Reincarnated GTO adds some spice to muscle image
There are not a lot of technical breakthroughs on the Pontiac GTO. It’s basically a Monaro two-door coupe, with a Corvette engine and transmission, built by General Motors’ Holden affiliate in Australia, and presented as the reincarnation of the car made famous by the Pontiac GTOs of the 1960s.
Performance makes the GTO’s world turn, but there aren’t many places this side of a race track to stretch such a performance car to its proper limits. Trying it on the highway means you probably will – and should – end up attracting an escort with flashing lights on the roof.
By luck, during my week-long test drive of a bright red GTO, I got invited to attend a session of the nationwide Bridgestone emergency handling and wet-traction comparison tests, conducted for Bridgestone dealers at the National Sports Center in the Minneapolis suburb of Blaine. That facility is normally overrun by soccer or hockey players of all sizes, ages and nationalities, but we convened separately, in the parking lot.
The circuitous route my test GTO took to get to Blaine is nothing compared to the revival of the GTO itself. Around the rest of the world, the term “GTO” means “gran turismo omolagato” – or, grand touring, homologated.It means the car was designed as a grand-touring sporty car, with enough of them built to rise above concept or prototype status to be homologated as a production car.
But in the U.S. of A., the term GTO is savored by performance-car fanciers for the mid-1960s high-performance car. Pontiac took a two-door version of its Tempest intermediate back then, stripped it of the usual costly creature comforts, then stuffed a big 389 V8 under the hood, beefed up the suspension, wheels and tires, and sent them out the door at a bargain price. Young people didn’t have a lot of disposable income in those days – in fact, nobody ever uttered the term “disposable income” because none of it was disposable. But everybody wanted hot cars, at bargain prices.
The whole genre took off and became the core of the late 1960s muscle-car era that overlapped into the 1970s, lasting until the first power-choking emission-control laws ruined the drivability of U.S. cars, dropping them a decade behind the more sophisticated imports. Some still haven’t completely recovered from the technological deficit.
If timing is everything, the powerful new GTO probably is ill-timed for the sudden rise in gasoline prices, and emphasis on fuel-efficiency. But auto builders work three or four years into the future, and when GM vice president Bob Lutz came on board, he knew that the corporation needed the infusion of new and youthful products. Holden, owned by GM, was making a midsize two-door in Australia and stuffing Corvette motors inside. So Lutz brought that car in a year ago, renaming it the GTO.
The first one met with something resembling indifference. Being fast and powerful didn’t mean it could get away with being boring in design. The look resembled a late entry in a kid’s soap-carving class, where the least amount of sculpting could make the project deadline. It was smooth and sleek, which was not all that different from the first GTOs, if a complete departure from more recent Firebirds, Bonnevilles and Grand Prix models that had been criticized for too many add-on scoops, flares and vents.
But taking all of the contours away might have been too much fixing for a questionable problem. So for 2005, the GTO hood adds twin air scoops. The scoops are functional, we’re informed, and if you open the hood, sure enough, you will see the openings from the vents, although it isn’t so much channeled into any elaborate ram-air intake system as it is a supply of cool air to wash over the completely shrouded engine. Also, a lower slab on the rear now houses dual exhausts, which also join with the flared lower side sills to give the car a dose of aggressiveness.
My test car – like all GTOs – came at a base price of $32,295, with an as-tested sticker, including destination, of $33,690. There aren’t a lot of options, but a lot is standard, including the 6.0-liter, LS2 Corvette engine, a giant V8 with 400 horsepower that will whisk the 3,790-pound car from 0-60 in 5.0 seconds, and will run the quarter mile in 13.5 seconds, at 107.1 miles per hour. Top speed is reported at 159 mph, electronically restricted.
Handling is pretty good, although perhaps not the car’s strong suit, because of its weight. It is plenty agile, for a reborn muscle car, but it might not want to challenge a Mustang GT around tight road-race turns.
Enter the Bridgestone/Firestone comparison test, which is concluding a 28-stop tour of North American cities, letting the sales force experience the handling of the new tires, while sponsoring and accompanying the fantastic, and free, teenage driving lessons from the nonprofit Driver’s Edge campaign. I drove the bright red GTO test car out to Blaine, and parked it behind the tent used to background about 50 salespeople from tire dealers that sell Bridgestone tires, among others.
Bridgestone has made a new Turanza EL400 tire, which we drove on the cone-lined, watered-down, autocross course in identical Chevrolet Impalas, half of which were equipped with Michelin Harmony tires. The Turanza has an inner core of even stickier tread, which provides good traction when the tire gets worn to that point. We also drove Toyota 4Runners, with Bridgestone’s latest Dueler H/L Alenza SUV tires, while half of them had Michelin’s Cross-Terrain tires.
The group of tire dealers voted that the vehicles with the Bridgestones handled better around the tight, twisting turns of the flooded autocross course. The Turanza Impala got a 5.5 grade compared to the Impala Harmony’s 3.5, and the Dueler-equipped 4Runner got a 5.4 to the Michelin 4Runner’s 3.3 grade. However, I must say that the Michelins were quite good, breaking away a bit quicker, but in a very predictable manner. Still, there was no question the new Bridgestone technology works for a better road-sticking concept in the wet.
