Even tiny Scion xB grows larger, gains power
You’ve got to love the Toyota Scion website: www.want2Bsquare.com. Now, what other auto manufacturer would dare to hint that it was going to be square? Toyota’s Scion xB has made being square into an art form.
The new information is about the new Scion xB — the cubic one — and the all-new xD, which, if you haven’t followed the trail of initials, replaces the current xA. The first xA and xB, and the later sleek tC sports coupe, seemed like a bold and curious move in 2003. But over half a million Scion buyers later, Toyota was proven right, as usual.
Now Toyota has unveiled an all new xB — the boxy Scion — and, instead of a new xA, the companion car is now the xD. It is the squarish xB that is the focal point for Scion, which is Toyota’s youth-seeking arm.
The first xB was tiny, and it was a striking vehicle appearance-wise, because it was a box on wheels. It had a tiny engine, and while it didn’t have much zip, it delivered strong fuel economy and became a popular urban commuter. It also was the most popular of the three. The new xB is a tribute to Toyota’s declared focus on market research– for better or for worse.
The new xB looks much better, to me, than the original, with neat headlights that wrap around the front corners. If the rear corners of the box seem farther aft than before, it’s because the new xB is fully a foot longer. Now, stretching a little car into a less-little car means it is bigger and heavier. The bigger xB now weighs in at just over 3,000 pounds, and since a stronger engine was right at hand, Toyota reached into the bin for the 2.4-liter four-cylinder — used in the Camry and the sporty tC coupe. It fits under the square hood of the square and previously small xB.
The 2.4 delivers 158 horsepower at 6,000 RPMs — an increase of 55 over the old xB — and 162 foot-pounds of torque — an increase of 61. A four-speed automatic or a five-speed manual transmission are available. Four-wheel disc brakes, tire pressure monitor, Toyota’s five-star safety system with airbags everywhere, and the inclusion of electronic brake distribution, brake assist, stability control and traction control, all make the xB a better vehicle.
Without a doubt, the new xB goes like heck. It is peppy and swift, which should bring positive reactions from every owner who said more power would be a benefit. The foot longer size, with a 4-inch stretch in wheelbase, plays out to 102.5 cubic feet of interior room — a whopping 32.4 cubic feet more than its predecessor — so score one for the group that asked for more room.
However, fuel economy seemed such a minor thing two years ago, but it is back in the forefront as fuel prices zoom over $3, with gusts to over $3.50 a gallon. EPA estimates for the xB were divulged as being 22 miles per gallon city and 28 mpg highway, which didn’t slip by during the introduction hoopla in Royal Oak, Mich.
“Our owners wanted more power and performance,” said corporate Scion manager Steve Haag, when I brought up the question. “We feel we still have the best compromise.”
Market research rules all, these days in automotives. But it takes a couple years, minimum, to take a good idea to completion and hit the streets with it. So when buyers of the first xB said they loved the surprising room inside the boxy little beast, but would like more room, and that they liked the fuel economy, but would appreciate more power, Toyota reacted.
My question of the new xB is that with the marketplace adopting hybrids and the new small-car range that includes the Honda Fit, Toyota Yaris, Nissan Versa and other fuel-sipping but well-built minicars, do buyers really want to see a neat and iconic economical small box become a somewhat less economical and somewhat larger box?
Base price is $15,650 for the xB (B as in Box), and $16,600 with the automatic. So the price is right, considering the improvements and features. Interior amenities have been smoothed out and refined at every touch. Use of more high-strength steel and noise deadening aid the feeling of solidity in both models, and among the available after-market pieces are a supercharger kit, body-panel aero kit, special alloy wheels, etc.
As it comes from the dealership, the xB has a new instrument panel, with center-mounted instruments separated from the shifter panel by the audio system. That audio, incidentally, is highly sophisticated, and it includes a handy iPod jack for playing your own music through the powerful ear-splitting system.
At the introduction of the first Scions, the target was the youth market, but a lot of older people seemed to like them too. Basically, they were small, economical vehicles, with the xA being a nice little subcompact, and the xB being an odd, square thing, sort of like a minivan or a cubic SUV that got squashed down to subcompact size. Toyota stressed that the plan was to revise the vehicles whenever the company thought it was a good idea, and that the new replacement models might be completely different and with different names, even. The constant linking all the Scions together was the capacity to allow buyers to customize, fiddle, alter, and otherwise modify their Scions.
“The business model was to allow buyers to personalize through accessories,” said Haag. “Consumers want to customize, and more than half of our Scion buyers have customized their cars. ”
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One of the brilliant behind-the-scenes tactics Toyota used was to make it easy and profitable for Toyota to help its customers modify their Scions. Toyota checked out the after-market companies and approached certain ones of them to partner with. That way Toyota could freely encourage their Scion buyers to alter the cars, and could be sure enough of the quality of the after-market devices to warranty them. So more of the same this time, with over 40 new accessories available at launch.
