Canadian Automotive Jury Drive Day marks last milestone before naming 2011 Best of the Best Winner

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Ed. Note: While the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada is announcing its class awards today for Car of the Year, alternative testing is taking place by the Canadian Automotive Jury, a separate, unrelated organization of automobile journalists and writers. For a story on the differences between the two, see here. Wheels’ John LeBlanc is a founding member of the Jury.)

 

TORONTO, Ont. - Yesterday, at a windy Woodbine Park test drive facility, myself along with other Canadian Automotive Jury members got a chance to get behind the wheel of all twelve of the 2011 CAJ Best of the Best Finalists  (including last year's winning Volskwagen Golf) before voting for an eventual overall winner next month. You already know I think the Golf is still the best compact car family out there. But here are my brief comments on this year's new entries:

• BEAUTY & THE BEAST - 2011 Audi R8 5.2 makes Gallardo redundant—will make you feel like Iron Man behind the wheel; 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee impresses—Chrysler interior upgrades finally paying off.

 

• GERMAN LUXURY, BIG & NOT-SO-SMALL - Robust, luxurious, refined-2011 Benz E Class defines mainstream luxury; 2011 Volkswagen Jetta interior borders on midsize, for compact money.

 

• CAJ Best of the Best Finalist, 2011 Kia Sportage, brings premium exterior and interior to hum-drum compact crossover segment.

 

• TOUGH CHOICES - You sacrifice features in the 2011 Mazda2, but lighter weight makes it more FTD than Fiesta; Looks, features, great drive; what took Ford so long to bring back its 2011 Fiesta?

 

• 2011 CAJ Best of the Best Drive Day catering budget exhausted on caffeine.

 

• THE ROCK STAR & THE NEW KID ON THE BLOCK - Found last BMW 5er too hardcore? More refined 2011 family may be your bowl of bratwurst; 2011 Hyundai Sonata epitomizes Korean automaker’s strong value play.

 

• Is the 2011 Cadillac CTS Coupe GM’s most dramatic looking car since the Bill Mitchell/1960s era?

 

• 2011 Regal-especially the Turbo- Buick's best attempt yet to get buyers who don't qualify for seniors discount.

Check back in here later November, when the Canadian Automotive Jury announces its 2011 Best of the Best Winner.

 

 

More than recalls cause of Toyota’s sales woes

Newsflash: Toyota Canada isn’t going to sell as many cars this year as they did last. To be specific, sales last month for the combined Toyota/Lexus brands were down 17.1 per cent from September 2009, in a Canadian new car market that’s up 7 per cent. At this rate—and there’s no reason for Toyota’s sales to rise between now and the end of the year—sales could end up around 175,000 for 2010, down from the just-over-200,000 in 2009, the automaker’s biggest drop since 1993.

Now, for sure, no doubt, Toyota’s massive mess of recalls, which will shortly celebrate its first anniversary, has dulled the Japanese automaker’s previous untarnished reputation for quality, encouraging new car buyers to migrate to other brands. And Toyota could also blame the Great Recession, which has really hurt small car sales (its Yaris and Corolla sales are in the toilet.) Or the fact the Detroit Three are still making hay while the sun shines on pickups, a segment Toyota has had little success despite several attempts.

True. Sort of. Yeah. Uh-huh. Except how does Toyota Canada explain why Kia, Hyundai and Volkswagen—brands that don’t sell pickups, but primarily small cars—are sporting double-digit increases over 2009? Toyota can blame the market. Or specific weak segments. Or it can just look at its Toyota, Lexus and new Scion showrooms, filled with aging and yawn-inducing products. In this economy, "new" sells. New car buyers need a good reason to buy. And Toyota’s “new” car cupboard is pretty bare for 2011.

But isn’t Toyota introducing “more than a dozen new or significantly refreshed Toyota and Lexus models in the coming year” including  a bunch of "new" Scions?

Yeah. If you cut and paste the Japanese automaker's press releases. Granted, the 2011 Sienna and 4Runner (which have been on sale since last spring) are “new” by my standards.  But I wouldn’t call refreshes of its Avalon (above), Highlander, IS, or RAV4 anything but updates. Even among the new-to-Canada Scion models, only the tC coupe is not stale. And you have to bleed Toyota Red to think those Scions (already coming into a struggling segment) aren't going to cannibalize Yaris/Corolla/Matrix sales.

What do you think?

Do you think Toyota’s sales woes can strictly be blamed on its recall crisis?

Or is Toyota’s lack of exciting new products more to blame?

