A

Whether you drive a car, need a car, or just occasionally bum a ride with friends, you've come to the right place. Join Jill and Tom as they break down everything that's going on in the auto world. New car reviews, shopping tips, driving green electric cars, classic cars, and plenty of great guests. This is the Consumer Guide Car Stuff podcast.

B

All right. This is the Consumer Guide Car Stuff podcast podcast. And I am indeed Tom Appel, publisher of Consumer Guide Automotive. Thank you for joining us this week. When you have a moment, you know the drill. Check us out@consumer guide.com that's all I'll say about that this week. Jill. Jill C. How are you today?

C

I'm doing really well. How are you?

B

I'm good. That is Jill Seminole, contributing editor here@consumerguide.com North American Car of the Year juror and prolific freelancer. Crazy week.

C

It has been. It has been a crazy week.

B

Can I talk about something entirely non automotive for a moment?

C

I guess so.

B

All right. It's, it's sad. It's kind of sad. And it might be about something that not everyone knows about.

C

Okay?

B

But in 1958, a photographer by the name of Art K. Kane went to Harlem and somehow some way talked 57 different musical artists performing in Harlem that night, Saturday night, to show up for a photograph very early in the morning, Sunday morning. That photograph is now known as A great day in Harlem. And it is the world's greatest document of living jazz artists. At the time, people have probably seen this poster and didn't know what it was. But it's all these great jazz people all in one place at the same time. 1958 was for Esquire magazine. Here's the sad thing. Are you ready? Because it's pretty sad. The last living person to appear in the photograph died over the weekend.

C

Okay.

B

Sonny Rollins, legendary legendary saxophone player, died at the age of 95. He was the last living person to appear in that image. But if you've ever walked into a record store or some kind of cool restaurant, whatever, you've seen this poster. It's, it's, it's absolutely legendary. It's a fantastic photograph. It means so much to so many people. But, yeah, we lost a great, a great musician, Sonny Rollins. And, and that kind of closes the door on this incredible photograph. So I just wanted to mention it and I'm trying to think. I used to work with someone who had a huge blow up of this poster on her wall at the office. It was very cool and she could name all the people in it, too. So There you have it. Just a cool thing, a little sad.

C

I, I, I have no idea who this is, but I will, I will go with your sadness.

B

I will post a picture of Sunny Rollins.

C

Okay.

B

We've been talking about things that I got wrong.

C

Okay.

B

Turns out the Volkswagen ID buzz will indeed return for 2027.

C

Okay.

B

We have everything but pricing and they haven't changed much. Nothing mechanically has changed. So range has not improved, which was a problem. But one of the interesting things that they've done is that they made the cool two tone paint jobs available on the base models. So you no longer have to pay an extra ten grand to get the orange or, or the green or the yellow.

C

Oh, that's good.

B

So that is good. That actually immediately improves affordability. So we'll see how well that that sucker sells. I'm not hopeful at this point because the range is still an issue.

C

Yeah, yeah. Well, you know, and it's really funny because at the, at the Midwest Automotive Media Association, I sat at a table with a representative from Volkswagen, a representative from Hyundai and a representative from Scout, and they were talking about how media lately has been getting their news wrong. And so they did discuss the ID Buzz saying, nope, nope, it's, you know, it's coming back. But the other two vehicles or the, the other vehicle that is not gone that I think we had previously reported was going away because apparently there was a Reuters story that said it was going away was the Hyundai Santa Cruz. So it, it's not going away either. So, you know, there are still two compact trucks in the segment with, you know, Maverick and Hyundai. And then the other thing that apparently media have been getting a little bit wrong is the idea that the production for the Scout vehicles is being pushed back. And that is actually not true either. And I mean, we will have a guest from Scout on next week so we can dig into that a little bit more. But interesting that there's been a spate of news lately where, you know, it seems like it's fact. It seems like it's fact. Everybody's reporting it, but then we, we turns out it wasn't true.

B

Yeah, two things though. The Santa Cruz probably is gone. They're just going to write out this particular build iteration of it and not do a new generation. Part of the problem is it comes in a little expensive for what it is. And since it launched, the Ford Maverick redefined what that segment is. And one of the things that segment isn't is a crossover with a pickup bed, which is very much what the Santa Cruz is so we'll see how long that lasts. But they probably want to do something different in that segment at some point. What was the other vehicle? What was the other vehicle?

C

Well, not the, it's not gone. But the, the Scout vehicles, we had oil that they were getting pushed back or production was going to be delayed. And that is not true.

B

Well, the funny thing about Scout, regardless of when they actually start producing stuff, is the vehicle has completely changed since we started having this conversation. Remember, they were going to be electric vehicles. That was it. And then they started talking about maybe adding an extended range version of the vehicle and now that's the only vehicle they're going to build at first. So there may never be a purely electric Scout at this point.

C

Right.

B

But we'll see. But what that vehicle is has changed. And one of the things that we learned too from talking to Sam, Sam Fiorani of Auto Forecast Solutions says this is also an experiment in distribution. Volkswagen, a major retailer of vehicles and seller of vehicles in US is going to try to sell vehicles not using the dealer franchise network.

C

Right.

B

So that's, this is an experiment there as much of anything else. So.

C

Right.

B

Yeah. Interesting stuff. Maybe we got that wrong. I don't know.

C

Like I said, we'll have a guest from Scout next week. We can, we can get him to clarify and extrapolate.

B

I've got a short story here. You ready?

C

Hello. The end.

B

No, I brief visit this today I was on the the Nick Dijilio Nick D podcast and one of his listeners sent me a question about a company called Auto Savvy. Auto Savvy, A A U T O S a V V Y One word. Auto Savvy is a retailer of. That sells vehicles under something called a branded title. Branded title probably doesn't mean a lot to some people in different states because automotive titles are handled at the state level. Here's the thing about Auto Savvy. They're selling vehicles that are basically broken. Insurance companies decided they weren't worth repairing, so they're fixing it up and selling them under what's called a branded title, which means that in the US it's like a. Or in Illinois it's like a salvage title.

