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2001 Oldsmobile Aurora
What is this? A Lexus?
 SAN
FRANCISCO: They climbed into the
back seat and off we drove towards Julius’ Castle.
"What is this? A Lexus?" Now I’ll admit that I
thought the Aurora was a pretty nice car, but here was someone
who wasn’t versed in car stuff and he thought it could be a
Lexus. Pretty high praise if you ask me. You should have seen
the look on his face when I told him it was an Oldsmobile
Aurora. Then he asked how much. "About 35 Grand " He
owns his own business and is doing quite well these days. The
Olds Aurora is now on the short list for his next new car buy.
I’ve got to tell you, when I first saw the 2001
Aurora I was a bit under whelmed. Not that it wasn’t a
good-looking car; it just didn’t stand out the way the
original Aurora did. But the more I looked at it, the more I
liked it. It is a handsome car. Lately I’m finding it’s
difficult to find fault with the fit and finish of today’s
vehicles. Go ahead and check one out - the cut lines around
the doors, hood, and trunk are uniformly even and tight. First
impressions are important, and when you look at a car and
everything looks right the first time, it just gives you a
feeling that the car was put together with care. The Aurora
has that look.
I also like cars that have a bit of stealth about them
(especially after my notorious speeding ticket). Flashy cars
are nice but for rapid transit, give me one that doesn’t
stand out in a crowd. What could be more "part of the
pack" than a medium to large four-door sedan?
And with Oldsmobile’s 4.0-liter, DOHC, 32-valve V8
powering the Aurora, stealth might be a good thing. The V8
sends 250 HP through a 4-speed automatic transmission to the
front wheels. The engine has proven itself in Oldsmobile’s
for the past few years and a version of it has powered the
winner of the Indy 500. The engine sure sounded right too - it
had a neat DOHC V8 growl from under the hood with a nice
rumble out the twin tailpipes.
Inside the Aurora had all the right stuff for a
"near" luxury car. Well, almost. I expected a power
moonroof to be part of the package. Other than that there was
leather seating, multi-adjustable power front seats with
memory for the driver, burl walnut trim, automatic climate
control with an air filtration system, and a very good Bose
stereo system with cassette and CD players with eight
speakers.
The Aurora is equipped with P235/55R17 tires on good
looking, chrome plated, aluminum wheels. I’m sure they
enhanced the handling. There is a down side though to large
rim size (17") and low profile (55 series) tires. They
can be harsh and transmit the little bumps too readily. I know
that Oldsmobile sees the Aurora as a touring car, kind of a
large sports sedan. That’s fine but I’d have preferred a
tire with a little more give to it.
I’m no suspension engineer but it seems to me that
with the rigidity of today’s auto bodies there should be no
need to have such inflexible tires (a low profile tire has
very little sidewall flex) in combination with firm
suspensions. Either tune the suspension softer or spec out a
tire with a slightly softer ride. Still, the Aurora is a fine
car, especially the V8 version.
Oldsmobile builds two Aurora’s - the V/8 one tested
and one with a 3.5-liter, DOHC, 24-valve, 215 hp, V6. The V6
is essentially the V8 with two cylinders left off. Not having
driven the V6, I can’t really say, but I think I’d take
the V8 (when there’s more horsepower, I’ll always take
it). The V8 is rated at 17-mpg city and 25 highway while the
V6 is 19 and 28, not that big a difference. The V6 weighs only
117 pounds less, that’s not enough to make up for the 35
horsepower difference in my book. So what the heck, go for the
big block and enjoy life.
The Oldsmobile Aurora with the V8 lists for $34,305 and
as tested was $36,670 including options and destination
charge. It seemed to be on par with V/8 cars costing a lot
more. Should be worth a serious look and a nice test drive
By Bruce Hotchkiss © AutoWire.Net - San Francisco
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