Quick Spin

The Toyota Prius is arguably the most well-known hybrid vehicle in the world, and its Prime-badged plug-in hybrid is right there with it. Launched at the start of the new millennium, the Toyota Prius has helped push hybrid powertrains to the forefront of American consumers. The plug-in Prius Prime joined the Prius nameplate in 2012 and entered its current generation in 2016. Powering the current Prius Prime is a 1.8-liter inline-four-cylinder engine that feeds Toyota’s Electronically controlled continuously variable transmission. Combining the engine with the electric motor, the Prius Prime throws 121 hp and 105 lb-ft of torque to the front wheels.

Just down from the Prius Prime at your local Toyota dealer is the Toyota Sequoia: a V8-powered, body-on-frame SUV. The Sequoia launched its second-generation effort all the way back in 2007 and hasn’t changed significantly in the last 15 years. While Toyota has announced and shown the next-generation Sequoia, it’s still waiting to head into production. That next-generation Sequoia will ditch the 381 hp and 401 hp 5.7-liter V8 and replace it with a turbocharged V6. Still, the second-generation Sequoia offers off-road capability and bold styling, if you can’t wait for its replacement.

On this bonus episode of Quick Spin, host Wesley Wren sits down with Autoweek’s Editor in Chief Natalie Neff to talk about her time with this unlikely pair of Toyotas. They talk about the driving dynamics and experiences with both of these Toyotas and show where both shine and both falter. The pair also break down the constantly changing SUV and small car landscape and the growing new car crisis.

The Volkswagen Golf is entering its eighth generation. It’s almost hard to believe that Volkswagen’s beloved hatchback is nearing 50 years in production. Still, VW’s Golf is giving hatchback fans a well-sorted and continually confident option. Well, that’s the case at least in the United States with the performance variants of the Golf, which fill the void for the departed base model. The 2022 Golf GTI is the entry point to VW Golfs in the US, and that’s not a bad thing. The latest Volkswagen Golf sticks to the same MQB platform as the outgoing generation, and sports an updated version of the same powertrain. This version of VW’s EA888 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder mill sends 241 hp and 273 lb-ft of torque to the front wheels. Controlling that power is either a six-speed manual transmission or a seven-speed automatic.

On this episode of Quick Spin, host Wesley Wren puts the 2022 Volkswagen Golf GTI through its paces and brings you along for the ride. Wren walks around the latest Golf GTI and highlights its design, features and interior before taking you along for a live-recorded drive review. Along with these segments, Wren chats with Mark Vaughn about the legacy of Volkswagen’s GTI, how it compares with previous models and what they like about the latest model. Closing the show, the two discuss what makes this eighth-generation Golf GTI special.

Volkswagen’s Passat was one of its most important nameplates and a staple of the Volkswagen portfolio. Entering the United States for the 1974 model year, the Passat has filled the driveways of countless folks over its nearly 50-year span in the ‘States. Though, Volkswagen announced that the Passat was seeing the end of the line after the 2022 model year, and even sent it away with a special final edition. Powering the current generation Passat is a 2.0-liter turbocharged engine that makes 174 hp and 206 lb-ft of torque. Slotted above the even more beloved Jetta, the Passat was in the middle of VW’s sedan lineup, which is a spot in the market that is continually shrinking.

Toyota’s Avalon is a similar story. While its run is shorter and was introduced fewer than 30 years ago, the Avalon quickly became a staple of Toyota’s sedan lineup. With five generations under its belt, it was probably hard for folks to see Toyota also discontinue the nameplate in the United States. Available with either a 3.5-liter naturally aspirated V6 that makes 301 hp and 267 lb-ft of torque or a 2.5-liter hybrid powertrain that makes 205 hp and 185 lb-ft of torque. Both of these powertrains are surrounded by the same mid-size sheet metal.

On this episode of the Quick Spin bonus show Talkin’ Cars With the Boss, host Wesley Wren chats with Autoweek’s Editor in Chief Natalie Neff about her time with both the 2021 Volkswagen Passat and 2021 Toyota Avalon Hybrid. The pair discuss how both cars drive, feel and look while also tackling the greater question of declining space for sedans in the new car marketplace.

