|
Browse by Tags
All Tags » 2009 » Feature ( RSS)
-
|
Fisker teased us earlier this week with a detail shot of the Karma S Sunset Concept , but we decided to uncover the droptop a little early thanks to KORSdesign . Henrik Fisker’s little coachbuilding shop will take the wraps off of the Fisker Karma production car at the Detroit Auto Show and will have a little something extra to show off their range of abilities. Fisker’s little something extra will actually be a little less by removing two of the doors and the roof from the Karma sedan. Officially dubbed the Fisker Karma S Sunset , the concept will feature the same plug-in Q-DRIVE lithium-ion battery powertrain good for 50 miles on a single charge and roughly 408 horsepower from two electric motors. A small gasoline engine turns the generator and should allow for extra range, though it’s not yet been determined what that range will be. Click HERE to see the 2010 Fisker Karma S Sunset! The Karma S Sunset Concept will feature a very similar design to its production sedan sibling, though the...
|
-
|
Why you should buy the 2009 MINI Cooper Clubman S : You're extremely wealthy and like small cars. You never liked going around corners that much anyways. The most exciting thing that could possibly happen to you in the course of a day is spotting another Mini in exactly the same color and getting the driver of it to wave feverishly at you. You used to have a regular Mini, but now you have a small dog. Why you shouldn't buy this car: You consider value an important part of the car-buying process. You drive aggressively. You hate rear barn doors. You live near curvy roads. You hate suicide doors. You enjoy the way the MINI Cooper S handles. You realized you could buy a well-equipped Chevy HHR SS for half the price and without the waving. galleryPost('clubmanexterior', 6, '2009 MINI Cooper Clubman S, Exterior Details'); galleryPost('clubmaninterior2', 9, '2009 MINI Cooper Clubman S, Interior Details'); galleryPost('SuperClubman', 9, '2009...
|
-
|
Exterior Design: **** The 2009 MINI Cooper Clubman S preserves much of the styling moxie possessed by the original while hiding much of the added heft. At a distance, it's nearly impossible to differentiate between the two variations, causing us to do more than one double-take. The only major giveaway is the 50/50 split rear barn doors with through-door tail lamps and the suicide door on the passenger side. But a front 3/4 view will make you swear you're looking at the original "S." Interior Design: *** The interior of the Clubman is mostly identical to its smaller brother from the cockpit-view forward. Rail-protected flight switches control much of the electrics while a delightfully gaudy speedometer dominates the center console. Every compartment, toggle and switch functions with the usual high level of BMW confidence. But don't even get us started on the Toys R' Us-grade plastic. In this price range, a buyer deserves a little better. Also, the color-selectable...
|
-
|
As interns at Jalopnik , we've got a pretty sweet gig. Admittedly, there are occasionally humdrum duties such as cleaning the tire debris off of Challengers and Corvette ZR1s , but at the end of the day, the perks outweigh everything else. Heavily. When two of us were tossed the keys to a fully-fueled 2009 MINI Cooper Clubman S so fresh its interior plastics were still off-gassing, and the only spoken rule was that it had to be at the airport the next morning to meet the boss man with most of its important bits still attached, our minds ran wild. A full trunk of camera gear in tow, we did what anyone would when presented the keys to a MINI S. We went straight to Hell. galleryPost('SuperClubman', 11, 'Straight to Hell'); Hell, Michigan is a microscopic town just 15 miles outside of Ann Arbor. It was founded in 1838 by George Reeves and back then, Hell was actually bigger than it is now: It had both a general store and a mill. Only the general store — selling mostly...
|
-
|
Think you’ve seen all of our photos of the 2009 Corvette ZR1 ? Well you haven’t. Follow the jump for every single one of our 81 photos of the best car ever made, in all their unedited glory. galleryPost('zr1megagallery', 8, '2009 Corvette ZR1 Mega Gallery'); Photography: Alex Conley
|
-
|
Ford PR Flack: "We wanted to give the Flex what we call a 'wow' factor." Random Auto Journalist: "Wow, can I quote you on that?" Press launches are interesting places. Well, if you find humanity in its most mundane and sycophantic form interesting that is. Full Disclosure: I didn't actually drive the 2009 Ford Flex , but I did sit in the passenger seat nursing my gimpy arm while Ray drove and opined on the experience. galleryPost('flexhero', 6, 'Flextacular'); galleryPost('flexexterior', 6, 'Flextastic'); galleryPost('flexinterior', 6, 'Flex-not-so-much'); I don't know when it happened, but at some point in its history, reviewing cars became the domain of the boring, the middle aged and the overweight. It also lost its way, becoming yet another tool for the industry to market its products (something akin to long-form, text-based advertising), rather than a critical method for helping consumers make informed...
