Innehållsförteckning för January 2014 från Car and Driver

Sic your dogs on us at: editors@caranddriver.com or join the discussion at: backfires.caranddriver.com NOT BUYING IT Although I agree the Audi is the superior car of the group, I really have an issue with the RS7's interior looking identical to a base 2013 A6's and would find myself struggling to write that check. Do something different. Anything. TIMOTHY R. PICKETT ELK GROVE VILLAGE, ILLINOIS Would some rich Corinthian leather change your mind?—Ed. I find it interesting how Mercedes, BMW, and Audi have bastardized the term "coupe" to name what are, in fact, sedans ["Civil War," October 2013]. Heck, if they're rewriting definitions, why don't they just call them "berlinettas"? And we could call the S-class and 7-series "phaetons." The term "coupe" in its true definition, as you know,…

THE R35 GT-R HAS TO SATISFY THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE. THIS R32 ONLY HAS TO SATISFY ONE. HIROSHI TAMURA CHIEF PRODUCT SPECIALIST AT NISSAN Hiroshi Tamura is Japan's Car-Guy-in-Chief. At 52, he's the chief product specialist at Nissan for the current R35-generation GT-R and for the NISMO performance division. When he's not at work building faster Nissans, he's at home doing the same: tweaking his classic 1989 R32 Skyline GT-R. So you have an R32? Actually, I had an R32 and an R34 [1999–2002 edition], but I sold the R34. The R32 was always my dream car. I worked on the R34, but when the R32 was produced I was only a kid. So it was only a dream to me. The Skyline GT-Rs have a reputation as Japan's greatest hot…

VULCAN DEATH GRIP Used for emissions testing, the Horiba Vulcan dynamometer illustrated here is one example of just how much an OEM's or major supplier's dyno differs from what you'd find at your neighborhood SHOP. THE VULCAN IS SO PRECISELY TUNED THAT DIFFERENT FINISHES AND TEXTURES ARE AVAILABLE FOR THE ROLLERS TO SIMULATE DIFFERENT ROAD SURFACES IN VARIOUS MARKETS. AN AUTO-PILOT SYSTEM IS ALSO OPTIONAL. The dyno's RISE in modern car culture is well chronicled on YouTube. Here, car guys while away hour after mesmerizing hour watching dyno pulls that depict unbelievable power, catastrophic consequences, or sometimes both. But the dynamometers that most enthusiasts have access to are crude instruments compared with what these machines are capable of. With the hardware and software to raise prices from less than $25,000…

One day in 1990, the heavenly incandescence of truth blazed down on me and I sat bolt upright in professor Sidney Fine's American History 102 lecture at the University of Michigan and thought: "There was a hidden ramp. There was always a ramp!" A Dodge Diplomat that plows into the back of a Chevy Caprice will not normally launch into a suborbital corkscrew roll before landing somewhere over the state line. It will just collapse like a steel milk carton into junk and busted plastic, which would make bad television. So the bastards put ramps back there. Of course, I blame the media of my youth for the fact that I didn't figure this out until my early 20s. When I grew up, well before everybody on planet Earth was…

The numbers car: It looks great on paper, and then you drive it. Though able to bruise internal organs during acceleration, braking, and cornering tests, the numbers car is usually too anodyne and too remote to foster lasting relationships with serious drivers. In most cases, it's not much fun unless it's at a test track doing the one thing it does well—generating numbers. Numbers might not lie, but sometimes they skip to the last page. GM has built its share of number generators in the past. But subordinating the feel of a car to raw metrics doesn't lead to great cars, just great Excel files. Judging from the new Cadillac CTS and Chevrolet Corvette, GM now knows how to bridge the gap between the driver and the spreadsheet. These cars…

It's not the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog. We have an $80,000 base-price cap for the vehicles invited to 10Best, and for good reason: It's easier to build a great car if it will command a great price. And frankly, the thrill of some megabuck über-cars fades even more rapidly than those machines accelerate. Don't misunderstand us; we're not saying that squabbling over the keys to a Ferrari is not worthy of fisticuffs, or that driving a Bugatti shouldn't be on your bucket list. But the cars of privilege are extremists, pulling everything else along in their wake. It can be just as gratifying to slide behind the wheel of those mainstream models that have tucked into that slipstream.…

