To me C&D , R&T aren't run by car guys - their run by marketing guys.
Hence there is no point in buying them. They have tried to make the mags appeal to everyone and in so they have become fluffy in their articles and obviously pander to who is paying their bills.
I use forums to gain insight and my own powers of deduction
stan wrote: Wow, pulled up an old thread there! What has changed in the last 18 months re the mags mentioned?
Nothing. A canoe restarted the thread.
Am I the only one that finds David Davis unreadable?
No. . . I let my subscription lapse because of it. . .
Strike_Zero wrote: No. . . I let my subscription lapse because of it. . .
Me three.
I cannot stand David E Davis. He's just too full of himself. Interestingly, I get the same sort of "lord of the manor" vibe from Harry Metcalfe over at EVO, but Harry makes it interesting without coming across as supercilious. He's simply a rich car nut, not a snob. DED is a snob.
I subscribed to both Hot Rod and Car Craft as part of their "$10/year and you get a free hat!" come-on. During my subscription, Freifelder (or however you spell that) came back to Hot Rod and was welcomed like a long-lost savior. But the mix of cars never really changed that much. They kept trying to kick-start trends ("Look, the 80's are back! No, wait, gassers are back!") and spent most of the issue talking about how cool things were in the old days. So I let the subscription lapse, even though a full year costs around the same as a single issue of EVO - and I've got almost every issue of EVO stacked up on the shelves beside my GRMs. Car Craft I kept because there's real honest-to-goodness technical information in there.
Interesting side note - I went to an Automobile private staff track day a few years ago. There was a lineup of very tasty press cars for everyone to play with, lots of performance free for the tasting. But helmets weren't required. They were actively discouraged at the driver's meeting! So the only people wearing helmets on the track were a couple of FM employees...
Most pretentious book name ever.
In reply to Keith:
I got a free clock with my Hot Rod subscription. Of course, it is so tacky that it was relegated to the back of the basement with my tools.
JoeyM wrote:stan wrote: Wow, pulled up an old thread there! What has changed in the last 18 months re the mags mentioned?Nothing. A canoe restarted the thread.
I saw that (plus another thread or two).
I was just curious about the state of the mags since then...
I first learned about GRM from Hot Rod
So did I. Freiburger talking about the Challenge, if I recall. So I cruised my local bookstore, and there was this issue with a cover story about junkyard diving and what could be made to fit into what, and when I saw a breakdown of the various gears you could stuff into a Miata transmission if you were so inclined, I realized that these people were clearly crazy, but in a good way.
I get Motor Trend free from work some reason so i'll read it but I wouldn't pay for it.
I read maybe 2 issues of Automobile and decided DED was the most conceited jerk I'd ever 'met'. I find it odd that their private staff test day discouraged helmets after DED flipped that MG and ground away half of his head way back when.
HOT ROD etc had the same thing happen to them that happened to DIRT BIKE magazine: they actually catered to their reader and were not necessarily afraid to say if something sucked. Then they got bought out by a big media company and became a catalog. Along with that any integrity went straight out the window; can't risk alienating an advertiser by telling the truth.
I just realized how old this thread is and figured my post was a duplicate.
Berkeley.
I gave up on Cand D after the "merger" with Rand T. Peter Egan FTMFW. Can you guys get him on your payroll?
My sis-in-law is friends with the newest Cand D editor in chief. She is amused by my disdain for Cand D. Even offered to pay for a subscription. Told her to save her money. She had shown him my reply to inquiry about why I don't read them anymore and he said my thoughts did not warrant a response. Um, yeah, sold!?!?!
Anyways I get GRM like religion, Road and Track, and Cook's illustrated (it's all about the tools, you know!). Considering Classic Motorsports as my Vette is aging ungracefully.
Interesting that this was brought up. 18 months ago, I still had AW, C&D, and R&T- now, as of this month, I no longer subscribe to any of those- all 3 of them are not my cup of tea- and it's not as if I changed- it was that the magazines changed.
