2020 Nissan Sentra Test Results; CR's Car Testing Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic  _ Talking Cars #255

The Great Tire Debate: Summer Tires vs All-Season Tires

When it comes to choosing tires for your car, one of the most common dilemmas is whether to opt for summer tires or all-season tires. The answer depends on various factors, including the climate you live in, the type of driving you'll be doing, and your personal preferences. In this article, we'll explore the pros and cons of each option and provide guidance on how to make an informed decision.

He's didn't have to worry about snow is indeed an all-season tire per se or a winter tire right but he's putting it on what he's calling an economy car I don't know what that is exactly but does that do you need that performance right the cars designed a certain way to come to tires from the factory to you know match those abilities right. Summer tires are all these ultra high-performance tires are gonna have more grip for sure a lot more than the stock tires right. But do you need that in everyday driving or are you maybe you're maybe he does want that more exhilarating experience or he might even be Auto crossing it which is like you know the amateur racing around cones time trial stuff I used to do a lot of it myself I know Jake did stuff like that that then it that makes sense but there's some trade-off with summer tires other than that actually they are a little bit worse on fuel their rolling resistance a little higher which makes them less fuel efficient. It's basically how easily they roll down the road and typically a summer tire is a little wider and they just they're not they don't roll as easily at least we found in our tests but we're talking maybe 1 to 2 miles per gallon difference and they don't last as long they just wear out faster because it's not the compound softer and naturally they just wear out faster other than that I mean and also you know all-season tires you can get a performance all-season tire that kind of has some like took a look at our ratings you can find some all-season tires performance all-season tires that have a little more of that summery grip maybe less of the winter stuff you know you can kind of pick through the ratings and find something that suits you better but I mean that you could definitely could do it it's just through some trade-off you have to kind of look into.

Performance Tires Can Be a Good Option

I never thought I would say this Ryan but you're getting old I mean look I mean you know performance tires you know and wheels often people do too is kind of like the low cost performance increase or for a lot of people and in cars and we've done some tastic tests where we could get you know remember a while ago we actually had what we had a marine we put some performance tires on it and stopped better than you know a lot of sports cars so I mean wait wait let's go back to the previous question Taylor put some performance tires on the on the Prius in the fours I mean you know it can also increase you know your steering feel and a lot of other things I mean look I mean and you're right I don't know how you know many miles an hour you're going around corners and whatnot but it is definitely a low-cost option and you know I mean both of us have had had done some kind of you know odd crossing and track events and it's really interesting that you can actually have an economy small car I mean you see with you know civics all the time with performance tires you could actually have them handle as well as some very high-priced sports cars you know often they you know people lower them and modify them otherwise but it is definitely an improvement in terms of performance.

The All-Season Tire Option

I actually back in another life I actually worked in Europe Europe for a while as a development engineer and was interesting there at the time nobody had all seasons like they just did not do all seasons it was summer tires or winter tires so all seasons you know they are a bit of a compromise. So, if you live in an area with mild winters and cool summers, an all-season tire might be a good choice. However, if you live in an area with harsh winters or extreme temperatures, a dedicated winter tire is still the best option.

The European Perspective

When it comes to choosing tires in Europe, there's often a perception that summer tires are the only option. This couldn't be further from the truth. While summer tires do offer improved grip and handling, they're not necessarily the best choice for everyday driving in most European climates. In fact, many Europeans opt for all-season tires, which can provide a good balance of performance and fuel efficiency.

A Word on Summer Tires

Summer tires are often misunderstood as being only suitable for warm weather. However, they're designed to offer improved grip and handling in dry conditions. They're not necessarily the best choice for everyday driving, but if you do need that extra bit of performance or want to take your driving experience to the next level, a summer tire can be a great option.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the decision between summer tires and all-season tires depends on various factors, including your climate, driving habits, and personal preferences. Both options have their pros and cons, and it's essential to weigh these carefully before making a decision. By understanding the differences between each type of tire and choosing the right one for your needs, you can enjoy a safer and more enjoyable driving experience.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enwe discuss our test results from the 2020 Nissan Sentra talk about how we're continuing to test while staying safe at our track and answer your questions including is it possible to install apple carplay on an older vehicle next on talking cars hey welcome back I'm Keith berry I'm writing to wachowski and I'm Jake Fisher and we are once again coming to you from remotely but that doesn't mean that things aren't slowly happening at our test track in Connecticut you know as as as the country is trying to figure out what how people can get get to work and what can be done safely and what can be done with some distance we are figuring that out for ourselves right Jake you've you've actually you've been at the track recently right yeah so I mean what we're trying to do is we're trying to keep on keeping on and we are here to test cars and I mean obviously there's a lot of restriction in place and and and even beyond the restrictions that we worked the the number one priority for all of us is to keep everyone safe but there is quite a lot that we still can do so because we are car testers and a lot of these evaluations we actually do on normal roads whether or not it's ride or handling even things like controls a lot of the work that we do we don't actually have to be at the facility so what week very quickly did was worked out a really good robust procedure to swap the vehicles so and actually I've been in contact with some people from car manufacturers they're going through the same kind of thing when you're doing development of cars you have to be able to swap these vehicles but not transmit anything so we're cleaning the vehicles thoroughly between that we're actually letting the cars sit and then we get someone else in the car and we could get a lot of work done I don't know Ryan you've you've you've gone through this yourself right yeah yeah I actually just the end the last week I swapped a car so I you know I go to the track with the vehicle I'm in and I when I get there I have to clean it we have all the cleaning supplies there's a little station set up inside the main shop and you know clean all the surfaces that you would touch you know the door handles the window switches the start buttons those you know those stalks everything like the steering you know literally everything that you might touch and you know get in the next car but that that car that I'm getting into has been cleaned and has been sitting there for 24 hours with nobody in it and they're outside so hopefully the you know it's been sunny recently at least and the Sun kind of helped they say that killed some of the virus and off I go in the next car and then I get home and I do my one day trips I do the stuff that I can do the seat comfort stuff access all the testing I would do at work and the stuff I would do on the roads anyway so