Toyota RAV4 Sport Review

Usually, here at TireKicker, price gets discussed last...after a recitation of facts and opinions about the vehicle being reviewed. And then, it's base price, a rundown of the options, culminating in the bottom line.

Well, in the case of the Toyota RAV4 Sport, I'm going to work backwards.

$30,938.

That's right. Almost 31 large for a compact SUV. What can we do about that? Let's work our way up the options sheet:

$745 for delivery. Not really an option. It stays.

$359 for a VIP-RS3200 Plus security system. I'd feel like a dope if it got broken into or stolen and I'd cheaped out on $359. It's a keeper.

$750 for a towing reciever hitch. What on earth am I going to be towing in a RAV4? Lose it. Gets us down to $30,188, which is still too much money.

$199 for floor mats and a cargo mat. Yeah, I could probably do better going aftermarket, but they match and I'm not a cheapskate...I'm just trying to reasonably equip a reasonably priced RAV4. Keep 'em.

$70 for a light control system. According to the sticker, it turns your headlights on automatically. I can turn on my own headlights. Dump it. Now we're at $30,118.

$40 for daytime running lights. Hate 'em. Always have. Goodbye. Make that $30,078.

Ah, here we go: $1,550 for a Nav system. When TomToms and Garmin Nuvis are available for a couple hundred? When most new cell phones have a GPS navigation app? I don't think so. Saying no means losing XM Satellite Radio and mp3 capability, but a couple of aisles over from the portable nav units are combo XM recievers/mp3 players for less than $200. Strike this line item. New balance: $28,528 and counting.

$1,930 for the Premium Package. That's leather-trimmed seats, driver and front passenger heated seats, 8-way power adjustable driver's seat with power lumbar support and height adjustment. I say no for two reasons: One, because we're trying to get the price down here and two, because if enough people order this kind of stuff on RAV4s, they'll eventually be $40,000 and as big as Highlanders "because that's what buyers say they want." New number: $26,598.

$475 for an integrated back-up camera. In a big vehicle, where lines of sight are compromised by how high up you are, these are useful. I don't think a RAV4 needs it. Down to $26,123.

Last item: $220 for a roof rack. Lousy for aerodynamics, meaning noise and gas mileage. If you're a biker or other outdoors type and seriously need one, then you probably know where to find one perfect for your purposes and maybe at a better price. Goodbye.

Where are we? $25,903. Still a smidgen pricey, but it's well-equipped, has Toyota's reputation for reliability, high crash ratings and an EPA estimated 21 city/27 highway miles per gallon.

At this price, I'd be interested. At almost $31,000? No way.

UPDATE: Drove the 4X4 version of the RAV4 recently with a base price of $26,530. Ouch. That means with nothing on it, it's now above what we whittled the front-wheel driver down to. And while this one wasn't quite as option-laden, it still rang up to $29,808 after delivery charges. Meantime, mileage drops to 19 city/26 highway.

There's growing competition in this segment...and by and large, it's less expensive. A couple of years back, you could justify the extra cost with a simple, "Hey, it's a Toyota". But right now, pennies count...to say nothing of thousands.

UPDATING THE UPDATE: Having the feeling I'd damned with faint praise, I arranged for an extended refresher in the RAV4 Sport.

Three weeks...more than a thousand miles. It never put a foot wrong, it proved itself more comfortable and versatile than its size class and price point would indicate.

As time went by, it wasn't "what's the next car?" so much as "Hey, I could live with this day in and day out for a five-year loan. Even at $29,808.

Sometimes a week and 300 miles just isn't enough to get beneath the surface. I'm glad we went back for another, longer round.

KAKNPF76CTWU

Lincoln MKT Review

From the back, in black, it looks like a 1940's hearse.

It gets so-so mileage.

For several thousand dollars less, you can get a Ford Flex...which is what this is based on.

The above three lines are the sum total of the downside to the Lincoln MKT.

There's a ton of upside...some of it wrapped up in the down.

First of all, for better or worse, Lincoln's breaking some styling rules and creating distinctive automobiles. And since the new family grille is a modern interpretation of 40s Lincolns, I suppose the "40s hearse" rear-end isn't a surprise.

Number two, 16 city/22 highway (the EPA estimate, which, for the first time in a long time in a Ford Motor Company product, we didn't achieve or exceed), while not great, is also not bad for something this big, with this kind of power. The MKT packs the twin-turbo EcoBoost engine...and, in fact, 16/22 is the mileage cited for the Flex when equipped with EcoBoost.

And as for the MKT/Flex comparison, well, Lincoln deserves a major pat on the back for putting distance between the two vehicles. This is shared-platform as opposed to "badge engineering". You could drive the MKT and Flex back-to-back (which Ford was brave enough to allow a group of journalists, yours truly included, to do this past fall) and spend the next few minutes remarking on how they really are completely different vehicles.

That price difference? Well, it's there...a base MKT starts about where a loaded Flex leaves off ($44,000) and it's not difficult to load an MKT beyond the $50,000 point with 2nd row bucket seats (in place of the standard bench), a 2nd row console with a built-in refrigerator, and Active Park Assist (which our vehicle didn't have). Put simply, it parks the car automatically. Yes, Lexus got there first, a couple of years ago, but the system wasn't flawless. We're told the Lincoln's is.

If the Navigator or Escalade is coming off lease soon and you're looking for style, speed and comfort without going the SUV route again, an MKT is well worth the test drive.

Story Of The Year: Car Crash Leaves Woman In Persistent State of Sexual Arousal

Forget the GM and Chrysler bankruptcies. This is the automotive story people will be talking about the most as 2009 draws to a close.

From Jalopnik. Though the original, significantly less smart-alecky version, including an interview with Joleen can be found on the KOAT-TV Albuquerque website.

