Nissan GT-R

The Nissan GT-R is the super car offered by Nissan, or as they say "it's THE supercar." This bolstering egotistical statement may very well be true, but I will let you decide after I present to you the facts mixed with some of my opinion.

 

First, let's start with a little bit of history; the GT-R orignally began production in 2007 and the 2013 model has just been released with minor modifications. It's predecessor was the Skyline GT-R which was produced from 1969–1973 and 1989–2002. The most popular model being this 2000 Skyline GT-R V-Spec II.
 
 















The current Nissan GT-R is offered in two "editions" (according to www.nissanusa.com), the GT-R Premium and the GT-R Black Edition. Each prices at $96,820 and $106,320 respectively. So what is the difference beside that $10,000? Well, essentially not much, the Black Edition comes with the same V6 Twin Turbo engine as the Premium, same horsepower, same transmission, blah blah blah. However, the Black Edition is "designed for the purist" (once again according to www.nissanusa.com), it has "20" Special black super-lightweight forged-alloy RAYS wheels, dry carbon-fiber rear spoiler, red and black Recaro leather appointed front seats and sophisticated black and red interior treatment."



Now, if it honestly came down to it there is absolutely no way I would spend an extra $10,000 for some Recaro seats that are "sophisticated." The wheels maybe, and the carbon-fiber spoiler probably (just because I'm a sucker for carbon fiber). Yet, the practical side of me knows that while these things may indeed make the slightest of differences, it is not one which I would consider for an extra ten grand.  So now that we know the models lets get down to the car. Both editions come with the same 3.8-liter twin-turbocharged 24-valve V6.



Which each engine hand-crafted by its own master technician in a clean-room environment. It bolsters a roaring 545 horsepower with 463 lb-ft of torque; it has DOHC with CVTCS on intake valves, and a whole lot of Aluminum. So what does all this mean? Its fast. VERY fast. It'll do 0-60 in about 2.72 seconds, just about a quarter of the time it'll take you to read this sentence.



While the interior isn't a masterpiece quite like the new Pagani Huayra, but then again it also is no where near the price. And ironically enough, its slower to 60. The interior is amazingly electronic, the screen on the dash provide an OUTRAGEOUS amount of driving statistics, most of which are incomprehensible to the common man.The other parts of the interior are symple, not trying to dazzle you or steal your heart. The GT-R wants to take you where you're going, and fast.



No overzealous amount of screens where there shouldn't be.



 No flashy carbon fiber-gold plated-chromed out knob. (Although that might be cool.)



Standard push to start, none of that missile launch cover crap.



...yeah. No idea what any of that means, but its awesome.



While I will admit the GT-R is by no means a "beautiful" car, nor is it a work of art by my standards, it is a car through and through. It doesn't try to win your heart over by it itself was designed is a airtight room designed by scientists. More mechanical than anything the GT-R does not mess around. Of the things the GT-R is not it also is a lot more than most other cars with these qualities.

At the end of the day it IS a super car, and it is also a Nissan. It's faster off the line than cars triple its price tag. Unlike some cars which attempt to bolster this same fact, it has power and knows how to put it down most efficiently. Has a back seat which you can put actual humans with actual legs in.  It has a trunk that can hold more than your girlfriends purse. And at the end of the month you wont be scraping to make mortgage payments and pay off those credit cards because the GT-R does not break the bank.  The GT-R truly is a scientific masterpiece, and somehow it's not six figures. I'm mind blown every time I re-remember that statement.

Tell me what you think, hideous, great? Terrible, wonderful? What would you spend $100,000 on if you had to pick one car?

Mini's Lineup is not so Mini

Hello all you faithful followers, if you are still out there. I apologize that it has been so long since my last post with summer, skating, work, and classes some things get unintentionally tossed on the back burner. But, I'm back, and with something that really revs me up (car puns). As we all know Mini Cooper has had a long history dating back to the 1960s and the original Mini Cooper S.



