2024 Nissan Frontier, Toyota Tundra, GMC Sierra, and a Sneak Peek at 2025 Chevy Blazer and Alfa Romeo Tonale

2024 Car Reviews

Speaker 1 0:04

time now for this hour's car review . I drove the 2024 nissan frontier . It comes in these trim levels s , sv , pro x , sl and pro 4x . I drove the pro 4x crew cab , 4x4 , automatic V6 . This is considered by your US government a standard pickup truck . Now in our world it's either a compact or a midsize , depending on your nomenclature for such a thing . I particularly gravitate toward this size pickup truck . It comes in two cabs and two beds that are available seats up to five , including the driver .

Speaker 1 0:53

Exterior changes from last model year . This was all new design in 2022 . Now what is really cool this year ? They offer a hard body appearance package . It offers that 80s and 90s hard body Nissan Frontier look . Yeah , styling , and it's really cool .

Speaker 1 1:15

Exterior features for this particular model that I had Sharp looking front fascia with high mounted squinty headlights . Blacked out grille with integrated skid plate . Black wheel opening extensions . Body colored rear bumper adds to the upscale look . That is body colored , in other words , they painted it what I like . The overall body design gets high marks . Lower red front toe hooks are included .

Speaker 1 1:41

What could use improvement ? Um , smallerer wheels and bigger , fatter tires . That's what I would do . It's your choice , yeah . Interior highlights Simple , straightforward dash design .

Speaker 1 1:54

Built-in square infotainment screen with HVAC controls that has its own panel beneath that infotainment screen . Passive phone charger with a forward storage tray on the center console . Optional leather seats with special Pro4X embossing . What I liked ? Simple , easy-to-use controls . What could use improvement ? Hard seating surface and lots of plastic paneling that could use improvement . But remember , this is an off-roader , so they like to make these things in the off-road way , which is like , yeah , put the hose in there and wash it out . Heavily weighted steering it's an issue . It's the first thing I noticed . You may like heavily weighted steering . I think it's just a little bit too much . That that's me . In other words , it's almost as if it's a cross between power steering and no power steering manual steering .

Speaker 1 2:54

3.8 liter v6 turns out 310 horsepower , 281 pound-feet of torque , shift on the fly , four-wheel drive system , two-speed transfer case , nine-speed automatic transmission . Tow rating is 6,100 pounds . That's a lot . Payload 1,220 . It's almost like a regular half-ton pickup truck . Miles per gallon in the city 18 , 22 on the highway for a combined of 19 . I got 20.2 over 321 miles , most of that on the freeway .

Speaker 1 3:26

What I liked about it ? The 17-inch beadlock alloys with those off-road tires on it . I think that that looked really good . What could use improvement ? I would like to offer that they offer a high-output 4-banger engine in it , Because I know that there are 4-banger engines that turn out 300-plus horsepower . I know it can be done . I'd like to see that as an option . What I liked about the ride and handling love those Bilstein off-road shocks . They work good on the road too . They've got lots of travel in it and it just is really a nice ride to it . What could use improvement in the ride and handling category ? Nothing .

Speaker 1 4:07

Okay , here's the pricing on this the base trim price is $39,300 . The price is tested all loaded up $47,630 . That's a lot of money . Base model price you can get in one of these for $31,330 . Base model price you can get in one of these for $31,330 . Competitors and I'm going to give you the base price for these competitors the Ford Ranger at $32,565 . The Toyota Tacoma starts at $29,430 . And the Chevy Colorado starts at $29,500 . So they're all within a couple thousand dollars in the start-off price . Yeah , so that's my review of the 2024 Nissan Frontier Pro 4X . I like the color . The green that you had was great . I did too , you know , and I'm not a green kind of guy , but I did .

Speaker 3 4:57

It's kind of a it's off-roady .

Speaker 1 5:00

Yeah , but it's not a Off-roady .

Speaker 3 5:02

Look at me . I'm green color technical turn and it's not an army green fluorescent , yeah , and it's kind of in between from it , just works with this .

