Auto News 5

Though a number of high-horsepower, rear-wheel-drive programs have been shelved as a result of the new Corporate Average Fuel Economy mandates, the electric-powered 2009 Mini E may be the first vehicle developed as a result of the draconian fuel economy standards.

Is Bigger Still Better?

It's hard to make a case for the Audi RS4 Cabriolet on a rational basis. With destination charge and gas-guzzler tax, it costs nearly $85,000. That's almost $20,000 more than the RS4 sedan, and roughly $27,000 more than the S4 Cabriolet. It's convertible top means that it doesn't have the structural rigidity of its sedan sibling, so - as any car magazine geek will tell you - it doesn't handle quite as well. It's based on the outgoing version of the A4, which for the sedans and wagon has already been replaced, so it's not the latest-and-greatest. Oh, and it gets 12 mpg, city.

The BMW 1-series, available as a coupe and a convertible, seems poised to be a very exciting addition to the company's lineup. The 1-series uses the same, highly regarded mechanicals as the benchmark 3-series, but wraps them in a smaller, lighter, and less expensive package. From a driving standpoint, one can hardly argue with the results. But what is open to debate is whether the cost and weight savings of the 1-series are significant or does the car too closely overlap to the 3-series.

I grew up in a home where the refrigerator was stocked with Miller beer and Velveeta cheese. For us kids, fried chicken was fine dining. Vacations found us in the cheapest roadside motels, and to obtain full value, we decamped in the morning with every sliver of soap and as many pillows as my mother could carry.

I get in, turn the key, and suddenly I'm inexplicably dying to have a barbeque. It's a feeling I can't shake because I'm driving an otherwise stock 2008 Ford F-150 that's powered by liquid propane (LP), that ubiquitous grill fuel. (Methinks the column shifter should be a spatula.)

Long, slender, French. We're not talking about the booth babes at this week's Paris motor show, but of the Citroen GT - a two-seat sports car concept with an interesting design history.

After President Eisenhower launched the space race in the late 1950s, there was a national sentiment that capable, average Americans could home-build just about anything. All men needed were good instructions and the right tools. Companies like Zenith, Heathkit, and the Radio Shack franchise offered solder-wielding hobbyists build-it-yourself kits for radios, TVs, alarm systems, etc. These, of course, would be necessary fitments for Cold War era bomb shelters.

The good burghers of Metz, France, haven't heard a racket like this since Prussian Prince Frederick Charles besieged the place back in 1870. Trundling along the narrow cobblestone streets, our Maserati GranTurismo S - the brand-new, hooligans-rejoice version of Maserati's sexy coupe - clatters raucously on overrun and shakes the picturesque rafters of the medieval buildings with barely muffled blasts of V-8 pandemonium. We pull into a parking lot beneath the soaring spires of a Gothic cathedral and squeeze into a ridiculously cramped space after much gratuitous revving of the engine. By the time we kill the ignition, the parking attendant is hopping up and down with what we hope is enthusiasm. "Bruit magnifique!" he shouts over and over. Magnificent noise!

I only drove the Rabbit briefly, but my overwhelming impression is that it oozes quality and refinement for an $18,000 car. There is nothing about it that feels cheap, from the nicely damped exterior door handles to the typically well-crafted VW interior, with its great seats, to the smooth and refined 2.5-liter five-cylinder engine. There's nice steering feel and a supple ride, and I didn't even mind that the inline-five, which at 170 hp provides plenty of power, was hooked to an automatic transmission, since it's a six-speed unit that's well mated to the engine. If it were me, though, I'd opt for the five-speed manual and use the thousand-dollar savings toward a four-door Rabbit, which has a base price of $17,485. Still, if you're looking to get into a high-quality small car, the two-door Rabbit with a five-speed manual, starting at $15,490, is a very attractive proposition. And heated seats are only a $225 option!