The Tale of the Round Door Rolls-Royce

Posted on Sep 18, 2021 in Editorials | 1 comment

I’ve tangentially touched on the topic of this post, the famous art deco “Round Door Rolls-Royce”, before when discussing Audi advertising and some Detroit history. On my recent trip to Los Angeles to drive a McLaren 675LT (you think Jack Baruth is the only TTAC staffer who can swing the loan of a supercar?), I took the opportunity to visit the newly renovated...

To Love A Sienna Like No Other?

Posted on Jul 21, 2021 in Editorials | 1 comment

MatadorX writes: Sajeev, I am hoping you and your readership can give me some guidance as to how far to take a vehicle overhaul: mild insanity or full on broke? The vehicle in question is a 1998 Toyota Sienna XLE. It has been in the family since grandpa (who else) bought it brand new, finally abandoning Chrysler vans after three successive transmission...

Which Beater Should She Bet On?

Posted on Jun 25, 2021 in Editorials | 1 comment

Kobe writes: Hi Bark, I’ve only begun to read TTAC and your email responses are a great read, so I figured I’d give sending you a question a shot. Two of my wife’s friends are looking for reliable, used cars. The parameters I’ve been given were $4,000 or less (as she will need to save a little for maintenance repairs I figure), a hatchback (preferably...

The Fragile Second Act Of The Prius C

Posted on May 18, 2021 in Editorials | 1 comment

There must be something about being the world’s most powerful automaker that makes you just, you know, wanna spread some branding around like your showroom is a big slice of bread and your best-loved nameplates are just sweet, sweet chrome jelly. How else can you explain Toyota’s attempt to expand the “Prius” into a three-car lineup, in the same way that...

An Unexpected Japanese Classic: The Honda Mobilio

Posted on Mar 16, 2021 in Editorials | 1 comment

It wasn’t supposed to be like this. The Town & Country I worked so hard to import into Japan was supposed to be my wife’s. I had planned to buy whatever I wanted and, although I hadn’t quite decided on what that was going to be, classic Japanese iron was on my mind. The second-generation Toyota Soarer and the ’90s-era Toyota Celica GT-Four were leading...

Which Car Will Make The Best Nostalgia Machine?

Posted on Feb 2, 2021 in Editorials | 2 comments

Greg writes: Hi Bark, I’m a 32-year-old red-blooded male, life-long car enthusiast and hopeful to be raising a few future enthusiasts in the foreseeable future. I can smell which way the wind is blowing and know that the car market is going to look very different in the future. I’m excited about electric cars, but also want a “timepiece” that’s tasteful, fun,...

A Reunion on Hawaii

Posted on Jan 12, 2021 in Editorials | 1 comment

Some fans of this website might call it an econobox. Others, who obviously don’t know better, might even call it a “penalty box.” But to Aliza McKeigue, 25, the humble 2001 Toyota Corolla is a beloved companion. She refers to the car affectionately in the third person singular, feminine. So when Aliza left Boston, Massachusetts in January 2015, for what she...

What’s The Lexus Replacement Consensus?

Posted on Dec 20, 2020 in Editorials | 2 comments

Sobro writes: Bark, Insert friendly greeting and small talk here. I was lucky that Sajeev is a sunroof enthusiast as well as a Ford fanboi when he promptly answered my question about the clunking roof in my wife’s 2003 Lexus ES300. At 170,000 miles, her glorified Camry is nearly as grounded to the ground as it ever was. However, she is starting to get antsy...

How Many Human-driven Years Remain?

Posted on Nov 1, 2020 in Editorials | 1 comment

Autonomous vehicles and shared mobility are invoked in our contemporary discourse as an inevitable fate. There is an unsettling undercurrent rippling around a not altogether desirable future for the automobile as we know it. I am not anti-progress, anti-technology, or otherwise prone to romanticizing yesteryear. I welcome the convenience and safety of new...

Too Much Junk in the Trunk (and Everywhere Else)

Posted on Oct 16, 2020 in Editorials | 1 comment

Ben writes: Hey Bark, I have a brother with a mechanically-healthy 2001 Toyota Camry LE four-cylinder automatic. I’m estimating it has about 180,000 miles now. He uses that car everyday — extensively on the job, and for visits to family members out of state. Mileage is piling up fast. He does have the car regularly maintained — mechanically — through a local...

High-Low, High-Low, It’s Off To Work You Go

Posted on Sep 5, 2020 in Editorials | 1 comment

Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of editing Daniel Ho’s theories on crossovers as reflections of the zeitgeist. In his thoughtfully-written piece, Daniel argues that crossovers are chimeras, reflecting a social trend towards generalized products that combine social signaling attributes from multiple socio-economic categories. The crossover, therefore, is...

I Bought a Scion Once

Posted on Jun 24, 2020 in Editorials | 1 comment

“Sir, I don’t think you understand how our pricing model works.” It was the winter of 2004, and a sad-sack of a salesman sat at the desk across from Mrs. Bark and me at a morbidly depressing Toyota-Scion dealership near Dayton, Ohio. My dear wife was the less-than-proud owner of a 2001 Hyundai Elantra that had been the very first car she’d ever purchased new....