As a journalist since 1976, I contribute sports, business, travel and lifestyle articles to newspapers, magazines and web sites. Many examples of my work: Tour de France to my syndicated car review column The Weekly Driver, golf to lifestyle feature — are listed in the sections to the left.
Article reprints and syndication are available via the banner below.
Cheers, James Raia. E-mail: james@byjamesraia.com.
It's hard to imagine any other vehicle as versatile as the Subaru Outback. It's the all-purpose car. It's ideal as a family wagon. It's a workhorse for a small businessperson. It's as safe as any car on the road in inclement weather. Introduced in 1995, the Outback has gone through several editions, including a redesign and a new lineup of models with more than 40 trim configurations for 2010.
Since its debut 20 years ago, Infiniti has remained among the most dynamic manufacturers. It’s no different in 2010 with the Infiniti G37 sedan debuting prior to the scheduled launches of the next generations of the Infiniti M and Infiniti QX.
As a complement to the Audi A4, the German carmaker's best-selling model, the A5 was introduced in 2007 as the "middle-ground" between the compact A4 and midsize A6. But the A5 is no longer a go-between. It now has a unique identity in the Audi lineup, albeit with a cumbersome proper name.
BMW introduced the X6 M at the New York Auto Show in April 2009 with a lofty goal. The German manufacturer wanted to offer serious competition in the high-performance crossover segment. The Porsche Cayenne Turbo S and Mercedes ML63 AMG are leaders in that fraternity, and who's going dispute the warranted popularity of those vehicles?
After a few concept test runs, the Suzuki Kizashi debuted last December in the Japanese carmaker’s attempt to “deliver the sophistication and driving experience of a premium sport sedan for the price of a modest midsize car.” With the exception of the choice, definition and pronunciation of its name (KEY-ZAH-SEEE), the 2010 sedan is an unqualified success.