Latest / In Wheel Time Podcast / Four-Door Camaro? | Ram 1500 | Auto History | Driving Destinations | Lexus IS 350

Transcript

Four-Door Camaro? | Ram 1500 | Auto History | Driving Destinations | Lexus IS 350 · In Wheel Time Podcast

• 0:05
  unknown: As always.
• 0:06
  Don Armstrong: Time now for Jeff's car culture.
• 0:08
  Don Armstrong: Four-door Camaros.
• 0:10
  Don Armstrong: Well, you know what?
• 0:11
  Don Armstrong: Guess what?
• 0:12
  Don Armstrong: I read a story that Ford is going to build a four-door Mustang.
• 0:18
  Don Armstrong: So imagine that.
• 0:19
  Don Armstrong: Well, let's just hold on to the end of the story, will we?
• 0:22
  Jeff Dziekan: Okay, well, General Motors has confirmed an ambitious five-year product offensive with dozens of you updated models in the works.
• 0:28
  Jeff Dziekan: And while the finer points are still locked away for now, reports suggest that Chevrolet could re-enter the performance sedance segment with an all-new flagship wearing the Camaro name.
• 0:38
  Jeff Dziekan: Again, uh for a badge that has always meant two doors and a back seat nobody really wanted to sit in, unless your biology class, uh, that would make a massive departure.
• 0:47
  Jeff Dziekan: A four-door fastback brakes with everything in the nameplate has stood for, yet it could also give Chevrolet the halo car it lacks once you climb down the Corvette lineup.
• 0:57
  Jeff Dziekan: These images, what we'll see here in this uh the segment here, uh show everything that could make the case work from sheet metal right down to the what might sit under the hood.
• 1:08
  Jeff Dziekan: Rather than mimicking a previous Camaro, the exclusive design study adapts cleaner, more sophisticated aesthetics up front with a razor thin, full LED light bar, stretches across the nose, and a bold hexagonal grille, while sculptured lower sections exude an aggressive stance.
• 1:25
  Jeff Dziekan: In profile, a sweeping fastback roofline flows seamless into a short deck, creating elegant proportions despite its four-door layout.
• 1:34
  Jeff Dziekan: The front fender sport uh an arrow blade and emphasizes a strong axle to dash ratio, while deep scalloped doors pronounce rear haunches and muscular surfacing.
• 1:44
  Jeff Dziekan: Those riders at Chevrolet.
• 1:45
  Jeff Dziekan: I know.
• 1:46
  Jeff Dziekan: This AI stuff is crazy.
• 1:48
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh at the end, uh I'm sorry, at the rear, Ovid triplet element LED taillights are joined by a glass, gloss black panel that highlights his broad shoulders, a sizable diffuser, quad exhaust outlets, and the LFA inspired vertical air vents complete the bold look.
• 2:06
  Jeff Dziekan: Chevrolet's Corvette, Equinox, Blazor EV provide plenty of clues to what you're looking at.
• 2:11
  Jeff Dziekan: Performance flagship interior could head.
• 2:16
  Jeff Dziekan: The expected curved digital instrument cluster and expansive central infotainment display running GM's latest Google-based software.
• 2:26
  Jeff Dziekan: AI-powered voice control and integrated navigation will be integrated.
• 2:31
  Jeff Dziekan: The automaker's stubborn approach to be omitting the Apple CarPlay and Android Auto needs a little bit of rethinking.
• 2:38
  Jeff Dziekan: Bringing the Camaro nameplate to a four-door layout would deliver a genuine rear seat accommodation in a sizable lift back cargo area.
• 2:46
  Jeff Dziekan: Look for heavily bolstered sports seats, premium materials, and performance-focused driving modes.
• 2:53
  Jeff Dziekan: GM has yet to reveal any mechanical information, but possibility that it could use an evolution of the rear drive alpha platform underpinning the current Cadillac CT5.
• 3:04
  Jeff Dziekan: It could adopt a 270 horsepower two-liter turbocharged four-cylinder or a 350 horsepower 3-liter twin turbo V6 in a mild hybrid assist.
