Archive for July, 2016
Private Fleet Car Review: 2016 Suzuki Vitara RT-S
A Wheel Thing welcomes Suzuki to the garage, with the first of five in a row being the entry level Suzuki Vitara RT-S. It’s a 1.6L engine and five speed manual transmission combo driving the front wheels and with prices starting at just $23990, it’s a great way for a new driver to get out on the road. Here’s why.
Suzuki’s Vitara range is part of a stable of cars that come from the niche Japanese automotive manufacturer. This particular vehicle, the RT-S, is, in A Wheel Thing’s opinion, one of the most ideal cars that a recently licensed driver can get into to hone their driving skills.
Up front is a frugal four potter, with Suzuki claiming consumption of just 5.8L per 100 kilometres. A Wheel Thing backs that up, with 5.6L/100 km from 560 kilometres worth of most urban driving, from a 47 litre tank.
No, it’s not a firecracker, with Suzuki reserving the fuse lighting for the 1.4 Turbo engine (which will be reviewed in August 2016). There’s 86 kilowatts at 6000 revs and a reasonable 156 torques at a highish 4400 revs, but not unexpected for this size engine. It’s partly why the manual transmission is “only” a five speed, not six, as the fifth gear ratio of 0.725:1 sees around 2800 rpm on the tacho at 110 kilometres per hour. That’s reaching the bottom limits of effectiveness for torque to twist a sixth ratio. Another positive which aids consumption is the light weight for the size of the car; just 1075 kilos kerb weight for the manual.
As such, it’s a free revving unit, if somewhat buzzy at high revs and from the line does need a bit of rowing through the gears. Happily, that’s not a chore as both the gear mechanism and clutch are smooth, well weighted and the pickup point becomes instinctive very quickly, again ideal for new drivers. Under way and around town, fifth is mostly fine, but some may find fourth a better choice. The dash screen does indicate what gear you’re in, unusual for a manual transmission. Finding some hills to climb such as the Great Western Highway or the zig zag for the Old Bathurst Road at the base of the Blue Mountains will see a need to drop back through the gears, down to first at one point on the zig zag whilst the highway climb should only need a drop to third.
The gear lever, as mentioned, is smooth in the move, with just enough notchiness in the swap between gates to give feel and feedback. Occasionally, however, it didn’t wish to find third from second, but this was moreso on a hurried change than a measured movement. In the H pattern it’s fitted with, Reverse is at bottom right, directly below fifth, and it took a few “wait a second” moments to remind the brain not to go for sixth where a six speed ‘box would normally have the hand move.
The Vitara RT-S has a welcoming interior and a couple of unexpected equipment surprises as well, being an entry level vehicle. Design wise, it’s a clean look, with airvents being the user friendly twist and turn design, there’s some piano black plastic surrounding the seven inch touchscreen (complete with satnav and apps such as Apple CarPlay) sitting above the simple to follow aircon controls. 
The dash plastic has the familiar rippled look (with perhaps too much reflection into the windscreen), the cloth covered seats have manual adjustment only, power windows all round but only the driver’s window is Auto up/down.
Speaking of the dash, the centre screen between the speedo and tacho is monochrome only and doesn’t show the speed as an option, whereas you will get instant and average fuel consumption, distance covered, external temperature and trip meter.
You’ll also get a reverse camera, tilt and telescope adjustable steering wheel column, 2 ISOFIX child seat mounting points, and a headlight switch that is Off/parkers/on (no auto headlights, they’re found higher up the range) and just at driver’s right knee height is the switch for the additional halogen driving lights. Safety for the new driver is also assured, with seat side, curtain, front and driver’s knee airbags, traction and stability control, reverse camera and pre-tensioning seatbelts.
Outside it’s recognisable as a Vitara, even with design hints from a decade’s ago model. Rectangular style headlights, halogen driving lights set deep in the front bumper, a “three box” profile, a compact body but with plenty of interior room and a cargo space just big enough for a week’s shopping. Sadly, you only get a space saver spare in the rear, rather than a full sizer.
