Mercede Benz CLS class

Don't place that order for the upcoming Volkswagen Passat CC just yet. Mercedes-Benz blessed its own four-door "coupe" (mentioned as one of six modern cars in Automobile Magazine's 25 Most Beautiful Cars issue) with a few updates for 2009, including one that throws a jab at VW.

Not to be overshadowed by a newer, four-door for the masses, Mercedes' segment-defining, exclusive CLS gets a revised grille (now with two louvers instead of four), a new rear apron with trapezoid exhaust pipes, a three-spoke steering wheel, a new infotainment system, new side mirrors and taillights outfitted with arrow-shaped LED turn indicators, and perhaps the biggest news, a new 3.0-liter V-6.

Mercedes execs couldn't have been happy to see the VW team taking a page from their CLS design book, so introducing a less powerful V-6-engined model could theoretically help steal a few Passat CC sales in non-USA markets. However, Mercedes doesn't officially recognize the lower-priced V-6 Volkswagen as a direct competitor, and it looks like the CLS and Passat CC V-6 models will only get a chance to be cross-shopped in Europe (America gets only the V-8 CLS).

In an effort to improve the CLS's performance, the 6.3-liter AMG version is now outfitted with a transmission that blips the throttle during downshifts. And using newly redesigned rear exhaust silencers, the CLS63 AMG's pair of twin pipes deliver a raucous bark unheard of in any family sedan - if it doesn't wake the neighbors, it will certainly be a healthy caffeine substitute.

Mercedes CL550 4Matic

What athlete wouldn't appreciate a little more grace?

This summer, Mercedes-Benz will begin offering its 382-hp CL550 with standard 4Matic all-wheel drive - the first time any large Mercedes coupe will get such a feature.

Giving the CL greater traction - and therefore better low-grip handling - the coupe's permanent 4Matic all-wheel drive system helps the CL appeal to snow-belt drivers by splitting torque between the front and rear axles at a 45/55 ratio. The CL's center differential uses a twin-plate clutch to manage the torque distribution between the front and rear axles.

Integrated into Mercedes' seven-speed automatic transmission's case, the CL's updated 4Matic system debuted two years ago on the S-Class. Unlike the earlier 4Matic system, it doesn't require special suspension parts or a wider transmission tunnel. Additionally, the extra gears and shafts driving the CL's front wheels only add 154 pounds to the CL's weight, and improvements to the drivetrain ensure that fuel economy doesn't suffer.

And while clear Vienna skies didn't give us an opportunity to truly feel the CL's new 4Matic system, we can tell you it certainly doesn't hinder the Mercedes' ability to scramble up twisting country hillsides.

POrsche Cayenne Turbo S

The Porsche Cayenne Turbo S was only around for one year before the SUV was (slightly) redesigned. The Turbo S model disappeared for a while, but returned to the Cayenne lineup at this year's Beijing Auto Show. Now the Cayenne Turbo S packs 550 hp and 553 lb-ft of torque.

Changes between the Turbo and Turbo S are minimal, so don't expect to see a totally different vehicle when one cruises past you on the road. Fender flares are a little wider and the rims are 21-inches on the Cayenne Turbo S. Functional changes include a remapped engine computer, different air intakes, and the exhaust system. That's enough to thrust the Cayenne Turbo S from 0 to 60 mph in less than 4.8 seconds.

With all that power, it's only fitting that Porsche is offering ceramic composite brakes on this monster of an SUV. We probably don't need people rocketing around in 5200-pound vehicles that can blast past 60 mph so quickly without such incredible brakes. Top speed is an equally insane 174 mph.

BMW X6

Okay, so get this: We've been laughing at BMW for years because of its insistence on calling the X5 an SAV. That's Sports Activity Vehicle. It's funny because the X5 is, by anyone else's definition, an SUV. Sport Utility Vehicle.

Why "activity?" Sure, you can do a lot of "activities" in the X5. You can spin its little iDrive controller until the computer locks up (which is fun). You can play with its new-wave shifter (which is a little disturbing, because it's shaped like... well, grab one and you'll know). You can even drive the thing. That's one particular activity that the X5 is really, really good at.

But what's BMW's problem with "utility"? We think the X5 has a huge amount of utility - it seats 7 people, it can tow 6000 pounds, and it can even do some off-roading. That's all very useful stuff. So, sorry BMW, but the X5 is an SUV. And a good one. Deal with it.

The new X6 is based on the X5, but it's not an SUV, either. In fact, it's not even an SAV. It's an SAC - a Sports Activity Coupe. Oh, really? To me, a coupe has two doors (even if it's called a Mercedes-Benz CLS or Volkswagen Passat CC, by the way). I'm going to let the ridiculous name slide for once, because there's one huge truth in the X6's SAC designation: the word "sports."

