Forte, Sorento bolster Kia armada for 2014
Kia's hot-sellling Sorento has been improved throiughout in a 2014 revision.
By John Gilbert
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZ. — Introducing two vehicles at the same time is a sketchy proposition for an auto manufacturer, because neither can attain full emphasis. But Kia is in a hurry, and with seven specific launches in the coming year, there is no choice but to package them together — which is why the 2014 Sorento SUV and Forte compact sedan both were presented together for introductory tests in the hills and desert of Arizona.
When I got my turn to drive the new Sorento and Forte, I was accompanied by Steven Hirashiki, a Kia product strategy fellow, instead of another auto journalist. That was good for a variety of reasons: I had to go directly from our lunch stop to the Phoenix airport for my return flight to Minnesota, he was able to answer some of my questions, I was able to respond to his questions about what I liked and didn’t like, and, mainly, I got to drive the whole day instead of trading turns behind the wheels.
Original Forte gives way to a stylish, nicely sculptured replacement.
In both cases, the vehicles performed well in assorted runs on highwayts, up0 and down hills, around curves, and in city traffic. While longer drives in both vehicles will be upcoming, my brief drives were properly impressive.
The Sorento has become one of the more successful and impressive SUVs for a changing marketplace, doing the work of large SUVs but with the agility and fuel efficiency of more compact models. And the new model improves on that already-impressive model in every way. The 3.3 engine upgrade is now truly upgraded because it has gas-direct-injection, a technique that improves both power and fuel-efficiency. Its appearance has been tweaked a bit, and the interior is easy to like. I found the performance good, although a couple of times it had a prominent jerk on acceleration at low speeds — s0mething that could improve as more miles accumulate. The steering was improved considerably, and so was the cornering stability.
The Forte never caught on in a big way when introduced in 2009, possibly due to the overwhelming response to the larger Optima and to the smaller Rio, plus the squarish Soul — which benefits by Kia’s reluctant but ultimate acceptance that the big hamsters are a lovable and popular trademark. The new Forte upgrades its design features, and its more-dashing exterior is matched by the interior Plus, the steering has a much better feel, as does the steering wheel itself, and the cornering is more precise and better reacting, as is the power in the optional 2.0-liter engine. Read more
Key still the key, in new Cadillac XTS
Graceful sloping rear pillar sets off the classy new Cadillac XTS .full-size sedan.
By John Gilbert
My son, Jack, and I had to take a little trip, and since I had two test-drive cars at my disposal at the time, I chose the one that would get better fuel economy. That meant we were going to leave behind a Cadillac XTS Platinum Collection sedan.
Now, most people might figure that was a bad move, because the XTS is the new full-size car from Cadillac, coming out as a 2013 model in a year that is big — and about to get bigger — for Cadillac, with the new compact ATS on the verge of winning the North American Car of the Year award in a few weeks. And who could mind being pampered in all that super-luxury of the XTS?
In General Motors version of downsizing, the XTS replaces the STS and all Caddies larger than that, including the DeVille, topping the new stable that is led by the CTS, with the new ATS eagerly joining on the bottom end.
Nevertheless, equipped with GM’s corporate 3.6-liter V6, with 304 horsepower and264 foot-pounds of torque, the front-wheel-drive XTS can be figured to get mid-20s fuel economy at best, and with the all-wheel-drive option, probably less. So we left it behind, in all its plushness, and drove away. I left word for my wife, Joan, who drives everything that comes into the driveway of the Gilbert Compound, that she should drive the XTS as much as possible and let me know her impressions when we returned.
Among its many features, the XTS has keyless entry, and, of course, push-button ignition. I have expressed my opinions frequently about push-button ignitions, as a solution for which there is no problem. I like the idea of being able to unlock your doors with a touch of the key-fob, but once inside the car, it seems to me that since you need the key to be with you in order to activate the push-button start, then you might as well use the key in the ignition. Besides, when you don’t need the key, it’s easy to let someone accompany you to a destination and turn over the driving responsibilities while you go your merry way with the key still safely in your pocket. But I digress. Actually, though, it is not a digression.
