Indholdsfortegnelse for January 2010 i MotorTrend

this month @ motortrend.com And the Winner Is This month wc crown the winner of the 2010 Motor Trend Car of the Year, our annual selection of the best car rollrig on four wheels. The 2010 field featured an incredibly diverse set of sheetmetal, from budget Kias to four-door Porsches. After you’ve read all about the contenders and the winner of the Golden Calipers, head over to motortrend.com for more of the story, all caught on video. We’ve put together a short film that details the complete COTY process from start to finish. You can check it out here: www.motortrend.com/multimcdia/videos/features or find it here on YouTube: www.youtube.com/motortrend…

SCRATCHING for survival with too many aging models in its lineup, Mitsubishi finally has a new Outlander on deck. The crossover SUV’s new styling was previewed by the Tokyo motor show concept, PX-miev. It’s the name that clues you in on the Outlander’s real news: Mitsubishi has been hard at work on a new dual-hybrid, combining serial and parallel systems, for introduction by 2013. The dual hybrid combines with a 117-horsepower, 1.6-liter four in the Outlander. The crossover can drive on pure electric or as a gas/electric hybrid, and the gas engine can drive the front wheels directly or be used just to recharge the electric motors. Mitsubishi has been working on the system for many years, obviously, and thinks it has a viable alternative to the Chevy Volt. The…

letter of the month gone down the road Upon receipt of each issue, I immediately turn to the last page for a quick read. After perusing Matt Stone’s article, “Trans Am Greats,” I slowly reread the line, “We shall never pass this way again,” and I almost shed a tear. The absolute totality of that statement really hit home! I may have felt a strong personal twinge brcause, at age 67, my own longevity comes to mind more frequently, and Matt’s article was just another sad reminder of what’s been and of what’s to come. While a Trans Am never stabled in my garage, my own personal journey down life’s highway included numerous rivals to the Trans Am greats, which always were viewed with respect. How sad that future generations…

WE LIKE: Smooth, quiet ride; SHO is a stoplight sleeper. WE DON’T LIKE: Cramped for such a huge and heavy car, sport seats just for show. FORD HAS Five Hundred reasons why it wants you to believe the 2010 Taurus is a brand-new model. Despite resurrecting the bull moniker and branding SHO upon its rump, this Taurus still retains much Ford Five Hundred breeding. It rides upon the same 112.9-inch wheelbase as the Five Hundred, but is 1.7 inches wider for a more aggressive stance. Problems arise with that swooping greenhouse; though the Taurus is 2.2 inches longer overall, the roof is 0.8 inch lower and covers the SUV-like “command seating” arrangement inherited from the Five Hundred. The net result is a rakish profile at the cost of a cramped…

WE LIKE: Good looks, cool stereo, lots of charm. WE DON’T LIKE: Unrefined chassis, noisy, crude engine, vague gearbox. THERE ONCE was a time when a college student’s car—often a high-school graduation gift—was a mixed blessing. Parents bought the car, so it was usually safe, reliable, and practical, and, in many cases, a little embarrassing to be seen in. Since then, economy cars have gotten some style, thanks in no small part to Scion. One of the newest cool econocars to hit the streets is the Soul, arguably the first car Kia has produced that will make you smile when you look at it. Inside and out, styling was a huge plus for the judges. As St. Antoine explains, the Soul has a “charming character with lots of exterior pizzazz…

WE LIKE: Delivers design, proportions, and interior space one expects in an E-Class. WE DON’T LIKE: Falls short of expectations for driving dynamics. THIS NEW E-Class coupe may replace the CLK in the lineup, but it’s quite a different car, and the lower your heart rate, adrenaline levels, and expectations, the more you’ll enjoy it. The style and proportions say E sibling, but underneath that social-climber skin there’s a lot of C-Class hardware. Lean on those parts hard, as red-misty-eyed car journos are wont to do on a closed handling circuit, and they groan under their heavier burden (200-300 pounds relative to a C-Class sedan). Tires howl, the steering turns lifeless (in contrast to the E sedan’s), and stability lights flash in minor slides. “Feels a bit nervous on the…

