2009 Volvo C30 R-Design Review

This week’s review is going to be a departure for us here at Automoblog. This won’t deal with how well a car deals with the grocery run, or whether it looks good while sitting in the driveway. This is a road trip. This is something special.

What kind of road trip is this? Well, it will include yours truly taking a three-day, 1,000 mile round-trip voyage from Columbus, Ohio to Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, home of Road America. This will be the ultimate test of comfort, control and efficiency.

But what should we use for this unique adventure? Maybe a comfortable mid-size sedan? Or how about a new crossover sport-utility? No, this is going to take something truly different. As luck would have it, Volvo supplied me with the right vehicle that would complement this unique trip: A 2009 Volvo C30 R-Design.

THE CAR

As our long-time readers know, our fearless leader Chris tested a Volvo C30 last year, and was not a fan of it. He could not get past the styling and his car suffered from a serious electrical glitch. Would I end up in the same predicament?

When the Passion Red two-door arrived, I was a bit skeptical of this somewhat “in-your-face, back-to-the-old-days” styling.

The clean and crisp front-end comes from the S40 sedan and V50 wagon, which the C30 shares its platform. It does away with the box-on-wheels of Volvo’s past and incorporates a smaller grille as well as rounded fenders with a subtle flair above the wheels.

But the other end of the car is what will grab your attention. Gone is your typical sedan trunk or wagon box. The C30’s modern design is in full effect.

From the front to the rear, the waist line bends upward as well as pulled in towards the centerline of the vehicle, creating these curvaceous hips that bring a strong whiff of P1800 to your eyes. The roof slopes up from the front then down slightly in the rear to a larger spoiler and all-glass rear hatch. The taillights traveled from the spoiler down into the rear end and push out into those wide rear fenders.

With the top-ranged R-Design package consisting of a monotone paint scheme, ground effects all the way around and designed eighteen-inch wheels, the C30 will certainly have you doing double-takes.

Inside, you will find the same well-executed interior as the S40/V50/C70, but with subtle touches. For one, the gauges have a blue face instead of black, and there is a wonderfully thick-rimmed steering wheel. The floating center stack gets its own Andy Warhol-like pattern to it. The seats in the R-Design come with their own special two-tone black leather and white Flextech, a material designed to resist fade and damage from Mother Nature, which are imprinted with the R-Design logo.

Motivating this little sport hatch is Volvo’s 2.5 liter, turbocharged inline-5. It has been around for a while and now makes 227 horsepower and 236 lb. ft of torque on premium gas. Transferring this power to the ground is Volvo’s five-speed automatic, with Geartronic auto-manual controls.

LET THE TRIP BEGIN!

The first half of my excursion would take me west on I70 towards Indianapolis. A quick jaunt around Indy I465 would lead me north on I65 straight through Gary. Hop on the Chicago Skyway and coast through Chicago on into Milwaukee. Then it would be a straight shot up Route 57 to the racetrack.

The weather was predicted to be nice, and traveling during a weekday would leave traffic less hectic, leaving me time to enjoy the drive and take many photos along the way. However, I think the gang from Top Gear would best describe this impending trip: Ambitious, but rubbish.

It was mostly sunny in Columbus on Tuesday morning. I had my luggage secured below that big rear window, the AAA TripTik in the passenger seat ready to lead me to my ultimate destination, almost 530 miles away.

I started my trip around the sprawling campus of Ohio State University, one of the largest universities in the country and home of major sports venues such as the John Schottenstein Arena and, of course, the Horseshoe. Luckily for me, it was the off-season, so I had the perfect opportunity to travel around and check out the campus before hitting the road.

Pulling onto I70 W, I got the first opportunity to use all 227 horses to accelerate ahead of a tractor trailer that refuses to move into the center lane. The five-cylinder does not pull quite as hard as a Mazdaspeed3, but the five-speed automatic kicks down quickly to put you in the right gear for maximum pulling power. And boy, does it sound terrific doing it, emitting a deep throaty roar from the exhaust.

Once down to safer cruising speed and putting some miles between me and Buckeye Country, I quickly realized two potential issues. One was the dark clouds rapidly approaching over the horizon in front of me; the second one was how unbelievably flat and boring this stretch of road seemed to be.

