The Weekly Driver Podcast

The LA Auto Show began more 100 years ago and it's always changed with trends in the automotive industry — pick-up trucks to alternative fuel vehicles. This year's show, scheduled Nov. 29-Dec. 10 at the Los Angeles Convention Center, will be no different. More than 60 vehicles are confirmed to make their North American or global debuts. Manufacturer specialists, once known as Sirens, are an enduri...

Chris Warren, sales manager for Premier Financial Services in Florida, knows the vintage car market well. He works for the prominent national company that for more than 20 years has provided financing for previously owned exotic, vintage and luxury cars. What Warren has observed is an increasing renaissance among purists who want to buy vehicles with manual transmissions. New vehicles with manual...

Kerrie Kelly knows style. She owns a design company and works in a home office worthy of recognition in an upscale home decor magazine. Kelly also knows what style she likes in her automobiles. She and her husband own a BMW sedan, but it's a 1986 Chrysler Jeep Wagoneer she prefers to drive. The Sacramento businesswoman, formerly employed by fashion mogul Ralph Lauren, is our guest on Episode #54 o...

Steve Povolny is head of the Advanced Threat Research Lab at McAfee in Hillsboro, Oregon. He's not a fearmonger, but he has concerns about the increasing dilemma of cyber attacks on vehicles. Povolony, who uses the term "mobile attack space on wheels" to discuss the predicament, is our guest on episode #53 of The Weekly Driver Podcast. Vehicle cyber attacks are an increasing concern. Co-hosts Bruc...

Vendors at the yearly Outdoor Retailer Show do an impressive job of attracting customers. But none of the companies had a better presentation than Helinox. It used a 1976 restored VW van. Helinox, which makes efficient compact lawnchairs, cots, umbrellas and other outdoor equipment used a VW restored by John Buschmann in his business called Urabus. The name is Subaru spelled in reverse, and Buschm...

Leo Sens is an outgoing 12-year-old boy with lots of interests. He's a musician and photographer. He likes automobiles, and he’s comfortable giving his opinion as a car reviewer. When his parents were shopping for a new car, Sens was in the back seat. Visiting car dealerships to purchase a vehicle isn’t often anyone’s favorite thing to do. But the younger Sens, who lives with an older sister and h...

Based in Oakland, Helinox (www.helinox.com) was among numerous vendors at the recent Outdoor Retailer Summer Market in Denver. The annual trade show showcases a vast array of merchandise, some geared toward various automotive user groups. “We obviously come from the outdoors, but we recognize the way in which people get to the outdoors is often by automobile," said Azul Couzens, vice president of...

Tragedy strikes every summer. Children and pets die from heatstroke after being left unattended in cars and trucks. It should never happen, but it does when unknowing vehicle owners think leaving a window slightly open or parking in the shade alleviates potential problems. But it's not sufficient. Within minutes after children or animals are left in a vehicle, temperatures can drastically rise and...

The Ford F-150 pick-up has no equals, except for its siblings. They comprise the stable of the country's best-selling pick-up trucks. The truck's legacy as the second best-selling vehicle in history as well as its pros and cons among three topics discussed in Episode 42 of The Weekly Driver Podcast. Co-hosts Bruce Aldrich and James Raia recently drove the 2018 Ford F-150 (Lariat) trim. Neither of...

Peter Zawadzki is as passionate about classic cars as any enthusiast. About four years ago, he had a keen idea to allow others to share his appreciation. He decided to rent out his 1958 MGA. A couple made it part of their wedding celebration. Fast-forward and the success of the initial transaction is the Hagerty DriveShare Program. It’s the online marketplace for owners of classic vehicles to rent...

Ryan Brutt is a writer and photographer who exudes enthusiasm about muscle cars. His interest is overtly apparent in his new book, Muscle Car Barn Finds. It details the art of automotive scavenger hunts. Brutt, self-described as an Automotive Archaeologist, lives in Chicago. The contributing rider to Hot Rod Magazine is our guest on Episode 34 of The Weekly Driver Podcast. Hosts Bruce Aldrich and...

Mulugeta Gebrewahid moved to Sacramento about seven years fago rom his native Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to be closer to his older brother. Known by friends and co-workers as Mule G (Moo-Lay G), the former warehouseman is a husband and father of seven children. He's active in the Sacramento community via the congregation at Faith Presbyterian Church. Mule is university educated, but he was unable to a...

