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Cartoon: Media Trump Fake News
Posted by Talbot Payne on March 19, 2024
Payne: Behind the wheel of the handsome, remade Ford Ranger
Posted by Talbot Payne on March 19, 2024
Salt Lake City, Utah — The midsize pickup wars are back with a vengeance. Chevy Colorado, GMC Canyon, Nissan Frontier and Toyota Tacoma have all raised the bar by recently introducing all-new models.
But no pickup war is complete without Ford. Big Blue. The King of Trucks.
The 2024 Ford Ranger has answered the bell and it is the most stylish, high-tech, smooth-riding and expensive mid-size Ford pickup yet. It brings more powertrains, more models (including — drool — a Raptor beast), more clever tricks like corner-bumper steps and all-digital displays. Ford left the segment in 2011, committing resources to build aluminum-bodied, full-sized F-150s. When it returned eight loooong years later, its entry was rushed, plastic, not fully baked.
The 2024 Ranger feels like the mid-sizer Ford wanted to build for the last decade. It’s a proper bridge between the popular, starter-kit Maverick and the F-150 patriarch.
Full-size pickups like F-150 are the Swiss Army knives of the automotive world, and Ranger’s big brother has dominated the class for over 40 years. Full-sizers tow your boat up north, transport the basketball team, haul mulch, chew trails and carry hunting dogs.
But I prefer midsize pickup trucks. Call them micro-Swiss Army knives.
Maybe it’s because they fit in my garage. Or because they only take up one space in the parking lot. Or can get through tight spaces at Holly Oaks ORV park.
I tore up a winding road through the Wasatch Mountains here, the Ranger ensuring confidence as I navigated roads with guardrail-less vertical drops. “The Ranger is the best-driving pickup I’ve ever had,” says my friend Jim of his 2019 model.
The ’24 adds 2 inches of wheelbase and 2 inches of track width to make the pickup even more sure-footed. But that length isn’t all about handling. While competitors have shrunk their engine choices to 4-bangers to satisfy government emissions nannies, Ranger (via shrewd product management that collects emissions credits with Lightning EVs and Maverick hybrids) is giving customers want they want: more engines.
The 2024 Ford Ranger is quiet and easy to drive on-road. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
With two more inches of wheelbase to play with, the Ranger can now stuff in a longitudinal, 2.7-liter V-6 right out of big brother F-150, a major upgrade for the ‘24 model year. And that’s even before you get to the 3.0-liter turbo-V-6 that the top-drawer, $57K Ranger Raptor shares with the $91K Bronco Raptor. The rowdy Ranger Raptor is a whole ‘nother chapter, so I’ll review that separately in Thursday’s Drive section.
The 2.7-liter V-6 will come later this year, but, in the meantime, the base 2.3-liter 4-cylinder mill (shared with the entry-level Mustang) provides plenty of punch. I nailed it up Wasatch’s steep slopes, its twin rear pipes letting out a growl.
While engine options expand, others narrow. In contrast to segment sales leader Toyota Tacoma, Ford has opted to offer Ranger in one, four-door cab size (SuperCrew), one box size (five-foot), one transmission (10-speed automatic, no manual). Want more choices? Check out the Maverick and F-150.
Designers have translated Ranger’s larger dimensions into more sophisticated styling. Like F-150, Ranger gets a bold, horizontal face graphic that bisects the grille and headlights, forming a C-clamp headlight. We are family. Combined with a sculpted, rear tailgate, the design conveys a more planted Ranger — versus the last-gen model that always looked like it was on tippy-toe.
Ranger learns from little brother, too. Wee Maverick is generous at managing interior space, and Ranger adds clever touches like better forward console storage, cubby space below the glovebox, and fold-flat rear seats so you can more easily store, say, suitcases or shopping boxes.
Unfortunately, rear seat room didn’t benefit from the wheelbase extension: interior measurements remain the same. That means a tight fit for six-footers, but — thanks to useful scalloping in the back of the front seats — my knees breathe easier.
Ford even took ergonomic lessons from — gasp! — General Motors and now options corner steps so you can more easily access the bed.
Ford has always been a leader on tech, and the 2024 Ranger gets to share in the big-screen fun had by Mustang Mach-E and F-150. The base XL model comes with digital screens while XLT, Lariat and Raptor models option a 12-inch center screen.
