Review: 2013 Volvo S60 T6 R-Design

In the Volvo family of cars, the S60 T6 R-Design sits at the top of the performance food chain-in other words, this is as hot as it gets. Even today, most people rarely think of Volvo's as quick or entertaining cars, with safety being the first thing that comes to mind when Volvo is mentioned. But the truth is, Volvo has been dabbling with hot rod versions of their cars for years. As an awkward fifteen year old, I have fond memories of being catapulted down the scenic Merritt Parkway by my neighbor, and boss on our way to work in mega-wealthy Old Greenwich, Connecticut in his 1984 Volvo 240 Turbo wagon. Well, I'm 40 now, not quite as awkward, and I do the driving now, thank you. So it was time to sample Volvo's current hot rod.

Not that The Garage is any stranger to the Volvo S60. Last fall we reviewed the base T5 AWD, and came away very impressed. The S60 is arguably one of the most handsome luxury sedans on the market, and without a doubt the sexiest Volvo ever built. It will, however, take a true Volvo fanatic to recognize you are piloting the R-Design. Unique 18' wheels, front and rear spoilers, rear diffuser and polished exhaust pipes. In other words, the changes are very subtle. Not so subtle was our test car finished in Rebel Blue, a color nearly every person I asked disliked. Color is a personal choice, but since the R-Design is so subtle against its less powerful S60 siblings, a milder color would make this the ultimate Q-Ship.

If the changes to the exterior are subtle, then the interior is even more so. Special sport seats, steering wheel, shift knob, blue watch dial gauges and aluminum pedals are all that differentiate the R-Design from other S60's. And that is not a bad thing, as the S60 has an open, airy cabin that is exceptionally comfortable, especially over long distances. As before, most controls are fairly intuitive, but the S60 seems to be a step behind the competition with its infotainment interface. Even so, the S60 R-Design sports some of the best seats in the business.

So while we all agree the R-Design does not do a lot to distinguish itself from outside/inside, the biggest difference is what lies in the engine bay, where you will find a 3.0L turbocharged inline six rated at 325hp, paired to a six-speed automatic. All R-Design S60's are all-wheel drive. Sadly, no manual transmission is offered. The R has 75 more horsepower than the five cylinder T5, and Volvo claims a 0-60mph of 5.5 seconds, which is over a second quicker. Suspension and steering have also been tightened up for the R-Design. Yes, it is quick and tight, but as I drove the R-Design, I kept thinking back to the sublime Audi S4. Boasting only eight more horsepower, the S4 will toast the S60 1.1 seconds to 60. While the S4 is intense and engaging, the R-Design has the goods but the speed is delivered in a far smoother, relaxed manner.

But where the R-Design trumps its competitors is price. And not because it is lacks features or suffers from inferior build quality and materials-far from it. The Volvo S60 easily matches its Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz rivals. This top-spec S60 has a starting MSRP of $43,900. Our test car included the Platinum package (navigation, premium sound, rear view camera), and Climate package (heated front seats, interior air quality system, heated windshield washer nozzles). Including delivery, our S60 T6 R-Design had a cost of $48,195, which is about $12,000 less than the Audi S4 we tested with similar content. If you don't demand a manual tranny, and for normal daily driving, the R-Design is by far the better buy.

If you view Volvo owners as New England types working at prestigious universities, well, you would not be far off. Owning a Volvo is not to show off your car to brag to your friends about, that's what BMW's are for. And despite Volvo's heritage in turbocharging cars, public perception still perceives Volvo has a brand that places safety above all else, and that is true. What most do not know is that you can be enveloped in an extremely safe Volvo, and have some fun as well. If your perception of Volvo owners is the college professor, then the S60 T6 R-Design is the cool college professor you had that played in a blues band on weekends. Fun, passionate, yet mellow. In other words, a long term friend, for which Volvo's have a strong reputation for.

