Elite Auto Rental Blog

For 2009, Hyundai took its satisfying Sonata mid-size sedan—already a more-than-credible alternative to the segment’s entrenched big dogs—and endowed it with more power and refreshed styling inside and out. As enthusiasts, however, we were most interested in what they’d done to improve the “sporty” SE trim, namely whether or not it’s actually sporty.

It’s No Hyundai Quattroporte, But It’s Better than Before

The SE is obviously no sports car, but it does now boast a bit more enthusiasm in its footwork. Previously more of an appearance package than anything else, the 2009 SE rides on all-season rubber (Kumho Solus KH16 tires) but gets a unique state of tune for the control-arm front and multilink rear suspension.

Other than the suspension upgrade, the $1600 increase for the SE model also includes 17-inch aluminum wheels, a power driver’s seat, steering-wheel audio controls, and a telescoping steering wheel.

The body control is good, and the damping even more so; the SE’s firmer suspension and thicker anti-roll bars fix a lot of the complaints we had about the floppy feel of our long-term Sonata LX. The SE corners confidently, with its 0.78-g skidpad performance just 0.03 g behind that of the Nissan Altima 3.5SE, a familiar benchmark for sporty family sedans. Braking is just a tad behind the segment leaders, with 70–0 taking 177 feet in the Sonata versus 173 in the Altima 3.5 and 170 in a V-6 Toyota Camry.

The steering is accurate, but is disappointing in that it’s pretty lifeless on center and doesn’t get any better as you move the wheel. You might be tempted to call feel a sacrifice to the front-drive, understeer gods—and the Sonata understeers a lot—but the Honda Accord manages to communicate what’s happening at the front wheels.

The 249-horse—up from 234—V-6 sounds great, and with 229 pound-feet of torque, it provides plenty of usable grunt. The five-speed automatic is above average, too, but both automatic and manumatic modes are too slow-witted for spirited driving; we got a bit frustrated waiting for the called gear to show up. Shifts, once the box decides to initiate them, are smooth.

Furthermore, manumatic mode no longer holds ratios and shifts far before redline, though, which likely accounts for the new car’s 6.9-second 0-to-60-mph time—0.3 second slower than the time we got from a 234-hp 2006 model. Four-cylinder SE buyers can opt to row their own gears, with a five-speed manual as standard.

It’s hard not to love the Maserati Quattroporte. Between its Pininfarina lines and the Ferrari-developed chassis and engine, it’s a veritable four-door exotic that makes the top-of-the-line competition from England and Germany look downright ordinary. But both countries are preparing tantalizing new offerings (Aston Martin Rapide and Porsche Panamera), and the Quattroporte has been on the market for five years now. With the complete replacement not due until 2012, Maserati has wisely developed a mid-lifecycle update for its sumptuous sedan. Now after squinting at spy shots for months, details and photos have begun to emerge in cyberspace.

The big question everyone was asking was whether this second-generation Quattroporte would continue with its current 400-hp 4.2-liter V8, or get treated to the more powerful 430-hp 4.7-liter unit that Maserati developed for the Alfa 8C and more recently shoehorned into the GranTurismo S. The answer is, yes. Like its two-door counterpart, the new Quattroporte will now be offered in two versions: the standard Quattroporte and the Quattroporte S. Both will come exclusively with the ZF-sourced six-speed automatic (jettisoning the clumsy sequential transmission that plagued the previous incarnation). Along with the new engine option, the Quattroporte has been treated to some new bodywork: the front grille and bumper have been reshaped and fitted with vertical slats to more closely resemble the GranTurismo’s, the front and rear light clusters have been restyled with LEDs, the fenders sharpened up, the mirrors slimmed down and the tail styled more aggressively. Two new colors – a sandy beige and a maroon – are on offer, and the interior has also been ergonomically and stylistically refreshed, integrating the new Maserati Mutlimedia System.

Porsche has unveiled the 2009 911 with some slight modifications. They added LED taillights, altered bumpers with daytime running lights, and new 18 and 19-inch wheels.