C

Okay.

B

So I want to get someone from this network on the show because to buy a car from them, I think you need to be a little brave. I think you, I think you need to be willing to gamble and be prepared to fix the car yourself perhaps, or do something to keep it running. But the cars are cheap. That's the whole appeal here. So auto savvy. We'll probably talk about that later. You wanted to talk a little bit about airbags?

C

Yeah, I did. I did. So I live in Chicago and I'm in the city and in my neighborhood recently, you know, I belong to a couple of, like, neighborhood Facebook groups. I have been seeing a high number of posts from, you know, people around me saying that their vehicle has been broken into and their airbag has been stolen. And, and they are overwhelmingly Honda vehicles. I've seen a lot of Honda CRVs, but also accords and Civics being broken into. And literally the only thing that is, is being taken is their airbag. And, you know, this is, this is kind of an interesting phenomenon because in many ways it relates back to the old Takata airbag. Recalls the old.

B

But still ongoing.

C

Still ongoing because we live in hell. Yeah. And the exploding airbags from Takata. And so when those vehicles were recalled, there was a shortage of supplies for replacing these airbags, which then, you know, created this vicious cycle of airbags getting stolen to put on the black market to sell to somebody who actually needs to replace their airbags. And so, but there's been an uptick recently of these, these airbags being stolen again. And the, the replacement costs are actually pretty high because it's not just as simple as, you know, putting a new airbag into the little module area. You know, it's labor, it's parts, it's, you know, all of the things. And like, if they damage the vehicle when they took it, you know, there's, there's also some repairs that have to be made. And so, you know, like replacing your window because they probably broke it. And, you know, so they're saying that the total out of pocket cost for repairing this is going to be anywhere from $2,000 to $3,500, which, if you have an older, you know, Honda Civic or CR V, it may not be worth the repair.

B

And you're not insured. Yeah, that's rough.

C

So, I mean, I mean, the thing that you got to do too, is make sure you've got the proper insurance that would cover this. And it's really funny because I was going through, I'm like, okay, how do you avoid this? What are the preventative measures? And, and, you know, one of the articles I read was like, park strategically, you know, under, under, like a well lit, high traffic area. And, and what's funny is, again, in my neighborhood, people are posting videos in broad daylight of people breaking into cars and like, on busy streets like, like Fullerton or KEDSI and like stealing airbags because they can literally break in, you know, pop the, the module off of the steering wheel, pull out the airbag and be gone in less than a minute. So parking strategically is not the solution. So they're sitting, you know, using a steering wheel lock or you know, anti theft window film. And you know, just the other thing they're saying is if this does happen to you and you need to replace your airbag, don't like buy a cheap airbag online because that just perpetuates the thefts to continue to happen. Because probably if you're buying an airbag on ebay or something like that, it was stolen.

B

And so that's the problem here and that's that there's no serial number on the airbags.

C

No.

B

So they can't be identified as stolen. And I know the Chicago police especially because as you've noted, this is a big problem in Chicago right now. It will spread. There's no reason why it's local unless a lot of Chicagoans buy Civics. But the other problem is parts commonality and that's that the cars you're talking about, the Honda Civic, some Accords, the Acura Integra, whatever the Acura was before that, the il, that was the Civic and some CRVs, these vehicles all use the same airbag. So you have this commonality which not only makes them easy to steal or easy to identify, but easy to resell because there's so much demand for them. And one of the interesting things is I checked today, platinum and palladium prices are very high. So you would think that there'd still be a lot of catalytic converter thefts. But actually they're down a lot, which I think a couple of things happened. I think a lot of people actually spray painted their catalytic converters paint and I think that there's that mesh you could wrap around some of them also. I think the demand was met. I think so many people stole catalytic converters, there's just a lot of stolen ones hanging around in back lots. So the big thing now, hair bags, that's where the money is. What sucks is that the people stealing these things, I mean, I don't want them to make money. They're not making much money off of these things. Between 50 and 200 bucks. But as you've noted, it can cost you three grand to fix the problem.

C

Yeah. And if they can, like if they have a whole bunch of these Hondas parked on a street, they can literally like break into 10 vehicles in less than 10 minutes and be on their way. And, you know, that's $2,000 for the thief.

B

Anything you can do to slow down the thief will make them think twice about your car. So a club is great because somehow they've got to shove that out of the way to get to the steering wheel. Or if you could just wrap something around your steering wheel. The problem is you'd have to do that after you park because you want your airbag to work.

C

Yes, that is correct.

B

So kind of a deal there. But, yeah, this is a problem in the Chicago area. It's going to spread. There's nothing about it that's unique to Chicago except the parking situation, perhaps. But, yeah, this will spread to other models, too, as thieves become aware of what's common and what's easy to steal. Yeah, unfortunately. But I can't think of any great ideas to help prevent these thefts.

C

I mean, other than. Other than the club, you know, or, you know, if you're parking in front of your house and you have a camera, like a ring doorbell or something like that, you know, you may not be able to prevent the theft, but you will be able to get a picture of the thief who stole it. Um, you know, you could potentially. I mean, a lot of cameras these days are. Are like, they're. They're not. They're wireless. So you could put a camera in your car and you could get a really good picture of the thief as they are stealing your airbag, could put a sign in your car window saying, smile, you're on camera. You know, anything like that may. May be a deterrent. I know that when I've been the victim of crime previously, one of the reasons, you know, they caught the guys that did it, but they didn't end up, you know, prosecuting because they didn't have pictures. So anything you can do to grab a picture of whoever's committing the crime is going to help you. Maybe not initially, but eventually trying to

B

figure out how much a club costs. But I thought they were about 80 bucks. So relatively cheap insurance.

C

Yeah.

B

So there you go. That's a problem. It's going to be a bigger problem before it becomes less of a problem. And unfortunately, yeah, there's a lot of airbags that need to be replaced. So also, these are just the steering wheel airbags. They're not stealing the passenger side ones or side airbags or side impact or knee airbags. It's specifically the steering wheel ones because they're so gosh darn easy to get out.

