Motoring June 2009

THIS MONTH I’M JUST TALKING CARS!

By Kevin Ransom

One of the realities of writing for a monthly magazine is the deadlines are about two weeks in advance of publication. So, most monthlies aren’t really able to report on the most recent developments in late-breaking news stories.They don’t come any bigger than the running story of the moment.

But the tyranny of deadline delay is with us again this edition, because, at this writing, in late May, General Motors was busily polishing their turnaround plan, with a June 1 deadline looming. If the Obama administration likes what they see, GM is golden, and gets much needed federal loans. If not, it’s “bankruptcy all around,” to borrow from Charles Dickens.

But by most accounts, it is seemed unlikely that GM would be able to avoid the fate Chrysler faced one month ago – the walking the bankruptcy plank. But this month, I’m letting our intrepid editor Philip Moore and his colleagues deal with the “B word” as it relates to GM, elsewhere in your region’s top auto mag.

Crucial to remember though, is that if GM goes into bankruptcy protection here in the US this does not occur in the Middle East and, indeed, other global markets, China, Australia and the like. It will be “as you were’ for GM personnel, the powerful network of dealers – especially in the Middle East where many have been with the auto maker for generations - and, of course, the most valued component of all – the customers.

Of course, if GM goes into Chapter 11 it will be a sad day for a native of Motown like me although it will emerge stronger and leaner. What can I do? I’ll tell ya - I’m just going to talk about the cars this month.

Lost in all of the talk about the Big Three’s financial woes is the reality that GM, Ford and Chrysler have been putting out some damn fine vehicles in the last few years.

Chevrolet Malibu

One of the winners to come out of Detroit in recent years is the new Chevy Malibu. This is a vehicle that will be hitting the shores of the Middle East around September 2009 with 2010 models. I also realise that ME Car staff are taking it for a run at press time but I couldn’t resist having my say too!

The re-designed edition was anointed 2008 North American Car of the Year, and won a bevy of effusive reviews. Even in a very tough year for new-vehicle sales, the Malibu has acquitted itself nicely. Way back in March of ’08, before the current economic meltdown, the Malibu posted a retail sales increase of 120 per cent.

The new Malibu will come to you in two well-appointed trim levels:LT and LTZ – all of which are equipped with standard head curtain side air bags and front-seat thorax air bags, in addition to optional convenience features like remote vehicle start. The latest edition also comes as a hybrid model, crucial in the current climate here, which gets an EPA rating of 34 mpg in highway and 26 mpg in the city. Also new is the addition of Bluetooth wireless connectivity with the new OnStar 8.0 system. Plus, the StabiliTrak electronic stability control system with brake assist and traction control is now standard on all models, while the 17-inch fascia spoke wheels and touring tires are now standard on LT models

A 2.4 L four-cylinder engine with six-speed automatic transmission is standard, while the 3.6 L V6 is optional on the LT and LTZ. Tranny choices are a four-speed or six-speed automatic, depending on the model. The pairing of the 2.4L Ecotec engine and 6T40 transmission was designed to deliver a balance of engine oomph and greater fuel efficiency. The EPA-estimated fuel economy for this powertrain combination is 22 mpg in the city and 33 on the highway.

The 2.4L engine delivers 169 hp, which GM points out is comparable to the four-cylinder engines from competitors such as the Nissan Altima and Hyundai Sonata – and delivers more horses than the Toyota Camry. Meanwhile, the 3.6 L V6 cranks out a more robust 252 horses.

Even though gas prices are much more reasonable in the U.S. than they were two years ago, in the last month or so they’ve snuck back up by about 50 cents a gallon, depending on the region of the country - so GM continues to hedge its bets with its Hybrid offerings. The plant in the Malibu’s Hybrid edition consists of a 2.4L Ecotec VVT four-cylinder engine mated to a Hydra-Matic 4T45 four-speed transmission. It delivers 164 horsepower and 159 lb.-ft. of peak torque.

Of course, it wasn’t just engine efficiency and performance that earned the Malibu those Car of the Year honours. The re-skinned Malibu also sports a svelte silhouette, with a sporty stance and bold body lines - at least for a high-volume family sedan.

Those uncluttered body lines flow gracefully to the corners, where the wheels are pushed out to give it that more aggressive stance – which is also augmented by the longer greenhouse and a shorter deck. In back, the rear profile embraces some Corvette design cues, lest we forget that part of the Chevy performance heritage.

My Malibu test model delivered sufficient engine brawn when called for, whether in tight-spot passing situations on the E-way, or navigating sharp turns on those bucolic country roads in and around the Detroit area’s leafy metroparks. Ride quality was firm, and handling was crisp as well, due in part to suspension system being mounted to a stout chassis and the integrated body structure – which features a safety cage design and the savvy use of high-strength steel to increase structural integrity. This chassis and body structure allowed GM engineers to mount the suspension systems in more rigid fashion, which in turn let them focus on the finer tuning of the suspension.

