2009 Mazda3 S 5-Door Grand Touring

Well with the entire world hearing about gas guzzlers, the timing couldn’t be much better for checking out this nifty little 5-door sport wagon. The Mazda3 styling is based off the MX-Sportif concept so while the little grocery getter is very practical it stays true to the zoom-zoom campaign that represents the promise of fun driving that Mazda touts.

The 2.3 liter engine produces 156 horsepower and mated to a 5-speed manual transmission, it’s perky enough to make the 3 feel sporty, albeit at higher rpm, which is not too big a deal for most. That said, aficionados will no doubt opt for the very potent MazdaSpeed3 which pumps out 263 turbo-charged horses that propel the car from 0-60 in a mere 5.4 seconds with a top speed in excess of 150mph.

Truth is though this car was designed to be functional with a sufficient amount of form to offer drivers economy, with just a bit of panache, and to that end the Mazda3 S delivers. With 17-inch alloy wheels, xenon headlights and foglamps, side sill extensions, sport styled front and rear fascias and the obligatory rear hatch spoiler; this is a very sharp looking little car.

In the S trim you’ll find leather trimmed seating areas, tilt & telescoping steering wheel, 60/40 split fold-down rear seating, AM/FM/CD with controls in the steering wheel, cruise control and power windows standard. Heated front seats, electroluminescent gauges and a trip computer add a touch of luxury, okay; a very small touch, but nice none the less. Base price for the Mazda3 starts at just under $14,500 but with all the goodies on my tester, the price came to just a tad over $22,500 with shipping. Not bad but there are at least 15 models that compete with Mazda in this crowded segment of the market.

As far as driving the Mazda3 goes, I’m a pretty big boy and I have to say I was very comfortable in the driver’s seat and the car handled better then I expected in actuality. While the steering was quick the variable assist could get a bit heavy at times but overall it wasn’t a problem. The balance of the vehicle was surprisingly good despite the 60/40 weight distribution and the ride actually bordered on nimble.

All in all I have to say that overall I was very pleased with the Mazda3 S, but in the interest of full disclosure I have to acknowledge that I’ve been a Mazda fan for quite a while, having owned a Miata for about 12 years. But the truth is, they are very solid cars that, as I said before, do a better than average job of mixing form and function. So, if you’re looking for something that will deliver close to 30mpg on the highway and 22 around town, maybe you should take a ride in a Mazda3 S before making up your mind. I liked it a lot and I’m betting you will too.

Two for the Road talks Trends

The automotive landscape is in constant flux and what amazes me is how quickly manufacturers are making changes and getting them to market. There was a time that it took 5 plus years from the concept to production and in some cases that time is more than cut in half. Some things we see coming include;

A Cadillac CTS wagon and yes you read correctly I said a wagon. GM says they expect to only sell around 4,000 units of the CTS Sports Wagon in the US but they hope to be a big hit in the Euro market. The CTS Sports Wagon will go on sale in the spring of ’09 with a choice of two 3.6 liter V6’s, one being the 304 horsepower Direct-Injection but the Asian and Euro markets get a 2.9-liter turbodiesel engine that Cadillac is developing. I wonder when the American market will welcome that engine. Stay tuned for more on this car.

Good news for rear-wheel drive fans the Alpha RWD Cadillacs are scheduled for the 2011 model year replacing the front-drive BLS in Europe and expanding the lineup to the U.S. The 3-series sized car could be a big hit but only time will tell.

Look for a new Lambda Escalade as GM tries to inject some new excitement into the Tahoe based Luxo-SUV. Using the Lambda platform makes economic sense because of production of the Buick Enclave, GMC Acadia, Saturn Outlook and the new Chevy Traverse. It would also give the Escalade a more edgy look without going overboard. It would most likely be powered by a small-block V8 since the Northstar replacement planned for the Enclave was cancelled.

