Redesigned Outlander cruises beyond costlier SUVs
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF. — There are so many new compact crossover SUVs bursting onto the automotive scene that it would be easy to overlook a few of them. Overlooking the 2007 Mitsubishi Outlander, however, would be a serious mistake for any consumer interested in a combination of good looks, advanced technology, attention to detail, fun-to-drive quotient, and a bargain sticker price.
Completely redone, the new Outlander has a tall challenge, trying to compete against the suddenly-expanding compact/crossover SUV segment against such stalwarts as the Toyota RAV4, Honda CR-V, Hyundai Santa Fe and Tucson, Kia Sportage, Ford Escape, Saturn Vue, Chevy Equinox, and flashy newcomers such as the Acura RD-X, or Mazda CX-7.
But the Outlander has blended features that can individual beat some of the best of those competitors, and it may, in fact, do a better job than any of them of offering all the right stuff. Its proficiency is something of a surprise, too, because Mitsubishi has just done away with the Montero, following the Montero Sport to the SUV sidelines. The company seemed to have lost its way a bit in recent years, even though it stuck with the small, 2.0-liter turbo to make the Evolution fly, but it went to a large, 3.8-liter V6 in the new Eclipse, veering away from its strength – small engines that over-achieve.
Mitsubishi has been impressive in its technical advances for nearly four decades, if not always under its own name. The Dodge Colt had a 1600 cc. overhead-cam four-cylinder with a third valve, called the MCA Jet, to create a swirling, better-igniting dash to the fuel-air mixture. That was a Mitsubishi engine, and it became instantly the smoothest 4 on the market a couple years later, when Mitsubishi ingeniously put counter-balance “Silent Shafts†inside the block to eliminate harmonic vibration. That was in 1971, I believe. Also, think of all those Dodge Caravans that cruised effortlessly for 200,000 miles with their 3.0-liter V6 engines. Those also were Mitsubishi engines.
But it will take something special to make it in this era of the fastest-growing marketplace segment, and the Outlander just could be that special. Consider the assets:
• Great looks, an all-new platform with a longer, wider, taller body, and wheelbase lengthened by 2 inches. That makes it 182.7 inches long, within two inches of the Santa Fe and CX-7, and longer than the RAV4, CR-V, RDX, Vue, and Compass. Some have written that it’s on the Lancer Evolution platform, but the fact is, it is a new “C†platform that will be assimilated into the next new models of the Lancer and Evolution. Use of high-strength steel in the lower body, and such top-lightening steps as an aluminum roof lower the center of gravity, improve the feeling of stability, while increasing torsional rigidity 18 percent and flexing rigidity by 39 percent over the outgoing Outlander.
• Excellent power, with an all-new 3.0-liter V6 (longer stroke, smaller bore than the old tried and true 3.0) with 220 horsepower, 204 foot-pounds of torque, a MIVEC (Mitsubishi Innovative Valve-timing and lift Electronic Control) upgrade that works with a two-stage variable intake manifold, and some clever placement of catalytic converters to become the first V6 in its class to achieve PZEV (Partial Zero Emission Vehicle) stature.
• A high fun-to-drive level, thanks to superbly bolstered bucket seats and a 6-speed automatic transmission with sequential manual capabilities that offer tall, vertical paddles made of magnesium on either side of the steering-wheel column. By being tall, they are easy to operate – right side for upshifts, left for downshifts – and by being fixed, they are always easy to locate, even if you need an immediate shift while in the middle of a sharp turn. A neat feature is that you can use the paddles in sport mode, without going into sport mode.
• Front-wheel drive standard on the base ES, LS and top XLS, with an innovative 4-wheel-drive system available on the LS or XLS. On 4WD models, the off-road heritage of those rugged Monteros is revisited by a round knob on the console that can select 2-wheel (front) drive, automatically fluctuating 4-wheel drive (front bias, transferring power to rear when called for), or lock it into 4-wheel drive to keep all four wheels churning (rear bias) in deep snow or off-road. Towing capacity is 2,000 pounds with 2-wheel drive, 3,500 with 4-wheel.
• An available third row of split-back seats is specified for kids. Four adults is a perfect fit, but another can sit in the middle of the 60/40 second row to make five. If the rear seats are up, two kids can fit back there, expanding capacity to seven, and the third row folds flat into what is a hidden storage bin in models that don’t select the third-row seats. Cargo room is 14.9 cubic feet behind the third seats, 36.2 with the third row folded down, and 72.6 with both second and third rows down.
• Safety features include front and side airbags, and side-curtain bags for the first two rows; four-wheel disc brakes with ABS and electronic brake distribution standard, as is traction control and active skid control.
Some of those many features would be impressive on an SUV that cost twice as much as the “low-$20,000†price Mitsubishi vowed for the base ES model, which comes pretty well equipped with front-wheel drive.
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Moving up to the LS gains some useful things, such as audio remote switches on the steering wheel, and the availability of 4-wheel drive, but those features shouldnÂ’t boost the price that much, which means the XLS, adding 18-inch alloys over the basic 16s, and the Sportronic remote shift paddles for the steering wheel column, should still come in under the $30,000 mark, which might only be reached by adding everything, including the luxury package, with leather seating.
Driving the Outlander with some, ah, spirit around the twisty highways coming out of the mountains north of San Francisco, heading toward the Pacific Ocean, showed off some impressive handling with the front-drive version, although I pushed it hard enough to get a little dose of drama from the understeer. Later, in the 4WD XLS, it seemed to be impossible to drive beyond the handling capabilities, thanks to the great suspension and the tight body.