For busy people with Bluetooth-enabled phones, the Motorola HS820 headset provides the means to free the hands for driving or other activities. The headset features an over-the-ear design, which allows users to chat hands-free in comfort.

“Although I am a big advocate of using every bit of time productively, I tend to shy away from having cell phone conversations while I’m driving,” says Ron Sturgeon, a small business consultant and owner of a Dallas exotic car rental company. “A hands free device like the Motorola HS820 is a great help when it comes to making notes and scheduling appointments on the fly,” says the owner of a DFW exotic car club.

After an increase in cell-phone-related car accidents, some states and cities have outlawed talking on cell phones without hands-free devices of some kind. Although many people swear such devices are effective in reducing distractions, others disagree.

Critics of hands-free devices contend that the devices do not help focus the driver on driving safely. “I see drivers with earpieces that are driving like they’re drunk,” says Eric Anderson, a former cell phone salesperson.

“I think it is having a cell conversation and becoming absorbed in it while behind the wheel that causes the poor driving, not the lack of a hands-free device,” says Anderson.

The Motorola HS820 headset can communicate with a phone up to 32.8 feet away. Other features of the Motorola HS820 include a comfortable cover on the headset and the ability to use the headset on either the right or left ear. The battery provides six hours of talk time and 100 hours of standby time.

Users can voice dial directly from the headset for a fully hands-free experience. The device is compatible with the Motorola A530, Razr V3, V505, V551, V600, and V710 phones and all other Bluetooth 1.1 or 1.2 complaint devices.

The Motorola HS820 retails for under $30 and is available at cell phone stores and electronics stores throughout Dallas-Fort Worth.

Kate Miller-Wilson is a freelance writer living in the Twin Cities. Visit her website or email her for information about her freelance writing services.

Next time you see an A-list celebrity sliding behind the wheel of an Aston Martin or Bentley, don’t be so sure it wasn’t rented for the night. You too can cruise down PCH in a convertible Lamborghini. Beverly Hills Rent-A-Car stocks a wide selection of exotic and prestige autos — and it’ll deliver to your driveway. Clients, mostly men, include celebrities, sports stars, Middle Eastern royalty and CEOs. “These cars go hand in hand with the male ego,” company spokesman Kurt Siejkowski says. Hmmm . . . maybe it’s time for the single gals out there to rent a Ferrari for a day and see what gets reeled in.

A fire-engine-red Ferrari F430 Spider, at 490 horsepower with a V-8 engine, tops out at 200 mph, but, well, “We don’t recommend going that fast,” Siejkowski notes. And be ready to fork over an extra $2 a mile if you zoom past the 50-mile-a-day limit. Price: $3,500 a day.

Aston Martin Vantage Coupe — a sweet 420-horsepower ride with a “nice purr to it” — appeals more to the sophisticated set, Siejkowski says. Think James Bond or hot European millionaire. Price: $1,600 a day.

Some Italian police get to drive Lamborghini Gallardos — with a V-10 engine and a Formula One paddle-shift transmission. But you can play polizia for a day in the sexy Gallardo Spyder, which comes with sleek yellow trim on black leather seats. $3,500 a day.

Not feeling sporty? The Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe says refined. Push a button to close the suicide doors. Enjoy the sumptuous teak-trimmed interior. And, hey, if it rains, pull the umbrella out of its hiding spot in the door. Bring your own jar of Grey Poupon. Price: $7,500 a day.

For the ultimate indulgence, rent a Bugatti Veyron. This limited-production sports car and its awe-inspiring 987-horsepower engine costs $1.6 million to buy and $25,000 a day to rent. Too bad Beverly Hills Rent-A-Car won’t let you drive it. But, baby, it sure would look pretty parked in the driveway.

The economy may be stalling, but luxury car rentals are accelerating—thanks to executives, realtors and ordinary folks who want to project an image of success.

Take the executive from a start-up company seeking venture capital money. Driving up in a beat up, four-year-old Toyota would send a bad message. So to attend a meeting at the golf and country club, that person may rent an S-Class Mercedes or BMW.