• 3:14
  Jeff Dziekan: VA powered an SS should be the uh uh, I'm sorry, take that back.
• 3:18
  Jeff Dziekan: The VA power in SS and ZL1 could feature the CT5 Blackwing Supercharger, 6.2 liter LT4, producing 668 horsepower and 659 foot pounds of torque.
• 3:31
  Jeff Dziekan: All versions would receive a 10-speed auto with a line lock and wash control and the six-speed uh manual for eight-cylinder models only.
• 3:39
  Jeff Dziekan: Should Chevrolet Greenlight a four-door Camaro?
• 3:41
  Jeff Dziekan: That's up to you.
• 3:42
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh, it would compete with an in-house Cadillac CT5, the Mustang's long-rumored Mustang Mach 4 sedan.
• 3:50
  Jeff Dziekan: There you go, Don.
• 3:51
  Jeff Dziekan: Others' rivals would include an uh upper echelon offerings such as a BMW 5 series and an Audi 6 four-door.
• 4:00
  Jeff Dziekan: Pie in the sky thinking, well, could be realistic hope.
• 4:05
  Jeff Dziekan: That's my story.
• 4:06
  Jeff Dziekan: I don't know.
• 4:07
  Don Armstrong: Here's my thought.
• 4:09
  Don Armstrong: So, what about Cadillac?
• 4:10
  Don Armstrong: Now they're supposed to be the performance.
• 4:12
  Don Armstrong: Now that granted, they've got all of the performance in a four-door sedan, correct?
• 4:18
  Don Armstrong: In the CTS.
• 4:19
  Don Armstrong: Yep.
• 4:19
  Don Armstrong: Yeah.
• 4:20
  Don Armstrong: Big motor, big stuff.
• 4:21
  Don Armstrong: So the only company within the General Motors umbrella would be Chevrolet that doesn't have a performance vehicle and a four-door, because they've got a two-door in the Corvette.
• 4:35
  Don Armstrong: Right.
• 4:36
  Don Armstrong: So I could see, I hate to say, I could see the Camaro going to a four-door.
• 4:42
  Jeff Dziekan: Yeah, and in the story, it says that you look down the Corvette line and the Cadillac line, and then boom, there's that four-door Chevrolet.
• 4:49
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh, and and looking at these photos that are produced for this, they're all renderings.
• 4:53
  Jeff Dziekan: There's there's not a production car or there's nothing built.
• 4:56
  Jeff Dziekan: These are renderings of your equinox and your this vehicle and that vehicle, and they're taking the back end of this and they're putting it in a uh a design to make it look a rendering to make it look.
• 5:07
  Jeff Dziekan: What does this look like?
• 5:08
  Jeff Dziekan: How could we make this work?
• 5:09
  Jeff Dziekan: I particularly don't like it.
• 5:11
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh, but no, it's but we're old.
• 5:12
  Jeff Dziekan: Yeah, well, I'm just saying it's uh I every six years we're gonna re-introduce the Camaro.
• 5:18
  Jeff Dziekan: I was on the reintroduction when they did the uh the latest model because Perelli, I was with Perelli and we did the 21-inch tires.
• 5:24
  Jeff Dziekan: We were exclusivity for that.
• 5:25
  Jeff Dziekan: So all of the SS had the 21-inch, they're staggered fit, we had a big production, big meeting, blah, blah, blah.
• 5:31
  Jeff Dziekan: And then six years later it's gone and back again.
• 5:33
  Don Armstrong: So well, because they weren't selling.
• 5:35
  Don Armstrong: Right.
• 5:35
  Don Armstrong: Uh the Mustang was killing them, and uh it was time to pull the plug on it.
• 5:39
  Don Armstrong: Because you know, you can only keep the Camaro name, I guess, in General Motors mind, anyway, is the fact that they all look the same from year to year to year to year to year.
• 5:52
  Don Armstrong: In in the in the past, I don't know, eight years or so?