C

Yep.

B

All right, new topic Are you ready?

C

I'm ready.

B

This one's all yours. Lexus really late to the game here in 2026 rolling out a replacement for its popular mid size sedan. What's going on?

C

Yeah, so coming out this month. So it is June 1st today. Hello, hello to June. So coming out this month they have the all new 2026 Lexus ES. It is both a hybrid and a, an electric vehicle. And they are essentially it's, they, it's the same vehicle with just different powertrains. So one is completely electric, the other is hybrid. They look exactly alike except for the badging on the back. And then the hybrid has like a slot on the nose that denotes like this is the grill that's letting air into the engine. But otherwise the vehicles are completely identical. Interior exterior, you know, the same. And so, you know, I, I just, this is the 8th generation of the ES. Drove it a couple weeks ago. Really, really liked it. I liked both models. I mean Lexus and Toyota do an amazing job with their hybrid powertrains. And you know, this is smooth, seamless. I can see a lot of people opting for the hybrid version of it. And you know the base price is going to be about $47,000 and it is

B

now that represents a fairly large price increase over the old one though.

C

Yeah, well, and so what I thought was really interesting is the electric vehicle is actually the less expensive model. So I like just pulled up the pricing in front of me and you have the 350e Premium. So the base model is $48,895 with destination fees. And the hybrid like the lowest priced hybrid is $51,095.

B

That is interesting. And then although the, the base electric is a little low on power. Is it about 225 horsepower or something like that?

C

Yeah. So the base electric is 221 horsepower. But I'm going to tell you with the instantaneous torque, I don't think that matters. And you know, if you go for the 500E, so it's the 350E is going to be front wheel drive, 221 horsepower. The 500E is going to be all wheel drive, dual motor, 338 horsepower. And you know, then you've got the hybrid which is going to be kind of in, in the middle in there. But I didn't like, with the instantaneous torque, I don't think horsepower matters as much in my opinion. And I mean I noticed a bigger difference between the all wheel drive and the front wheel drive drivetrain like when you were rounding corners and things like that, you could feel the movement of the vehicle down differently. That was more noticeable to me than the horsepower difference, even though it's like more than 100 horsepower different.

B

Any particular reason why they're still calling this a 2026 at this point? The model year is nearly over.

C

Yeah, I don't, I don't know. I don't know if they intended for it to be out earlier. I, I don't, you know, because I feel like when I was looking at press releases, they were saying it was going to be out in April. But, you know, I was listening to automotive news today and they said that the vehicles are arriving, you know, later this month. So I, I don't know if there was just a delay and when they were intending to get it out, that was not a question I asked.

B

Yeah, it's an interesting question. And manufacturers play around with model years in weird ways for different reasons. And often we never know why they pull ahead a model year or delay one. But. But there you have it. I was looking at this car and I did this weeks ago too. It looks surprisingly like the Toyota Crown to me in silhouette. And I did some checking and it is mechanically very similar to the Toyota Crown, which makes sense because the old Toyota Avalon was the basis for the old Lexus es. So that relationship across brands just stayed the same, basically. Does this vehicle, it's supposed to be roomier, does it feel roomier?

C

Oh, yeah. I mean, the back seat is gargantuan. I mean, I say that as somebody who's small, but they actually in the 350e with the luxury package they have or I think, yeah, the luxury trim they have included or no, is it the premium trim? But regardless, in 350 they have included an executive package where they allow you like behind the passenger side, you can put out an ottoman and recline and there's massaging seats and, you know, meant for either a chauffeur driven vehicle or for, you know, if you're lounging while you're charging or waiting in carpool or something like that. But there is enough space that I would say an average sized adult could move the passenger seat forward and then put that ottoman up and lounge comfortably.

B

Yeah, I think part of the reason that that's included too is that this vehicle now fills the space that was also occupied by the larger ls, which has been discontinued, though that car was no more roomy than this was and far, far, far more expensive. So this thing goes on sale as soon as they hit dealerships. Yes, it's now available hybrid or ev. There is no gasoline version. And I think this wraps up the slow, sad decline and ultimate dismissal of the old 3.5 liter V6 that I used to love from Toyota and Lexus. But I think that's completely gone now.

C

Yeah, yeah, I think you're right on that. But I mean, this vehicle has a lot going for it. Lots of good technology. It's got Lexus's newest infotainment system. In the battery electric version. You have the, they now have route planning in it. So. So it will like if you were going from Chicago to Indianapolis, it would tell you how many miles it would take to get there and if you need to stop along the way. And then it would show you all the charging stations that are along the way and how long you would have to stop at the charging station. So you don't have to fill up to 80% to get to your destination. Like it'll tell you you only have to charge to 40% to get to your destination. So I thought that was a real leg up and a new big improvement for, you know, Toyota, Lexus EVs because they haven't had that before. This is new and you know the one, there were, there were a couple things that I thought were a little bit weird. One, there is no. One, pedal driving. And two, I guess I've never charged a Toyota vehicle at a public charger, but you have to turn off the car in order to open the charge port. And you cannot open the charge port from inside the car. You have to exit the vehicle to open the charge port.

B

Interesting. Oh, and this now uses an acs. So this is, it's Tesla ready. So that's cool. It'll be interesting to see how this vehicle sells. Sedans, of course, are on the decline, but this is an all new spiffied up sedan that's hybrid only with an electric version. That's kind of cool. We'll see how it does. I've always loved the ES because it defined really what Lexus is. It was just such a refined vehicle. All right, we're going to take a break and when we come back, we talk to John Vincent of U.S. news World Report.

A

Questions or comments? Drop us a line@carstuffinsumerguide.com that's carstuffinsumerguide.com. Welcome back to the Car Stuff podcast.

B

And we're back. This is the consumer Guide Car Stuff Podcast. I'm Tom Appel. She is Jill Simonello.

