2008 Getaway Cars

GM will launch self-driving car

The car will be capable of piloting itself at speeds up to 60 mph in heavy traffic without any input from the driver sitting behind the steering wheel.

GM claims the system, called Traffic Assist, will make driving safer and more relaxing. It uses lasers, a video camera and plenty of computing power to “see” signs, bends, other vehicles and lane markings, and to control the engine, steering and brakes to keep the car in the correct position on the road and maintain a safe distance from the vehicle in front.

The system is to become available on more models by the end of the decade — initially other cars on the Epsilon platform, including the next Saab 9-3, Cadillac BLS and Saturn Aura. Whether it will be launched in the U.S. will depend on whether administrators deem it safe — product liability laws are different in America.

GM expects the package to be about 50-percent more expensive than conventional active cruise control radar equipment, which controls distances but cannot steer the car.

What this means to you: No, it’s not April Fool’s Day; GM really has developed a self-driving system. Great for traffic jams, but we’re not sure about a car driving itself at 60 mph!

Audi RS4

Lucky for you, the Audi RS4 is one of the ultimate sleeper cars. From a distance, there’s nothing to give away this car’s silhouette. It’s just another car parked along another street. When you get close enough, you might notice the mesh grille, chrome mirrors, subtle badges, and larger tailpipes. Still, it’s not as extreme as what some spoiled brats have done to their base A4s. Only when you and your lackeys pile in and drop the hammer do the authorities realize they should radio ahead… to neighboring states. As the baddest A4 yet, the RS4’s shoehorned-in 4.2-liter packs 420 bhp at 7,500 rpm and 317 lb-ft of torque at 6,000 rpm. It only takes 4.8 seconds to dash to 60 mph, and with the 155-mph limiter removed, your getaway is a tale you and three cohorts can reminisce about far, far away from where it all went down.

When to use: When winding mountain roads separate you and three accomplices from freedom.

Mini Cooper

Anyone who’s spent a day in the life of a thief will tell you it’s not about drawing attention to yourself. A badass in a badass car is going to attract a whole flock of John Q. Laws before he knows what hit him. And sometimes being quick and nimble is sometimes more so. This is why you’ll appreciate having the key — or the right wires connected — to a Mini Cooper S. The redesign for 2007 gave it a little extra size, but nothing that’ll hold you back. It still handles tight corners and tighter spaces like nobody’s business. The supercharger’s been scrapped for a turbo, but it’s still called the “S” and it’s still a great drive: 177 bhp at 5,500 rpm and 177 Ib-ft of torque at just 1,600 rpm conspire to deliver 6.7-second 0 to 60 times and a top end of 139 mph. But instead of running flat-out, this is the car that first gets you out of narrow passages, be it an alley, a hallway… whatever.

When to use: Losing pursuers in tight corners and tighter quarters.

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Hummer H2

We have yet to see a good crook that’s gone on to become a movie director. If that ever would happen, you’d finally see how not every job gets carried out on a perfectly quiet, moonlit night. Or that the thief always finds freedom chasing the sunset on a straight-as-an-arrow desert highway in a muscle car. What you never see is how messy it can get.

Not the human mess, that’s been dramatized to the hilt. We mean fording a 20-inch river on that moonlit night or crawling up rocks in that desert with 16-inch vertical approaches. When the terrain is an obstacle, you’d better be ready with the Hummer H2. Get off paved roads as soon as you can and run this beast in its element. The 6.0-liter V8 thumps out 325 bhp at 5,200 rpm and 365 Ib-ft of torque at 4,000 rpm, but it doesn’t translate to great 0 to 60 mph times.

The engine is just part of what gets you through the muck. You’ve also got 9.9 inches of ground clearance to play with, plus approach and departure angles of 40.8 degrees and 39.6 degrees, respectively. With the optional air suspension doing its thing, ground clearance goes to 10.8 inches and approach and departure angles grow to 42.8 degrees and an even 40 degrees.

When to use: Whenever you need to get to wherever mountain goats lose their footing.

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BMW M6

There’s much to say about having home-field advantage, even when that field is a far-off land. Naturally, we’re speaking of home-field advantage for your getaway car, exemplified here by the BMW M6. In case you haven’t heard, German police are not known to let offenders slide without jail time — and that’s just for parking tickets. Considering your malfeasance, your future won’t be pretty.

You’re better off stacking the odds in your favor. With 500 bhp at 7,750 rpm and 383 Ib-ft of torque at 6,100 rpm, just 4.5 seconds separate 0 from 60. Yes, you can count on the M6’s 5.0-liter V10 to perform beautifully on the roads it was designed to run. And run it will — even with the fuddy-duddy 155-mph limiter in place. Without it, well, we’ve heard unofficial reports that you can really frost Mr. Uppity’s strawberries and seriously challenge his Ferrari 599.

When to use: Whenever fuss-free Autobahn feats of strength present greater appeal than German prisons.

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