by Gabrielle DeSantis

If there’s one thing that’s consistent in car sales, it’s that people love SUVs. Some SUVs have maintained their best-selling status despite their shortcomings. This is often thanks to having a reputable name and coming with a lot of perks. Yet some of the most popular new SUVs Consumer Reports says people shouldn’t buy. Let’s look at what they are and why they’ve been given the ‘avoid’ label. 

Consumer Reports recommends avoiding the 2021 Ford Explorer

Sure, the 2021 Ford Explorer probably seems like a great choice, but it’s got some serious shortcomings. For one thing, it only gets 21 mpg, which isn’t a lot, even in its class. Consumer Reports also called its ride “stiff” and “less compliant” than others in its category. 

Perhaps the best things the Explorer has going for it are its size and safety features. The Ford Explorer comes with everything that Consumer Reports says a new car should. And it has plenty of passenger and cargo space. 

Yet even better is the 2021 Kia Telluride. It’s easy to maneuver, has loads of safety features, and Telluride owners love their SUVs.

The 2021 Honda Passport is a midsize SUV Consumer Reports says to avoid

Consumer Reports notes that the 2021 Honda Passport is similar to the 2021 Honda Pilot in that they share the same engine and transmission. Yet even with the 3.6-liter V6 in the Passport, it doesn’t quite live up to the Pilot’s hype. 

Consumer Reports says that the Honda Passport’s ride is still and handling is unrefined. Additionally, the infotainment system is somewhat lacking and slow. Perhaps most importantly, the Passport’s reliability rating is subpar at just a 2/5.

So what should you buy? Consumer Reports says that if you’d been interested in the Honda Passport, you may prefer the 2021 Ford Edge. It’s quiet, handles well, and has a good reliability rating. 

The 2021 Ford Escape is a popular small SUV you should avoid

The 2021 Ford Escape has pretty good gas mileage, at 26 mpg. However, its reliability isn’t great. It only gets a 1/5. The 2020 Ford Escape also gets a 1/5 for reliability. The worst areas include the body integrity, power equipment, and in-car electronics. 

The Ford Escape also comes with some pretty important safety features, like forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, pedestrian detection, and blind spot warning. The IIHS gives the Ford Escape all good ratings. The NHTSA also gives the Escape all five stars except for rollover, which each gets four stars. Yet its ride is stiff and Consumer Reports called its braking “oversensitive.”

So what would be a better choice than the Escape? The 2021 Mazda CX-5. It’s quiet, has “responsive” handling, and comes with a host of important safety features. 

Although these are some of the most popular new SUVs, Consumer Reports just recommends that you stay away. And with so many other great options out there that combine safety, reliability, and drivability, there’s no reason to choose any of these SUVs with the “avoid” label.

RELATED: These Are the Best 7-Seat 2021 SUVs

The post 3 Popular SUVs Consumer Reports Gave the ‘Avoid’ Label appeared first on MotorBiscuit.

by Gabrielle DeSantis

It’s described as “the most commercially and technically mature autonomous vehicle in the world” on Nuro’s website. It’s a small, electric vehicle known as the R2. All in all, the Nuro is a simple, self-driving delivery vehicle, with limited uses as of right now. But it’s also paving the way for a driverless, autonomous future, one delivery at a time.

The Nuro R2: small, electric, and adorable

I know I’m supposed to be unbiased, that’s my job as a journalist, but just look at it. The shape, the headlamps, it looks like a friendly little robot (mainly because it is one). The Nuro R2 is completely electric, completely autonomous, and packed with sensors to navigate city streets.

With a 360 degree camera mounted on top, the vehicle has a complete view of its surroundings. And other gadgets, such as a thermal camera, lidar, and radar, help determine distances between other objects, cars, and people. And the car was designed small on purpose.

Because the Nuro R2 was only built to carry cargo, it didn’t need to be as wide as a typical passenger car. Instead, it’s narrow enough to operate on a sidewalk (not that it would). And it leaves room for other vehicles to pass like one would pass a cyclist.

But perhaps the most impressive thing about the Nuro R2 is that it’s a completely street-legal autonomous vehicle. You can read the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s exemption of the Nuro, allowing it to operate 100% autonomously. And for a while, it has been.

RELATED: 5 Creative Uses for Driverless Cars

From groceries to pizzas, these companies have already partnered with Nuro

It all depends on where you are in the country, but already Nuro has partnered with big names to deliver goods. The biggest company they’ve teamed up with is Walmart, who’s no stranger to self-driving electric cars. There’s also Kroger and CVS, which delivers food and pharmaceuticals to those who need them. An impressive feat in a world where no contact deliveries are more popular than ever.

But according to Insider, online grocery shopping only makes up around 7% of grocery shopping commerce. Most people go into stores, look at their products, and check out. Food delivery, however, is a much more prominent market. And so far, both Dominos and Chipotle have teamed up with Nuro.

But the biggest, and most recent partnership, however, was FedEx, which committed to using Nuro autonomous vehicles for large-scale, last-mile deliveries. What does that mean exactly? It means that someday, all your packages will arrive via a self driving robot. Though that day is far in the future, the Nuro R2, and autonomous vehicles in general, have some hurdles to get over.

The current limitations of the Nuro R2 autonomous delivery vehicle

As previously mentioned, whether or not you can utilize Nuro all depends on what state you’re in. So far, Houston is the hub for Dominos. So if you want your Dominos pizza delivered by a self driving robot, you have to buy a plane ticket to Texas (or live there, whichever is easiest). Other states include California and Arizona, though the Nuro R2 only runs routes in select cities.

There are also some physical limitations to the Nuro as well. For starters, the R2 has a top speed of 25 mph. This is one of the contingencies the NHTSA insisted on in order for Nuro to operate on public roads. And the Nuro faces all the same problems electric cars do in terms of range and charging (which takes about four and a half hours, easy to do overnight).

In short, the Nuro is the closest thing we have to an autonomous future, but it’s not perfect. We’re a long way away from mass-produced and universally accepted driverless cars. So for now, keep your eyes on the road, and thank your mailman.

RELATED: If an Autonomous Car Crashes, Who’s At Fault?

The post The Nuro R2, an All-Electric Self Driving Delivery Vehicle appeared first on MotorBiscuit.