Review: 2011 Chrysler 300 V6

Of the many hurtful similes one can hurl at a vehicle, few are more insidious than drawing design or driving parallels to the oft-maligned American sedan. Thanks to the dark days of the ’70s and ’80s, once proud nameplates like Imperial, Impala and Galaxie were either completely forgotten or bastardized into models with about as much personality as a tube sock. Whether you blame it on oil prices, safety standards or the popularity of disco and cocaine,...

Read More

GM releases another shot of the 2013 Chevrolet Malibu

The 2013 Chevrolet Malibu will be unveiled on Monday at the Shanghai Motor Show. General Motors is expectedly making a big deal of the event, and started dropping teasers a couple weeks back. Those were followed by a full-on, high-resolution pic of the Malibu in red on Thursday. And now? Another picture of the China-spec car in blue. Since it’s static, we get a clean look at the new Malibu’s wheels and a better idea of the car’s profile If you feel...

Read More

Roush announces 2012 Stage 3 Mustang with 540 horsepower horsepower

The Stage 3 has always been the flagship of Roush’s modified Ford Mustang stable, and the supercharged pony car is making a return for 2012 with a new RS3 moniker. With 540 horsepower and 465 pound-feet of torque on tap, the Stage 3 replaces the 5XR as Roush’s most powerful offering. Along with the extra power, the RS3 comes with a new graphics package that is available in six stripe colors and six accent colors, making for 288 color combinations....

Read More

Review: 2011 Kia Optima EX

Nobody remembers the 2010 Kia Optima, but just like that, the 2011 model may be the mainstream sedan to beat. While some consumers – the uninformed and brand-bigoted – might remain skeptical, the 2011 Kia Optima is the new benchmark. How could the Optima go from warmed-over also-ran to the segment’s latest front-runner? The 2011 Kia Optima is at once classy and striking. There’s just enough detailing to keep it interesting without looking gaudy....

Read More

Mini Goodwood packs the heart of a Rolls-Royce for Shanghai

While it may seem anathema to American tastes, in the Old World, bigger is not always better. Particularly if you live in a city laid out long before the advent of the automobile. But overseas buyers can still have extravagant tastes, so downsizing to a smaller vehicle to get around densely-packed cities shouldn’t necessarily equate to losing out on those little touches that make a high-end automobile what it is. Hence cars like the Ferrari edition...

Read More

BMW Z4 GT3 undergoes first round of customer tests

The 2011 BMW Z4 GT3 proved it can win races back in January when it took the overall victory at the Dubai 24 Hours. Never one to rest on its laurels, BMW took the car from the winners circle in Dubai and put it right back on a test track. After a good beating throughout March, BMW made aerodynamic and electronic tweaks to get the racer into absolute state-of-the-art shape for customer entries in 2011 GT3 competition. The BMW Z4 GT3 resembles its...

Read More

First Drive: 2012 Ferrari FF

The last time Ferrari blew absolutely everyone away with wall-to-wall surprises and equally sizzling performance all wrapped into one car was in 2002 with its Enzo. We’re not saying that all things between then and today have been shabby, mind you. And we’re also not saying that the 2012 Ferrari FF does it in marquee-and-fireworks Enzo-style, but the unexpected innovations aboard this gorgeous trailblazing all-weather shooting brake will keep conversation...

Read More