Indholdsfortegnelse for February/March 2022 i Car and Driver

USE A COASTER I scanned through your supersedans test and see that you picked the Caddy over the Bimmer and Audi [“Ticket to Ride,” November 2021]. Are you going to do a 40,000-mile test on any of these cars? I would be very curious to see the costs of maintenance and repairs for the Blackwing. My scientific wild-ass guess is that it won’t stand up to hard driving over time. Just a guess. —Terry SottLitchfield Park, AZ We are looking to add a CT5-V Blackwing to our long-term fleet very soon—Ed. How much did BMW pay you for the M5 Competition to come in third? —Philip BrewerMill Valley, CA HORACIO’S MILLIONS I like how you felt the need to include the “.0” to tell us the price of the “$4.0…

When asked about VIR, Paul Newman mused, “If there is a heaven on Earth, it’s VIR.” It opened in August 1957 in the heart of the stock-car-racing belt, and Carroll Shelby won the track’s first race in a Maserati 450S. Although VIR attracted plenty of racers, the spectators necessary to keep the track afloat never showed up. The road course remained open until October 1974, when the track closed and the property reverted to farmland. Rebuilt and reopened by its current owners in 2000, VIR is now host to the Michelin GT Challenge at VIR and Fanatec GT World Challenge America. This year it will be the site of the SCCA runoffs. We return annually to pay our respect to the grandeur of the Grand Course.…

BASE PRICE: $54,945 • AS-TESTED PRICE: $55,445 355 hp • 4202 lb • 11.8 lb/hp TIRES: Pirelli P Zero PZ4, 255/35ZR-20 97Y The TLX starts off strong, hanging on for 1.00 g through Turn 1. But it works its Pirelli P Zero PZ4 tires so hard that they have only one strong lap in them before getting hot and greasy. A fast lap in the TLX involves managing turn-in understeer—not surprising for a nose-heavy sedan. The solution is getting back on the power early, as the torque-vectoring all-wheel-drive system helps rotate the TLX through the corner. Dubbed SH-AWD, it’s dialed in for racetrack duty. Step into the accelerator while cornering, and the car pivots productively but doesn’t aggressively oversteer like some Audis, which had a similar system. The brake-by-wire setup…

BASE PRICE: $49,545 • AS-TESTED PRICE: $57,120 382 hp • 3851 lb • 10.1 lb/hp TIRES: Pirelli P Zero PZ4 Run Flat, F: 225/40R-19 93Y ★ R: 255/35R-19 96Y ★ The M240i didn’t really get a fair shot this year. Like every other BMW present, the all-new 2 arrived without extra tires. To avoid prematurely wearing out the rubber, we sent it around the track in anger only four times in two days. The quickest lap came on the third session, and the by-then scrubbed-up tires contributed to a startling amount of turn-in oversteer that robbed some time. Still, this larger and substantially heavier M240i runs a major 5.0 seconds quicker than the previous-gen model. It’s faster everywhere, thanks in part to its 382-hp turbocharged inline-six from the 3-series. The…

BASE PRICE: $45,010 • AS-TESTED PRICE: $45,010 306 hp • 3084 lb • 10.1 lb/hp TIRES: Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2, 245/30ZR-20 (90Y) RO1 We anticipated that the Type R Limited Edition would take back the front-drive lap record from last year’s Mini GP by shedding a few pounds and swapping to Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 track rubber. But it delivered a 3.1-second spanking on the Mini, going 3.2 seconds quicker than the previous Type R. That this hottest Civic is approaching a sub-three-minute lap demonstrates the outrageous gains we’ve wit-nessed at Lightning Lap. This Type R not only destroys every other hot hatch but plenty of past Corvettes, M cars, and Porsches too. It ties the quickest car at our first-ever event, a 2006 Ford GT [see “Parade…