Sadly, both became a reality just outside of Dayton. The skys opened all the way to Indianapolis, which cut down on any outdoor activities, and flat farm land surrounding me at every viewpoint, it gave me a chance to become a bit more familiar with the C30’s interior.

I liked many of the interior treatments in this car. The cool two-tone seats were providing good support for my back and hips, and the HVAC was doing a good job keeping me cool while keeping the windows from fogging up. The thick-rimmed, R-Design wheel felt perfect in my hands, with these two small extensions for your thumbs which were a nice touch.

It is quite roomy up front too, and there is adequate room for two people in the second row. Trunk room is snug though, with the steep rake of the rear end cutting into valuable storage room.

One thing kept nagging me though. Where was the style, the look that matches the exterior? There are wonderful materials throughout and the dash carried the stigma of Volvo efficiency, but it just didn’t make a style point like the exterior did.

Just outside Indy, the rain dissipated enough for me to find my way onto the 465 beltway. However, traffic had picked up and my paced had dropped. Frustration was setting in, only a few hours into the calculated nine hour drive.

To take my mind off things, I turned on the optional Dynaudio upgraded sound system to see if I could find something to listen to. Lucky for me, this C30 comes standard with Sirius satellite radio. Turning to Classic Vinyl on channel 14, I found the 360 watt, 11-speaker a bit flat. Thankfully, this system, with Dolby Pro Logic II surround, had an adjustable five-band equalizer for both front and rear speakers. A little tweaking and I had CCR flooding the car with a rich, deep sound.

Finally relieving myself of traffic, I made my way onto I65, which would take me right into Chicago, and would make me lose my mind. Now, I have no problem with the state of Indiana. I like downtown Indy. I respect the Indianapolis Colts. But is this state mind-numbing to drive through.

I thought my trip from Columbus was bad, this section is downright torture. As far as you can see, (and you can see for miles in some places) there wasn’t anything to actually witness. No trees, no tended farmland; just flat land and straight highway. The only saving grace was seeing the Subaru plant, and I almost missed it.

Oh, and the rain started again. Can you see me smiling through the smeared windows? Thankfully this car has the optional automatic wipers that actually worked when it was raining, and their sensitivity was adjustable as well.

Not helping was the ride of my C30. On smooth asphalt, it was as quiet and comfortable, but rolling down the pock-marked Indiana highway, the Pirelli PZeros drone loudly. The suspension was absorbing the smaller potholes pretty well, but bigger ones would cause the front suspension to crash and jounce, sending wave after wave into my seat.

The R-Design comes standard with what Volvo called Dynamic Chassis. The suspension tuning offers a stiffer spring and dampers as well as thicker anti-roll bars. While I applaud the R-Design for handling tight on-ramps with tons of grip and flat cornering, it’s not enough to compensate for the harsh ride.

Merrillville, Indiana outside Gary is when I give myself a break and took care of the lighted gas pump symbol glowing from the dash. The rain is still falling, but that’s not what I am concerned about.

An older gentleman in a Bentley Flying Spur sedan pulls up behind me while I’m topping off the 15.9 gallon tank with fresh premium. I’m not so much focused on the car as I am the driver, who has stopped talking into the cell phone stuck to his hear to stare at the C30’s design cues. Then I noticed a woman filling up her Ford Focus giving the car a once-over as well. This car seems to be a real eye-catcher.

Back on the soggy road, I began to think about the design. Did I like it? Was it too much?

The answer is I thought it was a damn good-looking car. I love the uniqueness of the rear, without being overdone. It was graceful, yet striking. That small window was actually useful to load the 12.9 cubic feet of trunk space as well as reach the rear seats to fold them down. The chrome exhaust tips brought a more upscale touch. Not too much, but just right.

The rain ceased as I crossed into Illinois, and the clouds began to part. It looked like my trip was finally making a turn for the better. Unfortunately, the joy was short-lived. Just a few miles after the bridge, I was greeted by the Windy City with a four-mile long traffic jam. That added an extra hour to my trip, but at least I got a lovely view of the Sears Tower.

Traffic thinned enough for me to make it to the northern suburb of Winnetka, where I had an early Chipotle dinner with an old fraternity brother. Six hours into this trip and I still didn’t feel any physical pain, nor was I even hungry, and I’m always hungry. Could the C30 have pulled off a magic trick where I didn’t dispel any energy? This trip is getting stranger by the hour.

