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Top 10 New and Redesigned Vehicles for 2011

John Suit — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 14:00:07 +0000

There are lots of new and redesigned vehicles being built for the 2011 model year, and to help you sift through them, I’ve put together my Top 10 list of them. They range from the mainstream to luxury, but they’re all significant for the industry, manufacturer, or both. Click past the jump to see what made my list and why.

I’ve listed the following ten vehicles in alphabetical order by manufacturer. Let me know what you think in the Forums! (INSERT LINK TO FORUM TOPIC HERE)

Buick Regal

The Buick Regal brings back a tarnished nameplate for the semi-luxury GM brand, using the German engineering of GM’s Opel subsidiary. By designing the Opel to be more modular, including swapping headlights, taillights and badges, the Regal is a good example of badge engineering, a strategy that hasn’t worked out well for it, Chrysler or Ford. That’s not to say it’s a bad move for General Motors, since it injects some distinctly European flair into the traditionally stodgy domestic brand. With rave reviews, the new Regal is off to a good sales start, and works well as Buick’s entry-level car. For the 2011 model year, Buick will only be offering the CXL trim, with base and Turbo models, starting at $26,995 and $29,495, respectively. For 2012, the lineup will grow to three trim levels, and production will move from Europe to Canada. It’s a game-changer for Buick, which needs to bring its average buyer age down a good ways to stay in business.

Cadillac CTS Coupe / Wagon (plus V variants)

For Cadillac to really be the “New Standard of the World,” as their advertising would suggest, they need to compete head-to-head with the likes of BMW and Mercedes. Taking the CTS sedan’s solid structure and sales and adding coupe and wagon variants goes a long way towards accomplishing this goal. Expanding the CTS lineup is Cadillac’s first shot across BMW’s bow, and with all three body types containing the amenities and style BMW buyers are looking for, it should hit its mark. By offering performance-oriented V models, Cadillac is banking on the success of its CTS-V sedan to steal buyers of BMW’s M3 and Mercedes’ C63 AMG.

Chevrolet Volt (also notable: Chevrolet Cruze)

Finally, a mass-market electric car is coming to market. While it may not be electric-only, the range-extending gas engine should dispel range anxiety – the fear of running out of juice before returning to a charging station. With government subsidies, the Volt will be starting at around $33,000, but plan on spending another $2,000 or so to charge your Volt in less than 10 hours. The Volt is competing directly with the Nissan Leaf in the media, even though the Leaf is electric-only. By sharing its underpinnings with Chevrolet’s upcoming Cruze, GM could design the powertrain and other components separately, which saves the beleaguered automaker untold millions in development money. It also allowed the General to up its game in the small car segment, where the existing Cobalt has been a non-starter.

Ford Fiesta (also notable: Mazda Mazda2)

With the success of BMW’s Mini and the price of gas, some Americans have started to embrace the truly small car. The only hurdle left is convincing buyers who have a hard time putting $20,000 into a small car when for a few thousand dollars more, you can get a much larger one. The trick Ford is using is its SYNC infotainment system and high quality materials, fit and finish, as well as other amenities normally found in larger cars, such as heated leather seats. The Fiesta also re-starts Ford’s global car initiative, which stalled when redesigns of its Focus weren’t brought to the US from Europe, where the Focus is a much more popular car. Furthermore, even though Ford sold its controlling interest in Mazda, the two companies are still working together, including the platform that both the Fiesta and Mazda’s Mazda2 ride on. The Mazda2 promises to be a more fun to drive car, even while the Mazda is cheaper and has less options available.

Hyundai Sonata

After the initial success of the Genesis sedan and coupe, Hyundai is continuing its roll by revamping the Sonata mid-sized sedan. Already on sale, the Korean automaker has already moved a significant amount of metal, and for good reasons. Better-equipped, better materials, and three models to suit a bevy of tastes means the Sonata is really earning its place as Hyundai’s bread and butter car. Initially, only one model is available, in several trim levels, staring at around $20,000, but soon we’ll see the Hybrid and Turbo models debuting. Offering class-leading fuel economy, the Sonata is Hyundai’s first attack at upcoming CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) requirements.

