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Winding Road Issue 53 Is Now Available!
Even though WindingRoad.com still has that new website smell, our magazine hasn’t missed a beat. Issue 53 of Winding Road is now available to read online, or you can buy and download a PDF.
All-Electric eRUF Stormster Debuts In Europe
RUF Automobile, the Bavarian group responsible for creating some of the most drool-worthy Porsches ever to tackle the Nürburgring, has created something a little friendlier, at least to the environment. The eRUF Stormster is a battery-electric version of the Porsche Cayenne, and its debut coincides with the European Climate Change Conference currently underway in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Driven: 2010 BMW X5M
If a nonsensical vehicle like the Porsche Cayenne Turbo S tickles your fancy, you may want to leave space on your bedroom wall for another drool-worthy pinup. This, ladies and gentlemen, is the BMW X5M. It has 555 horsepower, it runs a tuned version of BMW’s xDrive all-wheel-drive system, and it costs $85,400—that’s a whopping $40,900 less than the starting price of Madam Cayenne. And if you immediately think to yourself, “Well, clearly this is because the Porsche is a superior vehicle,” you’ll want to think again. The X5M is as good to drive as it is unnecessary to own.
Driven: 2010 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG
The new aluminum SLS built in Sindelfingen, Germany stays dead even with the carbon-fiber SLR built in the UK until early this year. Though the naturally aspirated 6.2-liter V-8 in the SLS has 54 less horsepower (down 9 percent) and 96 fewer pound-feet of torque (down 17 percent) than the supercharged 5.5-liter V-8 in the SLR, the SLS weighs 328 pounds less (also down 9 percent), has much finer dynamics, and better technology. Acceleration on both cars to 60 mph therefore stands at 3.6 seconds and both lap the Nürburgring Nordschleife in just 7:40. The SLS just does it all with better behavior and efficiency.
First Look: 2010 Aston Martin Rapide
It’s been talked about for years now, but here it is – the absolutely, 100 percent, production-ready version of Aston Martin’s new Rapide four-door. Naturally, this car comes to market at a very interesting time, what with the Porsche Panamera just having hit the pavement. Even so, the Rapide takes all of the traditional Aston Martin values of sportiness, luxury, and style, and offers it in more of a traditional Grand Touring package. It’s Aston’s family car.
First Look: 2011 McLaren MP4-12C
We’ve been waiting for this one for quite some time. McLaren’s last official entry into the supercar world was the too-hot F1 which ended production in the late 1990s. But now Lamborghini and Ferrari have a new kid to do battle with — the MP4-12C, which has been developed entirely in-house and derived from Formula 1 technologies.
Driven: 2010 BMW X6M
What Was the Question, Again?
Let’s face it, the BMW X6 is an unusual car. We simply aren’t yet accustomed to a large, tall, fastback SUVs (or SAVs as BMW would have it). Making such a car in an M version makes it even more unusual, and challenges the cerebral cortex even more.
Driven: 2010 Mazda3
When you think about driving along the mountain roads of southern California, your brain immediately fixates on images of Lotus Elises and Porsche Boxsters as potential quick-footed dance partners for a day of driving fun. But in reality, any car with nimble steering, a taught suspension, and a bit of pep in its step can give similar pleasures. Take our 2010 Mazda3, for example. We spent many hours throwing it through a seemingly endless series of back-and-forth, left-and-right turns, and walked away feeling quite satisfied. The previous generation 3 was seriously fun in these conditions. We’re happy to report that the new car is too.
Driven: 2010 BMW Z4
Two market segments in particular have been decimated by the Great Recession. First, the Bentley-Ferrari-Porsche 911 area has effectively been castrated in the past six months. Second, there are the smaller two-seater premium Euro roadsters we all love so well in the best of times: Porsche Boxster, Mercedes SLK, Audi TT Roadster, and BMW Z4. For these little guys, emasculation similes do not suffice.
Winding Road’s Top Twelve Cars Of 2009
Over the past twelve months we’ve driven or reviewed (and often both) something on the order of 250 vehicles. Be it on some far-flung and usually stunning road served up by an automaker for a new car launch, or on the slightly more humble highways and byways that surround our Michigan and Texas offices, we’ve had a fair taste of what was on offer in the automotive universe during 2009. We figure the very least we can do is to tell you which ones we liked best.
Winding Road’s Guide To Winter Driving
Despite the April Issue indication you may have noticed on the cover of this month’s Winding Road (check out our full new issue at www.magazine.WindingRoad.com), it’s actually just around the middle of the long Michigan winter as we write this. That’s bad news for anyone who values anything in the way of a short sleeve or a naturally occurring tan, but it’s surprisingly good news for us driving enthusiasts.
We lean towards that group of people that embrace four full seasons in all of their glory, and love to drive through each of them. Which is why we’ve been paying special attention this year to the motive joys that can be had when our world is white. Be it driving a sports car or a convertible, with a new set of snows or in a frigid testing environment, we’re into winter driving. Find out why.