Once that was completed, the final event was a team relay, with seven drivers on each of seven teams. We each would drive one hot lap, starting and stopping at a specified spot, and with each group’s instructor driving the final turn. Each driver had to make a complete stops, unbuckle the seat belt, jump out, run across a line, and tag the next driver.
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Rolled out for the test was, if you can believe it, a bright red Pontiac GTO. At first, I thought it was my test car, but it had a Firestone logo on it, and a four-speed automatic, instead of my car’s six-speed stick. Firestone is now owned by Bridgestone, and the GTO comes equipped with Firestone Firehawk Wide Oval tires – another name out of the ’60s. These are impressive, water-channeling, low-profile radials, so we set off to competitively test their wet-track traction.
Amazingly, nobody knocked over any cones. Everybody drove quickly and quite well, and the competition was close. Autocrosses are always major fun, as well as educational about the car, the tires and your driving skill, all at once. I also noted that with the traction-control switched off, the car probably would have gone broadsliding through the cones; but with the traction-control on, it stayed in place.However, if you waited until the apex of the turn to hit the gas, then hit it hard, the traction device would refuse to supply all the power and bog the car for a second or two. So I did my braking early, started accelerating just before the apex, then hit it less abruptly, and the power came on as summoned.
Our team didn’t win, and didn’t finish second. One hotshot on the winning team recorded a 32.61-second lap, best of the whole group. I got a chance to see the overall scores later, and was pleased to note that my time, 32.71 seconds, was second overall, ahead of the third-place 32.86.
Those other folks could return to their dealerships to provide first-hand information about how the Bridgestones and Firestones handled the wet autocross course. I came away impressed with the tires, but also with an extra appreciation for the GTO. It is not just an overpowered coupe, but a proper muscle car for the road, and it can handle itself very well in tight, twisty maneuvers, even on wet pavement.
(John Gilbert writes weekly new car reviews and can be reached at cars@jwgilbert.com.)
Mercedes ML350 gets new style, engine, 7-speed
There have been critics of the Mercedes M-Class SUVs, although I have never been among them. I was impressed from the start with the vehicleÂ’s versatility and flexibility, both on and off the road. That said, the M-Class has been totally remade for 2006, and the new ML350 is impressive enough to cruise well beyond the reach of any critics.
A new body that retains styling queues from the current model, plus more power from an entire shift in concept and execution in the fine art of engine-building, highlights the stretched, more stable, and more agile 2006 model. All that, plus a seven-speed automatic transmission you can shift like a Formula 1 race car, has resulted in the just-introduced M-Class sold 3,516 units in the month of June, a 58.9-percent increase over June of 2004 and helping Mercedes record the most overall June sales in its history.
The first opportunity I ever had to drive the first Mercedes M-Class vehicle was at Road America race track at Elkhart Lake, Wis. The nationÂ’s automotive journalists got the chance to ride with and then drive with various top race drivers around the four-mile road course, and then also went through a rugged off-road course specially designed to tax the vehicle.
Having driven into some of Road America’s toughest corners at speeds of 120 miles per hour, I was impressed. Later, I was more impressed while driving through terrain that resembled an enormous ice cube tray, where one wheel could pull the entire vehicle through – and looking up to see a different M speeding along on the race track. Those were among the reasons I was impressed with the first M.
Mercedes, of course, has been in the SUV business since long before the term SUV accompanied the current runaway trend for sports-utility vehicles, and the current version of those early workhorse vehicles is a large, square truck under the heading of G-Class.
The ML350 bears no resemblance to the G. While the G is probably over-qualified to run on mere roadways, the ML350 is compact, tight, quick, agile, and yet luxurious in every dimension, inside and out. The restyled body has a more flowing, shapely look, with a wedgy rise from the front, and stylish contours along the sides, meeting gracefully with the sloping rear pillar. The rear is set off by chrome dual exhausts, while the front has the distinctive Mercedes logo in the middle of the grille, and the leading edge of a front skidplate tastefully visible when looking at the front. High-power projection headlights look out through glass lenses.
In the redesign, Mercedes obviously intended to make the ML350 even better suited to its on-road chores than featuring its off-road capabilities. For example, the unitized body structure of the best crossover SUVs is deployed, rather than the more truck-oriented body-on-frame arrangement. The ML350 is a bit longer, lower and wider, with a wheelbase stretched by 3 inches, but it loses its low-range transfer case – the device that most sets hardy off-road vehicles from their on-road cousins.
But since SUV owners rarely go off the road for anything more challenging than a grass-in-the-middle dirt road to a cabin up north, the adjustment shouldn’t be a problem. Besides, it helps save a chunk of weight, bringing the new ML350 in more than 400 pounds less than its predecessor. The look is unique enough that the ML350 seems more of a “passenger module†than a mere SUV.
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Inside the unitized body, Mercedes refers to its “modular command cockpit,†where the very businesslike and attractive gauge layout has a small information screen in the midst of the gauges. The center stack features a 7-inch screen for the navigation system, or controlling everything from the audio to the air/heat adjustments.
The interior is highlighted – dominated? – by the test car’s selection of leather and bird’s-eye maple. This is classy wood, more like furniture than a sheet of veneer or plastic looks-like woodgrain. The wood on the doors, console and running up the center stack was stunning, with its many bird’s-eyes on the light maple background.
