The Toyota Prius has never been our cup of Earl Grey. In its third generation the Prius still makes too many sacrifices in the quest for ultimate fuel efficiency. Enter the Prius v. It’s larger in every important dimension, and thanks to Toyota keeping the weight gain in check, still manages an EPA rated 42mpg combined rating. It just might be a Prius we can get on board with.

      The grumblings coming out of the Windy City this auto show season have been clear. The GMC Acadia is aged and is barely getting a facelift after 6 model years on the market. But look closer folks. That large crossover you see with the gleaming red GMC badge is hardly an Acadia. No, that my friend, is a facelifted Saturn Outlook.
     Yes, that is why the vehicle looks like the long lost friend you haven’t seen in years but somehow still recognize. When the Saturn brand was scuttled after the 2009 model year the Outlook was only in its third model year. The Outlook tooling was likely never fully amortized after the abbreviated run while the Acadia soldiered on as a successful backbone of the GMC brand’s somewhat surprising survival. In an effort to recoup costs while simultaneously making the Acadia unique from its 2007-2012 forbears, the Saturn’s tooling was dusted off and used to produce every exterior metal stamping save the hood. Granted, the Acadia and Outlook had always shared their door skins, but the rest of the exterior was surprising unique. This is hardly the first time old tooling has been used to update a model in need of a refresh in order to soldier on for another model year. Here are a few notable examples:
     In the US Chevrolet offered the aerodynamic Corsica for more years that it should have despite being the second best-selling car in the US in 1988. In Canada, Pontiac dealers sold a clone and slapped the nostalgic Tempest name to the deck lid. One of the few differentiations was the taillight lens. Chevrolet made use of the lack of the Tempest’s availability stateside and used its ridged lenses to replace those with Chevy logos in 1991. The taillights only served double duty in Canada for one year as the Tempest was phased out after 1991.
     Perhaps more difficult to observe was Cadillac’s reuse of the Eldorado grille from 1974 on the 1977 model year. Cadillac and convertible fans probably never noticed since they were mourning the loss of what was believed to be the last American branded convertibles when the last 1976 Eldorado drop top was produced. Cadillac pulled old grille moldings out of retirement a second time when they used the 1981 deVille and Fleetwood grille on stately 1987-88 Broughams.
      Pontiac’s B-body full size sedans endured a strange re-use of old tooling and name shuffling in the 1980s. The large Bonneville was shifted to the A-body platform in 1982, replacing the LeMans. Dealers cried foul as their large car customers sought Caprices, Impalas and Eighty Eights from Chevrolet and Oldsmobile. To stop the mass exodus, Pontiac brought the Parisienne down from Canada, which itself was nothing much more than a badge engineered Chevy Impala. This worked for model years ’83-84 until someone decided that resurrecting the 1981 Bonneville tooling would make the cars a bit classier. Indeed, the Parisienne served its final model years wearing the body treatment – including fender skirts, tail lights and decklid from the ’81 Bonneville with the nose of the ’83-84 Parisienne grafted on to maintain some level of continuity.
     In 1994 when complaints of the long nose on the Lumina APV and Pontiac Trans Sport was too much for GM stylists to endure, they lopped 3” off the nose of the vans and fitted them with headlights previously unique to the 1992 Pontiac Bonneville. The Oldsmobile cousin, the Silhouette did some strange parts sharing of its own when it received the facelift intended for the Euro-spec vans the same model year which was devoid of the Bonneville lamps. This helped to further distinguish the Olds from its lower class Chevy and Pontiac associates. Much more recently GM transferred the body of the Oldsmobile Bravada to the Buick Rainier and SAAB 9-7x when it buried the storied century old brand. Many complained that the Rainier and 9-7x were nothing more than rebadged TrailBlazers, but the situation would have been far worse had the deceased Oldsmobile not donated its vital stampings to the cause.
     Lest you think GM is the only manufacturer to surprise the eagle eyed car spotter, Ford managed to differentiate the SHO in 1992 from its lesser Taurus siblings by using the hood and fenders from its Sable sister. The Crown Victoria received an overdue update in 1998 by sharing its entire body shell with the Grand Marquis, when the cars had been completely unique externally since their updates in 1992. Ever wonder why the Mercury Mountaineer had odd running lights in the rear bumper? The original Mountaineer differentiated itself from the Explorer through the use of the rear bumper from the euro-spec SUV. And who could forget the use of Econoline tail lamps on the gigantic Excursion? Indeed, those tail light shapes are still in production several model years after their shared use on Super Duty based SUV.
     Chrysler is not exempt either. While the LHS and Concorde shared body shells from 1997-2001, the LHS was discontinued for the ’02 model year. At this point the Concorde began using all exterior fascia previously reserved for the sportier LHS and would remain this way until its demise in 2004. While the Dodge Caravan donated its tail lights to the first generation Durango and rear hatch to the Mexican market Ramcharger, my favorite reuse of old Mopar tooling is the drastic measures Chrysler Corporation took to save its Dodge dealers from utter destruction for the 1962 model year. In a disastrous decision to make all Dodge and Plymouth models mid-sized for 1962, traditional Dodge and Plymouth buyers had no place to go but up market Chrysler for a large car without heading to GM and Ford. Chrysler had just started offering the lower priced Newport for its upscale brand. Dodge quickly grafted the 1961 Polara front clip onto the Newport body shell, and designers were literally given a bushel-basket of chrome trim from previous model year Dodges and told to make the trim fit. Within months Dodge had its full size car back in time for January 1962, a few months late for the model year.
      While each of these re-uses of old or common tooling is often frowned upon by enthusiasts, how many of these examples are we really aware? Is this clever resourcefulness or lazy badge engineering? The aesthetic result and success in the market place are perhaps the real measure.