Options, options, options. Jeez, pickup trucks are becoming like Porsche sports cars.
My XLT had separate option packages for its black Sport trim, adaptive cruise control, four-wheel-drive system, 17-inch wheels, tow hook, screen and sliding rear window. Well, at least the steering wheel comes standard.
All that nickel ‘n’ diming added up to $825-a-month lease or $49,265 in cash — a whopping 15 grand over the base price, which itself is six grand higher than the outgoing, $28,895, 2023 model. And my XLT still had a standard turn-key ignition starter.
Sure, the old, two-door base model is gone and electronics have been significantly upgraded – but a $27k Honda Civic Sport will deliver a suite of standard push-button start, adaptive cruise control and wireless smartphone app connectivity.
Like performance sports cars, like performance pickups. Watch your wallet.
In a Utah field softened up by months of heavy snow, my tester sank into the soil. As I grunted around in rear-wheel drive, the Ranger sank further into the soil. 4×4 to the rescue.
I punched 4H on the console-mounted mode dial, and the Ranger hooked up all four wheels, delivering 400 pound-feet of torque to the grippy all-terrain tires. Suddenly, Ranger was as sure-footed as if on asphalt and I explored more deeply into the soggy terrain. I could have dialed up the grip further by engaging 4-low and a rear locker (you guessed it, another option package).
A FX4 package will add further underbody armor and Lariat, of course, options goodies like leather seats and an exterior chrome package. But my XLT Sport tester is the sweet spot once loaded with essential safety features and 12-inch screen.
A decade ago, I couldn’t sit in Mustang cloth seats for more than two hours without suffering discomfort. In the Ranger I could have gone for hours in the agreeable cloth buckets.
I zipped back down the mountains on I-210 towards Salt Lake at 75 mph in adaptive cruise control. Utah’s highways can be curvy affairs through the canyons, and I passed an F-150 on my way. Sharing good looks, vertical digital screens and interior comfort (as well as V-6 engines and Raptor models), the two Fords made a nice pair of Swiss Army knives.
2024 Ford Ranger
Vehicle type: Front-engine, rear and four-wheel-drive, four-door pickup truck
Price: $34,265, including $1,595 destination charge ($49,250, 2.3-liter, 4×4 XLT as tested)
Powerplant: 2.3-liter turbocharged inline-4 cylinder; 2.7-liter turbocharged V-6 (available summer 2024)
Power: 270 horsepower, 310 pound-feet torque (4-cylinder); 315 horsepower, 400 pound-feet torque (V-6)
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Performance: 0-60 mph, 6.5 seconds (est.); Payload, 1,711-1,805 pounds; Towing, 7,500 pounds
Weight: 4,415 pounds (4×4 as tested)
Fuel economy: EPA est. 21 MPG city/25 highway/22 combined (RWD, 2.3L); 20 MPG city/24 highway/22 combined (4×4, 2.3L)
Report card
Highs: More engine options; major exterior/interior upgrades
Lows: Rear seat still tight; gets pricey
Overall: 4 stars
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
Cartoon: Public School 2024
Posted by Talbot Payne on March 19, 2024
Cartoon: Buffalo Schumer Storms Knesset
Posted by Talbot Payne on March 19, 2024
Payne: Sailing the screen-tastic Lincoln Nautilus land yacht
Posted by Talbot Payne on March 19, 2024
Palm Springs — Welcome to the 2024 Lincoln Nautilus. Call it the Lincoln Not-like-any-cabin-you’ve-seen-before.
A handsome, high-definition 48-inch screen wraps the front cabin from A-pillar to A-pillar. Like the twin screen sitting on your office desktop, its expanded space allows you to run multiple applications. Which means you can keep your eyes on the road while scanning information including speed, navigation map, Sirius XM channels, range and more.
Cruising hands-free in Blue Cruise down Interstate 10, I rested my hands on my knees and settled back in the comfy leather thrones. Ahhh, a comfortable day at the office.
With its emphasis on quiet luxury (current slogan: “Power of Sanctuary”), Lincoln has been about comfortable cabins rather than carving corners. Let Bimmer, Alfa and Caddy fly around Nürburgring setting lap records, Lincoln wants to fly you First Class. Now, with its Lincoln Digital Experience, the brand has created a high-tech environment to rival other transformative interiors from Tesla Model S, Mercedes EQS and Cadillac Lyriq.
