Author: Frank Washington (Page 2 of 2)

First Drive: 2015 Honda CR-V

December 2, 2014 / Frank Washington

Honda called it a major-minor model change. The automaker increased the fuel economy and added another trim line to the 2015 Honda CR-V, but they also improved their best-selling entry level crossover vehicle in 60 other areas.

For 2015, the Honda CR-V has a new grille, new headlights, new front bumper, new skid plate and a tweaked front suspension. The rear end has a new fascia, new license housing and new bumper. It looks wider from the rear and now the crossover can be equipped with 18-inch wheels, in addition to its normal 17-inch rubber.

LED running lights are also available, a power tailgate is now offered and there is an available smart key.

The interior has gone high tech too. It has dual information screens. The center console is configurable, with easily reachable USB ports and the abilityto hold an iPad and large soft drink cups from fast food outlets. The dash has a clean saddle bag look to it as each soft touch layer flows down to a thin wood-like trim that spans across its width.

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First Drive: 2015 Acura TLX

September 28, 2014 / Frank Washington

It has been a long time, more than a decade, since you could put “Acura” and “fun to drive” in the same sentence. But the Japanese automaker unleashed its engineers and let them create a car that is indeed a watershed.

The 2015 Acura TLX replaces the Acura TSX and TL. Neither midsize sedan could be called a rousing success. Worse, the TL grew to be almost as big as Acura’s flagship RL sedan, throwing the automaker’s lineup out of whack.

The premium and luxury car markets used to be mannerly, almost sedate, but not anymore. Though it was the first Asian luxury brand in the U.S. market, Acura got left at the gate by Infiniti and Lexus. Now, Mercedes-Benz and BMW have risen to their challenge, and from Acura’s standpoint, there is a resurgent Audi and a rejuvenated Cadillac too compete with as well.

In short, you’ve got to have a great product to even call yourself a premium or luxury brand these days. It seems that Acura’s head honchos have gotten that message and allowed some of the best engineers around to develop the all new TLX. The midsize luxury sedan’s overall length has been shortened from the old TL, but the wheelbase length remained. That means the back seats of the TLX are spacious, comfortable and can carry two full-sized adults with no problem. But the real story here is under the TLX’s hood.

First, there’s a 2015 Acura TLX with a 2.4-liter four cylinder engine with an eight-speed dual clutch transmission and P-AWS. This engine makes 206 horsepower and 182 pound-feet of torque. There’s also a TLX with a 3.5-liter V6 that makes 290 horsepower and 267 pound-feet of torque. It’s mated to a nine-speed automatic. The model comes with either P-AWS or Acura’s SH-AWD.

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First Drive: 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat

August 8, 2014 / Frank Washington

We came out of Turn 9 into a long arc that seemed more like a straight-away at the Portland International Raceway and hit 105 mph before braking to enter Turn 10. We were driving the 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat; well, we were actually riding with a professional driver to get a feel for what this Dodge Challenger could do in expert hands.

One thing was clear: this 1.9 mile, 12-turn asphalt and concrete road racing track really wasn’t configured for the likes of the 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat. That is the official name for this muscle car, but look for it to be condensed to Hellcat which is a perfect fit for its personality. The car will go on sale in the third quarter.

The Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat has a 6.2-liter supercharged V8 that makes 707 horsepower and 650 pound-feet of torque. It can be mated to a six-speed manual transmission or a bulked-up eight-speed automatic transmission capable of funneling the massive torque that the engine makes to the rear wheels and onto the pavement.

At the track, we had the eight-speed automatic. The gear box didn’t matter, though; the performance of this car rivaled that of some supercars which cost 10 to 20 times more than its $60,990 base price. Some numbers have not been finalized, like the SRT Hellcat’s zero to 60 mph time, but that is expected to be in the low three seconds.

