2007 Audi A4

  Well I've driven a couple Germans so far, and all of them have been very nice and impressive machines. Sadly the European cars are pretty few and far between here in the U.S. That's partly due to the fear that people have that if anything ever happens to them, they'll have to sell a kidney to get it repaired. That being said they do tend to be quite a bit more expensive for parts, and because there are limited shops that will work on them, the labor's pretty steep too. Of course the flip side of that coin is that they are some of the highest quality vehicles available today which means that potentially you'll be visiting the shop less. Anyway, with the limited number of European cars available, I really have to test them while I have the chance. Today I found a 2007 A4 on the lot and decided to try it out.

  I've always admired the styling that the Europeans put into their cars, and this one is no exception. The exterior wasn't too showy, but you could still see that Audi put a lot of thought into the design. The lines were somewhat rounded but still retained some aggressive notes as well. Up front we notice HID headlights in a slightly down turned angle, the only chrome on the grille is the four interlocking circles that make up the Audi emblem. One design feature that I found interesting is that the body panels are all flush mounted to each other giving the whole exterior a very smooth and uniform look. If that last statement made no sense at all, let me explain. Most cars, for example have a protruding bumper, but the Audi does not. All the components of the body blend in seamlessly with each other.
   Stepping into the interior, we find leather and wood greeting us. This is not unexpected, given that we're looking at an entry level luxury/performance car. One thing that I found that I liked over the Japanese and American competitors is that the wood accents used is actual wood, and not plastic wood grain. Other than that, it's pretty straight forward. The sound system is, of course, premium Bose, most everything is power adjustable, and all the standard features you'd expect are there. Like with other German cars, the dash lighting is all a deep orange/red. I took some time to situate myself in the cabin before setting off. I've found that the interior layout of the European cars is a bit different from others.
  Once I was ready to go, I fired up the two liter turbo and set off. As with other Germans that I've driven I immediately found the steering to be pretty heavy, a trait that probably has something to do with sections of autobahn with no speed limits. I found the ride to be particularly comfortable, the seats were nice and plush, and I really liked how the sound system automatically turned the volume up as you sped up. Being a FWD layout I wasn't expecting too much in the way of handling, but it did well, and I soon found myself cruising on the highway. As far as power train performance goes, the engine did have a bit of turbo lag, but the transmission shifted very nicely in Sport mode. I found myself taking a longer route than I usually do with these reviews just because I was enjoying myself so much.
   Usually at this point I try to think of something negative to say about the car, but honestly there wasn't a whole lot to nitpick about. Sure it wasn't the fully loaded model, and as such didn't have navigation, heated seats or AWD, but that's about the only think I can think of that I'd really change. It's a beautiful car, a joy to drive, comfortable and surprisingly practical. This is one that I could see buying for myself. Anyway I hope you enjoyed the experience as much as I did, and I'll see you again tonight here in The Fast Lane.

2012 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X

   Well I made a promise last post to review the current car that I've been drooling over and now that the time comes to start writing I find myself rather nervous. Not so much that I don't know what to write about, but that I won't do this amazing machine proper justice. I've always been a huge car fan, I like the stylish cars, the interesting cars, technology that goes into the driveability, luxuries etc. Mostly though I've always enjoyed getting behind the wheel of a serious driving machine. I've always admired Mitsubishi as a company because they capture most of these traits. Over the years they've made some incredible machines that have changed the whole industry. The Evolution is one of those cars, so iconic and impressive, that I could probably have avoided posting any pictures of it and you'd all know exactly what I was referring to.

   As always I have to start with styling. Being spawned in the world of rally racing, a lot of the Evolution's styling features were not intentional. Loosely based on the Lancer sedan, we find a general body shape from a midsized economy car, but the panels themselves have been altered to accommodate the performance upgrades needed to create a rally racing champion. Up front we find that the body has been lowered and the wheel arches widened to provide aerodynamics with the widened wheels, the same thing happens in the rear with the addition of a diffuser to reduce drag and a spoiler to provide down force. The hood has scoops cut into it that feed cold air directly onto the body of the turbo, a feature that is purely functional but again adds to the overall styling of the car. In short they took a lancer, a good looking economy car to begin with, and made it look absolutely incredible and aggressive.

  The interior is more of the same. Being based on the Lancer it already looked pretty good, but with their functional upgrades it looks and feels amazing. The racing style steering wheel looks very cool and still has space for an airbag, the Recaro brand seats are full buckets with hip and shoulder hugging sides, but they still are comfortable and recline. Everything else is what you'd expect from a Lancer. You have climate control, cruise control, power doors, mirrors and windows, and the one that I drove was equipped with satellite navigation, leather and heated seating surfaces. Let's not forget, however, that this is a driver's car.