• 5:54
  Jeff Dziekan: Yeah, it's been six years since they introduced it.
• 5:56
  Jeff Dziekan: It went away and now it's back again.
• 5:57
  Don Armstrong: So we'll see.
• 5:59
  Don Armstrong: All right.
• 6:00
  Don Armstrong: Uh time now.
• 6:06
  unknown: That's okay.
• 6:06
  Don Armstrong: All right.
• 6:07
  Don Armstrong: So Mr.
• 6:07
  Don Armstrong: Mars, if if you don't have enough to do, now you now now we're gonna give you something to do because it's it allowed time for you to do your uh review of the 2015.
• 6:17
  Don Armstrong: I'm sorry, the 2026 Ram 1500.
• 6:20
  Mike Marrs: Yeah, 2015 is what we got.
• 6:23
  Don Armstrong: That's what you got, yeah.
• 6:25
  Mike Marrs: All right, so this is the 2015 Ram 1500.
• 6:29
  Don Armstrong: No, it's the 2026.
• 6:30
  Mike Marrs: 26.
• 6:31
  Mike Marrs: You know what?
• 6:33
  Mike Marrs: I wrote down 2015.
• 6:34
  Mike Marrs: That's just exactly like you said.
• 6:37
  Mike Marrs: All right.
• 6:38
  Mike Marrs: I have since corrected that.
• 6:40
  Mike Marrs: Here we go.
• 6:41
  Mike Marrs: 2026 Ram 1500 long hand longhorn crew cab four by four.
• 6:48
  Mike Marrs: Now, the final assembly point for this is actually in Sterling Heights, Michigan, although they bring a lot of parts in from all over the world.
• 6:54
  Mike Marrs: There are 10 available trim levels, not gonna go through all of them.
• 6:57
  Mike Marrs: They run from the tradesman up to the tungsten top of the line.
• 7:01
  Mike Marrs: The longhorn is somewhere in the mid-range there.
• 7:04
  Mike Marrs: They do have three different bed links you can get on this vehicle, and uh it is a full-size pickup with seating for five.
• 7:11
  Mike Marrs: Now, this is uh it's on the outside of it, you're gonna find you got full LED lighting all around.
• 7:17
  Mike Marrs: The headlights, taillights, all the uh courtesy lights are.
• 7:21
  Mike Marrs: You got tow hooks on it, you got power deploy running boards, and I really like the running boards on these with the height of this truck, it fit really well to use them.
• 7:32
  Mike Marrs: It wasn't something that was awkward.
• 7:34
  Don Armstrong: It also has the sorry old man, yeah, yeah.
• 7:39
  Mike Marrs: Old man steps is what they are, and they felt good, exactly right.
• 7:42
  Mike Marrs: And it also had a bed step for the old man that was nice to have, and it had the trifold tonneau cover on it, and it's got long hoard badging, of course, all the way around it, rolling on some 20 by 9 inch polished wheels that are nice looking wheels, makes for a nice combination for this color.
• 7:58
  Mike Marrs: The inside of it got leather seating all the way around with real wood trim on it.
• 8:04
  Mike Marrs: Now, the front seats got massaging, they're heated and they're ventilated.
• 8:10
  Mike Marrs: The second row is also heated and ventilated seating, although they don't have the massaging portion of it, which I don't care as long as I got it up front.
• 8:17
  Mike Marrs: Now it's got the wireless charging on it, it's got heads-up display, it's got UConnect 5.0 with a 12-inch touch screen.
• 8:25
  Mike Marrs: Uh, even the front passenger has interactive display in this particular vehicle.
• 8:30
  Mike Marrs: So there's a lot of technology in here, including an 18-speaker Harden Carmen premium sound system, and you also have the surround view camera.
• 8:40
  Mike Marrs: So you can see it, you can hear it, you can feel it on this vehicle.
• 8:44
  Mike Marrs: The drivetrain.
• 8:46
  Mike Marrs: Now we had the 3.0 liter inline six hurricane HO.