it's it's really it's it's different but it's it's no different in terms of the testing itself unfortunately we're living at a different time and we're you know in this current test group that we have are kind of going to the next phase of it so right now you know we're in Connecticut and they're starting to open and some people are actually getting in offices you know we have so many procedures that we have that we maintain a normal car tests we're writing new procedures on how to do these you know again have the same you know quality and make sure that we get the same tests but you know we may not be swapping the cars as quickly we may have you know I know you know we're gonna get into doing stuff like emergency handling so we'll have you know Ryan you'll get into the car and do everything and then swap it to the next person right right it'll be the next driver will drive the next day but it's it's it's it's different but it's it's I don't you know the quality works isn't different it's just gonna be the same it's just it's gonna take a little longer and we've used our own reporting that we've done in order to help develop these protocols you know so we have our health team we have people who have been talking with you know scientists who are who are working on this and the manufacturers themselves have come out publicly with protocols about how to keep cars clean and what should be done when a car comes in for service you know they've been telling their dealers what to do too so those employees don't who are you know vital employees and so they don't get sick so there's some research that's starting to build around swapping cars and and being able to stay safe yeah it's really interesting how it kind of you know we were yeah every morning we all get together and we have our scrum when we talk and talk these things true and it's so funny how we're asking the same questions that consumers are asking us so it's you know we have to buy cars how do we do that safe so we write the article how to buy a car and stay safe we need to swap these cards and clean them and not damage them so we write the article so it's it's kind of a twofer you know why yeah if you want to find out more about what we're disco 2cr org and look at our how-to articles cuz that's not you know we're practicing what we preach it's it's you know we're we're just saying what we do when we call and we're not buying cars from places that require you to come in someone put in ask for a quote from a local dealer and they said why don't you come on down and we'll talk and that's absolutely absurd you can't do that anymore so you know sorry they lost the deal and we bought a car from from another dealership but that's the advice that were you know that we're giving is what we're learning ourselves and Jake it's it's been a while since I've personally been been down at the track but our we're using this time to to get some much-needed maintenance and projects done right this sort of downtime where we're not actually driving on the on the track right yeah I mean it was kind of an advantage of getting us all out of there and we actually did a small paving project I mean we go and we you know I like to say that our test track is probably some of the best roads in the country because we have to make them so they're consistent all year long and they don't degrade so we're repaving even though they look really good we just want to make sure the coefficient of friction and all that stuff is the same so yeah so we actually repaved a section of our track I saw it yesterday it looks gorgeous I'm getting you know looking forward actually driving on it but right now it's curing and it just it the timing just works out great you don't across the country I think you'll see some of that too you know I mean people are paving roads because the traffic is down so it just makes sense yeah accelerated projects on on everything yeah so before some of those projects began at our track we finished testing the 2020 Nissan Sentra it's an interesting vehicle we we got the the SV trim line of this this sort of new car from nice onit's reinvented after a couple of years of the center just kind of existing in the lineup between the Altima and the Versa and it just sort of being there mostly you know I saw a lot of them at rental fleets the the one that we have now it's sv trim line hundred and forty nine horsepower a two liter four-cylinder engine with it with a CVT in front-wheel drive that's it's the only the only choice ours didn't come with any major options it was about twenty one thousand four hundred dollars which is you know pretty affordable for a small car these days and it starts around nineteen but you know some versions of this car can can be quite nice we're going to talk about that but um you know what what do we what do we think of the center Orion you you spent some time with it right yes yeah so we completed testing it and I'll be honest when I saw we were getting a Sentra I we have a board that shows the cars are like incoming from the dealers and I saw the Sentra on there and like I wasn't that excited I mean the Sentra has been like this car that was not that special for a long time unfortunately this car came in and I will say it I think it's surprised I think even shocks some most people at the track it's it's a grown up Sentra you know the Maxima used to be the big fancy one and then the ultimo kind of grew up into that place a little bit the Sentra has kind of grown now into like the Altima spot this is a really nice car you know it rides nice the the powertrain was fantastic you know it's it's got a CVT in it but it kind of mimics shifts but smooth the steering's really group is great you know even the interior was very nice in our SV trim and it's got a lot of safety features it's it's a really nice car I just wasn't expecting it I guess it's like the the old the old ser from yeah and back in the day the center was actually you know something that was the last accenture that I remember being like this is cool you know unfortunately but it's it this is awesome so nice I have been really interesting lately just because I mean you never really know what you're gonna get it's like you know Nissan's a box of chocolates you know I mean every you don't never know what you're gonna get I mean the the thing that is like you know you mentioned like the ser way back I remember in the nineties you know there was that ser there was like all sporty and then they almost become like the rental car company you know not not not too long ago and I agree with Ryan I mean I didn't have high expectations but I was kind of blown away I mean this was actually a fun kind of grown up small sedan you know really interesting that Nissan is actually putting some thought and energy into this market where everyone else is kind of going away from you know just concentrating on small SUVs but they're actually doing something here so I mean if you've kind of written off Nissan's lately I mean this is a great opportunity to go and you know give them another try and also you know I mean think about it in terms of equipment you know some of the high trim models of this car I mean they just have like a gorgeous interior I mean if you get like the the platinum and get all these different like trim lines I mean it's it looks like you're in a luxury car I mean for them to put the guest quilted leather it's an amazing an absolutely amazing that they're actually doing that so there's really no reason not to but it's it's definitely you know give another look even the model that we that we rented had that sort of two-tone paint with the orange and it looked really really really cool the one that we rented from the Sun the thing is interesting to me is that Nissan has said that they're gonna double down on the sedan segment and they publicly said this where everyone else is kind of going away Nissan has said you know what sedans are gonna be the new counterculture because then everyone has a crossover who's the cool one it's it's the guy in the sedan so I'm I'm kind of I'm very much on board with this but but you know of course the new rogue is gonna be coming out relatively soon and the son said that's on track and that's that you know it's gonna sell sell like crazy but it is really cool that they're putting this much effort into not just a a sedan but an affordable one too that something can be nice but not necessarily expensive you were