David Brown Speedback GT first drive <b>Review</b> | Autocar |
| David Brown Speedback GT first drive <b>Review</b> | Autocar Posted: 13 Aug 2014 02:07 AM PDT What is it?When it comes to fine cars, the name of David Brown is currently creating clarity and confusion in equal measure. David Brown (1904-1993) was the legendary tractor manufacturer and post-war rescuer of Aston Martin, who bought the company in 1947, helped create some its best-remembered cars, donated his initials to them, then sold up in the '70s when Aston struck financial trouble. In recent months, however, another car-making David Brown has sprung to notice. Also an entrepreneurial Yorkshireman, this new DB's business is also based on the launch a luxurious new GT car – which looks a lot like a classic Aston Martin. But this time there's no formal connection to the century-old Gaydon-based sports car maker. This Brown is the man behind the super-exclusive Speedback GT, priced a shade under £600,000. It uses the contemporary underpinnings from one of Jaguar's finest cars but its shape and details recall the most iconic features of the Aston Martin DB5, all realised in a modern package. Despite the uncanny similarity of his background and business career to Aston Martin's venerable Sir David Brown (the later DB is a patriotic British entrepreneur; his interests run to retailing, brewing, interior design, retailing and his background is in manufacturing large, off-highway vehicles), the new Brown never set out to take advantage of any perceived Aston connection. He's outgoing, wisecracking sort of bloke but you can see the suggestion irritates him, though he acknowledges that a company called David Brown Automotive has more instant gravitas today than a Trevor Smith Automotive would do. That much he knows he owes DB Mk1. The Speedback idea sprang by degrees from fun Brown has had over the years building wild rally cars, and entering both UK events and globe trotting productions like the Paris-Peking Rally (in a '20s Rolls-Royce). Several years ago '60s-loving Brown bought an Aston DB5 ("it is the most iconic car of the time") and modernised it with more power, soundproofing and better brakes. "I love it, and still have it," he says, "but after all that it was still a '60s car. I kept wondering how I could have a modern car with the look I liked." Under the skin the David Brown Speedback GT, launched in Monaco in April, uses an Jaguar XKR chassis, engine and all its other significant mechanical components, but is carefully designed so virtually everything you see is unique. The interior is a celebration of wood, leather and metal details. The exterior does plenty of DB5 details better than the old original (check the finely sculpted front bumperettes). One very special feature is a so-called picnic seat, an ingenious mechanism that springs from the flat boot floor. It's a two-person perch to please any SUV owner, except that this is a svelte GT car. The Speedback's use of proven high-performance components recalls days, Brown explains, when those who could afford fine cars would buy a rolling chassis from the likes of Bentley or Alvis and have it fitted with a body of their own specification – perhaps with some personal design elements thrown in by their choice of coachbuilder, who at the time were dealers in exclusivity. The Speedback's styling, inside and out, is the work of the well-known ex-Land Rover designer Alan Mobberley, who came out of retirement for this because he reckoned he was old enough to understand what made Astons of the DB5 era so special. "It's a contemporary GT with the heart and soul of a classic," he says. What is it like?For all logic of coachbuilding for exclusive, expensive cars, Brown has already had to meet criticism that his car is "only a Jaguar underneath". That's despite the fact that a) the Jaguar components are some of the best available, developed over at least half a dozen iterations by some of the world's best engineers, b) that Jaguar itself seems happy with the idea, and c) the Speedback GT's concept seems to splendidly at home with its dynamic bits. That's something we pretty soon established on some of the finest roads of Yorkshire, many of them comprising the route recently traversed by the Tour de France. The car is everything that fine Jaguar is - beautiful to steer, controlled but flat-riding, neutral at all sensible speeds on the road, equipped with very powerful brakes, and it positions its driver perfectly so the car pivots around him. The usual chassis stability and traction gadgets are aboard and power is transmitted to the rear wheels via a paddle-actuated six-speed ZF auto box. The Speedback GT also a shade softer riding than the XKR and generates marginally less road noise, perhaps because it rolls on slightly higher profile tyres, one of Brown's three-line demands. Bottom line: no car maker this small could hope to build a chassis and powertrain of such all-round distinction. To spend millions trying would scupper a promising enterprise and a desirable car. Brown has "previous" with the 503bhp, 5.0-litre supercharged V8 as an owner and rightly believes it's perfect for his car, woofing gently and smoothly at low revs most of the time, but eating up any straight with a delicious bark if the driver gives the accelerator a half-interested prod. Its muscular nature is clarified in the GT's claimed performance figures, with a 0-62mph time of around 4.6sec and a top speed that's limited to 155mph. Should I buy one?People seem to love the Speedback, if you discount a few snide web forumeers. It certainly created a stir wherever we went in Yorkshire. Most people instantly get the classic-meets-modern idea; the two aspects more likely to bother actual buyers will surely be the lack of old-time provenance for the car (DB believes this can be acquired) and the eye-watering price, which simply reflects the cost of hand-making something so superbly resolved and detailed. But