Autoblog

2013 Nissan Pathfinder: Introduction

Steven J. Ewing — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 11:57:00 EST

Filed under: Crossover, Nissan, Long-Term Garage

This ain't your daddy's Pathfinder. And that's exactly why we're welcoming one into the Autoblog long-term garage.

With the launch of the all-new 2013 Pathfinder, Nissan has ditched the trucky, body-on-frame architecture of the previous model for something substantially more refined and efficient, yet the automaker says this is still a capable machine. It's a move Nissan has used before (the second-generation Pathfinder, sold from 1996 to 2004, used unibody construction), but because of just how darn popular three-row crossovers are these days, the timing sure seems right for Nissan to, well, find a new path again.

Think about it: Ford made this exact move with the Explorer when its all-new model was introduced for 2011, and that vehicle has been a huge success for the Blue Oval, dominating the segment in terms of volume. Nissan is hoping to capture that same sort of magic - and make up a good deal of market share in the process - with this more-soft-road-than-off-road Pathfinder.

Does it work? Our brief stint behind the wheel of a 2013 model out in California gave us high hopes. But to really see if the three-row crossover-minded formula works behind that Pathfinder badge, we're embarking on a year-long test with the Smyrna, Tennessee-built Platinum 4x4 seen here.

Continue reading 2013 Nissan Pathfinder: Introduction

2013 Nissan Pathfinder: Introduction originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 08 Jan 2013 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2011 Volkswagen Jetta TDI: February 2012

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 19:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, Volkswagen, Diesel, Long-Term Garage

Two months with our long-term 2011 Volkswagen Jetta TDI is enough for me to know that history will not look back kindly on this generation of VW's long-running compact sedan. As has been covered, rather exhaustively I might add, the 2011 refresh of the Jetta brought with it a significant reduction in interior fit, finish and overall quality. Sadly, the more time you spend in the Jetta, the more its interior bits and pieces wear on your senses, as does the dour black color palette.

Perhaps the interior deficiencies of the 2011 Jetta wouldn't be so noteworthy if Volkswagen hadn't set such a heady precedent in past models, offering an upscale alternative to its competitors at a slightly higher price. As you're likely aware, VW's latest strategy puts its products on an equal footing with more mainstream brands while boasting a highly competitive price. Based on the brand's recent profit margins and record sales, the plan is working to perfection.

We hate to harp on the point, but have to wonder if moving downmarket will have long-lasting repercussions with diehard VW fans.

Keep your eyes locked on the official Autoblog Facebook page for the majority of our updates, as well as the official Autoblog Twitter account (@therealautoblog, look for the #ablongterm hashtag).

Continue reading 2011 Volkswagen Jetta TDI: February 2012

2011 Volkswagen Jetta TDI: February 2012 originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 08 Mar 2012 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2011 Volkswagen Jetta TDI: January 2012

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, Volkswagen, Diesel, Long-Term Garage

Stellar fuel efficiency is still the name of the game when it comes to our long-term Volkswagen Jetta TDI, as it's averaging well over its EPA-estimated 30 city and 42 highway miles per gallon in our hands. In fact, with a deft throttle foot, it's not terribly difficult to crest the 50-mpg plateau on long, steady-state trips.

The oil-burning steed recently made the trek from Southern California to the Phoenix, Arizona area so that our resident photographer, Drew Phillips, could make sure we got all the right shots as we lead-footed our way around the Bondurant circuit with the Chevy Camaro ZL1.

Parking the Jetta TDI next to the Camaro ZL1 was an interesting exercise - it's hard to imagine two vehicles more diametrically opposed than these. And, needless to say, moving directly from 580 supercharged horsepower in the ZL1 to just 140 horses in the VW took a bit of right-foot recalibration.

The good news is that, with 236 pound-feet of torque on tap, the Jetta TDI is fun to drive in its own right. Short-shifting the six-speed manual gearbox to keep the diesel mill in its sweet spot produces the most satisfying experience in the Jetta, and it allows you to feel the rush of torque as the turbocharger gets a hold of the spent diesel fumes, pushing your body into the seatback.

