BY STEVE SILER, PHOTOGRAPHY BY FOREST CASEY, ERIK JOHNSON, AND THE MANUFACTURER

For its first several years, we saw Lincoln’s Mazda 6-based Zephyr/MKZ as little more than the cheapest way into Ford’s most prestigious American brand. With a milquetoast powertrain and a softened suspension that took much of the fun out of the innately sharp mid-size sedan platform, the MKZ also spawned the Ford Fusion, Mercury Milan, and a few crossovers. (more…)

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BY ERIK JOHNSON AND STEVE SILER

The all-new Fit is fun to drive, practical, and pretty cool. So why can’t we agree on it?

We love the Honda Fit. Roomy inside and more fun to drive than a team of coked-up sled dogs, we’ve awarded it a place on our 10Best Cars list two straight years, and it decimated the competition in a seven-car comparison test. Of course, that was the old Fit. There’s now a new model, completely redesigned for 2009, and a few of us in the office have had a chance to take a spin behind the wheel. (more…)

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BY JARED GALL

The GTI moves asymptotically closer to perfection.

A select handful of cars offers a rare level of all-around excellence that sets them on a plane seemingly untouchable by their competitors. Premium branding is often part of the price of admission to this level of perfection, but the people’s car company”Volkswagen”sees no reason it can’t play here, too, granting its R32 levels of polish and balance more often associated with pricier brands. (more…)

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BY ERIK JOHNSON, PHOTOGRAPHY BY JORDAN BROWN AND THE MANUFACTURER

The difference between paper and pavement is staggering.

Sixty mph in 4.8 seconds. A quarter-mile time of 13.6 seconds at 102 mph. Braking from 70 mph to a stop in 162 feet. On paper, it looks like this test subject is a mildly interesting performance car with an above-average ability to go and a somewhat ordinary ability to stop.

On pavement? Oh, on pavement the whole script flips. It isn’t until you whirl the wheel of the car to which those numbers are attached that you realize what an incredible machine you’re piloting. It amazes like a Dwyane Wade drive to the hole; nothing should be able to move the way it does. It is, in short, breathtaking. (more…)

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BY ERIK JOHNSON

A turbocharger roosts under the HHR’s retro-styled hood.

As Chrysler uses Detroit’s annual Woodward Dream Cruise to roll out another snoozer special edition of the extremely long-in-the-tooth PT Cruiser”this time the Sunset Boulevard Cruiser, inspired by a street 2300 miles and several tax brackets away from Motown’s famed avenue”Chevrolet has decided to inject a little bit of muscle into the event. Make that a very little bit of muscle, because the bow-tie brand has seen fit to unleash upon the world the Chevrolet HHR SS, which is, of course, based on the diminutive HHR trucklet. (more…)

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An 80-percent-new engine adds six ponies while sipping less fuel.

The only exterior change to the 2007 350Z may be subtle”a new hood with a slight center bulge”but there are big changes under that hood. Power is increased to 306 horsepower, a modest six-hp bump for manual-transmission Zs and 19 for automatics, but Nissan claims that 80 percent of the Z’s prolific 3.5-liter VQ engine has been changed. (more…)

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BY JUERGEN ZOELLTER, PHOTOGRAPHY BY DIETER REBMANN

Power for the powerful. All the accoutrements of first-class, minus the bathroom.

Am I dreaming? Even as an automotive writer used to flying around the world in first-class, I have to admit the back seat of the 604-hp Maybach 62S is a pretty nice way to travel. I’m practically lying down in a gently massaging, leather-lined recliner that La-Z-Boy would eat its heart out for. I’m able to fully stretch my six-foot-two frame, and my feet are up. (more…)

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BY AARON ROBINSON, PHOTOGRAPHY BY MORGAN SEGAL

Ferrari introduces the everyday Enzo.

Using your vehicle respecting the environment will be your contribution towards environmental protection, reads page seven of the Ferrari 599GTB Fiorano’s 198-page owner’s handbook. The manual diligently advises drivers to avoid sharp and frequent accelerations and to upshift at only 2/3rds of the speed permitted for each gear or, say, a modest 114 mph in fifth. (more…)

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There are few cars on the road that not only define a brand, but also set the tone of what the brand aspires to become. The first generation G35 Coupe was that vehicle for Infiniti. With its low-slung and aggressive stance, powerful V-6 engine and a fun to drive nature, not previously associated with the Infiniti nameplate, the 2003 G35 Coupe was the car that launched a thousand imitators and set the benchmark for all future Infiniti products. (more…)

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