An electric Mazda, the driver's Porsche Panamera and an intriguing Citroen | Autoblog Podcast #674

This week's Autoblog Podcast features Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore and Associate Editor Byron Hurd. It's a rapid-fire show this week, and they start off with a bit of "This or That," with some two- and three-item face-offs including domestic V8 engines and affordable weekend cars. Then, they dive into what they've been driving. Byron talks about spending time with the 2021 Porsche Panamera GTS and Greg discusses the ins and outs of the 2021 Honda Accord Sport. Then they dig into some news, starting with Mazda's new electric MX-30 and then pivoting to Citroen's new C5 X flagship and what it could become as a U.S. model under a different brand. After that, they help a listener spend their money. This week, it's between two BMWs and a Chevy. Which would you choose?

Video Transcript

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GREG MIGLIORE: Welcome back to The "Autoblog Podcast". I'm Greg Migliore. Joining me today is associate editor Byron Hurd. What is going on, man?

BYRON HURD: Not a whole lot. Been a busy few weeks. Got to have some good times behind the wheel of a Panamera GTS. So coming off that high.

GREG MIGLIORE: That sounds like a great teaser. Also in the review section, we're going to talk about the Honda Accord Sport, which I drove. Pretty nice car. Don't sleep on it. It's definitely worth checking out.

Before that, we're going to play a little bit of "This or That". We're going to talk about just kind of like a bar stool conversation. Things like, which one do you like? Which one do you like?

There used to be a feature on the site called "This or That" where we did-- just debate things the casual way. So we'll talk about the Hemi, the Coyote, the Toyota 4Runner, the Jeep Wrangler. Lots of just different things that people talk about maybe around 7:30 when they're having a drink at a bar and they're just arguing.

It won't be very scientific, I will preface it with that. So that's leading off, then we'll talk some news. Mazda's got an electric car, the CX-30. Pretty cool.

This is something-- MX-30, I'm sorry. The CX-30 is something entirely different. But yep, the MX-30. It's very cool looking. It's electric.

It's coming, I believe to be in the fall of 2022, followed by a rotary version. So lots of news out of Mazda. We're going to talk about this kind of funky Citroen N that we saw earlier in the week. And then finally, we'll spend some money.

So let's jump right in here to our debate section, if you will. We're going to play a game called "This or That". OK, Byron? You ready for this?

BYRON HURD: I am very ready.

GREG MIGLIORE: All right. I'm going to throw a couple of things at you and you pick one. And then I will counter or agree with you. And let's see, it's 3:12, I'm drinking a cold coffee. I'm going to pretend I'm having some

Buffalo chicken wings and a cold draft beer. So let's kick things off with a big three debate among the engines. Hemi V8, Coyote V8, or Chevy's V8. Which one you got?

BYRON HURD: I'm going to have to go with the Chevy on this one. Those GM V8 are so versatile. They can do just about everything well and they do it in a small space, in a lightweight package. That's hard to beat.

GREG MIGLIORE: I-- logically, you're right, but this is not logic. I think the Hemi V8, actually, because of how scalable it is. It's in so many different things. It's got a few different displacements and they do all sorts of different things with it.

They supercharge it. To me that's got to be the winner. But I'm going to go with Coyote. So that's just how this is going to-- how this section's going to go. I just-- there's something about it. I saw a Mustang with a 5-0 it and that was like, oh man, the Coyote is--

Whenever I drive like a Coyote powered Mustang, it's just such an awesome, crazy, visceral V8 experience that really stays with me. So I'm going to go with that, because we're just picking stuff here. So that is the first one. Bronco, or Wrangler, or 4Runner in the sort of rough and tough off road segment. These three are kind of wildly different in some ways.

Wrangler and Bronco are pretty close. 4Runner is a little bit of a different animal. It's-- you know, if we were rating these, believe me, I don't think the 4Runner would win this argument, because of dated much of it is. But just emotionally, which one you're going with?

BYRON HURD: I'm actually going to go with the 4Runner.

GREG MIGLIORE: OK.

BYRON HURD: Because it's-- it's really the only one that I feel like I haven't really experienced very much. So I think it would be cool to actually, like, get some time with it.

GREG MIGLIORE: OK. Interesting. I'm doing the same. If I were going to buy a car right now, the 4Runner would be among the ones I was looking at because it's big. I just love how it's tuned.

It's so all, like, just, you know, bouncy jouncy off road. You know, I would think twice about a brand new one. I probably go a year or two old and get one of the TRD trims. Let somebody else take the depreciation hit, even though these things hold their value well.

