9ff GT9 in Details

Breaking the 400 km/h (249mph) barrier is no simple task and Porsche specialist tuner, 9ff, from Papenburg Germany have done so with honour. However, despite celebrated claims of breaking the world-record for road-going vehicles at 409 km/h, our research tells us this ain't so.

Regardless, after a couple years of GT9 coverage, 9ff has finally revealed all of the sumptuous technical details, production and pricing of its 400 km/h projectile.

Starting with its powerplant, the 996 Turbo sourced motor has been bored out to 4.0-liters which includes reworked turbos, dry sump oil lubrication system, titanium connecting rods, forged pistons and a 24 carat hard gold plated induction plate. The result is 987 PS / 726 kW at 7,850 rpm. The maximum torque of 964 Nm is reached at 5,970 rpm. Transmission is race prepared sequential unit.

The suspension is electronically adjustable aluminium shock absorbers in connection with double spring rate McPherson front axle and horizontal push-rods at the 5-link rear axle. Brakes disks are ceramic sandwiched by front 6- and rear 4-piston calipers. Special brake pads and an individually engineered race-ABS complete the system.

Lastly, the body is a Frankenstein of sorts, taking the front end of the Porsche GT3 model with a tubular steel-grid and developed a chassis made of very strong yet lightweight carbon and Kevlar fibre.
Vital to reaching speeds over 400 km/h, the under-body casing integrates a wind diffuser which generates additional downforce and stability at high speeds. Additionally, the low height of only 1,180 mm presents an increased aerodynamic profile while giving striking exotic look.

9ff will produce only 20 units of the GT9 for the price of 498,000 Euros.

Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 goes to 584hp, by IMSA

The Lamborghini LP540-4 was first unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show earlier this year, it is powered by a 5.2-liter V10 engine and as the name suggest pumps out 560 ponies and features a 4WD Viscous Traction system. This is the sort of package that puts the it's big brother Murciélago under a lot of pressure to come out with something even more spectacular and Lambo tuning specialists IMSA are hardly doing it any favours.

IMSA have introduced a new sports exhaust system to the model which adds an even stronger melody to the engine and brings total power output to 584hp. The exterior modifications include a new set of lightweight alloys and sports suspension kit along with an aerodynamic enhancing carbon fibre rear wing.

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Supercharger for Mustang GT goes up to 700hp

Roush have announced the new TVS2300 ROUSHcharger, giving all owners of the 2005-2009 Mustang GT the possibility to pump up the power up to 700 horsepower. The new supercharger was first presented to us at the SEMA show last year in the P-51A Mustang, the model had a limited production run of just 100 units but this release shows the American tuning house is looking to offer it to the wider market.

The kit includes a cold air intake system, unique fuel rail with 52 lb.-hr. injectors, a dual 60 mm electronic throttle body, all hardware, brackets and instructions. On its own it will only boost the power output to 510hp but with a little help from custom tuners, consumers can look forward to nearly 200 extra horsepower flowing through to the wheels of the Mustang GT

"The gloves are off for the specialty tuners to get really creative with a ROUSHcharger® now," said Joe Thompson, general manager of ROUSH® Performance. "We’re excited to see what some of these guys can do with the new TVS2300 ROUSHcharger® and really explore the type of performance that this new unit is capable of. We’ve heard some numbers from a couple of exploratory installs already and I must say that they are very impressive."

The new TVS2300 ROUSHcharger is available for $5,899, owners of the existing ROUSHcharger system looking to upgrade can get it slightly cheaper at $4,999.

BMW 6-Series by Hamann

When the E63 BMW 6-Series debuted back in 2003, Hamann brought to market a tuning package a year and a half later. For the facelifted BMW 6-Series which debuted a year ago, it seems Hamann might be speeding up their process, with an all-new styling package which subtly differentiates itself from the original styling kit of 2004. Showing an evolution of design, the aerodynamic package consists of a front and rear bumper fascia, side skirts and rear roof and bott lid spoilers.

KW street comfort for the BMW 3 series coupe E92

Sportier handling and ride comfort all in one is now being offered by KW automotive for the BMW 3 series coupe E92 with a suspension from the KW street comfort product line. This allows the body of the BMW coupe to be lowered between 20 and 40 mm at the front, and between 15 and 35 mm at the back. In spite of the significantly sportier handling, the BMW also excels with outstanding ride comfort, even on poor road surfaces. KW street comfort is available for the BMW E92 with immediate effect.

