Completely disagree. Subscribe Automobile, R & T, Car & Driver, Motor Trend, Autoweek and Car (England.)I'm not sure that a BRAVO from Autoweek would be worth very much. They're pretty lightweight and not really known for their deep and exhaustive testing.
That's what makes the world go around. I, too, subscribe to a fair share of automotive print publications: Automobile, R&T, C and D, MT, Hemming's Sports and Exotics, as well as a few car club monthlies (Roundel, Panorama...). I dropped Motorweek sometime in 2009 or so, shortly after they went from actually being a weekly to a bi-monthly. I had already grown tired of Dutch Mandel's pompous authoring over the years but their decision to change to a bi-monthly "at no cost to existing subscribers" was the straw that broke this camel's back when it came to renewal. The current article was a benign regurgitation of fact with little personal flair...milquetoast reporting...not horrible but not exciting either...but that's just my take.Completely disagree. Subscribe Automobile, R & T, Car & Driver, Motor Trend, Autoweek and Car (England.)
Of the five US publications, I personally like Autoweek, Motor Trend, Car & Driver, R & T and Automobile in that order.
From a weekly paper 20 years ago to a thin paper magazine to a high quality weekly, Autoweek is at least par with the above mentioned. For every page of auto writing, R & T has two pages of advertisement. This may be my first magazine to drop after 40 years of subscription.
JP Vettraino's four page spread is based on the same test drive everyone got at Bilster Berg. I thought it was fairly well done and objective. And he clearly likes the car - 'Acceleration is 911 Carrera grade,' 'most fling able and forgiving AMG car yet,' 'great thing does come in a small potent package.' My only complaint is that he is inaccurate in claiming the car has a standard back up camera which he thinks is 'almost a necessity.'
Scott,That link is over a month old. The threat title says July 22. Am I missing something?
Been there, done that on the current body style SLK. I believe I was one of the first customer orders in the USA. For me, CLA45 seat comfort is one of the great unknowns and concerns. I don't recall any discussion about driver seating in any of the reviews that we've all seen. Other than rear seating limitations on tall people and poor rear visibility, we're not hearing many facts or trusted opinions that we can relate to daily driving characteristics. Approx $60K or more for a well equipped CLA45 is a tough decision when all we have are photos and a few "boy racer" style reviews.I have to base my purchase decision on the CLA45 entirely on pictures....