|
-
|
When the powers-that-be over here at Jalopnik asked me to test drive a car for you boys, I was pretty excited. Finally, I thought, Jalopnik is learning to respect a woman's automotive point of view. And then Ray told me it was going to be the 2009 Lincoln MKS . Hmm. I'll admit, I have a bias against big cars that dates back to the need to parallel park my mom's minivan for my driving test. On the other hand, it's not like I get to drive a ton of "luxury cars" either, so I figured even if it wasn't to my taste, I could cheat on my Toyota Corolla for one day. Luckily, it was a really, really nice day, although I was sad I didn't get to see the rain-sensing windshield wipers in action, since those have always sounded really cool. Yes, that's right — while I might not have the the automotive knowledge set of the gentlemen of Jalopnik or say, Popular Mechanics , you know my Lincoln MKS review will make up for it with a certain panache you won't...
|
-
|
While we're not quite willing to call this a full review, we did get some seat time with a couple of spankin' new 2009 Ford Escape models yesterday. We managed to get back-to-back seat time with both the 2008 and 2009 V6 4x4 Limited as well as the Hybrid for direct comparison on the same 20-mile circuit. When Hardigree reviewed the Escape's platform pal, the 2008 Mercury Mariner Hybrid , it was fairly obvious our impression was one of disconnectedness. The brakes felt funny, the handling was blah, and the steering felt numb. Ford apparently heard these complaints from its customers as well. 2009 Ford Escape Hybrid For 2009, although virtually unchanged visually (the only distinguishing difference is a deeper chin spoiler) the new Hybrid Escapes see the 2.3L four cylinder engine upgraded to an Atkinson cycle 2.5L for a total of 177 net horsepower. The CVT gets a more aggressive software package and some improved tuning on the hardware side. Also new for '09 is the inclusion...
|
-
|
While we're not quite willing to call this a full review, we did get some seat time with a couple of spankin' new 2009 Ford Escape models yesterday. We managed to get back-to-back seat time with both the 2008 and 2009 V6 4x4 Limited as well as the Hybrid for direct comparison on the same 20-mile circuit. When Hardigree reviewed the Escape's platform pal, the 2008 Mercury Mariner Hybrid , it was fairly obvious our impression was one of disconnectedness. The brakes felt funny, the handling was blah, and the steering felt numb. Ford apparently heard these complaints from its customers as well. 2009 Ford Escape Hybrid For 2009, although virtually unchanged visually (the only distinguishing difference is a deeper chin spoiler) the new Hybrid Escapes see the 2.3L four cylinder engine upgraded to an Atkinson cycle 2.5L for a total of 177 net horsepower. The CVT gets a more aggressive software package and some improved tuning on the hardware side. Also new for '09 is the inclusion...
|
-
|
The 2009 Honda Pilot isn't the fastest or most exciting car to go on sale this year, nor is it the best looking. But, if we're honest with ourselves — which honestly, we aren't very often — it's probably the one we should buy. But that's the problem with honesty, it just isn't very exciting. galleryPost('pilotreview1', 6, '2009 Honda Pilot'); You see, with up to six or seven beefy bloggers, plus the occasional girly man (I'm raising my hand here) to haul around, most of the sexy sports cars we dream about are ruthlessly inefficient. Requiring Ray — we let him drive, it makes him feel powerful — to make an equivalent number of journeys to the number of people being moved just isn't the best way to start off sixteen hours of live auto show coverage. Aside from the fact that none of us enjoy being there, Ray's full blown borderline OCD has him biting our heads off at the best of times. Throwing cramped quarters into...
