- Doors and Seats
4 doors, 5 seats
- Engine
3.5i, 6 cyl.
- Engine Power
217kW, 351Nm
- Fuel
Petrol (95) 11.8L/100KM
- Manufacturer
4WD
- Transmission
Auto
- Warranty
3 Yr, 100000 KMs
- Ancap Safety
NA
2006 Honda Legend review: Quick drive
Honda's new Legend is jam-packed with gee-whiz technology. Drive it and you may well ask "Why?"
Its all-wheel-drive system can send more torque to the outside rear wheel when cornering and even speed up its rotation. The objective is to make the car behave like a sporty rear-driver.
So why not just build one of those, instead of adding a truckload of complexity and weight?
Sure, it's clever but at 1.85 tonnes the Legend is also too fat. At speed on our rough open roads the underdone suspension cannot properly control this mass, and handling, which initially feels quite taut, falls in a heap.
GPS tracks the Legend's position relative to the sun and automatically adjusts the air-conditioning on both the passenger and driver's side, according to whether they're in sunlight or shadow. Amazing. Yet the air-conditioning system also has five button and visual interfaces for the driver to deal with. Honda's attempt to emulate BMW's iDrive cursor and screen controller is even more of an ergonomic disaster than the original.
The 217kW, 3.5-litre V6 engine lacks torque. Five speeds in the auto is one too few by present standards.
Honda can build technically brilliant cars and motorcycles - the Jazz, Civic, Accord Euro and its Moto GP machinery, for example - but if the aim of technology is to produce a better car, then the Legend misses the point.
Drive a Holden Calais or a VW Passat 3.2-litre V6 and see if you can find an extra $20,000 worth in the Honda.