Honda Fit fits into fittingly tight spots befitting a small car
SANTA MONICA, CALIF. — It seems as though Honda has filled every available automotive niche, so the question is, when it brings out a new compact car, where in the world will it fit? Right there. In fact, it fits so well, that the new compact Honda is being called “Fit.Ââ€
To demonstrate how tight an area the Fit will fit through, HondaÂ’s marketing folks created a unique little test at the carÂ’s introduction in Santa Monica. They put a pair of vertical posts up, let the media types drive to a starting line about 20 yards away, then signal how close to put the posts, with the idea we could still fit the Fit through the gap. Think of it as something of a vertical limbo dance for a car.
I waved them close, then closer, because in my experience, drivers generally can squeeze through a tighter opening than they think. I was right. I positioned the posts closer than I thought was possible, and I still fit the Fit between them, without scraping any paint off the side mirrors. Others came closer.
Nobody, however, beat my first-try parallel parking attempt, where I purposely oversteered my attempt to park between extremely close pylons, trying to compensate for the carÂ’s compactness, and I made a perfect park, an inch from the curb, on my first try. “Fit” may be an odd name, but Honda obviously is hoping if the Fit fits, people will choose it as most fitting.
Next came a small, tight, pylon-lined course, which the Honda folks insisted was a not an all-out performance autocross, but just an agility drill, with a stop, and a back-up part, before the quick-stop finish. I went through it well, but conservatively, and though I didnÂ’t beat later drivers who ran it with tire-screaming aggressiveness as if it were an all-out autocross, I came away impressed with the FitÂ’s quickness and agility.
Prior to all that lunchtime fun and frolic, I already had been impressed with the FitÂ’s performance zipping around and through the twisty hillsides of the mountain range inland from Santa Monica. Along the way, the thought occurred to me that when U.S. automakers and critics criticize imports, they are missing a serious point with Hondas, among others.
When Honda builds a new vehicle, critics and competitors can line up and nitpick all they want, but one thing remains unassailable: Honda vehicles tend to be a complete package, with the total far exceeding the mere sum of its parts. The Fit is a perfect example, because it is a 5-door hatchback with a futuristic cab-forward design, with an interior that is remarkably versatile, and with performance that lifts it from utilitarian to fun.
Ingenious design makes the interior versatile in a Swiss Army knife sort of a way. Flipping and folding second-row seats can create a tall mode, long mode and lounge mode. In tall mode, the surprisingly low floor can house a bicycle; in long mode, folding the right side front seat and second row seats makes a 7-foot flat storage surface; in lounge mode, reclining the front buckets can turn the Fit into a great place for two weary occupants to grab rest-area naps.
A 1.5-liter engine with multiple valves and VTEC variable valve-timing has a posted 109 horsepower at 5,800 RPMs, and 105 foot-pounds of torque at 4,800, with EPA gas mileage estimates of 33 city, 38 highway. You can choose a five-speed manual or a five-speed automatic, and the automatic comes with paddles on the back of the steering wheel for fingertip manual shifts. How very sports-car like, for something more resembling a mini-minivan.
Speaking of critics, General Motors is on a marketing campaign to insist its cars are every bit as good, or better, than comparable imports that are perceived to be better, and that itÂ’s the fault of the media for not creating the proper image for GM cars. Amazingly, IÂ’ve recently read a couple of syndicated columns where the creators shamelessly repeat or rephrase exactly that sentiment. A General Motors official recently informed me that the new Malibu is every bit as good if not better than cars like the Honda Accord. I stopped him right there.
The Malibu, and the Pontiac G6, are very good, possibly the best of a new breed of GM cars. They have tightness, good handling, decent performance, are priced about right, and they have almost all the important features. Almost. But when comparing cars, the last I checked, the engines are part of it. Therefore, hallucination is a prerequisite for anyone who declares them equal to or better than the new Accord, or Camry, for that matter.
Unquestioned engine technology is a major part of Honda’s allure. Honda had multiple valve engines with variable valve timing – technology transferred directly from Ayrton Senna’s superb Formula 1-winning Honda engines – on the entry level Civic back in 1991. That’s 15 years ago. By the mid-1990s, Honda’s VTEC system expanded to all of Honda’s engines. When Honda makes a new and improved engine, it discontinues its obsolete engines, so all its fours and V6es stay on the world’s cutting edge of technology.