But the best part of sitting in those comfortably supportive bucket seats comes when you activate the revised mechanical stuff under the hood.
Back about a decade, Mercedes decided to revise its engines and build them with three valves atop each cylinder – two intake and one exhaust. That allowed for cutting corners on cost, because one overhead camshaft could make the whole bank of valves function. Now, however, Mercedes has decided to reach back for extra power, and it’s back to dual-overhead cams and four valves per cylinder.
The ML350 has a 3.5-liter V6 engine that produces 268 horsepower at 6,000 RPMs, and 258 foot-pounds of torque that are electronically maintained at a peak from 2,400-5,000 RPMs.
While some larger competitors are still trying to figure out how to go beyond four-speed transmissions, Mercedes has put the first U.S. application of a seven-speed automatic transmission in the ML350 – not just an ordinary seven-speed, either. This transmission came out for 2005 on the S430 and 500, E500, SL 500, and the CL500 coupe. For 2006, its use spreads to the ML.
The shift lever is on the column, not the console, and gives you three options. The lever in the middle is at “N,†from where it may be pushed up to engage reverse, in, toward the steering column, for park, or down into “D†for drive. Once you’re in drive, you simply drive, if that’s all you want to do. The transmission shifts smoothly and without any jerking, probably because with seven ratios you can pretty well be sure you’re in an appropriate range for whatever speed you’re going.
If you want more fun, and more control, there are little rectangular pads on the backside of the steering wheel, one for each hand, where reaching with your finger you can push on the outer side for the transmission to upshift, while if you push the inner side, it downshifts. Many people ignore these devices, but this one can be both useful and enjoyable.
You can start up in first, and upshift at the touch of your finger at however many revs you select. Naturally, you can run the revs up toward 6,000 before shifting if youÂ’re in a hurry, and you want to zip ahead with stronger acceleration. Coming off a freeway, you can downshift to fourth, or even third, so that the transmission doesnÂ’t have to hunt for a gear for city or residential streets.
The ML350 should be driven by anyone in the market for a $40,000 compact SUV, because thatÂ’s what the base price is — $40,525. It is easy, naturally, to load on the options from a vast array of goodies Mercedes provides. But it comes well equipped at that base price, and during my weeklong test, I got 19.5 miles per gallon in combined city/freeway driving, while I achieved 22.7 miles per gallon on a highway and freeway trip with the cruise hovering between 60-77 miles per hour.
Setting the cruise, incidentally, is my biggest complaint about the ML350. The cruise has been on a stalk jutting out of the left side of the steering column on Mercedes vehicles for so long, that the German company is not likely to yield in its stubborn determination to keep it there. Sure, it gets in the way of the turn signal, so the turn signal is rotated downward, as if coming out at 8 oÂ’clock, while the smaller cruise stalk is at about 9:30. The turn stalk is positioned perfectly to be obscured by the steering wheel column itself, while the cruise stalk remains in clear view. So, of course, the driver tends to hit the cruise switch about 70 percent of the time when he or she wants to signal a turn.
Beyond that, the four-sided cruise stalk has clearly spelled-out places on which way to push it for activating it, deactivating it, accelerating, decelerating, or perhaps how to slice bread. It has everything you could want – except for a readily identifiable direction to set the speed. Which is its fundamental purpose. Every time I tried to set the speed, I would pull, push, raise and lower the stalk, until it finally would catch at some speed with 10-15 mph of where I wanted it, then I would accelerate or decelerate to get to my desired speed. This was all just a petty nuisance, until, on a lightly traveled two-lane highway, I tried three times to set the cruise by hitting “accel,†and the highway patrolman coming toward me wasn’t what you’d call sympathetic to my experimental clicking to accelerate for scientific/mechanical purposes.
Fortunately, I was driving the ML350, and not the ML500, which costs about $10,000 more, with a 5.0-liter V8 and 302 horsepower with 339 foot-pounds of torque. I suppose if you have to tow a heavy trailer, or you can’t resist the temptatation to stay active in the who’s-got-the-baddest-SUV-on-the-block competition, you might spend the extra dough on the V8. Personally, I can’t imagine needing more power than the ML350, and the price makes it a bargain.
(John Gilbert writes weekly reviews, and can be reached at cars@jwgilbert.com.)
Hummer could crush Corollas, or invade Canada
Step on the gas pedal and the Hummer H1 lurches into action, its turbodiesel engine roaring menacingly for an instant before the big beast moves, but when it moves, it does so in a forceful and dramatic manner. As you start to turn a corner, the thought persists that you might be about to crush a Corolla, because the Hummer is so big and wide, you might not see a compact car in its path.
All that is lacking is the placement of a .50 caliber machine gun on the roof. If random use of a couple of July Fourth firecrackers were legal, you could toss them out the window and the reaction would be predictable: Hide your women and children! Pull your compacts and subcompacts off the street!
IÂ’ve driven a couple of different Hummer models recently, and the timing is perfect. What could be more fitting, on Fourth of July weekend than to be driving a Hummer H2 SUT? Before you can say flying an F-16 over your neighborhood fireworks display, or sailing an aircraft carrier up the Mississippi River, the easy answer is that the only thing more fitting to drive than an H2 on July Fourth weekend would be driving the Hummer H1.