The high-tech 3.0 V6 offers more power, more RPMs (the 220 horsepower peak is at 6,250), and fewer emissions, and it also has EPA highway estimates of 27 miles per gallon for FWD, and 26 for the 4WD. The fun of shifting with the paddles also makes the power seem more than the numbers imply by assuring youÂ’re in the right gear range for every circumstance. One other major asset is that the engine requires regular gas, a major saving at every fuel stop compared to premium-burning rivals.
A couple other impressive features include a couple of electronic touches – a hard-drive based navigation system that will house over 6 gigs of information and still have room to store 1,200 songs for replay through the optional Rockford Fosgate audio system. The AM-FM-CD-MP3 system has 650 watts and nine speakers, with a huge 10-inch subwoofer mounted in the rearmost wall, and a digital signal processor to best use the interior as a sound chamber.
If it sounds like the Outlander is loaded from front to rear, look at the extremities. At the front, a PremAir catalytic radiator is coated to turn 80 percent of all ozone molecules that pass by into oxygen molecules. At the rear, the top hinged tailgate flips up, leaving a small lower lip, and that folds down, then folds out, locking itself into an easy-loading shelf, or a prime seat for tailgaters.
Suzuki aims XL7, SX4 at rise to prominence in U.S.
CARLSBAD, CALIF. — The automobile business in the United States has been frustrating for Suzuki, and from a personal standpoint, I must say that SuzukiÂ’s cars have been mostly a frustration to me. That could all change for 2007, when the company known for exceptional motorcycles and outboard motors, and for being only a bit player in cars, introduces two vehicles – the XL7 and SX4 – that could lift Suzuki to the prominence it deserves.
For those who scoff at the words Suzuki and prominence in the same sentence, consider that in Japan, Suzuki ranks third in vehicle sales, behind only Toyota and Nissan, and ahead of such powerhouse companies as Honda, Mazda, or Subaru.
In Japan, and other countries more sensitive to congestion and fuel-efficiency, smaller cars have been big for decades, and Suzuki makes outstanding small cars. The new SX4 is the newest of those. In the U.S., Suzuki sold vehicles on its own through a small network, but made some noise through an alliance with General Motors, where its Samurai became the Geo Tracker, and its Sprint became the Geo Metro.
The Metro was a popular and dependable economy car with a tiny 3-cylinder engine that was great for kids with no money and pizza delivery shops that didnÂ’t want to spend much. Virtually unnoticed, the Sprint was available in a sizzling turbocharged 4-cylinder model that was a hoot to drive.
From that hot-rod Sprint, and its GSR road-racing motorcycles, I knew Suzuki could make special things that worked, and provided world-class fun. So I looked forward to the new Verona and Forenza models a year ago, and while they proved adequate, it was disappointing to learn that those cars are the result of SuzukiÂ’s recent alliance with General Motors, and GMÂ’s recent takeover of the South Korean Daewoo company. ThatÂ’s where Chevrolet gets its Aveo subcompact now, and GM fives Suzuki the larger Verona and Forenza from Daewoo. Both are pretty nice cars, but if I buy a vehicle with SuzukiÂ’s name on it, I want a Suzuki engine in it.
That brings us to the SX4. It is a small, compact, 5-door hatchback that will ultimately replace the fun and flexible Aerio in Suzuki’s fleet. It is more stylish, and it resembles a progressive extension of that late and lamented Sprint GT. Suzuki calls it an “X-over†design, meaning “cross-over,†and it is aimed directly at the Dodge Caliber, Toyota Matrix, Nissan Versa, Honda Fit, Scion xA or xB, Subaru Impreza, Ford Focus, and Mazda 5, among others. Though more compact than some of those, SX4 is within 95 percent of cargo space of anything else in its class.
A more thorough review will follow, but for now, consider these points: The SX4 lists for a base $14,999, making it the most inexpensive all-wheel-drive vehicle available. The three-mode switchable AWD can be locked in front-drive, all-wheel-drive, or low-range AWD, which is for snow or other severe conditions, and switches to normal AWD at 36 mph in case you forget. It has a Suzuki-built 2.0-liter 4-cylinder with chain-driven dual overhead camshafts, 143 horsepower at 5,800 RPMs, with 136 foot-pounds of torque peaking at 3,500 RPMs.
The Aerio had a 2.3-liter 4, and the Grand Vitara uses the 2.0, which has been renewed with electronic (drive-by-wire) throttle control, four-cam phasing, and a controlled crossover intake manifold that provides more low or high end power. A 5-speed stick or 4-speed automatic makes it go, and it has EPA estimates of 24 city and 30 miles per gallon highway with the automatic transmission.
The base SX4 is quite well equipped, including alloy wheels. Add $1,400 to get the Sport model, which includes electronic stability control with traction control, keyless entry, a 6-CD audio with a subwoofer, cruise control, leather steering wheel with remote controls mounted on it. Safety is also a major element, with six standard airbags for front and side up front and side curtains. The automatic transmission is the only option on the Sport model, adding $1,000 more.
Already being sold in other markets, the SX4 is being built in Japan, with the European version being built in Hungary. Suzuki officials say they are aiming the SX4 at predominately single men, age 18-30, 35 percent of whom have at least some college, and with a household income of $50,000. If this is entry level, itÂ’s a sophisticated entry level.
