Innehållsförteckning för March 2010 från MotorTrend

MINI is going to the Detroit auto show with a doorless, roofless concept car, the Beachcomber, that previews its all-new fourth model line. This will be a compact crossover available with FWD and AWD. It is to be launched at the Geneva show in March and on sale as a 2011 model. Obviously the real car will have doors and a roof. Unlike the existing Clubman, all four side doors will be conventionally front-hinged, and the car is symmetrical left to right. The B-pillars have been removed only for the concept. At 160 inches, this is the longest Mini ever but will still be one of the smallest crossovers on sale. It is also wider than a hatchback or Clubman and will be available as a five-seater with a rear…

AS YOU KNOW, the 2009 calendar year was the worst for U.S. auto sales in decades. The 2000s ran consistently in the 16-million-plus range, then fell from 16.1 million in 2007 to just 13.2 million in 2008. Automakers would kill for that 2008 number now. In 2009, U.S. auto and light truck sales freefell another 30 percent, to about 10.3 million. It would have been lower without the government’s cash for clunkers program, even if the July-August rebate program took sales from later in the year. So what does 2010 look like? Here are projections from five prominent industry analysis firms: These average out to 11.6 million for the U.S. market in 2010. Tune in to the same “Trend” channel, same “Trend” time next year to see who was closest.…

THE BLUE OVAL Faithful are so done. They’ve had enough of those Bow-Tie bullies kicking Chevy horsepower in their faces. Although the Mustang has perennially outsold the Camaro, it has nearly-as-often done so with less juice in the blender. Heck, the new Camaro’s V-6 puts out just 11 horses less than the 2010 Mustang GT’s V-8. It was time, literally and figuratively, to shake up the balance of power. Ford has tossed out its sturdy but underachieving 4.6-liter, three-valve, SOHC V-8 and also binned the grumbly, near-Paleolithic 4.0-liter V-6. In the latter’s place is a new V-6 that’s properly modern and matches the Camaro’s base engine pony for pony. And the GT’s new-for-2011 V-8 brings back a name and a displacement that’ll warm the heart of tire-boiling Mustang fanatics everywhere:…

“THE LAUNCH of a new Rolls-Royce is an historic event”, says CEO Tom Purves as we sit down to dinner at West Stoke House in bucolic West Sussex, England, only a few miles from the Rolls-Royce factory on the Earl of March’s estate at Goodwood, and in the very room where design chief Ian Cameron and team spent three months working on the Phantom back in 2000. Not as historic an event as it perhaps once was, though: The 2011 Rolls-Royce Ghost sedan is the fourth new Rolls-Royce to appear since the imperious Phantom rewrote the rulebook for super-luxury cars in 2003. For all that, the 2011 Rolls-Royce Ghost is indeed an historic car: It’s the first small Rolls-Royce launched since the 1949 Silver Dawn. “Small” is a relative term,…

WHAT: 2011 INFINITI M WHEN: SPRING 2010 Beware, BMW The last-gen M (2006-10) was commonly viewed as Japan’s version of the BMW 5 Series, with a personality that screamed more sport than luxury. Well, for 2011, an all-new-M ups the sport quotient while adding more luxury than ever before. Nominally-longer and Wider than the outgoing model, the new M line features a 3.7-liter, 330-horsepower-V-6 (W37), a 5.6-liter, 420-horse V-8 (M56), and a 3.5-liter V-6 paired with a lithium-ion battery pack (M35 Hybrid). Infiniti says the hybrid, available spring 2011, will be the cleanest and most fuel-efficient vehicle in its history. Both the M37 and M56 come standard with a seven-speed automatic and are available with all-wheel drive as’ well as a sport package that includes. 20-inch alloys. Inside, the M…

WHAT: 2011 ACURA TSX SPORT WAGON HEN: FALL 2010 Junk in the Trunk Not since the Lexus IS SportCross has a Japanese luxury brand attempted to sell a wagon in the U.S., but for the 2011 model year, that’s about to change, as Acura will import the TSX sport wagon from Japan. Based on the European Honda Accord Tourer, the Acura wagon will represent a small slice of the TSX pie, so it’s possible that powertrain combinations will be at a minimum to keep costs down. Thus, expect an automatic to be paired with both the I-4 and V-6, but no guarantee on an I-4 with a manual. WHAT: 2012 HYUNDAI VELOSTER WHEN: FALL 2011 CR-Z Fighter Hyundai is on a roll and is showing no signs of slowing down.…

