GM Scores Among Award Finalists

Perhaps marking GM’s reemergence from the automobile wilderness, the domestic car giant makes four of the six finalists for the 2008 North American Car and Truck of the Year award. Even better, the automaker now finds itself in a position to score wins in both Car and Truck of the Year a feat no other company has achieved two years in a row, a feat no other company has achieved. 

Truck of the Year finalists include GM’s Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid SUV and Buick Enclave crossover SUV, with Mazda’s CX-9 crossover SUV filling the third spot. As for Car of the Year, the Honda Accord will compete with GM’s Cadillac CTS sport sedan and the highly praised Chevrolet Malibu midsize sedan.

Now if the world’s largest auto manufacturer could only transfer this success to sales. While its vehicles continue to improve, the perception of domestic cars in terms of quality and design still lags behind Japanese and European makes. Earning awards is nice, but earning back car shoppers is obviously GM’s more pressing goal.

Vote is in: GM Rules (Detroit Free Press)

Friday Fleet Notes: 10.19.07

This week we get feedback on quite the cross section of cars. From the sporty Volvo C30 hatchback to the Mazda CX-9 crossover to the aggressive Dodge Viper, the staff was hopping in and out of some diverse vehicles that recently got the full review treatment on Cars.com.


2008 Volvo C30

• The outrageous Volvo S60 R, now discontinued, probably raised my expectations. The C30 is no S60 R. Neither is it a Volkswagen GTI, but it is a fun car and a nice size. The steering isn’t the best attribute, but saying a Volvo has numb steering is like saying a Hell’s Angel has a tattoo. Having driven it, I still have sticker shock – the good kind, but I wonder if they shouldn’t bring over one of Europe’s smaller and more efficient (please, more efficient) four- or five-cylinder engines and sell it cheaper still. That might be asking too much. Making a car look distinctive isn’t easy these days, so I like the C30’s easily recognized rear window and shape. — Joe Wiesenfelder, senior editor

Ch-Ch-Changes: 2008 Mazda CX-7, CX-9

As we continue our look at 2008-model-year changes, we‘re a bit surprised to see models that were new for 2007 having any alterations at all. The new CX-7 and CX-9 crossovers were huge new launches for Mazda this past year, and the CX-9 even won our three-row-crossover Faceoff against the GMC Acadia and Hyundai Veracruz. Mazda, however, saw some small changes that needed to be made.

For 2008, the CX-9 gets an entirely new engine. The new 3.7-liter V-6 gets 273 hp, a 10-hp bump over the engine it replaces. It gets roughly the same mileage, taking the more-stringent 2008 EPA tests into account. A new blind-spot monitoring system will also be available.

Changes to the 2008 CX-7 are less extreme but also impact the engine. The company has modified the CX-7’s impressive four-cylinder turbo engine so that premium fuel is now recommended, not required. That means owners can fill up on regular when gas prices spike too high too swallow.

The 2008 CX-7s and CX-9s are beginning to arrive at dealers this month.

Related
Ch-Ch-Changes: Mazdaspeed6, Mazda6 Wagon Dropped for 2008 (KickingTires)
Research 2008 Mazda CX-7 (Cars.com)
Research 2008 Mazda CX-9 (Cars.com)

Cars.com Three-Row Crossover Faceoff

It’s one of the fastest-growing segments in the market: Three-row crossovers have come along to take the place of traditional truck-based SUVs in the heart of suburbia. Cars.com put three of the newcomers head-to-head-to-head to determine which tops this new field. The GMC Acadia, Hyundai Veracruz and Mazda CX-9 all proved to be excellent people-movers, but only one could win the Faceoff. See which one we picked, and let us know what Faceoffs you’d like to see in the future.

Cars.comparison: Three-Row Crossovers

Friday Fleet Notes: 04.27.07

This week the staff was behind the wheel of a couple of BMWs and an impressive family hauler. Here’s what they had to say.