Speaker 1 5:10

It does , it does . They did a good job on that . So thank you , steve parrot at nissan , for uh loaning me the vehicle , which , by the way , I had to get his permission to get it . Oh , wow . So I just couldn't go through alba or normal source , uh , so I called steve . Steve , what come on ? Yeah , I gotta send him some information too , yeah . So , at any rate , uh , we got it , it's good , it's good , good and uh really did uh enjoy it .

Speaker 1 5:43

Time now for this hour's car review . I had a chance to drive the 2025 Alfa Romeo Tonali . Well , it's only one trim level and that's the Tributo Italiano E all-wheel drive . This was an all-new vehicle last year . It rides on the Dodge Hornet platform of all things , with the same engine that's modified , a modified Jeep platform , if you will . It's built in Pamigliano , italy .

Speaker 1 6:15

We love the overall shape with distinct alpha triangular center grille , squinty headlights , nice three-slot rear lighting , big dual exhaust I mean almost coffee can size Big red brake calipers that really stand out behind those huge wheels . They're 20-inch five-hole wheels , is what they call them . Very unique , very cool . It stands out . Had a lot of compliments on them . Red , white and green Italian salute on the side mirrors . They're very small but very cool . What could use improvement ? Nothing really stands out . Now , as far as interior is concerned , we love the red lighted dash accent with high-quality interior , a 10-inch infotainment screen with really excellent design , a starter button on the steering wheel , which is kind of unique and it took some getting used to try to find it , but there it is on the steering wheel , left-hand side . As far as other interior highlights , it had a phone storage charger right underneath the center dash Cargo room adequate , but remember this is a small SUV . What I liked rear seat legroom is outstanding . Believe it or not , in this vehicle .

Speaker 1 7:36

This is a PHEV , a partial hybrid electric vehicle , a plug-in electric vehicle . A plug-in A 1.3 liter turbocharged gasoline engine creates 285 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque , six-speed automatic transmission . It will tow up to one ton . As far as mileage is concerned , on the gasoline-only motor , 154 miles , battery , 235.9 miles for a total of 390.2 miles . Overall , I got 60.3 miles per gallon with the combination over 10.38 hours .

Speaker 1 8:20

What I liked about it ? The mileage and the power . What could use improvement ? Give me more of it . The gasoline motor drives the front wheels and the electric motor drives the back wheels . Now , as far as range is concerned , it's only going to get 30 miles on electric only . But if you drive it just around your area of town or , for instance , a commute back and forth to work , get a full charge in the morning , take it to a 30-mile destination and then plug it in At the end of the workday 30 miles back , you're going to be really sweet because it's probably not going to kick in the electric motor unless you really get on it . What I liked about it the sports car feel in the ride and handling for really get on it . What I liked about it the sports car feel in the ride and handling . For an SUV . What could use improvement ? Really nothing .

Speaker 1 9:11

This is a very unique vehicle . Warranty four $59,630 . The base model price with the gasoline motor is $45,995 . It's a hot rod , a very sporty ride , that's for sure . Competitors include the Lincoln Corsair PHEV $54,265 . The Volvo 40 eCharge $52,450 . So , overall , I want to give it an A rating . Believe it or not , I really did like this and if you're into a plug-in hybrid electric , this is something you definitely should have on your shopping list . And that is my review of the 2025 Alfa Romeo Tonale , tributo Italiano E all-wheel drive .

Speaker 2 10:23

All right , let's uh move on , shall we , and talk about a review of the 2024 toyota tundra capstone now I will say that I've seen a couple of these out in the wild before I actually got one and got the opportunity to drive it , and I was really impressed with some of the styling changes . So this is the 2024 toyota tundra capstone crew max , four-wheel drive . They get a big redo in 2022 and they've been styling it out since then . It is available in two cab styles , two engines , got three different bed links , so you can kind of mix and match things . But there's actually seven trim levels , starting with the base SR , then it goes to the SR5 Limited , platinum , 1794 , and then you got the TRD Pro , which is the big off-road , and then you get to the Capstone , which is the top-of-the-line premium model , which is what we happen to have For our review

2024 Toyota Tundra Review

Speaker 2 11:14

Now .

