Test drove a 2015 Caspian Black V6 Tech this morning. Here are the likes:
1. The seats! They've upgraded the quality of the motors and switches and slide bearings. No more snap, crackle, and pop. Plenty of range in the adjustments. Front thigh support switch is soft-feel (ala santoprene) and the lumbar/bolster adjustment is intuitive. The back seat leg room is reduced a couple inches but is still ample. Back seats are comfortable, front seats are better! The support and comfort levels are great! The tech has the upgraded driver seat w/ adjustable thigh support. Not sure if the seat cooler in test car was functioning as I didn't notice it get as cold as my 09.
2. The ride! Coming from the harsh 09, words cannot adequately describe how far they've come. In a word: fantastic. Absorbs bumps and dips like they aren't there. Drive over a speed bump in my 2009 at 15 mph and you'll smack your head on the ceiling if your belt is not buckled - think unloaded pick-up truck. Do it again in the 15 and a passenger reading a book probably wouldn't notice. Noticeably improved over the 2012 (non-Rspec) as well. It really is as good as the reviews and other posters here have said.
3. The handling. Handled a highway cloverleaf onramp just fine with no discernable tire roll or drift, and glided a couple tight corners with pavement depressions that would cause most cars to jump a foot to the side. There's a great little road near my house that has several small roundabouts (50-75 ft dia) and is a great handling test at 30-40 mph. I noticed a significant amount more body roll in this car than with the 2012 4.6 non-Rspec and my 2009. But it's nothing out of the ordinary for a luxury
non-sport sedan. With the Hankook Ventus S1 Noble2 tires, it grips as well as my 09 with Pilot Super Sports on dry pavement as far as I was willing to push it with a calm but somewhat white-knuckled salesman in the car and with the ESC on.
4. The radio. The 14-speaker lexicon sound quality is very good. Stereo image in the mids was clear and highs were crisp. Lots of range in the tone controls, and mids and tweeters did not blare or clip when set to +9 at 25 on the volume. Not quite as good as the excellent 17-speaker in the 09, as it lacks the punch of the higher-end subwoofer. Bumping the bass up a couple ticks from flat helped, but it's still not quite the same as the 17-Lex. Bluetooth connected easily and did not drop connection at all in the 45 minute long test drive - an issue in my 09. Streaming music was easy and sound quality came through just fine. The touchscreen interface is mostly intuitive but can be a bit confusing if you accidentally hit the MODE button on the
wheel and change sources (hint: hit the MEDIA button to return to streaming). HD radio quality is again very good. Overall the system could use a little more punch in the lows w/ a better woofer/subwoofer setup, but is worthy of the trim level of the car.
5. The "what kind of car is that" factor is back. The black paint pops as well as with the 1st Gen. Had a guy on a motorcycle pass me, double take, then slow down to look at the tail to figure out what the car was.
6. Lake departure warning + lane keep assist. This was implemented really well. If you actively change lanes while holding the
wheel without a blinker, you'll get the beep + haptic response in the steering
wheel. If you let the car drift on it's own (hands off the
wheel or with hands lightly resting on the
wheel), by the time get a tire up onto a line, the car will gently turn the
wheel to pull you back into the center of the lane. It's definitely not the jerky response I expected, and is so subtle you almost won't notice it.
7. Improvements to the cruise distance control. In 2012 the car would make very abrupt throttle and brake changes to deal with distance and speed changes of vehicles in front. This has been improved quite a bit in the 15, along with the addition of a 4th distance setting (about your typical one-alligator-two-alligator).
8. Blind spot detection. Also implemented very well. It will go off as expected if you turn on a blinker at highway speed and there's a car either next to you, in your blind spot, or approaching from behind. The beep is distinct and loud enough that you can hear it above music playing at volume 20.
9. Drivetrain. For a heavy v6, this car has quite bit of giddyup from 0 to 50. The transmission shift points seemed well balanced with the v6 engine. From then on, however, a v8 owner will notice a considerable difference. Although power is noticeably absent above 50 mph compared to my 4.6, dropping the throttle to the kickdown switch at 70mph on the highway worked as I expected. It downshifted well (and quickly! 2012 owners take note!) to find the right gear for passing and I was able to match left lane I-75 at 80 mph with ease.
10. Panoramic sunroof and other trimmings. The pano-glass roof is big! Power split shade keeps out the sun and opened smoothly. The pass-thru to the trunk is a little bigger than my 09, and plastic not metal. Might be able to get a couple, maybe 3 pair of skis through it. Back seat manual sunshades were easy to operate and hooks are subtly placed so not obvious when they're not in use. The storage pockets on the backs of the seats are now hard plastic vs. the elastic banded leather on my 09. Leather seats are perforated in front and back seat and upright surfaces, which makes for better ventilation and less sweat in the Florida heat.
All in all, the 2015 v6 is an impressive ride and has the right balance of drive train, ride, and tech-toys to make the car a fabulous long distance cruiser or daily driver.