Photos courtesy of General Motors

[Show as slideshow with a fullscreen option]

12►

A Hybrid After Our Own Hearts

     We’ve been putting our share of hybrids to the test over the past year. We’ve sampled Toyota’s offerings in the form of the popular Prius and their luxury brand’s Lexus CT 200h. We’ve sampled the family wagon Prius v as well as Chevrolet’s extended range plug-in electric car, the Volt. While each of these vehicles delivers varying levels of reduced consumption of gasoline, not one of them truly puts the electric motor to use for the full benefit of the driving enthusiast. When hybrids first happened on the scene, the enthusiast community couldn’t help but notice that the electric motors that assist (or in the Volt’s case, exclusively provide) propulsion had mountains of instantly available torque. We enthusiasts have had to settle for varying degrees of improved fuel economy with barely any fun thrown in. Finally, an automaker has stepped up to the challenge to use hybrid technology to actually make a sport sedan more sporting. Enter the Infiniti M35h.
     Not quite the superbly styled sedan we would expect from the brand that gave us the G35 and G37 coupes, the M35 looks a bit overinflated. Don’t get us wrong, the long-hood/short deck proportions indicative of a proper rear-wheel-drive sport sedan are there along with the ever attractive six window side glass, but the athletic shapes of the G37 are lost in translation on this largish luxury hybrid.
     Infiniti claims that the M Hybrid has the best of both a worlds: V8 power with 4-cylinder fuel economy. While the highway rating of 32 mpg is hardly impressive for a 4-cylinder, the 27 mpg city and 29 mpg combined rating is hard to fault. Remember, this is a large sedan that seats five in proper comfort and luxury. That economy is due to a combination of a 3.5-liter V6 engine, a 50kW electric motor and a 7-speed automatic transmission. If the M35’s sole output was from the 302 hp V6 we would expect high levels of thrust. Combine the engine output with the electric motor and we receive a hybrid system net power of 360 hp and 258 lb-ft of torque. Not class leading number until you factor in that the electric motor alone wrenches out 199 lb-ft of torque from near-zero rpm. Acceleration doesn’t feel as neck-snapping as all those combined numbers imply, but it is a far cry from the anemic acceleration of the Prius and certainly is devoid of the raspy engine sounds that vehicle produces as its CVT annoys the ears of those expecting engine revs to match vehicle speed. Placing the Infiniti in sport mode certainly made throttle responses more direct while holding engine RPMs higher. This is definately not your average environmentalist’s hybrid.
     The overall hybrid experience in the M35h is subdued and relatively discrete. Gauges indicate to the driver when electric power switches on an off while the tach disconcertingly drops to zero in electric mode. No matter, we quickly got used to the vehicle’s silent operation at traffic lights. Amazingly, the M35h can accelerate to a maximum of 62 mph on electric propulsion alone which is a feat the Prius and CT200h can’t touch. On one occasion we were disturbed to find the car rolling forward briefly after putting the car in reverse while in electric mode. The car didn’t roll forward enough to be a problem but was an unexpected glitch in a hybrid that otherwise performed flawlessly.