Top speed is 199 mph, the supercharger can pump 30,000 liters of air into the engine in one minute and, wide open, that engine will gulp 1.5 gallons of gasoline every 60 seconds, draining the 19.1 gallon fuel tank in 13 minutes. But driven normally, it’s been reported that the Hellcat could get 20 mpg on the highway, though official EPA numbers had not been released at the time of the test drive.

The Hellcat engine is not simply a bump-up of the last Challenger SRT powerplant. 91 percent of its parts are new. A deep-skirt, cast-iron block with cross-bolted main bearing caps, unique aluminum alloy heads with hemispherical combustion chambers and a screw-type IHI supercharger are at its core.

Dodge has managed to corral the Challenger Hellcat’s power when needed. First, the car will come with a pair of key FOBs – one red, the other black. The red one releases all of the car’s oomph, but the black one will hold output to 500 horsepower.

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First Drive: 2015 Dodge Challenger

August 5, 2014 / Frank Washington

We came to the City of Roses to test drive the 2015 Dodge Challenger. But that was really a misnomer. Yes, we drove the Challenger — well, three of them — but the real news here was brand expansion rooted in horsepower. Dodge wants to reassert its heritage as a mainstream performance brand, and with the 2015 Dodge Challenger, it takes a big step in that direction by offering a product for just about every power niche when the new Challenger goes on sale in the third quarter.

Dodge offers a literal avalanche of variants. When the new Challenger goes on sale in the third quarter, trim lines will include the SXT, SXT Plus, RT and RT Plus, RT Shaker, RT Plus Shaker, Scat Pack and 392 Hemi Scat Pack. The variants are so numerous they rival the powertrains on pickup trucks.

But at the heart of this Dodge Challenger product assault are the engines, and all four of them get no less than 300 horsepower each. This menu of muscle cars is topped by the 707 horsepower 2015 Challenger SRT Hellcat. It is in a class by itself, and we’ll deal with that particular model in greater detail later this week.

Power for the lineup starts with a 3.6-liter V6 that makes 305 horsepower and 268 pound-feet of torque; this is the lone Challenger engine that has only one transmission, an eight-speed automatic. Then there is the 5.7-liter V8 HEMI that makes 372 horsepower and 400 pound-feet of torque, but that output is when it is mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission. With a six-speed manual gearbox, the horsepower is bumped up to 375 with 410 pound-feet of torque. That incremental uptick in power makes a difference to a true enthusiast. This engine has a cylinder shut off system for fuel savings when it is mated to the eight-speed automatic transmission. It has an EPA rating of 16 mpg in city driving and a respectable 25 mpg on the highway.

The 6.4-liter HEMI developed by Dodge’s Street and Racing Technology Team (SRT) was more direct. With an eight-speed automatic or the six manual, this engine made 485 horsepower and 475 pound-feet of torque. We secured a 2015 Dodge Challenger 6.4L HEMI Scat Pack for the drive on historic U.S. 30 to the Crown Point Vista. It is the first purposely built scenic highway in the U.S., and the section we were on cut through the heavy foliage of the Columbia River Gorge. It was a winding, tight-turn, two-lane highway with tree-formed canopies and speed limits of 25 or 30 mph along this section. In other words, it was no place to unloose a car with almost 500 horsepower.

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First Drive: 2015 Hyundai Genesis

June 18, 2014 / Frank Washington

Hyundai stopped just short of calling its redesigned 2015 Genesis a luxury performance sedan. The Korean automaker opted to call the car a midsize premium sedan.

Nonetheless, the automaker said that German luxury brands, as well as Lexus and the newly resurgent Cadillac, are Genesis’ main competitors. In order to really compete with midsize offerings from the automakers, the new sedan has to offer a bunch of comforts and engineering prowess.

First, there’s the look. The 2015 Hyundai Genesis has a single-frame hexagonal grille. In other words, the sedan has a distinct face, low hood and short rump. It looks very athletic.

It also took Hyundai’s fluidic design to the next level, or 2.0 in Hyundai-speak. The lines are flowing, sharp creases are evident from stem to stern, and they end at the trunk with distinctive tail lights and either dual or quad exhausts.

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