Category Technical Talk

For the moderately priced AWD sedan market (starting MSRP ~$20k), currently there are not many choices in the US. Among those candidates the Subaru Legacy is the only model that comes with AWD system as standard.

Above image: the 2015 Subaru Legacy 3.6R Limited trim test car

Subaru offers two engine options on the 2015 Legacy (both are naturally aspirated): a 2.5L flat-4 producing 175hp and 174 lb-ft of torque; and also a 3.6L flat-6 engine with 256hp and 247 lb-ft of torque.

We have tested the 3.6L engine version, which is only available on the 3.6R Limited trim. The 2015 Legacy is a completely-new design, which marks the beginning of the 6th-generation of this model.

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If you have done some research on the internet, you may have already seen there are plenty of articles mentioning that, during the design phase the Phaeton is required to “be capable of being driven all day at 300 km/h”.

In fact there is no way the Phaeton can reach 300 km/h, not to mention it is “being driven all day” at that speed.  Below we will provide a brief analysis to show you why.

The Phaeton’s drag coefficient is 0.32 (Cd = 0.32). According to the air drag force formula we can calculate the force that the Phaeton will be facing:

Air Drag Force = 1/2 x Cd x Rho x Speed^2 x Area

In the above, “Rho” is the air’s density, and “Area” is the cross sectional area of ...

The Acura SH-AWD system (short for: Super Handling-All Wheel Drive) is often described ambiguously in most automobile literature. Some articles even said it is an enhanced version of the Honda VTM-4, which is incorrect.

In this article, we will analyze the SH-AWD in detail, focusing on these three questions:

1. How does the SH-AWD work?
2. Why the SH-AWD can transfer large amount of power to rear wheels constantly, without worrying about the wear and overheating issues?
3. What is the difference between the Acura SH-AWD and the Honda VTM-4 system?

Overview: The SH-AWD Systems

Currently there are 4 different types of SH-AWD:

1. The SH-AWD used on the 2005-2012 Acura RL
2...

2016 Cadillac CT6 Summary and Highlights

Cadillac is going to debut its brand-new CT6 full-size luxury sedan flagship in the upcoming 2015 NY auto show. Today, information regarding the CT6 is released before the official debut event. The most important news is the all-new 3.0L twin-turbo, and another new 3.6L naturally aspirated engine. In this article, we will first quickly go over the highlights, and then provide a short analysis on this new 3.0L turbo V6 engine.

Above image: the Cadillac CT6 sedan in a teaser video

Highlights about the Cadillac CT6:

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Some of you may wonder why we are talking about Honda Accord and Koenigsegg Regera at the same time. At first glance, these two cars are totally unrelated: the Honda Accord Hybrid has only 196HP combined system power, while the Koenigsegg Regera has 1,500HP. The Accord Hybrid starts from $29,305, while the Koenigsegg Regera carries a price tag of $1,890,000 (close to 1.9 million).

Above image: the Koenigsegg Regera in the 2015 Geneva auto show

In fact, despite the huge difference in power output and price, these two cars have one common feature: they are the only two production cars that connects an internal combustion engine (ICE) directly to the driving wheels...