Latest Article in OutdoorX4 Magazine: Trailer Supported Adventuring

The Teal Terror and our Dinoot J Series trailer are the focus of the latest installation of the Trailer Supported Adventuring series in OutdoorX4 magazine. Despite the fact the Suzuki is gone, it lives on in print. The Dinoot, however, is still safely parked under our carport.

You can check out the magazine at OutdoorX4.com and read the PDF there, too (starts on P. 60).

Subcompact Culture in OutdoorX4 Magazine

A few months ago I was approached by OutdoorX4 (pronounced "Outdoor By 4") magazine to write a couple of articles for their publication, and my first article was just published. Titled "Small Rig, Big Adventures: The Ins and Outs of Subcompact Overlanding," the article is about how Mercedes and I have used our subcompact Suzuki Sidekick (aka The Teal Terror) and our Dinoot trailer to have some great adventures, get out there, and explore all over the place, despite the vehicle being small. There are tips about traveling light, only taking what you need, and how to select the right small vehicle for travel. I still steadfastly believe that you don't have to have a huge, expensive vehicle to get out and road trip it, explore off road, or just have an adventure. People do it on motorcycles, in tuk-tuks, on bicycles, and in cars all the time. However, knowing how to pack and travel lightly is important, so check out the article.

OutdoorX4 is offered six times annually in both a print and digital version. The print book is currently available for purchase at most major book retailers within the United States and Canada with select distribution internationally. The digital edition, which supplements all print subscriptions, was developed to be viewable on all mobile devices including smart phones, iPad, tablet, laptop, or desktop by using a web browser with social media integration, downloadable PDF option for off-line viewing, and other reader-enhanced features.

For more info, check out OutdoorX4.com.

Time magazine: Why small cars are big business

Time magazine's May 7, 2012 article, "The Faster Lane: Why small cars are suddenly big business," (subscription required for online version) is all about increasing fuel economy standards, and how smaller cars have become more popular. In this article they call out seven models—Subaru BRZ, Chevrolet Sonic, Fiat 500, Scion iQ, Ford C-Max, Toyota Prius C, and lastly, the Honda Fit EV.

The article calls out the city fuel economy ratings of all the models listed. This is, of course, only half of the story, and arguably, makes the cars' fuel economy ratings look, well, not so impressive. Twenty-six MPG on the Sonic? So what. That's for the 1.8-liter, too. Why not use the EPA fuel economy of the 1.4-liter turbo, which gets 29 city and 40 highway? Or perhaps list the 1.4-liter's combined 33 MPG rating rather than just the city rating of the not-as-frugal 1.8-liter mill.

There was one big typo: The article calls out the"Toyota Scion iQ" as an EV, which it is not. It's a gasoline-drinking 1.3-liter four banger, Time.

Finally, the article goes on to tout the upcoming Honda Fit EV's 123 MPG. What it doesn't go on to say is that its range is 73 miles (city/highway combined). Range is probably the most important point regarding an electric vehicle, and when you're talking about MPG (or at least the equivalent, since it, you know, doesn't use gas), you might want to mention that.

While it's great to get more ink about small cars out there, it doesn't help when the entire story isn't told, or when there are typos. But hey, wee all make typoes ...

Car and Driver compares the latest subcompacts with somewhat surprising results.

The folks over at Car and Driver has posted their six-car comparison that includes the Honda Fit, Toyota Yaris, Hyundai Accent, Nissan Versa, Kia Rio, and Chevrolet Sonic. All but the Fit are 2012 models. The results of the comparison are a bit surprising, too.

MotoIQ fills sport compact magazine gap

By Sean Murphy

The sport compact world has been without major tech magazine since the likes of Sport Compact Car and Turbo & High-Tech Performance Magazine have left the news stands. But for those of us missing the tech heavy articles and super savvy sport compact staff, we have a new web site to our rescue, MotoIQ.

With returning favorites such as Dave Coleman from Sport Compact Car, Mike Kojima from Turbo & High-Tech Performance Magazine, and Sarah Forst from Nissan Performance Magazine, this Web site is filled with the project cars, tech articles, and features relating to the sport compact world.

The project cars are a little Nissan heavy right now but there are some newer Mitsubishi and Subaru cars in the stable. MotoIQ has been around since June and sounds like it will fill a void missing in a lot of car enthusiasts lives right now.

LINKS
MotoIQ magazine