We test a lot of cars here at Gear Patrol. Here are the ones you haven't read about yet.
Every year, we here on Gear Patrol’s Motoring desk test a whole lot of cars, trucks, motorcycles and other vehicles. If you read this site with any regularity, you’re probably aware of that — from our many reviews, our social media posts, and the myriad other ways we inform, educate and ideally entertain you, dear reader.
Still, not every car that passes through our hands makes its way to a standalone story. So, to keep you informed about some of the other vehicles we’re testing, every so often, we bring you a roundup of the other vehicles we’re testing during any given season. Check ’em out below.
Volkswagen ID.4 AWD
When I first took a spin in the VW ID.4 back in early 2021, I called it “the beta version of Volkswagen’s future.” The brand’s first ground-up EV in an onslaught of them arriving soon, it had plenty going for it: a clean, intriguing design, a reasonable price, a capacious interior, a decent amount of range. It also, however, had its share of flaws: the interior’s ergonomics seem developed for another species, and the decision to launch a crossover only in underpowered rear-wheel-drive form seemed like a missed opportunity
Well, I’m pleased to say that adding an extra motor for the front wheels solves a couple of them. It gives this crossover a nice dose of extra poke, for one thing, courtesy of the added horses: the all-wheel-drive ID.4 makes 295 horsepower, up from the rear-wheel-drive version’s 201. (Oddly, torque is the same for both models, at 229 lb-ft.) Punch the accelerator — sadly now shorn of the fun “play” symbol found on the ID.4 First Edition — and this Vee-Dub takes off with a punchy shove at around-town speeds.
More importantly for most buyers — at least those who live in wintery climes, which is at least half the country — doubling the driven wheels doubles your traction; lob on a good set of winter tires, and the AWD ID.4 should be able to claw its way through all kinds of snowy nastiness until its battery goes dead.
Unfortunately, the ergonomic issues remain. The infotainment system is a mess, the shifter and window switches unnecessarily confusing, and whoever designed the climate control should be paraded through the street like Cersei Lannister in front of a pack of bell-ringing nuns shouting “Shame! Shame! Shame!”
Still, if you can learn to live with those concerns, the AWD ID.4 is a very solid electric crossover worth parking in your driveway — and a superior car to its RWD kin. Just be sure you play with the temperature on your test drive. —Will Sabel Courtney
Horsepower: 295
Torque: 229 lb-ft
EPA Range: 245 miles
0-60 mph: 5.4 seconds
Price as Tested: $52,105
2022 Polestar 2 Single Motor
Call Polestar the masters of inscrutability. It’s Volvo’s exciting, sporty electric brand…which builds cars that are more boring than Volvos. There’s the Polestar 2, with a body style caught somewhere in the amorphous land between sedan and hatchback. And I drove the single-motor Polestar 2 long range, which is electric but is in no way sporty.
In a vacuum, the Polestar 2 long range is a good car. It’s not as quick as other EVs, with 231 hp and 243 lb-ft of torque; the AWD Polestar 2 puts out 408 hp and 487 lb-ft for comparison. But it’s a comfortable cruiser that’s up to maintaining the prevailing combustion highway speed. The added range that comes with the single motor brings you over 200 functional miles, when you factor in that you’re typically only filling to 80 percent. And it has a pleasant, eco-friendly interior with a panoramic roof.
The trouble for the Polestar 2 long range is value. My tester started at $45,900 and leveled up to $55,600 with options. (Even changing the paint color is a $1,200 choice.) At that price point, you’re butting against the Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Kia EV6, which are better. Polestar may be the more premium brand, technically — but most people don’t know what Polestar is. And you will need to explain that every time someone sees the car. —Tyler Duffy
Horsepower: 231
Torque: 243 lb-ft
EPA Range: 270 miles
0-60 mph: 7.0 seconds
Price as Tested: $55,600
2022 Hyundai Tucson PHEV
The all-new Tucson Hybrid — in my opinion, at least — is the compact crossover to buy. It drives surprisingly sportily; it’s distinctive and handsome to look at inside and out; the interior is spacious, with premium features like heated/ventilated front and heated rear seats. And the upper trims get 38 mpg combined.
The Tucson PHEV is that — with a much larger plug-in battery, giving it a rating for 33 miles of EV range. It packs about 30 more horsepower. Depending on the trim, it’s going to be about $5,000 to $6,000 extra, too.
If you’re really diligent about charging nightly and deploying the EV range strategically, the Tucson PHEV could be worth it. If you’re not, you’re going to get about 35 mpg, which is less efficient than the standard hybrid. You might as well save some money and enjoy the convenience of not having to charge. (Most buyers won’t get to have that debate, as the Tucson PHEV is only sold in 11 states.)
With the Limited trim starting at $43,870, you’re also not that far price-wise from going all-in on an Ioniq 5. And it’s hard to make a case for you not doing that. —Tyler Duffy
Powertrain: 1.6-liter turbocharged plug-in hybrid; 6-speed automatic, AWD
Horsepower: 261 hp
Torque: 258 lb-ft
EV Only Range: 33 miles
Price as Tested: $43,970
2023 Mazda CX-50
Mazda needed a more rugged and adventurous crossover — so they built the all-new CX-50, which amounts to their take on the Subaru Outback. I drove the CX-50 at the launch event and found the fancy Premium Plus version to be not just an alternative Outback, but the superior Outback: It looks cooler, drives more fluidly on road, has a more upscale interior, and is rough-and-tumble enough for mild off-road use.
But you can only learn so much on the carefully manicured roads of a first drive event. So Mazda also loaned me a CX-50 for a week to drive it in real life with my family. It was just as impressive there — if not more so. It was comfortable for the parents in the front and spacious enough for two car seats in the rear. The trunk proved surprisingly practical, too; I forgot to remove my daughter’s giant stroller before heading to the grocery store, but I still fit a full week’s shop for four in the trunk with it.
The 2.5-liter turbo engine with 227 hp and 310 lb-ft of torque was impressive. But it was also a mild disappointment. I drove the CX-50 directly after driving standout new electric cars — the Ford F-150 Lightning and Hyundai Ioniq 5 — back to back. And launching an all-new car in 2023 without even a hybrid option felt like a miss. —Tyler Duffy
Powertrain: Turbocharged 2.5-liter inline-four; six-speed automatic; AWD
Horsepower: 227
Torque: 310 lb-ft
EPA Fuel Economy: 23 mpg city, 29 mpg highway
Price as Tested: $43,170
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Keyword: Meet the Rest of the Cars We've Been Driving This Spring