Dodge Zeo, Ram

By James Foxall

First official pictures

14 January 2008 19:43

Dodge has got a long way to go if it’s to convince people it’s really concerned about the environment. The car the American firm was really trumpeting at Detroit was a concept muscle car called the Zeo. A lithium ion battery powered lightweight car that will do 0-60mph in 5.7 seconds and has an equivalent power output to 286bhp sounds impressive – until you see it’s only got a range of 250 miles.

With a conventionally fuelled motor, that’s not an issue. But plugging a car in for a lengthy charge half way through a holiday trip might prove a touch tiresome…

Head skimming

Perhaps Dodge knew the strange looking Zeo with its monster 23-inch wheels and head skimming roof didn’t quite stack up because the launch was very low-key for the American firm. Along with offerings from sister firms Jeep and Chrysler, the Dodge was driven onto the stage with none of the usual brio associated with the firm’s launches.

According to design boss Trevor Creed, the concept targets drivers who place less emphasis on practicality. Just as well because with the batteries mounted under the floor, space in the back seats and boot looks limited.

Mooo-ving on

While the Zeo might be a flight of fancy to show the firm is at least considering green issues, the real world car Dodge launched showed scant concern for the environment. Amid a herd of 120 longhorn cattle, transported specially from Oklahoma (consider how much fuel that must have used!), the firm revealed its new Ram pick-up truck.

At 5.7m long and with the smallest model returning just 24mpg from a 3.7-litre engine, the Ram’s success is far from guaranteed. It’s joining a market with sales on the slide in the US, possibly suggesting buyers here are slightly more in touch with their green side than Dodge is.

On the positive side, Dodge announced it would launch a hybrid Ram pick-up in 2010. But we can’t help wondering if anyone will still be buying full-sized trucks in two years’ time. This unveil smacked of desperation.

They say: The Dodge Zeo is designed to break the paradigm of what an electric car should look like
We say: It certainly does that! Shame it’s not really practical in the real world
CAR’s verdict: 1/5

Toyota FT-HS Concept

By Tim Pollard

First official green pictures

03 June 2007 02:33

Toyota FT-HS Concept: the lowdown

Salvation for supercar lovers in the 21st century: Toyota has turned its hand to creating a sports coupe with green credentials - and the futuristic FT-HS Concept mixes green with mean rather well, we think. Don't believe us? Well, how about 0-60mph in four seconds and 400bhp from a 3.5-litre V6 hybrid drivetrain - in a car that runs silently on electric power through town, with nothing more troubling than an electric whirr from the quad tailpipes.

It looks quite odd. What have they done with the styling?

This concept heralds two new design themes: J-Factor and Vibrant Clarity. Apparently, these are a celebration of Japanese design, and the car does have some unusually sharp surface treatments; the nose is dominated by a butch snow-plough spoiler, while the rear is deeply scalloped. From the front, the 'floating' C-pillar wraps over the rear haunches, while the roof bulges to provide more headroom where needed. There's even a folding hard top, turning the FT-HS into a cabrio at the touch of a button. The 3.5-litre V6 hybrid petrol-electric drivetrain might sound familiar from the Lexus RX400h and GS450h, but this time it's been tuned for 400bhp. No economy claims have been published ahead of its debut at next week's Detroit Motor Show, but Toyota claims 'ultra-low emissions and fuel efficiency'.

What's the FT-HS like inside?

This concept car has a 2+2 layout, with small rear seats for occasional use. The cabin has a lean, skeletal look and the engineers have tried to leave much of the car's architecture exposed. Has any concept car of recent years not lavished its drivers with a periodic table's worth of exotic materials? The FT-HS is trimmed with carbonfibre and cool-touch titanium, while the steering has an unusual mono-spoke wheel.

So will they build it?