Porsche Cayenne becomes diesel

It has finally happened. Porsche Cayenne has gone diesel.

Porsche CEO Wendelin Wiedeking (what a name, by the way) has confirmed that next year's Cayenne will be installed with a three-litre V6 diesel developing 237bhp and 406lb ft of torque.

If that sounds familiar, that's because the oil-burner will be transplanted near-unchanged from the Audi Q7 - all part of the Posche/VAG group not-always-so-friendly partnership.

The turbodiesel will haul the Q7 to 60mph in 8.5 seconds and return around 27mpg, so we'd expect similar performance from the Cayenne.

Rather than investing in a new, expensive diesel engine, Porsche has instead ploughed its cash into developing a hybrid system, which should make its way into the Cayenne some time in 2010.

And if you're getting all het up about the idea of a diesel Porsche, just think: it could've been that five-litre V10 turbodiesel out the Touareg. We're not sure whether that'd be better or worse, really...

© Source: topgear
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Porsche's next big thing - A lawn mower

Normally, we have witnessed theme cars and bikes done up by creative artists, car fanatics and even sculptors. Well this time, things area bit different. Here is a unusual lawn mower that Porsche, almost certainly doesn't have a place to display in its showroom, but it unquestionable would adore this creation which wears a Porsche Carrera theme.

Test Drive: 2008 Ford Focus SES coupe with five-speed manual transmission

Ottawa, Ontario - It's not hard to feel vulnerable driving a small car these days, what with so many SUVs, crossovers and pickup trucks on the road. Naturally, when you're driving a compact car like my Ford Focus Coupe tester, you get nervous when you're stopped in rush hour traffic and hear the sound of screeching tires behind you.

Luckily for me, there was a Dodge Ram pickup between my car and a skidding Toyota Tercel which careened into the back of the truck at something like 60 km/h. The Tercel, not surprisingly, was a write off, and the truck sustained a fair amount of damage from the impact too (while the two occupants of the Tercel were taken to hospital, the most serious injury was a broken leg).

How does all of this involve me and the Focus? The impact was serious enough to shunt the truck forward into the Focus' rear bumper. One of the most impressive things about the car was how it held up to this not-insignificant rear-end impact. Where the Ram's front bumper was noticeably dented, the Focus suffered little more than a misplaced rear bumper cover, plus a scratch below the license plate. Once I'd shoved the bumper cover back into place, you'd hardly have known the car had been hit as violently as it had.

The first example of this latest Focus I drove was a four-door sedan way back in February. That car was a fully-loaded SES model with an automatic transmission. The red coupe you see here wore the same top-level trim, but was fitted with the five-speed manual transmission.

The SES coupe's base price is the same as the sedan's, at $19,999. Options on my latest tester included a $1,495 Sport Appearance Package (chrome exterior trim, colour-matched side mirrors and door handles, ambient interior lighting, 16-inch wheels and a "high-performance" instrument panel - the price for this group seems steep for a bunch of things I wouldn't have missed), a power sunroof for $1,000, block heater ($75) and a Sony stereo with six-CD changer and subwoofer, which seems like a decent value for $695. All SES-trim Focuses come with the Ford/Microsoft SYNC hands-free entertainment and communications system.

The Focus is a great example of how small cars no longer have to feel that way. The tall roofline creates lots of headroom, and the high seating position allows for great visibility. The downside of these characteristics is that the Focus tends to feel tippy in corners. Despite that, and the soft suspension, which allows a fair amount of body roll, the Focus handles well and is fun to toss into a corner.

The steering is light but reasonably communicative and the brakes are confidence-inspiring in hard stops, with a firm pedal that's easy to modulate.

The manual shifter is about what you'd expect in a budget-mobile. Shift effort is light, while shift feel is so-so, but the tall shifter falls easily to hand and goes where you tell it to. The clutch is vague, but again, this is nothing you won't be used to if you've used the manual transmission in many of the Focus' competitors.

Fuel consumption during the time I was driving the car was impressive. Through gentle driving, the average consumption readout hovered between 7.0 and 8.0 L/100 km (Ford, for some reason, doesn't like decimals, so "7" or "8" is as accurate a read as you'll get from the car). In any event, that's alright, as the Focus' EnerGuide ratings are 8.5 L/100 km (city) and 5.7 L/100 km (highway). Despite my success in keeping the Focus' thirst down, this exact car only achieved an average of 6.7 L/100 km in the 2008 CanadianDriver 50-litre Challenge. I expected the Focus to fare much better than that on the event's highway route.

