2013 Dodge Dart Compact Sedan -- Car Review

Since rising from the absolute depths of bankruptcy and bailout, Chrysler Canada has released 20-plus new or renewed cars. There is no doubt that this 2013 Dart compact car is more important than any of those.

Furthermore, it's also the first car to be completely developed with new parent company, Fiat. Peel back the layers and the basic guts of this Belvidere, Illinois-built sedan come from Europe's Alfa Romeo Giulietta. A cowboy on a cannoli this is then, and one ready for the rodeo.

Ergonomics/Comfort/Quality

Dodge is being forthright about its new compact's European underpinnings, most likely in hopes of some magical, instant street cred. It is a chassis that's been modified though for our, umm, expansive, North American backsides. Versus the Guilietta, the Dart rides on a 7.6 cm longer wheelbase and measures 5 cm wider and 30 cm longer overall. The result is best-in-class interior room - near midsize sedan capaciousness.

We've seen the Dart's "driver-centric," dashboard on its big brother, the Charger, but the rest of the surrounds do indeed look much more Euro-inspired that any other current Dodge offering. There's nothing groundbreaking here in term of ergonomics - straightforward is the name of the game. From the SXT model up, you can order a Dart with the 8.4-inch touchscreen multimedia centre already deployed in the Dodge Journey. It controls myriad functions and is much easier to use than the similar MyFord Touch system found in the Focus. There's also an exclusive, customizable seven-inch screen offered in the gauge cluster. Bonus: the Dart uses only one seat design for all models and they're some of the best, most supportive buckets we've yet seen in this segment.

How about quality, fit and finish? It's a mixed bag: the soft touch materials and the varied colours and textures you can get on the interior are impressive (e.g.: denim, two stripes up the seat centres, accent stitching). That said, some the plastics look and feel decidedly low grade. What's more, some panels on the Dart's exterior were misaligned, but these were pre-production cars, so maybe Chrysler will sort that?

Functionality/Usability

They weren't precisely preaching on the merits of socialism, but we did notice the Dodge engineers at the Dart's first-drive talking more like Europeans. There seems to be an air of sophistication that went into the design of this sedan beyond what we're used to hearing from the American engineers. The guys waxed on about details like the laser joined roof panels for smoothness, the seal along the trunk for quiet, the active grille shutters that boost fuel economy, the hydraulic mounts to smooth the engines, how the vertical Alfa air conditioner allowed for a massive glovebox, 600 hours spent in the wind tunnel. We could go. It all means a better sorted, more competitive Dart.

On the safety front, all models comes with 10 airbags and stability control, plus this is the only compact aside from Hyundai Elantra with standard four-wheel ABS disc brakes.
Dodge reps went on at length in Texas about how they've equipped the Dart to be priced at roughly $3,000 less than equivalent rivals. The majority of Canadian Dart buyers will opt for the $17,995 SXT model. It doesn't match the nutty value-for-your-dollar of something like a Kia Forte, but you still get kit like LED tail lights, a laminated windshield, power windows, mirrors and door locks, remote keyless entry, a 60/40 split-folding rear seat and A/C.
While a top-of-the-line R/T starts at just $23,995, we're assuming you could option a Dart up to 30 grand. It would be one very well equipped car then, with features covering anything from blind spot monitoring, navigation and a backup camera to dual exhausts, a heated steering wheel, HID headlamps and a 506-watt stereo system.

Thinking about how dominating the Civic and Corolla have been for so long, this is a really impressive accomplishment - and no doubt a little scary for those two long-time Canadian top-sellers. The Dodge Dart lands in Canada this summer. Get more car parts information from carpart4u.

Discovery LR4 -- Is It Worth Buying

Land Rover, the typically strong, royal-family-backed British brand doesn’t appear to need to prove its off-road supremacy any more. Uber-confident in the Discovery LR4's latest mud-plugging tech and current chassis, the newest accessory to 2012’s steady follows the precedent set by Range Rover’s new Ultimate Edition -- driving the upmarket SUV even further up than it’s ever been before.

However, this most greatest LR4 is not as pricey as the $210,000 Ultimate Rangie. And, unfortunately, this does mean needing to do without the champagne cabinet, natural teak floor and twin headrest iPad docks. We rode with Land Rover’s newest high-rolling limited edition to find out if the view from the raised peak is worth the financial hike.

North America isn’t arranged to get the new gearbox or low-emission diesel quite yet, and so the HSE Luxury Limited Edition requires the current sole alternative, a lusty 5.0-liter gas V8, showcasing a ballsy 375 hp that’s mated to a six-speed auto transmission with CommandShift.

