C&D was once entertaining, witty, objective and a great read. The staff worked well together and they put out a consistently good magazine. Then it went through some rough years where it got kind of tame and boring. Now, it's an ill fitting mix of new and old writers trying to be fresh and hip while being spoon fed by the car manufactures. The magazine lacks consistency, focus and any sort of clear vision as to what they're about.
C&D mostly seems to print what the biggest manufactures want them to. There have been several articles lately, such as on the new Nissan GT-R and Corvette ZR1, that literally mirror articles in other magazines even featuring some of the same quotes from the same car execs. You might as well go to the manufacture's websites and read their press releases.
There has been a lot of inconsistency in C&D's reviews. One car will be rave reviewed, and 4 issues later, will place near the bottom of a multi-car comparison test. The impression is very much whichever manufacture spends the most on ads, dinners, drinks, and other gratuities, gets top billing regardless of the quality and performance of their vehicles.
Some of the writing is entertaining, but that's offset by the same tired editors (Csere, Bedard, et al.) who largely keep writing the same stuff they've been whining about for a decade or three. The end result comes off as heavily biased, anything but objective, and an awkard mix of writing styles.
My suggestion: Save some trees and just skim the C&D website for their rare entertaining exclusive article and get the rest of your automotive news somewhere else. Car and Driver (1-year auto-renewal)
Unfortunately, when Csebra...Casasba....Csabsbreaedads, er, forget it, Editor CC took over the reigns, the quality of the mag dropped with it. Readers letters, specifically those with constructive criticism, are often met with sarcastic, child-like responses. There was many a time when I agreed with a reader's letter, only to read CC shoot it down. Where is this man's humility?
The pictures and layout are still good. Some of the covers promise what looks to be an in-depth article, only to find out inside that it's a one or two page affair. All the US car magazines are swamped with ads, keeping our copy price down, the latter of which is nice. But after 16 years of subscription, I chose not to renew in March. I've been looking at recently resurrected Road and Track, and they have really changed their publication from stodgy old-fart affair to a modern, informative read.
Car and Driver doesn't need a new layout. It needs better management.
What is it with all these bad reviews? I was 50/50 on whether to order a subscription to motor trend or car and driver. So I looked at some of the past magazines I had recently purchased (In the last 3 months as of 08/12/10) from motor trend and from car and driver. I went with car and driver, they are better. I read articles over the new 2011 Cobra Mustang in a Car and driver and in the motor trend and it was so much better in car and driver. In car and driver they talked over (I never knew) the cobra mustang isn't great because alot of the weight is in the front of the car because of the engine, and not to mention its rear axle, so on. Motor tend is a great magazine i love it but im only choosing one, if i could get both i would.
I'm a car guy. I like cars, but I'm not a car nerd, I don't understand all the technical terms a real car buff would use when talking about cars. This is why Car and Driver is perfect for me. It appeals to the enthusiast inside me yet presents their reviews and previews in a way that's easy to digest and understand. Not to mention it is a pleasure to read. This is a great way to stay up to date with the auto industry and I also find it educational. I've learned quite a few things about cars just from reading this magazine, but one of the biggest and best things I've learned is about making an informed decision on car buying.
Thanks to the reviews in this magazine, as well as a combination of Internet research I feel confident my next car purchase will be the best I can get with the available funds that I'll have. Not only that, but I can help others in their car buying decisions.
Speaking of car buying decisions, not all of us can afford to really buy what we want. Some people write letters in to the magazine, complaining that they talk too much about expensive cars that some of us will never be able to afford. You should ignore these letters. While you may no be able to afford some of the cars, the way the writers describe what it's like to drive them is excellent. They're really good at describing how it feels to get behind the wheel, and again, this just emphasizes what I said about making an informed decision, no matter what your budget.
Some of the cars reviewed are truly awesome but most truly unattainable. That said, I find the whole magazine partially attractive. It is not one of those publications that I enjoy from start to finish. I like the reviews on everyday vehicles, those that are affordable to most and look forward to see how the new releases are rated. Besides that a person would have to be a serious car buff to enjoy it thoroughly. For those reviews that pertain I give it 3 Stars.
Informative magazine. If you like automobiles, this is a pretty good magazine to have. It reviews several vehicles each month and has letters to the editor to comment on the nifty articles that the magazine incorporates.
Recommend to all who enjoy vehicles and want to know updated information on
automobiles and other types of vehicles, including pickup trucks, SUVs and
Hybrids.'
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