Car reviews 2011

Friday, May 27, 2011

Celebrating the Indy 500’s 100th Anniversary: 100 Most Interesting Facts, Milestones, and More – Feature

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A gaze into the fascinating past of The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.

Like a lot of guys in the early years of the 20th century, Carl G. Fisher was smitten with the automobile. And like a lot of those guys, Fisher wanted automobiles to be faster and more reliable.

Keep Reading: Celebrating the Indy 500's 100th Anniversary: 100 Most Interesting Facts, Milestones, and More – Feature

Tony Swan 28 May, 2011

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Source: http://www.caranddriver.com/features/11q2/celebrating_the_indy_500_s_100th_anniversary_100_most_interesting_facts_milestones_and_more-feature
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Thursday, May 26, 2011

Aston Martin V12 Zagato Spied in Race Trim

Just a handful of days have past since Aston Martin confirmed it's building the V12 Zagato race car to compete in this June's 24 Hours of the Nürburgring. The images of the relatively tame red car, though, pale in comparison to these shots of the fully prepped version. The car, which will lap the Nordschleife for four hours this weekend as a warm-up to the longer summer event, was caught by our spy photographers while unloading at the famed German track.

Changes from the "preview" car are a bit obvious, beginning with the bright, emerald-green paint job that's believed to be the primary color of the final livery. In the rear, the V12 Zagato now sports a colossal spoiler and an equally serious-looking diffuser, each necessary to keep its curvaceous sheetmetal planted to the pavement at speed. Both ends of the car are now fitted with the required towing fixtures, and the passenger-side C-pillar has a quick-fill fuel valve. Lastly, the massive wheels have been replaced by a set of smaller, race-worthy rollers wearing what look to be the car's full-tread rain rubber. The front carbon-fiber splitter is absent, presumably to preserve it from the hazards of transport.

If it sticks with the current Aston livery pattern, expect to see lipstick surrounding this racer’s pouty grille when it makes her grand debut. Until then, check out the rest of the details on this 510-hp beast here.

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Aston Martin V12 Zagato race car (spy photo)

Jon Yanca 27 May, 2011

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Source: http://blog.caranddriver.com/aston-martin-v12-zagato-spied-in-race-trim/
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2011 Dodge Durango Crew V6 AWD Tested: Athletic, But Still a Comfortable Cruiser

The V6 Durango offers the R/T's sportiness without the harshness penalty.

What Is It?

It's the third-generation Dodge Durango, and it marks the nameplate's return from the sabbatical it took for the 2010 model year. Built on a lengthened version of the Jeep Grand Cherokee's unibody platform—instead of the old body-on-frame underpinnings of its forebears—the Durango retains a rear-drive layout, but a full-time all-wheel-drive system as tested here is an option on each of the five trims. We've already tested an entry-level rear-drive V-6 Durango and an all-wheel-drive V-8, but this is our first go with the more-affordable all-wheel-drive/V-6 combo.

Keep Reading: 2011 Dodge Durango Crew V6 AWD – Short Take Road Test

Jon Yanca 27 May, 2011

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Source: http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/car/11q2/2011_dodge_durango_crew_v6_awd-short_take_road_test
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We Sample Pioneer’s AppRadio Infotainment System, Discover It’s Not a Kludge of Overwhelming Jankitude

As in-car infotainment goes, Audi's latest MMI system is seriously impressive. It maintains the intuitive nature of the company's earlier attempts at in-car infotainment and seamlessly delivers Google-sourced content as an overlay via a T-Mobile connection while delivering an in-car wireless hotspot. It's also out of date as you read this.

The new trend, as evidenced by Saab's in-the-works iQon and Toyota's launching-imminently Entune, is leveraging the competitive, constantly updated nature of mobile-phone hardware and software to deliver the wired world to the driver's seat. We had a chance to play with Entune last week during the Prius V press preview and if we didn't come away floored by the UI, it's at least not a well-meaning kludge of overwhelming jankitude like MyFord Touch.

We could say the same of AppRadio—and did, even, in the above headline—which is Pioneer's foray into the aftermarket phone-based infotainment space, which, like Entune, relies primarily on your smartphone to power it. Unlike Entune, which also works with Android and BlackBerry phones, AppRadio only works with the iPhone and iPod Touch.

While the name suggests an infinite array of digital doohickies sprouting from your head unit like so many distracted-driver lawsuits waiting to happen, the reality is a bit more sensible than that. Only approved apps developed using Pioneer's API are available for use on the system. At launch, the golden five are Google Maps, the ubiquitous Pandora internet radio service, traffic information from industry heavyweight Inrix, music subscription service Rdio and MotionX's GPS Drive navigation app. The ins and outs of the vetting process aren't crystal-clear, but essentially, a developer with an application already available in the iTunes store can pitch it to Pioneer. If approved, the company will allow access to their API for automotive-suitability tweaking. Which, in Pandora's case, meant removing some of the more driver-distracting features like station creation. In fact, many app features are disabled unless the vehicle's handbrake is engaged. We imagine that creative installers will defeat this feature posthaste.