WE LIKE: Cheeky design initially engaging, interior space, fun, too. WE DON’T LIKE: Meager power, tongue-in-cheek styling won’t stay amusing for long. TO TWEAK an old favorite, “When the going gets weird, the weird will be driving Nissan Cubes.” However, there’s “weird” in a sad way—think Pontiac’s biblically disastrous Aztek—and then there’s this Cube, where Nissan is completely in on the joke. It’s a definite smile-maker. While every one of our testers preferred Kia’s better-driving (and looking) Soul to the Cube, we couldn’t help being considerably seduced by the Nissan’s geometrical whimsy. “Quirky fun, lots of character, and a pretty good drive, too” says the spot-on Ed Loh. In fact, it seems to be quirky in endless ways. Indeed, the Cube must be the most profoundly asymmetric car ever built,…

WE LIKE: Classic, stunning looks, athletic chassis, awesome thrust from twin-turbo 35i. WE DON’T LIKE: Squeaks from raised hardtop, hard-to-justify price. GADS IT’S gorgeous: as flat and broad as a surging ocean wave, with classical contours seemingly sculptured and smoothed by the house of Bernini. The new BMW Z4 power-hardtop convertible electrifies your medulla oblongottahave. “The styling makes my knees go weak,” says Frank Markus. “Wide, low, long-nosed/short-decked sleekness. Perfection.” Beautiful inside too. The Z4 cockpit is a restful, chic blend of contrasting leather, wood, soft plastic, and metal trim. Four central climate-control dials add an air of old-school elegance. Navigation (if ordered) is tucked away in a pop-up screen. “I am so glad BMW finally offers an interior that isn’t a dark pit”, writes Allyson Harwood. The base Z4…

WE LIKE: Throaty, eager V-8, racy handling response, gorgeous cockpit. WE DON’T LIKE: Needs a fresher exterior; rough, noisy base V-6 belongs at the end of an anchor chain. “STILL CRAZY after all these years,” writes Matt Stone about Ford’s evergreen ponycar. “Ford took a good thing—the 2005-2009 Mustang—and made it so much better”. No doubt about it: Ford’s newly reworked ‘Stang rocks. Sporting a physique that’s leaner and neater than the ’09 model it replaces, the 2010 Mustang cuts through the wind with a signature face and familiar, muscular profile. “A great answer to the question, ‘Where do you go from retro,” says Ed Loh. “Looks modern, without the ham-handedness of the ’05” Yet a few editors—among them guest judge and pro stylist Tom Gale—docked the Mustang for not…

WE LIKE: Well-executed CVT, 2.5GT power, cavernous interior. WE DON’T LIKE: Frumpy styling, stubborn six-speed, 2.5GT oversteer. SIMILAR TO this year’s winner, the Legacy represents a diverse lineup of sedans, one that includes a base four-cylinder transporter with a manual or all-new chain-type CVT a mid-level six-cylinder family hauler with a five-speed auto and paddle shifters, and a top-tier turbocharged flat-4 rally machine that comes exclusively with a six-speed shift-it-yourself. And with base prices ranging from $20,690 for the flat-4, $25,690 for the flat-6, and $28,690 for the turbo, the Legacy wears outlet-aggressive pricetags. Alas, it was not enough to move this Indiana-built four-door to the top of the heap. But who knows, if Subaru had offered its fifth-generation sedan with a hybrid powertrain, or even the brand’s new 145-horse,…

IN 1964, Motor Trend’s Car of the Year award went to the entire Ford lineup, recognizing its combination of design, engineering excellence, and performance. In 1970, we gave the nod to the Ford Torino, which could be ordered in a wide variety of configurations. Forty years ago, buyers could choose from economical, six-cylinder-powered sedans to the dragstrip-ready 429 Super Cobra Jet fast back. These legendary winners had one thing in common: bandwidth. In the 1960s and ’70s, this term wasn’t yet part of popular lexicon. Today, the Ford Fusion’s impressive bandwidth as a model range was one of the many factors that helped it earn the Golden Calipers for 2010. Want an economical midsize sedan that doesn’t cost much, yet won’t bore you to tears? Need to please your greener…

YOUR FRIENDS don’t understand. “You’re taking a Dodge Challenger on a road trip for five days from Los Angeles to…Where are you going?” “Not sure yet” you reply. “Oh, come on” You can hear the frustration in their voices. This isn’t normal, doesn’t fit the contemporary protocol of neatly planned digital calendars and Google Maps itineraries and “here’s my mobile number just in case”. Nobody takes a car and drives for thousands of miles without a destination. What’s the point! You must be headed somewhere? “East” you say. It’s the best you can do. You do know where you’re going, though: away, out there, gone. Sanctuary, of a sort, awaits: unsullied air to quiet the din of city traffic and TV pundits and your Cro-Magnon neighbors who can’t check the…

