February 12, 2012
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The cars of 2009: A year of industry turmoil
Written by Sally Sanders
Thursday, 07 January 2010 11:37
2009 was a year of churn in the automotive industry. General Motors and Chrysler accepted huge bailouts from the government; Fiat, having failed to dent the U.S. market during the 1970s and ’80s, finally bought its way in by purchasing Chrysler; and GM announced it would close or sell its Hummer, Pontiac, Saab and Saturn divisions.
Yet, for all the weakness of the economy and the near-failure of iconic automaking companies, life and innovation go on. Many of the cars we test-drove during 2009 left a favorable impression, though only one — the mildly retro Chevrolet Camaro — truly wowed us with its combination of style, performance, quality and value.
By contrast, many of the bargain-priced models we drove seemed under-equipped or overpriced, depending on the trim level. Most of the sedans and crossovers were wonderful to drive, but how much quieter, smoother and more athletic can such cars be? It comes down to style and marketing, and tiny increments of improvement over past models.Here, then, are our cars of the year for 2009, culled from the models we drove during the past year:
Sports car
“The Camaro, an icon of the muscle-car era, is a design triumph,” we said of the most exciting new car to come out of General Motors in years. “A stunningly beautiful car, it is also very fast, with a choice of 304-horsepower V-6 or 426-horsepower V-8 engine, as well as a choice of 6-speed Hydra-Matic or 6-speed manual transmission. The rear-wheel-drive coupe handles superbly, rides reasonably comfortably and quietly, and the base model is priced at just $22,680.”
We’d have liked to have seen higher fuel economy (we did no better than 24 mpg with the V-6 package), better visibility, a roomier back seat and bigger trunk opening, but you can’t come close to this level of style and performance at this price.
Economy car
We weren’t crazy about the performance and handling of Toyota’s redesigned Prius, but the automotive world’s reigning fuel-economy champ is pleasant enough to drive and highly functional in terms of passenger room, cargo space and versatility. Yes, there were compact and even subcompact cars we liked better. But the Prius’ otherworldly mileage numbers — we averaged between 47 and 48 mpg — put it in a class by itself. “This is one car that can make you feel good about what you’re driving, without feeling bad about the way it drives,” we wrote.
Sedan
BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen are trying to bring modern diesel technology to the American road, having had considerable success with it in Europe. Today’s diesel cars are almost as smooth and powerful as those with gasoline engines, they are essentially odor-free, and they deliver much better fuel economy than their gasoline-powered peers. Rated at 36 mpg on the highway, our 2009 BMW 335d had more horsepower and torque than the 328i, but it also came at a cost premium of more than $10,000. Since diesel fuel costs more than gasoline and the 328i isn’t exactly a gas-guzzler, you’d have to drive many hundreds of thousands of miles to benefit financially from the higher fuel economy. Still, we said of the 335d: “This BMW is satisfied never to let you forget it’s a BMW.”
Crossover/SUV
Among the many models in this segment we drove during 2009, two stood out: the redesigned Chevrolet Equinox and the Mazda CX9. The Mazda gets the nod on the strength of its superb driving dynamics, refinement, exemplary crash-test results, high comfort levels and good reliability. Our all-wheel-drive CX9 averaged just 17.4 mpg; Mazda’s compact CX7 crossover is rated at 28 mpg on the highway, about what you’d expect from the Equinox. As we’ve said in the past about the CX9, “It comes down to what you’d rather own and what you’d rather drive.”
Steven Macoy ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) is a longtime car enthusiast and full-time editor who lives in Bethel, Conn.
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