Customer Reviews

Motor Trend

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Motor Trend is a rather good, well written car magazine for auto enthusiasts. The articles are timely and full of facts and opinions about cars, new hybrids and the like. The quality of the paper is quite good and the print is always easy to read as well.

The cover "story" makes for a big splash but it's not sensationalism: the magazine backs it all up with a beefy article exploring the car, SUV or other vehicle in detail. The articles are peppered with well shot photos that enhance your understanding of what the article is trying to tell the reader.

There are ads and articles for a diversity of people; this month's issue, for example, has an article on the latest Bentley coming out. I suppose that's for the rich. SMILE On the other hand, there is also an extensive review--with photos--of the Hyundai Genesis Coupe. I think it's great they cover cars for people in all income brackets.

Look for more interesting articles. They review a Land Rover's performance in Argentina where apparently the vehicle must REALLY climb steep hills; and they take a "first drive" look at the Mercedes-Benz SL63 There's even a brief article on GMC's Sierra's first HYBRID vehicle--excellent!

Of course, you were waiting for me to mention this--the magazine has ads. In fact, it has LOTS of ads. This is one time, however, when I didn't entirely mind seeing lots of advertisements in a magazine. These ads provide the reader with resources for tires, noise canceling Bluetooth headsets, automotive accessories like heavy duty, strong plastic mats for the floors of your vehicle, and more. That's useful for readers who want to keep current on the latest supplies for their cars and, in the case of the Bluetooth headsets, accessories to make traveling by car a much better experience for so many of us.

Overall, I like Motor Trend. It's not for everyone; but it's great in my book. I like the articles that enable me to keep my ear to the ground for new automotive developments; and the advertisements also keep me updated as well.

Great job, Motor Trend!

Pros: Its cheap
Cons: Too many articles on high-end cars. Every month it seems like they re-review another Cadillac, or another Mercedes, or another Ferrari. Its very lacking in the economy car, and mid-size car categories. They tend to care little about value or fuel economy and too often leave out very common cars out of their comparison articles. They almost never go back and rereview a car they featured a few years back, which would be great to see how that car has held up after getting some miles on it. It totally lacks any mechanical articles, which would be nice once in awhile. All in all, I wouldn't subscribe if not for the ability to catch a good deal on it once in awhile (.50 cents an issue or less).

Motor Trend never fails to deliver. I like the fact that they cover such a wide variety of vehicles, everything from SUVs, CUVs, trucks, sportscars, import "tuners", sub-compacts, high-priced exotics, concepts and rumors. The news is fresh and accurate, the issues arrive on time, the mags are thick, pics are crisp, letters are interesting and articles provide usefull information.

Several times in the past I've almost completely given up on Motor Trend. I even canceled my subscription on two occasions. My main gripe during those times? Too darned many trucks and SUVs. Sure, that's what the U.S. public seems to want, and "Trend" does appear in the name, but boooooring. When they released Truck Trend as a sister publication, I danced for joy and then fell flat on my face when MT seemed to STILL spend 2/3 of every issue on hulking boringmobiles.

In recent months Motor Trend has come full circle and again seems to be focusing on interesting articles about cars. Trucks and SUVs are hardly missing, but in that respect and others MT is tremendously better than it was, say, two years ago. The transformation is nearly astounding. I can still remember the first time I closed the back flap of the latest issue and suddenly thought "Holy smokes, that was GOOD!"

Now definitely worth reading again!

I used to read MotorTrend until I started noticing a trend of my own. Every time a German car was compared to American or Japanese cars, the German would always win. When Lexus came out with the world's first 8 speed auto transmission, MotorTrend said, "That's too many gears". When BMW came out later with its own 8 speed auto, it was described as,"Seamless". When MotorTrend came out with its 2010 Car of the Year, the Volkswagen GTI won. Why? The GTI lost to the WRX, MazdaSpeed3 and Mitsubishi Rallyart in every category including 0-60, 1/4 mile, braking, interior space, handling, safety, and price but still came out on top. I wonder how much VW paid MotorTrend to get Car of the Year? How about MotorTrend's comparison of the Mustang and M3 in the article titled, "America's M3". These are totally different cars and of course the M3 won. Price-wise if you comepare the M3 to a Cadillac CTS-V, you'll find that the BMW M3 has no chance in any category with the Cadillac. These are just a few of the trends I noticed. When a lame car like the GTI won Car of the Year, I had enough and never picked up another MotorTrend magazine since.

Bottom-Line: In the final analysis I am glad I have once again decided to subscribe "Motor Trend Magazine."