C

Doing good Jill, still doing okay?

B

Okay. Yeah, Yeah. I check multiple times because a lot can change in it.

C

The situation can change. I will tell you. I have turned off my air conditioning, so I'm finally warming up. So. Yay.

B

Is it warm out? I'm right by an open window, but nothing's moving through it.

C

I mean, it's like 70 degrees. It's kind of warm. I just am always cold, so I prefer to be warm. So I'm doing better than I. Than the first time you asked me.

B

All right, so you're doing good?

C

I'm doing. I'm doing really good.

B

I needed to ask again. All right. Online with us today is John Vincent. He is senior editor for vehicle testing at U.S. news World Report. John, I think this is your third visit to the show. Thanks for coming back.

D

Absolutely. Always fun to talk to you guys.

B

So you guys have done some fun stuff over there for the first time ever. Tell us about what you did here.

D

So we put together an awards program for the best adventure vehicles. And we know that adventures mean different things to different people. For some people, it's getting from one hotel to the next. For others, like Jill, it's flinging cars across the desert with no gps. So we looked across the spectrum of everything that's out there and came up with four different categories. SUVs for off roading, trucks for off roading, best cars for camping, and best cars for road trips.

B

Yeah, this is a good list. I was going through this. Now I've got some questions about some of these vehicles because I don't know how they are better or worse than others and at things like camping. So I'm sure you've got an answer for me there, but why don't you just walk us through the list? Why don't we start with the best? Best SUVs for adventure.

D

Okay, so to start off with, know that all of our awards are based on data. They include our opinions, but our opinions are, you know, turned into numbers and included in the data analysis.

B

Okay.

D

So we don't just, you know, sit in a. In a smoky filled room and say, let's make these cars the winners.

B

What are you suggesting about other outlets, sir?

D

I am suggesting nothing about other outlets.

B

Okay. All right. Okay. Yeah, usually it's just pizza. That's what we used to do.

D

Let's talk about best SUVs for often subcompact SUV, Ford Bronco Sport.

B

Okay.

D

Bronco Sports. Based on the escape platform. And the escape is going away. And I think the better vehicle survived in the Bronco Sport. Best compact.

B

That's a conversation we have to have later if we have time.

D

Okay.

B

I think it's very weird that the escape is going away.

D

All right, Best compact SUV for off roading is probably the most obvious vehicle on this list, and that is the Jeep Wrangler.

B

Best.

D

Not going to give off road awards without giving the Wrangler something?

B

No, no.

D

Best midsize suv, Ford Bronco. A lot of people don't realize how much bigger the Bronco is than the Wrangler, but it's a much larger, more substantial vehicle than the Wrangler is.

B

Yeah, I fit better in it.

D

Large suv. And this one we had a lot of discussion about. But, you know, the Nissan Armada Pro 4X is a good value. And thinking about vehicles that are good for not just the 10 days that you're doing adventuring stuff in them, but also the other 355 days a year where you're taking that car to work, school, whatever, it has to work for those as well.

C

So you said there was a lot of discussion about this, why

D

it's not a top seller in the class.

C

Okay.

D

There are some other very capable vehicles in that category, including a bunch of truck based SUVs, Expedition, Tahoe, Yukon. But Armada, you know, when you look at the numbers, it came out on top of.

B

Also, I think when Nissan brought the Armada back, they did something they needed to do that they didn't do the first time, which was to price it appropriately. The first time they brought out a large suv, they kind of priced it right in there with like Expedition and Suburban. And it was new to the market, it was new to the segment, and it seemed relatively expensive. I just drove the Armada Pro 4X and I think it came in about $84,000, which was substantially cheaper than the competition.

D

It's amazing how expensive the big SUVs have gotten.

B

Oh, that segment's crazy.

D

Yeah. When you're looking at, you know, a GMC Yukon, that's 100 grand, that's. That's a tough deal.

B

Yeah. And people are paying it, so everyone wants to be in that segment.

D

Yeah. Best hybrid SUV for off roading. This one was a little bit of a surprise too, but when you look at the numbers, it comes out on top. Toyota RAV4 Woodland.

B

Okay.

D

Hybrid gets phenomenal gas mileage. Good cargo room. The numbers say comes out on top.

B

I almost asked, like, oh, they finally did a hybrid version of the Woodland, but everything's hybrid now. I keep forgetting that everything's hybrid.

D

And there's a plug in hybrid version of the Woodland now as well.

B

I didn't know that. Okay.

D

Luxury SUV for off roading. Land Rover Defender.

B

Delightful vehicle.

D

For this one. It came down to kind of the Defender and the Lexus gx.

B

Okay.

D

Two very different flavors of the same thing. But the Defender, when we looked at the numbers, approach and departure angles really helped it out.

B

Okay.

D

And that spot, sweat footed over the top. Cool.

B

And then you have an EV.

D

Yes, the Rivian R1S. Again, a tough category because the numbers between it and the Hummer EV off roading were very, very close.

B

Were they?

D

But in my mind, it kind of comes down to what. Which of those vehicles do you want to live with every day? I think I want all with the Rivian.

B

Yeah. I drove the Hummer very recently and I found it, you know, a nice vehicle to drive. And it was quick and it was comfortable and everything about it was pretty cool. But where do you put it? It's so big and it's ponderous and it's not actually. It is electric and that's good. But it's not actually energy efficient. It just has a monstrous battery.

D

The battery in it weighs more than a Mazda Miata.

B

There's. Okay, my point exactly. Thank you.

D

And it's actually illegal to drive it across the Brooklyn Bridge because it's over the weight limit.

B

Wow. You know, people are doing it though.

D

Oh, yeah. I mean, actually a lot of SUVs are probably close to or over the weight limit, but they do it every day.

B

Yeah.

D

Let's get in the pickups. Midsize pickup for off roading. Toyota Tacoma TRD Pro.

B

Okay.

D

Another tough category. Some great competitors. Colorado ZR2 GMC Canyon AT4, Jeep Gladiator. But the Tacoma just is an all around better package.

