After a hectic week of travel for Sam while Dan was making an emergency TV commercial, the guys are back with a bunch of vehicles they've driven. Sam spent time with the BMW 230i and Kia Rio EX while Dan was in the BMW X2 and the VW Beetle convertible for a last hurrah before it rolls off into the sunset. Sam also drove the Cadillac XT4 and Lincoln Nautilus and attended the global reveal of the Audi E-Tron Quattro. Also J Mays emerges from retirement to design something new. Our Sponsors: * Chec...
Sep 21, 2018•1 hr 50 min
Since the last regular episode, Sam has been in the new Jeep Wrangler with a 48V mild hybrid and a Nissan Kicks. Meanwhile Dan has been hauling stuff in the Hyundai Ioniq and picks up the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV. Mercedes-Benz revealed the new EQC this week and the Ford Focus Active isn't coming to America. Our Sponsors: * Check out Aura.com: https://aura.com/remove * Check out BetterHelp: https://www.betterhelp.com Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: htt...
Sep 07, 2018•1 hr 11 min
In this special episode of Wheel Bearings, Sam sits down with Larry Burns, retired SVP of R&D and Strategic Planning at General Motors to talk about his new book, Autonomy: The Quest to Build the Driverless Car—And How It Will Reshape Our World . Since retiring from GM in 2009, Burns has been an educator and consultant including working with the Google Self-driving car project and Waymo since 2011. The book is a great read for anyone interested in learning more the history of the DARPA Grand...
Aug 26, 2018•45 min
This week Dan records his end of the show from the new Kia Rio which proves an affordable new car doesn't have to be cheap junk. Sam is at home after having driven the 2019 Jeep Cherokee and the 48V mild hybrid Ram 1500. The guys discuss the wisdom of Jaguar building electric restomod E-types, Audi's new Pebble Beach electric supercar concept and whether Elon Musk has outlived his usefulness to Tesla Our Sponsors: * Check out Aura.com: https://aura.com/remove * Check out BetterHelp: https://www....
Aug 25, 2018•1 hr 21 min
Lots of electrified vehicles this week as Sam discusses the Lexus LC500h and Honda Clarity Fuel Cell while Dan gets his hands on the new Honda Insight and the Ford Expedition Max Platinum. Casey Liss is also back to talk about the VW Golf R. Everyone's favorite 80s and 90s near vaporware is trying to make a comeback as Vector offers up a couple of old prototypes to kickstart a revival. Our Sponsors: * Check out Aura.com: https://aura.com/remove * Check out BetterHelp: https://www.betterhelp.com ...
Aug 18, 2018•1 hr 31 min
This week, Sam describes his time with the impressive Honda Accord Hybrid - perfected just in time for the sedan market to dry up - and Dan gets charmed by the Ford Raptor and Expedition Max. We talk abut the looming fight over relaxin or even rolling back fuel economy standards, SAE working to define safety tests for autonomous vehicles, and the layoffs that just happened at Car & Driver. Sam found and fixed an error with our feedback form, and so we spend a good amount of time answering a ...
Aug 09, 2018•1 hr 42 min
Since we last turned on the mics, Sam has been in the Ford F-150 King Ranch diesel and the Kia Niro plug-in hybrid. Dan has been sampling Subaru's new big SUV, the Ascent. The automotive world loses big names to the inevitable. Our Sponsors: * Check out Aura.com: https://aura.com/remove * Check out BetterHelp: https://www.betterhelp.com Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy...
Jul 27, 2018•59 min
This week Sam drives what may end up being the last Ford car to Pittsburgh to learn about how Argo AI is helping Ford build the future of transportation. Dan takes a road trip in the biggest of Ford's passenger carrying vehicles. A lot of very cool vehicles climb Lord March's driveway at the Goodwood festival of Speed. VW will build some of its new generation of EVs in America. Small Hyundai's are really good. The guys discuss the meaning of crossover in an attempt to answer a listener question,...
Jul 18, 2018•1 hr 47 min
This week Sam has been in the new Ford Expedition Max, Dan gets a re-run of the Lincoln Navigator and Mazda CX-9. Lots of news including the new Audi e-Tron quattro without mirrors, chargers for GM's automated Chevy Bolts, rising prices due to the trade war and the Toyota Supra goes to NASCAR. Finally, Honda builds a 150 mph lawnmower because why not? Our Sponsors: * Check out Aura.com: https://aura.com/remove * Check out BetterHelp: https://www.betterhelp.com Advertising Inquiries: https://redc...
Jul 08, 2018•1 hr 27 min
This week Sam drives Ford's new baby SUV, the EcoSport and Dan marvels at the progress of Kia over 20 years after driving the new Sorento. This week Fiat Chrysler held their annual What's New preview and showed off the latest even faster Challenger variant, the Hellcat Redeye. Like the Challenger, many of the products in the FCA lineup have been around for quite a long time but the company has made an effort to continuously update them in ways that seem small on the surface but matter to custome...