[Source: Toyota Canada, DesRosiers Associates]

The General's naming games

As part of Chevrolet’s recent small car religion— that includes the 2011 compact Cruze, next year’s Orlando compact tall wagon and a future Spark city car—an all-new subcompact  2011 Aveo, left, is on the way as well. We saw the production version last month in Paris, initially, next spring it will be built at Government Motors' plant in Seoul, South Korea, then join the Cruze-based 2012 Buick Verano compact at one of GM’s Michigan factories, before the new Chevy subcompact goes on sale in Canada later next year.

Although the benchmark was set fairly low with the outgoing Aveo sedan and Aveo5 hatch, the new Aveo looks like it will be a huge improvement overall. With an all-of-a-sudden crowded small car market—new Fiesta, Mazda2, etc.—it better be. But now we’re hearing the General may be reconsidering the Aveo name. Apparently, GM wants to distance itself from the last generation car.

Here we go again…As you know, GM has played the name game countless times in the past, (think Pontiac Sunbird/Sunfire/Pursuit/G6 Pursuit, or ask why today’s’ Cruze isn’t still a Cavalier). But the company seems to be a slow learner. A new name for Chevrolet’s subcompact could cost millions of dollars in creating awareness in the industry and potential customers.

Other automakers seem to understand that brand awareness is a sticky business. Despite big changes and improvements through multiple generations from duds to studs, model names like the Nissan Altima or Hyundai Sonata live on. How many sales did Pontiac lose from Grand Am owners looking for a replacement, only to be confused by a salesman showing them a new G-whatever-it-was-called?

GM declined to comment on the Aveo name change in the Detroit Free Press report. But what do you think?

Should GM save some of our taxpayer money and stick with the Aveo badge for its new subcompact?

Or is the current Aveo such a dud, a new moniker is in order?

[Source: Detroit Free Press]

2011 CAJ Best of the Best nominees announced

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here’s the deal. If you’re reading Wheels, it’s safe to assume that you’re one of the wisest, sharpest, most knowledgeable car enthusiasts on the planet. So it goes without reason that if yours truly is to put his name behind an annual new car award, it’s going to be the “best” as well.

At a global level, I already represent Canada at the World Car of the Year awards. On a more local scale, I’m also one of the 10 Jurors of The Canadian Automotive Jury and our annual Best of the Best Awards.

Who the heck is the CAJ? Well, like myself, my nine fellow Jurors are fulltime journalists, some of the most-read auto industry experts in the country. We not only road test cars, but also travel the planet to new car launches and car shows from Beijing to Los Angeles, mainly to provide a distinctive and up-to-the-minute Canadian perspective on the ever-changing global auto industry.

I may be a bit biased. But I believe the CAJ Best of the Best Awards are the most credible, unbiased new car awards in Canada. We are a not-for-profit organization, and the awards are independently funded by us, the Jurors. We don’t receive a penny from any automakers to come to our decision.

I also like the fact that we, the Jury, don’t exclusively focus on just one model within a family of vehicles (i.e. only the GTI, and not the other Golfs) or only “all-new,” “semi-new” and “we-put-some-new-taillights-on-it-and called-it-new” models. As CAJ Jurors, we don't hand out awards for a specific model that may only appeal to a specific new car buyer. That’s why the reigning champion, the 2010 Best of the Best Winner, the Volkswagen Golf (with its gas, turbo and diesel engines, three-, five-door and wagon bodystyles, and sporty GTI) is automatically included as a finalist for this year’s awards.

And what about this year's second annual 2011 CAJ Best of the Best Finalists?

First, all candidates must have been on sale in Canadian showrooms by October 1, 2010. From this group, Jury members chose 11 finalists, plus the Golf. Five European models, four domestic, two Korean, and one Japanese model make up the dozen, which includes the Audi R8, BMW 5 Series, Buick Regal, Cadillac CTS, Ford Fiesta, Hyundai Sonata, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Kia Sportage, Mazda2, Mercedes-Benz E-Class, Volkswagen Jetta, and of course, the last year's winning Volkswagen Golf.

Later this month, the Jury will get together, take the gloves off, and hammer out a decision on what will be our 2011 Best of the Best Winner. Should be fun. Look for the winner to be announced some time in November.

Is adventurous car design dead?

 

We waited for this? was my thought bubble when spy shots of what is speculated to be the next-gen Honda Civic in hot weather testing showed up in a video (above) this week. But then, I had the same light bulb go off when I first saw der neu BMW 6 Series on the Paris show floor a couple of weeks back. Putting 6 and Civic together, it’s hard not to ask: Is the age of adventurous car design dead?