BASE PRICE: $280,225 AS-TESTED PRICE: $343,890 650 hp • 5050 lb • 7.8 lb/hp TIRES: Pirelli P Zero PZ4, F: 275/35ZR-22 (104Y) B R: 315/30ZR-22 (107Y) B Bentley’s most powerful Continental GT may share its platform with the Porsche Panamera, but when you’re sawing at its wheel, wringing out the mighty W-12, and ensconced in the rich leather and brushed-aluminum cabin, the experience couldn’t be more different. On the front straight, near the start/finish line, there’s a slight dip in the asphalt that goes undetected in many cars, including Porsche’s four-door. Even with the dampers in their firmest setting, the Flying B displays its softer side as its 5050 pounds list over the undulation at more than 150 mph. Keeping that speed in check are 17.3-inch carbon-ceramic front rotors squeezed…

BASE PRICE: $89,845 • AS-TESTED PRICE: $104,595 503 hp • 3917 lb • 7.8 lb/hp TIRES: Michelin Pilot Sport 4S, F: 275/35ZR-19 (100Y) ★ R: 285/30ZR-20 (99Y) ★ The BMW M3 Competition takes the win over the Cadillac CT4-V Blackwing primarily because it can stay with the Cadillac in the lower-speed technical parts of the track and flex its 31-hp advantage on the straights and in the straight sections that lead to the Climbing Esses. We also found the BMW’s all-wheel-drive system to be an advantage. Driving all four tires allows you to stoke the six’s 503-hp flame sooner than would be possible in the rear-drive Cadillac. Going into the Climbing Esses, the M3 arrives doing 134.1 mph (6.4 mph faster than the 4 Blackwing), creating a 0.1-second lead in…

After a conversation with Cadillac engineers about how much they use VIR, we were curious about how many laps our most experienced drivers have logged. So we counted 15 years of data. Tony Quiroga and K.C. Colwell have been at this the longest, each driving in 12 events, and Quiroga wins with 1689 recorded laps. This doesn’t include sessions lost to data gremlins, laps without recording equipment, or other times we’ve visited our Virginia playground. Quiroga has very likely lapped VIR’s Grand Course more than 2000 times, making him king of our ring.…

BASE PRICE: $181,344 • AS-TESTED PRICE: $192,054 620 hp • 4714 lb • 7.6 lb/hp TIRES: Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2, F: 275/35ZR-21 (103Y) ND0 R: 325/30ZR-21 (108Y) ND0 Like the Hulk, the Porsche Panamera Turbo S’s Mamba Green hue hints at the rage beneath. But unlike Hulk, the Panamera gets better the angrier you make it. Put it into the curbs, stomp on the brakes at over 150 mph, throw it into corners as hard as you dare, and instead of wreaking havoc, it’ll simply drive away with the four-door lap record. The time is a bit unexpected, because at 4714 pounds, the Turbo S is 86 pounds heavier than the former record holder, the Mercedes-AMG GT63 S. Porsche’s 620-hp twin-turbo 4.0-liter V-8 is also down 10 horses to…

IN 1982, MY PARENTS REPLACED their rear-drive Buick Regal with a four-wheel-drive Subaru GL wagon, a car that revolutionized Maine winter driving for the Dyer household. No more begging for ashes from a neighbor’s wood stove to throw under the tires—just pull the stubby lever to the left of the shifter and you’re on your way. The GL’s deep-snow acumen implied all-terrain invincibility. And as soon as spring arrived, my father took the wagon out on some nearby trails and got it righteously stuck, high centered on a log lying across the path. That day Dad learned that when it comes to off-roading, a four-wheel-drive car is still a car. Despite ads glorifying river crossings and dusty dirt roads, I don’t recall early-1980s Subaru promising any real trail capability for…

For the Mercedes SL, the arrival of the AMG GT roadster created a problem. Even in Mercedes-Benz’s vast lineup, having a pair of six-figure roadsters isn’t a great idea, especially when one was gorgeous and the other wasn’t. The homely SL’s sales skidded to about a tenth of their peak in the ’90s. To stop the slide and save the SL, Mercedes needed to make sense of its roadster lineup. The discontinuation of the AMG GT leaves the SL with the task of reestablishing itself as Benz’s sports car. That job fell to the AMG performance division, and as a result, all SLs now get AMG engines and badges. To fool insurance adjusters and to increase practicality, the SL sprouts a couple of tiny rear seats. Made possible largely by…

