2010 Honda Gold Wing GL18BM airbag review

900 POUNDS O’ FUN, FOR A PRICE ($27,999)

 

Honda's Gold Wing offers hefty, plush fun.

 

 

Picture a small cow with an engine, two wheels and the plushest saddle this side of an office chair, and you can imagine regarding the Gold Wing. At almost 900 pounds, you need a gym-toned torso, arms and thighs to stop at lights, corner or park it, though you do have a bit of help — it’s got reverse. Add cruise control, linked front and rear brakes, more compartments and storage than an Egyptian tomb, an intercom system, auxiliary plug for an MP3 unit and more, and you’ve got a ready-for-anything cross-country ride. It’s also not for the budget-minded; its sticker of $27,999 could buy you two and a half Hyundai Accent Blues, which start at $10,690. (There are less expensive base models, however.)

I mounted my test Gold Wing at a Queens dealership and headed off to Manhattan over the 59th Street bridge at, I’m not ashamed to say, Grandma speed. Sure, I’ve ridden motorcycles on race tracks, but I’ve never ridden three at the same time, which is what it was like navigating this torpedo. After 30 minutes, I started to get the hang of the heft and was actually leaning over, accelerating quickly, mounting and dismounting easily, and playing jazz on its crystal-clear sound system.

Later that night, I was comfortable enough to plop a passenger in the luxurious but snug rear seat and cart her about the boroughs like royalty. With a midnight moon above our heads, heading north on the FDR drive became a sublime New York moment.

The biggest challenges were stopping and holding steady while stationary. Again, though, practice made — okay, not perfect, but a little less awkward. Another caveat was overnight storage: The beast wouldn’t fit through the doorway-sized metal bars at the entrance of the place I park my bikes. Off to a nearby garage I sped, where I was charged the same day rate as — guess what? — a Hyundai Accent.

As the test period rolled on, I marveled anew each day at the bike’s goodies, which rival and best those found in some automobiles. For starters, the Gold Wing’s got a fully integrated, color screen navigation system with complete maps of the U.S. and Canada. The chilly winter wind is alleviated with 5-position heated grips and a system channels heated air over the rider’s feet. It’s also got a front airbag. Finally, its fuel-injected 1,832cc 6-cylinder engine is beastly but smooth, and adds to the overall grand Gold Wing experience.

You haven’t seen New York City until you’ve seen it by motorcycle, and you haven’t seen it by motorcycle until you’ve seen it on a Gold Wing at midnight.

New colors for 2010 include Metallic Red, Metallic Black, with Metallic Titanium and Pearl Yellow returning.

-Josh Max, AutoGigolo

2011 Chevy Silverado 2500 HD Base price: $27,965

“BRING IN A TANK, I’LL SELL THE (!) THING!” – Frank Rizzo, Jerky Boys, 1992

You are what you drive whether you know it or not, and when you navigate the Silverado 2500, with its Duramax Diesel engine, miles of metal and guttural engine, you’re the Hulk.  Man or woman, your vocabulary boils down to grunts and head-nods.  Your sleeves fall off, stubble appears on your mug, and you squint.

 

Haul it, tow it, pack it - it's all good in the Silverado 2500.

 

You’ll be tossed around like the shot in a maraca when driving with an empty bed over rough roads, but since the purpose of this machine is to haul and tow stuff, that’s no sin – this thing can tow up to 17, 800 pounds, and a 36-gallon tank allows you to travel up to 680 highway miles on a single fill-up. Yet it’s quiet, and smells not – I wasn’t even aware my test vehicle had a diesel engine until I felt it in my feet, and checked the press materials.  (There’s a certain “numb” feeling in the accelerator of many diesel-powered cars and trucks…and, yes, sometimes I deliberately don’t read anything about what I’m testing until I’ve had it a few days, so I can form opinions unencumbered by hype.)

An all-new chassis features a high-strength, fully boxed steel frame that’s five times torsionally stiffer than previous models and lets the Silverado 2500HD shoulder up to 4,192 lbs.of payload.  That’s a lot of pianos, pal.  Or debris from a construction job. Or your lawn equipment, building materials or what-have-you.

 

Members of United Auto Workers Local 598 make an adjustment to the chassis of the 2011 Chevrolet Silverado HD pickup at the Flint Assembly Plant.

 

The truck also comes with a lot of stuff you wouldn’t know about unless you read up, including:

Hill Start Assist On uphill inclines greater than a 5% grade, Hill Start Assist automatically engages to hold the truck stationary for about a second after the brake is released. This gives the driver time to accelerate before the truck can roll backward.

