Car and Driver: February 2008 Issue

The new issue of Car and Driver is here, let's take a look! The cover is dedicated to the Corvette ZR1, as if it would be something else.

The real meat and potatoes in my book is a comparison test of the Escape, CR-V, Tucson, Liberty, Outlander, Rogue, Vue, Grand Vitara and RAV4. Coming in last is the Liberty which was dinged for being too truckish. Next up was the Tuscon which looked and felt old. The Escape was thought to have too much road noise and needed a fifth gear. The Vue was heavy for its interior volume. In fifth position was the Grand Vitara, which was a little cramped and too somber inside. The Outlander possessed a cheap looking interior and vague steering. Nissan's Rogue placed third with poor rear visibility and nervousness off-road. Surprisingly Honda's CR-V did not take the first spot due to the odd looking front clip and no locking for the rear axle. Bringing home all the marbles was the RAV4 with a spacious interior and "Toyota resale value."

Also tested was an Impreza WRX STI. The general consensus on the Impreza has been that the new models are more well-rounded but less engaging. Also, some folks find the hatch's styling to be off-putting. The sticker on the C&D model was $39,440! Wowzers!!!


There is a feature titled "Zero to 200 and Back" but I found it pretty silly. I suppose a feature like this is better than "Lamborghini verses a helicopter" but overall this kind of stunt is best left to Top Gear.

Honda's Fit performed quite well in a 40,000 long term test. A good handler, fuel sipping and a spacious hatch for those folks who want to be frugal but still enjoy life. I whole heatedly agree with this review. From what I've seen so far of the next generation, I rather like the chunky look of the current model. Don't hesitate to pick up this gem. As Jim Kramer would say "Booyah!"

In the back of the magazine, between all the floor and and tire ads, there are preview drives of the GT-R and Audi A4 and short takes of the '09 Corolla, Civic Mugen Si sedan and Impreza 2.5i sedan.

One little nugget hidden in the front part of the magazine is a new documentary inspired by a Car and Driver story. The title of the film is called "The Boy Who Loved Hearses." You can check out a preview by clicking here. I haven't seen the film, but I loved John Phillips' story.