Get caught running a stop sign in California (which isn’t a thing you would do, but work with us on this) and you’ll get a $35 ticket. But that’s not what you’ll end up paying. A state penalty assessment adds $10 for every $10 of the base fine and rounds up, so tack on $40 for that. Then there’s a county penalty assessment ($7 for every $10) punching it up another $28. A court-construction penalty assessment is good for $20 more. The Proposition 69 DNA penalty assessment might not seem like much ($4), but coupled with the DNA Identification Fund penalty assessment ($16), there’s yet another $20. In total, 11 fees are added to the original $35 ticket, pushing it to $238. The math happens again and again, regardless of…

BASE PRICE: $58,525 AS-TESTED PRICE: $63,620 472 hp • 3958 lb • 8.4 lb/hp TIRES: Bridgestone Potenza S001L, F: 235/40R-19 92Y R: 265/35R-19 94Y Our initial test of the IS500 exposed a flaw. After six stops from 70 mph and three from 100, the brake pedal felt like we’d stepped into mashed potatoes. VIR is even harder on brakes, leading us to wonder: At what point will the brakes fade? Going into Oak Tree? On the back straight, where the IS hits 135.8 mph? And then Lexus informed us of a change: “We’ve installed prototype front pads that will be sold as an accessory.” Brakes are important when there’s a 472-hp 5.0-liter V-8 that can call up 142.2 mph on the front straight. Concerned about the brakes, we eased into…

BASE PRICE: $81,395 • AS-TESTED PRICE: $86,145 503 hp • 4548 lb • 9.0 lb/hp • TIRES: Michelin Pilot Sport 4S, F: 255/40ZR-21 (102Y) ★ R: 265/40ZR-21 (105Y) ★ The aptly named Roller Coaster consists of a 130-foot drop into one of the last corners before the front straight. Smashing over the final chunk of curbing on the left before dipping into the right-hander Hog Pen is usually routine business, but in BMW’s roided-out tilt-a-whirl, it’s a moment of weightlessness. Siri, play Sinatra’s “Come Fly with Me.” Like all the BMWs this year, the X4M had only the tires it showed up with, so we didn’t have the luxury of laps to sort out the (ahem) quirks that present themselves at speed. It didn’t take us long to realize that…

“THE CIVIC TYPE R LIMITED EDITION FEELS AND ACTS LIKE A PURPOSE-BUILT TRACK CAR. IT’S THE RARE PRODUCTION CAR THAT DOESN’T WALLOW AND QUICKLY FADE WHEN GIVING ITS ALL.”—Dave VanderWerp In 2006, at our first Lightning Lap outing, no car broke the three-minute threshold; this year nearly half the field did. The Honda Civic Type R Limited Edition illustrates that steady improvement in lap times over the years—it matched the lap time of the quickest car from the inaugural year, the 550-hp mid-engine Ford GT. So how is it that a front-drive hot hatch—one with 58 percent more weight saddling each horse-power—that you can buy for one-fifth of the GT’s inflation-adjusted price can hang with a mid-2000s supercar? A lot of it comes down to tires. The Ford’s Goodyear Eagle…

BASE PRICE: $67,515 • AS-TESTED PRICE: $78,985 472 hp • 3902 lb • 8.3 lb/hp TIRES: Michelin Pilot Sport 4S, F: 255/35ZR-18 (94Y) TPC R: 275/35ZR-18 (99Y) TPC They say that when you summit a mountain, the journey is only halfway over. Reach the crest of the Climbing Esses and what follows is a blind left-hander with existential repercussions. Overdo it by a mere 0.1 mph and a very bad ending becomes a very real possibility. After we went in a little hot and missed the turn-in point, the CT4-V Blackwing went into a lurid slide down the hill that ended in the grass, where a beefy right-front suspension member folded like a taco. The damage was more than the Cadillac engineers on site could rectify. So a call was…

