We’ve covered the standard RC 350 that this new sports coupe is based on, but we’re excited to tell you about the fire-breathing F version that Lexus rolled out on the second day of the North American International Auto Show. The F uses the 5.0-liter naturally aspirated V8 and 8-speed automatic from the IS F sedan, but the engine has been modified to produce “more than 450 hp” and Lexus has fitted an advanced torque-vectoring differential to help put the power down. All-wheel drive will not be offered so this powerful rear driver should be a lot of fun in the twisties. An active rear wing and a carbon fiber roof are other racing parts that have us excited to get behind the wheel when it goes on sale late this summer. Inside we see aggressive sport seats and a trackpad in place of the Lexus “mouse” controller that we’ve loathed the last few years.
Cadillac is looking to expand its critically acclaimed ATS line by adding this handsome coupe to showrooms this fall. While not as dramatic as the CTS Coupe, the smaller ATS is striking from every angle with an especially long greenhouse and an athletic stance. One thing you’ll notice when giving the car a once over is the updated Cadillac crest front and rear, which drops the wreath and has been widened to convey a more modern look and brand. Both the 2.0-liter turbo four and the 3.6-liter V6 are available but the smaller engine may be our pick since it now produces 295 hp and can be ordered with a manual.
It isn’t everyday that we use the latest out of Toyota to provide a benchmark for a vehicle class, but we’re going to go ahead and say it’s safe to declare that is exactly what we’re doing with the Scion FR-S. The Subaru and Toyota tie-up has yielded a car that far exceeds all expectations. Greater than the sum of its parts you might say, the Scion FR-S (and its sister cars: the Subaru BRZ and Toyota GT86 [not sold in the US]) has stolen the torch away from Mazda and its Miata as the bar to which affordable driving fun is measured. Read more…
After enough time has passed a name starts to mean something, so just as we never expect to find a Corvette emblem on anything but a low-slung two-seater, we didn’t think we’d see the venerable Range Rover name attached to anything but a high-riding luxurious box driven by enough mechanical four-wheeling hardware to make short work of even the most demanding wilderness. But here we are raving over the newest Range Rover and, as you can see in our video review, the most exciting crossover in 2012 is anything but a box. Read more…
BMW continues to develop great products in all classes but enthusiasts fear that in the age of turbochargers, dual-clutch transmissions, electronic driver’s aides of every kind and rapidly ballooning curb weights the ultimate driving machine perfected during the ’90s may soon be a thing of the past. Which is why we were heartened to recently find a base model 128i in our fleet. The smallest car in the BMW lineup is also the most traditional with straight forward styling and a tall greenhouse reminiscent of the legendary 2002. Under the hood is a silken 3.0-liter straight-six pushing 230 hp through a six-speed manual and out to the rear wheels. There are no buttons to adjust steering feel or suspension compliance. It’s just classic BMW-goodness that will delight the enthusiast on every drive. We speak for fans of the Ultimate Driving Machine the world over when we say: BMW, please don’t stop offering cars like this. Read more…
We Sample Two New Elantras and the Turbocharged Veloster
We can use a lot of words to describe Hyundai but lazy isn’t one of them. Their showrooms are filled with one of the freshest lineups in the industry and that’s a big reason they are on track for another record sales year. In fact, it doesn’t seem to matter which metric you choose—fleet fuel efficiency, incentive levels, transaction prices, day supply—Hyundai is in stellar operational shape. Without a doubt their biggest challenge is meeting demand with the serious production constraints they face. But that hasn’t stopped Hyundai from developing new product and continuing to flesh out their lineup. We recently spent a day with President and CEO John Krafcik as he showed off three new additions to existing model ranges at Michigan International Speedway. Read more…
Our main criticism of Honda these days is that they don’t seem to be willing to push any design or powertrain boundaries. It’s the same old transmissions and engines going into more-or-less the same old designs. That criticism was only partially addressed when Honda rolled out the Accord Coupe Concept which features some new powertrains in a coupe that looks very much like what you’ve been able to buy at any Honda dealer the past few years. We know that when the production Accord launches later this summer it will look like what you see here minus the fancy wheels and shiny bits. Read more…
Scion’s Basic Coupe Fails to Meet Some Basic Expectations
The low priced sporty coupe segment has been creeping upward in price during the last decade. The market used to be speckled with the likes of the Saturn SC, Ford Probe, Chevrolet Cavalier Z24, Mitsubishi Eclipse and Toyota Celica. Not one of those models exists today, but Toyota thinks it has an answer for the niche with the Scion tC. Starting at $18,275 the tC isn’t the cheapest coupe one can find, but does it offer enough sport to lure youthful car enthusiasts from straying to the used car market for their budget minded thrills? We tested a completely base tC to find out just how the Scion fares. Read more…
BMW’s Popular Coupe Loses a Turbo But None of its Charm
We’re sorry if a certain subset of our readers are tired of hearing the automotive enthusiast press gush about how great the BMW 3-Series (pick a body style, any body style) is. We maintain that if you don’t understand why the 3 earns our endless praise you’ve either never driven one, or are economically relegated to something far less German and far more Gremlin-esque. Either way we feel obligated to remind you that the 3-Series has been around a long time making used examples relatively affordable. Also, life is too short to drive something mundane. The rest of you already know how this review is going to end and just want us to get on with how the newly installed single turbo straight-six engine improves the breed. The quick answer is fuel efficiency. The 841 word answer is below. Read more…
