The six-speed automatic shifts smoothly and tries its best to deliver top mileage. And powered by the V-6, the still-compact SUV can tow a healthy 3,500 pounds.In contrast, the 2010 Honda CR-V, which comes with only a 180-horsepower four cylinder, can tow a maximum 1,500 pounds.Neither the RAV-4 nor the CR-V comes with a six-speed... [more]
November 12, 2009
The five buttons beside the gear lever are engine start, transmission mode (the four driver-selectable modes are C for Controlled Efficiency, S for Sport, S+ for Sport plus and M for Manual, along with a Race Start function), stability control (ESP On, ESP Off and ESP Sport), rear spoiler (which will automatically extend above 120 km/h) and AMG... [more]
November 12, 2009
The new aluminum SLS built in Sindelfingen, Germany stays dead even with the carbon-fiber SLR built in the UK until early this year. Though the naturally aspirated 6.2-liter V-8 in the SLS has 54 less horsepower (down 9 percent) and 96 fewer pound-feet of torque (down 17 percent) than the supercharged 5.5-liter V-8 in the SLR, the SLS weighs 328... [more]
November 11, 2009
But forget about comparing Porsche’s first so-called sedan with other four-door locomotives. Here are the numbers that put this thing in perspective: To 60 mph, the Panamera is 0.2 second quicker—and 0.1 second quicker through the quarter-mile—than the last 911 Turbo we tested. Which is odd because the Panamera is 689 pounds fatter than the... [more]
November 11, 2009
Porsche will roll out a new incarnation of the Boxter Spyder at the Los Angeles auto show next month. The flagship mid-engined model is the lightest sporstcar in the company's range at 1,275kg and more powerful than the Boxster S, topping 235kW from its direct-injection 3.4-liter flat six-cylinder powerplant. All this adds up a hair-piece... [more]
November 11, 2009
That engine, the U.K.’s AutoCar reports, "is the same 8.0-litre W16 engine found in the Veyron…the engine features two-stage supercharging and can run on ethanol as well as" conventional gasoline."In the Veyron, the powerplant is good for more than 1,000 horsepower. Autoblog reports, "Horsepower figures for the all-wheel drive Galibier... [more]
November 11, 2009
The S60 concept featured a turbocharged 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine mated to a dual-clutch automated manual transmission; the pair should be in production shortly, but it’s unknown if the small four would make it to this side of the Atlantic in the S60. The production car will, however, get the concept’s pedestrian-detection technology,... [more]
November 11, 2009
Vorsteiner V-RT 911 Turbo Layout Longitudinal rear engine, all-wheel driveEngine 3.6-liter flat six, dohc, 24-valve, turbocharged and intercooled. AWE Tuning exhaust manifolds, metallic catalysts and mufflers, AWE intercoolers and throttle body, AWE/GIAC softwareTransmission Six-speed manualSuspension KW V3 coiloversWheels And... [more]
November 10, 2009
Company officials have said that the old S4 — offered as a convertible as well as sedan in the past — accounted for just 5 percent to 6 percent of U.S. sales of the A4 line. They're hoping for more like 15 percent for the lower-priced S4, which is available in 2010 as a sedan only.If the test vehicle, in bright red paint and mostly black... [more]
November 10, 2009
Its predecessor A4 cabriolet had a 2-liter, 200-horsepower turbo 4 with less zip than the new direct-injection version, which Audi says performs like a 6-cylinder while delivering decent mileage: 20 city/26 highway.Not a screamer, however. It doesn't have enough spring in its first step from the light or into the passing lane. The S5 version,... [more]
November 10, 2009