BASE PRICE: $184,614 • AS-TESTED PRICE: $201,134 631 hp • 4945 lb • 7.8 lb/hp TIRES: Pirelli P Zero Corsa PZC4, F: 285/35ZR-22 (106Y) N0 R: 315/30ZR-22 (107Y) N0 Here’s step one in the Cayenne Turbo GT’s recipe for beating the Lamborghini Urus’s SUV record: Bake four Pirelli P Zero Corsa PZC4 tires at 180 degrees for two hours. According to Porsche, heat-cycling them in this manner makes them more durable on track. The Cayenne looks like an SUV, but given the way it rips up the Climbing Esses at an average speed of 124.3 mph—faster than the M5 CS—and its 1.08 g’s of grip in Turn 1, it sure doesn’t act like any ute we know. Lowered and stiffened, the Turbo GT Coupe gets its power to the ground…

BASE PRICE: $143,995 • AS-TESTED PRICE: $148,995 627 hp • 4116 lb • 6.6 lb/hp TIRES: Pirelli P Zero Corsa PZC4, F: 275/35ZR-20 (102Y) ★ R: 285/35ZR-20 (104Y) ★ Without so much as a press release or other announcement, BMW apparently decided it would like the Lightning Lap four-door record back and rolled out a lighter M5 CS. BMW briefly held the record, but then in 2019 was eclipsed by the Mercedes-AMG GT63 S with a 2:49.3 run. We’ve lapped the current-gen M5 a couple of times. The standard 600-hp model and the 617-hp Competition managed 2:55.2 and 2:54.0, respectively. The CS gains 10 horsepower, sheds 125 pounds, adds a revised adaptive suspension, and fits Pirelli P Zero Corsa PZC4 track rubber that took grip in Turn 1 from 1.01…

BASE PRICE: $181,062 AS-TESTED PRICE: $188,862 502 hp • 3229 lb • 6.4 lb/hp TIRES: Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 R, F: 255/35ZR-20 (97Y) N0 R: 315/30ZR-21 (105Y) N0 It is easy to characterize this 9000-rpm 4.0-liter flat-six as an automotive masterpiece. And while it’s true that this engine is just about the best out there, when the GT3 is placed on a road course, it’s the chassis that makes the car worthy of hyperbolic praise. Every primary control in the GT3 provides the right feedback. All parts seem cinched tightly together and tuned to provide only good vibes. You can feel the car’s pulse through the steering wheel and single-piece seat. Calling it an extension of your body could not be more clichéd, or more true. In typical Porsche…

Cool truck, bro. Is that the Cybertruck?” asked a curious holiday shopper. We were on our first nighttime excursion in the Rivian R1T. Its unique light signature gives it away as something different in the pickup-rich environment of southeast Michigan. It’s possible the shopper had a sense of humor and was riffing off comments from former Rivian executive Laura Schwab, who skewered Rivian for having a “toxic bro culture” and filed a gender-discrimination lawsuit against the marque days before the company went public. Well, as the opening stock price attests, Rivian is indeed a tech-bro fave. Three days after the IPO, the 12-year-old company’s value surpassed $120 billion. At press time, its value had dropped to $71 billion. Whatever the company’s value, it turns out that Rivian makes one hell…

Hyundai’s Ioniq 5 is yet another five-passenger electric SUV with decent range. What sets it apart is its distinctly creased design that appears to have been done on a 16-bit computer. Larger than it looks in photos, the Ioniq 5 has an aggressive stance derived from an uncommonly long 118.1-inch wheelbase, stubby overhangs, and wheels that sit nearly flush with the bodywork. While a rear-drive version with a 225-hp motor is available, we tested the dual-motor, all-wheel-drive configuration, which is good for 320 horses. Both have the same battery with an estimated usable capacity of 70.0 kilowatt-hours (in the spring, a lower-priced 168-hp model with a lesser battery and shorter range will follow). The rear-driver delivers healthy EPA estimates of 303 miles of range and 114 MPGe combined. Our all-wheel-drive…