Jaguar XJ

Jaguar’s styling seemingly hasn’t changed in decades, but the XF sedan which debuted in 2008 started a design revolution for the English brand. The XJ continues that, and brings Jaguar into the 21st century style-wise. The new XJ also brings Jaguar’s electronics up to speed, to compete with Audi, BMW and Mercedes. As long as the trick electronics hold up, Jaguar could have a hit on its hands, bringing the automaker back into the limelight of luxury cars.

Jeep Grand Cherokee

As I’ve written before, Jeep is rebuilding a legend with the 2011 Grand Cherokee SUV. With a less truck-like look, ride and feel, but with all the gadgets buyers expect, the Grand Cherokee looks like a winner. Jeep may lose some of its more rugged buyers, but it still offers the Wrangler to those buyers. The new Grand Cherokee rides on the last-gen Mercedes ML chassis, which is why it rides better, but its new platform also brings with it a much-improved off-road setup, so it’s a win-win for Jeep. Chrysler also gets to use this opportunity to refresh its Durango, a less-expensive and more sport-oriented alternative to the Grand Cherokee.

Nissan Leaf

For years, Nissan has been more a niche player than a mass-market manufacturer. With sales that lag behind that of Honda and Toyota, it has best competed with Mazda. Both automakers offer fun-to-drive vehicles that sell in smaller numbers, save the Mazda3. Nissan’s hybrid offerings have also fell behind that of Ford, Honda and Toyota, so it needed something unique to offer in the fuel economy wars. Enter the Leaf, a small plug-in electric car. With a range of 100 miles, the Leaf will work for a lot of commuters whose drives don’t include a lot of highway miles. The downside? Range anxiety. As the distance-to-empty meter gets closer to zero, drivers will be looking long and hard for a charging station. Major markets like LA, D.C. and New York will be building the charging stations, but most owners will be using in-home chargers, which will cost around $2,000. Reportedly, Nissan will be building the cost of the charger into the cost of purchase or lease, which is a smart move, and the rumor mill also says week-long loaner cars, with regular gasoline engines, will be available. It’s tough to say how well the Leaf will do, but I expect it to sell decently in the 150 or so markets it will be available, as long as the advertised range stays true when in the hands of consumers.

Scion tC

Toyota’s youth-oriented brand was originally designed to have single-generation vehicles replaced in 4-5 year increments. With steady sales of its tC model, Toyota executives commissioned a second generation, which ups the tC’s game with fresh design inside and out, as well as the speaker system from the Lexus LX470, a seriously bold move, and one which is bound to sway a fair number of younger buyers who are also audiophiles.

Volvo S60

Long believed to be more into safety than driving dynamics, Volvo needs less boring vehicles. Enter the 2011 S60 mid-sized sedan, which Volvo has been advertising as being “naughty.” Completely redesigned, the Volvo offers buyers the safety they’ve come to like, with proper handling and ride to go with it.

by John Suit

Information / Image Sources: Chrysler, Ford, GM, Hyundai, Jaguar, Mazda, Nissan, Volvo

Geneva: 2011 Volvo S60

John Suit — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 15:00:51 +0000

After so much other news on the 2011 Volvo S60, Volvo took the wraps off of it at this year’s Geneva Motor Show. The videos after the jump do a good job of showing off, so I won’t make you wait – click through the jump.

by John Suit

Source: Volvo

Update w/Video: 2011 Volvo S60

John Suit — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 15:00:54 +0000

This week, Volvo released several videos of their upcoming 2011 S60. The car will be shown off at the Geneva auto show next month, but until then, we’ve got the videos after the jump. There are a bunch of them, but they show pretty much all aspects (minus the new-car smell) of what is surely to be a hit for Volvo when it shows up at dealers later this year.

by John Suit

Source: Volvo

Wrap-up: 2009 L.A. Auto Show

roadreality — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 18:00:08 +0000