While the new Chevy Cruze is a pretty nifty looking little car, we’ll have to wait until 2010 before production begins in the U.S. Production in Germany, South Korea and Russia begins in March of 2009 with the car being powered by an anemic 112 horsepower 1.6 liter or 140 horsepower 1.8 liter gas engines and a 150hp 236 lb-ft of torque 2.0 turbodiesel. We won’t see the diesel iteration in the U.S. because the cost of the Cruze would go north of $30k and I don’t thing that will work for a vehicle only about the size of a Cobalt. This market will likely get a 1.4 liter turbo in the 150 to 170 horsepower range. Nice looking car but we’ll have to wait and see.

There’s a lot of buzz about the Hyundai Genesis and perhaps rightfully so, it appears to offer a lot of luxury and way better than average performance for not a whole lot of money. But Hyundai is jumping into the CUV fray with the 2010 Portico. While only spy pics are available, it’s pretty clear that Hyundai is aiming to cut into the Sport Cross-over market. The Portico has a pretty aggressive stance, a lower swept back roofline that despite the camouflage looks very interesting. Maybe even more interesting is the talk about eventually getting hybrid power. Slated to go on sale in 2009 as a 2010 it will be interesting to see if the Portico continues Hyundai’s march towards dominance with lots of quality at a great price. So far, looks pretty good.

Mitsubishi’s Lancer Evolution Revolution

The Phoenix Automotive Press Association had an opportunity to meet with PR Product Manager, Moe Durand and Melvin Bautista from Product Planning for Mitsubishi and talk about the all-new 2009 Mitsubishi Lancer family. Lancer debuted in 1973 and over the years Lancer has won several Rally Championships but not necessarily the hearts of the American consumer. Mitsubishi is hoping that will all change with the new iteration of the Lancer and as far as styling goes, they’re on the right track.

Trim levels include the Lancer, the Ralliart and the very potent Evolution. With the production of the 2009 Ralliart Mitsubishi has made a dramatic leap in performance and styling over the previous generation. Gone is the boxy squared off look and in is the sleek low nose high deck aggressive look you’ll see on the likes of the Lexus IS, and the huge aggressive grille you see on the Nuvolari inspired Audi S4 so needless to say, it’s a very cool looking car especially for the Tuner crowd.

It’s interesting to know how the styling cues must have a great degree of functionality in vehicles today, which presents an interesting challenge to designers. For example the lower grille opening on the Ralliart allows for more airflow to the intercooler, while the hood scoops and ducting help remove under hood heat while also providing air to the turbocharger. The functional side vents help extract hot air from the engine compartment.

The base engine is a 2.0 liter 4-cylinder that puts out 152hp and 146 lb/ft of torque in the Lancer and 237hp and 253 lb/ft of torque with both engines red-lining at 6500rpm. The Evolution is an entirely different matter. Horsepower jumps to 291 and torque goes to 300 lb/ft and redline is at 7000 rpm. How that happens has to do with some differences in engine architecture but the long and short of it is that it is a very potent engine.

Power gets to the wheels through a very sophisticated TC-SST transmission. All that alphabet soup stands for, Twin Clutch Sportonic Shift Transmission, but what it means is that it is one quick shifting transmission.

While we didn’t get a lot of wheel time, what we did get in the Evolution MR was pretty impressive. It’s quick fast and has a pretty serious fun quotient and is surprisingly roomy inside and we are looking forward to spending a week in this exciting new car from Mitsubishi

VOLVO CARS STUDIES BUGS TO IMPROVE SAFETY

As heard on Two for the Road USA Radio Show - September 21st - KKNT 960 AM Phoenix Arizona - Click on Radio Shows on www.twofortheroadusa.com

Since the first single cell organism emerged from primordial soup, nature has been testing, selecting and perfecting how best to help life survive. Along the way, she encountered dead ends and thankfully many successes. Today, lessons learned from Nature help scientists improve our lives with technologies like Velcro© that was inspired by burrs on seed pods, self-cleaning coatings for ship hulls from shark skin structures, neuromorphic computer chips that will one day be able to process information the way our brain does, just to mention a few.

