Cars Reviews

Forza 5 news, rumours, release date and cars

June 20, 2013 By admin Leave a Comment

Forza 5 News

Forza 5 confirmed as Xbox One launch exclusive
Forza 5 has been officially unveiled as a next-generation title, exclusively coming to the Xbox One.

“The new age is here,” states the trailer unveiled at the Xbox One’s launch event. Corporate Vice President of Microsoft Game Studio added that the game will “redefine what we can expect from a next-generation racing game.”

Microsoft Studios unveiled the first Forza 5 trailer during the its next-gen console announcement, alongside the news that the Xbox One will play host to 15 exclusive titles, including eight entirely new IPs.

With Forza being one of these exclusive titles, it will be interesting to see how Microsoft Studios develops the game to make use of the Xbox One’s new features, such as the upgraded Kinect sensor and cloud gaming.

“Built from the ground up to take advantage of Xbox One and the infinite power of the cloud, no game better delivers the sensation of being behind the wheel,” states the Forza Motorsport 5 official site. “Forza Motorsport 5 sets a new bar for racing games and will be available exclusively for Xbox One at launch.”

Microsoft Studios has released the Forza 5 trailer it showed at the Xbox One event, which you can find below.

At E3 2013, Turn 10 Studios’s Dan Greenawalt took to the stage to tell us a little more about Forza 5. He bigged-up how the game’s visuals aren’t just about textures and polygons, highlighting the interplay of light with the cars’ flashy paint jobs.

Don’t worry, the latest Forza will still be a visual feast.

Read our Forza Motorsport 5 hands-on preview

An assessment of your driving style will also be used to pair your with drivers of a similar level when playing online. No longer will it be just about how fast you race, but about every decision you make, at every turn.

Forza 5 Car List

Developer Turn 10 Studios has not confirmed all that many cars in Forza 5 yet. The final game will feature hundreds of cars – Forza 4 had more than 500.

Internet sleuths have discovered that the game will feature cars from Aston Martin, Audi, BMW, Chevrolet, Ferrari, Honda, Koenigsseg, Lamborghini, McLaren and Pagani – naturally among many other manufacturers.

Forza 5 is likely to have a more Western-centric car garage than the PS4′s GT6. The Gran Turismo series tends to lean heavily on Japanese car manufacturers – more than 60 per cent of that game’s cars were Japanese.

Forza 5 Release Date

Microsoft Studios has already confirmed that Forza 5 will be one of the launch titles for the Xbox One. This means that we won’t be seeing the game until Microsoft’s next-gen console comes to market “later this year”.

Until then, you might want to check out our Gran Turismo 6 news, rumours and release date roundup.

Article source: http://www.trustedreviews.com/news/forza-5-news-rumours-and-release-date

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Audi A3 Saloon review (2013 onwards)

June 20, 2013 By admin Leave a Comment

Audi A3 Saloon: summary

Amazingly this is the first time Audi has ever offered an A3-based saloon. Wannabe A4 buyers are going to love it.

What: Audi A3 Saloon
Where: Budapest, Hungary
Date: June 2013
Price: £24,275 – £28,105
Available: on sale now, arriving September 2013
Key rivals: Chevrolet Cruze, Mercedes-Benz CLA, Skoda Octavia, Volkswagen Jetta

We like: makes the compact three-box design work where so many have failed, very efficient, strong value
We don’t like: not as practical as you might think, driving experience doesn’t sparkle

On Bing: see pictures of the Audi A3 Saloon
Read another Audi review on MSN Cars

Audi

Audi A3 Saloon: first impressions

This is the first A3 saloon Audi has ever built. It sounds like it should be a fairly straightforward design proposition – take the regular A3 hatchback, stick on a boot, thus creating a classic ‘three-box’ silhouette. But no.

In fact, the A3 Saloon has been tweaked in every direction. The wheel arches are flared an additional 11mm, the side contours are sharper and rise more acutely, the entire front end gently refined, and the roofline is 9mm lower. That big boot adds 150mm in length over the latest A3 Sportback.

This means more luggage space. But it also makes that classic Audi saloon car look available to buyers shopping on a lower budget. So although British punters have turned away from the three-box compact in recent years – regardless of its global popularity – we suspect the A3 might just prove an exception to that rule.

The Saloon costs an extra £550 compared to the equivalent Sportback, makes all the efficiency promises we’ve come to expect, and surely has more of that magic Audi visual allure than any hatchback. The Mercedes CLA has some competition at last.

Audi

Audi A3 Saloon: performance

Though more will follow in due course, there are just three engines offered in the UK at launch: a 140hp 1.4-litre TFSI turbo petrol, a 180hp 1.8-litre TFSI turbo petrol, and a 150hp 2.0-litre TDI turbodiesel.