• 8:51
  Mike Marrs: Now, this is the twin turbo engine on this thing.
• 8:54
  Mike Marrs: Uh, I first time I'd ever driven one of them.
• 8:57
  Mike Marrs: I've heard a couple of people talking about them.
• 8:59
  Mike Marrs: They have the uh they don't have the HO, so this is kind of unique in that it's got 540 horsepower, 521 pound feet of torque.
• 9:08
  Mike Marrs: Toe rating is 10,000 pounds, haul rating is 1490 pounds.
• 9:13
  Mike Marrs: Now, I was a little surprised.
• 9:14
  Mike Marrs: I was really interested in driving this vehicle, like I said, because going from the 5'7 Hemi that I've got in the truck versus this, um, I will tell you, I felt like there was a lot of difference driving around town.
• 9:26
  Mike Marrs: This is a lot, this hurricane is a lot more refined, but I will also tell you you get up around highway speeds and you want to do a high-speed passing maneuver, this thing will get up and haul donkey on you real quick, real fast in a hurry.
• 9:40
  Mike Marrs: However, the EPA says you should be looking for in the city about 15 miles to the gallon, highway 21, combined 17.
• 9:48
  Mike Marrs: Now, I only had the chance to drive this vehicle 154 miles, but I got 16.1, 16.9 miles across that range.
• 9:57
  Mike Marrs: It's really nice ride.
• 9:59
  Mike Marrs: It's a really nice handling vehicle that's got the five-link suspension with active leveling air suspension on it.
• 10:05
  Mike Marrs: And then you can also have the manual ride height to where you can lower it down to get in and out of it a little bit easier.
• 10:10
  Mike Marrs: You're going off-road since it is a four by four.
• 10:13
  Mike Marrs: You want to raise it up, you can do that.
• 10:14
  Mike Marrs: And it's just really smooth on the road with lots of rolling power, like I said, up at highway speeds.
• 10:20
  Mike Marrs: Now, the base trim price on this vehicle is$76,405.
• 10:26
  Mike Marrs: As tested,$86,090.
• 10:29
  Mike Marrs: Now, you can get in a base model, tradesman, for$47,120.
• 10:34
  Mike Marrs: So you look across the board at the GMC 1500 crew cab 4x4 in the base model$46,995.
• 10:41
  Mike Marrs: The Silverado Cousin, uh, same thing, crew cab 4x4 is at$46,000.
• 10:46
  Mike Marrs: Even the Ford F-150 Crew Cab 4x4 will start you out at 467.
• 10:51
  Mike Marrs: So they're all right there in that same range.
• 10:54
  Mike Marrs: Then it just depends on how much you want to upgrade, how much you want to gussy it up from there.
• 10:59
  SPEAKER_02: And you can pretty much I need to know where I can buy my$20,000 work truck.
• 11:04
  SPEAKER_02: That why wasn't it?
• 11:05
  SPEAKER_02: I got my eyes home on with the hoodie bobs on it.
• 11:08
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
• 11:09
  Mike Marrs: Billy Bob used cared right down the street.
• 11:13
  Jeff Dziekan: So does Becky want one?
• 11:16
  Jeff Dziekan: Um, yeah.
• 11:20
  Mike Marrs: She liked it.
• 11:20
  Mike Marrs: I mean, you know, the leather and the wood.
• 11:22
  Mike Marrs: I mean, it's what's not to like about it.
• 11:24
  Mike Marrs: Um it's just the uh$8,000 price tag, is what she kind of hiccuped at.
• 11:31
  Don Armstrong: How about that seven-year note, huh?
• 11:32
  Don Armstrong: How about that?
• 11:34
  Mike Marrs: All right, coming up.
• 11:41
  Don Armstrong: Uh, time now for driving destinations.
• 11:44
  Don Armstrong: Last blast before the bell, please explain, Mr.
• 11:47
  Don Armstrong: Mars.
• 11:48
  Mike Marrs: So, you know, it's almost time for everybody to go back to school.