General Motors has been working with AM General to create some variations of the military Humvee for street use. The Hummer H1 is the most direct variant, but GM has also collaborated with AM General to build a couple of mellower versions, the H2 and H3. They basically consist of Chevy Tahoe platforms and engines, with Hummer bodies. Nearly as bold, almost as outrageous, but much more compatible with street traffic.
The H2 SUT I recently test-drove is the model with a small pickup-like box on the rear, which is handy for hauling stuff. The H2 Hummer is much more reasonable to drive on the streets than the hard-core H1. The Hummer H1 is close to what our country is sending to Iraq for the troops to drive over hill, over dale, and most importantly over the sand-dune trails. No, the street version of the H1 does not have armor plating, but, based on criticism about some of the vehicles weÂ’ve been sending to Iraq, that may make it more similar.
Driving any Hummer is a better method for calculating which passers-by are left-leaning and which are right-leaning than any political poll. As you cruise along, every pedestrian and passing motorist with whom you allegedly are sharing the road have one of two reactions. About half smile, wave, give you a thumbs-up for driving such an intimidating vehicle, or yell “Nice truck.†The other half frowns or looks away with some degree of scorn, as if to say, “How could anyone drive such a thing?Ââ€
That seat-of-the-pants survey excludes young males, under, say, 15, because they all love the Hummers – any Hummers – the way young kids used to play war. And there never has been such obvious over-the-top vehicles. Over-the-top works any way you’d like, because the off-road capability of the Hummer is to go anywhere, with enormous ground clearance underneath and suspension travel that would be the envy of mountain goats.
Comparing the H1 and the H2 SUT – for Sport Utility Truck – is indeed like comparing apples to oranges, but only if either apples or oranges cost well over twice as much as the other.
The Hummer H1 has a “standard vehicle price†of $139,771, and with the Off-Road Adventure Package, which includes a 12,000-pound electric winch coiled on the front (think about that), and electrically locking axles with two-piece aluminum wheels, you lift the sticker to $146,622.
In comparison, the Hummer H2 SUT lists for $52,485, and even adding the luxury series package of chromed appearance items, a step bar to reduce the high-jump quality entry, upgraded interior package, XM Satellite radio, integrated navigation system, air suspension with compressor, and a chromed roof rack and guards for the lights, you still are only at $62,735. Only.
Driving the two vehicles is even more dramatic than the price difference.
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Basically, GM figured that the macho look of the Hummer was just fine, but the vehicleÂ’s compatibility with everyday traffic was a little much. So it basically submitted the Tahoe SUV for AM General to cover with a Hummer body, and the interior is very livable and pleasant for a family. A third row seat still leaves some cargo room, and easily folds out of the way to increase it if needed.
The H2 (and H3) get GMÂ’s 6-liter V8 engine, and in the test vehicle it 316 horsepower and 360 foot-pounds of torque. It is agile and maneuverable, much like any Tahoe, which is to say much like any full-size SUV. No, it wonÂ’t win the neighborhood autocross, but it does go anywhere a standard SUV will go. Just expect to get the liberal-conservative reaction test every time you drive it.
With the ladder frame and heavy duty suspension components, plus an electronic transfer case and electrically locking rear differential, the H2 SUT is prepared for any off-road duty you might dream up. That includes going through rugged terrain on the way to some remote fishing spot. Uncharacteristic for the Hummer image, the H2 SUT also has eight-way power driverÂ’s seat, dual zone front heat/air controls, rear audio controls, a Bose premium speaker system, power sliding sunroof, and remote lock, as well as Onstar.
In other words, the Hummer H2 SUT has most of the amenities of any premium, luxury level SUV, and as such, the price of $62,735 is pretty much in line with what luxury SUV-buyers have to spend. The SUT version has a handy pickup-like box with a locking top. Unlock the top, undo the little complex rear assembly to swing the spare tire free, then open the tailgate. It’s a lot of work, but a versatile use of space.
But if you want military, flag-waving, jingoistic parallels, move gingerly up to the H1. The standard logo for AM General shows an H1 parked at a jaunty angle, while a black-silhouetted companion vehicle is parked behind it, with someone manning a machine gun on the roof.
The 6.5-liter Duramax V8 Turbodiesel has 205 horsepower – despite the fact sheet’s suggestion it has 300 horsepower—at 3,200 RPMs. But horses matter less than torque in a diesel, and this one spews out 440 foot-pounds of torque at only 1,800 RPMs.
The H1 got about 10 miles per gallon. I got a scare because I thought I was running low on fuel at one point, and after I filled it, for $46, I realized there is a reserve tank. Actually, there are two 30-gallon tanks for your diesel fuel. Just so you can have a chance to make it home after youÂ’ve ventured out to terrorize the neighborhood.
Getting into the H1 is no small accomplishment. I found it best to throw one leg up as if high-jumping, at a trajectory that carries your foot up and into the cockpit. Then you can find an assortment of handles and lunges that can carry the rest of your body up in there to join your leading foot. One reason it’s so high is that the H1 has a 16-inch gap between any body parts and the ground – the better to clear any and all obstacles on the way to the ol’ fishing hole. The ground clearance is enhanced by the angular undercarriage, which is not only armor-plated against rocks, but tapered to allow entering at a 72-degree approach angle and departing at a 37.5-degree angle.