IN MAY 2008, the last time we compared the crop of naturally aspirated four-cylinder compact crossovers, the all-new third-generation Subaru Forester handily conquered the likes of Honda CR-V Nissan Rogue, Saturn VUE, and Toyota RAV4. Fluke? Hardly. The small-but-stout Subaru only went on to snatch our coveted 2009 Sport/Utility of theYear award. Since those victories, however, the Forester has happily basked in its glory and evolved, um, not at all. Under the sheetmetal reside the same 2.5-liter, 170-horse flat-four, the same four-speed automatic, and the same AWD system. Conversely, the crossover field has since been recast with new and updated players. The RAV4, for instance, received a power bump from 166 horses to 179, and the CR-V’s pony count rose from 166 to 180. Then there are the new kids…

“I TOOK the Forester with me over the river and through the woods to Grandma’s house (drove a 1000-mile round trip to Reno/Tahoe and back) for the Thanksgiving holiday,” logs photographer Brian Vance. “Without even checking the specs, one gets the sense that this small-’ute has better ground clearance than its CR-V and RAV-4 competitors, and thus feels he can tackle more serious terrain than those other mini-’utes. I’m not talking about low-range rock-hopping; rather, I’m speaking of rough dirt roads, foot-and-a-half-high snowbanks, and the occasional rock-strewn stream crossing.” As you can tell, Vance’s grandma lives in a remote part of Reno. On his journey, Vance grew to dislike some attributes of our 2009 Sport/Utility of the Year. “The Forester seems softly sprung. It bounces up and down, wallowing over…

IT WAS GM from the 1930s to the 1970s. Then BMW and, it seemed, for a fleeting moment, Toyota. We’re talking about car companies that can pretty much do what they want while defying the cost-control measures that restrict mere mortal automakers. Volkswagen AG and especially its premium subsidiary, Audi AG, are in the catbird seat today. And so Audi’s new 2011 flagship, the third-generation A8 on sale by December in North America, launches with two rooflines. The short-wheelbase model unveiled at Miami’s Art Basel show late last year comes with the rather conservative but rakish A4-like roofline you see here. The long-wheelbase model will have a more formal roofline, with a distinct crease at the top of the C-pillar. This leaves the A7 “four-door coupe,” to be shown later…

run what’cha brung Thank you for the excellent comparison of the Hennessey Camaro HPE650, Shelby GT500 Super Snake, and Speedfactory Challenger SRT8 (“Bragging Rights,” December). All three are candidates on my short list and one will soon join my fleet at home, then soon thereafter go to one of the tuners. So the information in these articles is excellent and very timely. However, I don’t feel you did a fair comparison. If one of the trio shows up with 150-horsepower less than the other two cars, why in the world would you include it, to say nothing of putting it on the cover with only the “theoretical” horsepower? The Challenger is extremely competitive, and yet to act so milquetoast about it and blame the tuner so blatantly (congratulations, you’ve probably…

DOES BMW really need a new 5 Series? Say what you will about its aging, Chris Bangle-conceived proportions or oft-polarizing iDrive system, the now-six-year-old, current-generation model trounced all seven other competitors in our recent sport sedan comparison (February 2010). But time marches on, and the company will launch its sixth-generation 5 Series in the U.S. in June. Luxurious efficiency is the name of the game with the new 5 Series, so the company claims. Witness, for example, the first-ever application of electric power steering in a BMW. As with other accessories, it engages only when needed, freeing up engine power. Likewise, a smart alternator charges only on deceleration and braking to recover power. Active flaps behind the grille are able to close to reduce drag whenever possible. Efficiency enhancements aren’t…

