Installing low-rolling resistance tires that are otherwise costlier and noisier than standard rubber is another easy fix, with re-sculpting front fascia designs to improve higher-speed aerodynamics also a short-run possibility.

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Parts that need a sniff test are placed in three-liter jars with specialized foam seals (standard-smelling rubber seals could contaminate the testing).

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Seventeen-inch wheels and tires are standard on the base model, with 18-inch rims and rubber optional there and standard with AWD, where 19 inchers are alternately offered.

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The Pop-Up, which used to be a time-sensitive device to surprise and delight, has now become as standard south of 23rd Street as rubber Wellingtons and neck scarves.

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Eighteen-inch wheels and tires are standard with 19- and 20-inch rims and rubber available.

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We felt a few bumps and jolts over pockmarked pavement, due largely we suspect to the standard run-flat tires (which by nature are stiffer than conventional rubber), but by the same token the ride is never floaty or bouncy, which will certainly spare rear-seat riders from ever feeling seasick in this land yacht.

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