Monthly Archives: December 2021

Bud’s 2,500th review – ‘Merry Christmas’

Auto Reviews, Automotive Industry
The 2022 Grand Wagoneer moves Jeep into the luxury field. (Bud Wells photos)

“Merry Christmas” I shout out from the open window of the 2022 Jeep Grand Wagoneer.

It is a special time for me, as the Grand Wagoneer is the 2,500th car or truck I’ve reviewed over the past 44 years – since Christmas Eve 1977.

The 1995 Chevy Corvette at Georgetown.

Of those 2,500 models I’ve driven, 162 were Fords, the most for any of the 70 brand names, followed by Chevrolet, Toyota, Nissan, Volkswagen and BMW.

It started Dec. 24, 1977, when I walked out of The Denver Post building at 15th and California downtown and rode north to Griffith Chrysler Plymouth in Northglenn and was handed keys to a ’78 Chrysler Cordoba.

The next four drives were in an AMC Pacer Wagon, Mercury Zephyr Z-7, Volkswagen Rabbit Diesel and Pontiac Trans Am. Cheapest I drove were a ’78 Mazda GLC at $4,030 and ’78 Chevrolet Monza at $4,085. Highest-priced was the 2021 Rolls-Royce Cullinan at $394,275 last summer.

Saab was one of the greatest of handlers in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s. (Bud Wells)

Majority of my reviews were in The Post, though diversions earned me columns in the Rocky Mountain News, Pueblo Chieftain, Villager, Greeley Tribune.

For the 2,500th, it is the big, new Grand Wagoneer, Jeep’s pricey step up into the luxury SUV field to compete with Cadillac and Lincoln, even Range Rover and Mercedes.

The Grand Wagoneer, with overall length of 214.7 inches and curb weight of 6,340 pounds, performs impressively with a 471-horsepower, 455 lb.-ft. torque, 6.4-liter Hemi V-8, 8-speed automatic transmission and four-wheel drive.

It comes in four trim levels – Series I at $87,845, Series II $95,440, Series Obsidian $100,400 and Series III $104,845.

The Series I model I drove was finished in velvet red with a painted black cap and seven-bar grille out front. One of the first I showed it to, said, “I thought it might be a bit sleeker,” to which I replied, “Jeep hasn’t used the word ‘sleek’ in 80 years.”

Today’s automotive luxury field is low volume in sales, but very high in profit. The Grand Wagoneer, based on body-on-frame underpinnings derived from the Ram 1500, features independent rear suspension rather than solid rear axle, for smoother ride.

The popular Quadra Lift air suspension, which automatically adjusts between efficiency on the highway and greater ground clearance in offroading, is standard on the Grand Wagoneer. Twenty-inch wheels are standard on Grand Wagoneer Series I, while the upper trim levels get 22-inchers.

As the Hemi roars with high levels of power, the EPA estimate remains low in fuel mileage – 13 in town, 18 on the highway, my driving averaged 15.4 mpg.

A beautiful, plush interior is a highlight of the new offering and includes a Mcintosh sound system, newly refined for the automotive field. McIntosh designed the special audio for the 100th anniversary Ford GT in 2003.

One late afternoon in the Jeep, there I was at the busy postal depository for my handful of Christmas cards, window down and several more cars pulling in line behind me. In order to reach the small slot in the postal chute, I unhooked my seatbelt, stretched my arm to its length and tipped the cards in. Half a dozen cars waiting behind me now, I twisted the dial shifter to D, pressed lightly on the throttle, got nothing, no forward movement. Tried again, moved shifter back to P, then past R and N to D, deeper into throttle, got noise, nothing else. Another 20 seconds, Jan offered some words of advice, I noticed my seat belt light flashing, buckled the belt, moved shifter to D, accelerated and pulled away from the post office.

