Autoblog

By now we pretty much know what the 2006 9-5 facelift looks like, but these are the first pics we've seen of the wagon and the dashboard center stack. Inside, it look much like the 9-3. It must look better with a DVD-Nav screen since the corp-GM radio does not seem to fill out the space very well. The uneven taillights are still a little unsettling. There are also clean front pictures of the 9-5 here. The progression of the two side grills into the headlights was seen in the Saab concepts and is an interesting new trait. Thanks for the tips Swade.

Congrats to Devin Lussier for a review of his 2005 Hyundai Elantra GT Hatchback winning the last runner up spot.

My parents and I were shopping for my first car about three months ago. We had many choices, including the Suzuki Reno, Scion tC, Toyota Matrix, and Hyundai Elantra. A few insurance quotes and weeks of online research later we narrowed it down to the Suzuki Reno and the Hyundai Elantra. The two Toyota choices (tC and Matrix) were left out because they are more expensive, and don't come with attractive warranties like the Suzuki and Hyundai or options like leather seating.

Congrats to Steven Geiger for a review of his 2005 Honda Odyssey EX-L getting a runner up win.

One night, my wife and I bumped into each other in the closet and nine months later, we had twins. We thought we had the car situation worked out, but this was not to be the
case. The dual stroller was the size of a Mini and fitting three cars seats (we already had one child) in the back was quite a squeeze. So began our search for a replacement
vehicle.

Congrats to Steven J. Denfeld for his review of his 2005 Subaru Legacy Outback XT Limited getting voted a runner up! I love the Subaru WRX Sti. The mighty warrior from Subaru has all the right ingredients with which to light this enthusiast's fire. Problem, this enthusiast has been blessed (cursed) with a wife and two very fine children. Yes, the dreaded Family Life once again shows it's handiness at shunting a Driver's dreams smack into the hedge.

These packages appear to be just for the European folks (the Mini is not suffering any downturn in sales in the U.S. that would lead to the creation of new packages) and conjure up some names from Mini's past. The Mini One Seven will be painted Solar Red and Seven decals, the Mini Cooper Park Lane gets Royal Grey paint, leather trim and silver roof and stripes and the Cooper S Checkmate gets 17-inch wheels, LSD and Xenon headlights.

Last month pictures of the undisguised 2007 Toyota Camry leaked around the internet, so these pictures are not a big deal. Edmunds is predicting the new Camry to debut at the Tokyo Motor Show in October and U.S. sales should start second quarter of next year.

The press was all over GM during the rough times the past couple of months and now that GM has given analysts and certain members of the press a preview of 18 new models coming in the next 30 months. It's weird to hear journalists "gush" over GM's designs, but the new Malibu and CTS are getting a great reaction, as well as the next Escalade. There was mixed reviews for the new line of sport wagons, some loving the new Buick and others not too impressed. Interiors have also received a huge boost from GM. Reviews can be read from Edmunds, Chicago Tribune, Toronto Sun and The Wall Street Journal.

It seems like Toyota wants to have it both ways. They tout that Scion is its own brand and sold differently than the Toyota brand, but in their final numbers (and in the monthly numbers where the Scion brand adds huge to the Toyota brand) Scion sales get lumped in with the Toyota brand, almost adding 100,000 units to Toyota's bottom line. Problem is Toyota and Chevy both broadcast commercials proclaiming that they sold the most cars in 2004. Toyota is if they add Scion. Chevy is if they don't. Personally, this is like saying Pontiac/Buick/GMC sales should be counted all as one brand since they are sold at the same dealership. Ah, the PR games.

A piece of history went up in smoke yesterday as the Piquette Avenue Plant in Detroit burnt to the ground. A once mighty plant that was home to Ford's historic Model T and Studebaker's plant before they moved to their South Bend home in 1928. The fire was more devastating for the few businesses that were located in the big brick warehouse including a local family meat wholesaler. Detroit is in the midst of trying to preserve the remnants of "The Motor City" and this is one more blow to that effort.

The exterior shots are computer generated, but these interior mock-up pictures looks like they were taken right in the studio. There isn't too much of a departure from the current Mini, keeping the center mounted speedometer/info center and tach in front of the driver. The pictures also show both color combos and door panels.