I left my friend and began to enjoy the wonderful road construction that has consumed most of I94. Here, the stiff suspension reared its ugly head again and began pitching the car. Every heave and dip turned the little Volvo into a bobble-head convention.

As I entered Milwaukee’s smoother roadways, my fondness for the C30 started growing again. I love the right amount of power and sound coming from the engine. The just-right size let me squirt around slower traffic, even if the steering wasn’t as sharp as I like. I appreciated how the controls for the radio and ventilation were laid out in an easy to use manner. The gauges and handy trip computer were read at a glance, even though the blue faces didn’t match anything else in the car.

After yet another boring stretch of highway called Route 57, my destination thankfully appeared out of nowhere, shining like a bright beacon calling me to keep going. Its sedate front offices would have been passed had it not been for the large Kohler race car leading to the paddock.

Nine hours and 531 miles from Columbus and I made it. My little Volvo survived the trip unscathed. Outside of the ride, I felt little to criticize after my extensive trip. The seats gave me no aches or pains, and I felt physically ready go to while my brain was ready for sleep. I averaged 26.5 miles per gallon, which is quite good considering it’s a forced induction engine with an automatic. But it was late and I had two long days ahead of me, so off to the Days Inn in Sheboygan for some much needed rest.

The Trip Back

After two days of flying around Road America’s four miles of racetrack at insane speeds in cars you could only dream about (you’ll read about it all in future articles) and passing out business cards to PR people and fellow journalists, it was time to head back home.

Rain, my old nemesis, appeared early in the morning and kept me company the first half of the trip. But it was accompanied by its cousin no one likes, Fog. Luckily, the C30 R-Design comes equipped with front and rear fog lamps, the latter came in handy on more than one occasion.

On the way back, I followed I-41 down to I90/I94. But instead of going back through Indianapolis again, I took Route 31 across Indiana into Ohio and down Route 23 into Columbus. Figured it would give me something else to look at. At least I had hoped.

Milwalkee and Chicago were encased in fog, the roads were soaked and every single person decided to hog the left lane. I was happy to get off these interstates and enjoy a slower paced back road.

There were several stoplights on this stretch of the trip and it gave me a chance to really test the brakes, and goose the engine some more. While the brakes had a surprising amount of travel before they bit the rotors as well as being somewhat soft, they were reassuring and quite strong, even after multiple full-panic stops. Only once did the ABS engage. Did that engine note sound good.

On the flip side, there were a few apparent design flaws. The minor ones were the poorly placed ignition slot, which may have been useful if it weren’t stuck behind the windshield wiper controls. On the passenger side, the raised door sill actually chopped off the bottom of the mirror, which greatly threw off my depth perception.

But the big issue was the cause of cool design. In the rear, those tucked in body lines and flared rear fenders created a massive B-pillar, which caused a terrible blind spot over your left shoulder. Even looking over my shoulder and using the mirror, I ended up cutting off more than one person in my travels. I learned quickly to be careful.

After making it back to Columbus, I was sad my journey was over. Not because I enjoyed driving in the rain so much or the fact that the Midwest is the most boring part of our country, but I really enjoyed this Volvo.

It may not be the sportiest car in its class, and it’s certainly not cheap, but it was comfortable, fun to drive at 8/10s and it looks great. I had zero problems with the car and it loved the open road. And when you’re out there in your C30, you’ll be in a rare club, since I only laid eyes upon one other C30 during my entire trip. Hope you like the attention.

Base Price: $25,950

As Tested: $30,265

Architecture: Front-engine, front-wheel-drive four-passenger coupe

Drivetrain: Turbocharged 2.5-liter DOHC I5 with five-speed automatic transaxle

Length: 167.4 inches

Wheelbase: 103.9 inches

Mileage: 19 mpg city, 28 mpg highway

Weight: 4092 lbs.

© Gearhead Media - Please visit Automoblog.net for more great content.

Mazda Celebrates Miata’s 20th Anniversary At Le Mans

Sweet Jesus, has it been 20 year already? Yeah, yeah I guess it has. I remember in 1989 I was working for an aircraft manufacturer. There were four car guys in the office, including me. At the time, an ongoing topic of conversation was something along the lines of: “Why doesn’t Honda/some other Japanese car company take one of their four cylinder engines and sit it in a two door convertible body?”