As previously alluded to, interior space and comfort are definite Focus strong points. Those looking for maximum front-seat headroom might want to avoid ordering the sunroof, but there's decent space even with it. Leg room is excellent, and the front seats are very comfortable, even if they offer little lateral support.

The Focus coupe rides on the same 2,613 mm (102.9 in.) wheelbase as the sedan, so legroom isn't affected by the loss of two doors (though there's only just enough in either model). Ford claims that sedan and coupe models offer the same 973 mm (38.3 in.) of rear-seat headroom, but it feels like slightly less in the coupe. And, I'll ask this question once again: why does Ford feel that back seat occupants don't rate headrests? Had someone been riding back there when my tester was rear-ended, they'd almost certainly have suffered whiplash.

Strange to say, perhaps, but I think the Focus actually benefits from the durable cloth my tester's seats wore, rather than the leather that last winter's sedan had. It offsets the lack of lateral support and looks okay, too.

The dashboard is laid out sensibly enough, but there are more buttons on the centre stack than seems necessary. At least the various panels and pieces all fit together well, though some of the plastics are a bit hard, and the silver-painted plastic that dominates looks a touch cheap in the right (or is that wrong?) light.

The trunk is a useful size, though that usefulness was compromised in my tester by the subwoofer, which takes up a big chunk of real estate on the left side. The opening revealed by the folding rear seat is generous, though.

I don't know exactly who Ford's going after with the Focus coupe, though I suspect it's the same demographic who might shop for a two-door version of the Pontiac G5/Chevrolet Cobalt twins. The only other two-door sedan that comes to mind is the Honda Civic, and that car is the only compact that does the coupe thing right, with its boy-racer looks. Losing two doors to create a car that is otherwise nearly identical to its four-door sibling seems a bit silly to me, especially considering the coupe replaces the hatchback body style in the Focus lineup.

Despite its less-athletic nature, my favourite aspect of this second-gen car is the quiet and composed way it drives. At least they didn't take that away.

Porsche's next big thing - A lawn mower

Normally, we have witnessed theme cars and bikes done up by creative artists, car fanatics and even sculptors. Well this time, things area bit different. Here is a unusual lawn mower that Porsche, almost certainly doesn't have a place to display in its showroom, but it unquestionable would adore this creation which wears a Porsche Carrera theme.

Test Drive: 2008 Ford Focus SES coupe with five-speed manual transmission

Ottawa, Ontario - It's not hard to feel vulnerable driving a small car these days, what with so many SUVs, crossovers and pickup trucks on the road. Naturally, when you're driving a compact car like my Ford Focus Coupe tester, you get nervous when you're stopped in rush hour traffic and hear the sound of screeching tires behind you.

Luckily for me, there was a Dodge Ram pickup between my car and a skidding Toyota Tercel which careened into the back of the truck at something like 60 km/h. The Tercel, not surprisingly, was a write off, and the truck sustained a fair amount of damage from the impact too (while the two occupants of the Tercel were taken to hospital, the most serious injury was a broken leg).

How does all of this involve me and the Focus? The impact was serious enough to shunt the truck forward into the Focus' rear bumper. One of the most impressive things about the car was how it held up to this not-insignificant rear-end impact. Where the Ram's front bumper was noticeably dented, the Focus suffered little more than a misplaced rear bumper cover, plus a scratch below the license plate. Once I'd shoved the bumper cover back into place, you'd hardly have known the car had been hit as violently as it had.

The first example of this latest Focus I drove was a four-door sedan way back in February. That car was a fully-loaded SES model with an automatic transmission. The red coupe you see here wore the same top-level trim, but was fitted with the five-speed manual transmission.

The SES coupe's base price is the same as the sedan's, at $19,999. Options on my latest tester included a $1,495 Sport Appearance Package (chrome exterior trim, colour-matched side mirrors and door handles, ambient interior lighting, 16-inch wheels and a "high-performance" instrument panel - the price for this group seems steep for a bunch of things I wouldn't have missed), a power sunroof for $1,000, block heater ($75) and a Sony stereo with six-CD changer and subwoofer, which seems like a decent value for $695. All SES-trim Focuses come with the Ford/Microsoft SYNC hands-free entertainment and communications system.