So there we were, driving across Wisconsin, when my cell phone rang. It was Joan. We’ve got a problem, she started, with one of those veteran-marital “we” collectives that meant she had a problem, but was more than eager to share it.
In FWD, or AWD, the new XTS shares a family similarity from the front.
Because of the keyless ignition, and her concerns about leaving the key someplace, she set it in the cup-holder of the XTS and prepared to drive into town. Joan is pretty active, and she often goes for brisk walks along the North Shore of Lake Superior. She thought she’d probably take a walk on her way back, so she went back to the house to get her walking shoes. When she returned to the car, she thought she’d put her shoes and her jacket, in the trunk. Good move. She slammed the trunklid down, and it closed with a nice, classy “thunk.” Bad move.
As she heard the trunk close securely, she walked around to the driver’s door — and found it was locked. So were all the other doors.
Incredibly, she realized, closing the trunklid automatically and electronically locked all four doors. And the trunk. She was locked out, and the keys were safely inside, in the cup-holder. That’s when she called me. For a few miles, we wracked our brains, but could come up with no solutions. Then I thought of OnStar — GM’s exclusive customer-nanny that could direct you anywhere by GPS. Read more
Domestic optimism rises at Detroit show
Seventh-generation Corvette provided a big lift for GM at the Detroit Auto Show.
By John Gilbert
DETROIT, MICH. — Domestic automakers should have a big home-field advantage at Detroit’s North American International Auto Show, and they certainly did, kicking off the press preview days of the show, which runs through January 27, by sweeping the Car of the Year and Truck/Utility of the Year awards, after claiming four of the six finalist slots.
The Cadillac ATS claimed the North American Car of the Year honors, beating out the Honda Accord, while the Ford Fusion — once the odds-on favorite — slipped to third because of a combination of production recalls, delays in introducing its plug-in hybrid, and gripes about its connectivity system. With the 49 jury members allotting 10 points among finalists, the ATS wound up with 207 points, the Accord 159 and the Fusion 124.
Chrysler Group, LLC, was represented by the Ram 1500 full-size pickup truck, which had an even more substantial edge in winning the North American Truck/Utility of the Year. The Ram piled up 261 points to outdistance the Mazda CX-5, with 142, and the Ford C-Max, with 87. The CX-5 is an entirely new compact crossover SUV with Mazda’s technologically advanced Skyactiv drivetrain, and the C-Ma is a small utility wagon powered by only a hybrid or all-electric drivetrain, and while both met the new guidelines of the independent jury’s combined truck and utility segment, jury board members commented that voters obviously were attracted to the fact that the Ram was a “real” truck.
"Don't call me Dodge" Ram 1500 outpointed the Mazda CX-5 and Ford C-Max to win Truck/Utility of the Year.
Both award winners are comparatively traditional, with the Ram powered by either the Hemi V8 or a new Pentastar V6, while the compact Cadillac ATS has either a V6 with rear-drive, or a turbocharged 4. They were in stark contrast to the other two finalists in both car and truck competition, which featured high-tech high-mileage options — as did the array of flashy new vehicles displayed during the two press preview days at Cobo Hall. Vehicles from all over the world emphasized futuristic electric or electrically-boosted vehicles with high mileage potential.
Among the highlights were an all-new compact CLA from Mercedes, a downsized “4-door coupe” shape with a 211-horsepower turbocharged 4-cylinder and a stunning drag coefficient of 0.22, which the company claims is best in the industry. A revised 4-Motion system and a collision-prevention assist will be features. The CLA will be widely promoted at the Super Bowl — which, incidentally, will be played in New Orleans, at a facility now known as the “Mercedes-Benz Superdome.” Mercedes is also unveiling the revised E-Class mid-range sedan and a new S-Class luxury car. The E-Class will come in coupe, convertible and sedan, and also returns as a station wagon, as well as a high-performing AMG E-63. BMW introduced the 4-Series, which will become the name for all 3-Series coupes and convertibles, and its MINI division displayed a Cooper-Works sporty version of its 4-door Clubman. Read more
Encore becomes perfect encore to Enclave
Short, but not too short, Buick Encore offers more-compact compact-crossover SUV.
