Toyota’s FJ Cruiser direct hit on active-life segment
GREENVILLE, S.C. — The folks at Toyota who were introducing a couple new 2007 vehicles last month expressed disappointment because the 2006 RAV4, Toyota Avalon, and Lexus GS and IS models weren’t finalists in either the 2006 Truck or Car of the Year voting.
I suggested that maybe they only need to be patient, because Toyota could be in prime position to sweep both 2007 awards, with the latest generation Camry, and the introduction of the entirely new FJ Cruiser.
The redesigned Camry is a given, and the FJ Cruiser is a lead-pipe cinch to be successful. It is the latest example of a concept vehicle the springs to life and becomes a major hit. The first utility vehicle Toyota ever built was a primitive Jeep-like vehicle in the early 1950s, first called the AK10, and the second being the BJ, which acquired the nickname Land Cruiser in 1954.That was a rugged off-road vehicle, and it led into the series of Land Cruisers that evolved to what now exists as the basic large and fully appointed SUV.
Two years ago, Toyota unveiled a wild-looking, bright blue auto show concept vehicle that looked like an artsy combination of a Jeep Wrangler and a compact Hummer, with retro leanings toward the old FJ Land Cruiser. The concept vehicle met with such wild acclaim that this weekend, at the Detroit Auto Show, the FJ Cruiser will debut as a production vehicle
Styled after the 1967 FJ40, the new FJ Cruiser is a strange conglomeration of seemingly unrelated parts that somehow come together to make an entirely pleasing and impressive looking vehicle. From the side, the shape is uneven, with large doors and then smaller, thinner rear-hinged “suicide†doors allowing easier access to the rear seat. Trust me on this, but the FJ with the optional roof rack looks twice as good as the FJ without it. Without it, the FJ looks…almost bald, and not just because they all come with a bright white roof panel.
Toyota, which hasnÂ’t missed on many opportunities to gobble up market segments on its way to inevitably pass General Motors as the worldÂ’s largest auto manufacturer, has filled the FJ with every necessary option to impress off-road types, and to appeal to off-road-wannabes who need a vehicle for all seasons but donÂ’t mind creating the image that they are free-wheeling, devil-may-care adventurers.
It doesn’t matter to Toyota if you go mountain climbing, whitewater rafting, sky-diving, mountain biking, or never do anything more adventurous than driving to the mall, you are still “qualified†to buy an FJ Cruiser. The price is expected to be “mid-$20,000†and they will conquer rugged terrain, because of a tough, fully-boxed frame, two different four-wheel-drive systems with high and low ranges and a center differential lock, and with short overhangs for good enter and exit climbing angles.
The truck-based platform gives the FJ a 180-inch length and 106-inch wheelbase, and it is powered by a 4.0-liter V6 with variable valve timing, extracting 239 horsepower at 5,200 RPMs and 278 foot-pounds of torque at 3,700 RPMs. That engine, shared with the Tacoma, 4Runner, and Tundra, and either a six-speed stick or a five-speed automatic. Its tow capacity is 5,000 pounds, and its tongue weight is 500 pounds.
The stick-shift models have full-time all-wheel drive that can be switched into high for everyday, on-road driving, high-range/low-gear for off-roading, or low-range/low-gear for ultra-slow rock climbing, up or down. For the heaviest off-road duty, you also can start the stick version without pushing in the clutch, to avoid rolling on a steep grade. A Torsen limited-slip center differential sends 40 percent of torque to the front and 60 percent to the rear in normal driving, but any slippage of the rear can shift up to 53 percent of power to the front, and slippage up front can shift up to 70 percent to the rear.
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The automatic has uphill and downhill shift logic to prevent gear hunting on uphill climbs, and will downshift to help control slow speeds when going down steep embankments. A gated shifter allows drivers to manually shift as well. The shift-on-the-fly part-time four-wheel drive system means you can set it for just rear-drive, or shift into four-wheel drive when you encounter a slippery stretch.
The ruggedness of being based on the modern Land Cruiser frame parts adds to the impressive stance and off-road performance. But the FJ also is extraordinarily appealing to normal, on-road customers, with its wild color schemes, which are repeated on the center dashboard. An optional gauge package can be mounted up on top of the dashboard, as well.
The side doors must be opened to allow opening the suicide doors, and the second row can be folded down on a 60-40 split basis to create a flat cargo floor. Seat materials are water-repellant, covered with a breathable resin for easy cleaning. Floor surfaces are covered with rubbery stuff, and an enormous subwoofer can be installed on the rear compartment wall to enhance the audio system. Rear household plug-in sockets are also available.
All of ToyotaÂ’s latest safety elements are in place, from child seats to airbags to four-wheel disc brakes with antilock and electronic brake distribution, as well as a traction control system and a systemn for detecting and offsetting slides and skids.
Toyota says the FJ will compete with the Jeep Rubicon, Nissan Xterra and the softer but similarly aimed Honda Element. Toyota expects to build 46,000 of them for 2006 calendar year sales, with 93 percent of them 4x4s.
When Toyota recently brought out the RAV4, I remarked that by making it 14 inches longer than its predecessor, mounting a V6, and adding a third row of seats, Toyota might gain new customers, but it was abandoning the “cute ute†consumers who made it a giant success.