A YEAR AGO, MANY WONDERED IF THERE WOULD EVEN BE a car business in 2010 or 2011. Of course, we knew there would be, but few would’ve guessed how dramatically it might’ve changed. General Motors filing bankruptcy and installing a revolving door on the office of the CEO. Chrysler also seeking Chapter 11 protection and coming out of it joined at the hip with Fiat. Pontiac and Saturn gone. Several other brands on their way to Chinese ownership. Toyota losing money for the first time in decades. Cash for Clunkers. And thousands of automobile dealerships shuttered. Our industry is a resilient one and will likely come out of the recession much stronger than when it entered. A year ago, Nissan and Renault CEO Carlos Ghosn said, “In tough times, you…

■ R8 Along comes the Spyder Due this summer, the R8 Spyder will make its debut with the V-10 coupled to either the R tronic or six-speed manual, with the V-8 following in early 2011. All R8s might enjoy face lifts in the 2012 model year. ■ Q7 Echoes of EcoBoost Like many other automakers, Audi is taking supercharged, direct-injected V-6s very seriously. As proof, the Q7 will be supplanting its present 3.6-liter V-6 and 4.2-liter V-8 gasoline engines with two versions of the supercharged 3.0-liter TFSI V-6. Offering different outputs, they’ll bookend the existing 3.0-liter V-6 turbodiesel. Spruced up with an eight-speed automatic, expect the current Q7 to soldier on through 2014. ■ A8 Google car cometh Fall 2010 should bring all-new A8 in long and short wheelbases. A…

TOSSED out the open cockpit are the radio, the air con, conventional door pulls, and more. Porsche says the result is a weight savings of 176 pounds over the Boxster S, making the new Boxster Spyder, at a claimed 2800 pounds, the lightest model in the maker’s production-car lineup. The Spyder also boasts aluminum doors (saving 33 pounds), sport bucket seats (saving 26 pounds), an aluminum rear deck (saving 6.5 pounds), and the lightest 19-inch alloy wheels in the Porsche catalog. The new manual soft top is little more than a sun hat; it won’t stand up to a car wash. (Note: If you’re feeling “impure,” you can pile on A/C, radio, nav, and whatever other options you like.) The Spyder benefits from the Cayman S’s direct-injection, 3.4-liter flat-six. Compared…

1949-1956-CHEVROLET FULL-SIZE > 1957 FORD FULL-SIZE, 1958-1969 CHEVROLET FULL-SIZE > 1970 FORD FULL-SIZE > 1971-1975 CHEVROLET FULL-SIZE > 1976 OLDSMOBILE CUTLASS > 1977-1978 CHEVROLET FULL-SIZE > 1979-1981 OLDSMOBILE CUTLASS > 1982 FORD ESCORT > 1983 OLDSMOBILE CUTLASS > 1984-1985 CHEVROLET CAVALIER > 1986 CHEVROLET CELEBRITY > 19871988 FORD ESCORT > 1989-1990 FORD TAURUS > 1991 HONDA ACCORD > 1992-1996 FORD TAURUS > 1997-2000 TOYOTA CAMRY > 2001 HONDA ACCORD > 2002-2009 TOYOTA CAMRY MOTOR TREND has spent six decades tracking, reporting on, and predicting automotive trends. What’s hot? What’ll be the next big thing? When will a mid-engine Corvette arrive? We’ve asked and answered these questions and more each month to the best of our ability with varying degrees of accuracy. Looking back with the benefit of Superman-grade X-ray hindsight,…

IF YOU’VE read us recently, you might be under the impression that we’re bearish on the 2010 Mazdaspeed3. In the first full test of the car (August 2009) associate editor Harwood called out a specific, significant complaint. “We immediately recognized something that has been a signature of the ‘speed3 since it first went on sale: torque steer. It was the biggest complaint we had with the previous-generation, and returns here.” In our 2010 Car of the Year evaluations, editor at large St. Antoine came to a similar conclusion: “I was disappointed in the ‘speed3, particularly because it’s such a fanboy car,” he wrote. “I had issues with the torque steer…it didn’t seem to put the power down.” So, do we hate the car? No. In 2006 we chose it over…

MOTOR TREND ONLINE editor Mike Floyd, writing in the Jag’s logbook, challenged other test drivers with the following post: “I dare any of you to write about the Jag without making a feline reference. I dare you!” Hmmm. Is it possible not to make any “catty” comments when writing the wrap story after a year spent with Jaguar’s XF Supercharged sedan? Let’s see. For sure, the XF SC welcomes such comparisons, being a thoroughly graceful, fluid, noble, and powerful luxury four-door. After our first taste of the car in 2008, we knew immediately it was a driving star, but would the love endure? To find out—and help answer a lot of questions we (and you) have about the durability and reliability of Jaguar products—we added a Liquid Silver example (with…

