Mercedes-Benz GLB
Unlike the Land Rover Discovery Sport and Skoda Kodiaq, the Mercedes GLB is quite small for a seven-seater. But, there’s still enough space on its boxy body to pack plenty of chrome, loads of plastic faux-air vents, and a whopping great front grille. Combined, these features make it look more like a baby GLS than an overblown hatchback. Step inside, and you’ll be greeted by an equally posh-looking interior. The Mercedes GLB’s cabin looks a bit like it was drawn by someone copying the A-Class homework, but with enough changes to make sure they avoid getting put in design detention. The familiar five brushed-metal air vents look fantastic and most of the materials feel nice and yielding. Behind the GLB’s big, grille-mounted three-pointed star is a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that makes 221 horsepower. The engine is paired with an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission and either front- or all-wheel drive. At the test track, an all-wheel drive example managed a fairly brisk 6.0-second zero-to-60-mph time.
Specifications
Engine and Transmission
Displacement (cc) 1998
Max Power 224 hp
Max Torque 350 Nm
2022 Maserati Ghibli
With designer looks and twin-turbo power, the 2022 Maserati Ghibli brings a ton of Italian attitude to the mid-size luxury sedan party. Four-cylinder engines are damned, the Ghibli offers a 345-hp twin-turbo V-6 as standard while upper trims come with either a 424-hp version of that engine or a 580-hp twin-turbo V-8. To go along with its powerful engines, the Ghibli’s chassis is set up for driving thrills—it’s a joy to pitch down a curvy back road. Unfortunately, it may be too focused on fun, as the Ghibli doesn’t stack up well against rivals in the luxury and comfort categories, as its rear seat is less accommodating than rivals such as the Audi A6 or the Mercedes-Benz E-class. A host of leather, wood, and metal trims dot the Ghibli’s cabin to upscale effect, but several knobs and switches appear to be lifted directly from the Stellantis (Maserati’s parent company) parts bin. Still, the Maserati’s styling and performance make it endearing, plus its relative obscurity means it turns heads like Italian exotics from Ferrari and Lamborghini.
Specifications
Horsepower (bhp) 350
Torque (Nm) 500
Transmission Automatic
Top Speed (Km/h) 270
Seating Capacity 5 Seater
Acceleration 0-100 Km/h (sec) 5.5
2022 Lamborghini Sian FKP 37
Based unashamedly on the Aventador SVJ, the Sian has been restyled by Lamborghini’s in-house designers under the guidance of its German boss, Mitja Borkert, who used to work at Porsche, and in the flesh, it looks suitably extraordinary. You can tell it’s an Aventador beneath all the new fins and wings and multiple bits of carbon fiber, but only just. The name Sian refers to flashes of lightning that appear in the skies above northern Italy, while “FKP 37” refers to one Ferdinand Karl Piech, who was born in 1937 and was in charge at VW when it assumed control of Lamborghini. Piech was many things to many people, but he was also a brilliant engineer at heart who constantly embraced the future, hence Sian’s new hybridized version of Lamborghini’s now venerable 6.5-liter V12 engine.
Maximum power – Output – 785 PS / 774 HP / 577 kW
Horsepower : @ 8500 rpm
Maximum torque : 720 Nm / 531 lb-ft @ 6750 rpm
Top Speed : 350 Km/h / 218 Mph
Acceleration 0 to 60 mph (0 to 96 Km/h) : 2.6 s
Acceleration 0 to 100 km/h (0 to 62 mph) : 2.8 s
2023 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat
The Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat is where tires go to die. It’s one of the last coupes with American-style V-8 thunder under its hood. The Challenger SRT Hellcat lineup’s most reserved model spews 717 horsepower from its supercharged 6.2-liter V-8 engine. But there’s so much more: output from the Hellcat Redeye model’s version of this engine jumps to 797 horsepower. And the meanest, nastiest Hellcat Redeye, the Widebody Jailbreak edition, deploys 807 horsepower. All Challenger SRT Hellcats help you toward a suspended license with a hard-working eight-speed automatic transmission and rear-wheel-drive—a configuration that is always ready to deploy billows of smoke from each of its massive, 12-inch-wide rear tires. While souped-up rivals such as the Chevy Camaro ZL1 and Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 are more road-course friendly, the SRT Hellcat has surface-prepared drag strip energy. And a lot of it. The more everyday all-wheel drive, V-6, and smaller V-8 equipped Challenger are reviewed separately.
VEHICLE TYPE
front-engine, rear-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 2-door coupe
Displacement 376 cu in, 6166 cc
Power 797 hp @ 6300 rpm
Torque 707 lb-ft @ 4500 rpmTRANSMISSION 8-speed automatic with manual shifting mode
About Author