Speaker 2 11:14

It's got a lot of things on the outside of it , including led lighting that's all the way around , including fog lights , got the automatic leveling headlights and it's got tow mirrors that actually extend out from the sides and fold that are heated . It's got a panoramic sunroof and it's really a big sunroof on the inside of that cab got power running boards and it's got a bed step that's on the back so you can get up into the bed . My wife really appreciated these power running boards because they were a pretty good height for her and they came out quick . They didn't didn't diddle around trying to get there . We were rolling on some 22 inch dark chrome alloy wheels which really stood out well on the white paint that we were riding in . It's's got on the inside of it . It's got the aniline leather seating surfaces . Now the front seats are heated and ventilated , as well as the rear seats . On the outboard positions . It's got a 14-inch Toyota multimedia screen in it and that's where you're going to find your CarPlay , your Android , all of your navigation , your convenience controls . It's all going to be right in there . Now for the driver , there is a 12.3 inch digital gauge package and it's got a big 10 inch heads up display right there on the glass . So it's really big , really easy to see , particularly at night . It was really nice running down the road .

Speaker 2 12:29

Now , if you want to really have some sound in this thing , it's got a JBL 12 speaker audio system with a subwoofer on it and it really sounds well in this thing . It's got a JBL 12 speaker audio system with a subwoofer on it and it really sounds well in this vehicle because it's got a lot of the sound deadening glass and stuff on it . It's got a big glass space . You've got plenty of windshield , plenty of the big glass on the back of it , so there's not a lot of road noise . So that audio system really stands out .

Speaker 2 12:52

Now to make all this stuff work up front , you've got a 3.5-liter twin-turbo V6 hybrid under the hood . This equates out to 437 horsepower , 583 pound-feet of torque , and it's got a nice sound to it . The first time I cranked it I thought it had a V8 in it . So it's got a really cool sound to it . It's got plenty of torque . It's a 10-speed automatic with this thing . Now , the one we had was rated to tow 11,200 pounds . You can do a couple of mods , get it up to 12,000 . Haul rating of 1,940 . So plenty of stuff to put in the bed .

Speaker 2 13:26

Now the EPA says that in the city you should get 19 , the highway 22 , combined 20 . It's always been kind of the shortfall of the tundra . The fuel economy has always been a little weak . Yeah , like 13 . Yeah . So I drove 228 miles in this vehicle and I got 16.0 on the average across it , which is better than I got in the past , but still yeah , but you don't really buy vehicles like this . If you're looking for gas mileage , you're going to buy something else . To begin with , toyota says 0 to 60 in 6.6 seconds . It's got two different drive modes . You can get the tall , the tow mode , the hall mode and I will say I thought it had great highway dynamics .

Speaker 2 14:06

The ride was nice and smooth . It was firm without being wishy-washy . There was not a lot of road noise . It handled nice and again , the v6 engine really had a nice sound to it . I was really impressed with it and the big glass , the big windshield , the glass on the side , it just had a nice big viewed where you could see everything . It was really a pleasure to drive the vehicle . Now I will say pricing wise that crew max that we were in the , the base model price , starts at forty two thousand fifteen dollars . Now the base trim price that we were at , again seven levels up , starts at seventy eight thousand eight hundred forty five dollars . Stone the capstone , top of the line as tested . Here we go eighty two thousand four hundred twenty three dollars which , which was a little .

Speaker 2 14:48

It was actually less than I expected it to be I was waiting for you to say a hundred thousand .

Speaker 2 14:52

Yes , exactly now if you look across at the Ford F-150 , the base on it for the again the big crew cab is 43,515 . The Silverado 4,2500 . And the Ram 1500 is at 4,217 . So they're all on the base level , all in that 42,000 range for the standard half-ton four-door pickup truck . And then you've got to go up from there with whatever you want . All of them have plenty of stuff to put in it to where you can push it up in that $80,000 or $90,000 range and get whatever you want . But I do like the restyling they've done on this truck . It looks nice . We've always liked to drive the Tundra . It was just the fuel economy and some of the styling keys on it but they've really made some changes in .

Speaker 1 15:40

You know , jason's got a tundra . I don't know what year's his year his is , but uh , he likes his . Hey , if you'd like to get in touch with us , shoot us an email . The address is info at inwheeltimecom and be sure to follow us on facebook .

