La Dolce Veloce

The lack off new postings here is due to me traveling all the way to Colorado to road test a Toyota Prius and a Chrysler Sebring (ok, turkey and gravy may have had something to do with it as well…). Since these were relatives’ cars, I didn’t do a real road test, I babied them as you’d expect but did try to pay attention to the subtle details.

I found the Prius’ most enamoring trait to be its power monitoring display, and found myself actually trying to get better gas mileage. Being conscious of the fuel-friendly image Prius drivers have, though, I did try to counter that by flooring it leaving one stop light, and found that the Prius will easily beat most cars off the line. Well, as long as they’re not actually trying to race, that is. The Prius’ gas pedal seems to have just two positions, cruise mode and subtle acceleration. I kept wondering (hoping?) if perhaps the pedal was blocked, and I just couldn’t press it far enough to get full power. Toyota did a good job of providing adequate power, but really no more than that. As for its handling, the car’s harsh ride (probably due to its tires) leads one to expect some level of sportiness, but those expectations are quickly dashed. The electronic key took some getting used to (leave pocket in key, press ‘power’ button), as did the stereo, providing a mix of traditional panel-mounted controls, and controls accessed via the touchscreen display located a healthy distance away.

Also tested over the weekend was a Chrysler Sebring convertible, a few years old. I was pleasantly surprised by this car, not expecting much out of Chrysler. What I found was a car with decent acceleration and a healthy growl emanating from the engine compartment. It cruised comfortably on the Colorado freeways, though its soft handling really made itself apparent once you encountered a corner. Definitely more of a cruiser than a sports car.

Jeremy Clarkson, one of the hosts of the TV show Top Gear, is without a doubt my favorite automotive journalist of all time. His latest review is of the Bugatti Veyron, and has some interesting tidbits of information, such as in the R&D phase, they found out that the side mirrors were generating a significant amount of downforce! You can read the whole review at the Times Online.

Auto Bild has posted images of what is supposedly the next BMW 7 series (or else is a very convincing Photoshop job). The controversial styling has been toned down a ton to a much more beautiful level.

First shown in 2003 as the Le Mans concept coupe, the Audi R8 has been given the green light for production, to the surprise of few. It’ll appear in showrooms in mid 2007, powered by a five liter V10 (610hp). Last I heard, it’d be based on the Lamborghini Gallardo chassis, though there’s no mention of this in more recent press (it’s still a logical choice, though, seeing how Audi owns Lamborghini and has no high performance sports car platform of their own to start from).

Well, DUH. People will generally be more likely to brake hard at a camera-controlled intersection rather than risk a ticket. That tendency just gets worse when some city authorities actually decrease the length of the yellow light in order to increase revenue from the cameras. Read more over at Pistonheads.

I’m assuming if you’re reading this blog, you already know about Top Gear. If not, you *need* to watch it. NOW. The new season has just started up, and while it’s technically not available in the US (Discovery Channel was showing it for a time, then pulled it for now but plans to relaunch it soon), fans of the show can easily find it available via torrents. They’re kicking off the season with a supercar comparison…including my absolute favorite, the Pagani Zonda (a name I just love to say!).

Mazda did a wonderful thing with the Miata, creating a fun to drive, back to basics sports car. When the new one was recently unveiled, fans of the Miata (now called the MX-5) were relieved to find that its character remains largely intact in a marketplace full of cars with more and more ‘things’ that detract from the true driving experience. Well, now they’re going to be offering an option folding hardtop, in spite of having one of the easiest to use, most widely praised soft tops on the market. The steel hardtop will be available for an extra $2-3k; there’s no word yet on how much weight this adds to the car. (source: AutoWeek)