There is one big stumbling block to building a hybrid supercar: weight. All those batteries and hybrid power packs weigh a lot. The petrol-electric GS is a podgy 245kg more than its petrol counterpart, for instance. Finding a way to make a hybrid coupe handle like a sports car ain't easy. However, if anyone has the engineering nous - not to mention deep pockets required - to make this happen, it's Toyota. Nobody will make an on-the-record promise, but word is that the company is working flat out to be first with a hybrid sports car. It's the best pointer yet to the new Supra for the 21st century.

Mazda Furai concept

By Ben Pulman

First official pictures

09 January 2008 09:37

What should I know about the Furai? Does it go like the wind?

We said no jokes! But yes, the Furai will be quick - and green. Power comes from the same 450bhp triple-rotor rotary engine that Mazda used to campaign the ALMS car in 2005 and 2006. And now it’s been developed to run on pure ethanol.

While such a rotary engine won’t be seen in a roadgoing Mazda any time soon, the company isn’t about to abandon the Renesis motor. Franz von Holzhausen, Mazda North American operations director of design, says the company ‘has no intention of abandoning that valuable asset.’ The dark matt finish of the Furai, with red and orange highlights, is a tribute to the 787B, the only car from a Japanese manufacturer to win the Le Mans 24hrs (it too was rotary powered).

Racecar heart, eco blood

The ethanol-powered engine is a move designed to mirror the adoption of renewable fuels in race series around the world, while the switch of the Courage chassis to a closed cockpit is another forward-looking move. Both ALMS and the Le Mans 24hrs regulations are changing to promote such a design, as seen by the Peugeot 908 HDi FAP racer.

The interior of the Furai is a little less extreme than the outside, though it’s still very business-like with few creature comforts.

from:http://www.carmagazine.co.uk

2008 Dodge Viper SRT10

2008 Dodge Viper SRT10 - Auto Shows
Oh brother. The Viper now makes 600 horsepower, so it looks like we’ll have to do another comparo with the Z06.
BY JARED GALL, PHOTOGRAPHY BY JEFFREY G. RUSSELL	December 2006
Now that a Chevy Corvette Z06 comes with 505 hp, where’s the Viper’s cachet? Looks alone can’t sell a car in a segment where speed matters this much. Dodge is fighting back now, and throwing a hell of a haymaker. How does 600 horsepower grab you? Kind of like an Andre the Giant bear-hug, that’s how. We expect to see 0-60 times sneak a little deeper into the mid-threes (the last Viper we tested did the deed in 3.8 seconds), with the quarter-mile dropping consistently in under twelve seconds, whereas past Vipers have all danced around the low twelve-second range. Dodge achieves this nearly 20-percent increase in power by cramming about 20 percent more air into the engine through an enlarged intake nostril at the leading edge of the hood that feeds new dual throttle bodies. On the exhaust side, variable valve timing helps to expel more hot air. Lest anyone think that VVT on the Viper is diluting the nature of the beast, there’s also a slight displacement increase to 8.4 liters, so that the Viper’s V-10 remains the undisputed king of the primal American “bigger is better” sledgehammer approach to power. But, as the Spiderman himself, Peter Parker, learned from Uncle Ben, with great power comes great responsibility. Responsibility not to grenade your transmission; responsibility not to wad yourself up against a utility pole or an oncoming Freightliner. The extra power is funneled through a new dual-disc clutch that Dodge says offers an 18-percent reduction in rotational inertia, and hopefully lower clutch-pedal effort to go with it. The transmission is upgraded as well, with stronger gears and upgraded synchros to improve shift quality. And there’s a new, quicker-acting limited-slip differential to better put down the snake's power. But it doesn’t really matter; the Viper will still be delightfully brutal with all that delicious, face-melting power. To keep the Viper’s long hood from melting as well, what with 8.4 liters and 600 horsepower lurking below, Dodge has gouged six gaping cooling vents into it. That hood, along with five new colors—including a wild lime green—and three wheel choices wrapped in Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 rubber, are the only other changes accompanying the 90-hp boost. Now, what about all those Blue Devil rumors, Chevy?