Just the infotainment and some of the interior features are just so old school. And by that I mean out of date. Let's put it that way. It's almost hard to rationalize spending money on it. But-- So I haven't driven the Bronco.

Part of me thinks I'm still going to like the Wrangler more. That's just like kind of psychoanalyzing myself. In the-- the study I did, the sample size to discuss all, like, you know, the term of the day if you will. Efficacy, sample size studies, effectiveness.

I've got vaccines on the mind, if you will. But I really was into the Gladiator. I thought this is like the coolest thing I've seen in years. Drove it, drove a Wrangler shortly thereafter and thought, I like the Wrangler more. So I'm kind of thinking that's how my experience is going to be at the Bronco.

Is I'm going to love how it looks and then I'm going to go back and I'm going to say, you know what? I think just overall the Wrangler is my thing. That being said, pure emotion. I'm going 4Runner here. So.

So yeah. OK. It's a weekend, you've got 90 minutes on your hands. What are you going to do? Watch an Indy-- Indy car race or F1?

BYRON HURD: If I'm watching it in my living room, I'm going to go with F1. It's, you know, it's the spectacle there that they money they put into the production and everything, it feels like more of an event. But if you're telling me I get to go see it in person, I'm going for Indy car. Because it's accessibly-- you feel like you can really get up and do it without spending half your life savings.

So like, you know, especially because it's an American series. You can actually go to an Indy car race. Versus F1, where if you're lucky, you have to go to Texas. And you know, so yeah.

GREG MIGLIORE: Yeah. I don't know, It's tough to argue with that. I'm still going F1 as far as watching it. I actually like the European circuit races that are up early. You know, I generally get up early.

I have a toddler, so it's like, there's something about having, like, a strong cup of coffee, watching the cars go around. Like, I even like watching practice and qualifying. You know, when they're on early, I think that's kind of a fun thing.

Because there's not too many sports you can, like, watch-- like, watch with your first cup of coffee. You know? Unless maybe you live on the West Coast and you're watching like East Coast football or something at 9:00 AM. So I'm going to go with F1. Have you ever been to a F1 race?

BYRON HURD: No.

GREG MIGLIORE: I've been to the Austin--

BYRON HURD: Never had a chance.

GREG MIGLIORE: --which was pretty awesome. I was on one of those Red Bull junkets, back in the day when Red Bull was just destroying everybody. They did hot laps at some Speedway in Nashville and then we all flew down to Austin. And Sebastian Vettel was actually among the drivers of this, like, speedway thing in Nashville, which was pretty cool. So.

BYRON HURD: Nice.

GREG MIGLIORE: Yeah. I would do that, but I've been to the Indy 500 too and that's just awesome. And even, like, I would say your typical, like, Indy car race is such an experience too, I think. I mean like, to your point, so like American, but you've got this like open air, open cockpit technology that-- You know, that's-- just to have that here is really cool, I think.

You know, they used to-- Well they still do it on Belle Isle here in Detroit. One of my favorite events, like, I mean, just it's a mark of summer. They used to actually do it in late summer, like right-- right end of August, maybe even early September. It was like the last big race before-- Yeah, the last big race before like sort of the end of the season.

But yeah. No, I'm going F1. This is almost like-- "This or That" is almost an exercise for me to talk in circles. But, all right. Magnum SRT or CTS V Wagon. Early 2000's Wagons.

BYRON HURD: Oh, this one's hard. I don't know. The character of the Magnum I think appeals to me more. Like, my head says CTS V, because it's a better put together car. But the magnum, there are fewer of them, it feels like, that are actually being well preserved.

It's just they weren't as well put together to begin with. So I think I'd rather take that and kind of, like, build it better than it came stock. Versus CTS V Wagon, I feel like I kind of just have to preserve the way it is, because it's such a bizarre vehicle. So.

GREG MIGLIORE: Interesting. Interesting. You went with the LT one based on logic at the start and then you're kind of taken the emotional argument, which is what I've been doing in the middle here, to back your way into, like, you know, the Dodge, the Hemi here. So I am going to go with the Cadillac all day.

I Love those taillights. I think this was actually a really cool car that in some ways, I think made Cadillac cars cool. It was part of that time when like-- People forget the STS was actually a really good sports sedan in the early 2000s, because like the CTS, the CT-6. They've changed the name so many different times.

But to me this car was sort of part of, you know, that time. It sort of captured the zeitgeist of making Cadillac sedans cool again, if that was a thing back in the early 2000s. Power, looks, I love that car. I would even consider owning one, to be honest.