• 11:51
  Mike Marrs: So before all the beach towels get replaced with backpacks and your homework instead of campfires, you know, there's time for one more adventure the next couple of three weekends.
• 12:01
  Mike Marrs: So today we're gonna talk about hitting the road for five camping destinations, all within two hours of Houston.
• 12:08
  Mike Marrs: You can swim, you can paddle, you can fish, all the things that wrap up your summer memories uh that you can do in one weekend.
• 12:15
  Mike Marrs: So, first up is Brazos Bend State Park.
• 12:18
  Mike Marrs: Now, this is 45 to 60 minutes from Houston, depending on where you're at.
• 12:22
  Mike Marrs: But this is where you're gonna go get more of the Texas adventure if you really want to go that far.
• 12:27
  Mike Marrs: You know, the family can set up camp in the height below giant oak trees.
• 12:31
  Mike Marrs: There's 20 miles of biking trails, got plenty of little lakes that you can fish along the banks and and still catch some fish.
• 12:38
  Mike Marrs: You gotta watch out for alligators when you go through the boardwalks, and there are some observation areas specifically so you can see some of the wildlife.
• 12:46
  Mike Marrs: Now, there's also the George Observatory here, which I did not even know existed.
• 12:52
  Mike Marrs: Now, this is weekend visitors can go here and look through the telescopes that are after dark and and see some of the skies and stuff.
• 12:59
  Mike Marrs: So the kids love the wildlife, the parents love the easy access to Houston, so it's a great place to go for a weekend before school starts again.
• 13:06
  Mike Marrs: The next one is Lake Livingston State Park.
• 13:09
  Mike Marrs: Now, when I think of Lake Livingston, uh it's about 90 miles away from Houston.
• 13:14
  Mike Marrs: I go there, I used to go there to go fishing.
• 13:17
  Mike Marrs: Never thought much about going there to camp or hang out, but there's plenty of water, there's a lot of water, and then there's even more water.
• 13:24
  Mike Marrs: It's one of the largest lakes in Texas to where you can go camping, swimming, kayaking, canoeing, fishing, and they also have boat rentals if you don't want to haul your own boat up there.
• 13:34
  Mike Marrs: Shaded campsires, nature trails, a lot of shorelines.
• 13:37
  Mike Marrs: The kids can throw rocks to go swimming, lots of stuff to do when you're out, including a Friday night campfire, goes paddle boating Saturday morning, lots to do again for a Texas summer vacation before school starts.
• 13:51
  Mike Marrs: Then the next one, the third one, is down at Galveston Island State Park.
• 13:55
  Mike Marrs: Now, this is a little further, 75 miles from Houston, and it gives you a couple of different ways to go about it because part of the park is on the beach.
• 14:03
  Mike Marrs: So you can go out on the beach, you can build sand castles, swim, uh, and then go to the bay side of the park.
• 14:09
  Mike Marrs: And they've got marshes over there where you can get some kayaking, go do some bird watching, and watch some other wildlife.
• 14:15
  Mike Marrs: And they've added some new camping areas in the last couple of years.
• 14:19
  Mike Marrs: It makes it even easier for first-time campers to go and uh see some of the areas, take your bikes and hit some of the biking trails.
• 14:28
  Mike Marrs: Then we're gonna go off to Stephen F.
• 14:30
  Mike Marrs: Austin State Park, and this is about an hour from Houston.
• 14:34
  Mike Marrs: A lot of people don't look at it because it's not as big, but it's one of the easiest family camping trips to get to from Houston.
• 14:40
  Mike Marrs: It's on the Brazos River, Brazos River, and offers shaded camp size, hiking trails, fishing, bird watching.
• 14:47
  Mike Marrs: A lot of things you want to do when you go camping.
• 14:49
  Mike Marrs: It's just you need to be close to something so you make it easier to get there.
• 14:53
  Mike Marrs: And the nearby town of San Felipe adds a bonus dose of Texas history.
• 14:58
  Mike Marrs: So you got a little things you can do if you don't want to stay in the campgrounds all day.