B

All right.

D

Full size pickup for off roading. Ford F150. You have two main off road models of that, the Tremor and the Raptor. So there's kind of an off roader for, you know, whatever your budget.

B

Okay.

D

Yeah.

B

You've got the Ram as runner up. Okay. And then you mentioned the trim levels. Okay, well.

C

And I do want to say the Ford F150 from a petite person's perspective, like that's just my favorite truck, period, because of the kick down windows that lower the side mirrors and it just. You get really good visibility and very few blind spots. So explain those.

B

I don't know if everyone knows what you're talking about.

C

Well, the, the kick down windows like at the front by the A pillar, they just kind of drop down, which Allows you to lower the side mirrors so that you can see over the top of them rather than like not.

B

It's actually, it's actually an opening in what would be the door that allows you to see more mirror.

C

So I'm like, that doesn't make sense to me. But okay, all right, all right. It made sense to me. Good for short people.

B

We'll post a picture.

C

Yes.

D

And you know, Jill, does the Ford still have the adjustable pedals?

C

It does. So does the Ram. The Ram and the Ford are the only two pickup trucks that still have adjustable pedals.

D

That's a huge thing. Best electric pickup for off roading. Rivian R1T.

B

Cool.

D

Another tough category and again against the Hummer and Silverado ev. But the truck that you want to live with every day, incredible range. It's just a good choice. And honestly in that category, it's actually one of the more affordable.

B

That's interesting. That's funny because it, everything else sneaks up on it with the off road packages. I guess they do, yeah. Interesting. All right, what else you got, sir?

D

Let's go to best vehicles for camping. This was, you know, we base everything on data, but we look at that data and make sure that we're capturing everything about the vehicles that is important and making sure that the, that the data validates what we see in real life. So best subcompact SUV for camping. Again, the Bronco Sport.

B

Okay.

D

Subcompact hybrid SUV for camping. Crosstrek hybrid. It can get you there. It's very capable vehicle. Best compact SUV for camping. Hyundai Tucson. We're the Tucson and the Tucson hybrid. In the next category win is cargo room. Oh yeah, more Cargo room than RAV4 or CRV. And they, you know, again, excellent vehicles. Compact SUV, compact plug in hybrid, SUV, rather fairly thin category. RAV4 plug in hybrid could also have

C

been the Hyundai Tucson plug in hybrid. That was, that had to been in the mix somewhere.

D

And the Sportage plug in hybrid. Yeah, but Thorat Ford, numbers wise, came out on top on that one. Midsize SUV for camping. GMC Acadia GMC did very well in these awards. You know, they, they talk about themselves as being like a luxury adventure, adventure brand. When we look at the numbers on these categories, it kind of validates. What they're saying is that these vehicles are good for that stuff.

C

So a question for you before you continue down the list. When you're looking at this, are you thinking in terms of like car camping, people are sleeping in their vehicle or able to put a tent on top or just able to fit their gear or. Yes to all of the above.

D

Yes to all of the above. We looked at cargo space. We looked at roof capacity, both static and dynamic. We looked at fuel efficiency, even on this one, because you have to get there. Best midsize hybrid SUV for camping. Grand Highlander hybrid. And that's a vehicle that we just reclassified into midsize. We had it in large, didn't seem to fit that well in large. So we brought it down into the midsize category where it seems to compete a little better with. With its gears in there.

C

Okay, cool.

D

Midsize plug in hybrid SUV for camping. Again, a fairly small group now that the Jeep Grand Cherokee 4XE is gone and that the winner is Mazda CX90 Phem.

C

Okay, do you.

B

And I have to ask you about this vehicle because I whine about it a lot. A lot. Do you find the CX70 and the CX90 Hybrid drivetrains to be deficient in terms of smoothness and just general progressiveness? Okay.

D

Yes.

B

All right. Just asking. I didn't want to be a lonely.

D

No, you, you're, you're correct. They. The inline six in the non hybrid, non plug in hybrid is so smooth.

B

Yeah.

D

When you pop into a plugin, you realize how not smooth it is.

B

All right, we're on the same page. I feel very good about that.

D

And I say that as a recovering cheap 4xe.

B

I remember following somebody who had purchased one. He had a, I think a three year lease and he could not wait to be out of that lease on a 4XE. It just, it was a Grand Cherokee.

D

I am now out my Grand Cherokee and into a Genesis GV70.

B

Oh, well, that's smoother.

D

Yes, it is. And.

B

And faster. Yeah.

D

Best large SUV for camping. And that is the GMC Yukon xl. The long wheelbase Yukon, you know, Suburban in GMC clothing. Best electric SUV for camping. Hyundai Ionic. Nine tons of cargo room. Good range. A lot of features that make it good for camping. Also, power takeoffs.

B

Great looking.

D

Best minivan for camping. Kia Carnival. Okay, one of the benefits of the Carnival that is tough to find in minivans nowadays is the floor is completely flat.

C

Yeah.

D

And when you just get seats out, it's a fully flat floor.

B

That's handy. Now, why the Carnival over any of the other minivans? Because they all seem like they do about the same thing.

D

You know, the Carnival's the newest minivan in the segment, so feature wise, it has more safety features and all of those things flow into our data set. So it kind of rose to the surface.

B

The other, again, it was a pretty

D

close competition in that one.

B

The Carnival, I think, is still the only minivan you can do under 40 grand. Just barely.

D

Yeah. Which is saying something considering it's not built in America and it's exposed to tariffs.

B

Yeah, they're definitely taking a beating on that.

D

Yep. Best mid size pickup for camping. 2026 GMC in.

B

Okay.

D

And that came down to size of the bed, size of the cab. Cab. Best full size pickup for camping. And we went round and rounded with this one because the Ford 150 has a feature that makes it better than any truck out there for camping, and that is pro power on board.

B

Oh, okay.

C

I was gonna say zone lighting.

D

That's cool too. But pro power on board with the hybrid, where you can power your trailer for days at a time.