Following are the numbers of each make I’ve driven through the years:

The rear-drive Crown Vic, last of the big Fords, in the Rockies.
An S4 Cabriolet is one of 85 Audis driven and reviewed by Bud Wells. (Bud Wells photo)

List of 2500 Vehicles Driven

  1. Ford 162,
  2. Chevrolet 145,
  3. Toyota 126,
  4. Nissan 124,
  5. Volkswagen 104,
  6. BMW 103,
  7. Dodge 101,
  8. Mercedes-Benz 99,
  9. Subaru 92,
  10. Mazda 87,
  11. Audi 85,
  12. Jeep 73,
  13. Volvo 71,
  14. Infiniti 69,
  15. Chrysler 65,
  16. Honda 65,
  17. Lexus 61,
  18. Cadillac 57,
  19. Kia 56,
  20. Hyundai 53,
  21. Land Rover/Range Rover 49,
  22. GMC 47,
  23. Jaguar 47,
  24. Mitsubishi 47,
  25. Acura 44,
  26. Pontiac 44,
  27. Buick 40,
  28. Suzuki 36,
  29. Lincoln 33,
  30. Mercury 31,
  31. Ram 28,
  32. Saab 28,
  33. Oldsmobile 24,
  34. Saturn 21,
  35. Mini 19,
  36. Fiat 17,
  37. Porsche 17,
  38. Isuzu 16,
  39. Plymouth 15,
  40. AMC 10,
  41. Hummer 9,
  42. Alfa Romeo 7,
  43. Geo 7,
  44. Scion 7,
  45. Datsun 6,
  46. Bentley 5,
  47. Lancia 4,
  48. Triumph 4,
  49. Aston Martin 3,
  50. Eagle 3,
  51. Genesis 3,
  52. MGB 3,
  53. Rolls-Royce 3,
  54. Daewoo 2,
  55. Ferrari 2,
  56. Imperial 2,
  57. Lamborghini 2,
  58. Lectric Leopard 2,
  59. Maserati 2,
  60. McLaren 2,
  61. Sprinter 2,
  62. Electrek 1,
  63. Excalibur 1,
  64. Fisker 1,
  65. Lotus 1,
  66. Marathon 1,
  67. Maybach 1,
  68. Peugeot 1,
  69. Renault 1,
  70. Stryker 1.

Genesis GV70 earns divisional recognition

Auto Reviews
An ultramodern 2022 Genesis GV70 contrasts with a long-ago business of the little town halfway between Wray and Yuma. (Bud Wells photos)

“Is that a Bentley?,” Robert McKeigan hollered out the window of his pickup as I parked in a fueling lane at Stub’s Gas & Oil in Wiggins early afternoon on my way to Wray.

“No, it’s a Genesis,” I responded, “you know, from Hyundai’s new luxury division.”

More specifically, I was driving a 2022 Genesis GV70 all-wheel-drive SUV crossover, one that drew attention wherever I took it. It is a new luxury compact competing with the Acura RDX, Audi Q5, BMW X3, Mercedes GLB and GLC and others.

The winged emblem of the Genesis GV70 SUV crossover.

McKeigan and his wife, Adriana, were impressed with the GV70’s sleek structural beauty, and the guess that it might be a Bentley was based on its winged emblem at the front of the hood. The Genesis wings have similarities to several other car logos, including Aston Martin and Chrysler.

The Genesis name was a Hyundai model for 10 years before launching a slow start toward its own division in 2017. Today it is a full-fledged division with five models, based in Ulsan, Korea. In addition to the GV70, the nameplate also rides on three sedans – G70, G80 and G90 – and a larger SUV crossover, the GV80. Famed golfer Tiger Woods was driving a GV80 when he was seriously injured in an auto accident in California in February.

The good-handling GV70 has the feel of a relatively heavy compact, and sizes up that direction when compared with the popular Audi Q5. The Genesis has longer wheelbase, is an inch longer overall and 200 pounds heavier than the Audi.

The top-trim-level GV Sport Prestige’s twin-turboed 3.5-liter, 6-cylinder engine is powerful and smooth, tied to an 8-speed automatic transmission (with paddleshifters) and standard all-wheel drive. The V-6 develops 375 horsepower and 391 lb.-ft. of torque. It averaged 23.4 miles per gallon on drive to Wray and back. Available also is a turbocharged 2.5-liter, 4-cylinder of 300 horsepower.