The 1.4 TFSI petrol tempts with low weight and ‘Cylinder on Demand’ technology

Initial UK supply will also limit the petrols to Audi’s seven-speed S tronic paddleshift automatic gearbox, while the diesel will only be offered with a six-speed manual. In typically amusing international launch fashion,we were only able to drive the engine-gearbox combos the other way round…

So, we’ve sampled the petrols with a six-speed manual, and the diesel with the seven-speed S tronic. Fortunately, both gearboxes do a fine job, so you’re unlikely to have much cause for complaint.

As for the engines, in everyday driving there’s little to pick between the two TFSIs. Although the 180hp 1.8 accelerates 0-62mph much more quickly on paper, both produce the same 184lb ft of torque. Which means in cut and thrust traffic, the difference becomes scarcely noticeable unless you’re really gunning it.

This makes the 1.4 the more attractive proposition in our eyes. It also stands up very well against the diesel, where the petrol’s lower weight and clever ‘Cylinder on Demand’ – yes, that really is abbreviated to ‘CoD’ – brings it far closer in efficiency terms than you might expect. More on this below.

Audi

Audi A3 Saloon: ride and handling

The diesel also felt by far the most leaden from behind the steering wheel, with a surprisingly noticeable amount of extra heft for the front end to deal with when turning into corners and coping with bumps. Of which there are certainly plenty on Hungarian roads.

The A3 Saloon comes across as capable, but not exactly inspired

In this environment, the A3 Saloon proves reassuringly unflappable overall – despite every single one of the test cars we sampled being fitted with large 18-inch alloy wheels. So we can be reasonably certain that it should prove comfortable for customers back home in the UK.

Complicating matters, however, Audi will offer no less than three conventional suspension set-ups in the UK – with the further promise of adaptive options to come.

Buyers can choose Sport or S line specification. As standard, both of these get Sport suspension – which is 15mm lower than the regular suspension, a no cost option on the both trims and fitted to most of the cars we actually tried. S line also offers the no cost option of S line suspension, which reduces the ride height a further 10mm over Sport.

Confused? No kidding. But generally, the lower the car, the firmer the ride. So if you team the full S line chassis with the biggest wheel option – and up to 19-inch alloys are available – you can expect the A3 Saloon to be brittle. Try and get a test drive in your ideal spec before committing to a deposit.

Putting this issue to one side, in regular front-wheel drive form the A3 Saloon comes across as capable, if not exactly inspired. Both petrols seem well balanced, but hardly the height of dynamic gynasticism. They wouldn’t see us day dreaming of light traffic on the long way home.

Quattro four-wheel drive is coming later, but only on the range-topping 1.8 TFSI.

Audi

Audi A3 Saloon: interior

The increasingly ever-present ‘Audi drive select’ system allows you to tweak the steering weight and throttle response, livening things up a bit. Alternatively there are also Efficiency and Comfort modes, with the former also dialling back energy-sapping ancillaries such as the air conditioning.

We expect modern diesel engines to be efficient, but petrol is catching up fast

The cabin shares its basic design with the rest of the A3 range, so there are fancier elements (depending on options) and slightly shabbier ones, but it’s all put together with supreme integrity. To our eyes it lacks the drama available from the Mercedes CLA, but perhaps that’s part of the point.

Rear headroom is better than in the Mercedes, but the CLS does have a bigger boot – with 470 litres of stowage compared to the Audi’s 425 litres. The A3 Saloon is 45 litres more commodious than the A3 Sportback, but the boot opening is decidedly less practical.

So, for all that the A3 Saloon’s rear seats do fold down, you won’t be getting a fridge in the back.

Equipment and options are comprehensive, and there are plenty of features that are bound to delight – including the infotainment screen that rises serenely out of the dashtop, the touch pad that lets you hand scrawl words one letter at a time, and the availability of app-laden wireless internet connectivity.

Audi

Audi A3 Saloon: economy and safety

We expect modern diesel engines to be efficient, and the 2.0-litre TDI naturally heads the A3 Saloon offering, emitting 107g/km CO2 with a claimed 68.9mpg combined. By the end of the year there will also be a 1.6 TDI variant offering 99g/km eco performance. We tried this on launch, too – it’s a sweet package.

If you like the design, the chances are you’re going to love the car

But petrol is catching up fast. The 1.4 TFSI’s 60.1mpg claim is attention-grabbing enough, but it also emits just 109g/km CO2. Putting it in the same annual car tax bracket as the 2.0 diesel, while also avoiding the 3% surcharge for company car drivers.

The trick to achieving this is the CoD – which enables the engine to switch off two of its four cylinders during times of low demand, thus saving fuel. The switchover is literally imperceptible, and there’s no kind of dashboard indicator at all. So we’ll have to take Audi’s word that it’s actually happening.

Out in the real world, we suspect the non-CoD equipped diesel will remain the more consistently frugal unit, but petrol technology is rapidly improving. All versions of the A3 Saloon – including the least efficient 1.8 TFSI – officially manage 50mpg, and are fitted with stop-start and other fuel-saving gizmos.

