By Sue Mead

Knibbe Ranch, Spring Branch, Texas: This celebrated cattle ranch in the Hill Country of Texas was the perfect place for ‘The General’ to get back in the saddle! Now launching its next-generation pickup trucks, General Motors is truly back in the truck wars and hosted the first drive of its all-new 2014 Chevy Silverado at this working ranch that has been used for a handful of years as the proving grounds to evaluate the country’s top trucks each fall, in an annual shoot-out sponsored by the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA).

The 6th Annual Worldwide Go Topless Day for Jeep Owners is this weekend, on Saturday May 18th, 2013, and everybody is invited! No, ladies, we’re not suggesting you drive without a shirt! Jeep Go Topless Day is the day Jeep owners take the top off their Jeeps to show the world their love for their Jeep, their Jeep spirit, and the sense of fun and adventure that comes with owning a Jeep.

U.S. Pro Surfer and Pro Rally Star Team Up As Female First-Timers And Place 8th!

By Sue Mead

Casablanca to Essaouira, Morocco: It was no surprise that pro navigator and rally driver Chrissie Beavis, 32, of San Diego, was successful at the arduous and difficult navigation required of competitors in the Gazelle Rally that brought her team to an eighth-place finish out of 150 teams from 20 nations. After all, the multi-talented Beavis has guided many celebrated drivers, such as Rhys Millen, Tanner Foust, Ramana Lagamann and Seamus Burke to numerous stage and overall wins, highlighted by a Pikes Peak win in 2005, a United States Rally Championship win in 2006, and Gold and Silver Medals at the X-Games in 2007 and 2008. Beavis started campaigning her own Performance Stock Class car in 2005 in the California Rally Series, and has also had class wins as a driver, with several podium finishes.

By LeeAnn Shattuck, a.k.a. “The Car Chick^TM”

We’ve all heard the old adage, “Beware the woman driver!”  Sir Stirling Moss even reiterated his own similar opinion last week, only to be debunked by many women racers in the profession. That normally insulting phrase took on a whole new meaning recently at the the Doug Foley Drag Racing School held at zMAX Dragway in Concord, North Carolina, where I met up with top NHRA drivers, Brittney and Courtney Force, for a day of drag racing.

April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month, and Toyota has joined with Teen Vogue to promote a safe driving campaign to raise awareness of distracted driving, asking mothers and teenage girls to make a mutual commitment to drive safely.

Cars today are built with passive and active safety technology to protect drivers and passengers, but studies show automobile crashes remain the leading cause of death for teenagers. In fact, in 2010, seven teens between the ages of 16 and 19 died every day on average from motor vehicle injuries.^[1] 

Brasada Ranch, Redmond, Oregon: Attractive new styling, more powerful and efficient engines and some of the latest creature comforts, even at the entry-level model, define the 2014 Mitsubishi Outlander; it’s a crossover sport utility vehicle that seats seven. Mitsubishi says the third-generation Outlander has some “ground-breaking safety features for its class”—and we agree. It is also the only SUV at its price in its segment with three-row seating that comes standard. The new model also gets improved aerodynamics and better sound insulation; high-end technologies include adaptive cruise control, lane-departure warning and a crash-mitigation system. While Mitsubishi has not announced exact pricing, the new model will be priced close to the outgoing version, with an impressive array of added content over the previous generation. 

Let's give a big cheer to Shea Holbrook and her amazing presence representing women in the racing and automotive industry. Not only is she a successful racer and longtime friend of AskPatty.com, but today Shea launched a new website, www.SteelOvaryNation.com and an accompanying #SteelOvaryNation hashtag campaign representing female drivers, engineers, mechanics, fans, car, and motorsport gurus.