Sixe wise, what you get is 4175 mm of Vitara in length, spread across 1775 and 1610 mm for width and height, wrapping a 2500 mm wheelbase, with that providing a turning circle of just over five metres. That’s helped by a wider front track than the rear, at 1535 vs 1505 mm. What you also get is a slightly compromised cargo area, with only 375 litres available, increasing to 710 with the seats folded. BUT, it’s just big enough for a reasonable weekly shop for a family and just big enough for a weekend away. An added bonus is the lower than expected tail gate entry.
Underneath the Vitara is the tried and true mix of McPherson strut front and torsion beam rear suspension. It’s skittish and unsettled on some surfaces, with the rear moving left or right suddenly. It’s surfaces like road joins, some ripples etc and it’s easily controlled however. Another niggle is the rating of the dampers; they seem to be more tuned for hard absorption on short travel and soft for long travel, allowing the front and rear to feel as if they’re crashing down onto the bump stops.
Out on a straight and level road, it tracks well enough, with the Continental rubber, 215/55 in size, wrapping gunmetal painted five spoke 17 inch alloys and doing a great job of holding on and helping the front end turn in nicely. Undulations are noticeable for a few moments before being damped out and there’s considerable road noise on coarser chip surfaces as well.
At The End Of The Drive.
As suggested at the beginning, the Vitara RT-S will make an ideal first car for a newly licensed driver. Safety features, room enough for four comfortably, a user friendly interior, an economical non turbo engine and a fluid manual transmission make the Suzuki Vitara RT-S a more than reasonable argument and at just under $24K the dollar factor has a solid case for as well.
For more details on the range: 2016 Suzuki Vitara range and contact your Suzuki dealership for details on warranty and servicing costs.
2016 Ford Focus RS Lights Up Aussie Roads
Ford’s research and development engineers must have something in the water they drink. From a long history of sporting oriented cars and with a continued push to extract every erg of performance from their four cylinder range, the recent unveiling of the Focus RS model to the Australian motoring media has taken the superlatives to a new level, thanks to their latest work.
Here’s Ford Australia’s PR release:
The hugely anticipated 2016 Ford Focus RS brings Ford’s most advanced and capable performance hatch to Australian customers. With more power, as well as a driver-focussed Ford Performance All-Wheel Drive, the RS brings scintillating performance and technical innovation at a lower Manufacturer’s List Price than its predecessor.
“The all-new Focus RS is a very serious machine with high-performance technology and innovative engineering that sets a new benchmark for driving exhilaration,” said Raj Nair, group vice president, Global Product Development, Ford Motor Company. “The RS line has a proud history of technical breakthroughs that have gone on to benefit all Ford customers, and the new Focus RS is no exception.”
The all-new Focus RS is the 30th car to wear the legendary RS “Rallye Sport” badge, reserved for Ford models that have pioneered performance technologies. Focus RS follows in the footsteps of Ford models including the 16-valve 1970 Escort RS1600, turbocharged Sierra RS Cosworth of 1985, and four-wheel-drive 1992 Escort RS Cosworth.
The bold, muscular stance and wind-tunnel tested aerodynamic improvements give the 2016 Ford Focus RS an unmistakable performance posture. With a goal of zero lift front and rear, the RS boasts a uniquely aggressive front bumper, raised rear spoiler and dramatic yet functional rear diffuser. While its exterior’s bold colour palette, 19-inch alloys with Michelin Super Sport tyres and Brembo brakes scream athleticism, the RS badge signifies that its performance story is not merely window dressing.
Thanks to a new Launch Control function – the Focus RS finds itself in the company of premium dedicated sports cars.
This RS has more power than its predecessor, its all-alloy 2.3-litre EcoBoost four-cylinder boasting a twin-scroll turbocharger and a substantial 257kW2. Maximum torque of 440Nm is delivered between 2000 and 4500rpm, with 470Nm available for up to 15 seconds on transient overboost during hard acceleration1.
The EcoBoost engine itself shares its backbone – including block, crankshaft and therefore 2261cc capacity – with the 2016 Ford Mustang EcoBoost. Produced in Valencia, Spain, especially for the Focus RS, it has been significantly reengineered to deliver not only more power and torque, but a sharper acceleration response backed with a cack-and-burble from its larger exhaust system on lift-off for an entertaining drive both on- and off-throttle.
The Focus RS is offered exclusively with a six-speed manual transmission that remains true to the RS goal of the most exhilarating, engaging driver involvement. It continues the RS tradition of using manual transmissions as the ultimate in driving pleasure.