It is a delight to drive; a complaint, though, is the closeness on the center console of two rotary dials, making it not unusual to grab and twist one for the other until the driver is more familiar with the setup.

The forward-placed dial controls infotainment on a large, 14.5-inch touchscreen. Directly behind it is the gearshift rotary.

In my first drive of the review vehicle, I wondered why a small “eye” kept looking up at me from its insertion into the dash; it is an eye for scanning the driver’s fingerprint, which allows activating the GV without a key.

The GV70 3.5T Sport Prestige model’s base price of $52,600 climbed to $64,045 with addition of a Sport Advantage package of nappa leather, heated steering wheel, remote smart parking assist (practice this before using it in downtown Denver) and Lexicon premium audio. Also a Sport Prestige package of 21-inch wheels, carbon fiber trim, heated rear seats, manual rear-side sunshades and head-up display.

Genesis models are currently sold at Hyundai stores; beginning in 2022 the company will open exclusive Genesis stores.

Hybrid switch brightens Toyota minivan

Auto Reviews
The ’22 Toyota Sienna Hybrid in Boulder. (Bud Wells photos)

A bright position in a slumping automotive market category of minivans appears to be that of the Toyota Sienna and its maker’s decision a year ago to produce and sell only gas/electric hybrid models.

Contrasting that is FCA’s axing a bit earlier of the Dodge Grand Caravan, the greatest-selling minivan of all time.

Results through nine months of 2021 show the Toyota Sienna rising from fourth to first place in sales on the strength of an astounding 190% increase; the FCA minivan two-pack of Grand Caravan and Chrysler Pacifica which traditionally owned more than 50% of the market, has skidded to 24% by the Pacifica, alone without the Dodge’s presence.

In the face of worldwide chip shortages and pandemic slowdowns, it isn’t clear as to whether the Sienna sales surge will be of prolonged duration, and with the long-popular Grand Caravan gone, will loyal Dodge minivan buyers turn to stablemate Pacifica for replacement.

“The Toyota Sienna and its all-hybrid powertrain have surpassed customers’ expectations with a combined 36 miles per gallon, Toyota Safety Sense 2.0 as standard equipment at no extra cost and built-in quality, said Christine Henley, Western communications manager for Toyota North America. 

A strong selling point for the Toyota hybrid is the claim of much higher economy; on that basis of information, I requested and received one.

Distinguished educator James Colwell visits with Jan Wells in Boulder.

For testing the 2022 Toyota Sienna Hybrid XSE All-Wheel-Drive minivan, we drove from Greeley to Boulder to visit with James Colwell in a retirement community, on in to Denver to autograph a copy of “The 100-Year Deal” at the Colorado Automobile Dealers Association, then on out southwest for dinner at the home of Kurt and Tammy Wells.

The Sienna performed smoothly, if not powerfully. Its hybrid engine is made up of a 190-horsepower, 2.5-liter 4-cylinder, which is driven by two electric motors; total output is 245-hp. This is tied to an electronic continuous variable transmission.

For the 170-mile drive, the Sienna Hybrid averaged 34.9 miles per gallon, right at its EPA estimate of 35 in the city and 36 on the highway. Performance was a bit more satisfactory a year ago when I drove a gas-only Sienna Limited Premium AWD minivan equipped with 3.5-liter V-6 and 8-speed automatic transmission; its mpg, though, was 20.1.

The large ’22 Sienna is 17 feet long and weighs 4,610 pounds with sport-tuned suspension. The red-stitched SofTex (more durable than leather) front seats are very well-bolstered, the second-row captain’s chairs are of long-slide capability and third row seat is split and can be stowed in one motion.

Sticker price on the ’22 Sienna, including a full range of Toyota Safety Sense features, is $47,215.

Colwell, 95, English instructor for my freshman year at Sterling High School 70 years ago, enjoyed a distinguished career as an educator.

Jan and I were assisted at the Colorado Automobile Dealers Association by Kim Jackson and Savannah Hatcher. The book-signing was for John McCallan, whose family was associated in a Colorado dealership before moving to California, where John is involved in several large-scale automotive operations.
Minivans at the turn-of-the-century sold more than 1 million annually; the tally this year will be down around 310,000.