2016 Polaris Slingshot SL
MSRP $25,199.00
“The Slingshot is the most fun you can have on three wheels.”
Average
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A look that attracts attention
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Easy to get in and drive
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Real outdoor car driving
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Much, much lighter than sports cars.
Against
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Low grip at the rear limits performance
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not great in bad weather
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Licensing requirements vary from state to state.
Seeing a slingshot for the first time is, for most people, a combination of amazement and confusion. Even lawmakers still aren’t sure what to make of this reverse trike coming from a company normally associated with snowmobiles and ATVs.
But this love child of motorcycles and sports cars starts to make a lot more sense on closer inspection. Lacking a roof, doors, and pretty much anything else not essential to vehicle performance, the Slingshot has a curb weight that makes the Lotus Elise look fat. And while it’s far from the most pragmatic way to get around, it’s hard to deny the fact that this three-wheeler offers one of the most attractive entertainment-per-dollar deals right now.
Return to basic
The rare Slingshot features a 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine that sends all its power to a rear wheel via a five-speed manual transmission and a carbon-fiber-reinforced belt drive. The folks at Polaris say the impetus for the Slingshot came from their desire to create a vehicle that could cause a “paradigm shift” in the automotive market. While that certainly has an air of PR hyperbole to it, it’s not unlike the motivating factors behind the Cam Am Spyder of a few years ago (which is also a reverse trike), and the Slingshot is arguably more successful in that mission.
The Slingshot proved to be surprisingly comfortable for a vehicle intended for high performance.
Unlike the Cam Am Spyder, you sit in sling, not on top. This, along with Polaris’ side-by-side seating configuration, traditional steering wheel, three floor-mounted paddle shifters, and a center-console shifter, makes the experience behind the wheel more akin to that of a car with an open cab than that of a motorcycle. .
It also makes getting used to the Slingshot a surprisingly easy process, even for those who don’t have the time to sit behind the wheel of a motorcycle. I would consider myself part of this group, because aside from a brief stint on a motorcycle in my childhood, getting behind the wheel of this trike for the first time was my introduction to the world of motorcycles.
Despite my lack of experience, the handling of the Slingshot was instantly familiar to me due to traditional road car-style input methods. And before you buckle up and drive away, you can be forgiven for wondering why you wouldn’t just prefer a sporty convertible over this much less practical option. But after starting the engine and going on my first drive behind the wheel, it immediately became clear that such comparisons are meaningless.
The Slingshot’s tubular steel frame, minimal bodywork, and bare cockpit not only contribute to its 1,700-pound curb weight, but also allow it to retain much of the motorcycle-riding experience. The windshield found on the top-of-the-line SL model helps keep bugs and random debris out of your helmet, but otherwise it’s very clear that you’re outside while in the Slingshot—you can see, hear, and smell everything. around you at all times. While modern road cars tend to isolate the driver from the outside world, this trike offers exactly the opposite experience.
It’s a feeling that works both ways, as driving the fast Slingshot is a joy on a twisty back road like Angeles Crest Freeway, but it can also be quite disconcerting when competing for position with 18-wheelers on the highways of Los Angeles. The Angels.
Slingshot’s performance is also a double-edged sword. The trike’s Ecotec mill makes 173 horsepower and 166 pound-feet of torque, and that’s more than enough to make the Polaris a thrilling experience when you hit the gas, especially since the sound of the exhaust just seeps out of your ears. helmet.
But since all that power is channeled into a single contact point, powering up the rear tire is such a simple proposition that it occasionally works against the Slingshot. At low speeds in first or second gear, half throttle is all it really takes to make the rear tire go wild. While this makes for endless fun when all you want is to spin around like a maniac, it’s less desirable when you want to pass slower vehicles on the highway and aren’t sure whether or not you’ll end up swerving into oncoming traffic.
It’s worth noting that Polaris offers traction control second to none on the Slingshot as standard, but its threshold is pretty high. The rear tires would still happily go up in smoke whenever power trumped grip, regardless of whether or not traction control was on. As a result, attempts at a quick 0-60 mph sprint proved to be an exercise in restraint rather than courage.
Bradley Iger/Digital Trends
Bradley Iger/Digital Trends
While grip may be lacking a little at the rear, the Slingshot’s handling is impeccably tuned, effectively balancing responsiveness and ride compliance. The independent front suspension is paired with a rear swingarm that soaks up bumps at highway speeds and maintains a reasonable level of comfort around town, while the electronically assisted steering rack has a good weight and responds to inputs with an immediacy and precision that prevents things from ever happening. feel lethargic.
With the Slingshot’s extremely comfortable vinyl seats, which offer horizontal and recline adjustment, this trike isn’t as aggressive on long rides as you might expect, bouncing happily in fifth gear at around 2300rpm at highway speeds. While I wouldn’t call it a grand tourer by any means, the Slingshot proved surprisingly comfortable for a performance-focused vehicle that has more in common with the Ariel Atom than the Toyota Camry.
Conclusion
Slingshot is one of those automotive experiences where its inherent strengths can sometimes turn into weaknesses, and vice versa. Prices start at $20,000 for the base model and top out at around $25,200 for an SL model like this, which includes larger forged wheels and tires, a windshield, and an audio system with a 4.3-inch color screen and a backup camera. Compared to its two-wheeled brethren, the Slingshot gives the superior Ducati a run for its money, with the latter offering performance that’s on a whole other level.
However, when you compare the Slingshot to four-wheel-drive highway offerings, there simply isn’t a car on the market that offers as engaging a driving experience as the Slingshot in this price range. And no car (perhaps with the exception of an open-cockpit formula race car) can deliver the same visceral sense of connection to the road and the great outdoors that the Slingshot does.
While these attributes have occasional flaws, the moments when everything works more than make up for it.
editor’s recommendations
Categories: GAMING
Source: newstars.edu.vn