Jaguar XF SV8 driven

How much?	£54,900
On sale in the UK:	March 2008
Engine:	4196cc 32v supercharged V8, 416bhp @ 6500rpm, 413lb ft @ 3500rpm
Transmission:	Six-speed automatic, rear-wheel drive
Performance:	5.4sec 0-62mph, 155mph, 22.4mpg, 299g/km CO2
How heavy / made of?	1842kg/steel
How big (length/width/height in mm)?	4961/1877/1460

Today we reveal our first driving impressions of Jaguar’s replacement for the S-type and its answer to BMW’s big selling 5-series. Roomier, better built and better equipped than before it also showcases a new design language for Jaguar’s saloons. And click here to see the Jaguar XF in action with CAR road test editor Chris Chilton behind the wheel.

So Jaguar finally binned retro design?

Not quite, they just got a lot smarter about incorporating it into a modern design language. The old Jag cues are still there if you look: the grille inspired by the groundbreaking ’68 XJ, the traditional fluting above the headlamps, the Mk2-esque line of the chrome trim above the side window line and the phallic E-type bonnet bulge. But yes, this is a very modern-looking car. There’s a whiff of Lexus about the shape, but the XF is far better looking and more coupe-like than any saloon bar the Mercedes CLS.

I’m still not sure...

Trust us, it looks great in the metal where a three-quarter view of the Aston-like rear end is the strongest angle. That it does resemble an Aston is little surprise given Jag’s design boss is Ian Callum, the man who shaped Aston’s current design language in a previous life. It looks muscular no matter which engine is under the bonnet, but suits bigger wheels (can anyone remember a car from the last 10 years that didn’t?).

It’s aluminium of course, like the XJ and XK?

Wrong. Cost and the fact that Jag needed to get the car to market quickly means the XF is made from steel, although the suspension, which is shared with the XK, is aluminium. Weight is up fractionally, but not enough to warrant any big changes in the engine line-up just yet.

About those engines then...

There are four of them – for now, all carried over from the S-type. The ultra-refined 2.7 diesel pumps out 207bhp and 320lb ft and will account for 70 percent of UK sales. With a 0-62mph time of 8.3sec it’s fractionally faster than the 240bhp petrol V6 that will be the focus for another 25 per cent of customers. And with a combined mpg figure of 37.6mpg versus 26.8mpg for the petrol, there’s no contest.

So you drove the diesel then?

No. The press launch proper takes place in Europe in February but we grabbed an early drive by travelling to Arizona, although that meant only the two V8 engines were available to try. There’s a naturally aspirated 4.2 V8 with 298bhp and a supercharged version of the same engine that offers 410bhp. The latter is effectively the drivetrain from the old S-type R, although here it’s called SV8 to make it clear that something hotter is on the way. That something is likely to have close to 500bhp and an electronic rear differential to tame it.

But 410bhp isn’t shabby.

Too right, and it makes the SV8 something of a Q-car because only the 20-inch wheels really differentiate it from the naturally aspirated V8. It’s automatic of course, as are all XFs, the S-type’s little bought manual alternative having been dropped along with the 2.5 petrol V6. And this engine has that distinctive supercharger whine, but it’s far from intrusive so the performance can be deceptive. The SV8 will actually hit 62mph in just 5.4sec and has to be electronically limited to 155mph, but it’s so subtle in the way it gets there that it doesn’t feel anything like a factory hot rod. Personally we prefer the purer V8 soundtrack of the slower naturally aspirated car. But the addition of gearshift paddles across the range is welcome, the lack of manual control was one of the S-type’s few let downs for keen drivers.

What about Jag’s traditionally fine dynamics?

Mercifully intact. The XF still glides over bumps that cause havoc for its rivals and even made a decent fist of masking the horrible joints in US roads. It’s even quieter than the competition when fitted with larger wheels according to Jaguar, a claim we can believe. But this is no Lexus LS; when the road gets more interesting, so does the XF. Like the engine, the chassis is deceptively good, it never shouts about its abilities, but it’s still fun to drive with well-weighted power steering that turns the car in neatly, and huge reserves of grip. It’s an impressively balanced machine for its size, far more nimble than much smaller cars, just like the later versions of the S-type before it.