The X6 is oh-my-God good in corners - to the point that it's downright disturbing. No SAC, no SAV, and certainly no SUV should ever, ever be this good in corners. Especially when it weighs as much as two E30-series M3 (1988-91) coupes. And speaking of M3s, BMW says the V-8 X6 laps Germany's Nürburgring Nordschleife in just over 8 minutes, 30 seconds - about ten seconds slower than the E46-series M3 (2001-2007). Yeah - that one, with a 333-hp 8000-rpm engine and a chassis to die for. That's just ridiculous.

The X6 comes in two trim levels. The $53,275 X6 xDrive35i (no, that's not a joke, that's its real name) comes with that delicious 300-hp, 300-lb-ft twin-turbo in-line six that we adore in the 135i, the 335i, and the 535i. Saddled with the X6's weight (4894 lb), the overachiever of an engine still manages a 6.5-second 0-to-60-mph time. In regular driving, the 3.0-liter's big midrange torque is helpful, but if you catch the engine off-boost, patience is required. Luckily, the two teensy turbos spool up very quickly, so lag is minimal, especially at high revs. But because the turbos are so small, the engine runs out of boost (and therefore power) over 6500 rpm. Sure, it happens in the other 35i-motored cars, too, but you don't notice it as much because you're too busy giggling at how fast you're going.

The X6 xDrive50i starts at $63,775 and has an all-new V-8 under the hood. At 4.4 liters, the engine is smaller than the 4.8-liter in the other 50i-engined cars (the 550i, 650i, and 750i, to name a few) and the X5 4.8i. In place of the displacement, it packs two small turbos in the valley of the engine block's vee, and consequently it makes even more power: 400 hp and 450 lb-ft of torque. (The normally aspirated 4.8-liter makes 350 hp and 350 lb-ft in the X5). I wish I could say that I like the V-8 as much as I love the 35i motor, but I don't. The engine's power - and its huge torque plateau - are nice, but it experiences a lot more lag than the six-cylinder does, even at high rpm. I'm not a fan of turbo engines because I like instant throttle response, so this V-8 and I got off to a rough start. And speaking of rough starts, I had a few with the V-8: giving a little gas when accelerating off the line results in nothing, nothing, and then way too much power as the turbos spool up.

In normal driving, I preferred both the sound and the responsiveness of the xDrive35i. Its shorter gear ratios mean it feels almost as quick around town as the V-8 (it's not, though-the xDrive50i rips to 60 mph in only 5.3 seconds, according to BMW). Moreover, the ZF 6-speed automatic transmission is so mind-blowingly adept at banging off seamless shifts that I'd rather beat on the slower X6 instead of using the V-8's torque to ooze around town.

The other big news in the X6's driveline is Dynamic Performance Control, an active rear differential that can shuffle engine power (or engine drag) between the two wheels. It works together with the standard xDrive all-wheel-drive system but works like a limited-slip rear differential on steroids. Where a limited-slip diff aims to lock the two axles together in response to a slippage on one side, the DPC differential can actively shuffle power back and forth between the two - no slip is necessary. More important, it doesn't just lock the wheels together, sending up to half the torque to each side; it proactively sends torque from one side to the other. DPC can engage full "lock" in only 400 milliseconds, and at that point, it can take up to 660 lb-ft of torque from one rear wheel and transfer it to the other. That's 1320 lb-ft of torque more on one side of the car than the other, which can be used to steer the X6.

There are two main results: The first is that the X6 doesn't rely so heavily on its DSC stability control when approaching the limit. Rather than cutting power and abruptly applying the brakes to try to turn the car when you are understeering out of a corner, for example, DPC lets the engine stay at full boil, but sends power to the outside rear wheel, which helps to turn the car. So instead of experiencing a head-bobbing, ABS-pump-buzzing, no-engine-power hack-job of a corner, the X6 just flies right through it. The second benefit is that DPC does its torque-vectoring thing in regular driving, helping to steer the car even at normal speeds. This makes the X6 feel a whole lot lighter - which is a good thing, because the V-8 model weighs 5269 pounds. I told you it was as heavy as two E30 M3s. We can't blame DPC for the weight, though. The entire DPC system (including the diff, its two computer-controlled four-disc clutch packs, two planetary gearsets, all the wiring, and the bigger axles it necessitates) weighs only 26 lb more than a standard, open differential.

The aggregate of all of this technology is that the X6 is a complete rocket around a racetrack. Both 35i and 50i models understeer slightly, but they generate truly astonishing grip, brake very well, and accelerate very quickly. It's doubtful that any SUV on the planet could keep up. Frankly, most sporty cars wouldn't stand a chance. (Until, of course, the X6's mass demons overheated the brakes.)

Which begs the question: How many SUV drivers want to beat up Porsches on the back roads?

The fact of the matter is that the X6 is a vehicle that's going to sell based on its looks. And that might be a problem. The X6 looks like an AMC Eagle SX4 with a lift kit. Executive editor Joe DeMatio described its behind as looking like a horny cat with its rear end up in the air. I won't disagree.