At GM, the Malibu (and G6) don’t get to use the superb and high-tech Cadillac V6, and are saddled instead with the newest version of aging pushrod technology, which is cheaper to produce. When it comes to compacts, Chevy now sells the Aveo, which is built in South Korea’s Daewoo factory, which General Motors recently purchased. So GM loyalists continue to push “buy American†philosophy, and GM is pushing a good – but far from great – Korean import as its subcompact.
Meanwhile, Honda won 2006 North American Car of the Year honors with the completely redone Civic. Fantastic car, from every standpoint. In my tests, I got 37-42 miles per gallon with the Civic EX sedan, with an automatic transmission. Over the years, the Accord has grown, and the Civic has grown commensurately, and the previously subcompact Civic is now larger than the 1985 Accord was.
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Still, as gasoline heads inexorably back toward $3 per gallon, U.S. consumers might finally be ready to follow the lead of savvy buyers in Europe and Japan, and go smaller. If a car can be built structurally safe enough, then smaller, lighter, more agile and more fuel-efficient makes a lot of sense. Toyota is doing it with the Yaris, which is smaller than the Corolla, adjacent to the Scion fleet, and Nissan is doing it with the Versa, which is smaller than the new Sentra. The Mazda5 is a compact van/wagon version of the Mazda3.
If small is going to be large in our immediate automotive future, Honda, as usual, steps to the front of the class with the Fit. The Fit is 19.2 inches shorter and 2.8 inches wider than the 2006 Civic – but it is 18 inches LONGER, 7 inches WIDER and 7 inches TALLER than the first Civic was, back in 1973.
The engine has a sophisticated technique of deactivating one intake valve at low RPMs to create a swirl of more rapid combustion, and that valve is reactivated at mid- to high-RPM use for stronger power.
The five-speed stick has closer-ratio gears from 1-4, with a wider gap to fifth, for improved freeway cruising at lower RPMs for better fuel economy. The five-speed automatic has wider gear ratios, which is a welcome idea to reduce the need for frequent shifting. The paddle operation can be done with the transmission in D, in which case it goes back to normal automatic service by itself, or in full manual mode.
The FitÂ’s front suspension is an independent MacPherson Strut system, similar to the Civic, with the rear switched from multilink to a torsion beam, which allowed lowering the floor by 3 inches. Another key feature is that the fuel tank is moved forward, resting amidship, under the front seats, which used to be a vacant area. That allowed the rear floor to be lowered, 7 inches lower than in a Scion, for example. Passenger room is about the same as the larger Civic, and the cargo area expands from 20.6 to 41.9 cubic feet when you fold the rear seat down.
Honda used the new Ridgeline pickup – 2006 North American Truck of the Year – for overload crash-tests with the Fit. The body structure is made of 36 percent high-tensile steel, and with standard side and side-curtain airbags complementing the front bags, Honda claims top crash-test ratings front and rear side for the Fit.
Prices are between $13,500 and $15,000, in either base or Sport form. The Sport gets bigger (15-inch) alloy wheels, and underbody panel, foglights, paddle shifters, and a better audio system – essentially $2,400 in upgrades for a difference in price of $1,400.
Any car-buyer interested in quick and agile performance, great fuel economy, surprisingly good safety, active-lifestyle versatility inside, and low-price sophistication, will find that the FitÂ…fits.
Chrysler Group snowjob blows away auto show news
DETROIT, MICH. – The third and final media day at the North American International Auto Show resembled the first two — a spectacular stage show by the Chrysler Group, historic and maybe surprising news from an Asian automaker, and a lot of talk revolving around finances from a storied U.S. manufacturer.
The chronology of the morning displays inside Cobo Hall started with ChryslerÂ’s introduction of the Dodge Caliber and Chrysler Aspen, both SUVs, coming from opposite ends of the size and price spectrum.
Next up came the Asian surprise. Not a new twist from the numerous Japanese companies, nor another improved vehicle from a Korean company. This one was from Geely – a Chinese company that intends to sell a new and quite competently outfitted 7151 CK compact sedan in the U.S. The car appears to be a fairly basic subcompact, but the detail that will stop the presses is that it has a starting price under $10,000.
Every manufacturer in the world is competing to build cars to sell to the suddenly burgeoning Chinese market, which is a large jump beyond finding that virtually every trinket and article of clothing sold in the U.S. these days seems to be outsourced or made in China.You can even buy a General Motors vehicle made in Canada with a 3.4-liter V6 made in China by something called “GMS” — for General Motors Shanghai.”
