"It's never gonna happen."
If you had told me a few years ago that NASCAR's Tony Stewart would be retired from the Sprint Cup series career as soon as 2017, that would have been my response.

Tony Stewart loves racing more than anything, I would have said, and he will be here as long as he can compete -- possibly longer.
But of course, that's not the case. On Wednesday, Stewart is expected to announce that he will be competing in his final season in the Cup series in 2016, with Clint Bowyer expected to take over behind the wheel of the 14 car starting in 2017 (no 2016 stopover destination for Bowyer has yet been announced).

Lately, it’s all about going smaller, at least in the world of SUVs and crossovers.

As a result, there’s a rush for any automaker without an entry in the compact crossover segment to get into the mix, and this is true on the luxury side of things too.

Lexus is well-represented in almost all styles of vehicles, but their 2015 NX200t is the automaker’s first stab at the compact crossover, smaller than their RX and LX models, and I recently got a chance to put a 2015 Lexus NX200t F Sport model to the test to see how it measures up against the heavyweight competition it faces from Germany (Benz, BMW, etc.) and elsewhere in the luxury world.

Every vehicle isn’t for everyone, as we all have our own unique needs in life.

The Dodge Dart, a compact sedan with room for a very tight five passengers, is one vehicle with a definite audience -- namely those without a large group to shuffle around town.

It’s competing against cars like the Ford Focus, Nissan Sentra, Toyota Corolla, Mazda3 and Chevy Spark, trying to get young buyers to latch on to the Dodge brand when they first start to get their own wheels.

I had a Dart for a weeklong test driver and I’ll let you know my impressions on how it holds up in this category.

Ford has all angles covered in the SUV/crossover arena. Folks looking for a smaller ride can opt for the Escape, those who want three rows can opt for the Explorer, and then there’s the mid-range area -- that’s where the Ford Edge comes in.

The Edge is still two rows, but much more roomy than an Escape. I recently spent a week behind the wheel of an Edge and I’m back with a full report.

Ford has all angles covered in the SUV/crossover arena. Folks looking for a smaller ride can opt for the Escape, those who want three rows can opt for the Explorer, and then there’s the mid-range area -- that’s where the Ford Edge comes in.

The Edge is still two rows, but much more roomy than an Escape. I recently spent a week behind the wheel of an Edge and I’m back with a full report.

Depending on the size of your family and what you need from a vehicle, there are a lot of options to consider in the SUV/crossover marketplace.

A couple of vehicles that have been around for a while and are aimed at the family crowd, but each with their own style, are the 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee and the 2015 Mazda CX-9.
I recently drove both of them and I’m back with a full report on who might gravitate to the Mazda and who will be thinking Jeep when given the option of these two vehicles.

You’ve got to hand it to the Dodge Challenger, for this reason alone: Cars today simply do not look like this, and the fact that the vehicle was brought back and modernized is a pretty awesome thing all around.

If you’re not familiar with the Challenger, look at some TV shows and movies from the 1970s (“Dukes of Hazzard” is a good place to start) and you’ll see plenty of these long land boats with rockets under the hood. None of the smooth curves of today in little compact packages -- just an extra long, badass vehicle that will win a drag race every time.

I was lucky enough to get a week behind the wheel of this throwback ride, channeling my inner Richard Petty as I struggled to restrain myself from hammering the gas and instead enjoy the speed in moderation.

“Fun” is not the first word that comes to mind when you think midsize sedan, but Hyundai apparently didn’t get that memo.

With the 2015 Hyundai Sonata Sport 2.0T, the experience is actually quite enjoyable and you’ll forget at times that this is a vehicle that can work as your family ride.

I recently spent a week driving a Sonata Sport 2.0T, and I’m back with a full report. With some strong competition like the Ford Fusion and the Mazda6, how does it hold up in comparison?

Hybrids are everywhere, and the Toyota/Lexus contingent is perhaps the most versatile in this area, with many styles offered -- from the Prius all the way up to Lexus’ fancier hybrid options.

One of those Lexus hybrid options is the 2015 Lexus CT200h, a small, sporty hybrid that offers a bit more pizzazz than your standard hybrid.

I recently spent a week behind the wheel of a CT200h and I’m back with a report on what it has to offer.