The supposed 2012 Civic is an interesting case. The current model (left)  has been around for a while, since its debut as a 2006 model. But its progressive styling has kept it fresh. Now, in the good old days, Honda would have rolled out a new Civic by now. Which was the plan. Like the current Accord, the next Civic was going to be larger and more luxurious than the outgoing model. But then tougher fuel economy regulations came into effect, which left the Japanese automaker scrambling to rethink its Civic plans. In the end, it opted for a simpler, lighter (i.e. more fuel efficient) Civic which caused the delay of the new car.

The next Civic may very well be more frugal. And maybe less expensive to build. But judging by what we can see behind the duct-taped prototype in the video, the styling looks like a step backwards. It’s now a dulled-down version of its formerly progressive design, causing the Honda to look a lot like too many other small cars out there.

At BMW, the days of controversially styled cars seem to be over. The German automaker appears to heading down the same me-too, me-too styling path as Honda and other automakers.

Under former head pen Chris Bangle, BMW was once the domain of groundbreaking designs that rivals copied shamelessly. Say what you will about Bangle and his “butts.” At least, however, the cars were progressive and interesting to look at. Which is something that can’t be said of the yawn-inducing cars coming out under new BMW design head, Adrian van Hooydonk.

Today, you can’t say the C Word around van Hooydonk. He doesn’t think his cars are “conservative.” But BMW will admit that another C Word—China, and its conservative luxury car buyers—has played a big role in how its cars now look. Sadly, its back to "the same sausage, different links" approach that was the BMW norm before departed Bangle started shaking things up in the late 1990s.

It started with the current Z4. Then the 7 and 5 Series. And now the new 6 Series (left), which has lost the distinctive looks of its predecessor (right) that date back to 1999’s Z9 Gran Turismo concept. And the list of less adventurously styled new cars doesn't stop there. The new 2011 Volkswagen Jetta versus the old Jetta, and the new 2012 Mercedes CLS versus the groundbreaking first model can also be thrown in the lost-design-mojo heap as well.

So tell me: Are you sad that car companies are becoming more risk adverse, and tightening the creative reins on their designers?

Or do you like your cars conservatively drawn?

[Sources: CAR, BMW]

 

Did GM “lie” about its Chevy Volt being an “electric” car?

Its General Motors' so-called Jesus (as in savior) Car. And it's being rolled out in its home U.S. market right now, before it makes its way to Canada next year. Yet, in what should be a shining moment in the sun for one of the most talked about new cars in some time, parent GM is having to defend not only its Chevrolet Volt’s less-than-promised real-world fuel economy, but also if the car is really the revolutionary vehicle GM’s been promising us since its debut at the 2007 Detroit show.

First things first: Based on the on-road evaluations from reputable U.S. pubs like Popular Mechanics (they got 37.5 mpg), Car and Driver (“a carefully modulated cruise below 60 mph pushed the figure into the upper 30s.") and Motor Trend (“should return fuel economy in the high 30s to low 40s.") are reporting, the Volt isn’t exactly getting the 230 MPG city fuel consumption GM promised back in August of last year

For some context, a $23,875 2011 Volkswagen Jetta diesel (with one more seat than the four-place, $41,000 USD) sips in that range.

Mileage numbers may not in the end affect Volt sales. Like the Toyota Prius—which rarely achieves its fuel economy ratings—many buyers will be gob smacked by the Volt’s revolutionary mechanical makeup. But the second battle GM’s PR folks are battling now deals with the Volt's alleged status as a "pure" EV, and the company’s credibility—or precived lack thereof—is on the line. Here’s the skinny:

As GM has said for three years, the Volt is an electric-vehicle, an EV. It would always run on electric power, that the car is an “extended-range electric vehicle”, not a hybrid like the Prius.

Or is it…

During these U.S. media drives events, Edmunds.com, Motor Trend and Popular Mechanics have reported that during heavy acceleration the Volt uses its gasoline engine to power an electric generator which helps turn the wheels, not just juice its battery pack, as GM has stated all along —i.e. just like a run-of-the-mill gas-electric hybrid.

Hmmm…not as sexy, eh?

So now GM is saying that, yes, the Volt’s gas engine does assist in driving the car through an electric generator. Which, one could argue with GM and say, effectively, makes the Volt a plug-in hybrid and not the electric vehicle  GM has pimped the car out as for years.

Apparently, GM’s defense is that they didn’t want all of the Volt’s details to be released for fear its patents would be copied.

Lame? Maybe. But in the end, do you care if the Volt is a plug-in hybrid or an EV? As a taxpayer you should.

You see, last year, the Ontario government (a part owner in GM) announced that it would offer a $10,000 rebate on the Volt, because it’s an EV. But now that the Volt apparently isn’t a “pure” EV, does it still qualify for the rebate? If so, shouldn't hybrids from Ford, Nissan, Honda and Toyota get rebates as well?