But to have China come to the U.S. with intentions of selling 100,000 extremely inexpensive compact sedans in its first year takes the whole world-market concept to sobering projections, particularly in the face of financial struggles by U.S. car-makers.
That news was amplified even more when General Motors assembled the media in its area to announce, not a new car, but that it was cutting prices “across the board,†on all of its models. The all-new and totally redone Tahoe will list at $33,990, for example, which is $2,000 less than the current Tahoe.
Discounted pricing will hit every model car, truck and SUV. It will reduce the Cobalt LS Coupe, for example, from a fairly competitive $14,490 base price to $12,990, which, GM hastily pointed out, will make it less than a Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla, or Ford Focus.
That was it. GM had introduced its newest vehicles Sunday and Monday, including the Tahoe, the Cadillac Escalade, and the stunning Camaro concept car. The risk is that consumers were so stunned by gasoline prices skyrocketing to $3 a gallon a few months ago, that even while prices have subsided to the $2.20 range, consumers have backed away from the large SUVs.
Other auto manufacturers are stressing compact crossover SUVs, in fact, Ford is trying to force the pooularity of the term “CUV†for crossover utility vehicle because it’s newest SUVs are compact and on car-based platforms, such as the Ford Edge, the newly redone Lincoln Aviator, and a couple of new concept vehicles.
Honda similarly is stressing the new RDX, which has moved from concept to prototype and is destined for production as a hot little compact SUV with sporty overtones. Mazda also has a concept compact SUV, and everyone from Koreans to Japanese to Europeans, to Ford and Chrysler seem to be stressing the downsized SUVs.
That leaves General Motors with its new and very impressive Tahoe – clearly improved in every facet – but introduced at a time when the only people buying large SUVs are those who have an absolute need for the extra room. Chevrolet is stressing fuel-efficiency of nearly 20 miles per gallon highway for the Tahoe.
Meanwhile, back at the Chrysler stand, the promotion-oriented gem came after the Dodge Caliber was introduced. It appears to be a compact SUV itself, but it is actually more like a compromise sporty wagon. Indeed, it will replace the discontinued Neon in manufacturing facilities. It will have three different four-cylinder engines, ranging from 148 to 158 to 172 horsepower,with dual variable valve timing and a continuously variable transmission, plus electromagnetic all-wheel drive. It has youth-oriented fold down speaker panels to blast your decibels out the tailgate, and the glove compartment has a cooler tray for cans of pop or bottles of water.
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The astounding part of the introduction came when it was announced that the vehicle would start in SE form at $13,985 – which makes it less expensive than a Neon.
After the Caliber was driven off the stage, the clowns –literally – Chrysler had employed from New York shows and international television for the press days, stayed around. One of them stood center stage and pulled a small sheet of paper out, appeared to read it, then folded it carefully over and ripped it in half, then in half again, then again. Finally he tossed it up in the air, and the pieces fluttered back down on him like falling snow. As it fell, it was noticeable that more snowflakes, tiny ones, also were falling from the ceiling, descending clownward. Then the “snowflakes†became bigger, and more noticeable.
Just when it looked like the effect had run its course, suddenly there was an explosion of sound and an enormous instant blizzard – enough snow to fill a Madison Avenue parade. The entire stage was engulfed in white, as the light slivers of confetti covered the hundreds of assembled media types as far away from the stage as 100 feet. When the eye-popping airborne avalanche was at its peak whiteout, a vehicle burst out from backstage right in the midst of it.
It was the Chrysler Aspen. Amazingly, Chrysler resurrected the name of a less-than-noteworthy, short-term Dodge from its past, and has given the name to Chrysler’s new luxury SUV. The Dodge sedan never came close to living up to the name of the trendy Rocky Mountain ski resort town, and Chrysler is gambling that the new Aspen – complete with a 5.7-liter Hemi V8 – will do just that.
When the presentation was over, everybody within range was left laughing and shaking their heads, and all had a few snowflakes on or imbedded in clothing. Attempts to walk up to the stage for a closer look at the vehicle or an interview meant walking through a foot-deep pile of fake snow.
While General Motors and Ford are struggling to right themselves financially, considerably smaller Chrysler Group is riding high with its impressive recent flock of 300, Magnum, Charger and Jeep products, its still-ubiquitous minivans, and the strong performance of its Hemi-based engines. To say nothing of its optimistic attitude.