• 15:02
  Mike Marrs: When it gets hot, you want to go to town, you want to do a little run around, you got time to do all that, and it's close.
• 15:07
  Mike Marrs: The last one we're gonna look at is the Double Lake Recreation Area.
• 15:11
  Mike Marrs: Now, this is in the Sam Houston National Forest area, about 90 miles from Houston.
• 15:16
  Mike Marrs: And it's kind of tucked inside the Sam Houston National Forest.
• 15:20
  Mike Marrs: Again, camping, swimming, canoeing, fishing, got lots of shaded hiking trails that take you off through the East Texas prime pine trees.
• 15:28
  Mike Marrs: Now it's small enough to be a small lake.
• 15:30
  Mike Marrs: It's not like Toleda Bend where you've got boats doing 80 miles an hour across the lake, and you've got plenty of shade for cool, and the water the shade runs all the way down to the water's edge in a lot of places, so you can kind of stay in the shade while you're doing your fishing.
• 15:44
  Mike Marrs: So it's a lot of places that you can go, do a little bit of camping, get the family out and about before they go back to school.
• 15:51
  Don Armstrong: Sounds good.
• 15:51
  Don Armstrong: Let's go.
• 15:52
  Don Armstrong: Perfect.
• 15:52
  Don Armstrong: All right.
• 15:53
  Mike Marrs: Hey, the in-wheel time.
• 15:59
  Don Armstrong: All right.
• 16:00
  Don Armstrong: Time now for this week in auto history.
• 16:02
  Don Armstrong: Uh, that would be Mr.
• 16:03
  Don Armstrong: Morris' job.
• 16:04
  Mike Marrs: Yes, sir.
• 16:05
  Mike Marrs: We got a few things that we picked up this week that we thought would be interesting to watch out for.
• 16:09
  Mike Marrs: Way back in 1917, racing legendary legend Barney Oldfield took his unusual golden submarine to a lot of new speed records.
• 16:22
  Mike Marrs: Now, this vehicle was built, uh, is completely enclosed, and it was streamlined and built because a fellow driver, Bob Berman, was killed in an open cockpit race car.
• 16:32
  Mike Marrs: So Barney wanted something a little bit safer.
• 16:34
  Mike Marrs: So he got with Harry Miller and Fred Offenhauser, and they built this enclosed racer.
• 16:39
  Mike Marrs: Now, during the his time racing, 1917, for example, he took this vehicle to record speeds.
• 16:47
  Mike Marrs: I mean, this guy was cooking, got up to 80 miles per hour in this vehicle.
• 16:51
  Mike Marrs: So it's a lots of lots of speed records back then.
• 16:54
  Mike Marrs: Then the next thing we have is August the 10th, 1907.
• 16:59
  Mike Marrs: The first Peking to Paris automobile race ends.
• 17:02
  Mike Marrs: Now, think about Peking to Paris.
• 17:05
  Mike Marrs: Now that is 10,000 miles that you got to go.
• 17:09
  Mike Marrs: You got to go across uh the ocean, literally, everywhere.
• 17:13
  Mike Marrs: There was no modern highways, there was no GPS, no roadside views.
• 17:17
  Don Armstrong: But they had lots of ducks.
• 17:19
  Mike Marrs: Yeah, they had ducks.
• 17:21
  Mike Marrs: Yes, they crossed deserts, and there's even one of these pictures is of the bridge that collapsed when they were trying to go across it.
• 17:28
  Mike Marrs: So they had to dig out of the bridge to carry on.
• 17:30
  Mike Marrs: And this was actually a picture of the winner that won this race when he was trying to get through this bridge.
• 17:38
  Mike Marrs: Now, the next we have August 11th, 1966, the first production Chevrolet Camaro was built.
• 17:45
  Mike Marrs: And uh it was really a non-pilot production car, and it was completed in Norwood.
• 17:50
  Mike Marrs: They created this specifically to challenge Ford's Mustang, and they even invented a little mystery around this name before the announcement.