Review: 2013 Hyundai Elantra GT

As an American of British/Irish descent, I have often marveled that in spite of the fact that the USA is comprised of citizens from all walks of life, rich, poor, and from every corner of the world, there is one common perception about cars. And as Americans, most tend to snub their noses at a hatchback, and why is that? There is this crazy misconception that a hatchback is akin to flying economy class, while a formal sedan is more like flying coach. This silly rationale is one of the reasons Europeans point and laugh at us when we travel abroad.

By now, the Elantra is a household name, but in 2002, Hyundai slipped in a sleek five door hatch called the Elantra GT. One look at it, and I saw it as sort of a poor man's Saab 9-3. The Elantra GT disappeared after 2007, but 2009 saw saw the introduction of the Elantra Touring, which was a small station wagon based on the European market Hyundai i30. The Elantra Touring is gone, but Hyundai reinvented the i30 as a hatchback, and what we get is the Elantra GT.

The Elantra GT is a fantastic looking car from any angle. Fluid lines, swooping curves make a strong statement. With the GT, Hyundai has done a fine job of designing a compact car that looks more expensive than it is. No one is going to mistake the car for an Audi A7, the Elantra GT comes off as cool and sophisticated. Rolling in to a four star hotel outside Washington DC, the GT needed no excuses or apologies, and looked right at home.

I'll confess, I wasn't thrilled knowing I'd be making the drive from my native Connecticut to Washington DC in the Elantra GT, but the car more than proved itself as a competent road tripper. More than enough room for a family of three and their luggage, but the Elantra GT really proved itself for a long drive beset by accidents and terrible traffic conditions. After an eight hour drive to DC, we were exhausted, but to the Elantra's credit, we did not ache a bit. Clear gauges and intuitive controls make the Elantra easy to live with. After a 650 mile round trip, the Elantra GT passed with flying colors.

Motivation for the Elantra GT is delivered via a 1.8L four cylinder rated at 148hp. Buyers can choose between a six-speed manual or automatic. That's about on par for cars in this class, but Hyundai deserves a huge thank you from enthusiasts for letting the stick be available no matter how you option out your GT, while the competition makes their most basic car the only option if you like to shift for yourself. Our test car was equipped with the automatic, which shifted smoothly and was always ready to drop a couple gears if I needed more speed. The Elantra is peppy around town, and can more than hold its own on the highway, but you won't be winning any drag races. That said, the Elantra GT cruised comfortably for hours at 80mph. While I am told Hyundai softened the suspension a tad for Americans, this was a real tight car as far as ride and handling go.

The Elantra GT starts at a reasonable $18,545USD, with SiriusXM Radio, Bluetooth and iPod integration standard. Our test car included the Style Package, which added 17' alloys, panoramic  sunroof, leather interior and a power driver's seat. Also, the Technology Package added a rearview camera, dual zone auto climate control and navigation. Including delivery, our Elantra GT rang in at $25,550USD, which is not bad for the amount of kit our car came with.

And so, The Garage has sampled the entire family of the Elantra-sedan, coupe and GT. Of the threesome, the GT is my pick. For style, features and panache, the Elantra GT represents a great value, not to mention excellent utility to boot. Yes, Hyundai knows the sedan will easily outsell the GT, but as enthusiasts let's be thankful Hyundai has offered us the GT, a delightful Korean car with a European accent.

 

 

Action in the pits

Daytona was a bit weird for me, as it was the rare time that I have been at a race without photo credentials. That meant that I didn't have my go anywhere access, but my media creds still offered unlimited access to the pits, unlike some other series. As Sunday rolled onwards and teams packed up and went home, the empty pit stalls became perfect spots to shoot the action in the pits. I decided to stitch together some stop action footage and through in a soundtrack of the on track action. I hope you like it!

The Garage at 2013 Rolex 24 at Daytona

The Winners crossing the line!

