The Dodge Challenger SRT8 has been out in the UAE since last year. A facelifted version may already be on the way by the end of this year. And some nincompoop magazines had already ripped up the rear tyres on our tester. But hot damnit it is still an awesome car.
We had been holding off on an update for our 2010 Chevrolet Cruze long-termer because we were trying to find time first to do another round of performance testing, as requested by a reader who wanted to buy one. But it turns out there is no discernible change in performance since our last test, so we’ll go ahead and do a story about the interior instead.
Our Chevy Cruze long-termer has been running well for its first week. As Ramadan draws to a close and the uncertainty of when Eid falls is the topic of the moment, we’ve been out and about at various showrooms, looking to purchase a midsize sedan. It was ironic that we were trolling for new cars while actually driving a brand new sedan, but the Cruze is a bit smaller than what we were looking for. It competes firmly in the compact category, although it is a bit larger than most of its direct competitors. Incidentally, Chevrolet offers as many as three larger midsize sedans to suit every taste.
The grey 2010 Chevrolet Cruze is back with us again! It almost feels like I own this car, having driven it twice before, once for the initial review and once as a courtesy car from GM when they took away our Malibu long-termer for a week. This time, we’re getting to keep this car for an entire month, during which time we’ll settle down and play with its features further and explore its fuel economy capabilities. And just in time for Eid too.
Just launched in the UAE, the Korean-built Renault Fluence is a new-for-2011 model that competes in the compact segment in terms of price, features, performance and general demeanour. It is a rather underwhelming car, as most cars are in this segment, but it has one ace up its sleeve. A longer-than-average wheelbase means it is more spacious than many others in the compact class.
After a little more than a month, the 2010 Chevrolet Malibu long-termer finally left our fleet last week. We would’ve liked to keep it longer as we still had a lot to cover about it, but General Motors Middle East wanted to put the car back in use as a press test-drive vehicle. But before we gave it back, we just did a quick run to see what the engine is capable of in terms of fuel economy.
Debuting in late 2008, the Hyundai Genesis was the car that’s supposed to highlight what the Korean manufacturer is capable of, in terms of competing head-on with luxury brands. There was a lot of hype surrounding this car when it was launched. We’ve finally made contact with Hyundai’s UAE dealer and managed to acquire one for a road test.
The updated Range Rover was launched sometime in the second half of last year, complete with new engines, a new interior and, externally, a new grille. We finally got a 2010 Supercharged for a road test, although ironically, not before the 2011 model has already been announced, with further changes. We also had to sign a contract saying we cannot take it off-road. So we didn’t.
The 2010 BMW 5-Series Gran Turismo has apparently been out for a while now, but this test vehicle is the first one I’ve ever seen on UAE roads. At a price point that competes directly with the handsome BMW X5, while looking like it does, it isn’t hard to see why it will remain rare. However, simply by its oddity does it stand out. When was the last time you bothered giving an X5 a second glance? You will definitely be staring at this one.
Being the fully-optioned version of the 2010 Chevrolet Malibu, our long-term LTZ tester also comes with the best stereo available in the range. It is seemingly unbranded and doesn’t look like much, but for the first time ever, we had the time to delve deep into the entertainment system of a test car, and were pleased with the new tech on offer.