This is a marketing masterstroke. Most companies try to figure out what the consumers want, and then make that product. The younger buyers, however, don’t care how the car comes stock, they want to alter and personalize the cars. So making vehicles that are ready and willing to be modified — with those customizing tidbits available at dealerships — adds to the attraction of the Scions.
After a very brief and preliminary few spins around the suburban Detroit area in both cars, the facts would indicate the new xB and xD are certain winners.
The xD, meanwhile, bears a stronger resemblance to the xB than to the old xA it replaces. It almost appears to be an xB with a steeply angled front end. The xD won’t be available until August, and its prices haven’t been introduced yet, but it will strive to stay in the higher-mileage region.
A 1.8-liter four, with 128 horsepower and 125 foot-pounds of torque, represent a 23-percent increase in power from the xA. Fuel economy estimates by the EPA suggest 27 city and 33 mpg highway for the five-speed stick, and 26/32 for the four-speed automatic.
Inside the xD, the instruments are conventionally laid out straight ahead of the steering wheel, rather than on the top center of the dash. It also has a squared-back roof, nicely angled, and with similar interior features, like fold down rear seat, and the audio thing.
Use of more high-strength steel and noise deadening aid the feeling of solidity in both models, and among the available after-market pieces are a super, charger kit, body-panel aero kit, special alloy wheels, etc. And while it will be fun to try out both cars more extensively, and we can disagree or share doubts about more power/less fuel economy, we will concede that Toyota’s rise to worldwide automotive prominence deserves patience.
And while it will be fun to try out both cars more extensively, and we can disagree or share doubts about more power/less fuel economy, we also must concede that Toyota hasn’t missed the mark very often in recent years. And we also concede that Toyota’s rise to worldwide automotive prominence deserves patience.
Mercedes C-Class splits into Sport and Luxury for 2008
There is something completely natural about the combination of sport and luxury exhibited in the new fourth-generation Mercedes C-Class sedan — which comes in two distinct styles and personalities for the 2008 model year, appropriately and quite naturally named Sport and Luxury.
Every car-maker boast that their cars are either luxurious or sporty, or sometimes both, and nobody promotes having “just” a basic, mundane vehicle, although most make their profits off the stripped basic models, even while promoting their sporty and luxury versions. Maybe Mercedes saw the trend and wanted to cut through to the core, or maybe it was just typically pragmatic Germans performing normally, but with the new C-Class models, Sport and Luxury are all there is — when the cars reach showrooms in early August, there will be no such thing as a basic, mundane C-Class car.
On reputation alone, many consumers might be reluctant to consider a Mercedes C-Class, assuming it is priced out of reach in this era of escalating prices. But the C-Class should start out at just over $30,000 — a price that can be reached or topped by many rivals, including loaded-up midsize cars named Camry and Accord. So a truly fine Mercedes sedan is available at a price that no longer seems unreachable.
The natural feeling is that a C-Class car fits every driving requirement, and I must admit the feeling might have been influenced by the introductory road-tests when Mercedes summoned automotive journalists to the boutique-ish city of Portland, Ore. Our route guided us on an often spellbinding tour eastward along the Columbia River Gorge in the morning, when my co-driver and I drove a C350 Sport to the foot of Mount Hood, and in the afternoon, when we drove a C300 Luxury to within eruption distance of Mount St. Helen’s. Two fine cars, and the two most spectacular of Oregon’s several volcanic peaks.
It was a stunning backdrop, and the cars were up to the task of any and all highway challenges. I appreciate luxury car features, but I most prefer performance car responsiveness and handling. In the C-Class’s pair of unidentical twins, both cars can satisfy either preference. Using the same Sport and Luxury approaches that worked well with the recently renovated larger E-Class Mercedes, the C-Class models cross into each other’s territory while retaining their distinct personalities. The Sport is sportier, but it has plenty of luxury going for it; the Luxury is more luxuriously softened, but it has plenty of sportiness in its soul.
Both models are stretched over the current model — 3.9 inches in length, 1.8 inches in wheelbase, 1.4 inches in height, and 1.7 inches in width. Increased interior roominess is the benefit of the expansion, as is the new platform, which is 13 percent improved in torsional rigidity with 70 percent of the frame buillt of ultra-high-strength steel. It is proper sophistication and technical advancement for the fourth generation of a car that began life 25 years ago, when German car-maker Mercedes-Benz decided that it was time for its Stuttgart manufacturing plant to drop down from its costlier luxury chariots and build an “entry level” sedan.
