Motortrend - Sept 2008

By Scott Evans

The Toyota Camry has been America’s best-selling car for years now and for 2009, Toyota apparently has invoked the if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it clause. After all, the Camry was redesigned for 2007 — and then beat the competition to become our 2007 Car of the Year — so its looks are still fresh and its technology is still relatively cutting-edge.

The biggest difference you’ll notice on the 2009 Camry is that the CE trim level has been dropped. The entry-level Camry is now simply the Camry, with the LE as a mid-level package, the SE in sport trim, and the XLE as the premium brew. Of course, there is also the Camry Solara for those who want two doors and a drop top (the Solara coupe has been discontinued for 2009) and the Camry Hybrid for those looking to be even more eco-friendly or just to save at the pump via its 33/34-mpg city/highway mileage rating.

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Motortrend, September 2008

By Paul Horrell

I know what you’re thinking. A VW Golf with just 1.4 liters is unworthy of the attention of a Motor Trend reader. Possibly beneath his or her contempt. When’s the one with the performance coming along?

Well, the easy answer is that the one with the performance, the new GTI, will be at the Paris auto show in October, to go on sale in Europe in mid-2009 and the U.S. a year or so later.

But the real answer isn’t so simple at all. This 1.4 Golf, on sale in Europe now, actually is a performance Golf. It features a turbo and a mechanical supercharger, too, with direct gas injection, feeding a seven-speed dual-clutch sequential transmission. It runs a sub-8.0 sec 0-to-60, and hits 137 mph. Comfortably.

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BUSINESSWEEK - Auto News August 18, 2008, 4:57PM EST

by Sam Livingstone

The Lexus IS-F is a significant new design for one core reason: it introduces a performance sub-brand parallel to that of the M-cars from BMW, AMG from Mercedes-Benz, and the S and RS sub-brands from Audi. This then is Lexus making a logical next step to further encroach on the established German premium brands.

BMW originated the premium brands’ performance sub-brand with the ‘M for Motorsport’ M3 of 1986 (the M1 supercar of 1978 preceded that, but was a singular model, not a performance derivative). Now they are on their fourth generation M3 and M5. Though the ‘M for Motorsport’ moniker is now perhaps more ‘M for marketing’, M-cars still have a focus on lightweight track-orientated performance.

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MOTORTREND - By Greg N. Brown

Porsche’s roll out of a new 911 is as predictable as the thunderstorms that rumble across Germany every summer. First come the Carrera 2 coupes and cabriolets, followed by the all-wheel-drive Carrera 4s. A Targa rolls in next, and then the gale-force Turbo and whirlwinds of the ferocious GTs complete the perfect storm whipped up each time Porsche reinvents its iconic sports car.

Porsche revealed its thoroughly transformed 911 Carrera 2s earlier this year, and we had no compunction about calling them the best 911s yet. Unfortunately, wet roads and pervasive squadrons of radar-wielding polizei blew away our chance to enjoy the full force of the two more powerful boxer sixes, the refined chassis, and the new twin-clutch automatic gearbox.

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MOTORTREND, August 2008

By Frank Markus

Maserati has tampered with the Quattroporte, a sedan that inspires visceral, carnal automotive lust wildly out of proportion with its size and door count. Perhaps fearing cries of “blasphemy!” the factory proffered these historic precedents: DaVinci’s do-over of his “Virgin of the Rocks” masterpiece and Henri Matisse’s reinterpretation of “Le Luxe.”

Well, okay, in that context, we might forgive Pininfarina for extending the nose 1.4 in. and the tail by 0.4 in. and giving it a larger grille with vertical slats (chromed to distinguish the new S model) to strengthen its resemblance to the GranTurismo. It’s also incorporated new bi-Xenon and LED lighting and expanded the already staggering array of interior trim choices to 10 leather colors with 11 piping hues and myriad woods or lacquers from which to choose. Other interior upgrades include new cluster graphics, reshaped seats and a new multifunction wood and leather steering wheel with sporty thumb rests. We can certainly forgive the infusion of 25 extra horses and 22 lb-ft of torque that come with the S model’s half-liter-larger V-8. If you take umbrage at these aesthetic amendments, you’ll surely embrace the quantum improvement in ergonomics brought by Bose’s new multimedia/nav system, standard on base and S models (only these two trim levels are offered; the outgoing Executive model’s many extravagances are now optional on either).

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InformationWeek - August 6, 2008 09:35 AM

GM’s Chevy Volt is a plug-in hybrid concept car. Tesla Motors’ Roadster is an all-electric vehicle in production. We peek under the hoods of both.

By Cora Nucci

The mood in Detroit has got to be grim and tense. With truck and SUV sales plunging, and financial losses mounting, GM (NYSE: GM) needs to get its plug-in hybrid concept car, the Volt, to market quickly.

That day, however is at least two years off, and one cause for delay is the difficulty GM is having in sourcing a battery vendor.

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Motortrend, July 2008

Diet 1 Series: None of the boost, all of the fun

By Carlos Lago

We’re all clamoring about the 135i, but can you blame us? The surprising power delivery and cornering capability of the BMW make it hard not to. But while the 135i is the focal point of the 1 Series offerings in the U.S., the 128i is the more sensible sibling with similar attitude. We were impressed by the 128i when we first drove it and now that we’ve tested the cheapest BMW available, we can show you how it stacks up against the competition and its twin-turbocharged brother.

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