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Audi will debut its small A1 hatchback at the Geneva motor show in March, but has released details about the Mini competitor prior to its public debut.inline_mediumwraptextright32338941/features/news/1002_2010_audi_a11002_02_z+2010_audi_a1+front_three_quarter_view.jpgTrue

Although it was originally a segment-buster when it first arrived in the U.S., the Mazda 5 isn’t playing by itself any longer. Kia’s Rondo now serves as a competitor, as will the forthcoming Ford Grand C-Max and the Chevrolet Orlando. It’s timely, then, that Mazda is overhauling its mini-minivan for the 2011 model year.inline_mediumwraptextright28162123/features/news/1002_2011_mazda_mazda51002_01_z+2011_mazda_mazda5+front_three_quarter_view.jpgTrue

A day after photos began leaking onto the Internet, Mini officially released information on its new Countryman -- its first foray into the crossover field.inline_mediumwraptextright32348103/features/news/1002_2011_mini_countryman1002_01_z+2011_mini_countryman+front_three_quarter_view.jpgTrue

Nobody loved the early "modern" sports cars from Zuffenhausen, Germany. The first 911, the 901-series, was a thoroughly reengineered 356, which itself was a Volkswagen Beetle on steroids. Then came the turtle-slow 912, the neither-fish-nor-fowl 911T, the E with its capricious fuel injection, the Targa with the zippered plastic rear window that went blind after two summers, and the awful semiautomatic Sportomatics. The serious part of the 911 saga began in 1967 with the lean and quick 160-hp 911S. From day one, base-model 911s were never that special, the exception being the 1981-1989 cars and the particularly desirable, last-of-the-air-cooled 993-series. What made the ultimate metamorphosis of Ferdinand Porsche's Volkswagen such an icon over time were the sharper-edged variants. Charismatic suffixes like Turbo, SC, Clubsport, GT, RS, Carrera, Touring, and Speedster invariably make the hearts of 911 aficionados beat faster. Extra adrenaline is freed by such specials as the wide-body Turbo-look versions, the slant-nose cars that were available between 1983 and 1994, and the often substantially more potent factory high-performance kits (generally not available in the States) dubbed WLS, for Werks-Leistungs-Steigerung (Factory-Power-Increase).inline_mediumwraptextright32187153/features/news/1003_ten_favorite_porsche_911s1003_12_z+porsche_911+emblem.jpgTrue

After two years of trying (with BMW/Mini and also with Peugeot/Citroën), Daimler chairman Dieter Zetsche and his engineering chief Thomas Weber have finally struck a deal with Renault-Nissan to develop the next generation of Smart microcars by late 2014. The partners will market distinctly different derivatives under the Renault-Nissan and Smart nameplates.inline_mediumwraptextright32091867/features/news/1003_smart_renault_nissan1003_06_z+smart_forTwo+front_three_quarter_view.jpgTrue