AFTER LAST year’s radical revamp of its Ram 1500 trucks, which set just about everyone on his ear with their coil-spring rear suspensions, one could only wonder how they’d wow us with the new Heavy Duty versions. Well now we know, and while there’s nothing as paradigm-shattering here as coil springs, the new H-D’s are nevertheless rife with solid improvements. While last year’s engine choices remain-the 5.7-liter Hemi offering 383 horses and 400 pound-feet of torque, and the mighty 6.7-liter Cummins turbodiesel producing 350 horses and a stump-pulling 650 pound-feet of torque-the oil burner now features a neat engine-braking capability from its variable-geometry turbo. Push a button and the single-piece nozzle that controls the exhaust gases’ impingement on the impeller, slides to severely restrict the flow, creating backpressure, and hence…

2009 ACURA TL SH-AWD AFTER 7500 miles of dormancy, the TL’s Maintenance Minder light came on at 14,000 miles—it was time for the second service. We stopped in at Acura 101 West of Calabasas, which performed an oil change, full inspection, tire rotation, and replacement of the rear differential fluid, all for $229.62. Thus far, fuel economy, at 19.7 mpg, has been quite good and basically what we expected (EPA numbers are 17/25) for a 305-horse AWD sedan, but the V-6-powered TL barely outperforms our long-term V-8 Hyundai Genesis, which is achieving 19.2 mpg. Nevertheless, the 3.7-liter SOHC engine is impressing senior editor Ron Kiino. “The TL’s V-6 doesn’t feel like a 305-horse engine—more like 275—but boy does it swing sweetly and rev smoothly. It’s palpably racy yet still exceptionally…

FOLLOWING in the footsteps of the Lexus GS and on the heels of Mercedes-Benz’s introduction of the eighth-generation E-Class, Infiniti is readying the release of the third-gen M, a sedan that promises to compare favorably—at least on paper—with both. As with the GS, the new M offers V-6, V-8, and V-6/hybrid power, engine options that stack up nicely against the E’s V-6, V-8, and upcoming BlueTEC diesel. The new M, nominally longer and wider than the outgoing model, wears sleeker, more curvaceous sheetmetal draped over bigger wheels, all of which make it look like a slightly bigger G sedan. Interior dimensions, already roomy for the class, remain about the same. Infiniti offers the choice of a 3.7-liter, 327-horsepower V-6 (M37), a 5.6-liter, 415-horse (est) V-8 (M56), and a 3.5-liter V-6…

WE RECENTLY sampled a 2010 European-spec Golf TSI, powered by a riff on Ford’s EcoBoost engine-downsizing concept. VW’s Twincharger involves a 1.4-liter direct-injected four-cylinder boosted by a supercharger and a turbocharger, the former for instant response at low revs, the latter optimized for mid- to high-range performance. Output is an impressive 158 horsepower and 177 pound-feet of torque. That’s the same peak torque the Golf’s base 2.5-liter produces at 4250 rpm (see our Newcomer first drive, page 117), but the Twincharger generates it from a diesel-like 1500 rpm to almost 4600 rpm. Hooked to a seven-speed DSG, it hits 60 mph in 7.5 seconds and runs the quarter in 15.8 seconds at 89.6 mph, well ahead of the self-shifting variants of our 2.5 (8.1, 16.1 at 86.9) and TDI (7.9,…

DAYS AFTER Penske Automotive pulled out of a deal to buy the Saturn division, General Motors announced it had reached a definitive agreement to sell its Hummer brand. The new owners, upon Chinese government approval, will be Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery, with 80 percent via an investment entity, and Suolang Duoji, a private entrepreneur who will hold the other 20 percent. Rumors are the new owners will pay GM $150 million for the Hummer brand. The deal was to be completed by early 2010. Holdings of Duoji, the private entrepreneur, include Lumena, a the nardite (for glass and paper manufacturing) producer listed on the Hong Kong exchange. GM will continue to build the H3 and H3T for Hummer’s new owners under contract, and AM General, builder of the HMMVW…