If you just look at sales numbers and available models, minivans are dead and are buried under the crushing weight of crossovers and SUVs. While that might be true on the sales charts, it’s not exactly true on the showroom floor. Sure, fewer automakers are churning out these people movers, but minivans are still here to handle your multi-passenger problem. The 2022 Toyota Sienna entered its fourth generation last year and eschewed its traditional internal-combustion-only approach. This latest generation of Toyota minivan is hybrid only, and available with all-wheel-drive if you want the extra traction. The only available powertrain uses a 2.5-liter inline-four that feeds Toyota’s eCVT. Combing the electric motor with the internal combustion engine, this Sienna makes a respectable 245 hp while making 36 mpg city and highway.

In this episode of Quick Spin, Mark Vaughn puts the 2022 Toyota Sienna through its paces and brings you along for the ride. Vaughn walks you around the ’22 Sienna and highlights its styling and gives context around the minivan world before bringing you inside the Sienna to show off its interior features. Vaughn also brings you along for a live-recorded drive review. Adding to these segments, Vaughn talks about the Sienna and the greater role of minivans in the market with host Wesley Wren. The pair talk about the influx of consumer tech in the Sienna, the reason for minivans and more. Closing the show, the pair break down what makes the ’22 Sienna special.

Entry-level means different things to different people. For some, an entry-level new vehicle is like Ford’s Maverick or the Mitsubishi Mirage: affordable, reasonable and, generally, plentiful. Though every model from every automaker has an entry point, and some of those or better equipped than others. For the top Mercedes-Benz S-Class sedan, it’s the S500: a six-cylinder powered sedan that’s a great platform for the folks at Maybach to work their magic. Well, even the lowly S500 doesn’t skimp on comfort or luxury. Powered by the aforementioned six-cylinder, which displaces 3.0-liters while generating 429 hp. That power travels through a nine-speed automatic before hitting the 4Matic all-wheel-drive system. While the base S500 doesn’t sport the wild hyper screen, the Mercedes S-Class interior is more than posh enough to keep your in-laws happy.

In this episode of Quick Spin, Wesley Wren puts the 2022 Mercedes-Benz S500 through its paces. Wren walks you around the S500 while showing off some of its features, and highlights its interior. After that, Wren takes you along for a live drive review. Between those segments, Mark Vaughn joins to share his experience with the latest S-Class, and chat with Wren. Vaughn and Wren discuss some of their favorite and least favorite, parts of the S500. The two also give the lay of the land for the Mercedes-Benz S-Class lineup. Closing the show, the two explain what makes this S500 special.

Six-cylinder supercars historically aren’t that well received. Though, the six-cylinder tides are starting to change with Maserati’s MC20 and the new Ferrari 296 GTB. While it’s fair to argue if this is the first or second V6-powered Ferrari, the 296 GTB is definitely the future of the company and a nod to the current era of Formula 1. If you’re concerned about power from this hybrid V6 powertrain, you shouldn’t be. This combination is good for 818 hp peak power, which can rocket this Ferrari to 60 mph in 2.9-seconds. Even though it has fewer cylinders than previous Ferrari sports cars, it doesn’t seem like it has any less performance.

In this episode of Quick Spin, Mark Vaughn travels to Spain to test the 2022 Ferrari 296 GTB. Vaughn walks you around the latest Ferrari to talk about its styling while highlighting some of its features. Vaughn also takes you along while he tests Modena’s latest toy. Adding to those segments, Vaughn chats with host Wesley Wren about the new Ferrari. The two talk about this Ferrari’s competitive set, the driving dynamics and more. Closing the show, the two get to what makes this Ferrari special.

Subaru’s latest Forester gets a dash of extra adventure chops with the expansion of Subaru’s Wilderness package. This fifth-generation Forester initially launched in 2018 but has been lightly refreshed for 2022. The main styling updates are upfront with a redesigned fascia and new grille. In addition to some styling updates, Subaru tacked on the Wilderness package. This package adds a revised suspension that nets more travel, Yokohama wrapped 17-inch wheels and larger wheel arch cladding. Joining these outdoor-focused changes, Subaru also revised some exterior and interior styling for the Forester Wilderness, and include a different grille, ladder-type roof rails and water-resistant seat coverings. Powering the 2022 Subaru Forester is a 2.5-liter naturally aspirated boxer mill that makes 182 hp and 176 lb-ft of torque. Mated to that standard engine is exclusively a continuously variable transmission that feeds the standard all-wheel-drive system.

