So it’s been just over a month and over 3700 km with the Mondeo -– time flew by and so did the odo readings in the Mondeo, accounted for by just one long drive through Kalba, Khorfakkan, Dibba, Masafi and Dhaid last weekend, and a vast majority of the rest accounted for by my routine commute between my home in Sharjah and my office opposite Dubai Media City.
The 2011 Ford Mustang GT, the 2010 Dodge Challenger and the 2010 Chevrolet Camaro SS all have three things in common. All three are retro-styled Americans, all three are V8-powered muscle cars, and all three have more than 400 horses. Each. This comparo has been a long time coming. Everyone else has already done their armchair evaluations, simply comparing manufacturer figures, snapping a few photos and calling it a day. It took us a spread of six months to be able to drive all three of these direct competitors. We have neither the time nor the resources to pull in all three cars together.
Dodge has revealed the 2011 Durango Heat in the 2011 Chicago Auto Show. It is based on the Durango R/T. The R/T gets a V8 engine and the Heat is powered by a V6. Both pretty much look the same.
Dodge showed off the new 2012 Charger SRT8 at the Chicago Auto Show. Under the hood, the new 6.4-liter HEMI V8 offers more horsepower and torque than the old 6.1-litre HEMI V8. It will also have improved fuel efficiency.
The 2012 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 debuted at the 2011 Chicago Auto Show. It will be the most powerful Camaro developed by Chevrolet. It will have a more developed chassis with improved suspension and brakes for better handling. And of course, the engine will churn out a lot more power with the help of a supercharger.
Cadillac is offering a Black Diamond Edition of the high-performance CTS-V that comes with a host of performance options and exclusive tri-coat paint, called ‘Black Diamond’.
Ford’s Conservation and Environmental Grants section yesterday awarded money to two projects from the UAE aimed at the preservation of UAE’s coral reefs and the fight against the illegal trade of animals in the region. Anyone who applies for these ‘green’ grants is eligible to have their project looked at by a panel of environmental experts. We also brought up the topic of electric cars.
So far, there are no problems with my 2008 Ford Mondeo. There are slight squeaks coming in from around the centre console, although it is barely noticeable when compared to my previous Mazda 6 and is not intrusive. I had spent more time in city traffic this time which explains the increased fuel consumption. I have spent Dhs 338 dhs for fuel since I bought it and have covered over 1900 km, of which about 75% was spent on the UAE’s highways. Still very happy driving it. It is a very comfortable car.
Few cars we test ever attract an obscene amount of attention from bystanders. But that’d require something like a Challenger or a CTS-V Coupe. So it may be a bit of a surprise that our 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee caused such a ruckus everywhere it was parked.
It’s a busy world. People are in a race with time to be as ahead as possible in every aspect they can think of. There is hardly any time for anyone; and given the situation, people want the best in life; by saying best in life, I mean whatever that can make life easier and to be at ease. And such things include, for an instance, mobile phones which are capable of replacing one’s alarm clock, calendar, organizer, netbook, music players, video players, navigation systems and what not, besides serving the basic purpose of a phone and thus eliminating the need of having so many things at a time.