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Not too long ago the term “crossover” was a dirty word around these parts. The me-too products were more lame attempts to capture market share in a burgeoning segment than objectively good vehicles. They filled a spot on the showroom floor but they lacked style, personality and most egregiously, any semblance of driver involvement. Thankfully, those days are receding into memory as vehicles like the Kia Sportage SX emerge.

We’ve heard a lot about the übercheap new Jetta and its ambitious plan to attract new buyers. This more expensive SEL model, though, has just as important a job: keep the buyers Volkswagen already has. At first glance, it seems more than up to the task. A perusal of the spec sheet finds all the niceties we’ve come to expect from the Jetta over the years, including a sunroof, aluminum wheels, and (nice) leatherette seating surfaces, in addition to new features like navigation and keyless start. All of this comes in a roomier car that costs some $500 less than last year’s SEL model.

Prior to the issue that you hold in your hands, there have been 300 regular monthly editions of Automobile Magazine. We've picked twenty-five of our favorite covers from the past twenty-five years. How many do you remember?

A quarter of a century has passed since the first issue of AUTOMOBILE MAGAZINE arrived on newsstands. It seems like only yesterday to many of us, but surely that cannot be so, since the 1986 Toyota MR2 that graced the cover of our premiere issue has migrated to the back of the book. Once a cover model, the first-generation MR2 is now a Collectible Classic.