I don't know. At this point it's not collectible enough to spend money on, but it's not-- But it's like too old to really just say I'm going to go buy one and then use it, you know? But--

BYRON HURD: Yeah.

GREG MIGLIORE: So, let's wrap things up. Miata, BRZ or 86, which is really a Miata or do you want the sports car partnership car?

BYRON HURD: This is like my Craigslist search every day. So, this one, I don't-- I don't even know if I can answer it, to be perfectly honest.

GREG MIGLIORE: Yep.

BYRON HURD: I'm a Miata owner. I'm kind of BRZ/86 hopeful in a way. Because like the appeal to that to me is that it's a fixed roof car. You don't have to worry about roll bars if you're going to track the thing.

You know, it's a little more livable, a little longer wheelbase, something that's better every day. But the Miata just has that like open air, emotional-- It's the car you buy just for fun. You don't care that it doesn't do other things well.

And for me right now I'm really struggling going back and forth. Like, do I want to own another convertible? Or do I want to go ahead and just like stick with the fix roof coupe, even if it means giving up some of that versatility.

GREG MIGLIORE: I'd do BRZ. I've always enjoyed that car. I like the somewhat unique Subaru touches to it. It's getting a little bit more horsepower for this new generation.

I really like the Miata, but I like just a little bit more car around me, if you will. And so for me that's actually a pretty easy one. And I actually think the Miata to me isn't super raw, but it's very direct and engaged. Whereas the other two cars I think are actually quite raw and yeah, I like the BRZ.

I mean, when I was earlier in my career, let's put it that way, we had a long term BRZ at Auto Week. So, I mean, some cars just stay with you. So for me, I mean, this is all personal preference. That's what I would do.

So, "This or That", if you have a suggestion that you'd like us to debate or you want to tell us some of your own choices on this or argue with our somewhat irrational choices or logic, please drop us a note. That's Podcast@Autoblog.com and also spend your money questions. We love to hear from those.

Let's talk about some cars we've been driving. You know, Accord, Panamera, I feel like on the food chain here we got to talk about the Porsche first. So--

BYRON HURD: Well, I mean they're both sporty family sedans, right? I mean they're very similar in some ways.

GREG MIGLIORE: That's true. How much did yours cost?

BYRON HURD: About $150,000. It's a little--

GREG MIGLIORE: OK. So 120--

BYRON HURD: --slightly more expensive.

GREG MIGLIORE: --more than my car did. So--

BYRON HURD: Yeah, yeah. It's a touch more expensive. And it's funny, like, joking about these being competitors. I was actually sitting down and starting to kind of sketch out my notes on this car I was trying to think, like, what are the Panamera's competitors?

Because on paper it's basically like an Audi S7 to a degree, when we're talking about the GTS. Because the GTS has 473 horsepower. It's the sensible enthusiast's Panamera, right? it's sporty and you have all the like chassis options, the four wheel steering and all that kind of stuff.

But you don't have the really big turbo V8. So it's lighter. It's-- I mean, it certainly doesn't feel anywhere near as fast as the turbo, but it is really fun and engaging to drive. It feels live, especially for its size. I mean you consider these--

This is the same size as basically like a Dodge Charger. And it doesn't drive anything like it. Like, this feels small. It feels really dialed in. It's very clinical and still manages to be emotional at the same time.

Like you actually feel like it's fun. Like you can toss it around a little bit and not get yourself in trouble, because It's a Porsche that's solid and it's-- the feedback is trustworthy. Everything about driving it feels very natural.

But at the same time it's a lot of car. And sometimes you forget that. So you can get yourself in trouble if you go too far, but, well it's-- it's almost perfect as sports sedans go, in my opinion.

GREG MIGLIORE: Wow, OK. I am a big fan of the Panamera these days. I think it looks-- I think it looks pretty cool. I think it's really given Porsche just, you know, more of an executive vibe, if you will.

In that sort of class of big sedans where they, obviously, they never played. But, you know, I don't know. I've always been-- enjoyed the Panamera as sort of like a luxury item, if you will, more than a sports sedan.

So it's interesting to hear that you're like really into it, which is, you know, that's good. What did you do with it? Anything exciting?

BYRON HURD: Pretty much the usual. Just took it out to the kind of standard test loop we use around this area, out near Ann Arbor and kind of get out of the city a little bit and let it run. I mean it's the exact same area where I drove the new Panamera Turbo S back in the fall.

GREG MIGLIORE: OK.

BYRON HURD: And, I mean, it's been a good six months. So it's not like I can really say back to back, you know, this is how one feels versus the other. But I was just as eager to get back out in the GTS as I was to get back out in the Turbo S, if that makes sense.