And one day I walked into the office with the latest AutoWeek in my hands, dropped it on the conference room table and said, “Bob, Ernie. Take a look at this!”

There on the cover was a red, two-seat convertible that looked a LOT like a Lotus Elan. It was called the Miata, and would soon be hitting the showrooms of Mazda dealers throughout North America. A quick read of the captions told you all you needed to know:

Rear wheel drive

Two seats (and NO back seat, not even a jump seat)

Independent suspension

Disc brakes all around

1.6 four cylinder with four valves per and fuel injected

Folding top with a zip out rear window

“What’s up with the name?” asked Ernie

“Dunno. Old German word meaning something or other.”

“How Much?” asked Bob.

“Twenty thousand.”

“Really,” they both said in unison.

“Yeah … really … “.

And that was it.

A little over two years later, I was in a red 1990 package B Miata on my way rapidly south, down the Pacific Coast Highway, with a group of five other Miatas from the local chapter of the Miata Club of America. We were invitees of Mazda of North America to attend the Monterey Historic Races at Laguna Seca, a track I hadn’t been to since I was 11 years old, when I saw a Can Am race with my dad & brother.

On Friday night we were on our way back to the track from an early dinner at the Hog’s Breath Inn in Carmel (great French onion soup BTW), and up and over the twistys from the coast inland, the group of us happened upon a long white limo. I was number three or four in line, and about a quarter mile after he came up on them, the limo pulled over and we passed, each of us waiving our hands in thanks.

We get to the track, and head to the infield tent that Mazda had set up. They were showing their up-coming third-gen RX-7 to the press and the car crowd over the weekend. We were there for about 20 minutes when I noticed Bill, the guy who was our point driver when we passed the limo, talking with 4 Japanese guys, so I wander over.

“Hey Tony, these were the guys that were in that white limo,” Bill said.

“Oh really? Thanks for letting us by.”

“It was no problem,” said the youngest of the bunch in Japanese-accented English. “It would be a shame to slow you down on a road such as that.”

“No kidding. So what are you guys doing here?” I motioned to include the tent.

“We are the design team for the new RX-7″ he said, gesturing to the white, pre-production model RX sitting next to one of the original Mazda Cosmos.

“You ARE? That’s great!”

“How do you like our Miata?” he asked very politely.

“Like it? I love it! I grew up in a British car family and-” he cut me off with a half- suppressed laugh.

“Ah, I to had MANY Austin-Healy Sprites when I was young man,” he said with a grin, half shaking his head.

Sweet Jesus, has it been 20 year already? Yeah, yeah I guess it has. I remember …

Hat tip to Carscoop

Flickr photo from user Boats-n-cars

© Gearhead Media - Please visit Automoblog.net for more great content.

Spring Rally-The Good Economy

I remember ten years ago when you could buy a car with zero luxury features for very little money, depending on the size of the vehicle. People were content with their choice, although much else in their life was as exciting as their mode of transportation. But as time, and people’s tastes, have changed, so have the cars.

Vehicles today come with normal extravagances such as power windows, air conditioning and a CD player. Of course, those of us who need it all can get home theater-quality sound systems, navigation system that can direct us around traffic, and temperature-controllable seats to make sure our fannies stay at the optimal temperature.

But more importantly, these economy cars are now fun to drive. No longer do you have to deal with numb steering, lifeless brakes, and a floppy chassis. Now, you can do the daily commute in comfort, but have fun on the weekends. Here are some cars that will give you both worlds.

2010 Ford Fiesta 5-Door

Ford has been making strides to turn around their image, and I have to say, it’s working. Both cars offered enough of a thrill, but are still be docile for the rush hour slog.

The 2010 Fiesta available was the European version, but it’s pretty much ready for its American debut. Available next year as a sedan and hatch (pictured), the Fiesta carries the majority of the styling from the concept cars, with the stretched headlamps and rounded front end in the front to the chopped rear end. It’s not the prettiest, but we in the West have never been big fans of European simplicity.

Inside, you’ll find a very futuristic-looking dashboard, with a curvaceous center console that has the radio controls high and the HVAC controls separate, making it easy to use. The white-on-black gauges are huge, and everything is made with acceptable plastics and vinyls. It’s surprisingly funky for a car expected to price around $12,000.