All but the SV8 come on standard steel springs with regular non-switchable dampers. But the SV8 gets Jag’s CATS electronically adjustable dampers that further tighten up the body control without ruining the ride when you press the button marked with the chequered flag behind the gear selector. This also sharpens up the throttle response and switches the stability control to Track mode allowing more lateral movement before intervening, although not enough to really play hooligan. If you want to do that you can switch the whole lot off and slide this near two-tonne machine around like an MX-5 despite the open differential, although we can’t imagine many owners indulging.

and more in http://www.carmagazine.co.uk

Mercedes C180 SE

How much?	£22,937
On sale in the UK:	Now
Engine:	1796cc 16v supercharged 4-cyl, 154bhp @ 5200rpm, 170lb ft @ 2800-4600rpm
Transmission:	Six-speed manual, rear-wheel drive
Performance:	9.5sec 0-62mph, 138mph, 40.9mpg, 180g/km CO2
How heavy / made of?	1485kg/steel
How big (length/width/height in mm)?	4581/1770/1447

Four cylinders? A manual gearbox? Not traditionally attractive territory for a Mercedes, especially if you’re talking petrol rather than diesel. But Mercedes hopes you’ll go for this car rather than BMW’s 318i ES, and pay a couple of grand more for the extra 12bhp and 14lb ft afforded by the Merc’s supercharged engine.

Taxi spec doesn’t do it for me...

Times have changed. The base-model Merc is no longer poverty-stricken. Of course, you’ll pay extra if you trawl the options list for sat-nav, leather seats, park assist and so on, but the SE runs on attractive alloys, wears pleasing cloth on its seats, plays your CDs, controls your cabin climate and even tempers your over-exertions in corners.

And over-exert you may, because 154bhp is enough to make the baby C-class feel brisk. And there’s just enough feedback through the controls to make exploiting it all worthwhile.

You’re telling me this is a sports saloon?

Don’t get carried away. It’s the bottom rung of a tall C-class ladder, but 138mph isn’t to be sniffed at, and the 62mph sprint of 9.5sec doesn’t really convey the breadth of punch this engine offers.

A bit like a modern diesel, the supercharged four delivers its grunt from low-down, but it holds the charge as far as its 5200rpm power peak. You’re better off changing up at that point, rather than wringing it all the way to the red-line – this is a hard-working powerplant rather than an inspirational one. It’s quite gruff and tuneless, but its sheer pull is endearing and the note is muted so long as you avoid the tacho’s upper reaches.

You’ll be telling me it handles, next

It does. Don’t go expecting Caterham-sharp steering but rest assured that you can thread this C-class along a twisting B-road with great poise. A 3-series is more involving, but the C180 shields you better from imperfections in the road surface and somehow invites a slightly less frenetic driving style.

The ride is chunky at low speeds but becomes smoother as you gather speed, and the C cruises with unruffled stability, carving quietly through the air while the tall sixth gear keeps the engine twisting unobtrusively.

Even the gearshift plays ball, slotting deftly from ratio to ratio without the unnecessary heft of a BMW ’box.

Surely there’s a downside…

Well, yes, kind of. This is one of those cars that takes time to sink its claws into your affections. The reasons? It looks a bit stand-offish with that imperious grille, though SE-spec means less chrome around the windows and that makes it look sleeker. And traditionalists will probably prefer the old three-pointed star to the Sport version’s three-bar grille.

It’s a similar story inside too. The doors don’t shut with quite the measured thunk of an Audi, and it’s a bit of a penny-pinching move to delete the rear door pockets that upscale C-classes benefit from. Worse from a cosmetic point of view are the plastic surfaces that major on solidity rather than tactility and look cheaper than they probably deserve.

Yet all that kind of suits the C180’s unpretentious appeal. It’s obviously well-built, totally rattle-free on any surface, and the broad wheel, flat seat and straight-legged driving position give it some trad-Merc gravitas.