Constant updates kept the outgoing Grand Cherokee looking far younger than its years, but its 2011 debut was quite a long time ago. Now on the heels of the three-row Grand Cherokee L comes a new two-row Grand Cherokee. Slightly longer and wider than before, the two-row version is still nearly a foot shorter than the “L is for long” model. The result is a subtle swelling that still says Grand Cherokee. Despite the growth, Jeep says the new version has shed some 250 pounds. The unibody structure now contains more high-strength steel, there’s more aluminum in the suspension, and the liftgate is made from a combination of aluminum and composite materials. The 293-hp 3.6-liter V-6 and optional 357-hp 5.7-liter V-8 return, again working with an eight-speed automatic. Those powertrains…

BASE PRICE: $31,455 • AS-TESTED PRICE: $31,455 228 hp • 2842 lb • 12.5 lb/hp TIRES: Michelin Pilot Sport 4, 215/40R-18 85Y The playful character that makes the BRZ such fun to drive on the street—its quick-witted responses and willingness to slide its tail—is every bit as present at VIR. It’s a heart-racing blast that slip-slides through corners, even if it posts the slowest lap time of the year. Compared with the 2018 BRZ tS at Lightning Lap 12, this second-gen Limited model has a significantly stiffer suspension and structure and a new 2.4-liter flat-four with 23 more horsepower and 28 more pound-feet of torque. It runs on the same 215/40R-18 Michelin Pilot Sport 4 tires. But it lacks the tS’s firm Sachs dampers, big rear wing, and stout Brembo…

BASE PRICE: $31,325 • AS-TESTED PRICE: $31,750 228 hp • 2833 lb • 12.4 lb/hp TIRES: Michelin Pilot Sport 4, 215/40R-18 85Y The Toyota GR86 and Subaru BRZ are the automotive equivalent of identical twins separated at birth. It’s the age-old question of nature versus nurture—they start with the same mechanical DNA, but how did each parent influence their progeny’s development? The GR86 has firmer suspension tuning and a stiffer rear anti-roll bar, which makes it more willing to hang its tail out on the street. But on the track, we couldn’t tell the difference between it and the BRZ; they exhibit the exact same behavior. Same sharp steering. Same nimbleness. Same tendency to engage in sexy opposite-lock tail slides. But not the same lap time. The GR86 is 0.6…

BASE PRICE: $123,695 • AS-TESTED PRICE: $138,340 591 hp • 5489 lb • 9.3 lb/hp TIRES: Continental SportContact 6, 295/35ZR-23 (108Y) AO No one gets excited about SUVs at Lightning Lap. They’re too heavy, too tall, too big, too powerful for their own good. But there is real joy in seeing an elephant run free and then try to stop, probably. On the back of a 591-hp version of the same twin-turbo 4.0-liter V-8 found in the Porsche Cayenne and Lamborghini Urus, Audi’s 5489-pound RS Q8, the heaviest vehicle we’ve ever lapped, charged its way up to 144.1 mph on the front straight. Admittedly, it is exciting to reel in the energy of an RS Q8 barreling toward Turn 1. The 17.3-inch carbon-ceramic rotors clamped by 10-piston calipers are the…

BASE PRICE: $115,095 • AS-TESTED PRICE: $126,295 617 hp • 5338 lb • 8.7 lb/hp TIRES: Michelin Pilot Sport 4S, F: 295/35ZR-21 (107Y) ★ R: 315/30ZR-22 (107Y) ★ BMW used to tout its even front-to-rear weight distribution as one of the magical elements that made its cars handle so well. Jump from the Audi RS Q8 into the X5 M, and you’ll be a true believer. The X5 M carries 50.6 percent of its 5338 pounds in front, whereas 56.4 percent of the RS Q8’s 5489 pounds sits on the front tires. Instead of steady understeer, the X5 M is playful and works all its tires hard, not just the fronts. The X5 seemingly pivots around an axis in the middle of the car. Depending on where your feet shift…