Front seat occupants are treated to a high seating position and loads of room in thinly-bolstered seats. Rear seat passengers do not get the same amount, with little legroom to enjoy. Space beneath the hatch is surprising good considering the short rear overhang.

The drive is what you expect from an economy car though; good, not great. The engine under the hood was a 118 horse, 1.6-liter four-cylinder with variable cam timing. It’s not the quickest, but it is surprisingly smooth and moves the little five-door with good acceleration. The steering is light, but responsive and the five-speed is effortless to shift.

2010 Kia Soul

To continue on funky hatchbacks, Kia has given us the Soul, a funky urban cruiser designed to work well in tight spaces while being affordable.

Lets get the bad over with first shall we? Well, it’s not the Heidi Klum of the auto world, nor is it Uma Thurman attractive. The Soul has this tiny grill stuff in-between two headlights that were cut and then reattached crookedly. What’s up with that fake plastic guard on the front? It’s front-wheel-drive for pete sake. Rear isn’t much better, with its odd fender flares and toaster-oven shape.

Inside gets better. The Soul’s interior is following a similar playbook the Fiesta is using: funky, yet functional. The radio sits almost on top of the dash, with the ventilation controls right below it. Depending on which trim you choose, you can have half the interior in either bright-red or a mocha-like color with separate eye-catching designs sewn into the seats. There’s plenty of room for both passengers and their cargo.

Driving around town, the Kia feels solid and peppy. The 2.0-liter four cylinder produces 144 horsepower and 137 lb. ft of torque. (A smaller 1.6 can be had in the less-expensive models.) In the street car, the four-speed automatic was just acceptable, with a bit too much gear hunt for me. The five-speed is good if a little knotchy. On poorer surfaces, the stiffer suspension and bigger 18-inch wheels on the Sport gave it a butt-busting ride, but helped in the control department.

Handling is sound, with good steering feel and weight. It felt very eager to be pushed harder, but doing so invokes very bad understeer. It will work around town very well, with a zippy engine and small stature.

Prices start at just under $14,000. If you want the top of the line with the wheels, and upgraded stereo and a garrish interior, you’ll pay just under $18,000. (We will be covering this vehicle in greater detail later on this summer.)

2010 Mazda3 Hatchback

Since the Mazda3 came onto the market in late 2003, it has been a very popular choice over the more mundane Toyota Corolla, Honda Civic and Hyundai Elantra, to name a few. It was the best of bunch in terms of relability, quality and fun-to-drive. But has this new second-generation changed any of that? No, not in the slightest. It may have grown an inch in length and it has put on a few pounds, but this little five-door still offers copious amounts of luxury and thrill for very little money.

Still available in four-door or five and two engine choices with various trim levels, the Mazda3 can offer something for everyone. With a base sedan starting in around $15,000 and a hatch for a few thousand more, you get power everything, six-speaker stereo, 6 airbags, 16 or 17-inch wheels, disk brakes with ABS, and seating for five.

There is a lot new for 2010, but I will just skim the surface as we are scheduled to be receiving a few different variants next month. First is the new interior. It’s been designed with more attention to detail than ever before. The top of the dash houses two small screens for the radio and HVAC display as well as the optional navigation screen. From there, the center console gracefully flows downward to house the vents and radio controls, then curves back towards the firewall to house the recessed temperature controls. The gauges and dash are still lit by a mixture of blue and red lighting.

There is also some new parts under the hood. The 2.3-liter has been bumped up to 2.5-liters and now produces 167 horsepower and a surprising 168 lb. ft of torque. Your choice of transmission includes either the five-speed automatic or a new six-speed manual, which was what the test car had. It all works well to make the Mazda3 quick to scoot and fun to drive with a terrific clutch engagement and nice, short throws from the gearbox.

Under way, the drive is just as how you remembered the older Mazda3, with a touch more softness to everything. The ride is less harsh over bumps, but there is still that razor sharp steering and stable body control that made this car such a treat. It loves to be pushed hard in the corners, where turn-in is crisp and there is plenty of balance from the sturdy chassis.