GREG MIGLIORE: Yeah.

BYRON HURD: I didn't feel like I was done with the car after giving it one trip around the loop or one little test to launch control. I just genuinely was looking for more excuses to go out and drive with both. And I think that says a lot about how different they are and yet, almost equally appealing, just in different ways.

GREG MIGLIORE: When-- You've been doing this for quite a while. When Porsche got into-- They've been doing crossovers for a long time, but the Panamera was a newer thing. What was your initial take? Did you think, hey, this is a good move? And I guess, has it changed now that they've had the Panamera and the Taycan for so long?

BYRON HURD: I at first was very put off by the idea, which I think a lot of enthusiasts feel the same way. Especially, like, the Porsche die-hards still don't believe in the Cayenne, or the Panamera, or anything else that's come along with more than two doors and all that jazz. So it was actually, I think, the first time the Panamera actually clicked for me-- and I still wasn't sold on the styling in the first generation. I don't find it to be particularly attractive.

GREG MIGLIORE: Same.

BYRON HURD: It's fine. It's not hideous. But, you know, it doesn't excite me. I think that the new car actually looks pretty good. It's something that I would enjoy looking at, you know, walking up to it to go for a drive.

But it was actually, it was a GTS model that I drove quite a while ago. Probably a decade ago, give or take. And I remember playing around with a lot of control in that car, which operated in a completely different way than it did in the new one, of course.

And it's just like, it was the first time I-- in a big sedan like that where I was kind of like, OK, these things don't have to drive big. They can drive small. And from that point on, I was like, all right, I'm kind of sold on this idea.

I hope they can fix the styling. I hope they can maybe make it a little more engaging on the day to day and they've done that. So, Yeah. I was definitely a non-believer, but I've come around on it.

GREG MIGLIORE: I put myself in that same camp. I can actually kind of remember when I started to tilt. I was on-- this is kind of weird, because at first I thought the car was a, like you, it was bloated. It seemed to have an identity crisis.

I mean, yeah, it had plenty of power, but even the interior. It didn't feel like they got it right. It seemed like there were too many buttons in it in that first generation car. But, yeah, I was actually on a video shoot, believe it or not. This is probably five, six years ago.

And randomly the video crew had a Panamera. It was like one of their support cars or somebody's car. I don't remember why. This is like an outside video crew, by the way. It wasn't-- we don't generally give our video guys Panameras to roll around in as support vehicles.

I don't totally remember the circumstances, but I was sitting in and I was like, damn, this is nice. And like, these guys were like psyched to be in the Panamera. I was like, this is interesting. Not being the cynical car journalist who wants a Brown Subaru Wagon or a manual BMW from the mid '90s.

People like this thing. And I remember I had a conversation with my brother about along those lines. And he's into the cars. And he was just like, yeah, man, it's cool. Like, I don't care. You know, it's a Porsche.

He's like, they can do whatever they want. I like this. I was like, OK, yeah. It's sort of like that outside the industry perspective of, yeah, this is just this thing that is good. And if you don't like it, go by a 9-11. You know?

And if you want a bigger car, here it is. So that was kind of a tipping point for me. You know, and I think this new generation, they've buttoned some things, up they've made it I think a little bit better to drive. I think they've cleaned up the interior. Going to the kind of, like, would you call it like a wagon style offering?

That variant, I think has kind of helped too. It's broadened what it is. It's still honestly wouldn't be my choice in the segment. I would-- you know, there's other things. I would probably go with like, you know, jeez, it could be maybe the Mercedes AMG.

I would look at that. I would look at the M8 is something. I've always loved the RS-7.

I did drive with that in the Black Forrest, like, five, six years ago. And like I said, certain cars stay with you and it kind of stays in the pecking order. It's tough to rearrange it, which is probably how it works with consumers. But.

BYRON HURD: Yeah. I think if I had to make a choice between the Panamera Turbo S, whether it's the Sport Turismo or sedan, and the Audi RS 7, I think I'd have to go with the Audi on looks alone.

GREG MIGLIORE: Yeah.

BYRON HURD: Once you get up to that point where what you're talking about like the most exciting implementation of the Panamera versus the most exciting implementation of the A7, I think it goes to the Audi on the styling. I mean, and the performance is there too. I mean, and they're similarly sized cars.

People think of the Panamera being smaller than it is. It's actually a full on executive sedan. It's big.

GREG MIGLIORE: It's a big car. Yeah.