saying yeah I would just you know I just it's always something to remember you know I mean while everything is SUV SUV SUV you know if you do choose a sedan you will get more for your money you know me you don't get the you know the old wood drive option necessarily you don't get the fender flairs but you wind up having a lot more value you get a more grown-up car you get better fuel economy you get something that's quicker and handles better you know it is definitely a smart choice for a lot of people I mean who would have thought this Sentra at grown-up car I mean the Sentra was not grown-up but it's it's an adult now yeah man so if you want to learn more about how it did in in our tests just head over to see our org and you'll see all the numbers and our full take on it so I think it's time for some questions you've seen enough of us in our houses and we have a bunch of video questions today and it's you and your houses because you've sent your video questions to talking cars at icloud.com so thank you very much our first question is from Tom in Seattle hi talking cars love the show keep it up I had one question in regards to the Jeep Grand Cherokee I noticed now it is recommended by CR and from my perspective this is great news that is a beautiful vehicle and I've always shied away from it given some of the reliability could you share with us what changed is to why it's now recommended thank you bye so yeah the the Grand Cherokee it's it's an awesome SUV but it's always had this sort of miasma of reliability following following it around Jake what what happened what happened did FCA finally like finally figure it out after after nine years yes I mean I mean so the Grand Cherokee really had its last major redesign 2011 and like we always talked about in terms of reliability you know then when they redesign it there's more problems and sometimes it takes a couple of years to work out the books in terms of the Grand Cherokee it took several years to work out the Buffs and in fact the 2016 and up models definitely are more reliable still if you look those older models they still have have have reliability problems kind of across the board a lot of different issues so you know it's funny you know when you know we talk about like you know the Grand Cherokee or quite other Chrysler's like the Chrysler 300 the Dodge Charger a lot people like oh you guys don't like those cars I'm like no we like those cars a lot really do we really like those cars the reliability is what really brings down the score of these cars and all of those vehicles you know again with enough practice working out the bugs where we're happily recommending these models right now because they have improved the reliability so incurred including yeah the grin which incidentally as is kind of underpinning is very much like a Mercedes Benz you know because it it goes that far back back when it was Chrysler mercedes-benz yeah yeah it's I mean that is that that is a very very well-appointed very solid feeling feeling feel you know it's it's I I wouldn't hesitate sub Tom you should if you want one go out and buy one absolutely awesome our next question is from Nonie in Anaheim Hills hi talking cars I'm interested in getting a used manual stick shift car around $5,000 it's been 20 30 years since I used to own one an old 92 Tercel and I thought it'd be fun to have one again this is not a daily driver it'd just be an extra car and if you could recommend one one that's easy to get into again for around a five thousand dollar budget appreciate it thank you very much keep up the good work that's interesting used obviously stick shift $5,000 and an extra car Ryan what do you think so I guess nowadays you can't get too too much with $5,000 but I don't know how sporty he wanted to go but I I did a little just like cars.com CarGurus kind of a search just to see what's out there across the country and something came up and it reminded me of the good old days an Acura RSX ooh 5-speed manual fun little car we used to actually use one for tire testing years ago and I absolutely loved that car it's a simple car so it's there's not a lot going on in it so it's pretty reliable it was a smaller car it's fun and it's still manual well you know those don't exist anymore it seems so I went on I went on to the consumer report to use car marketplace shameless plug but so I mean you it was funny because I mean as soon as as soon as I heard you know five-speed and fun you know you got to think about in a Ryan you're right I mean the stick shift on that RSX was phenomenal so if you're interested in sick I mean it's always fun shifting but I mean some are better than others I always go Mazda so my first thought was Mazda 3 but you're not talking about your primary daily driver so I mean this just calls into you know Miata is always the answer Miata is where it's at and I would actually start looking at and B's so NB is the second generation in Miata which was like 1999 to 2005 and the reason I say that is because the first generation the older ones in the 90s they're actually going up in value so they're almost like a classic card you could actually get the NB that that early 2000s right around that five grand the shifter is just phenomenal and if you're caught above probably the best in the business and you know you know if it's not the daily driver then yeah two seats you know top down you're in Southern California enjoy yeah I was I was I was gonna stick with Mazda as well I was thinking the Mazda 3 the only reason why is that you want to be able to enjoy it with the whole family with friends you don't have to pick I assume that maybe maybe he has more friends than I do so yes yes here's three or four and they hit they they all want to go with them on the trip somewhere maybe a family and that's why the Mazda 3 is a good choice because it kind of blends a little bit of practicality but it still has that same you know buttery smooth shift they're like the like the Miata does and and I mean it still is a it's a great car but I don't know Jake I think you're right I think you're right the top down Southern California I would go Mazda 3 but yeah well a little job I think yeah totally totally especially cooped up in the house it's nice to think about going out with a convertible next question from another warm climate Paul and Atlanta has as a question about his Subaru hello I'm the owner of the 2018 Subaru Forester and I've been happy with the car with one major exception and that is the proprietary navigation system so I'm thinking about going to a third party is it possible to change the entertainment screen to accommodate an apple carplay now this is something a lot of our most reliable used cars have these awful infotainment systems or just ones that don't have the latest features and that's not a reason to go out and buy a brand new car jqu did something like this recently right you have some personal experience around fixing and upgrading a vehicle something like that so I say it's kind of interesting cuz when we talk about carplay a lot here and we definitely think it's terrific we see in Android auto is in Android auto as well you know but I'm gonna go say something maybe a little controversial do not do it you don't need it I mean it's it's nice but don't and I'll tell you why so actually we just went through this and you know my wife bought a 92019 Prius you know soon as I got all-wheel-drive we went out and got that the 19 Prius does not have car play so we started kind of looking into it and and look with most cars you can do this it's just not pretty you know I mean you're ripping apart the car the to be honest with you a lot of the aftermarket is not gonna be as robust in terms of like the OEM stuff so the stuff that's gone through all the testing and the car so so we looked at it there were options but here's here's the trick just get a cell phone mount we did some cell phone mount tests you know when you evaluated some my wife has a cell phone map now she's got a 6.5 inch screen on her iPhone which incidentally is actually the same size as the base screen on the Forester but you actually have an advantage when you do the cell phone mount you're using the navigation I'll tell you why one its vertical which actually works much better for navigation easily further ahead to you still retain the radio so now you've got two screens you've gotten your navigation and you've got your radio and you could work with both