Automotive journalists are treated to high-class trips by the manufacturers every time a new or thoroughly revised vehicle debuts. We stay at first class hotels, dine on great food, and sip great wines.

Then we drive these various cars, trucks, and SUVs on perfect roads for a day or two, and try to make an unbiased judgment on their relative merit in the marketplace.

Often, six months or a year later, we experience the same vehicle at home, in more prosaic—yet familiar—surroundings. This affords the opportunity to reevaluate said ride from a more realistic perspective. Here are recorded these ‘second thoughts’. It can be entertaining to see if the first blush blossoms into love or if familiarity breeds contempt

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