The Mini Cooper was seen as a English icon, produced by British Motor Company (BMC) it went on to win the Monte Carlo Rally in 1964, 1965, and 1967. The Mini brand has since been absorbed by BMW but they have done nothing but positive things for the brand in my opinion. The original Mini turned heads based on shear size alone, BMW has managed to take one car and provide the public with now seven options in their line. All keeping the classic Mini look but each providing different and more practical properties than the 1960s Mini. My current favorite Mini is the Mini Countryman, the largest vehicle in their lineup (which is still not that big) and also the only to offer Mini's All4 All Wheel Drive system. Sitting higher then the rest of the line up the Countryman is directed at just that, someone who wants to be RUGGED, and TOUGH, however, difficult it may be to believe that this vehicle is an off road machine like some of the advertisements imply it is their best looking and most practical car to date. I couldn't find the original advertisement I was thinking of with the Countryman plowing over some decent sized rocks but this one still gets the point across.



I may be wrong, the Countryman may actually be fantastic in the off road, however, hard to imagine I man never know but from first appearances I will lean more towards no. Yet the Countryman debate is not why we are here today, we are here for the modified version of this already good vehicle, it's called the Paceman and it'll blow your mind as it blew mine.



As you can clearly see its not all that different than the Countryman, and yet a lot different. It's almost as if they took everything I disliked about the Mini Cooper Coupe and made it useful. The noticable differences are clearly the loss of two doors, the roof is on the slight decline and tapers at the rear, and also does not sit quite as high, because although this does come in Mini's All4 option apparently its not for off roading, just for gripping corners?  Not sure, I liked the previous ride height regardless but this looks good none the less.



Now when it comes to rear ends it tends to be something car companies seem to neglect. I feel they have the mindset of "Well it looks good from the front thats what the customer cares about, just give it some tail lights and call it good." However, there are the select few that do prefer the car looks good all the way around. Let's look at an example! Take the BMW 650i overall a good looking car, not really my taste but I will agree it is good looking, however, take a walk around the car and you'll find this eye sore.



What...WHAT?! How did that get approved for production, I just bored looking at it, the taillights look mundane, out of place, and overall spiritless. Dare I compare it to the worst rear end of them all? The Porsche Cayenne.



We are getting off topic, the Paceman from front to back looks nice, not exciting, not dramatic, and certainly not a game changer. Sometimes though you must be honest with yourself and prioritize Sexy>Nice>Boring>Just plain bad. Sometimes for a car to be drop dead sexy it'll cost you more than you're willing to pay and a lot of times it turns out being useless for daily activities.



The Mini Paceman brings practicality to the sportier side of the line up, without compromising too much space. Overall, I am very excited for this to be released and do feel a test drive is in order. Next time I will be taking a look at the new SRT Viper, not Dodge, SRT. And the fact that it may not be a tire thrashing, torque monster, but actually a good, affordable sports car.

Facelifts on Facelifts

So, it turns out that the new 2013 Ford Taurus is getting yet another face lift. If my memory serves me correctly when Ford re-released the Taurus in 2010 (I believe) it had a whole new look to it. The Taurus changed in our minds from being just another 4-Door Sedan to a car that you would actually turn to look at if it drove past you on the interstate.

It went from this back in 2003...

 

 (Woah! Thats fast!...not.)

To this in 2008...

 (Who knew a car could be so boring?)

To this in 2010...

(That's looking good!)

Finally to this in 2013...

(I'd have one of those.)

With three major face lifts in the past four years you can't help but wonder what it is exactly they're trying to achieve. But, whatever it is, its working because I want one and you wouldn't hear me saying that back in 2008. 

The changes from the 2010 Taurus to the 2013 Taurus aren't quite so dramatic as that from 2008 to 2010. However, we can tell from this shot that Ford is jumping on the aerodynamics train along with everyone else in the industry by taking that front end and lowering it ever so slightly to improve airflow over the car.

The grill has been opened a little to go from the somewhat cheery look that the 2010 models have to a angry look that the new 2013 models have.

The exciting trim in the Taurus line is of course the Taurus SHO (Super High Output). 

The SHO features a twin-turbo, direct-injection 3.5-liter EcoBoost V-6 and is unchanged at 365 hp and 350 lb-ft of torque. All three engines offered will be paired with a six-speed automatic transmission. All-wheel drive is also a standard feature with the SHO.