By John Gilbert
ATLANTA, GA. — To traditional Buick owners, the new Encore might be too small, too light. Traditional Buick cynics might point out the styling glitch of the Encore’s hood having more portholes than there are cylinders. Acknowledging such criticism, the 2013 Encore still might be the ideal vehicle to help Buick continue breaking from its own tradition, in quest of more and younger customers.
The success of the large and luxurious Enclave made us all wonder what Buick could do for an encore, and the response IS the Encore — an all-new compact crossover SUV that is 4 feet shorter and 1,500 pounds lighter than the Enclave, and outperforms it in agility despite having the smallest engine ever offered in any vehicle wearing the Buick name.
Whoever thought we’d see the day when Buick would create a small, compact SUV, powered by a 1.4-liter engine that is turbocharged up to 138 horsepower and 148 foot-pounds of torque, aimed at combining adequate performance plus 30 miles per gallon?
“Basically, the Encore has the attributes of a larger SUV in a smaller, more efficient package,” aid Buick marketing manager Lloyd Biermann. “Our targets are to make this an Enclave for those age 30-50, and come in two primaryu groups — those who are often by themselves in a vehicle and don’t need the room of a bigger SUV, and empty-nesters who don’t need more room for occupants, and who don’t want to be a car-pool person.”
The Encore is truly a global project, with engine ideas springing from Germany’s Opel brand, conceptualized and designed in the U.S., and with actual development and construction done entirely in Gen eral Motors facilities in Korea. James Danahy, who used to be a key engineer on Corvette development, shifted his job to coordinating the development of the Encore, which necessitated him moving to Korea for three years.
The end result is a progressively contemporary and sporty SUV priced from the mid-$20,000 range and aimed at youthful buyers. Read more
Fiesta combines pep, high-mpg from 1.0 liters
Ford will bring Fiesta Hatchback with 1.0-liter EcoBoost engine to U.S. by end of 2013.
By John Gilbert
SANTA MONICA, CALIF. — For decades, U.S. car buyers have been conditioned to buy “bigger is better” cars and engines, which makes it a challenge to change mindsets smaller displacement engines, which will still provide peppy performance but with vastly improved fuel economy.
Ford has taken clear control of the progressive technology with its EcoBoost engines, which are the product of Ford building smaller displacement engines, turbocharging to get stronger, larger-engine performance, while enjoying the fruits of superior gas mileage. But for the coming year, Ford is going off the automotive deep end.
Already on sale in Europe, Ford is preparing to sell the 2013 Fiesta subcompact with a 1.0-liter engine, which has only three cylinders, instead of the four, five, six or eight cylinders we’ve all owned, admired and sought.
The thought of only three cylinders is mind-bending, but only until any customer drives one.
The trick is that Ford has brought its 1.0 engine into the new and expanding EcoBoost array, a group of turbocharged engines which now includes the 3.5-liter V6, and 4-cylinder engines measuring 2.0 and 1.6 liters. But 3 cylinders? And only 1.0 liter?
Surprise! Turbocharging operates by scavenging the escaping exhaust flow and directing it through a channel to spin a turbine wheel, generating a heightened volume of air, and at a much higher velocity of airflow, into the intake manifold. That flow draws in more fuel, and the result is a large dose of fuel to deliver more horsepower and meet the demands of higher performance driving. Naturally, standing on the gas to get more power doesn’t do a lot for fuel economy, but if you drive a turbocharged car with some restraint, you don’t cause the turbo to spin up toward maximum boost, and you can attain the same fuel economy as the same engine without turbocharging.
