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Bowler, an all-terrain high performance car company, and Land Rover, who have been working together for 10 years, came to an agreement on a business partnership. Bowler's competition vehicles will now wear a "Powered by Land Rover" tag, acknowledging Land Rover's role within the Bowler company.

Bowler did base, in the mid 80's, its first competition model off Land Rover's technology. Their latest car - the EXR and EXR S (rally and road versions) - both use a modified engine, a chassis and other components borrowed from the Range Rover Sport.

The new EXR S is the first Bowler product made for the street: it shares a platform with the EXR (only the engine was pushed back 300 mm), and many parts from the Range Rover Sport. The said engine is a supercharged 550-horsepower V8 that reaches 0-100 km/h in 4.2 seconds and a top speed of 249 km/h.

Retailing at £ 155,000 ($ 248,600), the EXR S will make its debut on June 28, at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.

Photo: Land Rover

I recently attended the launch of the 2013 Lexus ES 350 and ES 300h in Newberg, Oregon USA. Rather than fly, as journalists so often do, I drove to the event, which was a 1,200 km round trip. The vehicle that carried me to and fro is the subject of this review.


Convertible hardtop - best of both worlds
The Lexus IS is a compact four-door sports sedan. When a 'C' is added to the badging, it becomes a two-door convertible coupe that seats four occupants. The 'C' could just as easily represent "competent."

While its cabin is less spacious than the sedan, the hardtop convertible lid is so well executed that it's difficult to discern from within that the roof fully retracts into the trunk. Even from the outside, the car conceals its roofless alter, preferring to appear simply as a sleek coupe when the roof is in place.

When adding the "C" to the crest of the IS, it therefore refers to the four-seat convertible coupe. (Photo: Rob Rothwell)

IS 250 C milder than 350 C
The 2012 Lexus IS 250 C rides upon a rear-wheel-drive platform and relies upon a smaller V6 engine for propulsion than its IS 350 C sibling. That's okay, because it still has plenty of oomph when needed while returning better fuel economy.

The polished mill displaces 2.5 litres, generating 204 hp @ 6,400 rpm and 185 lb-ft @ 4,800 rpm. It's fastened to a 6-speed automatic transmission featuring shift paddles. Fuel economy with the autobox is pegged at 9.8L/100km and 6.7L/100km, city and highway driving respectively.

The 306-hp IS 350 C is rated at a thirstier 11.5L/100km and 7.9L/100km city/highway. This is a powerful vehicle, and with a base MSRP of $57,000, it's also significantly more expensive than its calmer brother, the IS 250 C, which is listed at $49,100.

Unless big power is a big need, I'd recommend forgoing the IS 350 C in favour of the more sensible brother. The congenial, soothing performance of its smaller powerplant delivers plenty of pleasure and contentment.

The standout attribute of this engine isn't its power but its refinement. I was delighted by its quiet, ultra-smooth operation and performance. It really reinforces the notion that the IS 250 C is, at its core, a luxury vehicle. But don't let that orientation delude into thinking that it's not directionally capable as well.

The 2012 Lexus IS 250 C rides upon a rear-wheel-drive platform and relies upon a smaller V6 engine for propulsion than its IS 350 C sibling. (Photo: Rob Rothwell)

Sweet-spot between handling and ride quality
My run to Newberg and back provided an extended opportunity to evaluate the ride comfort versus handling equation of my tester, and I'm happy to report that it was ideal in all situations.

The car delivers an absorbent, composed ride that's not mushy by any means. In fact, it's more on the sporty side than the revised ES series launched at the Newberg program; that vehicle emphasized comfort over handling, whereas the IS strikes a slightly more aggressive balance.

I purposely sought out secondary roads in the US, avoiding the freeway much of the time. It was on these twisty traffic-free stretches of tarmac that the responsive, direct steering of the IS 250 C was appreciated.

The car settles nicely into a curve, holding its line with precision and predictability as its 18" rear wheels push it off the apex and through to the next bend. Nice indeed.

The car delivers an absorbent, composed ride that's not mushy by any means. (Photo: Rob Rothwell)

Special Edition leather and more
The IS Series is a generously equipped luxury car with few available option packages. My tester was the Special Edition version of the IS 250 C, which added $3,400 to its MSRP.

In return, Special Edition packaging includes the 18" alloy wheels, a backup camera in the navigation display, clearance and backup sensors, voice-activated HDD navigation (most helpful on my trip) and red leather upholstery.

The automatic transmission with paddle-shift added another $1,600 to the bottom line, which saw my tester's price tag climb to $54,100 before taxes and delivery charges, which is a few thousand less than the Volvo C70 T5, the closest competitor to the IS 250 C.

However, both the Volvo and Lexus are considerably more expensive than the Chrysler 200 hardtop convertible, which starts at just $30,095 and works its way up to the $40K mark.

My tester was the Special Edition version of the IS 250 C, which added $3,400 to its MSRP. (Photo: Rob Rothwell)

The final word
The Lexus IS 250 C is a tremendously rewarding vehicle to drive, roof up or roof down. It's ultra smooth and refined, and its cabin is beautifully constructed, offering adequate room for four adult occupants. Luggage room is on the tight side though, with little usable trunk space remaining when the roof is retracted.

While it's not the least expensive four-seat hardtop convertible (Chrysler owns that title), it's on the lower end of the price range for an upscale hardtop droptop, especially one that's as competent across the board.

BMW 3 Series Cabriolet

Infiniti G25

Cadillac ATS

From GMM

Kimi Raikkonen has hit back at reports he is out of favour at Lotus.