|
-
|
Why you should buy this car: Odd vehicles fascinate you. You're open-minded and prepared to accept that a big, tall, heavy SUV can out-drive many a sports car. You always wanted a Lamborghini LM002 but are locked into a world of lease agreements. Your heart says sports car but your head says, "You live at the end of a dirt road in mountains that are snowbound nine months out of the year." Your own personal project car hell is creating the ultimate Dakar racer. Why you shouldn't: You think that lightness and simplicity are the be all and end all of automotive greatness. SUVs offend you. You need an SUV for off-roading and hauling manure. You have small children. The thought of $5 a gallon gas sends you into deep depression. galleryPost('x6review3', 6, 'BMW X6 Interior Details'); galleryPost('x6review2', 6, 'BMW X6 Exterior Details'); galleryPost('2009BMWX6', 6, 'BMW X6'); Suitability Parameters: Speed Merchants: Yes Fashion...
|
-
|
Exterior Design: *** Like many parts of the BMW X6 , its looks are promising yet flawed. Doing a great job of disguising its bulk — the X6 is huge, that lip on the rear hatch is taller than an F-150's tailgate and the pictured wheels are 20-inchers — they're nevertheless awkward in some places — the huge rear end — and disappointingly conservative in others — the boring front. It's an extremely color sensitive shape; white showing off its surfaces best while the burgundy version is just boring. Interior Design: ** In short: conservative and impractical. By opting for a CLS-style rear console BMW unnecessarily reduced the X6's people capacity to four, but haven't made the interior special enough to justify its lack of space. It's also very color and spec sensitive; the dash looks great covered in dark leather, but the beige plastic found in base versions is just plain tacky. The rear window, big on the outside, looks like little more...
|
-
|
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/autos/First_Review_of_new_BMW_X6_the_weirdest_BMW_ever'; The 2009 BMW X6 isn't great on a racetrack. This thought occurs during my third lap when I realize — the throttle wide open, exiting a corner at 100mph — this may not be the best sports car out there. My next thought is "But this is a 4,993lbs SUV." And that's the point where you realize what we have here is something entirely new. galleryPost('2009BMWX6', 6, 'Exclusive First Review - 2009 BMW X6'); BMW calls the X6 a Sports Activity Coupe. That seems preposterous given both their constant assertion that their best selling SUVs, the X3 and X5 , be reffered to as SAVs and the X6's four doors, which is 2 more than the unofficial definition of a coupe allows. The BMW X6 is based on that X5, its main difference, aside from the obvious low roof, swoopy bodywork and huge ass, is firm suspension and the addition of Dynamic Performance Control. It's...
|
-
|
Despite the news of the eminent demise of the Ford Taurus X , we're now not as concerned because we just got our first ride in the 2009 Ford Flex . A very hip Ford rep dropped by our extremely touristgasmic digs near Times Square to give us a ride over to dinner and get a little free press for Ford's new hauler. Despite a couple of syntax errors with the next-gen GPS system, which worked fine after we used the correct name of the city, the slab sided super wagon was off to the races a slow crawl through the streets of Gotham. galleryPost('09fordflexride', 9, 'Ford Flex in Driving Miss Jalopnik'); Even though we were a little bit lukewarm over the design when we first saw the production version, on the streets the Flex actually looks pretty cool. Since we were being treated to a ride 'chauffeur style', the back seats are our area of expertise. The seats are firm and they travel on tracks so you can go all the way from huge legroom in the middle row and a reasonable...
|
-
|
If you haven't been following along at home, folks, the nice people at Truck Trend (owned by our good friends at Motor Trend ) somehow managed to break the Hummer H3T today , about a week early. How could this happen? Motor Trend , as has been explained to us, doesn't purposefully break embargoes, and they get testy when you suggest that they do . As we've explained about media embargoes before , automakers like press, and when they want their cars in certain publications they send "embargoed" information to publishers early to accommodate the supposed lead time the print media needs to rewrite press releases and layout photos. Therefore, Truck Trend has had the information on the 2009 Hummer H3T for a little while. But they claim as long as they don't publish it online, they're not breaking an embargo until it goes to print. But then they also claim if the printing date is in line with the embargo date than all should be well. Fair enough -- a couple of hours...
|
|
|
|