Now, I have a new suspicion: Toyota abandoned the cute-ute segment only for a few months, and now it is refilling it with a “cuter-uter” that slots in smaller than the new RAV4, and should be a sellout.
Honda rides innovative Ridgeline into pickup battle
LA JOLLA, CALIF. — After truck sales zoomed into the stratosphere, it seemed that every possible configuration of pickup trucks had been created — from small to medium to humungous, from long-bed to short-bed to covered-bed, and from regular-cab to extended-cab to crew-cab. Not so fast, there, pardner. ThereÂ’s still room for one more, and Honda, of all people, is the one filling that slot.
The Honda Ridgeline pickup will hit showrooms in about a month, and Honda aims to sell about 50,000 of them this year year, while hoping to double that in future years. Honda officials readily admit that after insisting for a decade that they’d never build an actual pickup truck, now they are saying, “Here’s our truck.†The shifting marketplace and the increasing profits from trucks are more than enough motivation for a corporate mind-change. But Honda hasn’t missed on many of its ideas so far, always creating clever vehicles with the highest technology, build quality and clean efficiency, and the Ridgeline seems to be another direct hit.
Honda gave itself quite a task, aiming for a pickup truck that can do it all, with full-size interior and all sorts of appointments, yet a compact exterior, for maneuverability and convenience, and the ability of competing – if not beating – the more powerful and larger trucks on the market. The Ridgeline is a full-four-door pickup, with styling that is daring and bold enough to defy the conservative look of Accords and Civics, as well as the aerodynamically astute look of Acura RSX, TSX, TL, RL and MD-X models.
For power, Honda always has taken on the argument of enlarging displacement by using superior technology, but tweaking the 3.5-liter V6 to be able to run with the numerous V8 and larger V6 engines of competitors and still be clean for emissions, was a big task.
Meanwhile, recognizing that virtually all trucks are compromises, with some being better off-road, others better on-road, some with suspensions designed for full loads, and others for light-load comfort, the Ridgeline aims to combine all those assets. It is designed with both a fully cross-membered frame and a unibody, fused cleverly into a tight package that is both superbly comfortable loaded and unloaded, while hauling a half-ton of cargo or towing a 5,000-pound trailer. The bed is all-composite, and itÂ’s ingeniously designed with a trunk under the bedÂ’s floor.
The people buying trucks will be the ultimate jury, but the gathered automotive media were pretty unanimous in being impressed at the introduction of the vehicle at a resort and ranch in the La Jolla, California, area near San Diego. (Those of us who are hardy Midwesterners might wonder where this place, pronounced “La Hoya,†is located, and hopefully we all figured out that it’s the Spanish pronunciation of La Jolla.)
Anyhow, cynics asked how Honda could possibly compete with full-size pickups with huge V8s, using that slick little V6 that has variations powering the Acura MD-X luxury SUV and RL luxury sedan. Honda officials didn’t make any outrageous boasts, and they insisted their intention is not to replace the F150 – Ford’s benchmark full-size pickup – but that we should wait until the demonstration drives to see for ourselves.
Honda had a Ford F150 available, with a 5.4-liter Triton V8, and hooked it up to a 5,000-pound trailer next to a Ridgeline with an identical trailer. Nobody was surprised that the F150 out-drag-raced the Ridgeline, but everyone was surprised at how slight the margin was. And the last remaining critics were silenced when the same two vehicles were run through a slalom course, where, typically, the trailer felt like it was wagging the dog a bit with the big pickup, yet the Ridgeline performed with sports sedan stability and agility.
Earlier, we visited Vessels Ranch, where thoroughbreds and quarterhorses are bred and raised, and where an off-road course was carved into the hillsides, through sandy gulches and small streams. The Ridgeline breezed through it.
The 3.5-liter V6 turns out 255 horsepower at 5,750 RPMs, and 252 foot-pounds of torque at 4,500 RPMs, and preliminary estimates are for 21 miles per gallon highway and 16 city. It is the first pickup truck with an engine that meets Level II of the ULEV (ultra low emission vehicle) and Bin 5 pollution standards. Its five-speed automatic is reinforced, and is coupled with HondaÂ’s VTM-4 all-wheel drive, a system that runs front-wheel-drive until load or slippage calls for torque shift to the rear, then calculates and shifts up to 70 percent of the torque to the rear. For extreme conditions, you can lock the rear axle so that all four wheels churn together.
Honda says it spotted an opening in the crowded truck segment for an all-new and different type of pickup. Under cross-examination, though, Honda officials admit that if they hadnÂ’t found a self-styled niche, they would have still built a pickup, maybe a better Tacoma, or something similar. Instead, they claim to be filling a niche that their market research says is there.
Dan Bonawitz, Honda’s vice president of planning and logistics, said that with all its SUVs, Honda would sell 500,000 trucks in 2004, after having none to sell in 1994. Light truck sales account for 54 percent of all U.S. sales, and that is expected to rise to 58 percent, while car sales are expected to drop to 42-46 percent. Bonawitz also explained that among the 3-million total pickups, conventional 2-door models decreased 8.6 percent in the past year, while 4-door models have increased 9.5 percent, and “new variations†of cab design have increased 40.8 percent.
