Jalopnik: Motor Trend

New Motor Trend Editor In Childish Facebook Slap Fight With Professional Internet Troll

Matt Hardigree — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 10:00:00 EST

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After Motor Trend's Jonny Lieberman found himself the victim of a savage Facebook LOLing by professional automotive internet troll Jack Baruth, newly-annointed Motor Trend editor-in-chief Edward Loh jumped to his beleaguered number two's defense. It's not pretty. More »

Ed Loh is the new Editor-in-Chief of Motor Trend

Matt Hardigree — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 10:55:00 EST

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Angus Mackenzie's long-haired reign as Editor-in-Chief of the buffest of buff books, Motor Trend, is finally over, according to many social media postsings. In his place is former MT Executive Editor and Sport Compact Car EIC Ed Loh. Haven't figured out what distinguishing character of Loh we'll make fun of repeatedly... yet. Don't worry, Angus will be still be around, as Editor-at-Large and Chief Content Officer for Source Interlink. Wait, was giving the Passat COTY his last official act as EIC? Way to take one for the team, Angus! More »

MotorTrend's 2012 Car of the Year is an epic win for mediocrity

Mike Spinelli — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 15:00:00 EST

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I've just picked Golden Corral as the 2012 Mike Spinelli Restaurant of the Year. Oh, I don't give a damn about quality, technology, product-use experience or any other childish bullshit like that. I care about profits, dude, big friggin' profits. More »

Motor Trend Smacks Rush Limbaugh

Justin Hyde — Wed, 24 Nov 2010 16:30:00 EST

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After Motor Trend named the Chevy Volt their Car Of The Year, radio show host and former GM pitchman Rush Limbaugh blasted the award, saying "that's the end of them. How in the world do they have any credibility?" More »

Chevy Volt Is The Motor Trend Car Of The Year

Matt Hardigree — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 09:15:00 EST

The Chevy Volt is Motor Trend's Car Of The Year. Editor Angus Mackenzie calls it "the most significant car" in the award's history. More than the '02 Thunderbird or Cirrus? More »

2011 Motor Trend SUV Of The Year: Porsche Cayenne

Ray Wert — Tue, 19 Oct 2010 10:10:00 EDT

Motor Trend picks the 2011 Porsche Cayenne as the 2011 SUV of the year. Moving on... [CNN] More »

2011 Motor Trend SUV Of The Year Getting A Facebook Unveil

Ray Wert — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 07:30:00 EDT

Motor Trend will unveil its 2011 SUV of the year award on Facebook. Wethinks perhaps someone's feeling a little bit of Facebook fan page envy. More »

Jonny Lieberman, Former Jalopnik Contributor, Heading To Motor Trend

Ray Wert — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 15:45:00 EDT

Former Jalopnik contributor Jonny Lieberman is heading to Motor Trend as its new Senior Editor. Wish him well. [Autoblog] More »

Is The New Ford Mustang Better Than A BMW M3?

Sam Smith — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 13:30:00 EDT

Odd question to ask, right? But judging by the numbers, yes. Is that all there is to it? More »

Beige Bites Buff Book: Motor Trend Picks Camry As Top Mid-Size Sedan

Ray Wert — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 14:00:00 EDT

MotorTrend not only picked a Camry as top mid-size sedan, they picked a beige Camry. More »

Bankrupt Buff Books Blow Wad On Boosted Lincoln To Beat Bigger-Engined Euros

Ray Wert — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 14:45:00 EDT

~~Ford~~ Motor Trend and Automobile pit an ecoboosted Lincoln versus eight-cylinder Euros in a race over Loveland Pass. Since there's no disclaimer saying this is advertorial, how is a bankrupt media company's editorial budget big enough to support this? [6versus8] More »

Motor Trend Publisher Files For Bankruptcy, Will Privatize

Ray Wert — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 10:00:00 EDT

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Secretive media mogul Ron Burkle's Source Interlink, the publisher of Motor Trend, Hot Rod and Automobile filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. No word whether Angus Mackenzie's preparing for a new career in hair care. [Bloomberg] More »

Motor City Blogman Takes Swing At IIHS Crash Test

Ray Wert — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 15:45:00 EDT

MotorTrend's Todd "Motor City Blogman" Lassa takes 55-MPH+ swipe at IIHS small-car crash test. [MotorTrend] More »

Shenanigans! Muscle Car Comparisons More Marketing Than Comparo

Ray Wert — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 09:00:00 EDT

OK, we're calling bullshit on the muscle car "comparisons" being run by everyone from MotorTrend to Popular Mechanics. Sorry, but it ain't a real comparison until you've run 'em in one place at one time. More »

Car & Driver: 10Worst Award Winners In Auto Buff Book History

Matt Hardigree — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 13:00:00 EST

Auto buff books have given out some respected awards to some very disrespected vehicles. Renault Alliance as a 10Best? The new Thunderbird as Motor Trend COTY? Ouch. C&D ironically presents the ten most embarassing. [CarandDriver.com] More »

2008 Toyota Tundra TRD Performance Test Outs Motor Trend

Ray Wert — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 12:45:00 EST

Awww, SNAP! Motor Trend got schooled by teh internets! [AutoBlog] More »

Is Nissan Considering A GT-R Sedan For Infiniti?