Trailer Sway Control Working in conjunction with StabiliTrak, the Trailer Sway Control feature senses trailer sway and automatically applies the truck’s brakes to help reduce sway and help maintain control.

Bigger, stronger brakes Larger rotors and calipers improve brake pedal feel and result in shorter pedal travel. With Intelligent Brake Assist, the calipers are preloaded. When the system senses a panic-braking situation, the brakes can be fully applied more quickly.

Obviously, none of the above really applies to a week-long test with nothing towed, hauled, climbed or clobbered.  But you can feel it in your hands and feet – this Hulk gets ‘er done.  For the driver, there’s goodies galore, like:

• Heated, leather-appointed front bucket seats with dual-density foam.
• Driver Information Center displaying engine hours, fuel range, fuel used, transmission temperature and more
• Dual glove boxes (WT and LT models) providing nearly 9 liters of combined cargo space
• Humongous storage areas for front-seat passenger, including lockable underseat storage space on LT
• Room for up to three in Regular Cab and up to six in Extended Cab and Crew Cab
• There’s also satellite radio, blue-tooth hook up, and a pretty decent sound system. The optional, dealer-installed Chevrolet Wi-Fi by Autonet Mobile turns the Silverado HD into a mobile hotspot. 
  

  There are nooks, crannies, pockets and storage spaces galore.

I put two pals in the back seat – hauling about 300 pounds between the two.

“What do you think?” I yelled.

I couldn’t hear ‘em because they were being tossed all over the place.

“WITH A FULL LOAD, IT’S A SMOOTHER RIDE!” I shouted.  They staggered like drunks when I dropped them off.

Bottom line? GM makes ferocious trucks.  I’ve known that since I was 5, when the GMC school bus would roll up in front of my driveway, its badge bigger than my entire body.   I’ve never forgotten the feeling of getting into that mammoth spaceship, and climbing into the Silverado evoked the same feeling.

Base price is $27,965, but that’s nude, dude. Spring for the options, it’s a lot more coin, natch.

For loaded prices, trim levels, and more, click here.

-Josh Max, Auto Gigolo

Park your temper, too, when operating new meters

“Little Joe never once gave it away.  Everybody had to pay and pay.” Lou Reed, “Walk On The Wild Side,” 1972

 

Once upon a time, Manhattan drivers could park their horses for free on any street. The automobile came along and, by the 1930s, there were too many cars for too few spaces all over the USA.  Solutions were demanded, a few were proffered, and finally an Oklahoma newspaper editor named Carl Magee was issued patent #2, 118, 318 on May 24, 1938 for a “coin controlled parking meter.”    By the early 1940s, there were over 150,000 parking meters all over America.

After decades of service, the coin-operated meter is being replaced by a computerized boxes requiring drivers to buy time by coin or credit card—or a special parking card one can obtain by calling 311.  The driver is then issued a slip of paper indicating the time purchased and the expiration date, which must be displayed right side up on the dashboard, visible to the fuzz through the windshield.

No longer do meter men and women need approach ten coin meters on each street and empty them of quarters.  It’s one box per street now, maybe two on longer streets, more on avenues.  You can’t bang the box on the side of its head and get a few more minutes, either, as you used to with coin meters.

The new system sucks for drivers, though.  The new boss is an occasional bone-headed, inept tightwad who isn’t giving away anything, not even the 5 or 10 minutes left on the last guy’s meter.

Once upon a time, a driver could take advantage of the unused parking meter time left by other drivers, count on a grace period of one to as many as nine minutes before a parking meter’s “expired” red flag would pop up, and, most importantly, be able to park, pop a quarter in the meter, and be on our way.   That’s through.

Clearly, the new boss sucks.

When you drive to Manhattan, be sure to bring a roll of quarters (in case you find yourself parked at a meter coughing up a measly 10 minutes per quarter) a bunch of dollar coins (so if you encounter a parking box, you need not feed it 16 or 20 quarters) or be prepared to insert your credit/debit card in case the new machine’s coin slot decides to freeze shut.

Also, sometimes the coin slot—the keeper of the gate—closes in between coins and you stand there like a dummy before it deigns to open up again for whatever reason.

Ok, gripe over.

Here’s what other municipalities are doing about parking in unique if big-brotherish ways, and you can bet none are buying ads saying, “Our new improved method of parking is going to cost less!” It’s always more, folks—remember that. Always more.

*Smart spots

These are pavement-embedded sensors which detect whether or not a space is occupied. When someone drives away, the sensor clears the meter, so you can’t hitchhike on someone else’s dime.