The past 12 months have been just a crazy ride for me as I have traveled around the world covering events for Wheels.ca including bucket list events like the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the Goodwood Festival of Speed and just this past weekend I went to Daytona Beach to cover the Rolex 24 for the first time. Just an incredible year!

To get my full report on the 24, click here to read my live blog from the race complete with tons of images. The long and the short of it is that Chip Ganassi Racing won their fifth Rolex 24 in ten years. Toronto's AIM Autosport pulled off a great third spot on the podium in the GT class and west coast Canucks, Bullet Racing, scored second place in the new GX class.

Head past the jump to see a rather huge gallery of images from the 2013 Rolex 24 at Daytona.

Subaru Prices 2014 Forester

The Subaru Forester has undergone a massive transformation from when it started life as a 1998 model. With all-wheel drive, a boxer four cylinder engine and a slightly quirky persona, the Forester was a tall wagon that hit all the right notes with its loyal, and yes, quirky fan base. In 2008, Subaru ditched the tall wagon design of the Forester, and went typical compact crossover. Yes, sales of the Forester were up, but we questioned if Subaru had sold out. After testing a 2011 Forester, we concluded that Subaru had not, sticking with its core principles-all wheel drive, boxer engines, and turbocharging.

Which brings us to the all new 2014 Forester. Starting at $21,995USD for a base model 2.5i. A six-speed manual is standard-for $1,000 extra you can get a continuously variable transmission. I have to say it really disappoints me that Subaru opted for a CVT. The 2.5i is powered by 170hp boxer four, while there is the option of the 2.0 XT which features a 250hp turbocharged engine. The CVT is the only available transmission. A top-spec 2.0XT Touring will set you back $32,995. No word from Subaru as to when we can expect to see the new Forester in dealer showrooms.

Last But Not Least: Redefining the Meaning of Winning

Race 2 Recovery on the podium at Dakar

A guest post by Colene Allen

'What you have achieved was a triumph of perseverance and teamwork, and you have shown the world what true valour looks like.' ' The Duke & Duchess of Cambridge.

Winners.

In motorsport, there are many of them. Winners of races, winners of championships, winners of purse money, and winners of trophies. We define a winner by where they place in a competition. We often refer to the second place finisher as the first loser. For most drivers, teams, and sponsors, winning is the benchmark of success in motorsport. Given all that, something happened during the 2013 edition of the Dakar Rally-Raid that completely redefines what a winner is. In fact, what happened completely redefined motorsport as many of us know and view it.

Motorsport by its nature is a combination of man and machine, teamwork, determination, perseverance, sheer grit, and courage. We often focus on the machine part of the equation and concern ourselves with the latest advancements in aerodynamics, engine technology, or computer controlled systems. We focus occasionally on an exceptional driver, an outstanding performance, or a glimmer of greatness. We rarely focus on what people put into the work they do in motorsport to achieve the results they do. We do not notice what they overcome to achieve the results they do, and given our definition of what a winner is, we would never consider finishing in last place to be a triumph.

Approximately two years ago, while attending a therapy session at a rehabilitation clinic for wounded soldiers in the United Kingdom, Captain Tony Harris turned to his mate, Corporal Tom Neathway and expressed a desire to start a race team to compete in and finish the 2013 Dakar Rally-Raid. Over the next two years, the two mates assembled a team of wounded soldiers from the American and British militaries, several veterans, and a number of experts from the motorsports arena. They put together deals with high profile sponsors, including the Royal Family of Windsor, and trained and practised to get ready to take on the Dakar Rally-Raid. Harris and Neathway named the team Race2Recovery and set out to prove that being a single, double, or triple amputee has no bearing on the ability to compete in motorsports.