What’s under the man-sized hood within the already well-appointed LR4 continues to be left properly alone. But 2012’s Finding LR4 has recently received any well-executed massage from your guys inside the green overalls, together with Europe’s 3. 0-liter SDV6 turbodiesel today packing a lot more power (256 h . p .), plus improved upon efficiency and also refinement facilitated by way of a silky eight-speed programmed transmission controlled by way of a Jaguar-style pop-up switch and paddle shifters.

Being a stylish seven-seater fish tank that’ll accept any surfaces, the Finding LR4 will be staggeringly refined in terms of driving around the smooth african american stuff. Positive, there’s still slightly body rotate, dictated largely from the ride’s large height as well as the laws regarding physics, nevertheless the big Brit’s rate is however impressive -- specifically so inside the mid-range together with generous stores of grunt available on demand.

Discovering added sophistication could be the order with the day with all the Discovery LR4 HSE High end, and commensurate with the principles of exclusivity, this specific edition is with the limited sort -- even though the exact numbers which will be made for sale in the showrooms come early july remain incredibly elusive.

What tends to make this, since John Edwards sets it, “probably one of the most luxurious specs yet offered around the Discovery LR4” isn’t abundantly clear at first, so we’ll crack it straight down.

Firstly, it’ll be around only inside the dark-hued hues of both Santorini african american, Orkney dull or Havana brownish, which also includes the honeycomb fine mesh grille and also door addresses to especially contrast the particular bright satin silver finish with the grille encircle, full-length top rails, fender grills, wing showcases, hood and also trunk scripts. In the same way bright 10-spoke, 20” rims and stainless-steel raise bumper stand plate full the especially subtle outside mods.

Inside, you’re treated to extra swathes of premium Windsor leather, most visibly on the door tops, fascia and heated steering wheel, while exclusive Arabica-toned leather seats boast bespoke contrast stitching to highlight the posh dark veneer trim touches. Oh, and the carpets obtain an extra-deep shag pile that, even though it wouldn’t go down very well on the farm, definitely would do with your woman.

If you’ve ever want a Range Rover to perfectly seat seven yet cost significantly less, then the exclusive Land Rover Discovery LR4 HSE Luxury Limited Edition is your ride.

Considering the of those perfect car parts, you won't miss this cool car. Am I right?

Read more:http://willsamjohn.typepad.com/blog/2012/04/discovery-lr4-is-it-worth-buying.html

Standard features on the Audi A3 Sedan

Standard features on the Audi A3 Sedan contain 8-way power driver and 4-way power passengers seats, air conditioning, intermittent wipers, cruise control, tilt and telescoping steering wheel with front and rear cupholders, audio controls, power door locks, rear defogger, 6-speaker AM/FM in-dash single CD player with CD MP3 playback stereo, windows, mirrors (heated), Sirius XM satellite radio, USB connection, auxiliary audio input  and iPod integration, auxiliary audio jack, retained accessory power, pre-wired for phone, radio data system, trunk light, front and rear 12 volt power outlets, external temperature display, interior air filtration, rear ventilation ducts, Bluetooth online car phone with WLAN hotspot, front and rear reading lights and more.


Technological attributes in the A3 include parking assist, blind spot detection, lane departure warning, traffic sign detection, forward and rearward facing cameras, radar-assisted adaptive cruise control, and a Man-Machine Interface (MMI) controller located on the center console.

Standard safety features dual front side-mounted air bags, ABS brakes, front and rear head air bags, passenger air bag sensing deactivation, daytime running lights, engine immobilizer, child seat anchors, rear door child safety locks, stability and traction control, pre-collision safety system, electronic brake force distribution, tire pressure monitoring, emergency brake preparation and more.      

On the exterior the A3’s windshield is well raked as well as curved. From there it is awesome sophistication starting with a curved hood and its curved but light cut lines leading to the grille.  The headlights are modern slit units that have a highly unique shape. The grille is large. It is outlined in sharp looking chrome and includes some straight crisp lines along with pleasing angles. On top of that, the grille is flat but the bumper on the sides of it is curved. At the bottom are LED running lights.

The A3’s side profile includes upper glass that has an open profile outlined in chrome.  The door mirrors are silver with black on the outer edge. The front and rear fenders have some recessed lines at their edges and are flared adding to the car’s powerful look. There is an indented cut line that runs above the door handles. Last but not least, the doors have some recessed work in the center. On the whole, the look is solid but very fascinating.

In the rear the Audi A3 has a curved spoiler lip at the top of the trunk.  The LED taillights are horizontally slit units that have a distinctive shape.  The look is clean, simple, but modern.  Down low there is a black insert with dual exhausts at the edges.
 
The upcoming Audi A3 has tight lines and a great look. However, it will also offer good acceleration and braking, an upscale interior, spirited handling as well as reasonable gas mileage.