Matt Hardigree — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 13:20:00 EST

The lads over at Motor Trend have it that Nissan is "studying the possibility" of a four-door GT-R for the Infiniti brand. This reminds us of the time Laura Berkalter was "studying the possibility" of going out with us. While it didn't work it out with Laura, this is a rumor that might have legs. The sedan could carry over a lot of the components from the current GT-R, such as the twin-turbo V6, AWD setup and transmission. As the price could easily be in excess of $80,0000, making it an Infiniti is the only easy way to avoid the Phaeton syndrome. More »

Chicago Auto Show: Motor Trend Has Wood For Tundra

Mark Arnold — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 16:00:00 EST

Here it is in all its glory: The winner of the highly-coveted Motor Trend Truck of the Year Award, the Toyota Tundra. Just look at all those steel girders! When Ray (who had been locked up in the press room for most of the day) saw this shrine to the golden calipers, he just couldn't help but get an up close look. More »

Truck Trend Admits to Hummer H3T Embargo Screw-Up

Ray Wert — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 09:00:00 EST

One of the big buff mag boys over at the House of Trend is showing some remorse over the Motor Trend empire's embargo-breaking for fun and profit. Mark Williams, chief truck-lover over at Truck Trend, is manning up to "accidentally" publishing their latest issue ten days early and revealing the new Hummer H3T a week and a half early (though curiously forgetting to apologize to Suzuki over the new Suzuki Equator embargo blunder). Mark says "...it looks like we were the ones who screwed up the whole thing...and no doubt the subject of a few heated conversations at General Motors..." More »

Motor Trend Gaming Google on the 2009 Corvette ZR1?

Ray Wert — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 09:45:00 EST

While covering the Barrett-Jackson auction this weekend, specifically the $1 million purchase of the first "retailable" 2009 Corvette ZR1, we did a quick Google search for the 2009 Corvette ZR1 in order to pull up our old story on the new super-Vette from the General. When the results came up, we noticed something rather odd. No, not Motor Trend being the first result — we mean, come on, they're Motor fuckin' Trend — the fact that Jalopnik is merely a step behind them says little about us and more about Motor Trend's inability to leverage their brand name on the internet — and about how low they've let their brand name go. But we digress. What was weird was that they've got their "exclusive" "scoop" on the ZR1 set up in the "roadtest" section of their site. What? Do they know something we don't? Was there some super-secret drive of the new ZR1 they partook in with Chevy? Our sources at Chevy say no. So what's the reason? More »

Auto Buff Book Gets Feelings Hurt, Not REALLY a Bunch of Sleazy D-Bags

Ray Wert — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 09:00:00 EST

I got a call — a 29-minute phone call, actually — last night from Angus Mackenzie, Editor-in-Chief of Motor Trend. Apparently he was quite offended by our little site calling them a "sleazy bunch of d-bags" on the Corvette ZR1 post we ran on Thursday for being the first to break the embargoed news on the internet. After explaining to me that they didn't actually break the embargo because they received a copy of AutoWeek on their desk a few hours before the embargo broke, and since a printed magazine sent to a subscriber is totally the exact same as a mass communication medium like the internet, he went ahead and decided to "scoop" the rest of the world by running his ~~copy of the press release~~ story. Although I explained we use this thing called "sarcasm" and this other thing called "snark" here on this site — he wasn't buying it. More »

Motor Trend Names Toyota Tundra Truck Of The Year, Likes The Alliteration

Matt Hardigree — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 15:00:00 EST

Motor Trend tapped the bulging Toyota Tundra as the 2008 Truck of the Year, besting GM's HDs and Ford's F-X50 Super Duty pickups. The trucks were pitted against each other at Chrysler's Yucca, Arizona testing facility, where the editors could have fun throwing them through various road conditions. They also hooked the trucks up to 7,500 and 10,000-pound trailers, just for kicks. The vehicles were judged in three categories: Superiority, Significance and Value. The Tundra just ended up being more significant, more valuable and more superior. [Motor Trend via PickUpTruck.com] More »

