Two SUVs and the Gangsters of NASCAR

Dive into the electrified future of SUVs as we explore two distinctly different approaches to modern transportation. Our hands-on review of the 2024 Chevy Equinox EV reveals the practical realities of living with an all-electric vehicle – from its impressive 319-mile factory range to the sometimes frustrating home charging experience that adds just 2.1 miles per hour. 

The Equinox EV impresses with its technology package, featuring a massive 17.1-inch display, heads-up display, and surround view camera. But does the Google-based infotainment system measure up for Apple users? We break down everything from the surprisingly quiet ride to the real-world implications of battery degradation over the eight-year warranty period.

Between our vehicle reviews, we take an entertaining detour into NASCAR history, examining the sport's most intimidating and aggressive personalities. From Dale Earnhardt's commanding presence to Kyle Busch's firebrand style, these drivers defined racing with attitude rather than just skill, creating some of motorsport's most memorable moments.

Our second featured vehicle, the 2025 Mazda CX-90 PHEV, showcases a different approach to electrification with its plug-in hybrid powertrain delivering 323 combined horsepower. While the front seats offer exceptional comfort surrounded by premium materials, the second and third rows received less favorable reviews. Most importantly, we discuss how the impending 25% tariff on Japanese imports after April 3rd will significantly impact pricing for vehicles like this luxury SUV.

Whether you're considering your first electric vehicle, curious about hybrid technology, or simply enjoy discussions about automotive culture, this episode delivers practical insights and entertaining perspectives on the evolving transportation landscape. Share your experiences with EVs or hybrids in the comments below!

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Transcript

Chevy Equinox EV Review

Speaker 1 0:04

time now for this hour's car review.

Speaker 2 0:05

Mr mars has the chevy equinox to talk about yes, and just to clarify, the equinox can be either an ev or an ice powered you can have gas the other gas or electric gas or electric and we were driving the equinox evlt.

Speaker 2 0:21

Now this vehicle is actually this was a new model in 2024, so this is kind of an update Two trim levels this year LT or the RS. So obviously we were driving the LT. Now the final assembly for this vehicle Is in Mexico. There's a lot of parts coming in from Canada, korea, but the final assembly is in Mexico and then it's imported into the United States.

Speaker 2 0:43

Now this is a small SUV. It resides in the trim levels. It's just a little bit smaller than the Blazer EV. As far as size goes, it is a five passenger. We had the blue and white color combination. To me it was very beachy, very summery, very outgoing thing.

Speaker 2 1:00

Now, out front you're going to find LED lighting front, rear approach walkway, flush door handles that extend automatically when you walk up to the car, head-heated side mirrors, bright chrome roof rails. It has an auto-sensing power liftgate and it has the optional 21-inch aluminum wheels instead of the 19-inch standard wheels. Now, on the inside of it, you're going to find EvoTec seating surfaces. The front row is heated and ventilated. The second row is heated on the outboard positions of the 60-40 split seat. Now it is very roomy on the inside. It's got lots of glass so there's a lot of natural light in there. It feels very big on the inside of it, 17.1-inch diagonal display. It does not have Apple CarPlay. It has a Google setup. So you have to do if you're using CarPlay like I do you got to do a little finagling to get to where you can use all the stuff that you'd like to use on your phones, your nav and your sound and things like that. But it's also where you're going to see your surround view camera and your convenience controls. For the inside of it there is an 11-inch diagonal driver display as well as a heads-up display. So the driver's got plenty of information being fed to him, got the rear view camera mirror and I've come to like that really well. It's got a broader view than you get out of your regular camera I mean your regular mirror and uh, it's a lot clearer.

Speaker 2 2:15

Generally speaking now it is an ev, has a one single motor with an 85 kilowatt battery and it will take 150 kilowatt DC fast charge. It's equivalent to 220 horsepower, 236 pound-feet of torque, one-speed transmission. There's really just as direct drive as what it amounts to on a front-wheel drive vehicle. Now it is rated to tow up to 1,500 pounds and it has a 319-mile range as far as from the factory. Now I've learned that I can get about 90% of the factory recommendations when it's new. I also found where Chevrolet goes into several places where the batteries lose 1% to 2% per year of life, so that when you hit the end of the eight-year warranty you're actually down,19 is down to a 271 mile range and that's just the way life is now.

Speaker 2 3:09

I did drive this vehicle 427 miles. I had to charge it a couple of times because of that and a couple of things I noted on the charging I wanted to point out. When I plugged it into the house, the new system tells me I was adding 2.1 miles per hour of charge. That's all. That is it? So I've got to you the. The old range anxiety thing kind of changed for me. Six miles to the grocery store and back. Well, that's not too much as far as range goes. But I started translating well, that's three hours of charge time. Do I need that six miles later on in the day to go someplace? Probably three hours to charge it at the house. So it's kind of a to me. That's not a very good way to look at it, but I'm sure it is. But I went to a supercharger. It charged real quick once you got onto a regular charger an hour and a half and it put from 20 to 100.