The Pacific Coast Dream Machines Show is a daylong festival of engines. Rare and sentimental cars, trucks, aircraft, law enforcement vehicles, tractors, busses, military machines and motorcycles, they're all showcased. Add lives band, food and beverage vendors to its moniker as “the coolest show earth,” ideally defines the upcoming 28th annual event scheduled from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m April 29 at Half...

The 2018 Hyundai Ioniq is the first "green car" that can infiltrate the dominance of the Toyota Prius. The Ioniq is available in three modes — a traditional hybrid, full-electric and plug-in hybrid. The entry-level Ioniq plug-in hybrid Blue Line model is rated at 57 miles per gallon in city driving, 59 miles per gallon for highway treks. Its rating is several miles per gallon higher than the best...

Thirty-two years ago, Karen Saylor's parents drove into a downtown Sacramento, California, car dealership and drove away in a new 1986 turbocharged Chrysler Lebaron convertible. Like the legacies of many family cars, Karen Saylor fondly recalls going shopping with mother with the Lebaron’s convertible top down. She remembers trips to the Monterey Peninsula when mother and daughter had their hair b...

Several months ago, Chris Wood decided it was time for a new vehicle. He has a family, including four grandchildren, a 50-pound dog and a 5,000-pound ski boat and equipment to haul. He had $50,000 to spend, but he was faced with a lingering dilemma. Wood, 63, of Pleasanton, a retired Silicon Valley computer salesman, looked for six months but couldn't find a new sports utility vehicle that fit his...

Chuck Woodbury, editor and publisher of the RVTravel.com, the industry's largest and most prestigious online publication, is a full-time RVer and an industry advocate. But Woodbury says RV buyers must beware. The RV industry, with record sales in 2017, needs to better protect the best interests of buyers. The RV industry needs to better protect the interests buyers, according to Chuck Woodbury, ed...

Eric Wohlberg spent more than a decade traveling around the world to compete on two wheels. He participated in three Summer Olympics for Canada and won multiple cycling national individual time trial titles and stage races. But Wohlberg, 53, of San Jose, in his sixth year as a director for the Rally Cycling Team, now prefers four-wheel transportation. He often travels to the team's camp and its ra...

Autonomous cars, trucks and helicopters, drones and virtual reality technology are at the center of the current whirlwind of technology innovation. But personal light electric vehicles (PLEVs) are also increasingly abundant. They're compact, often foldable and easily transportable in boats, planes, automobiles and RVs. They’re the scooters, simple bicycles and mopeds of yesteryear gone electric an...

Sean O'Malley and David Aylor represent the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) in Arlington, Virginia. Established in 1959, the IIHS is a non-profit organization that works to reduce motor vehicle deaths, crashes, injuries and property damage. O'Malley, the senior test coordinator, and Aylor, the manager of active testing, work with colleagues to conduct research and produce ratings for...

Carly Starr is the curator of the California Automobile Museum in Sacramento. She has incredible knowledge of the cars and trucks in the unheralded museum as well as its diverse outreach programs throughout the year. The museum, located at 2200 Front St., opened in May 1987. It has more than 150 classic cars, race cars, trucks and rotating displays of different generations of vehicles from various...

Every family has cars, some long gone, some inherited by children or found in grandpa's garage decades later. A vehicle's pedigree is at least half the fun when discussing family cars. It could be something rare or a just a favorite old station wagon the family took on a trip when you were a child. The Weekly Driver Podcast, Episode 2 - Cars We've Owned In episode 2 of The Weekly Driver podcast, c...

Every family has had cars, some long gone, some inherited by children or found in grandpa's garage decades later. A vehicle's pedigree is at least half the fun of discussing family cars. It could be something rare or a just a favorite old station wagon the family took on trips when you were a child. The memories remain throughout our lives. We discuss our first cars and other vehicles we've owned...

Winter driving means different potential problems to different drivers in different parts of the country. But many commonsense practices remain universal, whether you’re driving in the snow in the Sierra Nevada or in strong winds and torrential rain in Florida. Most importantly, if you drive in winter weather, make sure to use your vehicle's headlights — even during daylight hours. During bright d...

The once standard belief a luxury car was defined by price is no longer valid. The current average price of a new car in the United States, slightly more than $29,000, is also slightly less than the former $30,000 launching point for a luxury vehicle. More pertinent today for a vehicle to be considered a luxury car are its features, comfortable interior to smooth ride to quality lists of option pa...