Innehållsförteckning för January 2009 från MotorTrend

■ Motor Trend Goes to YouTube MT has finally made it to everyone’s favorite video site, and we’re coming with both barrels blazing. You want high intensity? Check out our top-speed and drag-racing madness among the Corvette ZR1, Nissan GT-R, Porsche 911 GT2, and Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano. Want all the behind the scenes action on how we picked the 2009 Motor Trend Car of the Year? It’s all there. In addition, we’re constantly adding top flight video clips from our massive library of vehicle road tests and on-track action. Check it all out here: youtube.com/motortrend. If you’re not a YouTuber, you can always see our videos on our site as well: motortrend.com/multimedia/videos…

CHRYSLER will not offer a Dodge Challenger convertible. The car is “dead as a doornail,” a source says. And the 2010 Chevrolet Camaro convertible planned for midyear 2009 is on hold. Blame thin operating capital at Chrysler LLC and General Motors, the latter determined to fend off bankruptcy. Chrysler designed the LX-based Challenger without planning for a convertible. That may be hard to believe, but it means reengineering the unibody Challenger as a convertible would take the kind of money that Chrysler doesn’t have. The Camaro convertible is off the table probably for a year as GM tries to save cash and claw its way back to profitability. Analysts predict U.S. car and light-truck sales in 2009 will be even worse than in 2008 (see story, page 18), and the…

holy facelift, caped crusader! So there I am, watching an old Batman movie on TV because Hurricane Hanna is battering my town with rain and wind, and I can’t be outside washing my cars. You know which Batman I mean, the one with Jack Nicholson as the Joker. Well, as soon as the movie ends, I pick up my new Motor Trend, and I come across a story, appropriately named “About Face,” about the new Acura TL. As I’m looking at the face of that car, I suddenly realize that Jack Nicholson’s Joker was the model for the front end. The similarity is too great to be sheer coincidence. I guess since Batman gets a Batmobile, the Joker finally gets his own car, too. Thanks, Acura! Danny PerrinoVia the Internet…

LINCOLN’S NEW MKS turns the brand’s flagship formula back to front. For the first time in its 90-year history, Lincoln’s top-step sedan is based on front-drive architecture—borrowed from the Volvo S80. Visually, the MKS is an equally dramatic, thoroughly modern departure from the decades-old Town Car. Too bad the same cannot be said about the interior. Some testers have been impressed by the Micro-soft SYNC system, thronelike rear seats, and extensive use of leather, chrome, and real-wood trim. Others find it dated, with little innovation or useable storage space. Underhood, the MKS uses an upsized variant of the V-6 initially developed for the Ford Taurus nee Five Hundred. Bumped up to 3.7 liters, this engine powers the front or all four wheels via a six-speed automatic transmission also pulled from…

ON PAPER, there is little to distinguish Pontiac’s Vibe from Toyota’s Matrix. Both wagonettes offer up front- and all-wheel-drive variants, with the same combination of four-cylinder engines (1.8- or 2.4-liter) and transmissions (five-speed manual and four- and five-speed automatics). Differences are confined mostly to sheetmetal and interior treatments, though neither has found favor with our panel. Kiino characterizes the Vibe as “pudgy” while Reynolds finds it “difficult” inside and out. In the plus column are fuel economy and packaging efficiency. Along with an EPA-estimated 29 mpg on the highway, our Vibe packs numerous cubbies and a spacious rear seat that folds nearly flat to reveal a configurable, multipurpose cargo hold. Too bad such features can’t hide the faults. Kiino calls the steering “rubbery” and reports a whine from the 2.4-liter…