     We enjoyed the right-sized steering wheel that was Goldilocks-perfect–not too big and not too small. The meaty grips imply its sporting nature. Arm rests were pleasantly soft and complimented a nicely designed interior. Unfortunately there were a few disappointments, albeit minor ones. The headliner had a mysterious rumple just aft of the overhead console that screamed of the need for better quality control during assembly. Seat heaters were slow to warm up and rear seat passengers complained of seatbelts that locked prematurely during the buckle-up routine before departure. The M35h joins a long list of vehicles that have no need for a back-up camera but are so equipped anyway. This car’s backup camera was a bit useless as it didn’t offer an adaptive guide path showing the car’s eventual position. Instead, there were two simple lines overlaid in the screen that simply project back towards infinity (pun intended).
     While the M35h manages to ride and drive like a premium sport sedan, it is priced like one as well. The starting price is a wallet-lightening $53,700. There are only four boxes that can be checked on the hybrid’s factory installed options list, including a $3,050 Technology Package, a $3,900 Deluxe Touring Package, a $3,450 Premium Package and $650 for 18-inch wheels. Our car was equipped with the Deluxe Touring package which includes a Bose Surround sound system, rear sunshade, leather seating with additional bolstering, genuine White Ash silver powdered wood trim (uniquely pretty), suede-like headliner and something called Forest Air. That Forest Air system is some sort of advanced auto recirculation mode with a Plasmacluster air purifier and Grape Polyphenol Filter. We’re not certain what the benefits of those contraptions are, but we’re guessing it makes one breathe easier.
     Though we weren’t blown away by any one aspect of Infiniti’s performance hybrid, it certainly had no glaring faults. In fact, this car offers everything that a luxury sport sedan should; balanced handling, ample power and acceleration and a comfortable and luxurious interior. Add to this a fuel economy rating that pushes this 360 hp sedan comfortably past the 30 mpg mark and we finally have a hybrid we can get behind for more reasons than just passing the gas station.

 Photos by Jason Muxlow

[Show as slideshow with a fullscreen option]

12►

      Toyota’s Highlander has never been a vehicle to grab the attention of our automotive hearts. Its subdued styling and midsize packaging just doesn’t stand out in the crowd. Our all-wheel-drive test example was even painted a nondescript shade of beige. But setting out with low expectations can be good, because it’s then hard to disappoint.
      And yet we were still disappointed with the Highlander’s unimpressive fuel economy figures: 17 mpg city / 22 mpg highway. With numbers like that Toyota might as well have based this vehicle on a true truck platform rather than compromise truck-like capabilities with a car-based crossover. The Highlander again defied its cross-over roots by giving the handling feel of an old school truck-based SUV in the corners. It simply refused to be pushed when the roads twisted. The next disappointment was the leather wrapped steering wheel that felt exactly like plastic and the nice looking but hard to the touch dash materials. This would be something to criticize in a $20k vehicle but impossible to defend in the Highlander, which has a base price of more than $36,000.
      The Highlander did succeed in surprising us on a few accounts. First, its 270 hp V6 feels much more powerful than its power ratings suggest. Solidly pushing on the go-pedal scoots the Highlander into highway traffic with admirable ease. Once on the highway, Toyota’s midsize crossover is comfortable to remain there with a ride that soaks up the miles and the uneven pavement. The high perch from the driver’s seat is pleasant with an unexpected amount of adjustments. This is certainly a vehicle that can cruise all day without tiring its occupants. While the Highlander came up short in some obvious areas, its highway demeanor keeps this vehicle on the list of crossovers to consider even if it fails to place it at the top.