Charging Experience and Range Reality

Speaker 2 3:57

It is a very heavy vehicle, uh, and therefore with the taller tires it drives pretty smooth out on the highway. Absorbs, absorbs a lot of it. It's surprisingly quiet on the road, easy to maneuver in town. I love the one-pedal driving. Base model price is $33,600. Base trim price which? That is the base trim price, the price as tested $50,540. Now the Hyundai I-NIC 5 is one you could look at for $4,250. 303-mile range the Volkswagen ID.4, $3,995 with a 275-mile range and the Mustang Mach-E $38,490 for across 250-mile range. Pro-am auto. Sorry, and I just that's my review, but I really like driving this vehicle. I would like to have the gasoline powered one behind it, a week behind it, just to compare and see how the two run. But if you're looking for an EV, this is one of them you ought to look at.

Jeff's Car Culture: NASCAR's Toughest Drivers

Speaker 1 4:51

The In Real Time Car Talk Show continues after this break. Thanks for being with us today. We appreciate you. And time now for Jeff's Car Culture.

Speaker 3 5:04

Yes.

Speaker 1 5:04

Gangsters of.

Speaker 3 5:06

NASCAR Gangstas. I was watching NASCAR last week and there's really no tough guy anymore. There's the pseudo-tough people out there and everybody gets a trophy. So this is what I came up with. They're out there. There's a bunch of guys out there that are tough hombres, but this is what we got here. Racing is not about skill anymore, it's about attitude. Some drivers don't just compete, but they command respect lap after lap, no matter who's in their way. So these six fellas uh, they're what we think. Yeah, daryl waltrip, or boogity, boogity, boogity as we call him, wasn't just a fast talker, he was a fast mover on the track. He'd block and gamble his way to the front. Yes, he did, always looking for a way to outthink his rivals, whether it was a last lap fuel stretch or a bumper-to-bumper dogfight DW, with a win-at-all-costs mentality. So he was actually a nice guy too. I met him once. The next one we have another tough guy. This one's probably tougher, oh yeah.

Speaker 1 6:01

David Pearson.

Speaker 3 6:02

Big man too, he was a master of the long game. He didn't always push early, but when it mattered he turned up the wick and made his move. He knew how to outfox his competition, saves the best for the last laps and leaving his rivals wondering where did he come from? So that was a big discussion. With that, the next one we have is Cale Yarborough. Cale's a tough guy, this guy with his fists. Cale just didn't race. He battled Three-time NASCAR champion with an iron will. He never backed down from a fight, whether it was on track or on the infield just ask the Allison brothers. He could muscle his way to the front and hold his ground like a bulldog with a bone. I like Cale his way to the front and hold his ground like a bulldog with a bone. I like kale, he was cool. Next one uh, he's a modern day tough guy.

Speaker 3 6:48

Tony stewart just didn't race, but he fought for every inch of the asphalt. A short track brawler with a super speedway mentality, stewart wasn't afraid to put the chrome horn to work or throw a helmet occasionally. Now and then His temper was fearless. Driving made him one of the toughest competitors of his era. Now, this one's questionable in my opinion. I didn't like him before. Kind of like him now, but it's Kyle Busch.

Speaker 3 7:14

Nascar had a resident firebrand. It's Kyle Busch, love him or hate him. He races like every lap is the last, no room. He'll make it Rival in his way. He'll move him, whether he's muscling his way through traffic or pulling off the last lap. Miracle Busch is the definition of a high-risk, high-reward driver. And of course, everyone knows the intimidator, mr Dale Earnhardt. If there was ever a driver who owned a track with an iron fist, it was Dale Earnhardt. He didn't just race, he ruled Whether it was a last lap bump and run or throwing a daring block at 200 miles per hour. Earnhardt made sure you knew he was there. Short track, super speedways, it didn't matter. If you wanted to win, you had to go through him first. So there you go. Very good, excellent, excellent piece, okay him first.

2025 Mazda CX-90 PHEV Review

Speaker 1 8:02

So there you go. Very good, excellent, excellent piece Okay. Time now for this hour's car review. I had a chance to drive the 2025 Mazda CX 90. Final assembly location Hofu, japan, meaning it's going to be subjected to a 25% tariff. If you get one that's already on the dealer's lot today, there won't be a 25% tariff, but anything after April 2nd beginning April 3rd actually, then anything that comes into the Port of Houston or Port of wherever they come into, then that's a 25% tariff.

Speaker 2 8:44

Yes, Mr Mars. Are you going to be able to find out when that car came in?

Speaker 1 8:49

Well, if it's sitting on the dealer's lot, it doesn't make any difference.