“Eighteen percent of all Honda owners also own pickups, and almost 25 percent of CR-V owners also have pickups,†Bonawitz said. “Until now, Honda owners have had no choice but to go outside of Honda to buy a pickup.Ââ€
Extensive market research went into the clean-sheet design of the Ridgeline. Among both Honda owners and potential pickup buyers, the research showed a strong interest in what they wanted in a pickup, and the priorities were family needs, commuting, hauling kids and kidsÂ’ stuff, hauling home-improvement products. They also denoted a weakness of current pickups as the inability to securely store things, poor fuel efficiency, and limited interior comfort, particularly for five or six occupants.
“So we wanted to create our own benchmark,†said Gary Flint, Honda’s large project leader. “We had to retain our core values of safety for everyone, being environmentally responsible, offer outstanding value, quality reliability, and be fun to drive. We also wanted a strong image, the ability to haul a lot of cargo, all-wheel drive, good driving position, storage, and with a focus on family needs. Plus, from our sedans, we had to have comfort, refinement, ergonomics, and good fuel economy.
“We also wanted to make the Ridgeline maneuverable, able to carry at least five passengers, and be kid-friendly, while still being fun, durable, capable of running off-road, and of hauling dirty cargo. So we created a recipe, offering a new approach for active families.Ââ€
The result is a truck that is 207 inches long – 1.5 inches shorter than an F150, but with greater interior room. Large rear-seat knee room and seatback angle that is the same as the front buckets are standard, with the capability of storing 2.6 cubic feet under the rear seat, and to flip up the bottom cushion in all or part of a 60/40 split. A mountain bike will easily fit, upright, back there, meaning you don’t have to worry about it getting ripped off when you put it in the bed and stop at a store or restaurant.
The pickup bed is truly a work of art. The composite design took a battering without being marred from a front-end loader dumping 600 pounds of boulders into the bed as we watched. Grooves in the floor of the bed are designed so that owners of 3.4 million Honda motorcycles will find the tires fit perfectly. At 49 inches wide (the F150 is 50 inches), a 4×8-foot sheet of plywood rides flat in the 5-foot bed, which goes to 6.5 feet with the tailgate down.
The tailgate itself is a work of art. It opens by folding down, and 300 pounds of weight can rest on it without a problem, and it also will open to the side, which is perfect for allowing easy access to whatever you want to load or unload.
The primary feature of the bed, however, is the trunk. At a touch, the rear floor section will tilt up, revealing an 8.5-cubic-foot trunkspace. It is large enough to store extra large duffel bags, three full sets of golf clubs, a stroller, or a 72-quart cooler, and you can get a divider and cargo hooks as well. The best part is that the trunk lid/bed floor is completely sealed, so you could haul a load of dirt in the bed, and none of it would get into the trunk. The crowning touch is that you could simply fill the whole trunk with ice, and when you pull up to a picnic or camping site, or to tailgate, pop the trunk and you have the perfect cooler. A drain plug is also standard. Also, when you lock the doors, the trunk locks as well. A temporary spare also is stashed in the trunk, although a full-size one will fit there.
In design, Honda knew that a unibody was best for body rigidity and safety, but a body on frame is best for towing and cargo. So even though it took 93 percent new and exclusive parts, an integrated frame with boxed frame rails and seven cross-members of high-strength steel was designed and fastened to a unibody structure. The finished Ridgeline is 2.5 times stiffer in bending rigidity and 20 times stiffer in torsional rigidity than “other midsize pickups,†Honda says. The bed is sheet-molded composite, so it won’t corrode or suffer “ding†damage, and it has three cross-members under it.
An independent rear suspension tracks well and aids handling and comfort. Rubber isolation points on the subframe help to quiet vibrations. The suspension system designed for the Pilot SUV has been reinforced totally, measuring a 30-percent increase in strength, and the result is lateral response g-forces and slalom speeds far better than the F150, Titan, Tundra or Colorado pickups.
Driving position is excellent, as is the switchgear, except for the headlight switch. I donÂ’t like the turn-knob on the left side of the dash for headlights, when every vehicle on the planet seems to have pull-push switches, or twisting the end of the directional-light stalk, to operate the lights. WeÂ’re nitpicking, here, however. Along with antilock brakes on the four-wheel discs, the Ridgeline has electronic brake distribution, and brake assist for emergency stops, as well as traction control and vehicle stability control, and a full complement of airbags and curtains, and it earns five-star crash-test ratings, with special attention to crash compatibility to make smaller vehicles and even pedestrians safer in collisions.
The Ridgeline has passenger-car-level interior noise, with a navigation screen, audio upgrades that include rear-seat DVD screen and wireless headphones, and it starts out well-equipped with standard features in base RT level, at $28,000, while an RTS that adds alloy wheels and a six-CD audio, and the top of the line RTL adds heated leather seats with a base price of $32,000.
Whether Honda is accurate in its assessment of what it calls this available niche in a “morphing†truck market, the Ridgeline seems certain to be a sellout.
(John Gilbert writes weekly auto reviews, and you can reach him at cars@jwgilbert.com.)