The Focus is a great example of how small cars no longer have to feel that way. The tall roofline creates lots of headroom, and the high seating position allows for great visibility. The downside of these characteristics is that the Focus tends to feel tippy in corners. Despite that, and the soft suspension, which allows a fair amount of body roll, the Focus handles well and is fun to toss into a corner.

The steering is light but reasonably communicative and the brakes are confidence-inspiring in hard stops, with a firm pedal that's easy to modulate.

The manual shifter is about what you'd expect in a budget-mobile. Shift effort is light, while shift feel is so-so, but the tall shifter falls easily to hand and goes where you tell it to. The clutch is vague, but again, this is nothing you won't be used to if you've used the manual transmission in many of the Focus' competitors.

Fuel consumption during the time I was driving the car was impressive. Through gentle driving, the average consumption readout hovered between 7.0 and 8.0 L/100 km (Ford, for some reason, doesn't like decimals, so "7" or "8" is as accurate a read as you'll get from the car). In any event, that's alright, as the Focus' EnerGuide ratings are 8.5 L/100 km (city) and 5.7 L/100 km (highway). Despite my success in keeping the Focus' thirst down, this exact car only achieved an average of 6.7 L/100 km in the 2008 CanadianDriver 50-litre Challenge. I expected the Focus to fare much better than that on the event's highway route.

As previously alluded to, interior space and comfort are definite Focus strong points. Those looking for maximum front-seat headroom might want to avoid ordering the sunroof, but there's decent space even with it. Leg room is excellent, and the front seats are very comfortable, even if they offer little lateral support.

The Focus coupe rides on the same 2,613 mm (102.9 in.) wheelbase as the sedan, so legroom isn't affected by the loss of two doors (though there's only just enough in either model). Ford claims that sedan and coupe models offer the same 973 mm (38.3 in.) of rear-seat headroom, but it feels like slightly less in the coupe. And, I'll ask this question once again: why does Ford feel that back seat occupants don't rate headrests? Had someone been riding back there when my tester was rear-ended, they'd almost certainly have suffered whiplash.

Strange to say, perhaps, but I think the Focus actually benefits from the durable cloth my tester's seats wore, rather than the leather that last winter's sedan had. It offsets the lack of lateral support and looks okay, too.

The dashboard is laid out sensibly enough, but there are more buttons on the centre stack than seems necessary. At least the various panels and pieces all fit together well, though some of the plastics are a bit hard, and the silver-painted plastic that dominates looks a touch cheap in the right (or is that wrong?) light.

The trunk is a useful size, though that usefulness was compromised in my tester by the subwoofer, which takes up a big chunk of real estate on the left side. The opening revealed by the folding rear seat is generous, though.

I don't know exactly who Ford's going after with the Focus coupe, though I suspect it's the same demographic who might shop for a two-door version of the Pontiac G5/Chevrolet Cobalt twins. The only other two-door sedan that comes to mind is the Honda Civic, and that car is the only compact that does the coupe thing right, with its boy-racer looks. Losing two doors to create a car that is otherwise nearly identical to its four-door sibling seems a bit silly to me, especially considering the coupe replaces the hatchback body style in the Focus lineup.

Despite its less-athletic nature, my favourite aspect of this second-gen car is the quiet and composed way it drives. At least they didn't take that away.

Porsche's next big thing - A lawn mower

Normally, we have witnessed theme cars and bikes done up by creative artists, car fanatics and even sculptors. Well this time, things area bit different. Here is a unusual lawn mower that Porsche, almost certainly doesn't have a place to display in its showroom, but it unquestionable would adore this creation which wears a Porsche Carrera theme.

Test Drive: 2008 Ford Focus SES coupe with five-speed manual transmission

Ottawa, Ontario - It's not hard to feel vulnerable driving a small car these days, what with so many SUVs, crossovers and pickup trucks on the road. Naturally, when you're driving a compact car like my Ford Focus Coupe tester, you get nervous when you're stopped in rush hour traffic and hear the sound of screeching tires behind you.

Luckily for me, there was a Dodge Ram pickup between my car and a skidding Toyota Tercel which careened into the back of the truck at something like 60 km/h. The Tercel, not surprisingly, was a write off, and the truck sustained a fair amount of damage from the impact too (while the two occupants of the Tercel were taken to hospital, the most serious injury was a broken leg).

