In Oregon with the 2014 Acura MDX

I travelled with Acura to Portland, Oregon, to test their heavily-refreshed MDX 7-passenger SUV.

It’s an important vehicle launch for them, the MDX accounts for 1/3 of Acura’s total sales.

So the vehicle was re-built from scratch; new chassis and body, designed specifically for this SUV (non-car nerds: this is rare).

Read the full review over at Autonet.ca.

Short review – an excellent refresh; if a 7-passenger 3rd row vehicle is important, test this MDX, it’ll make the shortlist.

The interior ergonomics were updated, it used to be “a bit like climbing back into 1999”.

Breathes better, eh.

The new model is only the tiniest bit bigger, but the interior feels bigger, more open.

Steering is improved; engine provides more than enough power for a fun drive; it’s really quiet inside; all seats now fold flat for loading cargo; a secret storage compartment; the base model is loaded up nicely; great safety features come standard; 6 cameras; and for winter, you can pre-condition the car remotely, a just-for-Canada added feature.

Meet my driving partner, Sylvain Raymond.

Il écrit les belles histoires pour le bon website, Guide de l’Auto. Bienvenue à ma blog, mon ami!

2014 Acura MDX
Available July 2013
$49,990 – $65,990

 

Kids in Karts in kartSTART

Give ’em a healthy respect for speed early on.

kartSTART – Safety through education, brought to you by Toyota

Says founder Russ Bond:

“This kartSTART program is very unique in several ways,” Russ Bond Agency, Inc (RBA) owner Russ Bond says. “What we teach here is how a vehicle works. What makes it go, what makes it stop, and what makes it turn. We teach our students what is happening to the vehicle as they travel down the road. The key here is we teach youngsters in vehicles that fit them, our karts.” Bond adds.

I got out there, and got schooled by an 11 year old (hi Tim).

(photo credit: Gary Grant)

Back’atcha!

Gary writes and photos for Wheels.ca, and has blogged forever too (since 2005, nice): TheGarageBlog.com

The program is travelling coast-to-coast this summer, click here for the schedule.

If you ever get the chance, go drive a go-kart.
It’s a good reminder of what speed really feels like,
and brings back a respect for driving & the road

(here’s a column and video about that)

 

The Last Infiniti M37xS in Canada

It’s a 2013 Infiniti M37xS AWD Sport

Starting at – $52,700            This one – $67,100

While the post title is a little dramatic, it’s not really, because starting in 2014, all Infiniti models will start with a Q (I wrote about it for Autonet, click here).

It’s a 3.7L V6  7-spd. auto. AWD outputting 330 hp & 270 lb-ft of torque, and it’s tuned for drivers including a sport-tuned suspension, paddle shifters, and silver-inished callipers rolling on 20″ aluminium-alloy wheels.

Excellent acceleration, confident and balanced handling, and overall it’s a stiff ride, but obviously; this is a sports sedan.

The styling is subtle, which I liked. Quiet elegance.

Essentially, this is Infiniti’s flagship, their best sedan.

And this is my best dash photo to date comeON.

It’s feature rich indeed, like, this is as equipped as they come – the exterior doorhandles are lit, heated steering wheel and the seats are both heated and cooled, auto up and down on all windows. There’s 16 speakers inside (Bose), a rear-window power sunshade, Bluetooth, voice recognition, blind spot indicators, more, and the car has its own radar, which is used to  cruise control and distance control assist. Radar.

It’ll get 13.5 L/100 km, when left in sport mode the entire time.

It was easy to photograph.

Nice lines, eh.

I screwed up though, and should have taken a photo with the lid closed. It was just so interesting to me: when’d you last see a car with an ashtray inside? Rare enough that I gave it its own post.

Working from the driver’s seat.

My view.

#InfinitiLove

 

 

Maybe Why Prem Watsa Never Sold his Stock

Guys I think I cracked it. I had an epiphany 2 weeks ago…

I was surfing around, sourcing stories for Autonet.ca, and I stumbled on news about BlackBerry’s QNX OS.

BlackBerry’s operating system is QNX, and it’s poised to become the default software which runs the infotainment in all automobiles.

(Read it online here)

That is HUGE. Because that’s a real problem – each auto manufactuer has their own proprietary software, and there’s no easy way to update it, so often brand new cars have 5-year old systems inside.

Now.

Prem Watsa is an investor, he’s like the Canadian Warren Buffet.

He owns Fairfax Financial Holdings, and is the largest investor in RIM (BlackBerry) – $700 million, or 10%.  And it was always so curious to me why he held onto his stock, even when BB was at its lowest *, why he loved it so. Yes BB is known for security, and still has lots of subscribers, but…

Now THIS makes total sense – if QNX becomes the default auto OS, BlackBerry will return to it’s former glory, and then some.  I predict last week’s software release will be the game changer, though – QNX CAR.

Numberous automakers already base their infotainment systems on it, like: the guts of the system is QNX, then Acura adds its look & fee on top.

Audi, Chrysler… there’s more I’m not remembering…

Acura / Audi / Chrysler / Land Rover / Hyundai / GM / Porsche / Saab

Chevy’s new MyLink system uses it, which won all the awards this year for “best auto infotainment system”.

I interviewed the lady behind it all for the paper in February, click here, and I blogged it was the first system I’d ever liked (to my 500 times telling you never to buy one).

My BB story even made the cover of the paper, and my first non-‘Keri on Driving’ article to, nice.

I was so pleased with myself for figuring this all out, I texted and emailed everyone as much, and documented my smirking here, last photo.


* so I did too. My stock market strategy is: copy the successful guy