BY MARK GILLIES, PHOTOGRAPHY BY TOM DREW

Six-packed: Mazda’s new family sedan offers more of everything, except excitement.

No matter how much we liked the old Mazda 6, introduced in 2002 as a 2003 model, it was always at a disadvantage in the mid-size-sedan market because it was a little undersized.

For 2009, Mazda has rectified that matter with the new 6, which is bigger in every dimension. The wheelbase has gone up by 4.5 inches, to 109.8 inches. Overall, the car is 6.9 inches longer and 2.3 inches wider, at 193.7 inches and 72.4 inches, respectively. The maximum interior volume has increased from 96 cubic feet to 102 cubic feet, and the trunk volume is about 10 percent bigger, at 17 cubic feet. From being the minnow of the mid-size pack, the 6 is now one of its whales. (more…)

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BY PATRICK BEDARD, PHOTOGRAPHY BY TOM DREW

Dearborn’s dreamboat was the MKR, a 2007 concept with an unforgettable face, warming the crowd for this near-luxury MKS.

To your list of things that will never happen, you can add one more: The hot-blooded pilotes of this staff will never rank this new Lincoln above a BMW, any BMW, in a comparison test. But the Supreme Court is not the only enclave of divided opinions; the contrarians among us think Ford has something going on here. (more…)

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BY ALISA PRIDDLE

GM is investing in its Lordstown, Ohio, plant to build the Cobalt replacement.

Here is the first official look at the 2011 Chevrolet Cruze, which will both replace the Cobalt compact car in the U.S. and become the company’s new global offering in the volume C-segment. (more…)

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BY AARON ROBINSON, PHOTOGRAPHY BY MORGAN SEGAL

Quicker than a Subaru WRX, this new Lancer model offers fun on the run.

Mitsubishi knows the name Ralliart isn’t spoken with much reverence among American gasoline punks. That should change. Mitsubishi has watched Subaru ring up healthy sales with the mid-grade WRX, which neatly slots between the 87-octane Impreza and the high-test STI. (more…)

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BY ALISA PRIDDLE

Front-drive Malibu was to be followed by rear-drive Impala, but those plans still are in limbo.

Dealers should start receiving the new 2008 Malibu, available in four trim levels including a hybrid version, in November.

The Malibu is the last General Motors vehicle to come from the outgoing Epsilon platform that is being replaced by the new Global Midsize Vehicle Architecture. Cars from the next-generation architecture start rolling out next year with a new European-market Opel Vectra, with a steady stream to follow. (more…)

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BY TONY SWAN, PHOTOGRAPHY BY AARON KILEY

They were thinking of calling it the 501.

The elasticity of all-new gets a test here, as Ford stretches the words to surround this large front-drive sedan, known previously as the Five Hundred. Tepid sales and a new CEO led to the revival of a once-bright nameplate, even though that name had been dumped after years of sedans whose appeal seemed limited mostly to rental fleets. (more…)

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The all-new 6 is set to debut at the Frankfurt auto show in September.

Mazda just announced that an all-new Mazda 6 will debut at the upcoming Frankfurt auto show in September. Official details are still sparse, but the company has released a single image of the new car, which you see here. (more…)

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BY JARED GALL

Peugeot says the sinister jelly-bean styling for this touring race car of the future is inspired by a big cat. Looks to us more like a spacey diesel/electric locomotive; you can’t tell if it’s coming or going. Actually a locomotive would do well with the 908 RC powertrain. (more…)

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BY STEVE SILER, PHOTOGRAPHY BY MIKE VALENTE

A new car and a new naming system, neither of which we’ll see here.

Hyundai’s fetching new C-segment hatchback, the i30, is yet another cool hatchback that we won’t be getting here. But that’s okay, we pretty much already have it in sedan form as the Elantra. (more…)

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BY LARRY WEBSTER, PHOTOGRAPHY BY JEFFREY G. RUSSELL

A six that runs like an eight.

With its revamped V-6 engine now making 302 horsepower, Cadillac seems to be making the case that the optional V-8 is no longer necessary. (more…)

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