BYRON HURD: Yeah. And you-- I mean, and it's funny, because when you drive it, it doesn't feel big. Even when you look at it, it doesn't feel big. And it's certainly-- People absolutely recognize it as a Porsche.

GREG MIGLIORE: Yeah.

BYRON HURD: I, you know, I've got lots of compliments in parking lots and stuff like that and telling people like, hey, I can't take credit. I didn't pick it. You know? But it's recognizable.

People see it. They see Porsche. And I think that was something that threw people early on. I was just like, well, you know, Porsche isn't-- they don't play in this space. So people aren't going to associate these cars with the level of prestige that I think their owners were expecting to get from that badge.

It took a while for people to-- for it to just kind of, like, make its way into the public consciousness, right? Like that this Porsche builds cars like that. And , but now, I mean, granted this is Detroit.

It's a car town and people recognize cars whether they're domestic or not. But the reaction I got from this, it wasn't anything like driving the Bentley Flying Spur a few weeks back. But, it was certainly in the ballpark. So I was-- I was actually kind of surprised that people were so kind of clued into it.

GREG MIGLIORE: Yeah. I think you do-- This car, I think, does an interesting job of maintaining that Porsche. If you have the means and you're in the market, you might say, hey, I want a Porsche. I'll take this.

Because you get to tell all your friends you have a Porsche. Now is an Audi with those four silver rings on the hood gorgeously impressive and in many ways just as cool? Yeah. But I will say this, I mean you tell me, what's cooler, a Porsche or an Audi?

Just among the consumers and I don't know, to me it's like, oh, you got a Porsche. OK. You know? I mean, to talk really like just mainstream consumer, people who don't say the word Porsche are going to be like, oh, you got a Porsche.

OK. You got an Audi? OK. Wait, I remember what that car is.

And it-- the idea of a Porsche is cooler than perhaps the idea of many Audi's if you're going to, like, really get into like just the middle argument. So. Let's talk about this Honda Accord I drove. It's a Sport.

BYRON HURD: Yeah.

GREG MIGLIORE: Was fast. I guess I'm being slightly sarcastic, but it actually was a really, really good car. We just rated it in one of our ratings meetings. Zac Palmer, Road Test Editor and James Riswick, West Coast Editor. Both drove other trims.

I think we actually drove all three engines. So that's like the 1.5 liter. I was in the two liter Turbo and one of them was in a hybrid as well. So that's like the lineup. They tweaked the car for 2021.

It's-- you're not going to notice it. Let's put it that way. They kind of-- Like, the grill is slightly different. eight inch touchscreen is standard on the base car. The headlights are a little bit different and you get like Apple CarPlay and Android Auto is standard.

I'm reading this actually from our buying guide, which you should check out. I believe-- Let's see, James wrote that one. They just spruced the car up a little bit. Overall rating, if you're curious, we gave it a nine, which is quite strong.

We put it ahead of the Camry, which is an 8.5. And a few other things in the segment, which are a little bit lower than that. The car was an 8.5 before this and then we just thought with the improvements and just the way the field has kind of gone. You know, hey, we'll up it up a little bit to a nine. And yeah, it's a great car.

It's an editor's pick. A lot of people think the Mazda 6 is the, like, the looker in the segment. I would argue it's the Accord. I really like how the Accord and the current gen Civic look-- I'm curious, because we just put a teaser up today about what the new car is going to look like.

I hope they don't do too much. Those headlights, those taillights, the way the Civic looks right now, I think is gorgeous. I think that sort of carries over, of course, to the Accord, like sibling cars, if you will. Handles pretty good.

I would give the slight handling edge to the Mazda. Maybe that's just me drinking a little bit of Mazda Kool-Aid. I did think the Accord felt slightly like a little floaty. Because it is a pretty big car. There's no way around it.

But, by no means like numb or anything like that. It still felt reasonably sporty. Good steering. Interior is just fine, but it's like in line with the segment, you know?

If you like kind of like basic interiors, you're going to be fine with this. Again, I really like the looks. You know, it's a pretty powerful engine. You know, two liter turbo. Definitely-- it even had a little bit of a growl to it, if you will, which was kind of cool.

252 horsepower. The torques turn 73 pound feet, so not nothing. You know, fun car to drive. You know, especially if you like sedans, this could be it. The one thing I would say is--

And this actually goes back to our like Porsche versus Audi argument. You drive a Mazda 6. Oh, you got a Mazda. OK, that's cool.

I wouldn't say Mazda is by any means a prestige brand, even though their executions are trending that way. But if you're driving a Honda Accord, you're still driving a Honda Accord. You know? There's nothing about that, that's like sexy. So at least the idea of it.