How does all of this involve me and the Focus? The impact was serious enough to shunt the truck forward into the Focus' rear bumper. One of the most impressive things about the car was how it held up to this not-insignificant rear-end impact. Where the Ram's front bumper was noticeably dented, the Focus suffered little more than a misplaced rear bumper cover, plus a scratch below the license plate. Once I'd shoved the bumper cover back into place, you'd hardly have known the car had been hit as violently as it had.

The first example of this latest Focus I drove was a four-door sedan way back in February. That car was a fully-loaded SES model with an automatic transmission. The red coupe you see here wore the same top-level trim, but was fitted with the five-speed manual transmission.

The SES coupe's base price is the same as the sedan's, at $19,999. Options on my latest tester included a $1,495 Sport Appearance Package (chrome exterior trim, colour-matched side mirrors and door handles, ambient interior lighting, 16-inch wheels and a "high-performance" instrument panel - the price for this group seems steep for a bunch of things I wouldn't have missed), a power sunroof for $1,000, block heater ($75) and a Sony stereo with six-CD changer and subwoofer, which seems like a decent value for $695. All SES-trim Focuses come with the Ford/Microsoft SYNC hands-free entertainment and communications system.

The Focus is a great example of how small cars no longer have to feel that way. The tall roofline creates lots of headroom, and the high seating position allows for great visibility. The downside of these characteristics is that the Focus tends to feel tippy in corners. Despite that, and the soft suspension, which allows a fair amount of body roll, the Focus handles well and is fun to toss into a corner.

The steering is light but reasonably communicative and the brakes are confidence-inspiring in hard stops, with a firm pedal that's easy to modulate.

The manual shifter is about what you'd expect in a budget-mobile. Shift effort is light, while shift feel is so-so, but the tall shifter falls easily to hand and goes where you tell it to. The clutch is vague, but again, this is nothing you won't be used to if you've used the manual transmission in many of the Focus' competitors.

Fuel consumption during the time I was driving the car was impressive. Through gentle driving, the average consumption readout hovered between 7.0 and 8.0 L/100 km (Ford, for some reason, doesn't like decimals, so "7" or "8" is as accurate a read as you'll get from the car). In any event, that's alright, as the Focus' EnerGuide ratings are 8.5 L/100 km (city) and 5.7 L/100 km (highway). Despite my success in keeping the Focus' thirst down, this exact car only achieved an average of 6.7 L/100 km in the 2008 CanadianDriver 50-litre Challenge. I expected the Focus to fare much better than that on the event's highway route.

As previously alluded to, interior space and comfort are definite Focus strong points. Those looking for maximum front-seat headroom might want to avoid ordering the sunroof, but there's decent space even with it. Leg room is excellent, and the front seats are very comfortable, even if they offer little lateral support.

The Focus coupe rides on the same 2,613 mm (102.9 in.) wheelbase as the sedan, so legroom isn't affected by the loss of two doors (though there's only just enough in either model). Ford claims that sedan and coupe models offer the same 973 mm (38.3 in.) of rear-seat headroom, but it feels like slightly less in the coupe. And, I'll ask this question once again: why does Ford feel that back seat occupants don't rate headrests? Had someone been riding back there when my tester was rear-ended, they'd almost certainly have suffered whiplash.

Strange to say, perhaps, but I think the Focus actually benefits from the durable cloth my tester's seats wore, rather than the leather that last winter's sedan had. It offsets the lack of lateral support and looks okay, too.

The dashboard is laid out sensibly enough, but there are more buttons on the centre stack than seems necessary. At least the various panels and pieces all fit together well, though some of the plastics are a bit hard, and the silver-painted plastic that dominates looks a touch cheap in the right (or is that wrong?) light.

The trunk is a useful size, though that usefulness was compromised in my tester by the subwoofer, which takes up a big chunk of real estate on the left side. The opening revealed by the folding rear seat is generous, though.

I don't know exactly who Ford's going after with the Focus coupe, though I suspect it's the same demographic who might shop for a two-door version of the Pontiac G5/Chevrolet Cobalt twins. The only other two-door sedan that comes to mind is the Honda Civic, and that car is the only compact that does the coupe thing right, with its boy-racer looks. Losing two doors to create a car that is otherwise nearly identical to its four-door sibling seems a bit silly to me, especially considering the coupe replaces the hatchback body style in the Focus lineup.

Despite its less-athletic nature, my favourite aspect of this second-gen car is the quiet and composed way it drives. At least they didn't take that away.

