That Was the Year that Was. TACH's European Bureau Chief looks back on 2007
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By Andrew Frankl
European Bureau Chief
The Auto Channel
The last thing you, our faithful readers need during the holiday season is a long, boring article about the rear suspension setting of some obscure automobile so let me make it brief. The choices are all mine so if you disagree please don’t blame anyone but yours sincerely. Here we go.
The car I would pick if I had to have just one:
Volvo V70 XC AWD. Sorry
about all these silly letters but essentially what we are talking about is
Volvo’s cross country, all-wheel drive station wagon/estate car. It
may not be cheap but at around 35 thousand dollars-without some of the
unnecessary extras- it is quick, economical, pleasant to drive, safe with
tons of room for people and luggage, equally at home in the mountains and
by the sea, just one sensible automobile.
Volvo have successfully resisted cost-cutting by filling the car up with cheap and nasty bits and bobs from Ford Motor Company’s parts bin and stuck to their tried and tested components from Sweden. Long may it continue or should I say long may they be allowed to do so.
Dream car of the year:
Mercedes SL. At a –don’t
laugh-relatively cheap-for a dream car- 90 thousand dollars this is just
about perfect for the over 50s. Comfortable, quick, beautiful to look at
with that amazing folding hard-top, it is just fabulous. No wonder the
waiting list stretches from one end of Rodeo Drive to the other.
Surprise of the year:
Mercedes E class. I had to get to Los Angeles from
San Francisco in a hurry and with the 3.2 liter engine the new
“E” got me there in 5 hours flat on one tank of fuel. Bearing
in mind that I averaged 80 miles per hour I found this quite outstanding.
Only problem-the rock hard seat, otherwise a great car at a sensible price
. Drive of the year: a quick dash round middle England in Mr. Bond’s
Vanquish. Not for the faint-hearted.
Thrill of the year-somewhat related to the above:
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Disappointment of the year:
BMW’s ridiculous iDrive system. What
possessed that great company to do such a thing is completely beyond my
comprehension. As I pointed out in Bimmer Magazine it looks as though the
bits one cannot see were designed by the A team and the interior by the
reserves. I hear that the forthcoming 5 series will be a lot more sensible
as a result of all the negative press the company had received over the
7.
Delight of the year:
The amazing comeback by Nissan. After being down in
the dumps they came back with the much-awaited Z and also the award-winning
Infiniti G35. Astonishing what Carlos Ghosn managed to achieve in just
three years.
Surprise of the year:
The new Mazda6. Inexpensive, fun to drive,
clearly designed by real enthusiasts. Welcome back!
Driver of the year:
Michael Schumacher. Yes, he had a great car and a
great engine but to keep it on the island lap after lap, race after race is
just incredible. Well over 1000 racing miles without a single mistake, no
wonder he walked away with the Formula One Championship.
Racing car of the year:
Ferrari’s F1. All credit to Paolo
Martinelli for the design of the engine and to Rory Byrne for the
chassis.
Man of the year:
A tough one this. Let me name several and you take your
pick. Bob Lutz for breathing life into GM, Carlos Ghosn for reviving
Nissan, Luca di Montezemolo for Ferrari’s astonishing success and
Jurgen Schrempp’s team for stopping the hemorrhage at Chrysler. I
would love to name my old mate Nick Scheele from Ford but I think he would
be the first to admit that they have a long way to go.
Most welcome sustenance of the year:
Hot food and stiff drinks courtesy
of GM in freezing Salt Lake City during the Winter Olympics. Thank you
Marcia and Dawn.
Most exciting prospect for 2008:
To drive the Ferrari Enzo. When
I’ve asked Schumacher about this he suggested extreme caution. If
there is one person who knows what he is talking about it has to be the
champ.
Finally may I wish all our readers safe and happy motoring into the New Year.