That was in 1983, when the 190 model was first introduced, a quite-compact sedan with Mercedes class and numerous innovations, such as antilock brakes and seat-belt tensioners. The car built a following over the next 10 years, when the second generation came along and outsold the original 190 by 45 percent. In 2000, the third C-Class generation made a giant leap to a more contemporary and luxurious style, and it outsold its predecessor by 65 percent. By the end of 2007, the first three generations will have sold over 700,000 units, which means the C-Class, which accounts for 25 percent of all luxury car sales, remains the top-selling Mercedes model since 2001.
“At $30,000, the C-Class is the gateway into Mercedes for many customers,” said Bernie Glaser, the production manager for Mercedes in the U.S. “From there, they can step up to the E-Class, or the CLS, or the S-Class. By offering both Sport and Luxury models, we’ve lowered our demographic from a median age of 52 to 50 since 2005.”
Glaser anticipates that 70 percent of new C-Class customers will choose the Sport model, which has a dashing new grille with a huge three-pointed star right in the middle, much like the flashier Mercedes sports-coupes, while the Luxury model has the more stately horizontal blades on the grille. The luxury model also has sleek sides, while the Sport gets lower sills and spoiler edging designed by the AMG performance group, and sport suspension, which lowers the stance 15 millimeters and includes wider wheels at the rear. It also has special brakes and dual exhausts, with rubber-studded aluminum pedals. The Luxury version has a more sedate black-backed instruments and softer colors, like cashmere beige in the interior. A small touch is that the Sport has birdseye maple or brushed aluminum for dashboard trim; the Luxury has burl walnut.
At that point, however, the two start crossing over. Both have all-season tires and 17-inch wheels, with the Sport getting an 18-inch option. Both vehicles have the same choice of engines — a 3.0-liter V6 with 228 horsepower and 221 foot-pounds of torque, upgrading the current model’s 201 horsepower in the C230. The upgrade engine is a 3.5-liter V6 with 268 horsepower and 258 foot-pounds of torque. The real-world difference is one full second in a 0-60 burst, with the larger engine getting there in about 6.1 seconds and the smaller 3.0 in 7.1.
Both engines are available in both cars, but the 3.0 in the C300 offers the choice of a 6-speed manual transmission in the Sport, or the 7-speed automatic in the Luxury. Choosing the larger 3.5-liter V6 in the C350 is accompanied only by the 7-speed automatic. Mercedes officials anticipate that 15-20 percent of buyers will choose the stick shift — which is very interesting, because decision-makers at a company like Honda might rationalize not offering a manual transmission in a car like the new Accord V6 sedan by insisting only 5 percent of that segment’s buyers want a manual transmission. While it seems outrageous that more Mercedes buyers than Honda buyers would go manual, we can only applaud Mercedes for making it available.
Buyers of the 3.0 engine will be able to choose the 4-Matic all-wheel-drive system — a new version, with permanent all-wheel drive set-up that sends 45 percent of engine power to the front wheels in normal driving.
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Both versions also benefit by steering that is 6 percent quicker in response, which aids both safety and sporty handling. Other safety equipment includes six airbags, plus adaptive braking that deploys antilock, traction control and stability control. Occupants will also appreciate 8-way power seats, plus dual climate control with a charcoal filter that won’t allow any particle larger than 10 microns to enter, and Bluetooth hands-free communication.
As we swept around some rolling, undulating curves in the foothills of the mountains, both cars exhibited comfortable firmness in holding a flat attitude, which is the benefit of another unique new feature called the Agility Control System. Similar in response to the electromagnetic shock dampening system on some top Cadillac, Corvette and Audi vehicles, the Mercedes C-Class cars have a different form of selective damping from their shock absorbers. In the C-Class twins, it is not magnetic or electronic, but a purely mechanical system. When the road surface and driving style causes flexing of less than 10 millimeters, the car remains in comfort setting, but in harder driving, when the shocks flex more than 10 mm., the shocks stiffen by themselves, in a system described as strictly “amplitude dependent.”
That satisfies those of us who anticipate such real-world technical innovations from Mercedes, not to diminish the slightly more gimmicky creature features that are also greatly appreciated. For example, you can choose a normal sunroof or a panoramic roof that opens nearly full-width, with the front panel sliding up and over the rear. Or you can select an optional 30-gig disc-driven navigation system, with a 7-inch screen. Or an audio system that can be upgraded to a 12-speaker, 450-watt Harmon-Kardon unit, which allows you to rip CDs onto its hard drive, and features a 4-gig music register that has a plug-in to allow you to play personal music storage devices.