Nature is a wonderful laboratory. "We learned of Dr. Claire Rind´s, Newcastle University, UK, studies into the migratory locust, the African Locust, that they tend to avoid bumping into each other during flights," states Jonas Ekmark, Preventive Safety Leader at Volvo Car Corporation. "Our original thoughts centered on pedestrian safety. If we could trace how the locust is able to avoid each other maybe we could program our cars not to hit pedestrians." During the study, Dr. Rind learned that visual input is instantly transmitted to the insect's wing nerve cells, seemingly bypassing the brain. Dr. Rind calls this the Locust Principle.

"Locusts are quick reacting and have reliable circuits, they do their computations against lots of background chatter, much like driving around town," comments Dr. Rind. Volvo wanted to learn if locust sensory-input routing methodologies could be built into a vehicle pedestrian safety system. The goal was to avoid hitting pedestrians. Primary to this research was to synthesize a locust algorithm that could be applied to a car. "As it turns out, the locust processing system is much more sophisticated than the hardware/software currently available. In the end technology was no match for nature," says Jonas Ekmark.

"What we learned was very encouraging. However, rather than wait for technology to catch up to Dr. Rind's Locust Principle, Volvo created a pedestrian alert feature that will be introduced in the near future."When we started in late 2002, sensing and computational systems were rather weak."

But technology is quickly catching up. Volvo City Safety has been launched as standard in the new Volvo XC60. At low speeds, City Safety is smart enough to bring the XC60 to a complete stop should the vehicle in front suddenly stop.

"Beyond City Safety our next step will be our first pedestrian avoidance feature", comments Jonas Ekmark. "Although City Safety is not related to our Locust research, we are confident that our first pedestrian auto brake feature will be very good at taking actions to help avoid hitting pedestrians," comments, Jonas Ekmark.

"While some interesting ideas came from this study, we still have a many more years of research ahead to bring that small locust brain into our cars. We have found a lowly locust has man beat, at least for now. Still, the big question remains: How do groups of locusts keep from bumping into each other? Maybe there is more to be learned? We will continue to follow interesting paths in our efforts to reach our safety vision; to design cars that do not crash," concludes Jonas Ekmark.

Bondurant School Highway Survival Training

Makes Bill Z. … A Safer Driver in One Day

Phoenix, Arizona

August 24, 2008

It was with a bit of trepidation that I pulled into the parking lot at the Bondurant School of High Performance Driving to take the Highway Survival Training course on a beautiful summer day in Phoenix. Having gone through the one day racing course a couple of years ago I knew better then to think that I was going to make it through the day feeling good about my driving skills. These folks are the crème de la crème of driving instructors and they can always find something problematic with ones driving, and rightfully so.

I have to say that I, like a lot of people, feel like I am much more capable than average driver, but after going through the racing course, I was cured of any ego that I may have had regarding my ability to handle a race car.

That feeling was why I was apprehensive about what they were going to put us through with this course regarding my daily driving skills. I read that we were going to be dealing with emergency maneuvers, skid control exercises, shifting exercises, braking and cornering, a slalom run and of course some laps on the big track; all things that test reactions and coordination. Then, to make matters even more stressful, I saw that my classmates were a couple of youngsters with the razor sharp reflexes of youth that made me feel well, old.

That aside, Alex and Nic were very nice young men and our instructors Will and Austin were great and after spending a bit of classroom time learning about the forces that control a vehicle, weight and balance and the effects of inertia that we can use to maximize braking and steering, it was off to the practice pad.

From that point on the day was a blur of driving. First learning how acceleration effects turning by going in a circle in ever widening circles while holding the steering wheel in one position and then coming back to the starting point again, without ever turning the wheel. From there we went on a short loop of the track to learn how to find the correct line to get the car around the track as fast a possible without losing control. We learned how to “look where you want to go” rather then where you’re going, no small thing to get used to.

From there we practiced some accident avoidance by driving up to 45 miles per hour in the center lane of three lanes with green lights and wait for the instructors to turn two to red, then we had to maneuver into the lane with the green light. Again, no easy feat when they seemed to wait until way too late to make up your mind. But a minor miracle happened when we actually listened to the instruction to “look ahead” and use our peripheral vision to change lanes as we reacted to the lights.

