German coachbuilder, Xenatec, gets its kicks from making short cars long, long cars short, and long cars even longer. This is evident in their many zany interpretations, including their transformations for the Audi R8 and the Porsche 911.

Download 2011 Maybach Cruiserio Coupe

Saab’s entry level compact car has received a refresh for the 2012MY, and it also has a new name to go along with it. Now called the 9-3 Griffin for the US version, the hot hatch will be getting some interior and exterior modifications, as well as a couple of new engines.

Download 2012 Saab 9-3 Griffin

You're sitting a stoplight in your new 263-horse Mazdaspeed3. The street ahead is clear. When the light flashes green, you're going to excuse yourself from the rest of the herd rather rapidly -- including that brand-new 2011 BMW X3 xDrive35i right next to you. Dispatching it shouldn't be a problem, right?
Well, you had better hope whoever is behind the wheel of that crossover doesn't have similar aspirations. Because while you artfully Fred Astaire the Mazda's pedals, balancing wheelspin and boost to maximize acceleration, they'll merely slide the transmission into sport mode and step on the gas. Then the X3 will reach 60 mph in 5.6 seconds, matching your Speed3.


Download First Test: 2011 BMW X3 xDrive35i

Land Rover's crystal-ball department reckons the global lux-ute market is going to expand by 35 percent over the next five years, and it wants a big bite of this widening slice of profit pie. How best to get it? Expand the Range Rover brand while shrinking its footprint, both physically and environmentally.

Download First Drive: 2012 Land Rover Range Rover Evoque

Given the variety of shapes and sizes in Audi's portfolio, from the petite A1 to the bulky Q7, you'd think the German automaker already had a vehicle for every niche. There are a few more to be filled, though, such as the compact luxury crossover segment, where the all-new 2012 Audi Q3 will do battle against BMW's recently launched X1. Audi first showcased the future Q3 with its Cross Coupe Quattro concept during the 2007 Shanghai auto show, and its production descendant is coming back to this year's Shanghai show for its reveal.

Download First Look: 2012 Audi Q3

This may be the best car in the world — if all you need it to do is stay ahead of whatever's chasing it. If Bonnie and Clyde had a 2006 Lotus Elise they might still be on the run.

Download Full Test: 2006 Lotus Elise

Speedriven released recently released the details of their latest Mercedes projects, called the EV12. The EV12 is based on an older version of the Mercedes E-Class and is powered by a V12 engine. As you can see in the photos, the new Speedriven Mercedes-Benz E-Class has undergone an extensive engine modification, it now outputs 700 hp at the rear wheels. They tested the Mercedes EV12 on ALSA’s dyno.

Download Speedriven EV12 Mercedes-Benz E-Class

Back in 2009, we heard that Mercedes-Benz and AMG had plans to replace its entire engine lineup with a new range of more fuel efficient direct-injected and turbocharged powerplants. A few months later we had official details on one of the most anticipated of the newcomers, a 5.5-liter V-8 that is to replace the 6.2-liter unit found in the current AMG lineup.

Download 2012 Mercedes-Benz ML63 AMG Spy Photos Emerge

The Altima is arguably the most important Nissan product of the last decade. If you go back a mere 10 years and look at Nissan circa 1996 you'll see a company struggling to survive in the North American market. The Z was about to die. The "premium" products coming out of Infiniti were lackluster at best, and nothing in Nissan's future portfolio indicated a turnaround was anywhere on the horizon.

Download First Drive: 2007 Nissan Altima

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We had only driven two blocks in the test vehicle, a 2007 Saturn Vue Green Line, when my wife put a damper on the enthusiasm I was mustering for this budget hybrid.

"So this is one of those rattley cars," she innocently observed.

Download Follow-Up Test: 2007 Saturn Vue Green Line

Mercedes-Benz design chief Gorden Wagener is starting to reshape the future look of the Stuttgart carmaker. As such, some of the firm’s show cars of the recent past, such as the 2005 Bionic Car or the 2007 F700, primarily must be interpreted as design exercises. But with Wagener taking the helm in mid-2008, the direction of Mercedes styling has been whittled down to some precisely defined, common themes.

Download The Shape of the Next Mercedes-Benz C-class and E-class - Car News Future Mercedes models are likely to bo

While the market continues its current swing from giant SUVs to smaller crossover vehicles—only after moving from vans to those big SUVs—Toyota believes that the minivan market is poised for a comeback. With that in mind, the Japanese automaker rolled out its third-generation Sienna at the 2009 Los Angeles auto show.


Download 2011 Toyota Sienna

Priced from €304,500

Porsche will unveil the next-generation 911 (991) at the Frankfurt Motor Show, but that doesn't mean the current model (997) is going away anytime soon. Case in point, the company has just announced a series of upgrades for the 2012 911 GT3 R.

First and foremost, the model gains a revised 4.0-liter six-cylinder engine with an optimized intake system. This enables it to produce 500 PS (368 kW / 493 hp) - an increase of 20 PS (15 kW / 20 hp).



Download 2012 Porsche 911 GT3 R gets a power boost