Interiors are important to us for one obvious reason: that's where we
spend almost all of our time with the car. A luxo-sport sedan such as the
Aurora has to be interesting and still provide a level of cosseting that
invokes that involuntary aaahhhhh from a tired owner at the end of the
day.
The Aurora acquits itself well in these areas. The sensory experience
begins when you drop into leather-trimmed front bucket seats and that wonderful
leathery incense tickles your sense of smell. The comfortable steering
wheel is a satisfying handful, not too thick, not too thin, and is also
trimmed in leather.
We expect a high level of standard equipment from a sedan playing in
this league, and Aurora doesn't disappoint. Check the exhaustive list in
our specifications box for a complete rundown, but some highlights include
dual climate controls, power everything including memory seat and mirror
positions, and our favorite, the universal garage door opener.
Yeah, it's a little thing. But once the device is programmed, you can
put that stand-alone opener in your kitchen junk drawer. Some of us still
have an older opener the size of a car battery, which always seems to fall
off the sun-visor, to the surprise and dismay of driver or passenger.
Large instrument graphics and convenient rotary knobs for climate controls
provide a nice level of user friendliness. A sophisticated driver info
center provides readouts for lots of useful data such as mileage and fuel
economy, programmable ETA and a canny distance-to-empty fuel reading.
With big doors that open wide and accommodations for five adults, the
car is a roomy place to spend time. We'd like to see a larger trunk opening
with a lower lift-over height, but most luggage can be stowed easily (including
those all-important golf bags).
Sporty operations are almost as important as comfort considerations
in this class, and nothing contributes more to the sport equation than
a big-displacement American V8. Bigger is better. Believe it.
The Olds 4.0-liter V-8 is a powerful derivative of Cadillac's world-class
4.6-liter Northstar V8. The Olds edition has slightly less displacement
but retains the twin overhead camshafts and 32 valves for great breathing.
The engine sends its 250 horsepower through a quiet four-speed automatic
transmission. The standard axle ratio of 3.38:1 is replaced with a 3.71:1
gear in the optional Autobahn package with which our test car was equipped.
Higher-speed-rated tires also come with the package.
The Aurora accelerates with authority, gears electronically changing
silently and efficiently, but the experience is tuned less for all-out
scoot than a more mature build-up of speed. That said, typical 0-to-60
mph clockings come in well under nine seconds in instrumented tests.
Under way, the car's exceptional body structure resists the intrusion
of wind, road, and engine noises, providing a quiet interior. In addition,
because the Aurora is naturally rigid, its fully independent suspension
can be tuned firmer for better handling without impacting, as it were,
ride quality or telegraphing vibration to the interior. Good structure
also serves to reduce or eliminate potential rattles and squeaks.
We thoroughly enjoyed driving this car. The Magnasteer speed-sensitive
power steering provides more assist at low speeds for parking and in-town
maneuvering and less assist at highway speeds for reassuring directional
control. Magnasteer is a compromise: It filters out a fair amount of the
road feel some enthusiasts enjoy. But steering is linear and direct and
you will enjoy using it to aim the car through corners on those back-country
roads. And when those country lanes are snow covered, standard traction
control will help pull you through.
The Aurora radiates a dignified performance ambience. The engine doesn't
make a noise, but a sound. For all its mass, it accelerates briskly and
with confidence. It looks like a high-performance cruise missile and, within
limits, it is one. If Olds hoped to burnish its image with a gold-standard
sporty sedan, it succeeded.