FORD will adapt its EcoBoost concept to three-cylinder engines with 0.9- and 1.2-liter displacements for the upcoming Fiesta and Focus. At 1.2 liters, the engine will be capable of about 135 horsepower and 135 pound-feet of torque from about 1500 rpm. The engine will be available in the Fiesta from its mid-cycle face lift about three years from now. In Europe, it will eventually go into the Focus too, replacing the current 1.6- and 1.8-liter four-cylinder gas engines. It will probably be considered too small for a U.S. Focus. EcoBoost works by combining three critical technologies: dual variable valve timing for the twin-cam head, gasoline direct injection, and a turbo. The direct injection means a higher compression ratio of 10:1 can be used for much greater efficiency than regular turbo…

SQUEEZING out an extra 35 horses from its twin-turbo inline six, BMW has created the Z4 sDrive35is. Note the extra “s” at the end of the Bimmer sports car’s tortured powertrain descriptor. It’s no M, but it does add a modicum of extra sport to the sports car. The new version of the Z4, launched last year, made its debut at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. BMW modified the 3.0-liter twin turbo that until now made 300 horsepower. The Z4 “is” is rated 335 horses and 332 pound-feet, but this new sport package also comes standard with BMW’s seven-speed dual-clutch Sport Automatic transmission. Adaptive M Suspension also is standard, and fuel consumption on the European cycle is 9.0 liters per 100 kilometers, equal to 26.1 mpg U.S.…

IT’S AN opinion so often repeated that it’s accepted as fact: General Motors ruined Saab and its unique selling proposition. There’s no denying that, when GM lost its bid to buy Jaguar to rival Ford, it went after any remotely upscale European brand it could find and in 1989 bought half of Svenska Aeroplan AB for all the wrong reasons. The first GM-platform Saab was the new 900 for 1994. A year later, Saab turned its first profit in seven years. And in 2000, GM bought the rest of Saab. And therein lies the tale. Saab had struggled as the smaller, quirkier of Sweden’s two automakers since 1944, when aerospace engineers designed the Project 92, a car with a remarkable drag coefficient of 0.30. Saab sold its first production models…

avanti-garde Thanks for dedicating the major part of your “Archive” to Raymond Loewy’s BMW507 Coupe. But I don’t believe it’s fair to dismiss it as strange; after all, it seems to have played a major role in the Studebaker Avanti development. Besides the overall silhouette, just compare the two details like the front fenders with turn signals, the grille below the front bumper, the asymmetric hood ornament, the crease in the lower part of the doors, and the bubble-style rear window. Avanti designer Tom Kellogg even publicly admitted that Loewy’s 507 was among the cars discussed in the kickoff meeting for the Avanti project. I agree with you, Loewy’s 507 is not an indisputable beauty. But whereas the original 507 was pretty, yet totally contemporary, Loewy’s 507 explored—as did the…

SHELBY FANATICS have waited more than four decades for a new GT350. Beginning in 1965, Ford Mustang GT fastbacks rolled into the Shelby American facility near Los Angeles International Airport. Carroll Shelby and his band of racers, mechanics, fabricators, and engineers then turned them into legend. Ford took over the Shelby Mustang program for 1968, and it was all over just two years later. Ever since Ford and Shelby got back together (for the Shelby-built GT-H Hertz rental program in 2006 and the Ford SVT-produced GT500 beginning in 2007), people have asked the question: “When will the GT350 return?” The answer is: Now. The 2011 Mustang GT 5.0 (see page 44/46) has made it possible. This Camaro fighter, packing all the design revisions and hardware upgrades of the 2010 model…