2005 Mustang takes us back to the future
SANTA MONICA, CALIF. — Back in 1970, I made the most exciting new-car purchase of my life. As a young sportwriter and automotive columnist, I was covering motorsports that included road-racing, and I enjoyed the Trans-Am series so much that I tried out all the factory pony cars before choosing a 1970 Boss 302 Mustang.
Without question — and notwithstanding rhapsodies from classic-car zealots about the original 1964, or the macho 1968, or any of the Shelby Mustangs from 1967 through 1969 — the 1970 Boss 302 was the single car that defines FordÂ’s favorite icon since the Model T. It was sleek, handled with fabulous precision, made an absolute statement for uncompromising performance, and had a 300-horsepower V8 that enjoyed high-revving sprints so much that it fairly whistled as the revs built, applying the zest with which Parnelli Jones won the Trans-Am series to the streets.
It also was the most-refined of the first herd of Mustangs, from 1964-70. In 1971, Ford made the Mustang a foot longer, and lost — seemingly forever — the art of putting the Mustang atop U.S. car-buyersÂ’ must-have lists.
It was a thrill, after all the intervening years — and with that Â’70 still in my possession under modified 1969 Shelby bodywork — to climb inside the 2005 Mustang. This is the car that redefines the Mustang for Ford, 40 years after the first one. Chief designer Hau Thai Tang is too young to recall those first Mustangs, but he went back and sampled a lot of 1967 and Â’68 versions. Alas, he never found a 1970 Boss 302 to examine, or his task might have been made easier. But he did well.
The 2005 Mustang proves conclusively by how much Ford designers have missed the mark since 1970.
That is not to discredit the most recent Mustangs, on which Thai-Tang worked to guide the shape back toward the originals, because, after all, Mustang has survived where Camaro, Firebird, Challenger, Barracuda, Cougar, and Javelin all did not. But the new Mustang is what a modern, high-technology extension of the 1970 might have looked like. Had Hau Thai-Tang been in charge back then, this might have been the 1971 design, instead of wandering aimlessly between bigger, smaller, tiny, and finally back to pony car stature.
Company officials proclaim that if the F150 pickup is the heart of Ford Motor Company, Mustang is the soul. Last year, the redesigned F150 generated thousands of corporate-website hits for information, but this year, seven times as many people sought information on the Mustang. The same officials say that the new Five Hundred makes an intellectual statement for FordÂ’s future, while the Mustang is strictly aimed at emotion.
The long-hood/short rear deck Mustang started out as gamble and captured U.S. buyers as an emotional entity, but also an economical one. It may have strayed since 1970, but over 8 million of them have been sold in 40 years.
The new car will be built in Flat Rock, Mich., on an all-new, purpose-built platform, with taut bodywork that is 4.8-inches longer overall stretched over a wheelbase that is 6 inches longer than the 2004 Mustang. Five of those six inches are up front, allowing more room inside, and an improved weight distribution by reducing the amount over the front axle from 57 to 54 percent.
“It may be emotional more than intellectual,†said Thai-Tang, “but there are some smart ideas in the new Mustang.Ââ€
Among those are modern frame-building, which makes the new car 35 percent stiffer in both torsional and bending rigidity. And the interior gives more than torture-chamber room to the still-tight rear seat while adding to front room, where the driver has a modern metallic flair with controls and instruments that recall the early Mustangs, as do external features.
We can forgive younger auto-writers who didnÂ’t live through the first Mustang era. Some claim features copy the original, which would be the 1964, when, in fact, they most copy the refined 1970. That includes everything from taillight shape and three-bar look, to speedometer and tachometer digits, which are large, single numbers, almost identical even in font to the 1970.
Ford intends to sell nearly 50 percent of new Mustangs to female buyers, with about 70 percent of the total choosing the V6 base model rather than the GT model with its V8. The cars have vastly different personalities, but both fit into the corporate plan to keep the price down to real-world levels.
Dissipation of all pony car competition leaves the new Mustang to take on the likes of the Acura RSX, the Infiniti G35 coupe, and maybe even the M3-style BMW, or R32 Volkswagen GTI-upgrade. But all competitors will flinch while consumers celebrate the Mustang base price of $19,410, and the GT base of $24,995. Both versions have a five-speed automatic available, but the sticks heighten the sportiness.
Interestingly, the base car has a clean, open grille that made the 1967, Â’68 and Â’70 models so attractive, while the GT has large foglights mounted inside the grille, more reminiscent of the inside pair of smaller headlights on the 1969 model. With the headlights on both cars stylishly located behind plexiglass lenses, I prefer the look of the open grille.
What the Mustang does not have that would be good upgrades are a six-speed manual, and independent rear suspension. However, the live rear axle feels good, and the five-speed is adequate, but both were included in a concerted attempt to keep the price down. If including an independent rear and a six-speed meant vaulting above and beyond $25,000, I think Ford made the right decision.
