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Car and Driver
Drives AURA Hybrid: 0-60 in 9.4s, 0.76g, 23 observed MPG
Date: May 29, 2007
Source:
CheersAndGears.com
Author: empowah
Source Link
Original Article:
Tested: 2007
Saturn Aura Green Line - Short Take Road Tests
Date: May 2007
Source:
caranddriver.com
Author: Jared Gall
Source Link
http://www.caranddriver.com/shortroadtests...green-line.html
Tested: 2007 Saturn Aura Green Line - Short Take Road Tests
Sorry, Saturn, but we don’t foresee long lines forming at the dealership
for this budget hybrid.
BY JARED GALL, May 2007
Strolling to the parking lot to hop into the Aura at the end of the day,
we noticed our Aura Green Line was red. A red Green Line? How about a
Red Green line: “If the women don’t find you handsome, they should at
least find you handy.”
The Red Green Show was a Canadian parody of home-improvement and outdoor
shows that ran on CBC and PBS from 1991 to 2006. Main character Red
Green was known for his nuggets of humble wit.
What would Red think of the Aura Green Line? Well, the people have
spoken, and they already seem to think the Aura is a handsome car. We
do. Red, what if the women do find you handsome? Does that mean you
don’t have to be handy, then?
Good for the Aura Green Line, because the mild hybrid powertrain in this
car is not particularly handy at acceleration or saving fuel. This is
the same drivetrain that powers the Saturn Vue Green Line, and not the
sort of hybrid that will whoosh around on nothing but electric power.
Rather, the electric motor spins the accessory drive when the Aura is
stopped, allowing the gasoline engine to shut down when stationary. When
the driver takes his or her foot off the brake pedal, the engine starts
back up.
GM says this mild hybrid, although it saves less fuel than a full
hybrid, is a cheaper way to hybrid enlightenment, which is correct. With
a base price of $22,695, this is the cheapest hybrid on the market
today, but just barely. The Aura only undercuts the Toyota Prius by
$100. Our example came with a single option, the $375 Preferred package,
that includes a power driver seat, power mirrors, and steering-wheel
audio controls.
All hybrids do the start/stop trick, but in most the action is (almost)
transparent, and the driver has to pay close attention to notice the
engine starting and stopping. In our long-term Lexus RX400h, often the
only way to tell if the engine was running or not was to look at the
power-flow display on the driver information screen. All you have to do
to tell if the Aura Green Line is running or not is to be in it, since
the 2.4-liter four-cylinder is as smooth and quiet as a riot in a
minefield.
Since we don’t spend much of our time idling in traffic here in Ann
Arbor, Michigan, this hybrid solution netted less-than-spectacular
results for the Aura Green Line’s fuel-economy numbers. We averaged 23
mpg, only 3 mpg better than a V-6 Aura and a number we’re sure Saturn
would rather we didn’t report. Granted, that number includes our
track-testing session and flogging the car from every stop just to hear
the poor 2.4 suffer, but every car we test must protect its petroleum
reserves against the same onslaught.
We could get 23 mpg in a much more entertaining car, one with more than
a mere 164 horsepower, one capable of reaching 60 mph in less than 9.4
seconds and with a quarter-mile better than 17.3 seconds at 83 mph. This
lethargic acceleration is due also to the gearing in the four-speed
automatic, which, to keep revs down at speed, stretches the ratios
farther than an engine with only 159 pound-feet of torque should. More
than four gears would be useful. Heck, they’ve been putting 21-speed
transmissions on bicycles for years that could probably handle the Green
Line’s torque.
We could get that sort of fuel economy in a car that delivered much more
driving excitement than did the Aura, what with its underwhelming 0.76-g
skidpad performance, too. Okay, that number was no doubt hindered by the
budget Uniroyal Tiger Paws, tires that grip the road with all the feeble
tenacity of the runt of the litter and scream just as shrilly at almost
any provocation.
More grip in the Aura Green Line would be useful venturing onto the
freeway, as its lackadaisical acceleration means the safest way to enter
traffic is by building as much speed as possible while orbiting the
on-ramp before actually having to merge, therefore minimizing the amount
of time spent in the travel lanes while the overburdened four-cylinder
strains to get the car to speed.
We could get better fuel economy and better performance from other
vehicles, but could we do it for less than $23,070? Well, actually,
yeah, we could. How about a four-cylinder Honda Accord or Nissan Altima?
GM is working on a full hybrid powertrain for the 2009 Vue, a system
that will cost more but save more fuel. We hope that powertrain will be
shared with the Aura.
VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, front-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door sedan
PRICE AS TESTED: $23,070 (base price: $22,695)
ENGINE TYPE: DOHC 16-valve inline-4, 164-hp, 128 lb-ft; AC
permanent-magnet electric motor, 5 hp, 48 lb-ft; combined system, 164 hp
TRANSMISSION: 4-speed automatic
DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 112.3 in Length: 190.0 in Width: 70.3 in Height: 57.6 in Curb
weight: 3510 lb
C/D TEST RESULTS:
Zero to 60 mph: 9.4 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 27.8 sec
Street start, 5–60 mph: 9.9 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 17.3 sec @ 83 mph
Braking, 70–0 mph: 192 ft
Roadholding, 300-ft-dia skidpad: 0.76 g
FUEL ECONOMY:
EPA city/highway driving: 28/35 mpg
C/D-observed: 23 mpg