MT names Cadillac CTS Car of the Year, Needs Help Paying For Gas

tingwall — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 08:30:00 EST

Motor Trend has chosen the Cadillac CTS as its 2008 Car of the Year, attributing the win to sharp styling, great driving dynamics and luxury value — pretty much, the car rocked every category. For the General, it marks the first time in ten years that the company has taken home MT's top award. The Corvette won the Golden Calipers in 1998. Cadillac also has a special place in COTY history: Motor Trend's very first Car of the Year award went to Cadillac in 1949 when the award was given to an entire company, not just a single car. The CTS beat out the Audi A5/S5, Chevrolet Malibu, Dodge Grand Caravan, Honda Accord, Mercedes-Benz C-Class, Scion xB and Volvo V70/XC70 finalists to earn the award. The testing consists of a barrage of track tests and a 28.5-mile road loop to explore everyday driving characteristics. And finally, in a sign that gas prices really are out of control, Texaco has become the official fuel of Motor Trend by supplying all of the gas for COTY testing. Full press release from the General after the jump. More »

Motor Trend Selects CX-9 as SUV of the Year, Calls It "Zoomy"

tingwall — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 14:30:00 EDT

Motor Trend has named the Mazda CX-9 its SUV of the year. Weighing in at 4,633 pounds, the Motor Trend editors were impressed the hulking seven-seater didn't handle like a moose riding a walrus through a slalom course. In fact, the editors seem to think the CX-9 possesses a rare amount of agility...something that could only be characterized by a saying like "zoomy." But, considering this year's SUV shootout was unusually small, featuring only 11 vehicles made up of the Buick Enclave, Hyundai Veracruz, Jeep Liberty, Jeep Patriot, Land Rover LR2, Nissan Rouge, Saturn Vue, Subaru Tribeca, Toyota Highlander and Toyota Land Cruiser, we're hardly surprised the CX-9 came out as the "zoomy" choice. [The Commerical Appeal] More »

Primedia Sells Enthusiast Side Of Self For $1.2 Billion

Ray Wert — Tue, 15 May 2007 11:00:00 EDT

Looks like Motor Trend, Automobile and Hot Rod — among many other enthusiast books — are being traded to Source Interlink, the home-entertainment distributor, for a wad of 1.2 billion dollar bills. Source Interlink's best known for their supply chain system that serves up magazines, books and DVD's to about 110,000 retail store locations. We're assuming with such a powerful and technological savvy supply chain operation, we won't be seeing any more embargo breaks due to "not knowing when the magazines hit the stands." But we digress — the deal sends over the entire enthusiast division at Primedia including all 70 magazine titles, 90 websites, 60 event programs and 400 branded products. That's right, branded products — like the above Motor Trend 10 million candlepower cordless rechargeable spotlight (available now on sale from Amazon for only $30.99 — remember folks, Motor Trend — the brand is a name you can trust!). Check out some more of the branded products below. – Ray Wert More »

Second Motor Trend Blogger Takes Swing, Same Result

Ray Wert — Fri, 13 Apr 2007 17:45:59 EDT

The Motor City ~~Madman~~ Blogman at Motor Trend took a swing earlier this week and now another "blogger" over at the mag all about the trends of motors is swinging away at another, unnamed, member of the automotive mainstream media for fibbing on usage of the word "Exclusive!" So wait Matt, let's get this straight — don't read blogs because they don't know what the hell they're saying and don't read the mainstream auto press and buff mags because they're liars. So who should you read? Ah yes, wait for it — Motor Trend — because once in a while they practice "old fashioned journalism." Yup, when I think all the auto news that's fit to print I totally think Motor Trend — don't you? – Ray Wert More »

Motor Trend Blogger Attacks Blogosphere, Hits Self

Ray Wert — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 12:57:10 EDT

Todd Lassa, the self-proclaimed "Motor City Blogman" over at Motor Trend's blog, took a moment out of his busy schedule yesterday to provide some much-needed commentary on the state of the automotive blogosphere. Lassa, who appears to consider blogging to be defined as running print articles on something he calls a "blog," takes a few quick and dirty pot-shots at the automotive blogosphere. We'll be providing further commentary shortly on some of his specific attacks — mostly because we're too busy laughing at two of his comments to do much writing. The first is that in an attempt to get to his pummeling of the blogosphere (how meta is that?) he glosses over the problem that the Mulally-Bush story was started by an icon of the mainstream media, The Detroit News. The second, is that he attacks trained journalists for "chasing bloggers' stories." Seems to us like maybe his problem's with the mainstream media and not the blogosphere — but whatevs, he's just a "Blogman" anyway, what does he know? – Ray Wert More »

