I was at the AutoShow in Motion in Philadelphia this past weekend. For those who haven't been to one of these events, I highly recommend it. If you do go, get there early to save yourself the frustration of waiting in long lines. Anyway, here are my reviews of the cars I got a chance to drive. I'll also give the viewpoints of my brother, who has no strong loyalty to GM and was considering a BMW 330. Currently, he drives an Envoy and the last generation Nissan Maxima. I'm still in grad school so I've had to make do with used Cavaliers and Altimas.
Before my quick reviews, some notes about the event:
Four different courses were set up (all were a bit short, but adequate for testing handling and acceleration) - a course for the Vette and the SSR, a truck course, a passenger car course, and an offroad H2 course.
They required that you drive at least one other car before driving the Vette and SSR. You also had to drive at least one truck before the H2.
Cars that were available: CTS, Aveo, Scion xA, Park Avenue, Vibe, 9-3 Aero, 9-5 Aero, GTO, Malibu and Malibu Maxx, Grand Prix Comp G, Bonneville GXP, Camry, Accord, BMW 325i, MB C320, Impala (I think it was an SS). I might have left out a few.
Trucks: Didn't spend too much time here, since I'm shopping for a car and not a truck. Just drove a Silverado Crew Cab with the Z71 package and then off to the H2 course. There were also, to the best of my memory -- Rendevous, Rainier, Envoy XL and XUV, Jeep Liberty, Equinox, Sierra Crew w/ Z71, Sierra w/ Duramax, Escalade ESV and EXT, SRX, Explorer, Tahoe, Expedition, BMW X5.
My brother's and my impressions (remember, he was pretty set on getting a BMW):
Cadillac CTS: only the 3.6 was available. I don't think either CTS that was there had the sports package. Nonetheless, I was very impressed with the ride quality and handling ability. My brother thought body roll could have been less, but I reminded him that they didn't have the sport suspension. Interior quality was decent, but visually, something is lacking -- perhaps it's the gauges. Of the sports sedans we drove (325i, C320, CTS, 9-3), this was my brother's second favorite. He thought he was going to get kicked out of the event for pushing the car so hard :lol: . I think the interior will grow on me, so my graduation gift to myself will likely be the base 2005 3.6 with the 6 speed.
Saab 9-3 Aero: we were both amazed by this car. In fact, we had both driven the sedan and were so impressed that we waited to try the convertible. If the CTS had this car's interior, I would get the CTS without hesitation. Both 9-3s had the auto 5 speed, which still worked pretty well. The steering wheel shift paddles worked well also. Didn't notice any torque steer and handling was pretty comparable to the CTS (I imagine a CTS with the sports package would beat this though). Engine response was not bad at all. My brother loved this car! He thought it handled better than the CTS and was the perfect size.
BMW 325i: a huge disappointment. I can't fault GM for not getting a 330 since they were probably looking for a fair competitor in terms of price. No steering wheel paddles for the automatic. Handling was excellent, but the engine is not something to write home about (obviously, the larger engine from the 330 would change everything). The interior is only slightly better than that of the CTS. This car dropped to the end of my brother's list, and I agree with him. The premium of a 330 over the CTS is not worth it in my book.
MB 320: Nice! This is one solid car with a great engine and chassis. I really liked the interior - too bad the exterior does nothing for me. I was able to push it as hard as the BMW, and it felt great. If I wasn't a GM fan, I might pick this over the CTS. My brother had the same driving impressions. Unbelievably, he still liked the 9-3 and CTS better.
Corvette Z06: Wow! What can I say? The course did not do this car justice. You also had to have a GM personnel in the car with you, which took away some of the fun although the guys helped by telling you when to shift and brake to get the most out of it. It was still a blast. Who cares about the plasticky interior when you have that engine under the hood? Maybe a few years down the road... sigh...
Chevy SSR: Not something I would want to own, but it was still pretty fun to drive. I thought the 5.3 was pretty good in this truck... as long as you realize that the truck just doesn't want to be hustled along. My brother did not like it at all. Definitely a love-it-or-hate-it vehicle, down to the driving experience. They didn't allow the tops to be put down, either.
Silverado Crew Cab: My first time driving a full sized pickup. It drove better than I expected for something so huge, but now I can fully appreciate Ming's complaints about the dash
. Compared to the interior of my brother's Envoy, the interior is so outdated that it's almost comical. My brother drove the nearly identical Sierra, and didn't think it was anything special. Of course, neither one of us is getting a pickup anytime soon.
H2: the most fun course by far. If you have kids, you'll want them to experience this. They actually set it up to demonstrate how capable these beasts are. The highlight was the two successive, steep hills at the end of the course - ascending the taller hill, you're almost looking straight up into the sky, then you have to quickly brake as you descend and come to the second hill. There was also a portion of the course where you're tilted sideways at over 45 degrees - I really thought the truck was going to roll over. I have tremendous respect for the H2 now. Too bad most owners will never use them in this way.
That's it for my reviews. Since my brother and I are both shopping for sports sedans, we didn't drive the more mundane cars there. The poor Aveos - there were two there, and I would be surprised if more than 20 people drove them that day. I regret that I didn't get a chance to drive the GTO's. Those who did seemed to really enjoy it - I heard one guy said he hated how boring the car looked, but after driving it, the looks are growing on him. There were two of them with the 6 speed and four with the automatic - I'm sure some people went back on the GTO line quite a few times. The Goats were the only cars you could hear from anywhere, even inside the cafe area. There was also a GTO set up on a dyno, which was pretty cool.