Continue reading 2011 Volkswagen Jetta TDI: January 2012

2011 Volkswagen Jetta TDI: January 2012 originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 06 Feb 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2011 Volkswagen Jetta TDI: November 2011

Drew Phillips — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 16:27:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, Volkswagen, Diesel, Long-Term Garage

It's been a little over six months since the 2011 Volkswagen Jetta TDI joined our long-term garage, and since then, we've put more than 17,000 miles on this Tempest Blue sedan. After spending much of the summer in Detroit, the Jetta TDI was road-tripped out to Los Angeles where the Autoblog staff in Southern California have been tending to the car.

Even after half a year, we are still amazed at how easy it is to get excellent fuel mileage in the Jetta TDI. Official EPA ratings for the car are 30 city and 42 highway, but rarely do we fall below that average. Twice we have averaged more than 50 miles per gallon for a tankful, and only occasionally do we drop below 40 mpg on average. Apparently, only lead-foot Michael Harley, last month's caretaker of the Jetta TDI, knows how to get mediocre fuel mileage out of the 2.0-liter diesel four-cylinder, averaging around 35 mpg during his time with the car.

This admirable fuel mileage translates to well over 500 miles per tank (we went 608 miles in between our last two fill-ups), a pleasant change compared to the frequent stops necessary with other vehicles.

Of course, there's more to the Volkswagen Jetta TDI than its fuel mileage. Follow the jump to read more about how the other aspects of the car have fared during the past month.

Continue reading 2011 Volkswagen Jetta TDI: November 2011

2011 Volkswagen Jetta TDI: November 2011 originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 05 Dec 2011 16:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2011 Volkswagen Jetta TDI: October 2011

Michael Harley — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 19:29:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, Volkswagen, Diesel, Long-Term Garage

October proved to be a busy month for our long-term 2011 Volkswagen Jetta TDI. Unlike September, where it bounced between our Los Angeles editors, the keys to the Tempest Blue sedan were in my hands through Halloween. During the past month, it has traveled all over Southern California and taken more than a few trips to Los Angeles Airport loaded with my suitcases.

It's hard not to be impressed with the diesel engine and its fuel economy. Displacing 2.0-liters, the turbocharged inline-four generates 140 horsepower. While that first figure isn't particularly impressive, the 236 pound-feet of torque is. Even with five passengers and a full load of soccer equipment in the huge trunk, the Volkswagen Jetta TDI pulls confidently and has no trouble maintaining speed regardless of the grade. The EPA rates the Jetta at 30 mpg city/42 mpg highway - figures that aligned nicely with my overall average of about 36 mpg for the month of October. The TDI's frugality is maximized on the highway, where I have seen better than 50 mpg more than once.

Continue reading 2011 Volkswagen Jetta TDI: October 2011

2011 Volkswagen Jetta TDI: October 2011 originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 04 Nov 2011 19:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2011 Mini Countryman: October 2011

Drew Phillips — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 12:01:00 EST

Filed under: Crossover, Mini, Long-Term Garage

The last time we updated you on our long-term 2011 Mini Cooper S Countryman All4, it was in Northern California with senior editor Lavrinc. Since then, we've driving the car down to Southern California, although not before it served as our mode of transportation for the Rennsport Reunion at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. We've also taken a trip to Phoenix to check out the Local Motors Rally Fighter (look for a feature soon), and driven the Countryman plenty around Los Angeles, doubling our car's mileage in the process. Thanks to a majority of those miles being on the freeway, we've averaged a solid 27.39 mpg, a number that falls right in line with the official rating of 25/31. Our best stint was 29.3 mpg, all freeway miles, coming back from Phoenix.

If anything, spending spending five-plus hours in the Countryman at once has revealed some new likes and dislikes. Follow the jump to read more about them and what life is like for the Countryman in Southern California.

Continue reading 2011 Mini Countryman: October 2011

2011 Mini Countryman: October 2011 originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 02 Nov 2011 12:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2011 Mini Countryman: September 2011

Damon Lavrinc — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 14:58:00 EST

Filed under: Crossover, Hatchback, Mini, Long-Term Garage

Our long-term 2011 Mini Cooper S Countryman All4 has served out its time in Northern California and is set to head down to LA later this month. But before it departs the sunny side of the bay, I've got some closing thoughts after a few months behind the wheel.

