Luxury Muscle.
Alex Shapiro finds luxury in America’s latest grownup muscle-car imports.
Even with soaring petrol prices, a weekend trip is just not the same without driving. Public transport
can’t compete with the freedom of the open road as weekday responsibilities disappear in the rear-
view. Weekend drives are a kind of tradition and, apparently, so is weekend speeding. Over half of
us exceed speed limits during weekend breaks behind the wheel, according to a recent government
survey.
But, for most drivers and their passengers, going fast still comes second to being comfortable. Even
dedicated weekend driving enthusiasts will usually avoid choosing a car that compromises space
and luxury for speed and handling. Performance cars are usually low-slung, two-seat affairs with
roaring exhausts. Anyone who has taken a long trip in a true sports car knows that soreness and
mild shellshock are part of the fun. Now there’s a new option for weekend breakers looking for luxury
and excitement to share with friends and family. America’s latest breed of import-ready luxury muscle
cars finally offers living room comfort at break-neck speed!
• The 2007 Cadillac Escalade is one of the biggest and roomiest vehicles on American roads
and it’s also scheduled to arrive on our shores in June. With comfortable seating for six, this giant
SUV offers features more impressive than many homes. There’s a six-disc, in-dash DVD changer to
provide over a dozen hours of movies through the two on-board monitors or the four, optional, head-
rest displays. The Dolby 5.1 sound system was specially tuned for the Escalade’s acoustics.
Cadillac welcomed input from their Hollywood and music-industry clientele when upgrading the
Escalade. The result is copious gobs of chrome and luxury. Cadillac has produced exclusive, 22-
inch chrome wheels for this Caddy and the headlamp bulbs are engraved with Cadillac emblems.
The bling treatment, which General Motors have dubbed ‘chrome couture,’ extends to every side of
the Escalade. However, the real heavy metal is the Escalade’s 6.2L V8 that provides more power
than a Porsche 911 Carrera 4S, perfect for bringing five friends and a horse trailer along to your
next weekend adventure. The almost-three-tonne SUV unbelievably reaches sixty in under seven
seconds!
Exclusive Cadillac features include a rear-facing camera, optional cooled/heated cup-holders, a
heated steering wheel and shocks filled with magnetic fluid. This technology, borrowed from the
Corvette, helps the six-foot tall truck handle extreme manoeuvres and tight corners at speed when
evading paparazzi and would-be assassins. The headlights turn slightly in the direction you steer to
let you see around corners.
No vehicle offers as much comfort and instant celebrity glamour. At about 13mpg, the twelve-foot
long SUV makes a better weekend toy than daily commuter. However, with more room, power and
features than cars costing even twice as much, the Escalade is a great place to be on any day.
Prices aren’t yet announced, but expect it to cost under £70,000!
• The Chrysler 300C is already available in the UK. But the performance of the standard, 5.7L
V8 engine can still seem a tad conservative, especially when you load up the chunky Chrysler with
passengers and cargo. This is why Daimler Chrysler have topped themselves by offering an
exclusive, and more insane, version of the 300C. They’ve now given it more power and attitude
along with some styling tweaks.
The result is the Chrysler 300C (Street Racing Technology) SRT8, scheduled to arrive in June and
propelled by an obscenely powerful, 6.1L Hemi engine. It now has more torque than a DB9, meaning
the 4,200-pound saloon reaches 60 from a standing start in around five seconds! There’re also not
many big luxury cars that can go 168mph when carrying five passengers and their weekend gear.
Inside, the Chrysler is equipped with DVD sat nav, CD changer and dual climate control with an
odour/particulate filter. To distinguish it from lesser 300s, the SRT8 is also fitted with suede
performance seats emblazoned with SRT8 logos and sporting huge side bolsters to keep you in
place. The suspension has also been tuned for a sportier ride.
The exterior modifications are purposefully subtle. The fun in a car like this is that no one expects a
beast to lurk under its demure, grown-up exterior. Exterior touches on the SRT8 model include
bigger driving lights, an understated rear air-deflector and low-key, if gargantuan, 20-inch wheels
with SRT8 badges and Goodyear F1 Supercar tires.
The Chrysler 300C SRT8 is ideal for dutifully going about weekday chores as a mature and well-
mannered four-door saloon. It’s suited for entertaining clients or shuttling the family. However, when
the weekend does arrive, the Chrysler is ready to show its dark side. The exhaust snarls with just
minor provocation and the grownup saloon becomes a road-eating muscle car, though with ample
cargo space and an optional DVD monitor in the back row. The STR8 will cost under £45,000 in the
UK. If you can’t wait and don’t mind sitting on the wrong side, imports cost around £28,000.
• The F150 pickup is the best-selling vehicle in America. But the Roush F150 Stage 3 crew-cab
is different. Roush is an American tuning house that only works with Fords. Endowing Mustangs with
enormous power upgrades and body kits is Roush’s bread and butter, but tuning the quintessential,
American work-truck was still a delicate challenge.
The F150 already comes with a 5.4L eight-cylinder engine but it’s by no means a luxury
performance vehicle. To give the pickup its personality transplant, Roush started by bolting on a
112 brake-horsepower supercharger to force air into the engine and create the ultimate weekend
warrior, with 445bhp and 500 pound-foot of torque. Roush also created a body kit for the F150 with
a giant hood scoop and exhaust relocated to the side. Racing stripes on the Roush are optional, if
hard to resist. Together, it all adds up to a sports car that started its life as a truck.
Interior upgrades include smart add-on panels in the dash, custom retro leather seats and option
DVD for the back. There’s simply no better way to pull a 50-foot sailboat or a massive caravan.
Imports are possible for around £40K, depending on options.