The New Car And Driver...And How To Read It

Well, TireKicker told you a month ago about the coming January redesign of Car and Driver, but Jalopnik scores the first look, including a guided tour by editor Eddie Alterman.

Dodge Challenger R/T Review

The mailman got out of his truck, put our mail in the box by the sidewalk, turned, stared, did a double take and went back to his truck. He came out seconds later with his cellphone, snapping shot after shot.

The power crew came to replace the transformer buried in the next-door neighbor's backyard. They got out of the truck, on the way to the front door to tell me how long the power would be off. They never got there. I found all three of them, five minutes after I heard the truck doors close, in the driveway. Their question had changed from how soon they could cut the power without inconveniencing me too badly to:

Could I start it up, back it out of the driveway and do a burnout down the block?

The six year old girl, dressed in pink, leaving my daughter's ballet school, holding her daddy's hand as they walked to their minivan, stopped cold and said: "Whoa, Daddy! AWESOME car!".

God only knows what adolescent boys must be saying and thinking (though my son, who's 14, the age I was when the first Challenger hit the market, tells me it's "a reasonable alternative to the Viper").

Bright red (Dodge calls it "TorRed"), with 20" aluminum chrome wheels and a profile worthy of inclusion on Mt. Rushmore...and yes, it's got a Hemi. 5.7 liters, 376 horsepower and 410 pounds per foot of torque, to be precise. And though it comes with an automatic, this one had the optional TrackPak 6-speed manual.

Yes, it's way bigger than the original 1970 Challenger. That's what happens when you use the Chrysler 300/Dodge Charger platform. But it looks great, it's scary fast, it's got way more trunk room than the old one, and once you get inside, just reprogram your spatial orientation to "Road Runner" instead of "Challenger" and you'll be fine.

It's also something of a bargain for what you get: $29,320 base price...our tester bottom-lined at $35,965.

Love the shape but need still more of a bargain? The SE starts at $21,995, and comes with a 250-horsepower V6 and 18-inch wheels...which would have been a dream come true not too long ago. In fact, Dodge expects most Challengers sold will be SEs.

UPDATE: More than a year after the above was written, Chrysler sent us a second Challenger...again an R/T with the Hemi, the 6-speed manual, the Track Pack...and again, an '09 (though the '10s should be out there now).

This one had a bump in the base price...now $30,220 and with more options on the sticker, the bottom line rings in at $38,170.

Oh, and this one was silver.

Not covered the first time we covered this...five-star crash ratings all around, four for rollover. EPA estimates 16 city/25 highway.

Mazdaspeed 3 Review

Looking for the most fun you can have involving four wheels and a five-figure price tag?

You just found it.

The Mazdaspeed 3 has been a hot ticket for quite a while...but they keep making it better and better...and the new 2010 model just pegs the fun meter all the way.

Turbocharged. Intercooled. 263 horsepower...96 more than the stock Mazda 3.

Put your foot in it and hang on.

Best of all, Mazda's not only making each Mazdaspeed 3 faster, but more civilized.

You might expect a punishing ride. You'd be wrong.

You might expect bargain-basement surroundings (or else how could they sell so much power for $23,195 base?). You'd be wrong.



The Mazdaspeed 3 is so well equipped (18 inch wheels, halogens, cloth & leather seats, killer audio system, Bluetooth, dual-zone climate control) that you could buy it absolutely stock and have a winner.

As it was, the test car only had one option...the Mazdaspeed Tech Package...an audio system upgrade, navigation, alarm and keyless start for $1895. Anything that gets nav alone below 2 grand has to be considered an advancement.

With delivery charges, $25,840...and a bargain in every way.

EPA estimates: 18 mpg city/25 highway. Five star crash ratings, except four for side crash rear seat. Four star rollover.

Mercedes-Benz GLK350 Review

What a difference a decade makes.

About 10 years ago, Mercedes-Benz seriously cheapened their image with the introduction of what was then a small SUV..the ML320. It cost somewhere in the mid-30s, got them into a new market segment, but was a serious step down in terms of what people expected from Mercedes in materials and workmanship.

An even smaller SUV should be more reason for despair, right? No, not now.

You see, Mercedes as a whole followed the ML320 right down the garden path...resulting in a decade of less-than-special Benzes of all model designations...even some with astonishingly high price tags.

The good news is that M-B appears to be pulling out of the nosedive with some products that seem to put standards ahead of market share...and it is in this environment that they introduce the GLK350.

Size? Think somewhere between a Ford Escape and a Ford Explorer.

Price? Base is a reasonable $35,900. For that you get a 268 horsepower V6 engine with a 7-speed automatic transmission, translating to an EPA estimated 16 city/21 highway miles per gallon.

Best of all, it feels more solid than the ML ever has...and even loaded up with 10 grand worth of options (Premium Package, Lighting Package, Multimedia Package, Sport Appearance Package), it doesn't seem especially silly or excessive because, well, it's a Mercedes. It should be a cut above the other stuff.

For a long time, people paid a premium for Mercedes-Benz because of the quality and the engineering, not for the badge itself. If those days are back, we're all better off.

UPDATE: The above applies to the all-wheel drive GLK. Choose the 2-wheel drive model, and the base price drops to $34,600...making it one of the least expensive Benzes you can buy. And given that the 1998 ML 320 was $33,900, it's amazing.

Fuel economy stays the same in the city, but improves to 22 on the highway.

A recent drive in the 2-wheel drive model reinforces the earlier all-wheel drive review. And, this time, Mercedes only went for about 8 thousand in options (Premium Package, Multimedia Package and an iPod interface)...so the bottom line with $875 destination and delivery charges was $42.925.

Again, it's a Benz. And again, that's starting to mean the right things once more.