My initial complaints are few. For one, I think the dashboard is not efficiently designed, with the presets split around a mess of other buttons and the volume knob. It’s easily learned, but it shouldn’t have to be. Second, with the higher end trims with the Bluetooth and navigation, the steering wheel also becomes too convoluted with switches and buttons.

But lastly, and certainly not least, is the new exterior. I love the older models, with their clean, aggressive lines that gave the car a much more upscale look. Now, it’s almost smiling, trying to appeal to those who care more about looks than performance. And I truly do not like the character line down the side.

If you can get past the looks, it’s still one hell of a car.

© Gearhead Media - Please visit Automoblog.net for more great content.

Refreshened 2009 Mazda RX-8 (JDM)

 

Original RX-8 was tuned to gives additional comfort and convenience. Below are the specs and the features of the 2009 Mazda RX-8 (JDM):

• Water-cooled, in-line 2 rotor (654cc x 2)


• RWD Drive


• 4 Grades (Type G & Type E with 6-speed AT - Activematic transmission, Type S & Type RS with 6-speed MT transmossion)


• Rain-sensing windshield wipers


• Auto-light system


• Water-relellent coating (on the front door windows and door mirrors)


• Mazda’s advanced keyless entry and engine start system


• Addtional 2 new body colors on top originally 5 colors - Aluminium Metallic & Metropolitan Fray Mica


• Revised model grade lineup


• Audio-less specification standard

Related posts:

1. 4 New MAZDA will be coming to Town!
2. MAZDA Car Price Online
3. Pictures of 2010 Mazda CX-7

No Automakers Meet Obama’s New Fuel Economy Standard [I Feel Gassy]

The just-announced fuel economy policy changes demand 42 MPG for cars and 27 MPG for light trucks. A look at the data shows not a single automaker currently meets the new guidelines proposed today.

Using the Model-Year 2009 Fleet Fuel Economy standards provided by the National Highway Safety Transportation Administration (NHTSA), we determined the current ratings for passenger cars and light trucks and compared them to the goal for each of the greater automakers selling cars in the U.S. A few automakers, probable KIA and Hyundai, report their given conditions separately since of a different ownership arrangement. We also took a look at what barriers exist for them reaching those standards.

BMW

2009 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 27.5 MPG
Distance From 2016 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: -14.5 MPG
2009 Light Truck Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 23.1 MPG
Distance From 2016 Light Truck Fuel Economy Rating: -3.9 MPG
Barriers To Meeting New Fuel Economy Ratings: BMW currently offers no hybrid or electric vehicles and, as a matter of practice, has been increasing displacement not decreasing it. The use of diesel engines is a step in the right direction but they’re source behind where they destitution to be.

Chrysler

2009 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 28.3 MPG
Distance From 2016 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: -13.7 MPG
2009 Light Truck Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 23.9 MPG
Distance From 2016 Light Truck Fuel Economy Rating: -3.1 MPG
Barriers To Meeting New Fuel Economy Ratings: Chrysler’s biggest problem, in general, is the lack of appealing small cars with good fuel economy. Lacking any realistic vehicle put on the horizon, the Chrysler-FIAT deal was envisioned to solve this issue. Let’s see how that works out for them.

Daimler

2009 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 27.5 MPG
Distance From 2016 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: -14.5 MPG
2009 Light Truck Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 20.6 MPG
Distance From 2016 Light Truck Fuel Economy Rating: -6.4 MPG
Barriers To Meeting New Fuel Economy Ratings: Mercedes-Benz may have to reconsider its policy of bringing over G-wagens and GL-wagens if it doesn’t want to pay a refine, as the light truck numbers are low. The company has hinted at a smaller, possibly marked by electricity, model to bring up the average mileage but how many electric smarts do you need to overweigh an AMG G55?

Ford

2009 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 31.1 MPG (excluding foreign import)
Distance From 2016 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: -10.9 MPG
2009 Light Truck Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 24.7 MPG
Distance From 2016 Light Truck Fuel Economy Rating: -2.3 MPG
Barriers To Meeting New Fuel Economy Ratings: Ford sells a lot of trucks. Despite fluctuations in combustibles prices, the F-Series is bread + butter in favor of the company. The adding of EcoBoost should help propel passenger vehicles to a higher overall value, and rumors of similar turbo’ed engines in the pickups should help as abundantly.