2007 BMW Z4

After spending a lot of time lately writing about crossover SUVs, it was nice to get back into a car designed for drivers. The 3.0si is the most powerful non-M version of the Z4 you can get, and its 255-horsepower, 3.0-liter inline-six sings a sweet song at high rpms. Acceleration isn't fierce, but it's plenty strong if you're looking for an occasional thrill. Our coupe had the six-speed automatic transmission, and its manual mode featured impressive rev-matching on downshifts.

The car is planted and stable through fast corners and the handling is top-notch. The sport seats' aggressively bolstered backrests may be a little narrow for some, but they do a good job of keeping you in place when driving the car hard. For such a small car, the 12-cubic-foot cargo area adds some unexpected practicality.

There are a couple of drawbacks. The super taut sport suspension and low-profile run-flat tires make for a punishing ride on rough roads — even for a sports car. Additionally, if you're much taller than 6' 1", you'll be pushing the limits of the cabin, and over-right-shoulder visibility is significantly compromised by the coupe's large hatch.

• Mike Hanley, Cars.com reviewer

Hot Deals: New Mazda CX-9, Ford Edge Get Incentives

Most people think of incentives as a way for dealers to get unpopular cars off their lots. Now, automakers are trying to get brand-new models into early adopters’ hands using some attractive financing offers and bonus cash.

The Mazda CX-9 is a large crossover that seats seven yet looks like a sporty SUV. It starts at $29,035 and easily goes up to $40,000 with options. Mazda is offering a lease deal for 39 months with $2,000 down and payments of $349.

Ford will begin offering $500 on the base, SE trim level of the new Ford Edge crossover, even though the vehicle is seeing brisk sales.

[Crossing Over to CX-9, Autoweek — Ford Offers First Rebates on New Edge Crossover, The Detroit News]

Related:
2007 Mazda CX-9 Cars.com Review
2007 Ford Edge Cars.com Review

Cars.com Reviews the 2007 Mazda CX-9

Mike Hanley got an early look at the all-new Mazda CX-9 crossover recently in Detroit. His review lays out an impressive case for the fun-to-drive seven-seater. The CX-9 joins a quickly improving Mazda lineup that already includes the obviously smaller crossover, the CX-7. The CX-9 has a lot of competition in the rapidly expanding crossover segment, like the Saturn Outlook, so this review comes just in time for shoppers testing out these models just now arriving on dealer lots.

Click here to read the full review.

Mazda Lineup Growing, Advertising Not Catching Up

We just finished reading AutoWeek’s story on Mazda’s expanding lineup — moving from seven nameplates to nine in two years and adding six more bodystyles in the same timeframe — and we’re a bit dismayed that the company isn’t planning on expanding ad buying in the same proportions.

Here’s where we dissect some of the industry speak for you. Mazda’s new director of marketing David Klan isn’t planning on highlighting the new CX-7 and CX-9 crossovers over the rest of the lineup despite their positive reviews and brisk sales of the CX-7. He went the understated route, saying “the crossovers are a natural extension of the brand.” Sounds like a politician or losing quarterback who can only say one thing, no matter what the topic is.

The point is the CX-7 and CX-9 are probably the most important vehicles to hit Mazda’s lineup since the Mazda6.

Mazda Prices CX-9 Crossover

The first batch of Mazda’s new three-row crossover — the U.S.-only CX-9 — just left Japan, and we just received full pricing for the lineup. The CX-9 will arrive at dealerships early in 2007 and start at $29,035 for a front-wheel-drive Sport model. This is priced competitively with the new Saturn Outlook, which starts at $27,255.

A few years ago, this segment of vehicles was almost nonexistent. Now a number of manufacturers are trying to market these three-row crossovers to large families who want SUV looks and handling with the practicality of minivans. Earlier this year Mazda introduced the two-row CX-7 crossover to positive reviews and brisk sales.

We’re impressed at the $1,200 difference in front- and all-wheel-drive models. Most manufacturers have a price hike of roughly $2,000 for AWD vehicles.

Keep reading for a full list of prices and trim levels for the new CX-9.