We're Not Yet In Jail: More Speculation On The Corvette SS Spy Photos, Corvette C7

Ray Wert — Fri, 23 Feb 2007 11:45:00 EST

OK, so the spy photographer who snapped those pictures of the Corvette powertrain mule and posted them all over the internet is NOT in jail, and our sources at the General now confirm they've taken no legal action "themselves" against anyone. The General also hasn't pushed for anyone to take down their photos — which is good, because as you can see in the photogallery below, we weren't planning on pulling them down any time soon. But since speculation is what the name of the game is about on this whole Super-Duper (blue) devil of a Corvette — we figure we should be spending some time speculatin' about the next gen of the 'vette — the 7th. Motor Authority is claiming that in this next issue of MotorTrend magazine (which we've not confirmed as we've not yet received), they've got an exclusive interview with GM's veep of global product development Jim Queen, who they're claiming says:

"the next-generation C7 Corvette will retain a naturally aspirated V8 engine but will develop up to 700hp in flagship form. Also, rumors of an AWD version are said to be false..."

Sweet Peet D. On Motor Trend's Car of the Year, Again

Davey G. Johnson — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 18:30:00 EDT

We write many items in the space of a week. We know what burnout is like. We know how easy it is to fall back on time-tested gems like "notgonnahappen.com" and "the answer to the question that absolutely nobody is asking." Or alternately crap about Detroit that nobody but Detroiters would care about, like the Ham Center. (Which, to be fair, is actually in Warren.) And well, we feel like the Autoextremist has fallen into retread mode: once again, he's bashing Motor Trend's Car/Truck/SUV/Skateboard/Unicycle of the Year award. That said, his deconstruction is good, and we're very much opposed to the sorts of synergies the Sweeter Peter is on about here. More »

Between the Lines: Long-Term Testers

Mike Spinelli — Mon, 22 May 2006 14:00:29 EDT

Of all the sleazy little quid pro quos practiced by the mainstream automotive press — undeclared first-class junketeering, advertising that looks like editorial, editorial that looks like advertising — the long-term test car is the most offensive. I'm sure editors can think of 500 reasons why it's OK to "test" a Ford GT for a year. I can think of one good reason why they shouldn't: It clouds their editorial judgment. IRS auditors note: Buff books like Motor Trend are some to the worst offenders. They've assembled entire fleets of freebies; erstwhile journalists dip into the company key bowl like sex-mad suburban swingers. And when it's time to "update" readers on the writers' favorite perk, what's the chance they'll pull their punches? More »

Between the Lines: Motor Trend on the Cadillac BLS

Mike Spinelli — Mon, 08 May 2006 17:29:48 EDT

Despite the warm hotness that is the CTS-V, the words "Cadillac" and "small" go together like "male porn star" and "small." Cadillac obviously forgot to learn that lesson back in '81, when they released the "Cimarron by Cadillac". The badge-engineered Chevrolet Cavalier — complete with in-line four and four-speed manual — was the smallest, nastiest, most heinously over-priced Cadillac ever produced — followed closely by its replacement, the Catera. (People watching Saturn's decaying orbit should note that the Catera was a rebadged Opel Omega, imported from Germany.) And now, finally, the Cimmaron has a proper suck-cessor: the BLS. It's a Euro-only model, and Motor Trend's de-capitalized paul horrell likes it. More »

Between the Lines: Motor Trend on the Mercedes-Benz S500

Mike Spinelli — Mon, 16 Jan 2006 14:55:00 EST

It s hard to believe a German car maker would follow the advice of Winston Churchill, but there it is. If you re going through Hell, Winnie admonished his admirers. Keep going. Translation: If your flagship suffers from an overdose of kludgy electronics, add some more. To its credit, Motor Trend s undercapitalized, unattributed, parenthetical (first test) mercedes-benz s550 grasps the electronic nettle from the git-go. To its shame, the buff book never once uses the r word. But if questions about Mercedes s reliability remain unexpressed, at least Motor Trend is willing to tackle the big issues surrounding electronic intervention. Like who actually needs this shit? More »

Between the Lines: Motor Trend on the Chevrolet Tahoe

Mike Spinelli — Fri, 06 Jan 2006 10:18:22 EST

While the automobile industry gorges on gorgeous, unveiling wild and sexy concept cars in LA and Detroit, the real business of the car business grinds on. GM enters 06 with its financials on the crash cart side of perilous, and it ain t anything a turbo-charged two-door with all the luggage capacity of a grocery bag is gonna fix. Almost all the General s chips now rest on the little square marked GMT900: their new(ish) SUVs and trucks. So, is it a hit? Motor Trend s persistently undercapitalized (first test) chevrolet tahoe tells the tale. More »

