Sunday Drive: Fun at the 2022 Rocky Mountain Driving Experience
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- Steve Parrett, regional corporate communications manager from Nissan, leads off the discussion before lunch about the new Nissan Pathfinder Rock Creek edition at this year’s Rocky Mountain Driving Experience.
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- Deann poses with the 2023 Hyundai Palisade.
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- Deann poses with the 2022 Toyota Tundra Hybrid.
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- Deann poses with the 2023 Honda HR-V.
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- The 2023 Lexus NX.
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- A group of people gathers around the 2023 Nissan Pathfinder Rock Creek edition.
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- Deann poses with the 2023 Nissan Z.
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- The 2022 Kia EV6.
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- The 23 Genesis GV60.
With summer coming to a close, we had the opportunity to make our annual trek out to Denver and the Colorado mountains to attend an event put on by the Rocky Mountain Automotive Press organization (RMAP for short). They have dubbed this event the Rocky Mountain Driving Experience, or RMDE.
This year’s drive was held at The Fort Restaurant in Morrison, Colorado. It was the perfect setting for RMDE; it was minutes away from both canyon and freeway driving, giving the 30-plus journalists who attended the opportunity to put all the vehicles through their paces.
Not only does this event give us the opportunity to get into some really great vehicles in a short period of time, but we also get some seat time with marketing and PR reps form various manufacturers. This year, there was representation from Nissan, Lexus, Toyota, Genesis, Kia, Jeep, Mazda and Honda. This allows us to renew friendships and take a deeper dive into some of the great new vehicles on the market today.
First up for us was the new 2023 Hyundai Palisade, which has some added design features inside and out. Most notable was the 12-inch infotainment screen and the available all-digital dashboard that is user-configurable and adds a huge element of luxury to the already popular SUV.
Hyundai has also included what it is calling a Driver’s Ergo Motion Seat. It sounds pretty awesome, and it is. This feature works to make the ride more comfortable and easier on the driver. After the initial setup, the seat will — with the press of a button — run through a series of stretches in the pelvic and lumbar areas using air inside the seat to keep the driver refreshed. It is almost like massaging seats. We like the way it worked and are looking forward to some extended time in the Palisade.
We were then onto the all-new Toyota Tundra Hybrid truck. We spent a week with the new Tundra without the hybrid setting, and we were very impressed by how it handled and how it pulled, even on canyon grades.
The hybrid was even more impressive as it has an added electric boost that helps the now V-6 twin turbocharged engine really get up and go. Plus, with all the Toyota technology that has been developed over the years (they were the first to get into this world with the Prius), the hybrid version of the Tundra is expected to get 19 mpg average. That is great for a full-sized truck! We expect that, in reality, that number will be even higher as we have always done better than expected in any Toyota hybrid.
Honda has a new HR-V out this year that has been completely redesigned and now sports an all-digital cockpit for the driver and either a 7-inch or a 9-inch infotainment screen with wireless Apple CarPlay or Android Auto.
The affordable HR-V has been designed to look more rugged on the exterior but have more upscale vibes on the interior. It is set to get 27 mpg combined numbers, with a hybrid version coming soon that has even better numbers and even more power.
Before stopping for lunch at The Fort, we took a quick opportunity to get out in the Lexus NX Hybrid, having just had the non-hybrid version for a week in Utah. Again, we loved the new layout Lexus has for the interior, and the fact that there is now only a touchscreen to operate (and a huge one at that) was still our favorite feature.
The hybrid version, with a smaller four-cylinder engine that puts out 189 horsepower, is coupled with an electric motor that gets that number up to 239 ponies. Lexus claims it will get 37 mpg combined, which is fantastic. After a bunch of journalists took it up and down a nearby canyon for half a day, it was sitting right at 37.8 mpg — again, a testament to Toyota technology.
Before lunch, we were treated to a walk around of the new Nissan Pathfinder Rock Creek edition, and we got to see all the great additions that will make this SUV even more enduring for those who want to get out and wander about.
Rock Creek will feature an off-road-tuned suspension and utilize the Nissan all-around view monitor for navigating through the rocks and obstacles when using the Pathfinder in Mud or Snow mode.
After lunch, we just couldn’t help ourselves; we had to take the all-new Nissan Z out for a quick ride. This is going to be a great addition to the line, and they are currently starting to land in dealerships across the country.
Toward the end of our day at RMDE, we thought it proper to spend some time with the two all-electric vehicles that were at the event.
The new Kia EV6 was a pleasant surprise for us; it handled great and looked amazing. Along with the good looks, Kia just introduced a 576-horsepower version of this small “ute” on Aug 19. Now, there is some awesome power to go with a very versatile vehicle.
The EV6 can even be used to power regular electric devices (up to 1,900 watts), which would be very helpful in keeping some of the lights and appliances working in the event of a power outage.
Near the end of the day, we took out the all-new Genesis GV60, which is the new all-electric model that has just come out from that manufacturer. Of course, it had all the great Genesis luxury included — along with one really cool feature.
When starting an electric vehicle, there is no engine noise, and there are times when one may not know the car is actually on. We are just as guilty of this as anyone. The first time we got a hybrid to test, Craig called the driver to ask how to get the car to start after he’d pushed the button many times. The driver replied that it was a hybrid, so just push the button and put it in gear; it would be very quiet.
To solve this problem, Genesis has included a small crystal globe located on the center console. When the GV60 is turned on, the globe turns itself over and becomes the shifting device for the SUV. It was cool and left no doubt that the car was running.
RMDE 2022 is in the books. It was a great success and we loved being a part of it — and, more importantly, getting into some great new vehicles!
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