DODGE CHARGER SRT8 PRICE > $55,150 POWER > 470 hp TORQUE > 470 lb-ft WEIGHT > 4371 lb C/D OBSERVED MPG > 17 CHEVROLET SS PRICE > $45,770 POWER > 415 hp TORQUE > 415 lb-ft WEIGHT > 3931 lb C/D OBSERVED MPG > 17 Chevrolet laid its groundwork for the new SS with a profile body for the 2013 NASCAR circuit. The racing Chevy SS and the racing Dodge Charger would have each been that rarest of things: a V-8 rear-drive Sprint Cup competitor modeled after a V-8 rear-drive production car. But the SS arrived just as Dodge quit the series, so fans were cheated. Instead, the speedway rivalry that never was has simply moved out to the parking lot. The production SS squares off here, on a rainy…

NISSAN VERSA NOTE S / HONDA ACCORD HYBRID / MERCEDES-BENZ SLS AMG BLACK / VOLKSWAGEN JETTA SE TESTED Sweet exhaust notes, crisp shifts, deep well of power. No-feel steering, 2.2-ton Tessie, why are we sitting way up here? The cues are all there in the SQ5, Audi's first entry in the performance mini-ute arena. Grip its small-diameter, thick-rimmed, flat-bottomed, three-spoke steering wheel with its prominent contrast stitching, fingertips poised behind the shift paddles, eyes registering the positions of the white needles on the gray-faced gauges. Securely belted and bolstered in the sport seat, you're in charge of a tool devised for drivers of serious intent. Everything you see declares it. Which amounts to a tease when sitting in miles of stop-and-go traffic behind an accident. Plenty of time, then, to…

Mercedes-Benz's technical director in the 1950s, Rudi Uhlenhaut, had what is arguably the coolest company car in history. It was a gullwing version of the W196S 300SLR race car powered by a 306-hp, 3.0-liter version of Mercedes' Formula 1 straight-eight engine. His daily driver sprang from his own genius, and the car is now widely known as the Uhlenhaut Coupe. We just spent a week with the 21st-century edition Uhlenhaut Coupe. The 2014 SLS AMG Black Series doesn't have a straight-eight, but it does have the most potent 6.2-liter V-8 Mercedes-Benz has ever built. This is likely the last naturally aspirated gasp of the brand's heavy-breathing M159 engine we'll ever hear. As a retirement gift, AMG has given the engine new camshafts, specially coated bucket tappets, a more efficient intake…

C/D: What's in your garage these days? LI: Carroll Shelby used to tease me with, "I have the first Shelby in my garage." I'd respond, "Well, I have the first Viper in my garage," and I still do. It's red, by the way. I also have a 1982 woody convertible K-car that I use to drive around locally. I have the very first of only 45 of the Iacocca Silver 45th Anniversary Edition Mustangs, called the Iacocca. It's the only car I ever put my name on. Of course, I always have the most current Town & Country minivan. Plus I've got a Jeep and the "Yellow Banana"—a cute 1954 Ford truck. C/D: Among carmakers these days, do you see one that is consistently getting it right? LI: Chrysler. It's…

OUR ANNUAL 10BEST EXTRAVAGANZA gets more extravagant than ever this year, the 31st running of the competition. For 2014, we've cut out all the year-in-review stuff that normally accompanies (and crowds) the winners, instead focusing our efforts and meager talents on telling the stories of the cars and our quest to identify them. It's all in there—the highs, the lows, the bar tabs, and the cross-dressing that have come to surround and define this celebrated laurel [10Best starts on page 40]. But we still give out only 10 statues, so some very worthy stuff doesn't make the cut. That's why I'm here. My picks for the 3Almost10Best of 2014 are: LEXUS IS350 F SPORT Maybe everyone was confused. Maybe they only drove the lesser of the two identically white-over-black IS…