Bugatti Veyron for £17,500 a day

Want to impress former friends at a school reunion? Why not hire a Bugatti Veyron – for £17,500 a day. For the price of a brand new 2-litre diesel Ford Mondeo, a St. Albans-based company will lease the 253mph Bugatti Veyron for 24 hours.

And there’s no limit on how long you can hire the 1,001bhp Bugatti Veyron.

As a result it will cost £122,000 per week, £580,000 per month or £6.3 million for the year – enough to fund seven-and-a-half £830,000 Veyrons.

Which means the one of the Premiership’s highest paid footballers John Terry – who earns a reported £130,000 a week – could just about afford to hire the hypercar. But the leasing firm wouldn’t let the 27-year-old Chelsea captain hire the Veyron – as he’s not old enough.

To hire the Bugatti Veyron (similar to the one pictured), drivers must be aged between 30 and 65, be no taller than 6ft 3in or heavier than 18 stone, have no more than six points or made an insurance claim in the past three years.

As part of the deal, anyone who hires the Veyron at the weekend can get 300 ‘free’ miles, before paying £1.50 per mile after that.

The rich renter does get breakdown cover and fully comprehensive insurance – but is responsible for collecting and returning the Veyron.

The Bugatti Veyron is one of a host of luxury cars available for hire from leasing website Erento.

Other cars available include a Lamborghini Murcielago and Mercedes McLaren SLR (£1,500 a day) and Aston Martin DBS which will cost £1,995 per day.

© Source: autotrader
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Is CLEVER the ultimate solution for safe and versatile transportation?

You'd agree with me that a motorcycle can never replace a car as the simplest and cheapest way to get from point A to B. Due to its small length and width, a motorcycle permits you to maneuver through tight gaps and congested roads with a little effort, which a car can certainly not do.

Wald Continental GT Black Bisson Edition

Japan's premiere tuner of European and Japanese premium marques, Wald International, is no stranger to the Continental GT. Back in October 2007 they sent us some tasty images of their styling package for the W12 coupe, and now, have worked their photoshop magic to create a slightly more daring kit.

Under Wald's aggressive Black Bisson Edition, the Conti GT receives a restyled body kit which is hard edged with louvered styling elements. As a quick preview by Wald, no firm information has been released yet, but they provided a series of images which include Wald's 21-inch Portofino, Aufzhalen and Mahora wheel ranges.

G-POWER G4 3.0i EVO III

The German BMW tuning specialists, G-Power, have developed a new supercharger package called, G-POWER EVO III, for the BMW Z4 3.0i. Elevating just past the Z4 M levels, the kit consists of an ASA T1-12 supercharger, air-to-air intercooler, oil cooler, remapped ECU and complete exhaust system including racing-headers and catalytic converters. The result is 375 hp at 6,450 rpm and 420 Nm torque at 4,650 rpm – far above the standard 231 hp BMW Z4 3.0i.

The G-POWER G4 goes from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.9 seconds and 200 km/h in 15.1 seconds, which overshadows the BMW Z4M with a top speed of 300-km/h. The conversion of the standard engine to the G-POWER EVO III configuration is 18,850,00 Euro including the installation; which can only be done at G-Power headquarters in Autenzell Bavaria.

The rest of the G4 package continues into the 4-piece exterior styling kit, coilover suspension, 20-inch wheels, 8-piston brake calipers and disks.

smart car blasts away opposition in Cannonball Run

A smart fortwo gave its high-powered opposition plenty of ‘fuel for thought’ when it sprinted to victory in the Cannonball Run – a 3,000-mile dash across Europe inspired by the famous 80s film starring Burt Reynolds.

Long Term Verdict: 2007 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon

When Jeep decided to build a four-door Wrangler, we were excited about its potential. This was, after all, the first time the legendary Jeep was given two more doors; also, its stretched wheelbase made the interior more people- and cargo-friendly. Then the company announced it was going to build a Rubicon version of the Unlimited, and we knew we'd have to try one out for long-term testing.

The Rubicon package provides enough off-road gear to make it the most capable Wrangler you can buy from the factory: Dana 44 axles front and rear, Tru-Lok remote locking differentials, Rock-Trac two-speed transfer case with 4.00:1 low range, 4.10 rearend (available only on the Rubicon), and BFG Mud Terrains, etc.

