Oldsmobile Aurora

Oldsmobile Aurora Models

Offering two models is a departure from the original Oldsmobile Aurora, which was conceived as a fully equipped showcase of high-tech gadgets to go along with its complex and standard-setting rigid body construction. This Oldsmobile Aurora is available as a lower-priced 3.5L, which comes with a smaller engine and smaller tires. The V6-powered 3.5L gives buyers the choice of whether they want traction control, automatic air conditioning, passenger-side power seat, and a few other electro-goodies that come standard on the more expensive 4.0L.

Both models offer more options, such as the chrome wheels, Diamond White metallic paint, a premium stereo system, and the power moonroof that came on our test car.

Driving the Oldsmobile Aurora

We drove a pre-production 4.0L test Oldsmobile Aurora, which could explain why the drivetrain clunked loudly when we shifted into gear with the Euro-style console-mounted lever. Usually, the 4T80-E four-speed GM transmission, which began life in Cadillacs nearly a decade ago, is so smooth to operate it's almost invisible.

Moving from a stop, the steering feels super-light. Parking is a one-finger operation here. When you couple that behavior with the smaller size of the new Oldsmobile Aurora, it makes you feel like you could thread a needle with this luxury sedan.

Gathering steam, you hear nothing but exhaust noise. We think that's good, because it means all the extraneous noises from the suspension and drivetrain - everything from the tires to the gears - do not creep into the passenger compartment. Hot rodders will like the grumbly V8 exhaust, but some passengers we had in the car complained it was too loud. We think they were just whining, and pronounce the noise pleasing to our ears.

The Oldsmobile Aurora V8 is the smaller-displacement version of the Cadillac Northstar engine that appeared on the original Aurora, but it has been significantly refined and updated for the new car. Emissions are improved, fuel efficiency is improved, and it makes the same 250 horsepower on regular gas that the previous engine made on premium fuel. The Indy Racing League uses a modified version of this same engine to run the Indy 500.

The V6 engine found in the Oldsmobile Aurora 3.5L comes from the mid-size Intrigue, and it's a twin overhead-cam design derived from the V8. Both engines use four valves per cylinder, a more efficient and expensive arrangement than the two-valves-per-cylinder pushrod V6 engines you'll find in the big Buick and Pontiac sedans. Aurora's V6 makes 215 horsepower, the same as it does in the Intrigue. But the Aurora 3.5L weighs about 250 pounds more than the Intrigue, so it doesn't feel as much like a hot rod as the cheaper Intrigue does.

Both engines are mated to electronically controlled four-speed automatic transmissions. Standard on the V8 car and optional on the V6 is a stability system that can apply braking force to an individual front wheel to prevent the car from too much plowing or drifting in a corner. The traction control system uses wheel braking and engine power reduction (the most desirable combination) to limit wheel spin.

Though silent on the highway, the bigger tires on the Oldsmobile Aurora 4.0L tend to squeal early in sharp corners. That discourages sport driving, although the new Aurora corners as flat as any sports sedan. Credit heavier springs for that, although careful tuning of the suspension struts (bushings, rebound springs, and damping) and smaller anti-roll bars mean the car doesn't feel stiffer on the road. The Oldsmobile Aurora is more balanced, too. Even with the electronic stability and traction control, you can successfully left-foot brake the car to point it into a sharp corner. The brake pedal is firm and sensitive, encouraging confident stops.

Another area that's improved is the masking of torque-steer, a tugging on the steering wheel that happens under hard acceleration in a front-drive car with lots of horsepower. In everyday driving, you'll never notice you're in a front-wheeler. Where torque-steer occurs most noticeably in the Oldsmobile Aurora is on bumpy roads. You can leap from a stop on rutted, crumbly roads with the car's traction control limiting wheelspin, but you need both hands on the steering wheel because of the torque steer. BMW and Mercedes lick this problem by using rear-drive.