Regardless of which company sells the most vehicles, and makes the most money, there is no doubt which one has – and creates — the most fun at auto shows. From the media viewpoint, scurrying from one news conference to the next about every half-hour can be tedious, even if skipping a couple means sitting in carefully controlled audience settings while sipping a cappuccino or mineral water, and nibbling appetizers or pastries. Media members are well aware that they face as many marketing con-jobs as meaningful information sessions. When it comes to those clowns from Chrysler, however, even a snowjob can be eminently appealing.
Magnum SRT8 takes quantum leap with 425 horsepower
You know those little inscriptions they put on outside convex mirrors, the ones that say: “Caution, objects might be closer than they appear?†Well, maybe Dodge should consider paraphrasing those on the new Magnum SRT8. On the driverÂ’s side of the windshield, an inscription should read: “Caution, stepping on the gas can cause objects ahead to get closer sooner than seems possible.Ââ€
When the Dodge Magnum was introduced, its captivating shape – letÂ’s call it a “custom-chopped wagon” look – was impressive in a startling sort of a way. The long, low wagon had the three-barreled power approach, too, with a small 2.7-liter V6, a larger 3.5-liter V6, and a Hemi V8, and if rear-wheel drive bothered you in wintertime, you could even get all-wheel drive on the 3.5 version.
The Magnum finished runner-up to the Chrysler 300, its formal-sedan sibling, for a 1-2 finish in North American Car of the Year voting. After driving all three versions of the first Magnum, and being impressed by the capabilities of all of them, the question remained, what could Dodge do to bolster the Magnum for 2006? It seemed that nothing was necessary, because the new model would work for several years, but Dodge turned the Magnum over to its Street and Racing Technology (SRT) team.
The answer is the Magnum SRT8, and when I got a chance to road-test what might have been the first one to hit Minnesota, I have to admit I was startled all over again.
True, it has the same long, low, sloping roof, as if a California custom shop had knocked out part of the side pillars to lower the roofline. But sitting there, glistening metallic silver, it looked considerably more imposing. For one, the signature Dodge nose, rounded off aerodynamically around the bold crosshairs grille, is rounded off no more, but has sharply chiseled grooves defining the headlights and the grille, with the lower front fascia housing projector foglights in a ground-hugging posture that is impressive to look at, although it might be less impressive if you pulled too close to a curb in front of you.
But mostly, it’s the wheels. Bright, chrome wheels, with five glossy spokes, and they are enormous – 20 inch monsters, shod with low-profile, high-performance tires. They fill up the wheelwells, but in a good way.
I really like the headlights, too. Obviously influenced by Mercedes stylists, the Magnum has a slim crescent around the upper edge of the main headlight housing for the parking light and directional signal in amber. They look great when just the parking lights are on, and they add a sinister eyebrow to the headlights shining through those clear lenses with all the lights on.
None of the appearance tricks can match what’s inside the SRT8 Magnum, however. The venerable pushrod Hemi, with which DaimlerChrysler proves General Motors isn’t the only corporation that knows how to wrench inexpensive power out of a large-block engine, was very impressive in its initial form – 5.7 liters and 340 horsepower. That’s a significant increase over the 250 horses of the 3.5 V6, or the 190 horsepower from the high-tech but small 2.7.
But the SRT gang had a little fun with the 5.7, boosting the displacement to 6.1 liters with a whopping 425 horsepower, and 420 foot-pounds of torque.
Believe me, when you hammered the gas pedal on last year’s Hemi, the Magnum jumped up and took off. But in the SRT8, when you hit the gas there is a momentary stirring audibly as your ears fill with the building rumble, and instantly you are launched – fast and hard. It makes you careful, very careful, about stepping on it too hard or too often, because the response is sudden and forceful. That’s why the suggested windshield disclaimer might be useful. A casual or mind-wandering driver could find quick trouble without devoted focus on driving fundamentals.
The SRT guys are sharp, and they not only tweak maximum power out of that Hemi, but they also install high-performance suspension, and what they call “performance-tuned†suspension. Aided by the big tires on those huge wheels, the Magnum SRT8 whips around corners flat as you please, belying the fact that it’s a big and hefty wagon. The five-speed automatic transmission also is beefed up for what SRT engineers assume – and intend – to be foot-heavy driving.
The charcoal/slate leather bucket seats, with a neat suede-like insert, clutches your body to also help stabilize things. Other special touches for the SRT8 include white-faced gauges, and set apart further the SRT driving experience.