GM

2009 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 31.3 MPG (excluding foreign import)
Distance From 2016 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: -10.7 MPG
2009 Light Truck Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 22.5 MPG
Distance From 2016 Light Truck Fuel Economy Rating: -4.5 MPG
Barriers To Meeting New Fuel Economy Ratings: Barriers? What Barriers? The Volt will save everything… right? GM could be a victim of its own success if it turns out they start selling far more Camaros than hybrids and other fuel efficient vehicles.

Honda

2009 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 36.5 MPG
Distance From 2016 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: -5.5 MPG
2009 Light Truck Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 26.2 MPG
Distance From 2016 Light Truck Fuel Economy Rating: -0.8 MPG
Barriers To Meeting New Fuel Economy Ratings: Honda typically ranks highest amidst brands, with equal reason they’re doing pretty well. But maybe now we know why they keep delaying the NSX.

Hyundai

2009 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 33.2 MPG
Distance From 2016 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: -8.8 MPG
2009 Light Truck Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 25.7 MPG
Distance From 2016 Light Truck Fuel Economy Rating: -1.3 MPG
Barriers To Meeting New Fuel Economy Ratings: Unlike most Asian brands, Hyundai has picked up steam through moving away from greener vehicles. WIll the Genesis sedan and coupe cut into the gains made by their dinky little Korean hatches?

Kia

2009 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 33.7 MPG
Distance From 2016 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: -8.3 MPG
2009 Light Truck Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 24.4 MPG
Distance From 2016 Light Truck Fuel Economy Rating: -2.6 MPG
Barriers To Meeting New Fuel Economy Ratings: Kia has human being big barrier to better fuel economy and it’s the Kia Borrego. Since not any some seems to want the $40K truck we don’t see Kia having a hard time satirical it out of the lineup.

Mazda

2009 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 32.2/31.0 MPG (Import/Domestic)
Distance From 2016 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: -9.8 MPG/11 MPG
2009 Light Truck Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 26.6 MPG
Distance From 2016 Light Truck Fuel Economy Rating: -0.4 MPG
Barriers To Meeting New Fuel Economy Ratings: The only hybrid vehicle in the Mazda lineup is a rebadged Ford Escape and, so far as we know, diesel hasn’face to face been considered an option. While the Mazda3 gets good mileage it’s at all times placed Zoom-Zoom over glug-glug.

Mitsubishi

2009 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 29.5 MPG
Distance From 2016 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: -12.5 MPG
2009 Light Truck Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 26.1 MPG
Distance From 2016 Light Truck Fuel Economy Rating: -0.9 MPG
Barriers To Meeting New Fuel Economy Ratings: The single saving grace for Mitsubishi, as it languishes in the U.S., is the iMiev full of fire car. But can the company produce enough electrics and hold outright long enough to make it economically feasible?

Nissan

2009 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 30.1/34.0 MPG (Import/Domestic)
Distance From 2016 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: -11.9 MPG/ 8.0 MPG
2009 Light Truck Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 23.5 MPG
Distance From 2016 Light Truck Fuel Economy Rating: -3.5 MPG
Barriers To Meeting New Fuel Economy Ratings: Nissan has built a reputation around their VQ V6 and don’t seem intent on taking it out of somewhat of their vehicles. To balance this, they’ll try to use the Nissan Cube and other small cars, but they’ll have to do more fully than the also-ran Sentra

Porsche

2009 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 27.0 MPG
Distance From 2016 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: -15.0 MPG
2009 Light Truck Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 19.3 MPG
Distance From 2016 Light Truck Fuel Economy Rating: -7.7 MPG
Barriers To Meeting New Fuel Economy Ratings: Porsche has historically been more content to pay fees than reform their ways given they’re a work brand. The lucrative Cayenne, as well, presents a challenge. They could combine with VW to raise the Porsche medium, but at the price of lowering VW’s.

Subaru

2009 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 29.0 MPG
Distance From 2016 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: -13.0 MPG
2009 Light Truck Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 28.4 MPG
Distance From 2016 Light Truck Fuel Economy Rating: -1.4 MPG
Barriers To Meeting New Fuel Economy Ratings: Subaru builds cars disproportionately more fun than you’d look forward to and the popularity of vehicles preference the WRX and the lack of a small, under-powered economy car is a threat to the brand’s overall mileage. Could we see the return of the Justy hatchback?

