The Rocky Mountain Driving Experience is an amazing event where automakers bring their top-of-the-line vehicles for auto journalists to test drive over 40 of the newest models. Organized by the Rocky Mountain Automotive Press, the event is a great way to get the press and automakers together in one spot for a fantastic driving experience in a rugged & early autumn setting – including the offroad experience! Hosted at Devils Thumb Ranch once again, it was a fantastic adventure.
Here are some of the snapchat highlights of the 2 day experience – here are the few cars I got to get up close and personal with!
Mia Voss – Well that was an epic two days at the Rocky… | Facebook
Well that was an epic two days at the Rocky Mountain Driving Experience at Devil’s Thumb Ranch! Super fun to test drive 2016 and 2017 models from BMW…
Acura NSX – click here – Sad sad sad to say I didn’t get to drive this.. ie: the other journalists totally bogarted it! I’m just jealous, that’s all. 😉
BMW M2 – Oh this car. I can’t even. SO sexy and responsive. I want to date it. Maybe marry it (we’ll see, I have commitment issues). However, this car – oh goodness. They’ve really put a lot into how fabulous this car looks, performs, smells, drives.. you name it.
BMW X5 E – Hybrid with amazing performance and, of course, gas mileage!
Chevy Camaro SS – Oh boy. Seriously. I kinda felt like I morphed into a 16 year old boy when I got behind the wheel of this one. Definitely compact inside and built just for driving. Not running errands.
Fiat 124 Spider Lusso
Jeep Wrangler Rubicon LE – OMG, such a fun car to drive. A true off road vehicle. While the targeted demographic could not be any further than what I am (targeted towards male millenials and I’m a female over 50!) I still REALLY enjoyed this ride. I like to categorize vehicles by how well they perform in the event of a zombie apocalypse and this bad boy would do just fine! A few notable mentions: rollover prevention features: Electronic Stability Control (ESC)3 senses when you begin to over- or under-steer and applies individual brakes and controls your throttle as needed to help put you back on track. Electronic Roll Mitigation (ERM) determines when a rollover may occur and applies braking force to help reduce the likelihood of such an accident.
2017 Fiat 124 Spider Lusso – Super fun and sexy convertible. Fiat has pulled out all the stops to upgrade this new version and I loved how it performed, drove & looked. My only drawback for this particular model is that it was automatic which (to me) robs the driver of the true control experience.
Ford F150 – I had the privilege of driving this one back from Tabernash to Denver which meant a lot of ascent and descent up over Berthoud Pass back down to Denver at 5280 elevation. It performed great! The roads were narrow and winding at times but I didn’t feel like the truck was too big for the roads. LOVED the upgrade wood panel interior – would be great for roadtrips as well as around town, hauling etc.
Lexus GS-F Sedan – Loved the sleek design and the power which did well even for an automatic that went from 5280k elevation to over 7k elevation. Also loved the red interior & stitching. Great car for every day going to work & also nights out.
Mini Convertible – I loved everything about this car. Again, this is not a car geared towards my demographic but hey, let’s buck convention and drive the things we love. This sweet little number drove like a champ, had great power and I love love LOVED the interior. I’m such a fan of Mini’s. And the seat extension thingy was nifty! (see the video, trust me, you’ll see what I’m talking about.
Mitsubishi Outlander Sport – I drove the same model in a Summer Promo Road Trip earlier this year and loved it! I took this one out onto the offroad course as well. I wasn’t allowed to take it over the logs but I did get some off road condition driving. It does well but I wouldn’t count on it for the type of driving you would want to do if you were truly an outdoorsy/off roady kind of person.
Nissan Armada – Whoa, this model was LOADED like a freight train with bells and whistles. V8 power
Ram 1500 Rebel – Drove this bad boy twice and it does not feel like the big girl truck that it is. VERY fun to go off roading but also versatile for day to day, hauling things, tail gating, etc. Lots o power – Driving Experience
Links: here / and here
Toyota 4Runner TRD Pro – I’ve owned the 1999 version of the 4Runner for almost 5 years so it was fun to jump into the 2017 version. Super solid & well put together, it still has a great feel of a day to day car with a lot of great power.
2016 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat – Definitely a badass vehicle. Super loaded and fabulous. Muscle car for sure but again, I know people pay extra for automatic transmission but I would prefer standard transmission to get the most of the car. Loved the 7inch display and the interior in general. And yes, it only gets 16mpg and there is a Gas Guzzler tax for these vehicles but I think if you’re paying 70K for this car you can afford poor gas mileage.
Ford Mustang – I loved the look and feel of this car. Truly my favorite out of the muscle cars featured at RMDE. Yes, I termed it a muscle car. You can help but feel testosterone levels rise in this vehicle. Personally, I would love to have one of these as my Sunday Go To Meeting car, just to shake things up wherever I go. Amazing performance, accelaration, interior finishing etc. And I loved the orange color. 😉
Jaguar XE – Entry level Jaguar with amazing gas mileage. Personally I’d spring for the higher level Jaguar because the interior finishing felt entry level but it handled well, the exterior lines were sleek and.. let’s face it, it’s a Jaguar which means the engineering is top notch.
Honda Ridgeline – This was a fun truck to cruise around in! Great detail on the inside, swing gate door on the back tailgate, a mini footstool for easy access to the truck bed.. it has a lot of fun new features. Very easy to drive and it has some giddyup engine power!
Infiniti QX30 – a quick drive in this sweet thing