Time is running out to submit your application and video to be a part of the all-new Ford Fiesta Movement! Only a few days remain to be considered for a spot as one of the special Ford Fiesta Agents who will be one of the first to drive the 2014 Ford Fiesta, go on unique, life-changing missions across the country, and create cool sharable content with the best of the best showing up in print ads or on TV.

Mitsubishi transported a group of journalists to central Oregon for the introduction of the 2014 Outlander, a seven-passenger crossover utility vehicle. The location in Redmond, Oregon--with wide-open roads, gentle hills and vistas to swoon over--was the kind of place the Outlander fits right in.

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.

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. 

I took a little road trip recently, spending several hours in my Ford Fiesta to drive down to LaJolla, California, for a chance to experience an Aston Martin Vanquish and enjoy a delicious lunch at Cusp, in the  Hotel La Jolla by Kimpton.

As a work-at-home mom, small adventures like this are a lovely opportunity for an indulgent treat, a chance to gather with and meet other like-minded car and women bloggers. It's also a chance to explore new places and cars that would not otherwise be among my regular portfolio.

“It was a rich cream color, bright with nickel, swollen here and there in its monstrous length with triumphant hat- boxes and supper boxes and tool-boxes, and terraced with a labyrinth of wind-shields that mirrored a dozen suns. Sitting down behind many layers of glass in a sort of green leather conservatory, we started to town.”

-    The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald.

The year was 1922 and it was nine o’clock in the morning when Gatsby drove up to Nick Carraway’s bungalow in his Rolls Royce. At this particular time in history, Bentley had not yet come across the pond. But, most certainly, if it had been available in the US, Gatsby would have owned one.

In fact, nearly a decade later, in 1931, Rolls Royce acquired Bentley. The companies eventually parted ways in 2002. (It is said that Bentley aficionados refer to these six decades as "the blackest of all.")

Several years ago when I visited the Body Assembly Hall in Crewe, England, the factory where Bentleys are handcrafted, my guide Slim proudly explained, “Bentley Motor Cars, in operation since 1919, started off with the 1920 2 Litre, a vehicle which went on to win the Le Mans in 1924. Bentleys have been making beautiful history ever since.”

Everyone from royalty to Ian Fleming, Paris Hilton, Kim Kardashian and Kobe Bryant have owned Bentleys. And even if these vehicles do not assume the same bloodlines as the Rolls-Royce, it is fair to say that driving in a Bentley evokes the same kind of sentiment as Fitzgerald’s poignant quote from The Great Gatsby.

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.

Quebec: winter of 2012

The news: The Land Rover LR2, a premium compact SUV, has been totally renovated for 2013.

A short history: In the 1990’s, the Rover Group tried to partner with Honda to build a compact SUV. But the companies had their differences, and Honda left to pursue building the CR-V. When BMW acquired the Rover Group in 1994, they infused cash into the SUV project. As a result, the original Freelander debuted in 1997 to directly compete with Honda’s effort.  In comparison to the first generation, the second generation Freelander had a remodeled engine set on a different frame with more off-road capability.

Flash forward to 2006, when the first LR2 (replacing the Freelander in the US) launched in London to great applause. This complete redesign of the original Freelander 4 X 4 was a new direction for Land Rover into the small luxury SUV market. The LR2 didn’t compromise form for function—it still contained all of the off-road capabilities that were part of its DNA combined with on-road dynamics. 

This story began at a New Orleans race track. I was test driving the 2014 Aston Martin Vanquish with my own driving instructor.

I could bore you with superlatives or say, very honestly, that after many years of trying out vehicles on racetracks, this time I got it! The exhilarating feel of driving at speed, the sound of the engine, the smell of the leather, the way the Vanquish catches light when it is in motion. Yes, I finally understood the lure of the racetrack and the draw of the Aston Martin. And yes --(ladies you will understand) ---it was a ‘shades of grey’ moment!

San Antonio, Texas: One of my favorite car stories is about my friend Bob’s elderly grandmother, who drove a Toyota Avalon. She would take four right-hand turns to avoid a left. For a number of years, I thought of this driver as the demographic for this four-door, full-sized sedan. I surmised that this Toyota model was designed to appeal to older, more cautious drivers who loved rolling along in large and long lumbering boats. Times have changed, cars have changed, and so have my impressions of Toyota’s flagship Avalon. I have an all-new impression of the all-new 2013 Toyota Avalon which, by the way, is named for a mythical island in Camelot lore.