All the options are secondary, though, because stripping them all away still leaves a fine car under either the Sport or Luxury trim in the C-Class. Without a doubt, the C-350 Sport showed more zip and less effort than the C300 Luxury, while bounding up and over some curvy and mountainous hills, but I found manually downshifting and stepping harder on the C300 produced very satisfying performance. Meanwhile, we didn’t get a chance to compare the C350 Luxury with the C300 Sport, but that’s good reason for some subsequent test drives. And regardless, if Mercedes can keep the price in the same ballpark as the current C230’s base $29,650, the new C-Class could go well beyond living up to its reputation but prove to be the best seller of them all.
Ducks winning Cup means bright future for Wild
When the Anaheim Ducks whipped Ottawa in five games to win the first West Coast Stanley Cup, journalists clamored to boast that they were not surprised when the Ducks proved to be Mighty, even if they’d dropped the previous Disneyesque first half of their nickname.
One hockey writer, a good guy from Minneapolis, followed up the title series by reminding readers that, back before the season started, he picked the Ducks to go all the way. Very impressive, for those who could recall last summer when the regular season began. Easier to remember for the readers undoubtedly was when the same writer picked Ottawa — not Anaheim — to win the final series and capture the Cup. That was just before the finals. Before the playoffs began, in a huge, double-page spread in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, he picked all eight first-round match-ups in which he predicted the Wild to beat Anaheim (gong), as well as Pittsburgh and super-kid Sidney Crosby to beat Ottawa (gong), Atlanta to beat the Rangers (gong), Tampa Bay to beat New Jersey (gong), and Calgary to beat Detroit (gong). Oof! How does three right and five wrong sound? Not only that, in the same spread, he picked San Jose to go all the way by beating Nashville, the Wild(gong), Calgary (gong), and Atlanta (gong)to win the Cup (extra-loud GONG).
Not that I was right on, but I was close. Before the playoffs began, I wrote that the Wild were playing as impressively as any team in the NHL, but were running into the team against which they matched up worst. Detroit, Dallas, Calgary, Vancouver, San Jose, and Nashville — any of the other West teams would have been a better match for Minnesota in the most-balanced playoffs in NHL history. So I predicted that I would go with my heart over my head and take the Wild against Anaheim, but I hedged by saying the winner of that series would go all the way to the final.
Overlooked in the impressive Anaheim run to the Cup, choreographed by one-time Edina High School winger Brian Burke, was that the little, ol’ Minnesota Wild, in the first round, had given the Ducks a fiercely competitive series — tougher than Ottawa did in the final. Anaheim outscored the Wild 12-9 in the five-game series, then Anaheim outscored Vancouver 14-8 in a five-game second-round match, and only Detroit gave the Ducks more of a tussle, winning two of the first three before the Ducks won three straight, outscoring the Red Wings only 17-16, because of Detroit’s 5-0 Game 3 triumph. In the final, Ottawa, also went down in five games, but was outscored 16-11 including the climactic 6-2 Game 5 rout.
So Anaheim outscored Ottawa by five goals in the final series, and Vancouver by six, and Detroit by one goal, after only outscoring the Wild by three.
But at the time of the first round elimination, the disappointment of a state-full of Minnesota hockey fans reflected only that their heroes were snuffed too soon after sailing into the playoffs with high hopes. Never mind that the Wild lost two tough, close 2-1 and 3-2 games at Anaheim, then lost Game 3 at Minnesota 2-1. Down, and counted out, the Wild rose for their finest hour to capture Game 4 with a 4-1 victory. Hope returned, only to be snuffed when Anaheim delivered the knockout in with a 4-1 slam in Game 5.
The media and talk shows spewed all sorts of things about the Wild shortcomings. The fans had patiently waited while Marian Gaborik overcame a near half-season lost to a groin strain, and watched the Wild rise from the despair of losing ace goaltender Manny Fernandez halfway through the year before marveling as unheralded Niklas Backstrom came from the No. 3 goaltending slot to star as the best goaltender in the NHL, carrying the Wild up and into the playoffs and winning the award for fewest goals-allowed. So to be rudely eliminated almost before the playoffs began was a cruel ending.
It is less cruel in retrospect, after the Ducks did away with all those other contenders that Minnesota fans might have respected more than the Ducks. Only one team gets to hoist the Stanley Cup, and when it does, a careful look at all the fallen victims can be interesting.
When you think about it, Doug Risebrough timed his move perfectly, adding such luminaries as Pavel Demitra to be Gaborik’s Slovakian playmate, Bloomington’s own Mark Parrish to go to the front of the net and be an offensive force, Backstrom as a commodity far more valuable than a minor-league goaltending prospect, and veteran Keith Carney as a stabilizer on defense. With Brian Rolston and Pierre-Marc Bouchard already in place to ignite the offense, the redoubtable Wes Walz as a solid two-way center specializing in checking opposing stars, and Mikko Koivu emerging as an outstanding and virtually mistake-free two-way forward, coach Jacques Lemaire could finally work with something more than a defensive-postured competitor.