Here’s what I learned as a first-time driver at Lightning Lap: It’s not nearly as easy as our team of editor-drivers makes it look. Oh, it’s fun, but K.C. Colwell warned that it’s also stressful. Stressful? I have thousands of miles of track experience—how nerve-racking could it be? The pile of worry begins with the clock, and it’s not just lap times. Time management is critical to getting great lap times. Learning the 4.1-mile, 24-turn VIR circuit—particularly the blindingly quick four-corner squiggle that is the Climbing Esses—takes days. Chasing fractions of a second in each of the four or five very different cars you’re assigned eats hours. Most production cars will tolerate one fast lap before needing a cool-down, so every session has only a few real hot laps. Hardware…

BASE PRICE: $60,245 • AS-TESTED PRICE: $60,740 480 hp • 3811 lb • 7.9 lb/hp TIRES: Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2, F: 305/30ZR-19 (98Y) R: 315/30ZR-19 (100Y) The Ford Mustang Mach 1 didn’t happen overnight. It’s the culmination of years of development to the sixth-gen Stang bundled into a single package. The 2019 Shelby GT350R donates its camber plates. With the front wheels canted like the head of a curious dog, the Mach 1 enjoys precise turn-in and averages a 1.13-g ride through Turn 1. The 480-hp 5.0-liter V-8 comes from the retired Mustang Bullitt. It’s down 46 ponies to the GT350R, and that deficit shows up on long straights. Leading into the Climbing Esses, the Mach 1 is 3.4 mph slower than the GT350R, but aerodynamic and chassis bits…

BASE PRICE: $327,050 • AS-TESTED PRICE: $340,820 720 hp • 3632 lb • 5.0 lb/hp TIRES: Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 R, F: 285/35ZR-19 (1O6Y) MO1A R: 335/30ZR-20 (108Y) MO1A As the GT Black Series tears down VIR’s front straight toward a peak speed of 166.0 mph, all the pit wall hears is the sound of air rushing around the body and the whoosh of the turbochargers. On the inside, however, the Benz V-8 puts out more mechanical noise than a cruise ship’s engine room, and there’s also the metallic tinks and pops you get in a purpose-built race car. If AMG fitted any sound insulation, it’s not working. But that’s about the only thing that doesn’t work on this car. The Black Series is a track weapon with every…

An expert look at the newest and most important vehicles this month. The Subaru WRX is largely responsible for introducing a generation to the joys of turbo lag, all-wheel drive, and a manual transmission. Redesigned for 2022, the WRX retains its feisty spirit, passenger-car shape, and increasingly rare six-speed stick. True, there’s also a CVT that can imitate an eight-speed automatic, but supply-chain issues nixed it for our first drive. So we popped the clutch in a World Rally Blue Pearl WRX Limited and proceeded to drive it 700 miles on some of California’s best roads. We hadn’t set out to go so far—it’s that kind of car. The 2022 WRX again uses the Impreza’s platform but is the first WRX that doesn’t share a single exterior panel with the…

For decades Honda has worked hard to earn enthusiasts’ admiration and dollars by building small, fun, affordable cars with manual transmissions. For 2022 it’s keeping the torch lit with the redesigned Civic Si sedan, which costs less than $30,000 and comes exclusively with three pedals and a turbo four-cylinder engine. Like the rest of the 11th-generation Civic line, the latest Si gets a new body and interior with a powertrain that largely carries over. While we appreciate the continued availability of the six-speed manual, we couldn’t help but notice that the Si’s turbocharged 1.5-liter now makes 200 horsepower, down from 205 in the previous model, the 2020. Admittedly, numbers on a spreadsheet don’t paint the most flattering picture of the new Si, as it costs more too. In exchange for…

Mazda has taken its time wading into the electric-vehicle pool, and its long-awaited battery-powered MX-30 appears to be afraid to leave the shallow end. In many ways the MX-30 offers much of what Mazda is good at: an artful interior, a stylish exterior, responsive steering and handling. What’s missing, though, is power. And range. The MX-30 is not unpleasant to pilot—quite the opposite. It rides gently over broken pavement. The car corners with ease, aided by Mazda’s G-Vectoring Control Plus, which adjusts motor torque and braking at imperceptible levels to initiate a load transfer and improve handling. Its poise is commendable all the way to its 0.84 g of lateral grip. Perhaps it’s the mass of the 31.2-kWh battery in the floor, but the MX-30 is more composed than the…