Dodge lucks out on one thing. The craze for power that dominated the industry three or four years ago, and led to such power-monsters as the SRT8, could find showroom disaster when it crosses paths with real-world gasoline prices of $3 a gallon, and threatening more. But DaimlerChrysler came out with the first cylinder-deactivation system – General Motors is following suit – on a domestic car. Honda already has it out on V6 engines.
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What that does is allow the engines to cut out power to four of the eight cylinders when cruising, because it doesn’t take any more than moderate power to hold, say, 70 miles per hour – even if you attained it in 5 seconds. So you cut out half the cylinders and get decent gas mileage. The EPA highway estimate is 20 miles per gallon, and I got 21 on the highway and just under 20 if you combine city and highway.
That’s not great, against high gas prices. But it sure beats the 11 or so of the big SUVs, and the anticipated 15 you might peak at without cylinder deactivation in a 425-horse ground-thumper. Still, I was driving from Duluth to Minneapolis, and with a quarter of a tank, I thought I’d try to get closer to the Twin Cities in hopes of better gas prices, so I put in “only†$10-worth. I had to stop and put in another $10-worth before making it. While that says more about the price of gas than the SRT8’s sketchy mileage, it’s still a major factor in real-world decision making.
Electronic stability control and all-speed traction control help keep the SRT8 going in a straight line, or at least where you aim it, and huge four-wheel disc brakes help haul it down when you go fast.
A navigation system, Sirius satellite radio, heated seats, and air filtration on the dual climate control system are among options. They carried the base price of a stripped SRT8 from $37,320 to a sticker of $42,150 for the test car.
For that, we can be pretty certain weÂ’re seeing the ultimate, optimum Dodge Magnum high-performance wagon. At least until the SRT gang spends another year coming up with new ideas. Come to think of it, a second warning to the driver could flash onto the windshield whenever the gas pedal is stepped on firmly, reading: “Caution, stepping too hard, too often, on gas pedal could cause fuel gauge to reach ‘E’ faster than seems possible.”
New Audi A4 features revised look, engines, interior
TUCSON, ARIZ. — The A4 has been more than just a well-designed intermediate-sized sedan for Audi. It is the vehicle that transported the company from the brink of withdrawing from the United States marketplace 10 years ago to an upward spiral of success. Audi not only rivals German counterparts BMW and Mercedes for refined motoring in all categories, its quattro all-wheel-drive system and advanced engine technology make it one of the worldÂ’s standards of technical innovation.
So the timing seemed both perfect and curious that Audi introduced an entirely new A4 to North American automotive media this past week in the cactus-covered hilly region around Tucson. The timing is perfect because not only 10 years have passed since the A4 was introduced to the U.S., and Audi is about to celebrate the 25th anniversary of its quattro system, which spreads out the power to all four wheels all the time.
It is curious, however, because the A4 introduction comes just three months after Audi unveiled an entirely redesigned A6 sedan, and it seems like quite a challenge for a small company from Ingolstadt, Germany, to launch and promote the stunning new larger A6 and the new A4 almost simultaneously. While the A4 will be hitting showrooms immediately, it would seem like an early 2006, but it must be designated as a 2005 model because production started last November.
The new A4 has a new look, a new interior, more power, improved suspension, and, simply, is more fun to drive. From the new trapezoidal corporate grille to the oddly shaped taillights, the A4 is more than just a reskinning of the company’s golden egg. An entirely new interior – with workable cupholders, even – puts you in command of two new engines that both are cutting-edge in technical advances. Even the proven excellence of the quattro has been altered.
At the technical session before we drove the new cars, a video showed an A4 being driven in swift little circles on an icy surface. The driver had kinked the wheel enough to hang out the rear end just a bit, and held that tail-out attitude. I happened to be sitting next to Marc Trahan, Audi’s technical guru. “You wouldn’t have been able to do that with the old quattro, would you?†I asked. He shook his head.
ItÂ’s true. The quattro always has had 50/50 power distribution through its Torsen all-wheel-drive unit, because it was originally designed for performance, giving more power to the outside wheels in tight cornering, although it also was always able to shift a greater percentage of torque to the front or rear axle if it detected slippage at either end. The new quattro system on the A4Â’s Torsen can still shift the torque provide optimum traction if slippage is detected, but it will do so from a 40/60 front/rear basis rather than 50/50.