2024 GMC Sierra, 2025 Chevy Blazer

Speaker 1 15:58

Time out for this hour's car review . Had a chance to drive the 2024 gmc sierra . It's available in no less than eight count them eight trim levels . Starts with the pro , which I find is interesting because you know , uh , toyota has a Pro model in the Tundra . But anyway , we're talking about the Sierra here .

Speaker 1 16:18

This is the pickup truck Starts with the Pro , goes to the SLE , then to the Elevation , then the SLT , the AT4 , the AT4X , the Denali and the Denali Ultimate , the Denali and the Denali Ultimate . So if you can't find a trim level , then you need to go to somebody else , because they've got eight of them . You get a bunch . The review trim level is the 1500 Denali Ultimate Diesel Crew Cab with the short box . You can't even get that on one line . This is called a standard pickup truck , according to your US government . Passengers and driver , five altogether . The pro will seat six with the front bench . Understand that the pro is the work truck . In some levels they call it the WT , the work truck . All right , that's the stripper model in our language .

Speaker 2 17:15

I like stripper better than work truck .

Speaker 1 17:18

Why don't they just name it that Too many letters and put that girl that does one of those poses with their legs , kind of sitting on the back of the mud flaps ?

Speaker 3 17:31

That's an actual girl , a silhouette of an actual girl . Okay , I read that somewhere .

Speaker 2 17:39

So I've heard huh . Back to the review .

Speaker 1 17:41

All right , no changes really to speak of from last model year . The options include three cabs a regular , a double and a crew , three beds , depending on the cab , and four engines . Wow , that's a variety .

Speaker 1 18:04

That's like 10 different things that you can get . Here's the deal If you're going to spend $80,000 , or , in this case , $85,000 on a truck , order it $80,000 , or , in this case , $85,000 on a truck , order it that way . If you want a different rear axle in there , different gear ratios , you can get that . Whatever cab , whatever you want , order it the way that you want it , because you're spending $85,000 . Exterior features this is a gargantuan half-ton pickup truck that will probably not fit in anybody's garage , so take that into consideration . This would be one of those deals where you'd want to go ahead and have a car port made in front of the garage because it ain't fitting in the garage .

Speaker 1 18:49

Massive chrome grill with a hockey stick uh , side slather on there . Daytime running lights on it . Also kind of mirrors that hockey stick thing . We had a huge 20-inch smoky chrome wheel option . Retractable running boards is a nice feature . What I liked ? The subtle body side sculpting . I like that . I also enjoyed the multi-pro tailgate that comes with the denali ultimate trim . So they've included that . Used to be 10 . I don't know how much the thing cost . A lot of money . You have that multi-prof , but that's the way to go with that tailgate absolutely . Um , what could use improvement . I don't know they've thrown the kitchen sink at this thing . You could probably order that too .

Speaker 1 19:37

Interior highlights Well-laid-out dash with conservative instrument cluster pod , big infotainment screen now that's easy to maneuver through . Top-notch leather seating with adjustability . Big shift knob on the console Takes up too much room . Period Okay . Gobs of cubbies and storage throughout the cabin . What I liked about it ? The attention to the detailed stitching and the ultimate badging that's also on the seat . What could use improvement ? Nothing .

Speaker 1 20:07

This is GM at its best Three-liter inline , six-cylinder diesel engine , 305 horsepower but 495 pound-feet of torque , with a 10-speed automatic transmission . Towing 8,700 pounds , hauling 1,380 . 23 miles per gallon , city , 27 on the highway , for a combined of 24 . I got 25.4 miles per gallon over 451.8 miles . If you're going to keep this thing for a while , you'll probably get your money back on the up pricing on the diesel engine . What I liked about it smooth , quiet , power with big , big torque . And what could use improvement ? Nothing . Engine rocks is my note . Ride and handling smoother than you'd think for this massive thing . The tester was unloaded . In other words , I wasn't hauling anything and I wasn't towing anything . What could use improvement ? Suspension adjustability . Base trim price $82,500 . Prices tested $85,400 . Base model price $43,400 for the pro entry-level version . The other entry-level versions include the Ford F-150 starting at $4,355 , the Ram 1500 for $4,133 , and the Toyota for $4,200 . And that's my review of the 2024 GMC Sierra Denali Ultimate 1500 Diesel Crew Cab with the short box .

