Consumer Reports family sedans chat

Today, Consumer Reports experts will be online to discuss the latest road test group—family sedans—here in the Cars blog at 1 p.m. ET.

As seen in the December 2009 edition of Consumer Reports magazine, we tested several all-new and updated models, including the Ford Fusion, Mazda3 iTouring, Subaru Legacy, and Toyota Camry.

Our automotive experts will field questions about these cars and other sedans during the live, interactive chat, sharing test findings and helping you make the right buying decisions.

Just In: Volkswagen GTI

“Meet the all-new 2010 GTI” proclaimed the opening page on VW’s Web site when we were researching our recent purchase. Maybe it’s déjà vu all over again, but like our 2010 Golf, an awful lot seems familiar here.

A 2.0-liter, turbocharged four-cylinder engine? Check. Available DSG automated manual transmission (ours has the six-speed stick)? Check. Two- or four-door? Yep. Plaid cloth sports seats? You bet--they’re retrotastic.

Not everything is the same. The new car is lower and tauter. This time around we also opted for the four-door version. This one also has a set of wheels that look like a chopping tool from my Cuisinart food processor shod with Pirelli P-Zero all-season tires. Our GTI stickered for $27,504 with a sunroof, those 18-inch alloys, bi-xenon headlights, winter mats (safely put in the cargo area for now), and Bluetooth.

We really enjoyed driving our last GTI so hopefully that remains the same here, as well.

—Tom Mutchler

See our blog Tales of our Volkswagen GTI--car buying made easy.

Dodge's "Major Product Intervention"

Just how widespread are the problems with many current Chrysler products? It’s to the point where the company itself declared Wednesday that they will have a "Major Product Intervention" across the Dodge lineup. Many of these changes also affect their platform-mates in the Chrysler and Jeep brands.

That includes:

• A previously announced "all-new" interior for the 2010 Caliber, whose current interior one of us likened to "sitting in an Igloo cooler." It looks like the Caliber continues until 2012 when a new compact sedan comes on line; its Patriot and Compass platform-mates move to a Fiat-based platform in 2013.
• The Avenger midsized sedan also gets an all-new interior, a new engine, and better attention to noise and vibration isolation. That all happens later in 2010 with a new Fiat-based sedan coming in 2013.
• The Journey three-row SUV gets the same treatment as the Avenger in 2010, but it soldiers on through 2014.
• The Grand Caravan gets a whole new interior, a new engine, a complete suspension retune--with claimed "best-in-class" ride and handling--and more attention to noise, comfort, and features. A redesign comes for 2014. The Town and Country will see similar changes.
• The Charger claims to be "all new" with a "class-leading" interior, "class-leading" features, a new engine and "lifestyle oriented packaging." That comes in 2010.
• The 300 also gets a major update.
• The Nitro sees a "major modification" for 2011, but its future is uncertain beyond that. Its Liberty platform-mate will get a new platform and shed 600 lbs in 2013.

What do we take from this?

• Chrysler is pinning a lot on their new 3.6-liter "Pentastar" V6 engine, which replaces an array of other V6s across a wide variety of products and platforms.
• 2013 is a long time to wait for a new midsized sedan. Despite substantial modifications, the Avenger/Sebring sedans platform has limited potential. The cars are narrow and changing the roofline enough to improve visibility, a major complaint with those cars, is likely to be too expensive for an interim step.
• If you design interiors for Chrysler, you’re very, very busy right now.
• Chrysler once ruled the minivan segment, but they have their work cut out for them to beat the agility of the Honda Odyssey and the quietness and ride of the Toyota Sienna.
• Most of these products score near the bottom of our Ratings in their particular classes. While any improvements would be welcome, it’s very rare that even a major freshening transforms a design enough to propel it to the top of its class. The Ram was an exception to this rule.
• Finally, keep in mind that the competition isn’t standing still, either.

—Tom Mutchler

Also read: Chrysler's business plan: The Fiat platforms

Chrysler’s business plan: The Fiat platforms

Fiat-based platforms will have a big influence on Chrysler’s small and midsized products, based on a multi-hour presentation given today to the industry, media, and anyone else who wanted to monitor. Chrysler currently has no small cars, but by 2014, they will have three models based on two Fiat platforms, one being the 500.
 
