1w> 'f^ek'4'ineK:
The SVT Focus and SRT-4 Neon
Justin McLeod
Staff Writer
With the current
trends, gas will keep
on jumping and car
enthusiasm will as
well. So why not
take a four cylin
der engine and pull
a little extra power
of it? You’ll get the
gas mileage and the
ftill throttle fun in
one little package.
Not that V8’s are
out- they never will
be- but we all could
use a fun daily driv
er or an econo-car
that provides some
fun when driving.
So 1 went with the
2005 SRT-4 Neon The Ford SVT Focus (top) and Dodge SRT-4
and due to lack of Neon (bottom) display both power and style,
a 2005 model, the
W.
lop: Courtesy of fordveheles.com / bottom: Courtesy of dodge com
2004 SVT Focus.
Why were these two fours cho
sen? Well, they are both American-
made inline fours. They both scream
fiiel economy and performance and
they come with a sexier body style.
And with the added styling and
power, it’s easy to pay a little more
for something you won’t tinker as
much on.
The Focus is up for new changes
in the coming year and there will
definitely be* refinements, but it
might not be enough. Ford’s little 14
is pushing almost 2,600 lbs of car
with 170 base hp and 145 ft/lbs of
torque. That’s good for a little four,
but it would be nice to see what
happens when they change the old
engine’s two-valve cylinder heads
with the new Ford concept of three-
valves per cylinder. It would be
even more impressive if they would
go ahead and put a turbine on it too.
Dodge’s turbocharged four utilizes
230 base horses and 250 ft/lbs of
torque to push almost 3,000 lbs
around.
When it comes to interior, you
Won’t find a lot to gripe about
on either car. There are paneling
upgrades and a better steering wheel
. The instrument panel is attractive
enough, featuring extra gauges for
boost (on the turbocharged SRT).
Both come with suspension-sport
buckets in the front and the Focus
allows the backseat drivers full view
with a theatre-styled seating concept
that leaves the driver with a perfect
view as well.
The Focus and Neon handled
wonderfully as well. When you
wind up the engines, the tires grab
the road and you glide through turns
with ease and a feeling that can’t be
rivaled by anything less than a true
sports car Yes, they have equally
equipped suspension systems and
brake setups, but if the Focus had
had more horsepower, it would have
stayed in the running.
Of course, both of these are
grand buys filled with fun driving
at economic gas consumption. But
if you’re willing to jump from about
one grand for the added power you’d
be missing in the Focus- you’ll be
happier in the long run.
b^'s days are numbered in a
page-tuming new memoir
LinnieSarah Helpern
LiFEsmES Editor
In the ever-awesome world of
rock and roll, there is nothing worse
than being the guy who almost
made it. The tale is as old as Pete
Best himself; a young scrappy lad
joins the band of a school chum
and they rock out shamelessly until
said scrappy lad decides to take
another path. Neil McCormick was
one such boy and his old school
buddy was none other than... Bono.
In his memoir, “Killing Bono”
McCormick tells of his life post-U2,
the trials and tribulations he faced,
and what it is like to be Bono’s less-
successful alternate self
Some are born great. Some
achieve greatness. Some have
greatness thrust upon them. And
some have the misfortune to go
to school with Bono. So summa
rizes the back cover of “Killing
Bono.” Neil McCormick, now the
music critic (gasp!) for London’s
“Daily Telegraph,” could have eas
ily turned his tale into an attack
on the man considered by many to
be the messiah of rock music. And
with good reason; Bono is living
the life that McCormick convinced
himself as a child that he was bom
to live. Yet, “Killing Bono” is so
much more than that.
Courtesy of 42.com
Bono waves to crowds alongside
President Bush. In Neil McCor
mick's memoir, the U2 frontman is
blamed for a life in semi-ruins.
While McCormick believed that
he was destined for rock stardom, it
seems far more likely that he ended
up right where he was supposed to
be. McCormick begins his book
as a tale of what could have been,
but ends up focusing on what was
with more heart than any rock story
written in the last five years. The
dominant focus of “Killing Bono”
is not McCormick’s stab at almost
stardom or a bitter tirade against
the man who would be king, but it
is more about the music, man.
Neil McCormick experienced
the Dublin punk scene first hand,
both through the eyes of a musician
and the eyes of a future rock jour
nalist, and it shows. He approaches
the subject of the music with both
sensitivity and honor, and you can
feel his passion for what he is writ
ing. With that said it is his habit of
complete and utter self-deprecation
coupled with his innate ability to
make the reader laugh out loud that
make “Killing Bono” worth sitting
down for.
Inevitably, “Killing Bono” is
tale filled with heart, humor, and
some kick-ass Bono stories. In the
hands of any other writer, “Killing
Bono” could easily have become a
scathing tell-all about a rock leg
end. Yet, and perhaps most inter
esting, Neil McCormick and Bono
are still good friends. McCormick
simply believes that he and Bono
perhaps traded lives at some ill-
fated moment in history. And while
McCormick may never get “his”
life back, he is still the guy who sat
next to Bono in home room. And
that has to count for something,
right?
Another year, another batch of
wannabe idols
Courtesy of idolonfoK.com
Another year has passed and
yet again lambs gather to throw
themselves to the Idol wolves.
Kai Oliver-Kurtin
Correspondent
The talent-based reality televi
sion show “American Idol” began
its fourth season Jan. 18 after more
than 100,000 people in seven cit
ies around the country auditioned
to be a part of it. This year more
people auditioned than ever before,
proving that reality television shows
are truly becoming a widespread
phenomenon among Americans.
Last year, “American Idol” was
the most-searched item on both
AOL and Yahoo and received the
People’s Choice Award for the best
reality show competition.
Yet, not everyone loves
“American Idol.” Two major criti
cisms of the show are the allegedly
unfair voting for the contestants
and the mockery of talent William
Hung presents after receiving a
recording contract. Hung became
famous after his audition of a song
and dance to Ricky Martin’s “She
Bangs.”
Many complaints were lodged
see IDOLS page 6
CM K