of those three you've got wireless charging so you're not plugging in and every time and four you do have your voice controls so I'm not saying you know use the phone and touch it and do all these things what your car has in in most cars for the last several years have it is it's like something like excuse ice free where you don't necessarily need car plate which means basically that little voice button on your steering wheel hold that down now you're talking to your phone now you could program don't just press it once hold it right like this hidden feature that almost you know so many cars have and probably a lot of people don't use so now you could set your navigation and do that so um that is my advice don't rip apart your car go that way that's what we did I agree yeah I mean if you are going to go the route of ripping it apart I mean some really really specialty shops can find ways to can find ways to do it but I mean it will be things like remapping the steering wheel controls because those steering wheel controls are meant to work with with your and it just it gets to a level that is it's not like back in the day where you could take out the radio and put in you know is it a din or a double din and that's it it's it is it is so integrated in the cart and sometimes you lose some features you actually lose some of those those built-in features that you had we were looking at on the Prius and there was definitely an aftermarket option you lost the touchscreen you know I mean just like it's it's just and that's how you control in in the Prius that's how you control so many things and the same Forester it's never the same and then if it's a new pretty new car you might be screwing around with warranty stuff too so it's like I wouldn't I'd be worried about resale value I mean this is the thing I mean absolutely look I've modified many cars in my time but the thing about modifying them is you definitely for the most part you hurt the resale value when you modify it you know I mean we were talking about the Miata before you know what you getting me out of that hasn't been you know touched you know you want them stock those are actually worth more in the used car market the ones that have it you're not buying someone else's project right you don't and then that's been improved now this now this is a question so this is an answer specifically for Paul but there are some vehicles out there that had just kind of a module you could plug in this is not one of them I know Mazda talking about Mazda again had the ability to just and some other manufacturers had this as well as well where you could just sort of plug something in and the car would get upgraded to the new feature and that's a factory thing so so like if you have you know Mazda of Toyota they do some of these things if you could get it done at the dealership and it's something official go for it don't get us wrong but uh Subaru doesn't doesn't offer that on this vehicle yeah well good luck good luck use you know hold down that button a little bit longer and you'll find a hidden feature in your car maybe as long as your phone's plugged in next question also involves a force during a Prius and it's from Asheville North Carolina hey what's up talking cars it's calling to get your opinion on downsizing our family fleets we have a 2014 forester a 2008 prius and a 1976 BMW 2002 so we love the Priuses functionality you know the gas mileage and the all-wheel drive on the Florist are up here in the mountains but they're both pretty boring to drive honestly and luckily I walked to work so I don't need a car every day my wife has about a 30-mile commute and we like exploring on the weekends and the mountains and we drive to visit family about four hours away pretty frequently so what should we buy what a garage you got you got your fuel saver prius you've got your practical forester and you've got your 1976 BMW 2002 that is uh that is a very cool garage so so props to you folks for having us but you want to downsize Ryan what do you think well do not get rid of that 2002 please that's a beautiful car so you know the for the Foresters like you said the Forester is a practical all-wheel drive for the mountains the Prius is you know the fuel saver if you're gonna downsize it's hard to do the two and something that's more fun to drive he complains that they're not fun to drive he doesn't say anything about a budget so I kind of went off a little there maybe but I would say like an x3 bmw x3 or a rowdy q5 you know you have the practicality but those are fun cars to drive and on a long trip they're comfortable it could make a really nice seats in them so I would say one of those I like where Ryan's going on that and I completely agree getting rid of the 2002 is out of the question that is just not an option you need to keep that car but yeah I mean next x3 is definitely an interesting choice you know I can think what I'm I'm I'm kind of keyed into is you know not the like boring cars I mean the Forester and the prius are great cars but not a lot of excitement there you know and if you're looking for something that's you know have a daily driver and something reliable I would go cx-5 Mazda cx-5 I think you can replace both of those because I think the exercise is gonna wind up with better fuel economy than your for your older Forester certainly not Prius but I mean now you're combining the two and it is fun to drive absolutely so absolutely yeah I'm gonna stick with that and just say that especially if you're driving in the mountains you know that I've driven a 2014 Forester on hills and mountains and and you're gonna want that that little bit of extra power that the new cx-5 not that not the first year of the cx-5 that was that we felt a little underpowered but if you're buying a newer one that that's gonna give you so yeah but but yeah hold on to the 2002 please there's there's there's your fun car that's awesome yeah cool so the last question not a video question but we wanted to cover it patrons from South Florida asks I Drive a small car and always wanted to get summer tires but until recently they seem to always be expensive and primarily for high performance but recently I have seen less expensive models online what are the advantages if any for a summer tire on an economy car like mine Ryan our tire our tire pro here what do you what do you say so this is an interesting question because you know summer tires in the US are ultra high performance tires so they're designed for ultimate grip on dry and wet roads you know down in Florida he's didn't have to worry about snow is indeed an all season tire per se or a winter tire right but he's putting it on what he's calling an economy car I don't know what that is exactly but does that do you need that performance right the cars designed a certain way to come to tires from the factory to you know match those abilities right the summer tires are all these ultra high performance tires are gonna have more grip for sure a lot more than the stock tires right but do you need that in everyday driving or are you maybe you're maybe he does want that more exhilarating experience or he might even be Auto crossing it which is like you know the amateur racing around cones time trial stuff I used to do a lot of it myself I know Jake did stuff like that that then it that makes sense but there's some trade-off with summer tires other than that actually they are a little bit worse on fuel their rolling resistance a little higher which makes them less fuel efficient it's basically how easily they roll down the road and typically a summer tires a little wider and they just they're not they don't roll as easily at least we found in our tests but we're talking maybe 1 to 2 miles per gallon difference and they don't last as long they just wear out faster because it's not the compound softer and naturally they just wear out faster other than that I mean and also you know all season tires you can get a performance all-season tire that kind of has some like took a look at our ratings you can find some all season tires performance all-season tires that have a little more of that summery grip maybe less of the winter stuff you know you can kind of pick through the ratings and find something that suits you better but I mean that you could definitely could do it it's just through some trade-off you have to kind of look into I never thought I would say this Ryan but you're getting old I mean look