Going into the playoffs, the Wild ranked an A on offense, an A-minus on defense, and a surprising A in goal. Trouble was, Anaheim was also an A on offense, led by the remarkably ageless Teemu Selanne, and an A in goal with Jean-Sebastien Giguere, and a staggering A-plus on defense, led by the unbeatable pair of Chris Pronger and Scott Niedermayer. If you follow this, the Wild offense might have been better than the Anaheim offense, as far as which one might be easier for a common foe to harness. But the reason this particular match-up was too tough is that the Anaheim offense was better against the Wild defense than the Wild offense was against Anaheim’s defense. In the series, the Duck defense reduced the Minnesota offense to about C-level, while the Anaheim offense was at least a B against a Wild defense that held its ground impressively.
It took a while before Minnesota fans could look to the future, but there can be nothing but optimism for the Wild. Backstrom signed on, long-term, and Manny Fernandez was traded to the Boston Bruins, clearing up the goaltending situation. Risebrough drafted bigger, stronger, more forceful players, as he and Lemaire obviously saw what Anaheim did to win the playoffs. In today’s NHL, you don’t need to be strong enough to beat up your opponents, but you do need to be forceful enough to be able to play your best, even in difficult situations — such as, at Anaheim.
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My preliminary pick for the biggest surprise for the coming season is Brent Burns. A big, rangy young prospect who can play anywhere, he seemed to be little more than a slow-developing prospect until he got entangled in a fight to open the playoffs, and fought well enough to seem surprised by his own achievement. So in Game 4, when the Ducks decided to turn ugly and mug the Wild on the last few shifts, Chris Perry jumped Burns. Burns not only responded, he responded well, and punched out Perry, dropping him to the ice on his backside and winning a clear TKO.
Burns, again, was smiling, and seemed surprised, at his own fistic ability. And even Derek Boogaard, who continues to show that he can play, as well as intimidate, was impressed that he has found a teammate who can be counted on when things get gritty, and when more than skill and finesse are required to succeed.
The Duck success is a tribute to Burke, who left Vancouver as a scapegoat when Todd Bertuzzi was suspended and the Canucks slipped a cog. Burke landed on his feet in Anaheim, and he promptly acquired defenseman Scott Niedermayer off the free-agent market from New Jersey. In his time at Vancouver, he had a close-up view of what Chris Pronger meant as the Edmonton Oilers built a playoff contender. Pronger was unquestionably the main reason the Oilers made it to the Stanley Cup finals in 2006, so when Pronger became a free agent, Burke pounced again. Pronger is probably the best defenseman in the NHL right now. Niklas Lidstrom of the Red Wings is awesome offensively and crafty defensively, but Pronger is like a Lidstrom who also can flatten anyone in the league with a bodycheck, and he’s willing to do it, any time, straight on. How good is Pronger? We should not be surprised that he moved from Edmonton’s Cup runner-up to Anaheim, and, presto — Anaheim wins the Cup and Edmonton misses the playoffs.
There can be no question that John-Sebastien Giguere was stellar in goal, but the two primary reasons why the Ducks were as Mighty as they were was the play of Scott Niedermayer and Pronger. Randy Carlyle, a former puck-rushing and point-generating defenseman in his playing days, appreciated the defensive prowess of both, and the offensive capabilities. So he could play them together, but cleverly alternated them, assuring that one of them was on the ice at all times. They still could play as a tandem on power plays and penalty kills.
The strategy worked against the Wild. It wasn’t that the Wild played poorly, even though critics whined and moaned about their offense not clicking. Trying to click and getting bombed by Pronger’s checks is a different matter. Still, the Wild believed they played well enough and were close enough to win two of the first three, instead of losing all three. Winning Game 4 soundly rejuvenated the dying hopes of Minnesota fans, but returning to Anaheim was a dispiriting experience for the Wild, who were eliminated quite forcefully.
Having their offense extinguished by Anaheim turns out to be no disgrace for the Wild, because the Ducks did the same thing to Vancouver, the vaunted Detroit Red Wings, and, in the finals, to the vanishing superstars of Ottawa. Refresh my memory: Did Dany Heatley play in the finals? Or did he just suit up?
Heatley, and Ottawa’s sensational first line, did virtually all of the Senators’ scoring right up until the finals. So Carlyle broke up his plan and paired Pronger and Niedermayer on the same unit, then sent them out whenever Ottawa’s big line hit the ice. They rendered the Ottawa line completely helpless through four of the five games. Four, incidentally, is enough to declare the other side the winner. As tradition dictates, a team’s skilled players only have to be tough enough to perform on the road, when things get tough. And at Anaheim, they got about as tough as they can get.