My biggest complaint is that in spirited curvy-road driving, the SX4 could use either a 6-speed manual, or closer ratio between second and third, because I found myself having to choose between too many revs in second or not enough in third.
As for the new XL7, you might remember that the old XL-7 had a hyphen. The new one loses the hyphen, and it loses any resemblance to the old vehicle. The new one is based on an alliance with GM of Canada, and it is made in a joint-venture plant on the GM Theta platform, which underpins the Equinox. The Chevrolet Equinox is a good-looking midsize SUV, made in Canada, with a 3.4-liter V6 built in a GM facility in China – just to slow those who still chant “buy American†at the name Chevrolet.
Suzuki designed the XL7 to be close to the concept vehicle it displayed at the 2005 Detroit auto show, so it looks very good, particularly the stylishly shaped headlight enclosures that create a distinctive front end. Then Suzuki pulled off something of a coup when it also got to use Cadillac’s “high-feature†3.6-liter V6. Suzuki claims the engine is “designed by GM, but built by Suzuki,†and I’ve seen newspaper and magazine writers who should have investigated further who wrote exactly that.
In strategy with GM, Suzuki will build the smaller engines, and GM will provide larger ones, so Suzuki agreed to halt production of its own 3.5-liter V6. Yoichi Shimoda, a former engine designer who now bolsters the marketing staff, was accommodating when I asked him about the GM-design/Suzuki-built bit. Does that mean Suzuki gets blueprints, then goes out in search of aluminum? No, laughed Shimoda.
Does it get the blocks from GM? “Yes,†he said. The pistons? “Yes.†The valves? “Yes.†The injection system? “Yes.†The engine-management electronics? “Yes.Ââ€
Ah. So GM sends the parts to Suzuki, and Suzuki assembles them, basically. However, Suzuki does its own machining of the cylinder heads and block, and modifies some parts.
“Right now, this engine is almost exactly the same as the GM version,†Shimoda said. “But in the near future, we will do other things to it. Our soul is into this engine.Ââ€
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In the new XL7, with dual overhead cams, variable valve timing, and drive-by-wire coils on each spark plug, the 3.6 delivers 252 horsepower at 6,500 RPMs, and 243 foot-pounds of torque at a mere 2,300 RPMs. The vehicle is designed to take on the Honda Pilot, Toyota Highlander, Hyundai Santa Fe, Mitsubishi Outlander, the Ford Explorer, and yes – the Equinox and all of its GM spinoffs. Suzuki – which intends to sell the XL7 only in the U.S. – could sell 150,000 of them in the coming year.
It will be difficult to choose a GM version over the XL7 when the XL7 offers arguably the best engine GM makes these days, plus the same unibody structure with reinforced lower side rails, and a Getrag 5-speed automatic transmission with a manual-control gate. All of those assets are buttoned into an attractive vehicle at a price that will undercut almost all rivals.
MacPherson strut front and multilink rear suspension let the XL7 corner with poise and precision, and with three rows of seats available, and a towing capacity of 3,500 pounds, the XL7 also delivers quite good fuel economy estimates of 18 city/24 highway for front-drive models, and 17 city/23 highway for all-wheel drive. With the seats folded down into the floor, storage can be increased to 95.2 cubic feet.
Pricing starts at $22,899 for the base model with front-wheel drive, Those basic models have six airbags, stability control with traction control, 4-wheel disc brakes with antilock and electronic brake distribution, and 16-inch alloy wheels. Moving up to the Luxury model, price starts at $24,599, and adds woodgrain trim, 17-inch wheels, leather interior and power 6-way driver seat. The top Limited model starts at $27,949, with moonroof, rear DVD player in the premium audio, remote start, foglights, and aluminum trim.
On all models, all-wheel drive can be added for $1,600. Stand-alone options include the third row of seats, self-leveling, auxiliary rear air conditioning and under-floor storage, for $1,350.
Curiously enough, I had a similar complaint about the XL7 as the SX4. With the 5-speed automatic, even in manual mode, the XL7 shift points left me wanting less of a gap between second and third. A new and contemporary 6-speed would handle the problem.
OK, so I don’t completely get my way with Suzuki engines. The 3.6 V6 in the XL7 is not a genuine Suzuki engine, but itÂ’s an outstanding engine — my favorite engine currently built by GM, underwritten by a dose of Suzuki soul. The SX4, meanwhile, is pure Suzuki, through and through.
Koichi Suzuki, president of Amercian Suzuki, said the companyÂ’s goal is to sell 250,000 vehicles by 2010, and if you think thatÂ’s optimistic, Suzuki is up 62 percent since 2003, and in the first half of 2006, it beat out Volkswagen for having the largest increase year-to-year. The SX4 and XL7 are not likely to slow that upward surge.
Audi’s S8, S6 make powerful claims for proper respect
MONTREAL, QUEBEC — It was an impossible choice. Driving the new Audi S8 – the high-performance version of the A8 luxury sedan – was an exhilarating exercise in mastering some challenging woodsy two-lane roads in the hills north of Montreal. Driving the same roads in the new S6 – AudiÂ’s high-performance version of its hot-selling midsize luxury A6 sedan – was even more exhilarating in some ways.