BYRON HURD: Yeah.

GREG MIGLIORE: But in reality, I think it's a great looking car. I got my sons like Radio Flyer three Wheeler bicycle in there. We did a little TikTok on that. Check that out on the Autoblog handle. And I was stunned to see that you could put that back there.

Because I actually-- we drove downtown and did this bike path called The Dequindre Cut. We went from Eastern Market to all the way down to the river. It's a pretty good hike and good for him for biking the whole way.

So it's like at least a couple of miles. And I wedge the tricycle into the front seat, like shotgun, and then I was like, this is ridiculous. I can't even see.

So I was able to, like, compress the handle and then get in the trunk. Like literally, I just had this moment of clarity as we're packing up our car. And I was like, I literally said to myself, dude, the trunks on sedans are usually huge.

See if you can do it. So it's was just like, boom, ka-chow. Threw it in the trunk and away we went. And yeah, the Accord trunk will hold anything you need. Have you driven in Accord lately?

BYRON HURD: It's been a while. I was on the launch for the current generation--

GREG MIGLIORE: OK.

BYRON HURD: --in New Hampshire back in like 2017, '18, something like that I want to say,

GREG MIGLIORE: Kind of an odd place to do a launch.

BYRON HURD: Yeah. It was a choice. It was-- We were up in the mountains. You know?

GREG MIGLIORE: Yeah.

BYRON HURD: They were trying to show off that they were doing the turbo engines, right? So they had the 1.6 Turbo--

GREG MIGLIORE: Right. OK.

BYRON HURD: --and the two liter Turbo. And then they had an older V6 model for us to drive so that we could get the two liter Turbo and the V6 back to back and kind of feel the differences in the torque delivery and all that. And up there at elevation, the four cylinder made a lot more sense.

It made the old V6 feel kind of heavy and ponderous and not as responsive. But those are both very good cars. I actually-- I did get to drive the smaller four cylinder engine with the manual transmission back then, which--

GREG MIGLIORE: Nice.

BYRON HURD: --now you basically can't do, because they're gone. So

GREG MIGLIORE: Part of the annual.

BYRON HURD: Yeah.

GREG MIGLIORE: I should have mentioned that.

BYRON HURD: Part of that same 2021 overhaul. Unfortunately. And it was, you know, they weren't selling. That's just kind of the reality it.

At one point, they kind of even stopped, I think, building the six speed cars altogether and really nobody noticed until they officially announced they are being canceled. So, yeah. It's a good car. I actually haven't driven the Turbo Mazda 6. So I don't really have a good like back to back comparison look for the big Turbo Accord.

But I always thought even the smaller engine with the automatic was a pretty solid car. It actually felt pretty good in daily driving. So I'm not surprised that the improvements for 2021 have been good things and kind of rounded the package out of.

GREG MIGLIORE: It's a strong car. It's, you know, the Honda, Toyota, Hyundai have done a really good job of maintaining their piece of the pie in the segment and improving. And I think they've only been helped by the fact that the domestics just totally pulled back and gave it up, I think.

BYRON HURD: Yeah.

GREG MIGLIORE: The Fusion had, you know, not insignificant volume. So when they pulled out of that segment, Ford did, you know, I think you just gave Honda and Toyota market share right there. I don't care what you say about how you're going to make this crossover or the small pickup truck.

You gave up market share. Even if you make up some of it, there's still people who are like, well, I had a Fusion. You want me to buy this Maverick pickup truck? No thank you. Honda Accord, that was always on my list.

They make it in the United States. Sure, let me take a look on that. You know? Like, I just feel like there's a certain kind of customer that's going to-- that was sort of forsaken by the domestics. And I mean, that's where this is your car and it's a really good car.

So, that's the Accord. Let's talk about the Mazda MX-30. Pretty cool looking. Had us really buzzing in the slacks this morning. It's electric. It's got kind of crazy doors here.

That's kind of an interesting design cue. Like they're dialing it up, trying to get attention for it, that's for sure. We don't have a ton of details for it, but it's coming here relatively soon. What do you think, Byron?

BYRON HURD: Well, I am clearly a bit of a Mazda fan boy, as we've already touched on a little bit with the "This or That". And an ex of mine and I actually had an RX-8. So the suicide style doors do it for me without any question.

But I think it's a really interesting package all around. I mean it's basically you're taking like a CX-30 and you're re-imagining it as an electric-- more range extended electric crossover. And that seems like a win in my book. I'm really excited to see how the rotary range extender fares.