Call it chicanery or smart business sense, but a growing number of people in the business world are renting high-end automobiles to impress, according to PremierLuxuryRental.com, a high-end automobile and luxury home rental company serving Philadelphia and its surrounding states.

“You can look like a million bucks even when you’re making 50K,” says Mark McNeil, president of PremierLuxuryRental.com.

He says there are those customers renting luxury cars out of necessity.

McNeil recalls a realtor who asked for a Cadillac Escalade because her pro basketball player prospect couldn’t fit into her older Honda. Plus, she couldn’t very well show a million-dollar home in a $10,000 Accord. What would he think?

“Renting a luxury car is common and most often it’s the average man or woman doing it,” says McNeil. “I would say 70% of the time it’s making an impression, 30% is for need.”

It used to be that the only people who rented a Bentley, Jaguar, Mercedes, Lamborghini or Ferrari were the very wealthy. Not anymore.

“We still get many affluent clients and business people who rent out of necessity or for the fun of it. But the bulk of our business is the folks with modest incomes who simply want to look successful.”

Applying the logic of time-shares in condos, yachts and jets, a Boston-based company offers access to exotic sports cars at a fraction of the cost of owning them.

And while the service is currently available in four major cites on the East Coast, it expects to be nationwide by the end of the year.

“We have a national network that we are developing,” said John Caron, founder and president of the Otto Club, who was in Newport recently for the 2008 Newport Concours d’Elegance. “It’s a virtual garage. Wherever you travel, whatever you want, it’s there.”

“It” being a range of cars that includes Aston Martins, Bentleys, Ferraris, Lamborghinis, Maseratis and Porsches.

Of course, membership does require “a certain level of wealth,” but nowhere near the expense of buying the cars outright.

He said while collectors may have cars in their backyard, the Otto Club offers a collection that travels with them

“The focus is on access rather than ownership,” he said.

In addition, it offers a range of cars so members can chose what car to drive at any one time. “What if you bought the wrong car?” he said. “What if you bought a Ferrari and found out that you preferred a Lamborghini?”

Caron, 40, has a background in marketing – he worked for three Boston-area startups before spending two years at Gartner Group in Stamford, Conn., where he was global head of field marketing – and argued that the model he has developed for the Otto Club differs from the standard exotic sports car club or rental company, which he said are local. That limits the market, from the number of potential clients to the available cars.

Instead, he said he plans take his company national through partnerships with local clubs.

The club currently operates out of four locations: Boston, Newport, New York and Miami. Through a combination of direct ownership and partnerships with local clubs, Otto offers a range of about 21 cars in the Northeast and 15 in Miami.

However, by the end of the year, he said he expects to add a number of locations — Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, The Hamptons, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, San Francisco, Scottsdale/Phoenix, Ariz., and Washington, D.C. — and have a total fleet of 100 cars available for members.

How does it work?

“First you fill in a membership application and we do a background check for motor vehicle history, credit and criminal history, if any,” Caron said.

Once you pass, there are four membership levels: Silver, Yellow, Red and Black.

The silver level requires a $3,000 annual membership fee, for which you get access to all but three cars – a Saleen S7, a Lamborghini Murcielago Roadster and a Lamborghini Murcielago Coupe — in the fleet. In addition, each car has a daily usage rate, ranging from $1,380 to $630. Supplemental insurance is included and mileage is limited to 100 miles a day.

The yellow level requires a $2,000 annual membership fee plus $8,000 in prepaid credit toward daily use, which can be carried from one year to the next, for which you get access to all the cars plus a six percent discount on the daily usage rate and mileage is limited to 125 miles a day.

The red level requires a $1,000 annual membership fee plus $24,000 in prepaid credit for which you get access to all the cars plus a 12 percent discount on the daily usage rate and mileage is limited to 150 miles a day.

The black level? Well, if you have to ask, you can’t afford it.

