Auto News 5

For its fiftieth birthday, Mini threw itself a party at the Frankfurt auto show and unwrapped two shiny new concepts: the Coupé and the Roadster. These aren't just party decorations - both cars are headed for showrooms in 2011.inline_mediumwraptextright26731075/features/news/0912_mini_coupe_roadster_50th_birthday0910_01_z+mini+50th_birthday.jpgTrue

Miles to date: 21,281inline_mediumwraptextright25873859/reviews/12_month_car_reviews/0911_2009_honda_fit_sport_november_update0911_04_z+2009_honda_fit_sport+front_three_quarter_view.jpgTrue

Following decades of research and a lengthy apprenticeship energizing our cell phones, laptops, and power tools, lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries have begun closing the gap between today's petroleum-fueled transportation and the electric cars of the future. Acknowledging this milestone on the road to more efficient automobiles, the Li-ion battery is Automobile Magazine's 2010 Technology of the Year.

A year ago, when the heads of Detroit's Big Three - GM's Rick Wagoner, Ford's Alan Mulally, and Chrysler's Bob Nardelli - appeared in the infamous Capitol Hill bailout hearings, many lawmakers, and many Americans, decided that this trio from the industrial heartland could all be tarred with the bad-CEO brush. There was a telling moment, during a discussion about executive compensation, when the three CEOs were asked if they were willing to work for a dollar a year.