I first saw a pillar-to-pillar design on the Byton M-Byte, a Chinese electric vehicle, at the 2018 Los Angeles Auto Show. It was a showstopper. Byton promised its 48-inch jumbotron would come to market in 2020. Didn’t happen.
With Nautilus, this is Lincoln’s chance to shine. At a dealer in North Miami Beach recently, I heard audible gasps from customers as they opened the Nautilus doors. I haven’t seen butts jump into seats so fast since the Model S screen wowed at the 2010 Detroit Auto Show.
Tesla opened boutique stores at high-end malls (think Somerset) across the country so casual shoppers could try on their interiors as easily as fitting pants at J.McLaughlin. Lincoln, which has dabbled in the boutique store market, should do the same.
The 48-inch display works as well in practice as it looks. Like a TV screen paired with remote control, the touchless jumbotron is controlled via a console-mounted 11-inch tablet. Lincoln’s native navi system is run by Google — like Android Auto — and either can be used in the panoramic display’s center.
“Hey, Google, navigate to Idyllwild,” I barked, and the route populated the command tablet and megascreen. I gripped the wheel and eased into Palm Springs traffic for my trip to the San Jacinto Mountains.
The simple steering wheel (Tesla simple and square like a Corvette C8) is slick. It’s squared-off so as not to obstruct the megascreen. Like a head-up display, instrument and navigation information is always in your line of sight. The wheel’s simple interface is anchored by twin touchpads (Tesla uses scroll wheels): volume on the right, adaptive cruise control to the left. It shames over-engineered, button-infested wheels like Mercedes.
My instinct was to glance at the closer console pad for directions, but, with time, my eyes focused on the big screen. Its right half contains three more “pages,” which I filled with radio, trip information and clock. Want to change the selection to include tire pressure? Simply drag ‘n’ drop the icon on the command screen and — bingo! — it’s mirrored on the megascreen. A muscular Qualcomm chip makes for smartphone-fast touch speeds, a key to Tesla’s early popularity.
Also like Tesla, the Lincoln system is so cool you forgive Nautilus its dissonate notes.
Lincoln’s engine lineup is weak compared to competitors like Genesis and Mercedes (more on that later). Blue Cruise drive assist is sketchy — turning off multiple times during my interstate test. And there’s a wonky Drive Mode button on the console that doesn’t actually control the modes — it just gives you access to them in the command screen. It’s an awkward process not unlike Tesla’s two-button chore to open the glovebox. Happily, most Lincoln drivers will rarely use SPORT mode. Nautilus is no BMW M4.
Like the Bimmer, however, Nautilus is gas-powered. Lincoln teased a Star Concept EV two years ago, but has resisted the Sirens’ call to full-electrification like other small premium brands. Instead of tearing up its playbook, Lincoln’s refining it.
Nautilus’s state-of-the-art interior is executed atop a familiar gas-powered drivetrain lineup. Customers (Nautilus is part of an SUV family including Corsair, Aviator and Navigator) prize the “utility” in sports utility vehicle for summer trips up north or out west.
For all of Tesla’s innovation, the Silicon Valley brand copied Lincoln’s electronic button transmission for its 2024 Model 3 Highland. Tesla’s shifter buttons, naturally, are in the screen, whereas Lincoln offers hard buttons on the console. I played them like piano keys, shifting the DRIVE button with my middle finger and the REVERSE button with my forefinger as I backed in and out of a parking space.
The 2024 Lincoln Nautilus can compliment its big screens with striking materials and a quiet cabin. Henry Payne, The Detroit NewsOnce on the road, my hybrid turbo-4 cylinder purred along — a distant heartbeat from the hush-quiet cabin wrapped in acoustic glass and insulation. Despite the premium ride, the engine is Nautilus’s weak link.
The base 2.0-liter sounds like the Ford Escape egg-beater it’s shared with, and the hybrid lacks the visceral authority of a Detroit machine. Genesis, Acura, BMW — even Mazda’s premium CX-70/CX-90 — offer six-cylinder mills. Lincoln follows Lexus to hybrid fours, and it’s worth the $1,500 upcharge over the base engine. Coupled with a smooth CVT transmission, the battery provides good low-rev torque-fill to offset turbo lag.
Also worth the extra cents are the seven cabin scents on offer.