Once inside, you realize that the improvements to the interior for 2004 have made a big difference, both in the quality of the materials and in the features. One thing that is no different is the incredible lack of useful room inside. This is a vehicle that measures 130 inches in length, with a track (between front wheels) of 72 inches, and yet there are only four bucket seats inside, and without any chance of increasing tdhat number. When you sit in the driverÂ’s seat, the right side front seat occupant is 40 inches away, across the high intrusion of the center console. Same in the rear. It would take a contortionist to climb from the left rear seat to the right, and the chance of the driver hopping across to the right is even less feasible.
Because some of the controls and numerous switches have been added on in an attempt to make the Hummer more civilized, they arenÂ’t all in what you would call logical, ergonomic locations. On your first turn behind the wheel, for example, you will grope for a while to find the power window switches. They are on a four-switch grouping, located at about a 45-degree angle, on the western slope of that massive center console.
When you turn the key, that roar you hear tells you that the diesel under the hood means business. It doesn’t matter what the horsepower and torque numbers say, or that the curb weight of the monster is 7,500 pounds – the equivalent of three Mazda Miatas, or two of virtually any sedans – when you stomp on the gas, the big Hummer H1 moves on out. The H2, for what it’s worth, weighs in at 6,500 pounds, so it’s not as if it is the Weight Watcher’s poster vehicle either.
But the H1 surprised me. I had driven one of the first models ever offered to the public, and it filled the highway lane so thoroughly I felt nervous wondering whether any adjustment in vector would mean I was going to cross the dotted line, or put a wheel off on the shoulder. With the latest H1, I felt quite comfortable after only a few drives.
I did learn that you have to adopt an attitude when driving the H1. You are going to get the reactions anticipated – adulation or scorn, with no stops in between – so you might as well drive it boldly and with some aggressiveness. My wife, Joan, drove it across town and said she found people cutting her off every block. When I asked her, I realized she had driven hesitantly, being overly cautious, and that gave others the spirit to cut her off.
Instead, if you drive a little bit boldly, as if you don’t really want to crush those Corollas – unless one ventures into your lane – then you’ll find people will stay out of your way. Cutting a wide swath around a corner in city traffic, I felt as though other drivers might consider pulling onto the sidewalk to give me room.
When I arrived at a ballgame a little closer to starting time than I had wanted, because of traffic congestion, I simply told my teammates: “IÂ’d have made it earlier, but it took me longer because I kept having this compelling urge to invade Canada.Ââ€
(John Gilbert writes weekly reviews of new vehicles. Reach him at cars@jwgilbert.com.)
Revised Miata keeps $20,000 roadster niche to itself
KAAÂ’UPULEHU – KONA, HAWAIÂ’I — The 2006 Mazda MX-5 Miata is improved in every dimension, but the best news is that the car that personifies the companyÂ’s “zoom-zoom†attitude will stay within its guidelines of providing the most automotive fun you can legally enjoy for $20,000.
Zipping along in a two-seater with the top down is paradise to most driving enthusiasts, which made it appropriate for Mazda to summon the world’s automotive journalists to paradise – Hawaii – for the first actual driving exposure to the third-generation Miata.
In the year 2000, the Miata entered the Guinness Book of World Records as the best-selling two-seater in history. After considerable planning by designers and engineers in California, Hiroshima, and Germany, every element of the new MX-5 Miata has been attended to, keeping intact the idea of tightening the technology of a true sports car, while enhancing the fun-to-drive quotient. The 2006 MX-5 Miata is a bit longer, a bit wider, a bit heavier, a bit more powerful, but the much-improved new car remains a $20,000 gem, without compromising its objectives. Length and width are both increased 1.6 inches, the car is 0.6 inches taller, and wheelbase is increased 2.6 inches. Instead of providing more room inside, the main feature of the extra wheelbase is moving the engine back 5.3 inches, which allows 50-50 weight distribution for even better handling than its predecessor.
The new car is a throwback with refinement. It summons all the glorious enjoyment of the old MG-B or Triumph or Austin-Healey days but you won’t need to know your neighborhood mechanic on a first-name basis. The MX-5 Miata doesn’t intend to vary from its troublefree heritage, but it does intend to rekindle the passion of its own edgier first edition – all while staying at a price that is eminently affordable. The basic MX-5 Miata lists for $20,435, while a Limited Edition version, which will accompany the new unveiling, has special colors, larger wheels, a larger stabilizer bar, and various trim upgrades, priced at $26,700.
At that price, the MX-5 Miata remains the best of both worlds. Mazda is trying to phase out the U.S.-only use of the name Miata. In Japan, the car always has been known simply as “the Roadster,” while in Europe it has been called the alpha-numeric MX-5 – more in keeping with the similar Mazda 6, Mazda 3, and RX-8. But the company decided to stay with “MX-5 Miata†in the U.S., at least temporarily, because the name “Miata†is so well established. After Mustang and Corvette, few if any other cars are as universally identified as Miata.
Mazda officials say the first Miata was introduced in 1989 in Hawaii, which is roughly the halfway point from MazdaÂ’s Japanese home to the lucrative U.S. mainland. Communications director Jeremy Barnes pointed out that the company easily shaved more than a week off organizational time for its introduction by stopping off in Hawaii, so the choice had merit beyond dazzling the media. Still, the site probably prompted the quickest acceptance rate for invitations. Heck, Motor Trend alone had three staff writers on the scene.