Safety levels are hardly remiss, either, with all the tech from the A3 hatchbacks carried over to the saloon, including autonomous braking, blind spot monitoring and sophisticated stability control electronics. There’s no Euro NCAP result yet, but with the same airbags and a strong structure it should do just fine.

Audi A3 Saloon: the MSN Cars verdict

If you like the design, the chances are you’re going to love the car. The Audi A3 Saloon brings benefits from both sides of the equation, combining the efficient engine and construction techniques for the regular A3 with a new look that’s far closer to those big Audis to which so many buyers aspire.

In our brief encounter we felt it lacked real driving sparkle, and it is worth noting the extra boot space doesn’t automatically mean additional practicality. But as a package of design, build quality, image and efficiency – not to mention CLA-busting value – the A3 Saloon isn’t short of appeal.

Scorecard

Performance

Handling

Interior

Safety

Price

Practicality

Economy

Overall

Article source: http://cars.uk.msn.com/reviews/audi-a3-saloon-review-2013-onwards

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Cars.com Reviews the 2013 Toyota Camry

June 19, 2013 By admin Leave a Comment

The cliche tells us less is more, and so it goes with the 2013 Toyota Camry as it pertains to cylinders. Cars.com Managing Editor David Thomas says added oomph from the sportier Camry SE’s 268-horsepower, 3.5-liter V-6 reveals shortcomings not evident in the midsize sedan’s four-cylinder version. It provides plenty of passing power, but that’s at the expense of both fuel economy and ride quality. Meanwhile, lackluster cabin materials might make you wonder why you didn’t just save yourself some money and buy a Corolla instead. Read Thomas’ review and decide.

2013 Toyota Camry Review

Article source: http://blogs.cars.com/kickingtires/2013/06/carscom-reviews-the-2013-toyota-camry.html

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Vt. and Quebec announce electric car corridor

June 19, 2013 By admin Leave a Comment

MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) — Starting this fall, people who drive electric vehicles should be able to travel the 138-mile route between Burlington and Montreal without worrying they’ll run short of a charge thanks to a planned electric vehicle charging corridor, Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin and Quebec Premier Pauline Marois announced in Montreal.

Initially the corridor will have more than 20 charging stations along the route, although it’s expected the number of stations will increase.

‘‘Alternative fuel vehicles lower our reliance on gasoline, helping both our environment and our energy independence,’’ Shumlin said Monday in Montreal at an event with Marois. ‘‘With the number of alternative energy vehicles growing at tremendous rates, these stations, along with websites identifying their location, will support visitors and residents as they use this clean and efficient mode of transportation.’’

The agreement announced Monday also envisions a similar corridor on other cross-border routes, including between Magog and Sherbrook in Quebec’s Eastern townships and St. Johnsbury in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom.

‘‘The partnership between Vermont and Québec is a long one filled with many issues of common interests,’’ Marois said. ‘‘Today’s announcement outlining the installation of the electric charging network is a concrete example of our shared leadership in the field of sustainable development and clean energy use.’’

The official opening of the corridor will take place this fall.

Article source: http://www.boston.com/cars/news-and-reviews/2013/06/18/and-quebec-announce-electric-car-corridor/dygs5GtAc0r7TQe0raWo4M/story.html

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RI building electric car charging stations

June 19, 2013 By admin Leave a Comment

BRISTOL, R.I. (AP) — Rhode Island is building up to 50 electric vehicle charging stations for motorists around the state and also plans to purchase hybrid or electric-powered vehicles for the state fleet whenever possible, the governor announced Tuesday.

Gov. Lincoln Chafee said the moves, paid for by federal stimulus money, will help improve the state’s economy and save money on gas.

‘‘We are developing a clean and efficient transportation infrastructure for the future, saving taxpayer dollars and reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other air pollutants,’’ Chafee said in a written statement.

The first charging station is at Roger Williams University in Bristol. The others are scheduled to be installed by Sept. 30, said Allison Rogers of the state Department of Administration.

Before the announcement, Rhode Island had 11 publicly available charging stations. It is not known how many electric cars are currently registered in the state, but electric car advocates say about 100,000 are on the road nationwide.

State officials said the stations will be installed in convenient places such as restaurants and shopping plazas as well as popular destinations like state parks and beaches. The stations will have two charging spots, and state officials hope many of them will be free to use.

The state awarded a $781,225 contract to charging station company ChargePoint to find places for and to install the stations. Drivers will be able to use their smartphones or go online to find and reserve a station.

The state has already replaced 30 gas-powered cars in its fleet with hybrids and plug-in hybrids, Director of Administration Richard Licht said. The state will use federal stimulus money to pay for the difference in upfront cost between those vehicles and gas-powered vehicles.

Article source: http://www.boston.com/cars/news-and-reviews/2013/06/18/announce-electric-car-charging-stations/9GMFRh3af4iqZoUolu42qK/story.html

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Citroen C4 Picasso Review

June 18, 2013 By admin Leave a Comment

Rory Reid road tests and reviews the Citroen C4 Picasso, a five-seater MPV that purportedly offers contemporary styling, good driving dynamics and plenty of space for all the family.

