Seat Time is a chance for us to share our impressions of vehicles being tested in the Autoline Garage and at media previews from around the globe.

Reviewer: Seamus McElroy
Manufacturer: Hyundai
Make: Hyundai
Model: Sonata
Type: 4-door mid-size sedan
Competitors: Toyota Camry, Nissan Altima, Honda Accord, Ford Fusion, Chevrolet Malibu
Price: Base = $21,960
Made in: Montgomery, Alabama
Drivetrain: 2.4L GDI Four-Cylinder w/ six-speed automatic. 2.0L Four-Cylinder Turbo w/ six-speed automatic. 1.6L Four-cylinder Turbo w/ seven-speed dual-clutch transmission.
EPA Ratings: 2.4 GDI – 25MPG city/ 37MPG highway. 2.4 GDI (Sport & Limited) – 24MPG city/ 35MPG highway. 2.0T – 23MPG city/ 32MPG highway. 1.6T – 28MPG city/ 38MPG highway (estimated)

Final Impression:

The Sonata is currently the second best selling vehicle in Hyundai’s line-up, accounting for a quarter of its sales. But the past two years sales have dropped after peaking in 2011 to over 215,000 units. And the trend is continuing this year. But the company says its held back production in order to focus on quality over quantity. Never the less, its not a good direction to be heading.

Hyundai has just started rolling out the new model which it believes has the potential to be as successful as the outgoing model.

The 2015 Sonata features what Hyundai calls its Fluidic Sculpture 2.0 design. The company says, instead of going with a bold and aggressive look like the previous model, it wanted to give the car a more premium look which I think it accomplished. But the company doesn’t want to lose the customers that liked the bold styling of the previous model. That’s why Hyundai created a new Sport model, that features a more aggressive looking front fascia and rocker panel moldings. Plus it comes with dual exhaust instead of single like the rest of the Sonata line-up.

Inside, the style is also dialed back but the climate, audio controls along with the optional nav screen are well laid out. There’s plenty of room inside thanks to the increased passenger volume. And since Hyundai doesn’t offer a V6 with the Sonata its able to provide more passenger space than its competitors. The 2.0T model interior comes with a D-cut steering wheel with paddle shifters, a different gear shift lever, aluminum pedals and a instrument cluster with needle gauges. And like the exterior design of the Sport model, these sportier interior upgrades are meant to appeal to the buyer looking for more expressive styling.

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Seat Time is a chance for us to share our impressions of vehicles being tested in the Autoline Garage and at media previews from around the globe.

Reviewer: Seamus McElroy
Manufacturer: Toyota
Make: Scion
Model: tC
Type: 2-door coupe
Competitors: Hyundai Veloster, Subaru BRZ, Scion FR-S, Honda CR-Z
Price: Base Automatic = $20,965. As Tested = $23,166
Made in: Tsutsumi, Japan
Drivetrain: 2.5L 4-cylinder w/ 6-speed automatic transmission
EPA Ratings: 23MPG city/31MPG highway. Observed – 26MPG

Final Impression:

While the FR-S is the car that’s been getting all the attention in Scion’s line-up lately, the tC is actually the best selling model for the company. Through May Scion has sold over 7,800 tC’s, a gain of nearly 10% compared to last year while sales of the FR-S have plunged 21%, to a little over 6,500 units.

Perhaps that’s due to the “newness” of the FR-S wearing off or maybe customers are realizing that the tC offers a better everyday driving experience. While it doesn’t have the performance of a FR-S, the tC is still a fun, sporty car to drive and is much more comfortable to ride in during your normal driving routine. The FR-S is good for a day out on the track but it can be kind of a harsh ride out on the road.

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UP FOR DISCUSSION:
- Fuel Cell Vehicles or “Fool” Cell Vehicles?
- Ford reveals its new Fusion-based Edge and readies it for a global play.

SPECIAL GUEST: John Krafcik, President, TrueCar
- One of the most dynamic executives in the industry today.

All that and more with John McElroy, Autoline.tv; Todd Lassa, Automobile; Steve Finlay, Ward’s Dealer Business.

Thanks to our sponsor who makes Autoline After Hours possible: Bridgestone.

Subscribe to the free podcast version of Autoline After Hours:

Thanks to our partners and friends AutoFieldGuide.com, DrivenMavens.com and WardsAuto.com for embedding AAH!

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UP FOR DISCUSSION:
- GM CEO Mary Barra Returns to the Hill.
- J.D. Power, AutoPacific and Edmunds are out with their latest ratings. Who’s tops?

SPECIAL GUEST: Oliver Schmidt, General Manager, Engineering & Environmental Office, Powertrain & Fuel Strategy, VWoA

All that and more with John McElroy, Autoline.tv; Gary Vasilash, Automotive Design & Production; Mark Phelan, Detroit Free Press.

Thanks to our sponsor who makes Autoline After Hours possible: Bridgestone.

Subscribe to the free podcast version of Autoline After Hours:

Thanks to our partners and friends AutoFieldGuide.com, DrivenMavens.com and WardsAuto.com for embedding AAH!

John McElroy, Autoline.tv and Gary Vasilash, Automotive Design & Production answer viewer questions about GM CEO Mary Barra’s appearance before Congress on June 18, 2014 regarding the botched ignition switch recall.