Speaker 2 8:52

Well, let's say April the 15th, that's not up to me, that's not up to me.

Speaker 3 8:56

I'm just kind of wondering. It's a general question yeah, yeah, does the dealer?

Speaker 2 8:59

have to tell you whether or not you got the 25% tariff on it.

Speaker 1 9:02

I don't know. And is it going to show up on the Monroney? Probably not. No, Because tariffs don't show up on it and because you have to understand, 25% is on top of the tariffs that are already in place. So if there's a tariff of 7% for Japan, everything that comes from Japan is 7%. We'll tack on another 25%.

Speaker 3 9:22

Yeah, but the 25% doesn't go to the dealer, it goes to the government. That's correct. Yeah, so there's no incentive for the dealer to be charging that if they don't have to.

Tariff Impacts on Imported Vehicles

Speaker 1 9:30

Well, the car's going to cost the dealer more money because it's going to be built into the cost of that. But I think Mike's point is that how do you know?

Speaker 2 9:41

what the cutoff was of the car. Thank you, michael. We can start this. Thanks, mike, yeah, yeah, yeah. Acquiring minds want to know.

Speaker 1 9:47

So it's a CX-90. Is it? It comes in several trim levels Turbo Select Preferred. Premium Sport, premium Plus, premium Preferred. I had the PHEV plug-in hybrid electric vehicle Premium Plus. This is a standard SUV. Seats up to eight people, all new in 2024. This is the CX-70, but with the third row added to it. That's how they determined all that. So it was all new in 2024. One of the sexiest bodies in this size SUV Big grille that doesn't overwhelm the rest of the front fascia, concentric wheel openings, house big wheels, specific to the trim level that you get.

Speaker 1 10:35

Rear hatch has a sloped rear glass with a sunshade over. It looks kind of racy. It's almost kind of like a rear spoiler, but not what. What I liked about it? The overall look exudes luxury and sportiness in one. I wrote that Very nice. What could use improvement? Question mark Nothing that I could tell you anyway.

Speaker 1 10:56

Interior highlights Linear dash. The cues maintain a minimalist look. The screen is operated through a knob on the console with HVAC controls on buttons below. You didn't like it. That's a big X for me. Nice materials throughout the cabin with comfortable front seats. Dash allows for customized accessory motifs.

Speaker 1 11:27

I use that word Motif. You use that word? No, not very often. Well, I do. It's on my softer side. Cargo and trunk room small, with the third row up, what I liked would make a nice soccer mom mobile. It is big. What could use improvement? More attention to the second and third row seats for comfort, because they are like riding buckboard back there. Oh boy. But hey, it's. Either your passengers, like the Zekans, are in the back seat because we're onlyans, are in the back seat Because you know we're only carting you down the street, or back. Yeah, you're not going on a long trip with us, you're just getting carted. Yeah, carted, carted, that's it.

Speaker 1 12:17

Engine is a thing they called eSkyActive PHEV. I don't know what that means, but it is the PHEV. I don't know what that means, but it is the PHEV. Horsepower, combined with the battery 323. Torque 369 pound-feet. So it's got some oomph. Eight-speed automatic transmission Toes up to 3,500 pounds. Wow. Mileage 24 city, 28 highway for a combined of 25. That is without the electric. Help, I used the electric. One time I made it from my house to work, which is about 30 miles on a single charge. It didn't take long to charge it back up because it's not that big of a deal. It helps If I'm going to go back and forth to the grocery store, great If I'm going to drive anywhere over 30 miles not so much.

Speaker 1 13:09

I got, like I said, 28.9 miles per gallon over 350 miles. I use the electric, all electric, once what I like. Electric and gas combo equals 56 mpg-e. What can use improvement. Slow to react when stomping on the go pedal, doesn't quite know what to do, huh, so there is that. The ride and handling, sporty to say the least. Base trim price on this $57,950. Price is tested $59,405. Now if you just like the vehicle itself with the gasoline motor, you can get in one, if you can find one for $37,845. Competitors Kia Telluride is its brother. The gasoline version starts at $36,390. Toyota Grand Highlander 44 210 for the hybrid model, and the VW Atlas, which is a gasoline model, starts at 38 2 and that is my review of the 2025.

Speaker 2 14:10

Mazda CX 90, thank you.

Speaker 1 14:18

I was testing your memory and trying to find the damn page that had that written down on it.

Speaker 3 14:23

See, we pay attention over here. Yeah, we're the attention payers.

Speaker 1 14:26

Here's what happens. I get all these cars. I get a different car every week. I go into a parking lot, I'm going, what am I driving? Yeah, and sometimes I have to hit you do too, don't you?

Speaker 2 14:41

Where's the one with the blinking lights?

Speaker 1 14:43

Or the honk Honk. It's a tough problem to have Third world problems. Yeah, yeah, hey, if you'd like to get a.