The 2016 Focus RS comes standard with Ford Performance All-Wheel Drive – a Focus first. Ford engineers didn’t stop there. The sophisticated AWD system enabled Dynamic Torque Vectoring, which means that the Focus RS can split its torque not only front-to-rear, but also side-to-side for unprecedented road-holding.
Sport Mode is one of four selectable drive modes – the first RS model to offer such a feature – that maximise the livability and enjoyment of the Focus RS. Each of these modes alters the steering, which has been recalibrated for more linearity, as well as the ESC, engine and exhaust settings. They also alter the adjustable dampers, another first for the 2016 Focus RS. Normal and Sport are calibrated for road use, with Track and Drift modes for the occasional closed course and racetrack experiences only. The dampers can also be changed independently, with two settings available. The drive modes operate independently of the Launch Control system.
The high-performance character of the RS is reflected inside the car with heavily-bolstered partial-leather Recaro sports seats as the centrepiece of the cockpit. There’s also a flat-bottom steering wheel, while the Focus RS offers technologies new to the RS marque including Ford’s SYNC connectivity system. Simple voice commands such as “Find a race track” enable RS owners to get instant directions to the nearest public circuit.
A flood of orders since full specification of the Focus RS was confirmed at the 2015 Frankfurt motor show has underlined the customer desire for an affordable, exquisitely engineered Focus around the globe. More than 6200 orders were taken in Europe before the launch showing the affection, respect and desirability of Ford’s RS products. The Australian order book followed suit – the first allocation of more than 300 Focus RS’s has quickly been snapped up, with Ford Australia working on further stocks from the Saarlouis, Germany, factory.
Such anticipation comes courtesy of the Focus RS’s already brimming trophy cabinet. Ahead of Australian launch, its most recent accolade is the 2016 Auto Express Hot Hatch of the Year. That comes after awards, among others, from What Car? as a 2016 ‘Game-changer’, Autocar awarding it a maximum 5/5-star rating, while Top Gear announced the Focus RS its 2016 Car of the Year. To top it off, Autocar also named RS Chief Engineer, Tyrone Johnson – who today presents the Focus RS to the Australian media in Brisbane – its 2016 Engineer of the Year.
“The Focus RS sees the return of one of our most revered models,” said Graeme Whickman, CEO and President, Ford of Australia. “It builds on our showroom appeal of models including the Focus ST and Fiesta ST, XR Sprint Falcons as well as the hugely popular Mustang.”
The 2016 Ford Focus RS is another example of Ford’s commitment to Australian customers and comes on top of a $2 billion investment in local R&D over the past six years.
It’s already garnered plenty of acclaim from members of the Australian motoring press, with John Carey from Wheels magazine saying: “Ford delivers stellar performance and handling at a price that reads like a misprint.” Feann Torr from carsales.com.au said: “After an hour of hard driving, I’m sold. I want this car. Now. This isn’t just a great hot hatch; it’s one of the best performance cars yet.”
Here’s why:
ENGINE DATA: 2.3-litre EcoBoost
Type: Inline four cylinder petrol, turbocharged, transverse
Displacement: 2261 cm3
Max power: 257 kW at 6000 rpm, Max torque 440 Nm between 2000 – 4500 rpm(470 Nm on transient overboost)
Transmission: 6-speed manual, Ford Performance All-Wheel Drive
Fuel: 95 RON unleaded.
Kerb weight: 1524 kilograms.
Price is $50990 plus on roads, with prestige paint being a $450 cost option along with the Performance Wheel pack at $2500. there’s just four colours, being Nitrous (a blue), White, Magnetic (grey) and Shadow Black.
Private Fleet Car Review: 2016 Subaru Forester XT Premium
It’s always a good feeling to slip back into a Subaru Forester. Think of catching up with an old mate at your favourite pub, after you’ve pulled on your comfy boots and decided on having your favourite meal and a pint of your favourite suds. That’s what it was like in late June for A Wheel Thing, with the updated 2.0L (177 kW/350 Nm) petrol and CVT equipped XT Premium.