buyers who understand that are already circling - to the extent that Brown is looking for other coachbuilding opportunities. He's coy about saying where they lie, but they definitely exist. "Let's see the Speedback reach its potential," he says, "and then we'll see. "We have half a dozen customers ready to go," says Brown, "and the car's ready too, give or take so few mods. We have a staff of eight in Coventry – our job is to manage the skills of trusted suppliers – and a manufacturing system we know will work. Only last March, this car was no more than some sketches on paper." Currently there is only one completed Speedback GT in existence, our test prototype beautifully built by Envisage of Coventry. Envisage is one of those accomplished but rarely noticed prototype builders that have always discreetly fed the big companies with their news-making cars. Envisage will build the production Speedbacks, too. Brown has already said He'll never make more than 100 Speedbacks but given that the XKR is heading for the exit, the tally might be fewer than that because finding donor cars may get be difficult. Brown currently owns about 10 - convertibles are best because of the extra 'beef' in their lower bodies - but says he knows how to find another 50. "We have some big decisions to make about the scale of our business," says Brown. "We'll do it when the car feels like it's properly launched." Read more about the Speedback GT David Brown Speedback GT Price £594,000; 0-62mph 4.6sec; Top speed 155mph; Economy 23mpg (est); CO2 292g/km (est); Kerb weight 1800kg (est); Engine 8cyls, 5000cc, supercharged petrol; Power 503bhp at 6,000rpm; Torque 416lb ft between 2500-5500rpm; Gearbox 6-spd automatic with paddle shifters  |
| <b>Car Review</b>: 2015 Toyota Prius v - Insight News Posted: 12 Aug 2014 02:22 PM PDT  DETROIT – There are two ways to look at the Toyota Prius hybrid. Either the Japanese automaker dragged the rest of the U.S. market into gasoline-electric powered cars, the belief that if you want to compete with Toyota, you've got to have hybrids. Or, the automaker was out in front of the curve and saw that gas pump prices would eventually cause Americans to become a lot more sensitive to the fuel efficiency of their vehicles.Whichever you believe, the fact is that Toyota is the industry leader in the sale of hybrids in the U.S. market and the automaker has expanded and continues to expand its leadership role. We test drove the Prius v for a week. It was the third Prius, out of four, brought to market when it was introduced more than a year ago. The v stands for versatility. Yes, it is kind of hokey, but this Prius was spacious, it could carry four people in real comfort and it could carry a bunch of stuff. It had more than 34.3 cu. ft. of cargo space behind the split folding rear seat and a cavernous 67.3 cu. ft. of space with the rear seatbacks lowered. The front passenger seat folded flat creating even more storage space. Although they were loathed to use the word, the Prius v had a silhouette that brought to mind ever so slightly images of a minivan. But it was smaller. Still, at a regional launch of the vehicle officials did say that this Prius was aimed at young families. The second row seats were adjustable. They slid forward or to the rear and the seatbacks had a 45 degree recline for greater comfort. The cabin was chock full of nooks for storage. The Prius v had a dual glove box, bottle holders were in the front and rear door panels and there was a storage tray behind the center console. Families, especially young ones, mean kids. And little ones want what they want when they want it. That means food, drinks, whatever it takes to keep them relatively calm. An available interior material is something that Toyota called SofTex. We did not test it but the press packet for the Prius v Toyota said the material is easy to clean, resisted spills and was wear resistant. The ultimate testers, kids and time, will put that to the, uh, test. Still, what makes a hybrid is the powertrain. And in the case of the Toyota Prius v, it is comprised of a 1.8-liter Atkinson cycle four-cylinder engine and a 60 kW electric motor and a smaller electric motor as the power source for stuff like the radio, climate control system, etc. Maximum voltage was 650 and the net horsepower output was 134. Obviously, this was not a car to go speeding down the pavement. Its continuously variable transmission (CVT) made that even less unlikely. Still, the car was very good at what it did. In day-to-day traffic it was capable, on the expressways it was relatively able, it handled well, sight lines were great, the interior was airy, and we never got the feel of being cramped and never was the compact Prius v overwhelmed by other traffic. The Prius v had four driving modes: EV (electric vehicle), Power that enhanced midrange response, ECO that prioritized fuel economy and Normal. It also had a pitch and bounce control system for the suspension. This car was awfully smooth and it had a shift by wire system that seemed not needed in a car with a CVT. That was our only complaint. Whenever we put the car in park and took our foot off the brake, the Prius v would roll a bit except when the pavement was absolutely flat. It's hard to say how much, an inch, two inches maybe, but it was noticeable. The car was loaded with equipment: a rearview camera, Bluetooth, a navigation system, satellite radio, it had auxiliary and USB jacks and there was a smart key. The best part was fuel consumption or the lack of it. For 2014, the Prius v got 51 mpg in the city and 48 mpg on the hwy. That was impressive and seemed worth the premium that was embedded in the car's hybrid system; the sticker of the car was $37,267. What's more, over a five year period Toyota said the Prius v would save $6,250 in fuel costs. That sounded pretty good. Frank S. Washington is editor of AboutThatCar.com |
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