   The initial expectation is for a thunderous roar when you start up the engine, but it's actually quite restrained and more of a quiet purr. It's the same feeling as you set off down the low speed limit roads. The ride is smooth, the interior's comfortable, and it drives nicely. As soon as I hit the on ramp, the pedal went straight to the floor and the car immediately transformed. As the twin scroll turbo started hissing I was pressed back into my seat and the engine's RPMs shot up. Being still on the cloverleaf, I was able to get an idea of how sharp the handling was. Accelerating up to highway speeds was a very quick process, and as I settled into a cruise I was amazed to find that the ferocity went back into dormancy and was replaced, again, by the comfortable cruiser. After doing some more handling maneuvers I drove back and found myself lusting after the car all the more than I had before.

   As I said yesterday, this is the current dream car. You may think that there are other cars out there that are much more impressive, powerful and exotic. While that may be true, this is a machine that will hold it's own with a lot of super cars and yet it's a pleasure to drive daily, and it's something that's, not only affordable, but something that you wouldn't be afraid to drive at it's limits, and also doubles as a family sedan when you need it to. I hope you enjoyed this posting, and be sure to join me again tonight for another here in The Fast Lane.

2005 Audi TT-S Quattro

  Today's review was a very interesting one for me. There's an old saying that says: Never meet your heroes. Now I work in the car business and it's inevitable that I'd come across many of my dream cars that I always admired at various stages in life. Today I took the opportunity to review my original dream car. The Audi TT. And not just any TT but their no holds barred S line version. This was the 2005 year's cream of the crop.

  Now bearing in mind the fact that I'd never actually driven the TT until now, let me explain why I drooled over it for hours on end in magazines and Internet sites growing up and why any time I saw one on the street I had to stop and look lustfully at the interior and exterior of this machine. Starting with the exterior it's easy to see why it drew my attention back in the early 2000's. The smooth, rounded lines and the way every body panel, seam and exterior component fits together like one beautiful streamlined jigsaw puzzle. It's not just about the exterior beauty of the car though. As you look at the way every thing's fit together you can tell that it's a serious performance machine. That low stance, the cross drilled brake rotors, the high performance shocks and springs and light weight wheels indicate that it should be very fast and handle very well also. Under the hood we find a turbo charged five valve per cylinder in line four engine attached to a six speed manual transmission feeding the horse power to an all wheel drive system. So far we're still happy with our hero, but the real test is how it feels to drive. Will it really be as good as I always expected it would be?

   Stepping into the interior, I still wasn't disappointed. Every component was functional, but artfully pieced together to create one seamless flow of leather and aluminum beauty and functionality. As with the exterior you can still tell that this is intended to be a performance car with the short throw shifter, the racing styled steering wheel and the hip hugging seats, and yet they give you all the amenities that you'd expect from the German premium auto maker. Aside from the leather and aluminum, there's also a premium audio system by Bose, heated seats, automatic climate control and a very small but usable back seat. As with the exterior these are things I had already been aware of just by reading about it, but now comes the time to find out if it drives as well as I'd hoped.
  The short cruise that I usually take starts out on a low mph road with a couple traffic lights before reaching the on ramp. In town I found that the ride was, as expected a little bit bumpy with little give and body roll from the suspension. It wasn't uncomfortable though and would be something well worth dealing with as soon as I discovered the power and cornering capabilities as I entered onto the on ramp. The stiff suspension that was bumpy before, combined with the quattro all wheel drive enabled the TT to corner like a house fly, while the power combined with the light weight provided plenty of acceleration to put a smile on the face of even the most spoiled and serious driver. On the highway the light weight causes quite a bit of road noise and the still suspension again causes the ride to be bumpy, but overall it was a complete joy to drive, and the interior comforts make even long trips enjoyable.
  Well I finally got to meet my original hero. Was it perfect? Well if I had to nitpick, I'd say that the power could have been a little bit more, the ride could have been a little bit better and the back seat's kinda pointless, but as a whole, I was very impressed and greatly enjoyed the experience. Tomorrow I plan on writing about the current dream car, and you'll definitely want to be sure to join me again here in The Fast Lane.