I have to commend GM for holding these events. If my brother is any indication, GM will gain new respect and customers from doing this. Obviously, there are plenty of people who go just to get a chance to drive the H2, Mercedes and BMW's, but I heard a lot of positive comments from people along with the negatives.
Sorry for such a long post.
Before my quick reviews, some notes about the event:
Four different courses were set up (all were a bit short, but adequate for testing handling and acceleration) - a course for the Vette and the SSR, a truck course, a passenger car course, and an offroad H2 course.
They required that you drive at least one other car before driving the Vette and SSR. You also had to drive at least one truck before the H2.
Cars that were available: CTS, Aveo, Scion xA, Park Avenue, Vibe, 9-3 Aero, 9-5 Aero, GTO, Malibu and Malibu Maxx, Grand Prix Comp G, Bonneville GXP, Camry, Accord, BMW 325i, MB C320, Impala (I think it was an SS). I might have left out a few.
Trucks: Didn't spend too much time here, since I'm shopping for a car and not a truck. Just drove a Silverado Crew Cab with the Z71 package and then off to the H2 course. There were also, to the best of my memory -- Rendevous, Rainier, Envoy XL and XUV, Jeep Liberty, Equinox, Sierra Crew w/ Z71, Sierra w/ Duramax, Escalade ESV and EXT, SRX, Explorer, Tahoe, Expedition, BMW X5.
My brother's and my impressions (remember, he was pretty set on getting a BMW):
Cadillac CTS: only the 3.6 was available. I don't think either CTS that was there had the sports package. Nonetheless, I was very impressed with the ride quality and handling ability. My brother thought body roll could have been less, but I reminded him that they didn't have the sport suspension. Interior quality was decent, but visually, something is lacking -- perhaps it's the gauges. Of the sports sedans we drove (325i, C320, CTS, 9-3), this was my brother's second favorite. He thought he was going to get kicked out of the event for pushing the car so hard :lol: . I think the interior will grow on me, so my graduation gift to myself will likely be the base 2005 3.6 with the 6 speed.
Saab 9-3 Aero: we were both amazed by this car. In fact, we had both driven the sedan and were so impressed that we waited to try the convertible. If the CTS had this car's interior, I would get the CTS without hesitation. Both 9-3s had the auto 5 speed, which still worked pretty well. The steering wheel shift paddles worked well also. Didn't notice any torque steer and handling was pretty comparable to the CTS (I imagine a CTS with the sports package would beat this though). Engine response was not bad at all. My brother loved this car! He thought it handled better than the CTS and was the perfect size.
BMW 325i: a huge disappointment. I can't fault GM for not getting a 330 since they were probably looking for a fair competitor in terms of price. No steering wheel paddles for the automatic. Handling was excellent, but the engine is not something to write home about (obviously, the larger engine from the 330 would change everything). The interior is only slightly better than that of the CTS. This car dropped to the end of my brother's list, and I agree with him. The premium of a 330 over the CTS is not worth it in my book.
MB 320: Nice! This is one solid car with a great engine and chassis. I really liked the interior - too bad the exterior does nothing for me. I was able to push it as hard as the BMW, and it felt great. If I wasn't a GM fan, I might pick this over the CTS. My brother had the same driving impressions. Unbelievably, he still liked the 9-3 and CTS better.
Corvette Z06: Wow! What can I say? The course did not do this car justice. You also had to have a GM personnel in the car with you, which took away some of the fun although the guys helped by telling you when to shift and brake to get the most out of it. It was still a blast. Who cares about the plasticky interior when you have that engine under the hood? Maybe a few years down the road... sigh...
Chevy SSR: Not something I would want to own, but it was still pretty fun to drive. I thought the 5.3 was pretty good in this truck... as long as you realize that the truck just doesn't want to be hustled along. My brother did not like it at all. Definitely a love-it-or-hate-it vehicle, down to the driving experience. They didn't allow the tops to be put down, either.
Silverado Crew Cab: My first time driving a full sized pickup. It drove better than I expected for something so huge, but now I can fully appreciate Ming's complaints about the dash
. Compared to the interior of my brother's Envoy, the interior is so outdated that it's almost comical. My brother drove the nearly identical Sierra, and didn't think it was anything special. Of course, neither one of us is getting a pickup anytime soon.H2: the most fun course by far. If you have kids, you'll want them to experience this. They actually set it up to demonstrate how capable these beasts are. The highlight was the two successive, steep hills at the end of the course - ascending the taller hill, you're almost looking straight up into the sky, then you have to quickly brake as you descend and come to the second hill. There was also a portion of the course where you're tilted sideways at over 45 degrees - I really thought the truck was going to roll over. I have tremendous respect for the H2 now. Too bad most owners will never use them in this way.
That's it for my reviews. Since my brother and I are both shopping for sports sedans, we didn't drive the more mundane cars there. The poor Aveos - there were two there, and I would be surprised if more than 20 people drove them that day. I regret that I didn't get a chance to drive the GTO's. Those who did seemed to really enjoy it - I heard one guy said he hated how boring the car looked, but after driving it, the looks are growing on him. There were two of them with the 6 speed and four with the automatic - I'm sure some people went back on the GTO line quite a few times. The Goats were the only cars you could hear from anywhere, even inside the cafe area. There was also a GTO set up on a dyno, which was pretty cool.
I have to commend GM for holding these events. If my brother is any indication, GM will gain new respect and customers from doing this. Obviously, there are plenty of people who go just to get a chance to drive the H2, Mercedes and BMW's, but I heard a lot of positive comments from people along with the negatives.
Sorry for such a long post.