The X6 has sports hatch proportions, which works only on a much smaller scale. In fact, if you shrunk the X6 by about 40 percent and lowered it a few inches, its proportions might look like a four-door successor to the late, great, and gorgeous Volkswagen Corrado. But at this size, with what looks like five inches of gap between the wheels and the fenders, the X6 just looks bizarre.

On the bright side, even though it appears from the outside that the X6's back seats would be uninhabitable, it's actually very comfortable back there. Headroom in the back is only about an inch less than in the X5. Of course, the X6 only seats four - and is an inch longer than the X5, which seats seven, so there damn well should be lots of room. And behind the seats, the X6 has a little more cargo room than the X5. Mind you, the sloping roof line would prevent a dishwasher from fitting, but that's the price you pay for beauty. Or so they say.

From the driver's seat, the X6 is the same truck as the X5 - so you have a great stereo, comfortable seats, and iDrive. BMW is phasing out its force-feedback iDrive controllers, and the new crop of metal wheels feel chintzy, adding insult to ergonomic injury. The rest of the driving experience is typical BMW: brilliant. Great steering feels comes through the thick-rimmed steering wheel. That transmission is the best in the world, and despite my niggles about the V-8's power delivery, both engines really are masterpieces. The electronically controlled suspension rides smoothly, and the handling is divine.

The xDrive50i we drove had a sticker price well over $80,000, but it was loaded with every conceivable option, including a rear climate package, a leather-lined dashboard, and the sport pack's twenty-inch rims. At that price, we're not surprised that BMW thinks of the X6 as a low-volume niche product. The idea of a four-seat SUV that performs like a sports car seems like something that nobody ever asked for.

Or maybe it's just history repeating itself. More than twenty years ago, Lamborghini made a truck called the LM 002. It was an outrageously heavy, unbelievably expensive, hideously ugly four-door SUV/pickup-looking-thing with a screaming Countach V-12 engine, four bucket seats, a Nardi steering wheel, and a dog-leg five-speed transmission. I recently drove one in Italy and thought "wow, this is the coolest thing ever!"

But Lamborghini sold only 301 of them. I'm just sayin'.

Honda Pilot

Like it or not, minivans offer the best cargo/passenger-hauling versatility. But they're just not cool. In 2003, Honda addressed this dilemma by recycling a few Odyssey minivan parts to create the Pilot, which lost the minivan's nerdiness but kept all of the benefits of its unibody, front-wheel-drive platform: a stiff structure, seating for eight, and better handling than its body-on-frame peers.

Now, Honda has removed the last visible relic of the Pilot's minivan roots - the column-mounted shifter. The 2009 Pilot looks like a more muscular caricature of its predecessor, with enormous headlights, a menacing grille, and thick C-pillars. It's a bit bigger, too - overhangs are the same, but the wheelbase has been stretched by almost three inches, facilitating access to the nicely sized third-row seats.

All 2009 Pilots use a five-speed automatic transmission attached to a revised 3.5-liter V-6 that produces 250 hp and 253 lb-ft of torque. Thanks to Honda's newest version of VCM (variable cylinder management), the engine can run on either three, four, or all six cylinders, depending on how much power is needed. Active engine mounts and an eight-inch subwoofer cancel out any strange vibrations created when the engine isn't running on all cylinders.

What Honda hasn't been able to cancel out, though, is torque steer - even on models equipped with optional four-wheel drive. That's surprising, because Honda boasts that its VTM-4 all-wheel-drive system sends power to the rear wheels under acceleration. It must not dispatch enough grunt rearward, though, because it's not difficult to squeal the front tires off the line or light up the inside front wheel when accelerating out of low-speed corners.

Other front-wheel-drive crossovers, such as the Toyota Highlander, do a better job of mitigating torque steer and front wheel spin, but the new Pilot does almost everything else as well or better than its peers. It's ten inches shorter than a GMC Acadia but offers almost as much passenger space and feels like it's half the GMC's size from behind the wheel. It seems quieter inside than the Highlander, and its thick-rimmed steering wheel and supportive seats make the Toyota's cockpit feel cheap by comparison.

In fact, the interior is the biggest upgrade for the 2009 Pilot. The materials feel much more expensive and even better screwed together than before - which is saying a lot. The instrument cluster is especially cool, with black numbers floating on a transparent surface and orange needles below. Many of the gizmos you expect to find in a family hauler - navigation, Bluetooth, and a rear DVD entertainment system - are relegated to the top-of-the-range models, but all Pilots have huge, well-designed storage bins throughout the cabin.

We're not sure that consumers will continue to favor boxy SUV styling in the face of ever-increasing fuel prices. However, for families who are too self-conscious to be seen in an Odyssey, the Pilot does a good job of looking tough on the outside while coddling its passengers in comfort.