In Minnesota, where driving on ice and snow is a way of life, Audis have been popular and well-appreciated, because their standard front-wheel drive or quattro all-wheel drive eliminate most of the hazards that rear-wheel-drive vehicles confront annually from December to April. BMW and Mercedes – Audi’s two traditional German luxury rivals – have historically depended on front-engine/rear-drive for what they claim is a performance advantage.
Around the rest of the U.S., Audis are considered nice, safe cars, maybe just a slight distance behind the more prestigious cars from BMW or Mercedes. ThatÂ’s a sore point for Johan de Nysschen, executive vice president of Audi of America, who addressed journalists at the media introduction for AudiÂ’s newest cars in Montreal by making it clear Audi intends to make a bid to gain its rightful position. “We feel our brand is under-appreciated and under-recognized in the U.S.,†said de Nysschen. “For example, how many people in the U.S. know that our current S6 outsells BMWÂ’s M5 and the Mercedes AMG (E-Class) in Germany? And how many know that our A6 is the best-selling mid-size luxury car in the world?Ââ€
Most of us were surprised that Audi had surpassed those traditional foes in the home market, to say nothing of the world. The newest introductions, meanwhile, are to prove that while Audi’s sedans compare well to BMW and Mercedes counterparts, Audi also aims to outrun the high-performance AMG cars from Mercedes, and the “M†models from BMW.
That made the North American introduction of the S8 and S6 particularly intriguing. Both cars have the same basic 5.2-liter, Lamborghini-based, direct-injection V10 engine, and the same performance-oriented quattro all-wheel-drive system, but the cars make distinctly different impressions. Switch the S8’s air-suspension system to “Dynamic†and the big sedan hunkers down and feels planted on the curviest pavement. On the same roads, you could hurl the shorter A6 around the same curves, with a greater feeling that you are provoking the precision. You never think of “tossing†the S8 into a curve; it feels like it’s on rails. The S6 feels as though it needs your manipulations to send it sweeping smoothly around those curves.
That makes the S6 feel considerably quicker, which led to another surprise. One one segment of the drive through the hills, I noticed pushed the S6 at as spirited a pace as felt comfortable, enjoying the drive immensely, while a friend of mine did the same in another car up ahead, pretty much maintaining the same interval about 100 feet ahead. When we reached our stopping point, I was surprised to see that he was in an S8. The larger S8 is the classier, more luxurious car, while the S6 felt distinctly lighter and more agile, and I appreciated that sportier feel.
But leave it to those Germans. They decided they wanted the S6 to be ultimate hot midsize luxury sedans, and it has 435 horsepower and 398 foot-pounds of torque from its 5.2-liter V10. To prevent hot-footed S6 drivers from breezing past any larger S8s, the same size V10 in the S8 is tuned to 450 horsepower and 398 foot-pounds of torque. It seems the lighter S8 should be able to offset those extra 15 horses, but, the larger, longer S8 is only 100 pounds heavier than the S6, because its totally built of high-strength aluminum, with space-frame construction blessing the platform, suspension, body — everything.
The S8 will go 0-60 in 4.9 seconds – a vicinity only Corvette-Porsche-Viper type sports cars might visit, to say nothing of a large, four-door sedan with all-wheel drive and filled with opulent leather and wood. The rear seat could be the site of a board meeting, but it would be the fastest-moving board meeting imaginable.
Other competitors for Audi include Lexus, Acura, Infiniti, Volvo, Jaguar and Cadillac, but Mercedes and BMW are its primary rivals, because they share the autobahns, and they compete in motorsports. Audi counters by beating them – and everybody else – at the 24 Hours of LeMans, and on the Amercian LeMans series. Audi’s dominant R8 won five LeMans races, and 63 of 80 it competed in. This year, it was retired in favor of a new R10 TDI, which became the first turbo-diesel to ever win LeMans.
Race-bred performance in luxury models doesn’t come cheap. The smaller S4 may be a bargain, but the S6 starts at $72,000, and the S8 has a base price of $92,000. One S8 I drove, loaded with options including a $6,300 Bang and Olufsen audio system with 1,000 watts of power and 14 self-contained speakers, each with its own amplifier, had a sticker that topped $110,000. As with many of Germany’s finest cars, these beauties with Audi’s “fanatical attention to detail†are exorbitantly priced – and probably worth every penny.
With impressive success around the rest of the world, de Nysschen is impatient about focusing on the U.S. “We are headed for a record year in 2006 for our sales in the U.S.,†de Nysschen continued, “because of our newest A6, A4 and A3, and the introduction of the Q7, which has exceeded all our expectations. We introduced the Q7 just as large SUVs were slowing down, but we have delivered 3,200 Q7s since it was introduced last April, which means itÂ’s outselling the BMW X5 and Mercedes ML. We now also have the highest residual value.Ââ€
Audi, based in Ingolstadt, Germany, is not a huge company, but being between niche manufacturers and enormous companies is a benefit, and, de Nysschen added, Audi intends to capitalize on it.
“You must respect your competition – especially if they have larger market share,†he said. “Mercedes, unfortunately, has tarnished its reputation about quality a bit, and that is an opportunity for us. BMW seems to be very determined to become a volume brand, but when you do that, there is a threshold where you are no longer exclusive. We would like to have that problem, but for now, it can work to our advantage.
“In the past, we didn’t do as well as we should have,†de Nysschen said. “From the standpoints of marketing, and distribution, it was different in the U.S, than elsewhere. U.S. profits were not being reinvested in U.S. marketing. For many years we were behind BMW and Mercedes and had a lot of catching up to do. Whenever we got a car right, the economy seemed to go bad; and when the economy was good, we didn’t have the proper portfolio.