FOR PHASE TWO of the judging process, we move away from the controlled environment of the Hyundai-Kia proving ground and out onto real-world roads, courtesy of a 28.5-mile road loop based out of Tehachapi, which straddles the 4064-foot pass in the Tehachapi Mountains between Bakersfield to the west and Edwards Air Force base to the east. We’ve found how the 10 finalists work at their limits: Now we’re going to find out how they work in everyday driving conditions. The focus here is on the detail stuff. Each judge drives each finalist over the route, which includes stop-start city driving, two-lane blacktop, canyon roads, and freeway stretches, offering a variety of surfaces and a variety of speed and powertrain-load conditions. The judges assess such factors as the smoothness and refinement…

“FOR THE MONEY.” Three words that, for decades, have stuck to the Chevrolet Corvette like lampreys on a shark. As in, “The Corvette is a heckuva runner—for the money. But still not up there in the Pantheon with Ferrari, Lamborghini, and Porsche.” Ah, but now arrives the all-new 2009 Corvette ZR1. A no-compromises, “Target: Maranello” performance car unlike any GM model before it. In fact, with 638 horses rampaging from its supercharged 6.2-liter LS9 V-8, the ZR1 boasts more power than even the Enzo-engined Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano, one of the Italian maker’s greatest-ever road cars. Forget “for the money.” On paper at least, the ZR1 has the hardware to take on the sublime 599 in a straight fight. Of course, a mere paper match-up simply won’t do… WE’RE ALIKE,…

HOW DO you refresh a retro car for its second generation? The “what’s next?” dilemma has baffled designers since J Mays’ Concept 1 became the 1998Volkswagen New Beetle—after all, VW has no Mark II original Beetle from which to crib. The problem followed Mays to Ford, where the 2002 Thunderbird became a one-hit wonder. Lucky thing for Ford, it can draw from a half-decade’s worth of Mustang redesigns and facelifts from mid-1964 to 1970. While the 2005-2009 Mustang paid homage to the 1967, 1968, and a bit of the 1969, the redesign simply amps up the 1969/1970 cues slightly more, and the new car is made to look smaller. The nose looks pointier, the power-bulge is more pronounced, and the front turn signals are out of the bumper and inside…

VOLVO’S XC60 is a late entry to an increasingly crowded SUV niche already occupied by the Acura RDX, BMW X3, Infiniti EX35, and newcomers Audi Q5 and Mercedes-Benz GLK. Does it have the right mix of style and substance to be a player in the emerging small, premium SUV market? The eyeballs say yes. “Historically, Volvo’s interpretation of DNA signified ‘Do Not Abandon’ the design traditions,” says Steve Mattin, Volvo Cars design director. “We have now expanded its significance to redefine DNA as taking a Dramatic New Approach.” Dramatic it is. Volvo says the XC60 is its production vehicle to demonstrate this new design approach and, at first glance, you might think these Swedes have been smoking more than just salmon up in Gothenberg. For the XC60 is truly organically…

YOU REMEMBER those old Cold War stories about CIA analysts checking official photographs of Stalin and his generals reviewing the annual May Day parade in Red Square? Every so often they’d find one of the generals had disappeared. A closer look revealed he’d been carefully airbrushed out. It was as if he’d never existed. The 2009 BMW 750Li is a bit like that: It carefully airbrushes away everything that made its predecessor, the E65, one of the most confronting BMWs ever built. The “Bangle Butt”? Psssht! Tank-like proportions? Psssht! The dash that looks like a piece of furniture; the column-mounted shifter; the oddball seat controls: Psssht! Psssht! Psssht! All gone. Walk around the new 7 Series, and it’s as if the E65 never existed. The irony is the E65 has…

DECIDING between the 300-horsepower BMW 335i and the 414-horse M3? Well-equipped, the former costs around $50,000 while the latter runs near $70,000. Fortunately, Audi has just the solution. For an estimated $60,000 loaded, the 2010 S4, due to go on sale in fall 2009, presents an option that, in price and performance, falls neatly between the two 3s. Traditionally for Audi, the “T” in a badge has represented a turbocharger. But in the case of the new S4’s 3.0 TFSI engine, it stands for an Eaton Roots-type supercharger with two four-vane rotors and maximum boost of 11.6 psi. The blower not only helps the S4’s direct-injected 3.0-liter V-6 crank out 333 linear horsepower and 325 progressive pound-feet, but it does so without the shrilling whine normally associated with superchargers. In…

