Author Archive: David Boldt
David began his automotive career in a BMW showroom (1979 thru 1985), followed by management positions for Ferrari, Lotus and Alfa Romeo dealerships. He moved to automotive journalism in 1993, building an automotive section for a small network of Dallas-area community newspapers. In the almost twenty years since, David has written for a variety of regional and national outlets, and managed media relations for a Japanese OEM.
Away from the laptop, he enjoys motorcycles (his current ride is an ’04 Guzzi V11 LeMans), bicycling (Salsa road bike, Soma hardtail) and reading (CarBuzzard.com). His wife Tina is an executive director for an accounting firm. Tina and Dave have two adult children; son Sean is in the U.S. Army, while daughter Lauren pursues a LA-based career in dance.
2013 Overland Expo: The road less taken…is taken
Roseann and Jonathan Hanson invite many of their friends – and a growing number of off-road vendors – to Overland Expo, held from May 17-19 near Flagstaff, Arizona. Now in its fifth year, their exposition serves as a great way to see (and experience) the latest and greatest in adventure gear, compare notes on personal [...]
2014 Kia Forte vs. Kia Optima: Banging for your buck
We’ll start in the spring of 1975. I was driving a Fiat 128 which, after making contact (at speed) with a ditch in Brown County, Indiana, was never quite the same. My bride-to-be was driving a Ford Maverick with a straight six, finished in baby blue and topped with white vinyl. With marriage – and [...]
2014 Chevy Silverado Preview: Making a splash
San Antonio – If only the defenders of the Alamo might have retreated to the La Cantera Resort, located high above an abandoned quarry well north of the oh-so-historic mission. Not, to be sure, that those defenders of the Alamo would have opted for the resort over their place in history, but the views – [...]
Shel Game: Texas Auto Writers vote Shelby GT500 ‘Car of Texas’
For the tenth consecutive spring, those writers, bloggers and broadcasters affiliated with the TAWA (Texas Auto Writers Association) joined together at Texas Motor Speedway to sample the latest – and some of the greatest – new cars and crossovers available to their respective readers, listeners and viewers. Much like the Association’s annual Truck Rodeo, participating vehicles [...]
2014 Acura RLX first drive review: Welcome to Pleasantville
For those of you remembering this year’s Super Bowl advertising more clearly than the Super Bowl itself, you’ll recall Jerry Seinfeld attempting to negotiate with the guy whose deposit is on the just-announced (at the time of the ad) next-gen NSX. Seinfeld seems mildly desperate, channeling George Costanza in a manner he would have never done [...]
2013 Kia Soul! – Selling the Soul
In the veritable maelstrom that is automotive retailing, Kia’s Soul has represented an almost singular success. Born of a concept first shown in 2008, its two-box production variant arrived in showrooms with most of the concept’s styling cues intact. And with its oh-so-unique mix of distinctive styling, easy ergonomics and affordability, it was a MINI [...]
2014 Mazda CX-5 first drive review: SkyActiv 2.5 is much more ‘Activ’
At the time of its introduction at the Los Angeles Auto Show in 2011, the CX-5 team at Mazda seemed to have checked all of the boxes: Attractive sheetmetal, competitive utility, the goodness of a Mazda platform and – new to Mazda – efficiency fully competitive with anything in the segment. We said as much [...]
Ford announces new 2014 F-150 SVT Raptor Special Edition: Cue the Rapture
In Los Angeles, the Petersen Automotive Museum is putting the finishing touches on an exhibit celebrating 50 years of Baja Racing, dubbed Braving Baja. While the folks at Ford may not have the competitive history in Baja they enjoy at Indy, Daytona or LeMans, with the F-150-based SVT Raptor they’re no less prepared to compete. [...]
2013 Mazda MX-5 Club first drive review: The right crowd, some crowding
The 2013 Mazda MX-5 Miata, draped in True Red and distinguished by its new-for-2013 ‘Club’ trim, came to CarBuzzard’s satellite test facility (we also test satellites…) with a twenty degree drop in temperature and roughly two inches of local rain. In the rather narrow realm of testing new automotive product, delivery of a droptop is that [...]
2014 Mazda6 Grand Touring: Welcome to the new Millenia
With the recent launch of its 2014 Mazda6 the execs at Mazda would once again seem ‘poised to play’ in North America’s volume-driven midsize segment. With expressive sheetmetal, revised size, a nimble platform and – not incidentally – Mazda’s SkyActiv design ethos, this newest Mazda6 might very well be the answer to Mazda’s seemingly eternal [...]