Jun 29, 2018•1 hr 16 min
The delay between episodes is always Dan's fault. Most of the miles were put on this week via 737-700s and a rental Kia Soul. Sam was busy paying attention to all of the automotive goings-on, including leadership shuffles at General Motors, and Ford's latest real estate investment in Detroit's Corktown neighborhood, while also finding time to drive the 2019 Honda Insight. Because it's been a while, there's also a plethora of cars we've been driving. Sam was in the 2018 Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV ...
Jun 24, 2018•1 hr 41 min
This week Sam really likes the third-generation Acura RDX, Dan likes the Mazda CX-5 and then they try hard not to talk about Tesla and mostly succeed. The guys also talk GM and Softbank and the upcoming product plans for Chrysler and Dodge. Just kidding on the last part, there are no known product plans for Chrysler and Dodge but Jeep, Ram, Alfa Romeo and Maserati are all getting new stuff. Our Sponsors: * Check out Aura.com: https://aura.com/remove * Check out BetterHelp: https://www.betterhelp...
Jun 09, 2018•1 hr 50 min
We missed last week for reasons we don't need to get into (OK, it was Dan's fault) but Sam drove the Volkswagen Tiguan and Atlas while Dan had the new Jeep Wrangler. Sam went to the Midwest Automotive Media Association Spring Rally at Road America where he went for a ride in the Ford GT and drove a whole bunch of other cars and utilities. He came to the conclusion that for those that actually want to have fun driving, the VW GTI is a better choice than the Golf R. Finally, Tesla continues to hav...
May 30, 2018•1 hr 25 min
This week Sam is in California talking autonomous cars at a conference. He's driven the BMW X3 before the trip and trying out the Cadillac CT6 with SuperCruise in Silicon Valley. Dan has been enjoying the rough edges of the Subaru WRX. The guys discuss Teslas crashing into fire trucks, batteries that re-ignite and the pending demise of the diesel. Our Sponsors: * Check out Aura.com: https://aura.com/remove * Check out BetterHelp: https://www.betterhelp.com Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircl...
May 18, 2018•1 hr 20 min
Sam spends time with the Range Rover Velar and laments touchscreens that can't be seen through polarized sunglasses. Dan continues to be impressed by the Genesis G80 and lauds the Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid as a great family hauler that is also really efficient. Rolls-Royce follows the crowd and launches and SUV named after what else? a massive diamond. The guys lament the deather of the Cadillac ATS. Waymo is learning to see through snow, Uber can see but doesn't know what to do and battery fires...
May 11, 2018•1 hr 30 min
After a week off, the guys are back with lots of stuff to talk about. Since the last show, Sam has been in the Mini Countryman Cooper S E (where do they come up with these naming conventions?) and the BMW 530e xDrive while Dan has found himself surprisingly enamored with the Toyota Camry Hybrid. While electrification is the future, it's not the only solution for improving efficiency, especially in the big trucks that Americans favor. That's why Ford is launching a diesel engine in the F-150. Som...
May 03, 2018•1 hr 46 min
Since the last show, Sam has spent time with the Volvo XC60 and Mercedes-Benz GLE550e plug-in hybrid. Dan gets an encore with the Nissan Armada and some time with the Dodge Charger GT. As we head into this year's Beijing Motor Show, images of the new Mercedes-Maybach sedan-SUV concept surface and frankly it's not good. Audi provides a preview of some of the testing they are doing with the upcoming e-Tron Quattro and VW subsidiary Electrify America gets ready to challenge the Tesla SuperCharger n...
Apr 22, 2018•1 hr 32 min
It's all hatchbacks this week as Sam talks about the Hyundai Ioniq Electric and trying to find an EV charging station in San Jose. The Toyota Yaris was also surprisingly enjoyable to drive but Dan had the best ride with the VW GTI. The EPA has decided to rescind the Obama administration's late decision to lock in the 2022-25 fuel economy and CO2 standards and your hosts the discuss the impact or lack thereof on the industry. Ford debuts the fourth generation Focus which Americans will get far fe...
Apr 12, 2018•1 hr 29 min
This week, Dan and Sam come in favor of a couple of very different sedans, the plug-in hybrid BMW 740e and the latest generation Honda Accord. Despite how different these cars are, both feature a 2.0-liter turbocharged four cylinder engine under the hood. The show is a bit late because Sam was travelling in California last week for the Nvidia GPU Technology Conference. Meanwhile on the opposite coast, Waymo and Jaguar announced a deal, Nissan unveiled an Altima with variable compression ratio, V...
Apr 04, 2018•1 hr 42 min
This week Car and Driver transportation editor Pete Bigelow drops by get some family car buying advice and discuss the first pedestrian fatality from an automated vehicle. Dan drives the Nissan Armada while same raves about the Kia Stinger and Cadillac has a new twin-turbo V8 engine. Our Sponsors: * Check out Aura.com: https://aura.com/remove * Check out BetterHelp: https://www.betterhelp.com Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy...