That goal may not sound ambitious until you consider what the Dakar Rally-Raid is. It's a 9,000 kilometre off-road rally across all kinds of terrain from 100 foot high sand dunes in the desert to 4,000 foot high mountain peaks in the Andes. It takes 15 days to run the entire rally, and try as hard has he might, in eight attempts to win the Dakar Rally Robby Gordon has never managed more than a stage victory. The Dakar Rally is the most extreme and dangerous motorsports event in the world. Only 2 out of every 5 starters will make it to the finish. To finish the Dakar Rally by itself is an accomplishment and to win the Dakar elevates a driver and team to legendary status. Stephane Peterhansel may have won the Dakar Rally a total of 11 times, but even that accomplishment does not define the true meaning of being a winner.

Race2Recovery had entered a total of five vehicles in the Dakar ' a T4 Renault truck and four T1 QT Wildcats. The T4 Renault truck was the on-stage support vehicle, meant to render assistance in the event that one of the four T1 Wildcats broke down. They started the Rally on January 5, 2013 with the entered vehicles plus two LandRover Freelanders and two huge transporters carrying spares, tools, and other equipment required by the team. By the beginning of Stage 3 of the Rally, their first Wildcat had been disqualified for failing to go through enough way/checkpoints in order to obtain an official time. By Stage 4 of the Dakar, their second Wildcat was withdrawn after an on-stage mechanical problem that could not be repaired. Race2Recovery now had just their T4 Support truck and two Wildcats left in the Rally. On Stage 5, the unthinkable happened to the team and would force them to ask if they should continue the Dakar or withdraw and go home.

While on a transit between sections of Stage 5, the Race2Recovery T4 Support truck was involved in a head-on collision with two local vehicles. The resulting crash put three members of the team in the hospital in stable but serious condition, killed two locals, and injured four others. Race2Recovery was faced with a difficult decision ' give up their goal and go home or continue on against the odds and try to finish what they started. With no support truck and only two Wildcats left in the Rally, the task was daunting. They were also down three crew members. Where many others might have given up, Race2Recovery decided to continue the Dakar, a decision that would prove to bring the bittersweet taste of both success and failure.

With their two remaining Wildcats, nicknamed 'Ratcat' and 'Joy', Race2Recovery started Stage 6 of the Rally only to endure more hardship. Ratcat, driven by Ben Gott and co-driven by Staff Sargent Mark Zambon of the U.S. Marine Corps caught a sand dune on the wrong angle. Ratcat flipped violently several times and the crash sent both Gott and Zambon to the hospital with minor injuries. Both team members were later released from hospital, but the setback was a serious one. If the team continued, all of their hopes to complete the Dakar rested on 'Joy', driven by Major Matt O'Hare and co-driven by Corporal Philip 'Barney' Gillespie. 'Joy' was the last vehicle standing in a Dakar that had been mercilessly cruel to this team of rookies that had set such a lofty goal.

The story of the team's misfortunes and determination to continue was spreading over the Internet and social media. The team gained many new fans and followers from around the world. They may have been sitting in last place, but Race2Recovery had become the story of the Dakar. They were mobbed at fuel stops, constantly asked for autographs, and followed all over the world via live timing and scoring from way point to way point on stage after stage of the Rally. As their worldwide social media cheering section grew, so did their ability to see the goal of completing the Dakar with their lone remaining Wildcat 'Joy'.

On January 20, 2013, the Race2Recovery team came across the podium at the end of the Dakar with 'Joy'. Fifteen days, four vehicles down, 5 crew members hospitalized, 2 failed transport vehicles, and multiple artificial limb failures later, Race2Recovery had achieved their goal. They had finished last in the Dakar, and by all definitions traditionally used in motorsport were losers. What they did was redefine two things for all of us ' what winning really means and what is possible in motorsport.

Winners.

Race2Recovery are winners. They succeeded in accomplishing something never done before. They completed the Dakar Rally-Raid and made history doing it. They are the first disabled motorsports team to ever complete the Dakar. They have shown the world that disability is no barrier to achievement in any discipline one chooses to pursue. They've also shown all of us that sometimes it's not about where you place in the rankings, it's about what you have to face down and work through to get to the finish line.