Like most men in their twenties I was a car guy. I ate and drank the elixir of horsepower, torque, RPM's, wheel-base cockpit esthetics, and sheet metal. I could recite long lists of carlines and their varying specifications. I subscribed to and devoured all of the (four) the nation's most popular car magazines of the time: Car & Driver, Motor Trend, Road & Track, and the beauty queen of them all, Automobile Magazine. But as time and overseas assignments took my attention elsewhere, one-by-one my subscriptions lapsed and my car fetish all but died.

But now in the autumn of my life I have rekindled my love of cars, especially expensive high performance cars from well known and well respected nameplates we all know: Cadillac, BMW, Audi, Lexus, Lincoln, and of course Mercedes-Benz. So when it came time for my daughter annual fundraiser, I skipped the usual chocolate and wrapping paper and went straight for Automobile Magazine, a periodical is consider the premiere car rag.

But at the end of subscription period I let it lapse and moved instead to "Motor Trend Magazine" one of the premier car rags in the business. Published by Primedia in twelve monthly issues (subscription cost $12.00; $3.99 newsstand), this is not the "Motor Trend" of my early adulthood; the magazine is piled full of glossy, colorful, pictures and serious well written articles, car comparisons, and long-term road tests. Where once "Motor Trend" loved Detroit sheet metal almost exclusively, the magazine now has a more International flavor within its glossy well written pages.

"Motor Trend" is no longer content to cover the just American sheet metal, but reaches far-a-field to bring readers the normal, the exotic, and the really expensive from locations across the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. And the magazine does this in a format that is easy to follow, well laid out, and extremely inviting.

For instance the June 2007 issue features the all new Lexus LS 600h L, the new high powered, hybrid from Toyota, as well as a comprehensive write-up on the Shelby Mustang GT500KR . Add to these two very well written and equally as comprehensive comparison article, entitled Crossover War, which sized up the: GMC Acadia, Acura MDX and Mazda CX-9. Another article along similar lines is entitled America's Best Handling Car compares 10 leading sports coupes including the Porsche 911 GTS, Chevrolet Corvette Z06, BMW 335i, Honda Civic Si, and Lotus Exige S among others. The comparison test is very broad and covers a wide-range of traditional performance parameters. No doubt those looking for any of these automobiles will find something to like about this article.

While "Motor Trend" does have more advertising than I would like, the magazine does keep it under control and the magazines content does not suffer unduly. Most of the magazine is still dedicated to substance; the articles are what make "Motor Trend Magazine" such a joy to read. The articles are well written, concise, and comprehensive. And although the writers fill the paragraphs with lexicon of the automobile industry, the prose never talks down to the reader, or looses my interest along the way.

Even some of the photographs in "Motor Trend" have a story to tell in the guise of in-depth exterior and mechanical analysis. In the final analysis I am glad I have once again decided to subscribe "Motor Trend Magazine." Within its glossy pages I have found a home, a resting place from which I can gleam my needed automotive knowledge. For me there is no other.

Not quite sure, but I think I started getting MT when I was fifteen or sixteen; thus, it's been a staple in my life for close to 45 years.

Because of this long association, I can wholeheartedly recommend the magazine for its coverage of the auto industry: developments, innovations, prices, and its history.

The photos of cars from all angles give the reader a great "look" of what he or she may be interested in purchasing.

The magazine has quality editorial content that is both informative and thought-provoking.

MT is the premier auto magazine on the market.

Motor Trend is a very good car magazine. About 15-20 years ago, it was only "fair" in comparison to Car and Driver, and, Automobile. Now, it is a good, largely objective mag. As stated in prior reviews, there is some subjectivity; however, all car magazines I have read do have SOME objectivity -- we do want their opinions. They do test high-end autos (Porsche, Aston Martin, Ferrari, etc.); but, that probably comprises only 10% of their tests. If you really want to read about high-end cars, read Road and Track. Know that the 4 American car magazines prefer sporty driving and handling autos of all types. Generally, if the car is not reasonably quick and doesn't handle fast-paced or back-road (I do not mean off-road) driving well, it will lose points in a comparison.

I love MotorTrend because its articles just seem better to me. I like how they set up that I can understand what makes each car great. I bought a subsription so my wife can foward them to me overseas. They told us it would take 6-10 weeks and they weren't lying. It took just over 10 weeks to get my first issue. We ordered her a Cosmo subscription and had in 3 weeks. What could possibly cause them to take that long to deliver. Again, I love the magazine and hopefully the initial issue will be my only problem.

I have subscribed to 'Motor Trend" for decades. Many of the reviews read like auto company ads but overall the magazine gives worthwhile, often humorous, reviews and is worth its price.

Renewing at Amazon.com resulted in a good price and was effortless.
DFD