“We think the time is now. We have 267 dealerships in the U.S., with 97 of them exclusive Audi dealers. We are not a big company, and we can’t be all things to all people. But Audi has a passion to lead by technology,†he said, ticking off features such as quattro, the new sequential two-clutch automatic in the A3 and A4 that can be manually shifted in .2 of a second – faster than any human can shift a manual, and the passive and active safety measures that have gained accolades for the A3, A4, A6 and the soon-to-be-announced Q7 ratings, as well as the aluminum space-frame construction of the luxury A8.
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The S6 doesnÂ’t have the three-position suspension setting of the S8, but it has a comfortably firm stance. I particularly like the little styling touch on the S6 that includes a little row of five LED daytime driving lights up under the crossbar on either side of the now-familiar Audi grille.
Great attention has been given to making larger audio knobs, carefully finished details that might even be out of sight. The wipers, for instance, are positioned out of the airflow for aerodynamics, and when the outside temperature falls under freezing, the wipers raise themselves every so slightly to avoid sticking to the windshield overnight.
“We donÂ’t just build cars for our customers,†said de Nysschen. “We build cars for ourselves, too. Our engineers do thing to the very best level of what they are capable of. Those things look great, and feel great. Do they sell more cars? Probably not. But we like it, so we do it. We use real materials. If it looks like wood, it is wood; if it looks like leather, it is leather; if it looks like aluminium, it is aluminium.Ââ€
Europeans always include the extra syllable in aluminum, to make it “al-you-MIN-ee-um.†But the point is well-taken. I was at a rival luxury vehicle introduction recently, and when I asked if the wood trim on the dash was real, it led to an argument among the engineers, and nobody really knew. I laughed and said that if they couldn’t really tell, then it was pretty good stuff. But I like the Audi approach better. If you are going to put wood on my dashboard, make it real, or not at all.
Similarly, if you want the ultimate high-performance luxury sedan, and you want ultimate control around twisty curves — or icy Minnesota roadways — the S8 and S6 make powerful arguments.
Playoff critics can’t diminish Twins magical season
Had it been a movie, the end of the Minnesota Twins 2006 regular season would have been panned for being too unrealistic. It defied logic, as well as normal baseball style, for a team to rise from two months of ineptitude to start the season and finish in improbably glory as the Central Division champions on – make that after – their final game was over.
True, getting swept in three straight games by Oakland in the playoffs took some of the wind out of the billowing sails that had carried the Twins into post-season. But it canÂ’t take away from the captivating season finish.
Consider that by the time the Twins had lost their first 33 games, they had won only 25. By the time they had lost their next 33 games, they had won 71 games. Amazingly, you could almost separate the season in halves with those records – 25-33, then 71-33.
But at the start, with favored Chicago flying high, and surprising Detroit flying higher, the Twins seemed to be falling apart, right out of the box. If you recall, even Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau werenÂ’t hitting well, and Torii Hunter seemed to be swinging wildly. Twin Cities columnists and talk-show ravers agreed that Mauer may never be the great hitter once envisioned, and that Morneau might never be the power hitter many had hoped for. They also said Michael Cuddyer would never really have a position to call home.
Johan Santana had a fantastic year overall, but he did not have a fantastic first month. Brad Radke had problems getting his off-speed stuff in the location he wanted, and Carlos Silva seemed to have acquired a tendency to hit the fat part of opposing bats with frightening regularity. In the field, guys named Castro and Batista at short and third were OK, but never better than just OK, and the Twins lineup sounded more like a CNN compilation of Latin American dictators than an American League contender. Meanwhile, left-fielder Shannon Stewart went down with a continuation of his recent injury-spattered career.
In apparent desperation, the Twins seemed to turn to the future. Santana started pitching like his old, dominant self. Radke finally found some consistency, but was far off his game. Watching Radke pitch at his best is like watching a skilled artist bring together all the hues and shades and organizational concepts to create another masterpiece. We didnÂ’t know at the time that he had a crack in his shoulder and a torn labrum.
The turning point for the Twins? There were several.
Mauer, of course, was the peopleÂ’s choice behind the net. Turning 23, and really in only his second full season, Mauer started hitting first. His average rose, and he hit the ball to all parts of the field. By the time the rest of the Twins started to hit with any regularity, Mauer was almost up to .400, and being rightly called the best hitter in baseball.
A young left-hander named Francisco Lariano emerged, and, typically, was not allowed to pitch other than in middle relief by cautious, formula-following manager Ron Gardenhire. When he finally got to start, he was the star of the staff, and may have inspired SantanaÂ’s game to rise a notch.
Bringing up players cut at training camp has to be a difficult task, and there was no reason to believe that Nick Punto could do anything much at third, or that Jason Bartlett was ready to step in at short. They not only played well, they made brilliant, game-saving plays every game. With Luis Castillo sharp at second, and Morneau becoming ever-better at first, the infield suddenly was solidified.
Hunter, after missing some action when he cracked his ankle on one of his wall-climbing attempts in center field, didn’t help much in the first half. But Hunter’s all-consuming personality and that giant smile may have been the key to the camaraderie that engulfed the Twins. The word “chemistry†is overused in sports, but it was never more valid than when the Twins became a team where the whole was far better than the sum of its parts.