I mean you know performance tires you know and wheels often people do too is kind of like the low cost performance increase or for a lot of people and in cars and we've done some tastic tests where we could get you know remember a while ago we actually had what we had a marine we put some performance tires on it and stopped better than you know a lot of sports cars so I mean wait wait let's go back to the previous question Taylor put some performance tires on the on the Prius in the fours I mean you know it can also increase you know your steering feel and a lot of other things I mean look I mean and you're right I don't know how you know many miles an hour you're going around corners and whatnot but it is definitely a low-cost option and you know I mean both of us have had had done some kind of you know odd crossing and track events and it's really interesting that you can actually have an economy small car I mean you see with you know civics all the time with performance tires you could actually have them handle as well as some very high-priced sports cars you know often they you know people lower them and modify them otherwise but it is definitely an improvement in terms of performance I actually back in another life I actually worked in Europe Europe for a while as a development engineer and was interesting there at the time nobody had all seasons like they just did not do all seasons it was summer tires or winter tires so all seasons you know they are a bit of a compromise so I mean look into it and and maybe consider yeah I'm glad you brought up the Europe reference because in Europe yeah they have they have summer tires and winter tires they don't have the in-between you know all seasons like we do here in the US maybe we're just lazy or we don't like swapping back and forth but for people here though sometimes they see the word summer tire and they think well I live in Florida and it's only summer here that's the best tire for me that's not necessarily the case because the summer tire is actually you know like I said before a high-performance tire and you know down the floridi there's all season tires that would be probably even better in some cases if you're not worried about that ultimate grip good question yeah good good answers - yeah and for any tires that you're looking at you know I noticed that he said you know different less expensive models online if it's if it's a brand that he's concerned about he can head to CR org and check out our our tire ratings and we'll probably have them rated on there absolutely anything else head over to CRE org you'll learn about the car we talked about how to keep your car clean how we're keeping our cars clean how to stay safe send your questions to us our video questions - talking cars at icloud.com and we'll talk cars again soonwe discuss our test results from the 2020 Nissan Sentra talk about how we're continuing to test while staying safe at our track and answer your questions including is it possible to install apple carplay on an older vehicle next on talking cars hey welcome back I'm Keith berry I'm writing to wachowski and I'm Jake Fisher and we are once again coming to you from remotely but that doesn't mean that things aren't slowly happening at our test track in Connecticut you know as as as the country is trying to figure out what how people can get get to work and what can be done safely and what can be done with some distance we are figuring that out for ourselves right Jake you've you've actually you've been at the track recently right yeah so I mean what we're trying to do is we're trying to keep on keeping on and we are here to test cars and I mean obviously there's a lot of restriction in place and and and even beyond the restrictions that we worked the the number one priority for all of us is to keep everyone safe but there is quite a lot that we still can do so because we are car testers and a lot of these evaluations we actually do on normal roads whether or not it's ride or handling even things like controls a lot of the work that we do we don't actually have to be at the facility so what week very quickly did was worked out a really good robust procedure to swap the vehicles so and actually I've been in contact with some people from car manufacturers they're going through the same kind of thing when you're doing development of cars you have to be able to swap these vehicles but not transmit anything so we're cleaning the vehicles thoroughly between that we're actually letting the cars sit and then we get someone else in the car and we could get a lot of work done I don't know Ryan you've you've you've gone through this yourself right yeah yeah I actually just the end the last week I swapped a car so I you know I go to the track with the vehicle I'm in and I when I get there I have to clean it we have all the cleaning supplies there's a little station set up inside the main shop and you know clean all the surfaces that you would touch you know the door handles the window switches the start buttons those you know those stalks everything like the steering you know literally everything that you might touch and you know get in the next car but that that car that I'm getting into has been cleaned and has been sitting there for 24 hours with nobody in it and they're outside so hopefully the you know it's been sunny recently at least and the Sun kind of helped they say that killed some of the virus and off I go in the next car and then I get home and I do my one day trips I do the stuff that I can do the seat comfort stuff access all the testing I would do at work and the stuff I would do on the roads anyway so it's it's really it's it's different but it's it's no different in terms of the testing itself unfortunately we're living at a different time and we're you know in this current test group that we have are kind of going to the next phase of it so right now you know we're in Connecticut and they're starting to open and some people are actually getting in offices you know we have so many procedures that we have that we maintain a normal car tests we're writing new procedures on how to do these you know again have the same you know quality and make sure that we get the same tests but you know we may not be swapping the cars as quickly we may have you know I know you know we're gonna get into doing stuff like emergency handling so we'll have you know Ryan you'll get into the car and do everything and then swap it to the next person right right it'll be the next driver will drive the next day but it's it's it's it's different but it's it's I don't you know the quality works isn't different it's just gonna be the same it's just it's gonna take a little longer and we've used our own reporting that we've done in order to help develop these protocols you know so we have our health team we have people who have been talking with you know scientists who are who are working on this and the manufacturers themselves have come out publicly with protocols about how to keep cars clean and what should be done when a car comes in for service you know they've been telling their dealers what to do too so those employees don't who are you know vital employees and so they don't get sick so there's some research that's starting to build around swapping cars and and being able to stay safe yeah it's really interesting how it kind of you know we were yeah every morning we all get together and we have our scrum when we talk and talk these things true and it's so funny how we're asking the same questions that consumers are asking us so it's you know we have to buy cars how do we do that safe so we write the article how to buy a car and stay safe we need to swap these cards and clean them and not damage them so we write the article so it's it's kind of a twofer you know why yeah if you want to find out more about what we're disco 2cr org and look at our how-to articles cuz that's not you know we're practicing what we preach it's it's you know we're we're just saying what we do when we call and we're not buying cars from places that require you to come in someone put in ask for a quote from a local dealer and they said why don't you come on down and we'll talk and that's absolutely absurd you can't do that anymore so you know sorry they lost the deal and we bought a car from from another dealership but that's the advice that were you know that we're giving is what we're learning ourselves and Jake it's it's been a