The previous A4 quattro always traced such a precise arc that it almost felt more like it was on rails than that it was responding to steering input, while the new one feels even more precise because you can make it go just a bit over the line by inducing the proper doses of steering and throttle.
“We built the A4 to be more agile and offer more driving fun,†said Armin Ruscheinsky, the man in charge of developing the new suspension on the car. Ruscheinsky explained that the new suspension is borrowed from the larger A6 or high-performance specialty S4 vehicles, with the front double-wishbone unit improving the grip and steering feedback, and the rear trapezoidal system improving on preventing any tendency to oversteer and staying planted whether accelerating, swerving or braking.
“The handling limits are very high, with limited body roll,†Ruscheinsky said. “It has the safety of German high-speed cars, but with a high-degree of comfort. In testing, we were able to do laps below nine minutes at Nurburgring. I hope you can feel the spirit and character of this car.Ââ€
We didnÂ’t have Nurburgring, but we did have some rural highways outside of Tucson, one with about a dozen steeply undulating dips and hills. Ruscheinsky was in the back seat when we went out on our first drive, definitely feeling the spirit and character of the A4 as I stayed on the power, somewhere beyond the speed limit to feel like we might go airborne at the crest of each hill, then settling back down on the suspension with surprising grace for the dips. Ruscheinsky altered the road feel with shock absorber settings to absorb almost all the energy on its first flex, but staying up firm after one flex, rather than continuing to bounce. It was fun to push the A4, and Ruscheinsky seemed to enjoy the fact that I found it fun.
Fun seems to be the focal point of various car-makers these days, but when German car-makers say it, they mean it at another dimension, because of their unlimited-speed autobahn environment. Johan de Nysschen, the new executive vice president of Audi of America, talked about how Audi had caught its German counterparts in three-year residual value ratings, with Audi retaining 52 percent, BMW 54 percent and Mercedes 51 percent of original value, and that Audi was named as the best premium brand among German cars up to three years old.
The 2004 A4 is powered by two very good engines, a 1.8-liter four cylinder engine with five valves per cylinder and low-pressure turbocharging, and a 3.0-liter V6, also with five valves. For almost any other company, those two engines would be over the top for technical advancements, but the new A4 goes beyond both of them.
A 2.0-liter four TSI becomes the first regular-production engine available in any car with both direct injection and turbocharging. With direct injection, a high-pressure fuel-air mixture is injected into the combustion chamber rather than an intake port, which gives us a much denser and cooler mixture,†Trahan said. That allows it to run at a high 10.5-to-1 compression ratio, with 200 horsepower and 207 foot-pounds of torque – figures that represent a 30-horsepower and 41-foot-pound increase over the 1.8, and lowers 0-60 times from 7.8 to 7.1 seconds.
AudiÂ’s engineers have ingeniously coordinated the turbocharger and the electronic controls so that the horsepower peak occurs at 5,100 RPMs and holds that peak to 5,500, while the torque peaks at 1,800 RPMs and remains at that peak all the way to 5,000 RPMs. While torque is mainly responsible for the low-end power, it is best when the torque curve gets close to overlapping with the horsepower peak, and with this engine, the torque peak runs all the way into the middle of the peak horsepower band.
The upgraded engine is the 3.2-liter V6 that is the base engine of the larger A6. It, too, is a four-valve gem with direct injection, with 12.5-to-1 compression ratio, producing 255 horsepower and 243 foot-pounds of torque, which is an increase of 35 horsepower and 22 foot-pounds, and it lowers the 0-60 acceleration time from 6.9 to 6.6 seconds. The 3.2 is not turbocharged, and its torque peak is 3,250 while its horsepower peaks at 6,500 revs.
The six-speed manual transmission with the 2.0 four-cylinder and the Sport Package suspension – set to S4 specifications – was the most fun to drive. Truly a sports car in sedan clothing. And fancy clothes, at that.
We also drove the Avant, which is the wagon version of the A4, and we tried that with the 3.2 V6 and the six-speed automatic, which is a Tiptronic unit that you can shift manually, if you choose. Even with more power, and an efficient automatic being hand-shifted, the four with the stick felt quicker. The normal suspension is firm enough, although the Sport setting is firmer without being uncomfortable.
We got a surprise when we tried the 2.0 four with the CVT – constantly variable transmission. When we pulled onto the road, we were behind an elderly pair driving very slowly. For a mile or so. When I finally got a clear space to pass, I pulled out and hammered it, and the A4 took off like a scalded cat. I had to double check to assure that it was the four, but it was extra impressive because it was the front-wheel-drive version, not the heavier quattro.