Or do you only care that when the Volt  is running on electric power only—which now GM says is about “25 to 50 miles”— that it’s a cleaner alternative  to a gas-only car?

[Sources: Automotive News, Car and Driver, Edmunds, Motor Trend, Popular Mechanics]

Why Audi shouldn’t build its Paris Quattro concept

Of all the groundbreaking cars at this year’s Parisian shindig, personally, Audi’s Quattro Concept was my out-and-out fave.

I’d been hearing that Audi had been working on a revival of its original—or Ur—Quattro coupe (left)—in celebration of 30 years of Quattro, for a couple of years now. If you're the right age, the first Quattros are seminal cars, now classics. They had the credibility of not only countless rally championships, but also for jump starting a once-morbid brand, and supplying the golden nugget of what has become the cornerstone of Audi’s brand ethos: performance all-wheel-drive.

The Paris Quattro concept does a lot for me. Not only does it harken back to the original, it hints at future Audis, especially the use of the recessed tail lamps and the evolution of the Audi face with the vertical air intakes at the front of the car.

Now, my understanding was that the idea of a Neu Quattro production car was dead. The Great Recession, Audi’s push into making its E-Tron electric cars (right), and the speculated R4 midengine sports car to complement the existing TT, meant Audi’s been counters couldn’t make a business case for the expected 200-500 modern Quattros that would be built. However, after the glowing reception the concept received (and the thoughts of profits dancing in their heads) after its surprise debut in Paris last week, Audi's braintrust is at least saying all the right things to Quattro enthusiasts: it has not ruled out production plans.

Stefan Reil, head of development at Audi’s Quattro Gmbh division, confirmed a limited production run may go ahead. “We are rethinking standard processes to make it possible,” he said. “We know how to engineer it already.”

Now, I’m all for more performance cars. Especially with the new fuel economy regs threatening anything that may bring a smile to your face from behind the wheel. But Audi should leave the Quattro concept as just that—a concept.

Except for a couple of PR-friendly runs at Pikes Peak, Audi can’t take it new Quattro back to its progenitor's competition roots. The World Rally Championship—where the original Quattro took on rivals from Peugeot and Lancia at the height of the Group B era—has devolved into using less powerful subcompacts. But maybe more importantly, Audi needs to be moving forward as a brand, not backwards.

One lesson that needs to be learned in the past three years: the world has changed. Customers are looking for a new kind of value, not old answers. Revisiting quarter-century ideas seems like the well is running dry, which for a progressive automaker like Audi, seems untrue.

Look, Audi, you have the various R8s, TT-RS, RS5 (which the Quattro is heavily based on) and more than likely, the midengine R4. Don’t get greedy and mess with your icon's heritage for the sake of a few extra Eruos in the bank.

[Source: Autocar]

 

 

2010 Paris: Smart

PARIS - Already selling the smallest car you can buy in Canada, it seems unfathomable that Mercedes-Benz’s Smart brand would launch two new concepts at this year’s Paris show smaller than its existing ForTwo micro car.

In truth, the concepts aren’t cars at all. One’s an electric scooter, the other an electrically assisted bicycle. And neither will be available in Canadian Smart showroom anytime soon. But taking a longer view, the two-wheel Smart Escooter and Ebike concepts (plus the Mini e-scooters that were also in Paris) hint that automakers may need to make more than cars to stay in business in the future. Smart readily admits that “two-wheelers will enable the brand to also reach considerably younger people who do not yet have a car driving license."

In theory, the Smart Escooter, (pictured left, and in the video above) has a top speed of 45 km/h, via a 48-volt lithium-ion battery pack that has a range of “up to” 100 km. It can be charged at any standard household power socket, within three to five hours. Included on the Escooter are car like safety features like an airbag, ABS anti-lock brake system and a Blind Spot Assist.

The Ebike concept (seen right) could be even more accessible. You don’t need any license because it can’t go faster than 25 km/h. Smart says the aluminum Ebike weighs approximately 22 kilograms, making it among electric bicycles one of the “lightweights” in its class. The rider still has to pedal most of the time. But the electric "booster" is a 250-watt brushless direct current wheel hub motor that is integrated in the rear wheel, mainly to be used on hills, not drag racing city buses.

You can see how both of these two-wheelers would make sense in crowded European cities that already have scooter and bicycle cultures. And whether or not either of these two-wheel Smarts go into production, or ever come to Canada, is yet to be seen.

But do you think Canadian car owners will ever consider scooters and bikes as replacements for their cars?

And are there any advantages to buying one from a car brand?