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Nuts & Bolts By Peter Brewer Mitsubishi has applied the blowtorch to the fast-growing compact SUV (sports utility vehicle) market with its new ASX, pricing the all-wheel drive manual diesel version at a competitive $31,990 and in doing so, turning the heat up on all its rivals from Europe and Japan. At this price, the 1.8-litre turbo-diesel is going to be shopped directly against rivals like the Hyundai ix35 (sold as an automatic only in diesel for $34,990) and Nissan Dualis and will deliver a nasty fright for upmarket Europeans like the VW Tiguan. ASX (for Active Smart Crossover) prices start from $25,990 for the 2.0-litre front -wheel drive version and all models, including the entry level have seven airbags, stability control and traction control as standard. Some of the engineering bits for the ASX, such as the brakes and suspension, are borrowed from the kitbag of the bigger Outlander, which is not a bad thing at all.  Dramatic entry: Mistubishi's compact ASV SUV. However, the ripper model is the variable-valve turbo-diesel, which pumps out a very impressive 400Nm of torque. Combine this with the six-speed manual gearbox (because, sadly, you can’t get an automatic) and the fuel economy is claimed at a mini-car sized 5.6 litres/100kms. Emissions, too, are very low and conform to the very strict Euro 5 standards. Where the Mitsubishi earns extra brownie points is in having 16-inch alloys as standard across the range, plus climate-control air-con, steering that adjusts for rake and reach, cruise control and a trip computer. The stereo has a USB jack, too. An integrated Bluetooth is money well spent for $500, which comes in a pack with reverse parking sensors and steering wheel controls for the audio and your cell phone. A full-sized spare costs an extra $200, and replaces the skinny steel space saver. What may well be the clincher for many buyers is the standard five-year/130,000 warranty with roadside assist. It’s a little extra reassurance which has proved to be particularly important for female buyers The downside is that the only automatic available is a CVT (continuously variable transmission). A “stepless” CVT doesn’t need a torque converter so it doesn’t lose power through the driveline but the drive experience is very different to a conventional self-shifter, and many people just don’t like it. Our advice is to try before you buy. When a car reaches its final stage of testing before public release, there’s no other way to tick all the final boxes to ensure its readiness for the showroom except by taking it on public roads. And for car companies, that’s an exercise fraught with anxiety and potential problems, including the danger of getting involved in a prang, or having the car photographed by some sharp-eyed carparazzi news hound then scooped to the world. That’s why car makers employ experts in disguise; people who use a variety of visual tricks, canopies, panel covers and eye-fooling paintjobs.  Range Rover uses camouflaged promotion for Evoque. The camouflage imagery is actually a GPS mapping trail of ten key cities for Range Rover Evoque, with each vehicle saying ‘Hello’ to its city. These are just a small portion of the hundreds of Evoques now on the move throughout the world as engineers iron out the final few bugs before release. The cars will stay on the move through the day, and remain locked up out of sight at night but there’s a good chance Sydneysiders will see “their” car as it drives around, hopefully creating some market expectation before the showroom model is revealed here at the Sydney Motor Show in November. Customer deliveries of the Evoque are expected to start in Australia in March/April next year. We’ve just had our first drive impressions aboard the new Suzuki Kizashi sedan and quickly decided there’s much to like about this Mazda6 and Honda Accord rival. We’ll bring our full views in the next week but the early signs of the Suzuki – the biggest car the company has ever produced and its most ambitious project yet – are very positive. We’re driving the premium XLS model with a standard six speed manual gearbox. The premium sedan costs $34,990 and is dripping with equipment which in the near-equivalent Mazda6 Luxury Sports would cost you over $41K plus on roads. It looks great – if a little too cloned from the Accord and Mazda6 school of design – with the XLS receiving 18-inch alloys on wide and stickyYokohama tyres as standard to further enhance the visual appeal and serve up excellent levels of grip in the wet.  Favourable early impressions in the new Kizashi. The only glitch to the package we’ve found so far is that the excessive tyre rumble on coarse chip bitumen roads. The interior package has high quality plastics – not quite VW standard but pretty close – and a pleasing design in the sombre and subdued European style. In the depths of winter the XLS’s standard heated front seats are a godsend, while Bluetooth, cruise, steering wheel controls for the 10-speaker stereo, individual climate control for front seat passengers, power-operated driver’s seat and a steering wheel which adjusts for rake and reach are much appreciated. Under the Kizashi’s rear floor is a very rare sight indeed these days: a full-sized (18-inch alloy wheel) as the spare tyre. If Suzuki had wanted to save costs, that’s the first place it would have started. The fact the Kizashi offers the best possible shows just how much value is in this car. In short, the new Suzuki looks, feels and drives like an Accord or Mazda but offers much more kit for your cash. We’ll return next week with a more comprehensive appraisal. To find out more about Peter Brewer click here. |
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