By the time you read this, GM may well have been forced into bankruptcy. When they emerge, they will hopefully be leaner, with a healthier balance sheet, and will no longer have to be constantly pre-occupied with putting out fires. That means they’ll be able to focus even more on delivering high-quality, high-volume sedans like the Malibu, which will bode well for their long-term viability.

And I look forward to next month’s Middle East Car as I reckon my colleagues will have enjoyed the vehicle as much as I did.

Volvo C30

The C-30 also won its share of awards and raves when it was introduced – critics lauded it for its stylishness, its road dynamics and its unique Custom Build ordering procedure. In fact, customer response was so effusive for the limited-edition C30 R-Design that was rolled out late in the ‘08 model year, that Volvo created a new regular production R-Design model for ‘09.

Thus, the C30 R-Design is now the top-of-the-line C30 entry, replacing the former C30 Version 2.0. The R-Design comes with such standard features as Off Black Flextech/Crème premium leather seating surfaces with embossed R-Design logo; a special front grille with matte silver surround and R-Design logo; matte finish outside rearview mirrors; R-Design watch-dial instrument cluster; unique aluminum inlays; R- Design sport steering wheel and sport pedals.

The C30 line-up is completed by the T5 – now the entry luxury model, replacing the previous Version 1.0. A new Preferred Package is offered on both the T5 and R-Design that includes a power driver’s seat, front fog lights, trip computer, leather parking brake cover, Keyless drive and Dynaudio sound system.

That beefy sound system boasts Dolby Pro Logic II Surround, 10 Dynaudio loudspeakers and a booming 650 watts. Bluetooth hands-free phone interface is a new stand-alone option for both models, and one useful option is the Volvo HDD-based navigation system – which receives an improved driver interface, extended point-of-interest menu and a birds-eye-view map with detailed intersection and building footprints. The C30 is the only Volvo to offer the flexibility of the Custom Build ordering process.

Buyers pay a one-time fee of $300, which enables them to go hogwild and order a wide array of options, accessories, exterior colors and interior combinations. Indeed, a Custom Build Volvo can be constructed from a list of more than 30 various options – from Volvo’s famous Blind Spot Information System (BLIS) to the Electronic Climate Control (ECC) to the Dual Xenon high intensity gas discharge headlamps to the rear park assist. Volvo made its mark building larger, beefier vehicles – by European standards, anyway – that were known for their safety features. The C30 is a more compact model, giving Volvo entrée into that market. It’s a cute, zippy little number, so it does well with younger buyers and women buyers. It’s still built on Volvo’s standard structure, though - a solid body with wide front and rear tracks and a fairly long wheelbase.

The chassis rides on a MacPherson front wheel suspension and a Multilink rear axle – a synergy that is designed to improve control and deliver more responsive handling, based on driver input. And it definitely succeeds on that front. Which brings us to the power plant. Both versions of the C30 are powered by a turbocharged T5 5-cylinder engine that delivers 227 hp. Since the C30 is 8.5 inches shorter and weighs about 320 pounds less than the Volvo S40 sport sedan, it skedaddles pretty good out on the pavement – and it’ll turn on a dime and give you nine cents change.

Though it is aiming for a more fun-loving buyer, the C30 still retains Volvo’s safety-first ethos, and is built on Volvo’s highly regarded front structure – which is divided into zones, with the outer zones accounting for most of the “deformation” in a frontal collision. Four different types of steel are used to construct these zones, from normal to three different grades of high-strength steel.

In concert with the new model configurations for this year, here are some of the changes: On the C30 T5, the Volvo rear badge lettering is spread further apart; a seat-belt reminder has been added to the rear seats; a new Preferred Package includes power driver’s seat, front fog lights, trip computer, leather parking brake cover, Keyless Drive and Dynaudio sound system; and the Bluetooth hands-free phone interface is a new stand-alone option.

The C30 T5 R-Design, meanwhile, also features unique R-Design aluminum inlays; premium R-Design upholstery with embossed logo; leather gearshift knob with aluminum inlay; sport floormats with accent piping; matte Silver finish outside rearview mirrors; cruise control; custom built Dynaudio sound system option and an improved driver interface on the Real Time Traffic feature. It’s always interesting to watch a carmaker famous for a certain class of vehicle make inroads into other niches, and Volvo has done well with the C30. And, if you’re one who always likes more choices in life, you gotta love the Custom Build system.

Kia Sedona

A year ago, when fuel prices were up over $4 a gallon, the US mini-van segment, like the truck and SUV segments, were on the outs with US car buyers. But, of course, when gas prices go down, interest in larger vehicles goes back up – it’s one of the laws of the vehicle market.