MPVs are like dentures. And coffins. Nobody aspires to owning them, but there comes a point in all our lives when age or unavoidable circumstance forces us to invest in these soulless boxes on wheels.

The Citroen C4 Picasso is just such a vehicle. However the designers of the very latest model have done their utmost to give it an air of desirability. It’s pretty for a start, surprisingly so, and is built on an all-new platform that means it’s light on its toes with engines that give it staggering economy.

But is it as good a package as it seems? Would anyone actually buy such a vehicle out of choice? We hopped reluctantly behind the wheel to find out.

Design

We’ve never used the words ‘sexy’ and ‘mini MPV’ in the same sentence before, but we came damn close to doing just that when we clapped eyes on the latest C4 Picasso. It’s a striking thing that shames not only its predecessor, but the vast majority of its rivals. Its front end is particularly attractive, with a large, fairly aggressive grille and narrow LED day-running lights that sit above a set of squared-off headlights.

The C4 Picasso isn’t all eye candy. The car rides on Citroen’s new EMP2 platform, which helps it shed 140kg in comparison to the outgoing model. Aluminium, high strength steel and a composite rear floor cut weight by 70kg, while a further 70kg is lost through the use of an aluminium bonnet and a tailgate made of lightweight composite materials. The end result is that the C4 Picasso now weighs the same as the smaller C3 Picasso – no mean feat.

Its interior is arguably more impressive. The dashboard has a beautiful, almost concept-like design, with a variety of well-chosen materials and textures that exude quality. The seats, with their contemporary stitch pattern, are a particular highlight, and look as if they fell straight out of a a high-end design studio – even the cloth trimmed pews on entry-level cars look a damn sight better than most leather-clad equivalents in some high end vehicles.

Practicality

The new Citroen C4 Picasso is slightly smaller than its predecessor, but it offers greater interior space due to the fact its front and rear axles are slightly further apart. The cabin certainly seems enormous — it’s light and airy thanks to a whopping five square metres of glass (including a mammoth panoramic sunroof) and narrow pillars that provide plenty of all-round visibility. The immensely comfortable front passenger seat is designed to resemble a chair in the business class section of an airliner, and it even features an electric footrest.

There’s plenty of legroom in the rear, with three individual chairs of equal size, so you won’t have drawn the short straw if the family pecking order places you in the middle seat. The entire rear footwell is flat, with no awkward transmission tunnel to straddle, and the left and right seats come with optional trays that fold down from the back of the two front seats. Each of these features a small light so kids have no excuse not to do their homework. Our only gripe back there was the fact the seats were a little on the firm side.

The boot is larger than ever, up from 500 litres to 537 litres. Slide the rear seats forward and this jumps to 630 litres. Fold the seats flat and the total rises again to 1,709 litres. There’s a decent number of cubby holes to store general flotsam. There’s a nice little stash box under the footwell in the rear, for example, and another under the dashboard, which also houses the car’s USB and auxiliary ports, as well as a 220v electrical outlet. The central storage bin between the front seats is a little small for our liking, as are the glove box and the door bins.

Performance Handling

That C4 Picasso’s new platform helps it shed an impressive 140kg compared to the outgoing car. This model is also said to have a lower centre of gravity, thanks to the fact it sits closer to the ground and its engine is mounted lower. Citroen says it’s more agile than ever, but it’s no sports car — there’s a fair bit of body roll when changing directions, no matter how slowly you drive. On the flip-side, the ride is incredibly smooth and it admirably irons out imperfections in the road. Don’t bother fitting the optional 18-inch wheels, though – they make small potholes seem like giant craters.

Power is supplied by a choice of engines – VTi 120 and THP 155 petrols, as well as HDI 90 and e-HDI 115 diesels, all with 1.6-litre displacements. Of these, we were able to test the 1.6 e-HDI 115 diesel and THP 155 petrol. The latter is the clear choice for those who demand performance – it’ll accelerate from 0-62mph in a reasonably nippy 9 seconds (enough to see off some junior hot hatches), revs smoothly, is refined and delivers a decent 230Nm of torque at low speed. The e-HDI 115 is the better bet, however. It’s marginally slower, taking 11.8 seconds to reach 62mph, and it’s not particularly torquey for a diesel, offering a fairly wheezy 270Nm at 1,750rpm, but it’s very cheap to run.

Our test cars were fitted with Citroen’s 6-speed manual gearbox, which was pretty clunky. It’s accurate, but changing gear feels and sounds like you’re stirring a bag of rocks with a small shovel. Citroen promises a robotised version of this manual transmission, which does away with the need to manually change gear or use a clutch. A proper six-speed automatic (which should prove smoother, albeit more expensive) will be available in 2014.

