2009 Honda Pilot Review

While the name and a minute number of parts remain the same, the 2009 Honda Pilot is a new vehicle. Every piece of sheetmetal and glass, every mechanical component, and every feature has been gone through yielding a just slightly larger Pilot that put all the space to use inside. And unlike many similar designs it didn't gain too many pounds.

An eight-passenger Pilot can handle four adults and four kids easily, or four infant seats if you have the earplugs. It has useful cargo space beyond the third-row seats so you needn't fold one to fit a cooler or week's worth of groceries. And with six cupholders in the second row alone, eight door cargo pockets and the ability to carry a 4x8-foot sheet of building material flat inside, finding a place for everything isn't an issue.

Apart from perhaps flexibility and fuel economy for like vehicles the Pilot doesn't strike one as superior in any given aspect, but rather feels like a well balanced vehicle that maintains average or better performance in any number of areas; the utility moniker is apropos. Good carrying space, road manners, and comfort are now wrapped up in a much better looking box.

The majority of Pilots are all-wheel-drive models that allow another 1000 pounds in tow rating and provide better acceleration and climbing in snow; with the same tires and brakes, they don't stop or change direction any better than the front-drive version. If you don't tow near the maximum and live in temperate climes, Honda's Odyssey offers more room and similar flexibility and features for about the same tab as an equal-level Pilot.

Potential Pilot shoppers include all those Honda car owners who may have outgrown their sedan, Odyssey owners who bought a bigger boat or have a legitimate need for the added traction of all-wheel drive, and anyone looking to replace a traditional truck-based SUV with 95 percent of the ability for 95 percent of the owners 99 percent of the time while saving fuel and society's glare.

In footprint and operation the Pilot is one of the most efficient eight-seat crossovers around, and offers models suitable for hard-core outdoor adventurers who define camping as a sleeping bag to those who wouldn't consider adventuring unless there's a Four Seasons within an hour's drive. And if you ever get tired of it, 95 percent of a Pilot can be recycled.

Source : automotive.com

2009 Mazda RX-8 Review

It's been 40 years since Mazda released its first rotary-engine production model, a twin-rotor coupe called Cosmo Sport in mid-1967. By the early 1970s, the rotary seemed poised to conquer the automotive world. That never happened for a long list of reasons, but the lightweight rotary engine found a purpose powering a delightful series of light, nimble, high-revving Mazda sports-touring cars. Over the past four decades, Mazda has manufactured more than 1.9 million rotary-engine vehicles. And we're glad it did.

The latest model in this series, the ingeniously engineered Mazda RX-8, drives like a sports car, with a high-revving engine and near perfect weight distribution for balanced handling, and it has garnered motoring award recognition on four continents.

For 2009 RX-8 receives evolutionary styling updates, a more rigid structure and driveshaft, revised rear suspension and gearing, and a new RX-8 R3 aimed at enthusiasts. Although the R3 powertrain is the same as that of the other RX8s, its sports suspension and cosmetic and functional upgrades qualify it as the best sports value in the line for serious enthusiasts.

The Mazda RX-8 is surprisingly practical. It's capable of taking the kids to soccer practice, with passenger space for four full-size adults. There's enough room for a weekend's worth of luggage or two full-size golf bags, and the small rear doors and relatively spacious trunk make trips to the home improvement center possible. It's not as roomy as a sedan, but it can move people and stuff when needed, while offer the driving experience of a two-seat sports car.

In short, the RX-8 is a true four-seat sports car. And it's the small but powerful rotary engine that makes this possible.

The RX-8 was launched as an all-new model for 2004. Its most significant prior update was the six-speed automatic transmission that arrived for 2006, replacing the previously available four-speed. In addition to two more gears, the six-speed automatic also brought steering-wheel mounted paddle controls for semi-manual shifting; and allowed the engine to be tuned closer to its manual-transmission specification, narrowing the performance gap between the auto-shifting and shift-it-yourself versions.

Still, the manual and automatic models are two different cars. The manual benefits from 232 horsepower at 8500 rpm, while the automatic gets 212 hp at 7500 rpm, albeit with the same 159 pound-feet of torque at 5500 rpm. The bottom line is that the manual model is for driving enthusiasts willing to shift for themselves and those seeking maximum efficiency, while the automatic is for drivers more interested in the look and feel of a sports car than in ultimate performance or heavy stop-and-go commuters.

Source : automotive.com

2009 Pontiac Vibe Review

The 2009 Pontiac Vibe is a new, second-generation design that shares most of its mechanical parts with the Toyota Matrix. The Vibe is more refined, visually cleaner and appears to have more equipment for the money than its predecessor. The lineup features an array of models with a choice of engines and all-wheel drive making the Vibe attractive to a variety of drivers. It's a logical, flexible compact that should appeal to everyone from high-schoolers to empty nesters.

Virtually every component on the 2009 Vibe is new or heavily revised. The standard 1.8-liter engine is more powerful and efficient than its predecessor, and a larger 2.4-liter is available. An all-wheel-drive version is available and, like the engines, this particular system has been proven in hundreds of thousands of vehicles. Given Toyota's engineering history these cars should prove reliable and cost-effective.

The new 2009 Vibe is larger than last year's model, though at 172 inches it is still a reasonable size and makes good use of the real estate occupied. It will carry four people, five if some are kids. It can carry pets, the occasional wakeboard or even a mountain bike with the front wheel off.

All Vibes use regular unleaded fuel and rate at least 20 mpg in the city. The 2.4-liter AWD and the GT push 30 mpg on the highway, while the 1.8-liter engine and five-speed manual gets an EPA-rated 26/32 mpg City/Highway. We preferred the five-speed manual with the 1.8-liter, which made it fun to drive and responsive, but we preferred the 2.4-liter with the five-speed automatic.

One could argue the Vibe is an alternative to compact hatchbacks (Honda Fit, Nissan Versa, VW Rabbit), the short van/big hatchbacks (Mazda5, Kia Rondo), small crossovers (Honda CR-V, Kia Sportage/Hyundai Tucson, Nissan Rogue), and all the other little runabouts less easy to categorize (Chrysler PT Cruiser, Chevy HHR, Dodge Caliber, Scion xD, Suzuki SX4). Some of those may be faster, bigger, or less expensive than the Vibe, but the Vibe represents a good balance of all and will fill many needs without many expenditures.

Source : automotive.com