42 may 2019 whichcar.com.au/motor

Oldschoolsports sedana grower

ALLYOU NEEDTOKNOWINSNACK-SIZEBITES

LEXUS IS350

IFYOU’REFAMILIARWITHthetraditionalpremiumsedan

set,steppingbehindthewheeloftheLexusIS350F Sportwillbea bitof

shock.Presstheacceleratorandnothingseemstohappen,thesteeringis

disconcertinglyvaguearoundthestraightaheadandwhyistheinfotainment

seeminglyimpossibletonavigate?Sadly,thelatterneverimproves,the

processofusingyourleft-handtooperatea clunkymousealwaysfeeling

unintuitive.Thankfully,withfamiliarisationthedrivingexperiencegrowson

you.Thenaturallyaspirated3.5-litreV6mightlackthebulgingtorqueofits

turbochargedrivals,buttheneedtoexpenda littleefforttoaccesssome

powerenhancestheinvolvementandtherewardisa rortyV6note.Ride

qualityisexcellent,onceoff-centrethesteeringrespondswellandcontrols

a nicelybalancedrear-drivechassis.It illustratesthedepthofthiscategory.

AgainstthelikesoftheimpressiveJaguarXE 300 Sport,cohesiveAudiA4 45

TFSIandpolishedMercedes-BenzC300,nottomentionthebrand-spanking

BMW330i,theLexusstrugglestotroublethetopoftheclass,butit remains

anenjoyablecar.Andwhenwasthelasttimeyouheardabouta Lexus

reliabilityissue?Exactly.Justfixthatdamninfotainment!–ScottNewman

SPECS:3.5V6;233kW@6400rpm;378Nm@4800rpm;RWD;1685kg;$72,880

Rear-drivehalogainsgrippy Michelins

KIA STINGER GT

ATPCOTY 2018 welearnta lotabouttheStinger.Withwoundsfreshfrom

theclosureofAussiemanufacturing,thetwin-turboV6SouthKoreanaimedtobe

theperfectBand-Aid.AndchampiontheStingerwedid.However,onebeeinour

bonnet,apartfromthelackofa truemanualmodefortheeight-speedautoandan

absenceofsteeringtactility,wasa somewhatunhingedrear-end.TheContinental

ContiSportContact5 tyresweregood,buttheydidhavea habitofsheddingchunks

ofrubberunderthestressofsending272kW/510Nmtotherearaxlealone.Tohelp

remedythis,KiahasfittedtheStingerGTwithMichelinPilotSport4 tyres.Straight

awaythe255/35rearboots(225/40front)adda bitmoregriptotherear.The

1780kgKiarevelsinitsnewrubber,feelingmoreplantedandallowingaccesstothe

gruntearlierwithgreaterassuranceit isn’tgoingtosnaporbreakawayunderheavy

provocation.Yet,onreallybumpyroads,theGTstillfailstoutiliseallitsgrunt.It

scampersatopimperfectionswiththetractioncontrollightbuzzingharderthana

raveratStereosonic.Finda smoothroadandyoucanusetheGT’spower,extragrip

andmusculartorque.InisolationthebigGTisalmostasloveableasournowdefunct

Aussies.ThrowingMichelinrubberattheStingerhasonlymadeit a moreappealing

propositionandwecontinuetohopeit gainsa secondact.–TrentGiunco

SPECS:3.3V6TT;272kW@6000rpm;510Nm@1300rpm;RWD;1780kg;$59,990

Fast Blasts

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Specials

M FASTBLAST

Thego-fastversionofBMW’s

BMW X2 M35i

THISLITTLESUVor‘SportsActivityCoupe’,housesthemostpowe

four-cylinderengineeverfoundina productionBMW.It’sthenewestparto

BMW’sfastSUVonslaughtfornow– andit’sbasedona Mini.It’salsopric

northofwheretheoutgoingBMWM140isat.A newBMWhothatch?Notqu

Peaktorquearrivesat1750rpm,sodespitea veryoccasionallyrebellious‘

it’sratherquickoffthemark.A 0-100km/hsprinttakes4.9sec,butthefe

ofspeedcouldbea placeboinducedbytherortyexhaust,producingalmo

AMG-likecracklesandpops.Throughbendsandtwistyroads,especiallyif

they’rerough(read:Australian),theM35i’s‘bighothatch’vibestartstofa

apart.Itssizestartstomakeitselfknownthemoreyouleanonthebrakes

toavoidovercookinga corner.ThexDriveAWDsystemmakesfiringoutof

turnseasy,butit’snotanincrediblyplayfulchassis,andtendstoward

understeer.Then,feelingplantedshouldn’treallybea complaintinan

SUV.Especiallyif it’swet.Twodampermodesprovidea ‘sporting’andsligh

lesssportingride.Don’truleoutlongtrips,butyou’dwanttobelenient.A

performancecar,it doesn’tliveuptotheM140i.However,it isfast,practic

anddarewesayfun.Andthat’susuallyenoughformost.–ChrisThompso

SPECS:2.0I4T;225kW@5000rpm;450Nm@1750rpm;AWD;1610kg;$68,90

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