while since I've personally been been down at the track but our we're using this time to to get some much-needed maintenance and projects done right this sort of downtime where we're not actually driving on the on the track right yeah I mean it was kind of an advantage of getting us all out of there and we actually did a small paving project I mean we go and we you know I like to say that our test track is probably some of the best roads in the country because we have to make them so they're consistent all year long and they don't degrade so we're repaving even though they look really good we just want to make sure the coefficient of friction and all that stuff is the same so yeah so we actually repaved a section of our track I saw it yesterday it looks gorgeous I'm getting you know looking forward actually driving on it but right now it's curing and it just it the timing just works out great you don't across the country I think you'll see some of that too you know I mean people are paving roads because the traffic is down so it just makes sense yeah accelerated projects on on everything yeah so before some of those projects began at our track we finished testing the 2020 Nissan Sentra it's an interesting vehicle we we got the the SV trim line of this this sort of new car from nice onit's reinvented after a couple of years of the center just kind of existing in the lineup between the Altima and the Versa and it just sort of being there mostly you know I saw a lot of them at rental fleets the the one that we have now it's sv trim line hundred and forty nine horsepower a two liter four-cylinder engine with it with a CVT in front-wheel drive that's it's the only the only choice ours didn't come with any major options it was about twenty one thousand four hundred dollars which is you know pretty affordable for a small car these days and it starts around nineteen but you know some versions of this car can can be quite nice we're going to talk about that but um you know what what do we what do we think of the center Orion you you spent some time with it right yes yeah so we completed testing it and I'll be honest when I saw we were getting a Sentra I we have a board that shows the cars are like incoming from the dealers and I saw the Sentra on there and like I wasn't that excited I mean the Sentra has been like this car that was not that special for a long time unfortunately this car came in and I will say it I think it's surprised I think even shocks some most people at the track it's it's a grown up Sentra you know the Maxima used to be the big fancy one and then the ultimo kind of grew up into that place a little bit the Sentra has kind of grown now into like the Altima spot this is a really nice car you know it rides nice the the powertrain was fantastic you know it's it's got a CVT in it but it kind of mimics shifts but smooth the steering's really group is great you know even the interior was very nice in our SV trim and it's got a lot of safety features it's it's a really nice car I just wasn't expecting it I guess it's like the the old the old ser from yeah and back in the day the center was actually you know something that was the last accenture that I remember being like this is cool you know unfortunately but it's it this is awesome so nice I have been really interesting lately just because I mean you never really know what you're gonna get it's like you know Nissan's a box of chocolates you know I mean every you don't never know what you're gonna get I mean the the thing that is like you know you mentioned like the ser way back I remember in the nineties you know there was that ser there was like all sporty and then they almost become like the rental car company you know not not not too long ago and I agree with Ryan I mean I didn't have high expectations but I was kind of blown away I mean this was actually a fun kind of grown up small sedan you know really interesting that Nissan is actually putting some thought and energy into this market where everyone else is kind of going away from you know just concentrating on small SUVs but they're actually doing something here so I mean if you've kind of written off Nissan's lately I mean this is a great opportunity to go and you know give them another try and also you know I mean think about it in terms of equipment you know some of the high trim models of this car I mean they just have like a gorgeous interior I mean if you get like the the platinum and get all these different like trim lines I mean it's it looks like you're in a luxury car I mean for them to put the guest quilted leather it's an amazing an absolutely amazing that they're actually doing that so there's really no reason not to but it's it's definitely you know give another look even the model that we that we rented had that sort of two-tone paint with the orange and it looked really really really cool the one that we rented from the Sun the thing is interesting to me is that Nissan has said that they're gonna double down on the sedan segment and they publicly said this where everyone else is kind of going away Nissan has said you know what sedans are gonna be the new counterculture because then everyone has a crossover who's the cool one it's it's the guy in the sedan so I'm I'm kind of I'm very much on board with this but but you know of course the new rogue is gonna be coming out relatively soon and the son said that's on track and that's that you know it's gonna sell sell like crazy but it is really cool that they're putting this much effort into not just a a sedan but an affordable one too that something can be nice but not necessarily expensive you were saying yeah I would just you know I just it's always something to remember you know I mean while everything is SUV SUV SUV you know if you do choose a sedan you will get more for your money you know me you don't get the you know the old wood drive option necessarily you don't get the fender flairs but you wind up having a lot more value you get a more grown-up car you get better fuel economy you get something that's quicker and handles better you know it is definitely a smart choice for a lot of people I mean who would have thought this Sentra at grown-up car I mean the Sentra was not grown-up but it's it's an adult now yeah man so if you want to learn more about how it did in in our tests just head over to see our org and you'll see all the numbers and our full take on it so I think it's time for some questions you've seen enough of us in our houses and we have a bunch of video questions today and it's you and your houses because you've sent your video questions to talking cars at icloud.com so thank you very much our first question is from Tom in Seattle hi talking cars love the show keep it up I had one question in regards to the Jeep Grand Cherokee I noticed now it is recommended by CR and from my perspective this is great news that is a beautiful vehicle and I've always shied away from it given some of the reliability could you share with us what changed is to why it's now recommended thank you bye so yeah the the Grand Cherokee it's it's an awesome SUV but it's always had this sort of miasma of reliability following following it around Jake what what happened what happened did FCA finally like finally figure it out after after nine years yes I mean I mean so the Grand Cherokee really had its last major redesign 2011 and like we always talked about in terms of reliability you know then when they redesign it there's more problems and sometimes it takes a couple of years to work out the books in terms of the Grand Cherokee it took several years to work out the Buffs and in fact the 2016 and up models definitely are more reliable still if you look those older models they still have have have reliability problems kind of across the board a lot of different issues so you know it's funny you know when you know we talk about like you know the Grand Cherokee or quite other Chrysler's like the Chrysler 300 the Dodge Charger a lot people like oh you guys don't like those cars I'm like no we like those cars a lot really do we really like those cars the reliability is what really brings down the score of these cars and all of those vehicles you know again with enough practice working out the bugs where we're happily recommending these models right now because they have improved the reliability so incurred including yeah the grin which incidentally as is kind of underpinning is very much like