Having chosen Hawaii, Mazda bypassed Oahu’s scene with Honolulu and Waikiki, and Maui, which is probably the trendiest of the Hawaiian Islands, to select “the Big Island†– or Kona, or Kailua-Kona. This is the southeastern-most of the Hawaiian Islands. It is about 75 miles across, by 80 miles, and it is a study in contrasts, from luxury resorts to a volcano-dominated lifestyle featuring tropical rain forests, sandy beaches, crusty black lava rock, and breathtaking cliffs. No buildings over three stories in height are allowed on Kona, leaving the skyscrapers to Honolulu and larger cities. Discount stores, outlet malls, and billboards are other things conspicuous by their absence.
We were located at the fantastic but isolated Four Seasons Resort Hualalai, and when we drove on the island’s two-lane highways, we chose our bursts of acceleration carefully, because the normal driving mode of the residents is, shall we say, mellow. The biggest town on the island is Hilo, with 45,000 residents, rearranged by the last time Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea – the island’s two 13,000-plus-foot volcanos – erupted. The lava flow melted much of the town and covered it with 50 feet of lava rock. On a helicopter tour with Blue Hawaiian Helicopters we saw smoke coming out of several spots along the top of a volcano, and we saw lava, real and red, near the summit. Later we spotted plumes of steam where lava-heated rivers spilled into the blue Pacific, 25 miles to the west.
Hovering above the highest edge of the volcano, our helicopter pilot/guide stifled our amazement at the numerous pillars of smoke. “Those arenÂ’t volcanos,†he said. “TheyÂ’re just eruption sites.Ââ€
Oh, OK.
A live volcano, black lava rock formations it creates, lush rain forest beyond the peaks, 3,200-foot cliffs with their spectacular waterfalls, contrasted with the ultra-sophisticated resort, and set the stage for the Miata, which similarly stirs the primitive sports-car urgings in your soul, while its engine and razor-sharp handling reflect highly advanced technology.
We all owe a considerable debt of gratitude to the Miata for the expansive array of competitive models now available. During the 26 years of MiataÂ’s existence, most other roadsters were disappearing from the scene, or hadnÂ’t yet arrived, so it was up to the Miata to singlehandedly keep the heritage of pure sports cars alive. The new Miata again offers unequivocal doses of fun at a bargain price. Spare and without gimmicks in design, the new and revised Miata keeps its identity close to the car that became the gold standard for the ages-old tradition of wind-in-your-hair fun of roadsters.
Some critics could say the new car needs more torque to run with the Porsche Boxster and BMW Z4, more high-end power to compete with HondaÂ’s S2000, and more refinement to fend off the Audi TT roadster. Those evaluations are right-on. But those competitors all cost more. Mazda could have given the Miata a more potent demeanor, and jacked the price by $10,000 to run with those headliners. But its RX-8 big brother can handle those chores, and those prices, so the Miata can stay right where it is.
More torque would mean you could power around slower cars or accelerate up that hill without downshifting, while the Miata requires you to run through the gearbox – a pleasure in itself – to reach for needed power. Run up the revs in more powerful sports cars and you wind up exceeding the speed limits to reach the pleasure plateau, while in the Miata, you interact by picking the right gear and hitting the gas to get old-time exhilaration at speeds well below levels that alert radar patrolmen. By staying in its niche, Miata gives Mazda the niche to itself.
The refinement of the MX-5 Miata shouldnÂ’t surprise anyone. Mazda claims to have the greatest percentage of engineers to employees in the industry, and, in recent years came up with the Mazda 6, which competes with and outhandles the Accord, Camry, Altima and others; and the Mazda 3, which outclasses the latest Civic, Corolla and other traditional compacts. Those cars, plus the RX-8, extract great driving enjoyment.
But of all its cars, the Miata best exemplifies what program manager Takao Kijima described, via an interpreter, the Japanese concept of “jinba ittai†– the spirit of horse and rider acting as one. The original Miata had it, when it came out in 1989, and the second generation followed in 1997. Modern technology, and Mazda’s recent vehicles, promised a substantial upgrade of the still-fun existing car. Sure enough, engineers stiffened the body 22 percent in bending rigidity and 47 percent in torsional rigidity. Handling agility depends greatly upon weight and the stiffness of the car’s platform; if it’s not stiff enough, engineers must compensate with tooth-rattling suspension stiffness. The Miata platform is stiff enough that the suspension could be refined for more compliance, without inhibiting the superb cornering. Every spare ounce has been extracted from the new MX-5 Miata, paring it to 2,473 pounds, which also aids tossability.
Its devotion to detail includes the hand-operated convertible top, which drops to provide a hard cover for itself. I found only one complaint. Mazda says the seats are designed to allow anyone up to 6-foot-1 to find perfect driving position, but if youÂ’re on the passenger side, youÂ’re most comfortable if your shoe size is 10.5 or smaller. My size 11s would not rest flat on the floor, because of the intrusion of the air conditioning housing above the footwell. ItÂ’s annoying to have to sit with your feet at an angle, and lifting your heel to allow your toes to fit on the floor is like standing on tiptoes. Maybe thatÂ’s just another good reason to drive, where footroom is fine.