AT 15,000 miles, the Accord visited Culver City Honda for its second scheduled service stop, a $96.71 oil change, full inspection, and tire rotation. The crew alerted us to the Honda’s worn rear brakes, which required $241.92 worth of new pads and resurfaced rotors. With fresh oil and binders, online associate editor Rory Jurnecka drove down to San Diego. “As my Accord experience was limited to my very first car, a 1989 Accord LX, this car is a revelation. The new Accord (at least this topline version) has become a luxury sedan for those on a budget, with a highquality leather and soft-touch plastic interior.” Jurnecka, however, isn’t enamored with the transmission. “I wish it had a manual mode; it seems a little behind the times without one.” ■ Months/miles…

ST. ANTOINE, a lover of fine cigars, spirits, and gadgets, says, “I almost hate to admit how much I like this Veracruz—so much for my Pennzoil-fed enthusiast’s heart. It goes down the road expensively. It shifts expensively. It rides expensively.” Yet, at $38,320, it’s not as expensive as comparably equipped seven-seat crossovers. He adds that “the nav system—hooray—lets you input addresses while on the fly, and the controls work without fuss or needless complexity.” He concludes: “The ’Cruz doesn’t bug you by trying to be ‘modern’ or ‘techno’; it just does its job well.” Copy editor James Dryden concurs: “Second time driving the Veracruz from L.A. to Arizona. What’s changed? Nothing. Still the same smooth, almost luxury ride, with a killer sound system. Man, I could just keep driving this…

TOYOTA IS developing a range of Priuses that will include a small pickup based on the 2008 A-BAT concept and a sporty, 2+2 coupe to compete with Honda’s upcoming CRZ hybrid coupe. The Prius coupe will have a lower roofline than that of the all-new 2010 Prius hatchback sedan launching this year and will share its powertrain. The 2010 Prius sedan’s battery technology is carried over from the 2004-2009 model, but its 1.5-liter engine may get a small bump in displacement or power output with no penalty in fuel economy. Since the 2+2 coupe will be significantly lighter than the hatchback sedan, having the same powertrain means it will be quicker and faster. Think 1984 Honda CRX with a standard Civic four-cylinder. We still can’t say whether the A-BAT pickup,…

FORD OFFERS seven trim variations on its 2009 F-150, the top three of them premium models: Lariat, King Ranch, and topline Platinum. Product planning obviously took place before the floor fell out from underneath the pickup-truck market last year. High operating costs—read $3 to $4.50 per gallon fuel— “are keeping ‘fashion buyers,’ those who don’t need trucks for towing, out of the segment,” says a new report from analytics firm CSM Worldwide. So how much is the truck market, long a profit center for the Detroit automakers, going to shrink? A large part of the demand for pickups has come from home-improvement and construction workers who need to drive such vehicles, and the collapsed housing market has severely limited those sales in the last year. Against that background, CSM predicts…

THE NEW Maxima has been completely redesigned, making its overall size shorter and wider, with many handling improvements coming as a result of a lighter and stiffer (by 15 percent) chassis. The wider, more angular wheelwell shoulders and hips (giving it a top-view look of an hourglass) accentuate the new lower stance, echoing the styling cues of the GT-R. This we like. However, that’s where the comparisons stop. The new front-drive D-platform is an improvement over the previous gen, but editors still have found the chassis a bit stiff and noisy on some of our smoother drive routes and almost spongy through the tight cornering sections where we’d like more control. Several test drivers noted a tendency for this front-driver to understeer—not something you’d expect from a sport sedan. The…