SOLE TO SOLE Not all tire-recycling operations are as massive and industrialized as the one depicted below. A number of small companies carve up old tires to make sandals. If a tire can survive 45,000 miles under your car, then footwear made from it will easily outlive you. Every year, more than 200 million worn-out tires get replaced and another 15 million leave the road on scrapped cars. That's a lot of round, black blight collecting in vacant lots and piling up into unsightly mountains. Fires that start in such mounds are notoriously hard to extinguish. Traditional landfill disposal isn't viable because tires are bulky and buoyant. When their cavities fill with methane, the tires migrate to the surface, fill with water, and become mosquito condos. Various government agencies have…

So much of IT WAS FOUGHT in a few counties in northern Virginia that you can spend an hour at each of the five major battlefield sites shown here and come away with a vivid sense of the lore and gore that was the Civil War—all between lunch and supper time. Each site is anchored by an official visitors center, providing troves of background and blow-by-blow battle exposition, plus a big-budget movie. Each center is manned by amiable National Park Service personnel bulging with helpful information. Admission fees are negligible. There's even a souvenir shop at every center, carrying huge selections of books and maps as well as the usual bric-a-brac. One eerie aspect of touring these scenes of carnage and horror (e.g., hundreds of helpless injured on both sides…

There are a lot of bests out there—best summer movies, best places to live, best pizza joints within two miles of your current location. Our 10Best award is not one of those. These are cars we're talking about, people. We actually test these things. For a full week each fall, we lock the office, turn off our phones, and engage in the most comprehensive and focused driving in the car-evaluation business. Editors flog a dozen cars a day on the street and the track to determine everything from turn-in fidelity to the quality of a seat latch. What emerges is the fullest picture extant of the best cars on the market for under $80,000. These are the vehicles that offer the most value, that elegantly and comprehensively fulfill their missions,…

Alistair Cooke would have called it a quintessentially American success story: Two foreigners land on our shores from nations once defeated and destitute to seek fortunes in the land of their conqueror. Lofted to unimaginable heights by the updraft of postwar prosperity, they become business empires unto themselves. How much should we read into the common narratives of Honda and BMW? Both are smaller firms relative to the giants of the industry, yet they have remained steadfastly independent as others have buddied up into global conglomerates. Both companies have an inordinately strong sense of identity, rooted in engineering and nurtured at some point in their histories by a single patron or family. Both make motorcycles. And after nearly four decades of continuous success in America, the BMW 3-series and the…

That life is not fair is one of its most important lessons. Some are born with what others work for; some are born to be who others work for; and some are born without any real concept of what work even is, but they get elected to public office just the same. If you're the sort who's upset by such karmic imbalances, Audi's mid-sizers might bother you, as these cars have been given more than their fair share of gifts. They certainly bother BMW and Mercedes-Benz. There's nothing the Audis don't do well. When you've got 1000 freeway miles separating the morning's first cup of coffee and the comfort of your own bed, the A6, S6, and A7 are as serene as a suite at the Four Seasons. But when…

BMW's i3 has four wheels. Otherwise, it shares so little with cars as we've known them that automotive archeologists of tomorrow will figure there had to be some developmental step, some missing link between the stock of model-year 2014 and this electrically driven Bimmer. First, there's the so-called "skateboard" chassis. While a few concept cars have showcased this architecture over the past decade, this is its first production application. Here, the welded-aluminum structure, what BMW calls a "Drive module," supports the battery, steering, suspension, and mid-mounted electric motor. Aside from the steel rear-suspension links, most of the chassis components are aluminum. Atop that sits the "Life module," which you or I would just call the cabin. Its structure is molded carbon fiber, the body panels are thermoplastic, and the dash…

Car companies generally do not like to provide base models for review because they fear harsh judgment for what those vehicles lack. And with the new Nissan Versa Note, we will indeed judge harshly, though justifiably. But first, a question: Why is Nissan entering the cheapest-car-in-America contest, anyway? The 545-hp GT-R and the Leaf electric already create an identity crisis for the brand that also builds New York City taxis. Yet, even amid this confusion, the Versa seems off message. Irrespective of their successes or failures, those other Nissans at least have noble missions. The Versa is just a cut-rate econobox, a car so ruthlessly accounted that, by modern standards, it is barely more than a rolling chassis with a capacious back seat. We would list the common equipment missing…