“The black membership level is by invitation only,” said Caron, noting that it requires the ownership of an American Express Centurion Card, commonly known as the Black Card, that carries a range of exclusive privileges for an annual fee of $2,500 in addition to a one-time $5,000 initiation fee for the first year.

Caron added that the company does not divulge the privileges associated with the black level of membership. “It’s not public,” he said. “(That’s) part of the allure.”

But he said it did include what the company calls ASAP: Any Sports car Any Place.

“We will provide any car to any city for our members,” he said.

The current range of cars and their daily rates include the top of the line Saleen S7 for $3,250 a day; Lamborghini Murcielago Roadster ($2,100) and Lamborghini Murcielago Coupe ($1,800).

Rates for other vehicles change depending on location and time of week, with weekends commanding a premium. In the Boston and Newport market, a Bentley GTC, Ferrari F430 Spider and Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder cost $1,380 a day during the week and $1,920 on weekends.

The Aston Martin DB9 Volante, Audi R8 Coupe, Bentley Flying Spur, Bentley GT Coupe and Ferrari 360 Spider cost $1,080 a day during the week and $,560 on weekends.

The Aston Martin V8 Vantage Roadster, Maserati GranTurismo, Mercedes SL65 AMG, Porsche 911 Turbo Cabriolet and Porsche GT3 cost $840 a day during the week and $1,200 on weekends.

Finally, the Maserati Quattroporte costs $630 a day during the week and $900 on weekends.

Carol said he started the Otto Club because he wanted to spend more time with his children. He said he was traveling every week in his last years at Gartner and his three children ages 10, 8 and 2 wanted to see more of him.

“I needed to make a change,” he said. “I can’t tell you the last time I was in an airplane, and that’s nice.”

At the same time, Caron said he had always had an interest in cars.

“Oh God, yes,” he said, adding that he has been a car nut since he was 9 years old – “You know, the Porsche Targa poster and the Lamborghini Countach poster, we all had them” — and reckoned to have owned over 30 cars, some for as short as six weeks, some for as long as two years.

“Maybe two years, I don’t keep them long,” he said, noting that he likes to “figure the car out.”

“Each car has its own sound and feel,” he said. “They are very, very different.”

At the same time, he said he hardly ever drives the company cars.

“It’s like owning a chocolate factory,” he said. “Every one (you) eat is one (you) don’t sell.”

Caron currently drives a Range Rover – “nothing exciting” – but admits his passion is for Porsches.

He said he worked out his business plan over nine months starting in mid-2005 before launching the Otto Club in the spring of 2006.

He named it after Nicolaus Otto, a self-taught engineer whose Cologne, Germany-based company first produced a two-stroke internal combustion engine in 1867, the first practical four-stroke internal-combustion engine in 1876 and an electric ignition system, which allowed engines to become mobile, in 1884.

Caron said the run-up in gas prices is good for his club, given the savings it offers members compared with owning an exotic car.

“High gas prices are good for us,” he said. “If you drive for pleasure, you’d be more willing to belong to a club like ours.”

The club currently has 50 members and Caron said he is happy with its progress despite having nothing to compare it with.

“When you start everything completely new, there are no guard rails,” he said. “You’re constantly looking in the mirror.”

For more information, go to:

theottoclub.com

Las Vegas. Bling capital of the known world. Cruising the Strip in Lamborghini’s latest edition of their best-selling “Crumpet catcher”—as Sir Stirling Moss once said of a similar machine from 40 years ago.

The Gallardo is a radical form, perfectly matched with the memorable styles of Vegas after dark. In daylight, the Strip is full of family-friendly rental cars, but after dark even the rental fleet changes to match the ebb and flow of bling bunnies (crumpet) in search of bling resources. Attention is the game. Wild-eyed performance is the myth. Except in the puritanical white coupe with the world’s greatest neon flowing all over the flanks of a Lamborghini LP560-4. All eyes feed the dream. Behind the tiny windows it is real.