a Mercedes Benz you know because it it goes that far back back when it was Chrysler mercedes-benz yeah yeah it's I mean that is that that is a very very well-appointed very solid feeling feeling feel you know it's it's I I wouldn't hesitate sub Tom you should if you want one go out and buy one absolutely awesome our next question is from Nonie in Anaheim Hills hi talking cars I'm interested in getting a used manual stick shift car around $5,000 it's been 20 30 years since I used to own one an old 92 Tercel and I thought it'd be fun to have one again this is not a daily driver it'd just be an extra car and if you could recommend one one that's easy to get into again for around a five thousand dollar budget appreciate it thank you very much keep up the good work that's interesting used obviously stick shift $5,000 and an extra car Ryan what do you think so I guess nowadays you can't get too too much with $5,000 but I don't know how sporty he wanted to go but I I did a little just like cars.com CarGurus kind of a search just to see what's out there across the country and something came up and it reminded me of the good old days an Acura RSX ooh 5-speed manual fun little car we used to actually use one for tire testing years ago and I absolutely loved that car it's a simple car so it's there's not a lot going on in it so it's pretty reliable it was a smaller car it's fun and it's still manual well you know those don't exist anymore it seems so I went on I went on to the consumer report to use car marketplace shameless plug but so I mean you it was funny because I mean as soon as as soon as I heard you know five-speed and fun you know you got to think about in a Ryan you're right I mean the stick shift on that RSX was phenomenal so if you're interested in sick I mean it's always fun shifting but I mean some are better than others I always go Mazda so my first thought was Mazda 3 but you're not talking about your primary daily driver so I mean this just calls into you know Miata is always the answer Miata is where it's at and I would actually start looking at and B's so NB is the second generation in Miata which was like 1999 to 2005 and the reason I say that is because the first generation the older ones in the 90s they're actually going up in value so they're almost like a classic card you could actually get the NB that that early 2000s right around that five grand the shifter is just phenomenal and if you're caught above probably the best in the business and you know you know if it's not the daily driver then yeah two seats you know top down you're in Southern California enjoy yeah I was I was I was gonna stick with Mazda as well I was thinking the Mazda 3 the only reason why is that you want to be able to enjoy it with the whole family with friends you don't have to pick I assume that maybe maybe he has more friends than I do so yes yes here's three or four and they hit they they all want to go with them on the trip somewhere maybe a family and that's why the Mazda 3 is a good choice because it kind of blends a little bit of practicality but it still has that same you know buttery smooth shift they're like the like the Miata does and and I mean it still is a it's a great car but I don't know Jake I think you're right I think you're right the top down Southern California I would go Mazda 3 but yeah well a little job I think yeah totally totally especially cooped up in the house it's nice to think about going out with a convertible next question from another warm climate Paul and Atlanta has as a question about his Subaru hello I'm the owner of the 2018 Subaru Forester and I've been happy with the car with one major exception and that is the proprietary navigation system so I'm thinking about going to a third party is it possible to change the entertainment screen to accommodate an apple carplay now this is something a lot of our most reliable used cars have these awful infotainment systems or just ones that don't have the latest features and that's not a reason to go out and buy a brand new car jqu did something like this recently right you have some personal experience around fixing and upgrading a vehicle something like that so I say it's kind of interesting cuz when we talk about carplay a lot here and we definitely think it's terrific we see in Android auto is in Android auto as well you know but I'm gonna go say something maybe a little controversial do not do it you don't need it I mean it's it's nice but don't and I'll tell you why so actually we just went through this and you know my wife bought a 92019 Prius you know soon as I got all-wheel-drive we went out and got that the 19 Prius does not have car play so we started kind of looking into it and and look with most cars you can do this it's just not pretty you know I mean you're ripping apart the car the to be honest with you a lot of the aftermarket is not gonna be as robust in terms of like the OEM stuff so the stuff that's gone through all the testing and the car so so we looked at it there were options but here's here's the trick just get a cell phone mount we did some cell phone mount tests you know when you evaluated some my wife has a cell phone map now she's got a 6.5 inch screen on her iPhone which incidentally is actually the same size as the base screen on the Forester but you actually have an advantage when you do the cell phone mount you're using the navigation I'll tell you why one its vertical which actually works much better for navigation easily further ahead to you still retain the radio so now you've got two screens you've gotten your navigation and you've got your radio and you could work with both of those three you've got wireless charging so you're not plugging in and every time and four you do have your voice controls so I'm not saying you know use the phone and touch it and do all these things what your car has in in most cars for the last several years have it is it's like something like excuse ice free where you don't necessarily need car plate which means basically that little voice button on your steering wheel hold that down now you're talking to your phone now you could program don't just press it once hold it right like this hidden feature that almost you know so many cars have and probably a lot of people don't use so now you could set your navigation and do that so um that is my advice don't rip apart your car go that way that's what we did I agree yeah I mean if you are going to go the route of ripping it apart I mean some really really specialty shops can find ways to can find ways to do it but I mean it will be things like remapping the steering wheel controls because those steering wheel controls are meant to work with with your and it just it gets to a level that is it's not like back in the day where you could take out the radio and put in you know is it a din or a double din and that's it it's it is it is so integrated in the cart and sometimes you lose some features you actually lose some of those those built-in features that you had we were looking at on the Prius and there was definitely an aftermarket option you lost the touchscreen you know I mean just like it's it's just and that's how you control in in the Prius that's how you control so many things and the same Forester it's never the same and then if it's a new pretty new car you might be screwing around with warranty stuff too so it's like I wouldn't I'd be worried about resale value I mean this is the thing I mean absolutely look I've modified many cars in my time but the thing about modifying them is you definitely for the most part you hurt the resale value when you modify it you know I mean we were talking about the Miata before you know what you getting me out of that hasn't been you know touched you know you want them stock those are actually worth more in the used car market the ones that have it you're not buying someone else's project right you don't and then that's been improved now this now this is a question so this is an answer specifically for Paul but there are some vehicles out there that had just kind of a module you could plug in this is not one of them I know Mazda talking about Mazda again had the ability to just and some other manufacturers had this as well as well where you could just sort of plug something in and the car would get upgraded to the new feature and that's a factory thing so so like if you have you know Mazda of Toyota they do some of these things if you could