• 17:57
  Mike Marrs: And so they had uh played a game with it, and it offered everything from 140 horsepower six-cylinder to a 375 horsepower 396.
• 18:06
  Mike Marrs: Then coming up next in August the 12th of 1908, the first production Model T is completed.
• 18:12
  Mike Marrs: Now, this is important because it really wasn't famous as part of the moving assembly line, but that's what really brought this out and really made it affordable.
• 18:22
  Mike Marrs: And it changed the automobile from a luxury item, something that only the rich people go to forward, into something that uh was more practical transportation, ordinary Americans could actually afford to buy this.
• 18:33
  Mike Marrs: Now they began to run, ultimately, there was 15 million of these cars that were built and sold.
• 18:40
  Mike Marrs: Then on August the 13th, Friday, August the 13th, 1898.
• 18:44
  Mike Marrs: Now, this I find this, I thought this was real interesting because you know, if you go buy a car, you expect it to be really good.
• 18:51
  Mike Marrs: But what if you bought a car that was so bad that you complained so much that the car maker said, Well, if you can do better, go build your own, which is exactly what happened when James Ward Packard bought his new Winton motor carriage.
• 19:06
  Mike Marrs: He drove it home to Ohio from Cleveland and it did not go well.
• 19:10
  Mike Marrs: He had a lot of troubles, he complained a lot, and eventually Winton told him, if you think you can do better, do it.
• 19:17
  Mike Marrs: So he went out and started the Packard Motor Company.
• 19:21
  Mike Marrs: So that's what led to Packard being built.
• 19:23
  Mike Marrs: And the same thing happened to Ferrari because uh Lamborghini was complaining about the Ferrari, so Ferrari said, Well, you think you could do better, go do it.
• 19:32
  Mike Marrs: So he did.
• 19:33
  Mike Marrs: So that's how we got the Lamborghini, just as well.
• 19:36
  Mike Marrs: So that's a few things this week in auto history coming up that you might find interesting and want to look into a little more.
• 19:42
  Don Armstrong: I did, yes.
• 19:43
  Don Armstrong: Very good.
• 19:43
  Don Armstrong: Thank you.
• 19:43
  Don Armstrong: Thank you.
• 19:44
  Mike Marrs: Ford Motor Company.
• 19:49
  Don Armstrong: All right.
• 19:50
  Don Armstrong: Um, I'm going to uh give you now my take on uh our next car review.
• 19:57
  Don Armstrong: And the car review that I have for this half hour.
• 20:00
  Don Armstrong: Uh we're trying to play catch-up so we're doing a two car review.
• 20:03
  Don Armstrong: This car review is the 2026 Lexus IS350.
• 20:10
  Don Armstrong: F Sport.
• 20:12
  Don Armstrong: It comes in the F- Sport design, the F-Sport itself, and the F Sport special appearance package.
• 20:19
  Don Armstrong: This is built in Aichi, Japan, which is the factory that's currently closed because of the uh earthquake over there.
• 20:25
  Don Armstrong: I just had the F-Sport.
• 20:28
  Don Armstrong: I think that this is one of the best-looking sedans on the market today.
• 20:33
  Don Armstrong: Five seats.
• 20:34
  Don Armstrong: Obviously, the back seats are going to be a little bit tight because of the it's a smallish kind of car.
• 20:39
  Don Armstrong: All new in 2014, refresh styling inside and out for 2026.
• 20:45
  Don Armstrong: Um, new front grille is still too big, uh, but the spindle look has been turned down just a little bit, too, toned down a little bit.
• 20:55
  Don Armstrong: So keep that in mind.
• 20:56
  Don Armstrong: I I I think that this is really a good-looking vehicle.
• 20:59
  Don Armstrong: Upswept rear wheel openings looks racy.
• 21:02
  Don Armstrong: Uh, reworked trunk incorporates a new spoiler back there.
• 21:07
  Don Armstrong: I like it.
• 21:08
  Don Armstrong: Um, dual exhaust exits below the black painted panel.
