Auto News 5

At first glance, I thought that our red test car priced out at $29,520, and I said to myself, "Yeah, that's about right for this V-8 pony car." But then I looked farther down the spec sheet and realized that the as-tested price is actually $36,210! And I immediately thought of the all-new, 2009 Nissan 370Z, a much more modern car that is similarly priced (starts at $30K, easily rises to mid- or high 30s with options). I realize that, to Mustang fans, comparing these two cars is an apples-to-oranges affair. But let's face it: they're both rear-wheel-drive, two-door sports cars that are accessible to the common man, so they're worth considering side by side. And for my $30,000 - or $36,000 - I'd take the tight and taut Nissan over the live-axle, old-tech Mustang any day. However, the new Mustang just debuted at the 2008 Los Angeles Auto Show. Once I drive it, perhaps I'll change my mind.

While Hawaii has long welcomed eco-tourists to its shores, the state's motto "Ua mau ke ea o ka aina i ka pono," can now assume new meaning. The phrase translated means, "The Life of the Land is Perpetuated in Righteousness." Since so many environmental leaders view their role in this world as righteous, they should be applauding the state's recent move to allow a private company to begin installing an infrastructure to support EV-motoring. The state expects to have multiple battery charging and battery exchange stations in operation by 2012.

We hadn't much hope for Buick's reinvention, seeing as most concept cars from the stodgy division were either pie-in-the-sky convertibles or coupes with gullwing doors. That changed last year, when the General unveiled a concept at the 2008 Shanghai auto show. Called Invicta, it was a mid-size sedan that was both clean and contemporary - adjectives not used on a Buick since the 1995 Riviera. Better yet? We were told it was close to production.

Those of you who read our magazine religiously might recall the time columnist Ezra Dyer raced - and beat - a FedEx truck from New York City to Miami. In a Bentley Continental GTC. It was, he concluded, "a car that fell out of the awesome tree and hit every branch on the way down." It appears the awesome tree has since grown a few more branches: meet the Bentley Continental GTC Speed.