Enclave may now be the best car from Buick
The Buick LaCrosse is a high-tech midsize sedan, and the Lucerne is a medium-tech luxury sedan, but the highlight of a trip to any Buick dealership these days is not a sedan at all, but a truck — the Buick Enclave.
Not really a truck, either. The Buick Enclave is a crossover SUV, meaning it’s not built on a truck chassis but as a tightly coordinated unibody that handles and performs in a car-like fashion, smoother and better than any previous General Motors truck.
The Enclave joins the GMC Acadia and the Saturn Outlook as the third sibling in the GM triplets. All are impressive, but the Buick version has a clear edge in luxury, and, depending upon taste, in styling. All three share the benefit of high-technology under the hood, something that couldn’t always be said about General Motors products. But the superb 3.6-liter corporate V6 changes all that. It is a dual-overhead-camshaft, variable-valve timed engine that gives more than adequate power to make the Enclave and its corporate siblings outrun their bigger brethren with their huge V8s.
The old racing phrase “There’s no substitute for cubic inches” may have begun at General Motors, and it wasn’t until recently that some engineer must have answered back: “Yes there is; it’s called technology.”
The 3.6 is steadfastly replacing the old-tech 3800 V6, which has served GM so well as an inexpensive and adequate pushrod engine for about 50 years. It can’t come close to the 3.6, especially this one, which starts out with the substance of six-bolt main bearing rigidity, a forged steel crankshaft, and a new intake manifold. It produces 275 horsepower at 6,600 RPMs and 251 foot-pounds of torque at 3,200 RPMs.
Todd Pawlik, the program engine manager on the project, said that the all-aluminum 3.6-liter engine is the most powerful normally-aspirated V6 ever built at GM. That begs the question, and if you recall the old Grand National hot rod with a turbocharged V6, you’ve answered it. That was the only V6 ever produced at GM with more power. Take away the turbo and it’s no contest.
I was very impressed after some spirited driving in the upgraded CXL models, both with standard front-wheel drive and the all-wheel-drive system, at the media introduction for the Enclave in St. Louis. The statistics say the front-driver will get 16 miles per gallon city and 24 highway, while the AWD model gets 16/22 — only 2 mpg different. Both FWD and AWD are available in either the basic CX or the flashier CXL, and I must admit that during the media introduction in the Missouri countryside outside St. Louis, I cheated a little and stayed in the CXL to try both.
Driving aggressively in drive, my co-driver recorded 18.5 mpg with the AWD version on some twisty and hilly highways. When I took over, hand-shifting the six-speed automatic in the front-drive alternative, I drove much more aggressively but saw the computer mileage figure dip to only 17.6. Impressive, for the way I was tossing it around.
Later, I got an Enclave to drive for a week around Minnesota, and I was able to creep closer to 20 mpg. It was, however, the CX model with front-wheel drive. Some other SUVs might get better fuel economy, but the high-output and potent 3.6 V6 runs on regular gas. If you don’t think that’s significant, compare the price difference between regular and premium next time you fill up.
I received an email from a fellow who had heard my radio bit on WCCO AM with Charlie Boone on a Saturday morning, and bought a Buick Enclave CXL. He later heard someone else criticize the CXT for being too firm in its ride, and he wondered if maybe he should have ordered the CX instead. I told him I didn’t think the CXL was anything near harsh, and I am now ready to tell him he made the right move, because I much prefer the CXL.
The engineers insist that both models have the same suspension, the same engine and transmission, and the same four-link rear suspension with firm stabilizer bars front and rear, but the CXL felt smoother and sportier and a bit more stable. I attribute that to the specially-tuned Michelin tires on the standard 19-inch alloy wheels of the CXL. The CX has 18-inch wheels with slightly more bulbous all-season tires, and the larger wheels with lower-profile tires made a positive difference in the stable feel of the CXL.
Price matters too, of course. The prices of the Enclave read up like this: CX with FWD $32,055; CX with AWD $34,790; CXL with FWD $34,990; CXL with AWD $36,990.
Not bad. The CXL with leather interior, 19-inch wheels, and front-drive is only a couple hundred more than the CX with all-wheel drive, and the loaded version of the CXL is still safely below $40,000. The test CX I drove for a week had a sticker that rose from $32,055 to $36,260 with the inclusion of the optional entertainment system that includes 10-speaker Bose audio, rear DVD, with separate seat audio controls, plus a brilliant pearlish white finish, and a driver confidence package that had remote start, ultrasonic rear park assist and heated windshield washer fluid.
After the week of driving, I didn’t feel the CX FWD was as solidly stable as the CXL, but it certainly approached it in luxury. The neatly styled interior features woodgrain on the doors, console and dashboard, running left to right. It is fake — plastic wood — but the wonderful wood steering wheel is genuine mahogany. I do prefer the CXL’s leather upholstery.