Outside it’s been a minor set of changes, with the tail lights and head lights now equipped with LEDs and lit in a squared off C shape. There’s xenon headlamps up front and swept back into the fenders to accentuate the eagle eyed look Forester has had over the last couple of models. The grille has been reprofiled as has the front bumper.
Out back the tail lamp clusters stand proud of the rear fenders and have a nicely chamfered design to the edges. Above the driver is a sizable sunroof, covering both front and rear seats. The test vehicle was clad in silver, necessitating the auto headlights to be flicked on manually as their sensitivity under Sydney’s grey skies wasn’t enough to illuminate automatically.
There’s black painted 18 inch alloys (new aero efficient design for the 2016 model), with rubber supplied by Bridgestone in a 225/55/18 profile. They were grippy enough and added an extra level of comfort to the suspension setup, modified slightly from the 2015 model. There’s a touch more comfort, a touch more luxury in the ride quality, plush even, leaning towards the luxury side the XT is aimed at, rather than an out and out sports style.
It’s surprisingly twitchy on road, this particular vehicle, affected by cross breezes and passing trucks, needing a keen sense of attention from the driver in wet weather. I have to say it was an unusual situation to experience, as it’s so rare for a Subaru car to be suchlike in its driving. Otherwise, it’s a neutral handler, with the faintest hint of tight corner understeer (dialled out by the Vehicle Dynamics Control, for the most part), with Subaru’s famous all for the driver all wheel drive system playing its part.
The SI Drive system has also been fettled, with an eight step programming for the CVT and receiving throttle input information, going from a continous drive mode on light throttle input to the eight speed feel when under heavy load. Underneath, that ride quality has been helped by minor but noticeable changes to the spring and shock absorber settings, a more rigid front suspension cradle and rerated suspension bushes.
Inside, it’s more of the same; familiar dash layout, familiar instrumentation, familiar ergonomics. It’s as easy to deal with as the aforementioned comfy boots and bucket of suds for anyone that’s spent time with a Forester over the last few years. It’s certainly an easy place to get accustomed to for anyone that hasn’t, with clearly laid out switchgear, good ergonomics and sensible design cues apart from that damnable prediliction for lighting up the climate control’s dual zone button when in fact it’s only blowing into one zone. But you will also get Subaru’s much vaunted Eyesight system, which only once failed to work, due to direct sunlight shining directly down the camera barrels.
There’s, of course, electric seats. Comfortable, slip into ’em like your favourite shoes, electric seats with two heating settings (no cooling), clad in black leather, with thicker underside cushioning and with split fold rears accessing the cargo space. There’s Subaru’s X-Trac system underneath for softroading, accessed via a button in the front centre console. Even the vanity mirrors are now lit. What the XT Premium doesn’t get is a DAB equipped tuner.
What the Forester has been given, however, is a good working over with the refinement brush. Both suspension (adding to the ride quality experienced) and the NVH (noise, vibration, harshness) levels have been further refined (by five percent, says Subaru) thanks to slightly thicker glass and changes in the body’s structure plus increasing sound deadening materials. It’s evident by the lack of exterior noise making its way into the cabin. Apple’s Siri voice interface has been added, the tail gate is powered, and there’s memory seating as well.
It’s a good size, the Forester, with a compact 4610 mm length hiding a 2640 mm wheelbase. It’s tall, at 1735 mm and spans 1795 mm thanks to the heated wing mirrors extended. Weight is deceptive, with the XT Premium tipping the scales at 1657 kg, a full 157 kg heavier than the entry level 2.0L manual. Unsurprisingly, as a result, it’s also the highest in fuel consumption, with Subaru quoting 8.5L of unleaded being used for every 100 kilometres on a combined cycle. A Wheel Thing saw consistent nine plus around town. Warranty wise, you’ll get three years and unlimited kilometres.
All this adds up to be a reasonable ask in dollars; the range starts at just under thirty thousand, with the XT Premium auto ten dollars shy of forty eight thousand. Given the company it keeps, such as the Sportage, Tucson, Kuga, Captiva, RAV4 and the like, it may seem up against it but the sales numbers tell a different story, with the Forester range a consistent sales chart topper.
For info, to book a test drive and for enquiries, head here: 2016 Subaru Forester range and follow Subaru on social media.