As Stewart went out, Hunter was hurt, and Radke tried to find his problem, a pitching staff that started out with the hope of Santana-Radke-Silva, became a starting rotation where Boof Bonser, Matt Garza, Scott Baker, and reliever Pat Neshek stepped in. A bullpen staff led by closer Joe Nathan set new standards for effectiveness.
About that time, Morneau started hitting the ball. Hard. And out of the park. He surged to become the first player in the current era to hit 30 home runs for the Twins. With Mauer never slowing down, the two M-and-M boys led the way. Mauer with his classic swing, and Morneau, with his suddenly emerging power swing. Between them, Cuddyer, who had become an exceptional force with his strong right arm in right field, came through with clutch hits and key RBIs.
A pivot point in the Twins rise was when they closed in on the White Sox, for second, and their manager, Ozzie Guillen, made the unheard of comment: “I like my team, but I really like that team over there.†He named the obvious stars, but he also liked the little guys – the Punto, Bartlett types – and called them piranhas. That became another watchword for the Twins. If the big sharks don’t get you, the piranhas will. It seemed that the more players went down, the more persistent and resilient the Twins became. Bartlett, batting ninth in the lineup, was hitting nearly .320, and day after day, the Twins would fabricate a way to win.
Still, the Detroit Tigers who had been doormats for decades, showed no signs of faltering. For about six weeks, it seemed the Twins would keep winning, but fail to close the gap with the leaders. But they persevered, and they overtook the White Sox. Then, in the final month, Detroit started to stumble. Impossible as it seemed, the Twins closed in.
Mauer, sometimes appearing weary, got a few days off, and Morneau, once he got to 33 homers, quit hitting homers. Just about then, Torii Hunter caught fire. Running and leaping with his usual abandon to make catches in the outfield, Hunter also started hitting the ball into the seats. He, too, reached the 30 plateau for home runs, and if you broke down the last month, he probably was the Twins best clutch hitter in that stretch.
None of that prepared us for the magnificent finish. The Twins had tied the Tigers for first place, and the final three-game series for both teams, in their respective home ballparks, would decide the title. Against the tough White Sox, the Twins struggled, and lost a game. Then another. Detroit, playing last place Kansas City at home, blew a 5-0 lead and lost, then made a spirited comeback in the second game, but lost again.
The drama of the season finale was actually threefold. The Twins would either finish second, or tied for first – which would equal second – or somehow win the crown. Mauer, batting .347, had none other than the Yankees Derek Jeter on his tail, at .346. The final games started, all around the country. Jeter got a hit in his first at-bat, Mauer struck out. That left the two tied for first in batting.
Silva, meanwhile, pitched his best game in two months and the Twins took command against the White Sox. In MauerÂ’s second at-bat, he drilled a double to left. Word came that Jeter was by then 1-for-3. The mood was slightly subdued, because Detroit was hammering Kansas City, so the title seemed out of the question. Kansas City got a couple runs, so at least it wouldnÂ’t be 7-0 in Detroit, and it closed to 7-4 on the scoreboard at the Metrodome.
Mauer stepped in for his third at-bat. The count was 1-and-1, when suddenly an enormous roar filled the Dome. Mauer, startled, stepped out, refocused, and stepped back in. What had happened was the crowd saw the scoreboard change to show that somehow, some way, Kansas City had taken an 8-7 lead in the top of the eight at Detroit. In the next instant, Mauer drilled another hit to left, making him 2-for-3, and cinching the batting title. Jeter was 1-for-5.
The best was yet to come, of course. The Tigers tied the KC game 8-8, and after winning 5-1, the Twins celebrated, then headed for the clubhouse. But they returned, because the big screen in the Metrodome started to show the remainder of the Detroit-Kansas City game. About 35,000 of the crowd of 45,000 stayed to watch. The Twins returned to their dugout, and their wives and kids sat in the visiting dugout. Hunter led the cheers, “LetÂ’s go, RoyalsÂ…Ââ€
You donÂ’t see scenes like that in pro sports these days. And when Kansas City rallied to beat Tigers 10-8 in 12 innings, the celebration was incredible in the Metrodome.
The euphoria was partly due to the seeming obsession with winning the title and thus avoiding a first-round playoff match with the Yankees. By winning, the Twins would duck the Yankees, and play Oakland, instead. The Tigers, as the wild card, would face the Yanks. At the time, my feeling was “Be careful what you wish for.†With Yankee ace Randy Johnson a questionable performer in the first round best-of-five, and the possibility of facing the Yankees with Johnson in the best-of-seven league final round, it seemed facing the Yankees first might be preferable.
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The rest, as they say, is history. Santana, who had not been as sharp in the last month as earlier in the season, did not shut out the Athletics, who won 3-2. The Athletics won Game 2 5-2 in the Metrodome, and the columnists and talk show ravers were united in ripping Torii Hunter for missing a diving catch that turned into a game-changing inside-the-park home run. Going out to Oakland, the Twins continued to not hit very well, and gave Radke one last start. It was a close game, but the Twins didnÂ’t hit, and they made three errors, their bullpen lost its invincibility, and their season was over.
The faltering Tigers, meanwhile, went from being bombed in Game 1 at Yankee Stadium to whip the Yankees in the next three games. So Detroit, rising from a five-game losing streak at the worst possible time, advanced to face Oakland, while the Yankees and the Twins went home.
