Recent Comments:
How to ruin a Jaguar XF in one easy step {Autoblog}
Aug 14th 2008 3:42PM @ Letstakeawalk:
Don’t just stop there! For the complete package add a set of opera lights on each C-pillar and a set of Vogue whitewalls mounted on Dayton wires (gold-plated spokes, of course!). You could call it the XF Brougham D’elegance…
2009 Jeep Patriot with new interior already on dealer lots {Autoblog}
Aug 11th 2008 4:13PM LX: "As for the crank windows, I would buy that. Oh yes I would."
I'd go for the crank windows too, except the location on the Patriot's door panel looks like a potential knee-whacker when closing the door. The cynical side of me thinks Chrysler put it there on purpose as a way to upsell the power windows to potential customers.
Other than that, a vast improvement over the earlier dash design IMO.
Chevy Cruze to be built in Lordstown {Autoblog}
Jul 9th 2008 4:18PM Dude said “Also, where is the coupe? It needs a coupe.”
I say “Also, where is the hatchback? It needs a hatchback.”
Although we’re fairly small in number, we hatchback/wagon aficionados won’t settle for something less practical. In order to sell in any quantity in non-USA markets, the Cruze will have to have a hatchback and/or wagon version to offer along side the 4-door sedan shown. Here’s hoping that GM decides to offer either to USA car shoppers.
When it comes time to replace my xA in a year or two, I’ll be looking for a number of things:
• Hatchback or wagon body style (5-door preferred; 3-door acceptable).
• EPA city MPG rating of 27 or higher.
• Manual trans.
• Enough front passenger room to keep my 6’3” husband happy.
• Priced well below $20K.
The most probable candidate will be the next-gen Fit, although I’ll certainly look at the xD, the upcoming Fiesta, and Mazda 2 or Suzuki Swift (if we get either), maybe the Accent/Rio if the improvement in Hyundai/Kia continues at the present pace (and don’t suggest the Aveo; an Aveo rental was one of the most unpleasant drives in recent memory).
These are all interesting candidates, so if GM can’t offer a desirable hatch/wagon that can satisfy my wants and needs, it’s their loss, not mine.
Honda boosting Fit production to meet U.S. demand {Autoblog}
Jun 23rd 2008 4:11PM psu48187 said "Also aside from rear impacts the car does have a pretty robust safety cage."
If you check the IIHS website, you’ll find that the body structure is NOT included as part of their rear impact ratings. Their rear impact test measures seat and head restraint construction ONLY.
To perform this test, the seat is removed from the vehicle and mounted on an acceleration sled, with the dummy belted into the seat. The fact that the current Fit receives a poor rating (along with a lot of other makes and models currently sold) reflects the age of the current Fit’s seat design (2002?) and not the safety cage. Most vehicles whose seat design originated prior to the past couple of years do not do well in the IIHS rear impact test.
If the new-generation Fit comes to the US with some sort of active head restraint, I would expect it to do substantially better in the rear impact test.
Feds to release new roof-strength regs in July {Autoblog}
May 27th 2008 4:05PM Although not a perfect solution, here’s my suggestion. Tie the roof strength requirement to the rollover rating. An RX8 (5 star rollover rating) could have soda straws for roof pillars as the likelihood of a roll-over is very small, but the Jeep Liberty (2 stars) would have to have (in comparison) I-beams like a Manhattan skyscraper. The roof strength standards for vehicles with ratings between those two extremes would fall somewhere in between.
Official EPA numbers posted for the '09 Jetta TDI - 30/41mpg {Autoblog}
May 21st 2008 9:20PM @ BigMcLargeHuge
You said: “I will never stick my family in a car with low-rolling-resistance tires. Nor would I want something that can't corner or get out of its own way.
From what I have seen 'Safe' does not 'Happens' in a Prius.”
I say: Let’s not let ones opinions and biases get in the way of the facts.
Not sure where some people have gotten the idea that the Prius comes from the factory with special hard-compound, low rolling resistance tires. Except for the recent Prius Touring model (with its upgraded tires and suspension), the OE tire for the Prius is the 186/65-R15 Goodyear Integrity (in this case, I use the work “tire” advisedly). These craptastic rim protectors do resemble a tire in that they are round, black, and hold air, but that’s about all. However, they are NOT exclusive to the Prius but are popular as OE equipment on a number of domestic and import models (I’ve had Neon and Corolla rentals with these same, ahem, tires). My guess as to why these continue to be used as an OE tire has a lot more to do with cost than any performance criterium.