IN THE WORLD of compacts, the Corolla, a presence in the U.S. since 1968, is automotive royalty. With every generation, the Corolla further solidifies its reputation of reliability and fuel efficiency. This year’s sedan, in its tenth generation, has a new look on a highly revised chassis, a new engine and transmission, and a redesigned, more spacious interior. The new Corolla’s styling is right in line with that of the Camry. But the similarities are more than skin deep; many of the Camry’s interior amenities are available here, including XM Satellite Radio, tilt/telescoping steering wheel, heated seats, aux jack, and nav. In addition, the highest-performance XRS, a new trim level for 2009, comes with the Camry’s gutsy 2.4-liter, 158-horse four and five-speed a first for both in the Corolla. All…

IN A MODERN performance car, on the autobahn or a closed road, Grandma could hit 120 mph without fogging up her spectacles. She might even grin. But 200 mph…that’s a different speed galaxy. As velocity increases, especially nearing the Big Two, challenges, stresses, and risks magnify exponentially. A bump in the road at 100 mph becomes a chasm at 200. A wayward field mouse looms like a hippo in your path. Wind gusts are invisible giants attempting to thwack your car into the next county. Tires heat up dramatically, especially the outside two in any curve, especially if they’re bearing the brunt of the crushing downward g loads on banking. And when they get too hot, as the 599’s left-front Pirelli did after just a couple of high-speed laps, they…

THE SKY is a brilliant Bugatti blue, winding Sicilian mountain roads beckon, and a nice man has just given you the scarlet-red key to a new Ferrari. Yet, be warned, today’s drive may disappoint. The Ferrari we’re about to sample is no beauty, with its fussy flanks, fat hips, and elongated trunk—more bustle bum than bikini bottom. This is disappointing, if not surprising. The days when Ferraris were beautiful, sculptures for the street, poetry in motion, Rembrandts on the road, are gone. For gorgeous Italian automotive design, turn to Maserati or Alfa Romeo. The California is heavier than the bigger and much more powerful 599 GTB. Yet the 4.3 V-8 under the hood is some 30 horses shy of the output of the F430, currently Ferrari’s least-muscled car. The motor…

S-TYPE? What’s an S-Type? Jaguar’s luscious new XF four-door obliterates all memories of its Lincoln-based, J-gated predecessor. The XF, like the illustrious E-Type, is a real Jag. In last July’s Motor Trend, the top-model, 420-horse XF Supercharged also dusted off rivals from BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Lexus, handily winning our “Private Reserve Cabs” sport-lux comparo and inspiring every test driver to mutter, “We gotta get ourselves one of these.” So we did. A Liquid Silver XF Supercharged (with interior resplendent in “Spice/Char” soft-grain leather) has joined our long-term fleet. In barely a month, it’s racked up more than 3400 miles. The XF Supercharged, based at $64,475, arrives with every worthwhile goody standard: touchscreen nav, oak-veneer trim, air-conditioned seats, rear-parking camera, full iPod integration, 440-watt Bowers & Wilkins audio that could even…

“I DON’T get all the ‘it’s so stiff’ comments about the suspension,” says editor at large St. Antoine, who disagrees with Jurnecka’s assessment— “Driving on L.A. freeways feels like a roller coaster ride, with each bump, dip, and irregularity having ill effects on stomach and head.” “To me,” notes St. Antoine, “the damping is pretty tight, but the springs aren’t overly harsh at all. Compared with our previous long-term Mini, the IS F rides like a cloud. Never does the suspension crash into its stops. St. Antoine, who took the IS F to the Pebble Beach Concours, observes the Lexus’s star power. “Despite the profusion of Ferraris, Lambos, Veyrons, the Lexus got an inordinate amount of attention. The parking valet at Spanish Bay couldn’t stop talking about it—later I saw…