Carefree, Arizona: For the 2013 model year Toyota is giving RAV4 customers a little less and a little more for their money. The “more” category includes a complete interior and exterior redesign, a new engine, new six-speed transmission, and new all-wheel-drive system. Under the “less” heading, Toyota has filed its V6 motor, which was previously available as an option on this compact SUV, as well as removed the optional 3rd-row seat. The 2013 RAV4 starts at $24,145, including destination. The 4th generation RAV4 is significantly more refined and distinct from the first models that came to market in 1994 as ’95 editions with little competition; since Toyota has sold 1.7 million RAV4s in 150 countries and says some 80 percent are still on the road. The latest edition now joins 45 crossovers, including its direct competitors, the Ford Escape, Honda CR-V, Nissan Rogue and Chevy Equinox. Toyota’s California design team penned the new model for the U.S.; it gets 8 standard airbags (including driver side knee airbag, front passenger seat cushion airbag and side airbags for front and second row) and a standard backup camera, as well as optional goodies like Blind Spot Information System (BLIS) and a height-adjustable power liftgate.

Outside, the all-new RAV4 has the profile of an Olympic cyclist, with a low front bumper shape that wraps up from below like handlebars and a roofline that slopes steeply back from the A-pillar like a hunched-over speed racer. Glistening headlamps have an asymmetrical shape that slants inward toward the nose, which features a V-shaped grille that emphasizes this “cute ute’s” more aerodynamic look. The rear of the ute, which features an integrated spoiler with LED lights, has a bulbous shape that belies the cargo space inside. We’re thrilled that a liftgate replaces the swinging rear door of previous model years which also held the spare tire; standard steel wheels are 17 inches, with 17- and 18-inch alloys available on higher-end trim lines. The spare is now tucked under the cargo floor.

Austin, Texas: Jeep’s update of its 2014 Grand Cherokee model makes it new; there are new drivetrains, more luxury and a bevy of options for off-road prowess define it and its sizzling sibling- the high-performance, lap-of-luxury 2014 Grand Cherokee SRT. One of the original mid-sized luxury SUVs to come to market in 1992, the newest version seats five and is an authentic competitor to VW, Land Rover, BMW, and other high-end sport utes. It’s priced from $28,795 to $50,995; the Grand Cherokee Limited with Jeep’s new EcoDiesel V6 is the lowest priced diesel SUV in the market at $40, 295, says Chrysler.

The exterior strikes a nice visual balance between refinement and ruggedness, with a grille that has been redesigned to give more luxo character overall, with distinguishing trim around each of the signature vertical slots. Slimmer headlamps and a shorter upper grille put a check in the “more refined” category, while 17-inch all-season tires (standard on base Laredo models) and a beefy lower grille have “rugged” cred – plus, depending on the trim level, tires get as big as 20 inches. The rear has new, larger tail lamps with smart LED lighting, a larger, more aerodynamic rear spoiler, and a re-sculpted tailgate. Dual exhaust tips are standard on all Limited, Overland and Summit models. Front and rear LED lighting, including bi-xenon high-intensity discharge (HID) headlamps on higher end models, make Grand Cherokee grandly bright on the road.

For its fourth birthday as a unibody crossover SUV, the Kia Sorento is getting the equivalent of a pony, a piñata party and a wardrobe of amazing new clothes all at once. Among its gifts: a completely new chassis, a new V6 engine, a redesigned interior and some vamped-up, top-of-the-line features including an entirely new high-end trim line. Kia wants to be known for design, safety and value.

  The Sorento’s facelift freshens its design, while inside you’ll find improved conveniences, upgraded materials and more amenities. A top IIHS safety pick, Sorento seats five or seven (there are 2-row and 3-row versions), and comes in front-wheel drive and all-wheel-drive models that start at $24,950, including destination charges. In case you have not noticed, there are a lot of vehicles in the competitive compact and medium-sized utility vehicle (CUV) segment – and they start to all look alike after awhile. Although Sorento doesn’t look radically different from its contemporaries, it has a few distinctive features that help it stand apart. Among them: a beefy grille and deep front air dam with black hexagonal grille inset behind chrome trim. Vertically set rectangular fog lamps offset sleek, slanted headlamps.

The rear end sits high and is capped at the bottom by a kickplate with a sweet-looking oval tailpipe.