When it arrives in June, don’t count on AppRadio as a central hub for your hyperconnected dee-luxe sound system, though. While you can plug in a backup camera, you can't connect even a 1/8-inch auxiliary in. During the press presentation, the demo video featured a Volkswagen driver with shabby-chic hair routing his entire life through his iPhone, including a coffee date with an impatient girl named Sara in Moorpark, California ("Where life can be this good"). He's apparently AppRadio's target market, as the unit features no satellite-radio input, no USB connectivity and no provision for your retro six-disc changer. We imagine that in the future, Pioneer will offer pricier AppRadio head units with more versatility; assuming the iPhone-centric model doesn't utterly fall on its face in the market, future Android support's practically a given.

Is AppRadio an under-$500 replacement for a fully integrated system with nicely weighted and knurled knobs? No, but it does free one from the expense of repairing an Audi. Plus, there's no additional data plan to buy and assuming the developers want to stay relevant in the marketplace, it will be continually updated over time. While Pioneer remains mum on whether AppRadio will be compatible with the upcoming iPhone 5, the unit does contain a MicroSD slot to enable firmware updates. While the iPad is not officially supported, it may work. Your mileage may vary, all that and whatnot.

We have 160-GB iPod Classic packed with music and an iPhone 4 that we use for communications. While we could plug in the iPod for music and use Bluetooth for hands-free calling, we'd lose on-screen app availability. Also, as a double-DIN-sized unit, it won't fit in our old Porsche's single-DIN slot. AppRadio's a compelling start in a space that's sure to grow, but it doesn't fit the way we currently use in-car technology. Pioneer's bet, however, is that we're not most people.

Davey G. Johnson 27 May, 2011

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Source: http://blog.caranddriver.com/we-sample-pioneers-appradio-infotainment-system-discover-its-not-a-kludge-of-overwhelming-jankitude/
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New EPA Fuel-Economy Sticker Explained

It was just a few months ago that we dissected the convoluted fuel economy sticker on the Chevy Volt, but if you didn't get a chance to figure that out, don't bother. The EPA has released a set of all-new stickers for cars and light trucks that will be mandatory for the 2013 model year. Use of the new sticker is optional for 2012, so you could see it in showrooms as early as this fall. Why this, why now? According to the EPA's online fact sheet, the new labels "highlight the increased efficiency standards achieved under the Obama Administration that will save families money at the pump starting this year." How's that for grandstanding? Politics aside, the new labels are meant to provide more-detailed information about energy consumption and ownership costs. Plus, the labels give a consistent, easy-to-read look for plug-in hybrids and EVs.

The Basics

All labels have a projected annual fuel cost (and yes, it says "fuel" on the EV label) and five-year estimate for how much you save or spend compared to the projected CAFE average of all vehicles in that model year. The other universal elements to the labels are the "Fuel Economy & Greenhouse Gas Rating" and "Smog Rating" sliders. The greenhouse-gas rating is strictly a measure of tailpipe CO₂ emissions (which is directly proportional to fuel consumption) and doesn't count any upstream emissions for electricity production. The smog rating is based on emissions of non-methane organic gases, oxides of nitrogen, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, and formaldehyde. The smog rating also is tailpipe-only; EVs and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles get a pass on both of these rankings.

Your Mileage May Vary

Gasoline, Diesel, and E85 ratings are simple: a big combined fuel economy figure is accompanied by smaller city and highway figures. E85 vehicles will actually display gasoline mpg; optional inclusion of E85 fuel economy is a future possibility. The reason for this, according to the EPA's final ruling, is because "Data show that, on average, FFVs operate on operate on gasoline nearly 99% of the time, and on E85 fuel about 1% of the time." Sorry Iowa. Compressed natural gas and hydrogen vehicles look similar, only with mpg-equivalent figures.

Another number on the label is consumption rate in terms of gallons per 100 miles. Despite our American attachment to mpg, consumption rate is a great way to look at fuel economy. For example, consider a 25-mpg car and a 40-mpg car. When viewed in terms of consumption rate–4 gallons per 100 miles compared to 2.5 gallons per 100 miles–the difference is more pointed. Consumption rate also makes it easy to figure out relative fuel costs.

Conventional hybrid vehicles will get a standard gasoline sticker. Plug-in hybrids are broken into two categories, blended or series. Blended PHEVs are like the plug-in Toyota Prius, where electric-only operation is possible at low speeds but still uses the gasoline engine when needed. Series PHEVs, like the Chevrolet Volt, can operate in full electric mode until the battery is depleted. Both types show 240-volt charge time, an mpg-equivalent combined city/highway rating, and range for either the blended or electric-only mode. Blended PHEVs also show the corresponding gasoline and electricity consumption (per 100 miles), while series PHEVs simply show the electricity consumption. This is essentially the same information presented on the old Volt EPA sticker, but the presentation is easier to read.