Economy environment

Those looking for economy above all else should consider the e-HDI 90 diesel, which boasts 74.3mpg and CO2 of 95g/km, but with a 0-62mph time of 15.3 seconds, you’ll need the patience of a saint to drive it. A better compromise is the e-HDI 115 diesel. It’s noticeably quicker than the entry-level diesel lump yet returns 70.6mpg while claiming CO2 low emissions of 105g/km. The THP 155 petrol is thirsty in comparison, sucking down fuel at a rate of 47mpg while coughing up 139g/km of CO2

Equipment Value

At the time of our test, Citroen had yet to decide final specification for its UK C4 models. However the car can be specified with a vast amount of tech. The most impressive of this is an optional high resolution 12-inch display atop the dashboard. The left third of this screen permanently shows the vehicle’s speed, while the right two thirds can show a wealth of other, user-definable information. Vehicle settings, a rev counter, navigation info, trip computer data or simply a picture of the user’s choosing (uploadable via USB) can all be shown.

Below this is a smaller, 7-inch display, which comes as standard across all models. This is a capacitive touchscreen unit that allows control of all typical vehicle functions – climate control, navigation, audio playback, phone, driving aids and Citroen’s Multicity Connect feature. The latter is an online, subscription-based system that allows access to various apps, including Facebook, Coyote speed camera information, local weather, etc. The screen itself is a quite slow to respond to inputs (imagine your iPhone, drunk) which makes it slightly frustrating to use, but if you like gadgets, you’ll appreciate its presence.

Speaking of gadgets, the C4 Picasso comes with a shedload of advanced tech that should make your life easier behind the wheel. The highlight for us was the clever Park Assist feature, which automatically parallel or reverse parks the C4 Picasso for you.

Safety

The C4 Picasso has yet to be independently crash tested, but Citroen expects it to gain a five-star rating when Euro NCAP gets a chance to smash it up. Until then, it comes with a suitably impressive array of active safety systems that help keep you and yours safe. The car has a lane departure warning system that aggressively senses when the driver is drifting out of lane. When this happens, the car’s motorised seatbelts will repeatedly tug at your shoulder until you pull back into line. It’s incredibly effective, but also incredibly annoying.

In addition, the C4 Picasso is fitted with automatic high beam operation, which keeps the headlights on full beam except when the car detects it might be blinding other road users, blind spot monitoring, and Citroen eTouch. The latter enables the car to call the local emergency services using its own built-in SIM card when it detects the vehicle has been involved in an accident.

Verdict

Citroen has done a stellar job with the C4 Picasso. OK, it won’t set your pulse racing (what MPV will?) but its interior and exterior styling and its wide breadth of abilities make it a real winner. It’s comfortable, practical, drives well and is versatile enough to keep even the most demanding of families content whether they’re popping to the local park or driving cross country. If you’ve been forced down a path in life where you must confront the ominous spectre of MPV ownership, we suspect you’ll be pleasantly surprised by this one.

Key Specs

Model tested: Citroen C4 Picasso e-115 HDI 6-speed manual
Engine: 1.6-litre e-HDI 115
Power: 115bhp
Torque: 270Nm
Acceleration: 0-62 in 12.3 seconds
Top speed: 117mph
Economy: 70.6mpg
Emissions: 105g/km CO2
Price: £17,500 to £24,500
Score:

Article source: http://recombu.com/cars/reviews/citroen-c4-picasso-review

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RI to announce 50 electric car charging stations

June 18, 2013 By admin Leave a Comment

BRISTOL, R.I. (AP) — Rhode Island is set to announce its plans to build a network of electric vehicle charging stations around the state.

Gov. Lincoln Chafee (CHAY-fee) on Tuesday will be joined by officials from National Grid and charging station company ChargePoint in a news conference to announce details of the network, which will include 50 charging stations.

The project is being funded by federal stimulus money, and the state has said it plans to complete the network by Aug. 15.

The state currently has 11 public charging stations, which are free and located at places including train stations and Rhode Island College.

Article source: http://www.boston.com/cars/news-and-reviews/2013/06/18/announce-electric-car-charging-stations/9GMFRh3af4iqZoUolu42qK/story.html

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2014 Acura RLX FWD

June 16, 2013 By admin Leave a Comment

Instrumented Test

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Suddenly, the big Honda seems prescient.

Why was the old Acura RL so firmly nailed to dealership floors, with just 379 sold last year? That’s easy. It was too small. Its back seat was so tight that rear riders could practically adjust the stereo, could possibly even drink from the front cup holders with a long-enough straw. Too in thrall to Honda’s minor-key virtues of frugality and modesty, the RL couldn’t compete with the chest-thumping, lane-filling champions of the mid-size luxury-car segment.

Repeat: It was because it was almost Civic-sized in back, and not because it had a six-cylinder engine or was based on a front-drive chassis. In fact, you could argue that the rest of the luxury-car fleet has finally caught up with the Acura flagship. Amid rising fuel-economy standards, a six-cylinder luxury sedan no longer seems like a tin Rolex. Furthermore, all-wheel drive is now the de rigueur luxury-car format, and Audi has even sold front-drive A6s and A8s with a straight face. All of this might not get the new RLX the respect it deserves, but what Acura has produced here, for better or worse, is a car fully in sync with these comfort-, mpg-, and tech-obsessed times.