On this episode of Quick Spin, Executive Editor Tom Murphy hops behind the wheel of the 2022 Subaru Forester Wilderness and puts it through its paces. Murphy walks you around the Forester Wilderness while highlighting its features before taking you along on a live-recorded drive review. Murphy expands on these recordings while talking with host Wesley Wren. The pair discuss the growing adventure-ready vehicle market, the Forester’s interior features and more. Closing the show the two chat about what makes the 2022 Subaru Forester Wilderness special.

For the North American market, the compact truck is dead. At least, that’s how it looked after the once compact pickups from Ford, Chevrolet and others moved to their current, larger directions. That left folks relying on their aging compact trucks, moving to a larger vehicle or switching out of a truck in general. Well, Hyundai saw a space for compact trucks when it showed off the Santa Cruz concept at the 2015 Detroit auto show. Despite doubts of the truck actually making it to the assembly line, Hyundai pushed forward with the Santa Cruz. The Santa Cruz launched in 2021 as a 2022 model year. Powering the Santa Cruz is either a 2.5-liter naturally aspirated four-cylinder that makes 191 hp and 181 lb-ft of torque, or a turbocharged 2.5-liter I4 that makes 281 hp and 311 lb-ft of torque. This power travels through an eight-speed automatic before hitting the front wheels or all four wheels by way of the all-wheel-drive system.

On this episode of Quick Spin, host Wesley Wren hops behind the wheel of the 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz and puts it through its paces. Wren guides you around the Hyundai Santa Cruz to highlight its styling and features and then takes you along for a live drive review. Adding to those segments, Wren chats with Mark Vaughn about the Santa Cruz, the market for compact trucks and if the Santa Cruz is a pickup. Closing the show, the two talk about what makes this Hyundai special.

The McLaren 720S is one of the most interesting supercars on the road largely thanks to its incredible aerodynamic-integrated styling. This potent machine sits near the top of McLaren’s sports car lineup, and slots just below the even wilder McLaren Senna and 765LT cars. That said, this McLaren is far from being a slouch. Powering this supercar is a 4.0-liter turbocharged V8 that makes 710 hp and 568 lb-ft of torque. If you’re wondering where the name came from: look at the metric conversion for horsepower. In metric, the McLaren 720S makes a fitting 720 ps.

On this episode of Quick Spin, Mark Vaughn hops behind the wheel of this McLaren 720S and puts it through its paces. Adding even more to the conversation, this McLaren is part of the company’s Certified Pre-Owned program, which gives supercar buyers some extra confidence in buying their previously loved machine. Vaughn takes you on a guided walk around the McLaren 720S and highlights some of its interesting features and design elements inside and out. Vaughn also takes you along for a ride while recording a live drive review of this McLaren. Vaughn elaborates on his thoughts with host Wesley Wren and the two talk about the McLaren CPO program, the car’s features and more.

The BMW R 18 is one of the most beautiful engines to ever roll out of a BMW factory. This stylish and simple engine takes pieces of BMW’s horizontally opposed heritage and helps push it forward with 1.8-liters of grunt. With an engine this large, it only makes sense to strap it into an equally big bike and set your eyes on the highway. That’s exactly what BMW did, and more so with its grand touring R 18 Transcontinental. Setting its sights on the best from Harley-Davidson, Indian and Honda, the BMW R 18 Transcontinental is a hefty grand tourer that has no shortage of comfort. The 1.8-liter gasoline-burning boxer twin makes 91 hp at 4750 rpm and 116 lb-ft of torque at 3000 rpm. This power moves through a six-speed transmission before making it to the rear wheel.

On this episode of Quick Spin, Mark Vaughn climbs onto the 2022 BMW R 18 Transcontinental and puts it through its paces. Vaughn walks around the 2022 BMW R 18 and highlights some of its features and designs before taking you along on a live-recorded ride review. Between those segments, Vaughn talks with host Wesley Wren about this big BMW. The two talk about the crowded touring motorcycle market, where BMW fits with this R 18 and how it stacks up against its competitive set. Closing the show, the two discuss what makes this 2022 BMW R 18 Transcontinental special.