To begin with, Mini has succeeded in creating a livable, entertaining crossover that's nothing if not unique and hasn't diluted the brand's core values... much. Particularly in S and All4 guise, the Countryman has just the right amount of sport to keep us interested and enough functionality to make it an everyday vehicle. Sure, I'd like a little more cargo space, but there's ample room for a family of three - maybe four - to make a weekend trip up to the hills or out to the coast and enjoy the spaces in between.

Continue reading 2011 Mini Countryman: September 2011

2011 Mini Countryman: September 2011 originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 05 Oct 2011 14:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2010 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Street Edition: It's the little things...

Damon Lavrinc — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, Volkswagen, Diesel, Long-Term Garage

With over three months and 5,342 miles on our Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Street Edition long-termer, we've moved from the honeymoon phase to the daily grind, and now we're appreciating the little things.

Aside from averaging 39.2 mpg since our last update - which included a 10- hour trip to LA and back - there are a handful of thoughtful touches that continue to impress us. For instance? Carpeted bin liners. It may sound trite, but not hearing a plastic-on-plastic smack every time we throw our FastTrak into the door pocket is reassuring. Auto-up and down on all four windows is something you don't find often enough in this segment and it's a huge plus when clearing out the heat on a summer day. But our Favorite Little Thing? B-pillar mounted coat hooks. Throw your dry cleaning or sportcoat onto one of the hooks normally integrated into the rear grab handles and you've doubled your blind-spot. With VW's solution, visibility out back remains nearly unobstructed, assuming you hang your coat on the passenger side and not behind the driver's seat. We've also managed to cram four R-compound-shod wheels into the back (not for the Jetta, mind) with the rear seats folded down, and still had room for a toolbox, a few backpacks and a small tent. Not bad for a "compact sedan."

Gallery: Review: 2010 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Street Edition

2010 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Street Edition: It's the little things... originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 22 Sep 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Autoblog Long-Term Garage Introduction: 2010 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Street Edition

Damon Lavrinc — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, Performance, Volkswagen, Diesel, Long-Term Garage

2010 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Street Edition - Click above for high-res image gallery

We hinted at it in our review, but it's time to make it official. Welcome the newest entrant to the Autoblog Long-Term Garage: the 2010 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Street Edition.

So why, with the all-new Jetta right around the corner, would we bring the TDI Cup into the hallowed halls of Autoblog Towers? Simple. We want to get intimate with diesel. Not only do we want to reap the high-mileage benefits of ultra-low sulfur dino-juice, we want to see if something with a TDI badge can, in fact, be an entertaining drive over the long haul.

We explored the Cup's backroad prowess in our review, but how will it fare at the track? Will a new set of tires and wheels make a world of difference? How about some upgraded brake pads? In stock form, does it have what it takes to compete with the latest and greatest in the new fuel-conscious sporty car segment? How will it hold up after thousands of miles, a few road trips and stints across the country with our editors? All these questions and more will be answered over the course of a year.

We'll be keeping you updated on the TDI's progress with weekly and monthly posts, highlighting the finer points and questioning the logic of others. More importantly, we're interested in what you want to know about the Jetta TDI Cup Edition. Tell us in Comments and we'll get cracking.

Additionally, we've set up a specific page to follow the TDI's progress, complete with updates, specs and other useful info. Check it out and follow us on Twitter at TheRealAutoblog for 140-character morsels of insight tagged #ablongterm.

The fun is about to begin, and the only question now is: What's first?

Gallery: Review: 2010 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Street Edition

Autoblog Long-Term Garage Introduction: 2010 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Street Edition originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 29 Jun 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2010 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT: Automatic hill-holder is a great feature, but why the idiot lamp?

