Vehicles Blog

Updates from April, 2012

• New York • Although many European automakers debuted their new vehicles in Detroit in January or in Geneva in March, some chose to make their world premieres here at the New York International Auto Show.

  Following are the highlights:

  

  Patricia Cancilla/National Post

  The powerful new 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged GTC V8 features 500 horsepower and peak torque of 487 pound-feet.

  BENTLEY
  Bentley’s new Continental GTC V8 convertible made its official debut here to one of the largest crowds at the show.

  The powerful new 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged GTC V8 features 500 horsepower and peak torque of 487 pound-feet. With a new close-ratio eight-speed automatic transmission, the GTC sprints from zero to 100 kilometres an hour in just five seconds and has a top speed of 301 km/h. And, according to Bentley, the new V8 Continental delivers a 40% improvement in fuel efficiency and CO2 emissions.

  The Continental GTC V8 and its GT V8 coupe counterpart feature a state-of-the-art, all-wheel-drive system employing an advanced Torsen differential and a 40:60 rear-biased power split.

  Related

  • New York Auto Show 2012: Something to tease

  • Motor Mouth: New taxi has its New York minute

  MERCEDES
  Mercedes had three world premieres at the show — the new-generation GLK, shown at top, the all-new GL and the new SL 65 AMG.

  The new GL features space for up to seven passengers and safety innovations such as crosswind stabilization, Steer Control, self-levelling and Collision Prevention Assist, which are all standard. Active Lane Keeping Assist and Active Blind Spot Assist are also available on the GL-Class.

  The new GL 350 BlueTec 4Matic offers a 20% reduction in fuel consumption, with a fuel economy rating of just 7.4 litres of diesel per 100 kilometres, according to Mercedes. Fuel consumption for the 408-hp GL 500 4Matic BlueEfficiency drops by 18%, says the automaker.

  Mercedes’ smaller SUV, the cute and compact GLK, gets a new look and upgraded equipment. The redesigned exterior features the design language of the automaker’s sedans, which is not a bad thing. In fact, the attractive GLK now looks like a sedan as much as it drives like one while retaining all the amenities of a sport-utility vehicle.

  Inside, the GLK features new equipment and redesigned trim elements, along with state-of-the-art assistance systems and comprehensive BlueEfficiency measures such as the Eco start/stop function.

  The BlueTec diesel exhaust after-treatment system is also available for the GLK for the first time. The GLK 250 BlueTec 4Matic features 204 hp, making it the most powerful four-cylinder diesel engine in the SUV world, according to Mercedes. It consumes just 6.1 and 6.5 litres of diesel per 100 km on the highway and in the city, respectively.

  The new SL 65 AMG has a 6.0L V12 biturbo engine featuring a whopping 630 hp and 738 pound-feet of torque! The all-aluminum body is 170 kilograms lighter than its predecessor. Only 45 of the special-edition SL 65 AMGs have been created for the 45th anniversary of AMG, so you’d better order one soon.

  

  Graeme Fletcher for National Post

  Coming a day before Ferdinand Alexander Porsche, grandson of the company’s founder, died at age 76, the automaker unveiled its Cayenne Diesel.

  PORSCHE
  Coming a day before Ferdinand Alexander Porsche, grandson of the company’s founder, died at age 76, the automaker unveiled its Cayenne Diesel.

  Designer of the original 911, F. A. Porsche died April 5 at his home in Salzburg, Austria.

  When he first started at the company, working with his father and grandfather, the young Porsche probably never envisioned an SUV being built by the family firm.

  But this is what the people want now and so Porsche moved with the times to create its Cayenne in 2002.

  Ten years later comes the diesel version, which will be the first diesel-powered Porsche in Canada when it arrives in September.

