Car and Driver - USA (2020-01)

6

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JANUARY 2020 ~ CARAND DRIVER

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Supra’s electric steering

better than BMW did with

the M2 Comp’s when both

units are made by BMW.

—Donovan H.

Cupertino, CA

I’m not great at numbers,

but the GT350 winning Mr.

October over the 718 and M

left me Supra surprised. The

718 lost the powertrain cat-

egory because why? It has

four cylinders in a 2.0-liter

engine. The GT350 has twice

as many cylinders in a 5.2-

liter. The 718’s horsepower

plus my 2000 E320’s just

about equals the GT350’s

output. At 3141 pounds, the

718 is 680 pounds lighter

than the GT350. That’s

roughly equivalent to three

mothers-in-law. Apples

to apples, squeeze those

charmers into the winning

cargo hold of 15 cubic feet

and each one would have

five cubic feet to herself to

stretch out. Except the 718

still has only half an engine.

But it does have 20-inch

wheels, which tops the other

three. Let’s see. Carry the

seven. Oh, I stand corrected.

The GT350 did win after all.

—Robert Best

Sandy Springs, GA

Hey, C/D! Long time, first

time, and all that. Don’t make

fun of me for not noticing

this before, but in what world

do car enthusiasts prefer

lower-decibel engines? Your

four-way comparison labels

the GT350 as the best of

the lot. Great! No arguments

there, but I noticed that it

placed last in sound level.

The Stang’s V-8 throws a

whole 95 decibels at you at

full throttle! This is excel-

lent, and it should easily

I’M TAYCAN

I will never be able to afford

one, but the 2020 Porsche

Taycan intrigued me [“Elec-

tric Fatherland,” October

2019]. Now that I know it

has electric motors front

and rear, I wonder, where

exactly are the whopping 17

cubic feet of cargo space?

Is that a cumulative total

of cubbies scattered about

the vehicle, or does it have

a dedicated cargo hold in

the trunk or bonnet?

—DC Taylor

Purlear, NC

The total cargo area

includes the trunk and the

space under the hood—Ed.

be marked as the best of

the comparison (against a

second-place 87 decibels

from the M2). I get comfort

and whatnot, but GT

owners couldn’t give one

about the engine being “too

loud,” whatever that means.

—Nathan McGhee

Mechanicsville, VA

Volume has its place, but

silence is still golden—Ed.

On my birthday, I find in the

mailbox my October issue

of Car and Driver, and guess

what? The Mustang wins.

No truck test. Life is good.

—François Cyr

Sainte-Thérèse, QC

Q&A

C/D: Where do you see the

most potential to satisfy

the enthusiast base that’s

been a big part of Nissan?

Ivan Espinosa: We have

three iconic nameplates:

GT-R, Z, and Patrol; that

last name doesn’t exist in

the U.S., but you know it’s a

popular SUV. Those three

really describe what Nissan

is about. The fun and

excitement of making fun

cars that excite people.

C/D: Do you think the

GT-R and Z are important

to younger buyers?

IE: We have robust data

showing that most of GT-R

awareness for younger

buyers came from the Gran

Turismo series. A lot of the

younger audience learned

about the car through that.

There’s excitement there,

and I think it will remain. We

will continue to work on

keeping those cars relevant

for the future.

C/D: Is Nissan still com-

mitted to CVTs?

IE: We’ll keep looking into

available technologies and

tap into those that satisfy

our customers. Today, CVT

is a big part of our lineup

globally, but if market

needs change, we might

shift. There’s no unbreak-

able rules when it comes to

customer satisfaction; so if

there’s something we need

to address to satisfy our

customers, we will do it.

C/D: What’s your favorite

car in Nissan’s global

lineup?

IE: The Skyline coupe, 3.7-

liter with a manual trans-

mission [known as the

Infiniti G37 in the U.S.]. This

is not a car that’s produced

anymore, but it’s a car I

drive every day. It’s an

example of what Nissan is:

an expensive sports-car

experience in an affordable

and accessible package.

C/D: What was your first

vehicle?

IE: Volkswagen Jetta, 1985,

red. Funnily enough, my

second car was a Nissan

Tsuru [a.k.a. B12 Sentra].

10 Minutes with

Ivan Espinosa

While we were in Tokyo for the

Nissan VP of product planning

to discuss where his brand

is going without Carlos Ghosn.

chin music

Does David Beard

have a beard?

—Dylan Brooks

Winston-Salem, NC

Find him on Instagram

@nameonface—Ed.