When the Miata was first introduced, it had a strong little 1.6-liter engine out of the Protégé. The 1993 model was stronger with the 1.8-liter four-cylinder, and a cast iron block. The new car has an all-aluminum 2.0-liter four, with chain-driven dual overhead-camshafts. It is the strong base engine in the Mazda 3, but with significant upgrades. Power is increased to 170 horsepower at 6,700 RPMs, with 140 foot-pounds of torque at 5,000 RPMs. The four valves per cylinder have variable timing. You can rev freely to the 6,700-RPM redline, and if you’re careless, the fuel system shuts off at 7,000 revs.
Choices are a five-speed or six-speed manual, or a six-speed automatic, which has two less horsepower but retains the sporty demeanor with steering-wheel paddle shift switches. Mazda used a lot of high-tensile steel and modern impact-deflecting techniques as well as aluminum to both improve strength and lighten weight, giving the car considerable safety beyond what its lean weight might indicate.
While the competition is much more expansive than when the Miata was the only available roadster, great sports cars like the S2000, Boxster, Z4, and TT all cost significantly more, and sporty coupes in the Miata’s price range fall far short of the true sports car experience. You could say that in the $20,000 range, the MX-5 Miata remains the true volcano. Everything else is just an eruption site.
(John Gilbert writes weekly auto reviews; he can be reached at cars@jwgilbert.com.)
Marty Sertich’s Hobey will be impossible to duplicate
Marty Sertich seems mature beyond his years, but he may have to grow old, with kids of his own, before he will fully appreciate what he meant to his mother during this wonderful, glorious, heroic Hobey Baker season.
ItÂ’s already obvious what Patty Sertich meant to Marty. She was his inspiration, his special beacon for both focusing on what he had to do, and realizing what things are truly important in life. But itÂ’s the reverse role that may take some time. Marty Sertich is far too humble to even acknowledge what he meant to his mom this past year, when he provided her with inspiration, serving as her beacon to try to push herself to extend her own finite boundaries, even while she accepted the horrible inevitability of inoperable, terminal, brain cancer.
Patty Sertich made it through the WCHA season, including a few trips to Colorado Springs to see her son win the WCHA scoring title for league co-champion Colorado College. She made it through to see him play in the WCHA Final Five. And she made it to Columbus, Ohio, to see the Frozen Four, and to see her older son win the 2005 Hobey Baker Memorial Award – the emblem of the nation’s top college hockey player.
She didnÂ’t make it to the Hobey Baker ceremonial banquet, on a Thursday night in the Twin Cities. She was in a hospice by then. Two days after the ceremony, on Saturday, May 21, Patty Sertich could fight no more.
The funeral, at Roseville Lutheran Church, was one that will not be forgotten by the hundreds of people who attended. It lasted more than two and a half hours, and it included heartfelt and fond reminiscences by her two sisters, and by some close friends. One of them said it best: “Patty was born nice, and never changed.Ââ€
The service also included emotional, riveting comments by Marty, his younger brother Mike, and their older sister Sara. Steve Sertich, who had met Patty while he, too, was a star at Colorado College, and married her to start this remarkable family, spoke last, and by then, the entire congregation was emotionally drained – wiped out by the strength and character it took for those three adult kids to power through their emotion-choked tributes to insist their mom will be with them the rest of their lives.
Steve pointed out that he and Sara had been able to be with Patty almost constantly, but it was tougher on the boys. He knew it had taken heroic levels of performance to go through what they had, but Steve added that nothing could duplicate the heroics displayed by his wife, who never lost her cheery, upbeat outlook on life, throughout her ordeal.
Patty Sertich had beaten breast cancer a few years ago, which made the brain tumor, discovered just over a year before, seem all the more unfair. But “unfair†is a word that Steve refused to use, because Patty had refused to use it, and forbade her family from using it as well.
By the time Patty and Steve and Sara came to Columbus for the Frozen Four to see Marty and possibly freshman Mike play for the Tigers, she was too thin – even for her. Always smiling and vibrant, Patty stood up to an endless barrage of bright media lights and interviews. Occasionally, when she would lose her place while describing something, she’d tap Steve on the arm, or Mike, or Sara, and they’d supply the missing phrase so she could keep on, smiling at her bobble as she recovered to finish the sentence.
For those of us who first knew Patty as the wife of a star hockey player, then later as the mom of a couple more star hockey players, or for those who got to know her in their Roseville neighborhood, or when she went up to chip in as a waitress at the Shoreview branch of Panino’s – a small collection of restaurants started by her father in Colorado Springs – it was impossible not to feel like you’d known her all your life.
The chance to talk to her in Columbus provided a memorable glimpse of the real Patty Sertich, the one weÂ’ll all remember.
“When I was first diagnosed, it was very hard,†she said that day. “But I realize how important it is to have all my family with me. WeÂ’ve all been so happy and lucky, and IÂ’ve finally found peace. IÂ’m lucky we have each other every day, and we love each other so much, we donÂ’t have to think about the bad stuff any more.Ââ€
In my last conversation with Patty, I recalled how we used to see her either at hockey games, or up at PaninoÂ’s, scurrying around like a hyperactive waitress trying to impress the boss. I told her that when we got back to Minnesota, weÂ’d be stopping at PaninoÂ’s.