  The 2013 Cayenne Diesel features a 3.0L V6 turbodiesel engine generating 240 hp and 406 lb-ft of torque. According to the automaker, the SUV accelerates from zero to 100 km/h in just 7.6 seconds and has a top speed of 218 km/h. The diesel-powered Cayenne is expected to have a 30% improvement in fuel economy over its gasoline-engine sibling, says Porsche.

  Pricing for the new Cayenne Diesel in Canada will start at $64,500.

  
  

  

  
  1:00 pm on April 10, 2012
   

• Lisbon, Portugal • It appears that this is going to turn into a dog fight. Like two rutting canines, BMW and Audi are circling each other, sniffing each other’s bona fides, trying to determine who will be the top dog in the upper echelon of the near-luxury segment. Both are unveiling their new mainstream entries — 3 Series for BMW, the A4 range for Audi — in the Canadian market at almost the same time. Both will be putting an enormous amount of time and effort, not to mention dollars, to woo the newly and/or almost rich into their baby luxury barges. Both are considered to be big news; both are each company’s biggest sellers and are, for BMW particularly, the spiritual leaders of their respective lineups.

  It would seem, at first glance at least, that Audi is at a disadvantage in this conflagration. BMW’s 3 Series is all new this year, its styling completely revised, the chassis updated and the introduction of a new(ish) engine in the 328’s N20 2.0-litre turbocharged four. By comparison, the “new” 2013 edition of the A4 is barely changed. Like most mid-model-cycle refreshes, the front and rear fascias have been redone and there are some detail interior alterations, but the engines remain identical and chassis modifications are minimal.

  Were one looking to defend Audi, however, one could point out that BMW is only now finding out what Audi knew all along — that the best base engine for a near-luxury sedan in this day of indulged parsimony is a small turbocharged four-banger, Ingolstadt having used exactly that configuration for more than a decade in the A4. One might also note that in trumpeting its xDrive all-wheel drive as the panacea that cures all Canadian driving ills, BMW is reinforcing Audi’s contention that AWD is the ideal powertrain. The same applies to Mercedes,  whose C-Class began trumpeting all-wheel drive a few years ago and now boasts — you guessed it — a little turbocharged four (in this case, with the same 1.8 litres of displacement as the original Audi configuration).

  That said, there’s precious little new in the 2013 A4s, which will come to Canada in the third quarter of 2012. The entry-level version is still powered by a 2.0-litre turbocharged in-line four mated to an eight-speed transmission for better performance and, especially, improved fuel consumption. And though its 211 horsepower pales in comparison with the BMW’s 240, the Audi all but matches the 328’s 260 pound-feet of torque with its 258. I’ve long contended that this is the best engine Audi makes — or, at least the best engine it brings to North America — and unchanged or not, it’s still a peach.

  The supercharged 333-hp 3.0L V6 that powers the S4 is also said to be unchanged, though I’d swear that if I didn’t have the spec sheet right in front of me, it feels sportier. Maybe it’s because the test unit is hooked up to the slick-shifting S-Tronic double-clutch seven-speed or something about the warm Portuguese weather added some bark in the V6’s exhaust, but I enjoyed the 2013 S4 a little more than the almost identical 2012 version I am driving back home.

  Far bigger news is the return of the allroad to Audi’s lineup, this time in A4 rather than A6 guise. Based on the A4 wagon (which we will not be getting in Canada), the 2013 A4 allroad picks up many of the styling cues from its A6 predecessor that was last sold in North America in 2005. Body-cladded wheel arches stress a rugged muscularity, roof rails suggest a pack mule utility and a taller ride height promises at least a modicum of off-road ability.

  That the allroad is mostly an Avant save for the suspension and tire changes should not diminish its popularity. Like the rest of the lineup, the allroad gets a mildly upgraded interior with a simpler MMI onboard computer (though the navigational system still needs its own Sherpa guide to decipher) and new steering wheels. Other notable features are the trunk, which has one of the niftiest rail-based storage systems in the biz, letting you secure almost any size or shape package so it doesn’t flail about when you’re pushing the allroad’s handling envelope — which is pretty darn good considering it rides 37 millimetres higher than the base A4 and the suspension has been calibrated to allow at least a pretense of off-roading.

