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With its first redesign since being introduced in 2002, the 2009 BMW Z4 roadster looks as if it's finally passed through its awkward adolescence and has filled out into a curvaceous hardtop roadster.

Decades of pony car dominance (in the showroom, if not always at the track) have endowed the Ford Mustang with the type of confidence that renders garish demonstrations of machismo unnecessary. The 2010 Mustang is like the sedate old dude in the back of the bar who's kicked so much ass that he has nothing left to prove. It's so comfortable in its success that it feels no need for outlandish spoilers, pathologically oversensitive throttle calibrations, or faux carbon-fiber trim to call attention to itself. In fact, the muscular GT is so docile and easy to drive, you could use it to teach a teenager how to drive a stick.

In energy-conscious times, shutting off your fuel-sucking engine when its services are not required seems as obvious as turning off the lights when leaving a room. Soon, North American cars will handle the shutdown - and restart - automatically, in traffic or at a stoplight, without the driver even noticing.

The G8 really does resonate as a half price BMW 5-series. The 361-hp V-8 provides strong low-end acceleration. It rides beautifully. Steering and stability are very good and on center.

No one is bringing good, solid design into an environmentally friendly vehicle," says Franz von Holzhausen. "We either get strange, quirky vehicles that the general public isn't ready for, or we get iterations of the Prius. Nobody would buy a Prius if it were a normally powered car. My opportunity is to create a brand that revolves not only around clean, environmental stories, but also around awesome design. We are past the idea of an environmentally friendly vehicle needing to look different. As the idea becomes more mainstream, the quirkiness of the product will go away. People won't want to sacrifice anything, including style, to own an efficient car.

I really, really like the Flex, mostly because I am absolutely taken with the design: the shape, the proportions, and yes, the squareness. This is the American people mover boiled down to its pure, classic element. It is the utter antithesis of every jacked-up, pseudo-macho SUV and every bloated, trying-to-be-swoopy crossover.

What does the world need now? At this moment, I sincerely doubt the answer lies with more pickup trucks, but here's Suzuki's offering - which is little more than a warmed-over Nissan Frontier.

There's no disputing that the current Audi R8 is already an exceptional sports car. The combination of its stunning appearance, outstanding performance and general livability are plenty to be proud of, but the folks in Ingolstadt weren't quite satisfied. As a result, they've produced the 2010 Audi R8 5.2 FSI - or simply put, a ten-cylinder R8.

The CL coupe stands out as something unique in the automotive firmament. No other manufacturer builds a coupe off its top-line luxury sedan; BMW's 6-series comes closest, but it's not really close at all. The CL is more a kindred spirit to a Bentley Continental GT or even a Brooklands. A huge, luxurious, and expensive coupe makes quite an extravagant statement, and one that's AMG-fortified makes it even more emphatically. The awesome, 6.2-liter V-8, which we know from so many AMG models, provides jet-thrust acceleration accompanied by a stock-car sound track, an utterly charming combination - especially for those with their own oil well.

Many are the mid-size sedan offerings, and most are sold in large numbers. Naturally, whenever a product is produced in great quantities, its very popularity will cause a subset of its audience to seek an alternative. Something a bit sportier, or more luxurious, or more stylish. The Volkswagen CC, the Nissan Maxima, and the Mazda 6 all hail from mainstream automakers, yet all three address this desire for something more in a mid-size car.

There is little that's unique in today's automotive world of platform and drivetrain sharing. The Lotus Elise, a niche car that ought not share much in common with anything else, is in fact powered by a Toyota engine once also seen in the Pontiac Vibe. The Volvo C30 uses the same underpinnings as the Mazda 3. Which brings us to the 3's flashier sibling, the RX-8. Here, at least, is a sports car that is not only affordable, it's unique: it shares neither its platform nor its unconventional powertrain with anything else.

With the wisdom gleaned over a full model cycle, or about five years in this case, I think it's safe to pronounce the returning Nissan Z car a winner. The original 240Z was a defining car for Nissan (then Datsun), and a beacon of sports car hope during the largely hopeless early 1970s. Unfortunately, it evolved - or, more accurately, devolved - into the tasteless and disco-y 280ZX and 300ZX. A magnificent redesigned 1991 300ZX restored Nissan's sports car to a position of glory, but spiraling sticker prices - especially for the most desirable, twin-turbo model - eventually snuffed out sales. After what seemed like an interminable wait, and an equally interminable parade of show cars, the 350Z finally arrived, to general acclaim.

We've just finished two weeks with Mercedes-Benz's brand-new GLK350, which goes on sale January 5, 2009, as a 2010 model. Prices have already been announced, and they are quite competitive: $34,775 for a rear-wheel-drive model and $36,775 for the GLK350 4Matic with all-wheel drive. This compares with $40,225 for a BMW X3 xDrive30i, the GLK's most obvious competitor. (Although it's worth noting that BMW practically gives these things away via leases; you can get one for $469 per month, or $565 per month over a 36-month lease including all cash due at signing.)