Seat Time is a chance for us to share our impressions of vehicles being tested in the Autoline Garage and at media previews from around the globe.

Reviewer: Sean McElroy
Manufacturer: General Motors
Make: Chevrolet
Model: Camaro Z/28
Type: 2-door coupe
Competitors: Ford Mustang Boss 302, Nissan GTR, Porsche 911 S
Price: $75,155 – $76,150 (Including destination charges)
Made in: Oshawa, ON
Drivetrain: 7.0L V8 (505 hp, 481 lb-ft) mated to TREMEC 6-speed manual transmission
EPA Ratings: 13MPG city, 19MPG, 15MPG combined

Final Impression:

The idea behind the original 1967 Camaro Z/28 was to create a race-ready car to compete with Ford Mustangs in the SCCA Trans-Am racing series. Fast forward to today and the race track is exactly where the new Z/28 feels most at home. I recently got some time behind the wheel at the GingerMan Raceway in Michigan and what a blast it was.

Even though the Z/28 is street-legal, I overheard some of the Chevy folks say that they really want customers to drive this car on the track and I agree. I just wish I had more time behind the wheel and got to drive it on the street as well, just to see what it would be like. Although, there are plenty of other versions of the Camaro that are much better suited for everyday street driving. But once you look at the list of standard features on the Z/28 you just might start to understand why it should be on the track. It comes with things like Brembo carbon ceramic brakes, a slew of performance suspension upgrades and only comes with one speaker to save weight. In fact that one speaker is only there for the turn signal chime. And there’s just one option package available on the Z/28, which adds air conditioning and a 6-speaker audio setup.

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Today’s air conditioning systems use less refrigerant than in the past so it’s very important to have the correct system charge. Plus, lets take a look at why it’s almost never a good idea to use an A/C sealer.

Seat Time is a chance for us to share our impressions of vehicles being tested in the Autoline Garage and at media previews from around the globe.

Reviewer: John McElroy
Manufacturer: General Motors
Make: Cadillac
Model: ELR
Type: 2-door, 4-seater
Competitors: Tesla Model S, BMW i3
Price: Base: $75,000. As tested: $82,135
Made in: Detroit, Michigan, USA
Drivetrain: 162 kW electric motor, 16.5 kWh li-on battery; 1.4 L I-4 range extender
EPA Ratings: 82 MPGe electric mode; 33 mpg gasoline only. Observed: 40 mpg combined.

Final Impression:

The Cadillac ELR is a plug-in hybrid built off the same architecture as the Chevy Volt. It’s a stunningly good looking coupe with a luxurious interior and a lot of improvements over the Volt. One of the most fun features that I came to love about driving this car is that you practically never have to touch the brake pedal.

On the ELR, the paddles behind the steering wheel don’t shift the transmission. Instead, they engage the regenerative braking, which activates a generator that helps recharge the battery. But that regenerative action is enough to slow the car down.

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UP FOR DISCUSSION:
- After driving BMW’s M3 and M4, we ask: how will sports cars evolve?
- Thoughts on the Cadillac ELR’s failure to perform.
- By 2025, survey says, 75% of North American pickups will be aluminum.

SPECIAL GUEST: Mark Stielow, Program Engineer Manager, Chevrolet Camaro Z/28
- How and why his team developed a $70,000 Camaro

All that and more with John McElroy, Autoline.tv; Gary Vasilash, Automotive Design & Production; Michelle Krebs, AutoTrader Group.

Thanks to our sponsor who makes Autoline After Hours possible: Bridgestone.

Subscribe to the free podcast version of Autoline After Hours:

Thanks to our partners and friends AutoFieldGuide.com, DrivenMavens.com and WardsAuto.com for embedding AAH!

Seat Time is a chance for us to share our impressions of vehicles being tested in the Autoline Garage and at media previews from around the globe.

Reviewer: Chip Drake
Manufacturer: Volkswagen AG
Make: Volkswagen
Model: e-Golf SEL, Golf R, Golf Sportwagen and Sportwagen TDI
Type: 2 & 4-door hatch
Competitors: Ford Focus Electric, Fiat 500-e, Spark-ev (e-Golf);
Subaru WRX STI, Mitsubishi EVO x (Golf R);
Honda CR-V, Ford Focus Hatchback, Scion xB (Golf Sportwagen)
Price: No pricing available for e-Golf, Golf R or Golf Sportwagen at the time of this review.
Made in: Puebla, Mexico
Drivetrain: A 115-horsepower electric motor powers the e-Golf;
The Golf R has a more advance model of the new GTI’s four-cylnder turbocharged direct-injection TSI 2.0-liter w/ appx 80 more horsepower than the GTI’s 210;
Golf Sportwagen comes with two powertrains: 1.8-liter turbocharged, direct injection four-cylinder w/ five-speed manual or six-speed AT or the TDI Clean Diesel powered by 2.0-liter common-rail turbocharged, diect-injection diesel engine w/ six-speed manual & DSG dual-clutch AT.
EPA Ratings: e-Golf (max range of 115 miles appx.)
(There are no EPA numbers for either the R or Sportwagen at this writing.)

Final Impression:
VW did not have either a Golf R or Sportwagen to test drive on the event. We were able to drive the e-Golf for a two-mile loop which drove like your basic electric car: quiet, high torque and fun… for the whole two miles.