Here at Driving Lines, we like to take the whole car review concept a step further. In our current review of the Jeep Patriot, Stefan Lombard and myself sat down for a little online chat to discuss the thing and how it’s perceived on the street. Join us won’t you?
Alright Stefan, I got the Jeep Patriot the other day. Interesting car. You’ve driven it right?
I have indeed.
It’s very… Jeepy. [Read more →]
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Since around 2005, the Land Rover LR3 has been synonymous with the phrase “Big Bad-Ass Box.” While there are vehicles that are bigger, vehicles that are more Bad-Ass, and vehicles that are boxier, it’s hard to find a solution that puts the three together quite like this. In the horse-racing world, it’s known as the Trifecta.
Some quick stats on the Big Bad-Ass Box (BBAB):
Model: 2009 LR3
Color: Zermatt Silver w/ Almond Premium Trim
Mileage: 12 city/17 hwy
Price: $55,400
It came with the Heavy Duty Package, the HSE LUX Package, and the 7-Seat Comfort Package. And it has 3 sunroofs. THREE!
But really, how does BBAB drive? It drove amazingly well for a BBAB. Just last week I’d had the distinct pleasure of driving “the-most-expensive-Kia-of-all-time.” It was a $36,000 Kia Borrego, which is simply offensive, but the difference between that Korean appliance and this British exploratory force is far more than the $20,000 that sits between them.
The BBAB was smooth on the highway (like a baby’s bottom, only through the miracle of high-tech suspesnion and Almond leather). It had excellent visability all-around, and glided effortlessly through lane changes all along the urban landscape with which it was tested. Which leads me to my biggest complaint about the car; at almost $56,000, you’d be hard-pressed to find anyone willing to take it off-road in order to properly experience it’s rugged capabilities. Driving around the city in this thing feels like making a thoroughbred racehorse give pony rides at the fair. It’s not what it was built for. But, even with all of that potential, it’s a rare safari that takes these high-capacity rigs into the real desert.
Of everyone I know that owns a Land Rover of any kind, none of them take them off the pavement. Not one. And with that, there’s a constant internal conflict that refuses to resolve as you drive it. Everywhere you look inside you’re reminded that you can change it’s ride height, set different performance options for desert, ice, gravel and pavement.
In the end, I thought the car was a fantastic ride. It was smooth and elegant when it needed to be, but tough and brawny, like a big-brother backing you up in a fight. You had no worries as to what mother-nature could throw at you. I just wonder, does a garaged Land Rover LR3 feel trapped in the city like a caged lion? And is it an offense to mother nature to keep her there?
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Nicest Kia I’ve ever been in. Period. And, most expensive Korean car I’ve ever been in. Period.
On the outside, the Borrego is a great looking mid-size SUV. It has sophisticated lines, a great looking grill, and the “strong-jaw” of the automotive world; a nice boxy backend. The interior is excellent. Very nice. A bit plasticky in certain spots, but over-all very clean and very efficient. The entire cockpit is designed to give you immediate access to whatever you need, without a stretch or that feeling of being overwhelmed with buttons. That’s good.
It’s also well-equipped in terms of the luxury amenities. It had heated seats and an auxiliary music input with an iPod USB interface, allowing simple control of almost all types of players (and with the USB, it charges the devices as well). Even the way the center console is designed gives you access to devices, with a pass-through to the outlet in which they are plugged in. For a second, you almost feel like somebody finally designed a car that actually thought about how it was going to be used. And they designed a car that fits the way people drive these days. I was truly shocked and impressed with these touches coming out of a car line that has been known for their affordability, not engineering.
The ride height was also well designed, as it allowed you to effortless glide into the seats and out of them. There was no climbing up, like you do in a large SUV, and there was no falling in, as you do in small compacts. You just lean in and sit down.
However, it feels heavy. Too heavy. With it’s low center of gravity and the V6 power-plant, matched with the touchy throttles that all Kias are known for, it was easily one of the most difficult automobiles to drive smoothly. A touch on the gas and it lurched forward, making you adjust your foot, lifting it slightly, which caused a rapid drop in fuel to the engine, causing the vehicle to quickly pull to a slower speed. On again, off again. It really was the most lurching car I’ve ever been in, and I feel that’s largely the responsibility of the gas pedal being overly touchy. It’s also surprisingly big; wide, tall, long… Just a lot to manage when you’re having a hard time with throttle management.