Honda Ridgeline Named Motor Trend's 2006 Truck of the Year

Mike Spinelli — Tue, 20 Dec 2005 10:32:48 EST

It's a clean sweep for Honda over at Motor Trend. Earlier this month, the buff book named the Honda Civic its 2006 Car of the Year, now the Civic's truckish sibling, the Ridgeline, was named the magazine's 2006 Truck of the Year. The Ridgie, which hasn't been selling to Honda's satisfaction since its launch this year, beat out the Dodge Ram 1500, Dodge Ram Mega Cab, Honda Ridgeline, Isuzu i350, Lincoln Mark LT, and Mitsubishi Raider to claim the prize. MT editor-in-chief, Angus MacKenzie said the Ridgeline "is filled with innovation and clever solutions to everyday issues" and "encompasses all necessities a truck should have." (Except maybe a V8 and a full-length bed, but don't mind us.) The Ridgeline's independent rear suspension and novel lighting and storage solutions also helped win over the MT crowd, which considers value, class superiority and the level of "significant development on the new-truck scene" in their decision-making. More »

Between the Lines: Motor Trend on the Bugatti Veyron

Mike Spinelli — Fri, 16 Dec 2005 11:00:00 EST

Never fall in love with your writing. Authors smitten with their handiwork tend to guard even the most pointless piece of purple prose against essential self-sacrifice. The resulting read contains words, sentences and entire paragraphs that should have disappeared down the highlight-and-delete highway. And yet, there they are, just sitting there, lazing around, doing nothing special for anyone save their creator. If you re looking for particularly egregious examples of superfluous text, always scan an article s first four graphs. To see how it should be done, check out this piece from Motor Trend s decapitated feature (first drive) bugatti veyron 16.4. More »

What's So Cool About the Bugatti Veyron?

Mike Spinelli — Tue, 06 Dec 2005 11:10:24 EST

You may already know we're total geek whores for minutiae. That's why we can't pass up Leftlane News's compilation of the 10 Coolest Things About the Bugatti Veyron from the January issue of Motor Trend. Try these on for size: More »

Honda Civic Nabs 2006 Motor Trend Car of the Year

Mike Spinelli — Tue, 22 Nov 2005 10:19:03 EST

Says Motor Trend editor-in-chief Angus MacKenzie, "Honda deserves a standing ovation for not playing it safe again," regarding why the buff book picked the Civic as its 2006 Car of the Year. "The engineering passion that Honda Motor Company was founded on radiates from these new Civics." (Ok, we get it.) MT editors just finished their two-week yearly evaluation session, during which they drive, kick, flog, walk around, panic-stop and otherwise scrutinize new models, looking for value, class superiority and (wiggle-room alert) "the most significant development on the new-car scene." At the end, the eds picked the Civic over the lobbied-for Chevrolet HHR and Pontiac Solstice and short-list Mercedes R-Class (among 24 other models). More »

Between the Lines: Motor Trend on Leno's Record-Setting Spin

Mike Spinelli — Tue, 08 Nov 2005 12:00:00 EST

As far as the automotive press is concerned, Jay Leno is the gift that keeps on giving. The Tonight Show host is endlessly, relentlessly generous with both his time and his [large] jaw-dropping collection of exotic, vintage and mutant motors. To say Leno s pithy munificence has been endlessly exploited by doting car hacks would be like wondering if pre-pubescent Persian carpet makers would benefit from union representation. A quick search of Motor Trend s Web site reveals more than a dozen Leno-inclusive features. So, when Porsche approached Motor Trend with yet another JL-based idea, the temptation to file the request under DTD (Done to Death) must have been immense. Unfortunately, they resisted. More »

Between the Lines: Motor Trend First Drive, 2006 Suzuki Grand Vitara

Mike Spinelli — Thu, 06 Oct 2005 12:59:26 EDT

Immediately after BMW s pole position ad inside the cover of November s Motor Trend, Suzuki steps up to the plate with a two-page spread touting its all-new Grand Vitara. It s your basic, by-the-numbers lifestyle come-on: a blurred POV action photograph of some nutcase kayaking straight into the sun with a bit of spec-heavy copy. And then, on page 100, MT's Detroit editor, Todd Lassa — I m sorry, todd lassa — is charged with reviewing the wee beastie. But wait! Even before we begin the enigmatically entitled Grand Illusion, the review s sub-head is offering apologies. More »