Another national publication said the base engine is all new while the GT V8 is the same-old 4.6. In reality, the V6 is the 4.0-liter V6 that originated in FordÂ’s German Scorpio as a pushrod powerplant. Ford brought the engine in, revised it by beefing up the block and installing single overhead camshafts, and using it as the impressive engine in the Explorer and Ranger. Revised again, that SOHC 4.0 V6 is now installed in the Mustang, with 210 horsepower and 240 foot-pounds of torque — substantially better than the 187/225 figures for the pushrod 3.8 it replaces. That means the V6 can be fun, especially for those choosing the five-speed manual shifter over the five-speed automatic.
The GT engine is, indeed, the 4.6-liter V8 introduced in 1996, but while the displacement remains unchanged the engine is made entirely out of aluminum, with three-valve cylinder heads sprouting two intake valves and one exhaust. That design allows the sparkplug placement to remain centered, and single-overhead cams on each bank can dictate variable valve timing equalized on both intake and exhaust sides. Along with being 75 pounds lighter than the conventional 4.6, significantly increased power is complemented by 57 percent improvement in emissions, and can run on regular gas.
My biggest complaint about the Mustang is that while being careful to blend retro with progressive inside, the gauges have bright silver rings around them. I found that distracting because the silver translated every bit of light to glare, attracting my peripheral vision, and even making it difficult to see the two tiny gauges located between the larger speedometer and tach.
What goes into the car is only important in the context of how it all is coordinated, and the 2005 Mustang GT feels totally together. I was able to drive it, hard, around the twisting mountain road switchbacks above Santa Monica, and by luck, my passenger was none other than chief engineer Hau Thai Tang. The Mustang snaked around corners and held its line flawlessly, indicating that the even the specific-built Pirelli tires on 17-inch alloy wheels complement the suspension and the carÂ’s refined balance.
For those interested in impressing others, driving the Mustang in California meant some interesting reactions. It was easy lip-reading to note that numerous pedestrians and drivers at intersections would say, “Oh, thereÂ’s the new Mustang!Ââ€
One journalist had an unfortunate incident where he claimed a car ran a stop sign from his left, and he smacked it broadside when he started up. We came upon them moments later, as the woman talked on her cellphone in the passenger seat and two young boys stood next to her. I went across the street to shoot a picture of the bright yellow Mustang, and suddenly I was aware of a young boy standing next to me.
“That new Mustang is really neat,†he said. “How fast will it go?Ââ€
Turns out, it was the kid from the car that was hit, who was, in effect, praising the car that had just broadsided his car.
Later, in semi-rush-hour traffic by the ocean, a long-haired young man was weaving through traffic in a bright blue Volkswagen R-32, the high-performance upgrade from the GTI. We stopped next to him at the next intersection, and he said: “ThatÂ’s the new Mustang, eh?Ââ€
I said yes, it was.
“Effen rad!†he said.
I donÂ’t speak California, but judging by the radical nature of his car, I figured he ought to know rad when he saw it.
(John Gilbert writes weekly car reviews, and can be reached at cars@jwgilbert.com.)
New-generation Mercedes E-Class leaves no gap
ST. HELENA, CALIF. — The 2007 Mercedes E-Class is the most refined midsize sedan ever produced by Mercedes, but at first glance, the styling gap is almost imperceptible between the new seventh-generation model and the current 2006 E-Class. That prompts the question: Can there be a new-generation car if there is no generation gap? Or is that the automotive equivalent of the rhetorical question: If a tree falls in the woods and nobody is there to hear it, does it really make a sound?
The sound, or more accurately the lack of sound, is one of the impressive features of the new E-Class, which has enough significant improvements to justify Mercedes giving it its own generation, and also to summon a couple of waves of automotive journalists to the Napa Valley area, 100 miles north of Sacramento, to examine and drive it – even while acknowledging that the outside underwent more of a mid-cycle refresh than a redesign.
It didn’t take more than one step on the gas to appreciate the tremendous power and the firmer handling of the new E550, but for style, the existing 2006 E-Class certainly won’t look out of date next to the 2007. The new car’s grille is slightly taller, leans back at a steeper angle, and wears a new small Mercedes emblem just ahead of the traditional Mercedes star hood ornament. Below the grille is a pointier front bumper – the easiest way to differentiate the two. If the bumper comes to a distinct point at its leading edge, it’s the new car. Taillight lenses have a smoother lens, which is interesting, because the current style’s grooves were designed to force airflow and rainwater to clean off the taillights. New side mirrors have an air-channeling design to help blow the side windows clear of rain.
The first E-Class sedan was built in 1953, and it evolved into the company’s “bread and butter†car over 53 years, particularly in the last dozen, when it usually outsold the more compact C-Class and the larger S-Class. The new E reflects Mercedes’ continued attempt to divide and conquer with the usual Luxury model to satisfy the discriminating taste of the car’s traditional minions, and adding a Sport, which will attempt to swipe some performance/luxury customers from the likes of the BMW 5-Series, Audi A6, Acura RL or TL, Infiniti M, Lexus GS450h, or Cadillac STS.