Speaker 3 21:35

The only thing that does not appeal to me on that vehicle is the grille they never have through the whole life of that GMC version . The grille is my issue .

Speaker 1 21:46

I agree with you . If you'd like to get in touch with us , shoot us an email . The address here is info at inwheeltimecom . We are back after this quick break .

Speaker 2 22:07

Time now for this hour's car review . This week I had the chance to drive this 2025 Chevrolet Blazer . This is the RS version . It's an EV and it is all-wheel drive . Now , this vehicle was introduced in 2024 .

Speaker 2 22:22

For 2025 , they've made a few more changes to it Take five . Since this is an EV , the stylist can do a few things different across the front , make things a little more aerodynamic , kind of smooth some things out . But they've really gone to the thin headlights and they put an additional light bar all the way across the front so that the Chevrolet emblem also included in that lights up as well . Makes a really cool look in the dark . Now , coming down the side , we're going to see that there are some vents . We're going to see this nice 21 inch aluminum wheels that we're rolling on , got a black treatment on the caps for the side mirrors , roof rails , all the cladding around the wheels , even across to the back bumpers With the rear hatch open . We've got some cargo space here . We've even got some storage underneath the floor . Lift it up . You're going to find some places to put some dry storage . You're also going to find this is where your cables can be to do your charging . There is no spare tire . Chevrolet says this vehicle comes with self-sealing tires on it , so up to a quarter inch puncture is supposed to be able to self-seal and continue on the road .

Speaker 2 23:40

Inside , the driver's got a nice 11 inch screen that he can configure , particularly using the easy to reach buttons that are on the steering wheel . Now , over on the center stack or in the center , you're going to find a 17.1 inch infotainment type screen and this is where you're going to find all your controls for your convenience , your navigation , all the things you're going to do that you might be looking for buttons for , but they're all going to be down inside here , inside this screen . Now there are some buttons right here , as well as some kind of to me very retro looking air conditioning vents , but I really like them . There's also another storage compartment up here in the front , got two USB-C ports on them . Now there's no USB-A's that I could find any place , so you either need an adapter or you've got to come on up to the new stuff . Got two cup holders up here and we've got a wireless phone charger here . Now this works really well . And then we have another USB-C port in the deeper storage well of the center console Again , this red and black's kind of striking , but it looks really good actually whenever you get into it and you get past the initial kind of a shock of it .

Speaker 2 24:51

We've got a fold down armrest in the rear seat , as well as the rear seats that do fold down . Talked about some of the styling touches on this RS package , with the black and blue trim in particular . One of the things we wanted to note was there's a touch point right here and this is how you get to your charging cable . It's much like a fuel filler door that pops open , except this one obviously lowers itself , got a place to plug in and then , when you're finished , to seal it back against the elements because you're obviously going to get some rain and stuff going down the road . A button puts it all back together .

Speaker 2 25:36

The 2025 Chevrolet Blazer RS EV all-wheel drive . Now , this is an EV , so it's a little bit heavier . It rolls on some nice 21-inch tires , so when you get it out on the highway it's very compliant handling . It's not really a boat by any means , but it handles the road imperfections really well and it's quiet . It's very quiet . Automatically , as an EV it's going to be a little bit quieter , but it's surprisingly quiet and in town . It's easy to handle , easy to maneuver , it's got a nice size to it , it's easy to park , the steering is very responsive , just really nice to get around and it's got some really nice styling to it . The color get a lot of comments on the color of it and the styling of it . This is my review of the Chevrolet Blazer RS All-Wheel Drive EV .

Speaker 1 26:41

All right , it's time now for this hour's car review . I had a chance to drive .

Speaker 3 26:48

No , I thought it was .

Speaker 1 26:48

Mike's .

Speaker 2 26:49

No , it's Don's . Oh well , then I better back this up . Don said it was mine , but on the schedule it's Don's , oh well , then I better back this up .

