I recently had the chance to review the new 2007 Saturn Sky and I came away highly impressed of this GM vehicle. First off, it is an absolutely gorgeous and it never failed to get gawking looks from other drivers around me. Second, the materials used are first rate; it has the look and feel of a vehicle costing much more. And with a MSRP price of this example was $24,280, which included the destination charge and an audio package, it is fairly affordable as well.
In terms of performance, I found the Sky capable, but did found myself wishing for a little more power and torque. There is a Redline version coming out in the fall, which should address the lack of power issue I had. Handling wise, the Sky is an excellent performer as well – the steering is very precise and offers excellent feedback from the road.

Inside, the Sky is as nice as its exterior. You sit very low in the Sky and it takes some getting used to it. Visibility can be an issue; I found the side mirrors to be too small and an awkward shape at first. With the top up there’s a major bind spot to the rear. But you do eventually learn to deal with those issues. The audio system was excellent, offering good sound even with the top down. The only real complaint with the interior is the lack of good, usable storage space for items such as a cell phone, CD’s and other small items.

As impressed as I was with this vehicle, there are still some minor issues that must be addressed. First, the top could be easier to operate; it requires getting out of the vehicle to put it down or up. Still, it’s easier to operate than a mid-70’s MG. Once the top was down, I experience a major rattle/squeak from the rear when going over bumps. With the top is down, your cargo space becomes almost non-existent. I had a hard time fitting my small camera bag, small tripod and some detailing supplies into the trunk when the top was down.

There were also other minor fit-and-finish issues I saw, like the chrome trim piece on the doorsill which was lifting off and ill fitting panels between the passenger door and front fender (look closely at the photos to see what I mean). I believe these are mainly a case of first-year bugs and would expect them to be corrected by the second model year.

Overall, I thought this car was great and I wouldn’t deter anybody from buying one. For my money, I would take a new Mazda MX-5 over this, mainly because I believe it is a more enjoyable vehicle to drive. But there is no question that the Sky is the better looking vehicle and you can’t go wrong with it

Click here to view the photo gallery.  

A couple of weeks after driving a silver VW GTI with a manual transmission, I was able to drive a White GTI with the DSG automatic transmission. This version had plaid cloth seats, which isn't nearly as bad as it sounds. Other than that, and the DSG transmission, it was very similar to the one I had a few weeks prior.

As much as I like the DSG transmission compared to a normal automatic, it seems like I always run into problems with the transmission. I had an A3 3.2 earlier this year with the same transmission and it had problems getting out of my driveway in reverse. Then in this GTI, I took it on a long afternoon drive and near the end it started to act weird; sometimes shifting into manual mode on its own and a few times it appeared to get "stuck" in a gear. In one instance it was alarming enough for me to pull off the side of the road and restart the car. Personally, I've run into one too many problems with the DSG transmission in my reviews to be able to recommend it. Stick to the manual.

Overall though, I find the GTI to be a fun car to drive. As long as you don't load one up with options, they can be had for a fairly reasonable price.

As for the photos, the issue of PAS Magazine with my photos came out while I had this car, which inspired me to revisit Red Rocks with this GTI . Enjoy!

Take a look at the latest issue of Performance Auto & Sound Magazine (Volume 8, Issue 1) and on pages 138,140 you'll see a 2004 Mitsubishi Evolution 8 that I shot last August. I haven't been able to share the images until they were published, now that they have, I'm able to add them to my own Photo Gallery.

The car is owned by Taylor Conway of Boulder, Colorado and has been highly tuned by Street Concepts in Aurora, Colorado. The full article about this vehicle can be found on PAS Mag's website. On thing you'll notice is they went in a different direction for the color of the images than I did.

I'm glad these have finally been published, I broke an expensive lens during this shoot due to a little stupidity on my part. So I'm glad to know it wasn't for nothing. 

Audi debuted their redesigned TT at the 2006 New York International Auto Show on April 12. I was able to attend for AudiWorld.com and have added a number of photos from the press conference to my photo gallery. In my own gallery, I've included the vertical shots that I took, which were either not published or cropped to a horizontal format for AudiWorld's gallery.

The MazdaSPEED 6 I recently reviewed has been added to the photo gallery. 275 hp, all-wheel drive and 6-speed transmission made for a very fun car to drive. With agressive styling (check out the bulge in the hood to make room for the intercooler), performance tires,  tight steering and suspension all for around $30k, I would definitely take this car over a similarly priced Jetta GLI or base model Audi A4 2.0t. Inside, it has very hansom white & black leather sport seats and overall is very nice - although not quite in the same league as the VW and Audi (but not very many cars are to that standard). 

However, this car did experience some electrical gremlins. On cold mornings, the info display that showed the radio station, climate control settings, and clock, would not appear. After 20 minutes or so, when the car had warmed up, it would suddenly turn on and work fine - although the clock would be completely off. I also dislike the seat heaters which need a variable setting. These seats heat up to become very uncomfortable for a few minutes - then they shut off and become too cold. At least give a setting where they keep a comfortable, consistant setting. 

Enjoy the photos.