Popular Mechanics

Popular Mechanics looks at the automotive landscape and picks the best vehicles in a variety of categories.

Ring one up for Mazda. The Japanese brand's midsize offering, the Mazda6, has been named Popular Mechanics' Car of the Year. The 6 received a comprehensive reworking for the 2014 model year that saw it adopt sleek, sexy sheet metal; a clean, logical interior; and

Our friends at Popular Mechanics have announced the winners of their 2013 Breakthrough Awards, which honor innovations and new technologies i

It's that time of year again. Time for just about publication out there to come up with their Car of the Year winner, and Popular Mechanics is getting into the game for the first time with its Auto Excellence Awards. For its inaugural champion, the crew over at PM have named the 2013 Ford Escape as the Car of the Year.

Tucked between an avalanche airbag and a 3D desktop printer, a Ford engine and General Motors' crash avoidance system were named two of Popular Mechanics top 10 breakthrough technology award winners for 2012.

Ann Arbor, Michigan, is best known for the University of Michigan, punk rock progenitor Iggy Pop, and foodie favorite Zingerman's Delicatessen. We know, you're wondering why you should care. Well, it's also now home to three of the four major monthly car magazines.

Popular Mechanics is searching for America's worst roads, and it needs your help. Readers from all over the U.S. are encouraged to submit photos showing just how bad their local thoroughfares are. Once the submissions have been evaluated, PM will choose its top five.

Popular Mechanics' Top 10 Cars for 2011 – Click above for high-res image gallery

It looks like Popular Mechanics had room for two vehicles this year on its annual "Top Products" awards list. Both the Chevrolet Volt and Nissan Leaf were named Breakthrough Products for 2010. PM praised the ride quality and technology of the Volt, stating that it's "more than the sum of its cutting-edge parts." In addition, the publication prominently touted the Volt's range-extendi

It looks like Popular Mechanics had room for two vehicles this year on its annual "Top Products" awards list. Both the Chevrolet Volt and Nissan Leaf were named Breakthrough Products for 2010. PM praised the ride quality and technology of the Volt, stating that it's, "more than the sum of its cutting-edge parts." In addition, PM prominently touted the Volt's range-extend

Sure, these days everyone wants to win the MPG race. But it wasn't that long ago (yesterday? the day before?) that all that mattered to most automakers was having the most powerful engines under the hood. The prevailing mentality didn't stop some companies from emphasizing their high-miles vehicles, though, and Popular Mechanics thought a little trip down memory lane was in order for our $4/gallon $3/gallon sub-$3/gallon time. The cars that Popular Mechaniccs pi

It seems that Popular Mechanics is nearly as interested in fuel efficiency as we are these days. To wit, the online mag has grabbed the keys to three of the latest fuel-sippers on the market in order to wring them out. The goal? Not performance, but fuel efficiency. While the Jetta TDI and the Prius are clearly the headline bearers, we shouldn't forget the lowly Jeremy Korzeniewski

With all the rumors surrounding the hyped-up Corvette, Jim Dunne over at Popular Mechanics wanted to get some answers, so he went to the source – well, a source, at least.

Yesterday, Ben Stewart over at Popular Mechanics had a close encounter of the prototype kind while spending some time on the Angeles Crest Highway in So. Cal. He caught a glimpse of a camo'd current generation Accord sitting in a local lot and, knowing that it could be driven away at a moment's notice, began snapping pics of the moribund mule.

I don't envision myself needing the power and capability of an SUV any time soon in my life, but the Durangoneer is one ute I would drive just for fun. It's a HEMI-powered 2004 Dodge Durango chassis that's been shortened and strengthened wearing the body of a 1988 Jeep Grand Wagoneer - early SUV looks with late model technology and capability. The Durangoneer was built as a project car for Popular Mechanics and was apparently at this year's SEMA Show in Las Vegas, but we must've walked right by

Three green car-related technologies have won Popular Mechanics' Breakthrough Awards this year. They are the Tesla Roadster, Mercedes' BlueTec engine and an electrolyzer from GE that can extract hydrogen from water on the cheap. The Tesla Roadster won because it blows away (in under four seconds) the most common complaint about EVs: range. BlueTec won because of its incredible meshing of diesel's power and low-fuel consumption with

It looks like Ben Stewart of Popular Mechanics got the privilege of being the first journalist to actually drive the upcoming Tesla Roadster, or at least the first to publish about his drive. As most AutoblogGreen readers probably know, the Tesla Roadster is a new Lotus Elise-based electric sports car. The Elise makes an ideal platform for this kind of car, because it is strong and very light-weight. This

The current issue of Popular Mechanics is dedicated to “The Truth about Bio Fuels” (mentioned here last week) and Instapundit put up a podcast yesterday that contains an interview with the magazine’s Jim Meigs. Meigs gets into all types of biofuels with the Instapundit gang - ethanol, methanol, biodiesel, and hydrogen – as well as the politics of oil and green ener

If you’re looking for a readable yet detailed look at the scientific data of green automobile technology, Popular Mechanics is the place to go today. Their cover story called “The Truth About Biofuels” in engaging and straightforward and highly recommended.