Alex Shapiro finds luxury in America’s latest grownup muscle-car imports.
Even with soaring petrol prices, a weekend trip is just not the same without driving. Public transport
can’t compete with the freedom of the open road as weekday responsibilities disappear in the rear-
view. Weekend drives are a kind of tradition and, apparently, so is weekend speeding. Over half of
us exceed speed limits during weekend breaks behind the wheel, according to a recent government
survey.
But, for most drivers and their passengers, going fast still comes second to being comfortable. Even
dedicated weekend driving enthusiasts will usually avoid choosing a car that compromises space
and luxury for speed and handling. Performance cars are usually low-slung, two-seat affairs with
roaring exhausts. Anyone who has taken a long trip in a true sports car knows that soreness and
mild shellshock are part of the fun. Now there’s a new option for weekend breakers looking for luxury
and excitement to share with friends and family. America’s latest breed of import-ready luxury muscle
cars finally offers living room comfort at break-neck speed!
• The 2007 Cadillac Escalade is one of the biggest and roomiest vehicles on American roads
and it’s also scheduled to arrive on our shores in June. With comfortable seating for six, this giant
SUV offers features more impressive than many homes. There’s a six-disc, in-dash DVD changer to
provide over a dozen hours of movies through the two on-board monitors or the four, optional, head-
rest displays. The Dolby 5.1 sound system was specially tuned for the Escalade’s acoustics.
Cadillac welcomed input from their Hollywood and music-industry clientele when upgrading the
Escalade. The result is copious gobs of chrome and luxury. Cadillac has produced exclusive, 22-
inch chrome wheels for this Caddy and the headlamp bulbs are engraved with Cadillac emblems.
The bling treatment, which General Motors have dubbed ‘chrome couture,’ extends to every side of
the Escalade. However, the real heavy metal is the Escalade’s 6.2L V8 that provides more power
than a Porsche 911 Carrera 4S, perfect for bringing five friends and a horse trailer along to your
next weekend adventure. The almost-three-tonne SUV unbelievably reaches sixty in under seven
seconds!
Exclusive Cadillac features include a rear-facing camera, optional cooled/heated cup-holders, a
heated steering wheel and shocks filled with magnetic fluid. This technology, borrowed from the
Corvette, helps the six-foot tall truck handle extreme manoeuvres and tight corners at speed when
evading paparazzi and would-be assassins. The headlights turn slightly in the direction you steer to
let you see around corners.
No vehicle offers as much comfort and instant celebrity glamour. At about 13mpg, the twelve-foot
long SUV makes a better weekend toy than daily commuter. However, with more room, power and
features than cars costing even twice as much, the Escalade is a great place to be on any day.
Prices aren’t yet announced, but expect it to cost under £70,000!
• The Chrysler 300C is already available in the UK. But the performance of the standard, 5.7L
V8 engine can still seem a tad conservative, especially when you load up the chunky Chrysler with
passengers and cargo. This is why Daimler Chrysler have topped themselves by offering an
exclusive, and more insane, version of the 300C. They’ve now given it more power and attitude
along with some styling tweaks.
The result is the Chrysler 300C (Street Racing Technology) SRT8, scheduled to arrive in June and
propelled by an obscenely powerful, 6.1L Hemi engine. It now has more torque than a DB9, meaning
the 4,200-pound saloon reaches 60 from a standing start in around five seconds! There’re also not
many big luxury cars that can go 168mph when carrying five passengers and their weekend gear.
Inside, the Chrysler is equipped with DVD sat nav, CD changer and dual climate control with an
odour/particulate filter. To distinguish it from lesser 300s, the SRT8 is also fitted with suede
performance seats emblazoned with SRT8 logos and sporting huge side bolsters to keep you in
place. The suspension has also been tuned for a sportier ride.
The exterior modifications are purposefully subtle. The fun in a car like this is that no one expects a
beast to lurk under its demure, grown-up exterior. Exterior touches on the SRT8 model include
bigger driving lights, an understated rear air-deflector and low-key, if gargantuan, 20-inch wheels
with SRT8 badges and Goodyear F1 Supercar tires.
The Chrysler 300C SRT8 is ideal for dutifully going about weekday chores as a mature and well-
mannered four-door saloon. It’s suited for entertaining clients or shuttling the family. However, when
the weekend does arrive, the Chrysler is ready to show its dark side. The exhaust snarls with just
minor provocation and the grownup saloon becomes a road-eating muscle car, though with ample
cargo space and an optional DVD monitor in the back row. The STR8 will cost under £45,000 in the
UK. If you can’t wait and don’t mind sitting on the wrong side, imports cost around £28,000.
• The F150 pickup is the best-selling vehicle in America. But the Roush F150 Stage 3 crew-cab
is different. Roush is an American tuning house that only works with Fords. Endowing Mustangs with
enormous power upgrades and body kits is Roush’s bread and butter, but tuning the quintessential,
American work-truck was still a delicate challenge.
The F150 already comes with a 5.4L eight-cylinder engine but it’s by no means a luxury
performance vehicle. To give the pickup its personality transplant, Roush started by bolting on a
112 brake-horsepower supercharger to force air into the engine and create the ultimate weekend
warrior, with 445bhp and 500 pound-foot of torque. Roush also created a body kit for the F150 with
a giant hood scoop and exhaust relocated to the side. Racing stripes on the Roush are optional, if
hard to resist. Together, it all adds up to a sports car that started its life as a truck.
Interior upgrades include smart add-on panels in the dash, custom retro leather seats and option
DVD for the back. There’s simply no better way to pull a 50-foot sailboat or a massive caravan.
Imports are possible for around £40K, depending on options.
Your Quarter
July 06
July 06