Volkswagen is killing the Jetta and Passat's five-cylinder engine. Upon learning this news, exactly no one in our office observed a moment of silence or shot off a gun in a salute to VW's five. Why not? Well, the engine's heavy iron block, lackluster power, unimpressive fuel economy, and odd thrum didn't win any admirers. In exchange for the five, VW is offering a new turbocharged 1.8-liter direct-injection four-cylinder that, according to Volkswagen, is related to the GTI's turbo four. Learning that an engine is related to the GTI's is like hearing that your blind date is with Kate Upton's sister. Expectations rise. At 170 horsepower, the new turbo makes the same peak output as the 2.5, but does so at lower rpm. Torque is up seven pound-feet to 184,…

Subaru's U.S. sales ARE UP—way up. The brand may even reach its stretch goal of 500,000 annual sales here in the next couple of years, which would nearly double its volume from only three years ago. Apparently, that means Subaru can have more fun. Its catalog, mostly of earthy four-wheel-drive wagonoids, expanded in 2012 thanks to the rear-drive BRZ, which debuted to critical acclaim and a spot on our 2013 10Best Cars list. And at the Los Angeles auto show this past November, Subaru unveiled the latest iteration of its other product for boy-men—the turbocharged, four-wheel-drive WRX sedan. DESIGN The hexagonal grille and wide, angry fascia lend the WRX appropriate menace, while the rear sports a distinctive decklid and fascia. The "hawk-eye" LED headlights seen here will be standard equipment…

In 1980, only 2200 people lived in Murrieta, California, in the arid southwest corner of Riverside County. By 2010, the population hit 103,466. It's where families moved when the coastal counties of San Diego and Orange became too expensive. It's a town where AYSO soccer matters, where the church buildings aren't as old as the McDonald's, and where Republicans win the elections. And it's the site of a major blow against red-light cameras. In 2005, the city of Murrieta signed a contract with Arizona-based American Traffic Solutions (ATS) to operate automated cameras at three intersections. Critics, such as the National Motorists Association (NMA), have long opposed the cameras. These opponents claim, among other things, that the very foundation of the justification of the cameras is flawed. They say the studies…

Yet more complaints. During 11 consecutive days last month, I drove Car and Driver's long-term electric-blue Subaru BRZ from Montana to Ann Arbor, then drove all 60 of our 10Best nominees, then drove back to Montana in the "bronze bus"—our long-term Mercedes-Benz GL450. Those 4800-some miles inflicted a silver-dollar-sized blister atop my tailbone. During a routine physical, my doctor shouted, "Hey, Darlene, come in here—guy says he got this from car seats." Various patients in the waiting room began craning their necks. But I don't care, because 10Best is so intergalactically entertaining that I always half expect my parents to descend and say, "Okay, had your fun, now let's get back to the algebra homework." I love 10Best. It reminds me of a trip to interview Alejandro de Tomaso in…

There is no first place in 10Best. Officially then, the Porsche Boxster and its newly reworked tin-topped brother, the Cayman, are exactly equal to the other cars on our list. But lean in close now because we're going to let you in on a secret: The Porsches are the winners among these winners. Unlike several of the other cars here, the Porsches' place on the list was never in doubt. Over our morning (and midday, and afternoon) doughnuts, we'd debate the relative merits of the Honda Accord and the Mazda 6 and whether the combined forces of BMW's 3- and 4-series would be able to meet the challenge presented by the Lexus IS350. But there was no discussion of the Boxster and Cayman. They were on everyone's list, and that…

