Autoblog

Above: The first official photo of the 2007 Lincoln Aviator.

Below: Lincoln Aviator Concept from the 2004 Detroit show.

Not surprisingly, the production version lost the cool rear gate execution from the concept; but fortunately, its sleek overall profile has been retained. No matter how you look at it, the '07 Aviator is a big improvement over the current baby Navigator…and the changes goes far beyond cosmetic — the new Aviator will be largely based on the Mazda 6 whereas the old Aviator was pretty much a Explorer underneath. This car-based Lincoln midsize SUV will be powered by a twin-cam 3.5L V6 that pumps out 250 bhp and mated to 6-speed auto tranny. Can this new Aviator give the Lexus RX330 a run for its money? Will Lincoln add a hybrid version to the line-up? Only time will tell…

GM is planning a big show for SEMA: it will be coming to the party with tricked-out versions of the Hummer H3, Chevy HHR and Cobalt, Saturn Sky and Ion, Pontiac G6, and this race-inspired Pontiac Solstice named "Weekend Club Racer". Built by GM Performance Division, this special Solstice features a removable hardtop that drew inspiration from the Viper, an aggressive body kit, and of course, an oversized spoiler. There's not yet any information on what goes on under the hood of this little beast, but stay tuned, as we'll bring you more details when our SEMA coverage begins.

If you are a fan of the Audi Shooting Brake Concept, you've gotta check out its new microsite — an up-close look at the stunning concept featuring some innovative flash navigation (albeit a bit confusing at times). And of course, they've got a bunch of wallpapers and a screensaver ready for download. Enjoy.

With gas prices as high as they are nowadays, more and more Americans are starting to consider hybrids as an option for their next car purchase. And if you want a Prius, better get your order in now and be prepared for the wait — according to ToMoCo, the waiting list in the U.S. has gone from two months in September to three to four months in October. Rest assured, the debate over the validity of hybrids will be raging all the while you wait for yours.

By now, you've probably seen VW's new TV commercials for its 2006 Passat themed "120 not-so-standard features". If you liked those, you gotta check out their minisite that hosts short (about 8 sec each) films that are clever play-on-word for each of the features. Go to VW/Passat, click on "launch the minisite" and get ready for some hilarious shorts. My personal favorite is "automatic trunk release".

Note: there are only about 24 shorts right now, with more being added in the days to come.

OK. No more beating around the bushes. It's official. ToMoCo has confirmed those 500+ horses in the Lexus LF-A supercar will come from a V10. When the concept debuted in January's Detroit show, Lexus was very secretive about what type of engine will power the 200+ mph supercar, only going as far as saying it will be an engine "with fewer than 5.0 liters". Now, 10 months later, Lexus confirmed that the LF-A will be powered by a front-mounted V10 and will be rear-drive. It's likely Honda's announcement of its V10 powered next-gen NSX influenced Toyota's decision to green-light the V10 for the LF-A, or perhaps it was due to Nissan's 2007 GT-R plans…who cares, just let the Japanese supercar war begin.

Are minivans, pardon me, MPVs making a come-back? If you believe in J-cool, then the answer is YES.

We've already shown you Suzuki's funky P.X concept, and now, Nissan is joining in with their own cool MPV concept — Amenio. To be shown at the upcoming Tokyo show, Amenio hints toward what the next-gen Quest might look like. True, those 20-inch rims probably won't make it to production, but maybe those cool lounge chairs and that real skylight will. The coolest part of this concept, however, is the 18-inch ultra-wide monitor in the center of the IP that displays in 3 modes:

• City Browsing — showing various points of interest along the way as you drive

• Earth Browsing — looking down from outer space at cars traveling on earth

• Space Browsing — displays star constellations where the Amenio is heading

Sure, Earth and Space modes are probably not terribly useful, but they are so f**king cool. And oh ya, Amenio also comes equipped with the Around View Monitor that eliminates blind spots. Who knows, maybe Chili Palmer will drive one of these in the next Get Shorty sequel.

More pics after the jump…

There's no question Porsche had a great year. How great? Well, just ask any of its 11,700 employees how they feel about their $3,900 bonuses. That's right. Porsche will be distributing a total of $45 million in bonuses this year thanks to a banner year where in which it sold 40,000 Cayennes, 24,000 911s and 13,000 Boxters. And with its product lineup expanding, it sure is a good time to be working at Porsche.

I had to change a tire recently after discovering a big nail stuck to the sidewall of my front passenger tire. Jacking up the car and loosening those tight lugs under the hot SoCal sun worked up a good sweat for me. If you'd rather do without the exercise and not having to change your shirt before heading back to the office, here is a handy tool to have: the Superjack Tire Changing Kit. The $149.95 kit comes with a remote-controlled jack that can lift up to 2 tons of vehicle six inches off the ground.  And you also get EZ Lug, which has a 32:1 crank ratio to loosen those tight lugs with ease.

Thanks MKS for the tip.

There is no doubt the 2006 Zephyr is a very important car for Lincoln. And to make sure it gets the proper attention, Lincoln is launching an innovative advertising campaign called "walking ads". These street-level motion picture ads are 60-foot-long sequence of high-res images that appears as 15-sec motion pictures from the viewpoint of pedestrians walking by. The company responsible for this campaign, Submedia, has been selling these modern-day zoetrope ads in subway tunnels in NY, Atlanta and Philly since 2001. In fact, GM used them when they launched the H3 Hummer in June.