The electronic scent cartridges — standard Mystic Forest, Ozonic Azure, Violet Cashmere and additional Cloud Balsam, Serene Seashore, Twilight Embers and Sunlight Retreat — are loaded, three at a time, into a hidden chamber beneath the armrest. I hesitated at dispensing them, fearing my cabin would be doused in incense.
But the odors were mild and pleasant and complemented my refreshing interstate drive.
Passengers will enjoy the ride, too, as Nautilus offers best-in-class rear legroom (43.1 inches) and a giant panoramic roof so they can enjoy the treetops/sky/stars overhead. The hybrid’s 600-mile range will get you to Mackinaw City and back without ever having to stop at a gas station. Or, ahem, sit at an electric charger.
This rolling yacht is wrapped in a bold Lincoln exterior, including soft-squeeze, Packard-like door handles along the shoulder line. Mirroring the brand’s signature horizontal rear taillight, the front LED lamp now wraps ‘round the front. Lincoln also is hell on wheels (remember the turbine wheels on the Navigator?) and offers head-turning 22s that come with the Jet Package.
Big as it is, Nautilus sweats the little things.
Start with the door handles, then note the no-cap gas filler and double-pull hood tab under the dash so you don’t have to fish around the engine bay for the hood latch.
Buy it and you’ll be that guy giving neighbors interior tours.
Next week: 2024 Ford Ranger
2024 Lincoln Nautilus
Vehicle type: Gas-powered, all-wheel drive, five-passenger luxury SUV
Price: $52,210, including $1,595 destination charge (as tested)
Powerplant: 2.0-liter, turbocharged inline 4-cylinder; hybrid-electric drivetrain with 2.0-liter, turbocharged inline 4-cylinder
Transmission: Eight-speed transmission (2.0L); CVT (hybrid)
Weight: 4,517 pounds (hybrid, as tested)
Power: 250 horsepower, 280 pound-feet torque (2.0L); 295 horsepower, 310 pound-feet torque (hybrid)
Performance: 0-60 mph, NA; towing, 1,750 pounds
Fuel economy: EPA est. 21 city/29 highway/24 combined (2.0L); 30 city/31 highway/30 combined (2.0L);
Report card
Highs: Inspired interior tech, roomy, detailed design
Lows: Uninspired 4-cylinder engine lineup; Blue Cruise a work-in-progress
Overall: 4 stars
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne
Cartoon: Alzheimer Biden Oscar
Posted by Talbot Payne on March 11, 2024
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Payne: Behind the (stalkless) wheel of the redesigned Tesla Model 3
Posted by Talbot Payne on March 7, 2024
Troy — The 2024 Tesla Model 3 is the sedan’s first major update and you have questions.
Did it get Apple CarPlay and Android Auto? Nope.
Sirius XM? Nope.
AM radio? Nope.
A head-up display? Nah.
More rear legroom? Nada.
A glovebox button? Negative.
Plastic surgery so its Lord Voldemort face doesn’t keep you up at night? Yup.
A quieter cabin? You bet.
The latter two answers will be welcomed by the Teslerati, and were pleasing upgrades for this (two-time) Model 3 owner. How time flies. It’s been six years since the Model 3 hit the market after a chaotic manufacturing process to meet off-the-chart demand. Codenamed Highland, the ‘24 Model 3 is Tesla’s first chance to tidy up some details.
The dimensions of the 2024 Tesla Model 3 Highland are little changed as the car relishes its simple, iPhone look. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
The quieter cabin was immediately apparent as I zipped out of Troy’s Somerset Collection for a test drive. Tesla says noise, vibration and harshness — NVH — have improved by 20%. Credit upgrades like laminated glass on all windows, improved door-sill sealing, suspension tweaks and upgraded Michelin E-Primacy tires.
The streamlined face is pleasing, even as it erases signature features like the heavy-eyebrow LED running lights. Everything but the doors and quarter panels are new (even aero wheel covers), adding up to aerodynamic efficiencies that help increase range to 341 miles — but you might not notice if you were just strolling by. Tesla makes smartphones on wheels, and is more focused on software upgrades than physical appearance (I honestly can’t remember the design differences between my last two Android smartphones).
Since its debut, Model 3 has marched to the beat of its own drummer. This is a car obsessed with simplification. Heck, Tesla even wants to get rid of you on its path to full self-driving.