Another major disappointment I suffered in this car was that the key slot sits on a console that is slightly tilted in such a way, that the rest of your keys actually ‘lay’ on the plastic, rather than hanging freely. While this may not sound like a big deal, you quickly realize that your keys are sliding back and forth, rubbing and making a gawd-awful sound as they rub and rub and rub with every turn. And trust me, I’m a person who prides himself on carrying the absolute basic number of keys on his ring, this is just bad design. I mentioned it to Stefan, who drove it three weeks after me, and he immediately came back with the same frustration. It’s little things like this that will cause an otherwise acceptable driving experience to be maddeningly unacceptable.
In the end, the Kia Borrego feels like it’s in conflict with itself. At $36,000 you can drive many other vehicles that are known for their luxury and engineering. And while Kia is definitely growing out of its past econo-image, it hasn’t shed that view completely in most people’s eyes. And for that price, you get a collage of great, well-designed luxuries and features that feel in-line with that coming out of Germany, however with small details like the key-on-the-dashboard and the terrible throttle management, you’re constantly in doubt if the car really is as good as you want to believe. As I got out of the car for the last time, and locked the door walking away, to be honest, I still didn’t know what I thought of the car. At times it changed my mind about Kias, and at others, confirmed what I already believed.
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Here at Driving Lines, we’re going to try something new. Incremental reviews, by 2 people, throughout the week. I’ve been driving the Subaru for 4 days so far, and am about to post my first thoughts. (well, I’ve already posted a few on Twitter, follow @drivinglines to read).
Issue 1: The car beeps when you unlock it. Press unlock on the fob and you get two beeps. Press it again to unlock the passenger side and another two beeps. Not sure if it worked and you press it three times just to be sure and suddenly you’re listening to a choir of crickets just to unlock the door. This is unnecessary. Flash the lights to unlock the door. If I lock it, flash them again. If I press the button twice (to make sure it worked), then beep to inform me it took. BUT ONLY BEEP IF I’M LOCKING THE DOOR. /rant.
I haven’t driven the thing, so I can’t comment on all that blahblahblah, but I’ve no doubt it retains its “beauty of all-wheel drive” functionality and fairly mediocre fuel economy as a result. But let’s talk for a moment about exterior styling, because Subaru did an excellent job to design the character right out of the new Forester.
This is not a blanket criticism of all Subaru models, because despite my initial Suzukisms about the current-generation Impreza when I first saw them in photos, they are attractive cars in the metal. Except the four-door sedan, which is pretty awful.
But the Forester… A little bit Korea, a little bit Detroit. It’s a safe design. Very very safe. Unlike, say, a Nissan Murano, which looks like an athletic shoe but is at least distinctive, I find the new Forester to be largely forgettable, a soft and all-too-slick step backward from the boxmobiles of years past.
One item of interest, is that in the NW (Portland to be exact), you can’t drive 25 feet without seeing another Forester. They’re everywhere. Which is definitely a statement about their popularity and performance in the “active lifestyle” crowd of the Northwest. However, when I was in L.A. recently, we played a little game called “spot the Subaru.” In four days of active looking, I saw two Foresters total. TWO. I was shocked. Fun game though.
When I was in L.A. recently, we played a little game called “spot the Subaru.” In four days of active looking, I saw two Foresters total. TWO. I was shocked. Fun game though.
You spent four days in L.A. looking for Subaru Foresters? Obviously you and I have different ideas of “fun.”
As for the actual driving experience, it drove well. It was a bit stiff, and at times, felt cheaper than it was. It can have that “light-weight, small engine, stick-shift, Made in Japan” feel, but more like an entry-level car than a sporty Subaru you’re hoping for. On the freeway, it was pretty smooth, and held its line. I’ve been noticing a lot of cars wanting to wander with the poor road conditions on my neighborhood freeway, but the Subaru never gave me any issues. So, I appreciate that. It also could have been the incredibly small tires…
My final take-away is that I am a little disappointed with the car. I’ve actually considered adding a Forester to my quiver of cars, but after this experience, I’ll rethink that plan. I remember loving the 2.5XT a few years back, so maybe my problem was just with the base-level of this particular car. However, for $23k, I kind of imagine more than a bare-bones Subaru should be available.
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Who doesn’t want to take a the car out from the garage at this guys house. Totally awesome driveway with some nice corners. I have to say, I give him just as much credit for getting this past the wife.
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In 2001, at the Detroit Auto Show, Volvo displayed what was simply known as the Safety Concept Car (SCC). I remember looking at photos, going to Volvo’s website, reading all I could about this crazy little car from “the future.” I loved it’s giant rear window and just-forward-thinking design. Someday they’ll build this, I thought.
I hoped.
Well, welcome to the future.
