I see these frequently in the Executive Selection and occasionally in the Emerald Aisle and haven't driven one yet (for a ride report on the 2008 model, see here), so I picked one up with 3K miles at LAX the other day and did some LA-style city (read: suburban anywhere else) driving:

Overview: Despite the sporty, muscle car exterior, this Fullsize (FCAR) is a pretty vanilla-flavored ride that feels like a sedan, with average acceleration and handling and lousy fuel ecomony.

Handling: The 3.5L V6 gives adequate pickup with 4-speed automatic transmission. Cornering and handling felt solid on the windy roads in Palos Verdes. Despite the muscle car exterior, it’s a fairly quiet ride. Sight lines were generally very good horizontally and vertically, although the rear post on the passenger side obstructed my view of the blind spot a bit more than I’d like.

Features: Sirius satellite radio, 8-way power driver’s seat only with manual lumbar handle, basic climate control, fog lights, minimal trip computer with odometer only – no MPG or compass (same as the Chrysler 300 Touring).

Mileage: Manually calculated at 11 mpg city. Fuel tank door is on the driver’s side. No ‘slack’ at the top of the fuel gauge, so anything close to, but less than full will show up accurately as such.

Space: Driver’s seat was comfortable for me at 6-ft tall. The back seat is average sized, and might be a little cramped for tall people. The trunk looks like it would comfortably fit 4 rollaboards or two larger suitcases and some additional bags.


dstanridereport