So instead of answering basic questions (no AM radio? Really?) Model 3 asks new ones. Like: who needs steering wheel stalks?
The 2024 Tesla Model 3 Highland features new aero wheels.Henry Payne, The Detroit News
The original Model 3 consolidated functions onto the wheel and 15.4-inch center screen. Shift gears? Use the right-hand shift stalk. Turn signal? Left stalk. Everything else — mirrors, volume, adaptive cruise control — was on the steering wheel or screen.
Now the stalks are gone — following big brother Model S, which ditched stalks in 2021.
I shifted gears in the left screen margin: swipe UP for DRIVE, down for REVERSE, press P for PARK, N for NEUTRAL. Kinda’ like Lincoln dash buttons, and a distraction from the road. So are the turn signals, now accessed via buttons on the left of the steering wheel. Rather than adopt raised buttons like a Chevy or Kia, turn signal buttons are flat, requiring your eyes leave the road to find them. If the screen blacks out and you can’t shift? Tesla added redundant shifter buttons behind the rear-view mirror.
It’s a step back in the name of simplification. Other functions sacrificed to stalk removal are adaptive cruise and Autopilot, which now are in the right-side steering wheel roller. Voice commands and windshield wipers are now … less convenient buttons on the wheel.
2024 Tesla Model 3 Highland moves its shift buttons into the screen. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Two steps forward, two steps back. But the EV GOAT remains as compelling as ever.
After Elon Musk debuted the Model 3 in Los Angeles in February 2016, a flood of 250,000 pre-orders followed from buyers who laid down $1,000 — including this curious auto reviewer.
That demand brought production pressures that nearly crushed the young company. Musk called the next two years “production hell.” The company put up a tent in its Fremont, California, factory parking lot to meet demand. Thousands of 3s had to be repaired due to paint shop glitches. Vehicles suffered gaffes like panel gaps the size of the Rio Grande, bumpers that fell off, and screens that went black.
And yet.
The car was futuristic. Unlike anything we’d seen. Blistering acceleration, constant over-the-air updates like Navigate on Autopilot, bespoke charging network, online, no-haggle ordering. Buyers not only coveted the 3, its popularity spawned an even more popular Model Y SUV version. The 3 is the best-selling luxury car in the market, and the 12th best-selling vehicle in America.
Assuming you could put up with that Voldemort mug. I ordered my cars in black to diminish the nose.
Merging onto Big Beaver, I stomped the throttle and the entry-level 3,891-pound, rear-wheel-drive model darted forward. Ahhh, sweet electric torque.
2024 Tesla Model 3 Highland has a new rear diffuser. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
It was noticeably livelier than the porky 5,200-pound Chevy Blazer EV I recently drove. In addition to the quieter cabin, the suspension upgrades make Model 3 feel tighter next to my 2019 Performance model. The all-wheel-drive Performance version of the Highland will arrive later — when it does, I’ll take it on track to see if the tighter steering translates to better corner-carving.
I’m a fan of the 3’s iPhone-simple horizontal interior anchored by a jumbotron screen. The ‘24 Highland brings upscale updates like a thinner screen bezel, heated/cooled seats and square-bottom steering wheel so I can more easily slide my long legs into the seat. The interior has been reskinned with trendy cloth inserts (replacing last gen’s wood accents) and a more organized center console that includes two standard wireless charging ports. Most noticeable is ambient lighting that circles the cabin and can be adjusted to the color of your choice.
Other hardware updates include crisper cameras, which help for backing into parking spaces (unless you just let the car park for you), and 17 speakers for better sound quality.
The user interface is the same, and I navigated the screen and its familiar controls.
At a Michigan turn on Big Beaver, I reached for the turn stalk, grabbing at thin air. Oh, yes — where are those turn signal buttons? Actuating adaptive cruise control was easier, as I punched the right scroll wheel with my thumb.
The 2024 Tesla Model 3 Highland has redundant shift buttons on the ceiling. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Blind-spot assist comes via a camera image in the screen (putting blind-spot lights in the mirrors would violate the simplification theme), just like the last gen.
Back-seat occupants may not gain legroom — but they do get their own 8-inch screen, which includes temperature controls, heated seat controls, access to Netflix shows and a valet mode so you can move the front passenger seat forward. It’s a small but mighty screen.