The RLX overcompensates for the old car’s biggest failing. It’s full-figured, with a 2.0-inch-longer wheelbase and 1.7-inch-wider body than the outgoing RL’s. The cabin is far airier and roomier than before, with lots of clearance for occupants’ extremities. It’s also beautifully finished in muted tones, but its two-screen radio and nav interface is confusing; you never quite remember which of the screens and knobs will deliver the function you want. Also, the seat bottoms are too short for even the moderately lanky.

Engine downsizing touches the RLX, but only by 0.2 liter. The naturally aspirated, direct-injected 3.5-liter V-6 feeds the front wheels 310 horsepower and 272 lb-ft of torque, up 10 and 1, respectively, from the old 3.7-liter. Acceleration times are about par for the class, with the speedo needle finding 60 mph in 5.8 seconds and the quarter-mile passing in 14.3. Fuel efficiency should be very competitive, at 20/31 city/highway, figures we’re inclined to trust as they’re derived from a naturally aspirated engine. (We saw 20 mpg over about 1000 miles of mixed driving, but we drive like we’re qualifying at Monaco.)

Interestingly, Acura’s fuel-sipping strategy doesn’t rely on a tiny engine or sluggish gear ratios to achieve its result. Its final drive is actually 14 percent shorter than the RL’s, preserving the high-revving, coltish character of the powertrain primarily via careful management of its variable-valve-timing and cylinder-deactivation systems. The car retains the high-rpm urgency and natural linearity—abetted by a telepathic transmission—that’s missing from the turbocharged set.

But some of the fuel saving comes from, of all places, the rear suspension. Good news, lovers of high-tech Japanese cars from the late ’80s: Rear steering is back. Acura calls it Precision All-Wheel Steer, or, cutely, P-AWS, and it can toe the wheels independently. Under braking, for example, it pigeons the rears inward to keep the car stable. It also incorporates an ersatz torque-vectoring software program dubbed agile handling assist—let’s call it AHA—to rotate the car into corners with the brakes.

Specifications

VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, front-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door sedan

PRICE AS TESTED: $61,345 (base price: $49,345)

ENGINE TYPE: SOHC 24-valve V-6, aluminum block and heads, direct fuel injection

Displacement: 212 cu in, 3471 cc
Power: 310 hp @ 6500 rpm
Torque: 272 lb-ft @ 4500 rpm

TRANSMISSION: 6-speed automatic with manual shifting mode

DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 112.2 in
Length: 196.1 in
Width: 74.4 in Height: 57.7 in
Curb weight: 4004 lb

C/D TEST RESULTS:
Zero to 60 mph: 5.8 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 14.3 sec
Zero to 130 mph: 28.8 sec
Rolling start, 5–60 mph: 6.1 sec
Top gear, 30–50 mph: 3.1 sec
Top gear, 50–70 mph: 4.0 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 14.3 sec @ 100 mph
Top speed (governor limited): 133 mph
Braking, 70–0 mph: 166 ft
Roadholding, 300-ft-dia skidpad: 0.84 g

FUEL ECONOMY:
EPA city/highway driving: 20/31 mpg
C/D observed: 20 mpg

Continued…

2013 Dodge Dart – First Drive Review

June 16, 2013 By admin Leave a Comment

First Drive Review

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Fiat and Chrysler’s first kid is a good one.

Chrysler must have a death wish, an inferiority complex, or a burning desire to stay third among the domestic Big Three. Thirty-odd years ago, Lee Iacocca begged Congress for loan guarantees to keep the Chrysler ship afloat. This company had another encounter with the Grim Reaper in the ’90s, followed by a full Chapter 11 reorganization three years ago. Ownership stints by Daimler-Benz, Cerberus, the U.S. and Canadian governments, and Fiat have left the pentastar brand feeling like a toxic orphan.

Yet Chrysler keeps bouncing back with breakthrough products that save its bacon: K-cars 30 years ago, the LH family in the ’90s, and the 300 sedans in the aughts. Now it’s the Dodge Dart’s turn to prove that Chrysler is back from the brink to make amends for the misbegotten Dodge Caliber.

Married with Child

The Dart is the first child of the Chrysler-Fiat marriage, a union still in the honeymoon phase. By achieving 40 mpg combined in EPA testing (unadjusted mileage figures, not the lower window-sticker numbers), the Dart singlehandedly earned Fiat an ownership increase of five percent, lifting its controlling interest to 58.5 percent. The Voluntary Employee Beneficiary Association—operated by Chrysler’s long-suffering UAW workforce—owns the remaining 41.5-percent chunk.

