Auto News 5

Unlike BMW's M division, which put itself on the map by creating drivers' cars out of normal BMWs, AMG's cars - often the product of applying ludicrous power to regular Mercedes cars - make the ultimate I-outrank-you statements. And when your neighbors have an AMG in the driveway, there's only one way to beat them - an AMG Black Series.

In March, the all new Volvo XC60 will go on sale in the United States. Launched this fall in Europe, the XC60 is Volvo's entry in the "small premium utility segment," where it will take on the likes of the BMW X5, the Acura RDX, the Audi Q5, and the Infiniti EX35. Hoping to build on its "safety first" image, Volvo has added measure of performance and fun to its newest vehicle, emphasizing styling, high-tech content, and all-around capability.

Sure, it looks familiar. It should; this brilliant design exercise was done seven years ago, and traces of its lines and vestiges of its surfaces have turned up on numerous BMW concept and production models since. lines that were superb on the 2006 Mille Miglia concept car or that seemed not to make any sense in the grotesque (but very important) X Coupé were established by this concept, which BMW has finally made public.

For me, the Touareg has always been something of a disappointment - a car without a purpose. It's neither as sporty as its European competition (BMW X5, Mercedes-Benz ML) nor as useful, practical, and functional as the American SUVs that it was patterned after. Poor sight lines, a relatively space-inefficient interior, and a lackluster powertrain compound the problem. The engine lacks torque down low - it's not helped by the Touareg's substantial heft - but frustatingly, the six-speed automatic downshifts as if its innards were mired in molasses. The adjustable suspension (Sport/Automatic/Comfort) alternates between wallowy and painfully brittle, and finding pavement that the Touareg actually liked was something of a challenge.