I feel like that's the thing that makes this most interesting compared to the other like coming electric and plug-in hybrid style vehicles that we've got coming down the pike. And this one's different enough to really kind of peak my interest. And if this is what we're going to be seeing for rotary technology for the rest of existence, then I'm here for it, because whatever we can do, I'm on board.

GREG MIGLIORE: It's interesting to see them use rotary tech in a like a series hybrid application. It's not the most obvious use of it, let's put it that way. Or even way to set up a hybrid, but I think it's cool. I think it's uniquely Mazda.

It's a nice sort of nod to the past that will please the fan base but also they're using this sort of-- I mean, I hesitate to call it historic technology, but I don't think most people associate rotary engines with the way forward. But they're using it as part of their, like, long term future strategy. So I that's great.

It's-- I mean, I think it looks awesome just looking at it. It's very-- I mean it's, you know, when you see MX you start to think, well, wait, is this a Miata? Well, no. It's more or less a-- It's a crossover type thing.

Check out the pictures. We did put them up this morning. We got all the details for it. Let's see, the plug-in with the rotary is-- Let's see, 2023 model year in the year 2022. That's from a spokesman.

Let's see, what else do we have here? Launches in California in the fall. So before expanding to other states in 2022. That's some great reporting from Road Test Editor Zac Palmer. So it's coming.

I mean, I think you know if you live in California, this is definitely a fun thing to put on your radar, as far as something that you could get access to. And I imagine it will drive quite well. I'm excited about it.

To check out that full story, again, it's on Autoblog.com. If you're listening to this podcast, you know where to go there. Earlier this week we did have kind of a fun look at something called the Citroen C5 X. This is sort of a-- I don't know what to describe it.

This is literally a white space vehicle would be the way to probably put it somewhat authentically. It reminds me of the old Pacifica in some ways as far as like a wagon sedan thing. It's going to be badged as Citroen N, Ronan Glon our European contributor, penned the article.

He notes that it's about as big as a Toyota Camry. But it's also kind of got like a fastback. So there's a lot of stuff going on here. Obviously, no implications that it's going to come here. But Chrysler, which we've talked about in the last few weeks on the podcast and on the site, needs cars. Seems like a nice solution right here.

I tell you what, swap the badges. Put the Chrysler-- like the wings or the pento star. If they want to bust that out of moth balls. Bring this thing here, I think. It would be great.

BYRON HURD: Yeah, I agree. I think it's got a, oddly enough, that you brought up like the Pacifica and all that. I just read in Ronan's right up here that this is about the same dimensions as a Toyota Camry. And it gives me kind of first Gen Toyota Venza vibes when I look at it from certain angles.

You know? Where it's not quite a full blown crossover, but it's not really a wagon either. It actually has kind of a-- if you look at the rear 3/4 view it's got kind of a Porsche Panamera Sport Turismo look to it. Like, it's kind of segment defying in a way, but I like the idea of it.

I mean, you know, it's certainly a practical shape. And if you can actually build a car that's at least reasonable to drive and offers that kind of practicality, then I think people will respond to it. And yeah, the question really is, where would it fit if they decided to do it here? And I think you're right. I think Chrysler would be a good home for it.

GREG MIGLIORE: The specifications are not totally out there, but we're looking like just conventional engines at the lower end and then perhaps hybrid as you move up the food chain. To me this is like exactly what Chrysler needs. I mean really, Chrysler would need this to be maybe even more electrified.

I don't think they need to mess around with like, you know, whatever four cylinder that FCA or Stellantis is throwing into domestic cars. Like drop the pent star V6 in this thing or electrify it, or both, and go with it that way make it kind of a premium offering. Yeah, I mean, to me this is a kind of like a very timely vehicle.

It's a tweener. You could market it as a crossover. You could probably get some people in like the luxury car idea. Yeah, to me this is-- I have said, why they need Chrysler. Why Stellantis needs Chrysler.

And I think this would be my prescription for Chrysler. This would be part of it. This is actually a vehicle I didn't-- like I was sketching out other things, like bigger crossovers. A reborn 300, an EV. But I didn't necessarily know what an EV would-- what shape it would take.

My thought was maybe we'll make the 300, make it a 300 mile range EV. Boom, done. But then this thing appeared out of the mist and it's like, well, I would add this also to the mix. Maybe go three or four cars, something like that.

So, yeah. That's it. That's the new section. Let's spend some money. This week's letter comes from Amelio in the Bay Area. This is a great way to intro your note here.

