Auto News 5

This is the thirteenth concept car produced by Hyundai’s California Design studio. Thus, that three-letter acronym and accompanying number actually mean something—besides the fact that the folks at Hyundai are superstitious and skipped number thirteen, that is. This counters the trendy random collection of letters beloved by automotive marketers and applied liberally to all sorts of cars and SUVs in the hope that some Teutonic precision will rub off on their cheaper models. This time, Hyundai has conjured up one of the best-proportioned sedans in a very long time yet managed to throw away all those proportional advantages with one of the ugliest, bluntest front ends to appear in public in many years.

Cheer up, disgruntled NASCAR fans. In 2013, for the first time in six years, Sprint Cup races feature stock cars that actually look like stock cars.

We're not driving the 2014 Lexus IS F Sport on the Nürburgring, where some of its development took place. Rather, we're driving this exemplar of the new third-generation IS around carousels and corkscrews, through kinks and hairpins, all copied from Spa and Laguna Seca, Fiorano and Road Atlanta. This greatest-hits collection known as Driveway Austin Motorsports is approximately 2.0 miles around.

The Buick brand has evolved significantly since the current LaCrosse bowed at the 2009 Detroit auto show, so it's time for the full-size sedan to receive a facelift. The updates to the 2014 Buick LaCrosse bring the model in line with the rest of the brand's styling trends, and add a raft of new technologies.

What's the publication most widely read by Americans in search of a new or used car? Hint: it's not the outstanding periodical you're holding in your hands, insightful and award-winningly excellent though it is.