Slide into the snug, over-bolstered leather seat. Push the chunky key fob into a slot labeled “start/stop.†Tune an ear to combustion as smooth as a baby’s backside. Grab hold of the three-spoke leather-wrapped helm. Engage first gear. Mash the throttle and drop the clutch. Brace for wheel hop, snick through the gears to triple digit speeds, then slam on the brakes. Escape through the heavy driver’s door and slam it shut. Glance back at the Volkswagen Passat 2.0T. Continue reading Volkswagen Passat
Categories:Volkswagen
If Toyota is the new GM, Kia is the new Toyota. After establishing a U.S. beachhead with price-oriented products, the Korean automaker has gradually expanded its reach by replacing its penalty boxes with vehicles sporting upmarket features and class-leading safety, while maintaining the brand’s value promise. The Rondo is yet another example of the kind of mass market machine The Big 2.5 should be building, but isn’t.    
It looks like a more athletic edition of the Aston Martin DB9 may be hitting the streets soon. The 450 HP 6.0L V-12 reportedly remains under the hood, backed up a six-speed manual gearbox. Aerodynamic changes inspired by the DBRS9 racer and the upcoming DBS flagship show up in the front corners and the huge rear diffuser. 
The grid in Bahrain looked similar to last week in Malaysia. Two Ferraris and two McLarens, side-by-side, but which McLaren was up front was a surprise. Felipe Massa took his fifth career pole position, with McLaren’s young superstar-in-the-making, Lewis Hamilton, swapping with teammate Fernando Alonso and taking second. 
Toyota’s foray into the world of full-sized pickups has taught the company several lessons –- the hard way. According to Automotive News, the automaker is trying to adjust the production of certain trim levels to meet market demand; increasing output on some, while reducing others. 
Autoblog Chinese has the early word on Buick’s Shanghai Motor Show concept, and it’s got another familiar name attached to it: Riviera. Better still, it’s a coupe — no Dodge Charger-style door growth here. The Riviera is being called a “global” concept that showcases Buick’s future design DNA. Penned at GM’s Pan Asia Technical Center, the Shanghai show is just the first venue at which it’ll be shown. 
Orange buildings show planned expansion. Earlier today, we covered AutoWeek’s latest report on the Porsche Panamera. This week, Porsche held the “topping out” ceremony for that car’s new production facility in Leipzig. Part of a €150,000,000 expansion of the Leipzig plant, where the automaker already builds the Cayenne SUV, 
This weekend the American LeMans Series is making it’s first visit to the Monaco of America, more commonly known as Long Beach, California. Since the Formula One cars stopped running at Long Beach in the early 1980s, Champ Cars have always been the headliners on Shoreline Drive. This year they will be joined by the ALMS gang led by the storming Audi R10 diesels. The Audi’s will be trying to repeat their one-two finish from the St. Petersburg street race two weeks ago and continue their undefeated streak. The Audi press release is after the jump. 
In all of recorded employment history, it has never been a good thing when the boss “requests” that employees talk up the company, especially when non-employees know that those workers are operating under orders. Nevertheless, that is exactly the road Ford appears to have taken as part of the “Way Forward,” asking each employee to become a “walking advertisement” for the blue oval. 
Last year, a pair of series-built Porsche Cayennes that were further modified by the customers who purchased them drove to victory in the 10,000km-long Transsyberia Rally. Spurred on by the success shown by those two cars, Porsche has built a small production run of at least twenty-six 2007 Cayenne S Transsyberia SUVs, all of which will compete in the 2007 rally.