It's just overall a very good looking car, the only complaint I have is that it is quite massive. WHen pulled into my home garage with regulary fits with ease a Honda Accord and a Ford Edge, the Taurus had about three inches between the door and the back bumper. Leaving no room for the driver to get around the car and into the house...obviously a problem. 

All around the 2013 Taurus looks great, definately an improvement on an already refined well selling sedan. The good looks and feeling dont just end at the exterior though. 

The inside of the Taurus is solid, well constructed and just gives you a feeling like your being hugged, but by someone you like, not your creepy, overweight Aunt who doesn't know when to stop.  The center console sits a little higher allowing you not to be leaning at a 45 degree angle when you want to rest your arm. Ford's SYNC is also a standard on the SHO giving you two colored LCD screen which display various bits of information about your car such as radio, odometer, fuel economy etc. The Sony sound system as shown above is an optional extra (go figure).

I'll try to start update this a little more regularly as things are starting to wind down for me at least for a little bit. Spread the word!

Subaru Impreza 5-Door 2nd Test Drive

Spring Break has come and gone and that means it is back to the books...well kinda. Before I left home I decided to take my dad to the Subaru dealer (which is actually owned by a friend of mines dad) and take a little test drive to get his opinion, and I wanted to feel how the 5-Door drove in comparison to the 4. The overall consensus from my parents was that they liked it a lot. Looks wise, drive, and feel were all positive responses. Which is good as I would like their support of my hopeful future purchase.

Any ways, the 5-door. I was very excited to drive this and love it even more each time I am behind the wheel. Everything just feels so solid, well put together and though out. I was also extremely pleases with the rear hatch gate, my mother has a Ford Edge which as we know is a Crossover vehicle which sits significantly higher than the Impreza hatch. Yet when opening the hatch on the Edge it is S-L-O-W and at 6' 2" I hit my head on it consistently. I was literally amazed at the fact that the Impreza's lift gate is quick, smooth and I can walk under it with head clearance...simply beautiful. There were not many differences between the 5-door and the 4-door except, well, the extra door. But once again I was impressed and cannot wait until I own one. I will get back to you with the next test drive results which is hopefully soon. 

Stay tuned. 

Car Dealerships and 2012 Subaru Impreza First Drive Review

Today a friend and I went on what seems to be a bi-weekly test drive and dealerships in our surrounding area. Today, however, unlike most other trips, this one was enjoyable and probably the best test drive/dealer experience we have ever had. Our goal today was to test drive the 2012 Subaru Impreza 5-Door (trim line didn't really matter, the goal was more or less to get a feel of the feel of the car). So after what seemed like a three hour drive just to find the dealership we walked in and were introduce to a salesman. Very friendly, educated, smart, and he asked us what we were here for. My friend told him that we had seen the new Impreza at the Detroit Auto Show last month and were completely taken back by the reasonable price and good gas mileage. My friend then asked if we could take an Impreza 5-Door for a test drive, unfortunately the dealer had sold their last 5-Door and were waiting on moor but they did have a sedan that we could take. We agreed that it didn't matter all that much whether it was a 4 or 5 door and decided to take it for a spin. Much to my surprise he handed us the keys, without scanning either of our licences or even asking our names, and said "I'll see you two in a little bit!" So we were off.

The Subaru we drove was the standard Subaru Impreza 2.0i with the CVT Transmission.





You throw the shifter to the left while in drive to switch to the Paddle Shifters which you can see peaking over the steering wheel in the picture below.



We drove it in a good variety of environment; city driving (stop and go), highway, and rural. The rural road we found was quite well hidden with a speed limit of 30 (ha ha, yeah right like anyone goes that slow) and a lot of bends it was a great place to test the handling. It looked something like this...



