The Detroit Newspapers's view

HOLLYWOOD, Fla . — Death waits for everyone; in South Florida it just doesn’t wait as long.

If the Grim Reaper doesn’t grab you at the end of your golden years, then he might find you on the road.

I have no statistical evidence, but after a recent trip to the humidity-drenched turf of David Caruso, I can unequivocally say: South Floridians are the worst drivers in the world. The reason every “CSI: Miami” episode starts with Roger Daltrey’s scream is that it’s the sound every driver makes while crossing the Broward/Dade county line.

That was the landscape for my test drive of the 2008 Pontiac G8 base model.

Soon after landing at Fort Lauderdale’s overcrowded airport, I found myself in the driver’s seat of the rear-wheel-drive mid-size sports sedan. This is the base model G8 and I was eager to try it out after testing the 6-liter V-8 GT model a few months ago.

That car is raw power in a sophisticated package. The V-6 version may be meeker under the hood, but its package remains clean, well appointed and comfortable. It may not blast off at any given traffic light, but that’s OK. Light launching will inevitably result in someone T-boning your car because, according to Florida’s driver’s test, at least four cars run every red.

The first thing I noticed shortly after hopping into the G8 was its air conditioning rocks. All of my test driving was conducted with the air on high. Florida, a winter utopia for many Michiganders, is miserable June through October. Even the mosquitoes sweat.

With max AC, the 256-horsepower 3.6-liter V-6 still provided plenty of power to defensively accelerate past cars and trucks, many with their left turn signal continuously blinking. Sometimes the best defense is to blow the doors off of that ’83 Lincoln as the woman driver peers over the hood through her steering wheel.

Driving in South Florida is like permanently playing a life-sized game of Frogger. The G8 made the experience a little easier.

The quick acceleration (0 to 60 mph in 7 seconds) helped almost as much as the big brakes, which I was forced to use often to avoid running over random Canadian pedestrians crossing six-lane roads at unmarked crossings. (Black socks, sandals, Speedos and little else is the official uniform of French Canadians south of their own border.). The vented 11.73-inch front rotors coupled with the twin-piston alloy calipers give the base G8 nearly the stopping power of its bigger GT brother (which has slightly larger rotors) and lets you avoid cracking into those newspaper hawkers at every other traffic light, poised to jump in front of your car to sell just one more 50-cent copy of the Sun-Sentential.

More important was the variable ratio rack-and-pinion steering. Pontiac mounted the steering rack forward of the front axle and that helps give the G8 a solid feel and good balance. Even while swerving, a common occurrence in South Florida, (once to avoid hitting an RV cutting across three lanes on Interstate 95 to take an exit), the G8 remained calm and collected. My nerves weren’t as fortunate.

The multilink suspension always seemed ready to brace for a sudden turn while still providing me with a solid ride. The G8 comes with a firm ride, but it’s much less noticeable in Florida, where the roads — as congested as they are — were in much better condition than most of Metro Detroit’s concrete seams and potholes now under consideration to be named the sixth Great Lake.

Inside, the base G8 felt as comfortable as its GT brother. Really, it was tough to tell the difference. The same dual cockpit, the curvy dash and silly red volt and battery gauge at the top of the center stack.

The vehicle remains remarkably quiet while cruising and a good thing too. Even with the optional 230-watt Blaupunkt stereo kicking out tunes from my iPod, I was able to hear people in the back row shout, “Look out. That guy is going to hit us!”

That guy didn’t. And neither did the next, though I did begin to wonder if they were aiming at the finally styled G8. The base G8 keeps the dual hood scoops, vented fenders and chrome tipped exhaust and shares almost all of its looks with the GT. (The GT does have four exhaust tips.)

And people noticed the G8, even in Florida where Lexus, BMW and Mercedes-Benz seems to rule supreme. It’s sporty and aggressive looking enough to draw stares and questions from the car curious.

Surprisingly, the G8 with the smaller powertrain (which includes a five-speed automatic transmission with a manual shifting mode), didn’t provide much of a boost in gas mileage. The base G8 hits 17 mpg in the city and 25 mpg on the highway. The GT, with a much bigger engine reaches 15 mpg in the city and 24 mpg on the highway.

But the price difference may convince some that that smaller V-8 is worth it. The base model G8 starts at $27,595, while the bigger GT starts at $29,995.

For me, the G8 seemed about perfect to survive four days on the road around Fort Lauderdale. Electronic stability control is standard; so is a tire-pressure monitoring system, dual stage airbags, side curtain airbags for front and rear passengers as well as General Motors Corp.’s Onstar system, which can assist you if you’re in an accident, provide you with turn-by-turn navigation or help you if you lock your keys in your car — something I did not do.

When I parked the G8 at the airport, I walked away thoroughly impressed with the baby G8. It may not have brute strength behind it, but it drives like a great sedan.

Now, if I could only stop sweating.

2008 Pontiac G8

Type: Rear-wheel drive midsize sports sedan

MSRP: $27,595

Engine: 3.6-liter V-6

Power: 256 horsepower, 248-pound-feet torque

Redline: 6,800 rpm

EPA fuel economy: 17 mpg city / 25 mpg highway

Transmission: Five-speed automatic

Suspension:

Front: Multilink MacPherson strut, direct-acting stabilizer bar, progressive-rate coil springs.

Rear: Four-link independent; progressive-rate coil springs over shocks and decoupled stabilizer bar.

Steering: variable-ratio rack-and-pinion

Turning circle: 37.4 feet

Wheels: 18 inches

Wheelbase: 114.8 inches

Length: 196.1 inches

Width: 74.8 inches

Height: 57.7 inches

Curb weight: 3,885 pounds

Legroom:

Front: 42.2 inches

Rear: 39.4 inches

Trunk space: 17.5 inches

Fuel tank: 19.2 gallons

Standard safety features:

StabiliTrak electronic vehicle stability system

Tire pressure monitoring system

Dual-stage frontal air bags with a passenger sensing system

Head curtain side air bags for front and rear occupants

Side thorax air bags for the front passengers

Three-point safety belts in all seating positions

Front safety belt pre-tensioners

Rear-seat LATCH child safety seat provisions in all three seating positions

OnStar

Scott Burgess is the auto critic for The Detroit News. He can be reached at sburgess@detnews.com.