*Paying by cell phone

On some meters in Las Vegas, drivers can make meter payments via their cell phones, and receive text messages warning them 10 minutes before the meter expires. They can then buy more time without visiting the meter again. In Coral Gables, Fla., motorists register their license plate number, credit card information and cell phone, then call a special number after they park, entering a lot and/or space number.

*In-car meters

Aspen, Colorado drivers purchase meters that hang from the rear-view mirror, pre-paying for a block of time. They switch the meter on when they park, it counts down the time and replenishes itself by automatic payment.

*Infrared license plate scanners

In Sacramento and Chicago, parking enforcement vehicles are rigged with infrared camera systems that scan license plates and link to a GPS system, which can tell them which cars have been parked too long in a two-hour zone. You know what happens next.

*Multipurpose parking cards

In Bridgeport, CT, motorists can purchase metered parking with a debit card that also can be used to shop at participating stores and other municipalities.

- Josh Max, AutoGigolo.com

Best car ad of the week

SO IT’S FROM 1982—IT STILL RAWKS!

Shortest road test EVER.

New law punishes inattentive, incompetent drivers who kill

CONSEQUENCES FOR CAR “ACCIDENTS” CAUSING DEATH

In the circle of auto pundits  I travel in, many  say “crashes” instead of  ”accidents” because “accident” implies a circumstance out of the driver’s control,  rather than what usually causes highway crashes—driver error, inattention or incompetence.

How many hundreds of millions of drivers are there out there on the road—and what sort of testing do we require to judge competence?  Exactly one road test, and no follow-up test, except for eyesight, our entire lives—not in a year, not in ten years, not in fifty years.  Don’t we also need tests for hearing, reflexes, ability to respond to emergency situations?

How seriously, then, do we currently take vehicular manslaughter? Not very.

Hayley and Diego’s Law, reported below by the NY Daily News,  may not save any lives in the short term, but it’s another affirmative step in sending the message that the government, responsible for issuing licenses to drive, is taking vehicular incompetence and inattention as seriously as driving while impaired/drunk.

The NY Daily News reports.

- Josh Max, Auto Gigolo

2011 Mazda MX-5 Miata MSRP: $28,400

PEANUT CAR IS CITY CHAMP

The MX-5's a snappy, speedy little guy.

Folks who drive cars in the city often keep it on the down-low, as friends will expect them to move furniture or haul the gang.  No such possibility exists with the pint-sized MX-5 Miata, whose dimensions are suitable for the average jockey and whose storage space won’t even hold a guitar, let alone your pal’s luggage.

This midget ride floats around traffic jams, ala Muhammed Ali, like a butterfly, and its power and torque, via an optional 6-speed shifter, sting like a bee.  It’ll also shoehorn into tight parking spots or nab that tiny space near the fire hydrant that the Escalades and Yukons are too fat to consider. A week’s recent test was accomplished with the hard convertible top mostly closed due to drizzle, which also kept us from videoing, but a fine and fun ride it was nonetheless.

Roll bars keep your noggin safe in the event of a rollover.

The MX-5′s 2.0-liter inline four-cylinder engine making a laughable 167 horsepower actually feels quite powerful when you downshift and step on it, and if you opt for our tester, the best-equipped Grand Touring model, you’ll get a respectable roar and accompanying power.

The 2011 MX-5 interior includes standard power windows with air conditioning and leather wrapped steering wheel on the Sport models. Air conditioning, cruise control, power locks, keyless entry, fog lamps, and steering wheel-mounted audio controls are standard on the Touring models, and optional on the Sport models.

Changes to the 2011 interior included a new center console and armrest, and redesigned seats and door-mounted bottle holders.   The premium Touring package includes an awful-sounding six-disc CD stereo audio system with MP3 compatibility and Bluetooth connectivity. The premium package also includes heated leather seats and Xenon headlamps.

The only caveat is its pricing, which, like anything else, goes up and up and up each year.  If you’ve got a family, this will be your second car.  Or maybe your first, depending on your feelings about your family.

For more information, specs, pricing and trims, click here.

- Josh Max, AutoGigolo

Specs for the 2011 Mazda MX-5 Miata are as follows:

• Pricing: $22,810 MSRP base price; loaded, it’s $31,300
• Engine: 2.0-liter I-4 which generates 167 horsepower.
• Transmission: Five-speed manual transmission.
• Fuel Economy: 21 miles per gallon city and 28 on the highway.
• Car Safety Features: Standard safety features include dual front airbags, side-impact door beams, antilock disc brakes and side airbags.
• Warranty: Mazda’s standard warranty is for 3-years or 36,000 miles, whichever comes first.