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What makes the Enclave so special is that it has three very impressive primary features: One is the powerful and responsive engine, another is the comfortable luxury of the amazingly quiet and sound-insulated interior, and third is the outstanding styling of the exterior.
The Enclave has some sweeping contours that highlight the vehicle from its bold, waterfall grille on back to an upswept rear end, arching over both wheelwells in well-sculptured form.
It wasn’t always that way. Design director Jack Folden told the story of being frustrated at being unable to bring together all the elements he was seeking, with the chance to christen the new Buick entry with a design that could bring some emotional impact and flair to a vehicle that was built around space, room, and functionality.
“We were sketching things and drawing different designs, and we had some pretty good things going,” said Folden. “But it was nagging me a little. Do they have this super-strong emotional appeal, so it’s not just a car, not just transportation? It didn’t quite have it. One night, it was about 7 p.m., and I was staying late, doodling. I noticed a couple fellow-designers were still there too, and we got to talking.
“One of them said, ‘I see this as a fuselage.’ Another said something about the stance. A third said everything has to flow. As we talked, we seemed to have a spark. Things started coming together — emotion, lines flowing, growing, shrinking. Within two hours, we walked out. We had nailed it.”
Folden traced the line that runs from the grille through the headlights, over the fenders, flowing to the rear. Art, he called it, a living presence and personality. He added that the interior designers had accomplished the same thing, with tapered and undulating lines that go beyond a mere assembly of pieces. So the Enclave emerged as the benefit of some sort of karma, or timing, chemistry, or whatever it is that brings designers together on some vehicles, and might cause others to look like they were built by a committee whose members had never met.
Some high-strength steel in the frame and a half-dozen airbags and side curtains give the Enclave a five-star crash test rating, and all the latest rollover detection and stability control devices make it feel solid and secure in every maneuver.
Buick officials boldly asked us to compare the Enclave with the Lexus RX350 and the Acura MDX — two standards of the industry in midsize crossover SUVs with luxury tendencies. Buick ran sound tests to prove the Enclave was quieter than either, and I don’t disagree. But the RX350 is sleek and great looking, and I think the MDX is perhaps the best sporty-handling SUV on the planet, and even though Buick engineers disagreed with me, I’ve driven the MDX on a racetrack, and I’ve seen what it can do against huge snow drifts on the North Shore.
Buick officials boast that the Enclave has more room in the third-row seat than either, with easier access than either, and has significantly more storage room behind the third-row seat, as well as when the third row is folded down. They are undoubtedly correct in those measurements and boasts.The Enclave and its siblings are longer, and have more room behind the third-row seat, but the RX350 and the MDX are designed purposely to be more compact, and they have distinctly different personalities. Not everyone wants a third-row seat for adults, using it only for occasional use or small kids, and trade it off for handling agility.
But it is the highest of compliments that there is a Buick SUV now in showrooms that we are actively discussing as a viable alternative to the Lexus RX350 and the Acura MDX. High praise, indeed. We could go farther and proclaim the Buick Enclave as the best SUV ever built by GM.
Ford pins hopes on new models, new names for 2008
DEARBORN, Mich. — Here we are, up to our armpits in an enthusiastic variety of 2007 model cars, and major manufacturers are hustling, ever-huystling, to get the jump on the competition by unveiling some 2008 models. Ford Motor Company is among them.
Ford summoned automotive media to its Dearborn headquarters and then bused us over to its test facilities, where we got to briefly sample some of next year’s cars. Naturally, all models got updates from Ford, but here is a brief cross-section of what I was most enthused about:
MOST FUN/
The Ford Shelby GT. Biggest news is that there now is a Shelby Cobra-ized version of the Mustang in convertible form. The new Shelby GT is not to be confused with the Ford GT, the Mustang GT, the Shelby Mustang, or the Mustang Shelby GT500, or any other version, but it does come in both coupe and convertible form, the latter with a neat raised rollbar just behind the front bucket seats. It also comes in a new color, a neat vista blue with metallic silver striping running wide down the hood and over the trunk and down to the bumper. This one is not as hyper as the GT500, which has a supercharged 5.4-liter V8 with 500 fire-breathing horsepower. The new car comes off the normal Mustang GT assembly line at Flat Rock, Mich., then gets shipped to Carroll Shelby’s facility in Las Vegas, where Shelby’s fine touch gives it a distinctive new grille, little exterior tweaks here and there, such as hood pins, and specially set-up engine, brakes and suspension. The beauty of the Mustang GT is that it is a blast to drive, but it also can serve as an everyday driver. Same with the new Shelby GT, because it coaxes more power out of the 4.6-liter dual-overhead-cam V8 — from the Mustang GT’s 300 horsepower to 319 — but its handling and steering is more refined-performance than racetrack-performance. I like the looks of the Shelby GT a lot, and because it is plenty potent but still easily driveable, it might be the most marketable of all the Shelby/Cobra types. For good measure, you get a satin silver plaque affixed to the center console, listing the number of limited-edition Shelby GT you have bought, and also containing Shelby’s own unmistakable signature. There will, however, be only 2,300 of them made — an instant collector’s item.