Like this company’s previous savior cars, the Dart is charged with a mega mission. Phase one: Invade the hotly contested, fast-growing compact-sedan class where 20 or so Asian, German, and domestic models fight to survive. Phase two: Share its underpinnings with a broad range of future Dodges, Chryslers, and Jeeps. Phase three: Bring the SRT performance brand down from $100,000 Vipers and $50,000 Grand Cherokees and Chargers to the $30,000–$40,000 price range.

What makes these ambitious tasks doable is the warm, loving parent that took Chrysler in from the cold. To trim a year or more from the Dart’s gestation process, Chrysler-Fiat boss Sergio Marchionne shipped over one of the most admired platforms in the combine’s inventory—the Alfa Romeo Giulietta. Born two years ago with a classic name and fresh front-wheel-drive technology, the Giulietta has earned Alfa major kudos across Europe.

Well aware of the consequences of screwing up what could be their last shot at prosperity, Chrysler designers and engineers proceeded with caution. Style-wise, the Dart is a Charger with a pointy nose and less bad-boy attitude. Size-wise, it straddles the compact/mid-size boundary. Stretching the Giulietta’s 103.7-inch wheelbase to 106.4 inches, adding more than a foot to the overall length, and increasing width by 1.2 inches yielded what the Fiat-Chrysler alliance calls its Compact U.S. Wide platform, as well as 110.3 cubic feet of interior and trunk space. That gives the Dart more combined room than in the compact-class leaders—the Ford Focus, the Honda Civic, and the Toyota Corolla.

The Many Flavors of Dart

To intensify the invasion plan, the Dart will be a withering onslaught of five models, six powertrains, 14 color and trim combinations, and three wheel sizes scheduled to roll forth from May through the end of this year. The $16,790 base SE is powered by a new 2.0-liter DOHC 160-hp engine designed and manufactured in the U.S. Called the Tigershark in homage to the stillborn Northrop Grumman F-20 jet fighter, this aluminum-block-and-head, short-stroke, 16-valve four has variable valve timing and port injection.

Specifications

VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, front-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door sedan

BASE PRICE: SE, $16,790; SXT, $18,790; Rallye, $19,790; Limited, $20,790; R/T, $23,290

ENGINES: turbocharged and intercooled SOHC 16-valve 1.4-liter inline-4, 160 hp, 184 lb-ft; DOHC 16-valve 2.0-liter inline-4, 160 hp, 145 lb-ft; DOHC 16-valve 2.4-liter inline-4, 184 hp, 171 lb-ft

TRANSMISSIONS: 6-speed manual, 6-speed dual-clutch automatic with manual shifting mode, 6-speed automatic with manual shifting mode

DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 106.4 in
Length: 183.9 in
Width: 72.0 in Height: 57.7 in
Curb weight (C/D est): 3200–3350 lb

PERFORMANCE (C/D est, 160-hp engines):
Zero to 60 mph: 7.6–7.9 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 16.2–16.4 sec
Top speed: 130 mph

FUEL ECONOMY (C/D EST):
EPA city/highway driving: 25–27/36–39 mpg

Continued…

Used car review: Mini Cooper and Cooper S…

June 15, 2013 By admin Leave a Comment

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June 15, 2013 – 9:15AM

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David Morley

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Second-generation Mini Cooper provides plenty of retro flair and driving fun, and a thorough inspection will ensure it remains that way.

Mini Cooper S.

Our rating:

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Make

Mini

Family

Cooper

Series

R56

Year

2010

Doors

Seats

Transmission

Manual

Engine Configuration Description

In-line

Gear Num

Cylinders

Build Country Origin Description

UNITED KINGDOM

ANCAPRating

Car Size

Medium

Overall Green Star Rating

Fuel Type Description

Petrol – Unleaded ULP

Drive Description

Front Wheel Drive

Show more specifications

Search for used Mini, Cooper

You could never accuse BMW of not trying to squeeze every marketing drop out of the reborn Mini.

Having established the franchise back in 2002 with the Cooper and later the Cooper S, the brand has now been taken down some seriously imaginative marketing paths.

The irony of all this, of course, is that the new models that include the odd looking Mini Coupe, the multi-doored Mini Countryman and the topless Mini Cabrio were never part of the original Mini’s repertoire back in the rose-tinted 1960s.

Throw in unlikely-titled limited editions such as the Cooper Bayswater and Cooper Baker Street and even a diesel-engined variant and you can see how things have gotten a bit out of hand.

The point is that if you want to recapture some of that swinging sixties feel-good vibe (which must surely be the Mini’s strongest purchasing proposition even now) you’re best to stick with the models that best represent the original’s appeal.

And that means the Mini Cooper and Cooper S. Yes, the station-wagon versions offer more space and the convertible model has its own charms, but face it, there are plenty of alternatives to those that don’t carry the Mini’s pricing structure.

No, if you want the Mini magic, you need the version that most closely fits the legend.

These days, those very early cars are still worth a look at and are starting to look like decent value. But like any car with a bit of a performance bent, the newer you can buy the better.