Photos by Jason Muxlow

[Show as slideshow with a fullscreen option]

12►

       This week we get a ride in the Lexus CT 200h Hybrid. That’s a bit of a mouthful, but not as bad as the HS 250h Hybrid, which thankfully departs the Lexus lineup this year. The CT is actually a size smaller than the HS, or even the Prius, from which this little hatch steals its powertrain. Unfortunately, for as nimble as they’ve made the CT the hybrid/CVT pairing lets it fall flat on its face when the go pedal is depressed. A good number of hybrid fans out there won’t care, but this little Lexus is aimed square at the premium hatch segment of the market with its spry handling. A performance enhancing hybrid system would be better suited to this car’s willing chassis. And before we get a bunch of, “you don’t know what you are talking about this is a Toyota hybrid and it is suppose to be like this” comments we suggest you actually take this little bugger out for a jaunt on a twisty piece of tarmac with the drive selector spun to “Sport”. You’ll agree, the only thing missing is horsepower.

      Toyota dropped off an all-wheel drive Highlander Limited at the Automotive Trends garage this week. Timely since Mother Nature also stopped by with about two inches of snow for us to play in. Watch as Design Editor Gernand gives us a quick walk around of this beige family crossover. 

      What is an Automotive Trends editor to do when he has a brand new untested GoPro camera in a box, a 2012 Fiat 500 in the garage and a fresh layer of snow covering the AT Test Track? Go for a drive! I might also add that Automotive Trends highly recommends a good set of winter tires for any and all wintry conditions, regardless of vehicle drivetrain layout (you’ll note that the Fiat is wearing a snow shoe at each corner). Enjoy!  

      The Porsche Boxster has been a sensation since 1997 thanks to a winning formula of mid-engine handling prowess, boxer engine smoothness and timeless good looks. The lowest MSRP among Porsche’s offerings also didn’t hurt. The third generation 2013 model looks to continue all of that while comprehensively altering just about everything.
      For starters the chassis is thoroughly modified with a longer wheelbase, wider track and windshield set further forward. The stylish new body uses plenty of aluminum and shorter overhangs plus a redesigned fabric roof dispenses with the need for a convertible top compartment lid making this Boxster lighter than the outgoing model. Music to the ears of sports car fans the world over. The interior falls into line with the rest of the Porsche family with a thin center console and, according to Porsche, more passenger space. The exterior gains dramatic new details like aggressive side scoops and a raised rear winglet.
      Both Boxster and Boxster S models continue with the former using a smaller 2.7-liter boxer six that boasts 265 hp (10 more than the outgoing 2.9-liter) and the S models continuing with a 3.4-liter rated five more than last year at 315 hp. The 7-speed dual-clutch continues to be available but the standard transmission remains a 6-speed manual. Porsche is saving the newly-introduced 7-speed manual for the top-range 911 family, at least for now. They didn’t offer EPA ratings, but with the addition of a start/stop system engineers expect an improvement in this area as well.
      Porsche will offer larger wheels, a new mechanical rear axle differential lock called Porsche Torque Vectoring and a new electromechanical power steering system to improve the Boxster’s already legendary levels of handling response. Base models can achieve 60 mph in 5.4 seconds while the more powerful S model trims that run to 4.7 seconds. Both cars will arrive in the US this summer and start at $49,500 for the base model and $60,900 for the enthusiast-favorite Boxster S.

Photos courtesy of Porsche

[Show as slideshow with a fullscreen option]

     There’s a lot to see at the 2012 North American International Auto Show and many of our readers won’t be able to experience it firsthand, but if you’re looking for just the highlights you’ve come to the right spot. Executive Editor Brandon Dye, Senior Editor Jason Muxlow and Design Editor Erich Gernand spent two days covering the show from top to bottom and they’ve got the sore feet to prove it. So anyone who can’t make it to the Motor City this year should sit back and listen in as they discuss the big news coming out of Detroit. You don’t even have to risk sore feet.

      The 2013 Dodge Dart is one of the most important production debuts at the North American International Auto Show and Executive Editor Brandon Dye explains why in this Video Highlight from the show floor.

Photos by Jason Muxlow

[Show as slideshow with a fullscreen option]