“Oh, we will be going up there, too,†she said.
“But I bet you won’t be waiting on tables,†I joked.
“I wish they’d let me,†she said.
None of what she said was intended to distract in any way from her sonÂ’s big day. But it was the last time I saw Patty Sertich. And the light in her eyes told all that was necessary to show how much her son’s special season had meant to inspire her.
Marty Sertich, a junior at Colorado College, had all the statistical ingredients for the Hobey. He led the Western Collegiate Hockey Association in scoring with 17 goals, 25 assists, for 42 points, four more than Brett Sterling, his linemate, fellow all-WCHA, All-America, and Hobey Baker finalist. The two led Colorado College to a share of the league championship at 19-7-2 with eventual NCAA champion Denver. In all games, Sertich led the nation as well, with 27-37—64 statistics, an eyelash ahead of Sterling’s 34-29—63. CC finished 31-9-3, losing only to Denver, its archrival, in the NCAA tournament semifinals.
At 5-foot-9 and 163 pounds, Sertich relies on incredible quickness and playmaking to command the spotlight for both spectators and opponents. Whether it’s darting around and through defenders in 1-on-1 situations, escaping from congestion with the puck, or luring defenders to try to stop him from shooting – only to realize he rarely shoots if he can set up a teammate – he is the consummate team player.
“There was never any competition for who could get more points,†said Sterling, who joined Cornell goaltender David McKee as Hobey runners-up. “We complement each other – he being more of a passer and me more of a shooter. Being able to play on a line with Marty has been a treat for me.Ââ€
Two years ago, Sertich had a 9-20—29 freshman year at Colorado College, but critics still said he was too small, too light, and that the only reason he did so well was because he got to center 2003 Hobey Baker Award winner Peter Sejna, and Noah Clarke, a pair of All-America wingers. Two years later, teammates are attributing their success to being able to play with Marty.
When the award was presented at the NCAA tournament in Columbus, Marty Sertich said: “ItÂ’s been an unbelievable year, quite a ride. I want to thank my teammates, and the whole coaching staffÂ…and lastly, my family. I love you guys more than anything.Ââ€
In the audience, Steve and Patty Sertich beamed with joy at their sonÂ’s award, and they knew that MartyÂ’s tribute to his family was more than just protocol. The family had stressed the importance of Marty and Mike staying in college during their momÂ’s year-long struggle, so Steve and Patty traveled when they could to see them play, but mainly to see them.
“The boys had the hardest part, being away most of the time,†said Steve. “MartyÂ’s compassion, honesty, and strength, comes from her, and the way sheÂ’s dealt with this horrible disease.Ââ€
Mike Sertich, a part-time player as a freshman, acknowledged that he and his brother often discussed the situation. “I could see it in Marty, that he quietly used it as motivation,†said Mike.
Marty Sertich, whose spectacular season personified courage and character, as well as skill, put it all in perspective. “I realized there are a lot of more important things in life,†he said. “It definitely helped drive me.Ââ€
He can’t appreciate, undoubtedly, how much the inspiration flowed both ways between his play and his mom. The family hockey heritage is readily traced on both sides of the family tree.
Steve Sertich, a former high school star at Virginia, Minnesota, went on to play at Colorado College where he was team MVP in the 1972-73 season. His dad – Marty’s grandfather – moved to Colorado Springs when Steve played there, and when he died, the downtown arena he managed was named as a memorial for the beloved “Pa†Sertich.
Patty, meanwhile, was the daughter of Tony Frasca, who remains a legend of CCÂ’s early years, and was a two-time All-America, in 1951 and 1952.
Steve married Patty, prompting Marty, at the funeral, from remarking, “My dad got lucky.” Steve played for the 1976 U.S. Olympic team, and they moved enough to fulfill a vagabond’s resume. Finally they settled in Minnesota, closer to where SteveÂ’s brother, Mike Sertich, was coaching at Minnesota-Duluth. Steve taught and coached both of his sons at Roseville High School, but by the time Marty was a senior, his intended entry to UMD was eliminated when Mike Sertich was forced to resign. So Colorado College, which always meant so much to both parents, became the logical choice.
“The game is a lot faster now than when I played,†said Steve, who now coaches the Roseville girls high school hockey team. “The players are a lot bigger, and the game is a lot more physical. MartyÂ’s shiftiness is pretty much a matter of survival.Ââ€
The history, the heritage, and the closeness of both families culminated in the brilliant 2004-05 season by Marty Sertich – a season so special that it will be hard to duplicate, even though he will return, with Sterling, to try to win an NCAA title for CC. Consider how Patty Sertich accepted congratulations at the Hobey Baker Award presentation in Columbus. “ItÂ’s wonderful that Marty won it,†she said. “But if Brett had won, heÂ’d have been just as deserving.Ââ€
There you have it. From age 9, hockey moms are famous for believing their sons are the greatest ever. If a son someday makes a Division I college team, a mom is more certain than ever that her son is the best. But here was Patty Sertich, a hockey mom so special that, even though she deserved to gloat because her son IS the best player in college hockey, instead was eager to share her familyÂ’s glory.
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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