Finally, the label for pure electric vehicles is much like the gasoline label, with the addition of 240-volt charging time and consumption rate expressed in kilowatt-hours per mile. For both EVs and PHEVs, the electric consumption rate is wall-to-wheels, so it accounts for the electricity used to charge the battery and not just the electrical energy used to move the vehicle.

Michael Austin 27 May, 2011

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Source: http://blog.caranddriver.com/new-epa-fuel-economy-sticker-explained/
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Volvo Testing KERS Kinetic Energy Recovery Flywheels for Its Lineup

Volvo seems an unlikely carmaker to explore the use of kinetic-energy recovery flywheels in its pedestrian automobiles, but the traditionally safety-oriented company is indeed working to bring the Formula 1 tech to its cars. Volvo joins Porsche and its GT3 R hybrid racer in the utilization of a kinetic-energy recovery system (KERS) that uses the energy of a flywheel spun to high speed by recovered braking energy to aid a car's engine during acceleration.

In Volvo's system, the flywheel is mechanically coupled and decoupled from the rear axle using a continuously variable transmission. The CVT engages the flywheel as the car slows, spinning it to up to 60,000 rpm, then decouples the flywheel as the car comes to a halt, finally re-coupling the spinning flywheel to the rear wheels when the car accelerates from a stop. Volvo's mechanical, motorless rear-axle-mounted setup is unique from Porsche's approach to KERS, which relies on motor-generators to spin up the flywheel, recover its energy, and transfer that energy back to the car's forward motion. (Read more about the system in the 911 GT3 R hybrid here.) Volvo claims that the flywheel's accelerative boost not only aids fuel economy, but performance as well, with up to 80 additional horsepower available when the flywheel and engine join forces.

Because the flywheel doesn't spin forever—the laws of physics cannot be beat, so it loses rotational inertia over time—the KERS system is most effective in stop-and-go driving, where each stop can spin the flywheel, which can then be used to get the car going again for a brief period of time. Volvo is aware of the situational limits of the KERS system, so it has worked to make the flywheel as efficient as possible. This means that the flywheel is made of carbon fiber, making it lighter—the 7.84-inch diameter flywheel weighs just 13 pounds—and increasing its rotational capacity. The flywheel spins in a vacuum to minimize friction losses. Volvo plans to begin testing its KERS setup in its cars in the second half of 2011, and is confident it can reduce fuel consumption by up to 20% while giving a four-cylinder engine the punch of a six. We just hope an F1-style, driver-operable "boost button" makes the cut, because a Volvo with a go-faster button would make us giddy at the incongruity of it all. To see Volvo’s KERS concept in action, view the flick below.

Alexander Stoklosa 27 May, 2011

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Source: http://blog.caranddriver.com/volvo-testing-kers-kinetic-energy-recovery-flywheels-for-its-lineup/
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Mazda Not Working on RX-9, Odds of a New RX-7 Are Slim But Real

Contrary to recent rumors claiming that Mazda is considering building a hybrid RX-9 sports car, which would marry a gasoline-fueled rotary engine to an electric-drive system borrowed from Toyota, we can confirm that the company has no plans for such a vehicle. In fact, the very future of the rotary engine at Mazda is in jeopardy.

Production of the Mazda RX-8 is drawing to a close, and given the vehicle’s tiny sales volume—just 291 were sold in the U.S. from January to April of this year—we’re told by a company insider that there wasn’t even a business case for a special “end-of-the-road” edition with unique paint and badging. With the RX-8′s passing, Mazda won’t have a vehicle in which to install its current 1.3-liter rotary screamer. (It’s worth noting that new European emissions standards could have been the nail in the coffin for Mazda’s rotary, too, but this is a chicken-and-egg debate.)

We have learned, however, that there is a quiet movement within Mazda to build an RX-7 as a replacement. Such a vehicle would borrow (and, most likely, enlarge) the platform from the next-generation Miata, which should hit the market in a bit less than two years. This project hasn’t received any official green light, though, and we don’t know whether it’s merely on the drawing board or has moved on to skunkworks production.

The passing of the RX-8 is sad, as the vehicle’s chassis and steering are among the best in the business, and we love the distinctiveness of the rotary engine. But it’s hard to argue with the economics of the car business, and a small company like Mazda can hardly afford to build two sports cars on unique platforms in such small numbers. Still, we hope to be able to bring you official confirmation at some point of an MX-5-based RX-7—that day is just not today.

For more on the current RX-8, check out our 2011 Lightning Lap.

Justin Berkowitz 27 May, 2011

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Source: http://blog.caranddriver.com/mazda-not-working-on-rx-9-odds-of-a-new-rx-7-are-slim-but-real/
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