Chris Paukert — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 14:45:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, Subaru, Long-Term Garage

2010 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT - Click above for high-res image gallery

Like all new-for-2010 Subaru Legacy models, our long-term 2.5GT has an electronic parking brake that has a hill holder feature. We think these are great, particularly on manual transmission cars like ours, where rollback on uphill starts can be require a bit of pedal dancing that's particularly nerve-racking for newer stick-shift drivers. It's also mighty convenient for those that live in hilly areas where incline starts are a frequent occurrence.

So... great feature, right? Yes, but why does switching it on illuminate a green indicator lamp in the gauge cluster, and why does it turn itself off every time you turn off the car? We understand the advantage of a defeat button (usage is potentially ill-advised if you're towing something or carrying a heavy load), but we would prefer that once the feature is activated, that it stay that way until the driver specifies otherwise.

Oddly enough, Subaru actually offered a mechanical hill holder on its cars long before going to an electronic parking brake, but as best we can remember, that system wasn't defeatable. Still, we don't recall hearing anyone grouse about it staying on all the time, and we're not sure why the default setting for this new system is off, or why it requires an idiot lamp at all. As it is, we've stopped using it regularly to avoid the extra light in the cluster. That, and we couldn't get The Smiths' "There is a Light that Never Goes Out" bounding through our head every time we used it.

Gallery: Long Term: 2010 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT

2010 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT: Automatic hill-holder is a great feature, but why the idiot lamp? originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 14 Apr 2010 14:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Autoblog Long-Term Garage Introduction: 2010 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT

Chris Paukert — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 11:57:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, Performance, Subaru

2010 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT - Click above for high-res image gallery

Like others in our field, we pride ourselves on being able to offer our readers a surprisingly comprehensive assessment of a vehicle after only driving it for a few hours (as at an automaker's first-drive event) or living with it for several days (as with a normal media vehicle loan). But even though we've got our testing methodology down, there's simply no way to learn what it's like to live with an automobile without... well... living with the automobile.

Simply put, a year's worth of the day-in, day-out grind is likely to reveal more foibles and hidden charms than any number of test-drives could ever hope to expose. How does your backside feel after an 800-mile road trip? Does the clutch pedal feel like stirring molasses in subzero temperatures? How will the seat leather and interior plastics hold up over thousands of miles? Will the gearshift feel like a trusted old friend mile-after-mile? These are questions that can only be answered with a long-term driving experience.

To that end, we're pleased to introduce the first-ever entry into the Autoblog Long-Term Garage: The 2010 Subaru 2.5GT. We fell in love with this, the most sporting of Legacy models during its Vancouver launch over the summer, but the popularity of the model and its production-line companion, the Outback, has been so great that it's been impossible to secure a 2.5GT up until now. Subaru's Indiana plant has been so busy building the necessary volumes of the brand's bread-and-butter models that production of the 2.5GT - an enthusiast's sedan, when compared to its counterparts - has only recently started to come on-stream.

We suspect our loaded-up Ruby Red Pearl Limited model has been worth the wait, but we're prepared to take a year to come to grips with our final judgment. How will we feel about this rally-bred all-wheel-drive sport sedan after 365 days of everything from daily commuting to opposite-lock dancing on abandoned fire trails? Will its assertive flat-four thrum and newfound size win over converts - or leave us wishing we had picked a more obvious, safe-as-houses alternative?

More importantly - what do you want to know about life with the 2.5GT? We'll be regularly updating you on our new Subie's progress, passing its keys between our editors stationed around the country, putting its 265 horsepower through the paces in different climates and over various types of roads in order to see if it's worth the asking price. While you're pondering what questions to ask us in the Comments, feel free to check out our high-res gallery below as well as the spec panel after the jump laying out what makes the 2.5GT tick.

How to follow our Long-Term updates:

Twitter: Follow therealautoblog and look for tweets tagged #ablongterm.
Visit the Long-Term Garage category on Autoblog | Subscribe to RSS.
We'll be launching a new Long-Term model page for the 2010 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT in the next couple of weeks that will contain all of the information, insights and updates we publish. Stay tuned!

Gallery: Long Term: 2010 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT

Autoblog Long-Term Garage Introduction: 2010 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 30 Mar 2010 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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