One of the biggest features of the new A4 is the price list. The base 2.0 front-wheel drive sedan with the six-speed manual has a base of $27,350. The same car with the CVT is $28,550. Moving up to the 2.0 with quattro and the stick boosts the base price to $29,450, while the Avant version of that car is $30,450. The sedan with quattro and six-speed Tiptronic is $30,650, and the Avant is $31,650. If you want the 3.2 V6 quattro, the base sedan comes with the six-speed Tiptronic for $35,400, and the Avant is $36,400 A $720 desdtination cost must be added to those base prices, as well as all sorts of tempting options, such as DVD navigation, headlight washers, and the ability to play MP3 music.
As usual, Audi loaded up the A4 with two-stage airbags and air curtains, and structurally is is both lighter and stronger because 45 percent of the car is built of high-strength steel. The interior is all new, similar to the A6, which I think is a large improvement over the previously very good interior. In the A4, you can choose your type of real wood trim from the option list, and thereÂ’s some brushed aluminum and leather wherever you look.
U.S. customers finally have gotten through to Audi about cupholders, too. The last time I drove an A4, with the neat little slot that popped out of the dash and turned into a spindly cupholder, I plunked my tall, Nissan insulated coffee mug into the holder and pulled out of my driveway. I looked both ways, then pulled out onto the road. Suddenly I felt intense heat in my crotch area. The mug had flipped out of the holder, and, after a full end-over-end flight, had landed upside down in my lap.
The new A4 has receptacles sunk simply into the console, with spring clips to secure any coffee mug or water bottle you might choose to put in there. Simple, and it works superbly. That leaves, as the only complaint, the control knob that is used to alter the audio or the heat-air. It is a simplified version of the all-controlling knob BMW and other Audis have used before, and it still is needlessly complicated. A simple round knob and push-button system would be much preferred, much like the cupholders. But at least complex audio tuners donÂ’t threaten you with getting scalded by yout own coffee.
(John Gilbert writes weekly auto reviews, and can be contacted at cars@jwgilbert.com.)
Magnum R/T, 300C are twin winners with attitudes
Competition for 2005 Car of the Year is the most ferocious in the awardÂ’s history. Consider logical favorites such as U.S. icons Corvette and Mustang, both of which have been entirely redesigned, as well as some superb new vehicles that include the Volvo S40/V50, the sleek and sinewy Acura RL, Ford Five Hundred, Cadillac STS, and even the Honda Odyssey, andÂ…well, you get the idea.
So where does DaimlerChrysler fit into that group with its new and remarkably successful twins, the Chrysler 300 and Dodge Magnum?
Right up there at the top, that’s where. In fact, the biggest problem the cars face in the competition is that they are submitted separately. Both will attract some heavy consideration from the 50 jurors, if my part of the process is any indication. Had the two been submitted as one entry – sedan and wagon rising off the same basic platform – their combined total might have outpointed everything else.
But the company wants to differentiate between them, and indeed it has, with both their exteriors and interiors. But they do ride on the same platform, and share the same three engine/transmission packages. I drove a “Midnight Blue Pearl†Chrysler 300C – a deep, dark color that made all its chrome touches stand out. Earlier, I drove a “Cool Vanilla†Dodge Magnum R/T – a remarkable color that was a pearly compromise between white and cream.
Both were top-of-the-line models, with the 5.7-liter “Hemi†V8 engine and startling power for acceleration and smooth performance. Both have five-speed automatic transmissions, and neither had the available all-wheel-drive system that may relieve some of the anxieties the normal rear-drive presents in snow-country winters, trusting instead to traction-control sophistication.
If the 300C and Magnum are twins, they definitely are not identical twins, and they use distinctly different tones even as they both scream out “Look at me!Ââ€
Critics at first hinted that such styling departures would be the weakness of both vehicles. Instead, it has been their strength. The styling is not for everybody, but sales, which have been stronger than anyone anticipated, indicate that provoking a strong response, either positive or negative, is preferable to being boring. It helps, of course, if the “positive†side is in the majority, as are both the 300 and Magnum.