The beauty is that if and when you do need the power of a bigger engine, stepping on the gas summons instant energy. It’s another of those European tricks, where cost conscious car-owners have been buying the smallest-displacement engines available, and selecting the turbocharged version to sail along at high speed. Frugal European buyers can buy cars with a normally aspirated 1.0, which delivers 70-80 horsepower. Turbocharging the reinforced 1.0 jacks the power up to 123 horsepower and 148 foot-pounds of torque — more than enough to bring the Fiesta to life for even demanding buyers.
New Fiestsa look for 2013 features Fusion-like grille on the 1.0 turbo model.
In the Fiesta, you climb into the driver’s seat, fire up the engine, shift the 5-speed stick into first gear, and take off. Drive it quickly through the cityscape congestion of Santa Monica, turn down and drive north along the Pacific Coast Highway, then turn inland and charge up through some of the best curvy mountain roads in the country. You will find that you can shift it on up to fifth, and cruise effortlessly, but if you work the gearbox to stay in fourth mostly but downshift to third for the tightest curves, the Fiesta performs like a light and agile sports sedan.
Another of the benefits of turbocharging with direct injection and variable valve-timing is that my preference for a 6-speed stick instead of the 5-speed is pretty well negated by the Fiesta’s performance. If you go into a tight turn properly revved up in third gear, naturally the car pulls out of the curve with strong potency; but if you go into it with fewer revs in fourth, stepping on the gas means the turbocharger spools up and it still provides smooth power as the revs climb. Either way, you have long since forgotten that it is a comparatively tiny 3-cylinder engine doing the work.
In the battle for the auto industry’s two mainstream small-car categories, Ford has a solid head start, because its “C” segment Focus, and smaller “B” segment Fiesta have both been running strong in Europe for decades. While we in the United States got a Focus we can call dumbed down from the much more accomplished European version, we now are getting a chance to buy the singular global version of both cars. Focus buyers from years past will be astounded at the difference in tightness and performance of the new Focus.
The Fiesta is an entirely different animal. We used to get a small 3-door Fiesta that was a solid performer, and when Ford decided to stop selling the car in the U.S., it continued to thrive in Europe. So when tightening economy, rising fuel prices, and just plain common sense finally broke through the U.S. consumers’ traditional concept of cars that were larger than needed, and too large to be economical. Ford brought the Fiesta back into the U.S. two years ago, when it was turning the Fiesta and Focus into global cars, meaning there would be only one world-class model of each, worldwide. It was good timing all around.
In addition, Ford is bringing in a still-smaller, blunt subcompact wagon-van-like vehicle, unfortunately called the “CMax,” which makes it sound like it must be a giant truck. The CMax can be bought with a small engine, or with a hybrid combination gas-electric power, or in all-electric EV form. Having driven the Fiesta 1.0 EcoBoost, my anticipation is that the 1.0 EcoBoost would also be perfect for the CMax.
Tiny 3-cylinder engine packs potency despite diminutive size.
Steve Russ, the technical chief engineer of Ford’s gasoline-engine systems, said that the 1.0 EcoBoost has been available in Europe in the larger compact Focus for eight months, and only recently has been launched in the Fiesta. It probably won’t reach the U.S. showrooms until near the end of 2013. The engine is the product of Ford’s global approach, developed by Ford’s advanced engineering in Cologne, Germany (the Americanized spelling of the German city “Koln”). The engine, which also spent development time in Ford’s United Kingdom facilities, .
“I’m based in Dearborn,” said Russ. “I’m involved in directing the U.S. end, working with engineers here on the engine, but obviously we’re in close contact with the German engineers. In Europe, this engine won the international engine of the year award. They use a normally aspirated version of this engine, with 70-80 horsepower, and we built the engine with a lot of modifications to handle the fast-revving of the turbocharger. Along with the direct injection, we modified the interior of the engine inside and out. The block is built to withstand higher pressure and the cylinder head is unique, with an integrated exhaust manifold, allowing the turbo to be mounted right up close. We also use specially coated pistons, an offset crankshaft for 3-5 percent less friction, and a sealed timing belt.
