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Every year the Midwest Automotive Media Association (MAMA) hosts a ride/drive event at Road America race track in Elkhart Lake, WI. This year's event was held May 22 and 23. Attendees included automotive journalists and bloggers from a wide variety of outlets including print, broadcast, digital and social media, plus representatives from most of the auto manufacturers. Brembo brakes was also there since Brembo have become a leading supplier of OEM and aftermarket high performance braking systems.
The MAMA Spring Rally provides attendees an opportunity to see, photograph and experience various vehicles on a mixture of local roads, the race track and off-road (4WD vehicles only for the latter). Attendees also get to quiz the auto maker reps about product details, pricing, options and anything else they think consumers might want to know when deciding which vehicle to purchase.
The auto makers provided nearly 80 vehicles for the event, most of which were 2024 models plus a couple of preproduction 2025 models. Missing from the lineup was anything from Tesla (they have never participated in this event) and no Corvettes (I was hoping to test drive an all-wheel drive Corvette E-ray on the track or the new ZR1).
One of the obvious advantages of bringing together so many new vehicles in one event is that it gives the attendees the opportunity to drive competitive vehicles back-to-back to compare how they ride and perform, and how the driver interfaces and controls compare. With so many new vehicles now featuring touch-screen displays for many functions that used to be controlled by knobs, switches, stalks and shift levers, it really brings home the changes that are occurring in automotive technology. Some people love the simplicity of touch screens (Tesla fans, for example) while others find touch screens too distracting and downright annoying, especially when you have to hunt through unfamiliar menus to find the control function you are seeking.
One such example worth mentioning is my experience in a Polestar 2 LRSM. Unlike some vehicles where the touch screen looks like somebody slapped a tablet on the dash with little or no thought as to how it integrates with the overall fit and design of the interior, the Polestar 2 touch screen was well integrated into a high center location. It displayed simple icons and appeared to be well designed. But when I wanted to turn on the A/C, I had to hunt and hunt to find the buried climate control menu. Not a good design! And after driving the vehicle, it took me probably 5 minutes to figure out how to turn the vehicle off. The power off button was also buried in an obscure menu. I mentioned this fault to the Polestar representative and he agreed it could be better, but once you become familiar with the menus and where the various control functions are located it shouldn't be an issue.
In my opinion, if an auto maker if going to use a touch screen interface for major control functions, not just for entertainment, the major functions should be on the main menu, easily identifiable and simple to use. Things like climate control adjustments, powertrain on/off (if no separate button is used), transmission drive/reverse selection (if no separate level, rotary knob or buttons are used) and infotainment (maps, music, internet, etc.) should all be on the main display, clearly labeled (not just an icon) and organized in some order of importance.
In Europe, concerns over touch screen displays replacing more conventional controls has prompted the European New Car Assessment Program (Euro NCAP), a safety organization, to publish new guidelines that would require auto makers to use conventional manual control devices for certain basic driving functions.
The Euro NCAP guidelines are scheduled to go into effect January 2026 in Europe. Automakers seeking the highest five star Euro NCAP safety rating must use more traditional button, stalk, lever or dial controls for the turn signals, hazard flashers, honking a horn, turning on the windshield wipers, and activating a distress call to summon emergency services if needed. Auto makers are not required (yet) to follow these guidelines, but they cannot qualify for a top safety rating if they do notfollow the guidelines.
If the Euro NCAP guidelines prove to be popular with motorists, the same type of guidelines (or regulations) may be introduced on this side of the Atlantic Ocean. Personally, I would like to see a NHTSA requirement for a manual powertrain ON/OFF button, a manual lever (not a dial or push buttons) for Drive/Reverse/Park selection, steering wheel buttons for cruise control, steering column stalks for turn signals, wipers and high/low headlights, and steering wheel button for the horn.
If I were proposing the rules, I would also like to see some standardization with gear selectors. The rotary button style selectors often lack much tactile feedback so it's easy to think you have placed the transmission in Park when in fact you haven't. There have been a number of fatal accidents involving various vehicles that use dial gear selectors. Failing to put the transmission into Park may allow the vehicle to roll away if it is sitting on an incline. Consequently, a number of people have been run over by vehicles rolling backwards or forwards that were not in Park because of a poorly designed dial gear selector.