The 300 is a boldly different sedan, with a distinctive, hulking front appearance that may be blunt, but is laced with chrome highlights and a large, vertical grille. The bluntly chiseled demeanor follows all the way back along the high door sills, but with classy touches all the way to the angular rear. If you want to think retro, squint a little and imagine this car delivering Al Capone from his last heist directly to some high-society affair. In top form, with bright chrome, 18-inch wheels, the 300C is the perfect family sedan, or business executive cruiser. It definitely makes a statement wherever it goes, although IÂ’m not sure what statements are made by the several IÂ’ve seen with mesh grilles and (gasp!) spinner wheels as aftermarket add-ons.
The Dodge Magnum has a little less classic look and a little more outlaw than the 300. It comes as a wagon only, but not just a wagon. In silhouette, the Magnum has high side sills and a low, tapering roofline, which, when combined, leaves only a little room for the side windows, less and less as you go toward the tapering rear. But that’s the secret of the design – making it look as though some street-rodder chopped off the side pillars, lowering the roofline dramatically. Up front, the Magnum has Dodge’s signature cross-hairs grille making it look as though it truly might be a descendant of the big and bad Ram truck. Think of it as a powerful alternative to a minivan, SUV, or normal sedan for a city, suburban or rural fellow – or family – that is bold enough to think outside the box.
While the pushrod Hemi has tremendous power – 340-horsepower and 390 foot-pounds of torque, good for 6.3-second 0-60 dashes – it also has a smooth method to gain surprisingly good fuel economy. The system causes four of the V8’s pistons to completely shut down when cruising ease doesn’t require full power. The front and rear cylinders on the left and the middle two on the right bank cut out without notice, and stepping on the gas provides instant acceleration, also seamlessly. It sounded good when vehicle development manager Jack Broomall explained it to me, and it worked well enough to allow me to get 27 miles per gallon, better than the 25-mpg highway estimate.
I was impressed with both cars when I drove them at their introduction earlier this year, and the chance to spend a week of normal city and freeway driving with both amplifies ChryslerÂ’s initial claims. Loaded as the cars were with options, they both topped $30,000, running up closer to $35,000 as tested. If you stayed with the other models you could keep the price well under $30,000. The Magnum starts at $22,495 with a 190-horsepower 2.7-liter V6, moving upward to the SXT with a 250-horse 3.5-liter V6, before rising to R/T form. The 300 has a base of $23,595 with the 2.7, scaling upwards to the Touring and Limited models with the 3.5, and on up to the 300C, which trades the overhead-cam V6es for the big V8.
In the top models, the driving experience is similar, naturally, starting with a tall seating position that is 2.5 inches higher than in the Intrepid/300M models the cars replace. The suspension is taut and firm without being harsh, so you maintain level stature in hard cornering. Power is good, and the various traction and braking features make the cars feel sure-footed in all circumstances, although snow is still a future challenge.
For going, the traction-control system combines electronic throttle control with electronic braking to prevent wheelspin when accelerating, and electronic stability program (ESP) goes a further step to maintain directional stability by controlling oversteer and understeer. Stopping the near-4,000-pound twins is aided by antilock brakes on the four-wheel discs and bolstered by a brake-assist feature to provide maximum braking when you step down hard.
Instrumentation makes the Magnum sportier and the 300 classier, further stressing the difference in purpose of the two cars. The 300C has a big trunk, while the Magnum has a rear cargo area both on and under its floor, and folding the rear seats forward makes an enormous and flat stowage space. A really neat feature is the tailgate, which is hinged several inches into the rear roof, creating a yawning expanse when opened for easier loading.
When the cars first came out, I preferred the MagnumÂ’s sleekness to the more brick-like bluntness of the 300. After driving the mystical-off-white Magnum R/T, that thought was reinforced. But last week, when I drove the 300C that was so dark its rich blue looked almost black, I like both of them about the same. Either one is a valid Car of the Year contestant. Together, they might have been a cinch.
(John Gilbert writes weekly auto reviews, votes on the Car of the Year jury, and can be reached at cars@jwgilbert.com.)
About the Author
John Gilbert is a lifetime Minnesotan and career journalist, specializing in cars and sports during and since spending 30 years at the Minneapolis Tribune, now the Star Tribune. More recently, he has continued translating the high-tech world of autos and sharing his passionate insights as a freelance writer/photographer/broadcaster. A member of the prestigious North American Car and Truck of the Year jury since 1993. John can be heard Monday-Friday from 9-11am on 610 KDAL(www.kdal610.com) on the "John Gilbert Show," and writes a column in the Duluth Reader.
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