Once over the shock of the Gallardo’s swing-out door (why not use Lamborghini’s signature scissors?), the interior remains one of the entry-level Lambo’s strongest features. Demonstrating the wisdom of Stephan Winkelmann, central casting’s perfect leader of the resurgence of Automobili Lamborghini, and his team of brand masters, there are no changes here; it remains artful, useful, comfortable and roomy. With Ad Personam, the company’s latest individualization program, the customer is able to create any combination of color and trim. Behind this program stands the philosophy that a
super sports car should, after all, reflect the personality of its owner by enabling him or her to completely indulge their expectations and wishes. As a consequence, extreme exclusivity is the trademark of the new program. “Think the Impossible” states the motto, just one more element in Lamborghini’s personal statement culture.

Only storage space remains a point of contention. There is very little inside and only a weekend bag’s worth in the nose. Herr Winkelmann steadfastly refuses to call his cars exotics, they are super sports cars, and maybe that is the key to our passion and tolerance of their spatial shortcomings. In the not too distant past, luggage was strapped to the outside of anything called a sports car, but today, of course, we have Fred Smith’s famous travel back up system, FedEx. Perhaps the Lamborghini Club should arrange a special rate. The best personal luxury is to arrive at the hotel where everything is already folded into drawers or hung neatly in the closet.

On the outside, both ends of the firm’s most popular model have been changed to include a clearer family resemblance to the Murcielago LP640 and Reventón in their smaller sibling. The big cooling nostrils and low, central wing direct air under the perfectly flat belly pan and give the LP560-4 a much more serious aspect. And that is no styling exercise. As counterpoint to the nose wing is a newly designed rear diffuser that, together, contribute to the steering stability even at extremely high speeds. The result is 31-percent better aerodynamic efficiency than its predecessor. The new Gallardo comes nearer the Murcielago on top speed with 202 mph now possible. And its implication of attitude and radical style is on every square centimeter of its lightweight aluminum couture.

Approximately 7,100 Gallardo models have left the Sant’Agata Bolognese production plant since its launch in 2003. “The LP560-4 will complete this success story,” Mr. Winkelmann proudly pronounces. “It will outclass its predecessor in every aspect; its dynamics are distinctly breathtaking and its design sets new standards. With the introduction of the Gallardo LP560-4, we will consistently continue Lamborghini’s growth strategy.”

The new car’s full throttle growl is also stronger and more Lamborghini-like now, but the power delivery from its new 560 horsepower 5.2-liter V10 is the real story. Most of the 398 lb-ft of torque is available from just below 4,000 revs to its peak at 6,500. The result is a quicker response on track day and less challenging drivability on a workday. A key element in the update is a compression ratio now raised to 12.5:1, a number rarely seen in road cars since the heavily leaded sixties, and the Volkswagen group’s high-pressure, multi-nozzle, direct injection system. “Iniezione Diretta Stratificata” sounds even more exotic in a Lamborghini. But to feed these sophisticated nozzles as the engine approaches its 8,500 rpm redline a new fuel delivery system was created for Lamborghini. And engineers were still able to achieve an 18-percent reduction in fuel consumption and CO2 emissions by injecting vaporized fuel at different times in the combustion process. We’re talking nano-second differentials into specific parts of the chamber. That level of burn efficiency in a high compression chamber satisfies both ends of the consumption spectrum. In collaboration with the latest development in dynamic management and the all wheel drive system, the Gallardo fun factor has made a substantial leap. Think Audi Quattro in haute couture.

According to Winkelmann, the company makes super sports cars, not racing cars. Though the dynamic technologies of the latest generation did come from available racing data. Much of it, one suspects, comes furnished by the racing scientists at Audi AG and their years of experience with high performance all wheel drive.

The LP560-4’s Pirelli P-Zero (235/35 ZR 19 front and 295/30 ZR 19 rear) tires have a special relationship with the asphalt. While delivering awesome grip, they have a particularly low rolling resistance that also helps keep tire wear to a minimum.

