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For fifteen years, the Outback as all but defined Subaru in the United States. The high-riding wagons have been the perfect vessels for the brand's signature all-wheel-drive system. Through three generations, the Outback formula has effectively remained the same. For the fourth-generation 2010 Outback, Subaru has made the most significant changes so far to its best-known model.

Meet Sanford "Sandy" Leavitt, the CEO of Xtreme Green products. Leavitt's company builds the all-electric X Rider, an EPA-certified motorcycle in the truest sense of the word. The X Rider uses a hub motor and batteries to achieve a top speed over 60 mph. The X Rider is Xtreme Green's first consumer product and is set to go on sale later this summer at auto dealerships across the country. As you may be able to discern from the photos, the X Rider is more of a high-speed scooter than a competitor to Japanese sport bikes or Harley-Davidson cruisers.

We were quite excited early last week to take delivery of a 2010 Buick Lacrosse. After all, when was the last time we've seen a truly new mid-size Buick? (Answer: 1988)

Ferraris aren't cars. They're rolling, metal-and-glass celebrities, photographed and obsessed over by millions of fans around the world. Any mortal who learns that you've just driven one--including the customs officer I encountered when I returned home from Italy--gets the vapors. Indeed, when Ferraristi spot any activity whatsoever through the hallowed gates of Ferrari's Fiorano test track near Maranello, Italy, they jump around as if an espresso had just been spilled in their laps.

With GM cutting its number of brands in half, those who remain in the General's employ now have both the opportunity and the obligation to define their roles, build unique products, and sell lots of cars. As one of GM's four surviving brands, Buick owes a debt of gratitude to the Chinese market, where it is considered a premium marque. In the United States, the brand urgently needs to develop a similar cachet, and the 2010 Buick LaCrosse is an effort to do just that.

If you commanded the Nissan genie to pimp your Z-car, the result would be the second-generation NISMO model now available at dealerships. (The NISMO name stands for Nissan Motorsports International, the prime source of extreme performance parts and special-edition models created by Nissan factory experts for hard core street and track use.) Updates beyond the standard 370Z are 18 extra horsepower, 6 lb-ft more torque, various interior and exterior design touches, a retuned suspension, wider 19-inch forged-aluminum wheels, and Yokohama instead of Bridgestone tires. Even after you add a $780 dealer-installed engine oil cooler, the NISMO package runs only $6980 more than the regular 350Z equipped with a Sport Package.

For 2010, the Jaguar XF gets Jaguar's all-new, 5.0-liter V-8 engine, which displaces the long-serving 4.2-liter V-8 across the Jaguar lineup. Its 385 hp and 380 lb-ft of torque represent substantial increases over the outgoing 4.2-liter engine's 300 hp and 310 lb-ft, such that this normally aspirated XF model felt nearly as fast and energetic to me as our Four Seasons 2009 XF Supercharged, which has 420 hp and 413 lb-ft. The same engine is also available in the 2010 Jaguar XK coupe and convertible.

For 2010, the Jaguar XF gets Jaguar's all-new, 5.0-liter V-8 engine, which displaces the long-serving 4.2-liter V-8 across the Jaguar lineup. Its 385 hp and 380 lb-ft of torque represent substantial increases over the outgoing 4.2-liter engine's 300 hp and 310 lb-ft, such that this normally aspirated XF model felt nearly as fast and energetic to me as our Four Seasons 2009 XF Supercharged, which has 420 hp and 413 lb-ft. The same engine is also available in the 2010 Jaguar XK coupe and convertible.

Hybrids are all about fuel economy, right? In the minds of Joe and Jane Consumer, most would agree that hybrid vehicles get better mpg than their conventionally-powered counterparts.

Months in Fleet: Three
Mileage to Date: 14,722

With the 2010 model year, Ford is marking the start of its EcoBoost initiative, a plan that will dramatically effect the company's entire lineup in the coming years. By using turbocharging and direct injection with smaller-displacement engines, Ford says it can offer better performance and fuel economy. The company expects it will put 1.3 million EcoBoost engines on the road by 2013 and offer the technology in 90 percent of its models.

If there's one stereotype of an automotive journalist I don't mind living up to, it's the unadulterated love for BMW's 3-series. Although my last experience with the car (a 328i sedan with summer tires) was marred by several inches of snow, my weekend spent with this 335i coupe was nothing short of perfection.

Mileage to date: 21,360
Months in fleet: Nine