The console of the 2024 Tesla Model 3 Highland has been reworked with twin smartphone charging docks. Henry Payne, The Detroit News
All that standard equipment makes the Tesla a deal at $40,380. While the Model 3 still hasn’t hit its promised $35,000 mark from 2017, it’s satisfying to get this wealth of goo-gaws without being nickel-and-dimed like other luxury brands.
Save for Full Self-Driving capability, which will set you back, ahem, $12,000.
Next week: 2024 Lexus GX
2024 Tesla Model 3 Highland
Vehicle type: Electric, rear- and-all-wheel-drive, five-passenger luxury sedan
Price: $40,380, including $1,390 destination charge (as tested)
Powerplant: 80.5-kWh lithium-ion battery with electric motor(s) drive
Transmission: Single-speed transmission
Weight: 3,891 pounds (RWD, as tested); 4,030 pounds for long-range battery, AWD model
Power: NA
Performance: 0-60 mph, 5.8 seconds, RWD as tested (mfr.); 4.2 seconds (AWD)
Fuel economy: EPA est. range, 272–341 miles
Report card
Highs: More attractive, simplified fascias; quieter cabin
Lows: Distracting screen button shifter; no AM radio, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto
Overall: 4 stars
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.
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Payne: Audi RS5: ‘RS’ for Rocket Ship
Posted by Talbot Payne on February 29, 2024
Detroit — Electronics have democratized the automobile, leveling the playing field between mainstream and luxury makes. Jump into an Audi RS5, for example, and cockpit controls are as familiar as the Chevy Malibu I just rented at Hertz.
Digital instruments display, tablet console screen, temperature controls, automatic T-shifter. Tap the phone icon and sync your smartphone using Bluetooth. Activate wireless Android Auto? Tap the screen, done. “Hey Google, take me to the Renaissance Center.” Scroll the AM, FM and Sirius XM radio station icons, set your favorites. Scroll between them using the steering wheel buttons.
So what separates a luxury performance sedan?
WAAUUUUUUURRRGGH! I nailed the throttle and let loose the 444 horsepower under the long hood in front of me. WAAUUUUUUURRRGGH! The horses gulped air through the RS5’s huge black maw, twin turbochargers stuffing the air into six cylinders, then exhaling through twin rear tailpipes the size of ship cannons. WAAUUUUUUURRRGGH! The Audi devoured landscape before an interstate cloverleaf rushed into view.
Brakes, please.
Six-piston calipers (painted red so you know they’re serious) sunk their teeth into massive 14.8-inch rotors, slowing the runaway missile. I spun the Alcantara-sheathed steering wheel, throwing the beast into the cloverleaf as the electronic differential threw torque to the outside wheel for more grip, performance Pirelli P Zero Corsa tires screaming to find traction on cold Michigan concrete.
That’s what you get for your $80K Audi RS5. RS for Rocket Ship.
Inject RS steroids into an A5 chassis and you have a serious competitor to class icon BMW M3. I’m an M2 missionary as the best four-seat performance car in the land (the modern equivalent to the classic 2000 M3 E46 I once owned), but the sensational coupe is, admittedly, limited in utility with its two doors and tight backseat room. The 2024 M3 gains four doors and three inches of rear legroom to make it a better family sedan, though the backseat remains tight for six-footers.
My class favorite is the ferocious 2024 Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing with its 668-horsepower, supercharged V-8, 33-inch dash screen and additional two inches of rear legroom so you can pack in the whole family for its 3.6-second, 0-60 mph rollercoaster rides.
But the RS5’s ace-in-the-hole is hatchback utility — a rare attribute in the luxury performance space. It’s what made the Acura Integra Type S hot hatch one of my favorite new additions to the auto stable last year. Hatchback utility, another two inches of legroom over the Audi, whip-like handling from its toned 3,200-pound chassis — 800 pounds lighter than the RS5.
However, the Type S doesn’t have a V-6 and all-wheel drive. On a quiet night in downtown Detroit, I engaged launch control at the Jefferson and Griswold stoplight. The Corsas scrabbled for grip on the cold road, but grip they did — though Audi’s claimed 3.8 second 0-60 mph dash wouldn’t be achieved this night.
The twin-turbo V-6’s acceleration is ballistic, and viscerally satisfying. Through the tunnel under Huntington Place onto The Lodge Freeway, the Audi cleared its throat with a satisfying BLAAAT! with each upshift of the eight-speed automatic gearbox. It’s addictive.