The biggest platform shift is in the larger segments. According to Chrysler, this now has eight different platforms: 

• Wrangler
• PT Cruiser
• Compass/Caliber/Patriot
• Liberty/Nitro
• Sebring/Avenger
• Journey
• Dakota
• Viper

Click the links above for model overview pages featuring ratings and road tests, available to online subscribers.

By 2014, nine different products will stem from just two platforms – and one of those platforms is exclusive to the Wrangler. The Wrangler’s product line and reach will be extended, with major product modifications in both 2010 and 2011. Wranglers have an iconic image, they sell well, and their low-tech design is likely provides a handsome profit. While they perform well off-road, Wrangler’s don’t perform well on the road or in CR’s Ratings; the Wrangler is currently our lowest-scoring vehicle.

Wrangler aside, this means that eight products, covering vital products like midsized sedans and small and crossover SUVs, will all come from one Fiat Group platform. (Given that Dodge said that the Viper will be redesigned, perhaps this slide shown here from the presentation is short a platform for that low-volume street rocket.) While the decision isn’t finalized, the midsized Dakota may move to a unibody platform, like the Honda Ridgeline.
 
Moving to larger products, things remain pretty much status quo. Those platforms will continue to be sourced from Chrysler, with a large sedan platform (300, Charger, Challenger), a minivan platform, and another midsized SUV platform (Grand Cherokee, Durango). The Ram brand keeps its own platform—no surprise.
 
The first domestic-badged Fiat-based product is expected in 2012, a compact sedan sold by Dodge. That year will also bring Ram-badged large and small commercial vans, filling the big hole left from the Mercedes/Freightliner-shared Sprinter.
 
—Tom Mutchler

Video: Diesel comparison - BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen

For buyers looking for a fuel efficient car, diesels provide an alternative to hybrids. Popular in Europe for years, more diesels are making their way to the U.S. market.

Modern diesels escape many of the liabilities of earlier designs. They are quieter, burn cleaner, and have much improved acceleration. Fuel economy is considerably improved over gasoline-powered versions.

But buying a diesel usually means paying more up front. Finding a diesel pump isn't quite as easy as locating gasoline, and diesel fuel prices recently have fluctuated widely. Except for Volkswagen, diesel vehicle availability is also limited to high-price luxury brands.

In this video, we take a look at four diesels—Mercedes-Benz GL320 Bluetec, BMW 335d, BMW X5, and the Volkswagen Jetta TDI—and their pros and cons.

—Tom Mutchler

Just In: Audi A5, Infiniti G37, and Lexus IS convertibles

We recently shook off a spurt of December-like weather here in Connecticut and recent rains that have made it a colder, less pleasant October than normal. That cut into our top-down time with our three new convertibles, as well as our beloved Miata roadster.
 
Lexus IS 250 C
Our Lexus IS 250 C’s 204-hp is outgunned by most competitors, and the small-displacement powertrain has its work cut out for it moving around the 3,845-lb. folding hardtop convertible. (You can get an IS 350 convertible, but we bought the more popular, smaller-engined version.)
 
Our car has the Luxury Package (HIDs, heated/ventilated front seats with memory, wood interior trim), park assist, and a few other options, bringing the total to $44,400. (At that point, a $100 option for headlamp washers seems cheap -- just make them standard, already.)

Like the IS sedan, our first impressions of the convertible are that it’s a very pleasant and well-finished car, but it falls somewhat short of thrilling an enthusiast driver. As such, it is a reasonable successor to the now-defunct Toyota Camry Solara convertible.

See our convertible buying advice, recommended convertibles, and convertible ratings.  

Infiniti G37
The Infiniti G37 convertible comes with only one engine option: a lovely 325-hp, 3.7-liter V6. Ours has a seven-speed automatic transmission; when that gear box appeared last year on the G37 sedan, it improved fuel economy significantly.
 
We also got the Premium Package, which adds a Bose Open Air Sound System, including “front seat personal speakers” in the headrests that work quite well. There are also heated and cooled front seats, driver’s seat memory, power tilt/telescope wheel, and an iPod controller. Also adding “genuine African rosewood trim” put the sticker at $48,715.
 
We’re big fans of the G37; it’s currently our top-rated compact sports sedan. However, the convertible is having a harder time winning people over. The responsive steering, slick powertrain, and comfortable seats remain, but the move to a convertible didn’t help structure or the ride. One nice feature in our car is the standard rearview camera -- convertibles end to suffer from visibility problems with the top up.
 