LED Lights: Small Is Beautiful
In just about every new car that comes out, you’ll find LED lighting somewhere around it, whether it’s in the form of daytime running lights, the tail lights or the interior lighting. Car manufacturers seem very proud of featuring LED lighting in the designs. You might be wondering what all the fuss is about. Is this just the latest fashion or is there some real advantage to having LED lighting in your car?
If you have ever started the day with a flat battery caused by leaving the headlights on or a door slightly open or even the passenger reading light on (i.e. all of us at some point), you will have discovered the disadvantages of the old style incandescent bulbs the hard way. Ditto if you have ever had a bulb blow on you at a bad moment. LED lights don’t blow anywhere near as often as incandescents and they also use a lot less power. And that’s the advantages.
Let’s go back to basics. What is an LED light, how does it work and why don’t they blow or use as much power as the invention credited to Thomas Edison? (Historical note: Edison didn’t so much invent the lightbulb as improve it and buy out the patent from the other guys working on electric lighting. The first guy to light a building entirely by electric lights was the UK Joseph Swan. History lecture over.).
LEDs (light-emitting diodes) have been around for quite some time, having been discovered back in the early 1900s when scientists were starting to mess around with this new-fangled electricity stuff. LEDs are semiconductors made from materials like gallium, selenium and good old silicon. Skipping complex explanations about how all types of diode only allow electricity to flow in one direction, what’s special about an LED is that with only a tiny bit of electricity flowing through it (2–3 W), they start glowing.
For the best part of 100 years, LEDs weren’t particularly useful as they weren’t very bright. They lit up in dull red and you could see them glowing if it was dark but you couldn’t use them to find your way from A to B. Other diodes were much more fun in the early part of the 20th century, such as the ones used in crystal (cat-whisker) radios. In the 1960s, people started tinkering with computers and electronics, and found that LEDs were a good way of showing that a circuit was going. They were pretty expensive at first but soon became mass produced and became more widespread. You know those red numbers on timers and other whizz-bang gadgets in movies and TV shows from the 1970s and 1980s? Ditto green lights? Those are LEDs at work.
The fun really started when someone found a way to get colours other than red and green. If the human eye picks up more or less equal amounts of the three primary colours of light (red, green and blue), this is perceived as white. This means that if you shove a red, a blue and a green LED close together, it will look like a white LE
D. Make your semiconductors out of other materials and you get other colours, including actual white. More tinkering around with refraction by various physicists around the world led to the production of a nice bright white LED bulb and the possibilities really opened up – about 100 years after the initial discovery of LEDs.
There are three reasons why LED lighting is popular for heaps of applications, not just in the automotive world. Firstly, they use next to no electricity, so if you are in the habit of leaving lights in your car on, this won’t drain the battery overnight. It also won’t put demands on your car for extra energy, which increases fuel efficiency (and is even better news for hybrid and electric vehicles). Second, they last for ages. Thirdly, they don’t waste energy in the form of heat.
There’s a fourth advantage, which is more to do with aesthetics: LED lights tend to be smaller, which means that they can be worked into prettier designs (Audi has some nice ones). The fact that LEDs come in different colours also means that you can play around a bit with interior ambient lighting, which is also a lot of fun.
Work is still underway. While LED lights have become bright enough to be used around
the home, as daytime running lights and as tail lights (HSV do this well), they haven’t got bright enough yet to be used as headlights… at least not yet.
LED, Xenon and Halogen Headlights
OK, so how do LEDs stack up against the other big two forms of lighting in vehicles, namely halogen and xenon?
Halogen
Pros:
- Cheap
- Common
- Easy to make
Cons:
- Eventually blow themselves out
- Use heaps of watts of electricity
- Waste a lot of those watts in the form of heat
Xenon
Pros:
- Really, really bright
- More energy-efficient than halogens
- Longer lifetime than halogens
Cons:
- Expensive to make
- Take a little bit of time to reach full brightness
- A tendency to dazzle oncoming drivers, pedestrians and cyclists
LEDs
Pros:
- Don’t use much electricity
- No waste heat
- Last for ages if kept at the right temperature (i.e. cool)
- Small size allows more scope fordesigners to make something beautiful
Cons:
- Not bright enough for headlights
- Need to be kept cool, which can be a problem near a traditional internal combustion engine
- Still a bit on the pricey side
Level 2, 9 Help Street