So our starting point for this exercise should be the R56 version of the Mini which represented the first rehash of the modern Mini concept and which arrived in 2007.

In Cooper form you still got a 1.6-litre engine with slightly more power than the first new Mini (88kW versus 85) and a little more torque.

More significantly, the CVT of the first model was dumped in favour of a new 6-speed automatic and the manual option also gained a ratio for a total of six.

The Cooper was still not a real performance hatch but, with the manual gearbox fitted it could still be fun.

But even more fun was to be had with the Cooper S which ditched the supercharged engine of the first version for a turbocharged 1.6-litre with a double-overhead camshaft layout. It produced a little more power (128kW versus 120kW) than its forebear, but the real benefit was in efficiency and the newer turbocharged engine trumped the supercharged version at the pump by a full two litres per 100km on a combined test.

It still cracked on when you floored it, too, and while an automatic option for the Cooper S was made available for the first time it remains a better car with the six-speed manual fitted.

While the less highly stressed non-turbocharged engine seems to be pretty robust, some owners have had problems with the turbocharged version of the Mini.

The biggest worry seems to be a batch of cars with timing chain problems.

Some specialists say a batch of engines were fitted with a timing chain that was too long, others point to the chain’s tensioning system as the culprit.

Either way, it can be a huge problem if the chain snaps or jumps off its camshaft-gear and in many cases, the entire motor is turned to scrap in an instant.

The first sign seems to be a rattling noise when the engine is first started from cold. It can almost sound as if the engine is, in fact, a diesel, such is the clatter from the top of the engine.

If that happens, the car should be taken straight to a Mini specialist before any more damage is done.

Ignoring these noises will eventually lead to a broken or jumped chain and the mayhem we mentioned.

For this reason, it’s essential that you listen to any prospective purchase when its starts first thing in the morning from cold.

Be wary of a seller who has warmed then engine before you arrive as this could be an attempt to mask the death-rattle.

If they have, insist on returning next morning to listen to the engine from cold.

The rattling noises should not be confused with a ticking noise from the top of the engine which seems to be a result of the type of fuel-injectors used. It might be a bit annoying, but those in the know say that there’s actually nothing to worry about as this is a normal function of the engine.

Any squealing noises from the engine are usually the fault of the water pump, and if it’s making this noise, it’s probably ready for replacement, too.

There was actually an Australian recall of some Cooper Ss to fix the auxiliary coolant pump (which continues to cool the turbocharger after the engine has been switched off) which could, in extreme cases, overheat and even cause a fire.

BMW’s build quality seems to have translated pretty well to the rest of the Cooper and Cooper S packages, however, but we have heard of a few cars fitted with the optional sunroof that have problems on hot days.

When the ambient temperature is really high, the roof can start to make rubbing noises as it’s opened or closed.

In the worst cases, the roof will refuse to move at all, although it generally comes good as the day cools down or the car is parked in shade.

But we’d still want to see an up-to-date service record with any car like this and make sure that you check the whole vehicle for signs of crash damage.

The paint should all be one colour and don’t forget to check around the windows and under the wheel arches for paint overspray.

Cars which beg to be driven hard like the Cooper S are also more likely to be damaged somewhere along the line. Fact of life.

Nuts and bolts

Engine/s: 1.6/1.6 turbo
Transmissions: 6-man/6-auto
Fuel economy (combined): 5.4 litres per 100km (Cooper)/6.3 litres (Cooper S)
Safety rating (courtesy of www.howsafeisyourcar.com.au): 5 stars
Our rating: 3.5 stars

Likes:

If you like retro cars, then the Mini is one of the absolute best.
Turbocharged engine is a rocket. Find one with a manual gearbox.
Tight handling and quick steering make for a fun drive.

Dislikes:

Interior ergonomics suffer in the name of fashion.
Durability cloud hangs over turbo engine.
Requires 95-RON fuel.
Sharp ride might become tiresome over time.

Competitors:

Volkswagen Beetle – In turbocharged form the Beetle had a decent serve of performance. Overall car was compromised by its packaging, however, and a Golf makes more sense. 3 stars

Citroen DS3 – The name is the only really retro part of the Citroen hatchback. But it drives well and with turbo power has a bit for the enthusiasts out there. 3.5 stars

Alfa Romeo Mito – Odd looks from the front take away from the overall Mito image which pulls up short of retro but still buys into that Italian style thing. Average dynamics. 2.5 stars
What to pay (courtesy of Glass’s Guide):

What to pay

Model Year New Now

Cooper 2007 $33300 $16000
Cooper 2008 $33300 $17500
Cooper 2009 $33300 $19000
Cooper 2010 $33450 $20700
Cooper 2011 $33850 $21100
Cooper 2012 $34000 $23700
Cooper S 2007 $42100 $21500
Cooper S 2008 $42100 $23200
Cooper S 2009 $42100 $25600
Cooper S 2010 $42250 $28000
Cooper S 2011 $42900 $28400
Cooper S 2012 $43050 $31900

See all Used Car Reviews