 Toyota has revealed the facelifted 2014 4Runner for its North American market. The 2014 Toyota 4Runner has the same body-on-frame construction as before, and is available in SR5, Limited and Trail trims. It also carries over the same 4.0-litre VVTi V6 engine as the pre-facelift model – with 270hp and 278lb ft of torque – sending power through a five-speed ECT-i automatic transmission.  Off the top of my mind, BMW, Ram Trucks, Ford Australia, Toyota (J70 Land Cruiser) and Volvo are the only mainstream car manufacturers that still make passenger cars with straight-six engines. There was a time almost every car manufacturer produced some kind of straight-six engine, but the more compact design of V6 engines meant that manufacturers could create more cabin space while having the same performance of a straight-six motor.  Yesterday, on my way back home from a supermarket, I drove past a used car dealership that had on display a car that I haven’t seen in quite some time now – a Mk 1 Volkswagen Golf. It was a bright orange 1981 GLS model being sold for CHF 4,400. It had 107,000km (hopefully genuine), a four-speed manual transmission, three doors, and a heater – a very basic car in a world of cars that can now parallel park themselves. However, despite the small number of features that the old Golf had, it was the base for one of the best cars ever made, a base for the first of hot hatches. The Golf GTI.  There is no shortage of choice for SUVs these days, in fact you would be forgiven for thinking that the SUV market is overcrowded. With such a competitive market segment, this new facelifted Sorento will have to offer something special indeed for buyers to be persuaded to have one in their daily lives. Also, having driven the pre-facelift version on a Geneva-Paris-Geneva road trip, I was also keen to see what improvements Kia have made as well. |