BEST NEW-OLD IDEA/
The Taurus and Taurus X. There is no benefit in any “I told you so” stuff here, but when Ford came out with a new and larger sedan a couple years ago and said it was going to call it the Five Hundred — spelled out, please — and had a more compact car coming called the Fusion, I wrote that it seemed curious that Ford would forfeit all the name equity it had built up by discontinuing the Taurus. For 2008, Ford has announced it is renaming the Five Hundred the Taurus, in order to try to recapture all the name equity it had built up in what was the top-selling car in the U.S. for several years until the Honda Accord and then the Toyota Camry passed it. Hmmmm. After a year or so of mild selling, the Five Hundred — spelled out or not — failed to attract large numbers of customers with its mild styling and meaningless name. Along with the name, Ford has affixed its new corporate grille, similar to the Fusion, on the front of the new Taurus, and more significantly it has replaced the less-than-thrilling 3.0-liter V6 with its smooth but audibly boring CVT (continuously variable transmission). In their place, Ford has plunked its new high-tech, Edge-based 3.5-liter V6, and a new six-speed automatic transmission. Same huge interior and trunk, same comfort for all occupants, and renewed punch and performance. The Freestyle, by the way, also has been replaced by the Taurus X, and X marks the spot where another Fusion-styled horizontal-bar grille and the same Taurus drivetrain resides. Will the once-loyal Ford customers flock back to the flock to get a new Taurus? We’ll see.
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STRANGEST “NEW” IDEA/
Focus. The Focus has done a good job of being a pretty good compact car. Some liked it, a few loved it, but Ford treated it like a displeasing orphan, compared to the European Focus. A couple years ago, when Ford affiliate Volvo turned out a spectacular compact sedan in the S40, and affiliate Mazda came out with a similarly spectacular Mazda3, Ford came up with a gem. The European Focus rode on the Volvo S40’s rock-solid and safe platform, and got the Mazda3’s brilliant 2.0/2.3-liter four-cylinder engine, with a suspension tuned by the experts at Ford of Germany. Great combination, and reports are outstanding. So Ford introduces a new 2008 Focus in the U.S., and it not only has its looks improved, it adds a two-door coupe that looks positively sporty. So finally, I asked, is this the U.S. version of the European Focus? “No,” was the answer. No, this is a mostly-cosmetic remake of the U.S. Focus. The new Focus that will be based on the European Focus won’t come until the “next” remake of the Focus. In this era of sharing platforms and components — Volvo and Mazda platforms outfit the Ford Five Hundred, oops-Taurus, the Fusion, the Edge, and practically everything — then why is it cost-effective to make a sensational Focus for Europe and a pretty good Focus in the U.S.?
BEST ROAD TO FUEL-EFFICIENCY/
Ford Escape Hybrid. Around the Ford road-course at the test facility, I drove the new Escape Hybrid and the Mariner Hybrid, its sister ship from Mercury, and first I registered 28.5 miles per gallon. That is good for an SUV — any SUV. But it wasn’t good enough for me, because I was sure I could do better, by altering my driving, and using the brakes for regenerative duty while accelerating more moderately. Sure enough, I then coaxed it up to 33.8 miles per gallon. Now THAT is good for any SUV. Hybrids can work on any vehicle, from economy cars to high-performance vehicles, and up to the SUVs that make the most profit and are therefore stressed by some companies. If Ford would expand and put the Escape’s electric/gas engine package on other vehicles, such as the Fusion, Taurus, and on other SUVs, they could be the right vehicles for the right time.
Of course, Ford has various other redone vehicles for 2008, but coming on the heels (wheels?) of the Edge, MKX, MKZ, and others from Lincoln, Mercury and Ford, if these new models catch the public’s fancy, all could be well for Ford. The company deserves it, in light of recent news items that further underscores the problems at Ford, General Motors and Chrysler. All are struggling and hoping to turn their fortunes upward. Ford has an edge, you should pardon the expression, because it is ahead of its domestic rivals in some key technologies, such as hybrids. Now it needs to make a bold move toward, say, turbo-diesels, and its upward momentum could build quickly.
In recent months, the word that Ford was going to sell off Jaguar, Aston Martin, and Land Rover was somewhat anticipated. But last week, word started to spread that Ford also was planning to sell Volvo. That is a surprise, because Volvo has been very good for Ford, but the reason behind the scenes is that Volvo as an entity could command more money than Jag, Aston Martin, and Land Rover — combined.
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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