The skid cars were an absolute blast and if for no other reason then to get to do that, you should check out the Highway Survival Training course. It is absolutely amazing at how quickly all three of us got a handle on “looking where we wanted to go” rather then where we were going. As far as correcting for understeer goes, no real big problem, just slow down and get the weight on the front wheels, even if you have to tap the brake, until you have the car going where you want it to.

On the other hand, dealing with oversteer is an entirely different, and much more fun matter. Most of us can remember times when the back of the car starts coming loose and putting us into a spin, which is a very ugly feeling. Well, after a few minutes in the skid car, we were all feeling pretty sure of ourselves in dealing with that problem should it arise in the future.

Then we got to run the slalom course, again, more fun then should be legal, and after that several timed laps on a SCCA type course where we had to avoid running over pylons racing for time, which I think I still won even though Alex had a time 1 second better then mine. I was in a big Cadillac CTS and he was in a small Pontiac Solstice so when I factor that I’m older then their fathers, and I was in a bigger heavier car, I win. Needless to say, he doesn’t feel that way.
Finally we got to go on the big boy track and chase Will and Austin for several laps, again, more fun then you can possibly imagine.

But while we had a great time, the most important thing we learned is that driving is very complicated and without understanding how to control a vehicle in unexpected circumstances, the results can be devastating. And while we learned a lot, the most important thing we learned was, that we didn’t know enough, and that can be very sobering. I’ve been driving for almost 5 decades and I was amazed at how much I didn’t and don’t know. My young friends were very much aware of how much they had to learn but it was also great to hear that they felt a new respect for driving and I believe that they’ll be much more careful when the get behind the wheel now and that is a good thing for everyone.

With so many more cars on the road, and people driving faster every day it’s even more important to learn skills that will help keep you and your passengers safer on the road. I don’t know many people that wouldn’t benefit from spending a day at the Bondurant School going through this course. I know I feel a whole lot better about how I drive now and I bet you would too.
For information on the school, go to http://www.bondurant.com/ and check out their schedules. I’m glad I did and I bet you’ll be glad you did.

Viva the pony car wars

I can’t tell you how excited I was a couple of years ago when I heard about the resurgence of the pony car wars. Being an original muscle car nut, I was among the many disappointed aficionados in the ‘70’s when legends like the Corvette had less then 200 horsepower because of the gas crunch. Now I do understand that there is nothing politically correct about driving a vehicle with over 400 horsepower that gets, well, not much gas mileage today, but let’s be honest; for some of us, the roar of a pure American V8 is unparalleled and the 2008 Dodge Challenger SRT8 definitely got my blood boiling. I could spend a lot of time talking about the Challenger, but this video will give you just a taste of what it can do.

Unfortunately for me, it’s going to be a long wait for the Camaro to make it’s debut because we probably won’t see one till early ’09. I have been assured by our contacts at GM that there will indeed be one in the press fleet, and I certainly hope so because I’m guessing that the first production run has already sold out.

Anyway, enjoy the video, and I for one am thrilled that GM, Ford, and Chrysler started the wars in the late '60's, and GM and Chrysler decided to jump in the fray once more. We need to enjoy it while we can.

Community Tire Wins 2008 Small Business Impact Award

Congratulations to Howard and Patty Fleischmann of Community Tire and Auto Service, The recipients of the 2008 Small Business of the year Impact award honored by the Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce. We are so proud of you and thank you for your continued support of Two for the Road USA.

(PHOENIX) — The Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce is proud to announce the winner of its 21st Annual IMPACT Awards 2008 Small Business of the Year: Community Tire & Auto Service Specialists, Howard Fleischmann, Sr.Community Tire & Auto Service Specialists has grown to more than seven stores in three cities through innovative marketing, honesty and integrity. Likewise with its commitment to community, whether hosting fundraising events or simply giving of their time, Community Tire & Auto Services Specialists has become synonymous with the word for which it is named.The Chamber’s IMPACT Awards honor business owners and leaders from companies with fewer than 100 employees for their outstanding efforts.