So the Kia Sedona is once again an appealing option for North American buyers, especially given its high safety ratings by groups like Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. It was also named “Best Minivan” by MotorWeek and topped Strategic Vision’s Total Quality Index survey.

My mail is that there are a lot more Kia vehicles on the road in the Middle East these days – so it isn’t all down to gas prices.The Sedona is available in both the Long Wheelbase (LWB) and Short Wheelbase (SWB) formats, and comes in three trim levels – the Base, LX and EX. New for ’09 is SIRIUS Satellite Radio capability2, with auxiliary and MP3-USB connection, which comes standard on all trim levels - with three months complimentary service and an optional navigation system for the EX trim line.

Safety is one of the Sedona’s selling points, and Kia likes to remind us that the original Sedona received the company’s first five-star crash safety rating for each seating position from the U.S. government, and that the current generation was a “Top Safety Pick” by IIHS in 2007, 2008 and 2009.

Indeed, the current Sedonas offer a long list of standard safety equipment, starting with the six standard airbags (dual advanced front and front seat-mounted side air bags, and full-length side curtain air bags for all three seating rows). Plus, sensors control the dual advanced front air bags and determine not only the position of the seat, but also whether the seat belt is buckled, whether the front passenger seat is occupied, and the severity of a frontal impact before the bag is deployed.

A four-channel, four-sensor, antilock brake system (ABS) also is also standard.
But car buyers do not live by safety features alone, and Sedona also serves up a healthy dose of power: Its 3.8-litre DOHC 24-valve V6 engine produces 250 hp and 253 pound-feet of torque. The aluminum block engine is hitched to a smooth, five-speed Sportmatic transmission.

I found that the Sedona could really high-tail it when I punched the accelerator, and the four-wheel independent suspension helps deliver a sturdy ride. That suspension consists of MacPherson struts with coil springs and a stabilizer bar in the front, and a multi-link design with coil springs and a stabilizer bar in the rear.

Minivan buyers are always interested in spaciousness and flexibility. Obviously, the LWB version is more cavernous than the SWB, with seven-passenger capacity. But the SWB doesn’t skimp, either. Each offers plenty of seating/cargo-hauling configurations, by virtue of the flip-and-fold second row seats, which also provide easy access to third row seating on both LWB and SWB versions. A 60/40-split folding-into-the-floor third row seat is easy to operate and comes standard on all LWB models – creating a larger flat-cargo area. Meanwhile, a 50/50-split folding, removable third row seat is standard on the SWB model.

Both the LX and EX trim levels serve up a bevy of appealing features as standard equipment, including the SIRIUS Satellite Radio, ABS, six airbags, five-speed Sportmatic transmission. The LX adds some extras, like air conditioning, sliding doors with power windows, power mirrors and door locks, cruise control, an AM/FM/CD audio system that includes an auxiliary and USB-MP3 input jack, captains chairs for the second row and keyless entry.

The LWB Sedona EX adds fog lights, eight-way power-adjustable driver’s seat, four-way power-adjustable passenger’s seat, heated power mirrors, an eight-speaker AM/FM/CD/MP3 audio system with auxiliary input jack, auto-dimming rear view mirror with HomeLink, leather-wrapped steering wheel, power rear quarter glass, trip computer with compass, roof rack and an optional navigation system that’s new for 2009.

In addition to these standard features, the LWB Sedona offers various option packages to up the comfort / convenience ante – like memory setting for driver’s seat, outside mirrors, adjustable pedals; heated front seats; power sliding doors and liftgate; and a 660-watt premium entertainment system featuring a DVD player with an eight-inch monitor and a 13-speaker Infinity surround sound system. But, I would be remiss if I didn’t revisit the Sedona’s bread and butter – its ubiquitous safety features. The Sedona’s aforementioned ABS feature works in conjunction with an electronic stability control program (ESC), a traction control system (TCS) and electronic brakeforce distribution (EBD) feature, which takes into account the load the vehicle is carrying and its weight distribution -- and then ensures that the appropriate stopping force is used. The EBD adapts to individual wheel grip conditions, which helps to improve both control and stability.

Together, these systems work to apply individual brakes selectively to control oversteer and understeer as needed in order to help the driver maintain control on slippery surfaces or in emergency situations.

And the TCS employs brake and engine torque “intervention” to increase traction. If the ABS detects wheel slip, it signals the engine control unit to adjust engine torque output accordingly. TCS also senses when one or more wheels spin faster than the vehicle’s speed, and if this condition is present it applies the brakes to that wheel or wheels.

Working together, the two systems limit wheel spin and help the driver maintain control.
Like we said, Kia isn’t fooling around when it boasts of its safety systems. And those are among the many reasons that mini-van buyers – who, after all, typically are parents of small children or teens – will find the Sedona to be a top-notch choice.