I'm looking to blow money on my car. So, OK, so that's great. You're looking to spend some money and you just want to do it. You've come to the right place. He's 20, a mechanic and likes old cars, specifically BMW's.

He has an E-30 and an E-36 right now among some other. It sounds like he has some commuters from Japanese brands that he doesn't specify. Looking to buy either an E-90 M3 in a stick, Chevy SS with a stick, or a brand new G 20 300i that he apparently gets through a very cheap employee lease deal.

So that sounds cool. But it's a lease. Basically, he's leaning heavily towards the SS. I don't know. I think I'm going to go first here and yeah, steer you right into the SS. Whenever somebody has a sort of like a hard lean, I tend to confirm what they're thinking and go with it.

You know, the BMW stuff, like yeah, I'm right there with you, man. E-90 with the stick, it sounds awesome. But I don't know. Like I would say this.

It seems like with this sort of Chevy bias and the fact that the SS, this is probably not going to be the last car you ever own, let's put it that way. And You're probably not going to own this thing forever. Yeah, get it, have fun with it.

You know, that visceral V8 is visceral. It's a visceral V8. That's the best way to describe it. The SS was kind of a weird car to drive. I drove it a few times.

They tried to market it as like sleeper car, almost like they didn't put Impala badging on it. But I think that was the vibe, if you will. Like early '60s, like understated styling, because it was essentially, you know, a Holden essentially.

They didn't really do much to Americanize it or dress it up. The interior is, I mean, it's not straight crap, but it's not great. It's just very like, pre-- Even if you got a late model SS, you're still looking at the interior that's like mid 2000s as far as like how it looked.

Good luck with the infotainment and all that stuff. But you want a V8 powered Chevy that's got four doors, that's got, to me, a good feel about it, some gravitas, some presence, but it's also kind of a sleeper car? That's what I would do. So, over to you, Byron.

BYRON HURD: All right. I'm going to go the other direction with this one. I actually like the idea of the E-90 in this case and it's for a couple of reasons. First of all, that generation of M3 is pretty much at the bottom of its depreciation curve right now. Like, if you want to buy that--

I mean, it was a fluky generation, right? The V8 BMW M3, like that was at the time it made a ton of sense, because V8 everything. We had the Lexus ISF, we had that. It all made sense.

And now everyone's going back away from that. BMW has been past that already for going on a couple of generations now. So it's that weird kind of blip. It probably never really should have happened to begin with. So it's special in that sense, where like you're getting kind of an obscure vehicle from BMW standpoint.

It's somewhat anathema because it's a V8 powered M car. and a smaller one. It's special in that regard. It's as cheap as it's really ever going to be to get into one of those right now. And if you're a mechanic at a BMW dealership, you're in a great position to maintain a car like that.

Older, very much out of warranty. Things might go wrong, you've got the tools to diagnose. It you've got the experience. It's all right there in front of you.

This is one of those cars I feel like you're kind of at a unique point in your life to get the most out of it. And if you decide to keep it long term, you could preserve it and sell it perhaps for more money than you pay for it now. Certainly, never guarantee that a car is an investment, but maybe. Versus the SS where they're kind of artificially expensive because there were so few of them sold, especially with a stick.

So they're about-- they're really not going to get much cheaper and they're a bit pricey for what you're getting. So I mean, I think if you can find one and if you just like want to have some fun with it for a little while, dump the money into it, and then basically get it right back out of it because their prices are really changing, you're not going to put a ton of miles on it. Sure, why not experience it?

But if you really want to like dig into something, I think the E-90 is your best bet in that regard. And there's, I mean, the support for that car is enormous. Because they were-- a quite a few of them were built. And, you know, there's a great community around them.

Again, you have the tools at your disposal to maintain it. It just seems like a home run to me for this particular situation. And I mean, honestly, like the idea of the lease is it's safe and convenient. But, you know, you're not really going to get to express yourself through that vehicle.

It's something you're going to keep pretty close to stock, turn it back in pretty much the way you've got it and probably never think about it again. And is that what you want to say you did when you were in your early 20s? Yeah, just throwing that out there.

GREG MIGLIORE: I mean, I-- that's a very logical argument right there. I think if you're going to, like, you know, just spend some money, I think you want to go with either the BMW or the Chevy. And then get into your mid 30s before you decide to start leasing things and thinking logically. But yeah, emotion, logic, I think we covered it all on the start.

And at the end of this podcast, Fred [INAUDIBLE] tip your bartenders. Be save out there. Have a great week. Send us your spend my money questions at Podcast@Autoblog.com.

It was fun riffing with you this week there, Byron. I'm Greg. We'll see you next time.

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