's growing faster in sales and entries than any other? To say the 2019 Infiniti QX50 is long awaited would therefore be an understatement. At first glance and drive, the new QX50 would indeed seem to be wildly more competitive than its predecessor, which come to think of it, was eventually called the QX50 as well. This one is based on an all-new front-wheel-drive platform, and although it lacks the inherent verve of the old, rear-drive- and 370Z-based one, the resulting increase in cabin space should be a welcome tradeoff. In fact, as you'll see below, the QX50 has gone from one of the smallest compact SUVs to the most spacious. How does it stack up in every other way? Say, against the segment's four best-selling entries last year: the 2018 Lexus NX 300, 2018 Acura RDX, 2018 Audi Q5 and 2018 BMW X3. On paper at least, really well as it turns out. Let's go to the spreadsheet! Discover and compare other luxury crossovers with our Car Finder and Compare tools. Comparing engines, drivetrains and transmissions With the exception of the Acura, all of the contenders come with 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engines. As you can see, the Infiniti is the heavyweight amongst the four-bangers, boasting the most horsepower and torque. The Acura V6 nips it by 11 hp, but the QX50 is still the overall torque champ. Plus, as we documented in the QX50 first drive, the Infiniti's new VC-Turbo engine is also the most technologically advanced. The Lexus is the wimp of the group and is also the second-heaviest, which isn't exactly the ideal scenario. The Infiniti is the only one in the group to feature a continuously variable transmission. That's not going to generate much applause around here. The BMW tops the gear count with eight, while the Audi is the only entry with a dual-clutch automated manual. The Acura and Lexus have only six gears, but they're good transmissions and it's not like their fuel economy is off the pace. The Audi and BMW come standard with all-wheel drive, while the others offer a choice of front- or all-wheel drive. Comparing cargo and interior space The new front-wheel-drive platform is paying dividends inside for the 2019 QX50, as it now boasts the most maximum cargo space at 65.1 cubic feet.