LAST TIME we reported on the STI, at around 5000 miles, it was suffering from a right-turn signal that was “blinking at a feverish pace.” During its first maintenance visit—a $152.80 oil change, full inspection, and tire rotation—the technician at Thousand Oaks Subaru diagnosed the problem as a burned-out turn signal and fixed it under warranty. With the STI’s indicators signaling properly, editorial assistant Carlos Lago took it for a spin. “I like how our STI is more subdued than our Evo. It looks calmer and doesn’t have an enormous spoiler slicing through the rear visibility.” Evidence that the STI has matured, Lago notes, “While driving home last night, a blue 2005 STI filled with young men wearing sideways baseball hats pulled alongside and completely ignored me. No revving. No…

NISSAN ENTHUSIASTS know SE-R. The designation represents a budget-conscious vehicle tailored for driving excitement. Between 1991 and 1994, this sportiest of Sentras made those three letters famous. With its high-revving 2.0-liter engine, limited-slip differential, and feathery curb weight, the first-generation, two-door SE-R gained a cult following, as tuners and weekend racers flocked to it like ants to a melted Snickers bar. Alas, the subsequent two generations proved uninspiring, gaining weight and size and lacking the visceral performance that made the original so enthralling. But could the all-new fourth-generation 2007 SE-R, replete with a 177-horse, 2.5-liter engine, 17-inch wheels, and a continuously variable transmission with paddle shifters (an SE-R first), reignite the enthusiast torch? A rigorous long-term test was the best way to find out. Today’s SE-R moniker performs double-duty in…

NISSAN finally dropped the sheet on its next-generation Z at the Los Angeles auto show, laying to rest all the rumors. Of course, the 2009 370Z Coupe picks up the 3.7-liter V-6 from the Infiniti G37 sedan and coupe, with output bumped up to 332 horsepower at 7000 rpm and 270 pound-feet of torque at 5200 rpm. More significant is the 370Z’s compact new shape. With a wheelbase of 100.4 inches and length of 167.1 inches, the new Z is 3.9 inches shorter between the wheels and 2.7 inches shorter overall. Much of the wheelbase was lopped off behind the B-pillar, which should give the Z much tighter handling. At 72.6 inches, the new Z is 1.1 inches wider than the 350Z. Track grows to 61.0 inches front, 62.8 inches…

YOU DON’T want to fool with a fuel-efficient compact that has scored big with enthusiasts and young buyers. And worldwide, the 3 is Mazda’s best-seller, making up one-third of the marque’s sales. Still, it’s been five years since the first Mazda3 replaced the Protégé compact, so it’s time. Most noticeable change for the 2010 Mazda3 is the five-point grille, which mimics the facelifted 2009 MX-5 Miata’s. Mazda also claims a more refined, sporty ride and top-class fuel economy and quietness. The 3 goes on sale in North America soon, with 2.0- and 2.5-liter engine options.…

THE RAP about “street trucks” like Dodge’s Ram SRT-10, Chevy’s Silverado SS, and Ford’s own F-150 SVT Lightning is that they handled and performed well…for trucks. In designing a performance version of Ford’s iconic pickup, Special Vehicle Teams chose a different direction for the 2010 F-150 SVT Raptor. Widen the body of a Supercrew, redo front and rear suspensions, tweak the four-wheel-drive calibration, and make it an off-road-capable prerunner. The Raptor also gets a new truck engine, a 6.2-liter, two-valve (for better torque characteristics than multivalvers) overhead-cam V-8. Tuning isn’t final, but SVT says the oversquare engine will be rated about 400 horsepower and 400 pound-feet of torque. The engine was an on-again, off-again project known as the Hurricane V-8. Its official name is simply “6.2,” and Ford will not…

