Automotive Trends

Audi’s Former Hot Shot Plays Second Fiddle These Days, But The Music Still Sounds Good.

    If you’re a regular reader of these pages then you know cars from top to tailpipe and the fact that the S4 is no longer the baddest boy in the Audi garage isn’t news to you. If you stumbled onto this page courtesy of the geeks at Google then allow us to catch you up.
     Audi has made a wonderful entry-level luxury sedan called the A4 (it has also gone by other names) for a long time. Some years back, perhaps after renting American Graffiti, engineers at the four-ring company decided a big ‘ol engine (they actually used turbos for a while) in their itty-bitty sedan would be a lot of fun. Thus began the history of the high-horsepower A4, appropriately renamed S4, presumably for super but possibly for Sweeeeeet! In 2006 the highest-performance Audi remains the 340hp S4, but that is set to change when the 415hp RS4 arrives on our shores in July. Read more…

The Original Standard of the World Crossover

     The last SUV to occupy this space was lauded for not compromising, for retaining its body-on-frame roots, and for its V8 strength. But that SUV also felt more at home at a rodeo vs. Rodeo (pronounced Roe-day-oh, they tell me) Drive. However you say it, the Cadillac crossover is a compromise. A little bit of this, a little bit of that and whammo, a CTS off its diet. Read more…

       I usually detest driving big cars.
     It’s not because they’re ugly or slow — which many of them are — but because they remind me of my grandma’s car, an old Chrysler Fifth Avenue that wallowed through corners like its suspension was made of oatmeal and rubber bands. It felt more like piloting a boat than driving an automobile. Read more…

Serious Zoom-Zoom

    There are other turbocharged performance sedans on the market but the two we think of first, the Mitsubishi Evo and Subaru WRX, are considerably more manic than the thoroughly upgraded MazdaSpeed 6 we had the pleasure of driving a few weeks ago. We recently tested the Evo and were—not surprisingly—impressed by the sheer power of the tiny 2-liter and the fierce acceleration it provides. But the Evo is tuned heavily toward hardcore and not everyone wants to sacrifice a decent ride, sound insulation, and luxurious interior accommodations in the name of horsepower. Some will willingly trade a few tenths of a second in the 0-60 mph dash for something that can serve family sedan duty at the drop of a hat. Those people will find such a ride at their Mazda dealer. Read more…

Not Much Truck But Still A Lot Of Fun

     After spending a few days in a very nice H2 SUT we know one thing for sure: Buyers aren’t purchasing these things for their utility. The “midsize” member of the Hummer lineup has never been particularly useful for moving stuff from point A to B (not counting those rare instances when point B is in uncharted territory) because there really isn’t much interior cargo space. In the SUT that minimal interior cargo space has been replaced with minimal exterior cargo space in the form of a pickup bed with a four-hay bale capacity—maybe less! But we’re not dumb (Actually, test results are still pending—Ed). People buy Hummers because they look cool. The fact that they are comfortable, ride well, can drive through almost anything, and make you feel invincible are simply nice bonuses. Read more…

Just Say No To Blurring Lines

    Standing tall and proud the Explorer in no way tries to blend into the ranks with the ever increasingly popular crossover vehicle. The Explorer was one of the first SUV’s to define the segment and bring it to its prime. Then gas jumped over $3 per gallon and the weak kneed suddenly lost interest in filling the 25+ gallon fuel tanks these barges carry. Read more…

Finally A Saab To Be Proud Of?

    It’s been anything but smooth sailing for Saab since being acquired by GM in 1990. The quirky Swedish automaker has often been criticized for relying on outdated, back-of-the-pack products that cause it to lose money on a scale that impresses even Mike Tyson—and that’s not easy to do. Most of the time Saab opponents seem to outnumber supporters 100 to 1. The latest death threat came from Jerome York, a newly appointed GM board member and investor Kirk Kerkorian’s right-hand man, who called for the company to cut its losses and dump the brand. The latest rumors suggest York has since warmed up to Saab and now believes, as many others inside GM do, that the future business case for the troubled brand might be enough to turn the dim light at the end of the tunnel into a new dawn for Saab. The 9-3 SportCombi we recently tested suggests Saab’s sun may rise sooner than expected. Read more…

Look What Santa Left Me!

    Not to sound ungrateful or anything, but really Santa, an automatic? Actually, the more perplexing thing is why would anyone in the GM media relations department decide to loan out a Corvette in Michigan in December? Our only conclusion was that the coordinator was on vacation in sunny California, and well, it’s dry there. Fortunately for you, your faithful AT staff is reluctant to pass up horsepower of large proportions and thus, brought to you its 400 gift-wrapped stallions. Read more…

2005 Mazda3 playing in the park!

Something MoRe

       It’s probably appropriate that the high-performance version of Mitsubishi’s Lancer sedan is called the Evolution. Every couple years the die-hard speed junkies inside the three-diamond division tweak the look, and if we’re lucky, the turbo engine of this all-wheel drive monster and add one to the Roman numerals. Right now we’re flying around corners in the ninth version of the entry-level sedan cum serious sports car. Of course, when we think it can’t get any better the Evo will evolve again, and we’ll be blown away—again. Sadly, the 10th generation is still a ways off, but in the meantime the Evo IX is more than capable of serious entertainment. To be sure we were as amused as we could be we asked for the top dog MR edition. We haven’t had this much fun since the office Christmas party. Read more…