Bernhard Glaser, general manager of product management, said the two-pronged approach with Sport and Luxury models worked with the C-Class, and led to the same strategy with the E-Class. He noted that traditional buyers will find all they expect, plus some added dynamic function, with the Luxury model, while the Sport model seeks to lure performance buyers who donÂ’t mind a firmer suspension in exchange for more precise handling. In reality, both cars do their best to close even that gap. The Luxury model rides a bit softer but still handles very well on its new suspension, while the Sport model – available on either the E350 V6 models or the E550 V8 models — handles with a flatter attitude on its firmer air-suspension, without ever approaching harshness, despite riding 1.5 inches lower and on 18-inch alloys compared to the LuxuryÂ’s 17s.
Both models benefit from the new suspension, with asymmetric control arms enhancing lateral support, and a new steering system, which is 10-percent more direct in responding. Inside, the Sport gets white gauges, and two unique interior packages – black bird’s-eye maple trim instead of the Luxury model’s rich burled walnut. The Sport also has specific interior trim, either black with Sahara beige leather seats, or black with cognac brown leather. The Sport windows have a bluish tint, to differentiate from the neutral green of the Luxury.
Remarkably, the Sport model costs no more than the Luxury. In either form, the base price of the E350 is $50,550, while the E550 will start at $59,000 when it hits the showrooms in September.
The new V8 engine is the latest gem from Mercedes, which had gone to a smooth and efficient three-valve engine system for its V6 and V8 over the past decade, using two intake valves and one exhaust on each cylinder, operated by a cost-effective single overhead camshaft on each bank. Last year Mercedes changed to four-valve heads with dual overhead cams on the V6, and its increase in power and fuel-efficiency moved close enough to the V8Â’s performance to be a wise alternative.
This year, Mercedes has applied the four-valve, DOHC concept to the 5.5-liter V8 as well, and it makes a particularly notable difference in the E550. The new V8 has 382 horsepower – an increase of 80 horsepower (26 percent) — and 391 foot-pounds of torque – an increase of 52 (15 percent). No less than 100 percent of that torque is available from 2,800-4,800 RPMs, and 75 percent of the torque can be summoned at 1,000 RPMs, barely above idle. With the slick seven-speed Mercedes automatic transmission and its manual-selection capability, the E550 meets or exceeds every expectation for power.
That E350 V6 now has 268 horsepower and 258 foot-pounds of torque – more than adequate, and the E350’s 0-60 times of 6.5 seconds are not that far off the E550’s 5.4-second clocking.
This fall we can look forward to the same car becoming available as an E320, with a 3.0-liter Bluetec turbo-diesel, generating 208 horsepower and a startling 388 foot-pounds of torque, with 0-60 times at 6.6 seconds. That patented Bluetec diesel will thrive on our newly cleaned low-sulfur diesel fuel being put in place between now and October, and could be a third prong for Mercedes. While we’re at it, we must also point out a fourth as well, because for the first time, the in-house AMG performance branch of Mercedes got a chance to build an engine from a blank sheet, rather than merely modifying a production engine. The result is the limited-production E63, extracting 507 horsepower and 465 foot-pounds of torque from 6.3 liters, and Porsche/Ferrari/Corvette Z-06–like acceleration of 4.3 seconds.
It only took us one stop to marvel at how quiet the muscular 5.5 V8 runs. I had driven just over an hour through the scenic, curving roadways in the Northern California mountain range when we arrived at a restaurant parking lot for a prescribed rest stop and driver change. The car has the keyless operation system, whereby if you have the key in your pocket, the car unlocks itself as you approach, and you can start it by push-button, on top of the gearshift lever, which makes me nervous. As I pushed down on the gearshiftÂ’s handgrip button to shut off the engine, I mentioned to my codriver that it was neat, but it bothered me. On many cars, a very similar button must be pressed to shift out of park; in this car, that move kills the engine.
To demonstrate, I pushed the button down three or four times in a row, at five-second intervals, alternately starting and shutting down the 5.5-liter V8. As we climbed out, my codriver asked if the car was still running. “No,†I said, “that’s just the fan, cooling down the engine.†He nodded and said “OK, I just wasn’t sure.†Thermostatic fans run on sometimes, after hard driving, and we could hear the soft hum as we walked around to the rear of the car, nodding to three Mercedes officials positioned there.
Inside, we had some coffee and munched on snacks, and in 15 minutes we were ready to resume our drive westward, through the redwood-lined mountains to the coast. We stopped casually to talk to the same three Mercedes folks still standing a few feet behind our car. Then we climbed inside the E550. Only then did I notice the, uh, fan seemed to be still purring along, so I pushed down on the gearshift knob button. Sure enough, it stopped. The engine had been running the whole time. It was so quiet-running that both of us drivers, as well as several Mercedes officials standing just starboard of our tailpipes, didnÂ’t notice that the engine was running.
Those keyless operation deals, where if you have the key, you don’t need to use it, either to unlock the doors or to start the car, concern me for other reasons. I always envision driving to the airport, jumping out to catch a plane, while turning the idling car over to my wife or son. While they’re driving home, I notice the key is still in my pocket – at 40,000 feet above Denver. I like the feature of the door automatically unlocking as you approach, but if you need to have the key to start the car, I think not needing to put it into the ignition switch is like designing a neat cure for which there is no known disease. Embarrassing or not, inadvertently leaving the car running during lunch verifies my concern.
