My wife has a 3.5 Blade which she has owned for almost 5 years. I asked her if she thought it was a “hot hatchâ€. Her response: I couldn’t care less what anyone else thinks it is. Women!
ianab,
Aug 29, 8:03pm
Not in the traditional "hot hatch" sense. It's quiet, rides soft and smooth, and only handles like your might expect a Corolla or Aurion to (Average) You don't want to push it to the limit in the corners, as you wont enjoy it. But that suits my driving style, slow down before the corner, drive through under sensible power, and get on the gas again once you have your exit line sorted.
There was a link to a magazine review above that sums it up pretty well. Calling it a something more like a Compact Grand Tourer. It's a VERY nice little car to take on a road trip, or even daily commute. Overtaking / hills are a breeze etc. We toured the South Island in our Blade, you hardly notice the Mt passes etc.
A traditional "hot hatch" relies on it's light weight, stiff suspension etc to get performance and handling, while ride comfort and quietness is usually further down the list. Fair enough if you want a hot hatch, you accept that.
The OP wasn't looking for a "hot hatch" anyway. The thread has just been hijacked to that subject. And if you are only doing 50k a week, fuel economy isn't going to be a huge issues either. And even then, there aren't many cars with the Blade V6 performance that can get better economy. The 2.4 is basically just an upmarket Corolla, perfectly good commuter car, and wont struggle on open road either.
So, not a "hot hatch", but if you talk to the folks that have one, they aren't in a hurry to sell it. I'm not even sure what I'd want to trade it for, as anything better is way out of my pay grade. It's a bit of an oddball car really, maybe the VW Golf R32 might be something comparable?
thejazzpianoma,
Aug 29, 10:21pm
No, the Golf was designed with the R32 as a designation from the get go. It's Quattro 4WD and supurb suspension give it handling and grip that is out of this world compared to the Blade. It is a proper hot hatch. Drive one and you will see what I mean on the first corner.
If thinking of getting one, consider the Audi badged equivalent, weirdly they are often much cheaper in NZ where nothing about our car market is logical!
With regards to economy. A Giulietta QV will give similar performance to a blade 3.5 (and go around corners) in a similar price bracket (one went for 10K the other day) fuel economy averages just 7l/100km combined for the auto version (a little more for the manual). That's probably about what a base 1.8 Corolla does, goes to show the difference between out dated technology and what else is available.
Now that said, you like your blade and all power to you. My beef is just that people make them out to be something they are not (like a proper hot hatch) or even worse the only reliable fast hatch on the market. Neither of which are fair statements.
BTW, I totally agree with your summing up of the Blade too. It's a straight line hotrod with some nice goodies you don't get in a regular Corolla.
stevo2,
Aug 30, 4:20am
The scary thing is - I must agree with "MOST" of what Jazz has said in all of his previous posts in this thread. Have you been brainwashing me for all these years? The Euros know how to make "Hot Hatches" The Japanese have very few in that niche. The Blade G is a good, reliable and powerful car that has a lot going for it but it aint a "Hot Hatch"
Mate I read reread then read again the post by Tigertim. Nowhere at any point did he ask for a hot hatch. A Blade isn't a hot hatch. It is a darn comfortable car to drive.It has several nice safety features that clearly appeal to TT. Personally I enjoy driving them. For NZ conditions they are IMO darn perfect. We have a 100km/h speed limit and at that speed (and even enough above it to be in trouble with the police) it soaks up road bumps with ease. Its not lacking in power for country driving but is civilised for city driving. Its hard to be all things to all men but the blade does really well.
cjohnw,
Aug 30, 2:36pm
^^^ I tried to make the same point earlier. Previously no one made a single claim about a hot hatch whatsoever. So you can only assume it was raised to further a well known agenda held by another poster. I can only comment on our Blade, and say my wife certainly did not purchase hers on the expectation it was a “hot hatch†but more for the features you quite correctly identify above.
bwg11,
Aug 30, 2:40pm
Only driven a Blade around the block but the concept of the high geared, big lazy motor in a Corolla sized car appeals. Who cares if it fits somebodies idea of what a "hot hatch" should be or not? Australia and the States get the same power train in the RAV4 which really appeals to me.
gazzat22,
Aug 30, 2:55pm
I think the term"Hot Hatch" was some term a journalist in the UK or Europe coined for the VW Golf GTI when it first came out.Kaz from my experiences with the few I have driven I agree with you entirely.When I started driving many years ago we had the choice between a gas guzzling yank Tank which handled like a sponge pudding(half cooked) or in the words of a friend " an underpowered Pommy Car that wouldnt pull a sick woman of a pisspot!" Cars like the blade and most cars we can buy now are comfortable,adequately powered,reliable, dont leak oil and dont stop when it rains. Cheers.
Sounds like a whole lot of semantic rubbish to me, the original GTi Golf wasn't originally AWD either but was always referred to as a Hot Hatch so why can't the Blade be referred to as so based on that criteria? Its a well above average performing hatchback. Maybe we should look at some names perhaps before categorising things, the Blade is going to do what it says, it'll cut through the countryside with ease with its rock solid mechanicals and still give years of reliable service and be easy to sell, an Alfa Giulietta (Goolietta?) does exactly what IT says. It'll leave you in a sticky situation one day, be worth nothing and will be more difficult to offload than herpes. I know what I'd be buying.
gazzat22,
Aug 31, 9:59am
The Corolla FX GT both models which i think had the 4 AGE motor were pretty hot.
redrum67,
Aug 31, 12:05pm
. R32. Awd, 3door, 6 speed manual, recaro interior, sports suspension= hot hatch. blade, an under steering corolla that can tow= 5 door hatch.
kazbanz,
Aug 31, 12:09pm
Franc-in my opinion a "hothatch" is the sharpened up version of a normal hatchback. By sharpened I mean suspension and power usually. The GTI version of the Golf allways was. The sport version of the Swift, The sport version of the Vitz/Yarris are examples. I genuinely don't feel the Blade is one of those. In my view these things go in cycles. It looks to me that Coupe's --2 doors -are the current "in thing"
aggy3,
Aug 31, 12:45pm
we have a 2.4 blade. love it. is it a hot hatch or not, we dont give a shit really. they go well, cheap to run, reliable and good resale.
gazzat22,
Aug 31, 1:58pm
I think you could call the Blade 3.5 a Grand Tourer,the 2.4 a well optioned safe town car.
jmma,
Aug 31, 5:41pm
Talking of hot Hatches, this IMO is the best and its a much watch vid :o)
Yes, those were the days, in the late 80's and early 90's, I owned a FX-GT, a NZ new GT Hatch and a RWD Levin, while my wife had a import 4 door Corolla GT sedan. Who said Toyota build boring cars?
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