THIS THING is more fun than a renaissance festival. Just to catch a glimpse of it from any angle is to turn the clock back to the happy-go-lucky free-love decade of the 1970s. So faithful is the reinterpretation of nearly every character line and design flourish, even the interior looks period correct—right down to the shiny black plastic dash and door panels (it works, really). The Hemi’s rumbly roar and the manual six-speed’s pistol-grip shifter (complete with trigger notch) are the best parts. Everything’s so familiar, it’s just inflated to 8/7ths scale. Some of that familiarity breeds contempt. Authentic-looking pull-up door handles will have the fingernailed set relearning to open doors with their knuckles. The sound made by closing the doors or trunklid is disconcertingly Nixon-era, and access to the…

THE PONTIAC G8 GT easily beat its close competitor and sibling to the 2005 Car of the Year Chrysler 300, the Dodge Charger, in our April 2008 comparison. It’s a high-value sporty sedan, the rear-drive Chevy Impala we’ll never get, for about $30,000. Think modern musclecar with more refinement and better handling than the Dodge Challenger. The full-size Pontiac reminds Stone of an E46 BMW 3 Series with a big, family-size back seat. Indeed, that would make the coming 402-horsepower GXP (the only G8 to be offered with a manual gearbox) a larger, everyman’s E46 M3. The only retro note, Markus adds, is the way the 6.0-liter small-block rocks the car at idle. With sharp, precise steering and a firm suspension, it’s easier to point around turns than in the…

THINGS DON’T start well for Toyota’s new, second-generation Matrix (sister car to the Pontiac Vibe). “Hard to tell which engine—the 1.8-liter or the 2.4—is under the hood, and I’m not sure I even care,” writes Loh. “Not a compelling drive.” In the company of the more affordable, far more spirited and engaging Honda Fit, the Toyota Matrix (like the Pontiac Vibe) stands out as an average effort at best. FYI, Ed, that’s the bigger, 2.4-liter four under the hood of our tester. Though it’ll help the Matrix outsprint the Honda, the engine is nowhere near as polished and peppy. “Some engine buzz at cruise—and a fair amount of wind noise,” writes Markus. “It’s almost boomy at speed,” notes Lassa. We’re scratching our collective heads over this one: Is the new…

FERRARI didn’t have a 599 GTB for us to borrow. So we hit the Ferrari-owner message boards. Pete Tenereillo of San Diego bravely answered the call, offering up his new 599 to represent Maranello. As a bonus, computer-whiz Tenereillo also introduced us to his new baby Trapster, an anti-ticket technology all enthusiasts will want to know about. In essence, Trapster is a live community of drivers connected via cell-phone. Spot a radar trap or a red-light camera? Simply tap your Trapster-enabled phone to alert other Trapster users to its location. The more drivers who report the trap, the higher the report’s reliability score. Everybody in the system benefits: As you near the location of a reported trap, Trapster alerts you with voice warnings. We tried Trapster on our iPhone 3Gs…

PAUL Newman. James Garner. Steve McQueen. Clint Eastwood. James Coburn. Hollywood’s car guys of the 1960s and 1970s. They played hard together—on and off the silver screen. Cars, bikes, and racing were woven into many of their films. Newman once raced a Ferrari Daytona owned by Eastwood. McQueen and Garner raced against each other in Baja. They are studs from a time, as Archie Bunker put it, “When girls were girls and men were men.” James Harrison Coburn was born August 31, 1928, in Laurel, Nebraska. The lanky, silver-haired actor with the big grin, big voice, and big heart began his career with a television appearance on “Studio One” in 1957 and capped it 42 years later with an emotional, well-deserved Oscar win. Besides His memorable performances range from “The…

WHEN SUVs were all the rage, companies dolled up station wagons and relabeled them as SUVs. (Look at the first-generation Subaru Forester and Honda CR-V.) Now that the SUV market has cooled, the industry is going in the opposite direction—crossovers are being marketed as sedan alternatives. The all-new Toyota Venza is wider and taller than the Infiniti EX, longer and wider than the RX 350, and nearly the same size as the Ford Edge, yet Toyota doesn’t want it labeled as a crossover. The idea is that the Venza is 70-percent car, 30-percent SUV. Further complicating things, the EPA classifies it as a truck. The platform comes from a mix of Toyota components. The floorpan involves elements of three platforms welded together: Highlander up front and beefed-up Camry in the…