Colene Allen is a CASC-OR and SCCA (Detroit Region) veteran roadcourse Race Official. She is also the Canadian Motorsports Correspondent for In The Pits Racing Radio on the ESPN Radio Network. She has been involved in motorsport for thirty years.

Review: 2013 MAZDA CX-5

The notion of a compact crossover is hardly a new one. The Geo Tracker debuted in 1989, and in 1994 Toyota released a blockbuster hit with the RAV4, and Honda followed with the wildly successful CR-V a year later. Yet Mazda has been content to sit on the sidelines while demand continued to surge for this type of vehicle. Sure, there was the Mazda Tribute, which was simply a rebadged Ford Escape. Upright and staid, the Tribute did not mesh at all with Mazda's line of vehicles, and never sold well. With that in mind, it's hard to believe that the 2013 CX-5 is Mazda's first effort at a compact crossover.

Style and crossover don't always go hand in hand. The aforementioned RAV4 and CR-V reign supreme when it comes to sales, and the buying public has made its statement: they prize functionality and practicality over personality. Why is this? The belief is style will compromise the utility that buyers seek in a CUV. Mazda designers threw that notion in the garbage, and designed one of the prettiest crossovers available that  gives up nothing in the form of utility. Interesting angles and curves prevail, but the CX-5 never comes across as busy or overdone. The ultimate seal of approval came when I pulled up to the swanky Liberty Warehouse in New York City for a wedding reception, and the valet tells me what a great looking car the CX-5 was.

Inside, driver and passengers are greeted with a simple, functional interior. Fit and finish and quality of materials are on par with the competition. Buyers enticed by the exotic curves of the exterior may be disappointed that Mazda went ultra-conservative inside, however. Mazda bills itself as a driver's kind of car company, and as such I appreciated the chunky steering wheel and crystal clear gauges. Some reviews have panned the TomTom GPS navigation and infotainment as being too basic, but I found it a cinch to use with all the features I could possibly want. Flashy? No, but the CX-5's cabin proved to be roomy, practical and quite comfortable.

The CX-5 is offered with one engine, a 2.0L direct injected SkyActiv four cylinder rated at 155hp (though there are rumors we could see a diesel powered CX-5). A six-speed manual (which is I hear is sublime) is a rarity in crossovers, and is only available in the base model with front wheel drive. All other CX-5's get a six-speed automatic. Buyers can choose from front or all-wheel drive. Our automatic, all-wheel drive has EPA fuel economy ratings of 25/31 MPG city/highway, which is exceptional. When I saw that 155hp was all there was to motivate this car, I was skeptical that it would be able to get out of its own way. Thankfully, I was proven wrong. It's no rocket, but the CX-5 was perfectly at ease on the highway, engine and transmission working in perfect harmony. Steering, brakes and handling are superior to any other car in its class-and that is one hyper-competitive class. Smooth on the interstate, yet perfectly agile in the urban jungle of New York City, the CX-5 is a no compromise performer.

CX-5 shoppers can pick from three trim levels, starting with base Sport, Touring, and Grand Touring. Our test car was the top-spec Grand Touring model. Standard equipment included 19' alloys, power moonroof, heated leather sport seats, two-zone auto climate control, blind spot monitoring system, Bose audio, power driver's seat, HD SiriusXM radio and a rear-view camera. Our car's sole option was the Tech Package, which added navigation, HID headlights and other goodies. Including delivery, our CX-5 stickers at $30,415USD, which seems reasonable for the level of features you get.

Mazda's first genuine attempt to get into the compact crossover market is, in my opinion, a raging success. Mazda has proved that you do not need to have vanilla styling to be practical, or have the handling capabilities of a marshmellow to be comfortable. Instead, the CX-5 delivers a look that is interesting to look at, and a driving experience that shatters all the accepted notions of how a crossover should handle and perform. All of this with surrendering any practicality. Mazda may be years late to the party, but without a shadow of a doubt perfected the recipe.