With so many cars having been introduced this year at the L.A. Auto Show, A good synopsis of what’s been going on this week is called for, rather than a lot of details that won’t make a huge difference in your buying decisions in the next 12 months. That said, we’ve reported on some of the cars below (you can click on their name to read Road Reality’s report), but here’s a list of cars I think are going to make a splash when they go on sale, in alphabetical order, followed by a description for each car:

2011 Chevrolet Volt
2011 Ford Fiesta
2011 Hyundai Sonata
2011 Mazda Mazda2

2011 Toyota Sienna
2010 Volvo S60

2011 Chevrolet Volt

GM has released new information on their plug-in hybrid, the Volt, for years. GM was on top of the electric vehicle with their EV1 in the early 2000s, but scuttled the program after just a couple of years. Since last year, when gas price spikes drove the cost of fuel to $4.00/gallon, it seems as though every automaker has gotten on the hybrid or electric vehicle bandwagon. Slated to go on sale sometime in 2010 as a 2011 model, the Chevrolet Volt is a game-changer for GM. It will also be their first purpose-built hybrid vehicle, even though it shares its platform with the upcoming Chevrolet Cruze. The Volt will be powered only by its electric motor, with a “range extending” gasoline engine to charge the batteries that power the electric motor.

Why it matters: GM needs a big win, and they’re putting their money on the Volt. There are rumors that even at $40,000, GM will lose money for each Volt they sell, but if volume gets high enough, they will recoup the large sums they’ve put into creating the drivetrain from scratch.

2011 Ford Fiesta

Click here to read the Road Reality report on the Fiesta.

Why it matters: Ford needs a good, small car to take on the competition from Honda and Toyota, among others. The Fiesta appears to be just that.

2011 Hyundai Sonata

The big news is twofold for the new Sonata. First, it’s lighter than it was before, a rarity in the car world. Second, it will only be available with three different 4-cylinder engines, as opposed to the 4-cylinder and V6 models currently offered. The surprise here is that Hyundai will be offering a hybrid Sonata, their first in the US. Reports suggest that the hybrid Sonata will feature lithium polymer batteries, a relatively new battery technology that hasn’t seen any use yet in hybrid vehicles.

Why it matters: It shows that Hyundai is still determined to build its market share in the United States, by continuously updating their offerings and providing good value for the money its buyers spend.

2011 Mazda Mazda2

The Mazda2 has been on sale in Europe, Japan and Australia since 2007, and will come to our shores next year as a 2011 model. Like I’ve reported before, the Mazda2 shares some of its DNA with the Ford Fiesta, also coming to the United States in 2010, but look for more performance and handling than the Fiesta.

Why it matters: The Mazda2 will be a niche player, just like the rest of Mazda’s lineup, but will provide a new entry point for buyers. It will also provide performance-oriented shoppers of the Ford Fiesta a viable option, and might generate a cult following like its convertible brother, the Mazda’s MX-5 (aka Miata).

2011 Toyota Sienna

The Toyota Sienna has long stood as the top-selling minivan in the US. The 2011 version adds new rear seat entertainment, a host of tech gadgets, and of course more room for cargo and passengers.

Why it matters: If Toyota wants people to forget about their current recall, this is how! Toyota is also hoping to keep its sales up in the declining minivan segment of the automotive market.

2010 Volvo S60

The new S60 looks like Volvo used the Volkswagen Passat CC as a base for the exterior design, and the results are stunning. It’s an evolution of current Volvo design, but shows Volvo’s new design ethic, and it’s a good one at that. The swooping lines that adorn the outside of the car continue on the inside, as Volvo shows a more modern design which is far more attractive than its current designs.

Why it matters: Yet another reason for Ford to keep Volvo under its corporate umbrella.

Conclusions:

The 2009 L.A. Auto Show had a lot of cars, and the ones posted here are the ones I think will make the biggest differences in the coming year. Look forward to a fun shopping experience as the new cars pack more and more safety, technology and driving pleasure into everyday cars.

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by John Suit

Sources: Ford, General Motors, Hyundai, L.A. Auto Show, Mazda, Toyota, Volvo