• 21:13
  Don Armstrong: Uh, what I liked about it overall, the body tweaks are spot on.
• 21:18
  Don Armstrong: I don't think anything could use improvement.
• 21:22
  Don Armstrong: Good-looking wheels, red calipers.
• 21:26
  Don Armstrong: It's got its going.
• 21:27
  Don Armstrong: Look at that interior.
• 21:28
  Don Armstrong: How could you not like that?
• 21:30
  Don Armstrong: Get that.
• 21:30
  Don Armstrong: That is good looking right there.
• 21:32
  Don Armstrong: I love that thing.
• 21:33
  Don Armstrong: Interior highlights include new infotainment system.
• 21:36
  Don Armstrong: It is the bomb.
• 21:37
  Don Armstrong: No more touchpad.
• 21:38
  Don Armstrong: Thank you, thank you, thank you.
• 21:41
  Don Armstrong: The red interior is one of the best looking out there.
• 21:44
  Don Armstrong: 12-inch infotainment screen is very nice.
• 21:47
  Don Armstrong: I'm gonna roll through these.
• 21:48
  Don Armstrong: It's got everything about this just speaks to me.
• 21:52
  Don Armstrong: This is a Don Armstrong vehicle.
• 21:54
  Don Armstrong: Oh, there you go.
• 21:54
  Don Armstrong: Trunk room is small.
• 21:56
  Don Armstrong: What I liked about quality, design, and materials top-notch in this thing is the phone charger.
• 22:02
  Don Armstrong: Or could use improvement.
• 22:03
  Don Armstrong: Some of the screens are a little bit difficult to find, is a note that I wrote to myself.
• 22:09
  Don Armstrong: This is an old school 3.5-liter V6 naturally aspirated that turns out 311 horsepower, 280 pound feet of torque.
• 22:19
  Don Armstrong: Not a ton of horsepower, but this is an everyday driver that looks good.
• 22:26
  Don Armstrong: Eight-speed automatic transmission gets 19 miles per gallon in the city, 27 on the highway for combined at 22.
• 22:34
  Don Armstrong: Guy got 27.2 miles per gallon over 347 miles.
• 22:39
  Don Armstrong: What I liked, no turbo lag, because it doesn't have any.
• 22:42
  Don Armstrong: Normally aspirated.
• 22:43
  Don Armstrong: It could use a little bit more horsepower.
• 22:45
  Don Armstrong: Don't touch it.
• 22:46
  Don Armstrong: I like it.
• 22:47
  Don Armstrong: It's fine.
• 22:48
  Don Armstrong: Leave it alone.
• 22:49
  Don Armstrong: Run it forever.
• 22:51
  Don Armstrong: Ride and handling, sporty, but not too rough or stiff.
• 22:55
  Don Armstrong: What could use improvement in the ride and handling department?
• 22:57
  Don Armstrong: Nothing.
• 22:58
  Don Armstrong: Base trim price,$47,950.
• 23:01
  Don Armstrong: Prices tested$60,473.
• 23:04
  Don Armstrong: The base model price,$45,500.
• 23:08
  Don Armstrong: Competitors, BMW 3 Series,$48,000.
• 23:12
  Don Armstrong: Mercedes-Benz C class,$49,000.
• 23:15
  Don Armstrong: These are base prices now.
• 23:17
  Don Armstrong: And the Genesis G70,$43,450.
• 23:21
  Don Armstrong: And that's my review.
• 23:22
  Don Armstrong: Next week, Hyundai Alantra Hybrid.
• 23:26
  Don Armstrong: Thank you for joining us.
• 23:27
  Jeff Dziekan: You call it the uh engine old school.
• 23:29
  Jeff Dziekan: I would call it reliable because it even though it's been around a while, it's it's reliable.
• 23:35
  Jeff Dziekan: That's why it's been around a while.
• 23:36
  Jeff Dziekan: Proven.
• 23:37
  Jeff Dziekan: There you go.
• 23:38
  Jeff Dziekan: Better word, proven.
• 23:39
  Jeff Dziekan: All right.