Speaker 3 26:57

Don said it was mine , but on the schedule it's Don's . Ah , yeah , okay , yeah , right , there See , yep Right there Don's .

Speaker 2 27:01

You have to go by what he reads , not what he says .

Speaker 1 27:04

Yeah , so I had a chance to drive the 2024 Ford Ranger . It comes in these trim levels XL , xlt , lariat . The 2024 ford ranger . It comes in these trim levels xl , xlt , lariat and raptor . Did you know that they make a ranger raptor ? I did not know . The one that I had is the super crew 4x4 lariat , which is the top of the line of for the regular ranger compact seats five including the driver . Yes , it is a crew cab , All new sheet metal . This is the fifth generation of the Ranger .

Speaker 1 27:41

Exterior features include , well , one of the best looking compact pickups around , I think . Sharp looking grille with subtle side badges . Wheel and tire combo looks great on this . Door crease adds to its upscale . Look what I liked about it how the Ranger mimics the F-150 , but with a smaller stature . What could use improvement ? Well , prices rising exponentially with the upper trim . Would you somebody go out there and tell that boy to quiet it down , would you ? Yeah , prices rise exponentially with the upper trim levels . If you want to get into the Raptor , you're talking about some serious money right there .

Speaker 1 28:21

Interior highlights Tesla-like optional infotainment screen is the centerpiece to the interior . Great cloth seats . Yes , leather's available for you people that don't know how to deal with the heat in Houston , texas . Awesome dash layout , well designed . Now , as far as the bed size , they only come in one bed size and one cab , and that's the four-door , the crew cab . Yeah , what I liked about it the design . It's really nice looking . If you have not seen one , I encourage you , if you're in the market for what we call a midsize pickup truck , to go and check it out . What could use improvement ? More interior color , like the Raptor has , just a little bit more color , I think would be a little splash . Good Accents .

Speaker 1 29:11

Yeah , just a little bit more color , I think would be a little splash of good Accents . Yeah , comes with a 2.3-liter EcoBoost four-cylinder engine . That turns out 270 horsepower and 310 pound-feet of torque through a 10-speed automatic transmission . Tow rating 7,500 pounds . Haul rating 1,800 pounds . So this is a workhorse . This is a body on frame . This is not like the Maverick pounds . So this is a workhorse . This is a body on frame . It's not like the maverick . 21 miles per gallon city 25 , highway for , combined to 22 , is what it's rated for . I got 22 over 487.5 miles . What I liked about it plenty of power . If you need more , there is a three liter v6 , still available at 405 horsepower . Yeah , wow , uh-huh . I don't know what you'd do with that , but okay .

Speaker 3 30:01

Did you say turbo or no ?

Speaker 1 30:03

Just a V6 . V6 . Ride and handling , pretty smooth for an unloaded pickup truck

2024 Ford Ranger Review

Speaker 1 30:10

. What could use improvement ? Maybe an optional air ride suspension . But you know you start adding that kind of thing and you start increasing the price of it , and price is important . Base trim price $32,670 . So it's not cheap . That's the base Price is tested $43,630 . Now that's the top of the line Lariat , just one below the Raptor . You don't even want to know how much the Raptor is . Base model price $39,565 . So with that base model price in mind , competitors include the Chevy Colorado for $31,095 , toyota Tacoma for $33,700 , and the Honda Ridgeline $39,700 . And the Honda Ridgeline $39,750 . And that is my review of the 2024 Ford Ranger SuperCrew 4x4 Lariat with the 2.3 liter EcoBoost engine . Very good .

Speaker 2 31:11

Yeah , I think that's kind of like the Ranger's always been out there .

Speaker 3 31:15

Yeah , well , they've done the improvements . Made it a little bit bigger , which is not necessarily A little bit smaller .

Speaker 2 31:21

yeah , it's a nice size .

Speaker 1 31:24

I think so too . I liked it very much . What could use improvement ? Well , you know you pick it because I just didn't make it up but a little bit more splash on the interior . But remember it is a truck and I know people now have limousine trucks . Hey , if you'd like to get in touch with us , shoot us an email . The address here is info at nwheeltimecom .