MOTOR TREND’S Car of the Year is not a comparison test: Each vehicle is judged against our six criteria. The process starts at the 4300-acre, $58-million Hyundai/Kia Proving Ground in California, where each contender is put through the complete series of Motor Trend performance tests to give the judges baseline data from which to work. Each judge drives each contender around a 13.5-mile loop that takes in the proving ground’s high-speed track, the freeway surfaces road, and the demanding winding road. The judges also conduct detailed static reviews, looking at design, build quality, engineering innovations, and features. Daily meetings discuss strengths and weaknesses in detail. The aim of this first phase is not to pick the Car of the Year, but to eliminate those vehicles that do not measure up…

WE LIKE: High fuel economy, low pricetag. WE DON’T LIKE: Tin-box feel, cramped back seat, 11.2 to 60. WITH A Prius silhouette, it looks like a hybrid. With EPA fuel economy figures of 40/43 mpg city/highway, it sips 87 octane like a hybrid. And as a Honda, it…disappoints as a hybrid? Yes. Rarely do we frown upon vehicles from the H badge, especially high-tech hypermilers (think FCX Clarity), but the all-new second-generation Insight brought about less-than-favorable comments from our discriminating staff. “The Insight falls shockingly short on engine refinement, structural composure, and general driving satisfaction,” says St. Antoine. Markus notes, “The ride is mighty jiggly on choppy roads. Makes the car feel like an econobox, not a specialty vehicle (like Prius)”. Loh observes, “Rear seat is a joke. A bad…

WE LIKE: Remote Touch, attractive interior, great brakes. WE DON’T LIKE: Lack of Lexus identity, dull drive, high price. WITH THE huge success of Toyota’s and Lexus’ hybrids, it made perfect sense to round out the upscale brand’s hybrid lineup with the addition of a smaller, more affordable luxury model—and it comes to market offering the best fuel economy in the entire Lexus line. The HS 250h, based on the same platform as the Avensis (not sold in the U.S.) and RAV4, is around the same size as a C-Class, A4, and 3 Series and, of the rather large entry-level luxury segment, is the only hybrid available. Its hybrid system is architecturally similar to that of the Camry Hybrid, using the same 2.4-liter engine, backed by a continuously variable transmission,…

WE LIKE: Silkiness, solidity, quality of materials, impressive performance numbers, diesel option fuel mileage. WE DON’T LIKE: Design themes and high price/low value. MERCEDES-BENZ’S latest E-Class, theW212, has clawed its way back to excellence. It’s built again with the quality and the presence that defined it before the round-headlamp W210 turned to populist luxury. “The interior materials are fabulous”, remarks Jim Hall. “Problem is, the design on the inside is as disjunctive as the design on the outside”. Neither Hall nor Tom Gale was impressed with the accumulation of bodyside surface creases and curves, which subtly recall the Ponton Mercedes sedan of yore. The design theme worked better on the coupe than on the sedan, Gale says. “Lots of technology in an overstyled package”, Hall sums up. The car has…

WE LIKE: Crisply cut, Euro-style sheetmetal, cabin with extra goodies. WE DON’T LIKE: Half-baked chassis, horrid suspension tuning. IN JAPANESE, kizashi means “something great is coming,” and at first glance, that would appear to be the case. The Suzuki Kizashi is a striking newcomer to the crowded midsize segment, with strong European styling influences, particularly in the VW Jettaish nose and well-finished black-and-silver-themed interior. “Layout and build quality seem excellent. The metallic accents on the dash looked quite rich. You don’t expect this sort of craftsmanship from Suzuki,” says Kiino. Packaging is strong as well, provided large adults don’t spend too much time in the backseat, as the Kizashi is on the small side of the segment. Behind the wheel, things begin to fall apart. While the 185-horsepower I-4 wants…

WE LIKE: Exterior and interior, fluid ride, luxury-per-dollar ratio. WE DON’T LIKE: Needs more handling prowess to run with Euro elites. WHILE THE world’s attention was focused on GM black eyes like private-jet flame-outs and bankruptcy paperwork, Buick has quietly released a midsize sedan that steals all the spotlights in the theater. With its new-for-2010, Epsilon II-platform LaCrosse CXS, Buick has clearly targeted the Lexus ES 350. The Buick is slightly longer, taller, and heavier than its rival, but the two are close in size and closer in specification. Both are front-drive, flaunt comfort-filled cabins, and use similarly sized V-6 engines coupled to six-speed automatics (the LaCrosse also offers a smaller, 3.0-liter six). Where the Camry-based Lexus is innocuous, the Buick is bold, even stunning. Inside, the Buick pushes harder,…