Jaguar XF Supercharged

Today is Jaguar's last chance to make a splash in the luxury sport sedan arena before the automaker is packed up and sent to live with its new family. Yes, Ford has thrown in the towel after seventeen years of - to be kind - spotty management of this storied marque. Rather than belabor the sorry procession of bad corporate decisions and compromised products that marred Ford's tenure as keeper of the Big Cat, let's just be here now, sliding for the first time behind the wheel of the new Jaguar XF.

Even as time has run out for Ford, the Jaguar design renaissance has begun to take root. What caught our imagination in the sensuous XK coupe and convertible is about to be proved out in this controversial, new-wave sport sedan conceptualized by Ian Callum, one of the world's great classic sports car designers. "The XF is a stage in a personal journey for me," he explains in his gnarly Scots burr. Callum's journey includes being inspired by the Jaguars of his childhood to become a car designer, a dream that led him from the Royal College of Art to Ford, to Ghia's design studio in Turin, and to TWR Design, where his most famous projects were the Aston Martin DB7 and DB7 Vantage. He landed at Jaguar - his dream job - in 1999, smoothed a couple cars in the pipeline, then had his first smash hit with the XK. There is nothing more important to Callum than building on that success with the XF: "It has always been my career goal to return Jaguar to its rightful place as a leader in automotive design. Cars like the original XJ6 left a lasting legacy, and my ambition has been to create something as seminal. The XF is that car."

His opinion isn't universal. The blogs have been barking since the curtain was pulled from the XF in Frankfurt last fall; a spirited back-and-forth has filled the car mags, including this one, alternately blasting the XF for not being a Jaguar and slavering over its luscious modernity. Hate the front, love the rear? Well, shades of the XK's design debate at launch. But if the arc of the XK's design acceptability and then dominance is anything to go by, the XF will indeed triumph, and Callum will rule once again.

Our money's on Callum.

We came to Arizona prepared to judge the XF out in the real world, where all cars should finally be judged. Parked in front of Paradise Valley's elite Sanctuary Resort & Spa on Camelback Mountain, surrounded by the Benzes, Bimmers, and Audis of the well-heeled clientele, the XF stopped traffic, turned heads, and looked the freshest, the most chic, the most dramatically and dynamically elegant of anything on its wavelength. Perhaps you think this sounds lame, but photos don't begin to do the XF's complex shape justice. It's longer, sleeker, and snarkier in person, with wide, high haunches taut with unreleased energy. The windshield and the C-pillar are impossibly raked, giving the XF the profile of a sport coupe and contributing to a low 0.29 coefficient of drag. At the Sanctuary, the XF proved eminently worthy. The XF is one of the most gorgeous five-passenger sedans on the market today, although long-legged riders will want to call dibs early on the shotgun position, or they'll find themselves negotiating with the front-seat occupants for legroom. There is no dearth of trunk space, however, especially when you flop down the rear seats and expand cargo space into near-infinity.

The Brits will be the first to tell you that they do luxury cabins better than anyone. We'll be the second. The XF breaks some pretty heavy ground in this respect. If you've seen a Motorola Razr phone, you'll recognize the inspiration for interior designer Alister Whelan's aluminum-finished dials, Tungsten-colored switches and buttons, and "phosphor" blue halo lighting throughout the cabin. What you'll undoubtedly notice first, though, is the pulsing red engine-start button. You'll push it and watch a large, knurled knob in the narrow center console - looking every bit like BMW's dreaded iDrive controller - rise up and present itself. As you realize that it's a rotary gear selector, the parked vents on the dash will be rolling open and a seven-inch touch screen will blink to life.

Two things. First, the touch screen controlling the navigation, audio, temperature, and other car systems is much faster than it is in the XK. It works very well and is backed by a bank of redundant button controls. Second, the gear selector is less stupid than it seems at first blush. It quickly and neatly selects a gear and, being fully electronic, takes up so little space (just above an equally electric and tidy half-moon parking brake switch) that the bulk of the center console is left for massive cupholders and a storage bin (which has a power outlet, plus USB and iPod hookups). If you're like us, you'll be using the wide Formula 1 - style, steering-wheel-mounted paddleshifters to manage your own gear changes anyway.

This is the fine wood and leather club lounge of British legend, but freshly executed by a relatively youthful team. Your choice of wood trim merely accents a more prominent swath of aluminum. The padded leather cowl is low and tight, with double stitching that matches soft, lovely, leather seats. When you sit behind the wheel, with your elbows on the high center console and the door-mounted armrest, it feels as if you are commanding the road from your favorite reading chair. If your chair could do four-wheel drifts, that is.

Mike Cross, Jaguar's chief engineer, greeted us not only in person but also on the flat-screen TV in the hotel room on our arrival. The Jaguar public relations team had thoughtfully in-stalled a DVD starring handling wizard Cross at the wheel of an XF executing endless heroic four-wheel drifts on a wet, twisty track. Provocative stuff to be showing a bunch of journalists before letting them take your cars into the Arizona hills for a day. Thank you very much.

