THE FOURTH DUEL - GROUP 4
Mons Granite to the left - MAD Ouray II to the right.
Finally, we have the two giants in the comparision, the Mons Granite and the MAD Ouray. Both with sturdy ladder frames in the bottom, both with coil sprung solid axles in the rear. The Mons is running one up front also while the MAD is using a double wishbone front end. The MAD has a V8 while the Mons has an unusually large V6.
DRIVING CHARACTERISTICS
Cars in this class always have a drawback both in the Swedish terrain and in the cities - their size. But as long as the terrain is open, the Mons Granite goes on like a bulldozer, it is simply unstoppable. As already stated, in the crowded cities it is simply too large to work, and driving one can be a pain. But on the open road it is a surprise. The handling is not too far behind some passenger cars and despite being such a heavy car, there is no brake fade, even if stopping distances are long. ABS is standard equipment.
The MAD is still one of the better offroaders in the test even if it falls behind the Mons. As stated, this is as long as there is room for the huge beast. The drawbacks in the cities are of course the same, even if the MAD feels a bit more nimble and relaxing to drive, truth is though that the handling and brakes are very weak points. But once again, ABS and no brake fade saves it from a total failure in the braking department.
PERFORMANCE
Both of the cars are positive surprises. The top speed of the Mons Granite is maybe not very high at 180 km/h but 0-100 is done in a quite quick 8.47 second time, 80-120 in 5.28 seconds and the quartermile in 16.5 seconds - numbers only beaten by the GSI Bergsget. The MAD has nothing to be ashamed of either with a 213 km/h top speed, 10 second 0-100 time, 6.72 second 80-120 time and 17.58 second quartermile time.
COMFORT
The Mons is one of the most comfortable cars in our test. The ride is smooth with its hydropneumatic damping and the interior is nice. However, the grumbling and harsh giant V6 is the dark cloud on the horizon here, you never have to wonder if you forgot to turn the engine on, to put it this way.
The MAD is not only the winner of the two cars in this department, but in our whole test, by a great margin. The interior is kind of a living room, despite running only regular gas dampers the ride is smooth and the engine is much more quiet and relaxed than in the Mons.
ROOMINESS
In this class room shoul not be a problem. And it is kind of a tie here - slightly more cargo space in the MAD but slightly more room for the passengers in the Mons. The differences are only marginal though.
EQUIPMENT
Both cars are of course very well equipped. But the MAD has some gizmos included that is lacking in the Mons, as alloy wheels, CD player and traction control.
ENGINE AND DRIVETRAIN
One could expect a V8 in a car like the Mons, but instead it has an unusually large V6 (4.5 litres/291 hp) and we are not sure that we like the concept, since the engine is far from smooth. It features all the latest technology though, being a 24 valve twin cam with VVT. Tubular headers are another unusual feature. One thing should be said though, this is maybe not the environmentalists choice of transportation, but the emissions from the tailpipe is actually very clean.
Another unusual choice is a six speed manual with a gear spacing that seems to come out of a sports car. We think that an automatic would have been a much more logical choice in a car like this.
The 6 litre V8 in the MAD is a bit ancient with its pushrod technology, which shows in the power output, only 260 hp despite being larger than the Mons engine. But as the V8 it is, it’s more smooth and refined. The 4 speed computer controlled automatic seems to be wisely chosen for this car.
QUALITY
In this class you should expect build quality. And it has to be said that a rusty Mons is a rare sight. The rust protection is simply out of this world. The build quality is nearly bomb proof too. Yet, reliability is only around average, advanced technology is probably taking its toll in this class.
The MAD is slightly inferior in everything except for the reliability that is only marginally better. Still it has to be said that it is still a car with extremely high quality.
ECONOMY
The Mons is a complete disaster to your wallet. Both purchase price ($36500AMU), service costs ($1010.50AMU) and fuel economy (18.2 litres per 100 km) has the records for being the most expensive in this test.
One can’t say that the MAD is economical either, but at $30500AMU it is cheaper to buy, it is a bit more sparse on fuel at 17.8 l/100 km and cheaper to service at $989.20AMU.
SAFETY
This is two tanks that will crush everything that comes in their way, good for their own passengers, bad for everyone else. The MAD does have some safety equipment lacking in the Mons too, like a passengers side airbag.
Next page: Final verdicts