C

Yeah.

D

And the truck just switches on occasionally to recharge the battery and then sends power to your trailer all night. That's a great feature for camping.

B

I had not thought of that. Yeah. That's awesome.

D

That's one where the data didn't really show us that, but we looked at how we could make the data reflect things like that.

B

Yeah, that's cool. That's a great point, too. All right, what else you got, sir?

D

Best electric pickup for camping. Because people do that. GMC Sierra ev.

B

There you go.

D

And you know, it's the same basic truck as the Silverado ev, but the Sierra is just better.

C

Well, nicer.

D

Yeah.

B

I have not driven the gmc. I've only driven the Chevy. So this is very interesting to me.

D

Basically think about it as a Silverado that doesn't have the interior of a Malibu.

B

I will now forever think about it that way.

D

Let's get into road trips.

B

Yeah.

D

Best car for road tripping. And when we were working on the data set for this one, it's 2026, so fuel economy is a huge factor here.

C

Yeah.

D

It may not be as much in future years. We'll look at the Data. But for 2026, it had to be up there.

C

Yeah.

D

Best car for road tripping. Kia K5.

B

Just a nice midsize sedan.

D

Just a nice midsize sedan. Yeah. Best hybrid car for road tripping. Toyota Prius.

B

Okay.

D

Put over the top by fuel economy and cargo space.

C

Oh, yeah.

D

With the hatchback design, it has a ton of cargo space.

B

Interesting. Yeah. It's a good looking thing too. It really is.

D

And it's good driving.

B

It's a shame that we will probably see the Prius go away soon simply because Toyota has made excellent drive power. I'm sorry, hybrid drivetrains available in everything. So the Prius's role is somewhat diminished. But that's a shame because it's actually an excellent car.

D

But honestly, which would you rather have? Would you rather have a Prius or a Corolla Hybrid?

B

I've asked myself that question and I think I want to go Prius.

D

I would be there too.

B

Yeah.

C

So maybe Prius sticks around.

D

Let's hope. And let's hope that Prius doesn't become an SUV like everything else. Subcompact SUV for road tripping Hyundai Kona.

B

Okay.

D

Fuel economy.

C

Yeah.

B

Cargo space.

C

Yeah.

D

Subcompact hybrid suv, Kia Niro. Now, the Niro is a vehicle that doesn't get much love out there.

B

I wasn't aware there still was a Niro.

D

There are two Niros still.

B

Oh, okay.

D

There's the hybrid and the electric Niro.

B

Okay.

D

Amazing mileage, lots of room. Maybe not the prettiest thing to look at, but it gets the job done.

C

Right.

B

Also, I don't think it's available in all 50 states anymore. We'd have to check on that. Or is it John? Do you know?

D

I'm not sure.

B

Yeah, that might be one of those, like, green state kind of things.

C

I'm seeing a lot of Hyundai and Kia vehicles on here.

D

And gmc. GMC is the big one.

B

Yeah.

D

Across all the awards, GMC is the big winner.

C

Yeah.

D

Compact hybrid SUV for road tripping Kia sportage hybrid.

B

Okay.

D

Compact plug in hybrid SUV for road tripping RAV4 plug in hybrid. You know, for road tripping. The RAV4 now has 50 plus miles electric only. Range.

B

That's pretty generous.

D

That saves you a couple of gallons of gas a day.

C

Yeah.

D

And that's about 10 bucks at prices today. Midsize SUV for road tripping GMC Acadia.

B

Okay.

D

Again, another repeat winner. Midsize Hybrid SUV for road tripping Hyundai Palisade hybrid.

B

Sure.

D

You can imagine which vehicle that this one was up against. And you know, it was super close between it and Telluride.

B

That is a nice application of a hybrid drivetrain too. I mean, that car, that vehicle needed a hybrid and they did it so well. I don't know why you wouldn't go hybrid.

D

I think. I'm not sure whether Jill would agree with me or not, but I think the hybrid version of this vehicle is what led it to its Nak Toy win last year.

B

Oh, interesting. Okay.

C

I would agree with you. The hybrid powertrain is Just so good.

D

It is. The other powertrain is fine, but the hybrid rocks.

B

Yeah, it's quick, it's very efficient. It wasn't in my test drive. It wasn't nearly as efficient as I thought it was going to be. But I still broke 30 miles per gallon, which for a vehicle that size and that power, why not?

D

Yeah, you're moving a really big box through the air.

B

Yep, yep.

D

Lots of midsize plug in hybrid SUV for road tripping CX90 plug in hybrid again.

B

All right. Or not the hybrid in my case.

D

Not the hybrid in your case.

B

Yeah.

D

Inline six is really good.

B

Yes, it is.

D

Or if you want cargo space, you just get the CX70, which two row with a ton of cargo space and cup holders for the imaginary third row.

C

It's for your car camping. Yeah, you know, your cup holders, your bed in the back and then you've got your cup holders on the side for car camping.

B

Exactly.

D

One thing we did not check was to see whether Jill's yeti would fit into any of these cup holders.

C

Very, very important. The yeti must fit best.

D

Large SUV for road tripping GMC Yukon xl.

B

Okay.

D

The Yukon is kind of like a Escalade for people who want to stay below the radar.

B

I've often thought that it's a great way to go and you don't lose much in terms of mechanical refinement. You know, it's features. No, you just lose chrome on the outside. And the thing is, your resale value is going to be rock solid. So. Yep, great way to go.

D

Electric SUV road tripping Hyundai Ioniq 9.

B

Okay. Wonderful vehicle. Yep.

D

And it's always close with the EV9 from Kia. But you know, when I first drove the Ionic 9, it felt like the EV9 in a version 1.5, just slightly better in a lot of different ways. Best minivan for road tripping Toyota Sienna.

B

Okay.

D

Down to great fuel economy. Plus it's the only minivan you can buy that's available in both hybrid and all wheel drive at the same time. Yeah, you can get either one of those features on other minivans, but you can't get them both together unless you buy the Sienna.