HAVE IT OUR WAY_ The Fiesta ST offers few options that add to its $22,195 base price, though we'd be tempted by the Molten Orange paint ($595). For those 5 feet 10 inches or taller, add $1995 for the Recaros. If you're directionally challenged, spend your money on the $795 nav system instead. Ford redesigned the front suspension knuckles for more negative camber, -1.2 degrees versus -0.7, benefiting at-the-limit grip. The knuckles' slightly shorter steering arms quicken the steering ratio from 14.3:1 in the base car to 13.6:1 here. The geometry changes also raise the roll center, thus diminishing body roll compared with the base car. Spring rates are up all around, by 20 percent in the rear and 36 percent in the front. A higher roll center and stiffer…

It doesn't matter whether our German brothers dub it a Golf or a Rabbit or a pine marten. What we have here, folks, is a winner with momentum. This is the eighth consecutive year that the VW Golf lineup, the lone GTI, or both have earned 10Best laurels. What Belushi and Aykroyd did for rumpled black suits, Volkswagen has done for hatchbacks. Even the starter-kit five-door Golf automatic is a piquant stew of near-flawless fundamentals, and you can slide your cheeks into one for as little as $20,815. The TDI turbo-diesel is the Earth Firster's happy hummer, a torque weasel that will make you feel marginally less guilty about climate change. With a manual shifter, a TDI five-door starts at $26,020. Both of these Golfs are gratifyingly balanced and composed…

We live in a world increasingly polluted by radar. Automatic doors, traffic-measuring devices, adaptive cruise control, and blind-spot-monitoring systems can all emit the same frequencies used by law-enforcement agencies. To avoid the roadside tax collector while traveling at a brisk pace, radar-detector users need to distinguish the real threats from the noise. We want to help you keep your record clean, so we tested two top-of-the-line models in ticket defense—the venerable Valentine One, our previous champ, and Escort's new Passport Max. With the help of the speed-trap-subversion experts at Laser Interceptor, a laser-jammer manufacturer, we measured each detector's range with five radar sources in four different scenarios. We also tested sensitivity to POP radar and LIDAR [see sidebar]. Finally, to examine how these units deal with false alerts, we drove…

If Lieutenant Commander Spock were shopping for a mid-size sedan, we think he'd find the Honda Accord hybrid to be an entirely logical mode of transport. Luxury-car roomy inside with a quiet cabin suitable for Vulcan cogitation: check. Cogently arrayed controls and consistently engaging vehicle dynamics: affirmative. Class-leading energy conservation: The Accord hybrid's 50-mpg EPA city rating is particularly germane here. That's Prius territory and not a number we've associated with mid-size sedans capable of comfortably transporting, say, five Klingons. As with the Accord plug-in hybrid introduced last year, this no-plug hybrid Accord features a 141-horse Atkinson-cycle 2.0-liter four-cylinder augmented by a 166-hp AC permanent-magnet electric-drive motor. The difference is the battery. The regular hybrid doesn't need the big lithium-ion battery the plug-in uses to achieve its 13-mile gasoline-free range,…

HIGHLIGHTS MOST EXPENSIVE Bugatti Veyron 16.4 $1,657,700 LEAST EXPENSIVE Chevrolet Spark $15,895 HIGHEST TOP SPEED Bugatti Veyron 16.4 253 mph LOWEST TOP SPEED Mitsubishi i 80 mph QUICKEST 0–60 MPH Bugatti Veyron 16.4 2.5 sec SLOWEST 0–60 MPH Mitsubishi i 13.0 sec QUICKEST 1/4-MILE Bugatti Veyron 16.4 10.1 sec SLOWEST 1/4-MILE Mitsubishi i 20.3 sec SHORTEST STOPPING DISTANCE Porsche 911 GT3 135 feet LONGEST STOPPING DISTANCE Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon 204 feet MOST GRIP Porsche 911 GT3 1.12 g LEAST GRIP Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon 0.61 g BEST FUEL ECONOMY Mitsubishi i 126/99 city/hwy MPGe WORST FUEL ECONOMY Bugatti Veyron 16.4 8/14 city/hwy mpg ACCELERATION: Elapsed times from zero to 60 mph and through a quarter-mile distance. Tests are run in two directions and corrected to standard atmospheric conditions.…