WE LIKE: Grunt and sound of V-6 as well as simplicity of interior layout. WE DON’T LIKE: Overly aggressive ESC system and the I-4 turbo’s lack of pep. WE’VE KNOWN about the 2010 Hyundai Genesis Coupe since 2008. We’ve already driven it, tested it, and compared it, so you already know what we think about the Genesis Coupe. We like it, but we don’t love it, and we prefer the 3.8 to the 2.0 turbo in every way. The 3.8 has a cleaner, more quality look and feel to it, where the 2.0T feels cheaper, more plasticky. The look and layout of the dash are very nice, simple, easy to use, as Todd Lassa puts it, “It’s easy to forget just how good simple buttons and dials can be”. Equipped…

WE LIKE: Gee-whiz technology and real-car dynamics combined with science-project efficiency. WE DON’T LIKE: Boring and hard-to-read fuel economy gauges. THE NEW Prius comes with a different steering ratio to match each wheel and tire option. That’s how serious Toyota is about its halo. It didn’t simply design a better hybrid; it has designed a better car. “So much more a ‘real’ car than the last one,” St. Antoine says. “Roomier, sturdier, chassis more composed”. The midsize Prius hatchback is commodious and comfortable, with lots of versatile, useable space and interior fit-and-finish as sumptuous as the best Camry’s. Toyota worked to keep weight down, though, so it’s still noisier than conventional cars. Efficiency is up 3 mpg city and highway over the last Prius, our 2004 Car of the Year.…

AS AN INDUSTRY insider for over 35 years, I have always viewed the Motor Trend COTY award as one of the most coveted from a manufacturer’s perspective. But I wondered how the judging is accomplished and whether the environment is controlled enough to evaluate the disparate vehicles that are eligible for the award. As a new participant, I was struck by the effectiveness of the process and the criteria. Even though the ages, backgrounds, and automotive preferences of the judges were quite different, it was enlightening to see how the discussions and viewpoints around each contender were assimilated across the group, even if we didn’t approach from the same perspective. Naturally, I had some initial reactions based solely on appearance, but as always it was interesting to confirm or modify…

DATELINE PALOS VERDES, California: Guess what, automotive blogosphere, Honda’s Accord Crosstour is not the design catastrophe you so deliriously predicted. Prior to the new Crosstour’s traditional introduction, Honda, rather innocently, released early images of the Crosstour on Facebook. However, these social networks can often be less than sociable gatherings. Snap a finger, and a bunch of collegial car-loving “friends” can transform into a pack of frenzied piranhas. And on their menu last September was the complicated-looking Crosstour, which was spilling blood in the water even before it was properly introduced to the mainstream press. Okay, so just about every car company these days is upping the ante with their online stripteasing, leaking a photo here, releasing a gallery to a social network there, but this time, the viral publicity machine…

Choosing an outstanding “car of the year” for certain years past may be difficult, but for 1949 the selection is narrowed down to three most worthy of consideration: Ford, Oldsmobile, and Cadillac. While the Ford has an entirely new chassis and body, plus many mechanical changes, it offers nothing new or outstanding from an engineering viewpoint, since it now falls in line with conventional design practice established before the war The Cadillac was chosen in preference to the Olds because, while both have outstanding new V-8 engines that are similar, they are not by any means the same. The Cadillac, with 10 percent more piston displacement than the Olds, develops 18.5 percent more horsepower and weighs a few pounds less. SO WROTE John Bond in the November 1949 issue of…

FOR THE second time in two years, we welcome a dapper, Sport/Utility of the Year-winning Subaru crossover to our long-term test fleet. Per our protocol, the victor receives an invite to take a hotly coveted spot in our garage and, as usual, has signed up for a full year of real-world testing courtesy of MT’s adventurous editorial squad. This time around, it’s the 2010 Subaru Outback 2.5i Limited whose 3.6R sibling, as you may know, represented the line at this year’s SUOTY competition. Given the choice of vehicles to add to the fleet, we purposely checked off the box next to the 2.5i in order to better evaluate the model that Subaru claims will be its volume-seller. As the top of three 2.5i trim levels, Base and Premium being the…