ALL VOLVO
While not representing every idea available in the SCC, the Volvo C30 does reveal enough of the SCC as a real production car, and to me it is as exciting as the flat images I saw back in 2001. To walk around it, to see it, the C30 is all Volvo. The face evokes the style and curves that have defined Volvo since the S60 first bent people’s minds around the “new” Volvo in the late 1990s. The sides carry the broad hips most people recognize so easily in the bricky 240 series and the 140s before them. And rear of the car takes you back to the lovely 1800ES built from 1971 to 73.
But it also takes you forward to the SCC. The rear hatch—complete with its oversized window—looks fabulously matched onto the squat and curvy frame. I admit the rear design might not be for everyone, as I know several people who didn’t fall in love, but for those of us who did, it didn’t matter, because love is all you need, as they say.
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I’ve just been handed the keys to a 2008 Jaguar XKR in Emerald Fire over Caramel leather, and instantly I’m thinking of the 2000 film “Sexy Beast.”
Sir Ben Kingsley earned an Oscar nomination for his devil-may-care role as the badass Don Logan, and the film’s title, its leading man, and it’s slogan–”Sometimes it’s hard to say no”–perfectly exemplify this most British of sports coupes. [Read more →]
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Not long after I drove the Volvo V70, I had the opportunity to drive the XC70. It was an interesting opportunity to compare these similar cars and get a feel for the differences.
Most notably are the obvious. With over 8 inches of ground-clearance, this car sat much taller than it’s little brother. It was slightly longer in the cargo area, and it’s exterior styling was much more aggressive and macho. I’m personally a big fan of the XC styling, and think that has that little something that begs to be taken outside, run through mud puddles, stormed up to the mountain, and hosed off when home. Not to mention the addition of stock four-wheel drive on the XC70s, the differences are slightly more than cosmetic, and Volvo has provided a car worthy of the mountain in both its function and appearance.More…
Another note about the XC70 was that it seemed to be slightly more refined inside. My wife called it “the black-label V70”, noting a few small touches and refinements she hadn’t noticed in the smaller, slightly less expensive V70. Both had family-friendly features such as a B-pillar rear-passenger air vent that was at head-height instead of stuck in the foot compartment of the rear center console. Several passengers riding in the back showed appreciation that they too, like the front seat riders, could adjust warm air to their upper body instead of merely having it pointed at their feet.
One thing my XC70 came equipped that I didn’t see in the V70s option list, was child door locks tied in to the window locks from the driver’s door. On the driver door, where you would expect to find window controls for all four windows, you also had the ability to lock passengers from adjusting their windows. But with this lock, you could also activate the rear child safety locks, keeping your passengers stuck in the back until you chose to release them. We found this feature on accident, as I had inadvertently bumped the window lock feature with my hand, but soon after, as nobody could escape the back seats, we went on a hunt to discover how to deactivate the feature. Evidently, some models have a standard switch inside the door jam, but this XC70 had the feature tied to the window locks. I can see this as both a feature and an annoyance. For those with kids, it would be great to have absolute control over them, their windows, and their doors; however, those with adult friends could easily find themselves bumping the button and locking perfectly responsible people into their car. I guess that’s why it’s an option in this car…
As with the V70, I loved driving this car. And since I’m becoming more and more a fan of increased ground-clearance, I appreciated the taller ride-height. The interior again was beautiful, elegant, and characteristic of modern Volvos, which I not only love, but pine for when driving all but $50,000+ cars. They just know how to make an interior feel like home. With the XC70 starting at only $4000 more than the V70, and the four-wheel drive, improved styling, and slightly longer wheelbase, I’d be hard-pressed to recommend the V70 over this car. But to be honest, I’d be hard-pressed to recommend any other wagon in this class over the XC70. The Outback is nice, but the XC70 is amazing. 5 stars.
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by Holly Glaspey
Parallel parking has never been this fun. In case driving around in a convertible didn’t make one feel smug enough, pulling up to spaces 95% of cars can not even consider, and swinging in one-handed on the first try is a big perk for me with this little gem. So long as the top is down, changing lanes is a lot of fun too–I confess that behind the Mini wheel, I became a bit prone to “darting.”
There doesn’t seem to be much gray area in Mini public opinion. Most people who saw me in the car were dying for a ride, but those who weren’t didn’t want to touch it with a ten-foot pole. But I’m really on the fence: if you have to describe the Mini in one word it’s easy—FUN. This car made me more excited about “the driving experience” and “the journey” than any other I have ridden in or driven. However, I am not running to the nearest dealership. I felt plenty of “go” moving from second to third or third to fourth, but from a red light or up a steep hill I was disappointed. I was also uncomfortable driving with the top up because of the horrible visibility out the back window. One more note on the convertible top: I never used the half-way open, “built-in sunroof” setting. With the heated seats and the visibility issues, it just seemed like I might as well go all the way.
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