THE LETTERS stand for Compact Renaissance Zero and announce Honda’s goal of transforming the automotive landscape with a compact car that produces negligible emissions. As implied by renaissance, Honda has been down this road before: In name and silhouette, the CR-Z is clearly meant to trigger fond memories of the original Honda CRX. That little coupe helped foster and legitimize the Japanese, front-drive sport-compact craze. Light and snappy handling, the CRX proved a high water mark for the era, especially in canyon-carving Si trim. Heck, we picked the CRX as our Import Car of the Year in 1984 and the redesigned CRX Si again in 1988. But the CRX’s most enduring legacy might come from the high-fuel-efficiency HF model, which managed an impressive 50 city and 56 highway mpg on…

EARLY reviews covered both angles when Ford unveiled the 2012 One Ford Focus a year ahead of sales. “They didn’t know when to lift the pen,” an analyst said. “The Cruze is toast” a journalist countered. Yes, well, both ring true. The ’12 Focus sedan is a jewellike car, and it has a lot of side-surfacing going on. When the North American Focus reconverges with the European Focus, you’ll have a choice of funky four-door hatchback or the rich-looking four-door sedan. With the top-of-the-range Titanium trim level, it surely will sticker well into the middle of the Fusion price range. Ford is loading up the small end of its lineup quickly, with two Fiesta and two Focus body styles. The early reveal will almost certainly depress sales of the mediocre…

WHAT: 2011 E-CLASS CABRIOLET WHEN: MAY 2010 4Season 4Seater Imagine enjoying an all-around view of one of those rare crisp, sunny days in the dead of winter. Mercedes’ next cabrio promises that experience for front-and rear-seat occupants. The E-coupe-based (CLK-replacement) cabrio features a panel and nylon screen fence that rises 2.4 inches up out of the windshield header, plus another screen between the rear head restraints. This AirCap system keeps the air in the cabin calm, quiet, and temperature-controllable. AirScarf neck-warmers are standard in the front seats, and the seven-layer top can be raised or lowered at speeds under 25 mph. WHAT: 2011 E350 4MATIC WAGON WHEN: JUNE 2010 4Matic 4 the 4Tunate Rounding out the new E-Class body-style roster will be the wagon, which appears this June in V-6…

BEST IN MINIVAN CLASS? So minivans are a dying breed, eh? Toyota begs to differ, offering an all-new Sienna in five trim levels, powered by either an all-new 187-horse, 2.7-liter inline-four or a 266-horse 3.5 V-6, coupled to a new six-speed automatic and optional AWD with the V-6. What’s more, the new SE trim is a minivan blast, wearing 19-inch wheels, a firmer suspension, and quicker-responding, recalibrated steering. It’s even cool-looking, with considerable enhancements to its face, tail, rocker panels, and red-needles-on-white-fascia gauge cluster. Other nifty features include lounge-chair second-row seats (with leg supports) and a 16-inch video screen capable of presenting two movies at once. PLUG-IN POWER Having painstakingly gold-plated its reputation as the hybrid car company, Toyota was none too happy watching Chevy get so much attention with…

FIRST INTO the cage: the BMW M5 (MT, July 2009). Result: Cadillac CTS-V emerges victorious, leaving the aging Munich Mauler pummeled and bloodied. Next arrives the newly supercharged Jaguar XFR (MT, October 2009), all swagger and panache and Savile Row suavity. Outcome: CTS-V rips the English aspirant’s neatly pressed ascot to shreds. It’s at this point Cadillac’s engineering team smirks a little. Now comes Round Three—and the Caddy’s biggest threat yet: the 2010 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG, a thundering, leather-wrapped cruise missile we’ve already dubbed the best AMG sedan to date. Pull up a seat. This one could get ugly. The E63 represents the “biggest threat” as it’s the car best-equipped to confront the mighty, twice-victorious CTS-V. The M5 is, as noted, a dated design (a new, more potent edition is…

AS WE embark on the Mustang’s 46th year in business, and celebrate the rebirth of the Shelby GT350, it’s worth a look at the Ford concept car that first wore the name. The company’s press release, dated October 7, 1962, tells the story: “Coming or going, Ford Motor’s new experimental sports car, the Mustang, is all new. Looking it over are the two Ford executives responsible for its development: H.L. Misch, v.p., engineering and research staff (left), and Gene Bordinat, v.p., styling. Front and rear views are shown by the real car at left and a fiberglass model at right. The Mustang is the first car built by a major American manufacturer that fits into the European-dominated popular sports car class. It has a V-4 engine, located midship, delivering 106…