IT’S A RARE thing when one of an automaker’s most performance-oriented models is also one of its most practical. Our 2009 Mini John Cooper Works Clubman was such an example when it arrived on our doorstep in July 2008. Fresh from the Mini plant in Oxford, U.K., the unconventional five-door Clubman had barely hit U.S. showrooms when we took delivery, attracting plenty of attention on local Southern California roads. It attracted plenty of attention around MT headquarters as well. With its extended wheelbase, quirky reverse-opening, single rear-passenger door, and twin side-hinged rear-cargo doors, our Clubman was one of the more unusual vehicles in our long-term fleet. Add Chili Red paint with black racing stripes and the sporty John Cooper Works package, and we had an absolute anomaly in our garage.…

TOYOTA must start making exciting cars to pull itself out of its slump, President Akio Toyoda says. An affordable compact rear-drive sport coupe, coming in early 2012, is his proof. The FT-86 is a joint effort with Subaru, which engineered the car to Toyota’s performance targets. Subaru will manufacture the Toyota and its own version, which it failed to unveil at the Tokyo show where the FT-86 premiered. Recent Nürburgring spy shots identified as the FT-86 were of the Subie, however. Subaru’s first rear-drive platform (save for a local-market truck) features Impreza suspension fundamentals. The engine is a new gas direct-injection 2.0-liter flat-four, normally aspirated for low price. At 163.8 inches long on a 101.2-inch wheelbase, the car is lightweight, so an expected 160180 horsepower should provide decent performance. It…

MERCEDES-BENZ is preparing a full model change of its CLS sport four-door coupe. It will be unveiled at the end of 2010, likely going on sale in the U.S. early the following year as a 2012 model, a few months after the Audi A7 four-door coupe. The ’12 CLS shares its platform with the new E-Class, but the design is far more expressive. While its silhouette is an evolution of the current car’s, there are substantial changes to the nose, which is more upright and forceful. The CLS’ flanks will have a more exaggerated crease that runs upward ahead of the rear wheel and then flicks backward. It will also have a strong curved beltline, and wraparound rear lamp clusters. The new CLS will introduce a new family of downsized…

WHILE IT reads like a punchline now, there could not have been any other choice than the Chevrolet Corvair to take Motor Trend’s 1960 Car of the Year award. We cited the Corvair for its “engineering advancement: its (aluminum) aircooled engine, transaxle and four-wheel-independent suspension. All these combined spell progress and compel us to select the Corvair as the most significant car of 1960.” I960 Chevrolet Corvair ■ Base price $2103 fob Detroit ■ Options Powerglide transmission $146, heater $74, radio $54 ■ Price as tested $2377 (January I960) ■ Vehicle layout Rear engine, RWD, 6-pass, 4-door sedan ■ Engine 140-cu-in/80-hp*/125-lb-ft*, OHV 12-valve flat-6 (*SAE gross) ■ Transmission 2-speed automatic ■ Curb weight 2355 lb (38/62% dist f/r) ■ Wheelbase 108 in ■ L × W × H 180.0 ×…

SHORTLY AFTER rejoining GM in late 2001, Bob Lutz initiated a program to provide sub-Cadillac rear-drive cars in the United States developed from the Australian Holden brand. Unlike previous GM product chiefs in Detroit, Lutz was impressed with what the Australians had achieved with modest engineering budgets and saw the opportunity to transform the Holden rear-drive platforms into the sporty products he believed Chevy and Pontiac desperately needed. It was a sound concept—and one successive Holden execs had been pushing on and off since the 1990s and a project called GMX127, a proposal to build a Holden Commodore rear-drive sedan in Australia for Buick that was reportedly deep-sixed by UAW opposition to the idea. So what went wrong? In a word, timing. Lutz had the right idea, but from the…

WE LIKE: Surprisingly fast and fun for its size, phenomenal grip and brakes. WE DON’T LIKE: Artificial, disconnected feel, lack of smoothness. “A REAL PUZZLE, this one”, says St. Antoine, which only begins to describe our judges’ feelings about BMW’s flagship. No question our turbocharged 750i tester is fast; its acceleration numbers are unbelievable for a 4600-pound luxury sedan. Keep the pedal down and it will quickly and quietly reach its 160-mph top speed—the very last number on the dial. “Power feels instantaneous,” says Lassa, and Kiino concurs: “The engine just purrs, no noticeable turbo lag.” It’s great in the twisties too: “One of the most fun rides I’ve driven around the handling loop,” says St. Antoine. “Doesn’t seem to mind being thrown around, unlike some of the other sedans…

