It's a fairly big car too. Rear seat passengers have plenty of room, even if full-size. While there are seat belts for five, four is more reasonable unless we're talking kids. The rear headroom is surprisingly good too, especially when factoring in the rakish rear window. I found it was easy to find a place to store an odd or an end, there's covered bins pretty well everywhere. CDs fit neatly under the center armrest, deep enough for a library of favorite artists. The 6-way power adjustable driver's seat to the left of the armrest is particularly comfortable, well bolstered and like the rest of the furniture covered in perforated
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| Although a coupe, the Solara is a fairly big car with plenty of room in the rear seats for adults. (Photo: Shawn Pisio, Canadian Auto Press) |
leather - ivory hued in my test car. Out the back the remote power accessible trunk was finished in dark carpeting, and at 390 L (13.8 cu ft), large enough for more than I needed to carry. The SLE came standard with an extremely impressive 6-speaker JBL audio system featuring a 6-disc dash-mounted CD changer, easily up to pounding out Jay-Z while subtle enough for Ravel. Other upscale features include an easy to operate automatic climate control system, power glass sunroof, tilt/telescopic steering, heated seats, power windows, mirrors and door locks, that latter with remote access.
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| The Solara SLE could easily pass as a premium coupe, yet remains a pretty good deal with its $35,800 price tag. (Photo: Shawn Pisio, Canadian Auto Press) |
As far as safety considerations go, front side-impact airbags plus front and rear curtain side airbags are standard on the SLE, as are independent rear seat headrests.
All in all, the Solara SLE is very well appointed with its only option being Arctic Frost White paint, at $255. Coated with any other color the price stands at $35,800, which in my opinion is a pretty good deal for what could easily pass as a premium coupe.