It quickly became clear that despite the extra interior volume, Jeep hadn't gone mad and turned the Wrangler into a dolled-up kid hauler. The price you pay for a Rubicon is for its extreme off-road ability, not leather seats (our tester's were cloth) or comfy, cushy headrests (one editor noted they were "hard as rocks"). After ordering a few more items, the bottom line came to $34,730. The MyGIG system also added a slot for a memory stick, which allows you to download music to the 20GB hard drive and use your own images as wallpaper on the screen. However, on two separate occasions, the nav system froze up and, when it started working again, took some time to display the correct location (at one point, the Wrangler's was shown to be in the Pacific Ocean). When we received the Wrangler, MyGIG was a fairly new feature. ( Of course, it never acted up for the dealer, so nothing was done.) We hope Jeep has worked out some of the bugs since then.

In the city, the Wrangler fared better than many expected it to. Truck Trend art director Thomas Voehringer was "surprised and delighted by the versatility of this seemingly narrow-focused off-roader...the Unlimited can easily find its way beyond legal cruising speed on the freeway." Copy chief Jackie Manfredi chauffeured friends to a performance of "Wicked." She explained, "The ladies enjoyed the seats and there was a lot of room," and with the windows up, no noise intruded while the four of them chatted. It isn't the perfect city-dweller, though, and editors noted significant road and tire noise when the windows were down, a nervous attitude on the freeway-if you don't pay attention, it can drift into the next lane. It also tends to get blown around by high winds and it's slow to get to speed: Zero to 60 takes 10 seconds flat.

It also had several opportunities to run off-road. Within a month of its arrival at our office, Truck Trend editor Mark Williams took the Jeep on trails in a 4x4 area just outside Las Vegas. He didn't need to air down for the Rubicon to conquer obstacles with ease and, no surprise, it never got stuck.

Photographer Brian Vance used the Wrangler for a few different adventures. The first, a drive from Los Angeles to Lake Tahoe, made the shortcomings of the V-6 and the old-school automatic stand out. But once there, he removed the hard top and converted the hard-core off-roader into the ideal summertime cruiser. On another trip, he drove to hot springs near Minden, Nevada, and while only 10 miles off paved road, discovered he'd need to navigate an icy trail and ford a river to get where he needed to be. The next day, the Wrangler was just as confident in a sudden snowstorm. Back in town, he used the Rubicon to shuttle around friends whose vehicles were stranded. After returning to Southern California, he and some buddies used the Jeep for a long weekend of off-roading in Death Valley-again, with no problems.

While it was in our fleet, we took the long-termer to the dealer twice. The first trip was for its 6000-mile service (at 5951 miles), when it received the gold package: lube, oil, and filter change, 55-point inspection, and tire rotation, for a total cost of $71.16. Its second service, at 13,029 miles, was its 12,000-mile checkup, when the dealer performed a lube service and oil and filter change, inspected belts and hoses, topped off fluid levels, set tire pressures, and rotated the tires, for $60.74. While there, techs also replaced the trail-damaged license-plate bracket and the bracket's lamp assembly, at a cost of $97.14-a minor price to pay for the fun off-road. Besides, dents and dings add character to a Jeep.

The Wrangler Rubicon did everything it was supposed to, and it performed surprisingly well in areas where it isn't as strong. It takes the go-anywhere philosophy of the Jeep line and goes a step further, adding much of the equipment off-road enthusiasts crave. However, Jeep didn't go too far to the extreme, making sure this remains a decent vehicle for a daily commute-as long as you're willing to accept the compromises that come with a machine this capable.

From the Logbook
"This is as much a single-purpose vehicle as any sports car, just in the opposite direction. Not only is the vehicle twitchy on the highway on a good day, but combine the slab-sided body panels with mud tires and a lot of wind, and you have a tense driving experience."
- Mark Williams

"The four-door is an awesome package visually. The boxy exterior appearance is aggressive, particularly in black. Its overall design respects the WWII military roots while incorporating a bit of the post-millennium Hummer persona as well."
- Thomas Voehringer

"This being my first time in a Jeep I now see the appeal. Some of the best parts of a truck and SUV without a lot of the bad (I'm not hauling lumber or kids)."
- Mike Royer

"The Wrangler is a total time warp. It's as if Jeep refused to let go of the 1950s. It's so archaic in so many ways-front and rear solid axles, totally Spartan interior (although the nav and power windows and locks are refreshing), high step-in, no side airbags-yet it's somehow endearing. In some ways the Wrangler is like an automotive history book that teaches you how cars used to be built."
- Ron Kiino[source:MotorTrend]