I bumped the T-shifter to the right into manual mode so I could manually shift more BLAAATs. BLAAAT BLAAT BLAAT! And again when you downshift. BLAAAT BLAAAT! Hot hatches bring out the kid in me. Only the CT5-V Blackwing’s V-8 offers more audio thrills.
When playtime was over, I settled into the Audi’s comfortable cabin.
Some automakers offer exotic, carbon fiber performance thrones, but I have found them uncomfortable in daily driving. The Audi’s leather and Alcantara seats are a better middle ground. The RS5’s ergonomics are also better sorted than other Audis I’ve been in of late.
Audi automatic T-shifters have been located too close to the driver’s leg, with the result that my knee would accidentally bump it into NEUTRAL with a sudden spike in revs — OOOWARRGGH! I had no such issues with RS5.
Speaking of ergonomics, Audi honked off some customers a few years back when it abandoned its remote-operated infotainment system for a touchscreen. Remotes have their advantages — especially in keeping your eyes on the road — and a few automakers have maintained them like Alfa Romeo, Mazda and Genesis.
But Audi’s surrender to a touchscreen world (a new generation of millennial, smartphone buyers rises) has been expertly done with quick screens that audibly CLICK to the touch so you know an icon has been engaged. The brand was a pioneer in digital instrument displays that are configurable and paired with smart steering wheel controls.
My biggest recommendation? That Audi adopt BMW’s head-up display that shows a digital tachometer when in TRACK mode (DYNAMIC mode in the RS5). Bimmer’s display complements the paddle shifters in MANUAL shift mode, so you can keep your eyes on the runway as the tachometer nears redline.
In the Rocket Ship, redline comes fast.
The RS increases horsepower by a significant 100 over the S5 — the other performance hatchback in the A5 model lineup. The “S” siblings are distinguished by the 3.0-liter turbo-6 over the entry-level A5’s turbo 4-banger.
I’m partial to the A5 and its hatchback utility over the A4 and its conventional sedan boot. Of course, Audi also offers Q5/Q6 Sportback/SQ5 utes that come standard with hatchback utility.
We crazy auto journalists will take performance SUVs to the track, and I’ve tested my share, including the Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk, Dodge Durango Hellcat, BMW X5 M and Alfa Stelvio Quadrifoglio. “After taking (the 349-horse SQ5) to the track,” write our friends at Motor Trend, “we can confirm it also handles like a champ on our figure-eight course.” But given the choice, I bet they would prefer an RS5.
Few customers will take their SUV on track, and for good reason: 4,500-pound utes have lousy handling dynamics. Put a 400-plus horsepower twin-turbo V-6 in it (Audi has resisted such a move) and it requires considerable skill.
Better to put that skill to good use in a proper, low-center-of-gravity RS5 sports sedan, which will give you the same hatchback utility — and more capable handling dynamics. And, yes, you might just take it to a track day.
In a democratic auto world, cars may seem alike in their digital tech. But they are definitely not alike in the suspension and engine departments. For the best of both worlds, put RS5 at the top of your Audi shopping list. WAUUUUURRGH!
Next week: 2024 Tesla Model 3
2024 Audi RS5
Vehicle type: Front-engine, all-wheel-drive, five-passenger performance sedan
Price: $79,995 base, including $1,095 destination ($93,745 as tested)
Powerplant: 2.9-liter twin-turbocharged V-6
Power: 444 horsepower, 442 pound-feet torque
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Performance: 0-60 mph, 3.8 seconds (mfr.); top speed, 180 mph
Weight: 4,056 pounds
Fuel economy: EPA 18 mpg city/25 mpg highway/20 mpg combined
Report card
Highs: All-wheel-drive stability, hatchback utility
Lows: Heavy for track use; gets pricey
Overall: 4 stars
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne
Cartoon: Biden Michigan Primary
Posted by Talbot Payne on February 29, 2024
Cartoon: McConnell retires
Posted by Talbot Payne on February 29, 2024
Cartoon: Moon Landing, First since 1972
Posted by Talbot Payne on February 28, 2024
Cartoon: Whitmer Measles Lockdown
Posted by Talbot Payne on February 28, 2024
Cartoon: Trump Justice Hang High
Posted by Talbot Payne on February 28, 2024