When my husband took delivery of his ’05 Prius, I blamed most of the stodgy cornering and limp steering response on the OE Goodyears. They finally started nearing the wear bars just shy of 30K and (at my insistence) were replaced by a set of 195/65-15 Michelin Pilot Exalto A/S tires. Though I would’nt expect a Prius so equipped to start doing sub 8-minute laps around the Nordschleife, the amount of cornering grip was substantially increased (especially in the wet), the steering response dramatically improved, and the tendency of the Goodyears to aquaplane is much less so with the Michelins. I would expect our Prius with the better tires to hold it’s own with any average Fucamcordibu family hauler out there.
The Michelins have not appreciably affected the excellent MPG either; it still gets low-40s in mixed suburban driving and mid-40s on extended trips (provided it’s kept below 80mph!).
As for safety, the second gen Prius (’04 to present) gets the highest crash rating from the IIHS (http://www.iihs.org/ratings/ratingsbyseries.aspx?id=566) in front and side impacts (with side air bags, which our Prius has). I’ll admit that rear crash protection isn’t as good, but this has little to do with the body structure, and more to do with the lack of active head restraints (which few cars had in 2005 and which the next-gen Prius will no doubt get).
Does car color correlate with personal confidence? {Autoblog}
May 15th 2008 12:27AM Sorry, I’m too left-brained to let fashion or libido dictate the color of my car; practicality rules! I prefer white if given the choice because:
It’s cooler in the summer (less heat soak means less need to run the a/c in warmer weather)
It stays clean-looking longer (less washing means more free time for moi)
It’s more visible under most road conditions
It’s more durable than most other colors (when most clear-coats have started to dissolve, my white xA will look almost as good as the day drove it off the showroom floor)
It’s easier to repair in case of a fender bender (getting a clear-coat metallic color to match the rest of the car isn’t cake)
That said, I was really smitten by the pale-bluish “Moonstone” color that VW offered on a limited edition Beetle a few years ago.
IIHS questions the effectiveness of five new safety features {Autoblog}
Apr 17th 2008 3:35PM Back in the day when driver’s air bags started showing up in a few high-end luxury cars (and NHTSA was only hinting at making them mandatory), some wag (a Car and Driver columnist, IIRRC) suggested that more lives would be saved overall if, instead of the air bag, there was a shotgun shell aimed directly at the driver’s heart. Sure, a few innocents might get taken out, but think of how courteous drivers would be if they knew acting stoopid behind the wheel could be a shortcut to the hereafter.
In the Autoblog Garage: 2008 Suzuki Grand Vitara Xsport {Autoblog}
Mar 24th 2008 4:33PM I’ve helped out as a rally worker at the Laughlin Motor Sports Festival for the past several years, and I had one of the Grand Vitara courtesy vehicles at my disposal during my duties during the ’06 and ’07 events (a ‘07 2WD auto in 2006 and a ‘08 2WD 5spd in 2007). I put around 700-800 miles on each of them during the events, and I agree with the general consensus that the GV in current guise is honest truck and a decent SUV at its price point.
The handling was OK on pavement and actually very nicely balanced on dirt; especially considering the RWD truck chassis. I got decent power and fuel economy from the 2.7, averaging 18-20mpg in mixed driving (including a lot of time off the pavement; I even got to flog the GVs on some of the rally stages). There was more passenger and cargo room and 75-90mph cruise was smoother and quieter than in a co-worker’s Liberty. Dashboard layout and driver position were both excellent, and I don’t recall the body structure having the squeaks and rattles mentioned in AB test.
I only had a few complaints during my time with the two GVs. The VSC was really intrusive when trying to keep up a brisk pace on dirt (and when shut off, it automatically re-engages at 30mph, GRRR!!). I preferred the auto trans version; the 5spd on the most recent one was very truck-like in shifting, and the clutch take-up and gear spacing took some getting used to.
Daimler considers shutting down Maybach {Autoblog}
Mar 17th 2008 3:48PM @ Ronnie,
His CLS-owing acquaintance: “it's got pretty much the same mechanicals as the S Class but in a much more attractive car."
I’m sure a lot of those “4-door coupes” get sold for that reason, and DB is laughing all the way to the bank for every CLS that rolls off of the showroom floor. The CLS is not much more than an E-Class in a slinky cocktail dress (not much S-Class in it). DB sells it for near S-Class prices and pockets the extra Euros.
BMW (with the X6) and VW (with the Passat “coupe”) are trying a similar tack, but I expect VW to be the more successful of the two, as BMW doesn’t appear to have had a look the X6 with the house light up before giving it the go-ahead.
