Auto News 5

You've got to be pretty old to remember when new cars didn't have catalytic converters. Whether you know it or not, these now-ubiquitous devices occupy a frontal position in the assault against dirty car emissions. But being green wasn't popular in the early 1970s. The automotive enthusiast community saw government emissions regulations and catalytic converters as the enemy of performance and horsepower.

The tectonic plates have shifted. The U.S. Automotive Order, little changed for the last two decades, has suddenly been upended. No longer insulated from the high fuel prices that afflict so much of the world, America needs a drastically different national motor pool, and we need it now. luckily, the fun, frugal, small cars that we crave already exist overseas, and they're headed our way. But we couldn't wait for them to arrive before sliding behind the wheel, So we've brought you early reports on nine of yhe most promising cars coming to America. The news is good. To their makers, we say, "Step On It!"

Infiniti's mid-size sedan, the M, has been around for quite some time, but it's still one of our favorite luxury sport sedans. We lived with an M45 for a full year, and not once did it require repairs. Even those in the office who didn't initially understand the M45's place in the automotive world came away from the test in awe of how good this Japanese BMW-fighter really is.