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Review of Canadian 2008 CX-9
- Thread starter satwar
- Start date
It's a bit difficult to piece together as the 2007 & 2008 articles are meant to be read back-to-back:
For 2007 he said:
"The standard 263-hp 3.5-litre V6 with dual overhead camshafts, four valves-per-cylinder, and variable intake valve timing proved smooth, powerful and responsive, and the six-speed transmission was also very responsive and quiet. In fact, the whole powertrain is commendably quiet on the freeway, with engine revs below 2000 rpm at 100 km/h. Standing start and highway merging acceleration is excellent with plenty of power available when needed."
For 2008 he said:
"The 3.5-litre V6 engine used in 2007 has been boosted to 3.7 litres for 2008, and horsepower rises to 273 @ 6250 rpm from 263 @ 6250 rpm.
Perhaps more importantly, torque has been increased to 270 lb-ft @ 4250 rpm from 249 lb-ft @ 4500 r.p.m. This makes the engine feel more responsive, and helps improve towing performance, although the maximum towing capacity remains 1588 kg (3500 lbs)............The numbers indicate an 8% improvement in torque at lower revs which would mean a little more throttle responsiveness..............it's difficult to judge how much more responsive it is than last year's 3.5-litre engine without a back to back comparison test."
To me he's saying the responsiveness is very good but the magnitude of the improvement over 2007 was not easy to define from the "first drive" he performed. The 2008 CX-9 "first drive" was of two day duration, pretty long, since the typical "first drive" can be for only several hours. The "first drive" is meant to give readers a summary of first impressions, sort of like the experience a customer would experience at a dealership test drive. For some reason Canadian Driver has never done a more comprehensive "test drive" of at least one week duration for the CX-9 yet.
For 2007 he said:
"The standard 263-hp 3.5-litre V6 with dual overhead camshafts, four valves-per-cylinder, and variable intake valve timing proved smooth, powerful and responsive, and the six-speed transmission was also very responsive and quiet. In fact, the whole powertrain is commendably quiet on the freeway, with engine revs below 2000 rpm at 100 km/h. Standing start and highway merging acceleration is excellent with plenty of power available when needed."
For 2008 he said:
"The 3.5-litre V6 engine used in 2007 has been boosted to 3.7 litres for 2008, and horsepower rises to 273 @ 6250 rpm from 263 @ 6250 rpm.
Perhaps more importantly, torque has been increased to 270 lb-ft @ 4250 rpm from 249 lb-ft @ 4500 r.p.m. This makes the engine feel more responsive, and helps improve towing performance, although the maximum towing capacity remains 1588 kg (3500 lbs)............The numbers indicate an 8% improvement in torque at lower revs which would mean a little more throttle responsiveness..............it's difficult to judge how much more responsive it is than last year's 3.5-litre engine without a back to back comparison test."
To me he's saying the responsiveness is very good but the magnitude of the improvement over 2007 was not easy to define from the "first drive" he performed. The 2008 CX-9 "first drive" was of two day duration, pretty long, since the typical "first drive" can be for only several hours. The "first drive" is meant to give readers a summary of first impressions, sort of like the experience a customer would experience at a dealership test drive. For some reason Canadian Driver has never done a more comprehensive "test drive" of at least one week duration for the CX-9 yet.