Auto News 5

Over the past thirteen years, the silver spoilered brat pictured here has confidently watched its owner acquire - and then rid himself of - a hot red Nissan, two Mazdas, a VR6-powered Volkswagen, three Mercedes-Benzes, five BMWs, and a pair of Porsches. From its heated garage spot, it has snickered at Ferraris outside braving the rain and Aston Martins fighting the cold. And it laughs so hard it pees - Mobil 1, on the floor - every time some expensive, exotic new car sits out overnight, suffering the indignity of being molested by the neighborhood cat.

Could internal politics endanger the Volkswagen Group's trio of mid-engine compact sports cars -- the Porsche 356, the Audi R5, and the VW BlueSport? VW launched the mid-engine BlueSport concept at the 2009 Detroit auto show. The car was a runner, the engineers had done much more than their routine homework, and, in principle, marketing had given it a thumbs-up. Almost eighteen months later, however, the two-seater is still on hold.

Yes, the all-electric Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG E-Cell Prototype has slightly less horsepower than its gas-powered sibling. But it still has a very impressive 526 horsepower and 649-pound-feet of torque -- the latter available from the moment you mash the pedal to the floor. When you do stomp the E-Cell's accelerator, it will blast 60 mph in four seconds, according to the Benz AMG folks.