America on the Road

America on the Road


500 Miles in the all-new 2021 Ford Bronco Sport; Exclusive Interview: North American Car of the Year President

January 15, 2021

In this edition of the award-winning America on the Road we take the brand-new 2021 Ford Bronco Sport on a real-world 500-mile road trip. Host Jack Nerad and his youngest daughter, Greta, set off on a trek to take her back to college. The open question was could the Bronco Sport swallow all the gear a college student needs these days? The results were surprising.

On the other side of the road test equation, this week co-host Chris Teague put the 2021 Lincoln Corsair crossover utility through its paces. Does the Corsair offer advantages its opposite number, the Ford Escape, doesn't offer? And can the Corsair hold its head up versus the European luxury SUVs? We'll have the answers for you.

In the interview segment of America on the Road, Jack Nerad will have a lengthy discussion with North American Car of the Year jury president Gary Witzenbug about the just-released winners. They discuss how the winners of the North American Car, Truck, and Utility Vehicle of the Year awards matched up against the other finalists, that are pretty good vehicles in their own right.

2021 Hyundai Elantra wins North American Car of the Year award, and we'll talk to the president of the jury that chose it.

 

Filled with new tech, the 2021 Ford F-150 has just been named North American Truck of the Year.

Big news this week is the cancellation of the annual North American International Auto Show for this year. Originally the 2021 NAIAS was scheduled to take place in September after a series of date changes that were complicated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Now the show won't happen at all and in its place the organizers will stage a "celebration of the automobile:" called Motor Bella. And in other news, rumors abound regarding a hot performance version of the Hyundai Kona small crossover SUV.
Look back at what was named North American Car of the Year for 2020
The following is a partial transcript of Episode 38 created with AI, so please forgive some occasional grammar, spelling, and usage errors.

Jack Nerad 0:03
This is America on the Road, winner of the International Automotive Media Conference Gold Medal Award for radio and now in its 24th year on the air. Thanks for being with us as we bring you the latest automotive information from around the world. And we'll have special coverage of the North American Car of the Year for you today. America on the Road is brought to you by Driving Today.com and the Coalition for Vehicle Choice. I'm Jack Nerad, with me is co host, Chris Teague. Chris is very excited because he's moving from one house in Maine to another house in Maine. And he writes for Ford Authority, Forbes, Driving Today, among others. Tell us all about that exciting new house there, Chris.

Chris Teague 0:42
I think it'll be most exciting not to live in a house stacked tall with boxes. But the new house will be great. I'll have a garage to do projects on cars and actually park a car for the first time. And we'll have a little bit of waterfront too so the view never hurts.

Jack Nerad 0:55
Wow, a little waterfront. I like that What kind of water?

Chris Teague 0:58
A river, not the ocean, unfortunately, but it's still better than nothing.

Jack Nerad 1:02
Yeah, I like a little little river view. That would be very nice. This week, our special guest is Gary Witzenburg. He is president of the North American Car of the Year organization. I have a little bit of an in and getting an interview with him because I'm Vice President of that organization. He will give us a close up look on what to expect from the 2021 North American Car, Truck, and Utility of the Year winners. They were just announced this week. He and I both participated in that program outside Detroit. In the car review segment, Chris will give us his opinion of the 2021 Lincoln Corsair sounds like a nice vehicle, I'm going to tell you about my recent 500 mile drive with my daughter, my youngest daughter in the 2021 Ford Bronco sport,