Audi A5 quattro
Audi has had a history of being something of a bargain upscale brand. But looking at some of their current pricing suggests one of two things: either they’ve been successful at shaking that bargain image, or they’re getting downright audacious. (Maybe a bit of both.) Our $49,300 Audi A5 convertible is one such example.
 
The A5 convertible has a folding soft top, unique in a world of now-common folding hardtops. Our car also has a 211-hp, 2.0-liter, turbocharged four-cylinder engine. Our Premium plus model adds HID headlights, 18-inch alloy wheels, heated front seats, and an iPod controller. Throw in $400 of “dark walnut wood inlays” and $475 of quartz gray metallic paint and you get a sticker of $49,300.
 
Let’s compare. You can buy a well-equipped Volkswagen Eos, a very well-finished convertible with a folding hardtop and the same engine (making slightly less hp) as our Audi, for $37,290. At the other extreme, a BMW 328i convertible with similar equipment costs $50,900 -- not much more for a car with a folding hardtop and two more cylinders.
 
Our pricing protest is somewhat tempered by Audi offering a unique feature for a convertible: all-wheel drive. BMW, Infiniti, and Lexus don’t offer their all-wheel drive systems on their convertibles.
 
We have found that the lack of a complex folding hard top doesn’t hurt the A5’s livability, and allows for opening and closing the top on the move (it works up to 25 mph or so).
 
All three convertibles are going through break-in miles as they progress through our multi-week test regimen. Look for further coverage and full road tests in coming months. Learn more about buying a convertible.
 
—Tom Mutchler

Just In: Lexus HS 250h

Walk into a Lexus dealer with $39,000 to spend on a new sedan and you’ll find you have a surprisingly wide array of choices. That will buy you a Lexus IS 350, a compact rear-wheel drive sedan aimed squarely at the BMW 3 Series. Or, you could get Lexus’ top-selling sedan, the Camry-based ES 350, which is aimed directly at those buyers who used to drive Buicks.
 
Now there’s a third option: the hybrid-only Lexus HS 250h. Based on the Prius and the sold-overseas Toyota Avensis, the HS uses the Camry Hybrid’s 2.4-liter four-cylinder drivetrain. The HS appears to be aimed at Prius-shopping professionals who want something “nicer” that still gets excellent mileage. Cars like the aforementioned Camry Hybrid, the fun-to-drive Ford Fusion/Mercury Milan Hybrid, or a diesel-powered Volkswagen Jetta TDI might fit that bill, but they don’t have the cachet of the Lexus name. (Vehicle links point to the model overview pages, where online subscribers can access road tests and ratings.)
 
They don’t have the HS’s price tag, either. Our car is an HS 250h Premium, which gets you a wood and leather trimmed interior, power seats and steering wheel adjustment, and 18-inch wheels. A bunch of piddly little options (spoiler, glass breakage sensors, remote start, a cargo net and trunk mat, and all-weather mats) added a whopping $1,094, bringing the total with destination to $38,939.
 
We’ll let you know if the HS lives up to Lexus’ standards of quiet refinement as we put miles on our test car.
 
—Tom Mutchler

Just In: 2010 Volkswagen Golf

If you see the new 2010 Volkswagen Golf on the road, you might not notice any significant changes. There is a nip here, a tuck there, both inside and out. You’ll probably notice the name change from Rabbit back to Golf--supposedly once and for all. But underneath the familiar sheet metal is a freshened Golf. VW calls it the sixth generation of the car despite being far from a full redesign. By any name, it is one of Europe’s most popular models and one of our top-scoring small cars.

Our silver, five-door Golf listed for $20,314, with standard electronic stability control (ESC) and optional automatic, Bluetooth, and heated seats. In contrast, our 2008 Rabbit S automatic stickered at $19,725 with standard heated seats and optional 16-inch alloy wheels and ESC. (No Bluetooth.)

Compare photos and you’ll notice the lack of alloys on the 2010 and the relatively skinny 15-inch wheels (down from 16 inches). Inside, you might also notice the lower-grade radio head unit. Gone is the big display that listed presets, helping to make the old stereo one of the easiest in the business to use. Only a sharp eye will notice that the remote fuel and trunk releases are gone. You probably won’t notice the lack of floor mats or the missing front center armrest or that there is no CD changer or satellite radio (a deleted $375 option on our Rabbit) until you’re a few miles from the dealership. You might not even notice that the primary warranty went from 4 years/50,000 miles on our 2008 to 3 years/36,000 miles on our 2010. All of this suggests that there is some decontenting going on as VW struggles to hold somewhat firm on price, and assure a profit despite the high Euro.

