 PEOPLE VS. 2005 TOYOTA TACOMA PRERUNNER L: The first time I tested a Tacoma, I recall Toyota's sense of nervousness about the truck. This was the first imported truck to challenge Detroit's dominance in truck sales, and it made sure it did so only with a V-6 engine. I drove it on the Crosstown Expressway in Tampa, Florida, an undulating stretch of concrete ribbon that is elevated above the landscape and the crowded traffic lanes below. What I remember best is how well the Tacoma rode. Not at all like the bouncy trucks I was used to. This one smoothed out the dips and rises, yet performed as well as some bigger trucks - with thirstier engines. That still holds true for the Tacoma. It's one of the best-riding trucks available, and its price starting at $22,175 for our tester seems downright reasonable by today's standards. (We had options that brought the final price to $26,851.) Our tester was a TRD model that made it suitable for serious off-road use. Its 245-horsepower V6 had plenty of oomph. And the automatic transmission had 4-wheel drive optional with a simple bump of the shifter to the left. But this one had a hard time winning my heart. First off, I was confronted with six - count 'em - six nails in the left front tire as I left work one day. Roofing nails. From my office's parking lot. Late arrival at home didn't put me in a good mood, but at least I got to watch a service station guy assemble a special tool needed to lower the spare tire down from its place beneath the pickup bed. The damaged wheel/tire could not be put back under the truck, so it was tossed in the pickup bed. The next day saw yet another nail - in the spare tire! (Hurricane Charley last summer left us enough nails to insure flat tires for the next two years.) But, what the heck, I needed to haul yard debris to the curb and the Tacoma was the first truck I'd had in awhile. The tire wasn't leaking air, so the nail stayed put. That's when I discovered there was something wrong with the tailgate. It wouldn't lower. No, it wasn't locked. It just wouldn't lower. So I ended up hauling without benefit of a tailgate. Okay, so the Tacoma is still one of the best trucks (don't dare call it small when it fills an entire traffic lane), but I'm having trouble developing any fondness for it. And its 18 mpg city and 22 mpg highway makes it even less desirable as I see $2.23 a gallon for regular gasoline. Overall, it's guilty of not fitting my lifestyle needs. Good truck, wrong buyer.
PEOPLE VS. 2005 JAGUAR S-TYPE R: The 2005 Jaguar S-Type R spent two weeks, not the usual one, in my driveway for testing. And, like the Tacoma truck, it didn't fit my lifestyle either. It's an anachronism today, a smallish, extremely powerful sedan that only seats two comfortably and gulped $10 to $15 in premium gasoline every day I drove it. It has old-style flip-lid exterior door handles that date it and scream for a styling update. Yet it costs an astounding $61,230. It would like to complete with models from BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Audi, but a buyer would be hard-put to explain why this Jaguar would top their list. It has 390 horses under the hood, thanks to a supercharged V8 engine that returns an EPA-estimated 17 mpg in the city and 24 on the highway. I never did that well. Even using adaptive cruise control most of the time (a terrific feature of expensive cars that speeds the car up or slows down with traffic in your lane). And it has automatic everything, as expected, turning on the headlights at dark and windshield wipers when a speck of rain dots the windshield. The tires look like they belong on a drag racer, but it's ludicrous to think of speeding or even driving rapidly in the sometimes bumper-to-bumper traffic that is the norm this time of year in Florida (and always in parts of California as well as most metropolitan areas). In short, this car's potential can't be realized and you'll pay a stiff penalty at the gas pumps. What a deal, huh? Pay without play isn't much fun. The back seat's foot room is laughable, which is why this should not be considered a sedan for daily use by more than two people. The Toyota Prius that preceded this Jaguar had a far roomier interior. To finish off a not-so-great two weeks, the CD player sucked up two discs that it wouldn't return. They're still in there.
PEOPLE VS. 2005 SUBARU LEGACY GT: Now we're talking fun. Tell me again why you want to spend all that money on a quick BMW when you could spend $29,170 and have this decked-out Legacy GT with all-wheel drive that will run without just about anything. The GT was a week of solid pleasure to drive. Its 2.5-liter turbocharged engine was always ready to zip it ahead. The all-wheel drive and anti-lock brakes that are standard kept the confidence level high on rain-slicked highways. And despite the plethora of horses that begged full-bore acceleration, the GT returns 19 mpg city and 25 mpg highway. This 6-CD setup gave me back my discs. The GT has most of the features we've come to expect in cars at this mid-level and represents solid value when its reliability is considered. If you're considering a hot performing little sedan, you owe it to yourself to test drive a Legacy GT before you finally shell out your dollars.
PEOPLE VS. 2005 TOYOTA PRIUS: Let us now talk about the best auto buy on the planet. This is it. The 2005 Toyota Prius for a starting price of $20,875. Our tester had virtually every extra-cost option Toyota could throw on this little thriftmobile and had a bottom line of $26,680. For that amount, we had features most often found only in cars north of $50,000. We had a navigation system, voice command of that and the audio system, side head curtains, remote keyless entry, cruise control, vehicle stability control, special headlights ... In short, this car that returns 60 mpg in the city and 51 on the highway has the features of a luxury car at a price half that usually paid for gas guzzlers that offer this much. In real use for a week, on a 60-mile daily commute that is part-city, part country road, the Prius returned a 52.5 mpg average. Its combination of electric motor and four-cylinder gasoline engine gave it plenty of power for either city driving or highway cruising. Interior room is magnificent, with lots of foot room for rear seat passengers in this sedan. The continuously variable transmission, also found now in Ford products, is the future. Prius just has a big head start on that future. This is an immensely pleasing vehicle to drive. People love it. And they love you for your consideration of our environment and the depleting oil supply. I'm pleased that a county adjacent to my own purchased many original Priuses, has bought more, and recently ordered a bunch of hybrid Ford Escapes. This is wise use of tax dollars. This is good government. Government employees at every level should drive this - and then we wouldn't have to fret about Social Security going belly-up in our lifetimes.
PEOPLE VS. 2005 FORD FIVE HUNDRED and MERCURY MONTEGO: This might raise the hairs on the backs of some necks, but anyone who test drives all vehicles shouldn't be surprised at what I'm about to say: The Chrysler 300 is a very good car, a distinctively styled sedan that has garnered Car of the Year awards, but the Ford 500 is better. So is the Mercury Montego. I think Ford Motor Co. missed the entry deadline. The 500/Montego (essentially the same vehicle) is better for just about every reason I can think of except the 300's distinctive styling - that some folks hate. The 500 tested was $29,815 decked out. The Montego had a few more optional items and was $30,385. But both are better specifically because they have all-wheel drive standard and a continuously variable transmission that must be felt to be believed. That combination takes the ample power from a V6 engine (it's no Hemi, but do you really need that?) and returns 19 mpg in the city and 26 on the highway. Both cars have needed safety features, but side and head curtain air bags added $595 to the price of the Montego. Buy 'em. As is usual with Ford products, the pedals adjusted to suit any driver's size. These are new models, thoroughly up to date. They will not be antiquated in a year or two and are not at the end of their model run, like the Jaguar reviewed above. If these had a V8 engine, it's easy to imagine them as the highway patrol car of the future. They look like one, but the Crown Vic will continue to be a police favorite, while the Grand Marquis attracts gray heads who play golf. I'd take either of these, however. Rarely have test weeks been so .. normal. So pleasant. Just .. easy. As should always be the case, but rarely is.
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© 2005, Robert C. Bowden
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