Auto News 5

BMW’s smallest offering — the 1 Series — will arrive for the 2012 model year with a short list of changes.

Though it's only been known by the nickname "New Midsize Sedan" so far, Volkswagen is already making sales projections for its new, U.S. market specific Passat-replacement. VW hopes to sell more than 60,000 units of the large sedan in its first year.

Porsche has been absent from the Detroit Auto Show since 2007, but the automaker is gearing up for a triumphant return by announcing that it will unveil a “spectacular” vehicle at this year's show.

Resembling a cross between the Mini Coupe and Countryman, the Paceman is built on the same platform as the Countryman and designed to use the 211-horsepower, turbocharged, 1.6-liter I-4 engine from the John Cooper Works model Minis. The adaptation of Mini’s ALL4 all-wheel-drive system allows owners to feel as rugged as a flannel shirt while cruising mall parking lots in washed-silk comfort. In normal driving, ALL4 sends 100-percent of the power to the front axle, but an electromagnetic center differential allows as much as half of the car’s power to be sent to the rear axle in low-grip situations. The suspension system is also lifted from the Countryman using a MacPherson strut in front with a multi-link system in back. Mini states that the Paceman delivers typical Mini agility and confidence while maintaining the compliant and comfortable ride customers expect in this segment.

Hyundai is excited — and Honda might be scared — about the Hyundai Veloster’s Detroit Auto Show reveal.