finding the signal in an industry filled with noise
After spending a weekend driving MINI’s new Cooper I have a confession to make: the impressions that led to my last post were of a preproduction unit – the ones reaching dealers seem to be far better in most regards.
I’ll have post a full review in the next few days but in short, the I prefer the old S to the new one for the enthusiast, the new base Cooper to the old one for everyday use.
I’ve ranted before on my concerns with the new MINI based on what I’d seen in pictures and what I’d read regarding the engineering used.
Now that I’ve seen it in the flesh I’m even more concerned…
I must admit that it looks less awkward in person than in photos. But simply walking around and sitting in the car I noticed some serious flaws, especially when compared to the last version. All stem from BMW’s directive to make the next Cooper more profitable than the last one.
The last Cooper felt more like an old 911 than the current 911 – the feel of the switchgear, the door latches, even the fuel filler cap were tactile delights that hinted that the components were meant for looooong service lives.
Walking around the new Cooper you immediately notice a huge gap between the hood and the front wheel arch. Oops.
Unlatching that hood from the inside you appreciate the fact that the latch is relocated to the correct side but the feel of the pull convinces you you’ve broken something. Gritty is too kind a word. Lifting that hood you notice that the panel’s not just lighter, it’s downright frail in feel – if you don’t lift from the middle you can see the panel distort under its own weight. Imagine picking up a Dell laptop by the corner vis a vis an Apple Powerbook – such is the magnitude of the disparity. (A 91 Civic felt more robust!)
The fuel filler looks serious but when you touch it its lightweight plastic roots are too evident. People trading their old MINI for new will miss the way their old car was built at every fill-up.
The trunk latch, like the new X5’s, lacks the old models precise electric latch and soft touch button. Again the sound and feel is shamed by far cheaper cars. The Suzuki SX4 - a car that’s built far better than it need be – comes to mind.
Sitting inside the visibility isn’t what it was – the dash slightly higher and deeper. The speedometer’s larger size you’ll get used to but the way the climate controls move through their range of motion and the overstyled nature of the controls you won’t. Splitting the radio into two areas didn’t make sense in the 7 series and it doesn’t here either. Gimmicks like the downlighting that changes hues (but only matches the dash lighting on one setting) and toggle switches mounted overhead, aircraft style probably seemed like a good idea around the water cooler but should have been left in the trash can right next to it.
I’d have started the engine and taken it for a drive but didn’t want my disappointment with the above to cloud my judgement of the purportedly more refined – some might say aloof – feel.
More to come…
Mercedes has come up with yet another innovation: vented taillights.
It’s far more useful than it seems – as you might know, cars get lighter (and therefore less stable) as speeds increase. To keep them firmly planted on terra firma, manufacturers sometimes attach large wings or deep chin spoilers – that’s the easy way to do it – but more recently they’re paying attention to what lies beneath, smoothing out the underbodies to promote smooth airflow over the underbody literally creating a vacumn that pulls the car down to the road firmly. (With its smooth underpanel in place, my 95 m3 feels more stale at 85 than 65, without it it’s nearly undriveable over 70). Underbody venturis are common on uncommon cars like the Ferrari F430 but the rest of us aren’t expected to expect high speed stability.
In the case of the new C class, air is drawn from underneath the car to exit the rear, reducing lift on the rear axle and increasing fuel economy.
This isn’t the first time Mercedes has turned its attention to the tail lights – remember the ribbed designs on older Benzes? Those weren’t a cosmetic touch – they were made to make sure that there was clean lens area as the rest of the car got dirty.
When I say Mercedes is hellbent on leading again, this is the kind of stuff I am referring to…
Due to a single piece of trim, the Buick LaCrosse received one out of five stars in NHTSA side impact tests. Buick is redesigning the trim, but I have recieved no word on whether owners are being informed.
If you have any information to share with other readers, please comment below.
... but Ford’s really got no clue.
Their Edge crossover pales in comparison to their own Volvo based Freestyle and perhaps more importantly to its Mazda CX7 cousin.
Lincolns was too busy adding chrome to every surface and shuffling its names to an alphanumeric system to do much in the way of actual engineering on the Zephyr, which required them to update the car just one year into production. So much for a good first impression.
Then the ‘new’ Focus comes out not with the P1 chassis that the rest of the world gets but another refacing that sees the car moves to a coupe bodystyle just as hatch sales are skyrocketing. They’ve also killed the 2.3L Mazda engine that gave the Focus a fighting chance.
And now to make up for the bloated last generation Passat styling of the Five Hundred and releasing the car with an underpowered engine, Ford is renaming the Five hundred the Taurus?
If ever you run an automotive company, look to Ford for what not to do.
If you’re a regular reader, you might have picked up that I’m lukewarm on the 3 series coupe – its too big to have such a small backseat and the coupe specific electric steering is a huge leap backwards from the sedan’s hydraulic setup.
If you want a BMW coupe, the 1 series coupe spotted testing will be here in a year’s time.
It’s closer in size to my favorite BMW coupe bodystyle to date, the E36.
If BMW dials out the understeer, knobby ride and aloof feel that plagues versions of the 1 series already on sale they’ll have a car that could put BMW back on the path they should have never deviated from.
(Thanks to reader SMG for the tip).
You’ve likely seen the rumours about the next Impreza, for example that it will be a five door hatch only, that it will adopt a multillink rear suspension, etc. But the one sentence that has me most concerned was one I saw on Autoexpress’ site:
engineers have worked to keep prices down.
Very rarely has that resulted in a better car for the consumer. Stay tuned.
Just when Mercedes was starting to get its groove back, Mercedes and Chrysler have decided to share more parts. According to the article,
the company insists that the sharing of these parts won’t damage the manufacturers’ reputations.
How could it not?
The internet is abuzz with speculation regarding the upcoming Skyline, but I’m wondering if they’ll be able to capture what made the car an icon all these years: the chassis’ unerring poise that can only come from a long evolutionary process. Will a V6 engined, FM platform based Skyline do the name justice or is this just more platform/badge engineering from cost-conscious Nissan?
After a series of half baked products with shoddy build quality, refinement, and dynamics, I hope they get this one right. They’ll certainly sell every one they make regardless.
... and now Nissan’s produced a version of the 350Z (a car we don’t necessarily care for) that we won’t be getting. (Remember standardized tests? 350Z S-Tune 2 is to 350Z as 330 is to M3. In other words a 350 Z with the knob turned up to 11).
Click here for more details…