B

And that not for road tripping, but just for hanging around Chicago. That's important up here where we eight to ten days a year, we really, really, really all wish we had all wheel drive.

C

That is true.

D

And you wish everybody else did too.

C

Yes, that is also true because they're in your way, going five miles an hour in the left lane on the highway.

D

Just send them to a tire shop. That would help out a lot. Mid size pickup for road tripping GMC Canyon. GMC SUV for road tripping Ram 1500. With the Ram, it kind of comes down to efficiency, cabin size. You cannot get the diesel in the Ram anymore. Right. So in terms of overall fuel efficiency, the GM products, still, they'll win and what your best fuel economy is going to be. But when you run the numbers, diesel is so expensive that you're really not financially coming out ahead anymore.

B

Yeah, that's a bummer because GM still sells that 3 liter inline diesel. Yep.

D

And they sell in a lot of stuff.

B

Yeah, yeah. And everyone else has backed away from that. There's no other light duty diesels, but yeah, it's six bucks a gallon. You're not getting anything out of that

D

six or seven out here in Oregon, are you?

B

Seriously?

D

Yeah. Five regular unleaded and seven for diesel.

B

That's rough.

D

Best electric pickup for road tripping GMC Sierra ev.

B

All right, very cool.

C

Well, this is a really great list. So what made you guys decide that you wanted to do something like this?

D

So we looked at a lot of the lists for adventure vehicles and they were for hardcore adventurers.

C

Right.

D

And we wanted to develop a list of adventure vehicles for people who don't do adventure type stuff every day. So these needed to be good vehicles all around and capable of adventures.

C

Okay, so something that, you know, kind of your everyday driver that can also do hard things.

D

Exactly.

C

Okay, cool.

B

John. We're going to link to this from our show notes. But how can people see the whole list in one place?

D

Just go to usnews.com and look up the Autos tab and you'll find it all there.

B

Sounds good. John, thank you so much for your time today.

D

Thanks for the opportunity.

B

All right, that was John Vincent with U.S. news World Report. We're going to take a break and when we come back.

C

Quiz time.

B

Quiz time.

A

Questions or comments? Drop us a line at carstar stuff@consumerguide.com that's carstuffconsumerguide.com. Welcome back to the Car Stuff podcast.

B

And we're back. This is the consumer guide Car Stuff Podcast. I'm Tom. She is Jill. Jill. I'm mad about something.

C

When aren't you mad about something?

B

Usually never. But I have been whining about this technological three steps backward thing that Stellantis is doing and how we're now embracing the Hemi again. Yada, yada. Yep, I just got worse. Hemi News.

C

Okay.

B

From one single source So I don't know if it's true yet, but I'm sure it is. Stellantis is dropping the mild hybrid system, the Etorque system, from the Hemi. So just burn a little more oil, whatever. Doesn't matter.

C

Well, so I mean that the Etorque system is essentially the auto stop start engine, right?

B

No, you say that, but it's actually so much more than that. The Etorque system actually applies torque at launch. It's a belt driven system. It's very simple. And it's a system that General Motors used to use too, called belt assist system. But it is stop start and you're going to get smoother stop start because torque is being applied to the crankshaft during the start process. But it is also the real application of torque to help to launch the vehicle, which lowers the load onto the gasoline engine. So an Etorque engine would return better fuel economy.

C

But if they do away with the Etorque, does that mean they're also doing away with the auto stop start? That's the question.

B

Probably, maybe. Or at least temporarily.

C

And, and so, I mean, I, I find that to me less aggravating because I don't like auto stop start. But I feel like there were some regulations recently that were lifted so that people do not feel automakers should not feel compelled to put auto stop start in their vehicles. It's no longer.

B

All the regulations were lifted, so.

C

Yeah, well, it's no longer going to, you know, benefit them to have that. And it's a feature that makes people angry. So I don't. It doesn't bother me.

B

Well, it depends.

C

You can be angry. I am not.

B

It depends how people shop for a vehicle. If they look at EPA numbers, then having the stop start system there helps.

C

Yeah, but if you're just going to turn it off every time you get in the car, it does not. And I think maybe I just drove off.

B

I just drove the Lincoln Navigator. And every now and then the stop start system would hiccup a little bit and remind me that there was one there at all. It was super silky smooth most of the time. No way I would turn that off. Like, I'm getting better fuel economy. Why would I do that? But I've been in cars where it sucked and we know that Subarus aren't especially good at the stop start system thing. But anyway, that's my rant. Okay, did another step backwards. It's quiz time. But first, you probably want to talk a little bit about social media.

C

A little bit. I will be very Quick, you can find me on all the things at my name, Jill Simonello, and I use the hashtag car. I post new videos to YouTube and Tik Tok pretty much every day. And so I call that your daily dose of drive. So be sure to. If you're a video specific person, be sure to check that out.

B

I'm experimenting with a new hashtag to see if it helps me generate interest. Okay, it's hashtag nudenudenude.

C

I think you need xxx.

B

So we'll let.

C

What xxx.

B

Oh, yeah, that would help too. Probably in the same vein.

C

Yeah.

B

Okay. I'll let you know how that helps.

C

Cool. Thanks.

B

All right, it is quiz time. Are you ready?

C

I am ready.

B

Today's topic is is it built there?

C

Okay.

B

Is it built there? That's today's topic. The quiz is five questions. There's also a bonus question. You need three total of all six questions for a win. Okay, the bonus question, as always, related to the topic of the day. Okay, Are you ready? All right, number one, the Mercedes Benz G Wagon. The Galandevagon. That's their crazy paramilitary looking thing. Is it built in Graz, Austria?

C

I'm gonna say yes.

B

Austria it is. Yes. By Magnus Steyr, Big international company that has a very flexible factory that builds low volume stuff. So, yes, you're on the board. The G Wagon is Austrian, by the way. That sucker is expensive. Do you know how much that starts at now?

