Page 44 - Layout 1

AUTO REVIEW

NEW VEHICLE RUNDOWN
FOR 2018

By Steve Schutz, MD

For this issue I selected a handful of noteworthy new vehicles that have either just launched or will launch
in the next few months. This is by no means an exhaustive list of such vehicles, but it it’s a rundown
of the ones that are most interesting to me.

Audi A8
Audi’s technology leader, the upcoming full size A8 sedan comes

with cool goodies like self-driving capability up to 37MPH, an ad-
vanced lighting system that uses GPS data to point the LED head-
lights where they need to go before you even turn the steering wheel,
and Audi’s most intelligent and intuitive MMI system. Design-wise,
the new A8 will incorporate Audi’s new styling language, which,
OMG this is so not a surprise, looks a lot like their old styling lan-
guage. The car looks good though, so I guess Audi’s elegant design
consistency still works. Certainly their seven consecutive years of
sales growth say it does.

Chevrolet Corvette ZR1
Around 30 years ago, the first ZR1, known as, “the King of the Hill”

as it was being developed, blew people away with 375HP and a 0-
60MPH time of 4.9 seconds. In an era of 700-plus HP Dodge Charg-
ers those numbers seem quaint today, so Chevrolet made sure the
newest ZR1 was legit with 755HP. Acceleration times have not been
released, but expect a 0-60 time of less than 3 seconds and a top speed
of over 200MPH when this beast surfaces in the Spring of 2018.

Lexus LS500/500h
As the luxury car market moves rapidly towards SUVs and

crossovers, sedans like the new Lexus LS don’t matter like they used
to. While the LX570 SUV may be Lexus’ true flagship now, the LS
still matters, and the new one provides a more contemporary exterior
design than it used to have — am I the only one who thinks it looks
a little too much like the Nissan Maxima? — combined with a nice
interior and two advanced powertrain options. The advanced pow-
ertrains no longer include a V8 though, and the cool 10-speed van-
ishes if you select AWD. It would seem that the new LS is poised to
move one step closer to the class leading Mercedes S-class. Which
has moved three steps forward.

44 San Antonio Medicine • January 2018