  Combined with the taller, off-road-friendlier tires, it makes the allroad a little more vague when tossing it along Portuguese seaside twisties. And the suspension changes have seen a reduction in high-speed compression damping (which helps absorb the crevasses one is supposed to traverse) that have the allroad feeling a tad limp. But let’s remember that this is all in comparison with a conventional A4, one of the better-handling small sedans — or wagons — on the market. I suspect there will be precious few allroad customers who will test its prowess, especially since its clientele will veer toward the Volvo XC70-driving granola munchers who permanently attach a kayak to their roofs as a fashion accessory.

  As much as I like the Audi’s 2.0T four (and, as I mentioned earlier, I have always thought it the best powerplant in Audi’s N.A. lineup), which will be the only powerplant available in Canada, the allroad positively sings with the 3.0 TDI V6 offered in Europe. Smooth, extremely quiet and a model of decorum, the top-of-the-line version boasts a substantial (by diesel standards) 245 hp and a more important 369 lb-ft of torque. It accelerates to 100 kilometres an hour in a very S-line-like 5.9 seconds and consumes but 5.7 litres of diesel for every 100 kilometres (about one fewer litre than the 2.0T). An even more frugal 204-hp version promises a hybrid-like 4.9 L/100 km.

  Audi Canada needs to stop making excuses for not bringing this engine to our country. Sister company Volks-wagen can’t keep any of its TDI models available and the allroad’s quasi off-road appeal is a great excuse to at least begin offering a diesel in the A4 lineup. The 2.0T may be the best engine Audi imports to Canada, but the 3.0T TDI V6 is the best engine Audi makes.

  A few will lament that Audi hasn’t upgraded the A4 sufficiently, that the styling changes aren’t dramatic enough (I, on the other hand, especially like the new front headlight treatment) and that the powertrains are no more efficient (save for 0.3 L/100 km because of a switch to electric power steering). On the other hand, the changes that BMW and Mercedes-Benz have wrought to their entry-level lineup are exactly what Audi has been preaching for so long, so maybe there is method to its madness.

  
  

  

  
  9:00 am on December 8, 2011
   

• There is something unusually dissonant in the land of harmony and quietude, a low rumble that initially intrudes, then blends into the sea of traffic sounds or disappears altogether with the playing of music, only making its presence again obtrusive when passing power is called for.

  That discord is the initial engagement of the 3.5-litre V6 turbodiesel residing under the hood of Mercedes’ E 350 BlueTec, said E-Class an otherwise inspired blend of all things smooth, luxurious, safe and serene. By the measure of other diesels, the BlueTec is by no means overtly loud or displeasing. It is a highly sophisticated unit that is both clean running and exceedingly fuel-efficient. Compared with the silky silence of the gasoline V6 that I’ve sampled in numerous other Mercedes vehicles, however, the BlueTec is gruffer. It quickly settles into its rhythm, though, and easily disappears into the subconscious — only to reappear when it comes time to fill up at the pumps.

  Maybe I’m just inserting my working-class sensibilities into what is assuredly an upper crust car but, for me, the BlueTec’s superior fuel economy easily outweighs its thrum. A week-long test average of 8.4 litres per 100 kilometres for a mid-sized luxury sedan that weighs 1,845 kilograms is more than fair trade, especially when the bulk of my driving was suburban commuting, not long highway runs. In fact, it quickly became my favourite version of E-Class, replacing the E 350 gas — despite giving up 58 horsepower to that model. At 7.8 seconds to reach 100 kilometres an hour, the 210-hp BlueTec is only 0.6 seconds slower (credit 400 pound-feet of torque at a low 1,600 rpm). Meanwhile, Transport Canada rates the BlueTec at 9.7 L/100 km in the city and 6.1 in the highway — the E 350 gas is rated at 12.7 L/100 km in the city and 8.3 on the highway.