The most disturbing thing of the playoffs is the continued criticism of Torii Hunter, who is perhaps the gameÂ’s best center fielder. Game after game, Hunter makes ESPNÂ’s list with spectacular catches in center, either going up and over the fences to rob home runs, or diving to spear would-be hits in front of him. For those who didnÂ’t see the play live, when it appeared on Sports Center you thought that here was another fabulous catch by Hunter. It was a shock to see that the ball somehow sliced just away from his diving glove, missing it by maybe two inches and skipping to the wall as Hunter sprawled on the grass.
Various critics have said the move was ill-conceived, bad judgment, a terrible error, that he missed it by five feet(!), and it ruined the series, if not the whole season, and possibly was at the root of terrorism, global warming and world hunger. Enough, already. The guys with the press passes are going to suggest that they know how to play that slicing line drive better than Hunter.
In reality, even a three-game sweep at the hands of Oakland canÂ’t take away the magnificent and totally captivating season the Twins had in 2006. And when it comes to deciding whether to dive for a ball or not, IÂ’ll take Torii Hunter, any day, over the second-guessers in the press box.
Just once it would be nice to read, or hear, that the Twins had a magical season, an incredible finish, and then just flat got beat by an Oakland team that was at the top of its game. Sometimes, no matter how much skill and magic youÂ’ve got, you just happen to get beat. ThatÂ’s why they play the game.
Ford puts fine Edge on line for crossover battles
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF. — WhatÂ’s in a car name? Well, the 2007 Ford Edge could be said to have edgy styling, and it could give Ford Motor Company an edge over the competition as U.S. vehicle buyers edge away from oversized/full-sized SUVs to compact/crossover size.
It also could claim to be good enough to eat – at least from the names of its available colors. The colors are dazzling, and the names are even better, with crème brulee, dark cherry, French silk, light sage, lime gold, Merlot, orange frost, and white chocolate. Choose a color, and take a little drive out for dessert.
In the highly competitive world of current automotives, where crossover SUVs (CUVs) may become the most heated segment in the industry, any old edge will do, and the just-introduced Ford Edge is far beyond being just “any old†edge. Introduced to automotive media for test drives through the city streets of San Francisco, and the twisty, hilly roadways north of the Golden Gate Bridge, up to Point Reyes, the Edge showed good performance, a solid and comfortable feel of security, and the potential for economy that the big, truck-based SUVs could never pretend to have.
Ford unveiled the vehicles at a public courtyard near the Bay Bridge, on the Embarcadero, a busy boulevard running along the San Francisco waterfront. While a couple of waves of journalists got scheduled walkarounds of the EdgeÂ’s various assets, a lot of normal citizens walked up and asked all sorts of questions. There is no question, the Edge attracted considerable attention, and interest, from those passers-by.
Built at a renovated Oakville, Ontario, plant in Canada, the Edge has a fairly tall, blunt appearance, with the striking chrome horizontal grille bars familiar from the year-old Fusion sedan. Ford spent time and effort to make the Edge handle just right, which means softer edges in cornering than what European or some top Asian crossovers might have. That means compromising all-out performance handling for a more American edge in comfort. Oops, thereÂ’s that word again.
The undulating trends of American vehicles have taken us from station wagons to wildly popular minivans where baby-boomers grew up, then to sport-utility vehicles as boomers grew up and sought family tricksters that made minivans seem stodgy. Gasoline prices that rose to shocking heights this year, before subsiding from near $4, may have provided the impetus to bring us to our senses from 13-miles-per-gallon truck-based giants. Even though gas is back toward the lower $2 level, we may have learned that money saved on gasoline works quite well for other expenses.
Ford, among other manufacturers, claims that this year will see car-based crossover SUVs (or CUV – crossover-utility vehicles) surpass larger SUVs, and that by 2010 there will be 3 million CUVs sold. Consider that in 1996, as we lusted after large SUV trucks, there weren’t any CUVs. In 2000, there were a half-dozen of them. This year, there will be 40 different CUVs, on its way to 70. They will account for 2.4 million sales for 2006, while larger SUVs will be 2.1 million, and declining.
Minivans, meanwhile, havenÂ’t disappeared. Led by the Honda Odyssey, Toyota Sienna and Nissan Quest in pursuit of the dominant Chrysler corps, minivans are better than ever, but Ford claims its numbers will drop below a million in the next year. We in the U.S. have almost forgotten about the fantastic new station wagons that are dominant in Europe, from Volvo, Audi, BMW and Saab, while driving them and buying more of them would take us full circle. For now, the trend is CUVs, which are at least closer to the rational station wagon genre than their inefficient, truck-based forebears. Ford says that when you combine design, safety, performance, fuel economy and value, the Edge has the opportunity to be the best of the new breed.
The Edge has FordÂ’s new corporate Duratec 3.5 V6 engine, with 265 horsepower at 6,250 RPMs, and the low-end punch of 250 foot-pounds of torque, running through the new six-speed automatic transmission Ford has built jointly with, ahem, General Motors. It has an estimated fuel efficiency of 25 miles per gallon in two-wheel-drive form, or 24 with all-wheel-drive. The Edge will start with a base price of $25,995, while the upscale SEL model starts at $28,000, and adding all-wheel-drive adds $1,650. So the price point is very competitive.