We chose the top-of-the-line Supercharged XF for our tour. (Something about that extra 120 hp over the Luxury XF's basic 300-hp, 4.2-liter V-8, yes?) Not that the richly trimmed Luxury base model, at $49,975, skimps on features. It's nicely appointed but has eighteen-inch instead of twenty-inch aluminum wheels and less aggressive rubber, not a bad thing if you're going for a magic-carpet ride. Also, a few of the more exotic luxuries that are standard on the Premium Luxury ($55,975) and Supercharged ($62,975) XFs cost extra for Luxury customers. Tops on the list of desirable options must be the Supercharged XF's standard 440-watt, fourteen-speaker Bowers & Wilkins surround-sound audio system. It will make you incontinent.

Our drive route led us north out of Paradise Valley through rain on Arizona 87, a fast and twisting climb to Payson. Quiet and composed in town, the XF Supercharged was in its glory when it hit the highway. We like this blown V-8 in both the S-type R and the XKR, and it is as enticing in the XF - a full second quicker than the normally aspirated engine, at 5.1 seconds from 0 to 60 mph, with a 155-mph governed top speed. It's moving a big car - more than two tons - which makes those 5.1 seconds fly by. The real joy, though, is found in its healthy 408 lb-ft of torque, which peaks at 3500 rpm.

The ZF six-speed automatic transmission with paddleshifters - found in all XF models - is improved from its launch in the XK, with an instantaneous connection between transmission and engine. The XF's (and XJ's) chief program engineer, Mick Mohan, insists that it's "one of the quickest responding transmissions on the market today." It may very well be. There are three shift modes, the first being the everyday Drive automatic setting. Rotate the selector one notch to S, and the automatic mode becomes more responsive, with adaptive shifting to more aggressive driving. When you're really pushing it, though, you can shift yourself. Holding the upshift paddle for two seconds resets the transmission to Drive mode.

The Supercharged also has its own dynamic stability control mode, in addition to the standard stability control mode and a winter setting, which allows some wheel slip when you need it in low-traction conditions. Dynamic mode gets your driving party started by permitting full manual upshifts, late upshifts, and early downshifts, and it lets you know where you are with a big, amber shift indicator as you near redline.

The XF is a quiet and serene luxury cruiser when you don't want to be a driving hero. And then it leaps into action when the right piece of road finds you in the right frame of mind. The rain had lightened after lunch, and we shot back down on the more rough-and-tumble Highway 188 past the Roosevelt Dam to Globe, giving the XF a thorough workout. With a unibody based on that of the competent S-type, a suspension using the XK's setup front and rear with Computer Active Technology Suspension (CATS) damping, the XK's vented disc brakes, and the magic ministrations of Mike Cross and his crack development team, the XF was bound to be brilliant to drive. It carved those canyon roads with precise inputs from the thickly padded steering wheel. A bit of lift throttle helped nudge the front-heavy XF Supercharged through tighter turns, while it rode all the while with amazing grace, even on its twenty-inch wheels. Gotta love those Pirelli PZeros - 255/35YR fronts and 285/30YR rears.

After our six-hour day behind the wheel, we were ready to drive the XF home to Michigan, which is exactly how all good Jaguars feel. We're also confident that the XF will prove to be the seminal design that Ian Callum believes it is. Moving on from the XK and this new XF, Callum's string of pearls grows with a striking new aluminum-bodied XJ, due in 2010.

"The last ten years have been fairly traumatic, as you know," says managing director and thirty-two-year Jaguar employee Mike O'Driscoll, who has been through all of it and wants to stay on. "When we get things right, we get them terribly right. There's a real camaraderie at Jaguar - a sense that we're all in this and we're going to make it work." As of today, things are looking terribly right.

We're thinking that Tata is looking pretty smart for its reported $2 billion offer. The time is right for a new company to give Jaguar its best shot.

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Subaru Forester

Of the modern-era Subarus, the Forester has been the model that most closely reflects the character that the brand was built on: inexpensive, capable, utilitarian, slightly unconventional, and unconcerned with appearances. A Subaru among Subarus, this grungy earth child has been happily chugging along on the crunchy fringe of the compact SUV market. For 2009, the Forester has undergone a redesign that has made it larger, more SUV-like, and, well, more normal. And although the new Forester looks a lot different from the previous model, it manages to retain many of its predecessors strengths while expanding its appeal.

With its all-new body, the Forester goes from mutant station wagon to mainstream compact crossover. Its significantly longer, wider, and taller.

All of that makes for additional cargo space (enough for 4590 granola bars with the rear seats up!) and a much roomier cabin. The 3.6-inch-longer wheelbase helps alleviate the formerly cramped rear seat, and access is much improved. The previous models low cowl is gone, but otherwise Subaru managed to preserve the Foresters best-in-class outward visibility, particularly to the rear. A navigation system and dealer-installed Bluetooth join the options list, while side curtain air bags, stability control, panic brake assist, and an auxiliary audio input are now standard.