2010 Can-Am Spyder RS Roadster – $16,499

SPEEDY, STYLISH THREE-WHEELER LOADS OF FUN

The Can-Am Spyder provides three-wheeled fun.

The Can-Am Spyder was at a slight disadvantage for its road test, but it wasn’t the bike’s fault. I just figured after testing another manufacturer’s lame, ugly three-wheeler last year that you’d seen one motorized trike, you’d seen ‘em all.

I was humbled, then, by the tough, expertly designed and speedily stylish Can-Am. Though this movie star-gorgeous machine’s officially classified as a motorcycle, it’s really a combination of bike, ATV and snowmobile, with all the fun of those rides and far less physical peril due mostly to the rider not having to balance and because it’s equipped with both ABS brakes and a stability system. Its sizzling front end’s similar to the now-defunct Chrysler Prowler in that its two front tires and suspension are exposed Indy-racer style, and it’s got a lot of features you’ll find on big motorcycles, including a much-welcome reverse that’s difficult to quickly shift to but which makes parking the 697-pound Can-Am a fun snap. You’re powered by a 1125-cc, Rotax V-Twin dual overhead cam engine making 107 horsepower and 77 ft-lbs torque.

My maiden journey took me 50 miles north of Manhattan and I’m not ashamed to say I felt every inch the beginner I was initially, white-knuckling it tenderly over Route 87 north at a mere 55 MPH the entire way. That’s because the Can-Am’s handling is so sharp that the bike takes the slightest hint of left or right very seriously, and I pictured myself—needlessly, as it turned out—sneezing and subsequently pitching into the brush in Hawthorne. I was far more confident on the return trip and realized the bike likes to be thrown, responding to sharp turns not with any loss of control, but actually encouraging you to do your worst. That’s due to a stability system which intervenes if one of the front wheels lifts off the ground—it cuts the engine and applies the brake on the opposite wheel. As soon as I began trusting the system, it became Great Adventure time and I jerked the machine around, severely leaning in when I pleased and probably blowing the 35 miles to the gallon the Can-Am gets under normal driving conditions.

There are a few things to get used to. There isn’t any hand brake and the one and only way of stopping is under your right leg. But since front and rear brakes are linked, you stop in a split second with a smash of the foot. There’s no topbox available, but a trunk up front will hold your helmet and small items. Like a scooter, the Can-Am makes a great get-around-the-city ride, but it also works as a long-distance roamer and will satisfy anyone’s need for speed.

- Josh Max, Auto Gigolo

Planes, trains, subways? Feh.

Auto Gigolo flashes a peace sign and wishes you well on your journey—from the inside of his car.

When public transportation looks like this, I'll pony up.

Our highways are choked,  C02 emissions from automobiles are blackening our skies, highway carnage and damage is a huge ongoing tragedy, and public transportation is encouraged.  Yes.

But I have a little problem with public transportation.

I feel terrible saying this, but—

I don’t want to ride with you.

Any more than I want a roommate, or two, or hundreds.

No offense.  I’m smiling as I write this.  Here’s the truth—

I want to be alone, in my car, with my music, and the companions I choose.  The world is increasingly encroaching—and in this case, “the world” means the hordes on the streets of Manhattan, the island I live on, the upstate malls I go to, the teeming masses at banks, grocery stores, movies, coffee shops, bookstores—and, oh my God, the gym.  People people people in your face face face all the time time time I have to get away away away.

My meditation hut, therefore, has 4 wheels.

I want to pull over if I want to get something to eat, or to go to the bathroom. I want to take a photo of something interesting or amazing. I want to talk to my wife, or put my arm around her and just sit for a few minutes. I want to leave my house when I leave it, not dash, pants half-zipped,  to make that 8:12 train.

I want my guitar in the trunk, my coffee in a holder next to me and my iPod hooked up to my sound system. I want to stop and go shopping for food. At two places if need be.

I don’t want to be on your schedule.

You guys build the car that doesn’t pollute, doesn’t break down and looks halfway decent,  I’ll review it and maybe even buy it. I’ll even sit in traffic, gladly.  Want to cut in? Be my guest.  I’m not in that big a hurry.  I can use the break from the phone, the computer, the total immersion in this totally artificial world. I’m in a pod/cocoon while I drive and no matter what happens—heat, rain, snow, traffic—I’m the brain and the car’s my body, and together we regard the world.

If a nut with a bomb wants to take out a bunch of people, he’s not going to target my individual transportation device, either. He’s going to get on a subway or train.

When I want to interact with folks, I’ll do it on the street, at the office, at family gatherings—or in bed.

-Josh Max, Auto Gigolo