In all of its very informative and interesting press sessions during the Edge introduction, Ford’s demographic research may have missed one group – automotive journalists. We have spent the last two months on whirlwind introductory trips to drive some outstanding new vehicles, many of which are crossover SUVs, or CUVs. There is the Acura RDX, Acura MD-X, Honda CR-V, Mazda CX-7, Mazda CX-9, Dodge Caliber, Jeep Compass, Dodge Nitro, Suzuki XL-7, Suzuki SX4, Mitsubishi Outlander, Hyundai Santa Fe – all of which closely followed such vehicles as the Toyota RAV4, Kia Sportage, Hyundai Tucson, Chevrolet Equinox, Saturn VUE, BMW X3.
Among others. All of those are CUVs, and all of them have one thing in common: In each case, the manufacturer has said that while all the blossoming CUVs are very competitive, all have a stodgy SUV-like appearance, and “ours is the one that’s different.†Ford says it hasn’t yet seen the “iconic CUV,†which leaves the door open for the Edge to claim that turf, with what it claims is its most important launch of the year.
Overall, driving the Edge, or riding in it, is impressive. A solid feel, as if Ford tried to dial in a little of the larger Explorer’s strong stance, is evident. The Edge lets occupants sit up high, which Ford officials stressed as an important ingredient to consumers – never mind that when you are up high in one, but behind another SUV, you’re “commanding view†of the road is cut off at one car-length.
Truly useful features abound in the Edge. The 60/40 split rear bench seat folds down readily, including by remote switch just inside the uplifted tailgate. The front passenger seat backrest flips forward to form a flat surface, which extends stowage length to 8 feet from the tailgate.
When the rear seat is upright, not only is it roomy and comfortable back there, but the backrest reclines far enough for a restful ride or power-nap. A DVD navigation system is available. Power-points for such plug-ins as computer recharging are standard, and so is a jack for MP3 or iPods to play your own music through the 9-speaker audio system.
An enormous sunroof is available, and when you hit the switch it slides back for a vast expanse of sky view that entertains both front and rear occupants. The Vista Roof has a panel measuring 27.3 by 29.4 inches that tilts or slides open, and a 31.3 by 15.8 inch fixed rear see-through panel that combines to make a 9 square foot patch of upward visibility. With the Vista Roof open, wind noise is baffled, too, but when you close the windows and the sunroof, you realize the vault-like insulation from road and wind noise that surrounds you inside the Edge.
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The secure feeling inside the Edge is reinforced by the knowledge that the most important safety stuff all come standard on every Edge. The list of safety features ranges from an array of airbags that includes side and side-curtain bags, high structural rigidity, four-wheel disc brakes with antilock, and AdvanceTrac traction control with FordÂ’s spectacular roll stability control (RSC) first featured on the Volvo XC90. ItÂ’s nearly mandatory to have such features available these days, but to make them standard on even the base models is a high plateau, indeed.
Mom and dad care mostly about safety, but the kids care about being entertained as you head over the river and through the woods. For them, the usual ceiling-mounted DVD player folds down for rear-seat dwellers, but you canÂ’t get it with the panoramic sunroof, naturally. For those who want to have their cake and eat it too, choose the sunroof and a dealer-installed option of a pair of video screens in the backs of the front seat headrests. I blew a Ford guyÂ’s mind by asking if you could order the ceiling DVD screen AND the twin headrest screens for a three-screen overload. You can, of course, if you want to rise to the category of wanting to have cake, and ice cream, and to eat it all at once. Or, if you have three little twerps who could sit back there in potential harmony with the absurd possibility of three separate videos.
Driving the all-wheel-drive Edge hard around twisty mountain roads, it responded well enough. I might prefer a bit stiffer setting on the independent multilink suspension, to the point that I would be willing to put up with a bit of harshness to attain. The Edge could never be accused of even approaching that sort of stiffness.
The engine was responsive too, and the six-speed automatic handled all chores well. Well, almost all. In descending a steep hill, I was advised to click the overdrive switch on the gear lever to off, helping with engine-braking. I did, and it slowed slightly, but not well enough for my taste. I asked why Ford had not put a manual shift-gate onto the shifter, so you could manually up- or downshift, and I was told that FordÂ’s market research showed interested consumers didnÂ’t care about having that controlling edge.
OK, but as CUVs charge ahead to become the most competitive single segment of the industry, my feeling is that the RDX, Outlander, and others are extremely fun to drive because they not only have manual shift-gates, but fingertip control paddles on the steering wheel or steering column. They are fun to use in accelerating upshifts, but they are most beneficial in downshifting, whether descending a steep hill, or merely leaving a freeway, when you might prefer to drop down to fourth, or even third, to prevent the automatic from hunting and searching to match your gas pedal urging.
It seemed that Ford officials were condescending in acknowledging my question, but if the CUV segment is as competitive as Ford says – and I believe it is – then deal-breakers will be such things as that reclining rear seat, the convergence with electronic gadgetry, fuel-efficiency, and features like manual overrides on the transmission.
Technically, I learned later, deactivating overdrive drops you two gears, and if you’re still descending too fast, hit the brakes sharply and it electronically drops the transmission one more gear. At that point, downshift the lever to low, and it goes down one more gear — to second — and holds it. Nobody at the Edge intro seemed to be aware of all that. Seems to me, a manual gate, and paddles, would have been far simpler.
A brief drive down to FishermanÂ’s Wharf, then up some of the wonderfully abrupt San Francisco hills in the base two-wheel-drive Edge was also impressive. However, if you dropped the temperature 50 degrees and coated those streets with ice, you would have Duluth, and you would probably want that all-wheel drive.
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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