C

Isn't it like 100 or 110?

B

160.

C

Oh, my gosh, I'm way out.

B

Yeah, and there's an electric version that starts at 163. All right, you've got one point. Are you ready for question two?

C

Ready.

B

Is the Nissan Altima, Nissan's midsize sedan, built in Smyrna, Tennessee? Ooh,

C

I think it is. I'm gonna say, yes, it is.

B

Yes. You have two points. You're in a good way. You're doing good. You got two of the six. You're probably gonna cruise home to an easy victory here.

C

Maybe now you've just jinxed me.

B

Maybe. Jill. The Chevrolet Tahoe. Oh, is that built in Eugene, Oregon?

C

Oh, I have no idea where the Tahoe is built, but Eugene's a princess, right?

B

Isn't. Isn't there a princess, Eugene?

C

I don't know. I. And I don't. I don't remember, like, any plants in Oregon, but, you know, house plants.

B

I bet they have house plants.

C

Maybe. Maybe house plants. I'm gonna say no.

B

The Chevrolet Tahoe, built in Eugene, Oregon. You're saying no.

C

Yes.

B

It's not. Yeah, it's built in Arlington, Texas.

C

Okay.

B

All right, question four. The Porsche Cayenne. Ah, Porsche Cayenne. Is it built in Brat Slava, Slovakia?

C

The Porsche Cayenne feel like once upon a time it was built in the United States.

B

That is Porsche's midsize crossover, one of the first premium midsize crossovers. Also way back when, when they launched this thing, there was like this emphasis on off road capability. We kind of forgot about that since.

C

Yeah. With one of the very first cars I remember being driving at the Midwest Automotive Media Association Spring Rally in their off road course was the Porsche Cayenne.

B

Yeah, they probably wouldn't even put that in the off road course anymore.

C

No,

B

no, it is. Yeah. Volkswagen has a huge factory in Brat Slava, Slovakia where they build the Cayenne, the Cayenne coupe, the Volkswagen Touareg, the Audi Q7, the Audi Q8, and then some stuff for other brands that we don't get in the US So big factory. So you got one wrong there, right?

C

Yep.

B

All right, the Subaru wrx, is that built in Lafayette, Indiana? The wrx, of course, the sporty version of the small. The small Subaru. The impression.

C

I drive by that plant every other week and I feel like they put the cars in front facing the highway that they build at the plant. And I'm trying to remember. Yeah, it is, it is very cool. And there, that campus is flipping huge.

B

Do they do that? I wonder if they'll do that again at Belvedere. Belvedere's got. That's in Illinois between Chicago and Rockford. And that's where they're going to build the Jeep Cherokee. Or they are, I guess, building the Jeep Cherokee. So they've got like hills and stuff to park cars on. Yeah, it looks cool from the highway,

C

but I'm trying to remember if I remember seeing a WRX parked there. I think they only make SUVs there. I'm going to say no, you're correct.

B

No, they built them in Japan.

C

Okay.

B

All right. Nice job. You got four out of five. The bonus question, are you ready?

C

I am never ready for the bonus question. But let's have it.

B

You've been talking a lot about Salt Lake City lately.

C

I. Yes, yes, I have.

B

Offline, almost non stop. Yeah, just. Just salt like this, salt like that. I need you to tell me which of the following is not a real museum located in Salt Lake City.

C

Okay.

B

Are you ready?

C

Yes.

B

The butterfly biosphere. The Beehive house, The Alf Bangin Ski Museum or the Nelson. I can't read this. I should turn on my lights. The Nelson Major Bowling hall of Fame. One of those is not a real museum located in Salt Lake City.

C

I.

B

By the way, this is according to visit. According to visit salt lake.com

C

visit as I type. No, I'm not typing it in. I'm not going to cheat.

B

I'll read them again. The Butterfly Biosphere. The Beehive House. The Elf Engin Ski Museum or the Nelson Major Bowling hall of Fame Name Elf or Elf E L F Angam E N G E N. Which certainly sounds like an authentic Swedish style person who might ski if I hadn't made that up.

C

So I think it's got to be one of the last two, huh? And I've never seen the movie, but I feel like there's a movie where there's two guys that like Woody Harrelson is a bowler.

B

It's one of the greatest movies ever made.

C

King and I feel like Bill Murray, we're gonna make something up. Like that would be like it was the Bowling hall of Fame or whatever and they were going to Utah on a road trip or something. But I have no idea. I've never seen.

B

I think that's actually the plot of the movie. I think that's. Yeah.

C

So I. But. But the Alfred, like you, you just kind of said if I hadn't made it up. And so I'm like, well, yeah, so did you make it up? I don't know.

B

The Alf Angam Ski Museum or the Nelson Major Bowling hall of Fame.

C

Yeah, I'm gonna. I'm gonna go with the. The Bowling hall of Fame as fake.

B

Yeah, nice job. That's the fake. All right.

C

Did it figure into Kingpin at all?

B

No, I hadn't considered Kingpin. Okay, fantastic movie.

C

Poor logic on my side, but I got it right. Anyway.

B

It's actually a deeply troubling movie filled with really troubling stuff. But it is very, very funny.

C

Not my sense of humor.

B

All right, who do we have on the show next week?

C

Next week? I believe. I'm like, I want to make sure I get this right, but I'm pretty sure it's somebody from scout. And I want to say it is Ryan Decker from scout, but let me just double, double, double, triple check. Yes, Brian Decker from Scout.

B

An all new brand. We have a guest down from an all new brand building expended range electric pickup trucks and crossovers.

C

Yes.

B

That'll be exciting. All right. Guess what we did.

C

We had another great show.

D

Yeah.

B

Good to have John Vincent on the show. Always welcome. Big thanks to John Vincent. Thanks to you, Jill. Thanks to Margaret. Let's talk more about cars again next week. Next week.

A

Remember to check us out@consumerguide.com the car stuff podcast is produced by J Turn Media. To advertise on the show, please drop us a line@carstuffinsumerguide.com.