As much as the Foresters looks have changed, its driving demeanor really hasnt. The most noticeable difference is that the car seems a lot quieter on the freeway. The output of the base 2.5-liter boxer four is altered only slightly (its down 3 hp, up 4 lb-ft of torque), and the available turbo engines numbers are unchanged, although its torque curve is flatter.

Despite the new cars 100-to-150-pound weight gain, the base engine is still up to the task of moving it along, and the turbo once again provides welcome and well-integrated extra urge for the Forester XT. Both engines could use an extra gear (or two) for their automatic transmission, which is only a four-speed. The base engine at least can be paired with a five-speed manual; the turbo cannot.

The chassis, which is related to the new Imprezas, switches from struts to control arms in the rear suspension. The new layout no longer impinges on cargo space, but we didnt find any great dynamic benefits, as the Forester understeers readily. It also could use firmer damping and more precise steering. The new Forester has a bit more ground clearance than before (now 8.7 or 8.9 inches, depending on the model), which emboldened Subarus PR team to have us take a run up a steep, rutted dirt road covered with loose rocks. Sure enough, the Forester churned its way to the top, while a Honda CR-V bogged to a halt halfway up.

Often, adolescence brings a physically gawky stage, but in the case of the Forester, which just turned eleven years old, the opposite is true. With this redesign, the Forester has finally shed its dorky appearance and donned a handsome (if somewhat derivative) new suit of sheetmetal. Evidently, Subaru was tired of swimming outside the mainstream with its lower, smaller, more wagonlike entry, watching the CR-V and the Toyota RAV4 run away from the Forester in sales. Size and styling were two major factors keeping people out of the Forester, and Subaru has effectively addressed both. At the same time, the company has added standard safety gear yet lowered the price. It ought to be enough to move the Forester out of its granola-chomping niche.

Chevrolet HHR SS

Chevrolet's little retro wagon, the HHR, has been given the SS treatment, with a turbocharged engine and a firmed-up chassis, plus some tuner-style body modifications and interior upgrades. The resulting car may be a little hard to take seriously, but at least there's now a lot more substance beneath the HHR's candy-coated shell.

That shell, with its pleasingly rounded styling and practical wagon layout, has been netting the HHR 100,000 sales per annum, but the Cobalt mechanicals underneath mean that those buyers are unlikely to be driving enthusiasts. Now General Motors' in-house tuner crew has imbued the HHR with newfound power and poise.

The HHR SS benefits from the latest thinking at the GM Performance Division. That means turbocharging rather than supercharging for the 2.0-liter four, which also is treated to direct injection. The benefits are twofold. First, the turbocharged engine meets 2008 emissions standards that the supercharged 2.0-liter could not. (Which explains why the Cobalt SS Supercharged has disappeared from the lineup.) Second, the 2.0 turbo makes a lot more power: 260 hp versus 205 hp, and 260 lb-ft of torque versus 200 lb-ft.

To get all 260 ponies, you need to opt for the manual transmission; the engine in the automatic-equipped car is detuned to 235 hp, in deference to the four-speed automatic's fragility. For the SS, Chevrolet has shortened the manual's shift throws and moved the shifter both forward and up so it isn't such a far reach. Unfortunately, the five-speed's shift action is pretty notchy. Chevrolet quotes 0-to-60-mph times of 6.3 seconds for the manual and 7.5 for the automatic, but the gulf between them feels greater. Whereas the 235-hp car feels responsive but nothing more, the stick-shift SS is fast; the car doesn't shoot out of the hole, but its acceleration swells as if on a wave. Stay with it, and it will carry you all the way to 150 mph. The turbo's power delivery doesn't really lag, but it does build, with a faint, telltale whistle in the background. Mostly, though, what you hear is the cacophonous noise of the direct-injection engine, with some gearbox whine tossed in. You won't mistake it for a Honda VTEC engine.

When we say that the HHR SS doesn't blast away from a stop, we should qualify that statement by explaining that this is without using launch control. Yes, just like the Porsche 911 GT2, the HHR SS has a launch control mode. Switch the traction control to the competition setting, and the car is ready for launch control at any stop. Floor the throttle and the engine holds 4100 rpm, so the turbo is spooled up when you release the clutch. The result isn't a smooth launch - in fact, it feels like you're going to snap a half shaft - but it is a quick one.

Chevy also makes much of the "no-lift shift" feature in the HHR SS. The engine-management software's programming allows you to keep the accelerator planted during upshifts. The revs rise to 6200 rpm - just shy of the 6350-rpm redline - and turbo boost doesn't drop during shifts (as you can see by checking the A-pillar-mounted boost gauge). Again, this is mostly a parlor trick to impress your friends - particularly those who will thrill to the exhaust backfire that accompanies each shift.