  THE SPECS

  Type of vehicle Rear-wheel-drive luxury sedan
  Engine 3.5L DOHC V6 turbodiesel
  Power 210 hp @ 3,400 rpm; 400 lb-ft of torque @ 1,600 rpm
  Transmission Seven-speed manumatic
  Brakes Four-wheel disc with ABS
  Tires P245/40R18
  Price: base/as tested $62,250/$68,680 (2011)
  Destination charge $1,995
  Transport Canada fuel economy L/100 km 9.7 city, 6.1 hwy.

  Considering there’s also a $700 credit between the two 2012 models — $62,700 for the BlueTec, $63,400 for the gas — that’s cash I would pocket in a heartbeat. Other than the price of diesel, which, at the time, was 10 cents higher than regular unleaded, the only negative — though it is fairly significant — is that the E 350 gas comes standard with 4Matic all-wheel drive while the BlueTec is rear-drive only. C’mon Mercedes, this is Canada. Give the E 350 BlueTec the drivetrain it needs and I’ll never look at another high-end sport-ute again!

  Seriously, taking into account the E-Class is more of a boulevardier than an outright sport sedan, its ride and handling aspects are impeccable. The 7G-Tronic automatic knocks off upshifts and downshifts with flawless precision. The steering has a muscular heft to it without being artificial. And one can thank Mercedes’ engineers for the standard Direct Control suspension and select damping setup, which provide a blend of firmness and comfort without going overboard in either department.

  What truly seals the deal with the E 350 is its interior environment, a veritable oasis of comfort and entertainment that kicks stress to the curb and soothes the nerves of frazzled drivers. There’s a full measure of the modern conveniences one would expect from the tri-star brand, including (now that winter is approaching) heated front seats and steering wheel. The Comand controller that operates the audio/visual and communication interfaces is reasonably intuitive. But, what is especially worthy of praise is the instrument cluster, featuring gauges that are clear, sharp and well lit, plus the navigation display, which has to be the easiest to read of any car I have driven in recent memory. The rest of the controls are large, properly marked and fall easily to hand. Finally, the cabin’s sound deadening allows just a hint of the outside world to intrude so as not to seal the occupants in tomb-like silence. The one nit to pick was the audio system’s front speakers, which sounded tinny when I was listening to a news station. This isn’t the first time I’ve complained about the speakers in Mercedes cars, so I expect that the company’s sound engineers are half deaf from all those years of cranking Pink Floyd to 11.

  Mercedes gives up nothing in the safety department, with a long list of devices and backups all designed to keep the car’s occupants safe and the sheetmetal from getting pranged up. Along with the usual assortment of standard safety nannies is Attention Assist, which monitors and evaluates more than 70 different parameters in order to recognize driver drowsiness and provide warning if it detects the driver is nodding off. One option worth considering, especially long-distance drivers, is the $800 Driving Assistance Package.  This includes blind-spot monitoring and Passive Lane Keeping Assist. While the former is self-explanatory, the latter sends a pulse through the steering wheel when sensors detect the car is drifting into another lane. For those who might think that annoying, it can be switched off.

  Although the tester was a 2011 model, there are no mechanical changes to the E 350 BlueTec for 2012, and the cosmetic differences are minor. Plus, the price increase is only $450.

  A dozen years ago, the idea of finding any diesel-powered car desirable would have been laughable. However, the BlueTec engine is just too good to ignore, offering plenty of grunt when needed along with the tangible benefit of compact car-like fuel economy. Also, with the amount of traffic congestion these days, the more comfortable and comforting aspects of fine driving are taking greater precedence over absolute performance.

  The E-Class sedan, no matter what engine resides under its hood, is my definition of attainable desirability.

  
  

  

  
  11:00 am on December 2, 2011