PREPARE TO have your prejudices shattered and your perceptions altered. Prepare to relearn everything you thought you knew about performance cars. Prepare to drive the 2009 BMW 335d. The 335d spearheads a freshened 3 Series range for 2009. Key changes include a new hood with dual character lines leading down to a broader, chrome-ringed double-kidney grille. There are new bumpers front and rear, new exterior rearview mirrors, plus new headlights and taillights. The front track has been increased 0.2 inch, while the rear has been pumped out 0.9 inch. Six new wheel designs are available. Inside are mild upgrades to the interior, including classier new materials, revised instrument graphics, and the latest-generation iDrive system, featuring the new controller and button cluster from the just-released 7 Series, and the same glitzy,…

“WHOEVER the interior designer is at Subaru, he’s tall,” remarks six-foot-four associate online editor Kirill Ougarov. “He has to be—this car has more headroom than in an average SUV, and that’s without cranking the seatpad down.” Not only does the WRX’s headroom impress Ougarov, so does the driver’s seat, which is “a nice balance of comfort and sport. There are side bolsters, but they don’t make you feel like you’re sitting in a modern-era iron maiden.” While he appreciates the Subie’s noggin space and cozy chair, Ougarov isn’t enamored with its five-speed manual. “I have some gripes about the shifter—it’s not precise, has a rubbery feel, and has trucklike throws to the point that fifth gear is near the passenger’s lap. Put aside a few bucks for a short-throw shifter…

“THIS PICKUP has managed to impress me again and again,” says photographer Julia LaPalme, who often uses the Toyota to transport motorcycles and supplies to and from her mountain-top residence. “It proves so useful when I need that hauling capacity: furniture and belongings for a move; people and dogs for a climb up a mountain ridge; bundles of firewood.” Of course, the Tundra isn’t all work and no play. “It will take you on the back roads with the ability of 4WD and the comfort of leather, but will also keep its lane at a good clip through twisty mountain roads. While no‘city-goer,’ its cushy seats, parking assist, and great visibility give it a fighting chance in all terrains.” The biggest challenge with the Tundra? “Finding parking spaces large enough.”…

AFTER OVER 5000 miles, the JCW Clubman has garnered more lovers than haters. St. Antoine: “Worlds better than our long-term Cooper S. Rides nicely (unlike the previous car, which felt like cinderblocks rolling down iron stairs), and the manual trans is a welcome touch. Is there a more stylish and rewarding car for the money?” Jurnecka: “I appreciate the ride and dynamics of the longer-wheelbase Clubman to the standard Cooper. Not only is it more comfortable and stable on freeways, but it’s also not as twitchy on back roads, giving a more composed, relaxed, rhythmic feeling to threading curves.” Truck Trend Web producer Melissa Spiering: “The third door on the passenger side makes it easy getting in and out of the rear seats. The extra 3.2 inches of wheelbase prevents…

THREE and a half decades ago, the Corvette crowd felt the 911 was a chrome-plated Volkswagen. Porschefiles made fun of Chevy’s crude, plastic sports-car pretender. So what’s changed? Not much and quite a bit. This month’s cover, for what must be the umpteenth time, pits the latest—and for sure greatest-performing—Corvette against a Porsche that doesn’t resemble any VW we know of. Throwing a Ferrari into the mix, then or now, is a logical step, although nobody in 1970 would’ve believed Japan capable of building the exotic-yet-docile missile that is the Nissan GT-R. While anyone would want this Small-Block coupe or a pre-impact-bumper 911E, how about those groovy threads? Associate editor Chuck Koch summarized that long-ago story well: “No matter what we say, though, there will always be Corvette and Porsche…