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When we were certain the E550 was running intentionally, we fairly flew up the mountain roads, around the tightest switchbacks, through the giant redwoods, and along the fabulous Pacific Coast vista of California 1, which winds up the Pacific coastline all the way past Mendocino. We switched out of the E550 Sport to the E350 Sport for the afternoon driving assignments, and we were in for another surprise.
The power of the E550 V8 was awe-inspiring, but in spirited driving, if you go hard into a tight curve and hit the gas, the beast wants to show off its power by jumping ahead with startling suddenness. Impressive as that power is, you have to be focused on doing some steering correcting as you fly around tight curves.
For real-world consumers, doing real-world driving, the E350 in some ways was more precise, felt more agile, and seemed to harmonize even better with the quick-steering and handling balance. You could hammer it hard through the same tight curves and it tracks smoothly and predictably. After a few such curves, I could throw the E350 Sport into a turn knowing it would track precisely without steering correction, without concern that a heavy foot might cause the car to zoom ahead harder than you wanted.
From the driverÂ’s seat, the trip computer registered another key difference. Driving to excess in the E550 showed an impressive 19.8 miles per gallon, highway and curves, although it certainly would get better on a normal commute. The E350 indicated 26 mpg, also when driven hard, and also with an anticipated improvement in moderate, everyday driving. That closes the inter-model gap further, and the Bluetec diesel will narrow it more, even if the AMG model stretches it a bit.
Driving through the redwoods of Northern California, we paused to marvel at the majestic and enormous old trees. It reminded me that a week earlier, my son, Jeff, and I had marveled at the size of some huge old Douglas Fir trees in Northern Washington State. I also was reminded of Jeff’s comment: “These things are so huge that I have the feeling if one of them fell over, there would be some noise – even if nobody was around.†Similarly, we must concede that the E-Class will thrive in a seventh-generation mode, even without much generation gap.
Mazdaspeed6 hurls turbo-AWD challenge at Evo IX
There are race cars, and there are normal production cars, and you neednÂ’t go beyond NASCAR to understand why the twain, as they say, shall never meet. NASCAR race cars are virtual-reality, purpose-built vehicles with near-identical chassis, very similar nonproduction race engines, and phony bodies designed to only faintly resemble real cars. And while we were looking the other way, a few Japanese production cars resemble race cars far more than our race cars resemble production cars.
The most recent example is the 2006 Mazdaspeed6, a superb example of how taut, fit, and fun a car can be on the street.
The Mazdaspeed6 jumps wheels-first into the segment which has been a long-standing duel between the Lancer Evolution and Subaru WRX STi – a pair of rally-bred championship cars that set new standards as their production versions spent a decade continually escalating the standards.
As luck of the road-testing draw would have it, I ended calendar year 2005 with a pair these compact rockets on back-to-back weeks – the Mazdaspeed6 and the Mitsubishi Evolution IX MR. The Evolution, or “Evo†as the car has come to be known, is not all-new, just upgraded from previous models in an attempt to remain atop the competitive spiral of pocket rockets. The Mazdaspeed6, however, is all new. They were both enjoyable, even when their performance tires wanted to spin through the ice and snow along the shores of Lake Superior. Remember, both have a lot of power, but they ARE all-wheel-drive vehicles.
MAZDASPEED6
The Mazda6 remains one of my favorite cars, a sleek family midsize sedan with sporty overtones, meaning you can have your fun and family too. The standard Mazda6 comes with either a 160-horsepower 2.3-liter four cylinder or a 220-horsepower 3.0-liter V6. Mazdaspeed is the odd name Mazda gives to its corporate hot-rodders who wear their white smocks in the no-compromise back room, and the lads have done a proper number on this car.
Reinforcing cross-members have stiffened the bodyÂ’s twisting rigidity by 50 percent, and the 2.3-liter four has been tweaked, first with direct-injection fuel feed, and then with turbocharging, to boost horsepower to a whopping 274, with 280 foot-pounds of torque. ThatÂ’s a lot of power for a front-wheel-drive sedan, so Mazda inserts the all-wheel-drive unit it uses in Japan, which can transfer up to 50-percent of power to the rear whenever necessary. IÂ’ve read tests of 0-60 at right around 6 seconds, with a top speed electronically governed at 149 miles per hour. That ought to ease you through rush-hour congestion, eh?
Inside, you nestle into well-bolstered bucket seats with leather trim, and Mazda has modified the interior to be less gimmicky and more businesslike. Black gauges with clear numerals that light up red-orange at night, and drilled aluminum foot pedals add to the sporty effect. The gearshift is a six-speed manual, with limited slip standard as well, and the high-performance, low-profile tires ride on 18-inch alloy wheels, which further enhance the cornering stability, in concert with the stiffer frame and firmer shock settings.
Tastefully added molding flares accented the look of the medium-grey test car, which still had all the comforts of the normal Mazda6, such as climate control, power windows and keyless entry, plus heated bucket seats with eight-way power adjustment. There also is a keyless start feature, although the trend toward some of these is questionable at best. ItÂ’s handy, when youÂ’re carrying stuff, to unlock the door with keyless entry, and once you climb into the driverÂ’s seat, I guess itÂ’s neat to be able to twist the key fitting to start without putting the key in it. In other words, if youÂ’ve got the key in your pocket, you donÂ’t need to use it to start the car.