get it done at the dealership and it's something official go for it don't get us wrong but uh Subaru doesn't doesn't offer that on this vehicle yeah well good luck good luck use you know hold down that button a little bit longer and you'll find a hidden feature in your car maybe as long as your phone's plugged in next question also involves a force during a Prius and it's from Asheville North Carolina hey what's up talking cars it's calling to get your opinion on downsizing our family fleets we have a 2014 forester a 2008 prius and a 1976 BMW 2002 so we love the Priuses functionality you know the gas mileage and the all-wheel drive on the Florist are up here in the mountains but they're both pretty boring to drive honestly and luckily I walked to work so I don't need a car every day my wife has about a 30-mile commute and we like exploring on the weekends and the mountains and we drive to visit family about four hours away pretty frequently so what should we buy what a garage you got you got your fuel saver prius you've got your practical forester and you've got your 1976 BMW 2002 that is uh that is a very cool garage so so props to you folks for having us but you want to downsize Ryan what do you think well do not get rid of that 2002 please that's a beautiful car so you know the for the Foresters like you said the Forester is a practical all-wheel drive for the mountains the Prius is you know the fuel saver if you're gonna downsize it's hard to do the two and something that's more fun to drive he complains that they're not fun to drive he doesn't say anything about a budget so I kind of went off a little there maybe but I would say like an x3 bmw x3 or a rowdy q5 you know you have the practicality but those are fun cars to drive and on a long trip they're comfortable it could make a really nice seats in them so I would say one of those I like where Ryan's going on that and I completely agree getting rid of the 2002 is out of the question that is just not an option you need to keep that car but yeah I mean next x3 is definitely an interesting choice you know I can think what I'm I'm I'm kind of keyed into is you know not the like boring cars I mean the Forester and the prius are great cars but not a lot of excitement there you know and if you're looking for something that's you know have a daily driver and something reliable I would go cx-5 Mazda cx-5 I think you can replace both of those because I think the exercise is gonna wind up with better fuel economy than your for your older Forester certainly not Prius but I mean now you're combining the two and it is fun to drive absolutely so absolutely yeah I'm gonna stick with that and just say that especially if you're driving in the mountains you know that I've driven a 2014 Forester on hills and mountains and and you're gonna want that that little bit of extra power that the new cx-5 not that not the first year of the cx-5 that was that we felt a little underpowered but if you're buying a newer one that that's gonna give you so yeah but but yeah hold on to the 2002 please there's there's there's your fun car that's awesome yeah cool so the last question not a video question but we wanted to cover it patrons from South Florida asks I Drive a small car and always wanted to get summer tires but until recently they seem to always be expensive and primarily for high performance but recently I have seen less expensive models online what are the advantages if any for a summer tire on an economy car like mine Ryan our tire our tire pro here what do you what do you say so this is an interesting question because you know summer tires in the US are ultra high performance tires so they're designed for ultimate grip on dry and wet roads you know down in Florida he's didn't have to worry about snow is indeed an all season tire per se or a winter tire right but he's putting it on what he's calling an economy car I don't know what that is exactly but does that do you need that performance right the cars designed a certain way to come to tires from the factory to you know match those abilities right the summer tires are all these ultra high performance tires are gonna have more grip for sure a lot more than the stock tires right but do you need that in everyday driving or are you maybe you're maybe he does want that more exhilarating experience or he might even be Auto crossing it which is like you know the amateur racing around cones time trial stuff I used to do a lot of it myself I know Jake did stuff like that that then it that makes sense but there's some trade-off with summer tires other than that actually they are a little bit worse on fuel their rolling resistance a little higher which makes them less fuel efficient it's basically how easily they roll down the road and typically a summer tires a little wider and they just they're not they don't roll as easily at least we found in our tests but we're talking maybe 1 to 2 miles per gallon difference and they don't last as long they just wear out faster because it's not the compound softer and naturally they just wear out faster other than that I mean and also you know all season tires you can get a performance all-season tire that kind of has some like took a look at our ratings you can find some all season tires performance all-season tires that have a little more of that summery grip maybe less of the winter stuff you know you can kind of pick through the ratings and find something that suits you better but I mean that you could definitely could do it it's just through some trade-off you have to kind of look into I never thought I would say this Ryan but you're getting old I mean look I mean you know performance tires you know and wheels often people do too is kind of like the low cost performance increase or for a lot of people and in cars and we've done some tastic tests where we could get you know remember a while ago we actually had what we had a marine we put some performance tires on it and stopped better than you know a lot of sports cars so I mean wait wait let's go back to the previous question Taylor put some performance tires on the on the Prius in the fours I mean you know it can also increase you know your steering feel and a lot of other things I mean look I mean and you're right I don't know how you know many miles an hour you're going around corners and whatnot but it is definitely a low-cost option and you know I mean both of us have had had done some kind of you know odd crossing and track events and it's really interesting that you can actually have an economy small car I mean you see with you know civics all the time with performance tires you could actually have them handle as well as some very high-priced sports cars you know often they you know people lower them and modify them otherwise but it is definitely an improvement in terms of performance I actually back in another life I actually worked in Europe Europe for a while as a development engineer and was interesting there at the time nobody had all seasons like they just did not do all seasons it was summer tires or winter tires so all seasons you know they are a bit of a compromise so I mean look into it and and maybe consider yeah I'm glad you brought up the Europe reference because in Europe yeah they have they have summer tires and winter tires they don't have the in-between you know all seasons like we do here in the US maybe we're just lazy or we don't like swapping back and forth but for people here though sometimes they see the word summer tire and they think well I live in Florida and it's only summer here that's the best tire for me that's not necessarily the case because the summer tire is actually you know like I said before a high-performance tire and you know down the floridi there's all season tires that would be probably even better in some cases if you're not worried about that ultimate grip good question yeah good good answers - yeah and for any tires that you're looking at you know I noticed that he said you know different less expensive models online if it's if it's a brand that he's concerned about he can head to CR org and check out our our tire ratings and we'll probably have them rated on there absolutely anything else head over to CRE org you'll learn about the car we talked about how to keep your car clean how we're keeping our cars clean how to stay safe send your questions to us our video questions - talking cars at icloud.com and we'll talk cars again soon\n"