Mar 23, 2018•1 hr 45 min
This week Dan marvels at the stunning build quality of the beautifully sculpted Infiniti Q60 coupe (something Tesla seems fundamentally incapable of accomplishing). In discussing the Volvo V90, Sam demonstrates why auto journalists love wagons so much (bring on the new V60 please!). Then the guys dive into Ford's new product strategy and all of the upcoming hybrids, the refined new Ram 1500 and GM's call for higher-octane gasoline. Finally, Dan has a chat with Zach Bowman. Our Sponsors: * Check ...
Mar 18, 2018•2 hr 19 min
Sam returns from duty as a judge at a FIRST Robotics competition and gives his impressions of the 2018 Toyota Camry. Dan finds himself surprisingly enamored with the Acura TLX A-Spec. Following the Geneva Motor Show, the Jaguar i-Pace is officially on sale in Europe and coming to America soon. It will be followed by a pair of electric Porsches, the Mission E sedan and then the Mission E Cross Turismo. Ford patents a repair drone for its automated vehicles and guys dish out more car buying advice...
Mar 12, 2018•1 hr 40 min
This week Sam talks about and to the 2018 Lincoln Navigator while Dan shows some love to the auto journalist's special, the Volvo V90 in brown. The guys then discuss the production launch of the Jaguar i-Pace and some of the unique distinguishing features of the 2019 GMC Sierra including the available carbon fiber bed. Our Sponsors: * Check out Aura.com: https://aura.com/remove * Check out BetterHelp: https://www.betterhelp.com Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Op...
Mar 03, 2018•1 hr 2 min
Dan and Sam fired up the recorders late Friday night to marvel at the insanity that is the Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk and the combination of practicality and efficiency that is Hyundai's new Ioniq Plug-in Hybrid. Sam gives a primer on advanced driver assist systems in responses to comments on the Accidental Tech Podcast #261 and Waymo gets a license to operate an autonomous ride-hailing service in Arizona. Volvo launches its first three-cylinder engine. The demise of now former Ford executive...
Feb 25, 2018•1 hr 37 min
In this week's rambling episode, Accidental Tech Podcast co-host Casey Liss returns to talk about his experience with the Alfa Romeo Stelvio and compare notes with Sam. Sam also brings up his experience trying to drive the Giulia Quadrifoglio in the wake of a winter storm and Dan talks about the new Mini Countryman plug-in hybrid. The conversation then returns to the prior discussion Volvo's Sensus infotainment system and Casey's newfound frustrations with it. Dan is considering replacing his Cr...
Feb 18, 2018•1 hr 41 min
The guys are back after failing to get our collective acts together last week. Dan drove the VW Beetle with a 2.0-liter turbo that makes as much power as many much smaller engines, while Sam drives a three-row utility that actually has room for humans in the back, the 2018 Dodge Durango GT. This week Sam records his end of the show from Chicago as he gets ready for the auto show there. Ford is making a little bit of news with a mid-cycle refresh of the Transit Connect that surprisingly adds a ne...
Feb 09, 2018•1 hr 7 min
This week, Sam spends quality time with the Dodge Challenger GT AWD and comes away pleasantly surprised. Dan shares his appreciation of the 2018 Hyundai Sonata Sport and its naturally aspirated engine. Mazda invited Sam to California to learn more about the upcoming SkyActiv-X engine and drive a prototype. Then the guys go on an extended rant about BMW's plans to charge a subscription fee for Apple CarPlay and flow right into how reckless Elon Musk is being with flame throwers. Our Sponsors: * C...
Jan 29, 2018•1 hr 12 min
This week Sam commutes through the winter slog to the Detroit Auto Show in the 2018 Jeep Compass while Dan gets Toyota's new non-crossover crossover, the CH-R. The guys discuss all of the pickup trucks that debuted at the Detroit show and all the car brands that didn't show up along with more new crossovers and another Mustang Bullitt Our Sponsors: * Check out Aura.com: https://aura.com/remove * Check out BetterHelp: https://www.betterhelp.com Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands ...
Jan 20, 2018•1 hr 44 min
This week Sam is just back from the giant Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. While at CES, he rode in an Aptiv autonomous vehicle and discusses that experience, along with a few other highlights. Dan haas been battle-testing a Hyundai Elantra GT during a stretch of brutal, fickle winter weather in Boston. Other topics include the officially-announced Ford F-150 Powerstroke Diesel, a field report on GM Marketplace, and a quick spin through our favorite nominees to win North American Car and ...
Jan 13, 2018•1 hr 20 min
As the frigid temperatures continue to encase the midwest and spread to the eastern half of the US this week, Sam has been driving the new Hyundai Elantra GT Sport, his favorite variant of this compact Korean platform. Dan meanwhile has been taking to the snow-covered streets of the Boston area in the all-wheel-drive Dodge Challenger GT. In a relatively light news week ahead of CES and the Detroit show, the guys discuss driving in these wintery conditions, Volkswagen and Hyundai both announcing ...
Jan 06, 2018•1 hr 11 min