“We use twin independent variable valve timing, and it’s packed with technology. We’re using a single-scroll Continental turbocharger, which has a small propellor that spins faster to lessen turbo-lag. It can spin as fast as 248,000 RPMs. We also have a second cooling system that only cools off the top of the cylinders.”
Because a 3-cylinder engine is inherently imbalanced, compared to a 4, 5, or in-line 6, the transverse-mounted 1.0 uses special insulating methods to isolate the engine and negate the need for a balance shaft. Early turbocharged production engines had an issue with cooling down, because shutting the engine off abruptly could shut off the oiling, while the turbo wheel was still spinning, and some coking would be common. “Now the engine gets oiled from thermo cycling, with a separate cooling pump that keeps the oil flowing after shutoff,” said Russ.
Clean efficiency defines the interior of the Fiesta 1.0..
Russ, whose father is from Superior, Wis., said he is certain the 1.0 EcoBoost will be “great for the Twin Ports. It’s small, and with the flow only to three cylinder heads, there’ll be less warm-up, and no need to plug it in.”
No fuel estimates are in place yet, but Russ is confident, and he also thinks Ford’s idea of smaller displacement but potent engines will spread. “I absolutely think the 1.0-liter EcoBoost will lead to more companies making more small engines,” Russ said. “We have eight vehicles that top 40 miles per gallon, and we’re confident the Fiesta will too.”
While the 1.0 EcoBoost was the feature attraction of the introductory drive through the Santa Monica mountainous area, and on an autocross layout where the Fiesta proved its potency and sporty handling, there is another new Fiesta you’ll be able to find across the showroom. Maybe, even, before the 1.0 is available. That is the Fiesta ST, which is far more than just another of the various and impressive Fiesta models.
The ST is a product of what used to be SVT, Ford’s Special Vehicle Teams unit that takes standard Ford production products and converts them into high-performance vehicles. SVT is responsible for the Shelby Mustang, the F150 Raptor, and a long string of such products. Tim Smith has been with SVT for 10 years, and said that his group is now coordinated with Team RS, the European Ford high-production group.
“Team RS is a new organization, and we’ve traditionally worked together on some projects,” Smith said. “The ‘ST’ brand has a great heritage in Europe, and we’ve worked on both the Focus and Fiesta, and our versions will be universally known as ST. In the Fiesta ST, we use a 1.6-liter 4-cylinder EcoBoost, with 197 horsepower and 214 foot-pounds of torque.
“It’s a different engine; the 1.6 is a smaller family from the 2.0. The1.6 EcoBoost is available in the Fusion and Escape, but as usual with SVT involvement, we’ve improved every aspect from powertrain, electronics, suspension settings, ABS, and cosmetics. We use the 2.0 EcoBoost in the Focus ST, with 252 horsepower and 270 foot-pounds of torque. In the Fiesta, we’ve gotten 6.7-second 0-60 times and 130-plus miles per hour with the 1.6. We use a 6-speed transmission compared to the 5-speed in other Fiestas.
Sufficient storage, low price, high-mpg are all Fiesta assets.
“And we’ve also gotten 34 miles per gallon. We call it guilt-free performance.”
Stiffer spring rates, a firmer twist-beam, and quicker steering set off the Fiesta ST, said Russ, who stresses the car proves that the SVT tradition remains true — a collection of car-fanatics who also happen to be hot-car-fanatics.
“SVT is a passionate group building cars for passionate buyers,” he said. “The beauty of technology is that we had the old, big-displacement engines that had to be fed, and they still do. With turbo power we can make the smaller engine perform to the high-performance standards of larger engines but still get small-engine miles per gallon. The real-world difference is that for every person, there can be an engine that gets good fuel economy but also is fun to drive. This car [the Fiesta ST] is so fun that when you get in it, you find you’re grinning the whole time. No one is bored driving it, and you can use everything it has to offer.”
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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