The 2007 world champion's return to formula one this year initially went smoothly, but he has struggled more recently while newcomer teammate Romain Grosjean almost won the recent Canadian grand prix.

Not only that, there are reports his Enstone based employer is losing patience with the 32-year-old Finn's attitude, especially regarding his demands for a better steering system and a rumoured rift over a rallying ban.

"I don't know where you heard that," Raikkonen told reporters at Valencia. "Go and ask the team and you will get the truth."

Asked if he is still happy at Lotus, he insisted: "Why wouldn't I be?"

Everything's OK between Lotus and Kimi Raikkonen. (Photo: Lotus F1 Team)

Raikkonen did admit, however, that there has been some disappointment that the promise of the E20 car has not translated into a race win yet.

"We've been so close to certain results, so certain races have been a bit disappointing, and you are disappointed when you don't win," he said.

GM's top luxury brand is struggling to find some elbow room. Accounting for only 2.9% of the General's total sales in Canada, it's about time some fresh products hit the showroom floor.

Cadillac brand sales in 2012 (January through May): 2,715
Cadillac brand sales during same period in 2011: 3,348
Difference: -19%

The ATS and XTS should save the day for Cadillac, as they'll be covering the low and high ends of their car line-up, which are currently vacant. The CTS, presently accounting for 41% of the brand's sales, has been around in its present form since 2008, the Escalade is unchanged since 2007, and the SRX is hanging on to its modest sales numbers.

The recent demise of the DTS sedan is the main reason why Caddy's sales are down, so the full-size 2013 Cadillac XTS should do good, with its 304-hp 3.6L V6 engine, a choice of front- or all-wheel drivetrains and a host of new electronic gadgetry. The XTS will emphasize ride comfort, interior space and a well-appointed cabin, and will start at about $50,000.

2013 Cadillac XTS (Photo: Kevin Corrigan)

The 2013 Cadillac ATS is slightly smaller than the CTS and will offer a choice of three engines: a 202-hp, 2.5L four, a 270-hp, 2.0L turbo four and a 320-hp 3.6L V6. The ATS will be rear-wheel drive, and thanks to a bunch of weight-saving techniques, is said to be one of the lightest cars in the compact sports-luxury sedan segment - occupied by the BMW 3 Series, the Mercedes-Benz C-Class and the Audi A4. That's tough competition.

The arrival of the ATS, which should start at around $35,000, means that the next-generation CTS is likely to grow in size; figure half-way between Cadillac's two new models.

We'll see in a few months if Cadillac will have succeeded in turning things around.

The BMW team saw one of its M3 DTM cars totally destroyed by fire during a test session at the Lauzitzring circuit.

It was the young Marco Wittmann, the test driver of the team, who was at the wheel of the car usually driven by Joey Hand who stayed in California this week.

The German driver, who was there for the three days of testing at the Lausitzring, first noticed some smoke in the cockpit before the car burned totally. Marco Wittmann escaped unhurt from the flames, but was taken to hospital for smoke inhalation.

For now, the cause of the fire is not yet been determined by BMW's team members, who now have to build a brand new car for Joey Hand before the first practice session of the next round of the DTM championship, June 29 at the Norisring.

Bruno Spengler, BMW M3. (Photo: DTM)

What is it?

U.S. auto sales will rise 16 percent this month compared with a year ago, and the annual sales pace will rise slightly from May to around 13.9 million, a key forecasting group said. Vehicle sales in June will reach nearly 1.3 million, according to J.

The 2013 Ford Mustang configurator is back online with new features. Now, normally, this wouldn't warrant a mention.

Also in this episode: J.D. Power rankings have been released, National Insurance Crime Bureau car-theft stats are out and we have video of an SCCA car

Usually, Corvette chief engineer Tadge Juechter is the guy answering the questions.

Thomas Russell, former chairman and CEO of Federal-Mogul, who led the company throughout the 1970s and 1980s, died on Wednesday in Detroit. He was 88.

GM may have dialed back its ad spending on Facebook, but other automotive brands remain committed to aggressive social media plans with the online platform.

Summer is the perfect season for cross-country

Porsche's in-house Exclusive custom division on Thursday introduced new power-enhancement and aero-enhancement kits for the 2013 Porsche 911 Carrera S.

Russian steel company Severstal has no plans to expand its U.S. manufacturing footprint at this time, CEO Alexey Mordashov said on Thursday.

Volvo boss Stefan Jacoby has admitted his cars are too complicated and said the company needs to make them more intuitive for drivers.

Land Rover finalized a deal with Bowler on Thursday that formalizes an existing arrangement as Bowlerand#8212;a U.K.

New vehicle sales in Thailand more than doubled year-on-year to a record 115,945 units in May, according to data released by Toyota Motor Thailand.

A joint venture to make hybrid car components between France's PSA Peugeot Citroen and Germany's BMW was thrown into doubt by the prospect of deepening ties between the French auto maker and its European rival Opel.

2012 Dodge Charger SXT Plus - Size matters

Big size plays a big role in building up the Dodge Charger's image.

Big size plays a big role in building up the Dodge Charger's image. The full-size dimensions are nearly as important to the car's imposing presence as the sculpted sheet metal. But is the Charger too big to be practical? During the month of May, several of our drivers called attention to the Charger's proportions with both positive and negative undertones.

Photo Gallery: 2012 Dodge Charger SXT Plus - Four Seasons Update - May 2012 - Automobile Magazine

Photo Gallery: 2012 Dodge Charger SXT Plus - Four Seasons Update - May 2012 - Automobile Magazine

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