Divided by 20 and not in the mountains and that's basically it! In short the Subaru Impreza is a phenomenal car, it drives super smooth you almost can't even feel the bumps in the road. The steering is extremely responsive and quick. The cabin at 85mph was extremely quite, while I didn't try it I would assume a quite whisper would still be easily audible at that speed. Overall Grade: A

Upon our return to the dealer he asked us how we liked it and we told him all of our good thoughts on the car, there wasn't a negative one to give that I could find. And he began telling us all about the car, differentials, AWD system, accessories, roof rails, etc. He was not at all pushy, just very educated, very respectful about our needs and wants. So Dion if you are out there and you happen to read this, my hat goes off to you, the best car salesman I have ever had the fortune to speak with. \

Going off of that note, I have noticed a trend when it comes to dealerships. (Mind you, this isn't coming from someone who has only been to two dealers, I pride myself on making dealership trips a fun event and I have been to many; Ford, Chevy, GMC, Buick, Mercedes, BMW, Jaguar, Cadillac, Hummer, Audi, Porsche, VW, MINI, Land Rover, Pontiac, Jeep, Chrysler, Dodge, etc.) The trend is that most foreign dealerships, their employees tend to treat the customers 20x better than the domestic dealers. I can think of half a dozen occasions where I have left a dealership unhappy, or worse, unattended! Whereas the foreign dealers, there has been only one time where I have left unhappy and that was solely because they were so busy. I am not sure what it is but for some reason foreign dealers have better customer service. Enough said.

2012 North American International Auto Show

The world of automobiles has been a little uneventful recently, except for the North American International Auto Show. Luckily, I am from the suburbs of Detroit where the NAIAS is hosted every year at the COBO Center in downtown Detroit. I have been going every year since I was little and this year was no exception. I took an absurd amount of pictures and it would be borderline annoying to post all of them so I will highlight some of my personal favorites from this years show.

Ford's feature vehicle at this years show was the redesigned 2012 Ford Fusion, and it looks phenomenal. It seems to be a trend these past two years in the auto industry to lower the front end for increased aerodynamics, thus lowering the head lights giving the vehicle a very angry look.

I personally love the new look of the Fusion, the previous model was very bland with nothing excited whatsoever. While I do think it was designed or at least inspired by the designers over at Aston Martin, I can appreciate the looks of this vehicle and the reasonable price tag it will have. 

The Audi R8, there were some modifications to this years model that changed from last year dropping some weight and increasing horsepower. While I was skeptical if any vehicle could pull of a baby blue quite as well as the Noble M600, but the R8 does it and does it well.

Volvo C30, always been a personal favorite hatchback of mine, while the price is quite steep ($24,950) for such a small car it certainly looks good and we know its safe.

Ugh, the new Dodge Dart I don't like anything about this car. It is basically going to be the new Dodge Neon bringing a small sedan back to Dodge's line. As you can see, once again we have a lowered front end, lower head lights making the car look angry. I simply don't think this car looks good, the lowered front end is just too low to the point where it looks smashed down. 

The Chevrolet TRU 405, very cool looking, very sleek. Chevy is sticking with these tail lights that appear to be a standard on most of their models today. I don't mind though, the edginess of the tail lights really makes them stand out from the curvature of the car. 

While the Buick Regal GS certainly isn't new by any means the new look is...and it's darn sexy. When I first saw it I thought to myself "Wow, that is a good looking car...anyways, what was I doing?" Kind of something I would acknowledge and move on. But, the more I see it, the more I love it. It is phenomenal, looks beautiful, classy, and its fast. The best part about the GS...it's turbo charges and has Brembo front disk breaks, kinda cool to be able to say you have a set of thousand dollar brakes on your car. 

Subaru BR-Z a new model to Subaru's line a two door coupe. Supposedly a very good car, I'm looking forward to a test drive. 

My new found love, the 2012 Subaru Impreza 5-Door. I had absolutely no idea the reasonable price of this car! Base pricing at just over $17,000 for a 4-Door with AWD standard and 27 MPG city this car is an outrageously good value. I am seriously considering this for my first new car due to overall value for price. Consider it!

The Nissan GT-R, nothing new, good value for the cost, its fast, decent looking and affordable-ish.

Hope you all enjoyed, if my friend can get media passes to the Chicago Auto Show there will be a follow up. As always, spread the word, share the link. 