The new braking system includes eight cylinder calipers in front to grasp the 365 mm (14.37-inch) diameter brake discs. At the rear, four cylinder calipers act on the 356 mm (14-inch) brake discs. In addition, the new disc ventilation system improves thermal stability in extreme situations. Optionally, discs made out of Carbon Ceramic are offered. At the front, the CCB (Carbon Ceramic Brakes) discs measure 380 mm (15 inches) in diameter, while those in the rear measure 356 mm (14 inches).

All of which helps explain the smiling journalists during the racetrack segment of the company’s Gallardo LP560-4 Global Dynamic Event. Las Vegas Motor Speedway’s multi-option infield road course and about two-thirds of the outer circuit was the journalists’ test facility.

Even among that most overindulged group it was hard to get those new swing-out doors open for an occasional driver’s change. But almost as memorable was the long slow drive the length of that legendary, urbane thoroughfare being stared at by all the…

Well you get the idea.

In the race for change, the Porsche 911 could lose to an Icelandic glacier. But as with most evolutionary processes, it doesn’t stop. Such is the flow of new product from Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen. Less than one year since the GT2, the last variation of the 997—phase one—was launched, the next 911 is here. It’s still called the 997, though, indicating that changes to the legendary sports car are modest.

The body remains unchanged, but Porsche apparently thinks the 911 needs daytime running lights so it won’t be overlooked on the road. Admittedly, these LED units also look cool . . . maybe not as cool as those on the Audi R8, but cool nonetheless. The new LED rear lights look aggressive on the road, and their shape is slightly altered. The dashboard is also modified with redesigned knobs and buttons, which makes for a more rounded, less technical appearance.

No 911 ever feels underpowered—it is one of the lightest cars in its class—but Porsche is catching up with the competition in the horsepower department. The 911 Carrera’s 3.6-liter engine jumps from 325 horsepower to 345 horsepower, the 3.8-liter unit in the Carrera S gets 385 horsepower, up from 355. Both engines are equipped with direct-injection technology, an expensive and complex technology that significantly improves fuel efficiency. The base 911 Carrera is rated at a remarkable 24 mpg in the European cycle.

New Seven-Speed Dual-Clutch Transmission

More significant even than the bump in horsepower is the new seven-speed dual clutch transmission, which replaces the previous five-speed Tiptronic automatic. Known as “PDK” (Porsche-Doppelkupplungsgetriebe), the new transmission is the latest evolution of the same basic technology developed by none other than Porsche in the early ’80s for racing applications, as it saves time by providing seamless upshifts and downshifts. It debuted in 1983 in the 956 and was subsequently used in the 962 race cars. The technology was then largely forgotten until, supposedly, Ferdinand Piëch thought of it again and launched it in a series of VW and Audi models.

Even Speedier than Before

Even though Porsche pioneered dual-clutch technology, this new unit is supplied by ZF. We predict that not every Porsche fan will be pleased that the dual-clutch unit accelerates better than a perfectly driven manual version. However, we do expect most to enjoy the 13 percent increase in fuel economy thus equipped.

Acceleration depends on the transmission: In the Carrera S coupe, 0–60 mph comes in 4.7 seconds with the manual transmission, but with the optional dual-clutch transmission, the figure improves to 4.5 seconds. And if you opt for the Sport Chrono Plus package, time drops further to 4.3 seconds thanks to Launch Control. Top speed for the 911 Carrera S is 188 mph. Not entirely coincidentally, that’s one mile per hour faster than the R8. Now that Porsche officially controls VW Group, and thus Audi, it seems that Porsche is establishing exactly who’s on top.

Sales of the upgraded 911 start in September, with prices ranging from $75,600 for the Carrera coupe to $86,200 for both the Carrera cabriolet and the Carrera S coupe to $96,800 for the Carrera S cabriolet. That’s modest if you consider that the standard 911 Carrera now is almost as powerful as the previous 911 Carrera S. Just don’t start adding options if you hope to hang onto any money.

With phase II of the 997, the inevitable launch cycle starts all over. A few weeks from now, the 4WD Carrera 4 versions will follow. Look for wide-body versions, Targas, and upgraded GT3, Turbo, Turbo Convertible, and GT2 models down the road.