Autoweek was great at one time, then it was good, and then tolerable, then it became AW. I know some of the writers for C&D- Aaron Robinson used to live behind me before heading out to California. I started loosing them a few years ago, when they became BMW/Comparo central. They consistently ignore their own data and criteria in comparison tests to make who they want win. And make who they want last, last. Terrible. As for R&T, I have no idea what happened to them.
OTOH, its possible that I have changed, too- new cars don't interest me too much anymore, especially exotics and hyper exotics that are more about image than driving. Especially cars that are so beyond useful performance.
I know David E- met him while I was in school at UM, and just a few years ago when he was the guest speaker at our convention. Thankfully, his AROC convention speech was actually really good- he knew most of the old-timers from Alfa Romeo and the club quite well, and told good stories about them. But since my mom tried to tell me not to say anything if it's not nice, I'll stop there. 
My magazines are CM, GRM, and Vintage Racecar Journal- that's it.
Sad- I've been a CD, RT, and AW subscriber since the late 80's.
Eric
Even though this is a zombie thread... I did post about the zillion magazines I subscribe to, so here's a 1-year later update.
I still subscribe to Hot Rod. Some issues are "off", like the fad ones, but others are still excellent. Worth $10/year to me for 12 issues.
Car Craft is still the best tech car mag out there. WELL worth subsribing to, especially if you ever want/plan to build a V8. They have done Buick's, Oldsmobile's, Pontiac's, LT1's, LS1's, SBC's, BBC's, SBF's, 385-series BBF (460's and even BOSS 429 headed ones!!), FE-Series BBF's, LA Chryslers, BB Chryslers, AMC's, and even some 6-cylinder stuff (Buick Turbo and I-6 stuff).
GRM is of course still saved every issue and read cover-to-cover. I probably ought to subscribe to CM instead of picking up random issues now that I have the Javelin.
R&T was literally identical to C&D for awhile, even had the same cover shot!! I let that one lapse, though interestingly I did stick with C&D for another year (which will now lapse after their absolutely ridiculous "Best Handling Car in America" article, what a crock of E36M3!!!).
I still keep every issue of Hemming's Muscle Machines. An absolutely professional publication that really covers a great mix of stock and modified muscle cars and a lot of really cool stuff from the 50's, 70's, and 80's. Last issue had a 83 Trans Am, nice!
I re-subscribed to PHR now that I have the Javelin. Most of their stuff is still way too "Faux-Touring" for me, but there is some good tech from time to time.
Sportscar still comes in from the SCCA. It hits the recycle bin pretty quickly most issues.
RotarySpeed went under. SubieSport (or whatever it was) got bought out by GRM. SCC folded. I think that's all of them.
The one I wish had a subscription is PHR's Engine Masters. I buy every one of those when I see it, and have yet to be sorry I spent the money. Street Rodder, OTOH...well, I'm thinking of letting that one lapse. They consider $5500 reasonable for a fixer-upper early 50's Plymotuh wagon. I'm gonna scratch my baldspot for a while over that...
Javelin wrote: . . . though interestingly I did stick with C&D for another year (which will now lapse after their absolutely *ridiculous* "Best Handling Car in America" article, what a crock of E36M3!!!).
I've never been a C&D reader (I prefer their twin, actually), but I bought that issue off the newstand because it was of interest. I had my gripes, but I can't say my reaction was quite so strong. I'd be interested to hear what you thought.
While we're on the subject, I was just tellin' the wife the other day how reading that issue reminded me of why I don't buy that mag, or many like it. Self-fulfilling comparo prophecies come to mind, but it was something more than that. It was hard for me to put my finger on for a minute, but then I realized there was a thread of hostility within the mag's "culture". It was most easily identified in the reader letters, as is fairly common. There's always someone who disagrees or wants to complain about a testing method or comparo choice, and that's fine. For me, it went over the line though. I also found it in the articles tone as well, which kinda dismayed me. It almost reminded me of a douchey forum where the readers and writers were ready to shout down and 1-up each other. 
Anyway, rant over. In the end, it made me glad we have communities and mags like the one here. Hopefully GRM and CM represent a paradigm shift in automotive journalism that will continue. A sort of literary Darwinism if you will.
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