Needless to say, I jumped out at one point and my wife, Joan, drove off, and fortunately I realized I still had the key in time to call cell-phone to cell-phone and bring her back before she got somewhere and shut off the car, only to find it starting-impaired.
The best thing about Mazda6 models is that they are inexpensive to buy, considering all that you get. From a $20,000 normal Mazda6, the Mazdaspeed6 is still a bargain at $29,925. The only available options included on the test car were a trunk cargo net, wheel locks, a $700 power moonroof, and a $2,000 navigation system. The nav pops up from a trap-door that opens on the top edge of the dashboard, and you can tilt the screen various ways to avoid glare. That also means you can close the nav screen and the trap door if you’d rather not be bothered. The sticker price of the test car, so equipped, was $33,325 – still not a bad price for the latest sizzling performance sedan.
It runs, and it handles, in a way befitting a company that has cast its lot with the simply phrase: “zoom, zoom.Ââ€
LANCER EVOLUTION IX MR
MitsubishiÂ’s Lancer is its stalwart but still underrated compact sedan. It wasnÂ’t until Mitsubishi outfitted the Lancer to challenge SubaruÂ’s world rally championship cars that the EvolutionÂ…uhÂ…evolved. This is Evolution IX, and while there has been considerable conjecture about Evolution X, the IX will do for now, thank you. Lancers come in ES, OZ-Rally, and whatÂ’s called the Ralliart model, the latter being a sportier upgrade of the basic Lancer. But the Evolution stands above and beyond.
The turbocharged 2.0-liter, dual overhead cam four-cylinder delivers 286 horsepower, compared to 120 horses for the basic 2.0 single cam, or the 162-horse 2.4-liter option. A six-speed stick causes the Evo to want to leap forward at the touch of the gas in any gear.
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Equipped with its proven rigid suspension and limited-slip both front and rear on its all-wheel-drive platform, the Evolution MR is clearly equipped for heavier duty than normal traffic might offer. A lot of us may not be planning to enter any pro rallies in the near future, but rally competition uses real roads and is therefore a lot closer to real-world driving than NASCARÂ’s latest funny cars. Forged aluminum suspension bits, Brembo disc brakes, drilled aluminum pedals, and a large, screened-in hole in the hood, where hot air escapes in waves, are all tips that this is something racy.
However, all of those indications, including the molding strips, are unessential as tip-offs, because you know at a glance it means business by the enormous rear spoiler wing that rises on huge fiberglass struts up from the trunk lid. I thought the wing was a nuisance, because it slices a swath horizontally right across the middle of the rear window when you look through the mirror. But later I realized it could be beneficial as well.
We all must share the road with careless slugs whose headlights are poorly aimed high. And with drivers of aging trucks and station wagons whose rear load goes beyond the shocksÂ’ threshold of levelness. And with rude truck/SUV drivers who blatantly disobey the law by mounting enormously oversized tires and then aim their auxiliary lights higher than their high beams. All should be ticketed, but roam free, to blind oncoming cars as well as drivers ahead via their rear-view mirrors. In the Evo, I got so I could tip my head just a bit, and blot out those maddening ill-aimed lights with the spoiler.
The 17-inch forged BBS alloy wheels, also stylishly grey, set off the Apex Silver paint job. The car’s quickness is enhanced by standard weight-saving aluminum hood, roof panel and front fenders. Genuine Recaro bucket seats are also standard. The MR option package includes the silver shift knob – which, by the way, feels remarkably ice cold in December in the Upper Midwest – as well as a turbo-boost gauge kit that fits in a three-gauge package just below the center stack. The “Zero Lift Kit†includes the rear spoiler, front airdam, and other aero touches, but together those packages only cost $1,110. The price of the Evolution IX MR starts at a steep $35,189, so the price after transportation and options is $36,894.
Some of the stripped-down characteristics of the Lancer make weight-saving sense, but the lack of cruise control did not make sense. I mean, hereÂ’s a car with a rear wing that looks like it might allow you to go airborne, and which is certain to attract the attention of any law enforcement officer who sees it, and weÂ’re unable to restrict its tendency to zoom by cruise-controlling should be a necessity.
CONCLUSIONS
Maybe the Evolution IX MR price is not too much for a car that is a blast to drive – almost literally – and will still haul the kids. The Evolution is stunningly quick, but it also is a bit harsh in everyday driving, especially if you have to skip across weather-gouged pavement. That is a tendency it shares with the Subaru WRX STi, its long-time adversary on rallies and streets. But now there’s a new challenger on the street in the Mazdaspeed6.
Both these cars are spectacular to drive, with startling acceleration and race-bred cornering quickness and precision. The Evolution is built for uncompromising performance capabilities, and the key differences might be that the Evolution is more capable for rugged use, while the Mazdaspeed6 feels more refined. If I had to pick, IÂ’d guess that the lighter Evolution was a twitch quicker in acceleration, but the Mazdaspeed6 feels more civilized in all-purpose driving. With the Mazdaspeed6 priced about $3,500 less than the Evolution, the new kid on the block is a threat.
(John Gilbert writes weekly new vehicle reviews 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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