Auto News 5

It almost feels like a sin to take delivery of a shiny new Aston Martin DB9 in the midst of one of the worst economic disasters in the history of the country, but it seems even more ludicrous to turn down time behind the wheel of one of the most gorgeous cars on the road, so we spent a weekend cruising around Los Angeles in a titanium silver DB9 coupe.

On the modern muscle car battleground, no blow goes unanswered. Mere moments after the new Chevy Camaro SS was offered for testing, Ford parried with a 2010 Shelby GT500 armed with added firepower, a fortified chassis, and freshened interior and exterior appearance.

Our 2008 BMW 135i spent the month of February with our East Coast staffers, who were more than happy to spend some time with the little, alpine white sportster. East Coast editor Jamie Kitman and senior editor Joe Lorio managed to rack up more than a thousand miles in and around New York City.

Enough with the cargo haulers - Ford's new Transit Connect is just as well suited to being a people mover, and the Family One Concept, unveiled at this week's New York Auto Show, proves it.

The arrival of the controversial X5 M and X6 M might be confirmation that BMW has dumped every engineering principle that made its M cars so distinctive and consistently good for the last thirty years. Until now, all M cars have had a high-revving, normally aspirated engine, a manual or automated manual gearbox, rear-wheel-drive, and a sedan or sports car shell. You won't find a single one of these qualities in M's latest efforts.

Mileage to Date: 19,356
Months in Fleet: Eight

Recent developments at Volkswagen have sent some enthusiasts praying for their beloved brand. A sacrilegious VW badge on a Chrysler minivan and plans for watered-down, cost-cut, U.S.-specific models are an effort to attain VW's ludicrously optimistic U.S. sales target of 800,000 cars per year. But those cars come at the risk of undermining Volkswagen's brand image - that of a premium, sporty product with superior driving dynamics.

Car enthusiasts too easily become punching bags for environmentalists. As the racing season cranks back up along with back yard BBQs, here are some talking points that you can use when an eco-weenie blasts you with, "How can you like such a pointless activity that's killing the planet?"

2008 was pretty good for the Honda Civic Hybrid. As the original Insight was but a distant memory and the Accord Hybrid faded into obscurity, the Civic was the lone hybrid in Honda's portfolio.

Chopping the top off a car isn't as easy as it sounds, especially when the fixed roof is replaced with a folding one of the steel variety - the panels and system of motors and hinges add significant weight. Worse, in order to get the whole mess to fit in the trunk, folding hard tops often require a bubbly, arching roofline and an ungainly, long rear deck. If you've had the displeasure of studying a Volkswagen Eos, you know what we're talking about.