WE LIKE: Striking styling, impressive economy; full-featured, sweet-sounding stereo. WE DON’T LIKE: Lethargic four-speed, coarse engine note. THE METEORIC rise in Korea’s automaking aptitude has been well documented, with Hyundai earning most of the accolades. Kia, now 40-percent owned by Hyundai, is catching up quickly. This new Forte is far better looking than its Spectra predecessor—especially in Koup trim—and its improvements aren’t just skin deep. The base 2.0-liter four gets continuously variable valve timing that helps boost output by 18 horses and 8 pound-feet while delivering EPA fuel economy as high as 27/36 mpg with a $600 fuel-economy package. The Optima’s 2.4-liter four adds 173 horses’ worth of muscle to top SX versions of either body style. The value play, always a Korean hallmark, remains strong with standard features like…

WE LIKE: Terrific engines, refined interiors, sporty attitude. WE DON’T LIKE: Tiny nav screen, Speed3 torque steer, controversial styling. THE SECOND-gen Mazda3 and its hot-hatch sibling Mazdaspeed3 arrive with all-new sheetmetal, updated interior, and a lighter, stronger chassis. Plus, the regular Mazda3 receives a 2.5-liter four instead of the 2.3, now with a six-speed manual. The 2.0-liter comes with a five-speed manual or automatic (the four-speed is gone), and the Mazdaspeed3’s manual has new ratios. For years, the Mazda3 has challenged the Honda Civic as being the best in the economy-car class, and the 2010 sedan and hatch make an even stronger case. Judges praised the 2.5-liter’s engine note, handling, and steering on the twisting road course. As Loh says, “Wow, the best drive so far today—fantastic! It moves well…

WE LIKE: Tidier dimensions, big-bore performance, throttle-blipper button. WE DON’T LIKE: Roadster’s hunched hindquarters. YOU’LL FIND us front and center, loudly cheering any automaker willing to buck the trend toward longer, wider, and heavier when models come up for redesign. So indeed we sent up huzzahs when we learned Nissan was shortening our beloved Z car’s wheelbase by almost an inch, grinding 2.6 inches off the overall length, and slimming the width by over an inch. Tipping the scales 90-120 pounds less, the Z coupe and roadster are surely this COTY field’s “Biggest Losers.” With 26 additional ponies further bolstering the power-to-weight stats, these two-seat torpedoes seemed poised to prevail. Indeed the burly 332-horse, 3.7-liter VQ V-6 posted big numbers: 4.8 seconds to 60 mph; 13.4 to the quarter mile…

WE LIKE: VW can revive Microbus on the new midsize sedan’s platform. WE DON’T LIKE: No Stow & Go, no Swivel & Go. Nothing Jerry Garcia would recognize. VOLKSWAGEN offered hope for the minivan-averse when it unveiled the Microbus concept nearly a decade ago. Hot on the heels of the successful New Beetle, it could have attracted Deadheads and their families. Postwar retro doesn’t sell well in Europe, though, and VWs don’t sell well here, so a New Microbus simply didn’t make business sense. Instead, the German automaker, which earlier built a joint-venture European minivan with Ford, contracted with Chrysler for an American-size minivan. The VW Routan makes business sense, if you consider that the Chrysler Town & Country/Dodge Caravan outsold the entire VW line in the U.S. by 40,000…

WE LIKE: RS is a real sweetheart, being easy to drive and drive fast. WE DON’T LIKE: SS somehow represents less fun for your driving exertion; small windows; cheap interior. HERE’S ONE Bow Tie that’s almost unbearably burdened with history—the all-new Camaro. It’s bad enough having the spotlight on you as the resurrection of just one particularly fondly remembered icono-car. But in the case of this new Camaro, there were endless original styling iterations, powertrain combinations, even hood stripings—as well as millions of memories to distill. That’s an awful lot of nostalgia for one reincarnation to handle. Fortunately, Chevy has done its history proud. With three basic variations (LS, LT, and SS), a trio of engines (an impressive 304-horsepower, 3.6-liter V-6; the 400-horse, 6.2-liter L99 V-8 that’s matched to a…