Verdict

Merc won’t thank me for saying this, but I reckon the 180 SE’s a bit of a sweet spot in the C-class range. Yes, the six-cylinder cars are smooth but they’re also pretty vocal if you cane them. And, C350 apart, they don’t feel that quick.

Many would suggest the C220D is the perfect compromise between price, running costs and performance, but that four-cylinder diesel motor sounds and feels a touch too tingly at this rarefied level of the market.

And that leaves the lowly C180: well-made, well-equipped, decently spacious, unpretentious, entertaining, comfortable. Taking residuals into account, it represents a more sensible private buy than an upscale Mondeo. A good-value Merc, and an enjoyable one at that. Whatever next?

By: Glen Waddington
From:http://www.carmagazine.co.uk

Honda Accord Sport GT

Honda Accord Sport GT

How much?	£20,767
On sale in the UK:	Now
Engine:	2204cc turbodiesel 4-cyl, 138bhp @ 4000rpm, 251lb ft @ 2000rpm
Transmission:	Six-speed manual, front-wheel drive
Performance:	9.3sec 0-62mph, 132mph, 50.4mpg, 148g/km CO2
How heavy / made of?	1477kg/steel
How big (length/width/height in mm)?	4665/1760/1445

The Accord. Been around a while now, hasn’t it?

Yep, that’s right. The seventh generation Honda Accord has been around since 2003, and it’s been popular all that time thanks to its sharp looks, precise build quality and a range that includes a diesel and an estate. There’s little that’s radically new about the Sport GT. It’s aimed directly at the fleet market and combines some of the equipment and trim of luxury versions with sports suspension and Honda’s 2.2-litre CDTi turbodiesel. Cosmetic tweaks extend to dark chrome door handles and front grille, attractively menacing graphite-coloured 17-inch alloys, a bootlid spoiler and smoked headlamps. There’s also an exclusive (optional) White Pearl paint finish. All of which means the Sport GT looks pretty slick, rather as an S-Line Audi looks sportier than the standard model without making promises it can’t keep. And, in spite of its age – the Accord is old by Japanese life-cycle standards – the Honda’s basic outline is still fresh and contemporary.

I take it the inside story is more of the same ?

The ‘sports’ theme is taken care of with some carbon-effect panelling on the dash, centre console and door trim. The big story is more to do with the equipment level, which includes a voice-activated sat-nav system, Bluetooth telephone connectivity, premium audio with an in-dash six-CD changer, plus cruise and climate control. That’s a decent tally for a largish 20-grand saloon. Think BMW 320d and you’d be looking at the thick end of £10k more to match it.

Does the Accord Sport GT live up to the name?

That depends on your expectations. Honda makes a VTEC-powered Type S for those who seek revvy thrills. The Sport GT is equipped with a refined, languid, torquey and long-legged diesel powertrain. Combine that easy thrust with the poise and balance afforded by the tuned suspension, and GT is definitely along the right lines. There isn’t a huge amount of steering feedback, and the suspension is still on the soft side, but it feels like a stable platform from which to work, it’s quite supple and smooth, and it can actually entertain on twisting roads. Unfortunately, that suppleness gives way to an omnipresent rumble through the seat on coarse motorway surfaces. While you’re cruising you might also notice flawed dashboard ergonomics (the screen-based air-con controls confuse the most), some plastic mouldings that feel solidly hewn yet cheaply finished, and speakers that aren’t up to the task of transmitting all the stereo can pump through them.

Verdict

The Accord is something of an unsung hero, and the Sport GT makes the most of its many virtues. The price, spec and carbon emissions make a lot of sense for fleet managers. It looks good. It’s an enjoyable drive. In terms of interior space it’s trounced by the Volkswagen Passat and the Ford Mondeo – and the big Ford pips it on driving fun too. But the Honda is more exclusive, it’s refined, distinctive and well-equipped too. If it cropped up on my user-chooser list, I’d be tempted.

By: Glen Waddington
From:http://www.carmagazine.co.uk