More so than managing engine revs, a front-wheel-drive car with 260 lb-ft of torque needs to manage torque steer. Here, Chevy has done a better job than you might expect, particularly if you've driven a supercharged Cobalt SS or the HHR's closest domestic competitor, the Dodge Caliber SRT4. Chevy engineers point to the revised roll-center height, new steering knuckles, and different antiroll-bar mounting points, which they claim help exorcise the front-wheel-drive demons. When pulling out of slow, tight corners, torque steer never raised its squirmy head on dry pavement. We also took a turn in the 235-hp car in the rain, during which we did feel tugging at the wheel, but the car didn't dart off in all directions. In all, it was a commendable performance.

In fact, the chassis tuning overall is very well done. The HHR SS gets firmer springs, dampers, and antiroll bars, which keep body lean in check. The 225/45R-18 Michelin Pilots really hang on, and the recalibrated and quickened electric power steering does a convincing impression of a hydraulic system. We'd only wish for a bit more rebound damping, as cresting a sudden rise causes the HHR SS to momentarily lose its composure. In the spring, Chevrolet will offer a further chassis upgrade in the form of Brembo front brakes with larger rotors packaged with a limited-slip differential.

The mechanical enhancements to the HHR SS have been successful, but we're not totally down with the cosmetic changes. We like the eighteen-inch wheels, but the new fascia gives the car a nose-heavy, front-wheel-drive look, and the flared lower body cladding seems out of place and is annoying to step over. Inside, there are nice, suede-like inserts on the seats, but only the driver gets the more supportive, sport bucket seat (the non-matching, standard-style passenger seat preserves the fold-flat function). There's also the aforementioned boost gauge and a smaller-diameter steering wheel.

The HHR might seem to be an odd car to get hot-rodded, but the work is certainly well done. This pint-size son of yesteryear's Suburban can now take you into the past faster than ever before.

Got Boost?

Turbocharging has replaced supercharging as the preferred horsepower helper for GM's Ecotec four. The direct-injected, 2.0-liter turbo debuted in the Pontiac Solstice GXP (followed by the Saturn Sky Red Line). There are lots more cars to come:

NOW
HHR SS

APRIL
Cobalt SS
Turbocharged coupe

JUNE
HHR SS Panel

FALL
Cobalt SS Turbocharged sedan

Dodge Challenger

Dodge rolled out the 2008 Challenger SRT8 in Chicago, but saved the complete 2009 Challenger line for the New York Auto Show. R/T models feature the new generation 5.7-liter Hemi V-8 with 370 hp and 398 lb-ft of torque while SE models utilize a 3.5-liter V-6 that produces 250 hp and 250 lb-ft. Dodge expects the R/T model to be the volume seller.

Buyers who opt for the six-speed manual transmission will get a slight upgrade in power: the 5.7-liter Hemi is tuned for 375 hp and 404 lb-ft when mated to a manual transmission. This is the first application of a manual transmission in an LX car, but we're hoping it won't be the last. The slight bump in power means owners will be asked to burn premium fuel, but the addition of variable valve timing and dual ignition net the 5.7-liter V-8 an estimated five percent increase in fuel economy.

Dodge adds hill start assist for manual Challengers, so drivers in hilly areas will have an easier time taking off from a stop. A new limited-slip differential helps keep drive wheels hooked up during hard acceleration. Thankfully, SRT8 buyers will be offered a six-speed manual option for 2009.

An impressive collection of Mopar accessories are available to enhance your Challenger right at the time of purchase. Upgrades range from basic air intake systems all the way up to revised camshafts, cylinder heads, and forged crankshafts. A coil-over suspension kit drops the ride height by 1.625-inches and should improve ride quality. Most of the performance parts are for the Hemi engines, but the interior and exterior upgrades can be fitted to any Challenger model.

The Challenger R/T and SE retain the SRT8's lines, but will offer a slightly softer suspension and less aggressive tires. With correspondingly lower prices, the less-powerful Challengers will make this pony car more accessible to the masses.

Pontiac Solstice Coupe

The Pontiac Solstice wowed 'em at the 2002 Detroit auto show. Of course, a sexy set of twins will do that. As you may recall, the Solstice was shown as both a coupe and a convertible. But while the roadster was fast-tracked for production, its hardtop sibling was left behind.
"We were all about the roadster, then all the things that came after," says chief engineer Bruce Kosbab, who heads development of GM's small, rear-wheel-drive Kappa platform. He claims that when the Solstice was being engineered, no thought was given to eventually adding a hardtop variant. But about a year and a half ago that changed, and work began on the car you see here, the Pontiac Solstice targa, which should reach dealers next spring.
"We originally wanted to do it as a coupe," says Jim Fleming, who oversaw the car's design. "But there are a lot of legal ramifications to taking a convertible and making it into a fixed hardtop. It would be much more involved, because you'd have to change all your front header structure, windshield, and all those pieces. We'd have to look at roof-rail air bags, pieces like that, and that gets into a big technical challenge. So as we started working on the program and what it would take to do it, a targa became the natural choice."