Suzuki

2009 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 32.7 MPG
Distance From 2016 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: -9.3 MPG
2009 Light Truck Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 25.7 MPG
Distance From 2016 Light Truck Fuel Economy Rating: -1.3 MPG
Barriers To Meeting New Fuel Economy Ratings: The current Suzuki lineup is such random and confusing it’s hard to know where they could doings. With the affront of the SX4 and Grand Vitara there aren’t any products with much note recognition. Just scrap the whole thing and gain us the Cappuccino.

Toyota

2009 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 38.1/35.9 MPG (Import/Domestic)
Distance From 2016 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: -3.9 MPG/6.1 MPG
2009 Light Truck Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 25.8 MPG
Distance From 2016 Light Truck Fuel Economy Rating: -1.2 MPG
Barriers To Meeting New Fuel Economy Ratings: Unless Toyota discontinues the Prius and decides to frame the Tacoma V8-only, the automaker is moving in the right direction. Let’s just hope this doesn’t torpedo plans for a unused Supra although we fear it might.

VW

2009 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 30.2 MPG
Distance From 2016 Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: -11.8 MPG
2009 Light Truck Fleet Fuel Economy Rating: 23.9 MPG
Distance From 2016 Light Truck Fuel Economy Rating: -3.1 MPG
Barriers To Meeting New Fuel Economy Ratings: Volkswagen’s greatest environmental asset is the TDI engine. It’s greatest weakness is the haughty price of diesel fuel and the possibility of Americans turning on their technology. The greatest barrier on the horizon is Porsche, so we have power to’t imagine them combining.

Conclusion

Not a single automaker popularly meets 2016 standards for combustible matter economy. In passenger cars, only Toyota and Honda, who have larger fleets of fuel-efficient cars are less than 10 MPG not present from the proposed standards. This means companies will each have to radically alter their lineups, reduce the production of vehicles we actually want to drive, or invest heavily in choice propulsion systems at a time when their involving death is severely constrained. Good hazard with that! Appliance vehicles, here we advance!

Nova Astra – zvanično

Konačno su stigle zvanične slike nove „Astre”

Dugo očekivana nova Astra – od koje Opel mnogo očekuje, imaće premijeru u septembru, na salonu automobila u Frankfurtu, ali već sada su objavljene zvanične slike.

VW, Renault i Mazda su nedavno predstavili svoje nove adute u „golf“ klasi, tako da će Astra imati tešku borbu za kupce kada krene u prodaju.

Na osnovu brojnih špijunskih slika koje su se pojavljivale proteklih meseci, sa određenom sigurnošću se moglo naslutiti kakav će biti konačan izgled.

Dizajn je u velikoj meri inspirisan modelom Insignia, od kojeg će preuzeti i brojne napredne sisteme, kao što su AFL adaptivna prednja svetla, Opel Eye Front Camera System, FlexRide sistem podešavanja oslanjanja (Standard, Sport i Tour) …

Motori se u najvećoj meri preuzimaju od prethodne generacije. Osnovni benzinski agregat je 1.4-litarski benzinac sa 100 KS, a prate ga još tri – najsnažniji razvija 180 KS. Posebno je interesantan 1.4-litarski turbo benzinac sa 140 KS.

Dizelaši su radne zapremine od 1.3 do 2.0 litra i snage od 95 do 160 KS.

Ponuda će kasnije biti proširena, pri čemu je naročito primamljiva OPC verzija sa 270 KS.

Inače, nova Astra je bazirana na GM-ovoj Delta platformi, koju koristi i Chevrolet Cruze. Za razliku od „Golfa“ i „Fokusa“, svojih najoštrijih rivala, nema nezavisno zadnje oslanjanje.

Sa svojih 442 cm je za 17 cm duža od aktuelnog modela i čak 22 cm od „Golfa“.

Od karoserijskih verzija, pojaviće se hečbek sa troja vrata, GTC hečbek sa troja vrata, karavan (Sports Tourer), notchback (liftback) i klasičan sedan.

Za sada nema informacija o kupe-kabrio verziji, pošto će aktuelna Astra TT nastaviti da se proizvodi i nakon izlaska nove generacije.

Izvor: Auto vesti