2004 Jaguar XJR

  So today I figured would be a good idea to get on top of this latest arrival while I still have the chance to test it out. I've always been a big fan of top of the line luxury and performance cars, and today's is both balled into one amazing car. What we're looking at today is the 2004 Jaguar XJR. Some of you might have mixed feelings about the British company, but the fact is that Jaguar has produced some of the most stunning and gorgeous vehicles to ever see the pavement.
  Style has always been on the very top of the priority list for Jaguar, and that becomes evident looking at the exterior of this specimen. The styling, of course, is directly from the 70's, but quite frankly it was gorgeous back then so why change it? It's been slightly tweaked, of course, on the exterior. The lines are smoother and more flowing and rounded than the 70's models and through the wheel spokes, it's evident that it's dripping with modern technology. That being said, you start to notice things like how even though it's a big full size luxury car, it's also relatively low to the ground and how even though it's got a hood ornament of the iconic big cat, it also has performance brakes all the way around. What I'm saying is that even though it's big and classy, it looks like it just might be a sleeper.
   When you step inside though you start to second guess that assumption due to the unbelievable luxury that surrounds you. Every amenity that you can think of is there and then some. Obviously you'd expect leather seating, premium sound system and a sun roof, but what you wouldn't expect is heated seating in the back seats as well as the front, and not only electric seats, windows, doors and mirrors, but also steering wheel and pedal position  as well. As I fired up the engine, I was greeted by the pleasant rumble of a V8, but after a rev or two, I had to take a quick look under the hood. I found myself gaping at a supercharged V8, that I later found out churns out just under 400 horsepower. So it is a sleeper! After messing with the navigation system a little bit, I set off towards the highway immediately impressed by the smooth ride and comfort. The electronically controlled suspension clearly handled cruising well so I decided to put my foot down a little bit entering onto the highway and found that it also cornered very well also. As I accelerated I was pressed back into the leather and the purring V8 suddenly let loose it's big cat roar combined with the classic whine of the supercharger. I was delighted, but as I glanced down at the needle rising higher and higher, eased up on the gas a little bit before I got myself into too much trouble. It was phenomenal cruising at highway speeds, and felt like I was gliding along on a plush, comfy 400 horsepower cloud.


   Thus far I've been able to find something about every car I've driven that I didn't like, but this was a tough one. The styling was timeless and beautiful, the interior had every comfort you could think of, the engine and handling was excellent and even the trunk space was massive. I know it's a first for me, but this one really is flawless. Like I said earlier, some of you may disagree with me about Jags, but if you do ever get the chance be sure and experience one for your selves. Anyway I'll see you all again tomorrow on The Fast Lane.

2004 BMW X5

  I'm back! First off I'd like to apologize for the gap in posts. The good news is that I've had a chance to drive some REALLY rare and interesting cars, so there are good things to come! I'd like to start out this miserable cold autumn with a vehicle that appeals to a lot of people this time of year especially. SUVs, trucks and four wheel drive cars are getting more and more attractive as the ground starts to get rained on and freezing temperatures approach.

  Just so we're clear, the legendary four wheel drive systems that Mitsubishi produces is soon to come, but BMW is a brand that I've always admired. The combination of class, style and quality are rarely found all in one vehicle, but BMW has proved that it is possible. As soon as the chance arose to test their X5 SUV, I jumped at the opportunity. As usual I start by doing a quick walk around and check out the exterior. Up front we find the BMW decided to take their styling from their sedan lineup, a design trait that's becoming more and more popular these days. One thing that you'll notice is that it's rather reserved considering it's category. The styling is there but it's subtle. Moving around to the back you'll find that the ride height is aimed more towards road driving, but still has enough clearance for moderate off road trips. The only disappointing part of the exterior that I found was the back end. In contrast to the front it's big and bulky and none of the styling seems to quite fit. Overall though it's a nice looking SUV and yet isn't too over the top like the Denalis and Escalades and the like.   

        Stepping inside you're greeted by a full leather interior complete with all electric controls and of course memory settings. One thing that I found particularly striking with the interior was the massive glass roof, even more delightful was the fact that it actually opens as a sunroof. To be perfectly honest I was quite pleasantly surprised with the layout of the dash. In past BMWs that I'd driven there wasn't a square inch of dash that didn't have button, switch or knob on it, but this one was very nice and clutter free. Aside from climate control, audio and four wheel drive controls there actually isn't much there. I fired up the engine and turned on the super bright HID headlights. Immediately the dash lit up in orange lights and I was greeted by the premium sound system. After setting up my equalizer and volume I shifted into drive and set off.

     The BMW engines have always been legendary in every way, so the power and responsiveness was impressive, but expected. Steering, as with all BMWs was fairly heavy but responsive. The main thing I was looking for in this one was the suspension though. I wasn't disappointed. The cornering was very good with little body roll for something this big and top heavy, but at the same time the ride was smooth and comfortable as well. Ride height was very nice and well and made me feel much more safe along side highway traffic. Driving through town was a concern for me at first, mainly because I'm used to driving a midsized car, but I found that the turning radius was very good and it negotiated the tight spots very well. I would have liked to do a full test off road as well as city driving, but unfortunately all I had access to was a grassy hill that had just been rained on. Based on the limited testing that I was able to do, I found that the four wheel drive system was very good quality. The wheels never really lost any traction on the slippery grass and the slope descent mode is a helpful feature in a pinch as well.

    Well it's that time again for overall findings. I found the exterior pretty nice. The back end could have stayed on the designers desk a little bit longer but I do like the subtle styling and the functionality of the overall design. The interior had a very nice and open feel to it thanks to that glass roof, and I was pleased to see that BMW finally downsized their button and switch department. Finally I found the performance of the vehicle to be excellent and can't really think of anything to nitpick about that part of the test. Well I plan on continuing every day from now on and you can expect a LOT of really cool and exciting vehicles here in The Fast Lane.