The list of track approved vehicles at this year's event was rather short compared to previous years. I had to wait nearly two hours to drive the Mustang Dark Horse. It was worth the wait! The Dark Horse is an excellent track car with performance that almost matches that of the Mustang Shelby 500GT. Another vehicle I wanted to drive but did not get the opportunity to drive was the Hyundai IONIQ 5N, Hyundai's version of the KIA EV6 GT with slightly more horsepower (600 hp!). The wait list was long and the day ended before I could get behind the wheel. Having driven the KIA GT on several other occasions, I'm sure it would have been fun.
The torque and instant acceleration provided by a high output electric drivetrain beats most internal combustion engines. ICE engines have to rev up to produce more power, and they need transmissions with multiple gear ratios to multiply torque depending on vehicle speed and load. By comparison, electric motors deliver high torque from only a few RPM to peak RPM, and most don't use a conventional transmission, just reduction gears and maybe a 2-speed gearbox on some.
Most electric motors are also upwards of 94 percent efficient while internal combustion engines waste nearly two-thirds of the heat energy produced by combustion, and there are no emissions to worry about with an electric motor. An electric motor also has only ONE moving part, the rotor compared to dozens and dozens of rotating and reciprocating components inside an ICE engine. That's why I'm sold on EVs as being the way to go as we transition away from fossil fuels.
As yet I do not own an EV, although it would make perfect sense for 95 percent of the daily driving my wife and I do. I'm waiting for the next generation EV solid state batteries that will provide more range, faster charging and less risk of a fire in case of an accident, and the expansion of public charging stations beyond major metro areas so you can get a charge virtually anywhere. But that's another topic I have already covered in my blog on AA1Car.com.
In addition to a great road course track, Road America also has an off-road area that includes various types of terrain, trees, rocks, ponds and lots of mud. The fact that it had been raining prior to the event made the mud even deeper.
One of the vehicles I rode in was a Ford Bronco fitting with oversized mud tires. It was the equal of any Jeep I have ever went off-roading in and was a lot of fun on the course. One of the highlights was coming down a hill and splashing through several feet of very muddy water. I had the foresight to roll up my window but my co-rider did not and was soaked head to toe with muddy water when we hit the pond. His response? "Well, I guess we are having fun now".
I don't have a lot of specifics to say about most of the vehicles I took out for a drive on the local roads around Elkhart Lake except that most were comfortable, refined and responsive with a couple of exceptions.
I am a long time Mustang guy. I have owned a number of Mustangs over the year and still own a nice 2008 GT (mostly stock but with a few tweaks). I've probably almost every year and model of Mustang that has ever been produced, so I was surprised when I took a drive in a 2024 Mustang GT with an automatic transmission. I was expecting the usual response when you floor a Mustang with a Coyote 5.0L V8 that makes 486 horsepower and 418 lb.-ft. of torque. To simulate passing on a 2-lane highway, I sped up to about 50 mph then floored it to see how it would accelerate. Talk about throttle lag, it was totally unacceptable. It seemed to take forever for the automatic transmission to downshift before the throttle opened up and put the power to the wheels. Was it a fluke or was it symptomatic of all automatic Mustangs? I never had one hesitate this bad before.
I also took a three-wheel Polaris Slingshot car (motorcycle?) for a spin (full face helmet required). It was like driving a 1922 Bugatti open roadster, very noisy, very windy yet kinda wacky and fun. A friend of my son bought one of these a few years ago, and eventually got rid of it for two reasons. Besides being a fair weather vehicle, the rear wheel on the three-wheel Slingshot tends to fishtail when roads are wet, increasing the risk of spinning out. Also, the special tire on the back is very expensive to replace because of its design and the labor required to install it.
Another aspect of the Spring Rally is for attendees to pick their Favorite Vehicles in a variety of different categories. Listed below are these categories and the vehicles that are eligible within that category (Note: the only vehicles being considered in each category were those at the event). Choosing a winner in each category is not easy because everyone's opinions differ and for various reasons. But often there is a general consensus as to certain vehicles standing out compared to the others in their category.
My picks in each category are in BOLD.
Best Family Vehicle: Hyundai Santa Fe
Best Luxury Vehicle: Genesis GV80
Best Off-Road Vehicle: Ford Ranger Raptor
Best Pickup Truck: RAM 1500 Rebel
Best Performance Vehicle: Hyundai IONIQ 5 N EV
Best Plug-In Vehicle: KIA EV9
Most Affordable Vehicle: Buick Envista
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