Car and Driver's "2012 10 Best: 10 Best Design Details"

For this blog post I thought I would change things up a bit, instead of posting about a new car being released and such, I figured I would discuss a more specific detail. Interior design details. Car and Driver recently released what they consider to be the "10 Best Design Details of 2012", man, did they make some mistakes.

The first design detail is the Audi A6/A7 Layered wood trim.



I have to say, this is one that I STRONGLY agree with, I have seen this in person and know from first hand experience just how phenomenal this looks on the interior of a vehicle. It is a look different from most other "wood" trimmed interiors in todays vehicles. Good choice Car and Driver.

The second design detail is the Bentley Mulsanne Organ-Stop Airflow Actuators.



Now I obviously have not had the chance to see this first hand, however, they do look quite fantastic. I don't know if I would have placed this on my top 10, however, it is better then some other choices. So, smart choice Car and Driver.

The third design feature is the Bugatti Veyron Super Sport NACA Ducts.



Oh god do these look good. Personally, I like the Bugatti Veyron. I know a lot of people who say that it looks bland, boring, and as one friend put it, "lacking a soul". However, the people at Bugatti designed this car this way for a reason. To go fast, very fast. Now the standard Veyron 16.4 is good looking, except for one thing...


Those big 'ole air ducts on the roof, protruding from it like a two small tumors. Bugatti has found a way to have the ducts properly function, and look better. VERY good choice Car and Driver.

The fourth design detail is the Chevrolet Sonic Gauge Cluster.



This is one I have a hard time deciding on. I have see this first hand, and it does look very sharp. In a world where more and more automobiles are including digital read outs of speed and such, this does so effectively. Yet, I don't know quite how comfortable I am with solely a digital display and not the standard speedometer. I would have to say poor choice Car and Driver.

The fifth design detail is the Ferrari FF Passenger Side Speedometer



Very sleak, very innovative, very cool, very very useless. Poor choice Car and Driver.

The sixth design detail is the Lamborghini Aventador Start-Button Cover.



What a great, great design detail. Similar to that of a fighter jet before it launches a missile, this Lambo features a button cover before you start it's 700hp engine. However, that should not be tamed. Good choice Car and Driver.

The seventh design detail is the McLaren MP4-12C Air Vents.



Yeah...no. Nothing special about this. It looks like its made out of plastic from China, and aside from that, its just plain boring. Poor choice Car and Driver.

The eighth design detail is the Mercedes-Benz CLS63 Shifter.



I really, REALLY like this. For being a automatic gear box, your hand does not need to be on the shifter at all times, meaning the shape can be pretty out there (within reason). I like the low profile of the knob, if you could call it a knob, and it appears as if it may even be a little more ergonomical than the standard gear knob. Good choice Car and Driver.

The ninth design detail is the Morgan 3-Wheeler RAF Paint Job.



Here's another view, seeing as that one is a little restrictive.



If I had money to toss out the window, I might save it and purchase one of these. A certain friend of mine can appreciate, probably more than I can, the mechanics of this 'car'. The exposed instruments, the engine right in your face. and most of all the uniquely crafty paint job. Excellent, just excellent. Good choice Car and Driver.

The tenth and final design detail is the Porsche Cayman R Cloth Door Pulls



Oh God no, NO! Get it away! The red door pulls on a Sand Beige Interior Leather, sickening. Their television ads should say "From the world's laziest design team, Porsche now brings you...a uselessly hideous way to barely lighten your Cayman." I understand what they were trying to do by removing handles and inserting cloth pulls, but seriously? Seriously Porsche? There is nothing, NOTHING you could remove or make Carbon Fiber to lighten the car? Its just mind blowingly hideous, and the worst part is, the seat belts...also red. WHY! You cannot lighten a seat belt you just cant, if your going to make the door handles hideous red pulls that won't match a nice beige interior at least do us the courtesy of making the seat belts match. TERRIBLE choice Car and Driver.

Well I hope you liked this change of pace on my Blog. I hope you can agree with some of my opinions and disagree with others. This is the point after all, to spark conversation. As always pass on the link to my blog. Continue following, and I'll continue to try and put out more updates.

Thanks for the continued support. Chase your dreams, never give up.

Ferrari 458 Italia, some day.