Therefore, all Solstice hardtops will be targas, with a lift-off center section. That panel weighs approximately thirty pounds, thanks to a relatively lightweight materials mix of SMC (sheet-molding compound) over a magnesium frame. The entire rear roof section also is made of SMC, and it neatly replaces the rear-hinged deck lid of the roadster. Otherwise, the hardtop and the convertible share all exterior body sheetmetal-including rear quarter panels-and fascias.
Despite those constraints, the designers were able to fashion a treatment that stays true to the original coupe concept created by designer Franz von Holzhausen (now at Mazda).
"We started with the 2002 concept vehicle," says exterior designer Jose Gonzalez, who is well-versed in the Solstice, having done three SEMA-show concepts of the car: the single-seat SD-290, the GXP-R, and the Club Sport Z0K. "But we wanted a more contemporary DLO [side-window opening]. So we got rid of the [external] B-pillar and stretched it all the way back."
The designers were able to retain the concept's beautifully shaped hatchback window glass, which is emphasized by a crease that starts above the A-pillar and runs back, down around the bottom of the rear glass, and then back up the other side. "That spline gives the car a more aggressive feel," says Gonzalez. Fleming ads: "The original concept was very British-roadster inspired, and when we were working on this, we wanted to be a little bit more racy, a little bit more aggressive."

The coupe may look aggressive, but the addition of a hard top won't significantly alter the Solstice's on-road demeanor. Kosbab estimates that the two cars' structural rigidity is pretty much the same and that the weight difference between the two is only about twenty pounds. Thus, the suspension is essentially unchanged, as are the powertrains: a 173-hp, 2.4-liter four-cylinder in the base car and a turbocharged, 260-hp, 2.0-liter engine in the GXP.
Although it's mechanically identical to the roadster, the coupe is a bit more practical. Peek under the deck lid of a Solstice roadster, and you'll find the folded fabric top and a large mound under which lives the fuel tank and its evaporative canister. What you don't find is much actual storage space. There was no folding top to worry about for the coupe, so the evaporative canister could move, meaning the cargo floor could be flattened and lowered to the point where it might actually accept a piece of luggage. Not a big piece, but something, and there are a few cubbyholes built into the floor as well. (In all, there is about 5.6 cubic feet of space in the trunk.) Unfortunately, one item that can't be stashed back there is the targa top. To make amends, Pontiac will offer an optional Lotus Elise-style canvas top that can be collapsed and stored onboard.
We hope the success of the minimally invasive surgery that created this shapely coupe from the Solstice roadster entices GM to further experiment with the Kappa platform. Kosbab is mum about future Kappa variants-except to say that there will not be a Saturn Sky version of this car. That's OK; but how about something along the lines of the sleek Chevrolet Nomad concept? That would be pretty cool, too.

Kia Optima

Kia's often-overlooked Accord and Camry competitor gets a mid-cycle freshening and a New York auto show debut. A new grille and headlamps give it a bit more of the emerging Kia family look that we see in the hot Kia Koup concept that took center stage for Kia in New York.
The Optima shown at the 2008 New York auto show is in SX trim, marking the first time that Kia has affixed that badging to the Optima; it signifies a sportier tune. Turn signals that are now integrated into the side rearview mirrors; new taillights and deck lid; new standard Sirius satellite radio; and a new three-pod instrument gauge cluster round out the changes for the face-lifted 2009 Kia Optima. It goes on sale this fall.

Kia also announced today that, beginning January 1, 2009, all Kia cars sold in America will come standard with Sirius and a three-month subscription.

Honda Fit

Honda isn't offering the full scoop on the 2009 Fit just yet, but we have the official images and a few tidbits on the all-new B-segment star. Honda will offer a satellite navigation system with voice recognition for the first time in its subcompact and iPod integration is now standard on the Fit Sport.
The Fit is still motivated by a 1.5-liter four-cylinder, but the engine is new. No specific power figures have yet been released. Honda promises the best mix of power and fuel economy from the new engine, but that mix will clearly be skewed towards fuel economy. Transmission choices include a true manual and an automatic with optional wheel-mounted paddle shifters. Both the automatic and manual transmissions feature five forward gears.

Engineers worked hard to enhance the Fit's sporty image by tightening up the suspension, increasing body rigidity, and revising the steering system. We don't have specific information on how these components were changed, but that information will be available closer to the car's launch this fall. Rim size has been increased to 15-inches for the Fit and 16-inches for the Fit Sport.

Safety enhancements are always important in the B-segment, and the Fit delivers. Honda's Advanced Compatibility Engineering body structure is now built into the Fit along with active head restraints. Electronic stability control is optional for 2009. The usual mix of advanced airbags, anti-lock brakes, and electronic brake force distribution round out Fit's safety features.