Features aside, does the new Golf still have the solid feel, high-quality interior, and agile handling that made the Rabbit so impressive in our tests? We’ll see as we put break-in miles on the car.

—Tom Mutchler 

Just In: 2010 Mazda MX-5 Miata

The evening I drove our 2010 Mazda MX-5 Miata Grand Touring PRHT (which stands for Power Retractable Hard Top, obviously) home was one of those warm September nights, the kind where summer tries hard to hold off fall from coming. On what I thought would be a short trip, I dropped my wife off at the neighborhood book club and turned to head home. But I couldn’t. I just kept driving with the top down, not going very fast or very far, listening to the exhaust note, letting the stars shine in.

So, I can understand how Yutaka Katayama, “Dr. K” of Datsun/Nissan Z-car fame, created something of a stir when he said that the 370Z was “very heavy” and “very expensive.” According to Autoblog, he’d “like to have a sports car like a Miata,” since it’s closer to the elemental 240Z he championed than the current-day Z is.

A CR Top Pick for “Fun to Drive” for multiple years, the Miata recently had a light freshening. We bought one to see what the freshening brought and to find out if the quick-folding hard top adds some top-up calm to the Miata’s interior.

Despite the Miata’s carefree image, our loaded car goes beyond cheap fun. Adding the Premium Package (HIDs, electronic stability control, transponder key, Sirius) to a manual Grand Touring requires you to also buy the Suspension Package (Bilstein shocks, limited- slip differential). All of this set us back $31,150. Another sour note: the only way you can buy stability control on the Miata is to get a loaded Grand Touring version with the Premium Package.

We’ll see if the Miata keeps us smiling as we accumulate break-in miles.

—Tom Mutchler 

From the logbook: 2010 Buick LaCrosse CXS

According to Autoblog, GM has been taking their time building LaCrosses, shipping 300-400 or so in August and then stopping for a few weeks to work out bugs. Given the importance of this car to Buick, and how often LaCrosse advertisements compare the car to Lexus, patience in manufacturing to work out quality issues may be a virtue.

But we weren’t patient to find out how the new LaCrosse would perform, so following our typical testing timetable we grabbed one of the first to hit dealers’ lots. Our loaded LaCrosse CXS comes with GM’s 3.6-liter V6; lesser-level LaCrosses come with a 3.0-liter V6 similar to the one in our tested Chevrolet Equinox. A 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine will become optional this winter.

Our car has the touring package (19-inch wheels, continuously variable suspension damping), navigation, and an “oversized” sunroof. (That makes it sound like it doesn’t fit, or there is no roof left.) All in, the car lists for $37,555. Given the car’s size and content, it is a relative bargain compared to a comparatively-equipped Acura TL or Lexus ES.

You might be wondering if a Buick really should be mentioned next to a TL or ES. After all, most recent Buick sedans have been based on dated platforms. So far, our logbook entries suggest that this is indeed a very different Buick:

“Impressive drive. Very refined and inviting.”

“Wide A-pillars and short rear window impact outward visibility.”

“Driving position is narrow – high console and footwell intrusion from left.”

“No car with 40-series tires should ride this well.”

“Wish it was a Cadillac. Not sure if people who would appreciate this car would appreciate buying a ‘Buick.’”

“Good steering, smooth powertrain.”

“Sea of buttons in center stack.”

“Lots of features for the money--a good step forward for GM.”

“Trunk access is a bit tight.”

“Feels like sitting in a tub with high beltline with a very deep dash.”

“Nav system is easily the best that I’ve used. This one actually agrees with the route picked from (previous) mapping. Recalculates quickly, no U-turn, no persistence (to stay) on the planned route.”

“Great handling, nice steering feel.”

“World-class luxury interior. Quiet.”

“Big A-pillars are like blinders. Other than that and the busy control layout, a delightful car overall. I might like this more than the CTS.”

“Wraparound dash limits access and inside door pulls put style over function.”

“Refreshing styling. A woman wanted to trade her Camry for the Buick.”

“Overall quite competitive. It drives like no other Buick ever before, but falls down on some important details.”

“Was told it looks like a Lexus--maybe GM can pull this off after all…”

Our initial thoughts show that, in general, we’re pretty impressed with the LaCrosse. We’ll see how it does against the redesigned Ford Taurus and other large sedans soon.

—Tom Mutchler