WE LIKE: Four-seat private-jet cockpit, V-8/PDK powertrain. WE DON’T LIKE: Strange styling, premium pricetag. PORSCHE could’ve named its radical, new “four-door 911” Gran Turismo the Peculiar or the Polarizer. Instead, the fabled sports-car maker dubbed it something obscure, Panamera. (In case you don’t know, the name is derived from the legendary Carrera Panamericana sports-car race of the 1950s; yes, the same race inspired the 911 Carrera designation too.) No matter, Panamera has a rarified ring to it and seems a fitting moniker for a coupe-silhouetted four-door capable of a claimed 175-mph top speed. Granted we weren’t able to verify Vmax during evaluation, but we did confirm that our $104,805 platinum-metallic Panamera S was able to slip from 0 to 60 in 5.1 seconds and through the quarter mile in 13.5…

WE LIKE: Available diesel engine, great space efficiency. WE DON’T LIKE: GTI’s loud engine note could become tiresome, shifts are quick…could be quicker. AFTER SEVERAL years of watching various hot-hatch pretenders parade across the pocket-rocket stage, Volkswagen is tapping all of them on the shoulder and saying, “move over, guys, I mean business with this one.” And, boy, do they ever with the all-new GTI. As the performance pinnacle of a sixth generation of Golfs, the new GTI is the swiftest of the breed. But with the introduction of the new 50-state-legal turbodiesel—delivering EPA mileage of 30 mpg city and 42 highway when equipped with the excellent DSG transmission—Golfs are now also among the most efficient cars on the road. While the Golf’s evergreen design recipe remains—the familiar blocky two-box…

EVER SINCE the first brutish 911 Turbo was launched in 1974, Porsche has been trying endlessly to tame its wildest beast. That first-generation car, the 930, was a powerful, tail-happy monster, as you’d expect when you hang a 260-horsepower turbocharged engine over the back axle and drive the rear wheels through a motor renowned for its punch but not its reflexes. The turbo lag between throttle actuation and engine action felt like it could be measured in minutes, not moments. Sometimes it didn’t feel so much like lag as an overnight delay. As the generations have passed—this new model is series seven—Porsche has continuously wrestled with the fundamental flaw inherent in a high-speed car having the weight distribution of a pendulum. And, after 35 years of dogged development, Porsche has…

GOLF VI, as the 2010 car is known to model trivia buffs, arrives a year earlier than expected and marks less of a transformation than did its four predecessors. New styling inside and out conceals a chassis and drivetrain that’s largely carryover. All changes target two goals: improving refinement and efficiency and reducing the cost of production. We’re happy to report abundant evidence of the former and little or no indication of the latter. Sleeker styling is the new face of VW, with strong horizontal themes front and rear that lend an upscale air (TDI pictured). Heroic noise-reduction measures like thicker, acoustic glass, better sound deadening, and new door seals lower the interior din by six decibels in third gear at higher revs and squelch most of the five-cylinder’s dissonant…

WITH JUST under 14,000 miles on the 335d’s odometer, the on-board computer alerted us that our much-loved diesel was due for its first service. BMW of Beverly Hills poured in fresh 5W-30 engine oil, performed a full inspection, and replaced the diesel exhaust fluid, AdBlue. A clear, non-toxic liquid composed of urea and deionized water, AdBlue is added to the exhaust system’s Selective Catalytic Reduction to keep nitrogen-oxide levels at legal limits. When the amount of AdBlue was at reserve levels, the 335d’s instrument cluster informed us we had 1000 miles of driving left. Unlike gasoline-powered cars, which can be driven well over a recommended service interval, the BMW diesel can’t: Drive past that 1000-mile limit, and the 335d won’t restart after it’s been switched off. Loaded with a full…

ALTHOUGH it’s not yet been officially announced, we’re certain the Split-Window Corvette is on its way back. As reported last month, GM has given its design department the green light to develop a new Splitty based on the Sting Ray concept shown at last year’s Chicago auto show. The original was a one-year-only model, 1963, with the dual rear windows replaced by a single piece of glass beginning in 1964. The ’63’s visibility was mildly compromised by this daring design, so some owners sent their cars to body shops to have them “updated” to the later look. This involved cutting out the center spine and tossing the priceless rear windows. All these years later, the original ’63 Sting Ray coupe has become one of the most prized Corvettes of all…